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graceannee's review against another edition
3.0
DNF at page 84
I just lost interest. It was fine so far.
I just lost interest. It was fine so far.
lena_gomo's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Murder
brendalovesbooks's review against another edition
4.0
I liked this more than I expected. It was very fairy tailish, and it's pretty clear that I like fairy tales. I've read other books by younger authors, and have not been impressed, but with Stefan Bachmann, I was very impressed with his writing style. It was pretty fantastic.
It seems that this is the first of a series, but that's okay with me, because the writing was good enough that I will happily continue on. I would definitely recommend this one to fantasy fans.
It seems that this is the first of a series, but that's okay with me, because the writing was good enough that I will happily continue on. I would definitely recommend this one to fantasy fans.
theglossreview's review against another edition
5.0
Magical! 4.5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨Two unlikely heroes in a dark fairytale.
gmamartha's review against another edition
3.0
Beginning of a series. "Murder mystery, steampunk fantasy, gothic horror novel, coming-of-age-story, action adventure, faery tale..." Also "friendship, and especially about discovering friendship when and where you least expect it. It's about growing up and finding your place in the world - even when that world seems to conspire against you, even when you don't yet feel comfortable in your own skin." Greenwillow Books
alisonhori's review against another edition
2.0
I really didn't care for this book for several reasons. I think the biggest problem for me was that none of the characters were really engaging to me...I didn't care for any of them, they were not terribly well developed in my opinion and I just didn't much care what happened to any of them.
This book takes place in a world where Fairies have come to England and more or less gotten trapped there. The fairies arrival resulted in a mass destruction of Bath in England so the fairies so you are immediately not so sympathetic to the fairies plus most of the ones you meet are varying degrees of unlikable. Once the fairies got stuck in England, the British have stuck them in ghettos/done everything they can to temper their magic and turned the vast majority of the fairies into a poverty striken, subjugated class..no there goes my sympathy for the person.
Barthie is a nice enough Changling and Hettie is too young to be interesting and Mr. Jelliby as a totally lazy, disinterested man of privilege thrown into a situation where he can make a difference is the most appealing but his character is quite undeveloped, IMO. Jack Box and Millicene were the most interesting to me and I kept hoping Ophelia would show up and turn into a real character but she didn't. The book is very, very British in feel which is kind of fun in and of itself.
The world is kind of neat though the view of humanity is so dim that it was frusrating to me. Perhaps the most annoying to me was that, as a book that only barely held my attention, it ended with a total cliff hanger...nothing resolved. I don't know that I care enough to read the next now.
This book takes place in a world where Fairies have come to England and more or less gotten trapped there. The fairies arrival resulted in a mass destruction of Bath in England so the fairies so you are immediately not so sympathetic to the fairies plus most of the ones you meet are varying degrees of unlikable. Once the fairies got stuck in England, the British have stuck them in ghettos/done everything they can to temper their magic and turned the vast majority of the fairies into a poverty striken, subjugated class..no there goes my sympathy for the person.
Barthie is a nice enough Changling and Hettie is too young to be interesting and Mr. Jelliby as a totally lazy, disinterested man of privilege thrown into a situation where he can make a difference is the most appealing but his character is quite undeveloped, IMO. Jack Box and Millicene were the most interesting to me and I kept hoping Ophelia would show up and turn into a real character but she didn't. The book is very, very British in feel which is kind of fun in and of itself.
The world is kind of neat though the view of humanity is so dim that it was frusrating to me. Perhaps the most annoying to me was that, as a book that only barely held my attention, it ended with a total cliff hanger...nothing resolved. I don't know that I care enough to read the next now.
thebrainlair's review against another edition
4.0
The ending did not "ring true" based on what we knew about Barty but well worth the read. Loved the narrator, he brought the characters to life.
jennymock's review against another edition
4.0
I love the amount of detail in this book. It helped me become totally lost in the steam punk, fairyland. Very intriguing.
septembrea's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 stars. This book just wasn't very interesting, engaging or enjoyable.
literarylover37's review against another edition
4.0
A few points. Firstly, I wish I had known beforehand that this was part of a longer (not yet written) series. I got to the end and was asking myself how the author would wrap the story up, only to find that he didn't. Secondly, I want to point out that this story is definitely young adult (emphasis on ADULT). There are some very dark features in the book which, while fitting with this story, you do not get the impression would be there based on the whimsical cover. Just a heads up on those two areas. Of there than that, I really enjoyed it. I thought it was creative and will certainly be reading the sequel when it is published.