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4.0 AVERAGE
4.0 AVERAGE
Rose Marshall died in 1952 in Buckley Township, Michigan, run off the road by a man named Bobby Cross—a man who had sold his soul to live forever, and intended to use her death to pay the price of his immortality. Trouble was, he didn’t ask Rose what she thought of the idea.
It’s been more than sixty years since that night, and she’s still sixteen, and she’s still running.
They have names for her all over the country: the Girl in the Diner. The Phantom Prom Date. The Girl in the Green Silk Gown.
Sparrow Hill Road is the first book I've read by Seanan McGuire and I liked it. The story is original for an urban fantasy and I really appreciated that about the book. The combination of ghost story and urban fantasy was what really made me want to read this book in the first place and the book really delivered in that aspect. Rose was pretty likable as the main character and I also really liked some of the supporting characters.
The book had a couple of weaknesses for me, one being the format. It's written as a bunch of different stories instead of one continuous story with some connecting threads running through the whole book. It is Rose's story after all, so she is relating different things that have happened since she died, with a small part being dedicated to what her life was like before she died, and also how she died. I wasn't too crazy about the way it jumped around from one time to another, sometimes in the middle of one of the stories. It wasn't a complete turn off, but it isn't one of my favorite types of storytelling.
There was also the whole bit about Rose paying her way sometimes with sex. This was the one thing in the book that bothered me the most. Because Rose died on the road in a car accident, that resulted in her becoming a road ghost who hitchhikes her way across the country. If she can convince the driver to loan her his jacket or coat (any type of outwear will do) she can borrow a bit of that persons mortality for a little while. This results in her being able to actually have a mortal body for a short time period. Sometimes Rose would hitch a ride and the driver would expect something in return and she would trade sex for the ride. That's just too close to prostitution for my liking. However it was only mentioned a couple of times in the book and no details were given.
The ghost world in this book feels a lot like a purgatory. Rose can't see past it because she is stuck there and it is her reality. She knows a lot of ghosts end up traveling the ghost road, sometimes with her help, onto another place, but she doubts that it is any better than where she is. She has lost any faith that there is a better place, or that there is a God, although she does pray to the God she doubts exists several times in the book. I enjoyed this aspect of the book and under the circumstances, could understand why Rose felt the way she did, even though at this point, I think there is a lot she doesn't know or understand.
Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for giving me a copy of this book to review.
Review also posted at Writings of a Reader
It’s been more than sixty years since that night, and she’s still sixteen, and she’s still running.
They have names for her all over the country: the Girl in the Diner. The Phantom Prom Date. The Girl in the Green Silk Gown.
Sparrow Hill Road is the first book I've read by Seanan McGuire and I liked it. The story is original for an urban fantasy and I really appreciated that about the book. The combination of ghost story and urban fantasy was what really made me want to read this book in the first place and the book really delivered in that aspect. Rose was pretty likable as the main character and I also really liked some of the supporting characters.
The book had a couple of weaknesses for me, one being the format. It's written as a bunch of different stories instead of one continuous story with some connecting threads running through the whole book. It is Rose's story after all, so she is relating different things that have happened since she died, with a small part being dedicated to what her life was like before she died, and also how she died. I wasn't too crazy about the way it jumped around from one time to another, sometimes in the middle of one of the stories. It wasn't a complete turn off, but it isn't one of my favorite types of storytelling.
There was also the whole bit about Rose paying her way sometimes with sex. This was the one thing in the book that bothered me the most. Because Rose died on the road in a car accident, that resulted in her becoming a road ghost who hitchhikes her way across the country. If she can convince the driver to loan her his jacket or coat (any type of outwear will do) she can borrow a bit of that persons mortality for a little while. This results in her being able to actually have a mortal body for a short time period. Sometimes Rose would hitch a ride and the driver would expect something in return and she would trade sex for the ride. That's just too close to prostitution for my liking. However it was only mentioned a couple of times in the book and no details were given.
The ghost world in this book feels a lot like a purgatory. Rose can't see past it because she is stuck there and it is her reality. She knows a lot of ghosts end up traveling the ghost road, sometimes with her help, onto another place, but she doubts that it is any better than where she is. She has lost any faith that there is a better place, or that there is a God, although she does pray to the God she doubts exists several times in the book. I enjoyed this aspect of the book and under the circumstances, could understand why Rose felt the way she did, even though at this point, I think there is a lot she doesn't know or understand.
Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for giving me a copy of this book to review.
Review also posted at Writings of a Reader
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
adventurous
dark
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Sparrow Hill Road reminded me of Seanan McGuire's October Daye novels in the sense that McGuire has created a universe by bringing together different mythologies (mostly American but some West European and East Asian). It's very imaginative, though I admittedly haven't read much fiction involving ghosts and related phenomena.
The story's divided into four books, or parts, which makes it feel a little disjointed at times. I enjoyed getting to know Rose Marshall and the characters she encounters. Rose has abilities as a "hitcher," but she ranks relatively low on the hierarchy of supernatural entities. So even though she's dead, I still felt uncertainty and tension over what might happen. Overall, this was an excellent, entertaining read.
The story's divided into four books, or parts, which makes it feel a little disjointed at times. I enjoyed getting to know Rose Marshall and the characters she encounters. Rose has abilities as a "hitcher," but she ranks relatively low on the hierarchy of supernatural entities. So even though she's dead, I still felt uncertainty and tension over what might happen. Overall, this was an excellent, entertaining read.
I loved the prose and McGuire does an amazing job of keeping a consistent 50s Americana vibe throughout the whole book. This grew out of a collection of short stories and it still feels more like a collection of episodes than a novel. The main plot doesn't pick up until about halfway through and while I liked the ambiance and times it was a bit slow.
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
An excellent book, one that feels very much like myth making. Great world building (probably my favorite part), I enjoyed the different stories and how they built upon each other. And I liked Rose, and all the friends she makes along the way, as well as the sad, grieving undertone of the book.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I was skeptical because of the short story collection nature of the book but it turns out that's the part I enjoyed the most; the individual sub-plots of each short story.
Initially, the rules around the ghosts are very vague. There are a few universal rules we learn throughout the book but around the middle of the book, something unfortunate becomes apparent. The author invents new rules and exceptions as she needs them on the fly.
This is always something that annoys me a lot because it makes it really hard to buy into tension because I always know the author could at any time just make stuff up on the spot to resolve any situation however she wants.
The end was just too much for me. It was too cheesy, too whacky, and way too far-fetched.
Beyond that, I just plain didn't like the end but that is entirely subjective taste.
Edit: Something that I forgot to mention is the ability of the author to build a certain surreal atmosphere. This reads not at all like some generic UF. It is a very unique experience and even though I didn't like the ending I don't regret having picked up this book.
Initially, the rules around the ghosts are very vague. There are a few universal rules we learn throughout the book but around the middle of the book, something unfortunate becomes apparent. The author invents new rules and exceptions as she needs them on the fly.
This is always something that annoys me a lot because it makes it really hard to buy into tension because I always know the author could at any time just make stuff up on the spot to resolve any situation however she wants.
The end was just too much for me. It was too cheesy, too whacky, and way too far-fetched.
Beyond that, I just plain didn't like the end but that is entirely subjective taste.
Edit: Something that I forgot to mention is the ability of the author to build a certain surreal atmosphere. This reads not at all like some generic UF. It is a very unique experience and even though I didn't like the ending I don't regret having picked up this book.
Calm, but still suspenseful. I really likes Rose, and a bunch of other characters.