Middlegame

I loved this story on my first reading, but dear god does it make more sense on the second read! I love having read Over the Woodward Wall as well, the bits where I can see them bleeding together are wonderful.

Okay fine, here it is. My previous “review” is at the bottom.

My major problem with Seanan McGuire's writing, specifically her long books, is how repetitive they are (examples/screenshots below). She repeats phrases/words or even says the same sentence in slightly different ways. She repeatedly brings up the same character trait over and over again. Not in a subtle way either, not in a way that demonstrates the trait and shows it in action but in a blatant telling that it's that character's trait. It results in her smacking the reader over the head repeatedly with what she wants us to know instead of being more nuanced and allowing us to engage with the information and infer the importance of different actions and thoughts.

For example, if we know a character has a thing for donuts, and the character eats a donut or mentions donuts or walks by donuts, every single time Seanan McGuire will also write “Ashley loves donuts, it's their favorite food, they'll choose it over any other option if they have the ability” like it's not already super obvious. And then if they eat any other food we get an explanation that even though they prefer donuts they also have to eat other food to survive so that's why they're eating other food and not a donut. Like no shit.

Middlegame is very Roger=Words, Dodger=Math, but there are less heavy-handed ways to show the reader those things. You can have a character perform an action or think a thought that makes sense based on what we know about them (perhaps Dodger calculating something super complex during a party, measuring ingredients for baking by sight, kicking ass at billiards... Or Roger mentioning or quoting dense literature/famous authors, solving or spouting interesting word puzzles, or using complex words/phrases - as it stands, he talks like an idiot most of the time) and leave it at that. Because the reader can understand that their actions support what was told to us, that Roger=Words and Dodger=Math. But any time something like that happens, McGuire also writes “Dodger understands numbers, Roger knows words” (yeah, we already know). It just makes me want to rip my hair out. It's like she wants to make sure no one misses the connection she's making or support she's providing for the character trait, which leaves the reader with a feeling of being hit over the head with the information. And as my friend said, it feels like the Rodger =words and Dodger=math was so superficial in how they equal those things.

Moving on, the alchemy was surface level, mostly consisting of the hand of glory, and seemed to rely on the reader having previous knowledge from other books. There wasn't even a satisfying explanation for the Improbable Road and Impossible City. Seriously, what are those things, what's the point, and how did they come to be? Oooooh, alchemy. Got it. But, how? What does that look like???

The villians were nonexistent and cartoonish. They never felt threatening and were defeated with very little effort. And they made incredibly stupid decisions. Why did Leigh think killing Dodger's parents would make her give up and surrender? You hold them hostage, not kill them! Killing them provides absolutely no motivation to surrender. I literally laughed out loud at that part.

And just, the end, what even was that? I don't understand why Roger and Dodger were like, “Let's wait.” Ummm what?

I have always loved the concepts Seanan McGuire comes up with, and that's why I continue to read her books. But honestly, I think I'm done with her full novels.

And now, I offer you a couple of examples of the repetition that annoys me so much



Why? Seriously, why write this sentence more than once?



0:00 PST means midnight! Have some faith in your reader to READ!

A variation of “knows/doesn't know/doesn't understand the words” is used about 50 times (not kidding, go ahead and count).

I really don't want to write this review because I'm still annoyed. Go check out this review instead: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2775699939?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=3

Seanan McGuire has done it again. She has created a story unlike any that I've read before. Her writing style is amazing, the characters are amazing, and the story is amazing. She remains at the top of my favorite authors list.

I am sitting in stunned silence. I finished dashing through the last thirty pages of Middlegame about 5 mins ago' I now have the most unsettling feeling of, “Now what? Please story; don't end.” Alas, it did as it would have to. And I am sitting here twiddling my thumbs and wishing for so much more. I miss Roger and Dodger already.

Middlegame is as it is purported to be, it is a middle, the midway, the equidistant point between the beginning and the end. The term middlegame refers to space between the opening and endgame in chess. A space that often blends into both the opening and the endgame where there is not a sharply seen divide. It is an interesting play on definitions. The middle of a story, the middle of a chess game, and the story in its entirety is an elaborate chess game.

The middle is the most crucial part of most stories. Openings are but a fleeting moment that sends the characters on their path while endings are the explosion like a volcano after many years. Endings are the outcome. But the middle is the actual story. Middlegame is written about all the points in between for Roger and Dodger. Their tales are not done, although I have the sneaking suspicion that this story is a single book, not planned for a series.

I could tell you that this story is about twins, but so what. There are a million stories about twins. I could tell you it is about alchemy. Again, so what. It doesn't do any of it justice. So how about this, “Meet Roger. Skilled with words, languages come quickly to him. He instinctively understands how the world works through the power of story.” More so Rodger understands that naming something gives it power. Language in all its forms has power. “Meet Dodger, his twin. Numbers are her world, her obsession, her everything. All she understands, she does so through the power of math.” Math is in every movement of a bird, thing of beauty; math is sunsets, waterfalls and the first cry from a newborn. Math is a creation. But Roger's powers of language allow him to solidify creations through words. They work together.

The intertwoven, multi-decade story is about the intertwining of to opposite forces whose lives, and love meshes together like the roots of a gnarled old oak tree. Rodge and Dodge need each other, and through McGuire's excellent writing we can see that need coalesce into a yearning and a struggle. Sometimes the intertwining to the two of them feels like iron band banded around them, other times the intertwining is a hug from a long departed loved one in arms you never want to let go again. All of this is under the watchful eye of Reed, an alchemist, whose plans to exploit them for his own game have been the spiderweb the twins have lived in their whole lives.

But love, curiosity, leadership –those are equally important,or they wouldn't exist. Natureabhors a vacuum.Nothing without purposehas been made.

I can't tell you many details from the plot save for Rodger, and Dodger have been pulled apart and pushed together most of their lives. In the pulling and pushing they have figured out mostly who they want to be, but only when the other is around can they obtain their full potential.

First, let's talk about the magnificent. Seanan McGuire is damned good at story creation only to be bested by her ability of character creation. The writing of this story is sumptuous, atmospheric, and thick with meaning. While most other writers are thin soup, Mcguires writing is thick dark chocolate pudding. To be poured over and savored mouthful by mouthful. The only small quibble that led me to drop the rating by one star was the pacing. The story felt very uneven in terms of speed. Some section dragged on like molasses, others over in a flash.

Also, thank you, McGuire, for writing a math-driven girl as to be something celebrated and not something to be ashamed of. So many stories take female characters and say that their love of math is cute or silly and something that should embarrass them. But, not so in this story. Dodgers love for math goes deep into her bones. It is who she is. There is nothing to feel shame for. I love that, and it is wonderfully refreshing to read. Go STEM!

I will miss this story, and I have fleeting hope that she will continue to write this series. But if she decides not to, thank you, Mcguire, for the beautiful book. I wholeheartedly recommend it.