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thebakersbooks's reviews
281 reviews
The Girl in The Tower by Katherine Arden
5.0
Often, I finish the first book in a series and go months before reading the sequel, but I put The Girl in the Tower on hold within minutes of finishing The Bear and the Nightingale. It didn't disappoint, either. Neatly dodging middle-book slump, the second installment in the Winternight trilogy sent Vasya hurtling back into high-stakes adventure.
Following the events of the previous novel, Vasya's story shifts from her home in the countryside to the intrigue-filled city of Moscow. On the way she encounters strangers and familiar faces; both pose their own hazards to a woman traveling alone, unaware that rumors of witchcraft have arrived in Moscow ahead of her.
As in The Bear and the Nightingale, this story begins at a slow pace and builds to a tense, crescendoing finish. Well-timed narrative shifts allow readers more insight than the main character into the grand scheme of events, giving the second and third acts a sense of foreboding that dovetails with the dark, wintery themes of the book. The Girl in the Tower is a tale of Vasya discovering herself in the context of her family and the magical world. However, the other characters are developed so well that every interwoven point of view has impact and depth.
As before, the book ended on a satisfying conclusion that still left me wanting more of the overarching plot and more of these characters' individual stories. Luckily, the series conclusion comes out on Jan. 8, 2019and I have an ARC that I'm starting tonight.
I (strongly) recommend this book to anyone who loved The Bear and the Nightingale and also to anyone who enjoys fairy tales reimagined but is tired of reading the same handful over and over.
Following the events of the previous novel, Vasya's story shifts from her home in the countryside to the intrigue-filled city of Moscow. On the way she encounters strangers and familiar faces; both pose their own hazards to a woman traveling alone, unaware that rumors of witchcraft have arrived in Moscow ahead of her.
As in The Bear and the Nightingale, this story begins at a slow pace and builds to a tense, crescendoing finish. Well-timed narrative shifts allow readers more insight than the main character into the grand scheme of events, giving the second and third acts a sense of foreboding that dovetails with the dark, wintery themes of the book. The Girl in the Tower is a tale of Vasya discovering herself in the context of her family and the magical world. However, the other characters are developed so well that every interwoven point of view has impact and depth.
As before, the book ended on a satisfying conclusion that still left me wanting more of the overarching plot and more of these characters' individual stories. Luckily, the series conclusion comes out on Jan. 8, 2019
I (strongly) recommend this book to anyone who loved The Bear and the Nightingale and also to anyone who enjoys fairy tales reimagined but is tired of reading the same handful over and over.
The Perfect Assassin by K.A. Doore
5.0
On every front—characters, world, and plot—The Perfect Assassin was everything I'd hoped for and more. The premise of an assassin (Amastan) trying to absolve himself and his fellows of unsanctioned murder drew me to the book, but it was the addition of supernatural elements that made this a "just one more chapter before bed" kind of story.
From the first page, the pace is breakneck in the best sense, giving readers their own dose of the way the main character's world has been turned upside down, leaving him unable to find a foothold. Amastan's routines tidily reveal some elements of the setting, but his first encounter with the unquiet spirits called jaan is as much a learning experience for him as it is for the reader. This unfamiliarity—and the whole concept of the vengeful jaan—lends underpinnings of horror and suspense to this richly detailed fantasy.
On a more personal note, I was pleased with the author's handling of LGBT+ characters. I've never read a story in which queer people felt so thoroughly woven into the fabric of the world. Just as in real life, these characters' sexualities sometimes affected their lives, but were components in the much larger and more complex whole.For me, one of the most telling moments of this story's success was that when the antagonist was revealed to be a queer woman, I didn't feel the knee-jerk distaste I've experienced in similar past situations. The difference was that in The Perfect Assassin, there were enough other gay characters, both main and background, that I knew having the antagonist be gay wasn't a case of unfortunate implications. Very well executed!
The Perfect Assassin is an incredible debut for K.A. Doore and I'm eagerly anticipating a return to Ghadid in the sequel!
From the first page, the pace is breakneck in the best sense, giving readers their own dose of the way the main character's world has been turned upside down, leaving him unable to find a foothold. Amastan's routines tidily reveal some elements of the setting, but his first encounter with the unquiet spirits called jaan is as much a learning experience for him as it is for the reader. This unfamiliarity—and the whole concept of the vengeful jaan—lends underpinnings of horror and suspense to this richly detailed fantasy.
On a more personal note, I was pleased with the author's handling of LGBT+ characters. I've never read a story in which queer people felt so thoroughly woven into the fabric of the world. Just as in real life, these characters' sexualities sometimes affected their lives, but were components in the much larger and more complex whole.
The Perfect Assassin is an incredible debut for K.A. Doore and I'm eagerly anticipating a return to Ghadid in the sequel!
Binti by Nnedi Okorafor
5.0
A fantastic story! Now I can't wait to read more recent sci-fi. (Starting, obviously, with Binti: Home so I can find out what happens next!)
Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant
4.0
More of the same wonderfully tense creepiness as the prequel novella! Which is to say that I stayed up far later than I should have for two nights in a row to finish it once scary stuff started happening. This is a book to devour by gulps.
(Horror themes aside, I'll always appreciate the way Mira Grant/Seanan McGuire incorporates diverse characters in genre fiction, and she stayed true to brand here!Lots of characters died once the action hit in this novel, but the two in the f/f relationship survived! No burying of gays here. )
(Horror themes aside, I'll always appreciate the way Mira Grant/Seanan McGuire incorporates diverse characters in genre fiction, and she stayed true to brand here!
Impostors by Scott Westerfeld
4.0
Rounded up from 3.5 stars.
I had such high hopes for this book, and while it delivered in some ways, it was ultimately disappointing. (I'll explain in a minute why I rounded my rating up instead of down.)
The dealbreaker for me was pacing. This is going to be the first in a series, so this book's plot could (and in my opinion, should) have been spread out a bit more.I think a good break would've been Frey's father's attack on the city of Victoria. That would've allowed more time for Frey's subterfuge in the city and more time to develop her relationship with Col. As it stands, the switch from Frey's body-double act at home to her time in Victoria to joining the rebels and the Palafox army feels rushed. The level of devotion/trust between Frey and Col also seems unrealistic.
However, Westerfeld got quite a few things right. First was the inclusion of a character with they/them pronouns. Second was the worldbuilding; it's the same setting as the Uglies series, but a few years later. I would've liked to see it updated and expanded more, but it's still consistent and interesting to read about. Finally, the character development and the exciting ending were just what I'd expect from a Westerfeld novel.
In the end, this novel didn't feel as special to me as the Uglies trilogy (or even Extras, the redheaded stepchild of that series). I'm going to read the sequel because I like how Frey's character is growing and I'm interested in the plot; I just hope the pacing will allow more breathing room next time. I rounded up to four stars because this is a YA novel and I'm outside the target age range—I read and loved the Uglies series at 17, and I suspect I would've enjoyed Imposters just as much in my teens.
I recommend Imposters with reservations. Unless you really loved Uglies et. al, Imposters feels like a cookie-cutter dystopian novel a decade after it would've been relevant to the genre.
I had such high hopes for this book, and while it delivered in some ways, it was ultimately disappointing. (I'll explain in a minute why I rounded my rating up instead of down.)
The dealbreaker for me was pacing. This is going to be the first in a series, so this book's plot could (and in my opinion, should) have been spread out a bit more.
However, Westerfeld got quite a few things right. First was the inclusion of a character with they/them pronouns. Second was the worldbuilding; it's the same setting as the Uglies series, but a few years later. I would've liked to see it updated and expanded more, but it's still consistent and interesting to read about. Finally, the character development and the exciting ending were just what I'd expect from a Westerfeld novel.
In the end, this novel didn't feel as special to me as the Uglies trilogy (or even Extras, the redheaded stepchild of that series). I'm going to read the sequel because I like how Frey's character is growing and I'm interested in the plot; I just hope the pacing will allow more breathing room next time. I rounded up to four stars because this is a YA novel and I'm outside the target age range—I read and loved the Uglies series at 17, and I suspect I would've enjoyed Imposters just as much in my teens.
I recommend Imposters with reservations. Unless you really loved Uglies et. al, Imposters feels like a cookie-cutter dystopian novel a decade after it would've been relevant to the genre.