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oakamoore's review
2.5
The constant shifting between the parallel narratives was slightly disruptive, and resulted in the erosion of intrigue - questions that arose in one narrative had already been addressed in another.
This novel, while laden with symbolism and profound questions, doesn't really amount to anything. Additionally, the motivations for certain characters isn't as clear as it should be, given how much of an impact they have on the narrative.
This novel, while laden with symbolism and profound questions, doesn't really amount to anything. Additionally, the motivations for certain characters isn't as clear as it should be, given how much of an impact they have on the narrative.
ladytiara's review
4.0
White Crow isn't my favorite Marcus Sedgwick, but it's still a fantastic book.
marawii's review against another edition
1.0
What on earth did I just read?
This was supposed to be a mystery ya novel which I wanted to read in October, it felt like reading a school essay which wasn't even scary. (No offense to the author)
Every time I picked up this book, I had an urge to take a nap, that's how bored I felt while while reading it. I only continued because I hate leaving any book unfinished.
To me, it felt like a waste of time where I could have read other mysteries.
This was supposed to be a mystery ya novel which I wanted to read in October, it felt like reading a school essay which wasn't even scary. (No offense to the author)
Every time I picked up this book, I had an urge to take a nap, that's how bored I felt while while reading it. I only continued because I hate leaving any book unfinished.
To me, it felt like a waste of time where I could have read other mysteries.
guardianghost's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
librarian_wenn's review against another edition
3.0
Just started it this AM. We shall see how it goes...
bookgirl4ever's review
3.0
Told from the point of view of three characters, White Crow asks, "Is there an afterlife?" Rebecca and her father are spending the summer in a coastal town, Winterfold. Rebecca meets an odd local, feylike Ferelith. The other point of view is a reverend from the 1700s, who writes in diary format about a very unethical experiment he and a doctor are doing to determine if there is an afterlife, including angels and demons. The past and present merge together to create a creepy story.
Teen
Teen
meganac's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars. This is another one of those glorious Sedgwick books where you race to the finish, breathless, enraptured, only to close it after the end, stare blankly at the wall, and ask yourself...what did I just read?
What did I just read, indeed. White Crow is a strange little book, based on the idea that simply because you have never seen someone return from the dead doesn't prove it an impossibility. You think all crows are black because that's all you've ever seen, but if you were to see a white crow, you would have to believe differently. It's an intriguing thought about which to build a modern gothic horror story. It's also an apt read for me right now, as my husband and I are about to leave for Vancouver to see their extraordinary white ravens.
The story takes place in a town called Winterfold that is crumbling slowly into the sea. Once it was a booming medieval city, now it is a town of a few houses, many abandoned to await their turn to tumble into the waves. Rebecca is bored with it - her father dragged her out there because something happened that he needed to get his family away from. We don't learn what until much later in the book. She is befriended by a strange girl named Ferelith, who doesn't appear to have any family and knows everything there is to know about Winterfold. Rebecca doesn't like Ferelith at first. She gives Rebecca a bad feeling, and she's weird. But boredom causes Rebecca to spend more and more time with Ferelith, until a game of dares gets a little out of hand and things begin to take a more sinister turn...
At the same time, there's an interwoven story of journal entries by a priest of Winterfold in 1792. He meets a doctor who has come to the town and taken up residence in Winterfold Hall. There's something odd about the doctor, captivating and powerful, but odd. What is he doing in the Hall? The entries of the priest sometimes sound like the confused ramblings of a religious man mad with trying to be "good enough" for heaven. At times they were difficult to make sense of.
I didn't quite understand the end. We aren't given much to go on, just a few details with which to surmise the events. I liked it, but I was left with a hunger to know what really happened. As creepy and a little disturbing as White Crow certainly was, [b:The Ghosts of Heaven|21469108|The Ghosts of Heaven|Marcus Sedgwick|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1409674391l/21469108._SY75_.jpg|40787024] is still my favourite Sedgwick book.
What did I just read, indeed. White Crow is a strange little book, based on the idea that simply because you have never seen someone return from the dead doesn't prove it an impossibility. You think all crows are black because that's all you've ever seen, but if you were to see a white crow, you would have to believe differently. It's an intriguing thought about which to build a modern gothic horror story. It's also an apt read for me right now, as my husband and I are about to leave for Vancouver to see their extraordinary white ravens.
The story takes place in a town called Winterfold that is crumbling slowly into the sea. Once it was a booming medieval city, now it is a town of a few houses, many abandoned to await their turn to tumble into the waves. Rebecca is bored with it - her father dragged her out there because something happened that he needed to get his family away from. We don't learn what until much later in the book. She is befriended by a strange girl named Ferelith, who doesn't appear to have any family and knows everything there is to know about Winterfold. Rebecca doesn't like Ferelith at first. She gives Rebecca a bad feeling, and she's weird. But boredom causes Rebecca to spend more and more time with Ferelith, until a game of dares gets a little out of hand and things begin to take a more sinister turn...
At the same time, there's an interwoven story of journal entries by a priest of Winterfold in 1792. He meets a doctor who has come to the town and taken up residence in Winterfold Hall. There's something odd about the doctor, captivating and powerful, but odd. What is he doing in the Hall? The entries of the priest sometimes sound like the confused ramblings of a religious man mad with trying to be "good enough" for heaven. At times they were difficult to make sense of.
I didn't quite understand the end. We aren't given much to go on, just a few details with which to surmise the events. I liked it, but I was left with a hunger to know what really happened. As creepy and a little disturbing as White Crow certainly was, [b:The Ghosts of Heaven|21469108|The Ghosts of Heaven|Marcus Sedgwick|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1409674391l/21469108._SY75_.jpg|40787024] is still my favourite Sedgwick book.
jennifermreads's review against another edition
4.0
Sedgwick books are those that, upon initial completion you go, “huh? What? Did I even like that?” and then, weeks later (I wrote this just over a month later), you realize that the story was amazing, beautifully told, and you are better for having included his work in your list of reads.
Ferelith was creepy, Rebecca troubled. Multiple storylines kept me enthralled and rapidly turning the pages. The flashback into 1798 as the priest and doctor pursued theories that there is life after death was just plain eerie but had me wondering “will it work?”
Sedgwick is masterful at story-telling. He leaks bits of the story at the exact right moment and pace. Wow … wow … wow.
Ferelith was creepy, Rebecca troubled. Multiple storylines kept me enthralled and rapidly turning the pages. The flashback into 1798 as the priest and doctor pursued theories that there is life after death was just plain eerie but had me wondering “will it work?”
Sedgwick is masterful at story-telling. He leaks bits of the story at the exact right moment and pace. Wow … wow … wow.
meaks91's review
2.0
I didn’t get it. Spent ages building up to something that could have been deliciously creepy, but it just fell flat for me.
betris's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0