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A review by parue
Oil and Dust by Jami Fairleigh
4.0
When I was reading this, I couldn't stop thinking about it whenever I had to put it down. And now that I'm done, I still find my mind wandering to this book.
What I didn't love
I think where it fell a little short is the tonal shift that happens toward the end of the book. I would have liked some kind of signal earlier on in the book or in the synopsis, as the synopsis led me to believe that this book would be purely nice and calming. That all being said, this wasn't a deal breaker by any means. I still went on to read the sequel and plan to read the third book as well !
What I loved
Firstly, I'm a huge sucker for found family stories and this book has that in boatloads. I love that time is taken to get to know different characters along Matthew's journey, and I love that some of them come back and he ends up meeting up with them again. I also loved seeing Matthew's opinions change about living in a community, and seeing him get to know others and open up.
Secondly, I love Akiko! She's such a cute addition and her and Matthew's relationship is so fun to watch here.
Thirdly, the magic is interesting. I love reading about different magic systems, and surprisingly this is my first time reading about an art-based one. I think it's done in a really interesting way. This book is also light on the magic so that's something to keep in mind if that matters to you.
Fourthly, I'm obsessed with the world building. This is why I find myself constantly thinking about this book. I keep imagining what it would be like to live in this world. To live in small communities, trading skills and labor for food, shelter, and items. To depend on others and have others depend on you. I also had a lot of fun thinking about what the world looks at this point - what it's like traveling between communities, depots, just being able to camp on the side of the road. For me, this was the strongest aspect of this book and it's what kept me coming back to it.
What I didn't love
I think where it fell a little short is the tonal shift that happens toward the end of the book.
Spoiler
I found it a quite jarring when they start finding dead bodies, and when the battle breaks out and the threat of religion comes back, since the first 70% of the book was quite uneventful.Spoiler
It can hardly be called a "perfect escape" when things that caused the apocalypse (which are things that are going on in real life) come back to haunt this one.What I loved
Firstly, I'm a huge sucker for found family stories and this book has that in boatloads. I love that time is taken to get to know different characters along Matthew's journey, and I love that some of them come back and he ends up meeting up with them again. I also loved seeing Matthew's opinions change about living in a community, and seeing him get to know others and open up.
Secondly, I love Akiko! She's such a cute addition and her and Matthew's relationship is so fun to watch here.
Thirdly, the magic is interesting. I love reading about different magic systems, and surprisingly this is my first time reading about an art-based one. I think it's done in a really interesting way. This book is also light on the magic so that's something to keep in mind if that matters to you.
Fourthly, I'm obsessed with the world building. This is why I find myself constantly thinking about this book. I keep imagining what it would be like to live in this world. To live in small communities, trading skills and labor for food, shelter, and items. To depend on others and have others depend on you. I also had a lot of fun thinking about what the world looks at this point - what it's like traveling between communities, depots, just being able to camp on the side of the road. For me, this was the strongest aspect of this book and it's what kept me coming back to it.