I have an undying love for Lisa Mantchev’s first Theatre Illuminata book, Eyes Like Stars (review here). The plotting is fast-paced and tense, the emotional arcs resonate and I just plain adore the characters.
Feiwel & Friends, the publisher, sent me an ARC of Perchance to Dream because I pimped out ELS so well. (Ok, not really. I mean, they did send one. Cuz I asked nicely.)
The sequel did not disappoint. (As if there were any doubts.) I had a small quibble - we meet two new characters by page 50. This leads to the mystery of the mysterious stranger being resolved pretty quickly. I wasn’t so keen on that, but this book wasn’t supposed to be a mystery. It was Bertie’s journey to save Nate, and that’s exactly what it was: a journey. So the quibble remains minor. (Also those two characters pop up pretty conveniently. . . *narrows eyes*)
I was pleased with Bertie’s character development as well as Ariel’s. I am still a Team Nate fan, but I could sympathize with the air spirit. We do get more time with him, of course, which is why Nate’s character isn’t developed (that we see, but oh is it ever implied) as much, as he’s, yanno, kidnapped.
We meet some great new characters, who are all unique, with developed back story that is hinted at. Mantchev is a master at implication. She shows us things that are the result of relationships and history not explained, and mentions things to give us proper context. Truly a delight of the craft.
I think my favorite thing about these books is the tone/voice. Lisa Mantchev strikes a wonderful balance of humor, whimsy, and emotion. It draws me in so much. (But as I’ve said, I think I’m probably her perfect reader.)
The nice thing about this book is the back story from ELS is worked in smoothly, so if you haven’t read it but want to pick up PTD, and I suggest you do, you can do so. But then you’ll want to go back and read ELS anyway, and I will simply say, I told you so.
To prep you for PtD, I’ll be giving away a copy of ELS. All you have to do is comment on:
1) The review of ELS
2) This entry here
3) Wednesday’s entry: A special interview with Lisa Mantchev herself!
The winner will be announced on Friday. All entries count, so get yapping.
“Theatre Illuminata” sounds like fun to me. And “Eyes Like Stars” is a great title. I don’t recall reading your review of it previously, but I may have… I’ll have to pop over and see.
I LOVE the title of this one. “Eyes Like Stars” was a fine title, but it never really jumped out at me. “Theatre Illuminata” screams “Look at me!” more. But that might just be my weirdness showing through.
Popping over to the review of ELS
The books sound great! I love reading your reviews. You always seems to give enough about the story to wet my interest but not give away all the major points. I look forward to getting to read some of the books you’ve reviewed here.