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A review by emsee33
The Storyteller by Traci Chee
4.0
In a series that started with the simple tale of a girl discovering the magic of books, The Storyteller concludes, appropriately, as a web of stories as intricate and interwoven as the Illuminated World Sefia inhabits.
I enjoyed the way the books themselves grew in complexity as the world expanded, culminating in some tricky metafiction that earned an ‘Ooh!’ from me. There are some places that feel a bit glossed over in the rush toward the end, but by that point I was swept up in the story just like the characters.
What’s most interesting to me is that while I thoroughly enjoyed this series, I’m not sure how I feel about the two main characters. I don’t dislike them, but I think Chee populated these books with so many fascinating side characters that I became more invested in them. While Sefia and Archer’s struggles with guilt and grief are realistic, they suffer and inflict so much suffering that after awhile it just feels like weight, regardless of the outcome. Now, after the end, I want to read everyone else’s stories.
I enjoyed the way the books themselves grew in complexity as the world expanded, culminating in some tricky metafiction that earned an ‘Ooh!’ from me. There are some places that feel a bit glossed over in the rush toward the end, but by that point I was swept up in the story just like the characters.
What’s most interesting to me is that while I thoroughly enjoyed this series, I’m not sure how I feel about the two main characters. I don’t dislike them, but I think Chee populated these books with so many fascinating side characters that I became more invested in them. While Sefia and Archer’s struggles with guilt and grief are realistic, they suffer and inflict so much suffering that after awhile it just feels like weight, regardless of the outcome. Now, after the end, I want to read everyone else’s stories.