Scan barcode
A review by wyrmbergmalcolm
The Map to Everywhere by Carrie Ryan
4.0
This came across as a cross between the discovery of strange lands like "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" and the comical silliness of "Muddle Earth" (not as silly but there is that feel to it). The hapless heroes take a voyage on the Pirate Stream stopping off at strange lands in the search for the Map to Everywhere. Each land is different with its own quirks and inhabitants, all the while they're plagued by the big bad.
The characters were pretty good, with certainly a unique aspect with Fin who's forgotten about when people shift their attention elsewhere. There was a lot of "Who are you?" but, surprisingly that didn't get annoying and was even missed in longer passages when characters had focused on him for longer periods of time. There was a good exploration on the motivations and morals of a character (who naturally became a thief) who could do anything he wanted to without fear of repercussion, and then having to come to terms to having someone about who is able to remember him and what he's done.
Merrill was a weaker character, who played the fish out of water role as she's thrust into this strange world. She's carried along her adventure by the plot and those around her, but produces very little input that wasn't just there to act upon.
The villain was pretty decent, with some unusual aspects about him that made him interesting. He's also quite well fleshed-out and, though not the sympathetic villain, is at least a villain who's motivations can be understood.
The lands were well-imagined and not too far-fetched but not all that numerous, which did speed the plot along but I would have liked to have seen more. That there are currently 4 books in the series, suggests more is there to discover. I thing I will happily attempt to do.
A fun adventure with some original ideas.
The characters were pretty good, with certainly a unique aspect with Fin who's forgotten about when people shift their attention elsewhere. There was a lot of "Who are you?" but, surprisingly that didn't get annoying and was even missed in longer passages when characters had focused on him for longer periods of time. There was a good exploration on the motivations and morals of a character (who naturally became a thief) who could do anything he wanted to without fear of repercussion, and then having to come to terms to having someone about who is able to remember him and what he's done.
Merrill was a weaker character, who played the fish out of water role as she's thrust into this strange world. She's carried along her adventure by the plot and those around her, but produces very little input that wasn't just there to act upon.
The villain was pretty decent, with some unusual aspects about him that made him interesting. He's also quite well fleshed-out and, though not the sympathetic villain, is at least a villain who's motivations can be understood.
The lands were well-imagined and not too far-fetched but not all that numerous, which did speed the plot along but I would have liked to have seen more. That there are currently 4 books in the series, suggests more is there to discover. I thing I will happily attempt to do.
A fun adventure with some original ideas.