Previous SFF Author: Bruno Fischer
(1957- )
Catherine Fisher‘s acclaimed works include Darkhenge, Snow-walker, and The Oracle Betrayed, which was a finalist for the Whitbread Children’s Book Award. She lives in Newport, Wales. Learn more at Catherine Fisher’s website.
The Dark City by Catherine Fisher
The Dark City is the first of a four-book series by Catherine Fisher published years ago in England and now being released (in its entirety rather than year by year) to the US. Classified as young adult, I’d say it skews toward the upper end of YA while also being one of those YA novels that, though it might read a little thin to adults, can absolutely be enjoyed by them.
The books are set in the near-medieval world of Anara,
Bill Capossere´s rating: 4.5 | Catherine Fisher | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |
The Lost Heiress by Catherine Fisher
The Lost Heiress, Catherine Fisher’s follow-up to The Dark City, picks up the action a short while after the close of the first book. Galen, Raffi, and the Sekoi have left the city of Tasceron behind, while Carys has returned to the Watch. The book opens with a bang when Raffi and the others steal back the blue box relic from Alberic, the dwarf thief-lord who had stolen it from them in book one.
Bill Capossere´s rating: 3.5 | Catherine Fisher | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Hidden Coronet by Catherine Fisher
The Hidden Coronet is the third book of Catherine Fisher’s Relic Master series, following The Dark City and The Lost Heiress. While book one was quite strong, the sequel was solid but a bit disappointing, hurt by somewhat weak plotting and worldbuilding. The Hidden Coronet is much stronger and a welcome return to the quality of The Dark City.
It begins with several tense scenes — one involving Galen and Raffi trying to rid a house of an evil presence and the other concerning the attempted rescue of several prisoners,
Bill Capossere´s rating: 4 | Catherine Fisher | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Margrave by Catherine Fisher
The Margrave is the fourth and final book of Catherine Fisher’s Relic Master. The series as a whole is a bit thin on worldbuilding, emotional depth, and secondary characterization, but save for a minor drop-off in book two, it is a smoothly exciting read and The Margrave brings it to a satisfyingly strong conclusion.
As in the previous books, the story is split between Raffi’s experiences and Carys’. It begins with a bang as Carys is captured by the Watch at the very beginning.
Bill Capossere´s rating: 4 | Catherine Fisher | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Incarceron by Catherine Fisher
Incarceron by Catherine Fisher, is a tightly-plotted, intelligent YA novel that hits the upper mid-level of recent YA sci-fi/fantasy, falling a few steps below Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games or Kristin Cashore’s Fire (admittedly a high standard) but several steps above recent offerings like Caragh O’Brien’s Birthmarked or James Dashner’s The Maze Runner.
Bill Capossere´s rating: 3.5 | Catherine Fisher | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
Darkwater Hall by Catherine Fisher
I must have read this book for the first time over twenty years ago, and though I had forgotten the title, author and much of the story, a few little details stuck with me: the evocative atmosphere it conjured, the central premise that concerned a young girl striking a deal with the devil, and something about a stairwell that ran up and down time.
Then, one day while perusing the library catalogue in search of another book entirely, the cover art for Darkwater Hall (2011) stirred something in my memory.
Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 4.5 | Catherine Fisher | Children, Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
Previous SFF Author: Bruno Fischer
Pretty challenging book. Cut by half, speed up the cadence. Trying to figure out the plot, the main point of…
Thanks for the kind words, Marion! Coming as they are from a professional writer, they are much appreciated!
Wonderful review, Sandy.
The "body count" bothered me a bit less because being dead seemed more like an inconvenience than anything else... unlike…
Detailed, thoughtful review, Bill. I'm going to read it for two reasons. First, Karen Russell wrote it, and second, it…