(I think my Goodreads review is 2/5, but the passing of time has only made me angrier.)
STATUS: Sequel to Hartman's stellar debut, Seraphina; also, the end of the series. NOT a trilogy.
AUTHOR: Rachel Hartman
GENRE: Young Adult, Fantasy, Dragons, Adventure, Court Intrigue, Psychological Thriller
PUBLISHER: Random House
LOVE TRIANGLE: Yes—of a most unorthodox (and unexpected) kind
PAGES: 608 pages
From Publishers Weekly:
"...a worthy and wholly satisfying continuation of Seraphina's tale."From Booklist:
"...the intricate plotting, clever surprises...and lovely prose make this a worthy conclusion for all of Hartman's big-hearted characters."
**DISCLAIMER: I quote the above reviews only because I'm about to vehemently and wholeheartedly disagree. What follows is quite possibly the least detached review I've ever written: it is the passionate reaction of a fan who fell so deeply in love with Seraphina that she eagerly sought out and devoured the sequel, only to be so frustrated in the end, it hurt her heart.**
** spoiler alert ** This was, hands down, one of the most frustrating and disappointing sequels I have ever read.
**Warning: Spoilers Below**
First of all, I have to say, I loved Seraphina. Devoured it. Stayed up ridiculously late reading "just one more chapter." And I love those kinds of books -- they usually inspire an undying loyalty to the author. But in this case...I'm more than a little angry. (Which is not a good thing to be at 3:00 in the morning.)
Where to start?
Perhaps with the pacing. Seraphina took a while to get into -- but then, so did The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. In both cases, it took about 100 pages -- those first 100 seemed to drag on interminably, but then, it was like a switch was flipped and things just took off, racing steadily towards a perfectly timed climax.
In the sequel -- and, I will admit, I had NO idea that this was a two-book series; I honestly thought it was a trilogy and everything that Hartman was setting up seemed to reinforce that -- the pacing was just...off. I anticipated a slow start and thought that things were starting to pick up about a 1/3 of the way through, with the (re-)introduction of Jannoula. That's when things started to get interesting.
But most of the first half of the book was Seraphina journeying places. She went to Ninys and then to SamSam and then to Porphyry and then, eventually, to Lab Four. And all along the way we met brand new characters, had to establish a clear setting (which, ultimately, didn't matter, because we never went back to that country!), and forge new relationships. Not much happened -- or, at least, what did happen fell into a quickly established pattern: Seraphina arrives somewhere new. She meets new people. She searches for ityasaari. She attempts to befriend them only to find out that Jannoula has already gotten to them. EVERYONE falls for Jannoula, leaving Seraphina pretty much alone and miserable for the majority of the book.
Gone is my strong, witty, sensitive heroine. Gone are her relationships with her family, with Orma, with Kiggs, with Selda. Gone is the court intrigue, the suspicious characters, the MUSIC. (The first book dealt SO much with music and now...it's just gone.)
And as long as Seraphina is journeying places, not much happens. Even when things do happen, Seraphina seems to be sidelined for one reason or another.
