By Rainbow Rowell
St. Martin's Griffin, 2015. 522 pgs. Young Adult
Simon Snow is the "chosen one," a young wizard who has been plagued through his entire education at the Watford School of Magicks by a mysterious evil nemesis. It doesn't help that his roommate for the past seven years, Baz, might be a vampire as well as trying to kill him. As he starts his last year at school, Simon seems to have more to deal with than ever: his wand doesn't work half the time and when it does, he blows something up. His girlfriend might not be his girlfriend anymore and his nemesis has been running around wearing his face. Worst of all, Baz hasn't bothered showing up for school and Simon can't imagine what kind of trouble he has been brewing in his absence.
Sound familiar? This story has obvious - and intentional - parallels to Harry Potter, but with entirely its own spin and point. Readers looking for a "grown up" version of Harry Potter will probably find this appealing (if they don't mind frequent language). I would also highly recommend this to fans of Rowell's other books, her talent as a writer shines in this new (for her) genre.
BHG
1 comment:
Finally, I got to read this book that has been on my list for over two years! It did not disappoint. I just finished Rowell's Fangirl and this is a delightful companion for it. What is great is that you don't have to read Fangirl in order to enjoy the adventures of Simon Snow and Baz. Reading both books adds layers to each book and to each of the characters. When you think that this could really be the book the Cather wrote in Fangirl, you are more aware of Simon's loneliness and his seemingly random emotions and his inability to express them. When you read Carry On, you think about Cather working out her issues with her twin Ren and how she falls in love with Levi. Ultimately, Carry On is a love story, driven by all the angst of a slash romance fan fic. That moment when hate turns to love is beautiful to watch. I totally loved this book.
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