Troubles again! Unfortunately, Mosca Mye, Eponymous Clent and the goose Saracen have run into so many complications with their latest scheme that they’ve run through the first, second, and third back-up plans.

“Quaternary plan!’ gasped Clent. ‘Creative panic!'”

But at least Saracen is on their side, although Mosca needs to be cautioned by Clent against unleashing the power of the goose. “‘Be it even so, now is the time for calm calculation… and not for sending your web-footed apocalypse on a one-goose rampage…'”

The story begins with Saracen, who has been holding a village hostage with his belligerent behavior, and indirectly, Clent and Mosca for the damages he’s caused.

“Saracen, who had been swaggering to and fro in some uncertainty, was delighted to see Mosca on her feet and screaming at somebody. At last he knew how to choose his enemy. There was a froth of white wings, and a splash…”

I must say how much I love the irascible, bullying goose. Hardinge is particularly clever in avian characterization, keeping him very goose-like and leaving the details of his skirmishes behind flying feathers and howls of anguish. I suspect I find him particularly amusing because I have a Saracen of my own, an Amazon parrot that occasionally struts across the floor (he can fly, but for some reason chooses to walk during these little displays, perhaps the better to parade), bound for the lower rungs of a desk chair that he considers a back-up lair. Woe betide any toes or unsuspecting ankles coming to use the computer. Once, my mother complained she had to climb on top of the chair to escape after being subjected to his bloody ambush. I could only laugh–there is something so absurd about the power of 800 grams holding 60 kilograms hostage. David and Goliath, indeed. I share that anecdote to say that Hardinge captures that avian swagger well, and if she is exaggerating, it is likely by only a little.

So the quick sum is that Mosca and Clent are in a hard spot after leaving Mandelion, Clent particularly so as he languishes in debtor’s prison. Mosca takes a scribe job to earn enough coin for bail, but is caught in a double-cross. She’s resourceful, however, and after aid from an old acquaintance, they make haste for the open road. Unfortunately, the choice of destination is somewhat limited by Clent’s reputation, so they find themselves headed toward the town of Toll, a gateway to the eastern counties. Toll is very unusual, for more than just their critical control of the only bridge spanning a gorge that divides the country. They’ve made a science of the many little gods, and have assigned ‘dayshift’ or ‘nightshift’ to each one based on their characteristics. Unfortunately, they’ve also done the same to people, since people are named after the god in ascendance during their birth. Clent and Mosca have three days to come up with enough money to pay the exit fees to leave Toll, or they’ll be permanently assigned–Clent to the day, Mosca to the night. The main story takes place in Toll, where there’s thievery, love, duplicity, dungeons, damsels in distress, the strange habits of the inhabitants at dawn and dusk, and, of course, rebellion.

“‘Just between you and me,’ Mosca whispered, ‘radicalism is all about walkin’ on the grass.'”

Plotting is more singly focused than Fly by Night; the chief goal is to escape Toll, and action is centered around a strategy to earn money. When I was nice and settled into the plot, Hardinge again surprised, managing a clever plot twist as well as a completely satisfactory ending, even when I wasn’t sure it could be done.

Hardinge continues to impress with her imagination, both in setting and in word-smithing. She does amazing things with the town geography, and I can’t help but imagine a movie based on such a vision. I like the characterization; Clent and Mosca are so layered they achieve a rare dimensionality. Clent, in particular, shows the disenchanted but resigned acceptance adulthood often brings, while Mosca remains full of passion and youthful ideas of right and wrong. Perhaps my only complaint is an emphasis on Mosca’s irritable disposition; while it is usually connected to feelings of justice, her contrariness started to feel a little repetitive. I missed the Mosca that was filled with joy from words, learning and discovery of the larger world.

Hardinge still has a way with words, a playfulness that has me smiling as I read:

“‘So… the doors have been blocked.’ Clent was clearly becoming uneasy. ‘Plague, possibly. Or giant rats…’ He was blinking rapidly, as if his eyes had noticed that his words were not improving morale and were desperately signaling to his mouth to stop moving.”

“When she was at last woken by a young ostler politely and carefully stepping on her head in his attempts to rake out the dead coals…”

“A couple of expressions pulled Clent’s face to a fro between them, like puppies trying to fight their way out of a bag.”

Thematically, there is an interesting and indirect exploration of the power of names and the accident of birth. It leads to an even more interesting exploration of the power of social pressure–do you believe the expectations society ascribes to you because of class? Rise or sink to the occasion? I enjoyed the way Hardinge explores the issue without becoming pedantic or making Mosca into a straw-girl for an Important Life Lesson.

Overall, a great read that was highly satisfying on a number of levels. Hardinge’s made herself a spot on my ‘must-read’ authors.

Four-and-a-half golden eggs sassy geese
http://clsiewert.wordpress.com/2013/11/13/fly-trap-by-frances-hardinge/ ( )

Twilight Robbery, apparently titled Fly Trap in the USA, is a long and complex tale set in an alternative Eighteenth century/early Victorian England. I was reminded very early on of Joan Aiken's series for children published in the 1960s and 1970s set in a similar alternative world and centred around a streetwise orphan named Dido Twite, and wonder if it is the author's homage to that.

The main character, a 12-year-old girl named Mosca Mye, is a scrawny, streetwise orphaned urchin with a propensity for getting involved in local politics and causing dramatic changes in the towns in which she finds herself. She has a pet goose which occasionally causes mayhem, although I worked out its role in this story as soon as the big heist that occurs in a mad blend of Keystone Kops and pantomime goes drastically wrong.

It was quite near the beginning of the story that this is not a standalone book and that momentous events had occurred earlier, but, as they are explained in several bits of exposition throughout, there was no requirement to halt and read Fly by Night first. The current story is very ingenious with the nicely novel idea of 'Beloveds' - gods that rule every hour of every day, so that if someone is born at a particular time and date they come under that deity and are given a name ruled by them. This also dictates how other people see a person regardless of what that person is really like. Because of the way in which everyone is bound up in their Beloved, no one can lie about their name - even Mosca, who is starting to doubt that Beloveds actually exist - which is rather tricky when trying to avoid the fallout from one's previous activities. Mosca and the con man with whom she travels, Eponymous Clent, have made enemies and there is a reward out on Clent due to his previous cons.

To escape this 'heat', they travel to a town called Toll, which controls the only way across a dangerous river gorge, and steal the means to enter, but then have only three days as visitors in which to try to get the fee to escape on the farside. To make matters worse, Mosca was born under a nightime Beloved, so is treated with contempt and distrust, and will become a permanent resident of the nightime town if she and Clent cannot raise the exit fee. They attempt to do so by tipping off the subject of a kidnap plot- Mosca has already nearly lost her life to the would-be kidnappers - but everything that can go wrong does, and the two are soon embroiled in umpteen hidden agendas, plots and conspiracies. At one point, I thought I had spotted a dramatic inconsistency when a villain acted against his own best interest, but it turned out to be deliberate clue and I still didn't guess the actual major plot twist.

The book is written in a lively wry tone and develops the characters well, including minor ones such as the midwife who helps Mosca. There are some great names especially of the various Beloveds and their attributes and the author obviously enjoys the word play. There are lots of twists and turns, with conspiracy, spies, plots within plots, and a town which is under a protection racket and literally changes as dusk falls, with false fronts hiding buildings or creating or shutting off roads. The question of identity is a big theme due to the total predetermination of one's natal date and time and hence name.

I did find though that the story dragged a bit towards the end until it picked up again as the various plot strands came together. An enjoyable read, but I don't feel impelled to seek out book 1 which was adequately summarised in the backstory in this one, and for these reasons am rating this as a 4-star read. ( )

I thought this was much better than the first book. Less violent, for sure. ( )

I can't tell if this book is better or just as good as the first book, Fly By Night. It definitely matches the first one though, which is so great. Even better than that: we get to explore the world built up in the first book a bit more, focusing on the religion based on the Beloved and what it really means to be born under one or the other of these idols. The ability to read is not nearly as dangerous as being born under the time belonging to Goodman Palpitattle, He Who Keeps Flies out of Jams and Butter Churns, it turns out.

If you've read the first book, figuring out who is behind everything is not that hard, but honestly it didn't detract from the story at all. Even though I had my suspicions from early on, there were times when I started to doubt if I had the right idea after all. And there were other twists and turns (the book is as full of them as the first book) that I did not see coming.

All in all, so happy with this sequel. I don't want a happy ending, I want more story. ( )

Twilight Robbery takes up where Hardinge’s previous book Fly by Night ends. Mosca Mye, her travelling companion the poet and conman Eponymous Clent, and her warlike goose Saracen, are very much persona non grata in the city of Mandelion. They attempt to put as much distance between themselves and Mandelion as possible which means going through the town of Toll, which has the only bridge over the river Langfeather. On the way they accidentally overhear details of a plot to kidnap the adopted daughter of the mayor of Toll, and assume that revealing details of the plot will earn a reward from the Mayor. But the situation turns out to be much more complicated than first thought, and getting through Toll proved easier said than done. For Toll is an town with secrets, and much more dangerous than it first appears.

I’ve enjoyed all of Frances Hardinge’s books. Her first book Fly by Night (the prequel to Twilight Robbery) is probably my least favourite, but by Twilight Robbery she is starting to hit her stride, and this is a very enjoyable and innovative YA read. ( )