The Demon's Lexicon

[owlectomy]

There is almost no end to the number of delightful things it is possible for a book to do.

Here is one: You have a clue, and then a clue, and then a clue, and you say to yourself, "Oh-ho! I've figured out the twist!" And then as you're tapping your feet waiting for the characters to figure it out too, they hit you with the twist you DIDN'T expect, and then the other twist you didn't expect but should have given your previous deduction, and now you're not just satisfied by your own cleverness but thrown for a curve.

Here is another: You are utterly enamored of the author's cleverness in doing something like this, and you want to look up her sleeves and figure out her tricks, but you've stopped thinking of her characters as pawns for her to move around cleverly. They have become human beings enmeshed in something terribly tragic.

Recommended.

Comments

[owldaughter.livejournal.com]

I'm so glad you got to read it, because with your recommendation I know it's worth my while. Still going to wait for mm, though, because my library doesn't have it. (That unfortunate cover. Erg.)