A solid book, decent by the standards of a lot of writers but not my favorite entry in the Beagle bibliography. Which feels weird to say, because I loA solid book, decent by the standards of a lot of writers but not my favorite entry in the Beagle bibliography. Which feels weird to say, because I love Beagle's work, and two of his novels (The Last Unicorn and The Innkeeper's Song) are in my list of All Time Favorites. But despite the interesting premise and thoughtfully-created characters, and an abundance of dragons (always a plus in my book), the writing itself left a little to be desired. There were times it was unclear, or relied too heavily on an abundance of adverbs, or tonally inconsistent. The villain seemed to come out of nowhere. And the fact that the title suggested a more comic approach made the sudden dive into shocking, traumatizing violence created a tonal clash I couldn't quite resolve. Overall, it felt like this book needed one more edit/polish to really smooth over some of the kinks.
Still, I liked the world and plot and characters! And the book definitely kept me reading to find out what happened next, so clearly Beagle was doing something right....more
A lovely story with some poignant writing in it. When I first picked this up, I thought it would be like many "humans bonded to magical animals that tA lovely story with some poignant writing in it. When I first picked this up, I thought it would be like many "humans bonded to magical animals that they ride" stories, but instead it was much more like falconing - except the "falcon" in this case is larger than a person. And no matter how well trained, there is no magical bond that holds the roc to its trainer. Zahra is first and foremost a wild animal, a force of nature that can never be fully owned or mastered, and Ester knows this. Still, Ester loves her "with the gravity of a stone sinking into a pool" (a line which shook me when I read it and absolutely set the tone for the entire story).
It's an excellent character study of a book, exploring what it means to love something that will never love you back....more
So, I came at this from an interesting place: I'd read the original Seraphina, many many years ago, long enough to have forgotten much of it. I never So, I came at this from an interesting place: I'd read the original Seraphina, many many years ago, long enough to have forgotten much of it. I never got around to reading the sequel. I had assumed that this was an unrelated story set in the same world, a prequel perhaps, so I'd thought that having skipped a book wouldn't be an issue. Turns out, it's a sequel series so perhaps I should go back and read book 2!
That being said, the book--like its protagonist--is doing its own thing, even if it's coming hot off the heels of the book I skipped. There were some places where I was a little confused, but less than I'd feared. All you really need to know to understand Tess's journey, the emotional core of it, is in the book itself. And it is a very strong core. Hartman writes an emotionally nuanced and complex story with care and thoughtfulness. I admit I struggled at the beginning, because Tess's headspace was so bad that she acted spiteful, cruel, petty, and stupid. Not necessarily something I enjoy reading, so it was hard to empathize with her. But once she really started growing as a character, the story grew on me. I enjoyed watching how each encounter on the road shaped her and helped her grow. I appreciated what the book had to say about life and the nature of personal journeys. I loved many of the characters we met along the road, and I'm excited to see where this is going....more
A sweet, gentle story from K. O'Neill. I love diving into O'Neill's worlds, which are delightfully populated by whimsical animal people and engaging, A sweet, gentle story from K. O'Neill. I love diving into O'Neill's worlds, which are delightfully populated by whimsical animal people and engaging, lovingly-drawn lore....more
A sweet, lovely, and chill book. As the back cover proclaims, it's "High Fantasy and Low Stakes." Sometimes all you want is a Coffee Shop AU-style booA sweet, lovely, and chill book. As the back cover proclaims, it's "High Fantasy and Low Stakes." Sometimes all you want is a Coffee Shop AU-style book, and this delivers exactly that....more
With Nona the Ninth, the Locked Tomb series continues to be the most annoying book series I can't put down. It compels me despite its many frustrationWith Nona the Ninth, the Locked Tomb series continues to be the most annoying book series I can't put down. It compels me despite its many frustrations, and I continue to look forward to each new installment just to see what happens after the train crashes into the canyon and the smoke finally clears.
I was a little wary going into this one, because the impression I got (which may have been inaccurate) was that reader responses were mixed and hinged largely on whether you found Nona, the main character, annoying. I didn't find her annoying in the least. I found it kind of soft and refreshing to see this little domestic world she lived in, even as I was terrified of how it was all going to end. I loved all the characters we got to meet, I loved the time we got to spend with Cam and Palamedes and Pyrrah, I loved Nona's innocent viewpoint on a very dark and complex world, I loved her determination to love people even when she worried she didn't know what that word actually meant. Which, weirdly enough, is pretty good proof that she did.
The story was not without its frustrations. Nona's perspective meant that we only got fragments of the larger picture. So as with previous books, there's a lot put on the reader to fit things together. (view spoiler)[And how/why exactly Nona and Harrow and even Gideon ended up where they were is never fully explained, and I fear that might remain a mystery. How did the emperor get Gideon's body from BoE? Were the John segments dreams or a River bubble or something else? Why did John keep talking to Harrow as if she was both Harrow and Alecto? And Gideon's apparent face-heel turn was surprising, and I kinda wish we had a little more insight into how she got to this point. Even if we can surmise a lot, it still would have been interesting to explore. (hide spoiler)] But as with a lot of elements in this series, we're left to fill in a lot of blanks.
Still, there was a lot here that I enjoyed--like, ninety percent of it. John's backstory and the insights into his character were fascinating in the way a slow-moving 50-car pileup is fascinating, full of anticipatory horror and mass death. And the relationship between Camilla and Palamedes wrung my heart. And of course, the silly memes and jokes continue to delight me.
Looking forward to Book Four, and the end of this journey....more
So, I completely understand. This book asks a lot of its readers: a lot of patience, a lot of attention, a willingness to spend much of the book not kSo, I completely understand. This book asks a lot of its readers: a lot of patience, a lot of attention, a willingness to spend much of the book not knowing what the heck is going on, and a high tolerance for Harrow--whose personality is best described as a sad, spiteful goblin and whose life is so unrelentingly tragic and grief-stricken that it strains credulity. She's got one foot in grimdark edgelord territory and the other foot in wangst, and a third skeletal foot stuck in the mental trauma/unreliable narrator bucket, and this unsteady clattering tripod is the one you're holding onto as she flails gracelessly through the story and keeps running into walls.
So really, you have to ask yourself: are you invested enough in the characters and this world and this plot that you're willing to wade into these dark, churning waters? Are you willing to trust the author who killed off the best character at the end of book 1? Do you enjoy goofy meme references in your gothic mystery sci-fi?
I know the only reason I was willing to pick this book up after the first book's ending left a sour taste in my mouth, was because I was spoiled and knew (view spoiler)[Gideon was coming back (hide spoiler)]. I spent the whole book waiting for that. But the fact that I sucked down this book in short order tells me I must be pretty dang invested. Despite Harrow's unpleasantness, she was surrounded by some really interesting characters, including several who were introduced in the first book and really had some time to shine here. And the dynamics between the God-Emperor and his Lyctors was fascinating. This is a found family who's had 10,000 years to stew in their own petty dramas and power plays, and Muir really captured that. And some of the payoffs in the last 100 pages were pretty epic.
Was this book frustrating and slow at parts? Yes. Did its river full of rotting bodies go way past my usual tolerance for gore? Definitely. Will I be picking up the next book? Heck yeah. I am in this for the ride....more
Sweet, funny, charming, with lovely art/design. As a veteran gamer who's dealt with more than her fair share of tabletop drama, this story definitely Sweet, funny, charming, with lovely art/design. As a veteran gamer who's dealt with more than her fair share of tabletop drama, this story definitely hit hard at some points. Definitely recommended, if you like tabletop gaming and enjoy stories about friendship, drama, and fantasy adventure!...more
The final book of this trilogy didn't disappoint. It was a pretty strong look at how idealism and moral clarity run up against ignorance, entrenched sThe final book of this trilogy didn't disappoint. It was a pretty strong look at how idealism and moral clarity run up against ignorance, entrenched systems of power, and just...people being people. And the ending was satisfying, even if not everyone got exactly what they deserved or hoped for.
Still...I will say this. I've been struggling to get back into reading, after the pandemic really slowed down my reading rate (which was never very fast to begin with). I just found it hard to immerse myself in long-form fiction. I finally felt ready to make more time for reading in my life, and this trilogy was one of the first stories I started reading this year. And it was just so compelling and enjoyable and un-put-downable that I just...feel like a part of myself has finally come back. That alone gives this trilogy a special place on my shelf. Is it for everyone? Probably not. It's got quite a bit more gore than I usually enjoy, and the book's voice is very monologue-y. But it worked for me, and I guess it was exactly what I needed!...more
An amazing sequel to the first book, which kept me engaged and reading for hours on end. With every twist and turn, I fell more in love with the charaAn amazing sequel to the first book, which kept me engaged and reading for hours on end. With every twist and turn, I fell more in love with the characters, with El's cleverness and the bond she has with her friends. The ending was such a cliffhanger gut-punch that I literally ran out the very next day to buy the final book and keep reading....more
So I might have been slightly biased, as The Eleventh Hour was my favorite Balance arc, but this was the best installment of the graphic novels so farSo I might have been slightly biased, as The Eleventh Hour was my favorite Balance arc, but this was the best installment of the graphic novels so far. The one nitpick I had about earlier installments--rushed pacing, crowded page compositions that didn't give the story time to breathe--are not a problem here. This was the thickest volume so far, and they spent 9 more months on it than in previous installments, and it shows. In addition to the colorful characters and the subtle sight-gags that made previous volumes so charming, this volume gives the story the visual space it needs to really shine. Which is important, since we get some really focused attention on character building in this arc. Definitely recommended!...more
Got an ARC a few years ago. Ink is a fairly 'meh' YA novel which suffers from a paint-by-numbers setup, unclear world-building, a somewhat squicky preGot an ARC a few years ago. Ink is a fairly 'meh' YA novel which suffers from a paint-by-numbers setup, unclear world-building, a somewhat squicky premise, and a protagonist who makes baffling choices that brought me perilously close to chucking the book at the wall. Which is a shame, because a lot of this stuff would have been exactly my jam. I love stories about the importance of stories, and the idea of a society built around tattooing your life story on your skin is, well...kinda cool. But this was a definite fumble....more
Third book in the Wayward Children series. Solid, but my least favorite so far. I (mostly) enjoyed the setup of "group of oddball kids on a quest". AnThird book in the Wayward Children series. Solid, but my least favorite so far. I (mostly) enjoyed the setup of "group of oddball kids on a quest". And I get that McGuire wants to have a diverse cast who all have reasons for not fitting in with this world. But the handling of their respective difficult backstories felt like awkward and stilted info-drops that dragged the story to a halt, rather than a natural flow of conversation of characters getting to understand & appreciate each other better. At the slightest provocation, any one of them could start a speech about how they were bullied and excluded. Between that, some heavy-handed and sometimes excessive world-building explanations and narratorial musings, and a princess-in-distress who was more grating than quirky, I found the book less immersive and interesting than its predecessors.
I still enjoy the premise of the series, and feel like there's a lot of interesting concepts to explore. I might pick up the next one to see if I like it better....more
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