This review was, and I suppose still is, a bit of a roller coaster for me. I thought I had a pretty set opinion of this novella after the first chapter, but I try to keep my mind opened until I read the last page of the book, so I pressed on. After reading the last page I found that I had to wait to write the review because I needed to actually think about this one a bit more than usual. Instead of having a definite feeling about this book, I am still a bit on the fence.
Before I give you my thoughts, let me give you a bit of a glimpse of the story. The following is taken directly from Mary Fan's blog/website.
She does know that she must get out, at all costs. And that escape must start with remembering the simple things – her own name. Her place of origin. Her possible powers.
When a group of dark magicians reveal themselves to be her captors, she finds herself in the clutches of those who will stop at nothing to uncover the secrets locked within her lost memories. With her life fading under their merciless spells, the need to escape becomes dire.
But can she get out when she doesn’t even know who she is? Can she count on one unlikely ally for help? Or is it already too late for her, a girl without a name?
Look at that cover art..isn't it gorgeous? That cover really pulls you in and the colors and feel of it really do justice to the actual story. When I look at this cover I see ice, and confusion. Perfect companion art for the book.
I had great hopes for this book and I was halfway (perhaps a bit more than halfway) satisfied in the end. The only thing I had an issue with was the overuse of descriptions. The writer went a bit heavy on the adjectives and explained so much that it left me no reason really think much about what I read. It was a bit like that person who constantly explains the jokes they tell. Now, I understand completely the anxiety that goes along with writing a book, or really putting any piece of art out for others to enjoy. You are putting yourself into your art and sending it out for others to love or hate..it seems apparent in this author's writing that she is very anxious about what her reader thinks. Perhaps she put in things that weren't necessary because she second guessed her work..I'm not sure, but it is clear, at least to me, that this author, Mary Fan, has quite a bit of imagination and talent. I believe that if she had more confidence in her work, and confidence that she is getting her message across exactly as she wants, quite a bit of the fluff, the overuse of the Thesaurus would be left out. The story is quite good. I really wanted to know what was going to happen next and I am left, at the end of the novella, eager to get into the first book to see what happens next. The story is unique, well thought out and very easy to get into. If the writer were to strip this novella down a bit, write to get more content in with less words, this would no doubt be a best seller. It felt, especially in the beginning of the story, like I was trying to run through a bog to get to the actual story, like I had to work too hard to get into the greatness of the story. With all of that said, this is still a wonderful book, because as important as the writing is, it is a technical part that can be tweaked. The content of the story, the imagination of the author and quality of the characters are something that either hits or it doesn't. Mary Fan has the most important part of writing completely figured out, I do think that her technique could use some work, but I fully intend on reading more of her work.
I do hope to do a follow up with the author in another blog post, as I have learned quite a few things on her blog and website that I find intriguing and I would love to share it with you guys. I made the decision to read the rest of her work long before I saw her website, and now that I have, I am glad I got the chance to read her work and a chance to read about her. She seems like an incredible person who gives a lot back in a number of ways.
I urge you to read this novella for yourselves and tell me what you think.
Have a wonderful weekend!!
