Troubling a Star

The Austins have settled back into their beloved home in the country after more than a year away. Though they had all missed the predictability and security of life in Thornhill, Vicky Austin is discovering that slipping back into her old life isn't easy. She's been changed by life in New York City and her travels around the country while her old friends seem to have stayed the same. So Vicky finds herself spending time with a new friend, Serena Eddington--the great-aunt of a boy Vicky met over the summer.

Aunt Serena gives Vicky an incredible birthday gift--a month-long trip to Antarctica. It's the opportunity of a lifetime. But Vicky is nervous. She's never been away from her family before. Once she sets off though, she finds that's show more the least of her worries. She receives threatening letters. She's surrounded by suspicious characters. Vicky no longer knows who to trust. And she may not make it home alive. show less

It's a book by Madeleine L'Engle. How bad could that be? Well, um, actually? Pretty bad. Spectacularly, teeth-grindingly bad.

The plot's clunky. No, the plot's been recycled so many times that one can faintly see all the other stories below, like a palimpsest. The characters, many of whom we are supposed to know, are not themselves. None of the Austins are recognizable. Even worse, a major character is introduced as a long-time patient of Dr. Austin's, as well as Adam Eddington's beloved aunt- how did those salient facts never get mentioned before? That's just sloppy.

The whole book feels cobbled together, half-assed, phoned in. Even the drugs don't get L'Engle all riled up this time, it's more ho-hum, drugs, yeah, whatever. The bad guys show more are silly, the good guys are equally silly. The character development is nearly absent in the secondary characters.

It was difficult to read this, especially hard on the heels of the magnificent [b:A Ring of Endless Light|14358|A Ring of Endless Light|Madeleine L'Engle|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1279354664s/14358.jpg|1234050]. I don't recommend it, not even for Austin completists. show less

Troubling a Star resembles The Young Unicorns and The Arm of the Starfish — two other Madeleine L’Engle titles — more than it does most of the books in the Austin Family Chronicles. The Austin novels featuring teenager Vicky Austin, a middle child in a large Connecticut family, usually deal with family life in a bucolic town. Instead, Troubling a Star tracks our heroine stumbling into political intrigue in the fictional South American country of Vespugia, a danger that follows Vicky all the way to Antarctica.

The book opens with Vicky stuck on an iceberg, hoping to be rescued. The book gradually reveals how she got there. Does she get rescued? Well, it’s the sixth and final book in the Austin Family Chronicles, so it could go show more either way, creating a lot of suspense. The novel begins a bit too slowly, but once Vicky’s on her way, it turns into a page-turner. And the ending was a real roller coaster! While not as satisfying as Moon by Night and A Ring of Endless Night, I still recommend it. show less

The Austins have settled back into their beloved home in the country after more than a year away. Though they had all missed the predictability and security of life in Thornhill, Vicky Austin is discovering that slipping back into her old life isn't easy. She's been changed by life in New York City and her travels around the country while her old friends seem to have stayed the same. So Vicky finds herself spending time with a new friend, Serena Eddington--the great-aunt of a boy Vicky met over the summer.

Aunt Serena gives Vicky an incredible birthday gift--a month-long trip to Antarctica. It's the opportunity of a lifetime. But Vicky is nervous. She's never been away from her family before. Once she sets off though, she finds that's show more the least of her worries. She receives threatening letters. She's surrounded by suspicious characters. Vicky no longer knows who to trust. And she may not make it home alive. show less

For better or for worse, I really loved this book as a young girl and can't tell you how many times I read it. I loved the descriptions of how blue icebergs are, I liked all the Shakespeare references because that was what I pretentiously wanted my life to be, I liked the Dorian beauty of the man you are obviously not supposed to trust, and I was such a romantic at that age that I made the love story aspects of it into more than it even was. I can't explain what else about this book enraptured me so much, but part of it was likely the boatful of intellectuals and the fact that I thought my own adventure story and distant travels were near at hand. (Spoiler: they weren't.)

Vicky Austin is given a wonderful gift of a trip to Antarctica, but things take a turn for the more dramatic when she inadvertently crosses paths with a group of unsavory conspirators. The book opens with Vicky stranded on an iceberg, and the story unfolds as she reflects back on the events that led her to this predicament.

The book is rich with details about the Antarctic voyage, and the vivid images send a strong environmental message about this unique region. Long-time L'Engle fans will most likely enjoy some new insights about the fictional South American country of Vespugia, also featured in "A Swiftly Tilting Planet." As a character, Vicky seems a little more out of place than she did in her original appearance in 1960s "Meet The show more Austins" -- she doesn't ring true for me as a teenager in the present day, but after all these years I like her very much and am willing forgive the somewhat clumsy tone that has crept into L'Engle's later novels about teens. show less

Fifth and last in the Austin family series of novels for teenagers. Vicky, who narrates approaches sixteen at the chronological start of the book, although brief introductions to each chapter show her getting colder and colder on an iceberg in the Antarctic.

Very well written, with a great pace, slowly leading towards the reason why she is in such danger, and what the result is. It's a tense book, but the thriller theme is punctuated with Shakespeare, marine biology, and a few mentions of angels. It's political in places (although Vicky, like me, is mostly politically illiterate). The book is also very concerned with ecology, and the importance of preserving the Antarctic.

Definitely recommended to teens and anyone who enjoys a good show more series. Best read after the other Austin family books, but it's not essential. show less