Book Review: Far Rockaway by Charlie Fletcher, or Merciful Heavens, but this was a GREAT BOOK…

So I just finished Far Rockaway by Charlie Fletcher. As I mentioned recently, I think Fletcher is a vastly underrated author. His Oversight trilogy (two of the three are currently available) was incredible and based on them, I picked this one up. I was hooked by the description as much as my enjoyment of the previous books – I’m a fanatic for books about books, and especially books about getting lost in books. This was an absolutely incredible adventure for that, and one I cannot recommend highly enough for anyone who loves a truly magical story. The writing was great – fast-paced, great characterization, fantastic and memorable quotes that deliver lessons without being lesson-y (I’ve told you how I love that too)… Without spoilers, it’s hard to give you too much detail, so what I’m going to do instead is tease you with quotes (teehee). If these aren’t enough to peak your interest, I’m going to have to wash my hands of you… (No, really.)

• “The bit of her that stood outside herself knew she should be scared and disoriented. What kep her anchored and stopped her ballooning off into the gusts of panic swirling in from the back of her mind was the fact that this forest-that-was-not-the-hospital was not merely any forest; it was just familiar enough to hold on to. But at the same time that in itself was utterly weird, and not because of her inexplicable presence in the middle of it. It was weird because she knew two things at once about it that were definitely true and yet most definitely contradictory: she knew she’d been in these woods before, smelled this smell, seen this green and heard this silence; and she also knew for certain that it was a forest in which she had never, ever set foot.”
• “If you can’t see the angle, play it straight.”
• “The one stone truth about being indecisive is you end up somewhere you never chose to be, and who wants to be there?”
• “Death did not come for Victor.
  Death does not come for anyone.
  People who write stories try to put a face on it by saying it does, but if you’ve ever been lucky enough to be there when someone dies, you know the truth: nothing comes, there’s no Grim Reaper, no scythes, no terror. There’s neither flutter of black wings nor rush of shadows nor any melodramatic falling swirl of violins or indeed any suddenly approaching spot of pure light coming to swallow you up.
  You just go.
  It’s as simple and undramatic as walking out of the room. It’s not freaky or frightening, and perhaps the most surprising thing is that it turns out to be the most ordinary thing in the world. And why wouldn’t it be?
  Everybody does it.”
• “Real girls rescue themselves.”

If you’ve read it, let me know what you think – ditto if you pick it up. And I’m curious for thoughts on the Stoneheart books too – I must admit, I am struggling a bit to get sucked into the first one (despite having been pulled hard and fast into the others of his, ala catapult or zip-line) and am hoping it’s just either a slow-start or not the right book for me on this particular day… Of course, I’m also curious for feedback because I’d like to know if anyone’s actually out there [out there…out there…out there…] Happy reading!