Skip to main content

The Diviners by Libba Bray (Review #127)


"Evie O’Neill has been exiled from her boring old hometown and shipped off to the bustling streets of New York City—and she is pos-i-tute-ly ecstatic. It’s 1926, and New York is filled with speakeasies, Ziegfeld girls, and rakish pickpockets. The only catch is that she has to live with her uncle Will and his unhealthy obsession with the occult.

Evie worries he’ll discover her darkest secret: a supernatural power that has only brought her trouble so far. But when the police find a murdered girl branded with a cryptic symbol and Will is called to the scene, Evie realizes her gift could help catch a serial killer.

As Evie jumps headlong into a dance with a murderer, other stories unfold in the city that never sleeps. A young man named Memphis is caught between two worlds. A chorus girl named Theta is running from her past. A student named Jericho hides a shocking secret. And unknown to all, something dark and evil has awakened."

Review:
I have read some of Libba Bray's work before, and I adored her work. A Great and Terrible Beauty? I ADORE that book. So not only did the plot seem interesting, but I've loved the author's previous work. And it did not disappoint. I truly enjoyed the mystery, it was nothing like a conventional case of a murderer on a rampage, but some really spooky stuff! And the best parts were the characters.
Each of the teen characters had their own depth and their own story which I loved; it wasn't all centered around Evie, though she is how us readers make it to New York. I loved the 20's setting and loved the supernatural undertone. It wasn't overt magic left and right, these characters are learning along with us for the most part. Evie was definitely my favorite character because she was wild and unpredictable, and frankly a bit self-centered and selfish. She was a flawed person. It made her more real to me. Her morals were skewed and tended to use her magical abilities for attention and to feel important, not always for the greater good. Overall though each character had their merits. I loved Memphis, Theta and Henry, Mabel, Sam, and Jericho. I'm ready for the TEAM to UNITE, you know what I mean?


My ONE quarrel with this book is this:


"SOMETHING IS COMING"


"SOMETHING IS COMING"


"SOMETHING IS STILL COMINGGGGGG"

Half the book is dedicated to the other dark and sinister plot. That the Diviners were going to need to come together for. It's bigger than the mystery that Evie and the rest of the Museum team have been working on. We've been reading since the beginning about this "thing" that was looming on the horizon. I understand that this is a series and that this plotline is going to expand passed the first book. HOWEVERRRRRR, we need something. Us as readers need some little breadcrumbs to keep us going and we didn't get anything other than "They better be ready" or something along those lines.

?????

NOOOO. What kind of conclusion is that? It was infuriating. Don't get me wrong, I'll probably read the next book, but it was just frustrating. Anyways! Let me know what you thought of the book and your take!

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Finale by Stephanie Garber (Review #236)

WARNING: SPOILER ALERT: IF YOU HAVE NOT GOTTEN THIS FAR IN THE CARAVAL TRILOGY, STOP NOW. DO NOT READ. THIS IS BOOK 3. CHECK OUT  CARAVAL  FOR THE REVIEW OF BOOK 1, AND LEGENDARY FOR BOOK 2! "It’s been two months since the Fates were freed from a deck of cards, two months since Legend claimed the throne for his own, and two months since Tella discovered the boy she fell in love with doesn’t really exist. With lives, empires, and hearts hanging in the balance, Tella must decide if she’s going to trust Legend or a former enemy. After uncovering a secret that upends her life, Scarlett will need to do the impossible. And Legend has a choice to make that will forever change and define him. Caraval is over, but perhaps the greatest game of all has begun. There are no spectators this time—only those who will win, and those who will lose everything. Welcome, welcome to Finale. All games must come to an end…" Review: This final installment I was scared to start, I won’t lie. From bei...

The Harpy by Megan Hunter (Review #245)

“Lucy Lives with her husband, Jake and their two boys. Her life is devoted to her children, her days, mapped out by their finally tune routine. Until a man calls one afternoon with a shattering message. His wife has been having an affair with Lucy’s husband. He thought she should know. Lucy is distraught. She decides to stay with Jake, if only for their children sake, but in order to even the score, they agreed that she will hurt him three times. Jake Will not know when the hurt is coming, or what form it will take. And so begins a delicate game of crime and punishment, from which there is no return…” Review: “Deeply unsettling” author Daisy Johnson said of this book, and honestly I think that’s the perfect description. For me though this wasn’t necessarily horror, and fantasy is a stretch at best, but let’s backtrack a bit. This story was about grief. Lucy is grieving and trying to heal from a monumental wound. She by no means is a pillar of a healthy psyche, but even in her worst mom...

Bone Crier's Moon by Kathryn Purdie (Review #244)

 "Bone Criers have a sacred duty: to ferry the spirits of the dead to the afterlife. But the gods demand a sacrifice from them to prove their dedication. Ailesse has prepared since birth to become the matriarch of the Bone Criers, but first, she must complete her rite of passage by finding - and killing - the boy she is destined to love. Bastien has been seeking revenge for his father’s death at the hands of a Bone Crier. When he finds Ailesse on the night of her ritual, their fates become entwined in life and in death. Sabine has never had the stomach for the Bone Criers’ work, but when her best friend, Ailesse, is taken captive, Sabine will do whatever it takes to break the bond between Ailesse and Bastien. Before they all die.” Review: This was such a fun little read! Honestly, I was hooked from the moment Ailesse attacked that tiger shark. The pacing for this was like NASCAR. We were flying through so much action and plot and I was here for it. There were times I will say that...