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A review by astraia_sun
Crown Duel by Sherwood Smith
3.0
I had to change my original rating on this one. I originally rated it from the fond memories I had of reading it in high school, but on my reread, I realized that my tastes have definitely changed. Also I'm a lot more cognizant of problems in writing. This book had some problems. While Mel was an engaging narrator, I would have had a LOT more patience with her prejudices and stubborn beliefs if I wasn't in her head 24/7 while she thought about them.
Furthermore, there was a scene near the end of the first part that had me groaning in disgust. I could just see the author's hand contriving events and it made me want to take a red pen and edit. I don't often feel that way, and the rest of the book was fine, but it was so contrived that I literally had to put the book down and do something else for awhile.
I really enjoyed the second half, with the court intrigue and Mel trying to figure out how things worked. It's definitely different from the first half (all rebellion and chasing each other on horseback and running away and all that), so I could see some people not enjoying it if that's not their thing. The end was kind of out of nowhere, though some of the plot threads were definitely in place from the beginning. It just felt really rushed. After the climax of the book, it ended abruptly (though there was an afterward and a short story at the end that tied things up pretty well).
Interestingly, all that I could remember of the book was some of the stuff about the Hill Folk and who the identify of the Unknown Admirer was (that was something you don't forget, though if I recall, reading it the first time I was pretty sure of who it was and it's probably not that hard to figure out, but again, I read it years ago so I'm not sure).
Anyway, it's a fun book, but the author contrivance threw me out of the story so much I had to downrate it, unfortunately. I'll probably reread it again in the future, though!
Furthermore, there was a scene near the end of the first part that had me groaning in disgust. I could just see the author's hand contriving events and it made me want to take a red pen and edit. I don't often feel that way, and the rest of the book was fine, but it was so contrived that I literally had to put the book down and do something else for awhile.
I really enjoyed the second half, with the court intrigue and Mel trying to figure out how things worked. It's definitely different from the first half (all rebellion and chasing each other on horseback and running away and all that), so I could see some people not enjoying it if that's not their thing. The end was kind of out of nowhere, though some of the plot threads were definitely in place from the beginning. It just felt really rushed. After the climax of the book, it ended abruptly (though there was an afterward and a short story at the end that tied things up pretty well).
Interestingly, all that I could remember of the book was some of the stuff about the Hill Folk and who the identify of the Unknown Admirer was (that was something you don't forget, though if I recall, reading it the first time I was pretty sure of who it was and it's probably not that hard to figure out, but again, I read it years ago so I'm not sure).
Anyway, it's a fun book, but the author contrivance threw me out of the story so much I had to downrate it, unfortunately. I'll probably reread it again in the future, though!