Reviews with content warning for Blood - The Cartographers

I love a good mystery in a museums/library with ancient relics. This book clearly draws inspiration from A Secret History. I thought the story was fast paced, with an interesting cast of characters and a plot that kept you hooked. The only areas I thought the book kind of got distracted were in explaining

Spoiler

Wally’s motivation for wanting to keep the map a secret. And killing so many people?? And in the letter from Nell’s parents which just tried to spell out why Tam lived in the secret town for 30 years which seemed clumsy especially after all the careful retelling of the other Cartographers pov.

Additionally I didn’t love the magic realism part of the book - some of that was probably lost on me just trying to understand the dynamic between the different characters. Didn’t feel Felix was super useful either….he just didn’t seem developed

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grantsharpies's review against another edition

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dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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bluejayreads's review against another edition

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4.0

An enjoyable, magic-tinged puzzle with a ton of different pieces to put together, featuring a present inextricably bound to the past, interesting and mysterious family friends that the protagonist's father never told her about, and interesting thoughts on the nature of maps and navigation. The first half was about figuring out why this particular map is so special, and the second half about trying to keep it away from the antagonist, with small pieces of the story behind the map running throughout. My only complaint is that the protagonist just seems to accept that the antagonist shouldn't get the map without reason, as it's never made entirely clear what would be so bad about them getting it in the first place. It was a fun adventure of discovery and magical realism weirdness and cartography, and I enjoyed it.

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laguerrelewis's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious reflective 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? Yes

4.0

I always love the magic in the mundane, and apparently, so does Peng Shepherd. This is a pretty solid and enjoyable story—the characters are great, the weaving of timelines and POVs is creative and fun, and the actual narrative is very engaging. The mystery fuels this book and keeps you reading, and the twists and turns certainly hit! The biggest hurdles are that I absolutely got ahead of multiple revelations, leaving me waiting for the book to catch up with me. MINOR SPOILER:

Spoiler

There is a minor magical element to this world. However, I personally felt like the protagonists were confused/in denial of this for far too long, and time could have been saved by cutting that down.

If you’re willing to stick with this book, and if the concept appeals to your senses, give it a shot!

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