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A review by doogsley
The Missing of Clairdelune by Christelle Dabos
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
brilliant, ghibli levels of impressive worldbuilding with meh execution.
i'm still not convinced by ophelia's character. there's only so many times i can witness her bottling up her feelings/thoughts only to explode about it later, which Shocks her every time for some reason. for someone who spends so much time in her head, she holds a distinct lack of self-awareness re: her emotional threshold.
the cast as a whole is Okay. unfortunately no stand-outs despite having such a large cast. ophelia's great-uncle needs more screentime. archibald is probably my favorite side chara? but i feel like there's a Cooler Archibald in other stories i've read, since he's so delightfully trope-y. hmm!
my biggest storytelling complaint is dialogue NEEDS to stop being the vehicle for revealing plot. bruh. maybe i'm metaphorpilled rn but it feels so awkward/lazy to constantly be spoon-fed huge story beats through a person (usually a stranger) Revealing Secrets to ophelia. or her overhearing a conversation while hiding her mousy self in a corner. like let's get a lil whimsical!!
the main thing keeping me excited to read the next book: the world and magic is fucking awesome. i really really love the god storyline, the caste drama, all of the ethereal powers, post-apocalyptic floating sky islands and their individual societies... the cliffhanger for this book hooked me too, i fear. i just wish that the writing/storyboarding could match up to the dope fantasy vibes. nonetheless, i'll be starting book 3 tonight lol. this series has gotta have a natal mercury rx.
i'm still not convinced by ophelia's character. there's only so many times i can witness her bottling up her feelings/thoughts only to explode about it later, which Shocks her every time for some reason. for someone who spends so much time in her head, she holds a distinct lack of self-awareness re: her emotional threshold.
the cast as a whole is Okay. unfortunately no stand-outs despite having such a large cast. ophelia's great-uncle needs more screentime. archibald is probably my favorite side chara? but i feel like there's a Cooler Archibald in other stories i've read, since he's so delightfully trope-y. hmm!
my biggest storytelling complaint is dialogue NEEDS to stop being the vehicle for revealing plot. bruh. maybe i'm metaphorpilled rn but it feels so awkward/lazy to constantly be spoon-fed huge story beats through a person (usually a stranger) Revealing Secrets to ophelia. or her overhearing a conversation while hiding her mousy self in a corner. like let's get a lil whimsical!!
the main thing keeping me excited to read the next book: the world and magic is fucking awesome. i really really love the god storyline, the caste drama, all of the ethereal powers, post-apocalyptic floating sky islands and their individual societies... the cliffhanger for this book hooked me too, i fear. i just wish that the writing/storyboarding could match up to the dope fantasy vibes. nonetheless, i'll be starting book 3 tonight lol. this series has gotta have a natal mercury rx.