All hail Her Royal YA Highness Libba Bray, who can write about anything she wants in any genre or mix of genres and have it be a critical and commercial success. In her new series, which begins with THE DIVINERS, Bray returns to the stomping grounds that had first gotten her fans: a solid ensemble cast of characters with a dollop of very atmospheric paranormal elements.
Evie is a mouthy, flighty, manipulative, and sometimes silly ball of energy. She is, in short, whom part of you always wishes you could be like, and also everything you would never want to have to deal with in another person. Evie may drive you crazy with her impulsiveness and selfishness at times, but it is those characteristics of hers that allow her to be such a one-of-a-kind protagonist. Her lines and actions literally dominate the pages. If ever there was a character who was bigger than the words describing her, it would be Evie. And Im sure she would be happy to hear that about herself.
Evie, however, is not the only star of this book. Her new friends are strong characters in their own right. In THE DIVINERS, Evies friends and acquaintances dont seem to be in the book for the sole purpose of convenient info-dumping or plot-hopping: its not difficult to see them as protagonists of their own storiesTheta, the glamorous Ziegfeld girl with the troubled past; Memphis, the golden boy from Harlem; Mabel, who is just coming out of the shadow of her idealistic, revolutionist parents; Jericho, strong and silent with a secret that could blow apart everyones conception of humanity; and Sam, the pickpocket whose suave exterior hides a grimly driven purpose.
Along those lines, the dash of romance in this book will surprise and, I hope, delight you. Bray does not go the expected route, and neither does the romance impose upon the main plot in any way. Dare I say that this is one YA romantic setup that I actually cant wait to see play out in the sequel?
Speaking of main plot, thoughWell, sometimes its hard to tell what that is. The synopsis sells the premise of a supernatural serial killer, but thats just the surfacefitting, for a 600-page book. The languid, almost irresponsibly lazy pace of the first half of the book nearly killed it for me. Its necessary setup for future books in the series, and I appreciate that because of this thorough setup the future books will not beat a finished plot to death, but boy did it divide this book for me.
Overall, an extremely enjoyable novel, particularly for Libba Bray fans but also for those new to her books.
Evie is a mouthy, flighty, manipulative, and sometimes silly ball of energy. She is, in short, whom part of you always wishes you could be like, and also everything you would never want to have to deal with in another person. Evie may drive you crazy with her impulsiveness and selfishness at times, but it is those characteristics of hers that allow her to be such a one-of-a-kind protagonist. Her lines and actions literally dominate the pages. If ever there was a character who was bigger than the words describing her, it would be Evie. And Im sure she would be happy to hear that about herself.
Evie, however, is not the only star of this book. Her new friends are strong characters in their own right. In THE DIVINERS, Evies friends and acquaintances dont seem to be in the book for the sole purpose of convenient info-dumping or plot-hopping: its not difficult to see them as protagonists of their own storiesTheta, the glamorous Ziegfeld girl with the troubled past; Memphis, the golden boy from Harlem; Mabel, who is just coming out of the shadow of her idealistic, revolutionist parents; Jericho, strong and silent with a secret that could blow apart everyones conception of humanity; and Sam, the pickpocket whose suave exterior hides a grimly driven purpose.
Along those lines, the dash of romance in this book will surprise and, I hope, delight you. Bray does not go the expected route, and neither does the romance impose upon the main plot in any way. Dare I say that this is one YA romantic setup that I actually cant wait to see play out in the sequel?
Speaking of main plot, thoughWell, sometimes its hard to tell what that is. The synopsis sells the premise of a supernatural serial killer, but thats just the surfacefitting, for a 600-page book. The languid, almost irresponsibly lazy pace of the first half of the book nearly killed it for me. Its necessary setup for future books in the series, and I appreciate that because of this thorough setup the future books will not beat a finished plot to death, but boy did it divide this book for me.
Overall, an extremely enjoyable novel, particularly for Libba Bray fans but also for those new to her books.
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