Friday 22 January 2010

This week I have been reading

Crow Stone – Jenni Mills
It’s hard to describe this one too much without giving the plot away. Let me simply say that the story moves back and forth between the past and the present and that some elements between these collide. A number of secrets are hinted at. The main character seems so honest but clearly is hiding things and on several occasions does things that seem stupid or underhand.
While some aspects were a bit predictable I found the mix of subplots fascinating. In fact I became much more interested in these than in what was presumably the main plot. Generally speaking it read in a very true to life way. I could really relate to the teenagers and their desire to be grown up. This is a first novel so I’ll keep an eye out for more from this author.

The Rose Labyrinth – Titania Hardie
This is much too long. I love a good secret manuscript hidden treasure story as much as the next person. What I found hard to take here were how complex the ‘clues’ were. Also having struggled through I couldn’t quite see what the point was supposed to be.

I also found the John Dee connection a bit difficult to swallow. Maybe because I’ve read a couple of things that details Dees’ life and suggest that he was duped by Kelley? So I found the character’s belief in him a bit naïve. Otherwise everyone seems to know all about equinoxes and the symbolism of roses.

Maybe there was just a bit too much crammed in for this to work. Pity.

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