Walk on Earth a Stranger

September 21, 2015 ARC, Book Review 1

I received this ARC from Publisher for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Walk on Earth a StrangerWalk on Earth a Stranger (The Gold Seer Trilogy, #1) by Rae Carson
Published by Greenwillow Books on September 22nd 2015
Pages: 432
Goodreads

Lee Westfall has a secret. She can sense the presence of gold in the world around her. Veins deep beneath the earth, pebbles in the river, nuggets dug up from the forest floor. The buzz of gold means warmth and life and home—until everything is ripped away by a man who wants to control her. Left with nothing, Lee disguises herself as a boy and takes to the trail across the country. Gold was discovered in California, and where else could such a magical girl find herself, find safety?

Walk on Earth a Stranger, the first book in this new trilogy, introduces—as only Rae Carson can—a strong heroine, a perilous road, a fantastical twist, and a slow-burning romance. Includes a map and author’s note on historical research.

My Thoughts:

I have a confession. I have been meaning to read The Girl of Fire and Thorns for years. I mean, it sounds like a book I would love. How have I not read it?!? Seriously, Heidi. Get with it! So, when I first heard about Walk on Earth a Stranger I knew I had to read it right away. The story itself sounded amazing and I really wanted to read something by Rae Carson. Walk on Earth a Stranger was just what I needed to get me out of the reading slump I was in.

I want to focus on the three main things that stood out to me while devouring this book: the characters, the storytelling, and the history.

Characters: Lee (Leah) Westfall is exactly the kind of character I want to see more of. She is fierce and strong and loyal and kind. She’s independent and doesn’t let societies restrictions of females slow her down.  She’s also a bit lost and just doing the best that she can. She makes mistakes. She learns. She keeps on going.  I loved that she had a strong sense of integrity and really thought about her actions. I just loved her, flaws and all!

There were so many engaging characters in this story. I really loved the ways we got to know the people on the wagon train. The journey west was such an arduous one. People changed. The things they valued changed. Seeing all this was so interesting. And of course there’s Jefferson. He and Lee may have grown up together, but their lives were very different. After Lee, I feel most invested in his future.

Storytelling: I am a huge fan of the way Rae Carson tells this story. She expertly weaves the necessary historical details into the story without slowing it down. I could feel the urgency at the beginning of Lee’s journey and the strain as life on the trail began to wear. Each event built upon the last and I was pulled in to the story more and more.

Walk on Earth a Stranger is the first of a planned trilogy. I always worry that this means the ending will leave me hanging. While I certainly want to know what happens to Lee and company as they continue on, I felt satisfied with this ending. Carson found an excellent point to leave the reader.

History: History nerd alert! I’m such a sucker for historical fiction books. I love experiencing what the past might have been like through the eyes of a fictional character. It’s clear that Rae Carson did a lot of research for this book. Daily life, the gold rush, life on the wagon trains… all of these things were so clearly portrayed. There are also some great resources about the time period listed at the end of the book.

If I love historical fiction, I super love when there is a slightly magical addition (like in The Vespertine by Saundra Mitchell.) Lee’s ability to sense gold gave me that subtle paranormal twist. She was already in a precarious position. The necessity of keeping her ability a secret just turned the tension up to eleven!

Walk on Earth a Stranger combines a really excellent story rooted in history with the perfect amount of magic. I simply couldn’t get enough.

One Response to “Walk on Earth a Stranger”

  1. looloolooweez

    I’m so glad you liked this one too. I hope it gets TONS of love after release. And I’m looking forward to the sequels, because the wrap-up on this first book was satisfying but still left some stuff open to drama in the future.

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