Title: The Book of Days
Author: K.A. Barker
Publication Date: September 1st 2014
Synopsis: "Most people believe the best way to forget someone is to throw them down a well. Or lock them in a room with eight keys, or bury them at a crossroad in the thirteenth hour. But they're wrong.
The best way to forget someone is for them never to have existed in the first place.
When sixteen-year-old Tuesday wakes from sleep for the first time, she opens her eyes to a world filled with wonder - and peril. Left only with a letter from the person she once was, Tuesday sets out to discover her past with the help of her charming and self-serving guide, Quintalion.
Along the way she runs into mercenaries, flying cities, airships and a blind librarian. But what is her connection with the mysterious Book of Days - a book that holds untold power..."
My thoughts: I had to give myself a few days to think after finishing this one. First of all, it clearly took me a really long time to get through. This little baby has been sitting n my 'currently reading' shelf on goodreads for over a month and a half now, just waiting for me to read the next little bit. And I think that kind of suggests how I felt about the book overall.
Don't get me wrong, the first chapter was brilliant - the premise was interesting, the characters were fascinating, and the writing was engaging. But I felt like it kind of slipped after that a little. There was just so much happening in this book - all the time - and I found myself not really connecting to ANY character, which made it really hard for me to keep pushing through. I didn't get a chance to get used to any place or person, really, and so that made the emotional commitment to the book really fragile and easy to break.
I can definitely see why other people enjoyed this book, though. It is quite well written, and the characters are really, truly fascinating creatures. Quintalion and the blind librarian (assistant) would be my favourites if I'd had more of a chance to understand them and their motives, but the others had sparks of interest for me, too.
Overall, this was a decent read. Just not one that I would go back to in a hurry. I am, however, interested in what K. A. Barker will be doing next.
I received an unsolicited copy of this book from Pan Macmillan.
You would like this book if: You appreciate John Marsden's taste (he liked the first chapter very much indeed); you like fantasy books with much action and a touch of steampunk.
Rating: 6.5/10
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