pygment's review
4.0
I really enjoyed this book better than the first one. The first one seemed limited by doing it as entries in journals. This one isn't hampered by it at all.
caitlinwhetten's review
3.0
Not as good as the first one and it's a bit disappointing based on what the story could be. I do like the tension and subtle horror it gives off. I like that it takes place 30 years after the first book and we get a different side of Lizzie. I also enjoyed the unlikely team-up of Lizzie and Simon. Great characters and great writing, but the plot and pacing left a bit to be desired.
trike's review
3.0
This was not nearly as good as the first one. I don't know what it even has to do with Lizzie Borden, really. That aspect really feels forced, frankly.
It also felt far too long for the story. Shifting the first-person POV every chapter doesn't help the story flow, either. The Lovecraftian aspects were very much in the background rather than a clear and present danger as they were in the first book.
So why 3 stars instead of 2? Because it feels politically prescient, despite being set in the early 1920s. This was published in September 2015, which means she probably turned it in six months before then. That was before Donald Trump announced his candidacy. Yet everything political that happens in the story, complete with the KKK, misogyny, and alt-right type of organizations, feels straight out of Trump's campaign. And subsequent election, along with the cronyism of his cabinet appointments.
The fact that the heroine is an older woman teaming up with a Catholic to battle evil was icing on the cake.
THAT is the truly eerie aspect of this book.
It also felt far too long for the story. Shifting the first-person POV every chapter doesn't help the story flow, either. The Lovecraftian aspects were very much in the background rather than a clear and present danger as they were in the first book.
So why 3 stars instead of 2? Because it feels politically prescient, despite being set in the early 1920s. This was published in September 2015, which means she probably turned it in six months before then. That was before Donald Trump announced his candidacy. Yet everything political that happens in the story, complete with the KKK, misogyny, and alt-right type of organizations, feels straight out of Trump's campaign. And subsequent election, along with the cronyism of his cabinet appointments.
The fact that the heroine is an older woman teaming up with a Catholic to battle evil was icing on the cake.
THAT is the truly eerie aspect of this book.
moonlit_shelves's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
spookyjane's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I didn't enjoy this as much as the first book. There weren't enough monsters on page for me - most of it in the last 20% or so. I also didn't connect with the characters as much, particularly the new characters. I wanted to stay in the sections from Lizzie or Wolf. I also feel like the cosmic concept wasn't given enough time to breathe - if the characters had more interactions with it, I think it could've been much more eerie, and a better connection to Lizzie and the events of the first book could have been made. That said, I did enjoy this.
becxreadz's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Liked
*Duel narration
*Great for fall
*The KKK aspect was unexpected
Disliked
*A little out there
*No connection to any characters
*Lizzy Borden played less of a role
*Duel narration
*Great for fall
*The KKK aspect was unexpected
Disliked
*A little out there
*No connection to any characters
*Lizzy Borden played less of a role
librarianguish's review
4.0
Another great yarn from Cherie Priest. Perfect reading for a soggy camping trip in the rain forest.
sistercoyote's review
5.0
Review available at: http://cannonballread.com/2015/10/whacks-and-whacks-and-whacks/
belacqua's review
5.0
I'm so torn between 4 and 5 stars. Maybe 4,5? 4,75? Maybe yes, a 5?
I'd give it 4 stars because it did feel like the story was a little dragged out at some point around 50% in. But murder? Weird cult stuff? Math and God? Different points of view with the most amazing characters? Strong female lead? Lizbeth still an amazing character even 30 years after the first book? Those deserve a 5.
I read this book while I was also doing some reading for college and I can't help but say that this book and the first book in the series, Maplecroft, remind me of what [a:Walter Benjamin|1860|Walter Benjamin|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1334719047p2/1860.jpg] once wrote: "Every morning brings us the news of the globe, and yet we are poor in noteworthy stories. This is because no event any longer comes to us without already being shot through with explanation. In other words, by now almost nothing that happens benefits storytelling; almost everything benefits information. Actually, it is half the art of storytelling to keep a story free from explanation as one reproduces it."
Not that Chapelwood doesn't offer us any explanation - it does, and marvelously. But the way Cherie Priest builds it in her story, the way she offers us information through the eyes of so many different characters, it's absolutely stunning. I love her writing style, I really do.
And a Lizzie Borden that actually puts her axe to good use? Breathtaking.
I'd give it 4 stars because it did feel like the story was a little dragged out at some point around 50% in. But murder? Weird cult stuff? Math and God? Different points of view with the most amazing characters? Strong female lead? Lizbeth still an amazing character even 30 years after the first book? Those deserve a 5.
I read this book while I was also doing some reading for college and I can't help but say that this book and the first book in the series, Maplecroft, remind me of what [a:Walter Benjamin|1860|Walter Benjamin|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1334719047p2/1860.jpg] once wrote: "Every morning brings us the news of the globe, and yet we are poor in noteworthy stories. This is because no event any longer comes to us without already being shot through with explanation. In other words, by now almost nothing that happens benefits storytelling; almost everything benefits information. Actually, it is half the art of storytelling to keep a story free from explanation as one reproduces it."
Not that Chapelwood doesn't offer us any explanation - it does, and marvelously. But the way Cherie Priest builds it in her story, the way she offers us information through the eyes of so many different characters, it's absolutely stunning. I love her writing style, I really do.
And a Lizzie Borden that actually puts her axe to good use? Breathtaking.
Spoiler
I was so mad at the way things ended for Lizbeth! But I still can't hold it against Priest. She did a wonderful job, even if I'm mad about it. lolgatun's review against another edition
3.0
Chapelwood is the sequel to Maplecroft, a very different take on what really happened in Fall River, MA with Lizzie Borden. Chapelwood picks up Lizzie's story thirty years after the events of Maplecroft. Lizzie is older and just as feisty. Strange events are happening in Birmingham, Alabama that catch Lizzie's interest. What is happening at Chapelwood has far-reaching consequences. James Patrick Cronin and Julie McKay narrate. I did not enjoy Chapelwood as much as Maplecroft. The reason has to do with the narration. It was not the voices themselves. It seemed Ruth's voice was louder than any other and it pulled me from the story to turn the volume down. If you enjoyed Maplecroft, give Chapelcroft a try. You may enjoy it more than I did.