Eliana is a model citizen of the Island. She works as a weaver, living in the prestigious House of Webs. She also holds a secret – she can read and write – two things that are forbidden to the women of the Island. She can also dream – an ability that is forbidden of all residents by the mysterious Council. To dream is to be ostracized and cast out.

Much like the weaving she is so proficient at, Eliana has woven a web of protection around herself. The web begins to unravel though when an injured young woman is washed up on the shore outside the House of Webs. Unable to speak, the only clue to the girls’ identity is a tattoo on her palm. A tattoo in invisible ink that bears Eliana’s name.

The Weaver is the second novel by Emmi Itaranta. Like her first one, it takes place in a future dystopia where some unknown event has changed society. The resulting world is both familiar and yet also new to the reader. It is vast and yet it is tiny, much like the island where our story takes place.

Itaranta’s style of writing is very unique. Like the water that plays such an important role in her books, her prose has a kind of ebb and flow. We the reader are subjected to the push and pull of emotions by her words. We experience the highs and lows just as the characters do.

An engaging read, I found The Weaver to be imminently enjoyable. Much like Itaranta’s other book, I recommend it to my readers and look forward to seeing what she creates in the future.

Abigail Irene Garrett is a formidable and notorious woman. She drinks far too much and sleeps with married men. She has nothing but obligations. She is also a forensic sorceress, working for a Crown that has done little to win her loyalty.

Sebastien de Ulloa is a vampire. Incredibly old, he has forgotten his birth place and even the year he was born. What he does remember is the woman who made him what he is.

In a world where the sun never set on the British empire, and where the expansion of the American colonies was stopped by the war magic of the Iroquois; they are exiles in the new world and possibly its only hope for justice.

My dear readers, in the almost three years I have been writing this blog this is the first time I could not finish a book. Not because I ran out of time but because I found the book just that bad.

Told in a series of short stories, aside from the main characters there is little tying the novel together as a whole. Reading them, one almost has the feeling that the stories were written separately and only later were compiled together as a book. The tone is very inconsistent and quickly becomes irritating.

What irked me the most though was how flat I found the characters. With almost no characterization given, there is nothing to draw us to either Garrett or Ulloa. I found them to unfortunately be very one dimensional and bland. While the summary made them sound very interesting, upon reading the book I found the opposite to be true.

Looking at some of the other reviews on Goodreads, it would seem I am not alone with my dissatisfaction. New Amsterdam has a mixed bag of reviews.

While the concept showed great promise, the execution unfortunately falls flat. Steer clear of this one, dear readers.