Josh

Good plot, great character writing (in particular the relationships between the characters), and good world building, especially for a stand alone book. I think it's an especially good transition book for those going from YA to Adult Fantasy.

Don't really have any complaints, it's just a really solid stand alone Fantasy with an interesting take on reincarnation.

This is a heavy one in a way that only historical fiction can be imo. The fact I can remember all the stories about unmarked graves just a couple years ago from schools such as the one's in the book just adds additional gravity. Because you know that while the story you're consuming may be heartbreaking, the scope is so vast that there are thousands of Kenny's, Maisies, Howie's, etc out there. Many, many thousands who never had a voice to tell their story.

I appreciate this book immensely for telling the story it does, because it reminds us that tragedy isn't localized especially when your policy is essentially “kill the Indian, save the man”. Systematic racism like this ripples out and touches entire communities for many, many generations to come. And it's important to recognize that when discussing current issue's that effect such communities.

So the subject matter, the emotional impact, and the historical/cultural importance...I'm there for all that. But having said all the above, the writing just doesn't jive with me. From characterization, to dialogue, to what I felt were plot conveniences etc. There's just too many things I didn't personally like that pulled me out of the book.

I'd still recommend it though, because I firmly believe that understanding the abuses of the past is key to understanding communities of the present. And I think this book can be a starting point towards that for some. 

Superb atmospheric writing. Ernshaw does a wonderful job selling Pastoral and building it up in your mind with her fantastic prose. I enjoyed all the characters for the most part and there are some of them where their actions match their personality so incredibly well.

But this book's not a 3 star or higher for me, because there are a lot of plot holes and the twist itself to me, is just something I can't believe as an explanation at all. The atmospheric writing is so strong that this may not actually matter to many people that read the novel, but for me I read a mystery for the mystery. Here the mystery just isn't on point imo. 

It's heavily inspired by other popular middle grade fantasy like Harry Potter, but unique enough that it never feels completely derivative.  There are a few pacing issue's imo, but overall I found it to be quite the well written, whimsical tale with a fun cast of characters. I look forward to seeing how the books progress after this introduction to the world and inhabitants of Nevermoor.

 On the edition I read there is a blurb on the back by Joanne Harris that says “Some books you read. Some books you enjoy. But some books just swallow you up, heart and soul.”

I don't think this book could be summed up any better than that. It's a engrossing story that has an atmosphere that just sucks you in. 

A nice third book in the story with Spensa yet again at the forefront. I know there have been complaints about the other characters largely being missing in lieu of her, but I don't mind this as I enjoy how well her character has been developed. I also greatly enjoyed M. Bot's development and the further questions presented on AI ethics. There are also some great new characters introduced in this book, so suffice to say I really enjoy the characters overall.

The Sci-Fi elements, well, while I thought the delver storyline was well written, it did feel a bit on the simplistic side to me. I've always preferred harder Sci-Fi though so your mileage may vary.

When it comes to fantasy I would rank the factors that are most important to my enjoyment in order of importance as characters, plot, and then world building. There is a significant gap between 1 and 2, and 2 and 3 though.

This book hits solidly on 2 and 3. The plot is interesting and I wanted to keep reading to see how things would inevitably end up. It's also chalk full of world building. There are different cultures, biomes, races, languages etc. It is epic in scope in every sense of the word. 

But, the characters don't really resonate with me, falling flat more often than not. The group dynamics here and there are interesting and/or amusing, but largely fall they missed as well. The most intriguing character I find is Queen Erida, but by the end of the book it started to feel like certain elements were/are going to be shoehorned into her plot line that I wasn't a big fan of so even that ended on a somewhat sour note.  

I will read the next one though as the plot is interesting enough for that on it's own.

The problem I often have with stand alone novella's and short stories is quite simply the length. It doesn't allow for the type of character development or plot progression I prefer. This novella also falls in that category and I just find I wanted more. I personally thought the stakes were too high and the discussion on good, evil, and hate to grand to be condensed to fit in under 200 pages. I did enjoy the characters and thought they were rather well developed for the page count, but some of the moments that are meant to hit hard, didn't land for me emotionally. 

I found myself thinking several times while reading that, I think I would have enjoyed it more in movie format then novella. Your mileage may vary though, if you tend to like stand alone novella's, body horror, and such. I will say if you are going to read it, know that a lot of it is written in dialect (Southern, some Creole, Gullah Geechee etc), so if that's not your cup of tea for visual reading the audio book may be the way to go. Personally, growing up in the South did help me on this front I think, but even then I did have to re-read sentences (particularly Gullah) and puzzle out what was being said. Anyhow, would put at 2.5 if half stars existed on this platform.

I have very mixed feelings about this book. It's highly derivative to the point if you've read any YA dystopian fantasy of any kind...you'll likely know exactly where it's going and how it's going to end. For me as well with YA, one of the biggest pet peeves I have is how relationships and romance will be shoehorned in to advance the plot...but hey at least it's kicked up a notch with a love square! Triangles are so passé.

I don't want to sound like I hated this book though cause that's not the case. As I said mixed feelings. I love a good story about throwing off the yoke of oppression and confronting the powers that be. Plus superpowers in the mix that are passed down through blood? I'm there for it. To see those that are considered less than because of their blood rise up and show the silvers that they aren't inferior or as weak as they think. That's a story that I wanted and still want to read. The ending, while predictable, did a lot to bolster my hopes for this series as we moved beyond the love square that was so stifling in the majority of the novel. 

I'll be continuing on for at least one more book because the potential is definitely there.

The rating for this was much closer to Little Women than I anticipated. Given that I had never heard of Little Men, nor had my wife, it seemed to me that the book must not have been able to live up to the prequel.

I was pleasantly surprised, because while the same criticisms certainly are still there so are a great number of the strengths that I enjoyed. Jo was always my favourite, her school for boys is quite amusing and filled with some characters I can't help but root for. It doesn't quite measure up to Little Women as there are some characters that don't really serve any purpose, but it's very close. 

Overall I thought this one had the most interesting plot of the trilogy with more interesting characters than the second book and good queer representation. It also touches on some of the same social commentary and themes that I've enjoyed in the previous two books and adds in some new conversations of it's own.

I'd say the weak link in this one though is the romantic chemistry. In comparison to books one or two it does fall pretty flat. I was enjoying the plot enough that it didn't really detract much from my enjoyment though. Half a Soul was my favourite, but this is very solidly in the #2 spot.

The first book I read in a couple days and it was very good. I found the mystery, horror, and Sci-Fi elements interesting. I was enjoying the Biologists perspective and all indicators were pointed towards a series that would make my favourite's list. Then the second book came and it was so incredibly slow, meandering and filled with so much bureaucracy that it completely killed my interest in the series.  It also doesn't help that I didn't like Controls character much at all and he dominates the second book.

The third book had a few more interesting perspectives such as Saul, which make it better than the second book imo, but similar criticisms in that it's slow and nothing much really happens. Area X itself is very interesting, but the books for me end up drowning in the minutiae.

Extremely fast read due to it's casual/conversational writing style. It's got a pretty interesting premise, but it doesn't really go much beyond said premise. I'd go as far to say If you read the synopsis you already understand 75% of the book.

There is a plot of sorts, but it's pretty underwhelming and not the focal point of the novel. It's a fun read though and I had a few chuckles, but ultimately wish it had more depth.

I would say is if you are a person who prefer descriptive prose over dialogue heavy then you might find this one a bit more challenging, as it's almost entirely plot driven prose but even then I would still recommend giving it a try.

This is a story about a modern black woman is teleported back in time to the 1800's through a connection with a white ancestor who lives on a plantation. This creates an interesting dynamic with their relationship as she obviously has a vested interest in his survival, given that her own relies on it, but at the same time having to balance that with the horrific events that unfolded during this time period. A period that said ancestor is very much a part and product of. That's the premise of the book without spoilers mind you and it sets up very complex interracial relationships with themes centered around power dynamics, guilt, bigotry, racism, trauma, comparing modern sensibilities to past beliefs etc.