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juhina's review against another edition
1.0
oh man, this book...
on top of it being CONFUSING and not making sense
it was so long =(
on top of it being CONFUSING and not making sense
it was so long =(
craftyhilary's review against another edition
3.0
The Unnaturalists alternates between first person narration by Vespa, a rather spoiled young lady with strong scientific inclinations, and the third person perspective of Syrus, a tinker lad with a strong link to natural magic.
Frankly, I still have no idea how exactly either the magic or the science worked, but the descriptions of both were entertaining nonetheless. A slightly soppy, slightly confusing, but generally well-written middle grade fantasy novel.
FYI, this isn't really steampunk, despite the cover art. 3 1/2 stars.
Frankly, I still have no idea how exactly either the magic or the science worked, but the descriptions of both were entertaining nonetheless. A slightly soppy, slightly confusing, but generally well-written middle grade fantasy novel.
FYI, this isn't really steampunk, despite the cover art. 3 1/2 stars.
tough_cookie's review against another edition
3.0
While the premise of this book claims to be Steampunk in nature and it does have elements of the genre, I would not consider this a true "Steampunk" novel; rather, it is more of a fantasy/alternate reality story with a little Steampunk thrown in.
The story itself is interesting: told from alternating points of view, we start with Vespa Nyx, a young girl who works at her father's museum of Unnaturals. I found her to be annoying and weak in nature, and so there were very few times when I felt sympathy for her. Then comes the other POV in the form of Syrus Reed, a 13- or 14-year-old boy who is a Tinker living with his people (who are Rom-like in nature) outside the walls of New London in train cars. They care for the Unnaturals that live in the nearby forest. When his people are either killed or captured to be made into slaves for New London's Refineries, Syrus seeks to find a way to free them. And thus, his and Vespa's destinies become intertwined. Along the way, Vespa finds a romantic interest in Pedant Hal Lumin, who isn't who he claims to be and is also annoying in that he tries to do EVERYTHING himself, which doesn't work out. At all. Also, the romance between him and Vespa falls into a pit of gooey, sticky drama that the story could not slough off, even at the very end, when the two end up unsure of their relationship.
While I'm sure many readers would enjoy the flow and suspense of the story, I just found it frustrating at too many points. I know I'm being overly critical of this book, but my expectations are high, and this novel failed to meet them in a most disappointing manner. Suffice to say, I will not be reading the sequel.
The story itself is interesting: told from alternating points of view, we start with Vespa Nyx, a young girl who works at her father's museum of Unnaturals. I found her to be annoying and weak in nature, and so there were very few times when I felt sympathy for her. Then comes the other POV in the form of Syrus Reed, a 13- or 14-year-old boy who is a Tinker living with his people (who are Rom-like in nature) outside the walls of New London in train cars. They care for the Unnaturals that live in the nearby forest. When his people are either killed or captured to be made into slaves for New London's Refineries, Syrus seeks to find a way to free them. And thus, his and Vespa's destinies become intertwined. Along the way, Vespa finds a romantic interest in Pedant Hal Lumin, who isn't who he claims to be and is also annoying in that he tries to do EVERYTHING himself, which doesn't work out. At all. Also, the romance between him and Vespa falls into a pit of gooey, sticky drama that the story could not slough off, even at the very end, when the two end up unsure of their relationship.
While I'm sure many readers would enjoy the flow and suspense of the story, I just found it frustrating at too many points. I know I'm being overly critical of this book, but my expectations are high, and this novel failed to meet them in a most disappointing manner. Suffice to say, I will not be reading the sequel.
julesgou's review against another edition
2.0
I honestly don't know what to think about this novel.
It was really slow through the beginning and I really had to push myself to read it. It only really got interesting during the second half. In the second half, the story went by much faster and it almost made up for the beginning.
I also found that the beginning was just a tad bit confusing. I had to reread sentences just to double check that I understood them.
The cool thing about this novel was the setting. It was like the Victorian era with just a little spin on it. I found that "New London" was a very interesting place to be and would love to explore it more.
The love problems through out this story aren't bad, but they are a little predictable.
My biggest problem was that I had to force myself to read this novel. It didn't really grab me until the last 100 pages. It was hard to get through but I did and in the end, the last 100 pages almost made up for the entire story.
It was really slow through the beginning and I really had to push myself to read it. It only really got interesting during the second half. In the second half, the story went by much faster and it almost made up for the beginning.
I also found that the beginning was just a tad bit confusing. I had to reread sentences just to double check that I understood them.
The cool thing about this novel was the setting. It was like the Victorian era with just a little spin on it. I found that "New London" was a very interesting place to be and would love to explore it more.
The love problems through out this story aren't bad, but they are a little predictable.
My biggest problem was that I had to force myself to read this novel. It didn't really grab me until the last 100 pages. It was hard to get through but I did and in the end, the last 100 pages almost made up for the entire story.
amdame1's review against another edition
3.0
In this steampunk setting of Victorian London, witchcraft is punishable by death. Vespa would love to keep working in the Museum of Unnatural History, but society says that since she is almost 17, it is time for her to start looking for a husband. One problem,
*****SPOILER*****
she is a witch.
Syrus belongs to the Tinker clan. The Tinkers care about the Unnaturals and do their best to take care of the environment and help the Unnaturals whenever and wherever possible. However, Syrus’s entire family is captured and taken away to be slaves. The only way he can save their lives is with the help of a witch. So, Syrus and Vespa get caught up together in a sticky, tricky, action-packed adventure.
The plot was a bit confusing at times in terms of keeping track of characters, events, etc.
*****SPOILER*****
she is a witch.
Syrus belongs to the Tinker clan. The Tinkers care about the Unnaturals and do their best to take care of the environment and help the Unnaturals whenever and wherever possible. However, Syrus’s entire family is captured and taken away to be slaves. The only way he can save their lives is with the help of a witch. So, Syrus and Vespa get caught up together in a sticky, tricky, action-packed adventure.
The plot was a bit confusing at times in terms of keeping track of characters, events, etc.
keu482's review against another edition
4.0
Another steampunk, it seems to be a theme lately! (Two can be a theme, shut up :P) So this one also has a lot of magic, and also supernatural things, but only ones that aren't vampires and werewolves, yay new things! I really loved reading this as a young girls first brush with proto-feminism and learning how things weren't fair for women for much of history. Plus it has an "other" culture. I'm not sure how accurately that's handled but I do like how the feminist perspective was handled so I hope she did that well too. It's really subtle, and in no way takes away from the story, etc... and there's all kinds of intrigue and daring do to keep the plot tumbling forward.
rebellkatten's review against another edition
4.0
So, about this book. I'm not really sure what to write. I did like the setting, the plot and the general feel of the book.
One of the two main characters; Vespa, I did understand that she was in a way bound by her social status/setting so she couldn't do what she wanted, pour her whole being into the museum and science. For her being used to use her brain in the work at the museum she comes out a bit daft at times. Not doing the connection between the frog and her powers and other stuff. The ending with her father was also a bit, "huh" even with him being manipulated by the grue, shouldn't he have felt anything for his own daughter?
I'm hoping the next book in the series will have some answers.
What I don't really get are others calling this book muddled..I thought it was pretty clear.
I also read that the tinkers were based on a asian people and not "gypsies".
I liked that that the love was not instant, I recognized it as a teenage love, that kind that doesn't need a lot of getting to know each other, it's based on other premises, but it would be nice to see them develop it into something more like "real love" in the next book.
Uhg, my brain is too tired to make sense right now.
One of the two main characters; Vespa, I did understand that she was in a way bound by her social status/setting so she couldn't do what she wanted, pour her whole being into the museum and science. For her being used to use her brain in the work at the museum she comes out a bit daft at times. Not doing the connection between the frog and her powers and other stuff. The ending with her father was also a bit, "huh" even with him being manipulated by the grue, shouldn't he have felt anything for his own daughter?
I'm hoping the next book in the series will have some answers.
What I don't really get are others calling this book muddled..I thought it was pretty clear.
I also read that the tinkers were based on a asian people and not "gypsies".
I liked that that the love was not instant, I recognized it as a teenage love, that kind that doesn't need a lot of getting to know each other, it's based on other premises, but it would be nice to see them develop it into something more like "real love" in the next book.
Uhg, my brain is too tired to make sense right now.
abetterjulie's review against another edition
3.0
First, the cover of this book does not do justice to the originality and fantasy present in this story. Having said that, the abrupt shifts in narrative and scene changes detracted from the overall flow. There were points were the dialogue was Saturday morning cartoon-ish, mostly when dealing with the villain, and a few areas that were too handily resolved. Overall, it was a fun and imaginative read. I look forward to the rest of the series.
arlene_modernvintage's review
1.0
Slow. Boring... no not boring at least not the subject matter. That was interesting. It was mostly just a bad writing style.
archifydd's review
1.0
This must be one of the most uninteresting, unimaginative things I've ever tried to read. Gave up on it this morning.