Bonesmith
Nicki Pau Preto
Pacing and discovery
I often read book reviews that complain about the "pacing" of some novel. I, like, NEVER, get what the reviewer is talking about. It doesn't matter if this is a book I have already read or one I have not yet read. What exactly is the problem, when you say the pacing is off? However, I am going to complain about pacing in Nicki Pau Preto's Bonesmith. But I will explain exactly what it was that I saw as a problem. It has to do with a second buzzword we Fantasy and Science Fiction readers are apt to go on about: world-building. I get what that is. Does the speculative world you build have new and cool bells and whistles? More important, does it hang together logically -- is it just a lot of cool stuff thrown together, or is there an overarching structure that makes sense of it all? (Think Harry Potter vs The Lord of the Rings.)
But for me personally, what I really care about is world DISCOVERY. Every new F&SF novel (or, at least, every new series) is a mystery. At the start we don't know what the world has in it. As we read, we discover pieces. This is most satisfying when I, the reader, am not told an actual answer, but just enough to figure it out for myself. But however the answers come, this, for me, is perhaps the greatest pleasure of an F&SF novel: the world discovery. (I am, in real life, a scientist, that is, a professional thing-finder-outer. I love learning stuff.) There is an immense satisfaction to seeing the answers slot into place, that "Aha! It makes sense now!" feeling.
I enjoyed the last 40% of Bonesmith, because there was a lot of that. Answers fell into place. We discover who the characters are -- where they came from, what they have done, and what they want. The problem, however, is that 40% is too small a number. For the first 60% of Bonesmith I was mostly frustrated and confused, because I didn't really understand the Dominions or the people or or their magic. I really wanted Pau Preto to start dribbling out clues about the big mysteries earlier than the 60% point. I don't mind waiting a bit for things to start happening, but 60% is too long!
So, that's my "pacing" issue. Now, let me say that the last 40% was really quite good, very satisfying. And since Bonesmith is being promoted as the first book of a series, I expect the next book will be more fun, and I look forward to it.
Thanks to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster Canada for an advance reader copy of Bonesmith. This review expresses my honest opinion.