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A review by s_n_arly
Discord's Apple by Carrie Vaughn
2.0
This is merely an okay book, which is a shame because the story itself had such potential and the author can do much better. Instead of Vaughn's usual more polished work, this feels like a first draft, one that didn't go through a rewrite. It's a short book and I read it in an evening. I would recommend against buying it in hardcover, though for die hard Vaughn fans, it may be worth checking out of the library.
The book ties together the threads of four stories: The Storeroom's history, Evie the heir to the Storeroom, Alex/Sinon's search for a cure to the curse Apollo laid upon him, and Evie's comic book storyline. The book would have been stronger without the comic book bits, which merely took up word count and didn't significantly add to the overall story arc.
The book's primary strength is that it is character driven and I wanted to know what happened to the characters (particularly to Sinon the Achaean). There were also some fun bits involving glass slippers, Merlin and that darn sword in the stone. It also has a realistic portrayal of sexuality in the time of the Trojan war.
Weaknesses include a primary world that I just couldn't believe existed, a weak plot, and a final climax scene that is so sloppy you'll have to read it a few times to have a clue what just happened. It's slow to start and includes a lot of ancillary stuff that isn't useful or important. The ending is only partially satisfying. We lose track of a lot of characters without any explanation.
The book ties together the threads of four stories: The Storeroom's history, Evie the heir to the Storeroom, Alex/Sinon's search for a cure to the curse Apollo laid upon him, and Evie's comic book storyline. The book would have been stronger without the comic book bits, which merely took up word count and didn't significantly add to the overall story arc.
The book's primary strength is that it is character driven and I wanted to know what happened to the characters (particularly to Sinon the Achaean). There were also some fun bits involving glass slippers, Merlin and that darn sword in the stone. It also has a realistic portrayal of sexuality in the time of the Trojan war.
Weaknesses include a primary world that I just couldn't believe existed, a weak plot, and a final climax scene that is so sloppy you'll have to read it a few times to have a clue what just happened. It's slow to start and includes a lot of ancillary stuff that isn't useful or important. The ending is only partially satisfying. We lose track of a lot of characters without any explanation.