Book Review: Middlegame by Seanan McGuire (Fantasy)

Title: Middlegame
Author: Seanan McGuire
Publisher: Tor
Publication Date: 7 May 2019
Pages: 448
Format: eBook - EPUB
Genre: Fantasy
Source: ARC via NetGalley
 




Meet Roger. Skilled with words, languages come easily to him. He instinctively understands how the world works through the power of story.

Meet Dodger, his twin. Numbers are her world, her obsession, her everything. All she understands, she does so through the power of math.

Roger and Dodger aren’t exactly human, though they don’t realise it. They aren’t exactly gods, either. Not entirely. Not yet.

Meet Reed, skilled in the alchemical arts like his progenitor before him. Reed created Dodger and her brother. He’s not their father. Not quite. But he has a plan: to raise the twins to the highest power, to ascend with them and claim their authority as his own.

Godhood is attainable. Pray it isn’t attained.


Middlegame was a fascinating read on many levels. The intricately woven plot took some concentration to navigate, but the characters were well presented and engaging, and I really came to care about them as the story progressed. I had expected to prefer Roger, since I'm a 'word person' myself. However, I actually found I related more to Dodger, due to some of her personality quirks. I enjoyed the fairy tale-like elements woven into the narrative, mingling with the science in a way that spoke of the alchemy driving the story. There was some stunning imagery too; although, I almost wish I could have read the fake children's books mentioned in their entirety first, to better follow the symbolism. The brief excerpts we were given from them sounded really intriguing. As a book that requires some attention and deep thought, this may not appeal to all readers. However, if you are looking for a story both captivating and thought provoking, you should definitely give Middlegame a try. Just keep an eye on the timeline notes under the chapter headings, so you know when and where you are. 4.5 stars