A review by bibliotropic
Suited by Joanne Anderton
4.0
The story started in Debris continues with Suited, the second book in Jo Anderton’s Veiled Worlds trilogy. Tanyana returns to pry the lids off the mysteries surrounding debris , the Keeper, and the Puppet Man who are now doing more than watching and waiting.
This book picks up nicely where the previous one left off, with a fairly seamless transition from one book to the next. I confess to a little bit of confusion regarding some characters (“What, who was that again?”) but I suspect that’s mostly because it’s been a while since I read the first book. As I fell into the story, things came quickly back to me, and it was easy to lose myself in the anime-inspired future world that Anderton created.
I can safely say that if you enjoyed Debris, you’ll probably enjoy Suited, and if if Debris simply wasn’t to your taste, then avoid this one. Anderton’s style is revealing itself very clearly as being beautifully descriptive, with a good balance between dialogue and action, but damn, is the foreshadowing ever lousy! Remembering that Devich’s betrayal in the previous book came as absolutely no surprise, there was a similar character in this book, where I was just waiting impatiently for the big reveal that wouldn’t reveal a thing to anyone who’s actually been paying attention. Every so often I’d get my hopes up, thinking that maybe Anderton was going to play things out as though you’re supposed to think this character is a traitor but is really innocent, but nope, no such luck. This is Anderton’s main failing as a writer, I think. No ability to cast good foreshadowing. And what might be somewhat subtle in a series of half-hour animated episodes is really not subtle in a novel.
On the plus side, a great deal of information is given and expanded upon regarding the nature of debris, Halves, the Keeper, and just who and what the Puppet Men actually are. For all that Anderton can’t do subtlety in her writing, she has a great talent for world-building, throwing in layers of intrigue and depth that really keep you reading. The world in these books has a fascinating structure, history, and set of societies that are really entertaining to read about. That’s what keeps me coming back, I think. Wanting to see the layers peeled back and more of the world unveiled.
I will be reading the conclusion of this trilogy when it’s released. Its strength of storytelling didn’t quite compensate for the foreshadowing issue, but it can come awfully close sometimes, and I want to know what happens next!
(Book received in exchange for an honest review.)
This book picks up nicely where the previous one left off, with a fairly seamless transition from one book to the next. I confess to a little bit of confusion regarding some characters (“What, who was that again?”) but I suspect that’s mostly because it’s been a while since I read the first book. As I fell into the story, things came quickly back to me, and it was easy to lose myself in the anime-inspired future world that Anderton created.
I can safely say that if you enjoyed Debris, you’ll probably enjoy Suited, and if if Debris simply wasn’t to your taste, then avoid this one. Anderton’s style is revealing itself very clearly as being beautifully descriptive, with a good balance between dialogue and action, but damn, is the foreshadowing ever lousy! Remembering that Devich’s betrayal in the previous book came as absolutely no surprise, there was a similar character in this book, where I was just waiting impatiently for the big reveal that wouldn’t reveal a thing to anyone who’s actually been paying attention. Every so often I’d get my hopes up, thinking that maybe Anderton was going to play things out as though you’re supposed to think this character is a traitor but is really innocent, but nope, no such luck. This is Anderton’s main failing as a writer, I think. No ability to cast good foreshadowing. And what might be somewhat subtle in a series of half-hour animated episodes is really not subtle in a novel.
On the plus side, a great deal of information is given and expanded upon regarding the nature of debris, Halves, the Keeper, and just who and what the Puppet Men actually are. For all that Anderton can’t do subtlety in her writing, she has a great talent for world-building, throwing in layers of intrigue and depth that really keep you reading. The world in these books has a fascinating structure, history, and set of societies that are really entertaining to read about. That’s what keeps me coming back, I think. Wanting to see the layers peeled back and more of the world unveiled.
I will be reading the conclusion of this trilogy when it’s released. Its strength of storytelling didn’t quite compensate for the foreshadowing issue, but it can come awfully close sometimes, and I want to know what happens next!
(Book received in exchange for an honest review.)