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juushikaTitle: Well Witched (Verdigris Deep)
Author: Frances Hardinge
Narrator: Bianca Amato
Published: Recorded Audio, 2009 (2007)
Rating: 4 of 5
Page Count: 370
Total Page Count: 212,705
Text Number: 670
Read Because: fan of the author, audiobook borrowed from the Multnomah County Library
Review: When three children steal coins from a wishing well, they find themselves cursed with strange powers and obligated to fulfill the wishes bound to the stolen coins. Well Witched is further proof that there's nothing quite like Hardinge's books. Her initial premises are supremely creepy, and her flexible, creative metaphors render a vivid atmosphere. But the explanations behind these premises, and the resulting plots, are more mundane and occasionally comic—exacerbated here by the middle grade characters/audience, which further lightens the tone. Then again, she's compassionate, insightful, and has a knack subverting tropes, all of which makes for satisfying character growth. Her books are always flawed, if only because that shift in tone from horror to adventure/comedy is inconsistent and disappointing. But I love that she writes them, and especially love the elements that work best in Well Witched: the Glass House, the internal logic of the magic system which unites character growth and plot, the satisfying but unsimplified way that relationships develop; it's so enjoyable, so distinctive, if not perfect.
Title: The Weight of Feathers
Author: Anna-Marie McLemore
Published: Thomas Dunne, 2015
Rating: 3 of 5
Page Count: 315
Total Page Count: 213,020
Text Number: 671
Read Because: fan of the author, ebook borrowed from the Multnomah County Library
Review: Two teenagers from rival circus families cross paths. It's a beautiful premise, evocative and diverse: Spanish mermaids and French-Romani tree-climbers makes for a romantic but unidealized tableau, engaging race and class and assimilation; beautiful imagery and light touches of magical realism create an immersive setting. But the execution is merely adequate. It's all so predictable, from the nature of the feud to the course of the central romance—and while the protagonists are likable, their chemistry isn't enough to carry the book. I wish there were more going on, in the supporting cast, or larger world, or even more conflict or development in the romance than just the circus feud. As is, this is what it feels like: a first novel, with promising component parts but unremarkable execution.
Title: Victory of Eagles (Temeraire Book 5)
Author: Naomi Novik
Narrator: Simon Vance
Published: Books on Tape, 2008
Rating: 5 of 5
Page Count: 365
Total Page Count: 213,385
Text Number: 672
Read Because: continuing the series, audiobook borrowed from the Multnomah County Library
Review: When Laurence and Temeraire are separated, Temeraire assumes a commission of his own. The introduction of Temerarie's PoV is only briefly disorientating; it is, on the whole, a great addition, because this book is all about consequences—of the recent cliffhanger, but also of Laurence's actions throughout the series, and to see them from without, via a character unaware of that complicated social and moral position, is especially effective. It also keeps this book from becoming too dour—so too does the breadth of the action and progression of the war. This is almost too neat a book, in the way that reoccurring characters and ongoing arcs tie into the plot, but that would be my only complaint; I loved it, I found it necessary and well-realized and, if less pointedly feel-good than other series favorites, then perhaps more substantial.
Author: Frances Hardinge
Narrator: Bianca Amato
Published: Recorded Audio, 2009 (2007)
Rating: 4 of 5
Page Count: 370
Total Page Count: 212,705
Text Number: 670
Read Because: fan of the author, audiobook borrowed from the Multnomah County Library
Review: When three children steal coins from a wishing well, they find themselves cursed with strange powers and obligated to fulfill the wishes bound to the stolen coins. Well Witched is further proof that there's nothing quite like Hardinge's books. Her initial premises are supremely creepy, and her flexible, creative metaphors render a vivid atmosphere. But the explanations behind these premises, and the resulting plots, are more mundane and occasionally comic—exacerbated here by the middle grade characters/audience, which further lightens the tone. Then again, she's compassionate, insightful, and has a knack subverting tropes, all of which makes for satisfying character growth. Her books are always flawed, if only because that shift in tone from horror to adventure/comedy is inconsistent and disappointing. But I love that she writes them, and especially love the elements that work best in Well Witched: the Glass House, the internal logic of the magic system which unites character growth and plot, the satisfying but unsimplified way that relationships develop; it's so enjoyable, so distinctive, if not perfect.
Title: The Weight of Feathers
Author: Anna-Marie McLemore
Published: Thomas Dunne, 2015
Rating: 3 of 5
Page Count: 315
Total Page Count: 213,020
Text Number: 671
Read Because: fan of the author, ebook borrowed from the Multnomah County Library
Review: Two teenagers from rival circus families cross paths. It's a beautiful premise, evocative and diverse: Spanish mermaids and French-Romani tree-climbers makes for a romantic but unidealized tableau, engaging race and class and assimilation; beautiful imagery and light touches of magical realism create an immersive setting. But the execution is merely adequate. It's all so predictable, from the nature of the feud to the course of the central romance—and while the protagonists are likable, their chemistry isn't enough to carry the book. I wish there were more going on, in the supporting cast, or larger world, or even more conflict or development in the romance than just the circus feud. As is, this is what it feels like: a first novel, with promising component parts but unremarkable execution.
Title: Victory of Eagles (Temeraire Book 5)
Author: Naomi Novik
Narrator: Simon Vance
Published: Books on Tape, 2008
Rating: 5 of 5
Page Count: 365
Total Page Count: 213,385
Text Number: 672
Read Because: continuing the series, audiobook borrowed from the Multnomah County Library
Review: When Laurence and Temeraire are separated, Temeraire assumes a commission of his own. The introduction of Temerarie's PoV is only briefly disorientating; it is, on the whole, a great addition, because this book is all about consequences—of the recent cliffhanger, but also of Laurence's actions throughout the series, and to see them from without, via a character unaware of that complicated social and moral position, is especially effective. It also keeps this book from becoming too dour—so too does the breadth of the action and progression of the war. This is almost too neat a book, in the way that reoccurring characters and ongoing arcs tie into the plot, but that would be my only complaint; I loved it, I found it necessary and well-realized and, if less pointedly feel-good than other series favorites, then perhaps more substantial.
