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A review by readundancies
Strange Beasts by Susan J. Morris
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Strange Beasts was such a joy to experience in all of it's historical sapphic fantasy mish-mashed glory. Combining the worlds of Dracula and Sherlock Holmes is not something that I would inherently think to do, let alone assume they would pair together well, but Susan J. Morris really knocks it out of the park with this one.
The world-building specifically was my favourite part of the novel. Everything felt so vivid, it was like being in France, in the underground tunnels, at the opera performance, even in the perfumerie. The pacing was perfect, not too slow or fast, and it allowed for an appropriate amount of character depth to shine through whilst still pushing the plot along. But the characterization as a whole was the weakest part of the story. And don't get me wrong, the characterization was by no means bad. However, in conjunction with the rest of the book, it's not great. The world-building, the plot, the mystery, the history and backstory; all of it was just a level above the characterization. And it was noticeable, because I wanted to go deeper with Helena's character, which is why I really hope this becomes a series because I am invested.
I'm not sure the romance was everything that I wanted it to be. And that's OK, but that means it's not my favourite.I think I just gravitate to more of a slow burn and that's not what we got. I needed a little bit more angst, I needed a bit more passion and yearning and lingering looks, but that tension never really manifested to the extent that I wanted it to.
I'm seconding the "if you like T. Kingfisher, you'll like this" claim, because it checks. And will definitely be looking out for more of Susan J. Morris' work in the future.
The world-building specifically was my favourite part of the novel. Everything felt so vivid, it was like being in France, in the underground tunnels, at the opera performance, even in the perfumerie. The pacing was perfect, not too slow or fast, and it allowed for an appropriate amount of character depth to shine through whilst still pushing the plot along. But the characterization as a whole was the weakest part of the story. And don't get me wrong, the characterization was by no means bad. However, in conjunction with the rest of the book, it's not great. The world-building, the plot, the mystery, the history and backstory; all of it was just a level above the characterization. And it was noticeable, because I wanted to go deeper with Helena's character, which is why I really hope this becomes a series because I am invested.
I'm not sure the romance was everything that I wanted it to be. And that's OK, but that means it's not my favourite.I think I just gravitate to more of a slow burn and that's not what we got. I needed a little bit more angst, I needed a bit more passion and yearning and lingering looks, but that tension never really manifested to the extent that I wanted it to.
I'm seconding the "if you like T. Kingfisher, you'll like this" claim, because it checks. And will definitely be looking out for more of Susan J. Morris' work in the future.