Reviews with content warning for Fire/Fire injury - The Cartographers

The Cartographers was a fun listen. Twists and turns. Engaging world building. It's worth a read if you have any interest in geography or fun stories.

Content Warnings

lantheaume's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

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

3.75

Content Warnings

ofheartsandaros's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

3readingcircus's review

Go to review page

3.0

Content Warnings

emmonsannae's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

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

2.0

I’d really wanted to read this book for a long time, and it wasn’t an unenjoyable read, but I was disappointed by it. The story is promising and is an easy read. The premise is so intriguing! Its actual book was a bit of a letdown, though. The writing is a bit clumsy with a lot of telling rather than showing. I didn’t feel that words were used especially well—they were used in a utilitarian way to produce the story, but because of this they ended up taking away from the story. I ended up reflecting a lot while reading on how many other authors (even “non-literary” ones) fit language to their own ends so smoothly and effectively that we often don’t notice the artistry to what they’re doing.

Most importantly, I felt the author took advantage of readers’ suspended disbelief by choosing not to explain key elements, which meant I was never fully bought in to what the plot was doing. And it was predictable—I guessed the major plot twist about 100 pages in. The characters were also fairly one-dimensional. Their motivations felt unbelievable and contrived for the sake of the narrative. Ultimately, I just didn’t feel like the book was well-written. It’s such a great idea for a story, though—I enjoyed the creativity of it very much.

Content Warnings

hello_lovely13's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional 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

4.25

Content Warnings

tm400's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous 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

4.0

this was such a captivating read! i feel like it had such a unique premise, and that the author executed it really well. i'm a big sucker for magical realism, and this book hit almost every aspect of the genre that i love!

i love the use of language such as skeleton, ghost, shell, empty, etc when describing wally towards the end of the book, after we've discovered he was the one behind the murders/map disappearances but before they return to agloe. i also really loved the way the story was told, with the intermittent first person chapters from the members of the Cartographers. really helped me immerse myself into the setting!!

i loved how this story was written; it was immediately thrilling from the first chapter, and i read it quickly. i found it perfectly paced and loved the storytelling. personally though... i wished a different ending for the protagonist. i do think that this ending was great, and i think that it was still a fantastic ending for this novel. but part of me, the part of me that just read that whole book, wished for something more...explicit is all. i also got confused a few times on characters' motives for why they do the things they do (mainly/especially wally and tamara)

sorry but i also hate that tamara was still alive in agloe at all... i suspected it from the second we discovered she was the only one who didn't make it back to the real rockland after the fire but i was just hoping maybe it wouldn't happen but then it did :/

i'm giving this a 4/5 stars, and am definitely looking into more books by peng shepherd to add to my tbr!

Content Warnings

mckennajoy's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

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

4.5

Content Warnings

More...