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When I say setting, Im referring to the town Cecilia arrives in and Cornelia High. I felt like the author took their time establishing the atmosphere of New Haven and Jamestown. The nostalgia Cecilia experiences in these human towns shows us why she becomes attached to them and Cornelia High. In contrast, I felt like a lot of aspects of Cornelia high were hardly described. Though the author gives us its history, its students and student life are not explored very much. For example, we are told that the whole school loves Cecilia, and that Sebastian is considered an outcast within the school social structure. We are even told (not shown) that Cecilia is popular with boys and has to deal with a boy repeatedly asking her out. Even though we are told these things, I felt like the school operated more as a tool to give characters' their goals rather than a setting that consistently impact their lives.
What did you feel about the worldbuilding in Vagabond?

I agree with you 100%. That was actually one of my only negatives of the book. I thought we were given a very basic picture of the school grounds and rooms/buildings within the school but not enough to fully visualize the setting they are in. This was most frustrating to me during some of the action-packed scenes because I could not visualize exactly how things were happening because we were not given a great picture of the setting.

I agree with you. In my opinion, it would have been better if the author described the school life more, before and after her arrival and some details regarding the the rest of the characters, rather than just focusing on her

The author should have giving a more inept description of her surrounding. It would create a great mental picture in the mind of the readers. Aside from this every other thing in this book was awesome.

Yes, I am fully agreed with you. I feel that author give too little details to imagine the school atmosphere. I think it will be better if the author gives more detail of the school.

I do agree that the whole premise of a school setting was not depicted that well. The whole atmosphere of the school is through the characters but not the setting. It kind of lacked imagination but I think the author wanted us to focus more on the story rather than the background. That's what I felt.

I feel like Cecilia’s arrival was rather convenient, based on the ending. I do, however, agree that some relevant items were barely explained. We seem to know a whole lot about some things and hardly anything about really important details.

The author should have described her surroundings more sloppily. It would paint a vivid mental picture in the readers' minds. Aside from that, everything else in this book was fantastic.

I agree with you, the author should have been more elaborate with the school setting. It was quite basic.

My understanding was that the school was created by the forefathers who had the option to join the Devil as demons. I though the statute and crypt were adequately described by the author.

T T 2 wrote: ↑07 Dec 2021, 09:36 I do agree that the whole premise of a school setting was not depicted that well. The whole atmosphere of the school is through the characters but not the setting. It kind of lacked imagination but I think the author wanted us to focus more on the story rather than the background. That's what I felt.

I got this sense too! and it makes sense for a character driven story. I don't normally like high school settings but it IS an young adult novel. High school settings work because the characters see each other every day, so it doesn't have to be a particularly imaginative setting. What makes the lack of worldbuilding stick out in Vagabond is that the protagonist hasn't even been to school in her two centuries of life. Because the school is meant to be this safe, new place for Cecilia, the setting becomes a fundamental part of Cecilia's character growth.

The author created a great plot, however, I agree that the establishment of the settings does not match the plot. I also felt like I needed more description of the settings. I love to imagine the settings whenever I read books so the more description a writer gives of a setting, the more enjoyable the book is.

6eyed wrote: ↑08 Dec 2021, 00:08

T T 2 wrote: ↑07 Dec 2021, 09:36 I do agree that the whole premise of a school setting was not depicted that well. The whole atmosphere of the school is through the characters but not the setting. It kind of lacked imagination but I think the author wanted us to focus more on the story rather than the background. That's what I felt.

I got this sense too! and it makes sense for a character driven story. I don't normally like high school settings but it IS an young adult novel. High school settings work because the characters see each other every day, so it doesn't have to be a particularly imaginative setting. What makes the lack of worldbuilding stick out in Vagabond is that the protagonist hasn't even been to school in her two centuries of life. Because the school is meant to be this safe, new place for Cecilia, the setting becomes a fundamental part of Cecilia's character growth.

Exactly! For Cecelia, it is a completely new place so maybe the author could have given a bit more emphasis on the school setting from her eyes/perspective

I totally agree with you. This part of the story was very interesting to me and I was expecting more attention from the author as well. It is also noteworthy that the school and the environment there play a big role in Cecilia's development. However with the help of my imagination I created a complete picture.

mary a.j. did an awesome job on the vagabond but the scenes were not as detailed as i expected it to be, i find it hard to visualize some scenes from the novel