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3.61 AVERAGE
3.61 AVERAGE
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Audio scribd
This was light and fluffy and fun. I liked the teamwork of the four leads; I enjoyed how everyone found time to properly enjoy the Grand Tour (opera, shopping, touring antiquities) while also investigating the mystery. Nothing terribly demanding.
I did have trouble keeping Cecy and Kate separate in my head: which one does magic; which one is clumsy; which one likes opera; which one is good at lying (that was cute); which is married to James; which is married to Thomas, etc. In the first book, they were in entirely differnet locations, writing letters to each other, so the setting and sub-cast were distinct. But here, they're all scrambled up together: Kate narrates what Cecy says in one scene, and then we get a different POV and Cecy describes her perspective of the same scene, while narrating what Kate does. So the person who is named and described is not the pereson narrating the scene. Also since Cecy and Thomas do magic, they often go out to do magic stuff together, even though Cecy is married to James and Kate is married to Thomas. So all the landmarks and associations that separate characters are scrambled together. I got it straight at about the 3/4 mark, but it's hard for a characterization to sink in if I can't remember whether the person who likes opera is also the person who is clumsy, and whether the man she's married to also likes opera or gets bored by it all.
I see from the publication dates that this one was published over 15 years after the first one, so perhaps the authors were also having a little difficulty settling back into the characters. But, as I said, I got it straight in the end, so perhaps the third book will go more smoothly.
I did have trouble keeping Cecy and Kate separate in my head: which one does magic; which one is clumsy; which one likes opera; which one is good at lying (that was cute); which is married to James; which is married to Thomas, etc. In the first book, they were in entirely differnet locations, writing letters to each other, so the setting and sub-cast were distinct. But here, they're all scrambled up together: Kate narrates what Cecy says in one scene, and then we get a different POV and Cecy describes her perspective of the same scene, while narrating what Kate does. So the person who is named and described is not the pereson narrating the scene. Also since Cecy and Thomas do magic, they often go out to do magic stuff together, even though Cecy is married to James and Kate is married to Thomas. So all the landmarks and associations that separate characters are scrambled together. I got it straight at about the 3/4 mark, but it's hard for a characterization to sink in if I can't remember whether the person who likes opera is also the person who is clumsy, and whether the man she's married to also likes opera or gets bored by it all.
I see from the publication dates that this one was published over 15 years after the first one, so perhaps the authors were also having a little difficulty settling back into the characters. But, as I said, I got it straight in the end, so perhaps the third book will go more smoothly.
2015-02-27 reread: still enjoyable. I like it slightly less than Sorcery & Cecelia though, because I like Cecelia and James better and it feels like their part is slightly diminished in this one.
I love these books, they are so enjoyable, all the best bits of Austen sarcasm, with a healthy dose of Harry Potter British magical shenanigans.
2.5
Like the first book, we get the story from the perspective of the two protagonists, Kate and Cecy, through their writings; however, instead of letters written back and forth between the two we get Kate's entries from her "commonplace" book - pretty much a diary - and Cecy's deposition of the incident.
It didn't work quite as well in this book as it did in the first.
For one thing, everyone is together on the Wedding/Mystery Tour, so it makes less sense to have it written this way - though it is interesting to see the same events from the two viewpoints. Moreso, though, the plot dragged more in this one. Even though there was a big mystery and high stakes, I never really *felt* the tension. More time seemed to be spent discussing buying gowns and interviewing maids than the 'who's killing people' aspect, and if this was more of a romance that would be fine, but it felt like it tried to be too many things and sort of failed at fulfilling any of it.
Also, I had a harder time keeping track of who was who. Even though the two character's writings are written by different authors, their voices were just too much the same - not to mention a certain deal of inconsistency. (For instance, at one crisis we're told how Kate.
More than anything, though, it seemed to not work as well because our heroines took a backseat to most of the action. James and Thomas were not only tiresome in constantly trying to protect the girls, which is understandable to some degree, but they were often successful, so we get entries of how Kate, for instance, is sitting at home and waiting for news.
Not exactly the most riveting thing to read.
Even their maids seemed more active, as they were constantly complaining of being tired and going to bed and letting others take care of things.
Also, since Cecy's parts were written as a deposition, we don't really get any personal touches. In Kate's parts we at least see moments of tenderness and romance with her and her new husband, but with Cecy we don't get to see much of that side at all.
If the mystery is going to be tepid I at least want some decent romance, damnit!
Still, it was a pretty short read, though draggy in places (especially the travelling bits), and did have a certain bit of charm. I do intend on reading the third in the trilogy, but I can't not pretend that I'm not hoping for an improvement.
Like the first book, we get the story from the perspective of the two protagonists, Kate and Cecy, through their writings; however, instead of letters written back and forth between the two we get Kate's entries from her "commonplace" book - pretty much a diary - and Cecy's deposition of the incident.
It didn't work quite as well in this book as it did in the first.
For one thing, everyone is together on the Wedding/Mystery Tour, so it makes less sense to have it written this way - though it is interesting to see the same events from the two viewpoints. Moreso, though, the plot dragged more in this one. Even though there was a big mystery and high stakes, I never really *felt* the tension. More time seemed to be spent discussing buying gowns and interviewing maids than the 'who's killing people' aspect, and if this was more of a romance that would be fine, but it felt like it tried to be too many things and sort of failed at fulfilling any of it.
Also, I had a harder time keeping track of who was who. Even though the two character's writings are written by different authors, their voices were just too much the same - not to mention a certain deal of inconsistency. (For instance, at one crisis we're told how Kate
Spoiler
keeps it together and remains remarkably together, and yet, in another, she's all vapors and whatnotMore than anything, though, it seemed to not work as well because our heroines took a backseat to most of the action. James and Thomas were not only tiresome in constantly trying to protect the girls, which is understandable to some degree, but they were often successful, so we get entries of how Kate, for instance, is sitting at home and waiting for news.
Not exactly the most riveting thing to read.
Even their maids seemed more active, as they were constantly complaining of being tired and going to bed and letting others take care of things.
Also, since Cecy's parts were written as a deposition, we don't really get any personal touches. In Kate's parts we at least see moments of tenderness and romance with her and her new husband, but with Cecy we don't get to see much of that side at all.
If the mystery is going to be tepid I at least want some decent romance, damnit!
Still, it was a pretty short read, though draggy in places (especially the travelling bits), and did have a certain bit of charm. I do intend on reading the third in the trilogy, but I can't not pretend that I'm not hoping for an improvement.
Cecy and Kate are off on another magical adventure. This time they're on their honeymoon traveling around Europe. What should be a relaxing trip turns into something more when Thomas' mother is roped back into helping her old friends. Somebody drops off a magical package that someone else promptly tries to steal. It turns out that there are forces that seem to be agitating for the return of Napoleon to the throne and they are turning to magical means to do it.
A nice addition to the series. I'd be interested to see how this was shelved/categorized because this is a series about Young People but there are some more adult themes. My own inclination would be more toward the young adult but who knows?
A nice addition to the series. I'd be interested to see how this was shelved/categorized because this is a series about Young People but there are some more adult themes. My own inclination would be more toward the young adult but who knows?
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Read the book, don't listen to it. The Audible narrator is awful. She's got a real British accent that somehow sounds fake and the acting is pretty bad.
That being said, this is the second in a trilogy and it's beautifully written. It's the Letters Game between two talented authors set in Regency Era Europe with a dash of magic. Two young women get married and go on a grand tour with their husbands and end up having to save everyone from some dangerous people using wit, quick thinking and a little bit of magic. It's wonderful.
That being said, this is the second in a trilogy and it's beautifully written. It's the Letters Game between two talented authors set in Regency Era Europe with a dash of magic. Two young women get married and go on a grand tour with their husbands and end up having to save everyone from some dangerous people using wit, quick thinking and a little bit of magic. It's wonderful.
As good as the first book...really enjoyable, fluffy young adult literature.
Fun and easy. But frothy stories are much like champagne; sparkling and delightful, but too much and things just get silly.
This was nowhere near as tight, elegant, restrained and delicately balanced as Sorcery and Cecelia. It's substantially longer and bigger in scope, and unlike with the first one, the first-person documents storytelling style doesn't really work. Any passages of pure narrative - conversations and such - in the first one was carefully explained in the text ("I wish to record this most precisely as the details may be important" or similar) and thus it made a modicum of sense (as much as that sort of gimmick ever does). But in this one, being not letters to each other but the diary of one and the deposition of the other, the extensive passages of narrative are rather more outlandish. (Not to mention that. But since actual suspense is not the point of these stories - charming ladylike adventures are - I'm being overly picky and I know it.)
This was nowhere near as tight, elegant, restrained and delicately balanced as Sorcery and Cecelia. It's substantially longer and bigger in scope, and unlike with the first one, the first-person documents storytelling style doesn't really work. Any passages of pure narrative - conversations and such - in the first one was carefully explained in the text ("I wish to record this most precisely as the details may be important" or similar) and thus it made a modicum of sense (as much as that sort of gimmick ever does). But in this one, being not letters to each other but the diary of one and the deposition of the other, the extensive passages of narrative are rather more outlandish. (Not to mention that