4.5 stars
A satisfying sequel to House of the Scorpion. Both books ended with enough resolution for the story to be complete, but I really liked where she went with this follow-up. Like the first book, there's a lot to ponder, and there's much more focus on the eejits. Also like the first book, characters who make Mateo's life more complicated tend to get killed off. It's gratifying in a way (except with Mirasol-but I think that was convenient too-better that than a love triangle, though), but it also feels too easy. The flashlight killing Glasseye wasn't very convincing to me.

The appendix at the end is not to be missed-I had no idea how much of the novel was inspired by actual people, places and events.

If you listen to it on audio, there's a nice interview at the end between Nancy Farmer and the reader, Raul Esparza. The author seems like someone I'd like to have coffee with. In her home in Arizona. Because that would be cool. ( )

Not nearly as good as the first book. The story really drags about half way through and the ending is very unbelievably perfect. I don't like endings that are so happily ever after. There are too many random tangents that do not add anything to the plot. ( )

I thought the story could easily have been over after "House of the Scorpion," but I appreciate all of the worldbuilding that takes place in the sequel. ( )

I loved The House of the Scorpion so much, and I was really excited when I heard about this. But it was a slog to get through for me, unfortunately. I'm not sure where it fell flat, but I just couldn't get into it. ( )

While not quite as immersive and compelling as The House of the Scorpion, The Lord of Opium continues Matteo’s story after the major event at the end of the first novel. While the tension I remember from Scorpion wasn’t present in this book, I was nevertheless drawn in by Farmer’s unique dystopian story and Matteo’s personal journey.

I think the concept is interesting – what happens when someone rises to power who wants to undo the carefully crafted dystopian world? It’s a perspective I’ve never seen before. The new characters introduced in The Lord of Opion hold their own against the long standing characters from Scorpion, and each in their own way contributes to the careful unraveling of the empire. My favorite of these was Mushroom Master, who managed to be charming and insightful in every scene.

Farmer remains true to the original premise of this duology in that the teens and children run the show. I remember feeling like this was an unusual YA series when I read Scorpion, and I stand by that now. The writing here is more formal than most modern YA. However, the characters still do a decent job acting their age, something I can’t necessarily say for all YA novels. There are scrapes that Matt and the others find themselves in that really do require adult intervention. One thing I do love, though, was that the adult characters – particularly the allied ones – never underestimated Matt because of his age. At most, they warned him that others might. It was well done to show the power and respect his position brought, and not fall into common tropes.

As with Scorpion, the world building here is fabulous. Opium and the state of the extended world has already been established, but in The Lord of Opium we explore a few new locations that add richness and depth to our previous understanding. The best of these is the Biosphere, though conceptually, the Scorpion Star is worthy of mention as well. I also appreciated the fact that the voice and story felt consistent, despite the eleven year publication gap between books.

The plot is very slow and if anything, I’d say The Lord of Opium is more of a character-driven novel, pushed forward by Matteo’s desire to undo the mess left to him. It still carries many interesting themes, including personhood and freedom, which were strong themes in Scorpion. We also cover grief and love a bit in this one, mingled with explorations of trust and power. A good chunk of the book also explores environmental themes within the dystopian world and attempts to restore the land, which I appreciated. It’s funny – so many dystopian novels focus on the degradation of the planet and on famine, but I don’t know that I can really think of any where the protagonist is trying to solve that problem instead of just enduring it. So that was good.

Because The Lord of Opium is written in a different tone than most YA, I think this is the perfect duology for “people who think YA is too young”. It’s a great bridge story with a more serious tone but still age appropriate characters dealing with the challenge of fulfilling their roles in society and making the sorts of choices that define their character. I really enjoyed both these books, but they’re still the sort I’d be cautious recommending unless I knew the person’s style well. For example, I don’t know that fans of Serpent & Dove would love this one, but I think that fans of The Giver and The Hunger Games and Illuminae may be more open to it. All and all, though, these novels are really worth a try if they pique your interest at all. They’re creative and unique and immersive and would make a fabulous HBO series. ( )