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A review by savage_book_review
The Fire Thief Fights Back by Terry Deary
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Well that was underwhelming. I am genuinely so disappointed in this series; for a topic that has so much room for fun interpretation and scope to tailor for an audience of any age, it should have been a dream for a master of telling historical tales with a twist. But it feels like it's a story that's been dashed out in five minutes to fulfil a publishing obligation rather than being a story the author truly wanted to tell.
Once again, the set up is practically identical to the first two books; a parent and child con-artist team arrive in Eden City to fleece the locals, and they run into Prometheus, still on his quest to find a true human hero. The structure is the same too, with the Eden City events alternating with those in Olympus before slowing coming together. We've gone back to a boy MC this time, and as a result there's a serving/slave girl who makes an appearance for him to befriend and save. Again, all very familiar (that plot device appears in the Tudor Terros series too). Not sure why the girl in the last book didn't get a serving/slave boy equivalent, but whatever. So the markers are all there. But that's all that seems to be there.
The plot this time feels even thinner than before, and relies heavily either on repeats of the scenes from the previous books just tweaked to suit the new characters, or humour that probably does work for the appropriate age group. There's just no real substance to it. I did enjoy the introduction of various monsters from Greek myth into the plot, but they were literally just obstacles between the MC and his goal, and each were dismissed or dispatched within a couple of pages. They could have had so much more importance within the plot, but by this stage it feels more like we're aiming for cheap laughs.
After three books, I was at least hoping for a decent payoff. But I was left disappointed there too. It's probably the most honest and insightful piece of writing in the whole trilogy, but that doesn't stop it from leaving you feeling shortchanged. In my opinion, it basically negated the entire purpose of the books. So, so frustrating!
I think I'll stick with what I know from this author from now on, as I don't want to tarnish his otherwise stellar reputation as a force for kids' (and big kids') entertainment and education. This was a very strange blip in his back-catalogue!
Once again, the set up is practically identical to the first two books; a parent and child con-artist team arrive in Eden City to fleece the locals, and they run into Prometheus, still on his quest to find a true human hero. The structure is the same too, with the Eden City events alternating with those in Olympus before slowing coming together. We've gone back to a boy MC this time, and as a result there's a serving/slave girl who makes an appearance for him to befriend and save. Again, all very familiar (that plot device appears in the Tudor Terros series too). Not sure why the girl in the last book didn't get a serving/slave boy equivalent, but whatever. So the markers are all there. But that's all that seems to be there.
The plot this time feels even thinner than before, and relies heavily either on repeats of the scenes from the previous books just tweaked to suit the new characters, or humour that probably does work for the appropriate age group. There's just no real substance to it. I did enjoy the introduction of various monsters from Greek myth into the plot, but they were literally just obstacles between the MC and his goal, and each were dismissed or dispatched within a couple of pages. They could have had so much more importance within the plot, but by this stage it feels more like we're aiming for cheap laughs.
After three books, I was at least hoping for a decent payoff. But I was left disappointed there too. It's probably the most honest and insightful piece of writing in the whole trilogy, but that doesn't stop it from leaving you feeling shortchanged. In my opinion, it basically negated the entire purpose of the books. So, so frustrating!
I think I'll stick with what I know from this author from now on, as I don't want to tarnish his otherwise stellar reputation as a force for kids' (and big kids') entertainment and education. This was a very strange blip in his back-catalogue!