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abrich's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
Pacing issues, plot holes, and of the 10 characters Bear was the only potentially likable one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Abandonment
Moderate: Bullying, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Violence, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Classism
rorikae's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
'The Cartographers' by Peng Shepherd is a novel with an engaging premise that never quite lives up to the promises set up in the beginning of the book.
Nell Young dreamed of working at the New York Public Library like her father but a falling out with him years ago resulted in her being fired from her dream job. It was all over a seemingly useless gas station map that she found in the library's collection. Years later, Nell's father dies at his desk and when she finds the same gas station map in his belongings, she starts delving into why this particular map, something that shouldn't have much worth, is still in her Dad's possessions. As she learns more about her father's past, her mother's death in a fire when she was young, and a mysterious group called the Cartographers, Nell begins to unravel why this map has had such a sway over her past.
'The Cartographers' starts out great. The premise is engaging as it sets up a mystery around the gas station map that has put a strain on Nell and her father's relationship. The first third of the book is great as the tension continues to ramp up as more incidents appear to all be triggered by this map that Nell finds in her father's belongings. Unfortunately, as the mystery continues on, it becomes less engaging and the solution to everything is rather lackluster. For the heights of the mystery and intrigue set up at the beginning, the answers don't match up and end up being kind of boring. This is capped off by explanations at the end, including why Nell's father fired her, that don't really make sense. The stakes are never as high as they are set up in the beginning and this makes the drastic nature of some of the decisions that were made in the story feel nonsensical. This book could have been so much fun but it is never allowed to fully explore the possibilities of the premise.
There is a lightly speculative element to this story that I did really enjoy but again, it wasn't used in as engaging of a way as it could of been. I had to suspend my disbelief a bit, not with the speculative element itself, but with the narrow scope of how the element was used. This ultimately left me frustrated.
I did enjoy the audiobook narration. The story is mainly told through two narrators with a few characters popping in to give backstory. Having each of these backstory moments narrated by their own narrator did help create the community feel that I think Shepherd was trying to evoke.
Ultimately, this book has a great premise that is never allowed to shine.
Nell Young dreamed of working at the New York Public Library like her father but a falling out with him years ago resulted in her being fired from her dream job. It was all over a seemingly useless gas station map that she found in the library's collection. Years later, Nell's father dies at his desk and when she finds the same gas station map in his belongings, she starts delving into why this particular map, something that shouldn't have much worth, is still in her Dad's possessions. As she learns more about her father's past, her mother's death in a fire when she was young, and a mysterious group called the Cartographers, Nell begins to unravel why this map has had such a sway over her past.
'The Cartographers' starts out great. The premise is engaging as it sets up a mystery around the gas station map that has put a strain on Nell and her father's relationship. The first third of the book is great as the tension continues to ramp up as more incidents appear to all be triggered by this map that Nell finds in her father's belongings. Unfortunately, as the mystery continues on, it becomes less engaging and the solution to everything is rather lackluster. For the heights of the mystery and intrigue set up at the beginning, the answers don't match up and end up being kind of boring. This is capped off by explanations at the end, including why Nell's father fired her, that don't really make sense. The stakes are never as high as they are set up in the beginning and this makes the drastic nature of some of the decisions that were made in the story feel nonsensical. This book could have been so much fun but it is never allowed to fully explore the possibilities of the premise.
There is a lightly speculative element to this story that I did really enjoy but again, it wasn't used in as engaging of a way as it could of been. I had to suspend my disbelief a bit, not with the speculative element itself, but with the narrow scope of how the element was used. This ultimately left me frustrated.
I did enjoy the audiobook narration. The story is mainly told through two narrators with a few characters popping in to give backstory. Having each of these backstory moments narrated by their own narrator did help create the community feel that I think Shepherd was trying to evoke.
Ultimately, this book has a great premise that is never allowed to shine.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity, Violence, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
xlivinglikejen's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
5.0
This novel was so so good! It was paced really well and made it difficult to put down. The magical elements were beautifully written. I loved how everything tied together & the ending left me 🥹🥹🥹.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Infidelity, and Death of parent
lorenmarie7's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Toxic friendship
aklovekorn's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-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
Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Infidelity, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol
mateoj's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I definitely thought John Green invented Agloe for Paper Towns—never have I been so happy to have been totally wrong! To compare the two novels actually seems a little insulting to The Cartographers. This is everything Paper Towns wished it could be and so much more; balm for the part of my soul that rages about all the cool concepts mediocre young adult fiction has butchered.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Infidelity, Grief, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury
lovemelikesunday's review against another edition
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? Yes
2.75
In the end, this book just wasn’t for me. And that’s at least partially my fault. I don’t read many thrillers and don’t usually enjoy magical realism. To be completely fair, the first half of the book was interesting enough that I could overlook a lot of the things below. As the second half dragged on it all became deadweight.
The premise sounded interesting to me but the execution was lacking. Another reviewer pointed out that the characters all have the same voice, which I 100% agree with. They are all very samey and dialogue spoken by one character could have been said by any of them. To be honest, some dialogue read like the author has watched too many generic thriller movies.
There were attempts to give everyone their own motivations, but the cast are all academics in the same field and with extremely similar goals. The individual motivations weren’t convincing enough for me; because of this and the lacking individual voices the characters felt very flat and uninteresting.
People doing the right thing, exactly what they’re supposed to, doesn’t make for interesting stories, right? Except when the conflict is so thin and contrived it doesn’t make sense it negates all interest anyway. I was left wondering what the point of it all was often. The characters’ connections to each other felt thin and unconvincing as well.
Overall, I found the writing decent but not compelling. This book will not go in my reread pile and I probably won’t recommend it to anyone.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity, Death of parent, and Murder
inamerata's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
3.0
A cool premise but frustrating execution. The start was promising! Shepherd drops mysteries and questions in right away, so you're on the hunt for clues along with the characters. But then the answers are easily found as the pacing grinds to a halt, dragging on and on as you wait for the characters to catch up. To add insult to injury, when we finally get to the end, the book just kind of falls apart so much it's hard to care.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Infidelity and Murder
summerif's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Infidelity and Murder
Minor: Sexual content
clarabooksit's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Infidelity, Death of parent, and Murder