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3.65 AVERAGE
3.65 AVERAGE
The Deathsniffer’s Assistant is a very promising start to a series by a debut author. It’s a fantasy mystery story set in a semi-Victorian world with a fairly unique magical system. I’m docking it half a star for a spoiler near the end, but other wise it easily would have gotten four.
Chris Buckley’s a nineteen year old orphan trying to raise his sister among the decaying remnants of the family estate. With the country’s ongoing economic problems, he has difficulty finding a job until he goes to work for Olivia Faraday, a deathsniffer. Deathsniffer’s are the in universe equivalent of homicide detectives, and the pair quickly have their first case, investigating the death of the Duchess val Daren’s husband. Meanwhile, Chris is trying to protect his magically gifted sister from those in the country who’d use her talents to support their own political agenda without any regard for her health or safety.
The magic system is currently two fold, although there are hints of more complexities to come. The first is that much of the technology of the country is based around enslaved spirits (sort of like in the Bartimeaus trilogy by Jonathan Stroud). Chris’s sister Rosemary is a wizard, someone who has a natural talent for summoning and binding spirits. Secondly, each citizen undergoes a process called categorization when they are nineteen which usually gives them a magical talent of some sort. Chris is a wordweaver, someone who can enspell words to paper by thought alone. Deathsniffers are another sort of category, and they have an affinity for figuring out when a piece of information is important or when someone is lying. The reliance on bound spirits and categorization is an ongoing political issue and the main divide between the traditionalists and the reformists. Rosemary’s extreme magical gifts could thus make her into a political tool for either side.
While I thought the ideas behind the world of The Deathsniffer’s Assistant were imaginative, the world never quite breathed for me. The best settings are those that you feel could exist beyond the page of the novel, and The Deathsniffer’s Assistant never reached that height. This is possibly related to it being a debut book. Maybe as the series progresses the world will grow more vivid.
The Deathsniffer’s Assistant does very well by its female characters, of whom there are a number. While the setting seems to be based on a Victorian setting, women seem to have greater freedom of movement, evidenced by the professions of Olivia and her supervisor at the police station, another female character. However sexism (and homophobia) are still present. When applying for a job with “O. Faraday,” Chris automatically assumes that the deathsniffer is a man. Olivia initially came off as a bit flat, the eccentric detective who sees murders as puzzles to be solved, but by the end she and many of the other supporting characters had gained a lot more depth. Additionally, there was never a romance between Chris and Olivia. I think I’ve been trained with the expectation that the two characters of opposite gender on the cover must get together or have sexual tension or something, so it was nice to see that subverted!
Chris was undoubtedly the most well developed character in the novel. He is a rather innocent young man who cares very much about good manners and propriety, which can put him at odds with Olivia. The narrative also suggests that Chris’s obsession with propriety is his biggest flaw, one that can have personal repercussions for him. Particularly… I think there’s evidence that Chris is bisexual.
The above quotation comes from a dream sequence where Chris is dancing with the female love interest who suddenly transforms into the potential male love interest. That’s the point where I went from thinking I was probably deluding myself to thinking that this might actually be canonical. Still, nothing goes farther than the above quote. But I checked over the other reviews and nobody else has mentioned Chris possibly being bisexual? I did find a post by the author where she talks about writing bisexual and queer characters, which makes me think maybe I’m not imagining things after all. I’m still wary about this, since there’s been times before I thought maybe a character could be gay or bisexual only to have the narrative go on to expunge any suggestion that the character is other than heterosexual.
There are also some major issues with the one undoubtedly canonical gay character in the text. The rest of this paragraph will contain major spoilers, so please skip it if you don’t want to know. Needless to say, this is some problematic content.
Despite the above mentioned issues, I did like The Deathsniffer’s Assistant and want to read the sequel (in part to find out if I’m at all right about Chris). I found the book very engaging and mostly an enjoyable read. I’d recommend it for those looking for a fantasy murder mystery with strong female supporting characters.
Originally posted on The Illustrated Page.
I received an ARC copy from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for a fair review.
Chris Buckley’s a nineteen year old orphan trying to raise his sister among the decaying remnants of the family estate. With the country’s ongoing economic problems, he has difficulty finding a job until he goes to work for Olivia Faraday, a deathsniffer. Deathsniffer’s are the in universe equivalent of homicide detectives, and the pair quickly have their first case, investigating the death of the Duchess val Daren’s husband. Meanwhile, Chris is trying to protect his magically gifted sister from those in the country who’d use her talents to support their own political agenda without any regard for her health or safety.
The magic system is currently two fold, although there are hints of more complexities to come. The first is that much of the technology of the country is based around enslaved spirits (sort of like in the Bartimeaus trilogy by Jonathan Stroud). Chris’s sister Rosemary is a wizard, someone who has a natural talent for summoning and binding spirits. Secondly, each citizen undergoes a process called categorization when they are nineteen which usually gives them a magical talent of some sort. Chris is a wordweaver, someone who can enspell words to paper by thought alone. Deathsniffers are another sort of category, and they have an affinity for figuring out when a piece of information is important or when someone is lying. The reliance on bound spirits and categorization is an ongoing political issue and the main divide between the traditionalists and the reformists. Rosemary’s extreme magical gifts could thus make her into a political tool for either side.
While I thought the ideas behind the world of The Deathsniffer’s Assistant were imaginative, the world never quite breathed for me. The best settings are those that you feel could exist beyond the page of the novel, and The Deathsniffer’s Assistant never reached that height. This is possibly related to it being a debut book. Maybe as the series progresses the world will grow more vivid.
The Deathsniffer’s Assistant does very well by its female characters, of whom there are a number. While the setting seems to be based on a Victorian setting, women seem to have greater freedom of movement, evidenced by the professions of Olivia and her supervisor at the police station, another female character. However sexism (and homophobia) are still present. When applying for a job with “O. Faraday,” Chris automatically assumes that the deathsniffer is a man. Olivia initially came off as a bit flat, the eccentric detective who sees murders as puzzles to be solved, but by the end she and many of the other supporting characters had gained a lot more depth. Additionally, there was never a romance between Chris and Olivia. I think I’ve been trained with the expectation that the two characters of opposite gender on the cover must get together or have sexual tension or something, so it was nice to see that subverted!
Chris was undoubtedly the most well developed character in the novel. He is a rather innocent young man who cares very much about good manners and propriety, which can put him at odds with Olivia. The narrative also suggests that Chris’s obsession with propriety is his biggest flaw, one that can have personal repercussions for him. Particularly… I think there’s evidence that Chris is bisexual.
“He smelled like heather and sunlight. Chris buried his nose in the young man’s hair and felt his lips on his neck.”
The above quotation comes from a dream sequence where Chris is dancing with the female love interest who suddenly transforms into the potential male love interest. That’s the point where I went from thinking I was probably deluding myself to thinking that this might actually be canonical. Still, nothing goes farther than the above quote. But I checked over the other reviews and nobody else has mentioned Chris possibly being bisexual? I did find a post by the author where she talks about writing bisexual and queer characters, which makes me think maybe I’m not imagining things after all. I’m still wary about this, since there’s been times before I thought maybe a character could be gay or bisexual only to have the narrative go on to expunge any suggestion that the character is other than heterosexual.
There are also some major issues with the one undoubtedly canonical gay character in the text. The rest of this paragraph will contain major spoilers, so please skip it if you don’t want to know.
Spoiler
Are you still here? Yes? All right, so there is only one character that is explicitly said to be other than straight. He’s a gay man who’s dating the daughter of the duchess. As it turns out, he was in love with the duke and tried to shape shift into the shape of the duke’s mistress to have a liaison with him. This didn’t work out, and he killed the duke (and did a number of other violent things to cover this up). In a lot of ways, he fits into the trope of the predatory gay man. This is a trope that results in violence against queer people in the real world! I think the author intended for him to be a tragic figure, but having your only canonical queer character die because of tragic gay reasons is also not good! Even if Chris is bisexual, it is nowhere near as explicitly stated as it is with this character.Despite the above mentioned issues, I did like The Deathsniffer’s Assistant and want to read the sequel (in part to find out if I’m at all right about Chris). I found the book very engaging and mostly an enjoyable read. I’d recommend it for those looking for a fantasy murder mystery with strong female supporting characters.
Originally posted on The Illustrated Page.
I received an ARC copy from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for a fair review.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
I can't say that I read detective stories a lot, but I absolutely loved this novel. Would've loved some more introductory world building, specifically about all the little magical creatures and why they need to be bound, about the whole categorization deal, etc.
This didn't do anything for me and I did not finish it.
Apparently, writing characters "in the manner of Sherlock Holmes" is harder than one might think. When I read the description for this book, it sounded like O. Faraday was going to be a female Sherlock. Technically, I guess she was, although I like Sherlock Holmes, and I didn't particularly like Olivia.
With Sherlock, there is a sly, somewhat charming feel to his lack of social skills or concern for how polite people behave in company. Olivia just came across for me as rude.
Also, I had this as an audio book, and while the narrator is excellent, this book was over 15 hours long, and I had only gotten to the 3.5 hour mark and I didn't feel like anything much had happened. Even though we get the murder, and the discovery and viewing of the scene by Olivia and her new assistant in the first couple of chapters, the pacing of this felt slow to me.
This is probably more about me than the book. It is well written, and there are some clever moments, but it just didn't grab me, and I couldn't justify giving up another 15 hours to finish it when there are so many other audio books I want to listen to. When my next audio book arrived from the library it seemed meant to be that I put this on the DNF pile.
Apparently, writing characters "in the manner of Sherlock Holmes" is harder than one might think. When I read the description for this book, it sounded like O. Faraday was going to be a female Sherlock. Technically, I guess she was, although I like Sherlock Holmes, and I didn't particularly like Olivia.
With Sherlock, there is a sly, somewhat charming feel to his lack of social skills or concern for how polite people behave in company. Olivia just came across for me as rude.
Also, I had this as an audio book, and while the narrator is excellent, this book was over 15 hours long, and I had only gotten to the 3.5 hour mark and I didn't feel like anything much had happened. Even though we get the murder, and the discovery and viewing of the scene by Olivia and her new assistant in the first couple of chapters, the pacing of this felt slow to me.
This is probably more about me than the book. It is well written, and there are some clever moments, but it just didn't grab me, and I couldn't justify giving up another 15 hours to finish it when there are so many other audio books I want to listen to. When my next audio book arrived from the library it seemed meant to be that I put this on the DNF pile.
I received this ARC from Netgalley. What follows is my honest opinion.
I requested this on a whim. I’ve never heard of the author before, but the concept sounded intriguing and I loved the cover (by this point I have no shame in admitting that I definitely judge books by their covers).
I’m so glad I did. It was such fun to read. Yes, there are undoubtedly issues, I felt a bit lost in the world-building at points and I was often fighting the urge to slap some sense into Chris, but the mystery was wonderful and kept me guessing to the end. There’s a definite detective/chronicler vibe that’s reminiscent of Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson but it certainly isn’t just a copy of the original format. I loved Olivia in all her prickly, harsh glory and I enjoyed watching Chris begin to develop a spine as he learnt to live in a world he had avoided for so long.
I think perhaps some people might find the two main characters unsympathetic, but I really enjoyed them. McIntyre somehow manages to strike that very delicate balance between unpleasant and redeemable. She writes people who still have a long way to go before they’re going to win any decency awards, but who you can still feel for and who are clearly trying their best with what they’ve got. Olivia is unashamed of her cold, unfeeling demeanour if at the end of the day it means she solves the mystery and gets justice. Chris is a poor little rich boy at the beginning of the novel and incredibly insular after withdrawing from the world, but a great pleasure of this book is watching him get a clue and begin to grow up.
The characters also have understandable motivations. For instance, Chris’ once rich family have fallen on hard times in the wake of his parents death in a national disaster five years ago. Chris and his younger – uniquely talented – sister Rosemary have been living under the radar until Rosemary comes of age and is able to protect herself. The book is a little vague here as to what she’s actually being protected from.
There are definitely some holes in the world-building. I’m a big fan of dropping a reader in the middle of things and letting them work the world out as they go but it felt like I was missing a few necessary clues – especially about the magic system and the opposing political factions. I think this could be very easily cleared up by the second book with a few strategically placed hints.
I would definite pick up a sequel, the end sets us up nicely for the story to progress and I really want to see where it’s going!
I requested this on a whim. I’ve never heard of the author before, but the concept sounded intriguing and I loved the cover (by this point I have no shame in admitting that I definitely judge books by their covers).
I’m so glad I did. It was such fun to read. Yes, there are undoubtedly issues, I felt a bit lost in the world-building at points and I was often fighting the urge to slap some sense into Chris, but the mystery was wonderful and kept me guessing to the end. There’s a definite detective/chronicler vibe that’s reminiscent of Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson but it certainly isn’t just a copy of the original format. I loved Olivia in all her prickly, harsh glory and I enjoyed watching Chris begin to develop a spine as he learnt to live in a world he had avoided for so long.
I think perhaps some people might find the two main characters unsympathetic, but I really enjoyed them. McIntyre somehow manages to strike that very delicate balance between unpleasant and redeemable. She writes people who still have a long way to go before they’re going to win any decency awards, but who you can still feel for and who are clearly trying their best with what they’ve got. Olivia is unashamed of her cold, unfeeling demeanour if at the end of the day it means she solves the mystery and gets justice. Chris is a poor little rich boy at the beginning of the novel and incredibly insular after withdrawing from the world, but a great pleasure of this book is watching him get a clue and begin to grow up.
The characters also have understandable motivations. For instance, Chris’ once rich family have fallen on hard times in the wake of his parents death in a national disaster five years ago. Chris and his younger – uniquely talented – sister Rosemary have been living under the radar until Rosemary comes of age and is able to protect herself. The book is a little vague here as to what she’s actually being protected from.
There are definitely some holes in the world-building. I’m a big fan of dropping a reader in the middle of things and letting them work the world out as they go but it felt like I was missing a few necessary clues – especially about the magic system and the opposing political factions. I think this could be very easily cleared up by the second book with a few strategically placed hints.
I would definite pick up a sequel, the end sets us up nicely for the story to progress and I really want to see where it’s going!
Review:
4.5 stars
http://pagestoexplore.blogspot.com/2016/07/review-deathsniffers-assistant-by-kate.html
4.5 stars
http://pagestoexplore.blogspot.com/2016/07/review-deathsniffers-assistant-by-kate.html
Fun Steampunk Mystery. I especially like the character of Olivia. Unfortunately my library doesn't have book 2.
Advance copy provided by the publisher via NetGalley
Original review at The Book Adventures
Christopher Buckley is a young man trying to keep his family together and protect his younger sister in the face of bankruptcy, tragedy, and unemployment. He grew up privileged – but all that has changed. His money is running out, and he can no longer support himself and his orphaned sister. Their parents died in a tragic and highly publicized accident, and he has been struggling to survive since.
As a categorized wordweaver – one who can write words as quickly as they are said, or even thought – he is qualified for secretarial positions only. In Tarland, where he lives, categorization is an implied sinister process whereby people are labeled according to their magical abilities, forcing them into certain careers and stations in life. Labels equal rankings as well, so if a person does not have much magical ability, they are relegated to the meanest, lowliest jobs and positions in society. Since he does not have the luxury of being choosy, he ends up interviewing for an assistant’s position with the local deathsniffer – a categorized truthsniffer who investigates murders.
Olivia Faraday, the deathsniffer, is eccentric and moody, and very difficult to work for. Mr. Buckley, as he insists he be called, has a difficult time working with her eccentricities. Buckley is committed to courtesy, tact, and manners, even if they are empty. Throughout his experiences as the deathsniffer’s newest assistant, he fights his instincts for order and social graces in order to perform his job and get along with others. One of the strengths of this novel is the characterization of these two main characters. They are quirky and dynamic, and their growing working relationship kept things interesting.
Original review at The Book Adventures
Christopher Buckley is a young man trying to keep his family together and protect his younger sister in the face of bankruptcy, tragedy, and unemployment. He grew up privileged – but all that has changed. His money is running out, and he can no longer support himself and his orphaned sister. Their parents died in a tragic and highly publicized accident, and he has been struggling to survive since.
As a categorized wordweaver – one who can write words as quickly as they are said, or even thought – he is qualified for secretarial positions only. In Tarland, where he lives, categorization is an implied sinister process whereby people are labeled according to their magical abilities, forcing them into certain careers and stations in life. Labels equal rankings as well, so if a person does not have much magical ability, they are relegated to the meanest, lowliest jobs and positions in society. Since he does not have the luxury of being choosy, he ends up interviewing for an assistant’s position with the local deathsniffer – a categorized truthsniffer who investigates murders.
Olivia Faraday, the deathsniffer, is eccentric and moody, and very difficult to work for. Mr. Buckley, as he insists he be called, has a difficult time working with her eccentricities. Buckley is committed to courtesy, tact, and manners, even if they are empty. Throughout his experiences as the deathsniffer’s newest assistant, he fights his instincts for order and social graces in order to perform his job and get along with others. One of the strengths of this novel is the characterization of these two main characters. They are quirky and dynamic, and their growing working relationship kept things interesting.
Where do I start with this one? I definitely enjoyed reading this, and if I had to pin it down to a reason why it's mainly due to the fact that it is different. A genre like fantasy has many key characteristics that become recycled over and over again. This can be fine depending on the story you have on hand, and if it is done well. So it was a delight for me to come across The Deathsniffer's Assistant by Kate McIntyre. It really was something new. It’s a detective novel within a fantasy world.
This world that McIntyre creates is one where everyone is 'magical', and becomes categorized when they come of age. There is no technology to speak of, but rather everything is run by magic. It's the kind of magic though that is hard to control as it is called "binding" magic. Basically, binders are able to manipulate elemental spirits into doing their bidding. Which sounds as nerve wracking as you may imagine. Who wants to take a bath and have the threat that the water nymph might break free of its bond, and drown you? Relaxing I'll bet. Either way, this world really intrigued me. It had Victorian style so that’s a bonus. Besides, doesn't technology malfunction all the time in our world? As hubris humans though, we really don't mind the risk as long as it benefits us and there are always collateral damages.
To read my full review, please go to my blog Little Great Reads: https://littlegreatreads.wordpress.com/
This world that McIntyre creates is one where everyone is 'magical', and becomes categorized when they come of age. There is no technology to speak of, but rather everything is run by magic. It's the kind of magic though that is hard to control as it is called "binding" magic. Basically, binders are able to manipulate elemental spirits into doing their bidding. Which sounds as nerve wracking as you may imagine. Who wants to take a bath and have the threat that the water nymph might break free of its bond, and drown you? Relaxing I'll bet. Either way, this world really intrigued me. It had Victorian style so that’s a bonus. Besides, doesn't technology malfunction all the time in our world? As hubris humans though, we really don't mind the risk as long as it benefits us and there are always collateral damages.
To read my full review, please go to my blog Little Great Reads: https://littlegreatreads.wordpress.com/
I didn’t realize that this book is the first of a series which actually, now that I think about it, makes sense since the ending didn’t really feel completely conclusive. Anyways, while I thoroughly enjoyed this book there were definitely a few aspects of it that I wish were different and/or better.
First of all, the flow and world building was severely lacking. I had some serious issues with understanding the world I was being thrown into. There wasn’t much of a build-up or explanation on all of the paranormal creatures, how they came to be, why they were forced to provide light for the lamps or water in the pipes, and what happened to electricity or normal, regular water? Also, I wish there were some more clarifications on the categorization process such as what were the categories, what’s the difference between a wizard and a normal person, how did one become categorized, etc. There were just a lot of questions that weren’t answered and I just had to blunder my way through to try to understand it a little better. Even now, there are many questions that I have that weren’t completely answered during this book so maybe the second book will be a little better – hopefully.
Chris, the main character of this book, is a tad annoying and rude in the way that he’s overly polite but he doesn’t mean any of his politeness. He just cares how he is presented to other people. However, despite his many flaws, I had to remember that he is still a young boy – I believe he’s 19 – and he is in charge of caring for his younger sister who is apparently very skilled as a binder and a wizard. In a way, I think he is overly cautious and overprotective of his sister because he doesn’t want anyone to take advantage of her skills and wring her dry. But he doesn’t realize that his sister has some say in it as well and he doesn’t understand that maybe she’s old enough to take care of herself. Towards the end of the book, it becomes obvious how much he has changed from both the deathsniffer’s influence and his new governess. I’m hoping that the second book will build off of that.
The Deathsniffer Faraday, is also someone that changed a lot during this book. In the beginning, she came across as crass, rude and blunt to everyone. She certainly didn’t care much for different societal roles which is fine but she comes across as arrogant. While I liked her honesty and her need to find out the truth of these murders, I did find her at times a little too much for me. The one good thing is that after hiring Chris, she too also changed for the better and became more understanding and more human in her way of thinking.
The one character I had no interest in was Chris’ sister. I personally thought she was a brat and incredibly spoiled. While I admire and respect her abilities, I thought that either her inability or unwillingness to understand her brother and instead, goes out of her way to show her abilities to the public was obnoxious. Yes, she had the right to decide things for herself but couldn’t she at least explain things to her brother rather than doing things in her own way and stressing her poor brother out? Plus, she’s so spoiled. She was aware that their finances were dwindling yet she would beg her brother for treats or rides that they obviously couldn’t really afford. I did not like her at all.
The plot was quite interesting – I really enjoyed reading about the mystery and figuring out who was the culprit. Though, to be honest, I kind of guessed it during the middle of the book and it became obvious after I figured it out. Despite that, I still enjoyed this book and will most likely follow the series.
First of all, the flow and world building was severely lacking. I had some serious issues with understanding the world I was being thrown into. There wasn’t much of a build-up or explanation on all of the paranormal creatures, how they came to be, why they were forced to provide light for the lamps or water in the pipes, and what happened to electricity or normal, regular water? Also, I wish there were some more clarifications on the categorization process such as what were the categories, what’s the difference between a wizard and a normal person, how did one become categorized, etc. There were just a lot of questions that weren’t answered and I just had to blunder my way through to try to understand it a little better. Even now, there are many questions that I have that weren’t completely answered during this book so maybe the second book will be a little better – hopefully.
Chris, the main character of this book, is a tad annoying and rude in the way that he’s overly polite but he doesn’t mean any of his politeness. He just cares how he is presented to other people. However, despite his many flaws, I had to remember that he is still a young boy – I believe he’s 19 – and he is in charge of caring for his younger sister who is apparently very skilled as a binder and a wizard. In a way, I think he is overly cautious and overprotective of his sister because he doesn’t want anyone to take advantage of her skills and wring her dry. But he doesn’t realize that his sister has some say in it as well and he doesn’t understand that maybe she’s old enough to take care of herself. Towards the end of the book, it becomes obvious how much he has changed from both the deathsniffer’s influence and his new governess. I’m hoping that the second book will build off of that.
The Deathsniffer Faraday, is also someone that changed a lot during this book. In the beginning, she came across as crass, rude and blunt to everyone. She certainly didn’t care much for different societal roles which is fine but she comes across as arrogant. While I liked her honesty and her need to find out the truth of these murders, I did find her at times a little too much for me. The one good thing is that after hiring Chris, she too also changed for the better and became more understanding and more human in her way of thinking.
The one character I had no interest in was Chris’ sister. I personally thought she was a brat and incredibly spoiled. While I admire and respect her abilities, I thought that either her inability or unwillingness to understand her brother and instead, goes out of her way to show her abilities to the public was obnoxious. Yes, she had the right to decide things for herself but couldn’t she at least explain things to her brother rather than doing things in her own way and stressing her poor brother out? Plus, she’s so spoiled. She was aware that their finances were dwindling yet she would beg her brother for treats or rides that they obviously couldn’t really afford. I did not like her at all.
The plot was quite interesting – I really enjoyed reading about the mystery and figuring out who was the culprit. Though, to be honest, I kind of guessed it during the middle of the book and it became obvious after I figured it out. Despite that, I still enjoyed this book and will most likely follow the series.