April 17, 2008 at 10:42 am · Filed under Book Reviews, Favourite Books, Historical Fiction, Mystery and Suspense, Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror, Young Adult Literature
57. The Grand Tour or The Purloined Coronation Regalia by Patricia C. Wrede & Caroline Stevermer (Young adult historical fantasy) 469 p.
The sequel to Sorcery and Cecelia, this takes up only a few weeks after that book leaves off. For their honeymoon trip, Kate, Cecy, and their new husbands have decided to go on the Grand Tour, with Kate’s mother-in-law, Lady Silvia, accompanying them across the Channel to Paris. In Calais, however, a package left for Lady Silvia proves to contain an important and valuable artifact. All five know that it must not fall into the wrong hands, but this knowledge does them little good when the artifact is stolen by highwaymen on the road to Paris. The two couples continue their journey, but now in an attempt to foil a sinister plot.
I liked this almost as much as Sorcery and Cecelia, but not quite. It was a good deal longer, partly because the plot was more complex, but partly because the story was slower-paced. I’m also not that fond of watching couples fawn over each other, in real life or in books, because I find it boring and kind of annoying. There wasn’t a lot of it in The Grand Tour, but still too much for me.
The story was marvellously entertaining, though. I’m a little surprised by how much I liked both books, because if there’s one thing I don’t like, it’s a story told entirely through letters or diary entries. Kate and Cecy have such vivid personalities, though, and it comes through in their writing, so instead of being a little dull and removed from the action, their accounts are full of life.
I definitely recommend both books, and I hope I come across a copy of the third book sometime soon!
Pages read: 15,925
Tags: 50 Book Challenge 2008, Caroline Stevermer, Chunkster Challenge 2008, Kate and Cecelia, Patricia C. Wrede
April 16, 2008 at 11:22 pm · Filed under Book Reviews, Favourite Books, Historical Fiction, Mystery and Suspense, Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror, Young Adult Literature
56. Sorcery & Cecelia or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot by Patricia C. Wrede & Caroline Stevermer (Young adult historical fantasy) 320 p.
I swear I only went book shopping to look for Xenocide, for the second time this week, but I came home with this and its sequel instead. (In fact, I made a third shopping trip today; still no Xenocide, but five other books, quite cheap.) I’ve always liked Wrede’s Dragons series, and I’d heard many good things about this series, and there were remaindered hardcover copies of The Grand Tour going cheap.
Sorcery & Cecelia is an epistolary novel with a twist: all the letters in the book were actually sent by the authors, to each other, and they didn’t set out to write a novel. They were just playing the Letter Game: two people (they don’t have to be writers) carry on an in-character correspondence. They chose to be two cousins, best friends Kate and Cecelia, living in England in 1817. An England just like the one in our world, except that magic exists, and witches and wizards abound. Early in her Season, Kate is nearly poisoned by a witch who mistakes her for the Mysterious Marquis. Meanwhile, Cecelia finds herself spied on by an elegantly-dressed young man, and her new friend Dorothea begins to have a rather startling effect on the gentlemen of the neighbourhood.
This is a really excellent young adult novel. The writing is quick and clear, and the characters are delightful. The book has a real sense of humour, with delicious absurdities in every letter. The tone, too, is wonderful—the book is dedicated to Austen, Heyer, Tolkien, and Kushner, and their influence (or at least the women’s) definitely shows in this comedy of manners. There’s something so delightfully gothic about the “Mysterious Marquis”, and the same atmosphere pervades the book. Not many modern authors choose to create that kind of atmosphere; the only one I can think of, funnily enough, is Lemony Snicket.
Anyway, if you like Austen, Heyer, or Kushner, as well as young adult novels, you’ll probably enjoy this. Not because it’s a rip-off of those authors, but because it has a similar sensibility. The plot and the characters, however, are all the authors’ own. And the characters, especially, are people I enjoy spending time with. Cecy and Kate are fabulous; intelligent and independent young women, but still believable as Regency ladies. Altogether a very satisfying read!
Pages read: 15,456
Tags: 50 Book Challenge 2008, 888 Challenge, A ~ Z Reading Challenge, Caroline Stevermer, Fantasy Classics Challenge, Kate and Cecelia, Once Upon a Time II, Patricia C. Wrede
