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_berly_'s review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
depizan's review against another edition
2.0
I didn't like it as well as the first, even though, technically, it was probably better. And a little more consistent in tone/grimness level/whatever you'd want to call it. As the title suggests, it happens during a rather famous eruption of Vesuvius and anyone with some history knowledge is going to know that all will not go well with the character's vacation to Pompeii.
Two things made me not continue reading the series, though. One was that the ending had a rushed, or at least incomplete, feel. Somehow the urgency around trying to save the people trapped in the eruption wasn't quite there and when the rescue attempt failed, the story just sort of petered out. That they were doomed can be inferred, yes, but it felt weird that in-universe, people didn't more clearly react to that fact. It gave it a "oh noes, we must save them. ... Oh well" feel. The other was that the story seemed rather too much like Christian fiction at times. The mystery, such as it was, was basically in-universe Christian evangelism. And the way Christianity and a Roman ritual were treated by the text just felt biased. If these books aren't Christian fiction, the author let too much of her personal religious bias slip in.
Two things made me not continue reading the series, though.
wilde_book_garden's review
3.0
Didn’t enjoy this one as much as the first book but I’m looking forward to continuing the series (and apparently this book isn’t one of most people’s favorites.)
CW: Slavery, age gap romance/implied child marriage, ableism, describing birth parents as “real parents” as opposed to adopted parents
CW: Slavery, age gap romance/implied child marriage, ableism, describing birth parents as “real parents” as opposed to adopted parents
amber_insight's review against another edition
3.0
This was rather horrifying, with no actual conclusion... I don't need tidy, happy endings - but some sort of relevant resolution is preferred...
thebacklistbook's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
sakusha's review against another edition
3.0
A decent historical fiction for middle school aged children.
karingforbooks's review against another edition
4.0
Love the setting. More predictable than the first. Great characters though why there has to be matchmaking in middle grade I’ll never understand. Still a great book with fun characters and relationships. Decent diversity as well.