I loved this book. It was the kind of YA novel that wasn't fluff and it felt like something kids would read and then grow up and stumble upon once again.

It reminded me a lot of Terry Gilliam, in terms of darkness and strangeness. If they ever made a film adaptation I could see him directing it. I really liked Eldritch City, and I hope someday to know more about the people / things that inhabit it. Ken Kiang was hilarious a secondary villain, again if they ever made a film I swear Ken Jeong would be PERFECT, if you imagine him being as villainous and maniacal as he was in Community as Senor Chang.

There were a few things I would've liked to see more of / know more about. One is Jo's friends, I liked the charasmatic friend of hers that was the star of Teenage Icthala and would change costumes in an instant, though her other friends seemed to fall flat, like I tried to picture them in my mind but I couldn't think of any distinguishing features. Also I'm curious how people arrive at Eldritch city, maybe through various means? I won't go into spoilers but I would love to see that explored.

The whole mythology of the All-Devouring Mother was great, again I won't spoil that but I think it's a great origin of the universe story.

Anyways, great read! I can't wait for more from Mr. Kennedy! ( )

This must have been the weirdest book I ever read. I couldn't make heads or tails of what was happening, yet I couldn't stop reading. The story goes from weird, to crazy, than back again. I made it through, but couldn't tell you if I would recommand it. The story follows Jo and her old aunt as their live take a turn in the mysterious when Jo received the visit of mysterious friend and a weird package on christmas day. ( )

This was a fun, zany read. It didn't grab me and keep me reading obsessively like I thought it might, and a few bits were confusing (because it's super-zany at points...), but overall, it was definitely a great read, and I'm glad I found it! ( )

Giving up. This just isn't holding my interest at all. I don't understand why children's and teen fantasy books are all so (a) derivative and (b) unnecessarily long. Since the runaway success of Harry Potter, nobody bothers to streamline plots anymore; nearly any fantasy book published for the 10-and-up crowd suddenly has to be pushing 400 pages, regardless of how much material has to fill it.

I dunno, this might be great overall, but the first 130 pages didn't inspire me to finish.

'"I thought the afterlife would be drier than this," said Jo.

"Or better lit," said Sefino.

"We're not dead!" insisted Aunt Lily.

No one spoke for a while. Jo fidgeted uncomfortably in the wet darkness. Her body was coming back, and it ached all over.

"Pretty dull afterlife," said Sefino. "I must have been more of a sinner than I thought."

"I expect it picks up later," said Colonel Korsakov.'

What do you think of this little snippet of The Order of Odd-Fish? Love it? This book is for you, then. Somehow, and I really can't imagine how, unless he has been working on this book his entire life, somehow author James Kennedy has written an entire four hundred page so-called children's book with this kind of repartee on every page. Absolutely delightful. With Alice in Wonderland-ish zany plot twists. And a Hitchhiker's Guide to the Universe-ish philosophical soul.

I feel like I just spent a week at some kind of wacky interplanetary Disneyworld.

Thank you to the author for this delightful review copy. ( )