Chelsea

As the three stars insinuates, I liked this book. I wasn't absolutely dying to finish it, but the story was interesting enough to keep me reading.

The main problems I had with this book seemed to be focused in the first half. At the beginning, Patterson seemed to just scratch the surface of every facet of the book. I liked all the characters but I didn't feel like I had a deep understanding of any of them, even the narrator, Max. The plot was interesting but every time a new problem came up it was either solved quite quickly and easily or it was kind of pushed to the side (perhaps for other books in the series?) The plot seemed to overpower the character development in the first half of the book, which seems kind of backwards to me, especially for the first book in a series (shouldn't the readers get a good sense of the characters first, and then get into the action?)

Then, around the halfway mark, I started to like this book a lot more. I started to see the characters as individuals, not just “the flock”. I began to get a sense of what the characters wanted, what they believed in, and what they were fighting for. I still think some of the problems wrapped up a little easily (the group of mutant kids from the Institute just running off on their own?–yeah, that's gonna come back and bite the flock in their asses) but I do realize this is kind of a kid's book, so I take that into consideration. I do think I would have liked this book even more if I were younger.

Speaking of the age demographic, I'm not sure that Patterson really had a handle on the “young adult” genre. And this book didn't even seem young adult to me–more children's. The main characters range from age 6-14, but they act like they're probably ages 12-18. Yeah, yeah they've dealt with a lot in their short lives and are probably more mature than average kids their ages, but I still think some of their decisions, language, and actions were unrealistic.

All in all, a fun, quick read full of adventure.

ARC provided by NetGalley

Phew. I am so relieved to be done with this book.

This was a classic case of great ideas, poor execution. For a book that was basically all action, it was so dull. I think this was because from page one, it moves at a cheetah's pace, never pausing for a breath so you can absorb anything about who the characters are, the intricacies of their motivations, or why you should care. As the main character, Sal, moved from action to action, I found myself constantly wondering WHY. Sal's main motivation was straightforward—revenge—but there was hardly any deep world-building or internal character monologue for me to feel empathetic. It often felt like the actions were driving the characters, rather than the other way around, which makes it very difficult for me to connect with a book. And I just really did not connect with this one.

The main reason I'm disappointed that I didn't enjoy this is because Sal is gender-fluid. I was so excited to read about a gender-fluid character in a young adult fantasy book, where gender nonconforming characters are rare (they're rare in books in general). I did like that Sal's gender identity was just a part of them, but not a major plot point of the book. But I wish gender identity and sexual orientation had been discussed as a part of the world-building more. Many of the characters accepted Sal's fluidity without a question, which made me think that it was not too uncommon in their world, but that's just my inference from tiny context clues. I wanted something more concrete. There is also some misgendering of Sal by an antagonist, so be aware of that if you plan to read this book.

The brisk, action-focused writing style and impenetrable characters made this a book that wasn't for me. I hope to see more fantasy books with gender nonconforming characters and queer-inclusive worlds in the future.

Ok this was pretty silly and the writing/editing was not the best (example: the two main girls' middle names changed halfway through the book?? and then changed back??) but it was also cute and had a lot of my fave tropes and was exactly the light-hearted queer fun I needed to help me through the cold I have this weekend so COUNT ME SATISFIED

—

Pre-review: I hate this title but I love the fake married trope w sapphic ladies so,

A delicately told and intricately woven story about the detrimental history of silencing women and girls, particularly in Ireland. Touches on subjects from abortion, sexual assault, homophobia, classism, and many more ways that women have been historically and currently abused, shamed, and oppressed.

As Linus would say, “oh dear, what a DELIGHT!”

You know how sometimes the fantasy genre uses a different world, species, or place as an allegory for marginalization and the discrimination people face in a world that is systemically against them? Well, this book sure has that. And you know how, despite the message they're trying to send about people's differences being beautiful and something to be celebrated, sometimes those books include nothing but straight, white, cis people and the “monsters,” a dichotomy that works against the message itself? Well, this book sure does NOT have that.

Linus Baker is a rule-abiding human caseworker for DICOMY (the Department in Charge of Magical Youths), tasked with visiting the isolated orphanage on the island of Marsyas, where the most dangerous and uncommon types of magical children are looked after by their master, Arthur Parnassus. Linus's goal is to reside at the orphanage for one month, and ultimately decide if the orphanage should remain open, or be closed down. Linus is a wonderfully drawn character. Though frustratingly uptight and obsessed with the government issued book Rules and Regulations, the way he opens up and learns while on the island is beautiful and heartwarming to watch.

The children are so vibrant and unique—not just because of the kinds of magical beings they are, but because of the depth with which they are written. Instead of blending together into an amorphous, annoying blob of childhood, they each have their own personality and voice. There's Talia, a gnome with a fierce heart and a beautiful garden. There's Phee, a forest sprite who has lost everything, but who can pull the beauty of nature from the bare soil. There's Chauncey, a green blob with tentacles instead of arms, whose sole dream in life is to become a bellhop. There's Theodore, a wyvern who collects buttons and other treasures. And there's Lucy, the Antichrist, the literal son of the devil, a 6 year old who loves to cook, listen to his old records, and most of all, his brothers and sisters.

And Arthur. The master of the orphanage, a man with a painful past, and a father figure to all of these children. Arthur is everything Linus is not—open-hearted and unconventional, adventurous and spirited. The way these two men learn from each other and develop feelings for each other is so lovely to watch. They help each other stand up for what they believe is right. It's also a true slow-burn!!! Finally!

A recurring question in this book is “Don't you wish you were here?” So—at a time when things are difficult and uncertain, when the world is scary and you just need something to make you feel warm and hopeful—I ask you, don't you wish you were here, reading this book?

This was a great addition to LGBT YA Fantasy! I did have some nitpicks with it, and I wish a lot of it had been more developed (a general complaint from me about most YA fantasy), but overall I enjoyed it and I'm so glad it exists.

Some thoughts:

• I appreciate that there was a sexual violence warning at the beginning of the book. I already knew that content was going to be in this book from goodreads reviews, but many readers won't have seen that before reading, and I think it's so important for books (especially YA) to have brief warnings like this one did.
• I loved that this book showed how girls can support each other, but also still disagree with and dislike each other. I do wish some more of the girls/women in the book (especially Blue and Mistress Eira) had been in on the plan to overthrow the king. Maybe in the sequels.
• The ending was very rushed and felt disjointed from the rest of the book.
• The romance was sweet but didn't really feel based on much of anything. I wish it had been more developed.

meh. the last quarter or so of this was the only part that was remotely interesting to me (and the only reason i'm rounding up to 2 stars). i'll probably read the next one bc i'm still curious & confused about the love for these books but i'm pretty sure it's just gonna be one of those Not For Me series. COME @ ME WITH THOSE PITCHFORKS.