Release Date: January 26, 2016
Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers
Pages: 482
Genre: Fantasy, Historical Fiction, YA
Summary
London, April 1812. On the eve of eighteen-year-old Lady Helen Wrexhall’s presentation to the queen, one of her family’s housemaids disappears-and Helen is drawn into the shadows of Regency London. There, she meets Lord Carlston, one of the few who can stop the perpetrators: a cabal of demons infiltrating every level of society. Dare she ask for his help, when his reputation is almost as black as his lingering eyes? And will her intelligence and headstrong curiosity wind up leading them into a death trap? -Goodreads Summary
The Rundown
Now let me just say I will never trash an author's book. That's like the social equivalent of seeing a mom pushing her baby in the stroller and loudly yelling, "OMG! That's the ugliest kid ever!" Moreover on this blog you'll see me giving positive and constructive reviews because I choose what I read! I grab books off of my library's shelf or accept ARCs that sound entertaining to me, that I think my teens would really enjoy, or that comes highly recommended from a friend or other librarian. Basically, you'll see that most of my reviews range from "good" to "OMG read this now!" because I read books I have a gut feeling that I'm going to like.
That said, I wanted to like this book. Like really really really wanted to like this book. It had everything I usually love: history, a strong female protagonist, mystery, good vs. evil...why couldn't I get into it? The size of the book was a little daunting. But starting it I was like, "I've flown through big books before. No worries!" The pace just set me back. Example: I love descriptions of clothing and social gatherings from other eras, but when it felt like the same things were being described in detail each chapter it was like "Enough already! Can something happen?"
After throwing in the towel at page 200 I blame the slow pace and detail overkill, because the characters were super interesting. Here you have Helen, a high society girl orphaned with many rumors surrounding the death of her parents a decade. She's now being raised by her aunt and uncle and expected to do all of the things expected of a girl of her age and class: make her formal debut, enjoy the summer season, and marry well. As she's preparing to be presented to the queen, strange and terrifying things are happening in and around London. Strange things are beginning to happen to Helen too. Then she meets Lord Carleston and her introduces her to the Dark Days Club and explains what her gifts mean to stopping dark forces at work within London. Carleston comes with a dark past of his own that I was curious about, but my curiosity couldn't trump the slllloooooowwwww pace of the story.
All that said, there's a reason Goodman is a bestselling author. This book got great reviews in Kirkus, VOYA, SLJ, PW, and Goodreads. Why couldn't I get into it? Why?! I'll confess something: I didn't like The Fault in Our Stars by John Green the first time I read it either. True story. Maybe I'll pick this book up in the future, finish it, and go "What was I thinking?! I love this book!" Isn't that the beauty of books, though? There's so many different books and authors that not everything has to be for everyone, and that's a good thing!
Will I book talk this to someone who likes historical fiction or fantasy? Absolutely! I'm hoping someone else's thoughts will convince me to give this one another go. For a book in a similar genre that I loved, check out The Diviners by Libba Bray.
Rating: 2 Stars. Meh, not for me.
No comments:
Post a Comment