thrillingdetectivetales | [REVIEW] Wayward Son by Rainbow Rowell (Reply)

This evening, as I was going through my entire library to put together the reading list I just shared, I finished up Rainbow Rowell's Wayward Son, the second in her "this young magical hero is definitely not that boy with the lightning scar" YA series. I really enjoy Rowell's world-building in this series. It's very obviously the work of someone who encountered the Franchise That Shall Not Be Named and went, "Okay but what if it was better in basically every conceivable way?" and so is right up my alley vis-á-vis areas of interest.

I listened to the audiobook this time, as well, because the performer is really fantastic and I must say I highly recommend the experience. His voices are nuanced without being overdone and I really enjoyed his timbre even when he was doing canonically female voices.

As for the actual book, it picks up a little after the first novel lets off, with Simon Snow having given up his magic to defeat the Insidious Humdrum, stuck sharing a flat with his mage BFF Penelope and also with the dragon wings and devil tail he magically grew during the big finale of Carry On, and sunk into a deep, debilitating depression. He's quit school, he's quit seeing the therapist that Penelope and Simon's hot vampire boyfriend Baz encouraged him to go see, and is convinced that Baz is going to break up with him so he might as well just be a lethargic shit to make it easy on Baz to do so.

Naturally, Penelope decides that the solution to this problem is a flight to America to see Agatha, Simon's ex-girlfriend who fled the world of mages after spending basically her entire childhood standing at ground zero of some serious trauma since she was around Simon all the time. Agatha, in California and doing her best to live a magic-free life, does not particularly care to see her old friends and tells Penny so, repeatedly, only Penelope is entirely too head-strong to bother with Agatha's wishes or desires. This ends up being a blessing in the long run, as Agatha pretty much immediately stumbles by accident in a vampire cult who are trying to figure out how to "evolve" so that they can also do magic like the mages do. She gets taken captive, as the token damsel in distress is wont to do—don't worry, this book is about her growth just as much as it is her ex-boyfriend's—and a series of unlikely but dangerous and delightful shenanigans befall her unwitting trio of friends as they race steadily toward her rescue and slowly figure out what's going on along the way.

I enjoy this book series for a number of reasons, not least of which being that there's a canon queer relationship that Rowell spends the entirety of the first book setting up. Her sense of pacing and ability to weave seemingly unconnected events into a corkscrewing plot with such grace makes it a genuine pleasure to ride along with the characters through the end. I also love the way that she portrays relationships—it's the most realistic I've seen romance or friendship done in young adult lit in awhile. (Granted, it's been some time since I was actively reading YA, so there's a chance that lack of representation is at least partially on me.)

I love the way Rowell's magic system is rooted in linguistics and how, while it may not be as fantastical as certain secret wizarding societies are, it all makes sense and is actually digestible. Aside from that, her characters are all fully realized individuals with different desires, talents, and character flaws, and I love that she focuses on bringing every one of her main four down an arc of their own rather than treating three of them as crutch characters to catalyze and support a solitary main protagonist. She's built her cast as pretty obvious proxy characters for the Book Series That Shall Not Be Named but gives them all their own agency and explores the narrative across their different points of view, which is not only refreshing but deeply interesting. Not to mention that, for the most part, the characters have reactions and make decisions that make actual sense for a human—even a magical one!—to make during a crisis situation.

My only point of contention with this book is that ends on a pretty stark and sudden cliff-hanger, which I don't generally love in any of my media but especially something with the potential for as much time between as a book series presents.

If you're a fan of young adult literature with an urban fantasy bent, I cannot recommend Wayward Son and its predecessor, Carry On, anywhere near enough. Check them out, let me know what you think!