Wayward Son (Simon Snow Trilogy Book 2) Kindle Edition

“It’s the Normals who give words magic.”Brilliant. If, as I said in the opening lines of my review for the first book of the Simon Snow series (Carry on, 2015), Rainbow Rowell has given readers like me exactly what J.K. Rowling never could; then the second book gives us something Rowling wouldn’t even have imagined.I’m not sure where to start, because there are so many spoilers to avoid. Let’s just say that this second installment of Simon Snow’s Saga is all about CONTEXT.Simon Snow has no magic – but he does have big red dragon wings and a matching tail. Basilton Grimm-Pitch is still a vampire, but now he’s Simon’s boyfriend. Supposedly. Penny Bunce is still pushy and annoying but every bit as smart as she was…before. Although they’ve left Watford for an unnamed university in London, they’re just not that into it. Plus, Baz and Simon are having trouble communicating, partly because Simon is still freaked out about the whole no-magic-but-wings thing; but also because these are twenty-year-old boys who have not magically been given the ability to talk about their emotions.Out of nowhere, it seems, Penelope gets it into her head to take her friends on a spontaneous (and vaguely illegal) holiday to the United States. The weak link in her logic is the premise that they’re going to go see Simon’s ex-girlfriend Agatha, who is in college in San Diego, having run away to America and left her wand behind in the wake of all the tumult of book one. What Penelope doesn’t even consider is the place they’re going – and this story, hilarious, action-packed and not a little terrifying – is all about how very different in every way America is.It always struck me as odd that J.K. Rowling never even ventured a random comment about the United States, or what America’s equivalent of a magical school might be. Oh, we got Durmstrang and Beauxbatons, but they were clearly European, and we all know that western Europe is hardly bigger than Texas. Rainbow Rowell goes there. Literally. Or, actually, literarily. Whatever. The result is amazing.Simon, Baz and Penny are totally out of context, and they are as surprised, indeed blindsided, by the ramifications of that truth as they work their way from Chicago (supposedly to visit Penny’s boyfriend Micah) to California in a rented Mustang convertible. These are kids who, so very British and insular (literally and figuratively), possess an idea of the USA that’s based on television and internet searches. Suddenly, these young English magical superheroes find themselves stranded (oh, it’s way more complicated and funnier than that) and having to make it all up as they go along. What’s so marvelous about this is that it turns into an extended joke about America, but with the UK as the butt of that joke.The book jumps from one character’s point-of-view to the next, adding a significant new character who pops up unexpectedly and (to me, at least) becomes the “voice of America” for our wayward magicians. I will say no more, other than he feels very American to me, in just the right way. With this tool in her narrative arsenal, Rowell lets us dig into the young minds of each of the characters, so that we see what they’re thinking and understand how they feel. There is no lack of magical violence in this story, but it is surprisingly light-hearted and laugh-inducing. It is a scary, screwball road trip on which Harry, Ron and Hermione would never have ventured.Best of all, it looks like Rowell is still writing. I hope the next book appears more quickly, but I’ll wait however long it takes.

This second book is a fun side adventure that sets up the finale in the third book. But even though it was short and a bit unexpected in terms of a second book, I loved it. Loved it! I rated the first book 4 stars because there really is a lot going on and it got a little hard to follow at parts, and Simon kind of drove me crazy, but I loved everything about this book.In this book, Simon, Penny and Baz go on a bit of a road trip in the US. Of course it wouldn’t be a story about them without a lot of mishaps and shenanigans. This book was wildly hilarious and I was constantly laughing out loud. I think this one rounds out the first book really well; they’re no longer focused on the humdrum, but focused on figuring out life after defeating the humdrum, including who they are and what they want to do with their lives, plus Simon and Baz dance around their relationship. So the first book doesn’t end with everyone riding off into the sunset. There’s a lot to deal with after all that goes on in the first book.My favorite part of this book? Shepard! He’s a human (aka a normal or a bleeder) who inserts himself into the adventure and guides his new foreign friends across America. The way that magic works in the US is interesting and it’s cool that magic in this world differs depending on where you are in the world. But back to Shepard! He is HILARIOUS and I adored him. He’s one of those really personable characters you can’t help but love. He’s going to be in the third book and I can’t wait to learn more about him. I’m totally shipping him with Penny and I’d love for that to pan out, haha.So anyways. I obviously loved this book and highly recommend it! Definitely listen to this one if you're a fan of audiobooks because the narrator does an AMAZING job.

I'll start with the bad: this book ends on an open cliffhanger, with no emotional resolution and very little plot resolution. The assumption is that it will set up a third book. If so, this is a slightly weak second book of a trilogy. If not, it's a very, very unsatisfying ending to Carry On.The good: this book is very, very funny. Rainbow has a way with words and zingers and she absolutely delivers that in this book. There is a lot of deep emotional ramification and an unflinching look at PTSD, depression, and the effects those have on the characters and their loved ones. There's also a lot of really rich world building and a delightful new character. (Shepard is an absolute delight. I wish we'd known him all along!)Rainbow took a big risk on this book, and she clearly poured herself into it. I like it on the assumption of a third, but I have to admit to feeling a bit betrayed, and like there was a bond of trust broken between author and reader for the book to end this way, with us under the assumption and belief that it's the end of the line. I assume this is for marketing reasons. I think unfortunately, it instead traffics on emotions. With any other author the third book would be absolutely a no brainer, definitely happening, but with Rainbow you never know. She likes to break the wheel and upset expectations.I will return to this book, and I now have three copies of it (lol. the covers got away from me) but maybe not for a bit, or at least not until we have word on if this is the end or not. Overall, it was a lovely experience. It ached a lot, but it was a fun read, and I fell in love with Penny, and I just felt shredded for Baz. I don't think this is the story that was right for a Carry On sequel, but it's clearly the story Rainbow needed to tell, and I trust and support her vision to see us through to the third!

Loved the book, basically devoured it in one day

Incredible book, fun, devastating, and queer proud! A great sequel that lives up to expectations and introduces fun new characters

I didn’t enjoy this book at all. I’m not entirely sure why except for the fact that Simon and Baz’s relationship only gets worse and they don’t even solve it in the end. But it was something about it….I don’t know if it’s because this book barely bring anything to the story (what can you expect when every thing was solved in the first book?), they only get in more and more trouble. Sure it’s interesting when things happen, but not on this rate.Since it was a cliffhanger ind the end I will read the next book and see if it gets any better….

Truly best writing of Rowell up to date.A perfect summer break read. I loved the struggles, the realness of how a relationship can go into wrong directions. It's painful to watch, but it's impossible to put it down.

Llegó en excelentes condiciones y más rápido de lo esperado. Carry On es una de mis libros favoritos y leer su segunda entrega me hacía mucha ilusión, es un excelente precio y un libro muy bonito.