Doctor Who 50th Anniversary #7

Posted on December 13, 2013 by christinasr

This year we celebrate Doctor Who’s 50th Anniversary. One of the ways we do this, is by getting eleven short stories written about eleven authors. Each story is based on one of the eleven doctors, of course. A range of different authors of children’s fiction get to play with a doctor each and each month, on the 23rd, a new short story will be released.

Here’s the schedule – with links to my reviews (and yeah, I’m behind…):

January – First Doctor, William Hartnell (1963-1966)
February – Second Doctor, Patrick Troughton (1966-1969)
March – Third Doctor, Jon Pertwee (1970-1974)
April – Fourth Doctor, Tom Baker (1974-1981)
May – Fifth Doctor, Peter Davison (1981-1984)
June – Sixth Doctor, Colin Baker (1984-1986)
July – Seventh Doctor, Sylvester McCoy (1987-1996)
August – Eighth Doctor, Paul McGann (1996)
September – Ninth Doctor, Christopher Eccleston (2005)
October – Tenth Doctor, David Tennant (2005-2010)
November – Eleventh Doctor, Matt Smith (2010-present)

So can you ever trust a Dhalek? Would you ever dare to? Even if they have managed to create an equivalent to Plato’s Academy?
The Doctor and his companion Ace find themselves stuck in a kind of space Bermuda Triangle, The Temporal Plexus. Here they struggle to get the Tardis freed and when they succeed, they are thrown across the universe – to Skaro.
But definitely not the Skaro we know and fear. No, this Skaro is the centre of civilization, philosophy, democracy and art. Everyone is flocking here to learn – and the Dhaleks are the teachers. So when the Doctor attacks one of these Dhaleks to protect Ace, he is not exactly praised. Rather the students are very angry at him for attacking one of their friendly and peaceful teachers.
So what exactly has happened – is this another evil Dhalek master plan or is this something else – and something far far worse?
I really really liked this story. But oh, it was far too short. There was so much potential in a Dhalek build Platonic Academy – just imagine the always warmongering Dhaleks as philosopher kings? I can just imagine them walking around the grounds and saying ‘EDUCATE’ …! So it was a bit disappointing to me that it didn’t do more with this setting and elaborate on how a peaceful Dhalek sees the world and what kind of philosophy it (he?) believes in.
Of course the story had other flaws as well. In particular, there was a very sappy moment between Ace and one of the students that was just too much – at least for an adult reader, but I do think that young adults would probably love that … so I guess I can’t complain about that since this series is aimed at a younger audience than me.
So yet again I’m left with a feeling of wanting these to be just a tiny bit longer …

‘If you make a tiny change at just the right moment in time, then everything else follows naturally, like a ripple effect.’ (location 475-86)

First line:

Title: The Ripple Effect
Author: Malorie Blackman
Publisher: Puffin Books
Year: 2013
Pages: 55 pages
Source: Own collection – Kindle
Stars: 3 stars out of 5

I read this as part of the year-long celebration of the 50th Anniversary of Doctor Who.

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Doctor Who 50th Anniversary #6

Posted on November 30, 2013 by christinasr

Here’s the schedule – with links to my reviews (and yeah, I’m behind…):

January – First Doctor, William Hartnell (1963-1966)
February – Second Doctor, Patrick Troughton (1966-1969)
March – Third Doctor, Jon Pertwee (1970-1974)
April – Fourth Doctor, Tom Baker (1974-1981)
May – Fifth Doctor, Peter Davison (1981-1984)
June – Sixth Doctor, Colin Baker (1984-1986)
July – Seventh Doctor, Sylvester McCoy (1987-1996)
August – Eighth Doctor, Paul McGann (1996)
September – Ninth Doctor, Christopher Eccleston (2005)
October – Tenth Doctor, David Tennant (2005-2010)
November – Eleventh Doctor, Matt Smith (2010-present)

So when reading this, I found out that I’m full of prejudice. See, when I saw this book was written by Richelle Mead of The Vampire Academy fame, I was already a bit sceptic. And when I then saw it had a storyline with unrequited love, I was almost prepared to just stop then and there. But well, I rarely quit reading something so I kept on going – and I’m glad I did. Because this wasn’t just an unrequited love story, no, this was something more interesting.
The Sixth Doctor arrives together with Peri on Koturia, an civilization 200 years in our future but modeled on Las Vegas as we know it. They go there to attend a wedding of the son of one of the Doctor’s old friends, Lord Evris Makshi. But when they arrive, they arrive in the middle of a pterodactyl attack. Luckily the Doctor and Peri is able to scare the animals away without anyone being seriously hurt. They learn that these attacks have become more frequent lately – and that the pterodactyls are even carrying people away sometimes.
When they arrive at the home of the Doctor’s friend, they naturally want to meet the blushing bride but she is in the women’s part of the house where only Peri is allowed to go. So she goes – to check out the bride who is apparently alien. And when she does finally meet the bride, she is instantly recognized … and not exactly made to feel welcome.
I ended up quite enjoying this installment in the short story series but it also made me even more aware that I’m lacking so much Doctor Who knowledge. I’ve slowly started to get into the old episodes and the old doctors – but in this one, I really felt my lack of knowledge of what has been going on. And I’m questioning whether what I liked was the novel – or the villain who is from the tv series. This sort of puts into focus what my overall view is on Doctor Who fiction – it’s not nearly as good as the real thing but helps take the edge of when you’re pining for more Doctor Who related stuff.
The Doctor didn’t really stand out for me in this novel but maybe that’s because it was told from the point of view of Peri, his companion – and she already knew him and didn’t have to explain much about him.
Still, all in all, this turned out to be a story I really enjoyed but also a story that showed me how much I still have to experience with Doctor Who as seen on TV (or iPad or whatever).

First line: It was typical. The Doctor promised me champagne and cake, and instead I got flying lizards.

Title: Something Borrowed
Author: Richelle Mead
Publisher: Puffin Books
Year: 2013
Pages: 40 pages
Source: Own collection – Kindle
Stars: 3 stars out of 5

I read this as part of the year-long celebration of the 50th Anniversary of Doctor Who.

Related posts:

Doctor Who 50th Anniversary #5

Posted on November 20, 2013 by christinasr

Here’s the schedule – with links to my reviews (and yeah, I’m behind…):

January – First Doctor, William Hartnell (1963-1966)
February – Second Doctor, Patrick Troughton (1966-1969)
March – Third Doctor, Jon Pertwee (1970-1974)
April – Fourth Doctor, Tom Baker (1974-1981)
May – Fifth Doctor, Peter Davison (1981-1984)
June – Sixth Doctor, Colin Baker (1984-1986)
July – Seventh Doctor, Sylvester McCoy (1987-1996)
August – Eighth Doctor, Paul McGann (1996)
September – Ninth Doctor, Christopher Eccleston (2005)
October – Tenth Doctor, David Tennant (2005-2010)
November – Eleventh Doctor, Matt Smith (2010-present)

In a small town in Maine in 1945, things are happening. People starts telling each other the truth, no matter what it is – and that’s just not the way to make friends. Leading this charge of truth is the Acklin family who owns the local store and who are always first with the new things. Their daughter is organizing Truth Parties which just add a bit more nastiness to the whole teenage experience. And of course to participate in a Truth Party, you first have to buy a Truth Teller at the Acklin store. It’s always nice when families work together, right?
Not quite popular enough to be allowed in to these parties, are the two friends, Nettie and Jonny. The only mixed-race child and the only Jewish child in town, the two were destined to be friends when they met as five-years-old. Now, nine year later, Jonny has fallen in love with one of the popular girls in town and to have a chance with her, he buys a Truth Teller from Nettie. A Truth Teller, which immediately let her know, that he likes her only as a friend.
But of course a Truth Teller is not something that’s supposed to be in Maine in the 40s. So of course the Doctor shows up. A very elegant doctor in a white suit – with a celery in the lapel! And when a female companion wearing pants, the two are sure to attract attention.
What I really liked about this story was, that it wasn’t told from the point of view of the Doctor and his companion. I liked that it was told from Nettie and Jonny’s viewpoint. Normally we are with the Doctor and sees things from his side but I like to see it from the side of those who experience the Doctor waltzing in and doing something strange and – for them – unexplainable.
I also really liked how Patrick Ness used these small alien Truth Tellers to identify the Doctor. And that got me thinking, that I don’t think any of the novels have had a ‘Doctor Who’ moment, you know ‘I’m the Doctor.’ ‘Doctor Who?’ – and I kind of miss that. Of course they can’t put every trope in these short stories but I would like one of these moments in one of them.
Basically, I liked the whole idea of this story and it-s dealing with friendship, racism, bullying and how the rich and powerful can do whatever they want. I thought Patrick Ness manages to do a lot in a short amount of pages but I didn’t feel like I got a very good impression of this, the Fifth Doctor. So one of the strengths of the story becomes also one of it’s weaknesses. So a great short story, but maybe not a good Doctor Who story. But I still liked it …

First line: ‘Is it broken?’ Jonny asked, frowning.

Title: Tip of the Tongue
Author: Patrick Ness
Publisher: Puffin Books
Year: 2013
Pages: 38 pages
Source: Own collection – Kindle
Stars: 3 stars out of 5

I read this as part of the year-long celebration of the 50th Anniversary of Doctor Who.

Related posts:

Doctor Who 50th Anniversary #4

Posted on November 16, 2013 by christinasr

Here’s the schedule – with links to my reviews (and yeah, I’m behind…):

January – First Doctor, William Hartnell (1963-1966)
February – Second Doctor, Patrick Troughton (1966-1969)
March – Third Doctor, Jon Pertwee (1970-1974)
April – Fourth Doctor, Tom Baker (1974-1981)
May – Fifth Doctor, Peter Davison (1981-1984)
June – Sixth Doctor, Colin Baker (1984-1986)
July – Seventh Doctor, Sylvester McCoy (1987-1996)
August – Eighth Doctor, Paul McGann (1996)
September – Ninth Doctor, Christopher Eccleston (2005)
October – Tenth Doctor, David Tennant (2005-2010)
November – Eleventh Doctor, Matt Smith (2010-present)

One of the things I’ve learned in this 50th Anniversary Year is that I love getting to know more about the history of Doctor Who. Growing up, I had never heard of Doctor Who but discovered it by chance when on maternity leave with my first daughter. My first doctor was David Tennant and one of the first episodes I remember watching, is School Reunion. But because of this 50th Anniversary coming up so very soon, I’ve been inspired to dive into the history of Doctor Who, not just by reading these short stories by various authors but also by watching some of the old episodes. I haven’t had as much time as I had hoped so I’ve only finished watching the existing episodes with the First Doctor and a lot of the Second Doctor episodes – and I just love watching how some themes and villains have survived all through the series.
The Fourth Doctor with his jelly babies and colorful scarf is one Doctor, I’m really looking forward to watching but for now, I’m happy to settle for reading this short story.
First of, I absolutely loved the setting – a giant tree floating in space. This is the home of a people who seem to not only have met the Doctor before but to have rather strong feelings about him. And it quickly becomes clear that these feelings are not positive in any way. Rather, this people have been carrying a grudge for 900 years and to remember this, they all have names like Vengeance-Will-Be-Ours-When-The-Docor-Dies-A-Thousand-Agonizing-Deaths. So it’s not exactly a friendly welcome, the Doctor and Leela receives when they go there to satisfy Leela’s need to see some trees.
But of course things quickly spiral somewhat out of control and the Doctor and Leela both have to figure out why the Doctor is so hated and what to do now when both the population of the tree and they themselves are under heavy attack.
My favorite thing about this novel was the setting and the humor. I haven’t watched the Fourth Doctor but he seems to be a humorous Doctor and that definitely showed through in this short story. He had a great reaction to finding out that all the inhabitants had anti-Doctor names and I love both the references to the 11th Doctor and how one person’s past is another person’s future.
So an enjoyable read – just too darn short!

‘I can just about accept that I might, one day, in a moment of weakness, wear a bow tie, but there is no way I will ever take up arms against anyone unless they thoroughly deserve it.’

First line: Above the dead surface of a nameless world, far out among the Autumn Stars, the Heligan Structure hangs alone in the hard, cold light of space.

Title: The Roots of Evil
Author: Philip Reeve
Publisher: Puffin Books
Year: 2013
Pages: 40 pages
Source: Own collection – Kindle
Stars: 3 stars out of 5

I read this as part of the year-long celebration of the 50th Anniversary of Doctor Who.

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Justin Richards: The Angel’s Kiss: A Melody Malone Mystery (Doctor Who) (review)

Posted on May 2, 2013 by christinasr

This is the best audio book I’ve ever listened to. By far! I loved it. Absolutely loved it. So be warned. There might be gushing ahead.

But first – a bit of back story. If you follow Doctor Who, you know this novel is connected to the season 7’s episode 5 The Angels Take Manhattan. In this episode, the Doctor reads a mystery novel about a detective called Melody Malone and it turns out the novel is very important in helping the Doctor figure out what’s happening. The weeping angels causes Rory to be sent back in time where he meets River Song – and of course she is the writer of the mystery novel and uses the pen name Melody Malone. This of course also explains why the Doctor is so attracted to the female lead in the novel … It being River Song and all.

This novel is a prequel to the novel featured in The Angels Take Manhattan and it features Melody Malone, of course. Melody owns the Angel Detective Agency and she is hired by a famous actor who suspects someone is trying to kill him. He invites her to a party but when she shows up, he doesn’t remember her. And as Melody correctly points out, she is not easily forgettable. So how come he doesn’t remember her? And why is he talking about an angel’s kiss?

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The story is rather simple and it takes less than two hours to listen to. But this story is written by Justin Richards and read by Alex Kingston. And this combination is magic. Justin Richards nails River Song/Melody Malone perfectly and has written the most amazing lines for Alex Kingston to read. There’s a smart ass remark or joke in so many of the lines and it kept me smiling or even laughing for most of it’s duration. I loved lines like this: ‘He looked at me with what might have been sympathy or possibly disappointment. I’m not sure which as I don’t go looking for sympathy and I rarely disappoint.’ or ‘The secret is not just to be stunning which I find comes rather easily to be honest. The tricky thing is getting exactly the right level of stun for the occasion.’ Delivered perfectly by Kingston.

Alex Kingston’s reading of the lines are absolutely amazing. She is just as good as she is in the tv show and that is saying something. She comes across as sexy and sassy and as a big flirt. But a smart flirt. And a woman who knows her own assets and are not afraid to flaunt them. She knows her worth.

I wold still love to read the actual novel featured in the episode and read about Rory and Amy and River’s reactions to what happens to them so I hope this will be published at some point (although I doubt it). But in the mean time, I adored listening to Alex Kingston reading this one.

Title: The Angel’s Kiss: A Melody Malone Mystery
Author: By Melody Malone with Justin Richards
Publisher: BBC Books
Year: 2012
Pages: 80 pages
Length: 1 hrs 42 min
Narrated by: Alex Kingston
Source: Own Collection (Audible)
Stars: 5 stars out of 5

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Doctor Who 50th Anniversary #3

Posted on April 3, 2013 by christinasr

Here’s the schedule:

January – First Doctor, William Hartnell (1963-1966)
February – Second Doctor, Patrick Troughton (1966-1969)
March – Third Doctor, Jon Pertwee (1970-1974)
April – Fourth Doctor, Tom Baker (1974-1981)
May – Fifth Doctor, Peter Davison (1981-1984)
June – Sixth Doctor, Colin Baker (1984-1986)
July – Seventh Doctor, Sylvester McCoy (1987-1996)
August – Eighth Doctor, Paul McGann (1996)
September – Ninth Doctor, Christopher Eccleston (2005)
October – Tenth Doctor, David Tennant (2005-2010)
November – Eleventh Doctor, Matt Smith (2010-present)

So the Third Doctor spent a lot of his time in exile on earth, working closely with UNIT. And so it is in this story where he is on the hunt for a very special spear, a spear supposed to have been wielded by Odin himself, the Spear of Destiny.
After having rather seriously underestimated the security at a museum in London where the spear resides at this point in time, 1973, the Doctor together with his companion Jo travels back in time to the time of the Vikings. Here, they find themselves in the middle of a battle between two groups of Vikings on the brink of war. One of these is led by Odin who is wielding a spear which can’t miss.
But quickly it is clear that not everything is quite right, that there is something suspicious about Frey and that the Doctor and Jo suddenly find themselves in rather a lot of trouble, being captured by the Vikings.
I quite enjoyed this story. The Doctor again seemed different from the first two doctors in the first two anniversary short stories but whether it is because of Marcus Sedgwick nailing him or just because of the different writing styles, I can’t tell. He did have the obvious details right, of course, like his favorite means of transportation (Bessie) and his strong personal fashion style as well as a certain arrogance. Also, Jo seems like a girl with a knack for getting into trouble. There weren’t many references to other time periods or more modern culture which of course makes perfect sense since this incarnation spent a lot of his time on Earth, unable to travel in space and time.
I liked the story and the Doctor portrayed in this one and this is the first story which made me not only want to explore it’s Doctor further, but actually made me really eager to do so. I’m really starting to get a sense of the rich heritage Doctor Who has and what exactly it is we’re celebrating. As always, I eagerly await the next installment in the series, the Fourth Doctor’s story, The Roots of Evil by Philip Reeve.

Title: Spear of Destiny
Author: Marcus Sedgwick
Publisher: Puffin Books
Year: 2013
Pages: 55 pages
Source: Own collection
Stars: 3 stars out of 5

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Doctor Who 50th Anniversary #2

Posted on February 25, 2013 by christinasr

Here’s the schedule:

January – First Doctor, William Hartnell (1963-1966)
February – Second Doctor, Patrick Troughton (1966-1969)
March – Third Doctor, Jon Pertwee (1970-1974)
April – Fourth Doctor, Tom Baker (1974-1981)
May – Fifth Doctor, Peter Davison (1981-1984)
June – Sixth Doctor, Colin Baker (1984-1986)
July – Seventh Doctor, Sylvester McCoy (1987-1996)
August – Eighth Doctor, Paul McGann (1996)
September – Ninth Doctor, Christopher Eccleston (2005)
October – Tenth Doctor, David Tennant (2005-2010)
November – Eleventh Doctor, Matt Smith (2010-present)

So this Saturday saw the publication of the second of the 11 short stories celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Doctor Who. This time around, we get to spend time with the Second Doctor as seen by Michael Scott, the author of the The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series. As was the case last month, I have not seen any episodes with the Second Doctor so I can only comment on the story itself and not whether it portrays this doctor correctly.
Right off the bat, I think this short story is very much a traditional Doctor Who story and very much in line with this project. Whereas the first story clearly was written now with references to modern culture, this one is set in 1968 and there’s no references to the Doctor knowing about our modern culture. The focus is on the story itself in a nice traditional way.
Told from the point of view of Jamie, the Doctor’s companion, we get the Doctor as he appears to his young Scottish companion – shabbily and unfashionably dressed, with a tendency to get in a lot of trouble and sometimes needing help to get out of it again.
This time, a badly damaged Tardis is stuck in London in the 60s. Jamie has been sent on an impossible errand by the Doctor and on his way, he helps an elderly gentleman who has been attacked by a big thug. As a thank you, he receives a small book. However, the gentleman is not exactly an innocent and neither is the book.
When Jamie gives the book to the Doctor, things quickly goes downhill – which isn’t all that strange, given that the book in question is the Necronomicon, the Book of the Dead.
So this dangerous and fabled book is inside the Tardis and causes the Tardis to go off on a mad hunt across the universe to The Nameless City, home of the Archons, a race beieved long dead.
Now of course the question is whether this is actually true – and how to get the still broken Tardis away from this planet.
While I enjoyed this story, it felt a bit light to me. I think it had enormous potential with the Doctor facing off against an old enemy claiming to be the originators of the Tardis technology, however, the scenes with the Archons were too brief and things were just a bit too easy. I did enjoy a Scottish piper wearing his kilt and using his bagpipe as a sort of weapon.
In conclusion, this was a bit too light fare for my taste but I love the idea so much of these different writers writing stories for their favorite doctor so I’m still very much looking forward to next month’s encounter with the Third Doctor.

Title: The Nameless City
Author: Michael Scott
Publisher: Puffin Books
Year: 2013
Pages: pages
Source: Own collection
Stars: 3 stars out of 5

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Doctor Who 50th Anniversary #1

Posted on January 23, 2013 by christinasr

Here’s the schedule:

January – First Doctor, William Hartnell (1963-1966)
February – Second Doctor, Patrick Troughton (1966-1969)
March – Third Doctor, Jon Pertwee (1970-1974)
April – Fourth Doctor, Tom Baker (1974-1981)
May – Fifth Doctor, Peter Davison (1981-1984)
June – Sixth Doctor, Colin Baker (1984-1986)
July – Seventh Doctor, Sylvester McCoy (1987-1996)
August – Eighth Doctor, Paul McGann (1996)
September – Ninth Doctor, Christopher Eccleston (2005)
October – Tenth Doctor, David Tennant (2005-2010)
November – Eleventh Doctor, Matt Smith (2010-present)

Eoin-Colfer-book-a-big-hand-for-the-doctor-300x460

The first story is written by Eoin Colfer of Artemis Fowl fame. It’s a short, fun romp and even though I have to admit that I have never watched the first Doctor, I got a clear impression of how different a doctor he was, than the 9th, 10th and 11th doctors who are my doctors.

Eoin Colfer lets the Doctor and his granddaughter Susan go up against the Soul Pirates, some nasty fellows who kidnap children and then chop them up for parts. The Doctor has already been up against them before – and that caused him a hand. Thus, we meet him in this novel shopping for a new hand. And of course, while he does so, Susan gets into trouble and so, it’s the Doctor to the rescue. But a rescue made somewhat trickier by the fact that the Soul Pirates beam their victims up in a way so the victims loose any idea of where they are and what’s going on but instead think they are in a kind of paradise.

I can’t judge whether Colfer nails the Doctor – I have no clue about that – but I liked that he felt different and distinctive compared to the Doctors I know. And I liked Colfer’s many nods to the Doctor’s time traveling ability and to culture, Hogwarts, Mr. Scrooge and others.

And I thoroughly loved the epilogue’s nod to Peter Pan! It’s kind of obvious and the story had incorporated Peter Pan elements earlier too and it was very nicely done, I thought.

Overall, I enjoyed myself. It was half an hour or so well spend. Nothing that blew my mind or anything but a nice way to spend some time while we wait for the new Doctor Who episodes in March.

Title: A Big Hand for the Doctor
Author: Eoin Colfer
Publisher: Puffin Books
Year: 2013
Pages: 41 pages
Source: Own collection
Stars: 4 stars out of 5

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Paolo Bacigalupi: The Windup Girl

Posted on October 9, 2011 by christinasr

Paolo Bacigalupi: The Windup Girl (Nigh Shade Books, 2009).

I like long books. I like diving into a thick book and staying there for days, getting to know the characters and the world they live in. I like to spend some time with them – which is why I don’t read that many short stories and why I often prefer watching TV series rather than movies. This book is only 329 pages so it’s a rather quick read. Too quick. And not just because I got through it rather a few days. Mostly because it could have used more pages to really introduce and explain the world, it’s set in. I felt confused for quite a large part of the book and that’s a shame.
It takes place in Bangkok, but not the Bangkok we know. This Bangkok is in a world where the foodstuff have been largely ruined. The scientific advances have been great but have unfortunately cost the world a very high price. One example is a father who wanted to please his daughter and therefore, he has a Cheshire cat made for her since she loves Alice in Wonderland. But this cat is superior to regular cats so it mates with a lot of other cats and their genes are suppressed so quickly, there’s nothing but Cheshire cats. Food companies are desperately trying to find some kind of food thought to be extinct – or even better, seeds. Good ol’ fashioned seeds you can actually sow and grow something real from.
In Bangkok, the Environmental Ministry have their White Shirts to try to protect the Kingdom from all the infections of the natural world. A line of work, that’s not exactly popular with the Trade Ministry who of course wants to trade with the world outside Thailand.
This is also a world where war has become more commonplace, and ethnic cleanings ditto. There’s a huge population of Chinese refugees living in Bangkok. Most of these are living in absolutely horrendous conditions.
Japan is on the forefront of things and have managed to create artificial people. Unfortunately – or so some think – these people came after the Cheshire cats so they are not able to reproduce and are not able to move fluidly but move kind of joltingly. Therefore, they’re called Windups. Windups are not common in Thailand but some have managed to slip in, accompanying their masters but they are looked down upon.
In this confusing world, we follow several characters. An American, Anderson Lake, trying to find seeds and new foodstuffs in the streets of Bangkok. A Chinese refugee desperately trying to carve out a new life for himself after having lost everything. A Japanese Windup Girl left on the streets in Bangkok, horribly unsuited for the heat and only able to survive as a prostitute. A White Shirt, the Tiger of Bangkok, Captain Jaidee and his second in command, Kanya.
The story is being told from the point of view of all these characters, and while it add a bit to the confusion, it’s also an incredible way of telling this story. So much is going on all the time. The political scene changes constantly, Trade and Environment is in a constant battle, the city of Bangkok is constantly fighting to avoid being overtaken by the ocean surrounding it.
This also means, that this is not a gentle book. Not only have people had very tough lives with devastating losses before we even meet them, they also have those lives in this book. Particularly Emiko, the Windup Girl, the book’s title character. Emiko has a harder life than most. Just because she’s a Windup, it doesn’t mean she doesn’t feel. She feels a lot – mostly hot, but also other feelings. She’s being abused daily in the worst way by someone who despises her and has no one to lean on.
Everything changes of course, as these person’s lives interfere more and more. And as the world blows up in their faces.
I had a hard time writing this review. When I finished reading it, I thought it was a 4 stars read. But now it’s been a little while and although I really liked it when reading it but afterwards, it hasn’t left much of an impression on me. And I’ve had the hardest time writing this review. And not just because I accidentally closed down the window I was writing in it, so it all disappeared. I’m not sure why this is since I got really caught up in this while reading it and it was so exciting when things really started happening. I think a lot of my issues with this book are connected to the confusion I felt and then we’re back with the length of this one. This would have benefitted from maybe 100 pages more.