Wordsmithing and Worldbuilding: bitter greens

Back on April 20th, I posted a list of books I had just started/planned on reading. It finally occurred to me to write an update. Sadly, I only really liked one out of three. Here is a short rundown (if I feel mean I might write complete reviews, who knows):

HERE BE SPOILERS. You have been warned.

1. Uprooted by Naomi Novik

I wanted to love this book, and up until about 3/4's through, I did. I had two complaints, and while one of them was major, the other was personal. Novik's prose is elegant and her worldbuilding is (as always) very good. I loved the Polish fairytale bent, and the nod to Baba Yaga, and I really liked the heroine, Agnieszka (easier to say than spell). The idea was great, and I didn't mind the romance until later. So what was my problem? Two things:

I. The scene with the Dragon, toward the end. I'm trying to avoid spoilers, but their whole relationship was pretty carefully balanced (with her being so much younger and inexperienced), and this bit kind of destroyed the whole balance, to be honest (and it was unnecessary [read more like fanfiction] really). I've already said I have a weak stomach for romance, but this was a skip-the-page moment for me. I like my fantasies to stay epic, thank you.

Image Credit

II. My major complaint is super spoilery, so read no further if you HAVE to read this book: The book's climax fell COMPLETELY flat for me. Everyone (basically) turns on each other and dies, corrupted by the darkness in the wood. And then, we find out that the wood's darkness is not only understandable, it's the sad moaning of a betrayed and mistreated forest queen, and takes away any of her power to threat or frighten. It basically reduces the fantasy "big bad" to a sort of eco-virus, that you can't blame or hate because it was a natural sort of purging.

I basically put down the book thinking, "Oh, so in the end these people were all just as infected by the wood, they all kill each other and the wood is healed, and then the 5 or so survivors put up "Don't hurt the trees," signs, and we're all okay now?" Where is the threat, the danger, the peril that I was feeling up until then? Who could be mad at a bunch of sick trees?

Sorry, I'll quit ranting. But I couldn't be sad, mad, or even satisfied with that resolution. I just stopped caring altogether (and don't get me wrong, I love trees).

OVERALL: 3 out of 5 stars

The second misfire was the gorgeous Bitter Greens, by Kate Forsyth, which was far more like its title than its cover.

I'm actually surprised I finished it. It was basically a story about a mistreated author who is "empowered" by making seriously idiotic romantic decisions (especially for her time period), who then throws a hissy fit, gets mad at God and the king, and then gets thrown in a nunnery (that was like something out of Oliver Twist). She spends most of the time in the nunnery daydreaming about her former paramours and fancy clothes, until a strange old nun tells her a story. That story was the only redeeming factor (and probably why I finished the book). Since I basically despised everything about the book, I will spare you the rant and give you the only two good things I could find:

I. The descriptions of Venice, and the entire setting of 16-17th century mainland Europe was lush and well researched. You really felt like you were there (except for the one time when children were referred to as "kids," which jarred me a bit). Everything from the masks to the boats was rendered in vivid detail. The plight of women, as well, without personal freedom, and very little say in their lives, was explored in a historically accurate manner.

II. Margherita (the actual Rapunzel of the story) was sweet, charming, and I actually cared about her and her story. I found it compelling enough to slog/skim through the rest.

One final ranty bit:
I am tired of "people of faith (any faith, mind you)" being reduced to "I'm a ________, but I don't actually follow my beliefs, oh look, God didn't do what I wanted like a private magician, *faith lost* but I'm still loyal to my faith." This is not authentic, and it isn't character development. In Bitter Greens, the people in question were the Huguenots, a brave group of Reformers who died for what they believed in and lived out. In my opinion, Bitter Greens cheapened that, by styling the main character as one of them, and then having her not follow a single aspect of their faith, then renounce that faith, and then have the gall to think how she was still loyal in her heart, though her Huguenot faith had "done nothing for her." At least have her call a spade a spade and claim she never believed nor cared to.

THERE! That felt good. If you are still with me, you can see what I thought of Ross Poldark (below) and what I am currently reading.

The last book, Ross Poldark, was pretty enjoyable. It made me want to go to Cornwall more than I already did, and if this book didn't do that to you, look at this:

DailyMail UK

Poldark was basically a historical family drama/romance involving quite a few characters. Like Downton Abbey with a lot more dirt and mining, and poverty. It was hard to get into at first, but once I got caught up in the story, I liked it a lot. Still, I don't feel the need to read the (11!) sequels.

I am fatigued by the ranting, so here are the books I am currently reading:

Thorn by Intisar Khanani

The Last Bookaneer by Matthew Pearl

A Grave Talent by Laurie R. King

Does This Beach Make Me Look Fat? by Lisa Scottoline and Francesca Serritella

Chances are, there won't be a lot of ranting this time, as I'm far enough into all of them to think I'm going to like them all okay (at the very least).

So now I am tired, and I am going to go watch White Collar. Did you read anything good (or bad) this week? Have you discovered any new reads that look exciting?

Happy Monday!

It is foggy and rainy in Michigan (and a little colder than the past few weeks). But there is no April snow, so it's all good.

Monday's meme is from Sheila over at Book Journey, and here's her write up:

"Welcome to It’s Monday What Are You Reading? The meme that we use to share what we read this past week and what our plans are for the upcoming week. It’s a great way to see what others are reading and add to your own To Be Read list. :D You never know where that next great read may come from!"
(quote from Sheila's meme post here)

So I've started a lot of books in the past few weeks. I'm not sure if all of them will be worth finishing, it's too early to tell.

Most Recent: Uprooted by Naomi Novik

Here's the Goodreads excerpt:“Our Dragon doesn’t eat the girls he takes, no matter what stories they tell outside our valley. We hear them sometimes, from travelers passing through. They talk as though we were doing human sacrifice, and he were a real dragon. Of course that’s not true: he may be a wizard and immortal, but he’s still a man, and our fathers would band together and kill him if he wanted to eat one of us every ten years. He protects us against the Wood, and we’re grateful, but not that grateful.” (Goodreads)

I just started this, so I have no impressions other than about the cover. IT'S GORGEOUS. Also, I'm kind of scared to start it, as the Goodreads reviews compare it to some of my all-time favorite novels. I don't want to get my hopes up, you know? And yet, I can't help being excited . . .

Next up is Ross Poldark (Poldark #1) by Winston Graham

I'd be lying if I pretended I'd heard much about this series before the BBC rebooted it for Masterpiece with Aidan Turner as Ross. In fact, I've been deriving an enormous amount of hilarity from the drippy posts and memes BBC has been posting on Facebook. The blurb on Goodreads didn't really grab me either:

"Ross Poldark returns to Cornwall from war, looking forward to a joyful homecoming with his family and his beloved Elizabeth. But instead he discovers that his father has died, his home is overrun by livestock and drunken servants, and Elizabeth, having believed Ross dead, is now engaged to his cousin. Ross must start over, building a completely new path for his life, one that takes him in exciting and unexpected directions" (Goodreads)

Sounds boring, honestly. But I was inundated by Poldark, and I finally decided to give it a shot. It's pretty typical historical epic: wronged hero who is noble but makes some bad decisions (obnoxious, bad decisions), brooding (much brooding), a sort-of love triangle (square?), sweeping moors, a privileged upper class, and the downtrodden. In other words, I'm enjoying it so far.

So, thanks, BBC, even if you insinuate that this is the only reason we should notice Poldark:

Bitter Greens, by Kate Forsyth

I promise I picked this up for more than the cover:

Beautiful

Anyhow, it seems a little romantic for my tastes, but I love fairytales and historical fiction, so I'm giving it a chance. Here's a Goodreads blurb:

"Award-winning author Kate Forsyth braids together the stories of Margherita, Selena, and Charlotte-Rose, the woman who penned Rapunzel as we now know it, to create what is a sumptuous historical novel, an enchanting fairy tale retelling, and a loving tribute to the imagination of one remarkable woman."

Sounds pretty good, right? We shall see.

So that's it for this week. Did you start (or finish) any interesting books today? I'm still plowing through the wonderful (but long) The Greatest Knight, which is about the fascinating life of William Marshall. It's a little hard to read in the tiny snatches of time I have, so I don't know how long it will take me . . .

Cheers!