Rainer Maria Rilke

"Live a while in these books, learn from them what seems to you worth learning, but above all love them. This love will be repaid you a thousand and a thousand times, and however your life may turn,-it will, I am certain of it, run through the fabric of your growth as one of the most important threads among all the threads of your experiences, disappointments, and joys."--Rainer Maia Rilke


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Saturday, May 4, 2013

Not As Good As I Wanted

Incarceron by Catherine Fisher

Dystopian Fiction/Steampunk

I wanted to like this book way more than I actually did. 

There are two protagonists in the story:  Finn, a prisoner who has grown up in Incarceron, and Claudia, the Warden's daughter.  One wants out of the prison and the other wants in.  The prison itself, Incarceron, is a living metal fortress that takes care of everything and everyone within its walls.  It almost seems as if the book is taking place in another dimension sometimes and the description of the prison is so depressing it seems as if Charles Dickens is writing it.

Finn has always known he didn't belong in Incarceron.  Truthfully, he don't know much more than that.  He only has memories of the last two years of life.  Finn only knows one man to ever escape Incarceron, Sapphique.  But, he plans to find out the legend's secrets and be the second to escape.  Claudia is her father's daughter, competitive and stubborn and determined to win at any cost.  What is her father hiding and can it save her faithful tutor?

The book felt like it was missing something,  Was it love?  I don't think every story should have romance it it (and I hate true romance novels), but I just didn't understand the motivations of the characters.  Why would they go to such lengths if not for love?  And, did they love ANYTHING at all?  I think I would have like the book more if I had like either of the main characters.  Finn was a bit too whiny and Claudia was just abrasive.

There are only two in the series and this one must be read first.  It is a book that would fit either boys or girls, as the characters take turns narrating the action.

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