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3.67 AVERAGE
3.67 AVERAGE
This was a fun introduction to the series. Toby is an interesting character, even if the private investigator with a messy, sad past and gruff exterior is a common type.
I liked the wider cast of characters, and the mystery kept me guessing for most of the novel.
I enjoyed the worldbuilding, and I like McGuire’s writing style. I’ll definitely be continuing the series, although I hope we see less passing out/blacking out in Toby’s future.
4 stars
So I have owned this book for a long time. I started it once and didn't get into it. I put it down and walked away knowing that I would come back to it. And here I am.
October Daye, Toby is a PI and half fae. Known as a changeling Toby will have a long life if she can survive being a knight for her liege lord Sylvester Torquill. While on assignment Toby is discovered and turned into a fish for 14 years. When the spell is broken her life is in shambles. When Evening Winterrose is killed she binds Toby to find her killer. Caught in a race to find the killer and the motive before the curse claims her life, Toby is drawn back into Faerie politics and everything she left behind.
I have adored Seanan McGuire's Wayward Children series and I decided to give this another shot. I'm so glad I did. Toby is an interesting complex character. She is part of two worlds doesn't really belong in either. So far Toby has been happy to ignore what she can't change and make the best of what she can. When a job goes wrong and her world is upended, Toby decides that she want's nothing to do with the Faerie anymore. This backfires spectacularly and she is pulled right back into where she didn't want to be.
So after the fish incident Toby is wounded. She is languishing in guilt for herself and everybody that was felt behind. She was helpless to save herself and she's hurting. Toby is also boring. Wallowing has its point but she is punishing herself. However as she starts hunting Evening's killer Toby starts to shake off her funk and realizes that she's angry. She still feels defeated and is plagued with guilt and remorse. But the anger is there, even if she's buried it under six feet of avoidance, and an angry Toby makes for an infinitely more interesting Toby than a woe-is-me Toby, even if she's a bit reckless.
I love the world building with the Fae. Tybalt is by far the most fascinating character. I hope that we get to see more of Quentin and Manuel and the Luidaeg. I believe that as Toby starts to reconcile her life that was and her life that is things will change.
I will mention that I hated Devin the minute his name was mentioned and I feel so justified in my hatred.
So I have owned this book for a long time. I started it once and didn't get into it. I put it down and walked away knowing that I would come back to it. And here I am.
October Daye, Toby is a PI and half fae. Known as a changeling Toby will have a long life if she can survive being a knight for her liege lord Sylvester Torquill. While on assignment Toby is discovered and turned into a fish for 14 years. When the spell is broken her life is in shambles. When Evening Winterrose is killed she binds Toby to find her killer. Caught in a race to find the killer and the motive before the curse claims her life, Toby is drawn back into Faerie politics and everything she left behind.
I have adored Seanan McGuire's Wayward Children series and I decided to give this another shot. I'm so glad I did. Toby is an interesting complex character. She is part of two worlds doesn't really belong in either. So far Toby has been happy to ignore what she can't change and make the best of what she can. When a job goes wrong and her world is upended, Toby decides that she want's nothing to do with the Faerie anymore. This backfires spectacularly and she is pulled right back into where she didn't want to be.
So after the fish incident Toby is wounded. She is languishing in guilt for herself and everybody that was felt behind. She was helpless to save herself and she's hurting. Toby is also boring. Wallowing has its point but she is punishing herself. However as she starts hunting Evening's killer Toby starts to shake off her funk and realizes that she's angry. She still feels defeated and is plagued with guilt and remorse. But the anger is there, even if she's buried it under six feet of avoidance, and an angry Toby makes for an infinitely more interesting Toby than a woe-is-me Toby, even if she's a bit reckless.
I love the world building with the Fae. Tybalt is by far the most fascinating character. I hope that we get to see more of Quentin and Manuel and the Luidaeg. I believe that as Toby starts to reconcile her life that was and her life that is things will change.
I will mention that I hated Devin the minute his name was mentioned and I feel so justified in my hatred.
Solid start for an urban fantasy series featuring October Daye, a Changeling (half-human) PI who has spent the last fourteen years as a koi in Golden Gate park. This makes her almost a time traveler, skeptical of these "cell phone" and "internet" things. It's a great premise, though not played up as much as I could wish.
I read Rosemary and Rue very quickly. There's lots of time spent on setting up the world and posing questions that I can tell are going to be answered in later books.
If you're into urban fantasy, you'll definitely like this series. But if you're not, you're not missing anything.
I read Rosemary and Rue very quickly. There's lots of time spent on setting up the world and posing questions that I can tell are going to be answered in later books.
If you're into urban fantasy, you'll definitely like this series. But if you're not, you're not missing anything.
Considering this a soft DNF. No real complaints, it’s just not holding my interest.
It's hard not to compare this with the Newsflesh Trilogy. I felt like the world here wasn't filled out and where it was, it was pretty generic. The main character, October Day* (great name!), had a weird attitude. I mean, I guess it was typical noir urban fantasy, but it just bugged me how whiny-but-emotionally-withdrawn she seemed.
*apparently it's "Daye." I listened to the book so I didn't know.
*apparently it's "Daye." I listened to the book so I didn't know.
Good characters and a better than average storyline for this kind of book. Little melancholy for my taste though. Less fun than is usual for these escapist type of novels.
Spoiler warnings.
Disappointing. I expect a detective to do some detecting instead of whinging about how no one will be happy to see her, then going to those people for help anyway, and then running from fight to fight bringing those fights to those people's doors. I found the bad guy was telegraphed early and obviously. Oh and wouldn't you know it, it's a person she dated and smooched in the book. Idk I was eager to read a book the dropped all those tropes and just found more and more of them. The world building is cool but the characters are lackluster, predictable, and whiny.
Disappointing. I expect a detective to do some detecting instead of whinging about how no one will be happy to see her, then going to those people for help anyway, and then running from fight to fight bringing those fights to those people's doors. I found the bad guy was telegraphed early and obviously. Oh and wouldn't you know it, it's a person she dated and smooched in the book. Idk I was eager to read a book the dropped all those tropes and just found more and more of them. The world building is cool but the characters are lackluster, predictable, and whiny.
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was a book and series recommended to me last year for my 12 books recommended by 12 friends. A solid read. Urban fantasy is my fave sub-genre so it had everything I liked. I wasn't quite sucked in. But very interested the whole way through. A solid enjoyable read but not going into my faves. Something's missing but I dont know what. I'd pick up the next book if I come across it but I won't go looking for it.
I have a soft spot for urban fantasy. Plucky heroines, luckless detectives, murder, magic, and mayhem. When an urban fantasy is done right, when an author manages to blend our own mundane reality with other realities both strange and magical it is a wonderful experience that, long after the book is closed, will leave you looking askance at your everyday life. So yeah, I might scoff at the tramp-stamp be-speckled covers, I might groan at the paranormal romance plots that suffuse the genre but at the end of the day I’m still going to read the book and, even if I wouldn’t want to admit it, I’ll probably enjoy it. So when I heard good things about Seanan McGuire’s October Day novels I decided that it was worth a shot and nabbed a copy of the Rosemary and Rue via Audible.com with bonus benefit being that it was read by Mary Robinette Kowal (an accomplished editor and author in her own right).
October “Toby” Daye is a changeling, born of a human and a fae parent. She works as an investigator for a faerie lord though she has a “normal” life with her own human husband and a daughter. In the novel’s opening things go horribly wrong for Toby and her happy life is ripped away when she is trapped by a spell for 14 years. In the world again her husband and daughter will have nothing to do with her and, while she tries to lead a normal life, finds herself inexorably drawn back into the world of the faerie when her close friend, the Countess Evening Winterrose, is murdered. Compelled by her friend’s dying wish Toby is thrust back into her old life.
The first thing to note about Rosemary and Rue is the wonderfully rich and detailed world building McGuire uses. She seamlessly integrates and insinuates the world of faerie into our own. The city of San Francsico and its environs is carefully broken up into various fairy duchies with bolt holes and passages into the land of faerie scattered across the city. One of the aspects of the story that is central to Toby’s character is the notion that she is a changeling, a half-human half-fairy. In McGuire’s setting those changeling children who manifest power must choose between the human world and the fairy world. In truth this is a catch-22 choice as it will end in tragedy either way. As we learn the difficulty Toby faces as a changeling it really makes one question why she even considered having a child of her own. Its a decision that I suspect may come back to haunt her in the future; but that is abject speculation.
It is stated in the novel that Toby has earned a knighthood in the service of a fairy lord and, as a result, she is thought of rather highly by her lord and her friends (though changelings are still looked down upon by the “purebloods”). This is where my problems with the novel begin since I cannot understand what qualities could have merited Toby a knighthood. Over the course of the novel Toby seems to stumble from one scene to the next with very little direction and her method of finding a lead amounts to wandering around until someone or something tries to kill her. I mean the novel even opens with Toby failing miserably at her profession so maybe I shouldn’t be surprised that the rest of the novel follows through with a commensurate level of detective skill. I’m being a bit harsh but I honestly didn’t have a lot of faith in Toby’s skills throughout the novel.
I don’t know if that same level of borderline incompetence on Toby’s part continues throughout the series but I certainly hope not; especially since the world McGuire has built is a fascinating one. Additionally McGuire has set up some interesting, long-term mysteries from Toby’s manic mother, to the disappearance and reappearance of the Duke’s wife and daughter, said daughter’s obvious insanity, and the Queen of Mist’s odd behavior there are some interesting revelations one hopes will be seen down the line. While Toby’s skills as a detective leave a lot to be desired the strength of the world around her, and the clever tension between the mundane world and the fey world, makes for an interesting read. Recommended for fans looking for an urban fantasy with a slightly different twist.
October “Toby” Daye is a changeling, born of a human and a fae parent. She works as an investigator for a faerie lord though she has a “normal” life with her own human husband and a daughter. In the novel’s opening things go horribly wrong for Toby and her happy life is ripped away when she is trapped by a spell for 14 years. In the world again her husband and daughter will have nothing to do with her and, while she tries to lead a normal life, finds herself inexorably drawn back into the world of the faerie when her close friend, the Countess Evening Winterrose, is murdered. Compelled by her friend’s dying wish Toby is thrust back into her old life.
The first thing to note about Rosemary and Rue is the wonderfully rich and detailed world building McGuire uses. She seamlessly integrates and insinuates the world of faerie into our own. The city of San Francsico and its environs is carefully broken up into various fairy duchies with bolt holes and passages into the land of faerie scattered across the city. One of the aspects of the story that is central to Toby’s character is the notion that she is a changeling, a half-human half-fairy. In McGuire’s setting those changeling children who manifest power must choose between the human world and the fairy world. In truth this is a catch-22 choice as it will end in tragedy either way. As we learn the difficulty Toby faces as a changeling it really makes one question why she even considered having a child of her own. Its a decision that I suspect may come back to haunt her in the future; but that is abject speculation.
It is stated in the novel that Toby has earned a knighthood in the service of a fairy lord and, as a result, she is thought of rather highly by her lord and her friends (though changelings are still looked down upon by the “purebloods”). This is where my problems with the novel begin since I cannot understand what qualities could have merited Toby a knighthood. Over the course of the novel Toby seems to stumble from one scene to the next with very little direction and her method of finding a lead amounts to wandering around until someone or something tries to kill her. I mean the novel even opens with Toby failing miserably at her profession so maybe I shouldn’t be surprised that the rest of the novel follows through with a commensurate level of detective skill. I’m being a bit harsh but I honestly didn’t have a lot of faith in Toby’s skills throughout the novel.
I don’t know if that same level of borderline incompetence on Toby’s part continues throughout the series but I certainly hope not; especially since the world McGuire has built is a fascinating one. Additionally McGuire has set up some interesting, long-term mysteries from Toby’s manic mother, to the disappearance and reappearance of the Duke’s wife and daughter, said daughter’s obvious insanity, and the Queen of Mist’s odd behavior there are some interesting revelations one hopes will be seen down the line. While Toby’s skills as a detective leave a lot to be desired the strength of the world around her, and the clever tension between the mundane world and the fey world, makes for an interesting read. Recommended for fans looking for an urban fantasy with a slightly different twist.
In this first book, we are introduced to October "Toby" Daye, a changeling who works as a PI with a live-in fiance and a daughter. Her liege's wife and daughter are missing and Toby is asked to investigate. In the process of investigation, she gets caught by two purebloods and is turned into a fish. No one knows. And suddenly 14 years later, the curse just lifts off by itself.
After the curse lifts off, she's disoriented. The whole world is shocked at her return from so-though death. Her fiance and daughter ignore her return since she can't give them a satisfactory reason for her disappearance (they don't know she's fae). And all Toby wants is to pretend nothing has happened. She ignores her liege's invitation and calls, her childhood friends invitation. It takes one of her close friend's death and her subsequent curse to bring her back to the Faerie land.
I'm a huge fan of this series. I'm doing a re-read of the series to read #5. That said, I think this book is the weakest in the series. The prologue is strong but after she comes back from the curse, we are fast-forwarded to 6 months later. The events that took place in the interim are given as a internal monologue (This book has first-person narration).
This meat of the book takes place in less than week and during that period we are introduced to so many characters, so many monologues of their relation to Toby that it sometimes is hard to keep them straight. It is hard to relate to the side characters which is such a shame. On the other hand, the world-built is very good. We get a strong feel for the faerie world and how difficult the survival is for changelings caught in between the two worlds but belonging to neither.
At the end of the book, while I was not that impressed by Toby, I was invested enough to continue the series. And the books do keep getting better, if one can give this series a chance.
After the curse lifts off, she's disoriented. The whole world is shocked at her return from so-though death. Her fiance and daughter ignore her return since she can't give them a satisfactory reason for her disappearance (they don't know she's fae). And all Toby wants is to pretend nothing has happened. She ignores her liege's invitation and calls, her childhood friends invitation. It takes one of her close friend's death and her subsequent curse to bring her back to the Faerie land.
I'm a huge fan of this series. I'm doing a re-read of the series to read #5. That said, I think this book is the weakest in the series. The prologue is strong but after she comes back from the curse, we are fast-forwarded to 6 months later. The events that took place in the interim are given as a internal monologue (This book has first-person narration).
This meat of the book takes place in less than week and during that period we are introduced to so many characters, so many monologues of their relation to Toby that it sometimes is hard to keep them straight. It is hard to relate to the side characters which is such a shame. On the other hand, the world-built is very good. We get a strong feel for the faerie world and how difficult the survival is for changelings caught in between the two worlds but belonging to neither.
At the end of the book, while I was not that impressed by Toby, I was invested enough to continue the series. And the books do keep getting better, if one can give this series a chance.