Hi Guys,
Boy was it a busy weekend. Decorating, tree hunting… all that fun stuff. Between all of that I was able to finish listening to the second book in The Mapmakers Trilogy.
The Golden Specific by S.E. Grove picks back up a few months after Sophia, Theo and Shadrack return to Boston from their adventures in the Baldlands. Sophia is more determined then ever to figure out what happened to her parents but she feels lost and alone. Theo has been traveling with friends and Shadrack has been given an important and time consuming position within parliament.
After several dead-ends Sophia has finally found a clue but it is Ages away and she finds herself alone on a ship, with no allies and only a name on a map to guide her. Meanwhile in Boston, Shadrack and Miles are arrested for murder and Theo must face an old enemy in order to clear their names. Will Theo uncover enough clues to solve this mystery? Will Sophia be able to find a lost age and the path to her parents? And will this strange family of misfits and allies find each other again?
Gosh this book is complicated for juvenile fiction. I mean it’s really interesting and this world Grove has created is so complex and creative but it has so many moving parts that you really have to pay attention. The Golden Specific and maybe the whole series in general, is a prime example of a book written for children but made for adults/teens. There’s just so much to this book that I am not sure the targeted audience would get.
One thing I did enjoy was the characters Sophia draws to her. Sophia is like a magnet, attracting diverse, complex, but ultimately good people her way. I love all of the side characters in this series. If this were a YA book there would be about a million novellas from the various character point of views.
Ultimately, this was an interesting read and I am intrigued to see what happens in the last book. I don’t know if it would be my go to recommendation for a 6th grader but I wouldn’t discourage them from reading it either. Worth a read but this one only gets three stars from me.
That’s all for now!
-M-