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A review by kairosdreaming
West by Edith Pattou
2.0
I really enjoyed the first book in this series (East). This one though, while it was well written, I just didn't really see the point of it honestly. Yes, it continued the story of our protagonists, but it also just seemed unnecessary in a way.
West takes place a bit in the future after East, when Rose has settled down into life with her husband and child. Unfortunately, this peace is not to last though. Someone doesn't want to see Rose or her husband happy and will pull out all steps to destroy that happiness.
There's nothing wrong with the characters, although I feel like Bear is still not really fleshed out very much. And there's a bunch of characters to keep track in this one, with their own side stories, and it gets hopelessly mired in some of these without being built out enough to be engaging. For instance, Sib could be her own book, but instead, hints of her life are in this book without it actually ever being explored deeply.
This one doesn't follow a traditional fairy tale like in the first one either, which isn't a problem, but people who are reading based on the first book for that reason may find it surprising. It's its own story, which while it has elements, is not a retelling. Overall, I just felt underwhelmed with this one. It certainly won't turn me off of Pattou's writing, but maybe additional ones in the series if there are more to come.
Review by M. Reynard 2023
Merged review:
I really enjoyed the first book in this series (East). This one though, while it was well written, I just didn't really see the point of it honestly. Yes, it continued the story of our protagonists, but it also just seemed unnecessary in a way.
West takes place a bit in the future after East, when Rose has settled down into life with her husband and child. Unfortunately, this peace is not to last though. Someone doesn't want to see Rose or her husband happy and will pull out all steps to destroy that happiness.
There's nothing wrong with the characters, although I feel like Bear is still not really fleshed out very much. And there's a bunch of characters to keep track in this one, with their own side stories, and it gets hopelessly mired in some of these without being built out enough to be engaging. For instance, Sib could be her own book, but instead, hints of her life are in this book without it actually ever being explored deeply.
This one doesn't follow a traditional fairy tale like in the first one either, which isn't a problem, but people who are reading based on the first book for that reason may find it surprising. It's its own story, which while it has elements, is not a retelling. Overall, I just felt underwhelmed with this one. It certainly won't turn me off of Pattou's writing, but maybe additional ones in the series if there are more to come.
Review by M. Reynard 2023
West takes place a bit in the future after East, when Rose has settled down into life with her husband and child. Unfortunately, this peace is not to last though. Someone doesn't want to see Rose or her husband happy and will pull out all steps to destroy that happiness.
There's nothing wrong with the characters, although I feel like Bear is still not really fleshed out very much. And there's a bunch of characters to keep track in this one, with their own side stories, and it gets hopelessly mired in some of these without being built out enough to be engaging. For instance, Sib could be her own book, but instead, hints of her life are in this book without it actually ever being explored deeply.
This one doesn't follow a traditional fairy tale like in the first one either, which isn't a problem, but people who are reading based on the first book for that reason may find it surprising. It's its own story, which while it has elements, is not a retelling. Overall, I just felt underwhelmed with this one. It certainly won't turn me off of Pattou's writing, but maybe additional ones in the series if there are more to come.
Review by M. Reynard 2023
Merged review:
I really enjoyed the first book in this series (East). This one though, while it was well written, I just didn't really see the point of it honestly. Yes, it continued the story of our protagonists, but it also just seemed unnecessary in a way.
West takes place a bit in the future after East, when Rose has settled down into life with her husband and child. Unfortunately, this peace is not to last though. Someone doesn't want to see Rose or her husband happy and will pull out all steps to destroy that happiness.
There's nothing wrong with the characters, although I feel like Bear is still not really fleshed out very much. And there's a bunch of characters to keep track in this one, with their own side stories, and it gets hopelessly mired in some of these without being built out enough to be engaging. For instance, Sib could be her own book, but instead, hints of her life are in this book without it actually ever being explored deeply.
This one doesn't follow a traditional fairy tale like in the first one either, which isn't a problem, but people who are reading based on the first book for that reason may find it surprising. It's its own story, which while it has elements, is not a retelling. Overall, I just felt underwhelmed with this one. It certainly won't turn me off of Pattou's writing, but maybe additional ones in the series if there are more to come.
Review by M. Reynard 2023