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3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I was excited about this one, and the premise was interesting, and the plot was good...and then crappy writing let me down. The narrator is of the obnoxious omniscient kind, where we can see into everyone's thoughts and feelings at all times. Once I noticed, I couldn't stop noticing: in dialog, it's ALWAYS "Gee said" or "Piper asked" or "Anna explained" (name/pronoun followed by verb), and NEVER "said Gee," "asked Piper," "explained Anna" (verb followed by name/pronoun) which really makes the text feel choppy and stilted -- you see an end quotation mark and subconsciously brace yourself for the name or pronoun, instead of reading fluidly through.
I thought there was too much love interest going on for thirteen year olds, but maybe that's just me. I also saw Anna's secret coming from about the halfway point.
I wanted more backstory on the meteors/window between worlds, but I'm not engrossed enough to read on in the series to get those answers.
A solidly okay steampunk read.
I thought there was too much love interest going on for thirteen year olds, but maybe that's just me. I also saw Anna's secret coming from about the halfway point.
I wanted more backstory on the meteors/window between worlds, but I'm not engrossed enough to read on in the series to get those answers.
A solidly okay steampunk read.
A steampunk sci-fi fantasy adventure for middle schoolers that features a strong, young, female machinist; toxic star dust; a heroic gargoyleish shape-shifter; epic train travel; loyal friends and found family? Yes, please! Fantastically imaginative and fast-paced, this first book set in the Kingdom of Merrow and the Dragonfly Territories will have young readers looking for more adventures from the world of Solace (thankfully there are two more to discover)!
Topics, tropes, and themes:authoritarianism, socioeconomics, industrialization, ecology, found family, bigotry, loyalty, sentience, slavery, telekinesis, magic, community
Content notes:death of a family member (backstory), poverty, blood and injury, gun violence, fantasy violence, kidnapping, slavery, scientific experiments on sentient beings, strip mining, colonialism, tattoo
Topics, tropes, and themes:authoritarianism, socioeconomics, industrialization, ecology, found family, bigotry, loyalty, sentience, slavery, telekinesis, magic, community
Content notes:death of a family member (backstory), poverty, blood and injury, gun violence, fantasy violence, kidnapping, slavery, scientific experiments on sentient beings, strip mining, colonialism, tattoo
I loved the worldbuilding in this book (steampunk! artifacts!) but didn't find the character development engaging. Piper's emotions and thoughts felt much too simplistic, and the relationships, though cute, were similarly facile. As far as middle-grade books go, it's good.
Reminds me of:
Deeplight (Frances Hardinge; artifacts, middle-grade, family of choice)
Made in Abyss (Akihito Tsukushi; artifacts, orphans, cyborgs)
Reminds me of:
Deeplight (Frances Hardinge; artifacts, middle-grade, family of choice)
Made in Abyss (Akihito Tsukushi; artifacts, orphans, cyborgs)
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
Age Rating: 10+
My sister has been bugging me to read this :)
- I loved the characters. Piper was a great main character. She only made a few dumb decisions, which was good. I loved Anna. She was very sweet and I thought her and Piper's friendship was very well-developed. Gee, despite his odd name, was a cool character.
- I liked the 401 crew's relationship. It was very cute.
- I also loved how interesting the world is.
- I thought that the character-doesn't-remember-anything-about-themselves was handled really well.
- The plot was very engaging. I was hooked from the beginning! There were so many twists and turns.
- The villain was good. He had a believable motivation and he was actually a threat.
- I can't wait to read more of the series :)
Steampunk - Found family - Rich worldbuilding
My sister has been bugging me to read this :)
- I loved the characters. Piper was a great main character. She only made a few dumb decisions, which was good. I loved Anna. She was very sweet and I thought her and Piper's friendship was very well-developed. Gee, despite his odd name, was a cool character.
- I liked the 401 crew's relationship. It was very cute.
- I also loved how interesting the world is.
- I thought that the character-doesn't-remember-anything-about-themselves was handled really well.
- The plot was very engaging. I was hooked from the beginning! There were so many twists and turns.
- The villain was good. He had a believable motivation and he was actually a threat.
- I can't wait to read more of the series :)
Steampunk - Found family - Rich worldbuilding
I love it when stories have traditional elements but add a twist at the end. Piper is a scraper living a hand to mouth existence in outpost 16. Good with machinery her luck begins to change when she rescues a girl in a meteor storm. What follows is an adventurous tale of dueling interest and friendship.
Graded By: Amanda R.
Cover Story: Percy Jackson Hotness
BFF Charm: Platinum Edition
Swoonworthy Scale: 5
Talky Talk: Straight Up: Firefly Edition
Bonus Factors: Changelings, Steampunk
Relationship Status: All Aboard
Read the full book report here.
Cover Story: Percy Jackson Hotness
BFF Charm: Platinum Edition
Swoonworthy Scale: 5
Talky Talk: Straight Up: Firefly Edition
Bonus Factors: Changelings, Steampunk
Relationship Status: All Aboard
Read the full book report here.
I loved this book so much! The world was so interesting, I cared about the characters, and there was action, adventure, magic, mystery, and suspense. My only issue was that the main characters acted and talked much older than the book said they were (13), so I imagined them as 16-18 and that seemed to make more sense. I'm very excited to read the rest of the series!
Slow read for me. Great initial world building, but it fell off as the book progressed. Also, the love interest seemed unnecessary with the age of characters and the intended audience.