Ink of Blood

(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).

(This review may contain spoilers).

I found this book to be quite an intriguing read. It managed to draw me into the world really easily and I thought Maggie was a really intriguing character. She was a good mix of chidlike innocence and at just the right age to be ‘growing up’.

I did get a bit confused by the amount of different characters. I would have liked to see more of Maggie’s relationships with her siblings and her cousins. I found it very difficult to empathise with many of the minor characters, since I felt that they were just introduced through a listing off of the names and attributes.

I did think that the usage of the poem ‘Twas The Night Before Christmas’ was a really interesting concept and did a good job of linking in to the other world.

I felt that the dream of St. Nicholas falling from the roof did a really good job of showing elements of tension right from the beginning.

It was interesting to see something of a contrast between the world Maggie inhabited and the world she found herself in. I was a bit disappointed by the whole love-triangle-thing with Maggie, Catherine and Henry, though. I thought Catherine came across as very much ‘so pretty it’s almost a curse’. I did like the fact that she came across as a strong character even so, despite the fact that I didn’t find her as interesting as Maggie.

I did like being able to learn more about their families, even though I did find some of the background a bit confusing. It was also good to meet the Foundlings… but I didn’t really know all of them, either, even though I thought the timing part was really interesting.

I was a bit disappointed that Krampus didn’t really show up until much later, but I was intrigued by what was going on in the house and I would like to know if my theory about Krampus is correct. I probably would read the other book/s in this series at some point in the future, since I would like to see more of Maggie especially… but I’d also like to get to know other members of her family.