Friday 23 November 2012

#169 Book Review: The Diviners

The Diviners
Release Date: November 2012
Author: Libba Bray
Publisher: Allen & Unwin
Source: Publisher for Review
Format: Paperback
Where to Buy:  Fishpond | Booktopia | Dymocks
More Info: Goodreads
Summary from Goodreads:

1920s New York. A teen clairvoyant. An old evil. It has begun...

Evie O'Neill has been exiled from her boring old home town and shipped off to the bustling streets of New York City - and she is pos-i-tute-ly thrilled! New York is the city of speak-easies, rent parties, shopping and movie palaces, and soon enough Evie is running with glamorous Ziegfeld girls and rakish pickpockets. The only catch is that Evie has to live with her Uncle Will, curator of the Museum of American Folklore, Superstition, and the Occult - also known as 'The Museum of the Creepy Crawlies'.

When a rash of occult-based murders comes to light, Evie and her uncle are right in the thick of it. Even Evie's new pals - hoofers, numbers runners and activists, but all swell kids - are drawn into the investigation. And through it all, Evie has a secret: a mysterious power that could help catch the killer - if he doesn't catch her first...
Cover:
Aussie cover all the way! I fell in love with this book's appearance so much. From that mysterious cover, to the gold-tinted fonts and the spine. LOVE IT!

Story:

Welcome to the glamorous New York, 1920...

Oh hello there The Diviners, my first Libba Bray book ever! Mysteries, clairvoyance and the glamourous New York is there to attract you into the intriguing crafty story Libba Bray has written in The Diviners. Reading this book made me feel like singing 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' somehow. This book is pos-i-tutely charming and I enjoyed it!

This book is written from different points of view although the main character is still Evie. This book is fairly huge, about 600 pages but Libba Bray manages to explore the glamorous and quite scary-at-times New York descriptively. Reading this book made me want to live in the 1920 New York. The story plot and Libba Bray's witty writing are the best elements in this book. However, the switching points of view between Evie and the other characters made me lack the connection with the story. Sometimes, I felt confused and there were some bits that dragged for a while. While mysteries surround the book, romance does make an appearance and I thought it was really sweet, cute and charming. Although, I did enjoy this book even though I did not love it as much as I thought I would.

Characters:
Evie O'Neill. Be my new best friend please! I absolutely clicked with Evie from the first page. Throughout the book, I kept on wondering what Evie would do and how she would act to certain situations. There's also Uncle Will, the coolest uncle in the world. Well, he might not be the COOLEST but he's still cool! I really liked Memphis too. Some of the bits in the book were written from his perspective and I really did enjoy it! AND AND NAUGHTY JOHN! I'm scared of you. But not that scared. Oh and not to forget Jericho and Sam, Evie's love interest. So I liked both of them but maybe I'm leaning more towards Jericho! Overall, I do think that the characters all well-written although I do have to say that Evie was probably the one that I connected most with!

Overall:
How about a trip to the Museum of Creepy Crawlies in New York, 1920? Sounds great? The Diviners is the first charming, scary with a touch of humour book in Libba Bray's newest series. You like mysteries, clairvoyance and ghosts? Well this book is for you! Even though I didn't felt quite connected with the story, I still enjoyed this book overall! Absolutely can't wait for the sequel!
3 Forget-Me-Not flowers for The Diviners!
Thank you Allen & Unwin for the review copy!

12 comments:

  1. I really enjoyed this myself, but do agree that some parts were longer than necessary. I'm sorry you didn't completely connect with the story, but still pleased to see you liked it overall! Wonderful review, Celine. :)

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  2. Aww, I'm so sorry you weren't able to connect with this one as much as you wanted to, Celine! I loved it, but I do understand that some areas were longer than strictly necessary. Still, I'm glad you liked it and I hope the sequel works out better for you! Fantastic review, dear! :D

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  3. Yay for the Aussie cover! It's my favourite out of all of them too. Love it. I haven't read The Diviners yet but I plan to once my copy arrives. I've heard great things about Evie and I'm glad to hear you connected with her so much. I can't wait to meet her. I'm sorry you didn't love it as much as hoped but at least you still enjoyed it. Though I haven't expericened it for myself, it sounds like it could get a little confusing and drag at times, especially considering the size of the book!

    Fantastic review, Celine! :)

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  4. Aw, what a shame that you felt disconnected from the overall plot. I can understand how that could be the case. I definitely felt it a little bit when I was reading... kind of frustration when you're left hanging in a perspective and you just want to know what happens next to those characters. It can break up the pacing at some points, but I just loved it all. Nice review. I'm glad you enjoyed/loved everything else about it!

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  5. I like this edition of the cover! :) I liked the idea of several POV's, because they can give the story an extra dimension. I'm sorry to hear that it made you feel disconnected from them. The characters, especially Evie, sound great! I like mysteries, so I will give this one a shot. Wonderful review Celine.

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  6. I'm making it my goal to finish this book tomorrow! I'm not loving it quite the way I wanted but I STILL HAVE HOPE. I'm glad you liked it overall though and enjoyed the characters. Great review! :)

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  7. Ah, I'm SO jealous that you own the Aussie cover, Celine! As usual, the US cover is bland, boring, and utterly unremarkable, while the Aussie cover is just STUNNING. Anyhow, terrific review, darling! Even though you didn't completely love it, I'm glad you found bits and pieces of the story that you did enjoy. :) Personally, Libba Bray is one of my fave authors and I loved this book dearly...

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  8. Oh I'm so happy that you enjoyed this on the whole Celine, despite having some issues, I think Jericho was my favourite too, I can't wait to delve deeper with these characters in the next book! And I have to agree with Leanne, the Aussie cover is stunning! :)

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  9. That Aussie cover is SO gorgeous. Great review, Celine <3

    This looks amazing. Love the 1920's!

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  10. I totally understand why you had a hard time connecting with the story. It is so large and many of the characters don't have a defining role in this book and I found myself bored when the story switched away from Evie's point of view a lot of this book could have been cut out! I liked it but didn't LOVE it.

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  11. Aw, Celine, I'm sorry you didn't connect in the way you wanted (I know just what you mean), but I'm glad you still liked it!

    I love how you've described it and the mystery and EVIE! EEEEEEEE! Love ♥

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  12. I've been seeing some mixed reviews about this. The book is very big and chunky. I'm scared that I might get to some parts. Thanks for the great review. I'll buy a copy soon.

    -Dannielle

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