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3.46 AVERAGE
3.46 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Murder
Moderate: Body horror, Child death
Minor: Alcohol
mysterious
slow-paced
adventurous
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I have no idea how I feel about this book. I alternately hated and loved it 😆 I went from not wanting to pick it up, to not wanting to put it down; from a generous 2 ⭐️ at 150 pages in, to 4.5 ⭐️ for the last 100 pages.
The first half of the book was frustratingly slow and convoluted. There are too many characters, and it jumps so haphazardly from viewpoint to viewpoint that it’s hard to get into the flow of the story. Thank goodness for the character list.
The sentence structure is diabolical and tortuous. It took me forever to read this book because I kept having to reread the sentences due to their ambiguous phrasing (too many commas in some parts, too few in others). Some sentences were downright undecipherable. What do you MEAN, Mr Caldecott?? 😩🙄
From my last two paragraphs, you would think I hated this book. No, apparently, I am a sucker for punishment. I love mysteries, especially historical mysteries, especially alternative history mysteries. Throw in some fantastical elements, puzzles, action, adventure, minimal romance, and a few murders, and I’m in my happy place. I went straight to the library for the rest of the series.
Two more things:
- I really wish there was a map.
- The dialogue is ridiculous, no one talks like this 🙄 I only got used to it (somewhat) at around the 300-page mark.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Murder
The acknowledgements to this book contain fulsome praise for the writer's editors. God knows what sort of a state it was in before they got hold of it then, because I found this a muddled, poorly constructed read. The writing style seems to be searching for 'clever', but too often all it achieves is 'confusing'. It's very bitty, jumping about all over the place to no great effect. It's also one of those books that is forever teasing great revelations, yet it never quite delivers.
There are way too many characters, none of whom are properly developed. The book also seems to lack focus - there is no strong character to anchor the plot. There's a lot of description, yet I struggled to construct a plausible geography of the place. I was heading towards a one star rating for much of the book, but it does get better towards the end.
Comparisons with Mervyn Peake are way off the mark. Like comparing Harry Potter with Dickens. Inevitably, there are sequels in the works, but I'm afraid I won't be returning. The illustrations are nice, though.
There are way too many characters, none of whom are properly developed. The book also seems to lack focus - there is no strong character to anchor the plot. There's a lot of description, yet I struggled to construct a plausible geography of the place. I was heading towards a one star rating for much of the book, but it does get better towards the end.
Comparisons with Mervyn Peake are way off the mark. Like comparing Harry Potter with Dickens. Inevitably, there are sequels in the works, but I'm afraid I won't be returning. The illustrations are nice, though.
adventurous
challenging
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Loved cracking the clues to work out what was going on, fantastic fantasy/historical story
didn’t leave anything to the readers imagination, the very very presumptuous narrative voice assumed the reader was dumb
Even though the pacing is a little uneven, I did enjoy escaping into this new world! Nuanced characters, surprises, and an elaborate city all around it.
