I got this book through the amazon vine program. It sounded like an interesting premise to a story. Thought the story was well-written, the plot was slow moving, boring, and somewhat anti-climatic.
Mark is forced to move out of London to the vacation town of Brighton with his mother and new step-father. Mark sees his step-father as controlling and doesn't understand his mother's constant illness. This takes a stranger turn when Mark is shown the servant's quarters underneath their new house by an old woman who lives on the bottom floor. When Mark visits this area alone strange things happen; could these events somehow be connected to his mother's illness?
This is a very quick read and a very short book. That being said somehow the story is still very drawn out and somewhat vague. Although the writing style is great, I found myself getting as bored as Mark was. Maybe that was the point. Even as events unfolded under the house I found myself bored. I figured out the link between the house and Mark's mother almost immediately; so I didn't even have that surprise to look forward too.
Overall I found this book to be dull; this book probably could have been cut down to novella size and made a great story. To me this was more of a short-story than a book. I don't think I will be keeping track of this author in the future.
Monday, October 6, 2008
Slow Storm by Danica Novgorodoff (4/5 stars)
I haven't read a ton of graphic novels. Mainly I have read Neil Gaiman's stuff and scattering of Magna. When I saw this on Amazon Vine it looked interesting and I decided to give it a try.
The artistic style of the graphics wasn't my favorite. It's fairly stylized and looks like it was done in watercolor. This style may appeal to a number of people but I thought it was a little too washed out looking.
The story itself involves a woman who is a firefighter and her encounters with a Mexican immigrant during a colossal series of tornadoes. This is also not usually the type of story that I would enjoy, but despite myself I was very drawn to it.
The story is very engaging and you can't help sympathizing with the characters. I was amazed at the depth of character the characters had, given that this was a graphic novel. Some of the scenes with the Mexican and his god of wanderers were very reminiscent of some of Neil Gaimon's graphic novel stories.
All in all a great book and I am looking forward to more work from this artist/author.
The artistic style of the graphics wasn't my favorite. It's fairly stylized and looks like it was done in watercolor. This style may appeal to a number of people but I thought it was a little too washed out looking.
The story itself involves a woman who is a firefighter and her encounters with a Mexican immigrant during a colossal series of tornadoes. This is also not usually the type of story that I would enjoy, but despite myself I was very drawn to it.
The story is very engaging and you can't help sympathizing with the characters. I was amazed at the depth of character the characters had, given that this was a graphic novel. Some of the scenes with the Mexican and his god of wanderers were very reminiscent of some of Neil Gaimon's graphic novel stories.
All in all a great book and I am looking forward to more work from this artist/author.
Friday, October 3, 2008
Night of the Soul Stealer by Joseph Delaney (5/5 stars)
This is the third book in the Last Apprentice series by Joseph Delaney. This was an excellent book and a great follow up to the first two books.
In this book Gregory and Tom move to the Spook's winter home after being contacted by a man named Morgan, who is a former apprentice of the Spook's. In Gregory's winter home Tom learns many more secrets about Gregory's past and finally gets to meet the mysterious Meg. Things get more dangerous than Tom ever expected when Morgan starts to dabble in some seriously dangerous magic. Can Tom and Gregory make it through the winter and survive?
This book was great. Easy to read, well-written, fast-paced, and suspenseful. This was a great "horror" book for kids. Tom is a likable character that you can't help rooting for and Alice is also very engaging. Meg made for an interesting addition to the book too. It was great to learn more about Gregory's past and it was also wonderful to spend more time with Tom's Mam.
I eagerly await the next book. What will happen next as the dark continues to rise? What will Tom find in the secret room that Mam has left him? Will Alice be able to stay on the path of the light? I am excited to find out. I love these books there are just such a nice pleasant, and spooky, read.
In this book Gregory and Tom move to the Spook's winter home after being contacted by a man named Morgan, who is a former apprentice of the Spook's. In Gregory's winter home Tom learns many more secrets about Gregory's past and finally gets to meet the mysterious Meg. Things get more dangerous than Tom ever expected when Morgan starts to dabble in some seriously dangerous magic. Can Tom and Gregory make it through the winter and survive?
This book was great. Easy to read, well-written, fast-paced, and suspenseful. This was a great "horror" book for kids. Tom is a likable character that you can't help rooting for and Alice is also very engaging. Meg made for an interesting addition to the book too. It was great to learn more about Gregory's past and it was also wonderful to spend more time with Tom's Mam.
I eagerly await the next book. What will happen next as the dark continues to rise? What will Tom find in the secret room that Mam has left him? Will Alice be able to stay on the path of the light? I am excited to find out. I love these books there are just such a nice pleasant, and spooky, read.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Ophelia by Lisa Klein (3/5 stars)
I am a big fan of Hamlet and I have always wondered what the rest of Ophelia's story is. When of saw this reimagining of Hamlet, from Ophelia's prospective, I was wary but interested. Unfortunately, while decently written, the story was just plain boring and at sometimes forced.
The story starts from Ophelia's point of view earlier than the play, back when the court of King Hamlet was a happy place. There is even a brief meeting with Yorick the jester. It seems okay, the author tries to stay true to the writing style of Hamlet but also tries to make it easily readable. This was okay and overall better than trying to mimic Shakespeare. Unfortunately the author forces in famous parts from the original play. She tries to put them in word for word and they seem strange and stilted in with the rest of the story. It is just plain odd.
The back history and Ophelia's life after where the original play ends seem kind of boring. I am sure that the author means Ophelia to seem spirited and rebellious. To me though Ophelia's story seems rather plain; Ophelia takes what seems to me to be a rather typical route of women that were shunned in that time period. There is no stretch of the imagination here. I wonder if that is meant to make the story more realistic or maybe more in keeping with the times? The tragedy of Hamlet is in itself fanciful so I don't understand why you wouldn't stay with that and make Ophelia have a more interesting part in it all.
Despite all the things I didn't like there were some things I did like. I did like that the author stayed true to the major plotline of Hamlet. I liked the glimpse of the court before King Hamlet's death. And, although it was not in keeping with a tragedy, I liked the hopeful ending. Although even this rankled a bit because after having Ophelia rail against the men in her life it seemed odd for the author to hint that Ophelia would feel more complete with the addition of a man to her life. Maybe this was meant to be ironic. It also bothered me that the characters in this book seemed less passionate than in the play; you would think a book would give more license to character development.
All in all this may be a book I could have never really loved no matter who the writer was. It is an almost insurmountable task to fill-out a story written by Shakespeare. I applaud the author for the attempt. I just wish it was a more interesting and more well-written attempt. As it stands this book was okay, but nothing more. I don't think I will read anything more by this author, her writing style definitely didn't grab and take hold of me.
The story starts from Ophelia's point of view earlier than the play, back when the court of King Hamlet was a happy place. There is even a brief meeting with Yorick the jester. It seems okay, the author tries to stay true to the writing style of Hamlet but also tries to make it easily readable. This was okay and overall better than trying to mimic Shakespeare. Unfortunately the author forces in famous parts from the original play. She tries to put them in word for word and they seem strange and stilted in with the rest of the story. It is just plain odd.
The back history and Ophelia's life after where the original play ends seem kind of boring. I am sure that the author means Ophelia to seem spirited and rebellious. To me though Ophelia's story seems rather plain; Ophelia takes what seems to me to be a rather typical route of women that were shunned in that time period. There is no stretch of the imagination here. I wonder if that is meant to make the story more realistic or maybe more in keeping with the times? The tragedy of Hamlet is in itself fanciful so I don't understand why you wouldn't stay with that and make Ophelia have a more interesting part in it all.
Despite all the things I didn't like there were some things I did like. I did like that the author stayed true to the major plotline of Hamlet. I liked the glimpse of the court before King Hamlet's death. And, although it was not in keeping with a tragedy, I liked the hopeful ending. Although even this rankled a bit because after having Ophelia rail against the men in her life it seemed odd for the author to hint that Ophelia would feel more complete with the addition of a man to her life. Maybe this was meant to be ironic. It also bothered me that the characters in this book seemed less passionate than in the play; you would think a book would give more license to character development.
All in all this may be a book I could have never really loved no matter who the writer was. It is an almost insurmountable task to fill-out a story written by Shakespeare. I applaud the author for the attempt. I just wish it was a more interesting and more well-written attempt. As it stands this book was okay, but nothing more. I don't think I will read anything more by this author, her writing style definitely didn't grab and take hold of me.
The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan (5/5 stars)
This is the 4th book in the Percy and the Olympians series. I have heard that there are supposed to be 5 books in the series. This book was as good as the previous ones and follows the same basic formula as those ones. I listened to this on audiobook and the audiobook was very well done!
Percy is going to orientation at yet another new school. This time more is at stake because he was allowed into this school on a recommendation from his mother's boyfriend. As usual trouble ensues and he is attacked right off the bat by evil monster cheerleaders. So starts another fun fast-paced adventure with Percy and his buddies.
Percy flees the scene meeting Annabeth on the way and they end up back at camp half-blood where Annabeth is finally given a quest. Her quest will take her, Tyson, Percy, and Grover through the depths of the fabled Labyrinth and through many other fantastical areas of Greek mythology. As Aphrodite promised Percy's "love life" begins to get difficult with the addition of Elizabeth Rachel Dare to the story.
This was another great book. I continue to love how the Greek myths are woven in with everyday reality. I love the characters. I love how even Percy's everyday normal mortal life is kept track of and not forgotten about. This is just an all-in-all great book. I love this series and am very excited to see how it ends.
Great book!
Percy is going to orientation at yet another new school. This time more is at stake because he was allowed into this school on a recommendation from his mother's boyfriend. As usual trouble ensues and he is attacked right off the bat by evil monster cheerleaders. So starts another fun fast-paced adventure with Percy and his buddies.
Percy flees the scene meeting Annabeth on the way and they end up back at camp half-blood where Annabeth is finally given a quest. Her quest will take her, Tyson, Percy, and Grover through the depths of the fabled Labyrinth and through many other fantastical areas of Greek mythology. As Aphrodite promised Percy's "love life" begins to get difficult with the addition of Elizabeth Rachel Dare to the story.
This was another great book. I continue to love how the Greek myths are woven in with everyday reality. I love the characters. I love how even Percy's everyday normal mortal life is kept track of and not forgotten about. This is just an all-in-all great book. I love this series and am very excited to see how it ends.
Great book!
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Maledicte by Lane Robins (5/5 stars)
I bought this book because I loved the cover and when I read the premise I was intrigued. I love these kinds of stories and this one was especially heart-rending yet hopeful.
Miranda's childhood sweetheart is stolen from her in the slums that they are raised in. She vows to get back her love, Janus, at any cost. Disguising herself as a young lord named Maledicte she wins over the elderly lord of a house; he decides to foster Maledicte as an heir; for a price. When the lord finds out Maledicte's secret the stakes are even greater.
Miranda adopts Maledicte's persona completely and works to become a ferocious fighter and deadly courtier. This book is full of lush description, great fight scenes, and intrigue galore. There is much contemplation on the topics of love versus power and the values of each.
This book was well-written, impossible for me to put down, and a classic type of story with a twist. It is kind of your classic rage to riches story, but your young man is actually a girl pretending to be a man, and the young man's true love is not exactly what he seems.
The style of writing and court intrigue reminded me of Jacqueline Carey's Kushiel's Dart series; although the scope of this book is smaller (it is a stand alone novel) and the sex scenes are not explicit (just very sweet and tasteful).
This was a beautiful book and I was sad when it ended. The ending seemed slightly rushed. I was still very impressed and it was awesome to find such a good stand alone novel. It seems like now-a-days everything is part of a series. I will definitely be keeping an eye out for this author in the future!
Miranda's childhood sweetheart is stolen from her in the slums that they are raised in. She vows to get back her love, Janus, at any cost. Disguising herself as a young lord named Maledicte she wins over the elderly lord of a house; he decides to foster Maledicte as an heir; for a price. When the lord finds out Maledicte's secret the stakes are even greater.
Miranda adopts Maledicte's persona completely and works to become a ferocious fighter and deadly courtier. This book is full of lush description, great fight scenes, and intrigue galore. There is much contemplation on the topics of love versus power and the values of each.
This book was well-written, impossible for me to put down, and a classic type of story with a twist. It is kind of your classic rage to riches story, but your young man is actually a girl pretending to be a man, and the young man's true love is not exactly what he seems.
The style of writing and court intrigue reminded me of Jacqueline Carey's Kushiel's Dart series; although the scope of this book is smaller (it is a stand alone novel) and the sex scenes are not explicit (just very sweet and tasteful).
This was a beautiful book and I was sad when it ended. The ending seemed slightly rushed. I was still very impressed and it was awesome to find such a good stand alone novel. It seems like now-a-days everything is part of a series. I will definitely be keeping an eye out for this author in the future!
The Watcher by Jeanne C. Stein (3/5 stars)
This is the third book in the Anna Strong Chronicles. It was written in a style consistent with the first two. It was a pretty good book and I think if you liked the first two, you would also like this book.
Anna is signed on to be a Watcher. As normal things get out of control. A lot happens in this book. Anna is involved in everything from helping seek down a witch bent on summoning demons into the world, to retrieving her lost boyfriend Max from what are thought to be more typical enemies.
So much happens in this book that it is almost dizzying. That would be one complaint I have with this book; there is just too much going on. Another complaint I have would be that Anna is *still* making the same mistakes and vowing to correct them. Will the girl ever learn? Her character really needs to start changing and growing. My last complaint is that the secondary characters are not getting enough plot time to develop them into characters you know and love. Maybe there was just too much packed into this novel to be able to do that?
There were a couple things I really like. I liked that we finally got to spend some time with Max; he seems like he is an interesting character and I liked what happened between him and Anna. I also like the inclusion of the witches as another sub species in this book; it is nice to get some new fun things in there.
Will I read the next book? Probably. I do think there are better series out there. But these books are a quick read, fast-paced, and draw me in; so I will keep reading them. I just hope that Anna starts to get herself together a little bit better and grow some as a person.
Anna is signed on to be a Watcher. As normal things get out of control. A lot happens in this book. Anna is involved in everything from helping seek down a witch bent on summoning demons into the world, to retrieving her lost boyfriend Max from what are thought to be more typical enemies.
So much happens in this book that it is almost dizzying. That would be one complaint I have with this book; there is just too much going on. Another complaint I have would be that Anna is *still* making the same mistakes and vowing to correct them. Will the girl ever learn? Her character really needs to start changing and growing. My last complaint is that the secondary characters are not getting enough plot time to develop them into characters you know and love. Maybe there was just too much packed into this novel to be able to do that?
There were a couple things I really like. I liked that we finally got to spend some time with Max; he seems like he is an interesting character and I liked what happened between him and Anna. I also like the inclusion of the witches as another sub species in this book; it is nice to get some new fun things in there.
Will I read the next book? Probably. I do think there are better series out there. But these books are a quick read, fast-paced, and draw me in; so I will keep reading them. I just hope that Anna starts to get herself together a little bit better and grow some as a person.
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