Review: Double Life (Razia, #1)
EricMesa
- 2 minutes read - 258 words
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I met Ms. Usher Evans at Baltimore Comic-Con a year or two ago and she is a very prolific author. If any particular book of yours isn’t your cup of tea, you can try another - she has magical school YA, fantasy, and SF as well as others. This book is one of her science fiction books.
I like the character Ms. Evans makes with Razia/Lyssa. By changing the context I’m used to, changed the way I look at dual identities in another medium - the superhero story. Her struggles are also quite relevant in the current moment in which MAYBE we might finally be working towards a more equitable work environment for women. Her internal monologue is pretty realistic as are her interactions with others.
I think where the book fell short for me was in the pacing. The book pretty quickly introduces us to Razia/Lyssa’s skills, shortcomings, and challenges. Then spends most of the rest of the book without the stakes rising or falling significantly. There isn’t really a climax to this story, just a couple hills in place of what should be a mountain, figuratively. I don’t know if it’s because it was a planned trilogy or just one of Ms. Evans’ earlier novels, but I just found myself wondering when things would pick up.
I’m not soured on Ms. Evans’ writing; I’d like to check out some of her other series. But I think I’m done with Razia.