Flora Segunda

Flora Segunda by Ysabeau S Wilce

Hardcover: 448 pages
Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books(January 1, 2007)
ISBN-10: 0152054332

From Publishers Weekly

In her first novel, Wilce imagines a living castle—a kind of blending of Gormenghast and Hogwarts—and she breathes life into her tale with a wry sense of humor. The book opens as narrator Flora Fyrdraaca, the heroine of the title, is about to turn 14, a rite of passage that qualifies her to enter military training. She spends her days mostly alone inside her family's castle, Crackpot Hall. Its 11,000 rooms have started to decay since Flora's mother, the Warlord's Commanding General, fired the magical Butler. Flora's father "only comes out of his Eyrie when the booze and cigarillos run out." Rushing to avoid being late to school, Flora takes the forbidden Elevator and ends up lost within her home—and meets the banished magical Butler, Valefor, in a forgotten library. Valefor convinces Flora to give him some of her "Anima," her "magickal essence," and he grows stronger. The plot detours into a convoluted back story about warring kingdoms; this leads to the tale of the "Dainty Pirate," whom Flora and her friend Udo then rescue from the gallows. The pirate warns Flora that Valefor is actually sucking her "Will" away, and the two friends begin a hunt for a "Semiote Verb" that will restore Flora's strength. Wilce takes the kitchen-sink approach to storytelling—at times the narrative borders on self-indulgent (e.g., "Oh ugh and disgusting and yucky-yuck"); hence some readers may feel that the book is overlong—though certainly good-natured and enjoyable.

When I purchased this book I thought it sounded light and humorous.. and it was just that.  Quite a turnabout from the books I have been reading and a nice break.

I have seen that there are more books with this character and although I enjoyed this book it had a conclusion (stand alone) and it was just enough, so it's doubtful I will read more of them. (but who knows?!)

I was enjoying the beginning of the book when we meet Flora and her family and the banished butler Valefor. The fact that she could get in an elevator in her home and not sure where she would wind up was a great touch and I thought the book might go in that direction with all sorts of discoveries and humor along the way ..but it did not.  It seemed to me to take a step down and all the "war and warlord" stuff wasn't the fun I thought the is book would be.  It is not a bad book!  Just not what I expected or hoped for.

It is a YA book and as such I think young folk would enjoy this book and the characters and the fact that other books are out there.  If the other books are like this one they can also be stand alone books which I find nice that you can go on or not and not feel like you didn't finish something. Plus if they are all stand alone you don't find you "have to" read the next one right away.  So it has more good points than bad.

All in all it was a good relief read.