W.R. Gingell
Author of Between Jobs
About the Author
Image credit: W.R. Gingell
Series
Works by W.R. Gingell
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- Gender
- female
- Occupations
- writer
- Nationality
- Australia
- Birthplace
- Cairns, Queensland, Australia
- Places of residence
- Tasmania, Australia
- Associated Place (for map)
- Australia
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Reviews
Several years after Blackfoot, Peter starts at the University of Mechanics and Magic. He’s convinced of his own cleverness and cannot understand why one of his new classmates, Miss Glenna Stoneflange, does not want to work with him.
Because Peter ends up messing around with time-travel, there are a couple of scenes from his future in the previous books. It’s interesting getting those moments again from Peter’s perspective and fitting the puzzle pieces of his story together.
I also felt show more invested in his journey even though he spends a lot of time being arrogant and oblivious to how his actions affect others, because I knew that there must be a significant change up ahead. And even before that realisation, even when Peter still feels justified, the narrative is not blind to his faults.
I found the way Peter’s dawning realisation is handled unexpectedly satisfying. His mistakes and their consequences are not dismissed, not trivialised, and apologising doesn’t magically make things right; he has to live with some of his mistakes. And maybe being a better person will take a lot of hard work, but he’s capable of that, he has the opportunity of that; he’s not just the sum of his mistakes. There’s something very hopeful about that.
Peter had once thought that he was a reasonably satisfactory person. He had been quite content in the conviction -- as he had been in the conviction that he did not make mistakes when it came to logic, magic or mechanics. The only mistakes he made, as he had thought, were those carefully calculated ones in his experiments.
Perhaps he was more akin to his project in their experimental stage than the finished product: a series of considered trials and errors that took him ever close to the finished project -- a series of considered trials and errors without which the final product could never exist.
I also really enjoyed seeing more of Poly and Luck (from Spindle), and getting to know Glenna. show less
Because Peter ends up messing around with time-travel, there are a couple of scenes from his future in the previous books. It’s interesting getting those moments again from Peter’s perspective and fitting the puzzle pieces of his story together.
I also felt show more invested in his journey even though he spends a lot of time being arrogant and oblivious to how his actions affect others, because I knew that there must be a significant change up ahead. And even before that realisation, even when Peter still feels justified, the narrative is not blind to his faults.
I found the way Peter’s dawning realisation is handled unexpectedly satisfying. His mistakes and their consequences are not dismissed, not trivialised, and apologising doesn’t magically make things right; he has to live with some of his mistakes. And maybe being a better person will take a lot of hard work, but he’s capable of that, he has the opportunity of that; he’s not just the sum of his mistakes. There’s something very hopeful about that.
Peter had once thought that he was a reasonably satisfactory person. He had been quite content in the conviction -- as he had been in the conviction that he did not make mistakes when it came to logic, magic or mechanics. The only mistakes he made, as he had thought, were those carefully calculated ones in his experiments.
Perhaps he was more akin to his project in their experimental stage than the finished product: a series of considered trials and errors that took him ever close to the finished project -- a series of considered trials and errors without which the final product could never exist.
I also really enjoyed seeing more of Poly and Luck (from Spindle), and getting to know Glenna. show less
Another book I went into knowing almost nothing about it, and I really enjoyed that reading experience. All I knew was that it was connected to Lady of Dreams but set in a different country. (If I had read Lady of Dreams more recently, I might have realised the connections between the two stories faster, but I don’t think it mattered that I didn’t.)
As a guardian it is Carys’ job to protect the village by clearing seaweed from the shoreline every morning, to prevent it falling into the show more hands of dangerous selkies, and she is entitled to take anything she finds washed ashore. One morning, she finds an unconscious, injured young man in a rock pool.
I liked the descriptions of Carys’ life by the sea. I liked the mysteries, of which there are several tangled together – Who is Eurion and what happened to him? Why does Carys care about the ring she found with him? And what is Carys’ history? – and how they unfolded. I liked how Eurion, so sunny and effervescent, is such a contrast to Carys. And I liked how Carys’ words and thoughts can make her seem cold but, over time, her actions reveal a softer, warmer side.
As a guardian it is Carys’ job to protect the village by clearing seaweed from the shoreline every morning, to prevent it falling into the show more hands of dangerous selkies, and she is entitled to take anything she finds washed ashore. One morning, she finds an unconscious, injured young man in a rock pool.
I liked the descriptions of Carys’ life by the sea. I liked the mysteries, of which there are several tangled together – Who is Eurion and what happened to him? Why does Carys care about the ring she found with him? And what is Carys’ history? – and how they unfolded. I liked how Eurion, so sunny and effervescent, is such a contrast to Carys. And I liked how Carys’ words and thoughts can make her seem cold but, over time, her actions reveal a softer, warmer side.
Carys was used to the dark and the cold, just as she was used to the loneliness. She’d become so used to them, in fact, that now she merely thought of them as everyday life and no longer thought of them by their names.
Apart from a mild, infrequent irritation at Enfys, Carys wasn’t used to feeling annoyed. She was used to feeling – well, she was used to a lack of feeling, a continuous kind of coldness that had no up or down to it. She wasn’t quite sure what to do with this particular emotion.show less
I have been enjoying this series soooo much, and this new addition is not exception! The worldbuilding is so interesting and has puzzles within puzzles and layers upon layers that continue to fascinate and surprise me. Just like Viv, you just don't know who can truly be trusted,mostly because the characters are so not human and therefore, you just aren't sure about the way they think, or their motivations.
Viv, the main character, who in the first book was essentially thrust unexpectedly show more into a job in what turned out to be a supernatural agency without much direction or explanation. Instead she was left floundering to figure things out by herself, along with the reader, all while her mysterious boss Jasper, put her in charge of an emtionally damaged serial killer of what she learns are Behindkind... those that live in the world of the supernatural. Over the course of the books, we, along with Viv, began to learn more about the Tea House and about the various characters and about Viv herself, who is surprised to learn she has some unusual powers of her own having to do with her voice.
What I really like about this series is how much it teeters on the edge of urban fantasy and horror. There's a mysterious, meancing vibe at times that really hammers home how dangerous some of the people that are involved in this strange world really are, even the ones without their own magic. You feel the hair on the back of your neck stand up reading those parts, as terrified as Viv is, not knowing what may happen next. It keeps you totally off balance and I love how much it often surprises me, swinging from moments where it's terrifying to a bit of humour and then back again when you look at it all more closely.
For instance, one small instance in the book is when Viv receives a bouquet of flowers from Luka, aforementioned somewhat unhinged serial killer. He tells her he picked them especially for her, and then warns her not to keep them in her bedroom when she sleeps. She later learns they grow only on graves in the Fae world and can be quite deadly. You are left, like Viv, wondering if Luka truly cares for her, or if he even knows how or what that means.
There are some amusing parts with various unique characters that reside in the Tea House with Viv, who has her own room there as well. A little half-Fae girl who is always angry, and runs around in pink tutus with a glittering wand and eats too many sweets, who likes to sleep in Viv's bed and sees her as a sort of mother/comfort figure and yet this little girl is also extremely dangerous and ferociously demanding. There's a kind of invisible octopus named Sephy that sort of exists in a parallel space but shows up to share Viv's biscuits at tea time, and at other crucial times to help Viv, and even save her life. There are people who can walk through walls and ceilings and drag her through with them, and the entire place sort of works for an oversight agency called Forex that is full of strange used-to-be-humans who have lost most of their humanity in order to extend their lives, and wear skin suits that don't really fit, and sort of have a hive mind. No one likes them, and everyone kind of fears them. All in all, it's a wild ride that gets better and better as the books go along and you become more immersed in the characters and their worlds and activities,. Highly recommended! Can't wait for the next installment. show less
Viv, the main character, who in the first book was essentially thrust unexpectedly show more into a job in what turned out to be a supernatural agency without much direction or explanation. Instead she was left floundering to figure things out by herself, along with the reader, all while her mysterious boss Jasper, put her in charge of an emtionally damaged serial killer of what she learns are Behindkind... those that live in the world of the supernatural. Over the course of the books, we, along with Viv, began to learn more about the Tea House and about the various characters and about Viv herself, who is surprised to learn she has some unusual powers of her own having to do with her voice.
What I really like about this series is how much it teeters on the edge of urban fantasy and horror. There's a mysterious, meancing vibe at times that really hammers home how dangerous some of the people that are involved in this strange world really are, even the ones without their own magic. You feel the hair on the back of your neck stand up reading those parts, as terrified as Viv is, not knowing what may happen next. It keeps you totally off balance and I love how much it often surprises me, swinging from moments where it's terrifying to a bit of humour and then back again when you look at it all more closely.
For instance, one small instance in the book is when Viv receives a bouquet of flowers from Luka, aforementioned somewhat unhinged serial killer. He tells her he picked them especially for her, and then warns her not to keep them in her bedroom when she sleeps. She later learns they grow only on graves in the Fae world and can be quite deadly. You are left, like Viv, wondering if Luka truly cares for her, or if he even knows how or what that means.
There are some amusing parts with various unique characters that reside in the Tea House with Viv, who has her own room there as well. A little half-Fae girl who is always angry, and runs around in pink tutus with a glittering wand and eats too many sweets, who likes to sleep in Viv's bed and sees her as a sort of mother/comfort figure and yet this little girl is also extremely dangerous and ferociously demanding. There's a kind of invisible octopus named Sephy that sort of exists in a parallel space but shows up to share Viv's biscuits at tea time, and at other crucial times to help Viv, and even save her life. There are people who can walk through walls and ceilings and drag her through with them, and the entire place sort of works for an oversight agency called Forex that is full of strange used-to-be-humans who have lost most of their humanity in order to extend their lives, and wear skin suits that don't really fit, and sort of have a hive mind. No one likes them, and everyone kind of fears them. All in all, it's a wild ride that gets better and better as the books go along and you become more immersed in the characters and their worlds and activities,. Highly recommended! Can't wait for the next installment. show less
I had mixed feelings after I finished the first book in this series, and I wasn't sure if I wanted to go on, but I am so glad that I did. I absolutely LOVED this second book. It felt much more comfortable (maybe I was just more used to the very strange world and the strange creatures that inhabit it this time). The main character, Viv, also seemed more comfortable and in control of herself, and we learned a bit more about Luca and his background, which was interesting. I felt like the show more characters residing at the Tea House are becoming more familiar and we are learning a little bit more about them in this book, which is nice.
This second book is really a supernatural mystery surrounding a wedding of a female friend (and former lover) of Jasper, Viv's boss. He takes her to the site where the wedding will take place in a few days, where the wedding party and parents have gathered to enjoy themselves and spend some time swimming and enjoying the beautiful site prior to the actual wedding itself coming up in a few days.
The atmosphere is a bit tense as Cora is a supernatural or Behindkind, and her groom is human. Not everyone is happy about the mixed marriage and someone has sent the bride perfume anonymously, which is apparently a bad luck thing to do. Cora contacted Jasper and asked if he could try to discover who is trying to cause trouble. While they are there, the murdered body of a servant at the venue is discovered, deepending concern. Jasper and Viv must leave for Jasper to attend some meetings with some strange human-like creatures that I suspect we will learn more about, but tells Viv to take Luca and go back and try to figure out who is behind the murder.
Many strange, horrific, yet interesting and creative things occur and I really found the whole atmosphere and setting delicious to read. It reminded me a bit of the old golden age mysteries, I'm not sure why. Maybe because it was a glamourous setting with somewhat glamourous people. Luca, is always strange and yet sharp as a knife, and despite him having tried to kill Viv in the previous book, they seem to come to a mutual understanding in this one, and even a kind of relationship, albeit one that is still very fragile and prone to shatter at any time.
I'm very much looking forward to the next book in this series. What we learned in this book only whet my appetite to learn more. Highly recommended for those who like their fantasy a little strange and unexpected. show less
This second book is really a supernatural mystery surrounding a wedding of a female friend (and former lover) of Jasper, Viv's boss. He takes her to the site where the wedding will take place in a few days, where the wedding party and parents have gathered to enjoy themselves and spend some time swimming and enjoying the beautiful site prior to the actual wedding itself coming up in a few days.
The atmosphere is a bit tense as Cora is a supernatural or Behindkind, and her groom is human. Not everyone is happy about the mixed marriage and someone has sent the bride perfume anonymously, which is apparently a bad luck thing to do. Cora contacted Jasper and asked if he could try to discover who is trying to cause trouble. While they are there, the murdered body of a servant at the venue is discovered, deepending concern. Jasper and Viv must leave for Jasper to attend some meetings with some strange human-like creatures that I suspect we will learn more about, but tells Viv to take Luca and go back and try to figure out who is behind the murder.
Many strange, horrific, yet interesting and creative things occur and I really found the whole atmosphere and setting delicious to read. It reminded me a bit of the old golden age mysteries, I'm not sure why. Maybe because it was a glamourous setting with somewhat glamourous people. Luca, is always strange and yet sharp as a knife, and despite him having tried to kill Viv in the previous book, they seem to come to a mutual understanding in this one, and even a kind of relationship, albeit one that is still very fragile and prone to shatter at any time.
I'm very much looking forward to the next book in this series. What we learned in this book only whet my appetite to learn more. Highly recommended for those who like their fantasy a little strange and unexpected. show less
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