Review: Corpse & Crown by Alisa Kwitney

Title: Corpse & Crown

Author:  Alisa Kwitney
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Publishing Date:  February 1st, 2019

Pages: 304
Genre: YA Alternate History/Historical Fiction Sci-Fi Fantasy/ Horror Retelling

Series:  Cadaver & Queen #2
Source:  Audio

 

From Alisa Kwitney comes a connected novel set in the same alternative Victorian England of Cadaver & Queen. Corpse & Crown follows the story of Agatha DeLacey, an Ingold nursing student who travels to London and uncovers a devastating secret about the country's Bio-Mechanicals. Inspired by the classic story of Oliver Twist and complete with a dashing Artful Dodger-inspired male lead, this retelling is a satisfying follow-up to Kwitney's clever and critically acclaimed young adult debut.

This is the second read for the Cadaver & Queen series. I am not sure if this is only a duology of if there will be more. I really enjoyed the first read and I did enjoy this one too. I felt it wasn't as strong as the first book but it was still a good solid read. I enjoyed spending time with some different characters and see where the story was going to take us. 


This book focuses on the nursing student, Agatha. She is in the middle of getting her nursing education when her life gets flipped upside down. She meets a boy on the streets named Dodger, who is part of Oliver Twists gang.  These two oddballs form a friendship which in turns leads Dodger down a crazy path and he ends up in the middle of the drama around bio-mechanicals. Danger comes to both Dodger and Agatha which leads to their paths being forever intertwined. 

This was a very interesting read. I really love the world that the author has built for us in these books. The concept behind bio-mechanicals is very interesting and leaves lots to debate. This story really brings in some more morality questions. Which I love. I do enjoy reading books that delve into the moral gray lines of humanity. 

The setting and the tone were perfect in this read. I really felt I was there in the streets of England, in the doom and gloom of the poor side of town. The first book was more from the point of view of the privileged. This one was from the point of view of the struggling. 

I also enjoyed getting to know the complexity of all the characters. I think my favorite part of both reads was that all the characters have layers to them . This book revisits all the characters from the first book and really focuses on  Agatha. There are a slew of new characters too. One thing that I just love about the characters...all the girls are pretty dang strong, independent, fierce ladies.

The plot does thicken in this book and gets pretty serious. I feel there wasn't much of an ending so I am hoping there will be one more book in the future to close it all up. 

The only issue I found with this read was the pacing. The pacing really felt off for me. There were times I found myself easily distracted and a little bored then other times I was full on into the book and couldn't tell you what was going on around me. I hope the next book, if there is one, will not have this problem. However it's not enough to make me drop the series. I will for sure continue to read any future books. 

A good read. I did enjoy it. 

I'm the author of YA, graphic novels and novels for adults who still feel young, at least most of the time.
My latest books are Cadaver & Queen from Harlequin Teen, a Feminist Frankenstein meets Grey's Anatomy tale, and Mystik U from DC Comics, which features Zatanna and other magical characters in their first year at college.

My first novel, Till the Fat Lady Sings, is also about college and romance and eating disorders. (It was my thesis at Columbia University's MFA Program, where I felt like an outlier for liking comic books and romance as much as literature.) I was an editor at Vertigo, the mature/dark fantasy branch of DC Comics, before going freelance. (I've also written two hormonal werewolf books as Alisa Sheckley.)

I live in an old house in Rhinebeck, NY with my husband, my cat, and the occasional visiting skunk.