Right, time to reread this series i guess. I know I enjoyed the hell out of it last time.

Edit: I just checked the FFN page, it said to expect book 4 some time in 2011. Cutting it a bit close aren't we?

 

Read above, Inverrarity (sp.?) said on his ... LJ that she would publish the first chapter the 30th, which she did.

 

Lolll. Not a she. Inverarity is a guy.

 

Haha, yeah. In my review for the chapter, I said that it's no wonder that everyone thinks that he's a she, since Inverarity is so good at writing a convincing female protagonist.

 

I think I may have to go back and read the first book. I read the first part of the fourth book and the magical tourism event, the normal teenage friendships, characters enjoying their lives, are all amazing.

 

I'm one of those who couldn't stand Alex, a point that I noted in one of my reviews; on the other hand, despite its flaws I loved Inverarity's next-gen story (Hogwarts House Divided) to bits.

Time to give this another try, I guess

 

Even some people who like the series say they like it despite Alex. While I have never seen her as unlikable, a lot of readers do. I think she gets more likable as the series goes on, but then, I would.

I don't know if my writing is publishable quality yet, but I know that it's improved a great deal since the first book. Not that I am ashamed of AQATTC; far from it. But it was the first full-length novel I ever wrote and I posted it without even knowing what a beta reader was. So when I look at it now, it's easy for me to see the flaws, from basic writing mistakes to weaknesses in the story. But I still like it.

I hope you all enjoy book four.

 

Chapter 2 is now up.

http://www.fanfiction.net/s/7689884/2/Alexandra_Quick_and_the_Stars_Above

It's interesting to see whether Alexandra would actually focus her attention on her studies. Perhaps we might see more of her school life in this book.

 

Do you honestly expect Alex to just ignore the Deathly Regiment and go focus on her school work? It would be pretty out of character if she did, but if explained as a sign of her maturing and thinking with her head instead of her heart then I could see it work.

And we're four books in now. Maybe time to rename the thread? Just a thought.

 

Third chapter seemed mostly filler to me but still interesting. Looking forward to monday again.

Spoiler

I did wonder if we were supposed to know which sister they are going to?

 

Dianna Grimm is going to catch Thorn. That's the main thought you have to keep through all of this. At first I thought her more of a 'for magic and the Confederacy' type but going in, without backup, to take him down? That seems more personal. Past romantic fling perhaps?

That said Dianna will do everything in her power to get an advantage. If that means rerouting some Howlers to score points with Alexandra? Why not? It could mean she let's something accidentally slip. And really when you compare the possible fallout from letting one teenage girl practice spells in her bedroom to capturing your governments Most Wanted Man the choice is clear.

 

Okay, I just finished reading this series, and I have to say: Holy shit, this is good.

By far the weakest book in the series is Alexandra Quick and the Thorn Circle, which all things considered, bodes well for future installments. Admittedly, Alexandra is an absolute little shit, but she grows on you- like a fungus, but a likable fungus nonetheless. She has far more in common with Uzumaki Naruto than Harry Potter, and I have to admit that I actually enjoy that. As much as I loved Rowling's portrayal of Harry's wonder, it's refreshing to read the opposite perspective, Alexandra's rapid disillusionment and bitterness toward the immature, entitled authority figures that litter both HP canon and AQ. There are really only two characters that bug me: The Grimm sisters, and to be entirely fair, it's really the Headmistress that gets to me. She is totally unbelievable and pretty much every time I read anything involving her I get jarringly pushed out of the story.

In terms of sheer writing quality, the Second and Third books are among the best written fan fiction I have ever read. I would call the third book borderline publishable (admittedly, there are a number of books I've read that I don't believe should have ever been published,) and the major selling point of this series is how well thought out the world is. The main character is extremely likable (if polarizing) as long as you enjoy characters who are proactive and often create their own conflicts, rather than reactive or apathetic characters (like Harry Potter, actually).

Book 1 rates: 4/5. On the whole, there are a lot of problems with this book. There are really good things, like the world building and the circle of friends Alexandra builds. There are also some god awful things, like the adult OC's. The good bits are so freaking awesome that I kept reading.

Book 2 rates: 4.5/5. As inverarity smoothed out his writing, this series really took off. Max is extremely likable, Alexandra begins to come into her own as a character, and you really get to see why her dad is a bulging, necrotic cyst on the lower cunt flap of an upside-down rhinoceros with the glaggies. The author manages to keep the good things about his previous work, while fixing some of the glaring flaws he exhibited in Book 1.

Book 3: 5/5. First of all, this book is written superlatively all the way through. Second of all, what makes this book is the ending. The choices that Alexandra has to make are phenomenal, epic, and extremely well written. I absolutely love how the antagonist of the piece was characterized. This is hardly a flawless piece (grammar needs some help, some of the dialogue was a little wooden, some of the description needed a little more work, et cetera.), but it is the one I would call borderline publishable. The other two are simply not as good.

Book 4: Too early to tell, but I'm eagerly awaiting the next update.

On the whole, I'm rather amused by DLP's general reaction to this story. I can see why they tend toward panning it, even if I think their real problem with the work is that the main character isn't named Harry. I also have to say that for all of enembee and Silens' complaints about angst and unsympathetic characters, not only is Harry Potter often more angsty in canon (Book 2, 3, 5, 6, and 7), their personal interpretations of Harry are angstier than Alexandra Quick. Hell, Silens' work in particular has the least sympathetic Harry I've ever read, including the one from HBP, and he's created one of the most stomach churningly bad OC's (that stupid IRA-bomber type guy) ever. enembee's interpretation of Harry in Conloadh's Song, while completely awesome, is at least as angsty about how he was 'saved' by Dumbledore as AQ ever was.