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4.01 AVERAGE
4.01 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
weird girls forever and ever and!!! their beautiful wooden best friends amen!!!!
I don’t read a lot of YA because I’m not a fan of “teenage drama”. I’m very glad I followed a recommendation to read this one though - the story was decently paced and immersive with an intriguing universe. There are a few things I thought fell a little flat, but overall I really enjoyed the characters, the world, and I felt the magic system was interesting. I’m a little annoyed at the romance that developed between the main character and the Dragon, because that was expected and felt cliche, but at least it wasn’t a whirlwind that took the story over.
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Naomi Novik is quickly becoming my favourite writer. After the spellbinding Spinning Silver quickly made its way to my favourite-ever books list last year, I knew Uprooted would be right up my alley.
There are a lot of tropes repeated here that I throughly enjoyed in Spinning Silver — clever heroines who make their own destinies, fairytale influences, glittering prose and delicious descriptions of magic. There’s a smattering of enemies-to-lovers romance but it doesn’t overwhelm the plot and I think it works well here.
I wish Kasia had more depth to her character and I think the first-person narration led to some flat side characters, but all in all I enjoyed this enough for it make my favourites shelf.
There are a lot of tropes repeated here that I throughly enjoyed in Spinning Silver — clever heroines who make their own destinies, fairytale influences, glittering prose and delicious descriptions of magic. There’s a smattering of enemies-to-lovers romance but it doesn’t overwhelm the plot and I think it works well here.
I wish Kasia had more depth to her character and I think the first-person narration led to some flat side characters, but all in all I enjoyed this enough for it make my favourites shelf.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-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
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I liked the concept of The Wood. I liked the magic system. I liked that all of the female characters were not damsels in distress. I liked how the story ended (mostly). I still had my gripes with it. Mostly with the relationship between the FMC and MMC. But of course, it is a Beauty and the Beast retelling so I can't really harp too much on it for being what it is.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Violence, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexual content, War
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I thought this book was great. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it - to the extent that I didn’t even put it aside for the 2024 Olympics.
I particularly loved the way Agnieszka would naturally feel the best way to do her magic, in contrast to the very controlled and precise way in which the Dragon’s magic worked. Her instinct was much more certain than others’ logic - which in a world of magic I found very appealing and similar to some of Alan Garner’s works.
The Wood makes for a very powerful, very clever and very evil enemy, set on revenge against all human kind. The political shenanigans at Court and the jealousies amongst the wizards and witches were well written and entirely believable. The resolution could have gone a couple of different ways and I enjoyed how it was handled, without being completely surprised by it - it’s very much in keeping with many other folklore stories. The very last page also brought a satisfied smile to my face.
The use and description of the flowing feeling of the magic is very clever, although it seems odd that Agnieszka never quites get the hang of clothing herself both comfortably and attractively at the same time, despite quite suddenly becoming adept at a significant number of other spells, even without any practice. That is, perhaps, my only significant quibble with the book.
I think it’s a great read, without being truly excellent, and am very glad it was chosen for our monthly Book Club read.
I particularly loved the way Agnieszka would naturally feel the best way to do her magic, in contrast to the very controlled and precise way in which the Dragon’s magic worked. Her instinct was much more certain than others’ logic - which in a world of magic I found very appealing and similar to some of Alan Garner’s works.
The Wood makes for a very powerful, very clever and very evil enemy, set on revenge against all human kind. The political shenanigans at Court and the jealousies amongst the wizards and witches were well written and entirely believable. The resolution could have gone a couple of different ways and I enjoyed how it was handled, without being completely surprised by it - it’s very much in keeping with many other folklore stories. The very last page also brought a satisfied smile to my face.
The use and description of the flowing feeling of the magic is very clever, although it seems odd that Agnieszka never quites get the hang of clothing herself both comfortably and attractively at the same time, despite quite suddenly becoming adept at a significant number of other spells, even without any practice. That is, perhaps, my only significant quibble with the book.
I think it’s a great read, without being truly excellent, and am very glad it was chosen for our monthly Book Club read.