ratfactor reviewed Aunt Maria by Diana Wynne Jones
Review of 'Aunt Maria' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
Very good! The whole first half was superb children's mystery fiction. DWJ has such a unique way of revealing information in ways that are sort of twists and sort of in front of you the whole time. The setting and humor were completely enchanting (while always containing an element of danger and unease).
I think another huge strength in her fiction is the way her characters are all motivated by totally different things. It's realistic in a way that can be jarring and sometimes even upsetting. It makes the stories compelling because often you have NO IDEA what a character will do. But when they do, it makes sense.
It turns out that the premise of the book is pretty wild and the ending...would take some re-readings to properly decide if I like it or not. (Honestly, I shouldn't be putting ratings on anything I haven't read at least twice. …
Very good! The whole first half was superb children's mystery fiction. DWJ has such a unique way of revealing information in ways that are sort of twists and sort of in front of you the whole time. The setting and humor were completely enchanting (while always containing an element of danger and unease).
I think another huge strength in her fiction is the way her characters are all motivated by totally different things. It's realistic in a way that can be jarring and sometimes even upsetting. It makes the stories compelling because often you have NO IDEA what a character will do. But when they do, it makes sense.
It turns out that the premise of the book is pretty wild and the ending...would take some re-readings to properly decide if I like it or not. (Honestly, I shouldn't be putting ratings on anything I haven't read at least twice. But there's so many books to read, so I just plow on to the next one.) Anyway, I'm not ready to stamp this with five stars, but only because I think I liked the first half better than the second half, even when less was happening.