Reviews

What Abigail Did That Summer by Ben Aaronovitch

Only show reviews with written explanations

leahopkins's review

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

I really enjoyed this addition to the Rivers of London series. It had a nice new setting, an intriguing main character and of course, talking foxes! The plot was quite interesting, but I felt like it could have done well with a bit more background / explanation concerning the House, but I guess a Novella just doesn't have the scale for that.
Abigail and Simon were really likable characters, Abigail especially is so strong-willed and determined, which I really appreciated about her. However, I was a little bothered by the fact, that the narration had the exact same style as the books written from Peter's perspective, because you would think a thirteen year old girl would maybe speak a bit differently than her ten years older cousin. Aaronovitch tried to set Abigail apart from Peter only by incorporating slang into the narration, which leaned a little "how do you do, fellow kids?" sometimes, at least in my opinion (but I also do 't quite share Abigail's demographic and regional background, so maybe I am the wrong person to judge that). It wasn't that disrupting though, so I will just keep quiet and appreciate the effort.
Overall, I really enjoyed learning more about Abigail and her fox friends.

masterfozual's review against another edition

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adventurous funny mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

priya_haha's review against another edition

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adventurous funny mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

katieinca's review against another edition

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5.0

The Rivers of London books are generally well suited for a Terry Pratchett fan, but this novella hits that note even more strongly, despite still being very London. There's even a fox who wants to be called Gaspode. I was hoping for more background on the delightful talking foxes, but I guess I'll keep digging through the shorter works, and I'll try to be prepared for the possibility that Aaronovitch just has plenty of things happening offstage that we never get to read about.

motherofladybirds's review against another edition

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4.0

I love this magical series set in contemporary London. I enjoyed Abigail as a protagonist just as much as Peter. Humorous plot driven tale with talking foxes.