Review Detail

I only had a vague idea of what this book was about and I wanted it that way. This book is set in a time period and a place that I don't normally read, so I wanted to try it out. I'm pretty glad I did.

Cecily and Gwenhwyfar both had some major flaws, enough to make them somewhat unlikable to me. There were times when they would start to change and turn things around, but then they'd go back to where they started. I kept waiting for the two to move past their prejudices instilled by the different backgrounds they had and create a bond, but it never really happened. There wasn't as much character development for either character as I would've liked to see.

On the other hand, I really loved how J. Anderson Coats dropped you in the middle of this time period and this place and was unforgiving with it. Slang and terms and the Welsh language were all used. If you didn't understand something, it was rarely explained. It really helped immerse me into the setting. She was also very descriptive, so I could easily imagine everything going on and I had to figure out what different things meant for myself.

Coats is also an excellent writer, though it was hard to tell at times if this was a middle grade or a young adult book. The characters could be as petty and bratty as a character I would expect to read about in an MG book, but some of the descriptions and words and ideas were more like a YA book. That was a bit of an issue, but otherwise, it was just good writing that I enjoyed.

The story was really interesting, covering a topic I knew nothing about. I'd known there was some issues between the Welsh and the British, but I hadn't known any details or times or places. The reality was much darker and more intense than I would've realized. The treatment on both sides was nasty and disturbing. It was a learning experience as well as being entertained.

Overall, The Wicked and the Just was a really good book, but I wasn't as satisfied as I wanted to be with it. However, this is definitely a book for those who love historical fiction and rebellions.