I read a fair amount of serious / literary / thinky fiction and non-fiction, but I am also an avid reader of more relaxing, lightweight books, under the overarching umbrella that can best be described as "cosy". I read cosy crime, cosy mainstream fiction, cosy fantasy, cosy adventure, and (rarely, but occasionally) cosy romances. Sometimes that is what my brain and heart needs, and I'm more than OK with that.
That said, even within the category of "cosy", there are good books and less-good books. I don't assess them on literary merit, but I do look for fresh, original and lively writing, vivid characters, engaging stories, and good pacing. I don't tend to enjoy stilted, shallow or excessively derivative writing, even in my cosy reading life.
In January so far, I have read three cosies - two mysteries in the same series, and a cosy fantasy. To my mind, the mysteries were very successful examples of a great cosy, whereas the fantasy book really missed the mark. Let me explain!
This book was really fun to read, and extremely engaging, enhanced I think by the writer's use of the present tense. Hampson's descriptive game is top-notch, and her vivid evocation of places and people is a huge strength of this story.
The loving and careful detail with which Hampson paints the scene of the 60s Sydney rag trade setting worked so well, and I was fascinated by the social history embedded in the story. The main plot was straightforward but nicely deployed, and the B-plot was a strong support to both the character development and the action as a whole.
I absolutely loved the tea ladies (Hazel in particular, of course, but I also have a huge soft spot for Irene). It's not easy to write characters like this without falling back on stereotype, but Hampson really pulls it off - all four of the main tea ladies are recognisable *types* without being flat or one-dimensional.
Overall, for the type of book this was setting out to be, it was a triumphant success. Comfortable 8.5/10 for me.
The second in the Tea Ladies series, The Cryptic Clue picks up where the first book left off and delivers another crackingly good read. The main plot is just as good, arguably better, than in the first book, although the two B-plots suffered a bit from neglect (particularly the treasure hunt plot, which I thought ended a little disappointingly).
The picture that Hampson provides of the dying days of a profession - in this case, tea ladies - is really powerful and quite poignant, and delivered convincingly within the strands of the conspiracy story. Hazel goes from strength to strength as a protagonist, and I so enjoyed both Betty and Irene in this one - Hampson really had fun with both of them, and it shows.
There's a third book due out this year, and I'll be keeping my eyes peeled for it! This one was another 8.5/10 for me.
I saw another reviewer of this book say something along the lines of "can a cosy fantasy be TOO cosy? Apparently the answer is yes" and that more or less sums up why I found this book disappointing. The plot is so bog-standard predictable that it got quite boring, the world-building is shallow and unoriginal, the characters are flat, derivative and mostly one-note, and above all, there were never any genuine stakes. You'd think that a runaway fortune teller and a lost child would have set up the potential for some genuine narrative tension, but as it turned out, no, there was none whatsoever. The ending in particular was quite cringey, with the over-fulsome reconciliation with Tao's mother, the damp squib of a showdown that wasn't with the Guild, and the complete removal of all dangers and stresses from every single character. I mean yes, I like a happy ending as much as the next person, but ...
The other thing that irritated me was how very obviously the writer was drawing on fantasy greats to provide the template for her characters, her dialogue, and aspect of her world. The most blatant of these is Silt, whose very name is only one letter off Silk, the Eddings character he's blindingly obviously based on (Silt, however, is an anemic and dull copy, and I say that as someone who holds no brief for the Eddingses and their work). The influence of Becky Chambers and Lois McMaster Bujold is also palpable, but in a watered down, less effective way. (The gods being the Mother and the Sons? Come on now). The "found family" trope is an oldie but often a goodie, but for it to work, there just needs to be more investment in fleshing out the characters, and giving them genuine flaws and growth arcs. Here, it falls flat because with the possible exception of Tao, I didn't read any of the characters as anything other than walking D&D roles (Warrior, Thief, Quirky Innocent Abroad).
This all makes it sound like there was nothing at all in this book to like, which is not quite accurate. It was a relaxing and quick read, probably because it was so obvious so early that nothing traumatic was going to happen to any of the characters, including our hapless protagonist Tao. I enjoyed the concept and execution of the telling of small fortunes, and would have liked to see this expanded in the plot. The writer has decent technical skills and there are a few nice descriptive passages.
Overall, though, I think it didn't meet its potential, and I wouldn't recommend it, although if you are looking for a very low-stakes cosy book for a flight or to read on a beach, it might hit that spot. 5/10 for me.
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