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pinkadilly's review
4.0
A really solid 3.5/4, while Ink and Bone never totally whisked me away the writing was nice to read and the pacing fantastic, the plot never lets up but avoids being too breakneck to enjoy. Reminded me a little of Red Rising, in the sense that so much happens, and events that other authors might stretch into two or three books get tossed out in one, which makes me only more excited to see where they go next. And while I was slow to get drawn in, I am eagerly waiting to read the sequel and see where they go with this from here.
springpetunia's review
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
It’s taken me over two and a half years to read this, but I’m glad I finally committed. I’m now scared of pulling a tile and being sent home.
anndragon's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
epilieaspiechick's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
My full review can be found on the Epilie Aspie Chick blog!
I love the way this story features the elements of found family, fantasy, and ethics. Knowledge shouldn't be owned by one organization but is it okay to hide away dark knowledge that could easily corrupt others? How do we keep an organization that's meant to spread information from becoming self serving? There are so many layers to the questions you could ask that I know they'll stay with me a long time.
I love the way this story features the elements of found family, fantasy, and ethics. Knowledge shouldn't be owned by one organization but is it okay to hide away dark knowledge that could easily corrupt others? How do we keep an organization that's meant to spread information from becoming self serving? There are so many layers to the questions you could ask that I know they'll stay with me a long time.
avanticiera's review
4.0
took me a while to finish, but it was great once i could really get into it! definitely going to continue this series
bergsteiger's review
4.0
Oh boy. I really want to read the sequels but am afraid what I will find. So many of these recent YA dystopian/authoritarian series start out pretty well and then deteriorate into garbage. However, to the task at hand.
Great alternate/steampunk-tinged reality. The Library of Alexandria never burned, in fact it took over the dissemination of knowledge and functions in the "modern day" as a medieval Catholic Church, with independent political clout and respectable military power in a world of vying nations. If you are rich or brilliant (or both) then you seek appointment with the Library, either in Alexandria or one of its Serapeums (branches).
Jess, from a smuggler family that makes a profit from chipping at the Great Library's monopoly, is the unlikely recipient of just such an appointment. The book is mostly centered on his training to enter the Library's service. Along the way he finds out just how ruthless the world (both secular and Library) is. More importantly, Mrs. Caine does an excellent job of not making his adversaries monolithic in their intent. The individuals in power all have different goals and views of what should transpire.
At any rate, great plot, believable characters, and imaginative world. In the YA vein it is sometimes overly simplified, but that is no reason not to pick it up off the shelf. Solid 4 stars.
Great alternate/steampunk-tinged reality. The Library of Alexandria never burned, in fact it took over the dissemination of knowledge and functions in the "modern day" as a medieval Catholic Church, with independent political clout and respectable military power in a world of vying nations. If you are rich or brilliant (or both) then you seek appointment with the Library, either in Alexandria or one of its Serapeums (branches).
Jess, from a smuggler family that makes a profit from chipping at the Great Library's monopoly, is the unlikely recipient of just such an appointment. The book is mostly centered on his training to enter the Library's service. Along the way he finds out just how ruthless the world (both secular and Library) is. More importantly, Mrs. Caine does an excellent job of not making his adversaries monolithic in their intent. The individuals in power all have different goals and views of what should transpire.
At any rate, great plot, believable characters, and imaginative world. In the YA vein it is sometimes overly simplified, but that is no reason not to pick it up off the shelf. Solid 4 stars.
ashurq's review
4.0
I’m just going to say it: this book was way better than I thought it was going to be. There was a lot of action and a great cast of characters. I liked reading from Jess’s perspective because he has this conflict going on the whole time. He’s fascinated by the library and he’s kind of falling in love with it, but he also doesn’t want to disappoint or betray his family. And as time goes on there are other people he doesn’t want to disappoint or betray either. It really puts him in a hard position, but Caine does a great job of helping the reader to understand how Jess is feeling and his reactions all seem pretty reasonable.
This alternate future is seriously CRAZY. It’s a little steampunk and a little dystopian and in this world, being a librarian is really something completely different than it is in our world. There were enough familiar things about this world that the author was really able to build it and have the reader understand without having to infodump or anything like that–which I appreciated. The alchemy that’s woven throughout the story feels very natural and I’m really interested to learn more about it in the next book.
Overall, this book was super action-packed and I think the storyline is very intriguing–I’m not sure where the next book is going to take it. There are characters who you will love and characters who you will kind of hate but in the end, they’re all memorable. This is definitely one that I would recommend.
Overall Rating: 4
Language: Mild
Violence: Heavy, some gore described but not explicit
Smoking/Drinking: Moderate
Sexual Content: Mild
Note: I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This alternate future is seriously CRAZY. It’s a little steampunk and a little dystopian and in this world, being a librarian is really something completely different than it is in our world. There were enough familiar things about this world that the author was really able to build it and have the reader understand without having to infodump or anything like that–which I appreciated. The alchemy that’s woven throughout the story feels very natural and I’m really interested to learn more about it in the next book.
Overall, this book was super action-packed and I think the storyline is very intriguing–I’m not sure where the next book is going to take it. There are characters who you will love and characters who you will kind of hate but in the end, they’re all memorable. This is definitely one that I would recommend.
Overall Rating: 4
Language: Mild
Violence: Heavy, some gore described but not explicit
Smoking/Drinking: Moderate
Sexual Content: Mild
Note: I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
kara_reads7's review
3.0
I’m really not sure how I feel about this book. I enjoyed the first half. The second half went a turn a way I did not particularly enjoy. The ending was ok. I am interested in the characters enough to read the next book but I was kind of frustrated with how the main character was treated. I am hoping the second book is less chaos and more answers