I've recently become interested in fairy tale-centric stories and so FREE AGENT seemed like a good book to try. I loved the idea of a fairy godfather named Grimm and what it would be like to be traded into his employ but FREE AGENT didn't always hold my attention as much as I'd hoped. I've read some extremely positive reviews of the book, though, so perhaps my expectations were too high? Don't get me wrong, there are lots of good things in FREE AGENT. Much like INTO THE WOODS, this book explores the idea of what happens after wishes are granted, and shows us how they get granted in Marissa's world.
Sadly, despite an interesting premise, FREE AGENT fell very flat for me. It's a nice easy read but I wasn't overly captivated by Marissa's story. All of the usual elements are there but they didn't gel for me the way that the obviously have for other people. Despite that, there are parts of the book that I found admirable, the strongest being the world building. Nelson has created a very unique world for this series and I enjoyed exploring it as Marissa was sent on various missions. As a regular old human, Marissa needs Grimm's help to get into different realms but it's so wondrous that she is still captivated, even though she's been working as one of Grimm's agents for years. Nelson does a nice job of creating different environments and gives the reader a real sense of the different places that exist in the series. There was no unique elements in these worlds but the author does a nice job of putting them all together in an interesting way.
I also thought Marissa was an interesting protagonist, especially once you get her backstory. All of her memories before she started working for Grimm are obscured, at her own request, but it doesn't stop her from wondering, and eventually discovering why she asked to forget. It's tragic and fascinating and adds a lot of new levels to her character, which made her quite interesting to me. Unfortunately, the other characters weren't as compelling. They weren't bad in and of themselves but I didn't connect to them. They have some nice moments in FREE AGENT but I didn't feel like particularly invested in them.
I'd like to stress that there's nothing inherently wrong with FREE AGENT -- it just wasn't for me. I'd suggest reading the excerpt below to see if FREE AGENT is for you. It wasn't my cup of tea but I think that it might appeal to folks who are interested in stories that revolve around fairy tales.
Sorry this book didn't work out for you. Hopefully, you'll have better luck with your next selection.
ReplyDeleteI have seen this book around, and am drawn to the blurb, even though I am not really a fairy tale fan. I think I will wait for book 2 or 3 to come out to decide if it is for me. I am sorry this one was not for you.
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