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juushikaTitle: The Aviary Gate
Author: Katie Hickman
Published: New York: Bloomsbury, 2008
Rating: 2 of 5
Page Count: 339
Total Page Count: 53,556
Text Number: 156
Read For: personal enjoyment, checked out from the library
Short review: In the modern day England, Elizabeth has just uncovered an ancient document which tells the story of Celia, an English woman held captive in the Sultan's harem. In 1599 Constantinople, Celia is pulled into the scheming and intrigue of the Sultan's harem, where the Sultan's mother vies for power against the Sultan's favorite concubine. Their stories run in parallel as Elizabeth uncovers Celia's story and Celia uncovers the palace plot—but all of the intrigue amounts to little. Elizabeth and Celia are ultimately unconnected, and Elizabeth's timeline feels like an unnecessary accessory to the plot. Celia's timeline comes to an adequate conclusion, but the twists and turns along the way are predictable. Combined with lackluster storytelling, The Aviary Gate is forgettable on the whole: while not bad, it offers no redeeming value and I do not recommend it.
At first glance, this book has a number of intriguing factors which may draw the reader in: the historical "exotic" setting (if that attracts you), the concurrent plotlines, and the promise of plentiful courtly intrigue. However, each of these factors falls flat in turn. From what I can tell, the setting seems adequately researched and realistically realized, but it has no spark. Hickman does not idealize the foreign palace or the shrouded secrecy of the harem, and neither does she journey deep into its dark, inglorious underbelly. Lacking either extreme, the setting falls at some mundane, unremarkable mid point. The Constantinople storyline is frequently broken by the modern storyline, breaking the magic of the setting; worse, Elizabeth's story bogs down the text. Her struggles are cliché or else they remain unresolved, and ultimately she has no connection to and does not parallel Celia and her inclusion is unnecessary. Finally, while Celia's story is heavy with scheming and intrigue, the plot twists are predictable and Celia has little influence on the plot. The seemingly good characters turn out to be bad, all the bad characters good, and halfway through this process it already feels routine. Rather than being an active participant in the plot, Celia is usually being pushed along unwittingly by her own mindless whims or else she's just in the right place at the right time by virtue of luck alone.
When all of the book's attractions have fallen, not much remains. The characters do not inspire emotional attachment, the plot is sufficiently predictable to deter reader interest, and the writing style is littered with character's thoughts (sometimes in italics, sometimes not, they feel like the mark of immature writing) and, in this first edition, typos: in short the book offers nothing more, however meaningful or frivolous, to redeem itself. While not actively bad, The Aviary Gate is lackluster and immediately forgettable. I was disappointed, and I do not recommend it. If you do still want to read it, consider borrowing it from a local library—the book will not stand up to rereads.
Review posted here on Amazon.com.
Author: Katie Hickman
Published: New York: Bloomsbury, 2008
Rating: 2 of 5
Page Count: 339
Total Page Count: 53,556
Text Number: 156
Read For: personal enjoyment, checked out from the library
Short review: In the modern day England, Elizabeth has just uncovered an ancient document which tells the story of Celia, an English woman held captive in the Sultan's harem. In 1599 Constantinople, Celia is pulled into the scheming and intrigue of the Sultan's harem, where the Sultan's mother vies for power against the Sultan's favorite concubine. Their stories run in parallel as Elizabeth uncovers Celia's story and Celia uncovers the palace plot—but all of the intrigue amounts to little. Elizabeth and Celia are ultimately unconnected, and Elizabeth's timeline feels like an unnecessary accessory to the plot. Celia's timeline comes to an adequate conclusion, but the twists and turns along the way are predictable. Combined with lackluster storytelling, The Aviary Gate is forgettable on the whole: while not bad, it offers no redeeming value and I do not recommend it.
At first glance, this book has a number of intriguing factors which may draw the reader in: the historical "exotic" setting (if that attracts you), the concurrent plotlines, and the promise of plentiful courtly intrigue. However, each of these factors falls flat in turn. From what I can tell, the setting seems adequately researched and realistically realized, but it has no spark. Hickman does not idealize the foreign palace or the shrouded secrecy of the harem, and neither does she journey deep into its dark, inglorious underbelly. Lacking either extreme, the setting falls at some mundane, unremarkable mid point. The Constantinople storyline is frequently broken by the modern storyline, breaking the magic of the setting; worse, Elizabeth's story bogs down the text. Her struggles are cliché or else they remain unresolved, and ultimately she has no connection to and does not parallel Celia and her inclusion is unnecessary. Finally, while Celia's story is heavy with scheming and intrigue, the plot twists are predictable and Celia has little influence on the plot. The seemingly good characters turn out to be bad, all the bad characters good, and halfway through this process it already feels routine. Rather than being an active participant in the plot, Celia is usually being pushed along unwittingly by her own mindless whims or else she's just in the right place at the right time by virtue of luck alone.
When all of the book's attractions have fallen, not much remains. The characters do not inspire emotional attachment, the plot is sufficiently predictable to deter reader interest, and the writing style is littered with character's thoughts (sometimes in italics, sometimes not, they feel like the mark of immature writing) and, in this first edition, typos: in short the book offers nothing more, however meaningful or frivolous, to redeem itself. While not actively bad, The Aviary Gate is lackluster and immediately forgettable. I was disappointed, and I do not recommend it. If you do still want to read it, consider borrowing it from a local library—the book will not stand up to rereads.
Review posted here on Amazon.com.
