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4.05 AVERAGE
4.05 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I hadn’t read anything by Lex Croucher before (for some reason I thought I had read Gwen & Art Are Not in Love), and for me, this was a lovely, gentle romp – exactly what I needed right now! It’s a similar premise to her earlier novel, in that Croucher has taken a Queer spin on a famous legend, in this case Robin Hood.
It is not a retelling; it's actually a sequel of sorts because it's about Robin Hood’s granddaughter, Mariel, and other characters who are descended (vaguely) from the original Robin Hood story. I like this way of approaching legends as it could in effect be canon because the original story wasn’t touched.
However, things are very different! This is seamlessly set in a queernormative world, which was the best thing about this book for me! Nearly all of characters are Queer in some way; there is lesbian and gay rep and ‘they’ pronouns are used all without comment. If only we were so advanced in our current era!
Mariel is determined to prove herself a good Captain as part of the Merry Men, who, years down the line from Robin’s day, have become… well, rather less merry.
As Clem, a healer from the forest states when she is kidnapped:
“I have to be honest. That doesn’t sound very merry. And you aren’t all men. So there’s been a bit of marketing confusion, at some point down the line.”
Indeed, in Robin’s absence, the Merry Men have become more a kind of militia and are more concerned with Fighting and Organisation and Doing Things The Proper Way, so there’s a lot less time for robbing from the rich to give to the poor, and more martialling the poor into fighting a personal vendetta against the Sheriff of Nottingham and his posse.
Mariel, oblivious to this in her desire to gain her father’s favour (Robin’s son), does things By The Book. Clem doesn’t. As a hostage (yep, the Merry Men now take hostages) she, in fact, does nothing she’s supposed to do – she’s helpful to everyone, regardless of whether they’re nice to her, regardless of allegiance. This is rather problematic for Mariel, who is, essentially, Grumpy.
The sunshine/grumpy thing became a little annoying/overdone at points (couldn’t Clem occasionally get annoyed? Or Mariel occasionally be nice?), which was my main criticism. Other readers have talked about the slow pace, which I didn’t find myself… although the ‘vibes’ were definitely more important than the plot. Technically, there were high stakes and a few moments of peril and genuine sadness, but really it was character >plot. This worked well for me – for various reasons, I’m currently in the headspace for Not Too Much Plot and a BIG Nope To Subtlety, which may be why I enjoyed it more than other reviewers?
I must also mention the adorable supporting characters – Jordan and Kit (who’s also incidentally Japanese, but this is all unremarked on in this world) and Baxter and Josey… although I have to admit I did occasionally get them confused… they were still very cute.
An easy, comforting read, with some interesting thoughts about how initially well-intentioned organisations can become skewed, and we should all look at our humanity first and (I quote) just “f*ck the fascists.”
Thanks to Bloomsbury for giving me a free copy – although I’m still not quite sure how that happened since this has been out for almost a year… still, who am I to question a free book? ;)
It is not a retelling; it's actually a sequel of sorts because it's about Robin Hood’s granddaughter, Mariel, and other characters who are descended (vaguely) from the original Robin Hood story. I like this way of approaching legends as it could in effect be canon because the original story wasn’t touched.
However, things are very different! This is seamlessly set in a queernormative world, which was the best thing about this book for me! Nearly all of characters are Queer in some way; there is lesbian and gay rep and ‘they’ pronouns are used all without comment. If only we were so advanced in our current era!
Mariel is determined to prove herself a good Captain as part of the Merry Men, who, years down the line from Robin’s day, have become… well, rather less merry.
As Clem, a healer from the forest states when she is kidnapped:
“I have to be honest. That doesn’t sound very merry. And you aren’t all men. So there’s been a bit of marketing confusion, at some point down the line.”
Indeed, in Robin’s absence, the Merry Men have become more a kind of militia and are more concerned with Fighting and Organisation and Doing Things The Proper Way, so there’s a lot less time for robbing from the rich to give to the poor, and more martialling the poor into fighting a personal vendetta against the Sheriff of Nottingham and his posse.
Mariel, oblivious to this in her desire to gain her father’s favour (Robin’s son), does things By The Book. Clem doesn’t. As a hostage (yep, the Merry Men now take hostages) she, in fact, does nothing she’s supposed to do – she’s helpful to everyone, regardless of whether they’re nice to her, regardless of allegiance. This is rather problematic for Mariel, who is, essentially, Grumpy.
The sunshine/grumpy thing became a little annoying/overdone at points (couldn’t Clem occasionally get annoyed? Or Mariel occasionally be nice?), which was my main criticism. Other readers have talked about the slow pace, which I didn’t find myself… although the ‘vibes’ were definitely more important than the plot. Technically, there were high stakes and a few moments of peril and genuine sadness, but really it was character >plot. This worked well for me – for various reasons, I’m currently in the headspace for Not Too Much Plot and a BIG Nope To Subtlety, which may be why I enjoyed it more than other reviewers?
I must also mention the adorable supporting characters – Jordan and Kit (who’s also incidentally Japanese, but this is all unremarked on in this world) and Baxter and Josey… although I have to admit I did occasionally get them confused… they were still very cute.
An easy, comforting read, with some interesting thoughts about how initially well-intentioned organisations can become skewed, and we should all look at our humanity first and (I quote) just “f*ck the fascists.”
Thanks to Bloomsbury for giving me a free copy – although I’m still not quite sure how that happened since this has been out for almost a year… still, who am I to question a free book? ;)
adventurous
medium-paced
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
funny
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Kept waiting for the characters to feel engaging or alive and they simply remained flat
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes