Book #1 of 2014: Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy
Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy by Karen Foxlee
(Book given free for review by Random House.)
Rating: 4/Liked (1-5/hated-loved)
Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy was perfect.
The writing was not just perfect, it achieved a trick I never encountered before: Somehow it read like a bedtime story; I didn't feel like I was reading it, I felt like it was being read to me. The rhythm? The style? I have no idea how that was accomplished.
The characters were perfect. Not as in they were without flaws, but as in all were believable as real people. From the most minor to the main characters, from magical to ghost characters, I bought them all. They all had flaws, strengths, and believable reactions and motivations.
The story and the world-building were amazing. The main character believed in science and only science, no magic or myth, and slowly the world around her changed until she had to accept and learn to deal with things she never thought existed (magic, ghosts, quests, etc).
This book felt almost Harry Potter-ish to me. It had that same nonmagical person immerse in a new magical word feel about it.
I can't name one bad thing about Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy. How rare is it for me to not be able to note one single issue? No misplaced semicolons, no unreasonable character, no requirement to suspend logic even for a moment. So why only 'liked' ranking and not 'loved'? For all it was perfect, for all I identified with the main character, for all I loved how the story was told, I had no drive to read it. I don't know if it was me or the book, but some days I'd read just a page or two and walk away and not think about it again. Even when I was reading the ending, I had no pressing need to keep going. It took me almost two days to read the climax of the story.
I can't explain why that is, and believe me I've thought about it. I liked everything about it, I identified with the main character (which is rare), I had not a single complaint about it.
I would still recommend it to any and all, even with my lack of drive to finish it.
(Book given free for review by Random House.)
Rating: 4/Liked (1-5/hated-loved)
Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy was perfect.
The writing was not just perfect, it achieved a trick I never encountered before: Somehow it read like a bedtime story; I didn't feel like I was reading it, I felt like it was being read to me. The rhythm? The style? I have no idea how that was accomplished.
The characters were perfect. Not as in they were without flaws, but as in all were believable as real people. From the most minor to the main characters, from magical to ghost characters, I bought them all. They all had flaws, strengths, and believable reactions and motivations.
The story and the world-building were amazing. The main character believed in science and only science, no magic or myth, and slowly the world around her changed until she had to accept and learn to deal with things she never thought existed (magic, ghosts, quests, etc).
This book felt almost Harry Potter-ish to me. It had that same nonmagical person immerse in a new magical word feel about it.
I can't name one bad thing about Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy. How rare is it for me to not be able to note one single issue? No misplaced semicolons, no unreasonable character, no requirement to suspend logic even for a moment. So why only 'liked' ranking and not 'loved'? For all it was perfect, for all I identified with the main character, for all I loved how the story was told, I had no drive to read it. I don't know if it was me or the book, but some days I'd read just a page or two and walk away and not think about it again. Even when I was reading the ending, I had no pressing need to keep going. It took me almost two days to read the climax of the story.
I can't explain why that is, and believe me I've thought about it. I liked everything about it, I identified with the main character (which is rare), I had not a single complaint about it.
I would still recommend it to any and all, even with my lack of drive to finish it.