In ways which chime as powerfully resonant to today’s world. It is a cracking adventure story – with the usual weirdness and supernatural elements which we expect from Hardinge – and explores with insight, sympathy and a keen intelligence the characters and buildings and world she creates. A Skinful of Shadows is macabre, terrifying, liberating and darkly optimistic. Impossibly high for a normal writer perhaps, but not Hardinge. These two books set the bar hugely high for Hardinge, impossibly high perhaps.
It is on a par with – in my humble opinion, exceeds – the likes of Phillip Pullman. The Lie Tree, likewise, sparkled with wit, intelligence and a compelling cast of characters. The sort of novel which I wish I had more than my self-imposed five stars to give it. I would buy a telephone directory with her name attached to it as an author!
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