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kdschaefer522's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
fallingletters's review against another edition
5.0
Review originally published 31 October 2018 at Falling Letters.
After allowing ghosts back into Ingot in [b: A Properly Unhaunted Place|32333261|A Properly Unhaunted Place|William Alexander|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1476806821s/32333261.jpg|52969507], Rosa (Latinx) and Jasper (African-American) now have to navigate the consequences of living in a newly haunted town as they return to school in A Festival of Ghosts. The ghosts here aren’t too frightening – appeasement librarians like Rosa and her mother know how to keep them satisfied. Yet some ghosts at school are stealing students’ voices, which might be related to the mystery of whether Rosa is being haunted by her father’s ghost.
Rosa’s confident personality shines while Jasper grows as he learns the art of appeasement. Instead of having Rosa rehash the rules of appeasement for the reader, we have Jasper showing us what he’s learned. Rosa’s bold attitude and witty comments had me wishing I was more like her at times. She’s not without fears and concerns, though. What I love about Rosa is that she doesn’t let those stop her. She acknowledges the challenges and works through them.
I also enjoyed that we get to dive into the family mystery hinted at in the first book. I don’t want to give anything way, so suffice to say A Festival of Ghosts digs deeper into the characters and family dynamics.
In contrast to [b: The Island of Monsters|288737|Corydon and the Island of Monsters (Corydon, #1)|Tobias Druitt|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1439406583s/288737.jpg|2645623], I think may actually have enjoyed this more than the first book! I preferred the plot in this book (more than a few things I didn’t seem coming – I gasped once or twice), I adored Rosa even more, and I think the prose has improved – there were some great lines and little stories that said a lot with few words.
After allowing ghosts back into Ingot in [b: A Properly Unhaunted Place|32333261|A Properly Unhaunted Place|William Alexander|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1476806821s/32333261.jpg|52969507], Rosa (Latinx) and Jasper (African-American) now have to navigate the consequences of living in a newly haunted town as they return to school in A Festival of Ghosts. The ghosts here aren’t too frightening – appeasement librarians like Rosa and her mother know how to keep them satisfied. Yet some ghosts at school are stealing students’ voices, which might be related to the mystery of whether Rosa is being haunted by her father’s ghost.
Rosa’s confident personality shines while Jasper grows as he learns the art of appeasement. Instead of having Rosa rehash the rules of appeasement for the reader, we have Jasper showing us what he’s learned. Rosa’s bold attitude and witty comments had me wishing I was more like her at times. She’s not without fears and concerns, though. What I love about Rosa is that she doesn’t let those stop her. She acknowledges the challenges and works through them.
I also enjoyed that we get to dive into the family mystery hinted at in the first book. I don’t want to give anything way, so suffice to say A Festival of Ghosts digs deeper into the characters and family dynamics.
In contrast to [b: The Island of Monsters|288737|Corydon and the Island of Monsters (Corydon, #1)|Tobias Druitt|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1439406583s/288737.jpg|2645623], I think may actually have enjoyed this more than the first book! I preferred the plot in this book (more than a few things I didn’t seem coming – I gasped once or twice), I adored Rosa even more, and I think the prose has improved – there were some great lines and little stories that said a lot with few words.
Speak to danger in its own language, or offer it your own. That was a quote from Catalina de Erauso, Rosa’s patron librarian and a great duelist of the sixteenth century. She killed so many of her enemies that she took up the arts of appeasement to calm their vengeful ghosts. (p. 9)
xandra_lyn's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
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? It's complicated
5.0
Such a great sequel to the first book!!! I really enjoyed it!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death
Death is clearly indispensable to this story, but none of it is graphically toldsingerji's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
pagesofpins's review against another edition
4.0
"Mom described aletheia as the world's memory of hidden things, but Rosa thought of it as a way to shout Don't you DARE forget about this to the wide and entire world. It also said We remember to all hidden things nearby." (6)
Nell and Sir Dad are completely awesome side characters.
Rosa and Jasper are doing their best to soothe a town completely unequipped to process the past. The fake history of the Renaissance festival is clashing with ghosts of the town's real history. No one wants to talk about or remember mean, abusive family members, but their ghosts won't go away. The school is so haunted classes can barely resume. Ghosts whose voices have been silenced are taking other people's. Jasper's parents are unemployed, and Rosa's dad might have finally caught up with them.
"Time is made by motion. Make your own. Do not allow your opponent to take it from you."
Things I liked: Once again, Rosa as a character is allowed to feel all her feelings. Also, she is trained and treated as a professional. Librarians can be kids in this universe.
I appreciated that losing an abusive family member still means you have to process things and acknowledge that they existed, but that is all the room they get--nothing else.
The posters on the walls at school with real quotes about history were fun.
Interesting element of perceptions of history vs real history duking it out.
College level vocab and little known history weaved seamlessly into the story.
Need more: Resolution with the Ren Faire ghosts. Are they going to disrupt the festival still during summer? If not, why not?
Jasper is an awesome friend and talented appeasement specialist in training, but not a lot of thoughts and feelings from him this book. More Jasper!
The dad storyline wasn't bad, but unconvincing in places.
Nell and Sir Dad are completely awesome side characters.
Rosa and Jasper are doing their best to soothe a town completely unequipped to process the past. The fake history of the Renaissance festival is clashing with ghosts of the town's real history. No one wants to talk about or remember mean, abusive family members, but their ghosts won't go away. The school is so haunted classes can barely resume. Ghosts whose voices have been silenced are taking other people's. Jasper's parents are unemployed, and Rosa's dad might have finally caught up with them.
"Time is made by motion. Make your own. Do not allow your opponent to take it from you."
Things I liked: Once again, Rosa as a character is allowed to feel all her feelings. Also, she is trained and treated as a professional. Librarians can be kids in this universe.
I appreciated that losing an abusive family member still means you have to process things and acknowledge that they existed, but that is all the room they get--nothing else.
The posters on the walls at school with real quotes about history were fun.
Interesting element of perceptions of history vs real history duking it out.
College level vocab and little known history weaved seamlessly into the story.
Need more: Resolution with the Ren Faire ghosts. Are they going to disrupt the festival still during summer? If not, why not?
Jasper is an awesome friend and talented appeasement specialist in training, but not a lot of thoughts and feelings from him this book. More Jasper!
The dad storyline wasn't bad, but unconvincing in places.
sc104906's review against another edition
3.0
I received this as an eARC through Edelweiss.
This is a sequel to A Properly Unhaunted Place.
After the events of the previous novel, Rosa’s new town is full of ghosts and many are up to no good. Rosa is forced to attend real school, so that she can keep the ghosts there in check. In addition to the spooky things happening at school, Jasper’s parents work at the local medieval faire grounds, which is too haunted to be repaired. The two will need to team up to get the town back in working order.
This is a sequel to A Properly Unhaunted Place.
After the events of the previous novel, Rosa’s new town is full of ghosts and many are up to no good. Rosa is forced to attend real school, so that she can keep the ghosts there in check. In addition to the spooky things happening at school, Jasper’s parents work at the local medieval faire grounds, which is too haunted to be repaired. The two will need to team up to get the town back in working order.
thedizzyreader's review against another edition
3.0
Rosa's ghostly world remains as interesting as ever in this follow up to A Properly Unhaunted Place. The town of Ingott is trying (and mostly failing) to learn how to live with the very much active remnants of its past. While Jasper is consumed with trying to find a way to save the Renaissance Festival, Rosa finds herself struggling to contain paranormal chaos in the classrooms of her new school.
I loved many things about this book. The scene where Rosa and her mother sort unhappy Interlibrary Loans was just delightful - appeasing books pulled because of misinformation, books that remember being trees, books that remember their first drafts, books that "pushed subtext too close to the surface." Ha!
I think what made this a 3 star review for me was really not liking the direction the author took the plot with Rosa's dad. In a world full of free-flying ghosts and supernatural steeds, that was the only thing I found unbelievable. It makes me wonder if Alexander had the idea all along and just didn't sow the seeds well enough in the first book, or if it occurred later as a way to spin a sequel.
I loved many things about this book. The scene where Rosa and her mother sort unhappy Interlibrary Loans was just delightful - appeasing books pulled because of misinformation, books that remember being trees, books that remember their first drafts, books that "pushed subtext too close to the surface." Ha!
I think what made this a 3 star review for me was really not liking the direction the author took the plot with Rosa's dad. In a world full of free-flying ghosts and supernatural steeds, that was the only thing I found unbelievable. It makes me wonder if Alexander had the idea all along and just didn't sow the seeds well enough in the first book, or if it occurred later as a way to spin a sequel.
the_fabric_of_words's review against another edition
5.0
We enjoyed reading this second book. The ghosts have to duke it out -- the medieval ones vs. the town's miners, who died in droves mining the copper that held them out for so long. Again, the Renaissance Festival is key -- but I won't spoil how.
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Visit my blog for more book reviews, free teaching materials and fiction writing tips: https://amb.mystrikingly.com/
peyton_'s review against another edition
3.0
Another good story, but I did prefer the first book. I didn’t feel this story was as strong as the first. Elements seemed disjointed and the characters weren’t as easy to relate to; there was a lot going on. I still enjoy the ghost world in this book and think it is a fun read.
bethmitcham's review
4.0
Great tone balancing humor and real emotion as two kids deal with ghosts and petty schoolkids whose bullying sometimes rises to the level of real harm (both the ghosts and the kids). And an extra twist of a secret about her dead dad raises the emotional stakes. Lots of fun even though I haven't read the first book.