This is a much better story than some of the novels for several reasons, but suffers from some of the same old weaknesses too. First plus: Cinder stays on Luna. It turns out watching her try to learn politics is much better than her trying to save the day as an action heroine. Iko is more interesting and relatable in that role. On the other hand, the gang does not get back together; instead, we see bits of each of them, some not enough. The […]
Don’t go there!
Things I liked: meeting Leander, the Mission Impossible-like mystery and accompanying reveals and re-reveals about characters and events, Jamie’s dad, and meeting Charlotte’s dad. Things I didn’t like: Charlotte and her mother, Charlotte with her family, the hints about Charlotte and her future, and the separate investigations going on at the same time by characters who each want to solve things first (this of course does not end well). Charlotte gets more withdrawn and less relatable than before, which is kind of a shame because […]
Too much time messing around with the circus
This world and characters have soo much potential, but the story spends so much wasted time on Elizabeth either planning or thinking. I also find the title a bit misleading as it does not really seem to appear to refer to Elizabeth but to a minor character who only has a few pages worth of story. Elizabeth Barnabus was born into a circus family, but the evil Duke of Northampton ruined the family in order to force then 15 year old Elizabeth into indentured servitude […]
Not Enough Industrial Magic
3.5 stars really. I was expecting a full novel but this is either a novella or a short YA book. The set up is pretty intriguing. In 1850 London, magic exists and those who have the talent are highly sought after. So much so that if/when talent is reported the Royal Society of Esoteric Arts shows up to check things out. IF the report is false, the maker is punished. If it’s accurate, the talented person is taken from their family for training. Once educated […]
Harry Potter Goes to Ms Peregrine’s
I was reminded of a cross between Hogwarts and Miss Peregrine’s schools. After her mother catches her floating in her sleep, Amy is sent to an all-girls boarding school, Drearcliff-Grange, that she discovers is actually intended for girls with special abilities like her, and/or daughters of famous criminals, scientists, and magicians. The school is divided up into houses as in Harry Potter, but unlike Harry Potter, these houses are named for Shakesperean ladies: Viola, Goneril, Desdemona, Tamora, and Ariel (even though Prospero’s spirit is referred […]
More mythology please
This is a good retelling of some of the basic elements of Norse mythology, but it felt a little light and incomplete to me. I was hoping for a fuller presentation of the whole saga, which granted would make this book twice or thrice as long as it is. For example, there is very little about the lady goddesses, some of whom do have their own stories. There’s a note in the introduction about how many Norse stories have been lost, which is true of […]
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