Curioddity: A Novel by Paul Jenkins Pages: 320
Published by St. Martin's Press on August 30, 2016
Genres: adult, Action & Adventure
Source: eARC from Publisher
Will Morgan is a creature of habit―a low-budget insurance detective who walks to and from work with the flow of one-way traffic, and for whom imagination is a thing of the distant past.
When a job opportunity enters the frame in the form of the mysterious Mr. Dinsdale―curator of the ever so slightly less-than-impressive Curioddity Museum―Will reluctantly accepts the task of finding a missing box of levity (the opposite of gravity).
What he soon learns, however, is that there is another world out there―a world of magic we can only see by learning to un-look at things―and in this world there are people who want to close the Curioddity museum down. With the help of his eccentric new girlfriend Lucy, Will will do everything he can to deliver on his promise to help Mr. Dinsdale keep the Curioddity Museum in business.
Curioddity is Paul Jenkins’ debut novel... exciting, fast-paced, and uncanny. A must-read.
Curioddity is a fantasy novel by Paul Jenkins. I had a lot of fun with this book. Don’t get me wrong, this book is downright weird at times, but it was a lot of fun to read. The main character Will, is a detective that never really gets to do much detective work. He finds himself at the Curioddity Museum, and lands himself the job of trying to save the museum. The Curioddity museum reminded me a bit of warehouse 13 (sci-fi tv show, which is awesome), but the writing and the zany situations and characters reminded me much more of Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. I think fans of that book will really enjoy Curioddity.
I would love to wander the halls of the Curioddity museum. There are a mixture of crazy contraptions (that make for some pretty hilarious scenes) some other world-y things, like Levity (the opposite of gravity) and some cool historic relics that have magical properties (this is what reminded me of warehouse 13- if you like that idea, you need to watch that show! It’s on netflix).
Curioddity is a book that certainly has it’s slower moments, but I think that is mostly because Paul Jenkins really focuses on character development. You get to know who Will is. Who he really is. you get to see his inner struggles and see why his job wears on him. I enjoyed getting to know him as a character, and I think Paul Jenkins has done a great job creating someone who can star in tons of sequels and series. Will is a great guy to follow from book to book. I hope that is what happens with Curioddity.
Bottom line: if you like zany books, with strong character development, lots of funny scenes and more than a few weird- off the wall moments, Curioddity is a book that you will enjoy. I certainly didn’t know what to make of it a lot of the time. it kept me on my toes, and I think that was my favorite part. Fans of The Hitchiker’s Guide to the Galaxy will really enjoy detective Will Morgan and the curioddity museum.
Brooke Banks
Another great review, I’ll have to check this out.
Stormi Johnson
This sounds fun. 🙂
danielle hammelef
I love “zany” books and weird stuff like what is at the museum. I would definitely go and see this place. Thaks for the review–I’m going to try and find a copy of this book–not just for me, but to pass along to my husband (he adores Hitchhiker’s Guide) and daughters.