Roadside Magic (Gallow and Ragged, 2)

Reviewing the entire trilogy as a whole as well as by the installment. Often times one can tell from a first book in a series how a given author writes and if the stories they tell are of any interest or quality. Some authors can start with a weak first book, but develop and become stronger over the course of a series. That is unfortunately not the case here.Lilith Saintcrow has piqued my interest as an author before, but the synopsis for this book and the series as a whole is woefully misleading as to what this strange, almost rambling story and its characters really entails. The writing itself is decent, just reading some of the prose structure and pacing and you can tell the author is a keen writer and well established in style. However the content itself is very thick and disjointed, though it could be reasonably assumed that due to the nature of Faerie lore the series bases itself in, this could a stylistic choice on the author's part, though not one that does the story any favors.The main characters take the the idea of budding romantic chemistry and go running in the opposite direction. There are no genuine moments of flirting or engagement with eachother, only vaguely inferred interest on both parties' parts and long, drawn out inner thought sections which always culminate in the assumption that the other is actually not interested after all, and/or make wild guesses about why. The female protagonist is under the assumption that the male protagonist only sees her resemblance to her sister, his dead wife, and he in turn thinks that she sees him as a cold hearted killer and nothing more. And rinse and repeat through the entire book, and then the entire series. Not once do they actually talk about how they really feel and why, and the vague inferring gets old within the first few times they do it.The action scenes are fast and descriptive, but very brief and slapdash with their pacing and use. It seems every other scene characters are running somewhere or from something, fighting something, hiding out, then doing it all over again. It is not helped by the random side character perspectives the author decides to give as much if not in some cases more development in the short term than she gives her main characters in the long term for one-off encounters they have as outsiders looking in on the story, usually ending with flash-forwards about how it affects said side characters in the future, after which they are never brought up again. It seems to be an effort to try and flesh out the mystical lore of the series and how it affects the normal world so randomly, but it comes off as pace breaking and needless padding for the story overall. None of it does anything to affect the main cast nor add up to some grand consequences at the end of the books individually or the series as a whole.There are also smaller details that get focused on so often and so thoroughly that clash with the actual events at hand, making them break the immersion and come off more as distracting than helping craft the actual scenes. Overly detailed focus on the background, or bringing up bits of Faerie lore and background premise that drag in noticeable spots when the focus should be on the action or the characters interacting with eachother. Also a few very confusing uses of terms repeated throughout the books ad nauseum, like despite the cover depictions and all written descriptions of the male protagonist's weapon looking and being constructed like a spear, the author refers to it as a lance, which has almost the exact opposite construction to its design as constantly described by the author every time the protagonist brings it out. This seems like a bit of a nitpick, but given how often the author goes through the descriptions so repeatedly through the books, it starts to stick out like a sore thumb along with all the strangely used terms.What really rankles however is that there are moments the books, the first in particular, seems to set up turning points where it seems like there will be actual character moments and interactions, that deeper engagement will occur for the story and actually give reason for investment. But then it fails to, every time, and instead of reading out of interest to see where the story and characters go, there is a frustrated sense of impatience wondering when the author will actually get to doing it. This pervades all the way to the end of the trilogy, and to a very disappointing conclusion, the most disappointing I've come across in a very long time as a reader, and moreso because the author does seem to be competent at story-crafting and thus off all the more befuddling to why she wrote it such a way that gives so little care to its actual characters and how the story itself proceeds.It is not often I find myself regretting spending money on books, but this is an instance where I feel like I wasted quite a bit on this trilogy when I should have stopped with the first book. It is quite possibly the most well crafted, intentionally written disappointment I have ever read.

After the first book, it was clear to me that the Gallow and Ragged series was as much a romance as it was an adventure. Which is perfectly fine. I prefer more action than flirting, and I appreciate that the author is going for a slow burn (comparative to other series, at least) rather than shoving the typical One True Love blather down you're throat. The tension is there but the characters remember that they have a job to do first and foremost. We pick up right where we left off, and get the juicy backstory to Jeremiah's rivalry with his former friend. We also get more faerie politics, and Robin embracing her powers, which were my favorite parts. The problem is that the characters are so much more interesting in teams or groups, than on their own. Because every character is so strong (no wimps here!), there's not much internal conflict to dwell on when they're doing their own thing. 3/4 of the book was just Jeremiah chasing after Robin and just barely missing her, and it got old. However, the payoff when they finally catch up to each other was worth it. I didn't *love* it, but I did like & enjoy it and eagerly await the final installment.

I've been looking forward to this follow-up to Trailer Park Fae ever since hearing about it from the author's blog.It delivered nicely although not as strongly as TPF. Robin Ragged is still under-developed, but Sean as the trigger for her character's burgeoning growth and then his changeling's metamorphosis pose possibilities for her eventual rounding out (as well as plot development) in Book 3. For now, I get why Gallow sees what he sees in her, but not the New Guy who is introduced in Book 2. Puck's reanimation and his revealed relationship to Robin as well as his belief that she will join him falls a little short for me. In this one thing, he is so blind/naive? Really? I'm missing some convincing detail.Nice Gallow-development with the details about his origin and the genesis of his tattoo and armor. LOTS of possibilities there.The ending with Winter and Gallow was a given, so I hope we get a better look into how the dark side lives, functions, interacts with the human world, etc. in the next book. The few elements Saintcrow throws in from that side - the Hunt, working with the dwarves - are great. Like the Summer side and it's bloody woods, mean-girl court and promise-twisting, I hope to see that Winter's court is multi-dimensional. Looking forward to Book 3.

I did not want this one to end. The book started out a little on the slow side for me, but having said that, I also took my time as I wanted to savor every word and not rush through the story. I actually groaned at the conclusion, not because of any issues with the writing or story. As I said above, I really wanted this book to keep on going.

I love this series. Love the ambience, the setting, the language, but most of all, love the characters. Many readers complain about it being overly dark, but for me it all just works. The second part doesn't dissapoint. New character appears and we learn more about Gallow's past. I hope in the third part we learn more about Robin's history, because there are big gaps there.One question in particular bothered me through the story: how is it possible that Gallow and Robin had never met before, when they had beem supposedly both at the Summer Court at the same time?

Humans, Fae, Half-Fae, the creatures and lands of the Summer and Winter Courts - loved the world, the characters, and the care the author takes with her creations. Highly recommended.

I found this gritty look at being at war with the world to be rather exciting. Robin just feels like she is about to explode into full power at any point and take both courts by storm. However, I would like, JUST ONCE to see a Fae (King or Queen) who was not an evil, self serving waste of breath.

Lilith Saintcrow strikes again with yet another shitty ending. Just by the time I got over this perpetual cliffhanger betrayal of the Strange Angels series, she does it again. Don't waste your time on this one. Crap ending.

Loved it

Awesome series to read ... I love this author!!!