livwoods's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book got me out of my reading slump. What a fantastic, intriguing story about maps and their power to bring people together, or, unfortunately, drive them apart.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Death of parent, Blood, Murder, Grief, and Death
renyoi's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Really engaging text on cartography, interpersonal relationships, and familial dynamics. Author is good at making complex ideas understandable, but falls short near the end of the book in making her character motivations understandable, . Thoroughly enjoyable ready with fully fleshed out characters you will absolutely grow to care for deeply, even when they make seemingly nonsensical decisions. Recommended!
Spoiler
specifically Wally, whose villainy went rather unexamined in any meaningful way the entire time
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Stalking, Abandonment, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Infidelity and Grief
Minor: Gun violence
coookiecat's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Violence, Grief, Alcohol, Gun violence, Murder, Blood, Death, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Confinement
Minor: Sexual content
raquelcanread's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Pretty entertaining! Gave me da vinci code/ national treasure vibes. If it gets picked up for a film it could be a cool adventure movie!!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abandonment, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Death of parent, Mass/school shootings, and Murder
leaflit's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Gun violence, Fire/Fire injury, Death of parent, Murder, and Infidelity
Moderate: Classism, Toxic friendship, Emotional abuse, Stalking, Mental illness, Grief, and Gaslighting
caseythereader's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Gun violence, Infidelity, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
tamara_joy's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Murder, Infidelity, Death of parent, Death, and Grief
taelights's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
2.5
I started off really loving this book so I'm a bit disappointed that it went so downhill for me by the end.
The first half quarter of the book was honestly so good. I was so drawn in by the story and the mystery and the characters. But towards the halfway point I thought the story had grown very repetitive and boring. I was kind of desperate for it to be over so I could move onto another book which is never a good thing.
Also by the halfway point I had already guessed the two biggest twists in the story so I didn't really feel surprised at all when either of them were revealed. I was just like "oh okay cool I was right" but not even in a satisfying way.
I thought the ending was super unsatisfying and a bit too open ended for my tastes at least.
Also I felt like a lot of the sacrifices and choices made by the characters were just dumb and unjustified.
Honestly the idea of the book really interested me but the execution of it was disappointing. Most of the characters fell flat and were unbelievable to me. The story also felt underdeveloped and had a few obvious plot holes. Plus the world building just wasn't it and left me with so many questions.
The first half quarter of the book was honestly so good. I was so drawn in by the story and the mystery and the characters. But towards the halfway point I thought the story had grown very repetitive and boring. I was kind of desperate for it to be over so I could move onto another book which is never a good thing.
Also by the halfway point I had already guessed the two biggest twists in the story so I didn't really feel surprised at all when either of them were revealed. I was just like "oh okay cool I was right" but not even in a satisfying way.
I thought the ending was super unsatisfying and a bit too open ended for my tastes at least.
Also I felt like a lot of the sacrifices and choices made by the characters were just dumb and unjustified.
Spoiler
Wally's whole motivation made no sense to me and his actions were so extreme. Like turning into a serial killer just to protect the secret of this town??? And for what reason??? Literally makes no sense to me still. Also Tam deciding to live in the Agloe for multiple decades just felt pointless. Like what person would give up their whole life with a loving husband and a tobbler just for some town even if it was a secret town. Turning the husband you are supposed to love into a single parent when you could idk just call the police and/or run away. Also Swan's death was overly dramatic and I thought it added nothing to the story.Honestly the idea of the book really interested me but the execution of it was disappointing. Most of the characters fell flat and were unbelievable to me. The story also felt underdeveloped and had a few obvious plot holes. Plus the world building just wasn't it and left me with so many questions.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, and Murder
erandle's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Infidelity, and Murder
Minor: Gun violence
lilifane's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
What are the odds to read a second book in a row with a family history, mystery and adventure, a treasure hunt, and a friends group? But this time with adults?
I'm always craving more books about a friends group and an adventure that is not YA, and it's really hard to find those. So I was really happy that this book turned out to be exactly what I was searching for for so long. I really love the idea behind The Cartographers. And I very much enjoyed the book, even though some of the reveals were too predictable and some decisions... didn't make any sense. But I was willing to just go with it because I liked the overall story so much.
The weakest point is definitely the characters. Although you get a lot of their backstories, I had a hard time to get emotionally attached to them. Especially the friends group, it would have made it so much more believable and emotional if we experienced more interactions between them that explained their bond and different relationships a little bit more.
I'm always craving more books about a friends group and an adventure that is not YA, and it's really hard to find those. So I was really happy that this book turned out to be exactly what I was searching for for so long. I really love the idea behind The Cartographers. And I very much enjoyed the book, even though some of the reveals were too predictable and some decisions... didn't make any sense. But I was willing to just go with it because I liked the overall story so much.
The weakest point is definitely the characters. Although you get a lot of their backstories, I had a hard time to get emotionally attached to them. Especially the friends group, it would have made it so much more believable and emotional if we experienced more interactions between them that explained their bond and different relationships a little bit more.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Gun violence, Infidelity, Murder, and Toxic friendship