Reviews

A Restless Truth by Freya Marske

anna_hepworth's review against another edition

1.5

I am very much not the audience for this book. The first few chapters, I felt relief, that I was enjoying it more than book one. By a third of the way through, I was gritting my teeth and wishing that I could learn the plot without having to read the story. At two thirds of the way through, I gave up, and started flipping through, getting a paragraph or two of the story every couple of pages, to at least have the satisfaction of knowing some of what is going on. I did rather like Maud more than Robin, but I think that has to do with the author having got stronger at writing characters. 

And while I would very much like to know how the overarching plot turns out, I am not going to be reading the third book. 

So: great world-building, great plot, characters are well rounded and fascinating, writing is competent. They just don't add up into something I enjoyed. The author's afterword describes it as a "bubbly Wodehousian romp", which probably does as good a job of summarising why I hate it. I've never met a Wodehouse book I've committed to finishing, and I've read summaries of enough more that I chose not to start. If you like farce, lots of shiny plot strands flying in all directions at high speed all the time, this might be your thing. But it is very much not mine. 

amurcia91's review against another edition

adventurous slow-paced

2.0

msmollyb's review against another edition

adventurous lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot

2.25

ourtictac69's review against another edition

adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

zober's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes

3.25

The two main characters - particularly Violet - felt much original than in the first book, though I didn't actually like them that much. But that said, even without particularly liking Maud or Violet I love that this showcases queer women in an era where that's very far from the norm. I also love that this book highlights how under-respected women are

hello forsythia club

- and how powerful they are, despite that. 

The plot in this one picks up much more quickly than the last, but the pacing felt very uneven. It also felt repetitive to have the main character/one of the two love interests be a non-magical person thrust into the magical world

who, surprise surprise, turns out to have special powers!! How novel. And it appears that we're gearing up for the same setup in book 3, joy.

There were some odd plot things going on too -

e.g. at one point, one of the bad guys "gets away" and rather than look for him, I guess Maud & co just hang out on the ship doing their own thing. And I know it's probably an intentional plot point, but seems like they're underestimating Seraphina Vaughn (idk how to spell her name #audiobookproblems). Also it wasn't clear why Violet fully picked up an American accent after living there for like, 1-3 years?

I liked the audiobook narrator more for this book, although Violet's American accent often sounded a bit off.

linluvsbooks's review against another edition

adventurous funny mysterious 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

4.5

Fun and funny and clever and overtly sexy

lesbophone's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny fast-paced

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

4.0

Very fun follow-up to the last book—really enjoyed both the continuation of the plot & getting to know new and old characters better! I’m very excited to read the final book of the trilogy.  

meganperfect's review against another edition

adventurous challenging funny lighthearted mysterious 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

3.75

linamina9's review against another edition

adventurous tense 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? N/A

4.25

wordsandrecreation's review against another edition

adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.25