Book Witches live by a strict code: Real people belong in the real world; fictional characters belong in works of fiction. Do not eat, drink, or sleep inside a fictional world, lest you become part of the story. Falling in love with a fictional character? Don’t even think about it.
Which is why Rainy has been forbidden from seeing the Duke of Chicago, the dashing British detective who stars in her favorite mystery series. If she’s ever caught with him again, she’ll be expelled from her book coven—and forced to give up the magical gifts that are as much a part of her as her own name.
But when her beloved grandfather disappears and a priceless book is stolen, there’s only one person she trusts to help her solve the case: the Duke. Their quest takes them through the worlds of Alice in Wonderland, King Arthur, and other classics that will reveal hidden enemies and long-buried family secrets.
Comment: This is the most recent book by Meg Shaffer, whose previous books The Wishing Game and The Lost Story were very appealing to me, especially the first one, which was really wonderful. Of course, I expected more of the same...
Rainy March is a book witch, meaning that she can travel to the fictional stories and deal with necessary things, such as if someone is interfering with how the story is supposed to go. Rainy is very dedicated and she wants to follow the rules just like her late mother, who used to be known as the best of the book witches. But with the same specificity of good outcomes when the rules are met, there are consequences if something doesn't go according to plan, and Rainy will learn her lesson when her new task sends her to a book in the Duke of Chicago series. The thing is, Rainy has always considered the duke to be her "book boyfriend" but everyone knows one of the main rules of this job is that one should not fall in love with a fictional character, especially if they need to work together to solve some mysteries...
I had a lot of hope for this book, not only because I had the experience of having enjoyed the other books by the author and kind of anticipating her style, but also because the plot seemed to hit on the perfect fantasy for a book lover, such as it is to think one could visit beloved stories.
The plot is divided into several sections, labeled as literary genres, starting with romance, then mystery, and so on. This was clever and a good indication of what type of situation the main characters would find, and I think all were suited for the situations presented. The plot focus on the idea that rainy and the fictional duke go on to solve some mysteries which turn out to have connections with other things and the more they discover, the more complex the story becomes. On the way, they fall in love.
I should say that, in regards to the other books by Shaffer I had read, the magical elements are, as it seems to be the pattern, not fully developed and explained. This can be tiring because I do like some sense in how certain things can happen. However, I think I accepted this element better here than in The Lost Story. Still, I must confess that, out of the three books, this is the one I liked less and my personal grades have gotten lower with each book, with The Wishing Game being an 8, The Lost Story a 7 and this now a 6.
Unfortunately, my biggest issue is that the romance element was incredible vague and too subtle, which means that felt poorly engaging. Then, the second section with the mystery aspects taking the focus was very confusing at times and, sadly, dull at others. I struggled to maintain my attention on what was happening and only when that section ended and new information was shared, did I feel things improved. Still, the somehow confusing scenes continued - along with the lack of explanations for some magical things - and I think the characters never got the depth I think such a story deserved. There are emotional scenes but the characters' attitude was often so all over the place that made it difficult to connect with them.
Then, another element I found a little poorly done was the whole jumping into books and so on element. I mean, as a possibility, this is great and whimsical and dreamy and who is the reader who never dreamed of such an idea? However, the choice of having Rainy and others going from this place to that and so on and never really making is special or memorable and almost only a prop for what Rainy was supposed to be doing for work, was a little disappointing. This element also reminded me too much of The Astral Library by Kate Quinn, a book with a similar premise and plot point, which I had read in July and that I graded low (4/10). The idea just didn't really convince me as I imagined, in either book.
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