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3.46 AVERAGE
3.46 AVERAGE
I enjoyed this book, and particularly the creation of the backwards-yet-forwards town of Rotherweird in contemporary Britain. But with a large cast of characters, each with curious names, and whose perspectives switch from paragraph to paragraph, I also found it a struggle.
Perhaps it is too clever and deliberately cryptic, but I liked the people and the vision even if I could quibble with the implementation. I will come back to it at some point to see if it makes enough sense.
Perhaps it is too clever and deliberately cryptic, but I liked the people and the vision even if I could quibble with the implementation. I will come back to it at some point to see if it makes enough sense.
3.5 stars.
This was a really fun first in series. I really loved all the world building that went into making Rotherweird, well, rather weird. I think a lot of the issues I had with it are kind of the traditional pitfalls of a first in series book. I struggled a little bit with keeping the characters straight, and the plot got a bit muddled in places for me, as they got bogged down a bit by all the world-building and history. With that said, I did think this was a really entertaining and original sort of modern-day steampunk fantasy, and I'm excited to see what the rest of the series holds!
This was a really fun first in series. I really loved all the world building that went into making Rotherweird, well, rather weird. I think a lot of the issues I had with it are kind of the traditional pitfalls of a first in series book. I struggled a little bit with keeping the characters straight, and the plot got a bit muddled in places for me, as they got bogged down a bit by all the world-building and history. With that said, I did think this was a really entertaining and original sort of modern-day steampunk fantasy, and I'm excited to see what the rest of the series holds!
Rotherweird feels distinctly Harry Potter-y to me: the bad guys are so very obviously bad, and for no obvious reason, and it's very British, but set in a Britain that normal people cannot access or know about. It's also British in a very conservative, past-tense sense: everyone is white, straight, and easily-defined. Women's looks strongly define who they are as characters, but men - nah.
I admit that I only read the first half of this book. I persevered to a point, but why keep reading a story that only irritates me? There was so much 'telling' of characters' emotions, motivations, and actions: as a technique, it saved time (there was a lot of story to tell) but it tended to create 2-dimensional characters that never came alive for me.
Loads of potential in this story-world, and some excellent wry humour, but I wonder what the author intended to achieve overall. Is there a theme? A reason for bringing Rotherweird into fictional being? I haven't spotted one yet.
I admit that I only read the first half of this book. I persevered to a point, but why keep reading a story that only irritates me? There was so much 'telling' of characters' emotions, motivations, and actions: as a technique, it saved time (there was a lot of story to tell) but it tended to create 2-dimensional characters that never came alive for me.
Loads of potential in this story-world, and some excellent wry humour, but I wonder what the author intended to achieve overall. Is there a theme? A reason for bringing Rotherweird into fictional being? I haven't spotted one yet.
I enjoyed it. You do start with a couple of very unlikely assumptions, but once you accept them, the characters are engaging and the fantasy world well-imagined and well described.
I really enjoyed this clever and knowing Gothic-and-supernatural tale. Travel to the small English town of Rotherweird, where no one is allowed to know the town's history or ask about the origins of its inhabitants. There you'll find scheming villains, society snobs, a nocturnal acrobat, a man with a mysterious past, and a newly-arrived teacher for the local school, who, with a little help from his predecessor, sets into motion a fun and quirky ride into another dimension, a vast catalogue of secrets, and a little romance.
Perseverance Pays Off
I’ve tried to start Rotherweird a few times and stumbled. My brain was trying to follow the present day outsiders as the main focus of the story. They aren’t, and once I got past that the story opened itself up to me.
I’ve tried to start Rotherweird a few times and stumbled. My brain was trying to follow the present day outsiders as the main focus of the story. They aren’t, and once I got past that the story opened itself up to me.
I loved this book so much. Beautifully strange and magical, and a world (although it has its horrifying parts) that I want to spend a lot more time in.
Enjoyable, some classic elements of British fantasy along with a mystery to solve and secrets to be revealed. Had a touch of Gormenghast and maybe Rivers of London to which the cover alludes, with the magic of place in ancient and modern England.