The Cartographers

by , , , , , , ,

Unabridged

English language

Published March 15, 2022 by HarperAudio.

ISBN:
978-0-06-309653-0
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3 stars (8 reviews)

Nell Young's whole life and greatest passion is cartography. Her father, Dr. Daniel Young, is a legend in the field and Nell's personal hero. but she hasn't seen or spoken to him ever since he cruelly fired her and destroyed her reputation after an argument over an old, cheap gas station highway map. but when Dr. Young is found dead in his office at the New Your Public Library, with the very same seemingly worthless map hidden in his desk, Nell can't resist investigating. To her surprise, she soon discovers that the map is incredibly valuable and exceedingly rare. in fact, she may now have the only copy left in existence..... because a mysterious collector has been hunting down and destroying every last one-along with any who gets in the way. But why? To answer that question, Nell embarks on a dangerous journey to reveal a dark family secret and …

8 editions

reviewed The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd

The twist makes it.

3 stars

The characters are a bit thin, there's a romantic subplot that doesn't really go anywhere or do anything, and the first half of the book is thankfully a quick read for how little is going on. The back half, after the twist is revealed, is much more compelling and is probably best enjoyed in a single sitting. Some characters are much more fleshed out, and the developing intrigue mixed with the dramatic irony (you can totally tell who the villain is before they ever reveal themselves) makes every page gripping and a little heart-wrenching. I was filled with thoughts like "is the antagonist going to show their hand now" and the twist was so out of left field given the otherwise rather mundane nature of the setting it genuinely took me by surprise. Glad I read it, and though I won't be reading it again, I'm excited to talk about …

reviewed The Cartographers by Jason Culp

I was sufficiently entertained

No rating

It has its boring parts, it's hard to believe parts, it's predictable parts, it's too much parts, but I don't care, I like it. There's maps and map nerds.

I was wondering for a while if it'd go to a supernatural direction and whether I'd enjoy it more if it did or didn't. When I found out the way it went was fine with me :)

reviewed The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd

Hit and miss

3 stars

The description of some of the things in this novel, e.g. academic life, large corporations and search algorithms seem a little off, as if the author didn't actually know how they work. Unfortunately, some play a bigger role in the story. If you can suspend your disbelief about those the hunt for the mystery is exciting once the pace takes up. I did guess the main villain halfway through, though. While there are some ponderings about the purpose of maps the project one of the characters is working on - a map of everything - only gets a cursory treatment. It could have merited a book of its own.

reviewed The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd

nothing about this is right

2 stars

I’ve already hooted and hollered about the many ridiculous things the book gets wrong about libraries and academia and I won’t rehash (although ffs if you’re going to write a book revolving around these key details, why wouldn’t you think you need to actually learn about them?!). But even beyond that, this just doesn’t work. Like, the premise of why the murderer wants to do the murdering? Nonsensical. I stand by my appreciation of the romance plot. And I do like the idea of magical maps etc etc. But those are the only reasons this isn’t a one-star review.

reviewed The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd

Spannender Thriller mit interessanter Prämisse

4 stars

Für mich hat das Thema “Raum” schon länger eine besondere Faszination – und damit natürlich auch Karten. Daher ist Peng Shepherds Roman über eine junge Kartographin, die Familiengeheimnis enthüllt, wie gemacht für mich.

Im Mittelpunkt steht dabei eine einfache Karte aus den 1930er Jahren – eine der ersten, die für den aufkommenden privaten Autoverkehr gedacht waren. Die Hauptfigur Nell findet diese in einem Versteck ihres Vaters, nachdem dieser auf mysteriöse Weise umgebracht wurde. Schnell findet sie heraus, dass diese Karte viel wertvoller ist, als sie erscheint, und ein Geheimnis enthalten muss. Was dieses Geheimnis aber ist und wie eng es mit der Geschichte ihrer Familie verwoben ist, zeigt sich erst im Laufe der Geschichte.

The Cartographers ist in erster Linie eine Kombination aus spannendem Thriller und Familiendrama. Als solcher ist er genauso flott wie unterhaltsam erzählt und lässt sich wunderbar “weglesen”. Im Kern der Handlung liegt eine kleine Besonderheit aus …

reviewed The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd

nothing about this is right

2 stars

I’ve already hooted and hollered about the many ridiculous things the book gets wrong about libraries and academia and I won’t rehash (although ffs if you’re going to write a book revolving around these key details, why wouldn’t you think you need to actually learn about them?!). But even beyond that, this just doesn’t work. Like, the premise of why the murderer wants to do the murdering? Nonsensical. I stand by my appreciation of the romance plot. And I do like the idea of magical maps etc etc. But those are the only reasons this isn’t a one-star review.

reviewed The Cartographers by Jason Culp

the cartographers

2 stars

Great setup, poor execution. Repeatedly suffers from "the only reason for X is because otherwise the story would be over". The alternate narration sections are wonderful, but the tenses and precision disqualify them as the stories told to the protagonist that they're supposed to be. The magic system in ingenious, but has elements that are sometimes critical to the plot and sometimes ignored and discarded, and this is never explained. From the beginning, the reader is beat over the head with information meant to be part of the penultimate reveal, such that it's infuriating to watch the characters somehow get taken by surprise. Characters are reckless and unimaginative, only to have their decisions described as careful and creative. I'm mad that such a fantastic idea for a story received a treatment so ham-slap-dash-handed.

avatar for FredJohansen

rated it

5 stars

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