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A review by melissasbookshelf
Valour and Vanity by Mary Robinette Kowal
3.0
This was only a 3.5 stars for me. I LOVE this series, but this book took awhile for me to get into.
In this book, Jane and Vincent are traveling in Europe with Jane's sister and new husband and her parents. They separate from the traveling party to go to Murano. Unbelievably they are set upon by Corsair pirates who bash Vincent on the head and steal all their belongings. Jane and Vincent are supposed to stay with Lord Byron, but he is out of town and so they end up staying with one of the passengers. Nothing is quite as it seems in Murano and Jane and Vincent end up having to plan a major operation to thwart the thieves who not only took their money and belongings but their glamour in glass.
This book took forever for the plot to develop and then once it did, it was unclear what the point of all the subterfuge was for. It seemed like a lot of trouble just to try to get the glamour in glass to the French. One of the villains made no sense. It was never explained why this person was a spy. I liked the nuns and Lord Byron. Jane and Vincent who were so enjoyable in previous books were somewhat annoying in this one. Vincent was moody and annoying because he would overtax himself and then get angry because he couldn't do glamour. Jane was constantly on him about this when she wasn't trying to be feminist of the year. It just wasn't as enjoyable as previous books. There was also so much detail that didn't further the plot that somewhat bogged down the story. Once the heist portion of the book started, it became more enjoyable and a quick read. I still love the series and am looking forward to Of Noble Family.
In this book, Jane and Vincent are traveling in Europe with Jane's sister and new husband and her parents. They separate from the traveling party to go to Murano. Unbelievably they are set upon by Corsair pirates who bash Vincent on the head and steal all their belongings. Jane and Vincent are supposed to stay with Lord Byron, but he is out of town and so they end up staying with one of the passengers. Nothing is quite as it seems in Murano and Jane and Vincent end up having to plan a major operation to thwart the thieves who not only took their money and belongings but their glamour in glass.
This book took forever for the plot to develop and then once it did, it was unclear what the point of all the subterfuge was for. It seemed like a lot of trouble just to try to get the glamour in glass to the French. One of the villains made no sense. It was never explained why this person was a spy. I liked the nuns and Lord Byron. Jane and Vincent who were so enjoyable in previous books were somewhat annoying in this one. Vincent was moody and annoying because he would overtax himself and then get angry because he couldn't do glamour. Jane was constantly on him about this when she wasn't trying to be feminist of the year. It just wasn't as enjoyable as previous books. There was also so much detail that didn't further the plot that somewhat bogged down the story. Once the heist portion of the book started, it became more enjoyable and a quick read. I still love the series and am looking forward to Of Noble Family.