[Review: The Unnaturalists by Tiffany Trent]

"The Unnaturalists"
Author: Tiffany Trent
Series: The Unnaturalists #1
Pages: 305
Genre: YA, Alternate History, Steampunk, Paramornal
Date Published: August 14th, 2012
Publisher: Simon & Schuster BFYR
Format Read: Hardcover from the library

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Summary:

 In an alternate London where magical creatures are preserved in a museum, two teens find themselves caught in a web of intrigue, deception, and danger.

Vespa Nyx wants nothing more than to spend the rest of her life cataloging Unnatural creatures in her father’s museum, but as she gets older, the requirement to become a lady and find a husband is looming large. Syrus Reed’s Tinker family has always served and revered the Unnaturals from afar, but when his family is captured to be refinery slaves, he finds that his fate may be bound up with Vespa’s—and with the Unnaturals.

As the danger grows, Vespa and Syrus find themselves in a tightening web of deception and intrigue. At stake may be the fate of New London—and the world.

-Goodreads

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My Thoughts:

The Unnaturalists is one of those books that pulls you in with it's world building, giving you a world that is so well imagined that you want to know more about it, but that's not all.  By the time you reach the end of the book you also can't help caring about the characters and the adventure that they've included you in.  I have to admit that the beginning was a bit slow for me, but once I got a bit more into the story I couldn't wait to find out what the epic conclusion was going to be.

Trent has re imagined London and given it a new life.  Magic and science battle it out for their rightful place in the world and lies and deceit keep you on your toes as the story unfolds.  The Museum of Natural History turns into The Museum of Unnatural History and the saints that the New Londoners pray to are the great scientists of the ages.  It's an interesting concept and Trent plays it off wonderfully.  It's the way that she weaves the story together and isn't shy about throwing death in your face that keeps you interested in her new version of London.

The story is told from two points of view in third person, which really worked in this novel.  Both Vespa and Syrus have strong voices and equally large roles to play in the unraveling of the plot.  Neither of them is all that rich, but Vespa has the upper hand there.  As the only daughter of a scientist and owner of a museum, she has a decent social standing.  It also means that she has been raised to fear magic and worship science.  Syrus on the other hand is a vagabond and a thief, raised to revere and protect magic and the creatures that hold it.  I enjoyed their interactions when they happened.  Trent's world not only plays with magic vs science but also the class system and her use of her two main characters helped her out in displaying how the classes interact.  

Trent's characters are interesting.  Along with all of the humans that run around New London she also gives a voice to the Unnaturals (the magical creatures).  Piskel was one of my favorite small characters (and I don't just call him small cause he's a sprite).  He had so much attitude even though you never got to hear the words that came out of his mouth.  He became a loyal pal to Vespa, Syrus and Hal.  And Hal, he's one of my favorite characters in the whole book.  Trent never lets you know who her characters really are and I loved how she used Hal throughout the book.  

There isn't really much more I can tell you about The Unnaturalists without giving away the secrets that Trent has taken such great care to hide within the pages.  So I'll leave it up to you to dive into this wholly imagined world, to meet these characters that will stay with you and to go on one heck of a beautiful adventure. 

Rating:

 4 Unicorns = Close to perfect!