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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
here's the thing.
The world and the plot of this series are fantastic
But the characters break my heart and not in the way you want them to.
The absolute character assassination of Hester Shaw really ruins this series for me. In the first book and for most of the second book you can understand Hester, she's still not particularly likeable for the people around her, but the things she says and does make sense given her life. In Predator's Gold she did something awful, but you could understand her messed up reasoning, and most importantly in the first two books she has redeeming qualities. But in this book it gets worse, every time Reeve has the opportunity to show us Hester isn't a two dimensional killing machine that lacks any empathy for anyone other than Tom, he decides instead to show us that's exactly what she is. I don't know maybe in A Darkling Plain it's all fixed somehow and you can see he's done this to her for a reason, but right now it just seems like he's taken this complex character and turned her into something awful. As someone who loved Hester I want to keep loving her but Reeve makes that absolutely impossible, maybe that's his intention but if that's the case then I can't say it's a reading experience I'm into. I don't really want to read about characters I loved become people you can't defend tbh :/
As for Tom, while he's not as bad as Hester I've found him really hard to like since Predator's Gold. I don't know I guess I just can't forgive his behaviour in that book, and while he's not as bad in this one it really irks me that he can't stop commenting on how pretty other women are and how ugly his wife is, like ! we get it ! Hester's ugly ! don't u think it's a pretty shitty thing to keep saying about someone you apparently love though :/
As for his love for Hester, for the past two books I feel like we only ever see Tom claim to love Hester, but never do or think anything that actually validates that, you see Hester with her boarderline dangerous love for Tom (tbh it's more than boarderline but) and then Tom who doesn't even seem to return any feelings at all? It's just occasionally he'll say something about loving her in passing? idk it's weird
Wren is okay. I found her irritating in the beginning but I think you're supposed to, she got a lot better but I wouldn't like die for her or anything lol
As I said, the world and the plot are very good and are what are keeping me reading. But I am forever a characters over plot person, and reading this series is just making me sad because I don't want to watch this happen to characters I used to love
I like Theo though, I thought he was a good addition. Also why is Shrike lowkey my favourite character lol
The world and the plot of this series are fantastic
But the characters break my heart and not in the way you want them to.
The absolute character assassination of Hester Shaw really ruins this series for me. In the first book and for most of the second book you can understand Hester, she's still not particularly likeable for the people around her, but the things she says and does make sense given her life. In Predator's Gold she did something awful, but you could understand her messed up reasoning, and most importantly in the first two books she has redeeming qualities. But in this book it gets worse, every time Reeve has the opportunity to show us Hester isn't a two dimensional killing machine that lacks any empathy for anyone other than Tom, he decides instead to show us that's exactly what she is. I don't know maybe in A Darkling Plain it's all fixed somehow and you can see he's done this to her for a reason, but right now it just seems like he's taken this complex character and turned her into something awful. As someone who loved Hester I want to keep loving her but Reeve makes that absolutely impossible, maybe that's his intention but if that's the case then I can't say it's a reading experience I'm into. I don't really want to read about characters I loved become people you can't defend tbh :/
As for Tom, while he's not as bad as Hester I've found him really hard to like since Predator's Gold. I don't know I guess I just can't forgive his behaviour in that book, and while he's not as bad in this one it really irks me that he can't stop commenting on how pretty other women are and how ugly his wife is, like ! we get it ! Hester's ugly ! don't u think it's a pretty shitty thing to keep saying about someone you apparently love though :/
As for his love for Hester, for the past two books I feel like we only ever see Tom claim to love Hester, but never do or think anything that actually validates that, you see Hester with her boarderline dangerous love for Tom (tbh it's more than boarderline but) and then Tom who doesn't even seem to return any feelings at all? It's just occasionally he'll say something about loving her in passing? idk it's weird
Wren is okay. I found her irritating in the beginning but I think you're supposed to, she got a lot better but I wouldn't like die for her or anything lol
As I said, the world and the plot are very good and are what are keeping me reading. But I am forever a characters over plot person, and reading this series is just making me sad because I don't want to watch this happen to characters I used to love
I like Theo though, I thought he was a good addition. Also why is Shrike lowkey my favourite character lol
DNF'd. i got bored of these books real fast.
should've only been one book.
should've only been one book.
After two extraordinary books, I was so disappointed by the turns and in my mind misrepresenting characters. It was the time jump that I think destroyed it for me. You age the characters by sixteen years and kill a lot of their character development.
The new characters were interesting and it was nice to see old faces
The writing is still excellent, hoping A Darkling Plain redeems the decisions in this book
The new characters were interesting and it was nice to see old faces
The writing is still excellent, hoping A Darkling Plain redeems the decisions in this book
adventurous
Throughout the majority of Infernal Devices I wasn't quite convinced that a time jump of 16 years, and a story following Tom and Hester's daughter, was going to work. But the ending makes this book, and, I would argue, casts everything that precedes it into a completely different light. I'm talking about Hester revealing her true feelings about her life in Anchorage to Tom.
On top of this, I discovered that Reeve's initial drafts were that of an adult series, and everything made so much sense. It confirmed to me that the off feeling I had regarding the books was not imaginary. Even though I have really enjoyed them, and loved the experience of reading these books, there has been something niggling me from the start of the entire series. The violence and dark tone clashed with the very juvenile characters (particularly in their dialogue), and I always felt that we were just scratching the surface of another, deeper, more complex story. Knowing that it was intended to be filled with city politics and adult themes makes the more jarring aspects more understandable. Hester's pregnancy, her bloodlust,and the breakdown of her marriage, and the reasons for it, would seem less out of place in a story written for older readers. Obviously, I can't know for sure how much Reeve changed regarding his original story plan, but my God, I wish they'd published this as an adult novel. I can only imagine how amazing it would have been with all those extra characters and city politics.
But on to the book that was actually written: like Predator's Gold, Infernal Devices feels less like a full story in itself but rather a set up for what I hope is a fantastic finale.
Yes, it has its faults, but it remains fast-paced and action-packed. At the end, when Hester revealed how bored she was in Anchorage - and how Tom had changed from the brave, handsome, passionate boy, she loved - her cold behaviour and lack of maternal love made sense. I could probably write a (bad) essay about Tom and Hester's characters in Infernal Device, but I'll keep it brief. Tom grew up, settled into fatherhood (though he remained hopelessly naive), while Hester didn't, she yearned for the adventure of the past. Tom's stable, ordinary love could never match Hester's destructive love... Hester resented that Tom loved Wren more than he did her... blah.. blah...blah
I'm going to stop because I've lost track of what I am saying. I'll end by saying: It was good. Or was the story I wished it would have been good? Am I making it up? Am I silly to think that Reeve's original, more mature story is still there, hidden beneath the slightly childish dialogue? I don't know.
On top of this, I discovered that Reeve's initial drafts were that of an adult series, and everything made so much sense. It confirmed to me that the off feeling I had regarding the books was not imaginary. Even though I have really enjoyed them, and loved the experience of reading these books, there has been something niggling me from the start of the entire series. The violence and dark tone clashed with the very juvenile characters (particularly in their dialogue), and I always felt that we were just scratching the surface of another, deeper, more complex story. Knowing that it was intended to be filled with city politics and adult themes makes the more jarring aspects more understandable. Hester's pregnancy, her bloodlust,
But on to the book that was actually written: like Predator's Gold, Infernal Devices feels less like a full story in itself but rather a set up for what I hope is a fantastic finale.
Yes, it has its faults, but it remains fast-paced and action-packed. At the end,
I'm going to stop because I've lost track of what I am saying. I'll end by saying: It was good. Or was the story I wished it would have been good? Am I making it up? Am I silly to think that Reeve's original, more mature story is still there, hidden beneath the slightly childish dialogue? I don't know.
I was madder than mad when Hester left poor Fishcake! I'm glad she got what was coming to her in the end.
I still think Mortal Engines is the best of the series so far. Infernal Devices, centering around Wren getting herself kidnapped and then the daring rescue that ensues is fun but her character arc just doesn't compare to the old adventures of Hester and Tom.
I still think Mortal Engines is the best of the series so far. Infernal Devices, centering around Wren getting herself kidnapped and then the daring rescue that ensues is fun but her character arc just doesn't compare to the old adventures of Hester and Tom.
What makes the Harry Potter series so genius, is the writing matures with the readers. In my opinion, the writing of these series is regressing. The only thing growing is the body count. Who exactly were these books written for?
I don’t think words can convey how much I hate the world in this series. No one has or can have a happy life it’s either slavery or idiocy and none of it worth it and everything is awful. The characters are horrible too and it’s just so stupid and I hate how much Hester is jealous and resents her own child. How she and Tom are a romantic couple eludes me he is consistently shown thinking she’s ugly or feral and awful while she adores him. It’s not healthy and stupid and I hate this series
One of my favorite worlds although pleasepleaseplease don't ask me to live there. I would probably be a casualty in the first five minutes.