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A review by sparky_young_upstart
The Reader by Traci Chee
5.0
First off: if you're gonna read this book, pay attention to the page numbers - there's a secret message there that I didn't notice until partway through and I had to backtrack.
This book was phenomenal! I loved every moment of it. Normally I try and read books quickly, but I went slowly with this one because this was a story I wanted to savour. This is a book that's a tad difficult to describe to other people. On one level, it's a book about books - what they are, what they can do, what it's like to learn how to read one. But at the same time it's also a very well-written fantasy story, and on another level it's a pirate story. They all mesh and weave together and complement each other very well. I'm a sucker for a well-structured narrative and everything in this one worked perfectly. Everything happened for a reason, and was introduced in exactly the right place to keep the momentum of the story going.
The setting takes some getting used to, and because Sefia spends most of her time on only one of the five islands of Kelanna (the fantasy world where this takes place) we don't get a very broad view of the world. But the chapters focusing on Captain Reed and his crew more than make up for it, giving the broader scope of all the political machinations and wars breaking out behind the scenes that will surely play a large role in the books to come.
The character work is also great. It does take some time to really dive under the surface of Sefia's character, but once she meets Archer and has a companion to interact with things become much more layered. We can see her desire for vengeance and her apprehension about possibly having to kill at the same time, and her mixed feelings about bringing Archer with her really highlight the core of her character - she's always scared of not only losing those she loves, but that it will be her fault if she does so. And what's more interesting is that even though she tries to break free from this mindset, she's still there when the book ends.
Now that, coupled with the fact that there are a few plot threads that are left hanging at the end of the story, normally would have bugged me. But I'm okay with it, partly because I know there are more books coming, and partly because I'm not sure where else the book could have ended. It finishes in places that are emotionally raw and intense, and that makes my already significant desire for the next book grow.
This book was phenomenal! I loved every moment of it. Normally I try and read books quickly, but I went slowly with this one because this was a story I wanted to savour. This is a book that's a tad difficult to describe to other people. On one level, it's a book about books - what they are, what they can do, what it's like to learn how to read one. But at the same time it's also a very well-written fantasy story, and on another level it's a pirate story. They all mesh and weave together and complement each other very well. I'm a sucker for a well-structured narrative and everything in this one worked perfectly. Everything happened for a reason, and was introduced in exactly the right place to keep the momentum of the story going.
The setting takes some getting used to, and because Sefia spends most of her time on only one of the five islands of Kelanna (the fantasy world where this takes place) we don't get a very broad view of the world. But the chapters focusing on Captain Reed and his crew more than make up for it, giving the broader scope of all the political machinations and wars breaking out behind the scenes that will surely play a large role in the books to come.
The character work is also great. It does take some time to really dive under the surface of Sefia's character, but once she meets Archer and has a companion to interact with things become much more layered. We can see her desire for vengeance and her apprehension about possibly having to kill at the same time, and her mixed feelings about bringing Archer with her really highlight the core of her character - she's always scared of not only losing those she loves, but that it will be her fault if she does so. And what's more interesting is that even though she tries to break free from this mindset, she's still there when the book ends.
Now that, coupled with the fact that there are a few plot threads that are left hanging at the end of the story, normally would have bugged me. But I'm okay with it, partly because I know there are more books coming, and partly because I'm not sure where else the book could have ended. It finishes in places that are emotionally raw and intense, and that makes my already significant desire for the next book grow.