Tag: strong protagonist

YA

Review: A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro

Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: Charlotte Holmes #1

a-study-in-charlotte-brittany-cavallaroThe last thing Jamie Watson wants is a rugby scholarship to Sherringford, a Connecticut prep school just an hour away from his estranged father. But that’s not the only complication: Sherringford is also home to Charlotte Holmes, the famous detective’s great-great-great-granddaughter, who has inherited not only Sherlock’s genius but also his volatile temperament. From everything Jamie has heard about Charlotte, it seems safer to admire her from afar.

From the moment they meet, there’s a tense energy between them, and they seem more destined to be rivals than anything else. But when a Sherringford student dies under suspicious circumstances, ripped straight from the most terrifying of the Sherlock Holmes stories, Jamie can no longer afford to keep his distance. Jamie and Charlotte are being framed for murder, and only Charlotte can clear their names. But danger is mounting and nowhere is safe—and the only people they can trust are each other.

3 Drink Me Potions

I’ve been an avid fan of Sherlock Holmes since I was a child, having read all the original stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. So for a Sherlock retelling in the YA genre, it was definitely peaking my interest.

But, there were ups and downs in my opinion.

Ups:

1. Charlotte Holmes is kickass
I didn’t know what to make of a female Holmes at first. Yeah, I’m sure it’ll be great and it’s not the first Sherlock retelling that’s flipped genders (there’s that TV show Elementary going on). So I knew I’d be okay with this element.
What excited me was that she was reminiscent of the Sherlock we know. Drug addiction, blunt attitude, awkward interpersonal relationships, and brilliant as heck.
But, I also enjoy a little something that the author puts in on their own. What’s the point of a retelling if it’s EXACTLY the same as the original? You might as well re-read it. I liked that Charlotte had her vulnerabilities, in part because she’s female, and knew how to play to her strengths (a damsel in distress work like a charm in certain situations). So it was more fun to get to reacquaint myself with someone who is familiar but at the same time, still new in some way.

2. Jamie Watson’s voice
No, I don’t mean his literal voice (I did not read an audiobook so I’m not sure how that would be like).
Writing from the perspective of Watson admiring Holmes’ work (just like the original), it could’ve been a little dry but I rather liked his tone and the way he saw the world he was in. Seeing this story in Holmes’ POV would’ve been a ton different and I’d much rather see it from Watson’s eyes. This might just be a personal opinion though.

3. The mystery
Once you get through almost 50% of the book, the mystery really starts to pick up. Who’s going around hurting students at their boarding school? Why are there links to Sherlock Holmes stories? Who’s out to get Holmes and Watson?
I thoroughly enjoyed this aspect. After all, what’s a Sherlock retelling if there’s no solid mystery at the heart of it for Holmes to deduce? I thought the story wasn’t completely predictable, although once the party involved was identified, it wasn’t as much fun just waiting for the info dump from Holmes to explain her deductions (not all of us are THAT smart, Holmes).

These helped me progress through the novel, but the following kept me away from finishing this novel for over a year.

Downs:

1. The pacing
OH my goodness. It was sooo slow at first. I stopped at 36% for over a year until I felt like finally continuing. A murder does happen fairly early on (ish), but their guesses were going around in circles and it just didn’t seem like the pair of young sleuths were progressing much at all. There was too much info on what they were doing in their daily lives at the boarding school that I just couldn’t seem to care about as much. I came here for a mystery, not for “how teens live in a boarding school” contemporary!
It did pick up after 50% but the pieces of the mystery fell too slowly. There was too much focus on Watson and Holmes, too.

2. Their relationship
Don’t get me wrong. I like Holmes and Watson. They’re an inseparable team. Watson balances out the neurotic behaviours of our favourite genius, while Holmes gets Watson out of ridiculously dangerous scrapes. You can’t have one without the other.
But….I just didn’t love them together. Yes, I knew that making one of them a girl may lead to a more romantic relationship possible, especially cuz it’s YA and what is a YA book without ROMANCE?
I just didn’t care about them dating. I’m not even excited for the potential of it. Maybe it’s cuz I’m rather traditional about it but their relationship always wrung true as platonic. Friendships are important too and it just saddens me a little that this has to change as well. It’s not like it’s impossible for a guy and girl to be good friends, but thus is the world of YA I suppose.

Well, A Study in Charlotte was sweet overall, and it made me nostalgic for certain Sherlock stories. I liked it enough, but there were certain hurdles that made it hard to continue for me personally.

Overall Recommendation:
For a Sherlock Holmes retelling, it had its good moments and bad. A Study in Charlotte, paying homage to a few elements from familiar Sherlock adventures, tried its best with the mystery but took its time upping the suspense factor. Throwing in the extra bit of unnecessary romance and I had to take a year-long break to finish. Altogether, it’s not a hard book to swallow, but it may not be for every Holmes’ fan.

YA

Review: The Heart of Betrayal by Mary E. Pearson

Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: The Remnant Chronicles #2

the-heart-of-betrayal-mary-e-pearsonHeld captive in the barbarian kingdom of Venda, Lia and Rafe have little chance of escape. Desperate to save Lia’s life, her erstwhile assassin, Kaden, has told the Vendan Komizar that she has the gift, and the Komizar’s interest in Lia is greater than anyone could have foreseen.

Meanwhile, nothing is straightforward: There’s Rafe, who lied to Lia but has sacrificed his freedom to protect her; Kaden, who meant to assassinate her but has now saved her life; and the Vendans, whom Lia always believed to be savages.

Now that she lives among them, however, she realizes that may be far from the truth. Wrestling with her upbringing, her gift, and her sense of self, Lia must make powerful choices that will affect her country… and her own destiny.

 

3.5 Drink Me Potions

Rating: 3.5 stars

The Heart of Betrayal picks up directly where its predecessor left off, with our brave protagonist stuck in Venda, a kingdom rumoured for its barbaric ways and people.

I thought this book continued strong with Lia as our main character. She demonstrated great restraint in her plans and beautifully crafted lies that would hopefully lead to her eventual escape. She grew to love some of the Vendans, seeing beyond the stereotype she was always taught back in her own kingdom. Lia became the hope for these people that not even the evil ruler, the Komizar, could instill in them.

I was, however, less impressed by the world building. I was a little excited (and intimidated) to see what the notorious kingdom of Venda would be like now that all our main characters are up and personal in this land. It was a little bit of a letdown, to be honest.

The Song of Venda – in short cut-down passages – was seen as glimpses between certain chapters back in The Kiss of Deception. Its mysterious story and how it related to Lia and company in the present day was intriguing, but seeing how some of this unravelled and became more clear didn’t excite me. It was one of the only things that made this world that they lived in different from any other vague fantasy world in the YA genre, although the plot trope of a mostly-devastated kingdom from a time of old when the gods walked the earth has also been seen several times in the last few years (one example would be Rae Carson’s The Girl of Fire and Thorns).

Everything in this book had a familiar feeling to it, like you’ve seen it before. Nothing stood out too greatly, and that’s why I can’t rate this any higher.

However, I did enjoy the romance a bit more and the plot moved faster as Lia and Rafe hatched an escape plan together. The romance can’t really be called a love triangle as it seems Lia explicitly declares she has feelings for Rafe (in the romantic sense) while only “caring” for Kaden. I felt sorry for him a little as we got to learn more about his backstory, this being his home land and all.

The suspense was heavier too as the Komizar played a dangerous game with Lia in a subtle fight for the stronger will and more clever wit. I enjoyed it, while also being immensely relieved that this wasn’t one of those stories where the girl gets taken advantage of (and has to deal with it) because she’s powerless from different things held over her head.

While The Heart of Betrayal wasn’t the best fantasy story I’ve read in the last while, it still has its merits and altogether, I still enjoyed it.

Overall Recommendation:
With an even feistier and stronger Lia than before, The Heart of Betrayal continues her adventures. While a fairly fast read and less emphasis on the darn love triangle (SO grateful), the world building left me less than impressed as we dive more into the stories of Venda and our favourite assassin, Kaden. It balanced out the bits of sweet romance with Rafe and the suspense as they fought for their escape against the tyranny of the Komizar, but there just wasn’t enough here to make me remember this world as altogether special from other fantasy worlds. Overall, a good sequel but may not be the best.

YA

Review: The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson

Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: The Remnant Chronicles #1

the-kiss-of-deception-mary-e-pearsonA princess must find her place in a reborn world.

She flees on her wedding day.

She steals ancient documents from the Chancellor’s secret collection.

She is pursued by bounty hunters sent by her own father.

She is Princess Lia, seventeen, First Daughter of the House of Morrighan.

The Kingdom of Morrighan is steeped in tradition and the stories of a bygone world, but some traditions Lia can’t abide. Like having to marry someone she’s never met to secure a political alliance.

Fed up and ready for a new life, Lia flees to a distant village on the morning of her wedding. She settles in among the common folk, intrigued when two mysterious and handsome strangers arrive—and unaware that one is the jilted prince and the other an assassin sent to kill her. Deceptions swirl and Lia finds herself on the brink of unlocking perilous secrets—secrets that may unravel her world—even as she feels herself falling in love.

 

3.5 Drink Me Potions

It took me a while to finish The Kiss of Deception. I’m not wholly sure why, but I had to pause for a time and set it aside before I could come back to it.

It may have something to do with the fact that this book is surrounded at its centre on a freaking love triangle .

But I did enjoy many aspects of the novel.

For one, Lia is a superb protagonist. She’s no spoiled little princess, the type of girl that assassin Kaden would easily hate. No, she’s willing to get down and do some work in the new place she settled in after fleeing her home. She’s willing to do what she must to spare another’s innocence. She’s willing to lie to protect those whom she loves.

I admire her ability to adapt to harsh conditions and to never back down against those who wish to crush her spirit. She had the patience to time her responses, even when it’s hard to bite back insults that would feel momentarily good. I totally understand and I am with her in those POVs. I wish I had a Lia in my life like that.

But, there are those parts that weren’t so great. Those parts split between Kaden and Rafe. I will get back to this.

I liked the world building. For most of this book, we get to explore the great kingdom of Morrighan, plus a few uncharted areas between kingdoms as Lia travelled. The backstory to how the world was devastated once and the Remnant that survived were charged to remember is still a little unclear to me and I’m not sure if it’s just me but I hope it’ll clear up with more things that Lia learns in the next book.

And lastly, there was plenty of excitement and things going on with Lia and crew that helped me through 3/4 of the book quite quickly. The pacing got a little slow around the 75% mark and I think this was one factor that made it hard for me to finish it completely.

But mostly, it was the love triangle. I always seem to side with one guy and it’s annoying when the girl just can’t seem to figure out who she likes more. Like, come on. Toying with two different guys isn’t fun. I can’t stand it.

Here, Lia isn’t so bad. Necessarily. It seems she prefers one guy more over the other (and come on, one’s an assassin – albeit a cool factor, but he wants to kill her, kinda – so why not choose the prince, hmm?) but sometimes these things throw me off when the author suddenly does a 180 and chooses the other guy. I’d hate to see Pearson do that to me, but I suppose I shall see.

It took me some time to get over how little time there was with Rafe, and that’s why I stopped. But here I am, all finished. Overall, it’s still a good story. The romance was just a little rushed and there’s the thing with a triangle, but hey, it works for some people.

Overall Recommendation:
The Kiss of Deception was a fun book to start off a new series, albeit a little confusing with the world building. With a strong protagonist such as Lia who represents women who are cunning and flexible without having to be a skilled warrior, who could ask for a better story? Only having to hurtle through the obstacle of a love triangle taking up a large picture of the novel, this book probably would fare well with most people if you enjoy love triangles on top of your fantasy cravings.