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4.09 AVERAGE
4.09 AVERAGE
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I really wanted to love this book, but I just felt like it would've been better to leave things as they were in the previous novel. It felt like a lot of things happened just to end up back where we started, more or less.
The plot feels meandering and aimless. The different POVs remain disconnected for most of the book, and while they come together at the end it feels like too many coincidences need to happen in order for the story to even get there at all, so it didnt feel as satisfying as it should have. The new characters are mostly uninteresting or unlikable, or both. Kriendel and Toby I liked, but not as much as our beloved Golem and Jinni, whose roles feel diminished and dull in this novel. Their relationship, the strongest part of the first novel, feels stuck on loop in this one, and I can't tell entirely what Wecker was going for with them. Their communication breaks down in ways that feel forced, and many of their interactions are frustrating to read because of this.
The way POVs are broken up in this book was also frustrating to me. We'll often have multiple POV switches on the same page, and while they're clearly delineated and not confusing, I found myself wishing that we could stay in one character's head for more than a few paragraphs.
Wecker's prose is great, though. She is really a talented writer. I don't think I'll read the follow up to this one, but I'll still be looking out for more works from her in the future.
The plot feels meandering and aimless. The different POVs remain disconnected for most of the book, and while they come together at the end it feels like too many coincidences need to happen in order for the story to even get there at all, so it didnt feel as satisfying as it should have. The new characters are mostly uninteresting or unlikable, or both. Kriendel and Toby I liked, but not as much as our beloved Golem and Jinni, whose roles feel diminished and dull in this novel. Their relationship, the strongest part of the first novel, feels stuck on loop in this one, and I can't tell entirely what Wecker was going for with them. Their communication breaks down in ways that feel forced, and many of their interactions are frustrating to read because of this.
The way POVs are broken up in this book was also frustrating to me. We'll often have multiple POV switches on the same page, and while they're clearly delineated and not confusing, I found myself wishing that we could stay in one character's head for more than a few paragraphs.
Wecker's prose is great, though. She is really a talented writer. I don't think I'll read the follow up to this one, but I'll still be looking out for more works from her in the future.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Terminal illness, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Suicide attempt
Minor: War
Audiobook: George Guidall, narration.
Fabulous narration, again.
I continue to love the characters in this book - all of them. Continues to raise intriguing questions about life and death and mourning and community. The beginning and end captivated me the most. My 3* review is because I got bogged down/bored in the middle somewhere. Almost stopped listening. The Titanic ends up affecting the story in a tired way. Even Downtown Abbey had a Titanic storyline. I much preferred the way the Triangle Factory tragedy was treated: it happened on the edges of the story, adding richness to the story and the story adding context to the fire and it’s aftermath.
If there’s a #3, I will definitely read it. I’m glad I stuck with this one.
Fabulous narration, again.
I continue to love the characters in this book - all of them. Continues to raise intriguing questions about life and death and mourning and community. The beginning and end captivated me the most. My 3* review is because I got bogged down/bored in the middle somewhere. Almost stopped listening. The Titanic ends up affecting the story in a tired way. Even Downtown Abbey had a Titanic storyline. I much preferred the way the Triangle Factory tragedy was treated: it happened on the edges of the story, adding richness to the story and the story adding context to the fire and it’s aftermath.
If there’s a #3, I will definitely read it. I’m glad I stuck with this one.
medium-paced
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
A stunning sequel! I almost waited to read this so I could re-read Golem and the Jinni, but the book does a good job filling in some gaps at the start. The story immerses you in New York at the turn of the century, a time of enormous change and growth. The characters must navigate these changes along with their own loves, losses, and conflicts. Chava and Ahmad are still central in the story, with Sophia, Anna, and Maryam all returning as side characters. There are also some phenomenal additions: a Jinniyeh who is banished from her tribe; Toby, Anna's son, growing up and growing curious about his past; and Kreindel, a rabbi's daughter who helps her father create a golem. The characters and storylines all come together beautifully at the end. I read the last 40% in one sitting!
While I still love Helene Wecker's style of writing, and I suppose the previous book did lend itself viable for a sequel of some sorts, this was not what I wanted out of these two characters. The tone of the book, I feel, basically walks back the friendship of the two characters in many ways and, one could argue, has a very weird anti-exogamy tone to it. I think readers could understand that if Chava and Ahmad continued their relationship, that there would be issues due to their magical natures and personalities, but I didn't appreciate the fatalistic approach to their relationship.
Apparently this is meant to be the second book in a trilogy, so I could see the breaking of their relationship as a standard "second book low point", but with it standing as is now, it truly makes me sad to see the two of them separate and distant now. I'd prefer to just keep the ending to the original book.
Apparently this is meant to be the second book in a trilogy, so I could see the breaking of their relationship as a standard "second book low point", but with it standing as is now, it truly makes me sad to see the two of them separate and distant now. I'd prefer to just keep the ending to the original book.
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
I didn't love it as much as the first book. But it did break my heart a little bit.