rosanicus

VERY up and down day today (read this very good book, might have finally succumbed to the novel coronavirus) but I did have a few thoughts to share on Worrals' first outing!

( Musings )

Of the three Worralses I've read I think this is a firm joint-first with War-Path, because the whole sequence with the sheep on the clifftop is absolute peak literature. I especially liked all the confined spaces Worrals and Frecks found themselves trapped in, and the fact that this book starts after Worrals has already been in the W.A.A.F for some time. I would definitely be interested in a Worrals Learns to Fly...

As mentioned I acquired my first ever Worrals during my adventures in London last Saturday, and having read it I can now confirm that I am 100% Team Worrals. She is a perfect character and I would lay down my life on her behalf.

I intended to read these books in chronological order but as with most things in life that plan did not quite work out. So instead I have started four books in with Worrals conducting an air operation in unoccupied France with the assistance of 1) her girlfriend, 2) her boyfriend, 3) her French not-dad, and 4) two gay French aristocrats. Before reading I'd seen some criticism that Worrals reads more like a male character who's had the pronouns Ctrl+F'ed, but I have to say that I disagree. Mostly she reminds me of Darrell from Malory Towers, a very formative character for yours truly. I think Johns is actually quite good at writing women when he remembers that they exist!

The hijinks:page ratio was very satisfactory and I found myself genuinely nervous about a few of the events in the book. Johns really is good at describing action as well as grand sweeping settings and both of them worked out very well in this story. The Cevennes really came to life, although I would always be down for more discussion of the caves. I'm pretty sure the Tarn and its related caves came up in Robert MacFarlane's Underland (which ROCKS) so it was nice to be reminded of that.

Regarding Worrals and her relationships, I have to say that I really enjoy both dynamics. She and Frecks are clearly bosom friends and care about each other a lot while still sniping at each other from time to time. They react naturally to stress and even level-headed practical Worrals freaks out from time to time when her plans don't quite come off. Meanwhile, Worrals and Bill have a fun and unconventional relationship and still care about each other a lot, even if it remains unspoken for a lot of the book. The part where Worrals thinks Bill's plane is going to crash and she covers her eyes is quite affecting! What I'm saying here is that Worrals has two hands.

The worst part of all of this is that Lucien and Raoul spend at least one night completely alone together in a cave awaiting rescue and no one has written fanfiction about what they did to pass the time...