Standback > Recent Status Updates

A lot of choices here just aren't working for me at all.
- It's taking half the book just to get last book's main characters in position to actually come anywhere near the big cliffhanger the first book ended on.
- Three Seagrass's POV and longing for Mehit is really offputting; *that was a major point in book 1*
- Where book 1 started off with such intrigue and colorful characters, book 2 is boring people scared :(

Honestly I'm both disappointed and bemused. I'm a third of a way through the book and I feel like it's all been throat-clearing and vaguely maneuvering into position. While there's no shortage of threats, the story seems to mostly be a few characters reminding us of how threatened/anxious/upset they are.

Honestly I'm both disappointed and bemused. I'm a third of a way through the book and I feel like it's all been throat-clearing and vaguely maneuvering into position. While there's no shortage of threats, the story seems to mostly be a few characters reminding us of how threatened/anxious/upset they are.

Well this is harrowing. And unquoteable, because the magic is in the format. I love it.

Devoured a huge chunk of this over Shabbat; looking forward to reading the rest

"Apt Pupil" is a harrowing piece. It's like they often say about horror; us people are the scary ones. Not one I see myself returning to often, but important in what it does and how; horror and awe mixed while also showing how pathetic and miserable they are.

I've not read much of King, and didn't count myself a fan. But this is SO GOOD, and I feel like every paragraph is another lesson in rock-solid craft.

I love the writing, but I'm also at "I can't believe there are still 400 pages to go,"
and also at "could we possibly have a major female character who is not a vicious psychopath"

יש לי המון דברים לומר על הספר הזה; זה כמו סגירת מעגל, או אולי עליית-דרגה, לעומת הנובלה הראשונה-ראשונה לפני עשור. צריך קצת מחשבה וניסוח.

One thing I'm really noticing is how this series, and Baruchin's writing, dance back and forth across contradictions: the epic vs. the personal; City Spirits as representing their locii vs. as characters in their own right; the beautiful variety of cities and Spirits vs. finding comfort and rooting in settling down in *one* place. There's a lot here, and I think that's a lot of what makes this so strong.

This book is based on a series of Baruchin's novellas, some of which I've read previously. This weaving of the novellas together works astonishingly well, balancing out the razzle-dazzle action and worldbuilding of "Latte, To Go" with the intimacy and character growth of "Squeezed Pomegranate Juice." Eager to read the rest!

Honestly, this isn't the book I wanted.
I see what it's doing. The intimacy; the familiarity. The joy of recognition, of safety, of capability.
But I'm not finding *story* here. Process, narrative, growth. I'm seeing fantasies of understanding and compassion and found-family playing out, but they feel detached; convenient; artificial.

Also, this just really isn't a plot book. It's a character book; the strength is all in loving the characters and identifying with them.
Which is great as far as it goes, but I definitely feel like I've gotten as much as I'm likely to get from the initial setup. I'm growing weary; feeling a lot of more-of-the-same.

Fun, oddball mix. I like the tropes, and there's a lot of joy in the mishmash and magic, filling the mundane (and often heartbreaking) world with the impossible (which is also mundane, and often heartbreaking).
I'm having a real tough time, though, with how forgiving and sympathetic the book is towards Satomi.

Very very strong on the distinction between echoing the characters' emotions, and eliciting *new* emotions in the reader.
It's definitely a tough subject to describe technique for, so it feels a little hand-wave-y, but I think it hangs together quite well. Highlighting a lot of sections, which I hope will help me review handily.

Interesting. What I'm getting so far is an exhortation to delve deep, and in unexpected directions, and that this is a *technique* for provoking more emotion, and deeper emotion, from the reader, because it makes them react emotionally.

Oh, I am loving the beginning here.
I have had these discussions about "show, don't tell," and I feel like Maass really gets into the core of why this advice even exists, and how to actually use it fruitfully. Looking forward to seeing where this goes.

I keep being stunned by the intricacy and the depth of this book. HOW can this be a debut series, I ask you.

I think this is where the book firmly shifts from "What WOULD a war look like in this pseudo-utopian, post-nation-state world?", back to its core themes of choosing our futures and trying to actually strive for a better world.