Tower of Thorns
(Blackthorn & Grim #2)
Juliet Marillier
fantasy
copyright 2015
read in December 2015
rated 8/10: really quite good
This book surprised me.
In a good way. In a very good way.
I was expecting chick lit. Nothing wrong with that, I enjoy good chick lit.
This book is so much more.
Yes, it is a book for women. For women who enjoy fantasy and true love and nice magic. At its heart it is a love story... or two.
There is a background of fey and magic and evil curses. This is essential to the plot -- but is not pushed at us on every page. Then, at the end... I do like the local fey opinion of the person who set up the original curse :-) An acceptably sensible attitude to the magic.
It is a book for women... Not for teenage girls. A more mature version of chick lit, perhaps.
There is a lot of reference to past sufferings of the two main characters. This had me worried... Would there be a sudden descent into tragedy ? And yet... There is some suffering but it is no more than expected.
Makes me wonder: was the past suffering even before the first book about these two people ? It would not surprise me.
In a postscript the author mentions her research into post traumatic stress disorder. Ah, okay. This is not just, I'm so miserable because of my past history. It's well researched treatment of two people with PTSD. Which -- for me -- takes the book beyond the froth of true chick lit.
This book can also be read and enjoyed without having read the first of the series. A definite plus ! The overarching threat still exists but there are no other loose threads. A book which stands alone but makes me want to read more !
Though I was expecting one final twist... Perhaps book three will prove me right. In which case yes, there is a final loose thread :-) But really, this is a self-contained novel which develops the characters within the larger series.
I do have to say -- on the down side -- that a couple of "plot twists" were so clearly signposted that I saw them well before the surprise reveal. I say, on the down side. I really mean, I enjoy a book where I can predict at least some of the plot twists.
Not that the plot twists very much. Reasonably straightforward. More character development than surprise and suspense. With characters so likeable that I am glad to watch them develop.
An enjoyable story. With more depth than I expected. Very good !
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