The+Finisher

The Finisher by David Baldacci Fantasy 2014 SLJ gr 6-9 Recommended by Oyster River Middle School

See the NHU-PAC entry [|here]

Publishers Weekly
01/20/2014 Best known for his adult crime novels, Baldacci makes a detour into middle-grade with this wildly fanciful and darkly intriguing tale of a girl forced to fight for her life as she investigates the secrets of her tiny community. Fourteen-year-old Vega Jane works as a “Finisher,” creating goods she’ll never be able to afford and leading a hardscrabble life with her little brother. Like all other “Wugmorts,” they have never left the town of Wormwood, trapped there by the deadly Quag surrounding it. When Vega discovers a map leading through the Quag, she suspects there’s more to Wormwood than believed. Consistently using smarts, cunning, and improvisation, Vega proves herself a strong, admirable heroine as she’s thrown through time, uncovers lies and mysteries, and takes possession of magical artifacts. Her narration blends Wugmort slang with oddly formal speech and thought patterns, helping shape an enigmatic setting filled with unfamiliar terms, bizarre creatures, and memorable characters, as Baldacci pulls in elements of fantasy, science fiction, and myth. A cliffhanger ending leaves many explanations for future installments. Ages 10–14.

Comments:

After multiple attempts, I just could not understand this book and I am finally giving up on pg 120 of 497 because I've renewed my copy several times and now it's just grossly over due. Baldacci's fantasy world is crammed with too many foreign fantasy words and names per square inch that just seem silly and I can't follow what's happening in any detail. Yes, I get the broad strokes of a girl in trouble, trying to care for her little brother, ill parents; dirt poor and working in a factory; a mysterious forest or part of the region that's off limits, corrupt government...but without appreciating the details, I can't care about the story or characters. Baldacci seems like he trying too hard to create a kids' fantasy world and this takes all the fun out of a reader trying to discover it. Pass on this one. Yvette/Merrimack

...Leaves room for a sequel, but I hope not. Nancy/former Madbury Public