A review by mochavonbee
Half a Crown by Jo Walton

4.0

This series is very hard to rate as I found it original and compelling and loved it, despite a couple of Buts. I loved the way this one was set later than the first two and we could see how things had developed in the meantime. The alternate version of the 1960s was very plausible and sensitively handled. The writing, especially the way sinister details were thrown in as offhand asides, was excellent. In terms of the setting, this might have been the strongest of the trilogy. I love Jo Walton as an author and will definitely read more of her work, but I did not love the ending, even though it was clever in many ways and did draw all the strands together. Somehow, it just didn't quite fit. It was a Ruritanian ending but this wasn't a Ruritanian novel or series.

Still, I would definitely recommend the trilogy for originality, enjoyment and writing.