That was an interesting sounding novella, so when the publisher reached out and asked if I’d like to give it a try, it was not hard to jump on the chance.
So, thanks to the author, as well as Tordotcom via NetGalley for the review copy!
Lana Baker is Aldgate’s finest scribe, with a sharp pen and an even sharper wit. Gregarious, charming, and ever so eager to please, she agrees to deliver a message for another lovely scribe in exchange for kisses and ends up getting sent to Low Parliament by a temperamental fairy as a result.
As Lana transcribes the endless circular arguments of Parliament, the debates grow tenser and more desperate. Due to long-standing tradition, a hung vote will cause Parliament to flood and a return to endless war. Lana must rely on an unlikely pair of comrades—Bugbite, the curmudgeonly fairy, and Eloquentia, the bewitching human deputy—to save humanity (and maybe even woo one or two lucky ladies), come hell or high water.
This is the story of Lana Baker who is a scribe in an alternate-universe-London where fairies exist. She gets sent to Low Parliament, a place you don’t seem to be allowed to leave, to scribe the never ending debates there. To prevent an endless war (and drowning, I think?), Lana must rely on a fairy named Bugbite, and Eloquentia, a human who has sparked Lana’s interest.
I was expecting to like this one a lot more than I actually ended up liking it, unfortunately. It was certainly an interesting idea but I had such a hard time keeping up with what was actually going on that I ended up skimming most of the end of the book just to see how it ended. The plot just seemed to be everywhere and nowhere all at once, and I found it very, very confusing.
I never really ended up liking Lana as a character, as she just seems to spend a lot of the time wandering around getting high and oogling every other woman there is. Oh, and this world appears to be totally women, so, there is a good bit of oogling. Bugbite isn’t a very likable character by their very nature, so Eloquentia was the only character I didn’t not like, and unfortunately it just wasn’t enough to keep me interested.
So, perhaps that the problem is that I just didn’t ‘get it’. I’d say give this one a try if you want to try something really quite unique, but fair warning, it might not make much sense to you either. 2/5 stars.
superstardrifter 
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