The Picture of Dorian Grey by Oscar Wilde (4/5 stars)

I have heard a lot about this book and, having read a few of Oscar Wilde's plays and enjoyed them, decided to give it a try.  Overall is was a good book, if a bit inconsistent in pacing at times. 

Dorian Grey is a beautiful young man, who is corrupted by a Lord to worry about how his looks might one day fade.  While a portrait of him is being painted he wishes to never grow old.  Later he realizes that the portrait is changing to reflect any cruelty in his nature, yet he remains the same.

Oscar Wilde is a genius at writing.  The cleverness of the language he uses and the sharpness of the commentary on society is deftly done and makes the story a joy to read, most of the time.  The footnotes in this version of the book help to explain some of the more subtle jokes that I would have missed without them. 

The book does have some flaws, especially when compared to modern literature.  Wilde takes nearly half to book to set up his characters.  You can tell Wilde is a playwright at heart because many of the characters wander off into multiple page long dialogues that get to be a bit too much and sometimes a bit boring.  Even in the second half of the book there are times where Dorian is reading from the book he is obsessed with and it just goes on and on and on.

The second half of the book is by far the strongest.  Wilde stimulates the imagination by talking about Dorian's unspeakable acts but never revealing what the majority of the horrible acts are.  I was a little disappointed that there isn't a lot more to the plot than what you read on the back of the book.  That being said, the end of the book is remarkable and really made the book a wonder to me. 

Overall this is a very interesting book and worth the read.  Some of the lengthy dialogues can get a bit trying to read through, but most of the book has a quick wit to it that is amusing.  The ending of the book holds some wonderful surprises.  I would recommend reading this, especially if you are a fan of Wilde's writing style.

This book goes towards the following reading challenge:
- The 100+ Book Reading Challenge

Briar Rose by Jane Yolan (4/5 stars)

I really like fairy tale retellings, so I was eager to read this book. It is a good book, but not so much about fairy tales as about the Holocaust and one girl's struggle to uncover her grandmother's past.

Becca's grandmother, Gemma, always tells the story of Sleeping Beauty. As Gemma ages and gets sick, the story of Sleeping Beauty is the only thing she ever says. When Gemma passes she leaves a mysterious box of trinkets for Becca. Becca has promised to track down her grandmother's past and uses the box of clippings and trinkets to find out the story of her grandmother who thought she was a Polish Princess.

This was a very well-written book and a very interesting idea. When I realized that this was a book that merged the story of Sleeping Beauty with the Holocaust I was a bit taken aback. I mean the origins of fairy tales are never pretty, but I can't think of an uglier time in human history than the Holocaust. The chapters alternate between short snippets of Gemma reciting her version of Sleeping Beauty and chapters following Becca's journey to find out what happened to Gemma.

More than anything this is a fairly accurate fictional accounting of events that happened during the Holocaust; as you might expect this makes for a somewhat sad, depressing, and distressing read. This story is much more about history, the origins of fairy tales in general, and human nature than it is about Sleeping Beauty. While there are some echoes of hope throughout the book, the majority of it explores the evils of the Holocaust and the struggles people went through during that time. The renditions of some of the actions taken by the Nazis are disturbing and accurate, although not overly gory.

The story itself is very engaging and hard to put down as you are struggling to guess what Becca will find out about her grandmother. All in all it was a good read, just not necessarily a pleasant one. I have read works by Yolen before and her writing style is excellent; I am not used to her dealing with such a serious topic.

Overall, this was an excellent read. People should be prepared more for a different variation of Holocaust events than a retelling of Sleeping Beauty. This book is about so much more than fairy tales. Yolen also has a brief afterward telling which events in the book really happened and which she fabricated to meet the stories needs. For those of you who have read enough about the Holocaust to know how truly disturbing it was; you may want to skip this. I do think that everyone should be exposed to the horrors of those times though so that they are remembered...and this book does an excellent job of doing that while pulling readers through an intriguing story at the same time.

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

 

The Robe of Skulls (Tales from the Five Kingdoms, Book 1) by Vivian French (4/5 stars)

I must admit this is a book where I saw the cover and immediately wanted to read it.  After reading the description it sounded amusing, so I picked it up from the library.  This is the First Tale from the Five Kingdoms by Vivian French.  Last I heard she was contracted for five books in this series.  It was an amusing read.

The Sorceress Lady Lamorna wants a new gown, but she doesn't have any gold.  So she devises a plan to turn princes into frogs and blackmail their parents to pay her money to turn them back.  Unfortunately she doesn not factor in all the trouble the people she meets will cause her.

This book is completely tongue in cheek.  All the characters are way over the top and completely stereotyped.  For example Gracie Gillypot, the Trueheart, can find happiness in the most grim of situations...even if that situation is being locked in a dark, dank cellar.  The Lady Lamorna is your typical evil queen villain sort.  If you don't like over-the-top, excessively crazy characters than this is not the book for you.

The book is well done and engaging, as well as a quick read.  The whole book has a sharp wit to it that is highly amusing and is told in a very fairy tale-like manner.  There are pictures in each chapter that are well-done and fit the crazy fairy-tale demeanor of the writing.  This was also a very quick read, maybe two hours at the most. 

Overall I enjoyed it, chuckled some, and rolled my eyes at some of the overly blatantly craziness and silliness.  At points it almost gets too silly, but never quite manages to cross that line.  If you like zany fairy tales with overly dramatic and ridiculously stereotyped characters then you will get a kick out of this book.  If you aren't into that sort of craziness I would look for something else.  I will definitely read the next book in this series "The Bag of Bones".  I am not sure if I will read beyond that because I think this level of silliness might get old quickly; we will see.  For this book though I enjoyed it.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
- The Young Adult Reading Challenge
- The 100+ Book Reading Challenge
- Support Your Local Library Reading Challenge
- 1st in a Series Reading Challenge

 

The Silver Door (Moon and Sun, Book 2) by Holly Lisle (5/5 stars)

This is the second book in the Moon and Sun trilogy (at least I've heard that it's supposed to be a trilogy) by Holly Lisle.  It was an excellent addition to the series and is a wonderfully told story.

In the first book we find out that Genna is destined to be the Sunrider.  This book starts out with Genna, Dan, Doyati, Catri, and Yarri being tutored in the Sun Wizards language by the very tedious Master Navan.   Things quickly change though when Genna and Catri are attacked by a dragon and carried off to the Spire, an ancient stronghold of the human Sun Wizards of old.  There Catri and Genna learn more about the humans' past and about the Sun Wizards in general.  But will the help the Spire gives be of a benefit or detriment to Genna's path to become a Sunrider? 

This was a wonderful book.  Lisle has an excellent writing style for telling a good solid fantasy.  The characters are well developed and the plot thickens as more characters are thrown into the mix and the humans' situation gets more dire than ever.  Much of the book revolves around Catri and Genna exploring the enormous Spire and about what they find out there.  Most of this book focuses around the past of the humans and how they came to be slaves to the Kai Lords.

This book was a little more wandering than the last book.  In process of exploring the Spire, Genna looses some focus on her Sunrider duties, but that is all part of the story.  This book really gave the story a lot more breadth than it had in book 1.

I love Lisle's writing style and her skill in building worlds and characters that are engaging and completely natural feeling.  I love that the characters , especially Genna and the Cat, have a sense of humor that occasionally rears its head...this keeps things from ever getting overly serious.  Genna is a great character, she is kind yet possess honor,persistence, and a practicality that is admirable.  I was a little disappointed that we didn't get to spend more time with Yarri and Doyati, but the additions of Jagan and the Dragon more than made up for the nightlings' absence in this story.

Another great addition to this series, I can't wait to read the next book!  This book would appropriate for all ages.  If you like the Fablehaven series, The Last Apprentice, or even Harry Potter I would check out this series.

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

 

Waiting on Wednesday - 2/17

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

This week my WoW book is "The Red Pyramid" (The Kane Chronicles, Book 1) by Rick Riordan.  If you haven't read Percy Jackson and the Olympians series by Rick Riordan you should; every book in that five book series is awesome.  So, I have been waiting with bated breath to see what Riordan writes next and here it is.  His next series is going to be the Kane Chronicles.  Looks pretty awesome to me!

The Red Pyramid (The Kane Chronicles, Book 1) by Rick Riordan
Pages: 528 pages
Publisher: Hyperion Book CH
Release Date: May 4th, 2010

Synopsis (from Amazon.com): "Since their mother’s death, Carter and Sadie have become near strangers. While Sadie has lived with her grandparents in London, her brother has traveled the world with their father, the brilliant Egyptologist, Dr. Julius Kane.

One night, Dr. Kane brings the siblings together for a "research experiment" at the British Museum, where he hopes to set things right for his family. Instead, he unleashes the Egyptian god Set, who banishes him to oblivion and forces the children to flee for their lives.

Soon, Sadie and Carter discover that the gods of Egypt are waking, and the worst of them--Set--has his sights on the Kanes. To stop him, the siblings embark on a dangerous journey across the globe--a quest that brings them ever closer to the truth about their family, and their links to a secret order that has existed since the time of the pharaohs."

Going Under (Quantum Gravity, Book 3) by Justina Robson (3/5 stars)

This is the third book in the Quantum Gravity series by Justin Robson. There are supposed to be at least 5 books in this series. The fourth book "Chasing the Dragon" came out in August of 2009. This was a decent book, I liked it better than "Selling Out" book 2, but there are still some things that are a bit crazy about this book especially towards the end. I listened to this as an audio book and the quality was okay but not the best I have heard.

The book start with Lila Black in Demonia. Right away we find out she has married both Zal and the demon Teazle and they are honeymooning in Demonia. The honeymoon consists primarily of fighting off various demon assassins to prove herself worthy of her husbands. Then Malichi shows up and tells Lila that her and the boys are needed in Otopia to deal with the Moth Crisis that is going on. Lila and Zal end up being pushed into fairy before they are ready and then the whole gang is suddenly dealing with events in the realm of fairy that are way bigger than they are. Lila is also continuing to change as her machine and natural body parts become less and less separate.

This was an interesting book. If the first book in the series was about the elven world and the second was about Demonia, then this book is about the fairy realm. As has been the case with these books there is a lot going on and it seems like Lila (Or maybe Robson) looses site of what the main story plot is. The book is a bit slow to start as we get to watch Lila, Zal, and Teazle "relax" in Demonia. Once they get pulled into the Fairy Realm then things really pick up pace and get very interesting. This book is more linear than the last book was and doesn't switch viewpoint as much.

The biggest strength in this series is the world building. The characters are also very interesting. The biggest thing I have a problem is with the plot; it kind of skitters around everywhere. There are so many things that are mentioned but never really addressed. For example the worlds cracking apart is talked about but never really dealt with, getting rid of the Moths appears to be a major goal of the stories but is dealt with in passing, Lila and Zal's Game is brought up once but never really dealt with, etc. etc. I am still unsure about how I feel about Robson's writing style. It takes me a bit to get used to, but after I get used to it I am okay with it.

The usual cast of characters is brought into the book and sometimes I found them overwhelming. Now we are not just dealing with Lila and Zal, but Lila, Zal, Teazle, the imp, Malichi, and Tath...not to mention all the side characters. I guess I just feel like this book could have been tighter and a bit better planned. I won't include any spoilers but the end of the book left me kind of confused and dissatisfied, not to mention it didn't really sum up anything.

Overall, I am still fascinated by Robson's world and her characters. I am disappointed in the plot and how it goes all over the place bringing up a million new issues but resolving none of them. Will I read the fourth book? Probably. This is a very creative and intriguing series and that draws me to it, but I may not read any more after that it the plot is still scattered.

This book went towards the following reading challenge:
- The 100+ Book Reading Challenge

Wicked Gentlemen by Ginn Hale (5/5 stars)

This was a beautifully written book; I liked it a lot.  The characterization is wonderful and the story engaging, driven and sweet.

Belimai Sykes is a Prodigal, a human of part demon descent.  Belimai has a tortured and horrible past and as a Prodigal he also has a number of intriguing powers, but it is his addiction that drives his life the most.  When Captain William Harper shows up and asks for Belimai's help tracking down a serial killer that is killing and torturing Progidal's, Belimai is excited to do some of the investigation work that he is so good at.  The plot though is bigger than either Harper or Belimai expects.  Along the way Belimai and Harper will forge an unlikely bond with one another.

This was a wonderful book.  The writing and the descriptions are beautiful and breathtaking.  I loved this book from the very first sentence "The night hung in tatters."  The whole book is dark and moody; it has a bit of a steampunk feel to it.  The plot was engaging and made the book difficult to put down.  The book is broken into two parts; the first deals with the Prodigal serial killer and the second deals with Harper's fight against the entrenched authority of the city.

The characterization was excellent.  Belimai is a complex character with an intriguing past and a sardonic wit that hides layers of anguish.  Harper is also more than he at first appears to be.  The relationship between the two men is sweet, beautiful and complex.  The sex scenes are not really all that explicit, but more sensual.  Even the side characters are interesting and make you want to learn more about them.

This book does deal with same sex relationships, but that is not really what the story is about...I think people would be doing themselves a dis-service to skip this beautiful book because of the GBLT aspect of it...at heart this is a fantasy/mystery not a social commentary.  I am actual kind of surprised that this is classified as a GLBT book; to be honest this story reminded me a lot of Mercedes Lackey's Last Herald-Mage series or Lynn Flewelling's Nightrunner series.  Both of these books feature same sex relationships but have never really been classified as anything other than fantasy.

The book was light on action scenes, but the action scenes were well done.  The world Hale created was intriguing, if not as broad as I would have hoped for.  For the majority of the book you are stuck in the main city.

All in all I really loved this book.  It was a pleasure to read.  The strongest points were the beautiful writing and the wonderful attention to characterization.  I wish that I could read another book with these characters.  I will definitely be keeping an eye on Hale's future works.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
- Thiller and Suspense Challenge
- GLBT Reading Challenge
- The 100+ Book Reading Challenge