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ninetalevixen 's review for:
Mister Impossible
by Maggie Stiefvater
This review (and more) can also be found on my blog, Nine Tale Vixen.
content warnings:
rep:
I have to confess that I was among the fans super disappointed by the cover and title — but oh my gosh, does the book itself deliver. Honestly, I enjoyed it even more than Call Down the Hawk, maybe because, with so much exposition out of the way, there’s space to really explore everything: dreaming, the relationships and dynamics, even some setting, though to a much lesser extent than in the Raven Cycle. (Based on CDTH I thought Mister Impossible would be the DC book for my Cross-Country Reading challenge, but it turns out it takes place in several states!)
As always, character dynamics and perspectives are a strength of Stiefvater’s. It was so much fun to see interactions between characters who are getting to know each other for the first time, or getting to know each other in different ways, and/or getting to know themselves better. The Lynch siblings continue to bring both heartwarming and heartbreaking scenes; Jordan and Hennessy push their own and each other’s limits; Declan and Jordan gave me all the feels. Truth be told, I’m still less invested in Farooq-Lane and Liliana’s part of the story, so I appreciated that there are longer stretches between POV switches and the characters all converge more frequently.
With regard to tone this is much more thriller-y and action-y than the Raven Cycle or CDTH, though I would say it’s still primarily character-driven urban fantasy. There are major developments in the overall plot arc, and so much tension in so many places, and this review has been tricky to write because I have a lot of feelings about some very specific reveals/ twists and scenes. It’s so long until the next (and last!!!) book, so I guess I’ll just be rereading the TRC/ Dreamer saga and coming up with theories and maybe getting back into fanfic while I wait.
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CONVERSION: 14.4 / 15 = 5 stars
Prose: 9 / 10
Characters & Relationships: 10 / 10
Emotional Impact: 9 / 10
Development/Flow: 9 / 10
Setting: 9 / 10
Diversity & Social Themes: 3 / 5
Intellectual Engagement: 4 / 5
Originality/Trope Execution: 5 / 5
content warnings:
Spoiler
non-graphic violence, blood & bodily fluids, mention of body horror, serial murder, binge eating, child neglect, industrial sabotagerep:
Spoiler
ggay Northern Irish American MC [Ronan], bi/pan Black MCs [Hennessy & Jordan], WLW MCs [Farooq-Lane, Liliana], bisexual secondary character [Adam], M/M established relationship, queer F/M interracial relationship, F/F relationship, Latinx minor characters [Angelica & kids]I have to confess that I was among the fans super disappointed by the cover and title — but oh my gosh, does the book itself deliver. Honestly, I enjoyed it even more than Call Down the Hawk, maybe because, with so much exposition out of the way, there’s space to really explore everything: dreaming, the relationships and dynamics, even some setting, though to a much lesser extent than in the Raven Cycle. (Based on CDTH I thought Mister Impossible would be the DC book for my Cross-Country Reading challenge, but it turns out it takes place in several states!)
As always, character dynamics and perspectives are a strength of Stiefvater’s. It was so much fun to see interactions between characters who are getting to know each other for the first time, or getting to know each other in different ways, and/or getting to know themselves better. The Lynch siblings continue to bring both heartwarming and heartbreaking scenes; Jordan and Hennessy push their own and each other’s limits; Declan and Jordan gave me all the feels. Truth be told, I’m still less invested in Farooq-Lane and Liliana’s part of the story, so I appreciated that there are longer stretches between POV switches and the characters all converge more frequently.
With regard to tone this is much more thriller-y and action-y than the Raven Cycle or CDTH, though I would say it’s still primarily character-driven urban fantasy. There are major developments in the overall plot arc, and so much tension in so many places, and this review has been tricky to write because I have a lot of feelings about some very specific reveals/ twists and scenes. It’s so long until the next (and last!!!) book, so I guess I’ll just be rereading the TRC/ Dreamer saga and coming up with theories and maybe getting back into fanfic while I wait.
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CONVERSION: 14.4 / 15 = 5 stars
Prose: 9 / 10
Characters & Relationships: 10 / 10
Emotional Impact: 9 / 10
Development/Flow: 9 / 10
Setting: 9 / 10
Diversity & Social Themes: 3 / 5
Intellectual Engagement: 4 / 5
Originality/Trope Execution: 5 / 5