A review by incrediblefran
Maelstrom by Jordan L. Hawk

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No

3.25

The seventh Whyborne & Griffin book, and things are starting to really kick off with the wider plot. Hawk has laid a lot of groundwork in earlier books, and it’s starting to come to fruition here. I enjoy Widdershins as a setting a great deal, and there was a lot of fun payoff in this book. 

For a long while in the early books I wished for some Griffin POV, as it was apparent that Whyborne’s perception of himself was very different from how other people see him. In some respects having Griffin’s viewpoint works well - there’s some additional tension when we can accompany Griffin on his investigations, and it’s particularly effective in showing different sides of Whyborne Senior - but in others it falls down. I don’t think Hawk has made his voice distinctive enough from Whyborne’s, so both POV’s read a little too similarly for my taste. 

The secondary characters, particularly Christine and Persephone, are the highlights of the series for me. This book also did some neat work with Miss Parkhurst, who up until now has been a one-note character. I hope that will continue. 

The final showdowns in W&G books aren’t always my favourite parts of the books, but this one was particularly effective with a complete POV departure. I’m really interested to know how Whyborne’s link with Widdershins is going to develop over the rest of the series. 

These books aren’t Great Literature, but they are extremely good fun and I’m looking forward to getting to the remaining books over the next few weeks.