Illusionarium, by Heather Dixon
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Illusionarium, by Heather Dixon
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What if the world holds more dangers—and more wonders—than we have ever known? And what if there is more than one world? From Heather Dixon, author of the acclaimed Entwined, comes a brilliantly conceived adventure that sweeps us from the inner workings of our souls to the far reaches of our imaginations.
Jonathan is perfectly ordinary. But then—as every good adventure begins—the king swoops into port, and Jonathan and his father are enlisted to find the cure to a deadly plague. Jonathan discovers that he's a prodigy at working with a new chemical called fantillium, which creates shared hallucinations—or illusions. And just like that, Jonathan is knocked off his path. Through richly developed parallel worlds, vivid action, a healthy dose of humor, and gorgeous writing, Heather Dixon spins a story that calls to mind The Night Circus and Pixar movies, but is wholly its own.
Illusionarium, by Heather Dixon - Amazon Sales Rank: #184904 in Books
- Brand: Dixon, Heather
- Published on: 2015-05-19
- Released on: 2015-05-19
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 8.25" h x 1.17" w x 5.50" l, .0 pounds
- Binding: Hardcover
- 368 pages
Illusionarium, by Heather Dixon From School Library Journal Gr 9 Up—Jonathan is a teenager apprenticed to his father, whose life is turned upside down when the King docks his airship at their port in Fata Morgana and insists that they work with the famed scientist Lady Florel to find the cure to a deadly new illness. The mysterious sickness, which kills women exactly six days after contraction, has attacked the Queen and threatens to spread through their whole civilization. A new drug, "fantillium," which allows certain individuals to create group hallucinations, may hold the key to their survival—or it could be Jonathan's ultimate downfall. As he uses his ability to create illusions to try to find the cure, Jonathan also finds a way to enter alternate realities and discovers that Lady Florel is not who she claims to be. Forced to fight in an lllusionarium battle (reminiscent of "The Hunger Games"), the protagonist makes unlikely allies and ultimately comes out victorious. This steampunk fantasy set in a futuristic London features so many fantasy elements, plot twists, and dramatic crescendos that it is easy to lose the thread of the story. Still, the lovable characters and the story's originality will appeal to some readers. VERDICT Recommended as an additional purchase for places looking to expand their steampunk offerings.—Sunnie Lovelace, Wallingford Public Library, CT
Review “Steampunk fantasy set in a futuristic London features . . . fantasy elements, plot twists, and dramatic crescendos . . . The lovable characters and the story’s originality will appeal.” (School Library Journal)Praise for Entwined:“Full of mystery, lush settings, and fully orbed characters, Dixon’s debut is both suspenseful and rewarding.” (Booklist (starred review))“Dixon balances the suspense with generous helpings of humor and sparkling dialogue…[A] charming, romantic story, told with a light touch.” (Kirkus Reviews)“This steampunk adventure catapults across two fascinating, dangerous worlds with mild horror, some humor, and suspense. …Jonathan’s first-person narration is compelling, candidly relating triumphs and missteps alike.” (The Horn Book)“The snappy dialogue, intriguing cast, and well-developed worlds make Dixon’s sophomore effort a lush and original story.” (Booklist)“Dixon casts Jonathan not as a pinup daredevil but as an ordinary, decent person who does some extraordinary things along the way. Her steampunk world is vibrantly imagined, and the page-turning quality of Jonathan’s wry narration will have readers fully invested in his story.” (Publishers Weekly (starred review))
From the Back Cover
Far, far north, in the cold aerial city of Fata Morgana, apprentice scientist Jonathan is preparing to leave for university.
He doesn't know about fantillium, the newly discovered chemical that allows people to share hallucinations—sometimes wondrous ones, sometimes appalling.
He doesn't know he holds the rare skill to control the hallucinations—to become an illusionist.
He doesn't know that fantillium can also open gateways to parallel worlds. Or that he will soon begin an epic journey, crossing cities and worlds, to save his family, his friends, and his very reality.
He doesn't know any of that . . . yet.
And when he does, will his compass continue to point true north? Or will it break apart?
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Most helpful customer reviews
14 of 15 people found the following review helpful. Reading Bifrost Review By Reading Bifrost Oh, I’m so disappointed that I didn’t like this book! The characters turned out to be flat from the beginning and didn’t start to develop personalities until the last 10-20% of the book.Jonathan is the main character that is a rare illusionist. What’s really nerve racking is he keeps switching from normal English to proper 1800s Queen’s English (which is the setting for the book).Lockwood was an awesome character… in the second half. It’s almost as if he has two completely different personalities in the book because the Lockwood in the first half is not the same as the one in the second half, and there’s no transition for character development. He did turn into a fun character to follow. He’s a knight that’s very good at what he does, and has a quirky attitude. The biggest aggravation ever is over his missing eye. There’s a story there, right? A knight with an eyepatch? He even STARTS to tell the story TWICE in the book, but for some reason or another the author leaves the readers hanging and just cuts him off. We’ll never know Lockwood’s story.Constantine is a misshapen beast of a man the characters come into contact with in a parallel world. He really has a one track mind- only wanting a girl named Anna- and doesn’t care about anything else. He plays a major part in the book, but he’s really one dimensional because of his I-want-Anna-I’ll-kill-you attitude. That’s really all you ever hear from him.I have a hard time describing the two worlds because the original world we’re given isn’t properly described until we’re already in the next world, and then it’s Jonathan pointing out the differences. His world apparently had sleek, metal airships while the new world had wooden ones but we didn’t learn that until pointed it out halfway through the book. In my mind I had already pictured a Peter Pan-ish flying pirate ship (just for the heck of it).What really gets to me is this entire book is about characters on drugs. Yes, you heard that right. DRUGS. Apparently getting high on fantillium makes certain people superheroes and you share hallucinations for fun. I wonder if fantillium gives you the munchies? Oh, and if you use it too much your body spontaneously starts to split or grow extra bits and pieces. Why? I have no idea.I also noted several times in the book in which the author fell into the evil trap of telling-not-showing. “This happened, he did this, then we did that.” Those parts were boring and slowed down the story- mostly causing me to skim over parts.One thing I did enjoy in Illusionarium is the hilarious footnotes. Ever so often Jonathan would have something snarky to add to his narration or to the end of someone’s sentence and it was added as a footnote. Those I did enjoy.Overall, Illusionarium was not for me. The drugs, flat characters, and lack of world building and explanations just didn’t add up to a credible story.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful. Review for Illusionarium by Heather Dixon By Alyssa ***Review posted on The Eater of Books! blog***Illusionarium by Heather DixonPublisher: GreenwillowPublication Date: May 19, 2015Rating: 4 starsSource: eARC from EdelweissSummary (from Goodreads):What if the world holds more dangers—and more wonders—than we have ever known? And what if there is more than one world? From Heather Dixon, author of the acclaimed Entwined, comes a brilliantly conceived adventure that sweeps us from the inner workings of our souls to the far reaches of our imaginations.Jonathan is perfectly ordinary. But then—as every good adventure begins—the king swoops into port, and Jonathan and his father are enlisted to find the cure to a deadly plague. Jonathan discovers that he's a prodigy at working with a new chemical called fantillium, which creates shared hallucinations—or illusions. And just like that, Jonathan is knocked off his path. Through richly developed parallel worlds, vivid action, a healthy dose of humor, and gorgeous writing, Heather Dixon spins a story that calls to mind The Night Circus and Pixar movies, but is wholly its own.What I Liked:This book was pretty great! Definitely worth the long wait between this one and Heather Dixon's last novel, Entwined. Entwined was one of my favorite books of 2011 - and one of my favorites of all time! Fairy tale retelling, gorgeous fantasy, and lots of great humor. This book, Illusionarium, was a bit different, but with elements of Entwined that are true to Dixon's unique writing style. While I think I liked Entwined more (let's face it - I LOVED Entwined, and little will come close to it), I certainly enjoyed this book, and definitely want to read more by Dixon!Jonathan and his family live in a large aerial city, living their lives and minding their business. His father is the second best scientist/surgeon in the second only to lady Florel, a cold by genius scientist who apprenticed his father. When the queen falls ill with Venen, the disease that is killing the people of the city, Jonathan and his father are taken to the king's ship. But when Jonathan's mother and sister contracts Venen, Jonathan gets caught up in a chemical called fantillium, a Lady Florel that isn't Lady Florel, a power he did not know he had, and a world he never knew existed.Just a note - this book is not related to Entwined at all! This book is a historical fiction novel with aspects of fantasy and parallel worlds in it. Not quite time travel, though there is some playing with time. The ideas of this book are so interesting! Aerial cities is what drew me, but the illusions business is pretty cool too. Jonathan takes fantillium, and discovers that he can create illusions very well, with fantillium's aid. Could he illusion time to speed up? Could he illusion a cure's creation? Could he... illusion himself into a new world? Well, he didn't. The Lady Florel that isn't Lady Florel drags him to the parallel London, where she is queen. There, she strikes a deal: illusion for her, and she'll give him the cure.This book is definitely a bit slow at first. Things really didn't "start" for me until Jonathan enters the parallel city of Nod'ol (the spelling of the name is eluding me at the moment, but I think that's correct). There, he is forced to compete in an illusion contest of a sort. The purpose is entertainment, but he must create amazing illusions and beat two prodigy illusionists (who are also in the competition to win something precious) in order to get the cure. The illusion aspect of this book is really interesting, and the side effects of fantillium are totally creepy. I won't give anything away, but the side effects are weird!This book is told from Jonathan's point-of-view. Jonathan is such a kindhearted, jovial character. This book has an overall humorous tone, and Jonathan's inner voice is quite funny. Lockwood is another primary character, though his point-of-view is not featured. Lockwood is a military officer in the king's ship, a lieutenant, if I remember correctly. He is constantly trying to choke Jonathan (no, seriously), after Jonathan (accidentally) let the doppelganger Lady Florel escape. Lockwood comes with Jonathan to Nod'ol, though he can't illusion. Lockwood is a hilarious addition to this story, and I'm glad Dixon kept constructing his character throughout the book. The book would not have been as funny or as enjoyable without him.Another important character is Hannah - Anna in Nod'ol. Hannah/Anna is Jonathan's sister. Anna is the sister we see more of, as more of the book is spent in Nod'ol. Anna becomes a critical character in Nod'ol, just like Hannah is a critical character in London. There's also a little romance involving her, which was sweet. Jonathan has his own lady love, though his romance is by fair the least important aspect of the book. You might as well go in thinking there is ZERO romance to this book. Which is fine! This book doesn't need romance to stand on its own "legs".The world-building was pretty well-done, in my opinion. I think I saw complaints about this, but I also think you really have to read the entire book to get a good grasp on the concepts of the book. I think Dixon's writing and world-building is solid.I loved the historical fiction aspect of the book! Dixon definitely has the historical side down. I'm also a huge history fan, so naturally I was obsessed with this part of the book. This time period is one of my favorites, and it's fascinating to see how Dixon incorporates something so unreal - an aerial city - into this time period. Creative!This book wraps up really nicely as a standalone! The story started and finished and there really aren't any loose ends or leftover questions to be answered. This is good - I like it when standalones are airtight like that, with no room for ambiguity. The ending is very pleasant and light, though there is a death that was super sad. But then it's not as sad when something else happens. So the ending overall is very sweet. You'd have to read it to know what I mean!What I Did Not Like:This one definitely reads as a "younger" YA novel. Entwined had a "younger" YA vibe to it too, so I wasn't really surprised when I started reading this book and thought it was a tiny bit on the juvenile side. Not trivial or childish, but not the tone of a mature YA book that one might think of this book, given its strong historical fiction and fantasy foundations. So, if you're turned off by "lower" YA books, perhaps this one isn't for you. It didn't really bother me, though I definitely noticed it.Would I Recommend It:I would recommend this one! It's light and humorous and a fast read. The story is interesting, the concepts are pretty unique, and the cover is lovely! What's not to like! Unless you're not a fan of YA for a younger audience - see my note above.Rating:3.5 stars -> rounded up to 4 stars. I liked this book! I hope Dixon has more novels up her sleeve, because I wouldn't mind reading more of her work.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Felt this was lacking in development and characterization. There was too much going on at too fast of a pace. By Jessica Leigh (Lovin' Los Libros) Having really enjoyed Dixon's debut Entwined, I was excited to see what Illusionarium would hold. Unfortunately, this book was not for me. I never truly felt like I could get a grasp on what was happening and it was always a struggle for me to keep up. It's very fast paced, which is a plus, but it was too fast for me to comprehend everything Dixon was trying to get across. To put it plain and simply: this book was confusing. There are so many layers and explanations of what's going on with the illusioning and alternate realities that it just made it too hard to keep up.I also felt the characters were rather flat. I realize this is set in the 1800's, but Jonathan was so awkward to me. His speech, mannerisms, it all felt too strange. I didn't particularly care for one him one way or another. He ended up surprising me by the lengths he would go to in order to procure the cure for his dying family and friends. We see him go from bumbling, awkward scientist to fearless illusionist, who will stop at nothing to return home and save the people he loves. I thought that was awesome, but I missed seeing that transformation.We don't really find out the mechanics of this alternate reality, called No'dol, until late in the book and once we do things made a bit more sense. I felt there were some plot holes also- things were introduced but then I never saw them really referenced or resolved. I eventually found myself skimming more than reading, just to get to the end.It was just too hard for me to wrap my head around this one and I felt it was really lacking in some major areas such as development and characterization. There was TOO MUCH going on that I felt not enough time was taken to really explore and focus on the things that mattered.
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