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A review by oneanjana
Ghosts of Gotham by Craig Schaefer
3.0
Honestly, I don’t know what to say about this book. The blurb made me expect some blast with the various genre attached: mystery, crime, urban fantasy, magic and paranormal. It’s a super great idea, I think. But sadly, it just doesn’t meet my expectations, or maybe just failed in the implementation.
At first, I rooted for the mystery and I can say that the mystery part is promising enough. But as the story goes, the real point of the story seems so blurry and confusing. When the plot was about to enter its magical side, I guess that was when the story lost a lot of its dynamics. Perhaps it’s because of the plot twist that includes ‘world-moving’ (from pure detective-play kind-of-story into magical realism) isn’t well executed. This results in not-too-smooth genre-blending outcome.
The story narrated from the third person PoV, mostly focuses on Lionel. We can see some of Maddie’s part too, but I consider it a downside, because Maddie’s background story isn’t strong enough to make her perform like an old-century witch. Yes, there is a little bit romance here, not an instant love type, but somehow I feel the romance is a bit forced.
It's not fair to just mention the downside. So, here’s the thing I liked about this book. Thankfully, the action scene was good enough. And a plus for its mythology references. Overall, I think it just didn’t hit the spot, given that the early ideas were very promising. Or maybe just not my cup of tea.
At first, I rooted for the mystery and I can say that the mystery part is promising enough. But as the story goes, the real point of the story seems so blurry and confusing. When the plot was about to enter its magical side, I guess that was when the story lost a lot of its dynamics. Perhaps it’s because of the plot twist that includes ‘world-moving’ (from pure detective-play kind-of-story into magical realism) isn’t well executed. This results in not-too-smooth genre-blending outcome.
The story narrated from the third person PoV, mostly focuses on Lionel. We can see some of Maddie’s part too, but I consider it a downside, because Maddie’s background story isn’t strong enough to make her perform like an old-century witch. Yes, there is a little bit romance here, not an instant love type, but somehow I feel the romance is a bit forced.
It's not fair to just mention the downside. So, here’s the thing I liked about this book. Thankfully, the action scene was good enough. And a plus for its mythology references. Overall, I think it just didn’t hit the spot, given that the early ideas were very promising. Or maybe just not my cup of tea.