Won't find many stories like this anymore
4 August 17, 2018
I'm in love with this book and the multiple realities Blackwick created in the Vivian Amberville series. First thing I read from her were some micro stories from an Advent Calendar, and it made me curious about the book too.
It was better than I expected. Sure, there were some hiccups here and there in which the world-building went a bit too far, but it always turned out to be worth reading about in the end, because Blackwick is the kind of writer who makes a seemingly inimportant detail become the crux of the main plot.
There's something about this author, I can't quite put my finger on. She looks/seems way too young to be wriitng at this level, and for a foreign person, her English is way too good and too british to come from someone who learned English as their 2nd or 3rd language. It's almost like Vivian Amberville came from another one of J.K.Rowling's secret pennames. Remember Robert Galbraith? I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if miss Rowling shows up one day and declares she's the mind behind the Vivian Amberville saga.
At any rate, if Louise Blackwick is a different person than Rowling, and her mind is behind this series, then I owe Blackwick an apology, and would even urge the world to put her on their watchlist, because that's one seriously talented young author, a bit like the authors of old.
Do I recommend Vivian Amberville to anyone? Hell yes! Doesn't matter if you love fantasy or not. This book has got enough backbone to be entertaining and not take itself too seriously, despite its fantastical nature.
Seriously, just go and get it and read it now! Get it on paperback, if you can. They ship everywhere in the world and it doesn't cost all that much. Totally worth the investment! Plus it's the kind of book you'd want to have on your shelf and get back to it, now and then.
It was better than I expected. Sure, there were some hiccups here and there in which the world-building went a bit too far, but it always turned out to be worth reading about in the end, because Blackwick is the kind of writer who makes a seemingly inimportant detail become the crux of the main plot.
There's something about this author, I can't quite put my finger on. She looks/seems way too young to be wriitng at this level, and for a foreign person, her English is way too good and too british to come from someone who learned English as their 2nd or 3rd language. It's almost like Vivian Amberville came from another one of J.K.Rowling's secret pennames. Remember Robert Galbraith? I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if miss Rowling shows up one day and declares she's the mind behind the Vivian Amberville saga.
At any rate, if Louise Blackwick is a different person than Rowling, and her mind is behind this series, then I owe Blackwick an apology, and would even urge the world to put her on their watchlist, because that's one seriously talented young author, a bit like the authors of old.
Do I recommend Vivian Amberville to anyone? Hell yes! Doesn't matter if you love fantasy or not. This book has got enough backbone to be entertaining and not take itself too seriously, despite its fantastical nature.
Seriously, just go and get it and read it now! Get it on paperback, if you can. They ship everywhere in the world and it doesn't cost all that much. Totally worth the investment! Plus it's the kind of book you'd want to have on your shelf and get back to it, now and then.