White Cat By Holly Black (3.5/5)

This was another book that I have somewhat mixed feelings about. I'll start firstly with the things I quite liked. The world that was built up in this book was brilliant, I liked the idea that “worker” was often synonymous for criminal because it was outlawed at around the same time as prohibition. I like the way that everyone has a different magical skill, I think this was a very smart way of shaping their personalities. How they had to directly lay their hands on people for it to work was a nice touch, this adds a realistically limited aspect to their powers, it was interesting how this expanded into an almost phobia of not wearing gloves, and about people having bare hands. This was an extra added feature that gave the story more depth and realism.

I enjoyed reading about the consequences of memory alteration, and the whole concept of not being able to trust your own memories. I liked the parts of the story that included the “White Cat”, I particularly enjoyed the parts that was unnerving, as given the circumstance these would make sense. I liked the idea that the cat had a personality of it's own and was perfectly content to either be affectionate or to attack you if you crossed it.

I liked the friendship between Cassel and Sam and how the former didn't even consider himself in a friendship until he realised how much he was relying on and trusting someone who he had previously seen as just an aspect of his fake life. This seems to be often what real friendship is about. I found the idea of not being able to trust family, when you have been drilled to believe that family is the most important thing in the world, very interesting to read, especially considering the relationship that Cassel is trying to nurture with his brother near the end of the book. I found Cassel's fast thinking and ingenuity very impressive in that it allowed him to outmanoeuvre people whom he may have considered his betters at previous points in his life. It was also really interesting to see people as he did, through his perspective, as marks to be victims of his cons.

I liked the character of Lila in the flashbacks and found her to be a very entertaining, vibrant character. I liked her fierce strength and how it seemed to mask a certain vulnerability, she seemed very human to me and I enjoyed to read about her. I like the idea of growing up with a childhood friend who you realise at one point you have fallen in love with and don't know what to do about it. This meant that I could understand the main character's pain right at the end of the book, and that to me was almost one of the most affecting parts of the book.

However, for some reason I didn't find myself connecting with the book as much as I would have liked to. I read it very quickly and it required very little effort, yet something didn't quite click. It seemed too simple, I predicted most of the twists before they happened and only minor events escaped my guesses. There seemed to be a small detail missing, and even though I found the book pleasing in a lot of individual ways, when it was all strung together it still seemed slightly hollow. I really wasn't expecting that since I have loved, and occasionally, been overwhelmed by Holly Black's books. I liked everything about the books but somehow I think I needed it to go one step further, something felt missing and I am unsure what. This is the main reason I am anxious to get my hands on the sequel, as the world is already established, it may fill in some of the detail that my brain seems to have decided this first book lacks. All in all, an entertaining, interesting, well thought out read. I just needed a little more 'oomph', I think. Whatever that may be.

Currently Reading: Radiant Shadows By Melissa Marr