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valhecka's review
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
tone is at odds with themes & plot events, which are at odds with the characters' ages
ashleylm's review
4.0
A very high 4, held back from 5-ness because (a) I didn't cry, and (b) not as surprising as the first book, in the sense that we've already been introduced to the milieu, the characters, and are expecting good things. If only most books were as good or better, life would be a treat.
This felt more YA than the original volume--there is kissing, an implication of pedophilia, death, drugs, and loud music--to the point that, at first, I was worried I'd be disappointed--the first quarter is awfully different in tone from Flora Segunda. But gradually as the plot takes hold, and the twists and turns arrive just when one would want them, it began to seem very much the right sequel. (I'm reminded of the Bartimaeus Sequence, which also felt older and darker as it went along.
Looking forward to the next!
(Note: 5 stars = rare and amazing, 4 = quite good book, 3 = a decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. There are a lot of 4s and 3s in the world!)
This felt more YA than the original volume--there is kissing, an implication of pedophilia, death, drugs, and loud music--to the point that, at first, I was worried I'd be disappointed--the first quarter is awfully different in tone from Flora Segunda. But gradually as the plot takes hold, and the twists and turns arrive just when one would want them, it began to seem very much the right sequel. (I'm reminded of the Bartimaeus Sequence, which also felt older and darker as it went along.
Looking forward to the next!
(Note: 5 stars = rare and amazing, 4 = quite good book, 3 = a decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. There are a lot of 4s and 3s in the world!)
lisalark's review
4.0
This ought to be 4.5 stars but there's no such thing. Terribly clever, erudite, creative, human, good character development, fabulous descriptions.
I want a Pig and a nickname as cool as Tiny Doom.
I want a Pig and a nickname as cool as Tiny Doom.
kentcryptid's review
4.0
A lot of fun, and the setting is as wonderfully bonkers as ever, but there were a couple of niggling things that I didn't like. Firstly, there was a bit of a disregard for the loss of human life in this one that sat weirdly with me, and secondly I felt that introducing a romantic rivalry between the main character and another teenage girl (which included Flora being insulted for her weight, etc) was predictable and unnecessary.
jessalynn_librarian's review
4.0
I almost didn't read this sequel to [b:Flora Segunda: Being the Magickal Mishaps of a Girl of Spirit, Her Glass-Gazing Sidekick, Two Ominous Butlers|229033|Flora Segunda Being the Magickal Mishaps of a Girl of Spirit, Her Glass-Gazing Sidekick, Two Ominous Butlers (One Blue), a House with Eleven Thousand Rooms, and a Red Dog (Flora Trilogy, Book 1)|Ysabeau S. Wilce|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172891622s/229033.jpg|2356884], but I'm really glad I did. Maybe I was just in the wrong mood the first time around, or maybe the pacing picked up in the second book. Either way, something clicked.
I can't say that I've ever complained about a lack of good ol' West Coast fantasy, or even fantasy based in an American landscape, but if I had complained, this would be the solution. Wilce gives us a fantasy version of San Francisco, a world where the place and mythology is crucial to the story. Just what I never realized that I always wanted.
Perhaps my favorite thing about Flora’s Dare is the language. And not just the fake-swearing language, either (exclamations of “pigface!” abound). The names are just as delightful as the first time around – a character named Tiny Doom rivals the Dainty Pirate from the first book. Throw in magic and monsters, a high rate of bacon and waffle consumption, a girl who’s outgrowing her stays, a kilt-wearing populace, an army general for a mother, a best friend taken over by the outlaw version of the red shoes (in this case, a pair of sparkly red boots with a five inch heel), and some stuffed pigs that I suspect of being more than they seem – well, sign me up.
This one hovers on the border between middle grade and YA - and I'm inclined to say middle grade because there's no specific content that makes it more mature. It's a big book, excellent for those fans of elaborate but unusual fantasies.
I can't say that I've ever complained about a lack of good ol' West Coast fantasy, or even fantasy based in an American landscape, but if I had complained, this would be the solution. Wilce gives us a fantasy version of San Francisco, a world where the place and mythology is crucial to the story. Just what I never realized that I always wanted.
Perhaps my favorite thing about Flora’s Dare is the language. And not just the fake-swearing language, either (exclamations of “pigface!” abound). The names are just as delightful as the first time around – a character named Tiny Doom rivals the Dainty Pirate from the first book. Throw in magic and monsters, a high rate of bacon and waffle consumption, a girl who’s outgrowing her stays, a kilt-wearing populace, an army general for a mother, a best friend taken over by the outlaw version of the red shoes (in this case, a pair of sparkly red boots with a five inch heel), and some stuffed pigs that I suspect of being more than they seem – well, sign me up.
This one hovers on the border between middle grade and YA - and I'm inclined to say middle grade because there's no specific content that makes it more mature. It's a big book, excellent for those fans of elaborate but unusual fantasies.
pinoncoffee's review
4.0
I devoured this within a 6-hour window and I’m still in a book fog. So many revelations and plot twists, and I need to find out what happens next!
The plot element about Flora’s passion for Nini Mo books is really handled well. She’s doing a great job making it essential to the story.
The plot element about Flora’s passion for Nini Mo books is really handled well. She’s doing a great job making it essential to the story.
magentabyfive's review
3.0
"I AM QUIRKY!"
That's all I could think as I read this. I mean, this is really dark, it is wonderfully dark, but covered by a quirky and ultimately infantile. Which is too bad, because this story has a voice. It's just too bad that the voice is so babyish. I mean, this got me in the last book, but while the last book had certain feel to it that almost excused the language. This just shoves it into your face. Is it supposed to make what we're reading easier on the young adults who are reading this? Because to me it just brought me completely out of this very bloody world.
That and why is this about tentacles? And why does it come out of a "potty". I mean, it's in the description, it's supposed to be a selling point. Is it supposed to be as creepy as it is. Because you don't really have to know jack squat about Japan to know the joke and for your mind to go in the potty.
The main character is as irritating as possible. Though I did like the twist. I'll give it that. I only realized it a chapter or so before Flora so there's that. Yay! I guess. Udo, he was there he had something going on that seemed to really have nothing to do with anything in the story. Maybe other people get a lot out of his story and how it matches her and how she grows and on and on... he just had a part and then came back and then... Why was he in the book? It didn't feel like there was much weight to his story no matter what Flora said.
Still, this series is a bit like the Assassin's Apprentice. I start reading it, the forced reap of the last book makes me think "this is it, I will not read the next book, I'll be lucky to finish this one" and then somewhere while reading this while characters are fake swearing I'll go "oh god, I'm going to read the next one aren't I?" and then a little part of me will die. But thankfully we've only got one book left, so hold your breaths until I go back to library to the thrilling conclusion of forced quirkiness, a wonderful backdrop of dark implications (and not implications), and baby talk.
That's all I could think as I read this. I mean, this is really dark, it is wonderfully dark, but covered by a quirky and ultimately infantile. Which is too bad, because this story has a voice. It's just too bad that the voice is so babyish. I mean, this got me in the last book, but while the last book had certain feel to it that almost excused the language. This just shoves it into your face. Is it supposed to make what we're reading easier on the young adults who are reading this? Because to me it just brought me completely out of this very bloody world.
That and why is this about tentacles? And why does it come out of a "potty". I mean, it's in the description, it's supposed to be a selling point. Is it supposed to be as creepy as it is. Because you don't really have to know jack squat about Japan to know the joke and for your mind to go in the potty.
The main character is as irritating as possible. Though I did like the twist. I'll give it that. I only realized it a chapter or so before Flora so there's that. Yay! I guess. Udo, he was there he had something going on that seemed to really have nothing to do with anything in the story. Maybe other people get a lot out of his story and how it matches her and how she grows and on and on... he just had a part and then came back and then... Why was he in the book? It didn't feel like there was much weight to his story no matter what Flora said.
Still, this series is a bit like the Assassin's Apprentice. I start reading it, the forced reap of the last book makes me think "this is it, I will not read the next book, I'll be lucky to finish this one" and then somewhere while reading this while characters are fake swearing I'll go "oh god, I'm going to read the next one aren't I?" and then a little part of me will die. But thankfully we've only got one book left, so hold your breaths until I go back to library to the thrilling conclusion of forced quirkiness, a wonderful backdrop of dark implications (and not implications), and baby talk.