by Joan Aiken
I've read three chapters and I'm quitting. Quitter!
Seriously, though--according to the rules, I'm allowed to give up a book after two chapters, provided I replace it with a similar one. So I'm replacing this with The Misadventures of Maude March, which was also a story of old-timey girls (They Wore Bonnets, Didn't They?) that was written in modern times. The main difference between the two books is this--The Misadventures of Maude March, once picked up, was hard to put down. This one, once put down, I can't stand to pick up again.
What's wrong with it? It's...just...all icky. It appears to be about two girls. One of them, who seems to have some serious impulse control issues (a.k.a. spoiled brat), has parents who are going away and leaving her in the care of an unknown relative. You know from the start the relative is an evil b----, but the author was too big of a coward to take the step of making her a real witch and giving her some magic spells. She's just an unpleasant old woman. Boring stereotype!
The second girl is a scared little mouse, traveling to live with her country cousin. On the way, her train is besieged by wolves. Not werewolves; wargs, or even nasty trolls, just plain old wolves...who crash through plate glass windows in their ferocity to eat the frightened travelers within.
The plot, as described, could have been good (except for the wolf nonsense and a minor historical mistake near the beginning.) But the book is shallow and the characters are skimpy. I hope the wolves eat them all.
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