Reviews with content warning for Sexism - The Kingdom of Back

Nannerl is the sister of Wolfgang Mozart and just wants to be remembered in a society that does not want women to be remembered for the music they create. Nannerl spends this whole book going on this ongoing adventure and making this big deal with a supernatural being just so that she can be remembered. All while her and her brother are traveling Europe as child musicians. Throughout the book you can see Wolfgang gaining the respects of the patrons and royalty as he gets commissioned while Nannerl is just a sort of afterthought. This leads to her becoming desperate for her to be the one to write the family legacy, hence the deal with the supernatural being from a made up world that both her and her brother share. I was so looking forward to loving this book. As a double violin major in college, it sounded like the perfect book for me.
I think Nannerl had so much potential. She had a spunk and a want that I just feel fell so flat during the last 2 chapters. Nannerl ends up being exactly what she stated time and time again that she did not want to be.

She gives up composing, gives up music in general, has an unnamed husband and basically becomes the very thing she did not want to be. I understand that she made peace with her legacy being Wolfgang's due to the fact she inspired him so heavily, but I also just cannot accept that being enough considering they fell so out of touch.

Another problem I had with this book was the plot points that really didn't lead anywhere. Nannerl meets a boy she is interested in

and then he just sort of disappears? He wrote her letters and from the looks of it she never wrote him back or tried making any communication despite being very interested in him? I could see if Johann made an appearance at the end of the book, but instead there is an unnamed husband. I just don't see at all why this character needed to be introduced

There were also a lot of times where characters were so sick it seemed they were on the brink of death, but for some reason they always made a miraculous recovery.
I keep trying to understand why the ending was written the way it is. Why Nannerl had to fall so flat at the end. But I cannot. I can understand the approach of not wanting to divert from history too much, but this book includes a magical world filled with a dragon, a witch, ogre among other magical things. There was no reason Nannerl's story could not have been slightly rewritten

she could've continued composing under the vague Mozart name even if there was never no intention of publishing, she could've kept making music, even if it was just for her family and close friends, she could've married someone who was important enough to name.

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thewildmageslibrary's review against another edition

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4.0

This book is so beautifully written. <3 It very much gave me fairytale feels. I love Nannerl, her drive to be remembered is very relatable. I can definitely see myself reading this again.

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madamenovelist's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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olivia's review

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character

3.5

I definitely need to reread this book the properly form coherent thought because I think I was in the wrong state of mind while reading it. I found the writing magical, transportive, spectacular (insert more positive adjectives here), but I couldn't wrap my head around the fairytale world, and how it interacts with the real world. Anyways, I loved the vibes, but I didn't understand the plot/setting. The rating will likely be boosted following my reread of this story - whenever I get to it. Hopefully, my reading comprehension mode will be activated on my reread, so I'll be able to rave about this book like everyone else is... Also, credits to David Curtis (the cover artist), and Kristie Radwilowicz (the cover designer); this cover is a masterpiece^^

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escapismforlife's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful informative inspiring sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

This story is beautiful and solidifies that Marie Lu's writing to this day can still make me cry.

Fun fact about me before you read this review : I had a minor in Woman and Gender Studies. One that I completed spring of 2021.

A real life firgure like Marianne Mozart is why I refuse to keep my mouth shut when it comes to my opinion. And incorporating characters in stories that have sensitive men who listen, validate and help women and women of color.

While she had many privileges and rights growing up getting her due recognition and respect was never one of them. And for that reason I will continue to be critical of men and women who I'm around to not live in delusion of the western society's patriarchal oppression.

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ajourneythroughpages's review

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adventurous emotional mysterious sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This is such an important story because it is based on a real, almost-forgotten person. Definitely read the author's note afterwards for context.

The descriptions in this book of how the main character feels when she plays music were so relatable and inspired me to start playing piano again after three years. I couldn't put this book down for the last 100 pages and I loved it.

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nytephoenyx's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I really enjoy it when I learn about an historical figure through a fiction book. Before picking up The Kingdom of Back, I had no idea that Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart had an older sister. While there are elements of fantasy in this book (The Kingdom of Back is an historical fantasy after all) there’s enough research around Wolferl and Nannerl to tie into their true life story. Well done, Marie Lu!

If there were glaring historical inaccuracies in that part of the book, I would be the first person to call them out. But I’m serious when I say Lu did a fantastic job here – the history was vivid, the music sang, and the fantasy was appropriately menacing. Ironically, the the tone of the book often conjured “In the Hall of the Mountain King” by Edvard Greig for me, rather than something Mozart himself wrote, but the classical music element was there regardless.

There are three pieces at the center of The Kingdom of Back. First, we have Nannerl’s ambitions – she’s an extremely talented musician and composer, but as a woman, she will never be able to follow her heart or publish her music as it was “a man’s job” at the time. Obviously today we know this is absolute poppycock, and Lu successfully recreated Nannrl’s internal struggle between the need to behave in a societally acceptable manner and please her father, and her desire to write music. Second, we have the relationship between Wolfrl and Nannrl. The sibling relationship is the thread that pulls the book together and Nannerl’s driving motivation. There were sweet moments and frustrating moments and as a strictly raised older sister to a passionate and free younger brother, I found myself empathizing with Nannerl frequently. Finally, we have Hyacinth’s pact and the children’s relationship to the Kingdom. All together you have a complex story split between two worlds that is constantly testing the loyalty and selfishness of the characters.

Plot-wise, I loved it. The Kingdom of Back is fantastic. Aesthetically, the book reminded me strongly of Wintersong, both in the chilly European aesthetic and the foundation of classical music and their composers. This inspiration is still pretty uncommon in the literary world, and it was a refreshing change of pace. The coexistence of historical and fantasy evoked images of The Magicians or The Chronicles of Narnia – a little magic in the ordinary. While The Kingdom of Back tells a very different story than either of these, it’s the sort of world you are entering when you pick up this book.

The characters and relationships were both intricate and interesting. There’s a scene between Nannerl and her father that adds excellent depth to his character and strengthens the reader’s understanding of their relationship that I really appreciated. I felt the real world characters – even minor ones like Johan – were better developed than the fantasy characters. While I believe this was part by design (Hyacinth is mysterious and duplicitous after all), the lack of depth kept me distant as a reader there was that loss of emotional investment in his part of the story.

My major complaint about The Kingdom of Back is the way the story is told. We spend an awful lot of time in Nannerl’s head and while this perspective feels true to life, it’s also not always interesting for the reader and becomes repetitive. I liked that it was a single POV because it suited Nannerl’s deeply guarded fears and anger, but I think this could have been a stronger book with a little less analysis of her thoughts and a little more immersion into her world.

The Kingdom of Back is different than many of the other things I’ve read by Marie Lu. The more I read her recent books, the more I am convinced that she has grown exponentially as a writer during her career. The Kingdom of Back and Skyhunter are much more impressive novels than Warcross and Legend. Fans of her earlier work may not like The Kingdom of Back as much because it’s such a departure from her YA science fiction, but to miss this book would be a mistake – it’s an excellent work, compelling while be being subtly educational and full of sinister magic. I recommend it.

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allyhoo811's review

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adventurous emotional mysterious reflective relaxing sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

My admittedly disorganized thoughts after reading "The Kingdom of Back"

Positives (for me):

1) I don't feel this book should be marketed as YA. Yes, the protagonist is a teenage girl, but it feels much more general audience to me.

2) The writing style is beautiful and had a dreamlike quality. I found myself falling asleep on several occasions while reading this one -- not because it was boring, but the cadence of the words just kind of lulled me into dreamland lol

3) This book has some wonderful Dark "Peter Pan" vibes (reminded me a bit of Season 3 of Once Upon A Time in that way). If you enjoy that story, I'd try this.

4) Fans of portal fantasies should check this out.

5) The brother/sister relationship in this story is perfection.

6) I loved that I was never sure what the author intended the Kingdom of Back to be: was it a real place, a dream, I childhood game, or was Nannerl experiencing some kind of mental health issues (schizophrenia perhaps).

Negatives (for me):

1) The last 2 or 3 chapters (after the time jump to post-Mozart's death) really brought the book down for me. They didn't feel necessary to me and really left me confused (not in a good way this time) to the author's intentions for what the Kingdom was and what the theme of the story was. It should have just ended without these chapters included.

2) There are several historical inaccuracies (at least according to some very basic google research). It doesn't greatly affect the story, but if you like researching your historical fiction/fantasy you will find it is there.

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Reviews tagging 'Sexism'

The Kingdom of Back by Marie Lu

gloriasing's review

scarletthequeen's review against another edition

becbec624's review

thewildmageslibrary's review against another edition

madamenovelist's review against another edition

__olivia__'s review

escapismforlife's review against another edition

ajourneythroughpages's review

nytephoenyx's review against another edition

allyhoo811's review

olivia's review