Advice - Ways to get free books

Okay so those of you who aren't in the Amazon Vine program are wondering how to get free books to review? More specifically how to get ARCs (advanced reading copies).

Well there are a couple good ways to get them. Some are free and some are just really cheap.

I use paperbackswap.com a lot. Not only do you get books for the price of postage but in many of the forums people post ARCs (advanced reading copies) that they are trying to get rid. So, it's a great way to get books early and really cheap. The same can be said for bookmooch.com

Okay, well the above aren't free but a couple of bucks for a paperback is an awesome deal anyway.

Another way to get free books is through the LibraryThing.com Early Reviewer program. Every month LibraryThing lists a ton of books that they get from authors to distribute to LibraryThing members. This is only the second month I have done this. Each month I have scored a book, so it's pretty cool. It's even cooler than the Amazon Vine program because you are under no obligation to review the book and the book is yours to keep (not property of LibraryThing). I had no idea this program existed until I stumbled upon it while screwing around on LibraryThing one night. It is awesome!

Another way I have gotten a number of free books is to have this book blog. It helps to state your info and that you are willing to receive advance copies of books to review. I have had a number of authors contact me and ask for me to read their audio book, e-book, or paperback book. This is the most fun because you get to chat back and forth with the author a bit. Unfortunately this is also the most iffy way to get books. By that I mean I have gotten some really bad books this way, but on the flip side I have gotten some really awesome books this way too! It's a cool way to get books because you are under no obligation to review them (although you should), you get to keep them, and you get to know the author a bit. Many authors are willing to do interviews or other things to help your blog.

These are mainly passive ways to get books. I have heard that you can actively seek out review copies or ARCs from publishers or authors directly. I guess I am too lazy to do that...and I have too much to read. The above ways work pretty well for me. I usually score a few free books each month one way or another.

So all in all those are the ways I get some books before their publish date. Also the way I get a lot of my books cheap. I suppose I could mention the libray too...but everyone should know you can read books for free at your library :-)

Waiting on Wednesday - 3/31

Okay "Waiting On Wednesday" is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine.

This week my WOW book is an anthology that looks really good.  It is called "Sympathy for the Devil", by various authors.  The list of authors includes, but is not limited too, Neil Gaiman, Holly Black, Stephen King, Kage Baker, Charles Stross, Elizabeth Bear, Jay Lake, Kelly Link, China Mieville, and Michael Chabon.  Lots of great authors...it sounds like it could be a great anthology.

 

Sympathy for the Devil

Pages: 400 pages
Publisher: Night Shade Books
Release Date: August 15th, 2010

Synopsis (from Amazon.com) : The Devil is known by many names: Serpent, Tempter, Beast, Adversary, Wanderer, Dragon, Rebel. His traps and machinations are the stuff of legends. His faces are legion. No matter what face the devil wears, Sympathy for the Devil has them all. Edited by Tim Pratt, Sympathy for the Devil collects the best Satanic short stories by Neil Gaiman, Holly Black, Stephen King, Kage Baker, Charles Stross, Elizabeth Bear, Jay Lake, Kelly Link, China Mieville, Michael Chabon, and many others, revealing His Grand Infernal Majesty, in all his forms. Thirty-five stories, from classics to the cutting edge, exploring the many sides of Satan, Lucifer, the Lord of the Flies, the Father of Lies, the Prince of the Powers of the Air and Darkness, the First of the Fallen... and a Man of Wealth and Taste. Sit down and spend a little time with the Devil.

Teaser Tuesday - 3/30

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

- Grab your current read
- Open to a random page
- Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
- Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My teaser this week is from "Violet Wings" by Victoria Hanley.

 

Here it is: "A buzzing frenzy of fairies and genies hovered one on top of the other, showing every color of wing, every shade of hair.  Something was happening on the ground." Pg. 99

Review - Violet Wings by Victoria Hanley (4/5 stars)

This is another young adult fairy book that I have had on my list to read for some time.  While I found the characters to be a bit weak, Hanley did a great job creating a complex fairy world that was believable and full of action.

Zaria was orphaned when her parents were lost on Earth.  Back on fairy she is finally being given her watch that will tell her what level of magic she can do.  When her magic levels astound, she is pulled into a plot that is destroying all of Fairy, little does she know how deeply it is entangled with her past.

There were a lot of things I liked about this novel.  Hanley begins each chapter with a quote from "Orville Gold, genie historian of Feyland".  These small sections do a great job of explaining the somewhat complicated magic system of radia and color levels that show how strong a fairy is.  They also do a good job in giving a history of races and how they interact.  Without these sections Zaria's world would be confusing.  They also foreshadow what the following chapter will be about.

The world that Hanley has created is more complex and more realized than most fairy worlds in young adult fairy themed literature books out there.  That gives this book major kudos in my mind.  Hanley also keeps the pace of the plot pretty fast and writes good action scenes.

Despite the well thought out magic system and fairy society, Feyland was a bit limited in scope.  Zaria's world seems contained to the major city that all fairy's live in; I kept thinking that there has to be more to it than that.   I also didn't really like any of the characters; so characterization is not the strongest point of this novel.  Zaria as a character is okay, but her relationships with all of her friends felt forced...there didn't seem any reason behind their loyalty to her or any past that would contribute to that loyalty.  Leona, the other main character in the book, was all over the place in personality.  Leona would come off as irresponsible, then thoughtful, then irresponsible again; she just didn't have very consistent characterization.

The ending is left somewhat open, so I assume there will be a sequel to this book.  I haven't heard anything about a sequel, but there is room for one.  In fact it was a bit odd that some specifics about the disappearance of Zaria's family are brought up, but never really dealt with

Overall I enjoyed the world but I didn't fall in love with any of the characters, and only found the writing style to be so-so.  I liked the story, but didn't love it.  Mostly it was the world that was created and the interaction with humans that intrigued me.   Will I read the next book in this series if there is one?  I am not sure.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
- The Young Adult Reading Challenge
- The 100+ Book Reading Challenge
- Support Your Local Library Reading Challenge

Review - Fairy Tale by Cyn Balog (3/5 stars)

This was a rather short, contained novel about fairy.  It is Balog's debut novel and I have been wanting to read it for a while.  It was okay.  About par for the course when compared to numerous other young adult fairy books out there.

Morgan and her boyfriend, Cameron, were born on the same day.  They have known each other forever and imagine they will be together forever.  Morgan is a psychic and as far as she knows everything she predicts always comes true.  Then things with Cameron start changing and she can't tell why.  That is until Cameron gives her the news that he is actually heir to a fairy throne and a fairy himself.  He thinks despite this, nothing will stop him from staying with Morgan.  That is until his human replacement shows up from fairy.  Pip is a sweet human boy raised in fairy, he is geeky and awkward and Morgan does her best to help him fit in.  He was the kid that was stolen from fairy when they left Cameron in his place.  Morgan is determined to find a way for her and Cameron to stay together; but what does that mean for fairy and what does that mean for Pip?

This was a hard book to rate for me because there were things about it I really loved and things about it I really disliked.  I loved the dialogue.  The dialogue between characters was always snappy, witty and at times heartfelt, never awkward .  Morgan was a great character and I loved how she dealt with everything.  Despite her psychic ability she is always very down to earth, honest, and has a great sense of humor.  I loved that she wasn't another over-dramatic, whinny heroine.  I also loved that her and Cameron has a solid base for their relationship; it's based on years and years of friendship.  I also enjoyed Balog's writing style; her sentences are well put together and the writing itself is engaging.

There were a couple things I didn't like though.  I thought the plot development was weak.  Morgan's efforts to save Cameron from his fate were weak and her change of heart mid-story was odd given the history her and Cam have.  I was kind of torn mid-story because I couldn't decide if it was nice to have Morgan make a mature rational decision...or if it was just weird that she gave up so easily.  Balog also never develops a very solid foundation for the fairies.  You don't know much about their world or their magic system.  It just is.  So, from a technical standpoint the plot left a lot to be desired.

All in all this is an okay read.  I would read it more for fun than for any desire to read something wonderful and new.  It was a quick read and a fun diversion, but definitely nothing awe-inspiring.  I did like Balog's writing style though, so I may pick up her next book "Sleepless" just to see if the plot development improves.   If the next book is like this one then it is minimal time to breeze through the book.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
- The Young Adult Reading Challenge
- The 100+ Book Reading Challenge
- Support Your Local Library Reading Challenge

 

Mailbox Monday - 3/29

 Mailbox Monday can be found at: The Printed Page

Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week (checked out library books don’t count, eBooks & audio books do). Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.

I, again, got a lot of books this week.  I got two through paperbackswap.com.  The first was The Problem Child by Michael Buckley, the second was Spellbent by Lucy A. Snyder.

I got a couple of books through the Amazon Vine program.  White Cat, which is the first book in Holly Black's new Curse Workers series, is one I am super excited to read.  I also got Birthmarked by Caragh M. O'Brien, which is a dystopia that I have heard great things about.


I had preordered the last Fablehaven book "Keys to the Demon Prison".  I am very eager to read the concluding book to this series.  I have all the other books as keepers, so I decided to splurge and get this one new.

Then I got one book from the libary and that is Carrie Vaughn's debut young adult book, Voice of Dragons.

Lots of wonderful books.  Hope that you all have a great week!  Happy Reading :-)


The Problem Child (The Sisters Grimm, Book 3) by Michael Buckley
 
First Sentence: "Sabrina opened her eyes and saw a monster hunched over her."
From Amazon.com: "A mystery story with a monstrous twist
In book three of the series, Sabrina and Daphne Grimm tackle their most important mystery: Who kidnapped their parents more than a year ago? Sabrina enters the hideout of the Scarlet Hand, the sinister group of Everafters who are keeping her parents prisoner. She has a chance to rescue her mom and dad but is foiled by the most famous fairy-tale character in the world. With the help of her little sister (who might be tougher than Sabrina realizes) and a long-lost relative, Sabrina finds a powerful weapon for fighting her enemies, and discovers that magic has a high price."

White Cat (The Curse Workers, Book 1) by Holly Black
 
First Sentence: "I wake up barefoot, standing on cold slate tiles."
From Amazon.com: "Cassel comes from a family of curse workers -- people who have the power to change your emotions, your memories, your luck, by the slightest touch of their hands. And since curse work is illegal, they're all mobsters, or con artists. Except for Cassel. He hasn't got the magic touch, so he's an outsider, the straight kid in a crooked family. You just have to ignore one small detail -- he killed his best friend, Lila, three years ago.
Ever since, Cassel has carefully built up a façade of normalcy, blending into the crowd. But his façade starts crumbling when he starts sleepwalking, propelled into the night by terrifying dreams about a white cat that wants to tell him something. He's noticing other disturbing things, too, including the strange behavior of his two brothers. They are keeping secrets from him, caught up in a mysterious plot. As Cassel begins to suspect he's part of a huge con game, he also wonders what really happened to Lila. Could she still be alive? To find that out, Cassel will have to out-con the conmen.
Holly Black has created a gripping tale of mobsters and dark magic where a single touch can bring love -- or death -- and your dreams might be more real than your memories."

Birthmarked by Caragh M. O'Brien
 
First Sentence: "In the dim hovel, the mother clenched her body into one final, straining push, and the baby slitered out into Gaia's ready hands."
From Amazon.com: "IN THE ENCLAVE, YOUR SCARS SET YOU APART, and the newly born will change the future.

Sixteen-year-old Gaia Stone and her mother faithfully deliver their quota of three infants every month. But when Gaia’s mother is brutally taken away by the very people she serves, Gaia must question whether the Enclave deserves such loyalty. A stunning adventure brought to life by a memorable heroine, this dystopian debut will have readers racing all the way to the dramatic finish."

Keys to the Demon Prison (Fablehaven, Book 5) by Brandon Mull
 
First Sentence: "Seth knew he should not be here."
From Amazon.com: "Since ancient times, the great demon prison Zzyzx has protected the world from the most dangerous servants of darkness, including Gorgrog, the Demon King. After centuries of plotting, the Sphinx is on the verge of recovering the five artifacts necessary to open the legendary prison. Facing the potential of a world-ending calamity, all friends of light must unite in a final effort to thwart the Sphinx s designs and find a safe home for the five artifacts. To this end, Kendra, Seth, and the Knights of the Dawn will venture far beyond the walls of Fablehaven to strange and exotic magical preserves across the globe, where the end of every quest becomes the beginning of another. In this explosive series finale, allegiances will be confirmed and secrets revealed as the forces of light and darkness collide in a desperate struggle to control the keys to the demon prison."

Spellbent by Lucy A. Snyder
 
First Sentence: "My name is Jessie, and I'm the reason why your life is about to change forever."
From Amazon.com: "In the heart of Ohio, Jessie Shimmer is caught up in hot, magic-drenched passion with her roguish lover, Cooper Marron, who is teaching her how to tap her supernatural powers. When they try to break a drought by calling down a rainstorm, a hellish portal opens and Cooper is ripped from this world, leaving Jessie fighting for her life against a vicious demon that's been unleashed.

In the aftermath, Jessie, who knows so little about her own true nature, is branded an outlaw. She must survive by her wits and with the help of her familiar, a ferret named Palimpsest. Stalked by malevolent enemies, Jessie is determined to find out what happened to Cooper. But when she moves heaven and earth to find her man, she'll be shocked by what she discovers—and by what she must ultimately do to save them all."

From Library:

Voice of Dragons by Carrie Vaughn
 
First Sentence: "Her parents were going to kill her for this."
From Amazon.com: "On one side of the border lies the modern world: the internet, homecoming dances, cell phones. On the other side dwell the ancient monsters who spark humanity's deepest fears: dragons.
Seventeen-year-old Kay Wyatt knows she's breaking the law by rock climbing near the border, but she'd rather have an adventure than follow the rules. When the dragon Artegal unexpectedly saves her life, the rules are abruptly shattered, and a secret friendship grows between them.
But suspicion and terror are the legacy of human and dragon inter­actions, and the fragile truce that has maintained peace between the species is unraveling. As tensions mount and battles begin, Kay and Artegal are caught in the middle. Can their friendship change the course of a war?"

Review - A Local Habitation (October Daye, Book 2) by Seanan McGuire (4.5/5 stars)

This is the second book in the October Daye series.  Last I heard there were eight books planned for this series; the 3rd book "An Artificial Night" is due to come out September 2010.  I thought this book was much better than the first book in the series; I really enjoyed it.

October (Toby) is back in with the fairy community.  Her liege lord, Sylvester, has asked her to go to the County of Tamed Lightning to check on his niece, January O'Leary.  The political situation in Tamed Lightening is touchy; Toby brings along Quentin to help with the case.  When they arrive they find out things are much stranger than they were originally lead to believe.  January runs a computer company that is focused on bringing technology to the Summerlands.  The computer company employs a number of interesting types of faerie as well as a dryad that is now housed in a network tree (her forest was destroyed).  What Toby doesn't know right away is that faeries there have been dying and no one can figure out what's killing them.  Toby's time to figure out what is happening is running out; and now her and Quentin may be the hunted ones.

This was an excellent book.  It is fast paced and the plot is well put together and never really wanders.  Toby is a great character that shows admirable practicality, determination, and initiative.  I am amazed at how many interesting types of magic she pulls off despite her supposed lack of magical power.  Toby is very good at using what she has effectively.  Many of the side characters are also very intriguing; McGuire does an excellent job with character development.  I really enjoyed the King of Cats, Tybalt, and hope that he features in future books.  I also enjoyed that the Night Haunts played some role in this book, they were fascinating to learn more about.

I really loved the creativity of the plot.  Having the faerie community merging with technology was an interesting concept that brought up a number of interesting questions.  We get to meet a wide-variety of types of fairy in this book too.  I enjoyed the creativity that went into developing these races and making them really fun to learn about.  This book is definitely more of an urban fantasy than a paranormal romance; although Toby does have a potential love interest in Tybalt.

I thought this book was much more well put together than the first one.  The plot was more engaging and really propelled the reader forward; Toby develops into a much more likable heroine (she was not as whiny as in the first book).  I also liked that Toby spent some time in another duchy.  I hope in future books we are exposed to an even broader world of faerie that goes outside the coastal US area.

I only have one major complaint about this book and that is that it was rather predictable.  From the moment Toby and Quentin set foot in Tamed Lightning I new who was involved in the deaths.  I was kind of hoping that I was wrong.  I also have one minor quibble...that was that Toby spent more time than I would have liked having breakdowns.  It was nice to see that Toby had a soft side; but towards the end of the book it seemed like she spent most of her time crying or passing out...

Overall I liked this book much better than the first book.  It would have been 5 stars, if not for the predictability of the conclusion to the mystery.  I am excited to read the third book in the series and am happy I only have to wait six months for it to come out!  This is developing into one of the better urban fantasy series out there right now.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
- The 100+ Book Reading Challenge
- Support Your Local Library Reading Challenge
- Thiller and Suspense Challenge

 

Review - Mercury by Hope Larson (4/5 stars)

I got this book through the Amazon Vine program.  It sounded like an interesting premise and I love graphic novels.  Overall it was an interesting read with great illustration.

This book follows the stories of two young girls.  Tara is a young girl in current times whose house has burnt down.  She is struggling with starting at her new school and finds a pendant in her mom's old jewelry that is intriguing.  Alternating with Tara's story is the story of Josey.  Josey lived in the same area as Tara but in 1859.  Josey has meet a handsome young man that promises to find gold on Josie's parents' farm and make the farm rich.  As things progress the two stories become somewhat tied together.

I liked the illustrations a lot.  Larson does an excellent job clearly picturing the actions of the characters, the frames are easy to follow and there is never any doubt about what she is trying to portray.   To make the two stories easier to follow the frames telling Tara's story have a white background behind them and the frames telling Josey's story has a black background.  Also any Canadian slang is clarified with asterisks below the frames.  So overall very easy to follow and clear illustrating.  The style of illustration is fairly minimalist with pictures done in black and white, no shades of gray.  The drawings are not intricate but they are detailed enough to portray the landscape and background of the settings.

The story was intriguing.  Josey's story is the more intriguing of the two as it focuses on Josey's relationship with a young man, Asa, and her family's quest to find gold.  This story has more urgency to it and was more engaging than Tara's story.  Tara's story was boring at points.  The first portion of the story mainly follows Tara running and hanging out with her friends.  When Tara finds her mom's old necklace the story gets more interesting (last third of the story or so).

I wish that more time had been spent with Tara exploring the origin and capabilities of the necklace.  It took too long to set up Tara's story. On the other hand I really enjoyed Josey's story. 

Overall this graphic novel was well illustrated, very well organized, and had a somewhat engaging story.  It was a unique subject for a graphic novel and was presented well.  The only thing I would have changed would be to get into Tara's portion of the story faster.  I will be keeping my eye out for future works from Hope Larson.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
- The Young Adult Reading Challenge
- The 100+ Book Reading Challenge

 

Waiting on Wednesday - 3/24

Okay "Waiting On Wednesday" is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine.

This week my WoW book is "Guardian of the Dead" by Karen Healey.  Sounds like an intriguing premise.

See below for synopsis and cover :-)

Guardian of the Dead

Pages: 352 pages
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Release Date: April 1st, 2010

Synopsis (from Amazon.com) : 
Seventeen-year-old Ellie Spencer is just like any other teenager at her boarding school. She hangs out with her best friend Kevin, she obsesses over Mark, a cute and mysterious bad boy, and her biggest worry is her paper deadline.

But then everything changes. The news headlines are all abuzz about a local string of serial killings that all share the same morbid trademark: the victims were discovered with their eyes missing. Then a beautiful yet eerie woman enters Ellie's circle of friends and develops an unhealthy fascination with Kevin, and a crazed old man grabs Ellie in a public square and shoves a tattered Bible into her hands, exclaiming, "You need it. It will save your soul." Soon, Ellie finds herself plunged into a haunting world of vengeful fairies, Maori mythology, romance, betrayal, and an epic battle for immortality.

Review - The Poison Eaters and Other Stories by Holly Black (4/5 stars)

This book is a collection of Holly Black's short stories.  Overall it is a decent collection.  It you are a huge Holly Black fan, like I am, beware that many of these stories appear in other anthologies.  So, I had already read some of them.  There is a nice publication history in the back of the book just in case you want to check and see which stories you may have already read.

The stories tend to be dark and follow paranormal/urban fantasy themes.  Most of the stories are a bit ironic and have some sense of dark humor to them. There are a number of stories that touch on fairies, a couple that touch on werewolves, a story that deals with characters in books coming alive, one that deals with vampires, and a couple that deal with mythology.  There is one story that takes place in the world that Black's Modern Tales of Fairie is in.  There are twelve stories in all, they vary quite a bit in length.

I tended to like the stories towards the back of the book better.  Among my favorites were: The Night Market about a girl who saves her sister from a fairy by braving the strange Night Market, Virgin a story about unicorns, The Coat of Stars a story about a costume designer fighting the fairy Queen for his lover's return, Paper Cuts Scissors at story about characters coming out of books and mingling, and The Poison Eaters a story about poisonous sisters.

There were also some stories that were a bit weak.  The Land of Heart's Desire, which uses the characters from the Tithe series, wasn't the most interesting. 

Overall though I enjoyed the majority of stories and am glad I read the book.  It is a quick read, but if you are a Holly Black fan...or an urban fantasy fan in general you should enjoy this collection.  Now I am looking forward to reading the start of Black's Curse Worker series "The White Cat".

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
- The Young Adult Reading Challenge
- The 100+ Book Reading Challenge
- Support Your Local Library Reading Challenge

 

Teaser Tuesday - 3/23

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

- Grab your current read
- Open to a random page
- Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
- Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My teaser this week is from "Chasing the Dragon" (Quantum Gravity, Book 4) by Justina Robson.

Here it is: "The rogue's head rolled on the floor, bumped against a mattress, and rocked to a still point.  Its body didn't move at all, save for some blue electrical discharges at the neck." Pg. 69

Review - Greywalker (Greywalker, Book 1) by Kat Richardson (4/5 stars)

This is the first book in the Greywalker series by Kat Richardson, so far there are 6 books sold in this series.  Book #5, Labyrinth, is due out August of 2010.  I listened to this book on audio book and it was very well done and very easy to listen to.  I originally read a short story by Richardson that Harper Blaine was in; I liked her writing style and the idea behind the Grey so I decided to give this series a try.  I am actually surprised it isn't rated higher on Amazon; I thought it was a very solid entry into the paranormal market.

Harper Blaine, a private investigator, gets whacked around by a pissed off client and ends up dead for a couple minutes.  When she comes back and tries to resume her normal life things have...changed.  She keeps seeing ghosts and getting sucked into a grey world.  Her doctor refers her to an interesting couple of people who make a living studying magic; ends up Harper is a Greywalker and can walk the planes between the natural and supernatural world.  This is all well and good but for some reason Harper's cases start getting more and more bizarre as things from the Grey are drawn to her for help.

There were a lot of things I liked about this story.  The idea of the Grey is very cool and, while Harper's full potential wasn't realized in this book, there are a lot of cool things that Richardson does with the Grey.  I think this whole idea of the Grey has great potential for even more creative use as the series continues.  I also really liked Harper's character.  She is practical and organized; she is not overly tough-girl but is willing to deal with whatever life throws at her.  I also liked that she still has to do normal things like eat and sleep and that isn't ignored in this book.  I also liked the side characters; all the side characters are intriguing and engaging.

I liked the writing style too.  It moved pretty fast, had good action scenes, Richardson makes some very funny analogies and gives her characters some great sarcastic wit that I enjoyed.  Richardson did an excellent job have having multiple plotlines going (with all of Harper's different clients) and the plotlines never got confused and they ended up coming together very neatly in the end.  I liked Harper's relationship with Will; it was just a normal, nice beginning relationship.  It was good to see Harper live her life as normal as she could with all the weird stuff going on around her.  That being said this was not a romance or even a paranormal romance; this was definitely more of an urban fantasy...which of course, is what I prefer.

The treatment of vampires was pretty traditional, nothing too surprising there.  So, I suppose that might disappoint some people.  The conclusion to the book wasn't all that surprising, but it was well done.  There are a number of other supernatural forces dealt with in this book...primarily necromancers, witches, and ghosts.  There was also brief mention of werewolves and the inclusion of the Guardian of the Grey.  I am hoping that in future books we learn more about the Grey and that the world isfurther expanded.

Overall this was a solid paranormal read that tended more towards urban fantasy and mystery.  I loved the creativity of the Grey and thought the characterization was very strong.  I also enjoyed the tight plot.  I am hoping we get to learn more about the Grey in future books and that Richardson expands upon the world she's created in this book.  I really enjoyed Harper's character.  I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
- The 100+ Book Reading Challenge
- 1st in a Series Reading Challenge
- Thiller and Suspense Challenge

 

Review - Chasing the Dragon (Quantum Gravity, Book 4) by Justina Robson (4/5 stars)

This is the fourth book in the Quantum Gravity series by Justina Robson. I know a fifth book "Down to the Bone" is planned for a 2010 release, I couldn't find any information on how many books overall are planned on this series. This book was a good addition to the series and started to tie together a lot of the loose ends that appeared in books 2 and 3.

A lot is happening in this book. It starts where the 3rd book left off; with Lila showing up on the beach 50 years after she went into fairy. In the mean time Teazle has taken over half of Demonia, Zal is still missing/dead, and Mal is leading up a branch of the agency. Ghosts are appearing with increasing frequency in Otopia. Lila is offered a position heading up the AI branch of the Agency. There is a lot to sort out, both personal and political. Lila is armed with an ever changing dress/armor that is more than it first seems to be and with an..uh...ink pen that has powers she could have never imagined.

This book was a good addition to the series. It brings together some of the plot elements that seemed somewhat random in the previous book. Finally we begin to understand how the Ghosts are all tied together with the Fates, Zal, and Lila...and how all of that is tied to the stability of the universe. The pace of the book is pretty good, although the action is not as non-stop as it was in book 2. Again if book 1 was about the elf world, book 2 about the demon world, and book 3 about fairy...then this book is mostly about the realm of the dead...although it does a good job of bringing all the realms together.

This is a complex story-line and there are still points at which I am not completely convinced that Robson knows what she wants to do with everything that is going on. The book switches viewpoint a lot...going between Teazle, Lila, Zal, Mal, and Tath. So, sometimes the story gets a bit fractured from all the viewpoint changes. Also the story gets a bit metaphysical with Lila in Thanatopia/Void and although Robson makes a good effort at describing it, sometimes it is a bit hard to picture exactly what is going on. The discussions between various characters (for example Tath and Mal) can get a little crazy and drawn out as they debate the cause of various metaphysical aspects of the parallel realms. I am also a bit confused on how in the previous book the worlds were on the edge of destruction and now here it is fifty years later and they are still on the edge of destruction...it's like nothing really happened so maybe destruction wasn't as imminent as it was portrayed in the last book....

The above being said there are some great character additions to this book. Temple Greer, the new head of the Agency, is an awesome character. He brings a lot of humor to the story and a wit that really lightens the whole plot. Lila's crazy dress/armor was also an awesome addition to the story and added a lot of fun.

I am impressed with the creativity in this book and with the depth of the worlds that Robson has created. The plot is getting increasingly complex; I am hoping that Robson has a reason for all these plot elements and that in the end they weave a wonderfully complex, yet complete story. The characterization is good; Lila starts to come into her own as she spends less time doubting herself and more time looking out for her interests. I also enjoyed Teazle's development as he exercises the new powers he gained in fairy.

You definitely need to read the previous books to follow what happens in this book. Robson does not dumb down her writing to remind readers of things that have previously happened. Things happen quickly and every word counts; so this book is a bit of a harder read than some. Still overall the complexity of the world intrigues me and I have grown attached to the very interesting characters Robson has created. This was a great addition to the series and I hope the next book has clear path forward.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
- The 100+ Book Reading Challenge
- Support Your Local Library Reading Challenge

 

Review - Lord Sunday (Keys to the Kingdom, Book 7) by Garth Nix (4.5/5 stars)

This was the seventh (and final) book in the Keys to the Kingdom series by Garth Nix. This was the first book that I read; the previous six I listened to on audio book. I have to say that these books read a lot better than they listen to...if that makes sense. Anyway, this book was an excellent conclusion to a great series. I actually thought it was the best book of the series. You do need to read all of the previous books to have this book make any sense to you at all; if you start with this book you will be at a total loss.

We pick up right where book 6, Superior Saturday, leaves off...with Arthur falling after having claimed the sixth key. In general everything is falling apart. Superior Saturday's forces are attacking the Improbable Gardens (Lord Sunday's domains), Dame Primus is leading an assault on Superior Saturday, the lower house is being claimed by Nothing, and the human world is being plagued by strange sicknesses as things deteriorate in the House. In general things are not happy. How will it all be resolved? Arthur has given up his humanity but is there a way for him to save the House, and hence the universe, while retaining some contact with his family?

This book was very well done. The story is jam packed and fast-moving. Nix does an excellent job of making every word in this book count; there was no fat in this story every page goes towards resolving all the issues and bringing the story to a satisfying conclusion. All the characters you know and love are in this story. The action is non-stop and very well done. Lord Sunday is a fabulous character, and not at all what I expected.

Nix did an excellent job portraying Arthur's fight to retain some humanity. Arthur's denizen personality often starts him on a rash course of action that his human side will counteract...although as Arthur spends more time wielding the Keys you can tell he is having trouble remembering what it is to be human. Suzi remains her lovable self and is more competent than ever in her own conniving way.

I think that readers of the series will have little to complain about with this spectacular, fast-moving, and action-packed conclusion. If there is one thing to complain about it is the ending. I was a little upset at how things all ended, but upon spending a bit of time thinking about it I think Nix ended everything the best way he could given the situation the characters were in. The only thing that might really make readers mad is that a major death occurs at the end which is given little thought; in fact only a sentence or two is given to this major life-changing event in Arthur's life. Should that prevent you from reading the book? Of course not, overall it was very well done.

I was pleased with this series as a whole and thought this book was fantastic. I was happy that Nix concluded the series with a tight book that didn't drag on and on and did an excellent job of concluding the story. I also really liked Nix's Abhorsen trilogy. So, I will definitely be picking up his future works. I am curious to see what his next project is.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
- The Young Adult Reading Challenge
- The 100+ Book Reading Challenge
- Support Your Local Library Reading Challenge

 

Mailbox Monday - 3/22

 Mailbox Monday can be found at: The Printed Page

Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week (checked out library books don’t count, eBooks & audio books do). Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.

I only bought one book this week and that was "Persuasion" by Jane Austen.  A friend of mine told me that if I was going to visit Bath in the UK (which I did a couple weeks ago) I needed to read Persuasion.  I should mention "Persuasion" has the longest first sentence I think I have ever read.

The rest of the books were from my wonderful library.  The Anoka County Library system deserves huge kudos.  With their super easy to use online holds request and their equally easy to use purchase suggestions I have gotten tons of great books from there.  Not only do they purchase everything I ask for; I usually get it the day after the book comes out in the stores.  So, huge thanks to my library system.  And, while library books aren't supposed to be included in Mailbox Monday, I got a lot of great books from the library so I thought I would list them anyway.

See below for the full list!  Happy reading to you all :-)

Persuasion by Jane Austen
 
First Sentence: "Sir Walter Elliot, of Kellynch-hall, in Somersetshire, was a man who, for his own amusement, never took up any book but the Baronetage; there he found occupation for an idle hour, and consolation in a distressed one; there his faculties were roused into admiration and respect, by contemplating the limited remnant of the earliest patents; there any unwelcome sensations, arising from domestic affairs, changed naturally into pity and contempt, as he turned over the almost endless creations of the last century–and there, if every other leaf were powerless, he could read his own history with an interest which never failed–this was the page at which the favorite volume always opened: ELLIOT OF KELLYNCH-HALL.
From Amazon.com: "In her final novel, as in her earlier ones, Jane Austen uses a love story to explore and gently satirize social pretensions and emotional confusion. Persuasion follows the romance of Anne Elliot and naval officer Frederick Wentworth. They were happily engaged until Anne’s friend, Lady Russell, persuaded her that Frederick was “unworthy.” Now, eight years later, Frederick returns, a wealthy captain in the navy, while Anne’s family teeters on the edge of bankruptcy. They still love each other, but their past mistakes threaten to keep them apart."

From Library:

Lord Sunday (Keys to the Kingdom, Book 7) by Garth Nix
 
First Sentence: "Athur fell."
From Amazon.com: "Seven days. Seven keys. Seven virtues. Seven sins.
In this thrilling conclusion to Garth Nix's Keys to the Kingdom series, Arthur Penhaligon must complete his quest to save the Kingdom he is heir to...and Arthur's world"

Where Angels Fear to Tread (Remy Chandler, Book 3) by Thomas E. Sniegoski 
 
First Sentence: "Delilah sat in the passenger seat of the old Jeep in a central Vietnam valley - The Cat's Tooth Mountain barely visible through the thick canopy of lush vegetation - and waiting for a sign."
From Amazon.com: "Six year-old Zoe York has been taken and her mother has come to Remy for help. She shows him crude, childlike drawings that she claims are Zoe's visions of the future, everything leading up to her abduction, and some beyond. Like the picture of a man with wings who would come and save her-a man who is an angel.

Zoe's preternatural gifts have made her a target for those who wish to exploit her power to their own destructive ends. The search will take Remy to dark places he would rather avoid. But to save an innocent, Remy will ally himself with a variety of lesser evils-and his soul may pay the price..."

Fairy Tale by Cyn Balog
 
First Sentence: "People call me spooky."
From Amazon.com: "Morgan Sparks has always known that she and her boyfriend, Cam, are made for each other. But when Cam’s cousin Pip comes to stay with the family, Cam seems depressed. Finally Cam confesses to Morgan what’s going on: Cam is a fairy. The night he was born, fairies came down and switched him with a healthy human boy. Nobody expected Cam to live, and nobody expected his biological brother, heir to the fairy throne, to die. But both things happened, and now the fairies want Cam back to take his rightful place as Fairy King.

Even as Cam physically changes, becoming more miserable each day, he and Morgan pledge to fool the fairies and stay together forever. But by the time Cam has to decide once and for all what to do, Morgan’s no longer sure what’s best for everyone, or whether her and Cam’s love can weather an uncertain future."

Violet Wings by Victoria Hanley
 
First Sentence: "Back when I was nine, my parents went missing."
From Amazon.com: "For Zaria Tourmaline, the three years without her mother and brother have been lonely ones, living with a cold and distant guardian while she completes her education. Just as she is ready to join the world of adult fairies and genies, she finds a spellbook written entirely in her mother’s hand. But this treasured object is not safe from a new enemy, a fairy with more power than Zaria ever dreamed existed. Only among the humans–who must never know fairies and genies exist–can Zaria hide the spellbook; but hidden magic, it turns out, can expose a fairy in ways she never thought possible."

The Poison Eaters and Other Stories by Holly Black
 
First Sentence: "Matilda was drunk, but then she was always drunk anymore."
From Amazon.com: "In her debut collection, New York Times best-selling author Holly Black returns to the world of Tithe in two darkly exquisite new tales. Then Black takes readers on a tour of a faerie market and introduces a girl poisonous to the touch and another who challenges the devil to a competitive eating match. These stories have been published in anthologies such as 21 Proms, The Faery Reel, and The Restless Dead, and have been reprinted in many “Best of” anthologies. The Poison Eaters is Holly Black’s much-anticipated first collection of stories, and her ability to stare into the void—and to find humanity and humor there—will speak to young adult and adult readers alike."