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A Study in Aether
(A Baker City Mystery #1)
by
Elizabeth Coderre has always known that there was something strange about her home town, Baker Ontario, but it isn't until her English teacher disappears that she starts to find out how strange. Getting through classes, killer kitten swarms, and bullies are going to be the easy parts of surviving at Sir Arthur Conan Doyle High. Elizabeth and her best friends, Jackie and An
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Paperback, 248 pages
Published
June 29th 2016
by Renaissance
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Start your review of A Study in Aether (A Baker City Mystery, #1)

I really enjoyed this debut novel from Éric Desmarais about the city of Baker, a place full of mystery and magic. When people start going missing in droves, Elizabeth Coderre is determined to put the pieces of the puzzle together, even at her own risk. She's a strong protagonist and I love stories with intelligent young women. Great young adult fiction. I can't wait to read the next book in the series!
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Technically it's 3-and-a-half, but Goodreads doesn't know how to play nicely.
CHARACTERS: Boom! Elizabeth is damn right awesome and yass!! Female character!!! Elizabeth comes so prepared I should ask her to summarise my college subjects. Wowee, Elizabeth figures things out so wonderfully I want to ask her to figure out why data is so expensive in South Africa (no really, tell me how much you guys have to pay for 1GB) and why the hell Donald Trump is still running, much less alive.
Received a copy ...more
CHARACTERS: Boom! Elizabeth is damn right awesome and yass!! Female character!!! Elizabeth comes so prepared I should ask her to summarise my college subjects. Wowee, Elizabeth figures things out so wonderfully I want to ask her to figure out why data is so expensive in South Africa (no really, tell me how much you guys have to pay for 1GB) and why the hell Donald Trump is still running, much less alive.
Received a copy ...more

*Full disclosure: I BETA-read this book a handful of revisions ago.*
Although the teen/YA urban fantasy genre is not typically my thing, I enjoyed this first-of-the-series outing from Eric Desmarais.
The characters are well fleshed-out and having realistic reactions to their bizarre circumstances, which is something that often gets implemented poorly, but is greatly appreciated when done right.
Overall, the story was well-paced and has a satisfying conclusion. Interested to see where this goes in f ...more
Although the teen/YA urban fantasy genre is not typically my thing, I enjoyed this first-of-the-series outing from Eric Desmarais.
The characters are well fleshed-out and having realistic reactions to their bizarre circumstances, which is something that often gets implemented poorly, but is greatly appreciated when done right.
Overall, the story was well-paced and has a satisfying conclusion. Interested to see where this goes in f ...more

A Study in Aether is a great cross-genre YA read with a Veronica Mars meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer feel, steeped in the classic tones of Sherlock Holmes. It has a wonderfully diverse cast of well fleshed out, three-dimensional characters, and a well-paced plot that has a lot of great twists. I'm really looking forward to the rest of the series!
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A captivating story, with a lot of moving pieces. I do have to take off a star for the swarm of killer kittens (shut up! I'm entitled to my biases), but if that kind of detail doesn't bother you, then there is no reason for you not to enjoy this.
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originally published on TheNerdistheWord.ca
Local Writers
Headed to your local chain bookstore to purchase the current bestselling novel converted high budget film? If you feel like literature aimed at young adults has been over hyped lately, why not look for something a little closer to home? Ottawa is home to many authors who travel our streets incognito. We, their fellow residents, are mostly unaware of their existence, as they strive in silence to publish quality works that the over saturated ...more
Local Writers
Headed to your local chain bookstore to purchase the current bestselling novel converted high budget film? If you feel like literature aimed at young adults has been over hyped lately, why not look for something a little closer to home? Ottawa is home to many authors who travel our streets incognito. We, their fellow residents, are mostly unaware of their existence, as they strive in silence to publish quality works that the over saturated ...more

There is a slight Buffy and Veronica Mars feel to the story. I found the story fun, but the characters are a little too wholesome for me to believe that they are in highschool. Elizabeth's inner dialogue talked about what she felt, but didn't always make me feel how she felt. I don't want Elizabeth to tell me she's tired, I want her to describe how her legs are jelly and might buckle at any moment. I don't want to hear someone started crying. I want to see their lashes become heavy with tears, t
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This is a wonderful first effort. It shows a lot of creativity and promise for the author.
That said, there are quite a few problems with the book, ranging from unrealistic background details to perplexing action sequences. Characters felt as if they barely cared about what was going on, and their interactions felt incredibly scripted. Dialogue was robotic and gave all the proceedings a feeling of weightlessness, that is, as if nothing had any impact. The greatest fault, by far, is the heavy and ...more
That said, there are quite a few problems with the book, ranging from unrealistic background details to perplexing action sequences. Characters felt as if they barely cared about what was going on, and their interactions felt incredibly scripted. Dialogue was robotic and gave all the proceedings a feeling of weightlessness, that is, as if nothing had any impact. The greatest fault, by far, is the heavy and ...more

I liked this book (3), but might have really liked it (4) if I were the intended audience. So since reviews ought to be for the intended audience, I've rated it 4 (an upgrade for my original post).
The basic idea, which you'll get most of from the blurb, is kids faced with a supernatural mystery they need to solve and resolve. I liked the characters, and the plot was interesting. I was happy the setting was in a fictional Ontario town instead of some generic American one, since I've heard some p ...more
The basic idea, which you'll get most of from the blurb, is kids faced with a supernatural mystery they need to solve and resolve. I liked the characters, and the plot was interesting. I was happy the setting was in a fictional Ontario town instead of some generic American one, since I've heard some p ...more

I LOVED this book! Well-fleshed out characters, great action, and a mystery thrown in? It's a perfect set-up that delivered all the way through. Highly recommended read!
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Éric has had an eclectic career which ranges from casino dealer to canal boat captain to radio station DJ. Since 2009, he’s worked as a layout artist and desktop publisher for the federal government. During his off time he works as a freelance layout artist for various Canadian-based authors and publishers, roasts gourmet flavoured coffee, runs several pen-and-paper role-playing games, writes, and
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A Baker City Mystery
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