Why do they feel the need to rebel against a piece of advice? Why not find smart solutions to what is actually bothering them? Why simply go absolutely rogue and create three problems while trying to solve a tiny one? He possessed a depth I could sink my claws into. His death in the Silver Woods was beautifully tragic, and wonderfully appropriate. I just wanted to wrap him in my arms and die with him. Random things I loved: Mattie’s word-of-the-day ritual and the "word wars" she fought with her friend Weaver, Cook the cook, Miss Wilcox’s library (so jealous) and the way the girls dealt with the guy from table six. It’s my hope that quoting the opening paragraph gives you a sample of the quality of the writing. Just lovely throughout.

And that seems to be a rule. But that’s not bad, because the world in which they find themselves is always some kind of general chaos or evil. And the characters! Rhys! Oh, I was so happy for him and his beau - such a perfect couple. It was wonderful to have such a strong couple in the book. This isn't my normal fare and I'm not entirely sure how it ended up on the bookshelf! However for bedtime reading I'm willing to try pretty much anything. This is a coming of age story set in early twentieth century America in New York state in a rural farming community. The author has quite neatly woven the story around an actual historical event; the murder of a young woman called Grace Brown (also the basis of Dreiser's An American Tragedy).

i did love the french canadian uncle (very very familiar voice there) - but many other elements seemed too fleeting. i would have liked more resolution with some of the storylines, but overall, this was a very fine novel, and i won't get mad if it tries to sneak onto my shelves again. i won't let it stay, but i won't frown at it, i will give it a soft, "oh, you scamp" kind of look... Rhy especially has a ton of character development. I laughed with him at the beginning and here my heart broke for him. He has to step up so much and really come into his own as a leader and I just love it. I really liked a lot of these elements, but couldn’t help by feel they were a little random? This floating market idea was super cool and I loved the way it played out, but it literally came out of nowhere. Emily Baxter/Wilcox: is an unconventional poet who has written poems controversial enough that they have been burned and condemned by the highest authorities. Her husband, who does not approve of Emily's poetry, tries to get her committed and eventually, she flees to Paris. Under the name of Miss Wilcox, she acts as a teacher and friend to the main character, Mattie. She also helps Mattie achieve her dream of going to college. White London - is a city in war with itself. It was ruled by evil twins, but now has a new king. Everyone in this London tries to fight for magic and power within this corrupt city.

Pa (Michael Gokey): The father of Mattie, Lawton, Lou, Beth, and Abby. He is bitter and depressed from the loss of their mother. His French name is Michel Gauthier. He was beaten by his step father and still has many scars to prove it. this was filled with so much more action and adventure that wasnt quite as prevalent previously. so much was at stake that i couldnt put this down - i became so invested in the captivating writing, the constant peril and intrigue, and the emotions i felt for the characters and their redemption. just everything about this pulled me in and wouldnt let go. For me, Schwab’s writing style is always something I look forward to reading. I always love the way she tells a story. I love the way she is building up her worlds. I love the way she is inserting a little bit of evil in all of her characters. Mattie's love for books and writing is one of the best parts of the story. My favorite part of the novel is a scene where Mattie sees her teacher's library for the first time-more books then she has ever seen or heard of that inspires her into a passionate speech about writing.Meanwhile, Mattie fends off the romantic advances of her neighbor Royal Loomis. Royal tries to connect with her by giving her a book for her seventeenth birthday. Unfortunately, he gives her a cookbook, which, to Mattie, shows he wants her to be just like other girls. What I love in Schwab’s writing is her small multiple chapters, this book almost had a 100 chapters (not kidding) and they were short which kept me attached to the story with the dreaded “just one more chapter”. This style became like Schwab’s specialty in writing as it could be found in most of her books.

This book felt a bit like anarchy, to be completely honest. I mean, it did pump some serious amount of adrenaline in my veins at some point and that wasn’t really a bad thing. It was so well written and the characters – annoyingly stubborn as they were – actually made sense to the whole action. The story unravelled nicely and the only thing I wished from it was to not be, I don’t know, so rushed at the end. To make them last a bit longer.First things first, even though I really liked this (it gave me a three-course anxiety meal and all that) I still felt like I couldn’t give it 5 full stars because it was a bit too long for how they handled the whole situation at the end. The ending works very well. No spoilers, but everyone ends up in believable places and there’s certainly ramifications. Alucard stood in the doorway, soaking wet, as if he’d just been dumped in the sea, or the sea had been dumbed over him. It's long, it's boring, and the copywriter in charge of writing the summary, using words like "mystery" and "romance," has clearly never read either genre. I'm sorry, Miss Wilcox," I said, looking at the floor. "I don't mean to be coarse. I just... I don't know why I should care what happens to people in a drawing room in London or Paris or anywhere else when no one in those places cares what happens to people in Eagle Bay."