Wonderful continuation to the series -- I just wish it was available as an audio book, because the first one was so very well done. ( )

A very high 4, held back from 5-ness because (a) I didn't cry, and (b) not as surprising as the first book, in the sense that we've already been introduced to the milieu, the characters, and are expecting good things. If only most books were as good or better, life would be a treat.

This felt more YA than the original volume--there is kissing, an implication of pedophilia, death, drugs, and loud music--to the point that, at first, I was worried I'd be disappointed--the first quarter is awfully different in tone from Flora Segunda. But gradually as the plot takes hold, and the twists and turns arrive just when one would want them, it began to seem very much the right sequel. (I'm reminded of the Bartimaeus Sequence, which also felt older and darker as it went along.

Looking forward to the next!

(Note: 5 stars = rare and amazing, 4 = quite good book, 3 = a decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. There are a lot of 4s and 3s in the world!) ( )

The book starts shortly after [b:Flora Segunda|229033|Flora Segunda Being the Magickal Mishaps of a Girl of Spirit, Her Glass-Gazing Sidekick, Two Ominous Butlers (One Blue), a House with Eleven Thousand Rooms, and a Red Dog (Flora Trilogy, Book 1)|Ysabeau S. Wilce|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172891622s/229033.jpg|2356884] ends, and the repurcussions of that adventure are still being sorted out. Through Flora's intervention, Poppy has managed to pull himself out of madness and a drunken stupor and insists on strict military rules for Crackpot Hall. Meanwhile, Flora's perfect older sister Idden has deserted the military and is running wild with a group of revolutionaries. And worst of all, Flora's best friend, the beautiful and vain Udo, has fallen in with a bad crowd. (Wilce does probably the best job I have ever seen of creating fictional sub-cultures.) But Flora can't deal with any of these problems, because Califa's earthquakes are ever worsening, and according to Lord Axacaya, she is the only one who can stop them.

This is a really fantastic book. I recommend it to anyone who loved Harry Potter but wished the characters did a bit more research, or who loved Jonathan Strange&Mr. Norell but wished for more adventure. The world building, word-play, character arcs--all are absolutely fabulous. ( )

I remembered this book being a letdown after Flora Segunda... But for the life of me I don't know why. This time around it was AMAZING.

Such a fun, crazy, wild adventure. I'm still in love with Flora. She has to be one of my all-time favorite main characters. And the messes she gets into! Every little subplot of Flora's Dare is interesting and well thought out, from Zu-Zu to Springheel Jack to all the tiny problems that end up parts of the one big problem.

I also adore the world of Califa. It's so intricate and so complete. It's one of those worlds that I would just die to visit. The places, the people, the types of people, the magick, the army, the clothes, the cliques, the Butlers... everything about it. I would seriously read a guidebook of Califa.

This book has everything, and all of it's done well. Underwater terrors, time travel, symbiotic villains, traitorous gentlemen, magickal mishaps, cliche plot twists that totally work anyway. Everyone should read these books. ( )

Watch out this review contains spoilers. This book is definitely a worthy sequel to Flora Segunda. It is jam-packed with even more adventure than the first, and there is the shock at the end in learning that Tiny Doom, or the Butcher, is in fact Flora's mother. It is nice to see Udo and Flora come together in the end (though the next book messes that up :( ) A very good book. ( )