ARC Review: The Missing of Clairdelune by Christelle Dabos, translated by Hildegarde Serle

Title: The Missing of Clairdelune
Series: The Mirror Quartet #2
Author: Christelle Dabos
Translated by: Hildegarde Serle 
Source/Format: Netgalley; eARC
More Details: Young Adult; Fantasy
Publisher/Publication Date: Europa Editions; May 7, 2019

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

When our heroine Ophelia is promoted to Vice-Storyteller by Farouk, the ancestral Spirit of Pole, she finds herself unexpectedly thrust into the public spotlight and her special gift is revealed to all. Ophelia knows how to read the secret history of objects and it could be no greater threat to the nefarious denizens of her home. Beneath the golden rafters of Pole's capitol, Citaceleste, she discovers that the only person she is able to trust is Thorn, her enigmatic fiance. Ophelia again finds herself unintentionally implicated in an investigation that will lead her to see beyond....

 

Picking up where the first book in the series ended, The Missing of Clairdelune is an excellent follow up to A Winter’s Promise. Part whodunit type of mystery with a lot development on both the character and world building front, The Missing of Clairdelune was an exciting story with enough twists and reveals to keep me on my toes. It was a thoroughly engrossing read, and at this point, I’m truly invested in this series.

The Missing of Clairdelune wasn’t a fast-paced kind of story, but overall, it was a good one. It was detail oriented, and dealt with complex issues—many of which had no easy solution. Around every corner there seemed to be something going wrong for someone, and there was more often than not a ripple-effect that reached even the main character, Ophelia. There were secrets, and some hard truths, which sometimes offered a different perspective on certain places and people. And for every question answered—or just hinted at—about the Rupture, the arks, the ancestral spirits, and Farouk’s obsession with his book, there were always more that were yet to be solved. By the end of the book, I still had more questions than answers.

I said it about A Winter’s Promise, and I think it applies here too: some of the best aspects about The Missing of Clairdelune is the characters. The whole cast is uniquely interesting, and the further development of both romantic and platonic relationships was remarkably well-done. Ophelia is such a fun character to read about. I liked her personality and quirks. The development to her character was also something to take note of, and I was also glad to see her asserting herself more as she figured out how to handle being Vice-Storyteller. Thorn was still kind of an enigma. For the most part the scenes where he and Ophelia interacted with one another were interesting, because they were very different characters. That being said, the direction his character went in was unexpected and very intriguing. Also among my favorite characters was Berenilde, Thorn’s aunt, and Rosaline, Ophelia’s aunt.

The setting was also interesting. Pole was an exceedingly dangerous place where alliances could turn at the drop of a coin, and the environment was constantly cold no matter the time of year. So, much of the book remained indoors where illusions were used as a substitute for the poor weather, which was primarily in Citaceleste where much of the story took place. It was all very cool. That being said, I was glad when the story eventually went outside of Citaceleste, because while it’s an intriguing place, I was also interested in seeing other parts of Pole.

Overall, The Missing of Clairdelune is the best book I’ve read so far this year. Plus, given the way the story ended, I’m very interested in what’s in-store for the characters in the next book in the series….

About the author...

Christelle Dabos was born on the Côte d’Azur in 1980 and grew up in a home filled with classical music and historical games. She now lives in Belgium. The Mirror Visitor, her debut series, won the Gallimard Jeunesse-RTL-Télérama First Novel Competition....

About the translator...

Since graduating in French from Oxford University, Hildegarde Serle has worked in London as a newspaper subeditor at The Independent and The Sunday Telegraph. She has a diploma in translation from the Chartered Institute of Linguists. She lives in London, but her heart lives on the Quai aux Fleurs in Paris...

Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by Europa Editions via Netgalley for this review, thank you!

Review: A Winter's Promise by Christelle Dabos

Title: A Winter's Promis
Series: The Mirror Visitor
Author: Christelle Dabos
Translated by: Hildegarde Serle
Source/Format: Borrowed from the library; Hardcover
More Details: Young Adult; Fantasy
Publisher/Publication Date: Europa Editions; September 25, 2018 (First published June 6, 2013)

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

Volume 1 of The Mirror Visitor Quartet; Winner of the Grand Prix de l’Imaginaire.... 

Where once there was unity, vastly different worlds now exist. Over each, the spirit of an omnipotent and immortal ancestor abides. Long ago, following a cataclysm called the Rupture, the world was shattered into many floating celestial islands, known now as arks. Ophelia lives on Anima, where inhabitants can read the pasts of objects. What’s more, she is also a “mirror-traveler,” possessing an ability that has been passed down to her through generations. Her idyllic existence on Anima is disrupted when she is promised in marriage to Thorn, an influential member of a distant clan. Still only a girl, Ophelia must leave her family and follow her fiancé to Citaceleste, the capital of a cold and icy ark called Pole. But there, her future husband seems indifferent to her and she slowly realizes that her presence on Pole is part of a much bigger plot and has far-reaching ramifications not only for her but for her entire world. 

An unforgettable heroine, an insightful study of relationships, a rich and bountiful universe, intrigue and suspense, A Winter’s Promise is perfect for readers of Margaret Rogerson, Scott Westerfeld, Melissa Albert, and N.K. Jemisin....

A Winter’s Promise is one of the best books I’ve read so far this year. True to its synopsis, this book reminded me a little of N.K Jemisin’s Broken Earth trilogy, but also of Howl’s Moving Castle. There was an element of domesticity present throughout the novel rather than a focus on weapon and or magic heavy battles. And you know what? That worked out perfectly fine. A Winter’s Promise is a story that suited the characters as much as the characters suited the world they inhabited—which was all around a fascinating setting. And while the end of the book yielded more questions than answers, A Winter’s Promise was an excellent beginning to The Mirror Visitor series.

One of the elements that initially drew me to A Winter’s Promise was the event known as the Rupture. There was a lot of mystery surrounding it, which persisted throughout the novel. However, there are sequels to A Winter’s Promise. I hope some of those answers will be provided as the series goes on, because the history of the setting was fascinating.

The overall premise is pretty simple: Ophelia ends up in an arranged marriage she can’t escape from, and she’s not exactly the biggest fan of her new fiancé. Yet, the plot was anything but simple, and it was something that became apparent as more of the details surrounding the engagement were revealed. The situation also afforded a direct look into the individual societies on the two arks prominently featured in the story. Anima, Ophelia’s home ark—while strict about their ways and the expectation placed on her about her engagement—was still almost idyllic in comparison to that of Thorn’s. Pole was like Anima’s polar opposite. On Anima, the weather was fair and everyone was like family. On Pole, it’s always cold and snowy, and there was a clear hierarchy with distinct classes of people. A point of interest for me was seeing how Ophelia would adapt, if at all, to the new environment.

The characters were also something to make note of. I won’t go into specifics since I don’t want to spoil anything, but I enjoyed reading from Ophelia’s perspective. The synopsis says “an insightful study of relationships,” and that’s what I got from the story. It was a character driven story, and a lot of time was devoted to exploring relationships as well as everyday happenings. I did like how seemingly innocuous abilities could have unintended consequences. One such effect was Ophelia’s clumsiness. Initially, it came off as a bit off-putting at times, but I did catch the details about the cause of it. Thorn was a mystery and mostly remained as one, and what information there was about him revealed hints of an interesting character. I hope to see more of him in the next book.

So, there are a number of questions I still have. Thus, I’m looking forward to The Missing of Clairdelune. Luckily, the wait won’t be too long…

The Friday 56 (148) & Book Beginnings: A Winter's Promise by Christelle Dabos

The Friday 56 is a weekly meme hosted by Freda's Voice where every Friday you pick a book and turn to page 56 or 56%, and select a sentence or a few, as long as it's not a spoiler. For the full rules, visit the the page HERE

Book Beginnings is a weekly meme hosted by Rose City Reader that asks you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you're reading.

Synopsis from Goodreads...

Volume 1 of The Mirror Visitor Quartet; Winner of the Grand Prix de l’Imaginaire.... 

Where once there was unity, vastly different worlds now exist. Over each, the spirit of an omnipotent and immortal ancestor abides. Long ago, following a cataclysm called the Rupture, the world was shattered into many floating celestial islands, known now as arks. Ophelia lives on Anima, where inhabitants can read the pasts of objects. What’s more, she is also a “mirror-traveler,” possessing an ability that has been passed down to her through generations. Her idyllic existence on Anima is disrupted when she is promised in marriage to Thorn, an influential member of a distant clan. Still only a girl, Ophelia must leave her family and follow her fiancé to Citaceleste, the capital of a cold and icy ark called Pole. But there, her future husband seems indifferent to her and she slowly realizes that her presence on Pole is part of a much bigger plot and has far-reaching ramifications not only for her but for her entire world. 

An unforgettable heroine, an insightful study of relationships, a rich and bountiful universe, intrigue and suspense, A Winter’s Promise is perfect for readers of Margaret Rogerson, Scott Westerfeld, Melissa Albert, and N.K. Jemisin....

Beginning: "It's often said of old buildings that they have a soul. On Anima, the ark where objects come to life, old buildings tend mostly to become appallingly bad-tempered."

56: "In a whirlwind of skirt, the storm departed from the room just as it had arrived."

Comments: I finally read A Winter's Promise, and I loved it. What are you reading this week?