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A review by ojtheviking
Grave Importance by Vivian Shaw
3.0
The third and so far final physical installment (a fourth one is just about to be released on e-book) of the Dr. Greta Helsing series brings you, for better and worse, much of the same as the previous two novels.
While reading all three books, I've had a very ambivalent feeling about them, and this is the notion I am left with at the end, too. To clarify, I like the overall concept, and each book's main, stand-alone plots are interesting enough. I even felt like this third book showed some signs of increased confidence in the author's writing. Such elements as pacing, humor, more fleshed-out characters and their backgrounds, work very well here, in addition to how there is more significant continuity from the last book and the series in general; the story takes place mere months after the previous one, giving this an increased feel of serialization.
Shaw is leaning a bit into more noticeable romantasy elements this time, but although that's a genre with which I'm not familiar enough to fully determine if she does it well, from the perspective of a novice, I had no problem with it.
I also feel that Dr. Helsing's medical expertise is finally more vital to the main story this time, as the main mystery revolves around mass fainting spells and some sort of illness curse. In the previous two books, it felt like she just happens to be a medical doctor for supernatural creatures who got dragged into mysteries to solve, but in this case, the main mystery in and of itself seems like a medical issue she aims to deal with. And I like that; if a main character has some sort of specific profession, it should be utilized well in the stories.
But some of my minor gripes are the same as with the previous two installments. There are some parts of dialogue that seem like unnecessary, dry padding - which I know sounds like I am contradicting myself since I mentioned earlier that there is more distinct pacing and humor, but this just goes to show how there is a slight lack of balance in my opinion. Characters making brief statements and other characters agreeing or disagreeing with them, until it feels like they are just standing around talking back and forth when they should get going, and it almost makes me miss the more blatant, to-the-point exposition trope.
There are some hints of social commentary, especially as the romantasy elements are also LGBTQ-friendly, but it can get a bit lost in the occasional near-tediousness.
Also, this might classify as nitpicking, but Dr. Helsing is back in France for the second time in a row. I don't mind storylines where she leaves London to travel to places where she is needed, but it could have been interesting if each story took place in a different part of the world. We do at least get some variation, as some of the supporting characters are initially elsewhere in the world.
The conclusion after reading this book is the same as when I finished the first one: I did genuinely enjoy it, but I wish I could have enjoyed it just a tad more. I realize that these books are intended to be light reading with quirky little plots that have a dash of suspense in them, but there are fortunate and unfortunate ways to approach that style, too, and every now and then, I just felt that something was missing to make it closer to perfect.
While reading all three books, I've had a very ambivalent feeling about them, and this is the notion I am left with at the end, too. To clarify, I like the overall concept, and each book's main, stand-alone plots are interesting enough. I even felt like this third book showed some signs of increased confidence in the author's writing. Such elements as pacing, humor, more fleshed-out characters and their backgrounds, work very well here, in addition to how there is more significant continuity from the last book and the series in general; the story takes place mere months after the previous one, giving this an increased feel of serialization.
Shaw is leaning a bit into more noticeable romantasy elements this time, but although that's a genre with which I'm not familiar enough to fully determine if she does it well, from the perspective of a novice, I had no problem with it.
I also feel that Dr. Helsing's medical expertise is finally more vital to the main story this time, as the main mystery revolves around mass fainting spells and some sort of illness curse. In the previous two books, it felt like she just happens to be a medical doctor for supernatural creatures who got dragged into mysteries to solve, but in this case, the main mystery in and of itself seems like a medical issue she aims to deal with. And I like that; if a main character has some sort of specific profession, it should be utilized well in the stories.
But some of my minor gripes are the same as with the previous two installments. There are some parts of dialogue that seem like unnecessary, dry padding - which I know sounds like I am contradicting myself since I mentioned earlier that there is more distinct pacing and humor, but this just goes to show how there is a slight lack of balance in my opinion. Characters making brief statements and other characters agreeing or disagreeing with them, until it feels like they are just standing around talking back and forth when they should get going, and it almost makes me miss the more blatant, to-the-point exposition trope.
There are some hints of social commentary, especially as the romantasy elements are also LGBTQ-friendly, but it can get a bit lost in the occasional near-tediousness.
Also, this might classify as nitpicking, but Dr. Helsing is back in France for the second time in a row. I don't mind storylines where she leaves London to travel to places where she is needed, but it could have been interesting if each story took place in a different part of the world. We do at least get some variation, as some of the supporting characters are initially elsewhere in the world.
The conclusion after reading this book is the same as when I finished the first one: I did genuinely enjoy it, but I wish I could have enjoyed it just a tad more. I realize that these books are intended to be light reading with quirky little plots that have a dash of suspense in them, but there are fortunate and unfortunate ways to approach that style, too, and every now and then, I just felt that something was missing to make it closer to perfect.