ensslen's review
4.0
The Wind City is a well paced adventure story. It manages to have well rounded characters, including the villains and Maori gods, without becoming either sluggish or challenging. It is an easy and entertaining read.
nicolepants's review
5.0
What a lovely and fun book! I have no idea how I ever heard of this little delight, and subsequently found it in a used bookstore, but I'm super glad I did.
ariereads's review
3.0
It’s raining in Wellington, sometime soon or not so long ago. Saint has been feeling miserable, maybe due to an odd encounter he had on a bus the other day but he can’t quite remember, only knows it has something to do with a girl and a twisting of sorts, somewhere in his mind. Honestly, discovering his flatmate is a bloodthirsty maero – one of the iwi atua roaming Aoteroa since time began – hasn’t really helped his mood. Lucky for Saint he’s made a new friend then, and so what if Noah isn’t technically alive?
Boutique sci-fi publisher Steam Press is dedicated to presenting speculative Kiwi fiction in the form of “gorgeous paperbacks”, and this care and attention to detail is obvious here: the book is a delight, from the cover design and font, to the sketches of Wellington that begin each chapter.
Full review here
Recieved from Steam Press through NZ Booklovers.
Boutique sci-fi publisher Steam Press is dedicated to presenting speculative Kiwi fiction in the form of “gorgeous paperbacks”, and this care and attention to detail is obvious here: the book is a delight, from the cover design and font, to the sketches of Wellington that begin each chapter.
Full review here
Recieved from Steam Press through NZ Booklovers.
cowboyvelma's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
lizziexlewis's review
2.0
A charming novel that brings modern characters and ancient mythology together in a Wellington love letter.
For those familiar with Māori mythology and/or New Zealand's capital city, this book certainly captures the imagination. It was these elements that first drew me to the book. Various cameos and in-jokes create a sense of familiarity for those in the know. For those unfamiliar with these elements of the story, the light-hearted tone and witty, colourful cast of characters are enough to draw you in and appreciate the energy and charisma of the author, Summer Wigmore.
The reason I have only reviewed two stars is because I felt that despite its charm, The Wind City just missed the mark. The writing style and character development was original and refreshing, but too often clumsy. The dialogue felt a tad over-stylised, which was at times as distracting as it was endearing.
But for me, what stood out most was that Wigmore hadn't quite mastered who the ideal reader of the novel was. A Wellingtonian? A New Zealander who may never have visited Wellington but is familiar with NZ culture and Māori myths? Or a complete stranger to Wellington and New Zealand altogether?
Places in Wellington were described in minute detail and focused on minor points and technicalities (the description of the Public Library, for example). As a Welllingtonian myself, the descriptions were of course unnecessary for me to picture the scene, yet I felt they were almost too detailed to fully make sense to someone less well acquainted with the city. I was already in love with Wellington when I picked the book up... but it wasn't me that Wigmore should have been trying to convince.
Overall, though it was not particularly well written, I would still recommend this book to those interested in New Zealand fiction.
Here’s why: As an urban fantasy novel, it champions the city as a setting and this is something seldom seen in mainstream NZ fiction. It's refreshing to see a city celebrated as a home of stories and hub of culture, particularly as New Zealand novels often favour wild or rural settings, or use cities to tell stories of tension and violence. The Wind City goes a step further as a fantasy novel, drawing parallels between the ancient and modern and suggesting that cities are recesses of energy comparable to nature.
For those familiar with Māori mythology and/or New Zealand's capital city, this book certainly captures the imagination. It was these elements that first drew me to the book. Various cameos and in-jokes create a sense of familiarity for those in the know. For those unfamiliar with these elements of the story, the light-hearted tone and witty, colourful cast of characters are enough to draw you in and appreciate the energy and charisma of the author, Summer Wigmore.
The reason I have only reviewed two stars is because I felt that despite its charm, The Wind City just missed the mark. The writing style and character development was original and refreshing, but too often clumsy. The dialogue felt a tad over-stylised, which was at times as distracting as it was endearing.
But for me, what stood out most was that Wigmore hadn't quite mastered who the ideal reader of the novel was. A Wellingtonian? A New Zealander who may never have visited Wellington but is familiar with NZ culture and Māori myths? Or a complete stranger to Wellington and New Zealand altogether?
Places in Wellington were described in minute detail and focused on minor points and technicalities (the description of the Public Library, for example). As a Welllingtonian myself, the descriptions were of course unnecessary for me to picture the scene, yet I felt they were almost too detailed to fully make sense to someone less well acquainted with the city. I was already in love with Wellington when I picked the book up... but it wasn't me that Wigmore should have been trying to convince.
Overall, though it was not particularly well written, I would still recommend this book to those interested in New Zealand fiction.
Here’s why: As an urban fantasy novel, it champions the city as a setting and this is something seldom seen in mainstream NZ fiction. It's refreshing to see a city celebrated as a home of stories and hub of culture, particularly as New Zealand novels often favour wild or rural settings, or use cities to tell stories of tension and violence. The Wind City goes a step further as a fantasy novel, drawing parallels between the ancient and modern and suggesting that cities are recesses of energy comparable to nature.
kamreadsandrecs's review
2.0
Full review here: https://wp.me/p21txV-Hj
"However, while [there] are good reasons to pick up this book, there are other reasons that a reader might not want to. Chief of those is the plot, which isn’t as cohesive as I think it should be. To be sure, it starts out all right, and there’s something to be said for the breadth and varying viewpoints that following three different characters can achieve, but by around the midway point it becomes utterly chaotic. It’s like the reader’s equivalent of being in the back of a cart with the reins on the horses cut loose: uncontrollable and inescapable.
"Because of this, everything else that’s good about this novel suffers..."
olive2read's review
4.0
This made me angry and broke my heart - but in a good way? A fun modern tale of the communication challenges that arise when humans and fae creatures share a space, including truly tragic misunderstandings. Wonderful and quirky characters - full of imperfections and just trying to live. Some in the sense of trying to get by and others working to find the joy - and to not screw everything up in the search - to mixed results. Bonus that I didn't know anything about Maori folklore and got to discover a whole new mythology!
exitpursuedbyaclaire's review
5.0
Reading The Wind City by Summer Wigmore is like the best sort of birthday, where you get everything you asked for and, best of all, things you never even thought to hope for.
I knew I wanted a fun, joyful fantasy story that made me laugh out loud. I knew I wanted a diverse cast of characters. I did not know, before reading this book, how much I needed to see myself and my friends in a story.
In The Wind City, characters slide Princess Bride quotes into appropriate situations, and characters think things like, “Hey! I’m being a dashing hero!” And it’s not just for laughs or for comedic effect, it’s because that’s what real people do, that’s the language of tropes and references that so many people of my generation speak.
Characters who find out that they’re walking among legends have a variety of reactions, and one is “I will befriend all these mythical beings!” and one is “I will research them!”—a beautiful breath of fresh air after years of watching characters in other fiction have identical textbook responses to discovering magic.
In The Wind City, you will fall in love with Tony, and Saint, and Steffan, and Hinewai, and everyone… and there will come a moment, about halfway through this novel overflowing with wit and wonder, when you realize that any one of them could die.
If there are any flaws in this book, I was having far too much fun to notice. I have read this book twice now and know I'll keep rereading it for a smile for years.
I knew I wanted a fun, joyful fantasy story that made me laugh out loud. I knew I wanted a diverse cast of characters. I did not know, before reading this book, how much I needed to see myself and my friends in a story.
In The Wind City, characters slide Princess Bride quotes into appropriate situations, and characters think things like, “Hey! I’m being a dashing hero!” And it’s not just for laughs or for comedic effect, it’s because that’s what real people do, that’s the language of tropes and references that so many people of my generation speak.
Characters who find out that they’re walking among legends have a variety of reactions, and one is “I will befriend all these mythical beings!” and one is “I will research them!”—a beautiful breath of fresh air after years of watching characters in other fiction have identical textbook responses to discovering magic.
In The Wind City, you will fall in love with Tony, and Saint, and Steffan, and Hinewai, and everyone… and there will come a moment, about halfway through this novel overflowing with wit and wonder, when you realize that any one of them could die.
If there are any flaws in this book, I was having far too much fun to notice. I have read this book twice now and know I'll keep rereading it for a smile for years.
claudiearseneault's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
THIS BOOK. Man. I need to shove this book into everyone's hands RIGHT NOW. This is such a wonderful story, entrancing from start to finish, and I love everyone in it. I just want to hug every single character and hang out with them and just -- *breathes*
I'm very glad I somehow stumbled upon this book. As a canadian, urban fantasy with Maori myths was super refreshing and mysterious, and I kept getting more and more excited about the diverse cast, and the complexity of characters, and how smoothly the story flowed, slowly building into a disaster, leaving you with a solid case of book hangover.
10/10, would get my feelings destroyed again, thank you.
I'm very glad I somehow stumbled upon this book. As a canadian, urban fantasy with Maori myths was super refreshing and mysterious, and I kept getting more and more excited about the diverse cast, and the complexity of characters, and how smoothly the story flowed, slowly building into a disaster, leaving you with a solid case of book hangover.
10/10, would get my feelings destroyed again, thank you.