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4.19 AVERAGE
4.19 AVERAGE
It took me three months to finish this book. I kept having to take breaks because living in Adrian's head was uncomfortably like living in my own.
I still loved it and I think it was a great final entry into what has become one of my favorite books series.
I still loved it and I think it was a great final entry into what has become one of my favorite books series.
adventurous
emotional
funny
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:
Yes
This book was between a 4 and 4.5 for me. I was so happy to get another Montague Siblings story. The author’s note at the end is a must read to tie it all up. I will say more later.
Toward the end of the book Monty tells Adrian perhaps he didn't need to be fixed, which to me has always been a huge part of my mental health journey. It almost winded me from the page.
I am so glad there is a generation of people who will get to read these books and see themselves in them - queer, feminists, scientists, oddballs, adventurers, riddled with anxiety with no idea what it means... It is incredibly powerful and so very important.
I am so glad there is a generation of people who will get to read these books and see themselves in them - queer, feminists, scientists, oddballs, adventurers, riddled with anxiety with no idea what it means... It is incredibly powerful and so very important.
Libby audio. Probably 2 stars for me. I didn’t really like it, but I can’t say if I liked it more or less than the first one. Adrian is just an annoying character to read. I understand the author was highlighting anxiety and OCD as a mental health issue and processing some of his own mental issues, but it sure made for a neurotic and (again) annoying read. I also thought the book dragged for a large chunk in the middle.
My review of this book appears in Historical Novels Review issue 98 (November 2021):
Lee completes her award-winning trilogy about the fascinating upper-class Montague family, whose adventures take them across early 18th-century Europe and beyond. The third volume is told by the youngest Montague, Adrian, last seen as a toddler called the Goblin by his two estranged older siblings. The previous novels were fan and critic favorites due to their breezy, modern dialogue and brilliant, self-aware protagonists. Lee also manages to infuse the characters in her traditional “campy adventure tales” with modern concerns: charismatic Henry combats addiction and depression with the help of his life partner Percy; genius scientist Felicity overcomes sexism and what today we would call Asperger’s Syndrome to win the loyalty and respect of a pirate nation in Algiers; and Adrian, as the third novel begins, is a privileged, well-educated peer with a supportive fiancée who struggles to function despite crippling anxiety and obsessive thoughts. His recently deceased mother and abusive father never told him about his siblings, and the shock of discovering them initiates a journey to locate the legendary Flying Dutchman, the source, Adrian believes, of his mother’s fatal mental illness and the only hope he can imagine of curing his own.
Lee has been praised for her realistic and honest depictions of neuro-atypicality and LGBTQ+ identity in a historical setting, but the novels are also entertaining and full of well-chosen details. Because the narrator of this one is prone to constant self-criticism and frequent self-harm even as he approaches his adventures on the road with an open heart and a liberal mind, some readers who suffer from anxiety may find themselves triggered by the vivid depiction of Adrian’s own obsessive thoughts, while readers who don’t may become impatient with their repetition. But the touching emotional bond formed among the three siblings reflects Lee’s skill in characterization, and the message of the series is ultimately hopeful and healing.
Lee completes her award-winning trilogy about the fascinating upper-class Montague family, whose adventures take them across early 18th-century Europe and beyond. The third volume is told by the youngest Montague, Adrian, last seen as a toddler called the Goblin by his two estranged older siblings. The previous novels were fan and critic favorites due to their breezy, modern dialogue and brilliant, self-aware protagonists. Lee also manages to infuse the characters in her traditional “campy adventure tales” with modern concerns: charismatic Henry combats addiction and depression with the help of his life partner Percy; genius scientist Felicity overcomes sexism and what today we would call Asperger’s Syndrome to win the loyalty and respect of a pirate nation in Algiers; and Adrian, as the third novel begins, is a privileged, well-educated peer with a supportive fiancée who struggles to function despite crippling anxiety and obsessive thoughts. His recently deceased mother and abusive father never told him about his siblings, and the shock of discovering them initiates a journey to locate the legendary Flying Dutchman, the source, Adrian believes, of his mother’s fatal mental illness and the only hope he can imagine of curing his own.
Lee has been praised for her realistic and honest depictions of neuro-atypicality and LGBTQ+ identity in a historical setting, but the novels are also entertaining and full of well-chosen details. Because the narrator of this one is prone to constant self-criticism and frequent self-harm even as he approaches his adventures on the road with an open heart and a liberal mind, some readers who suffer from anxiety may find themselves triggered by the vivid depiction of Adrian’s own obsessive thoughts, while readers who don’t may become impatient with their repetition. But the touching emotional bond formed among the three siblings reflects Lee’s skill in characterization, and the message of the series is ultimately hopeful and healing.
I loved this book. I was able to see myself in Adrian and his struggles with anxiety, and though mine isn't to his level, it was nice seeing myself in a character. The wedding scene was worth 5 stars all on its own and I loved his final letter.
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-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:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
fast-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:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
emotional
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
medium-paced