I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Ordinary Monsters by J.M. Miro Series: The Talents Trilogy #1
Published by Flatiron Books on June 7 2022
Genres: Adult, Fantasy, Historical fantasy
Pages: 672
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
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The nitty-gritty: A dark fantasy world, compelling characters a lively plot combine in this beautifully written and executed series opener.
I usually hesitate when it comes to long books, as I haven’t had a very good track record finishing them. Also, as a review blogger, I want to read and review as many books as I can, and taking the time to read anything over five hundred pages limits the amount of books I can read each month. But I’m very glad I decided to tackle Ordinary Monsters, which turned out to be anything but a hardship. From the very first page I fell into J.M. Miro’s seductively dark tale about a group of children with special abilities and the adults who either try to keep them safe—or try to destroy them.
The story takes place in 1882 and centers around the Cairndale Institute, a school for children with special abilities called talents. Located in a remote part of Scotland, members of the Institute search the world for these children and bring them to Cairndale to keep them safe. Ordinary Monsters follows several key characters: Charlie Ovid, a teenager who cannot be killed—his body repairs itself every time he’s injured; Marlowe, a young boy with a mysterious past whose skin glows with a blue light; Alice Quicke, a private detective hired by the institute to find Marlowe; Margaret Harrogate who runs the London office of Cairndale; Dr. Berghast, the man in charge of the Institute with his own, nefarious agenda; and Jacob Marber, who used to be a talent but has been seduced by a dangerous monster called a drughr.
Within the walls of Cairndale lies a magical doorway to the world of the dead, protected by a creature called a glyphic, and the doorway must remain shut at all costs. But someone is trying to open it and bring about the ruin of the Institute and all the talents who live there…
I absolutely loved Miro’s writing, which is lush and evocative without tipping over into purple prose territory. Because the story is set in the Victorian time period and takes place London (as well as other locations), Miro does a great job of evoking the squalor and desperation of the poor, the grittiness of the streets, and the horrible lives of those without status or the means to survive. And for such a long book, I thought the pacing was pretty solid. Even though the story is intricately plotted, and the author spends time digging into each character’s backstory, the pace never suffered during these moments. I was so riveted by every detail of the characters’ lives and each bit of world-building that the pages flew by much faster than I expected.
Some of the world-building elements feel very familiar, and I guarantee you’ll be reminded of other stories as you read this book. There are shades of X-Men, with the school for special children; there’s a mysterious ring that was never explained in this book but I suspect will be addressed in future installments, which reminded me a bit of Lord of the Rings. And late in the story we learn about a magical glove that two of the characters are tasked with finding, which really reminded me of the Glove of Myhnegon from Buffy, even down to the spikes that are triggered when you put it on. But there are also some wonderful elements that felt fresh and new, one of my favorites being the keywrasse, a magical weapon that can destroy the drughr. The keywrasse is trapped within two old key-like objects called weir-bents and can only be released when the weir-bents are activated. Alice forms an affinity with the keywrasse, and you guys I loved the keywrasse so much! I’m hoping we get to see it in the next book.
But let’s talk about the characters, because they are pretty special. First you have the kids who are brought to Cairndale for protection, but of course Cairndale turns out to be just as dangerous as the rest of the world. The story mostly focuses on Marlowe and Charlie, but we also meet Komako, Oskar and Ribs, three other kids who are already at the Institute when Marlowe and Charlie arrive. Together these five form a tight-knit group who decide to strike out on their own to investigate the truth. I loved this little gang, which (once again) reminded me so much of the kids in Stranger Things: Mike, Will, Max, Steve, Dustin and Lucas. I also loved Alice Quicke and Margaret Harrogate, who have their own adventures, a wonderful character named Brynt who cares for Marlowe in the beginning of the story, the blind governess Mrs. Davenshaw, and Mr. Thorpe the glyphic, the spider-like creature who protects the orsine. Even the bad guy, Jacob Marber, has a tragic backstory that made me feel sorry for him—and he’s not a very nice man, so I thought it was well done.
Most of the story is told in the present, but the author uses flashbacks to fill in the characters’ backstories, which gave the story a nice richness and depth. For example, we learn that Komako lived in Tokyo before being discovered and brought to Carindale. She and her sister were orphans but were allowed to live in a theater, provided they helped with chores. Alice Quicke grew up on the streets of London and was taught how to be a pickpocket, a skill that shaped her adult career as a detective. Jacob’s story was one of my favorites, since his past involves Marlowe in some very interesting ways. As much as I loved the magical aspects in Ordinary Monsters, I found the characters and their tangled lives to be the backbone of the story.
There are plenty of thrilling action sequences as well. The stakes are quite high throughout, and I was surprised to find the author could write pulse-pounding chase scenes just as well as he developed the setting and characters. One of my favorite scenes takes place on a train, and I could not turn the pages fast enough!
Overall, I was so impressed with Ordinary Monsters. The ending made me anxious for the next book in the series, which as far as I know has not yet been announced. If you love dark fantasy and appreciate a skillfully written book, I suggest checking out this series opener as soon as possible.
Big thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy.
Amazing review, Tammy! I absolutely love that it has vibes of X-Men, Lord of the Rings, AND BUFFY. It sounds so good and I loooove a good dark fantasy!
Stephanie @ Bookfever recently posted…It’s Monday! What are You Reading?
The Buffy comparison might just be a coincidence, but I really hope the author did it on purpose:-)
I couldn’t find anything else by Miro. It must be a debut. Good for Miro!
Priscilla Bettis recently posted…The Most Haunted House in America
I’m pretty sure J.M. Miro is a pseudonym for an established literary writer, but I haven’t done enough research to know for sure. It’s definitely not a debut, it’s so well written:-)
This sounds like a truly engrossing read even though it’s something of a door-stopper: like you, I try not to let myself be ensnared by “big” books to the detriment of others, but you made Ordinary Monsters look too good to be ignored…
Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Maddalena@spaceandsorcery recently posted…OGRES, by Adrian Tchaikovsky
I’m glad I made the effort and wasn’t scared off by the page count:-)
Excellent review!! I loved the weird magical items, especially the keywrasse – I hope it appears in the sequel!
I adored the keywrasse! I feel like it’s going to return at some point:-)
Oh wow, this sounds great! I’ve been mostly shying away from longer books lately, but I think you’ve convinced me that I should give this one a try. Great review!
It’s definitely worth it, especially if you love historical fantasy:-)
I just finished this one as well (review coming!) and I enjoyed it for a lot of the same reasons. I didn’t feel quite the depth of connection with the characters that I wanted, but the vibe and action were *on point.*
I will look for your review!
Robin reviewed this one. I’m glad you enjoyed it so much.
Anne – Books of My Heart recently posted… Ordinary Monsters by JM Miro
It was a pleasant surprise:-)
I very much like how you were reminded of several other franchises (X-Men, LotR, Buffy, Stranger Things) without appearing to be disappointed at how derivative this was, but instead excited at the inspiration it might have taken from these other works you’ve enjoyed. I think that can add a really nice extra layer to a book.
Sometimes books that rely on other ideas feel derivative but the similarities were subtle enough here that they felt more like paying tribute:-)
I’m over 100 pages in this book and it’s one of the best historical fantasy books of this year! Excellent review!
I’m so glad you love it too!
I was a little put off at first when I saw it was 672 pages long but it sounds wonderful! Loving your comparisons to X-Men, Buffy, and LOTR too.
I really did just “fall into the story,” it was so good!
I like big books, but they can be intimidating (I am currently reading Dragon Mage and I waited so long before starting it because it is a pretty scary book! All those pages, and the sheer weight to add to the fact that it would take so much time to read and all the other books that are waiting their turn would have to wait even more!!) and they sure require some commitment!!
But this one sounds intriguing! The characters sounds like really worth meeting and the magical and strange things of this world sounds awesome!!
This is a big book worth taking time for!
Oh wow- kids with powers, the institute, Scotland… this is pushing my buttons lol.
The train sequence sounds fabulous. Definitely going to add this.
Greg recently posted…Tuesday Tagline #215
It’s so good, definitely read it if you can:-)
OK, this sounds like a fantastic read, if somewhat on the long side… but hey, it’s Summer and I have lots of time – so I will give it a try 🙂
Carla Corelli recently posted…How to Define a Narcissist: The 5 Traits You Need to Look Out For
I usually won’t touch long books like this, but I’m glad I read this!
I’ve been so curious about this one, so I’m happy you reviewed it. And all you’ve said greatly appeals to me, so I’ll def add it to my TBR.
I think you’d love it. Very polished and well done in every aspect:-)
I really, really want this book in my life.
Lynn 😀
You need it, Lynn. I think you’d love it.
It’s such a long book! I confess, that was the reason this was on my maybe pile, but after your review, I might bump it up to a must 🙂
This sounds really good, but since it is a long book like you say, I can tell you I probably won’t ever pick it up. But, now I can recommend to people I know who would love it! Great review!
Lisa Mandina (Lisa Loves Literature) recently posted…Discussion Post: Would I Lie To You or Have You Ever Reviewed a Book You Didn’t Actually Finish?