Review of Obsidian Mirror

The Obsidian Mirror by Catherine Fisher
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

As a fan of Incarceron, I wanted to like this book, I really did. And it was decent, but...like Incarceron, it had its issues.

The book starts off with a fascinating premise--a boy out for revenge, a mysterious guardian. The name Oberon (Midsummer Night's Dream, anyone?) is already a clue that there might be some fae magic going on, so when more sci-fi elements get brought in, its a pleasant surprise. I personally always love to see the two combined, and I was also looking forward to Jake as a central character, since many YA books are written from the girl's point of view.

Jake initially intrigued me at first, but unfortunately, I quickly became and bored of and disappointed in him. He starts off as a dangerous teenage boy, willing to do anything to get expelled from school. Eager to see why, I read on, only to discover that my questions were answered all too quickly as he immediately opened up to a teacher he barely knew. All of the sudden Jake was a big softy with little spine and a willingness to accept whatever explanation was told to him. Every now and then he went back to that fierce determination, but I saw nothing else of the dangerous boy I glimpsed in the first few pages.

The story was fast-paced, the plot interesting, but I think half the problem with this book is that there are so many plot points and sub-plots that the characters get lost in the story Fisher is trying to tell. I had a similar feeling with Incarceron and Sapphique, where there were so many mysteries that I lost track of them, and sometimes when secrets were "revealed," I still didn't really understand their significance. It's much the same with this book, where big "reveals" don't seem important to me, and all the information I really want to know is still being held out, hopefully for the next book. By the end I started to get confused about which character was doing what, as the POV kept switching so much and I just wanted to yell at them to start asking the right questions!

I obviously got a bit worked up by this book, but part of that is because I did still get into the story. I do still want to see what happens, and find out more answers. So if you're willing to get through the parts where the characters drive you a little bonkers, then I say go for it. In all likelihood, you'll still enjoy the read.

I received this advance ebook copy from NetGalley

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