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lunchlander's review
4.0
Finder is an immensely ambitious, occasionally frustrating but mostly thoroughly entertaining read. Carla Speed McNeil has crafted a pretty immense world here, and it's clear from reading the comic pages and the annotations that there's so much more than she's able to get into the book.
That's good in that the world feels fully realized, and bad in that, as others have noted, the story sometimes feels maddeningly vague or incomplete. Without the annotations at the back, some of the story cues in the comic (like when it's a flashback or a dream, or even what a particular character is doing) are unclear or even downright impossible to figure out.
However, even without knowing fully what's going on, there are a lot of neat sci-fi ideas and some amazingly fleshed-out characters. McNeil does fall into the "tell, not show" problem with the characters from time to time, but even without her notes, you can pick up on a lot of inner conflict and flaws in the various characters. These characters feel more real than most fiction can manage, and that goes a long way in terms of making this a favorite.
In addition, McNeil's artwork is beautiful, reminiscent of Terry Moore in its adoration (but not objectification) of the human form, male or female and her mastery of expression, whether it's subtle facial expression or more broad physical movement. And while her panel structure is generally straightforward, she's not afraid to break the pattern in order to show off a chaotic moment, an expansive backdrop or a character experiencing something spiritual.
That's good in that the world feels fully realized, and bad in that, as others have noted, the story sometimes feels maddeningly vague or incomplete. Without the annotations at the back, some of the story cues in the comic (like when it's a flashback or a dream, or even what a particular character is doing) are unclear or even downright impossible to figure out.
However, even without knowing fully what's going on, there are a lot of neat sci-fi ideas and some amazingly fleshed-out characters. McNeil does fall into the "tell, not show" problem with the characters from time to time, but even without her notes, you can pick up on a lot of inner conflict and flaws in the various characters. These characters feel more real than most fiction can manage, and that goes a long way in terms of making this a favorite.
In addition, McNeil's artwork is beautiful, reminiscent of Terry Moore in its adoration (but not objectification) of the human form, male or female and her mastery of expression, whether it's subtle facial expression or more broad physical movement. And while her panel structure is generally straightforward, she's not afraid to break the pattern in order to show off a chaotic moment, an expansive backdrop or a character experiencing something spiritual.
saidtheraina's review
1.0
Just not my taste. a bit too out there/nonlinear. Illustration style a bit too utilitarian. plot line a bit too disconnected. also, I have trouble when dialect is written into the text. takes me out of the story.
ederwin's review
4.0
I just went back and read this (and volume 2) for the third time. After having read all rest of the books in the series, this was much easier and more rewarding to read.
The story takes place in an extremely complex world and centers on some emotionally fractured characters with rich backstories. The reader is thrown in with little preparation, so lots of things are hard to understand at first. The story, or intersecting stories, are told via flash-backs, flash-forwards, dream sequences, etc., and it is easy to get lost. Some people will not care for that. But it is worth continuing. After a while, it all does make sense. I promise.
Anyone new to the series should probably start with [b:Finder, Vol. 09: Voice|9298590|Finder, Vol. 09 Voice|Carla Speed McNeil|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1403201073s/9298590.jpg|14181222], [b:Finder, Vol. 04: Talisman|422955|Finder, Vol. 04 Talisman|Carla Speed McNeil|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1194835532s/422955.jpg|412060] or [b:Finder: Third World|21532221|Finder Third World|Carla Speed McNeil|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1400875860s/21532221.jpg|40860577]. After you learn to understand the way the world works, the issues that the characters are facing in these first books, especially the effects on the characters of being in a mixed-clan family. It is clear that the world was fully built before this first story was drawn.
Read the footnotes. They are almost as important to the story as the notes in [b:Pale Fire|7805|Pale Fire|Vladimir Nabokov|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388155863s/7805.jpg|1222661]!
The black-and-white drawings are gorgeous and richly detailed. And these volumes also contain copious amounts of text. (The most recent story has much reduced the use of text.) Look for them in the full-size versions as the smaller size of the later collected version would be hard on old eyes.
Disclosure: I've known Carla since High School.
The story takes place in an extremely complex world and centers on some emotionally fractured characters with rich backstories. The reader is thrown in with little preparation, so lots of things are hard to understand at first. The story, or intersecting stories, are told via flash-backs, flash-forwards, dream sequences, etc., and it is easy to get lost. Some people will not care for that. But it is worth continuing. After a while, it all does make sense. I promise.
Anyone new to the series should probably start with [b:Finder, Vol. 09: Voice|9298590|Finder, Vol. 09 Voice|Carla Speed McNeil|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1403201073s/9298590.jpg|14181222], [b:Finder, Vol. 04: Talisman|422955|Finder, Vol. 04 Talisman|Carla Speed McNeil|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1194835532s/422955.jpg|412060] or [b:Finder: Third World|21532221|Finder Third World|Carla Speed McNeil|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1400875860s/21532221.jpg|40860577]. After you learn to understand the way the world works, the issues that the characters are facing in these first books, especially the effects on the characters of being in a mixed-clan family. It is clear that the world was fully built before this first story was drawn.
Read the footnotes. They are almost as important to the story as the notes in [b:Pale Fire|7805|Pale Fire|Vladimir Nabokov|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388155863s/7805.jpg|1222661]!
The black-and-white drawings are gorgeous and richly detailed. And these volumes also contain copious amounts of text. (The most recent story has much reduced the use of text.) Look for them in the full-size versions as the smaller size of the later collected version would be hard on old eyes.
Disclosure: I've known Carla since High School.
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