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A review by aliceboule
Mélusine by Sarah Monette
2.0
I was very excited when I started reading Melusine . Reviews were generally quite good and the summary was interesting.
When I read the prologue, I was a little surprised by the relative.. childishness of the writing. Writers do this sometimes, have the narrator speak as though talking out loud. And this is fine, except that the reader is reading and it comes off as uneducated. I prefer a narrator that formulates complex sentences and, in most cases, doesn't address the reader. But I still had hope.
But then, the story jumps immediately into the middle of everything. The summary sold me a "dashing,highly respected" wizard, one who's past is hidden, except that everyone figures it out on the first page.. And Mildmay is an assassin and thief. And yes I understand he isn't supposed to be super educated, but that doesn't mean that his mind isn't. I've have read other books where thieves narrate, and their language doesn't bother me.
I tried to give this a try. I did read 267 pages. Felix's maddness was interesting, but we don't understand it BECAUSE WE DON'T GET TO KNOW FELIX AT ALL. and Mildmay is annoying.
I am not going to finish this book. The plot looks fascinating and I love the brutality lurking in the corners, but I simply cannot get past the childish first perspective. I just can't.
When I read the prologue, I was a little surprised by the relative.. childishness of the writing. Writers do this sometimes, have the narrator speak as though talking out loud. And this is fine, except that the reader is reading and it comes off as uneducated. I prefer a narrator that formulates complex sentences and, in most cases, doesn't address the reader. But I still had hope.
But then, the story jumps immediately into the middle of everything. The summary sold me a "dashing,highly respected" wizard, one who's past is hidden, except that everyone figures it out on the first page.. And Mildmay is an assassin and thief. And yes I understand he isn't supposed to be super educated, but that doesn't mean that his mind isn't. I've have read other books where thieves narrate, and their language doesn't bother me.
I tried to give this a try. I did read 267 pages. Felix's maddness was interesting, but we don't understand it BECAUSE WE DON'T GET TO KNOW FELIX AT ALL. and Mildmay is annoying.
I am not going to finish this book. The plot looks fascinating and I love the brutality lurking in the corners, but I simply cannot get past the childish first perspective. I just can't.