The Explosionist
February 11, 2009
Jenny Davidson’s The Explosionist was not what I was expecting. At the beginning it confused, later it intrigued me and at the end it frustrated me because I had thought that this was meant to be a stand alone but no, it’s definitely going to have at least one sequel.
This is what you have to know about the The Explosionist before you start it – you need to take what you know about the world and chuck it aside. When you start reading this book you are entering another universe that takes place in our own world. It’s a sort of “what if” book. What if Napoleon hadn’t lost at Waterloo? What if England had fallen during WWI? What if things were very, very different? If you can accept that you’ll do fine with this book. I didn’t know that going in and I spent the first 50 to 100 pages trying to figure out what the heck was going on. Just accept and embrace everything that seems a bit “off”. It’s not 1938 the way you’ve ever thought about it. It’s not Scotland the way you’ve ever thought abotu it either. And that’s not even getting into the whole supernatural divation/spiritualism aspect of it.
I liked Sophie a lot. I thought she had a good head on her shoulders. Great Aunt Tabitha I had a hard time understanding – she expressed love but it didn’t seem like she showed it so much or that Sophie felt it so much. I have some problems with Mikael…problems along the line of I think he needs a good swift kick. The way that he thinks that Sophie needs his protection makes me want to pinch him. Hard. And I do believe it’s going to bite him in the ass in the next book (or at least I’m hoping it is).
The Explosionist is a really interesting book. I do think that some people will be thrown off it by the alternate history aspect of it but once I let myself I enjoyed it. Jenny Davidson is working on (perhaps finished?) the sequel and it’s called The Snow Queen. (I’m not sure I get her titles but anyway…) It probably won’t be out unil 2010 and I suspect that I’ll be wishing that I had waited and read them closer together.
Charlotte has a much better review than mine. I’ll just say that I did like it and that I wish the sequel wasn’t so far off.
February 12th, 2009 at 12:31 am
[...] The Explosionist – Jenny Davidson: This book has been on my to-read pile for ages. Every time I see a new review of it, I want to move it up my list. [...]
February 12th, 2009 at 9:18 am
Both your review and Charlotte’s pique my interest, cautiously. Sometimes alternate histories give me the creeps. Not even sure what it is about the Crimean War in Jasper Fforde that got to me, and meant I couldn’t get more than a few pages into The Eyre Affair.
Still, might give this one a look.
Elizabeth W.’s last blog post..Booking Through Thursday 2/12
[Reply]
February 15th, 2009 at 5:48 pm
There was a lot that I liked about this one but I was frustrated by the ending as well. Particularly because there was nothing on the book or online anywhere (at the time that I read it) to confirm that there would be a sequel. What if I was left hanging there forever!? I was very glad to find out that there will be a sequel and I will be snapping it up the minute that it comes out!
Kate S.’s last blog post..Histories of Food and Eating
[Reply]
February 17th, 2009 at 12:42 pm
Elizabeth – it’s not a creepy alternate history…I don’t think. Well, there are some aspects of it that are disturbing, I won’t deny that. I found it really interesting though.
Kate – I only discovered that there was to be a sequel after I finished the book and googled it! It was the author’s goal to finish the sequel in January. I’m still not certain what I think about the ending…but I am very much looking forward to the sequel.
[Reply]