3.5 stars. I think your enthusiasm level for this sequel will be directly tied to how much you liked Carlston in the first book. I just wasn't his big3.5 stars. I think your enthusiasm level for this sequel will be directly tied to how much you liked Carlston in the first book. I just wasn't his biggest fan and kept waiting for Selburn to show up here (while also weirdly hoping he turns out to be the Grand Deceiver? It works).
If you don't remember the first book very well, this one sums up a lot of the basics when Helen explains the world to Delia:
"The Compact is our agreement with the Deceivers. It allows the creatures to feed upon human energy by skimming a tiny amount from many people. It is not their preferred way of feeding, of course; they would much rather glut upon the energy of one person at a time... glutting, you see, almost always kills the victim, and the influx of their life force allows the creatures to build the energy whips they use as weapons." "Oh my," Delia breathed. "Stolen bodies, energy whips, feeding upon human energy. It is all so... gothic."
"Part of the Compact requires them to maintain their anonymity. There are too many of them to destroy, and so we must live alongside them. We cannot, however, have their existence known... the panic would rip apart society."
The Dark Days Club isn't convinced that Carlston is loyal or stable after absorbing so much of the energy that would cause him to go mad, so Helen must serve them instead of serving Carlston. And if she informs him of her assignment she'll have committed high treason. A good part of the story is her trying to retrieve Benchley's journal, usually dressed as a guy. She still has super speed & strength, the ability to heal, and better senses because she's a direct inheritor of her powers.
A few parts of this series are just a bit weird to me sometimes, but I do like it overall! And it really does have one of the best historical settings I've found. I'm not sure if Alison Goodman time traveled or just really knows her stuff, but all of the details are incredible. So I do like most of the characters and where the plot is heading... but a lot of my attention got lost in the first half. The second half really picked up and had an exciting finish, though!
I'd recommend this series if you liked The Infernal Devices, These Vicious Masks, or any other historical stories with demon hunting!
Thank you to the publisher for sending me an ARC! The quotes above were taken from an ARC and are subject to change upon release....more
1.5 stars. Nope nope nope. That turned into an infuriating mess.
The story starts with Alexander and Tatiana raising their son in America. Alexander w1.5 stars. Nope nope nope. That turned into an infuriating mess.
The story starts with Alexander and Tatiana raising their son in America. Alexander won't really talk to his wife or look at her... they're just living together and everyone's resentful and miserable. He says everything in their current life reminds him of the life she built while she thought he was dead. Nothing is ever enough and it's incredibly depressing to read.
Alexander feels like a failure, so Tatiana spends most of the story desperately trying to get him back. He says he survived so that she could "save" him, but he's certainly not making it easy. Both of them believe the other is gone and neither can escape the past. Alexander says Lazarevo was fake and that they still live like "homeless and abandoned" people with one pot because they can't move on. So... they go on a road trip. Alexander has to debrief stuff with the government. More drama ensues. There are whole chunks of the book that focus on Tatiana's dead siblings. But the main drama is them trying to salvage their marriage and create a future.
NOW FOR THE PART THAT IS NOT OK. Alexander turns completely abusive. Like he had a temper and was scary and punching things and hurting her in previous books, but this is just absurd and not even excusable at this point. He uses his physical strength to get his way, hides her from his friends, blames his actions on alcohol, and then tells Tatiana half truths and guilts her when she says her friends saw him disappear into a room with a naked woman.
A few chapters later Alexander cheats on her with some other woman. That woman calls looking for him, so Tatiana confronts him and Alexander goes to rage at the woman like a total ass. That woman's husband finds out she's pregnant and the woman claims it's Alexander's. Tatiana breaks some plates and cuts her hair off and is justifiably upset. But Alexander finds a way to still yell at Tatiana over this and blame her?! His response is "well, at least SOMEONE around here is pregnant" and then he hits her so hard across the face she falls over and he keeps coming after her until their poor son intervenes. Alexander has completely turned into his father at this point: he shoves his son away while he beats the mother.
Alexander is all bitter, saying he thought and hoped that Tatiana would never find out. She tells him she's pregnant and had made a nice dinner to tell him this while he was off with the other woman. He HAS THE NERVE to say that Tatiana had no right to incite him when she's pregnant and doesn't she have the "slightest sense to protect herself" from him.
I cannot take this BS any longer. Their relationship is so completely unhealthy in every way that it makes me actually nauseated to read.
Anyways, somehow their marriage improves because they're having a kid now. (Who cares about that poor other ignored child they already have). Some truly weird stuff with Vietnam ensues. I do not care. I am completely over this "romance." If the Dasha stuff in the first book made you mad, maybe skip this final book....more
3.5 stars - I wasn't as into this book as much as The Bronze Horseman, but it was still good! The middle kind of drags, but obviously if you made it t3.5 stars - I wasn't as into this book as much as The Bronze Horseman, but it was still good! The middle kind of drags, but obviously if you made it that far you need to see them reunited and the end is worth it. This is still one of the better WWII stories I've found!
Alexander's POV alternated between his childhood move to Russia and his current miserable suicide mission. A lot of scenes from The Bronze Horseman were told again through his perspective. I liked him way more in this book! He's a lot nicer seen through his own eyes. His battle scenes were pretty intense, but I still found myself wanting them to hurry up so he could maybe possibly SOMEDAY be reunited with Tatiana.
But I absolutely loved Tatiana's story in New York! She's grown so much from the naive girl she was at the beginning of the first book. She's trying to raise her son, work, and navigate an entirely foreign culture. Her clueless American friend Vikki's "issues" were a great contrast to show the hell that Tatiana's been through. I really wish there had been more to this side of the story, though. It felt like it just glossed over most bits here and there, yet it was by far the most interesting part of the book.
So obviously Tatiana figures out Alexander's message to her from the end of the first book and then goes off on some crazy mission to rescue him from a concentration camp. What she does is incredible and the end was super intense. I loved the scene where they meet, but then they quickly got on my nerves like they did occasionally in the first book. Again, all they can do is argue and have sex. I mean, they're on the run from freaking Nazis with dogs and what sounds like half of Russia... priorities, people.
The ending was sweet, but really sudden. So I'm hoping that after all of the stress of this book they can actually BE together in the next one (and maybe now Alexander can chill with the anger issues). They've survived some pretty horrible situations and deserve a few days of peace.
The main thing I got from this story: if I ever have a time machine, I'm avoiding 20th century Russia like mad... ...more
It's nonfiction written like fiction, which made it super fascinating to read! This book covers all of the details of what life would be like in medieIt's nonfiction written like fiction, which made it super fascinating to read! This book covers all of the details of what life would be like in medieval England, except it walks you through each section like you're really there experiencing it. There were some really amazing facts and I actually learned a lot (like what types of squirrels were present at this time). If you're interested in this time period and don't want to read yet another dry nonfiction book, check this out! ...more
I CANNOT EXPLAIN HOW MUCH I LOVE THIS BOOK. I was expecting semi-serious historical fiction, but it's more like the Monty Python version of the dramaI CANNOT EXPLAIN HOW MUCH I LOVE THIS BOOK. I was expecting semi-serious historical fiction, but it's more like the Monty Python version of the drama between Henry VIII's kids.
I don't want to ruin any of the plot, so I'll just say this book is hilarious. Basically, the story starts out adding its own twist on history, but then ends up chucking history out the window and rewriting a happier ending for King Edward VI, Lady Jane Grey, and Lord Guildford Dudley. All of the familiar faces like Elizabeth I, Bloody Mary, and Mary Queen of Scots are featured. And the new ending could totally still fit in with actual history.
There were SO many hilarious references and actual lines pulled straight out of Monty Python and The Princess Bride. And Gifford's character kept coming up with a ton of Shakespeare's future lines.
The way everything fit together was so incredibly clever. The romance and action were even well done... I have zero complaints. I would 100% read this kind of story for every executed monarch throughout history. I really want one for Marie Antoinette!
Side note: whether or not you'll adore this book really depends on your sense of humor. I think Monty Python's funny, though, so I loved it! It's just a really lighthearted, silly read....more
3.5 stars. This is definitely my favorite Cassandra Clare book I've read so far. I kind of wish I had read these books before TMI because they're way3.5 stars. This is definitely my favorite Cassandra Clare book I've read so far. I kind of wish I had read these books before TMI because they're way more interesting.
I absolutely love this time period! I was a little annoyed in Clockwork Angel because Jessamine irritated me and Will reminded me so much of Jace (and everyone knows how much I couldn't stand that guy). So it was fun to see that both of those issues were cleared up a lot here. BUT Will still did that whole "I love you but I have to act like a jerk and push you away because of reasons" thing that gets super old.
I'm not the biggest fan of the writing and thought the book dragged the whole way through. I've found with all of Cassandra Clare's books that you can skip an entire page or two and not miss anything. There's just a lot of filler. It felt like not too much happened in this book, but I was actually ok with that because I loved most characters and the setting. I JUST LOVE JEM SO MUCH.
But oh my goodness I cannot stand the way this particular love triangle is being carried out right now!! I took off a full star just out of sheer annoyance at that. It was ok and emotional at first, but when Tessa kept stringing these guys along and kissing the other one every other scene I started to get super exasperated. If she would actually take action instead of letting everything happen to her, I'd like her more.
So it was kind of slow overall, but I do love Jem and Will and Sophie! It was fun to see Magnus again too. This book reminded me a lot of The Dark Days Club, so I'm throwing that out there as a recommendation!...more
2.5 stars. Romeo & Juliet meets Indiana Jones is a pretty accurate description!
The story itself is pretty unique - Samuel and Rachel's fathers ar2.5 stars. Romeo & Juliet meets Indiana Jones is a pretty accurate description!
The story itself is pretty unique - Samuel and Rachel's fathers are both trying to discover the same dinosaur in the Wild West. Their feuding fathers ask them to spy on each other at first, but the kids fall in love. It took me a bit to place exactly when this story was taking place, but I figured it out once they hopped on a Union Pacific train and had soldiers protect them from Indians...
As far as the characters go, Rachel was super hard to relate to and almost didn't feel human. I liked that she was plain and into science, but I'm just tired of seeing every smart girl turn into some emotionless robot without a romantic bone in their bodies. "She was like a fortress. Nothing could hurt her." Sometimes she came across as a believable autistic character (I'm not sure if that was intentional though), but other times she was just...I don't know, completely unrealistic. So that was hard to get past. But Samuel was a pretty average clueless teen guy and his character worked.
I was loving the setting and the adventure of the story, but the last 30% got pretty weird. This story has the tone of a fun middle grade book, but then managed to stick in the absolute most awkward sex scenes I've ever cringed at. So that was a weird choice.
I really don't know what to make of this book. The first half was fun, but I'm not really sure I even liked it by the end. It's still a fun concept and the writing is fine, so I think middle school guys might be the perfect target audience?
Thank you to the publisher for sending me a review copy!
I think I would've liked The Infernal Devices WAY more if I had read this series before The Mortal Instruments. The last 3 books in TMI weren't the grI think I would've liked The Infernal Devices WAY more if I had read this series before The Mortal Instruments. The last 3 books in TMI weren't the greatest and I'm still trying to recover from those. Maybe I should take a break right now before reading anything else by Cassandra Clare...
I absolutely loved the world this book was set in, but something about the characters irritated me a bit. I know they had reasons for not adhering to their time period's social norms, but Jessamine seemed too much like Isabelle and Will still reminded me too much of Jace (and you know how much I never want to read about him again).
It was fun seeing familiar characters like Magnus & Camille in a different time. I liked the steampunk elements. And the writing is better than it was in TMI! I would definitely recommend reading this series first.
I'm going to take a break from any Shadowhunter books for a few months and then come back to this series when I can give these books a fair shot on their own without forcing them to be in the shadow of my annoyance at TMI's ending. I really do think this was a fun story on its own and I would normally like it more!!!...more
1.5 stars. I definitely don't feel like I read the same book as all of the other 5 star reviews.
I thought this was pretty bland & dull overall...1.5 stars. I definitely don't feel like I read the same book as all of the other 5 star reviews.
I thought this was pretty bland & dull overall... the writing was super hard to connect with, didn't flow well, and had a somewhat juvenile/simplistic tone that was almost painful to sit through at times. I was even bored during the action scenes.
I also felt like I was a constant observer of some flat characters instead of immersed in any story. DNF at 50% although I stopped caring at 5%. It mostly felt like poorly executed Jane Austen fanfiction.
But a lot of other people loved this book, so it's probably just me!...more
This was a really neat anthology of historical fiction stories by some of my favorite YA authors! I just loved the idea of such a wide variety of stroThis was a really neat anthology of historical fiction stories by some of my favorite YA authors! I just loved the idea of such a wide variety of strong heroines and settings. My favorite short story was definitely Marie Lu's one about an Inuit girl! They were all pretty well done, though, and 4 stars was the average of all of the stories put together. Most of these could easily be full novels and/or awesome movies! ...more
I'm not sure why there are so many time travel books based in Scotland. Pretty sure I need to start roaming the highlands (but with a backpack full ofI'm not sure why there are so many time travel books based in Scotland. Pretty sure I need to start roaming the highlands (but with a backpack full of antibiotics and/or something to cut a fever because I PLAN AHEAD, CHILDREN). Anyways, I could probably write both a 2-star and a 5-star review. So let me now write you an essay in the hope that I decide on a rating sometime in here:
What I *think* was the plot: Hope is a girl who has a lot of anxieties, so her mom kept her out of the loop about her time traveling. When her mom goes missing (presumed dead), Hope goes to Scotland for the summer to stay with her aunt. The Scottish manor has an underground passage into a mountain in the highlands where a bunch of ley lines intersect, making time travel possible if they carry a stone. Hope meets a hot guy out on the highlands, learns there's another group of evil time travelers after some super-power stone, and then decides to travel back in time to the Middle Ages with two other teens to rescue her missing mother. Then... I'm not even sure what the focus of the story was. Not the mother. Not the other teens or evil time travelers. Not really the super stone. It might have been instalove + Eleanor of Aquitaine is awesome + religious persecution + BETRAYAL.
So the premise was fun and the writing was good, but the actual storyline itself was all over the place. This book's biggest problem is it tried to do too much and cover way too much, so it could never get very complex. I seriously felt like was getting whiplash at times as I tried to figure out what the focus of the story was (beyond the incredibly predictable plot points).
Exhibit A: When Hope gets to the Middle Ages, she wanders off and runs into Rachel, a Jewish girl who is incredibly persecuted for her religion. After several chapters, the story started to feel like it was going to be about religious divides or how much Rachel's life sucks, which would have been fine if she was going to show up in the sequel or somehow matter to the story... but no. She's suddenly gone from the plot a few hundred pages later. None of it particularly mattered.
But then Rachel ended up being a way more developed character than even Collum and Phoebe, the two teens Hope is traveling with. Phoebe was super fun at the beginning, but apparently lost her personality in the time travel portal thing. I could barely get a sense of Collum -- I'm not sure if there was meant to be a love triangle there or what was up with his constant controlling, glaring weirdness, but that was all we really get from him. Even the soldiers who kept trying to rape the girls had more of a personality. (And don't get me started on the hilarious Middle Ages dialogue).
Historical side characters like Thomas Becket and Eleanor of Aquitaine were the strongest characters in the whole book but the plot didn't really follow them because they don't matter in the end. Even the mom and the villain were weak, confusing characters who popped in and out of the story. The group of evil time travelers were never very threatening and way more could be done with them (kind of like that Timeline movie).
Hang on, lemme get a few more complaints out: Hope is definitely not my favorite main character... she has no clue how beautiful she is and, of course, is not one of those slutty size 2 blond cheerleaders with big boobs. (This part of her personality thankfully disappeared after a few chapters as the book meandered in a different direction). She still isn't the brightest bulb, despite having an almost Sherlock-like ability to glance at a book once and forever be able to recall every single thing it said. The instalove with Bran wasn't as unfounded as it seemed, but I still found myself rolling my eyes a lot at the forced, intense romance that developed so quickly. And his "plot twist" was obvious from the very beginning. And honestly, if you're planning to time travel to the extent that you have an underground lair full of costumes, WHY ARE YOU NOT BRINGING ANTIBIOTICS WITH YOU.
Ok I've decided I'm giving this book 3.5 stars. I love Scotland. I love the Middle Ages. Time travel is awesome. The setting and first 25% of this book were good and the writing saved it. I know I just complained forever about it, but I really did like it more than hate it. If you don't take this book too seriously or hope for any substantial plot then it's a fun, quick read. Definitely not the best Scottish/Middle Ages time travel book (I can't believe I'm saying that like it's some genre), but it's a solid YA book. Just don't compare it to like Outlander or anything.
Hopefully the sequel develops stronger characters and a better focus because there's a ton of potential there!
Never have I ever related more to a fictional character than Anne. This is just the most adorable, heartwarming book ever and I honestly don't think INever have I ever related more to a fictional character than Anne. This is just the most adorable, heartwarming book ever and I honestly don't think I ever read it before this week! I have the movies practically memorized and they follow the books perfectly, so there was nothing terribly new in this story. The only obvious difference was that Gilbert isn't in the book as much.
But seeing Anne ramble on and on for pages more than made up for that. I just have to stick some of my favorite quotes in here:
"When people mean to be good to you, you don't mind very much when they're not quite–always."
"One can't stay sad very long in such an interesting world, can one?"
"Isn't it a wonderful morning? The world looks like something God imagined for His own pleasure, doesn't it? ...I'm so glad I live in a world where there are white frosts, aren't you?"
"Isn't it nice to think that tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it yet?"
"It's nicer to think dear, pretty thoughts and keep them in one's heart like treasures. I don't like to have them laughed at or wondered over."
"Oh, it's delightful to have ambitions. I'm so glad I have such a lot. And there never seems to be any end to them– that's the best of it. Just as soon as you attain to one ambition you see another one glittering higher up still. It does make life so interesting."
"I like people who make me love them. It saves me so much trouble in making myself love them."
"Ruby Gillis says when she grows up she's going to have ever so many beaus on the string and have them all crazy about her; but I think that would be too exciting. I'd rather just have one in his right mind."
"Dear old world... you are very lovely, and I am glad to be alive in you."
So if you've seen the movies, you're not really missing any of the book. But this story will never get old and now it can go on my favorites list! Because I seriously am Anne:
I am SO relieved there's a sequel. That was such an intense mess that I just need something to actually work out in the end!
I really feel like I’m talI am SO relieved there's a sequel. That was such an intense mess that I just need something to actually work out in the end!
I really feel like I’m talking about 3 separate stories at times because this was so long. So much happened… so here’s a brief overview of this complex plot because I had this book on my shelf forever and didn't get to it because the description does NOT tell you anything. I mean, I'm going to type half a novel here and probably still not spoil anything big.
The basic plot: Tatiana is an incredibly naive and innocent girl who's almost 17 and lives in a cramped room in Communist Russia with her grandparents, parents, sister, and brother. She's told to go to the store to get some food because Germany is invading Russia. She can't imagine them ever running out of food so she buys ice cream instead and waltzes around town instead. She runs into this soldier named Alexander and it's basically love at first sight. He helps her back to her home where they discover Tatiana is the sister of the girl he's been seeing.
Tatiana starts out the story as the world's biggest martyr & pushover and spends the next 200+ pages sacrificing the guy she loves, her food, and her general well-being so that her sister and family can have what they want and be happy. She convinces Alexander to keep seeing her sister and it's just this endless ANGST of them being in the same room but unable to look at each other. They still see each other secretly, though. It's a little ridiculous how mean Tatiana's family was to her, but I guess it helps put her character in a vulnerable position so Alexander can get angry and defend her when her father beats her etc. Minor spoiler: (view spoiler)[Tatiana goes off by herself to find her missing twin brother and bring him home after she overhears her mother say she wishes that Tatiana had died instead. Alexander finds Tatiana under a pile of dead bodies and nurses her back to health and carries her home. (hide spoiler)]. Then the siege of Leningrad really gets going and everyone starts dying of starvation.
The best plot device for tension was definitely Alexander's "friend" Dimitri. He’s a ruthlessly self-serving guy who knows the truth about Alexander’s past (which I won't spoil) and basically controls him because of that. Dimitri takes whatever Alexander is interested in, so that’s yet another reason why Alexander has to pretend to be totally uninterested in Tatiana. That worked WAY better than the whole sister reason.
So... all of that is just the beginning. The next chunk of the plot can be summed up as:(view spoiler)[ Tatiana’s entire family, including her sister, all starve to death. She escapes but believes the indifferent attitude she made Alexander treat her with was the truth. Six months later Alexander goes to some sunny paradise rural village where he finds Tatiana serving some new family without a thought for herself. He gets overprotective, drags her out of there, and they get married and have lots of sex and cabbage soup for a month. This is where the plot SERIOUSLY drags. The dialogue was cheesy and I was just not into this whole… 100+ pages? But hang in there because he goes back to war, Tatiana follows him, and stuff gets intense. (hide spoiler)] Then Dimitri gets his plotting into gear, Alexander gets a few more personalities, and Tatiana grows into a seriously tough and capable woman by the end.
I have a few complaints I'll get to in a minute, but first let me just say this is one of the best WWII stories I've read. The whole scope of this love story was pretty impressive. I mean, it's 800+ pages and I feel like I endured a lengthy battle myself just to get to the end (which may or may not be a good thing). And even though I have no interest in ever going to Russia, I have a weird fascination with historical Russia. So I LOVED the setting. That was actually my favorite part. I've seen some complaints that some parts of the siege of Leningrad were historically inaccurate, but I... really didn't care.
Yes, the book could probably have a few hundred pages trimmed off, but the writing was fine and I was never too bored. And historical romance is really not a genre I'm usually into. This read more like YA at times so that worked better for me.
I was frequently infuriated with the characters, but I guess at least that means I was actually into the story. And every time I got too annoyed with the main characters and tried to set the book aside, I'd find myself picking it up again a few minutes later because I was so completely wrapped up in this world. The tragedy of their whole situation was super emotional and I just needed them to be happy. Everything they sacrificed and did for each other in the end was pretty incredible.
But just a few complaints: Pretty sure these angsty little drama llamas were causing more of their own problems than Hitler was for part of the story. Like nobody was MAKING Alexander sleep with Tatiana’s sister. Good grief.
I genuinely wanted to love Alexander and be totally into this romance, but I was not a fan of him. I know a lot of my Goodreads friends LOVE Alexander, but I just have zero tolerance for men who are super possessive, aggressive, controlling, don’t listen when women say no, and who have a temper. He was just not attractive to me in most scenes. I get that it’s another culture and time period, which is why I kept reading. But the level of his love/obsession with Tatiana could easily turn abusive (and it was kind of creepy at times already… like he was more into her “innocence” than her). And him punching the wall by Tatiana’s face and screaming at her and hurting her because he’s just crazy with concern is… not that romantic to me. He legitimately freaked me out in some scenes that I’m pretty sure were meant to be sweet? And Tatiana’s willingness to literally DIE for him and completely disregard herself was a concerning combination with his behavior.
Ok… now I'm laughing. Maybe I’m just not the best person to review dramatic love stories. I get that people love this stuff, but I just want to sit everyone down and discuss things rationally. COMMUNICATE. I’m really sorry that I suck the fun out of books by ranting about the guys everyone loves...
Anyways, I absolutely loved Tatiana’s character growth and how strong she became by the end. She was stubborn, persistent, endured so much, and finally took action. The end was super intense. Even if I wasn’t a huge fan of Alexander, I still really cared about both of these characters and the situation they were in!
One more thing: the author's note in the back talks about how Tatiana and her sister were best friends, but I never got anything remotely like that from the story. Her sister was absurdly mean and callous to everyone around her to the point where her character was reduced to some caricature... I'm not sure if this was done so the reader wouldn't feel bad that Alexander and Tatiana were going behind her back, but that whole aspect was odd. The whole family felt like a bunch of fairy tale villains at times.
I know I just complained a lot, but I honestly did enjoy this book and was more into it than most other stories I’ve read this year!! There really weren't many dull moments. I totally recommend this book if you like historical romance, WWII stories, or… The Winner's trilogy? I know that's random but this story really reminded me a lot of The Winner's Crime!...more
This is one of those ratings I want to put a bunch of asterisks after because this book had some serious problems, yet I still ended up really enjoyinThis is one of those ratings I want to put a bunch of asterisks after because this book had some serious problems, yet I still ended up really enjoying it!!
First off, time traveling pirate ships + the historical Hawaii setting were pretty much what made this book so awesome. Nix and her fellow pirate-ish folks can travel anywhere in history (but also to fantasy worlds too??) if they have a map. But once they use a map, they can never use that same map to return to the same place again. They were initially after a map so Nix's dad could go save her mom from dying and the story seemed to be about Nix's own existence possibly being negated since that was in the book description... but then that all kind of got put to the side as they jumped through a bunch of random hoops to get to the map.
I could NOT for the life of me figure out what this book was doing half of the time. Most of the story was like "wtf are you doing now and why." They got wrapped up in the fall of the Hawaiian monarchy, some powerful sketchy guys started plotting with them and a gold heist became the main focus (although I couldn't figure out exactly who was in on it or who they were trying to double cross), Nix met a cute Hawaiian guy, and suddenly they're taking the ship to some Chinese terra cotta soldier tomb with a new random map and then making the soldiers come alive and then returning with that army back to... oh yeah, the whole gold heist plot. Ok that actually sounds like a coherent plot now that I say it all but it did NOT have the chain of events or cause & effect feeling that this sounds like.
Basically there were several small mysterious storylines or characters and interesting side plots, but nothing felt like it was part of the SAME story or fully tied together. Like there was the creepy lady who had known Nix's mother and had some maps and could see the future. And they went somewhere in time to save her but didn't but also did?
There are a LOT of plot holes. Like they technically don't need the ship to travel through time... the dad just likes it? The time travel stuff isn't really fully explained and the added element of being able to go fictional worlds added too many questions.
So just roll with it, I guess! I'm still a bit confused about how the details of crossing your own time stream or going between fictional and real worlds works... (like when they're concerned that the map that Blake drew might have been his interpretation/story of Hawaii instead of the real one -- would that make the Blake that exists in the version of Hawaii they returned to the REAL one she met or whaaaaat)??
AND WHY DO THEY NOT HAVE MORE MONEY. I'm sorry but if they're jumping between an ancient country, a fantasy world, and then 2016 New York and are able to plan ahead and choose where they go next... THEY SHOULD HAVE MONEY. They can sell literally ANYTHING because they can take objects with them! They can bring objects through all of time (and apparently space/reality)?! Use the freaking TARDIS ship to make some money first.
The pacing and character development could've been better, but it wasn't bad in the end. Like most things, you just need to hang in there a bit until it works out. Nix's appearance wasn't described until 100 pages into the story and some other characters weren't described until the end. I didn't mind Nix as the MC, but she also fell pretty flat compared to other characters. Her ship had picked up her friend Kashmir long ago in some other world and there's sort of a romance there, but it's barely touched on. They're mostly just friends and that relationship is really fun!
But what was up with her mini dragon thing she got from the creepy lady? It disappeared and showed up in the tomb randomly and I thought it was going to be that lady as an animagus or something buuuut no it was just an irrelevant dragon? SO MANY ELEMENTS, SO LITTLE CONNECTIONS.
The beginning was super, super slow moving and the end was majorly rushed and confusing, so the pacing could have been better. I really thought the map Blake was drawing was going to get them to the time period in Hawaii where they were planning to go at the start, but then they wound up in China? The end was such a mess... I'm halfway certain I understood it and even less certain that I cared.
GOOD THINGS: There was a sort of relaxed feeling to the whole book that was nice, though. I really did love the setting!! The history and politics of Hawaii was probably the strongest bit of the book and I loved it. And the writing was well done -- there were SO many good lines!
I did love the overall feeling of the story and was never bored... like everything was still intriguing despite any confusion. So I would recommend this if you can handle fun adventure stories where you just kind of go "whatever" and let them do their thing!...more
This book is like Jane Austen meets The Infernal Devices? The worldbuilding is incredible and by far the most detailed Regency era book I've ever readThis book is like Jane Austen meets The Infernal Devices? The worldbuilding is incredible and by far the most detailed Regency era book I've ever read. I'm a huge Jane Austen fan, but still learned so many random facts here.
Kind of wish more could've been done with character development (or anything to make me hate Lord Carlston a little less), but I guess the stage is set pretty well for the next book. I really loved the secondary characters, though!
I'm starting to get really tired of books that are drawn out for the sake of sequels... the middle got pretty tedious. But I actually wasn't ever completely bored because the setting was so realistic, so I guess there's that.
It's kind of hilarious how much this book messes with basic Russian history and world events, but that just made it even more fun. I was digging arounIt's kind of hilarious how much this book messes with basic Russian history and world events, but that just made it even more fun. I was digging around for something set in this time period in Russia after finishing The Grisha Trilogy & the first Firebird book and this totally fit. ...more
This book was solid up until the last chapter which tried to sum everything up in like 5 pages. What happened to the James plotline?! It's just... theThis book was solid up until the last chapter which tried to sum everything up in like 5 pages. What happened to the James plotline?! It's just... the end.
And this didn't ruin the story, but honestly this girl is like the worst spy ever. She can't read, can't speak the language she's spying on, and misses the most painfully clear clues that are glaringly obvious to the reader. She has like one talent and I'm not sure that's enough to warrant her position if she can't piece together clues like the villain smells like spices and is left-handed soooo maybe it's that central character sitting near the spice market who you ran into writing a letter with his left hand? MAYBE. Ughhh.
Saw the end coming from a mile away but it was still fun. ...more
So this is definitely more historical fiction than fantasy FYI. The only fantasy aspect is that the main character has the "witchy power" ability to sSo this is definitely more historical fiction than fantasy FYI. The only fantasy aspect is that the main character has the "witchy power" ability to sense gold, but that really doesn't come into play very often.
This was mostly a story of a girl who heads west disguised as a boy and meets an assortment of typical mid-1800s characters along the way. The story reminded me a lot of Under a Painted Sky and other YA stories of girls fleeing to California for freedom. There are all the typical threats along the trail: dehydration, cholera, Indians, thieves, snakes, buffalo stampedes, etc.
I absolutely loved The Oregon Trail computer game, Little House on the Prairie, and pretty much anything to do with pioneers as a kid, so I was totally into this story! I thought it had a solid mix of characters and felt like a decently realistic portrayal of the West (for all I know).
The romance was super slow-burn almost to the point where it's barely there, but I suppose it just built a solid foundation for the next book. At least it's better than instalove.
The story IS super slow moving, but I actually didn't mind that for the most part. It's more of a peaceful pace instead of boring. The author did a great job of capturing the main character's voice and the setting! So I like where this is heading overall and will totally check out the next book!...more
2.5 stars. Steampunk Scotland + faeries is what drew me in and I really, really wanted to love this book. I just didn't get that into the world buildi2.5 stars. Steampunk Scotland + faeries is what drew me in and I really, really wanted to love this book. I just didn't get that into the world building or main character, though. BUT I could have easily just been in a weird mood because so many of my friends loved it!! I might try again someday. ...more
3.5 stars. I think if you're used to reading YA plots, this book will come off as suuuuuper slow and tedious. But if you're fine with the pacing of "a3.5 stars. I think if you're used to reading YA plots, this book will come off as suuuuuper slow and tedious. But if you're fine with the pacing of "adult" historical fiction books then it's a more enjoyable read! It fell somewhere in the middle for me... like the writing was good but I just wanted everything to get moving.
The story reminded me a bit of Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier with how there are families that pass on the genetic ability to time travel, how the girl finds herself traveling to different times without any training, how she's attracted to the guy she travels with, and that her mission is to track down a missing device. It also kind of reminded me of The Girl from Everywhere by Heidi Heilig with the whole ship & time travel stuff too, buuuuut it's totally its own story.
I didn't know anything about this plot going into it and think knowing more might've helped me stay interested (or know where to skim). So basically, Etta is at a modern violin performance when she unknowingly plays a note that causes a passage through time to open. She's abducted and ends up on a ship in the eighteenth century, where she runs into Nicholas (the other POV). Etta learns she's being taken to the evil grandfather of some powerful family that uses time travel to increase their power & wealth. THEN IT GETS A LITTLE CONFUSING. Like I followed the general idea of why Etta needs to hunt down the device or else the grandfather would kill her mother, but it was just explained in a way that made me totally lose interest. Then Etta & Nicholas are suddenly in WWII London and then Cambodia and everywhere else Etta's oddly distant & scheming mother painted and/or told her stories about.
I'm holding off full judgement until I read Wayfarer, but I hope some plot points and locations are used more. SO many awesome conflicts and characters were introduced and then never seen again.
But I love historical stories set on ships, so I was super into the first half! The relationship developed kind of fast and didn't have much basis, but I was more interested in that than anything else. Nicholas was my favorite character for sure -- I really didn't get as strong of a sense of Etta.
Honestly, the strongest part of this book was seeing Alexandra Bracken tackle discussions of racism and sexism through time without tiptoeing around anything. And she created an African American love interest with his own POV, which was so wonderful to finally see.
So there were a ton of elements to the story that I adored (mainly time travel & ships). And I do still plan on reading the sequel tomorrow... but oh my goodness the plot dragged in so many places. I had to work really hard to make myself keep reading and mostly did so because of the book's potential instead of what was actually happening. And in the end I really didn't care as much as I wanted to.
I still recommend it if you like slower historical fiction or can handle skimming large chunks!...more
This is actually the first time I've read this book the whole way through! I had this movie memorized by the time I was 7, so I've always set the bookThis is actually the first time I've read this book the whole way through! I had this movie memorized by the time I was 7, so I've always set the book aside when the beginning chapters weren't done in as much detail.
And yes, a lot of detailed movie scenes are summarized in a few sentences in the book, BUT I finally admitted that the book expands in so many other areas! I loved seeing more into Elinor's mind and got a way stronger understanding of Marianne's character. They're still two of my absolute favorite Austen heroines. I love how whole story is just so wonderfully complex and still completely relatable today. And in the end I actually felt like I got a way richer story out of the book despite characters like Mrs. Jennings not having quite as much dialogue (I just adore her in the movie).
Jane Austen really is on an entirely different level as an author, though. She's so incredibly insightful, witty, and just saw the world in such a clear way. I think Persuasion is still my favorite Austen novel, but this is still one of my favorite books!...more
Cait • A Page with a View
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