Reviews with content warning for Infidelity - The Cartographers

Reviews tagging 'Infidelity'

The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd

59 reviews

outernetbex's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

i really enjoyed this book. i knew almost nothing about it going in which i think made it really fun and surprising- especially the reveal. i had a few issues w the main character, but other than that found the characters believable. they felt like real people making decisions within the world they exist in. however, nell just felt a bit naive most of the time? it was stated throughout the book how smart she is, how good with maps she is, etc etc- yet we don’t really see that. everything going on with the maps she is either told or can’t figure out by herself.

AND WHY DO THEY NEVER TAKE PICTURES?.!,!, i understand that it wouldn’t like be a real copy of the maps, but it would allow them to study them longer? like the seaborn map of the library or whatever it’s called like she definitely could have taken a picture of it and found the hidden room. also i’m not sure about the reveal that her mom is still alive in agloe… like how is she not insane from isolation. idk i know it’s a magical realism story but it seems a bit far fetched even for the concept of this book. maybe it would make more sense if so much time had not passed?? idk

anyway i felt like i was connecting the dots despite nell’s narration, or clue gathering, not because of it. that being said i do like the reveals and think most of them are spot on with setting them up well enough that they make sense while also still feeling like a surprise.

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spineofthesaurus's review against another edition

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mysterious

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meg_elyse's review against another edition

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adventurous dark informative mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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allapaz's review against another edition

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challenging mysterious tense medium-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? No

3.5

thrilling mysterious dark academic, a worthy and wonderful adventure, I could see myself rating higher on a reread if some plot holes are resolved by me reading versus audiobook-ing as woof that’s a lot of details and characters for my oatmeal brain to remember without being able to flip back a page

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ikeastorage's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.25

I really enjoyed this book. Phantom settlements are incredibly interesting to me, the idea of them becoming real when following the map is great. The magic(?) system seemed well thought out and wasn't too confusing, although it was a bit confusing because it was introduced ~halfway through the book though it worked out well.

The way the original Cartographers were integrated with Nell's life was done very well. I did guess that William was Wally pretty early after he was introduced but Humphry caught me by surprise. /pos Nell's mother being alive was not my favorite part of the ending but, personally, it also didn't take anything away from the ending.

All in all, I think this was a great, enjoyable read and I would recommend it.

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mar's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious slow-paced

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

2.5

really neat mystery/magic realism story concept that gets weighed down by confusing character motivations and glaring plot holes :/

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renyoi's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

Really engaging text on cartography, interpersonal relationships, and familial dynamics. Author is good at making complex ideas understandable, but falls short near the end of the book in making her character motivations understandable,

specifically Wally, whose villainy went rather unexamined in any meaningful way the entire time

. Thoroughly enjoyable ready with fully fleshed out characters you will absolutely grow to care for deeply, even when they make seemingly nonsensical decisions. Recommended!

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