Flame of Sevenwaters by Juliet Marillier

Maeve, daughter of Lord Sean of Sevenwaters, was badly burned as a child and carries the legacy of that fire in her crippled hands. After ten years she’s returning home as a courageous, forthright woman with a special gift for taming difficult animals. But while her body’s scars have healed, her spirit remains fragile, as she fears the shadows of her past.

Sevenwaters is in turmoil. The fey prince Mac Dara has become desperate to see his only son, who is married to Maeve’s sister, return to the Otherworld. To force Lord Sean’s hand, Mac Dara has caused a party of innocent travelers on the Sevenwaters border to vanish.

When Maeve finds one of the missing travelers murdered in the woods, she and her brother Finbar embark on a journey that may bring about the end of Mac Dara’s reign — or lead to a hideous death. But if she is successful, Maeve may open a door to a future she has not dared to believe possible...

Flame of Sevenwaters is the 6th (!) book in the Sevenwaters series. I must say the magic has somewhat worn off in the last few books. Not that they're not charming, enjoyable reads, but they're not mind-blowing, gut-wrenching love stories anymore like the first one was. There's been a clear formula for at least the last 2 or so books now. Girl has given up on men. Mystical hilarity ensues. Girl finds shmexy leading man after all.

I think what really got me was the abruptness of Maeve's love interest. Out of the blue...and they just KNOW and then they're engaged. And that's not really how love works...and those aren't the love stories I like to read.

All in all, as I said, this book was charming, but fluffy and read like YA. It was a quick, enjoyable, light read. While I probably won't read this one up again, I will pick up the next Sevenwaters book (if there is one).

Bottom Line

 To sum it up: The Sevenwaters legacy continues.

Overall Rating: 3 / 5

Buy or Try? Try

More? Standalone but 6 / 6 in series

Content

Plot: 3 / 5

Setting: 4 / 5

Characters: 2 / 5 (somewhat flat and cookie cutter compared to Marillier's other works)

Style
Pace: Fast
Descriptiveness: Prose

Fantasy factor: Magical Realism

Amazon.com link

The Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Addison Allen

Emily Benedict came to Mullaby, North Carolina, hoping to solve at least some of the riddles surrounding her mother’s life. For instance, why did Dulcie Shelby leave her hometown so suddenly? Why did she vow never to return? But the moment Emily enters the house where her mother grew up and meets the grandfather she never knew—a reclusive, real-life gentle giant—she realizes that mysteries aren’t solved in Mullaby, they’re a way of life.

Here are rooms where the wallpaper changes to suit your mood. Unexplained lights skip across the yard at midnight. And a neighbor bakes hope in the form of cakes.
Everyone in Mullaby adores Julia Winterson’s cakes. She offers them to satisfy the town’s sweet tooth and in the hope of bringing back the love she fears she’s lost forever. In Julia, Emily may have found a link to her mother’s past. But why is everyone trying to discourage Emily’s growing relationship with the handsome and mysterious son of Mullaby’s most prominent family? Emily came to Mullaby to get answers, but all she’s found so far are more questions.

Is there really a ghost dancing in her backyard? Can a cake really bring back a lost love? In this town of lovable misfits, maybe the right answer is the one that just feels…different.

I am a huge fan of Sarah Addison Allen's first two books. I am from the south, and her books are set in North Carolina small towns. Her descriptors make me nostalgic, and the magic in her books is a soft, domestic sort of magic. My favorite is still The Sugar Queen.

This book just didn't have that magic touch, I thought. It seems more like a YA book, so it may be exactly what some people like. Those amazing descriptors are still in this book, but it seems a more shallow story, and it just didn't touch my heart like the previous two did.

If you like southern fiction with a touch of down home magic, I definitely recommend Sarah Addison Allen's books. However, I would also recommend starting out with one of the others first, unless you're a fan of YA fiction also.

Bottom Line

 To sum it up: A magical southern to the core story about family and getting back to your roots.

Overall Rating: 3 / 5

Buy or Try? Try

More? Standalone

Content

Plot: 3 / 5

Setting: 4 / 5

Characters: 3 / 5

Style
Pace: Slow
Descriptiveness: Poetry

Fantasy factor: Magical Realism

Amazon.com link

Blackveil by Kristen Britain

WARNING: I try to avoid spoilers, but they are possible (even probable), since this is the fourth book of the Green Rider series. Green Rider (review here) is the first. I recommend reading them in order.

This review actually has some spoilers (clearly marked). I appreciated the warning on the crazy shit that goes on in this book, so I imagine there are some others out there too that prefer to know what they're getting into before taking on a book like this.
Once a simple student, Karigan G'ladheon finds herself in a world of deadly danger and complex magic, compelled by forces she cannot understand when she becomes a legendary Green Rider-one of the magical messengers of the king. Forced by magic to accept a dangerous fate she would never have chosen, headstrong Karigan has become completely devoted to the king and her fellow Riders.

But now, an insurrection led by dark magicians threatens to break the boundaries of ancient, evil Blackveil Forest-releasing powerful dark magics that have been shut away for a millennium. 

I think the subtext "long-awaited sequel" has been on every Kristen Britain book since Green Rider. Here are the respective publication dates of each Green Rider book:

Green Rider (1998)
First Rider's Call (2003)
The High King's Tomb (2007)
Blackveil (2011)

To be a Kristen Britain fan, one must be very patient to wait 4-5 years between books. That said, though, it's easy to be patient generally. Britain has always made an effort to wrap up at least some plotlines and let the reader have a sense of closure, even if the story is still ongoing. No such luck with Blackveil. Ginormous cliffhanger at the end, so if you have a problem with that I'd hold out for the next one to come out first.

This book was a lot darker and more mature than previous books as well. Be prepared for travel into "ookey" territory more than the other books. Still on the PG-13 side though, imo. All in all, I enjoyed it immensely, more than the third book that's for sure. Aside from tying up some messy, random plotlines from #3, it was a cleanly written and a fast read (for such a long book that is.) I couldn't put it down. Very refreshing after #3.

Once again, the romance aspects and character interactions make the book feel sort of light, but the rest of the plot is very dark and lends some depth to the book.

THAR BE SPOILERS AHEAD

So there are some odd things about this book. First, Zachary gets shot in an assassination attempt, and for the good of the country (mostly), his advisers decide to conduct a sham marriage between him and Estora, with Colin saying "I do" for the king, since he's out cold. There's some sort of ritual where some people have to watch the king and queen do it for the first time, and this ritual still occurs even though Zachary is delerious. Estora and Zachary are both drugged, and they have sex...Zachary thinking Estora is Karigan, and Estora being blackmailed by her cousin. It's really weird, and I think that surely there was some way for the story to go the same general way that didn't involve this weirdness.

END SPOILERS

So other than some strange twists in the story, I really liked Blackveil a lot. It brought me back to the first two books, and there was never a dull moment, that's for sure. I could see hints of how the book series might end too, which was nice. I am hoping that the fifth will be the last. As much as I will miss new books, I think it's time for the series to conclude. Blackveil feels like the beginning of the end, and I hope not to get another "let's drag this out and make more money" book after this one being so much better than The High King's Tomb.

Bottom Line

 To sum it up: Exciting, dark, and memorable.

Overall Rating: 4 / 5

Buy or Try? Buy

More? 4 / 4 so far. Unsure of how many there will be total...it was initially to be a trilogy.

Content

Plot: 4 / 5

Setting: 4 / 5

Characters: 3.5 / 5

Style
Pace: Fast
Descriptiveness: Prose

Fantasy factor: High Fantasy

Amazon.com link

Challenges: 2011 Fantasy Reading Challenge

High King's Tomb by Kristen Britain

WARNING: I try to avoid spoilers, but they are possible (even probable), since this is the third book of the Green Rider series. Green Rider (review here) is the first. I recommend reading them in order.

A thousand years ago the armies of the Arcosian Empire, led by Mornhavon the Black, crossed the great sea and tried to conquer the land of Sacoridia —and during Karigan G'ladheon's early years as a Green Rider, Mornhavon's spirit, sensing weakness in his prison walls and seeking vengeance, began to wake. With the ghostly help of the First Rider, Karigan had managed to drive off the spirit of Mornhavon—but for how long, no one could know. And now, the descendants of those Arcosians are ready to strike, reaching out to claim the land their forebears had tried to conquer. Worse, these vengeful enemies had spent generations honing their powers of dark magic—a force against which the Sacoridians had no defense…

I love this series. Really. I do. But it should have been a trilogy. I think someone was trying to get their money's worth out of this author, so she was signed up for a 90 bazillion book deal instead of what she had originally planned to do, which simply wasn't making them enough money.  

The Green Rider series was supposed to be a trilogy, as far as I know, up until the second book. In my opinion it shows. First Rider's Call reads like a good second book...things are coming together, almost ready to be tied up and brought together in the final volume. 

However, The High King's Tomb takes all of that and spins off in another direction. I felt like the plot of this one was kind of out of left field, and now that I've read the fourth (review forthcoming), I think this book was just a way to extend the series. It didn't really move the plot along, and more served to introduce more characters and plotlines that couldn't be resolved in just one more book.

Godbeings were introduced as well, and I'm not sure how I feel about that. Again, it just did not seem like it went along with where the second book was going. That said, with the fourth book now out, the third book is a nice tie-in to the series, although it seemed to have more "filler" than the rest. Filler for this author, though, still makes for an entertaining read.

Bottom Line

 To sum it up: If you like this series so far, don't stop now. :)

Overall Rating: 3.5 / 5

Buy or Try? Buy

More? 3 / 4 so far. Unsure of how many there will be total...it was initially to be a trilogy.

Content

Plot: 2.5 / 5

Setting: 4 / 5

Characters: 3 / 5

Style
Pace: Middlin'
Descriptiveness: Prose

Fantasy factor: High Fantasy

Amazon.com link 

Challenges: 2011 Fantasy Reading Challenge, Read Me Baby One More Time

First Rider's Call by Kristen Britain

WARNING: I try to avoid spoilers, but they are possible (even probable), since this is the second book of the Green Rider series. Green Rider (review here) is the first. I recommend reading them in order.

Karigan is a Green Rider, one of the king's elite troop of messengers, each of whom is called as magic in the blood answers an ancient summons. Since the breaching of the D'Yer Wall, which protects Sacoridia from the malignant forces of the Blackveil Forest, however, all the magic in the land has become unpredictable, including that of the Riders. With tainted magic escaping into the world, and Karigan herself poisoned by it, the last thing she needs is to start having visions and hearing voices--visions of the First Rider, Lil Ambriodhe, long-dead founder of the troop, and voices whispering of an age-old, unbreakable link between Lil and Karigan. Lil has seen Karigan's future and that of Sacoridia, and the land will come to no good end if Karigan and Lil together are unable to overcome the great evil that is about to enter the world.

This book picks up about a year after the events of Green Rider. This book has always been my favorite of the first three (I'm working on the 4th now) because you find out so much about Sacordia. I love learning about the first rider and the history of Mornhavon the Black. The historical background helps the reader understand the "current" events better.

Once again, the relationships are sort of weird and sometimes feel contrived. Generally, I don't notice, but there are some conversations, especially between Karigan and Zachary that left me wondering how their relationship got to where it is in this book. Perhaps we missed something in that year that is in between the first and second books. There is an awkwardness in the romantic portion of this book, and indeed in the friendships sometimes, that is certainly not evident in the rest of it.

It's ok though. Really. This is one of my favorite books, and the plot is even better than the first Green Rider book was. As much as the characters stayed at their status quo for the most part, the plot became more intricate and the Green Rider universe became far more multidimensional.

Bottom Line

 To sum it up: More of the same, but in a really interesting un-put-down-able way.

Overall Rating: 4 / 5

Buy or Try? Buy

More? 2 / 4 so far. Unsure of how many there will be total...it was initially to be a trilogy.

Content

Plot: 4 / 5

Setting: 4 / 5

Characters: 3 / 5

Style
Pace: Fast
Descriptiveness: Prose

Fantasy factor: High Fantasy

Amazon.com link 

Challenges: 2011 Fantasy Reading Challenge, Read Me Baby One More Time

King's Dragon by Kate Elliott

It begins with a civil war...For though King Henry still holds the crown of Wendar, his reign has long been contested by his sister Sabella. there are many eager to flock to her banner, and there are ways to make even the most unwilling lord into a weapon pointed at the heart of Henry's realm. — Torn by internal strife, Wendar also faces deadly raids from the north by an inhuman race, the Eika. And now terrifying portents are being seen; old ruins restored to life under the light of the full moon and peopled by the long vanished Lost Ones; dark spirits walking the land in broad daylight.

And suddenly two innocents are about to be thrust into the midst of the conflict:

Liath, who has spent her early years fleeing from unknown enemies, is a young woman with the power to change the course of history if she can only learn to master her fear and seize what is rightfully hers.

While Alain, a young man who may find his future in a vision granted by the Lady of Battles, must first unravel the mystery of who he is -- whether the bastard son of a noble father, the half-breed child of an elfin lord, the unwanted get of a whore, or the heir to a proud and ancient lineage. For only when he discovers the truth can he accept the destiny for which he was born.

Liath and Alain, each trapped in a personal struggle for survival, both helplessly being drawn into a far greater battle, a war in which sorcery not swords will determine the final outcome, and the land itself may be irrevocably reshaped by the forces unleashed...

I'm really not feeling much up for a long, drawn out review of this book. I've been slowly slogging through for a couple months...I broke my own "never read two books at once" rule because I just couldn't get into it. 

I really couldn't tell you why. The characters were interesting and complex. The magic system was okay, the world was generic but that can be overcome. The writing was good. The story had potential (it is the first book in the series, after all). But I just...couldn't quite get into it. It was like you never got to the point of the book. There was no climax or turning point or anything...if there was, I missed it completely.

Either way, I think some would love this book. I'm not giving it away just yet, because I felt like I was sooooo close to liking it. It just didn't do it for me, and I'm tired of it sitting there mournfully on my goodreads. Don't let my review of this book deter you from this author though. I loved her new book, Cold Magic.

Bottom Line

 To sum it up: I really couldn't tell you.

Overall Rating: 2 / 5

Buy or Try? Try

More? 1 / 7

Content

Plot: 3 / 5

Setting: 2 / 5

Characters: 3.5 / 5

Style
Pace: Slow.
Descriptiveness: Middlin'

Fantasy factor: High Fantasy

Green Rider by Kristen Britain

Yknow how there are some foods that make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside? When it's cold and rainy outside, you curl up with some tomato soup and grilled cheese (cut diagonally of course) under a blanket in front of a warm fire. Well this book series is like that for me. It was published in 1998, but I read it sometime in high school (2000-2004). A friend gave it to me, and I was skeptical...but it quickly changed into one of my favorite books, and Kristen Britain is one of those authors I always look out for new stuff from. Since her new book just came out, Blackveil, I decided to reread and review the entire series.

On her long journey home from school after a fight which will surely lead to her expulsion, Karigan G'ladheon ponders her future as she trudges through the immense forest called Green Cloak. But her thoughts are interrupted by the clattering of hooves as a galloping horse bursts from the woods, the rider slumped over his mount's neck, impaled by two black-shafted arrows. As the young man lies dying on the road, he tells Karigan that he is a Green Rider, one of the legendary messengers of the king, and that he bears a "life and death" message for King Zachary. He begs Karigan to carry his message, warning her not to read it, and when she reluctantly agrees, he makes her swear on his sword to complete his mission "for love of country." As he bestows upon her the golden winged-horse brooch which is the symbol of his office, he whispers on his dying breath, "Beware the shadow man..."

Karigan's promise changes her life forever. Pursued by unknown assassins, following a path only her horse seems to know, and accompanied by the silent specter of the original messenger, she herself becomes a legendary Green Rider. Caught up in a world of deadly danger and complex magic, compelled by forces she cannot understand, Karigan is hounded by dark beings bent on seeing that the message, and its reluctant carrier, never reach their destination.

I haven't read this book in years, so I really wasn't sure if I would adore it as much as I used to. This time around, I read it with a more critical eye, but it was still very enjoyable.

I always think of this book as simple, bright fantasy, but really it's pretty dark in places. There is a definite horror element to it, but not so much that I wouldn't be able to read it at night. There are some legitimately creepy things that happen on Karigan's ride to the castle. The depth of the writing is somewhat inconsistent, but not to the point of being distracting from the story.

For example, the relationships that Karigan forms seem to come out of nowhere with people she just met. She's somewhat snarky and stubborn, and she is very determined to get out of the castle, so I'm surprised that everyone seems to like her immediately. In that way, it is a light read. But I feel like the lightness, for lack of a better word, of the people aspect is balanced out with the heavy darkness of the plot. It's not fluffy to the point of ridiculous, but just enough to make it so you're not slogging through horror after horror. 

Britain has said that she likes to give her readers a sense of closure, and you certainly get that with this book. It's not the end of the story at all, but nobody's hanging off the edge of a cliff by a toenail. All in all, I enjoyed this book just as much as I always have. Any book following The Broken Kingdoms had an uphill battle ahead, so I think it was a good choice to reread a book I loved so much.

Bottom Line

 To sum it up: A good book for anyone who likes interesting adventures, a very evil baddy, and a strong heroine

Overall Rating: 4 / 5

Buy or Try? Buy

More? 1 / 4 so far. Unsure of how many there will be total...it was initially to be a trilogy.

 

Content

Plot: 4 / 5

Setting: 3 / 5

Characters: 3 / 5

Style
Pace: Fast
Descriptiveness: Prose

Fantasy factor: High Fantasy

Amazon.com link

Challenges: 2011 Fantasy Reading Challenge, Read Me Baby One More Time

The Broken Kingdoms by NK Jemisin

WARNING: I try to avoid spoilers, but they are possible (even probable), since this is the second book of the Inheritance Trilogy. The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms (review here) is the first. I recommend reading them in order.

I know it's only been a couple days since my last review, but I just could not put The Broken Kingdoms down. I thought about it when I was driving to work. I thought about it at work. I wished I could read it on the treadmill and at dinner tonight. And now I'm really sad that it's over. From the back cover: 

In the city of Shadow, beneath the World Tree, alleyways shimmer with magic and godlings live hidden among mortalkind. Oree Shoth, a blind artist, takes in a strange homeless man on an impulse. This act of kindness engulfs Oree in a nightmarish conspiracy. Someone, somehow, is murdering godlings, leaving their desecrated bodies all over the city. And Oree's guest is at the heart of it. . . 

The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms was only the second book I ever reviewed for my site. I remember enjoying it, but being slightly put off by the tone of the novel. I think, in truth, it may have been the protagonist was not one I could relate to easily. I found Oree a much more likable narrator. I was very impressed with the fact that although this novel is also narrated in first person, like The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, Oree is very obviously a very different voice from Yeine. I imagine that it is very hard to pull off two distinct first person accounts.

As in the previous novel, I found this world to be incredibly intriguing and complex, I think even moreso. I was a bit lost at the very beginning because it's been a good long while since I read the previous novel and this one takes place 10 years after the events of the first. However, Jemisin throws little "reminders" in there for recurring characters and continuing story arcs, so I was able to follow the plot without feeling the need to run out and read the first one again. That's a pet peeve of mine, given the enormous gaps there usually are in between series releases. It's also not a clumsily thrown in explanation either...very artfully done.

As I had mentioned in my review of the first book, the author inserts a lot of sidenotes and afterthoughts into the narrative. In The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, that was somewhat distracting. I didn't feel like the sidenotes and afterthoughts were necessarily relevant to the story. In this case, each seemed very pertinent and seemed shorter. This was probably one of the things that gave Yeine and Oree their distinct voices.

I just love this series. It's a unique perspective on divinity and their interactions with mankind. I am especially intrigued by the gods' interactions and relationships to each other. I always finish these books and start to think about the nature of gods, their nature, and find myself comparing the theology to current, real world theology. I enjoy books that have meaning, and that cause you to walk away thinking. Although I must say, the emotional side to this story makes it hard to walk away.

I think NK Jemisin has really hit her stride with this book. The third will be The Kingdom of the Gods, released in September (click here for a synopsis). I have a feeling I will be even more upset when the series ends.

Bottom Line

 To sum it up: Gods + humans. Hilarity does not ensue.

Overall Rating: 5 / 5

Buy or Try? Buy

More? 2 / 3 projected

Content

Plot: 5 / 5

Setting: 5 / 5

Characters: 5 / 5

*Yes really. I waffled about giving out a perfect score out of principle, but I just didn't have anything to complain about at all.*

Style
Pace: Fast
Descriptiveness: Prose

Fantasy factor: High Fantasy

Amazon.com link

Challenges: 2011 Fantasy Reading Challenge

Cold Magic by Kate Elliott

Long time no see, blog friends! A lot has been happening, so I haven't had much time to read. Cold Magic was a quick read, though...I had trouble putting it down. From the back cover:

The history of the world begins in ice, and it will end in ice.

It is the dawn of a new age... The Industrial Revolution has begun, factories are springing up across the country, and new technologies are transforming in the cities. But the old ways do not die easy.

Cat and Bee are part of this revolution. Young women at college, learning of the science that will shape their future and ignorant of the magics that rule their families. But all of that will change when the Cold Mages come for Cat. New dangers lurk around every corner and hidden threats menace her every move. If blood can't be trusted, who can you trust?

I've been waiting for Cold Magic for quite some time now, and for an epic fantasy, it's a very fast-paced read. 502 pages may sound daunting, but the action moves fairly quickly. I was pretty happy about that because I've been dragging through King's Dragon by the same author for a good long while now, and I just can't quite get into it. I had no such trouble with this book.

The characterization is great as well. I was surprised as the characters' true personalities and nuances were revealed. While I can't say I liked all of them, I believed them. Their motivations and attitudes generally made sense, given their upbringings and current situation. As much as this is a fantasy story, the human element takes center stage. Cat and Bee's relationship, although they are cousins, is as close as sisters. There is a lot of betrayal and selfishness in this book, and you really see the dark side of humanity. Everyone, it seems, is looking out for number one. The bright spot is definitely the girls' love for each other. Things are what they appear to be with the two of them: they would sacrifice everything for the other. I think their relationship might be one of my favorite parts of the book.

Based on the cover and the synopsis, I can't say this story ever went as I expected. When I first started writing this review, I was going to open by saying that the back cover of this book was not very descriptive. However, reflecting on the book now, I can't say I fully grasp what's going on in this world entirely. The book cover describes how the book opens, but certainly not how it progresses.

Generally, in an epic fantasy, events tie together to one great event or danger. However, I felt like there was a lot happening in this book but there wasn't one coherent idea of what was going on in this world. Is it a political revolution? Is there something happening in the spirit world? Where's the magic/science clash that is described on the cover? Most of the book is taken up by Catherine's journey, and I think that may be one of the weaknesses of a first person narrative. Our perspective is as narrow as hers is, and I'm not entirely sure that's appropriate for a trilogy that touts itself as "epic" and has such a broad scope as this one appears to have. Elliott slowly reveals information, so I am hoping this will be something that will become more cohesive in the second book.

The world Elliot creates intrigues me. Her alternate history seems to be well-researched (to my untrained eye) and at the very least well thought out. The characters are interesting and several, including the heroine, are likable. Although the storyline of this initial book seems small-scale and somewhat disorganized, I look forward to the second book and the rest of the series.
 

Bottom Line

 To sum it up: A fast paced, epic-ish, steampunk-ish fantasy with loads of promise.

Overall Rating: 4 / 5

Buy or Try? Buy

More? 1 / 3 projected. Cold Steel and Cold Fire will be the 2nd and 3rd books

Content

Plot: 3 / 5

Setting: 4 / 5

Characters: 4 / 5

Style
Pace: Fast
Descriptiveness: Prose, bordering into Poetry sometimes

Fantasy factor: Low Fantasy

Amazon.com link

Challenges: 2011 Fantasy Reading Challenge

Fire Burn and Cauldron Bubble by HP Mallory

Since I have spent the last few weeks studying for the test that decided the course of the rest of my life (no pressure), I really needed something light and fun to read. Fire Burn and Cauldron Bubble by HP Mallory was just perfect for this purpose.

Life isn’t bad for psychic Jolie Wilkins. True, she doesn’t have a love life to speak of, but she has a cute house in the suburbs of Los Angeles, a cat and a quirky best friend.

Enter Rand Balfour, a sinfully attractive warlock who insists she’s a witch and who just might turn her life upside down. Rand hires her to help him solve a mystery regarding the death of his client who also happens to be a ghost. Jolie not only uncovers the cause of the ghost’s demise but, in the process, she brings him back to life!

Word of Jolie’s incredible ability to bring back the dead spreads like wildfire, putting her at the top of the Underworld’s most wanted list. Consequently, she finds herself at the center of a custody battle between a villainous witch, a dangerous but oh-so-sexy vampire, and her warlock boss, Rand. 

I don't really read paranormal romance very often, if ever, and definitely not one that clearly states on the front cover that it is a paranormal romance, but I read an excerpt and just had to read more. Even better, this is another book that was only $0.99 at Amazon for the Kindle...I didn't figure I had much to lose.

It was fun, fast-paced, and surprisingly complex. I was not expecting a romance novel to have the depth of world-building that this one has. The underground, secretive world of vampires, werewolves, fairies and witches have their own society. I found each of the species to be quite well developed.

The characters are somewhat flat and predictable, especially the men, but I found I didn't mind all that much. You don't go into a rom com expecting Citizen Kane. Every woman hopes for a Rand to waltz into her life, and I enjoyed the relationship between Rand and Jolie for the most part.

That said, I found Jolie to be somewhat inconsistent. I felt that she became whatever the author needed her to be at the time. At the middle of the book, she's trying to convince Rand to have sex with her spur of the moment in the woods. Then later, she turns down her new boyfriend citing the fact she's only done this once before, and she's just not ready. This same woman, who earlier in the book said she had no discernible sex drive and dressed conservatively is suddenly a provocatively dressing sex kitten who has at least four men who are trying to seduce her. This sexual tension between Jolie and...well...everyone was very sudden.

As previously mentioned, I do not read paranormal romance so perhaps this is a genre style, but at times, the sensual scenes, although they were widely spaced, seemed somewhat heavy-handed and artificial. It was especially noticeable toward the end. I felt the author couldn't decide between a trashy romance novel and a light fantasy read, so everything was just jumbled in together. Or an editor said "Hey. There's not enough smut in this, and that's what sells books. So fix it."

All in all, it was fun and entertaining. As far as paranormal romances go, it was very good in my opinion. I will definitely buy the next one because I really enjoyed the book, despite its flaws, and it was exactly what I needed: light and fun. HP Mallory has one other series started that I have my eye on as well. However, I think for my next book, though, I need something with a bit more depth.

Bottom Line

 To sum it up: A light and fun read for a rainy day.

Overall Rating: 3.5 / 5

Buy or Try? Buy. Can't beat $0.99

More? 1 / 2 so far. I anticipate at least one more book

Content

Plot: 4 / 5
Setting: 4 / 5
Characters: 3 / 5

Style
Pace: Fast
Descriptiveness: Prose

Fantasy factor: Magical Realism

Amazon.com link

Challenges: 2011 Fantasy Reading Challenge

Hush Money by Susan Bischoff

As soon as I knew I was getting a Kindle for Christmas, I started looking at cheap and free ebooks. This one is $0.99 at Amazon...not quite free, but as far as I'm concerned, well worth the money. 

They call their abilities Talents, and that’s what they call themselves as well. Talents are people born with supernatural powers, feared by the population at large. Possession of an “unregistered ability” has become illegal, and those who are discovered are forcibly removed to government-run research facilities. They do not return.

And so the Talents try, as best they can, to keep their abilities secret–some more successfully than others. For some, keeping that secret begins to define who they are. That’s where Hush Money begins…

Be normal, invisible. Don’t get close to anyone.

All in all, this book was fairly enjoyable. It was a light, fun read. The characters are entertaining, and the plot moves quickly. The narration is easy to read, and Joss is sassy and fun.

However, it is very obviously a YA novel. The scope of the novel is very small, taking place in a fairly small town. We don't really find out much about the Talents on a national or global scale, which I would have found interesting. Also, the climax of the book was not so climactic...I expected a bit more after the build up of the rest of the novel.

Was it worth 99 cents? Yes. The time I put into reading it? Yes. Will I buy sequels? Yes. However, I would not recommend expecting too much out of this book...it was fun but not revolutionary. I think this would make a good beach read, or would be a nice way to relax when you're horribly busy or stressed out.

Bottom Line

Overall Rating: 3 / 5

Buy or Try? Buy...it's only 99 cents
More? 1 / ?   Heroes Til Curfew being released 2011

Content

Plot: 3 / 5
Setting: 2 / 5
Characters: 3 / 5

Style
Pace: Fast
Descriptiveness: Prose

Fantasy factor: Magical Realism

Amazon.com link

The Gentleman Poet by Kathryn Johnson

If you look through my reviews, you will find very few books that have no mystical element to them. Generally, I stick to the fantasy genre, but The Gentleman Poet intrigued me, and I just had to try it. I found it through a meme. Both I and another blogger posted about books based on Shakespeare's The Tempest (what are the odds?). I happened to see it at the library in on the new fiction shelf this week.

En route to the Americas in 1609, Elizabeth Persons, a young servant girl, sees her blinding headache as an ominous sign. Sure enough, a hurricane during the final leg of their journey tosses the ill-fated Sea Venture and its one hundred and fifty passengers and crew onto the dreaded shores of the Bermudas, the rumored home of evil spirits and dangerous natives. 

In the months that pass—time marked by grave hardship, mutiny, adventure, danger . . . and a blossoming love between Elizabeth and the wrecked ship's young cook—she despairs of their ever being rescued. But she finds hope and strength in a remarkable new friendship, forming a fast bond with the Sea Venture's historian, a poet traveling under the name of William Strachey. But Will is more than he seems. To many back home in England, he is known by a different name: Shakespeare. And he sees in their great shared travails the makings of a magical, truly transcendent work of theater.

This book was an easy, fast read for me. The print is huge, and the book itself is much shorter than what I'm used to. Johnson's prose is beautiful but not flowery, and Elizabeth is a clever narrator. Her observations made me giggle in a few places, and she seemed to be a very real character for me. I think that was my favorite part of this book...I could picture all the characters with ease and they were very fleshed out and realistic. Their reasons for being the way they were made sense. Oftentimes, authors miss a plausible backstory to characters.

Dread Bermuda, where most of the novel takes place, is not the dangerous, horrible place the castaways expected. They rightly describe it as paradise, lush with vegetation, animal life, and mostly beautiful weather. Unfortunately, this is where things got somewhat unrealistic. Birds that are extremely tame come to investigate the newcomers and are subsequently killed. I think wild birds would always be suspicious of newcomers. Wild boars are made to seem easy to catch, herd, and kill. On the contrary, wild boars can be extremely dangerous animals. Elizabeth finds a plethora of plants that make excellent spices and not one she discovers is poisonous. While I don't know what spices and herbs come from where, I find it highly unlikely that the same plants that grew in England would grow in Bermuda, but somehow the protagonist comes across the exact same plants, or very close analogs. There are no subsequent hurricanes the likes of which wrecked them in the first place. In short, things just go way way too well for these folks.

I enjoyed the historical notes by the author, and Elizabeth's recipes recorded every few chapters. I like being able to get a "behind the scenes" peek at what historical data inspired this novel. However, I found the connection between the historical William Strachey and William Shakespeare to be extremely shaky. However, Johnson admits this herself, emphasizing that the book is not history but fiction. It is an artist's interpretation of historical record, and doesn't claim to be anything else.

Suspension of disbelief aside, this book was quite enjoyable. Nothing groundbreaking, but a fun way to pass a few hours. I would definitely recommend giving this one a go if you like interesting spins on history or literature. I look forward to future novels written by Johnson.

Bottom Line

Overall Rating: 3.5 / 5

Buy or Try? Try
More? Standalone

Content

Plot: 3 / 5
Setting: 4 / 5
Characters: 4 / 5

Style
Pace: Middlin'
Descriptiveness: Prose

Fantasy factor: Not fantasy

Amazon.com link

Seer of Sevenwaters by Juliet Marillier

Before I review this, I just want to clarify that the Sevenwaters series is one of my favorites, and Juliet Marillier is one of my favorite authors. I've had this on my wishlist since I heard there was another Sevenwaters book coming out.

The young seer Sibeal is visiting an island of elite warriors, prior to making her final pledge as a druid. It's there she finds Felix, a survivor of a Viking shipwreck, who's lost his memory. The scholarly Felix and Sibeal form a natural bond. He could even be her soul mate, but Sibeal's vocation is her true calling, and her heart must answer.

As Felix fully regains his memory, Sibeal has a runic divination showing her that Felix must go on a perilous mission-and that she will join him. The rough waters and the sea creatures they will face are no match for Sibeal's own inner turmoil. She must choose between the two things that tug at her soul-her spirituality and a chance at love...

As I said, I'm a huge fan of Juliet Marillier, but I felt like this book was fairly different from the previous Sevenwaters books. It was a lighter read, for one thing. Where the other books seemed to have an element of peril and danger, and no shortage of dark themes, Seer of Sevenwaters seemed to meander in safety for most of the novel. There is a lot of conversation. I know this sounds bad, but I got bogged down in all the philosophical discussion.

I did find myself becoming very nostalgic at the beginning and end of the book. It was like a Sevenwaters novel at those points: there was danger, romance, and the family from Sevenwaters that fans of Marillier will find familiar. I will say that it was nice seeing what happened to many characters from the other books, and visiting the island of Inis Eala.

However, I found the new main characters Sibeal and Felix to be bland and rather uninteresting, and the plot was formulaic. Boy meets girl, they fall in love but don't say anything, supernatural drama ensues, insert dramatic confession of love here. I had the entire course of the story figured out after meeting the shipwrecked characters, even the grand mystery of Svala and Knut (a couple from the Viking shipwreck), while the rest of the island was blissfully ignorant. I found that somewhat implausible as well, that an entire island of warriors and people with plenty of intuition couldn't figure out who the bad guy was and what was going on with these new people.

All in all, this was a book that could have been chopped in half...there was a lot of filler in between a relatively solid first and last few chapters. Marillier is an amazing author, so I admit this book came as quite a surprise to me. It made me long for Marillier's first few books, so maybe I'll reread those.

Bottom Line

Overall Rating: 2.5 / 5

Buy or Try? Try
More? Standalone, but of a series of 5 books so far

Content

Plot: 2 / 5

Setting: 4 / 5 (still love the setting, even through 5 books)

Characters: 2 / 5

Style 
Pace: Slow
Descriptiveness: Middlin'
Fantasy factor: Magical Realism

Amazon.com link

Bitten by Kelley Armstrong

I feel like I'm supremely late on the uptake with this series. Originally, I was going to read this book for a challenge, but I didn't finish it in time. I had bought it forever ago from a used book store and I was happy to finally read one of the books I already own. 

Ever since her parents were killed in a car accident when she was five, Elena Michaels has longed for a normal family life. Smart, beautiful, and engaged to be married, Elena hopes to fulfill that dream when disaster strikes. Not only has her fiancé lied about his secret life as a werewolf, but he's made her one, too. She has no choice but to join him at Stonehaven, the upstate New York home of an elite pack of werewolves.

In an attempt to break away, she moves to Toronto to lead a normal life. Working as a journalist, Elena now lives with her new architect boyfriend, works out in the basement gym of their high-rise apartment, lunches with girlfriends from the office, and once a week, at four in the morning runs naked and furred through a downtown Toronto ravine, ripping out the throats of her animal prey. But when a band of outlaw werewolves threatens the Stonehaven pack, Elena's feral instincts drive her back there to join the defense. What follows is a war for territory, for pride, and ultimately for Elena herself.

I'm afraid this review will be awfully short. Despite sleeping until 10am this morning, I am still exhausted from the last few weeks...and I've taken Benedryl which knocks me for a bloody loop.

In any case, this book wasn't bad. I haven't read many vampire or werewolf books, so I can't say that I know how it rates next to other books of the same variety. I'll be honest, there was a little too much description of wolf fighting and playing for my tastes. It just got sort of dull after awhile. I understand the author was probably trying to build a relationship between the characters, but the fact remains that wolves don't have the depth of expression that humans have and it got rather routine.

I liked Elena all right. The first half of the book I wasn't crazy about any of the characters. They just seemed too smug and cookie cutter. At the end, when worlds collide, as it were, I found myself finding Clay far more endearing. It was like a switch turned on and all of a sudden he was trying to be likable or something. Still, the characters lacked soul for the most part. I felt like half the book was spent explaining stuff.

Also, the explaining got old after awhile. I felt like there was lost of background information, but not much reason for it. Pointless stories. I guess it was to flesh out the characters, but I would have preferred current actions to speak for themselves.

Overall, the book was sort of choppy and generic. I liked it, and there was lots of promise in this book... but I'm not in a hurry to read the next.

Bottom Line

Overall Rating: 3 / 5

Buy or Try? Try
More? 1 / 12 in the Women of the Otherworld series...different characters

Content

Plot: 2 / 5

Setting: 3 / 5

Characters: 3 / 5

Style 
Pace: Middlin' to Fast 
Descriptiveness: Prose
Fantasy factor: Magical Realism

Amazon.com link

Troubled Waters by Sharon Shinn

In comparison with the last book I read, this one flew by. It took me less than 48 hours to finish it. I find that I read books that I enjoy pretty quickly, despite whatever school mess is also due. 

Zoe Ardelay receives astonishing and unwelcome news: she has been chosen to become the king’s fifth wife. Forced to go to the royal city, she manages to slip away and hide on the shores of the mighty river.

It’s there that Zoe realizes she is a coru prime ruled by the elemental sign of water. She must return to the palace, not as an unwilling bride for the king, but a woman with power in her own right. But as Zoe unlocks more of the mysteries of her blood — and the secrets of the royal family — she must decide how to use her great power to rise above the deceptions and intrigue of the royal court.

Before Troubled Waters, I had read all of Sharon Shinn's Samaria books and enjoyed them very much. Again, Shinn creates a world that is very original and complex, just as I found Samaria to be. I found the world to be the most enchanting part of this book, actually.

The magical system is based on the 5 elements, although Shinn combined two different ideas of the elements. Generally, one hears about earth, fire, air, water and aether (soul) as the 5 elements, the Classical elements. The Chinese have another system: earth, water, fire, metal, and wood. It seems that the author combined these two...her elements are earth, fire, air, water, and wood. I found that to be somewhat confusing, merely because I have trouble understanding the Chinese system to begin with.

One of my absolute favorite elements was the quasi-religious system in the novel. At the temples, there are barrels full of coins marked with different blessings. When a baby is born, their parent is to ask 3 random people to pull blessings from the barrels. These will be the child's blessings through their life. Zoe's are Beauty, Love, and Power. There is a great side story in the book where a man asks Zoe for help pulling blessings for surprise twin girls. If you are in need of guidance, you pay a tithe and pull some blessings from the barrels that will give you direction. Certain blessings are tied into the different elements, but anyone can have any blessing, regardless of their affinity.

The book reminded me very much of Maria V Snyder's Poison Study. Both writing styles seem similar, and the depth of the novels are about the same. While Shinn's world is very fleshed out, I found the characters to be less so, and the story to be somewhat simplistic. I stop short of calling them all two dimensional because the supporting characters were all very different and the story certainly kept me reading. However, I found I was able to accurately predict how the story would go most of the time. There were twists, but I could identify when they would occur, and make an approximation of what would happen. 

Zoe has a love interest, and I felt that their love for each other was somewhat out of the blue. There was zero development of a relationship besides a lot of arguing. Zoe is a likable heroine, but a very predictable one I'm sorry to say, and I did not find her to be a very realistic character either. The supporting characters were well developed and interesting, but I got very little feel for Zoe other recklessness and impulsivity with absolutely no regret for any of her actions. Somehow, there are never any repercussions either.

The end was terribly abrupt and seemed thrown together. Huge event happens, but it's in the last 50 pages or so of the book. In the last 3 pages, 90% of the loose ends are tied together in a pretty bow. It was just really strange, because the book spends all this time building up, and the ending was just terribly rushed. It was almost like the author was gearing up for a trilogy or series, but then decided not to write the rest and just cram the next book or two into the last few pages.


That said, I really enjoyed this book. I really didn't mind any of the previously mentioned issues as I was reading. I was aware of them, but they did not impede my enjoyment. I had a really hard time putting it down because it was so exciting and entertaining. It was very refreshing to enjoy a book after the debacle of the last two I tried to read. 

Reading back, my analysis seems pretty critical, but I would highly recommend picking this book up. I'm sad there's not more than one book in this world. If you're looking for something deep, insightful or dark and realistic, look elsewhere. If you're looking for a fun, light, absorbing read, Troubled Waters is a great place to start.

Bottom Line

Overall Rating: 4 / 5

Buy or Try? Buy (I would read this again for sure)
More? Standalone

Content

Plot: 3 / 5

Setting: 5 / 5

Characters: 3 / 5 (for all the varied characters)

Style 
Pace: Middlin' to Fast 
Descriptiveness: Prose
Fantasy factor: High Fantasy

Amazon.com link

Elfland by Freda Warrington

WARNING: Some spoilers, merely because to illustrate why I didn't like this book, I have to spoil some plot points. Nothing that will ruin the book for a potential reader, though.

Had a hard time getting into this book. Was about to give up several times...

Elfland is an intimate, sensual novel of people—both human and Aetherial—caught between duty and desire. It’s a story of families, and of Rose Fox, a woman born to magic but tormented by her place in her adopted world.

Led by Auberon Fox, a group of Aetherials—call them the Fair Folk, if you will—live among us, indistinguishable from humans. Every seven years, on the Night of the Summer Stars, Lawrence Wilder, the Gatekeeper, throws open all gates to the Other World. But this time, something has gone wrong. Wilder has sealed the gates, warning of a great danger lurking in the realm beyond them. The Aetherial community is outraged. What will become of them, deprived of the home realm from which their essential life force flows?

Rose Fox and Sam Wilder are drawn to the lands beyond the gates, even as their families feud over Lawrence’s refusal to do his duty. Struggling with their own too-human urges, they discover hidden truths that draw them together in a forbidden alliance. Only by breaching the dreaded gates and daring the danger beyond can they confront that which they fear most— their otherness—and claim their birthright.

...and then I finally did. The writing in Elfland is sound, though I admit I picked this up mostly for the cover. I love Kinuko Craft. This book was not what I was expecting to be at all.

If anything it was a soap opera, with vaguely magical beings. But the 12 chapters I read had very little magic. It was mostly about flat, ridiculous, trashy characters that I worked very hard to try and like and failed miserably.

Rosie, who is the main narrator, is stupid. Just plain stupid. Naive to a level not attributable to her age. When she decides to have sex with another character (not her husband) in her wedding dress, I was done. Compound this with the fact that she's obsessed with Jon, who is quite self absorbed, a druggie, and has no idea she (or anyone else really) exists. And she whines a lot...like...man.

Matthew, Rosie's brother, seems nice in the beginning. Turns out he wants to be "normal" so badly, he doesn't care who he hurts to get there. So he knocks up one of Rosie's friends and marries her, even though he doesn't love her. The reader gets the impression he is a very controlling person, and his wife is doltish and is happy just to be with him. Honestly, for her part, I sort of understand, because she came from a pretty terrible background herself.

The only semi-likable main character is Sam. He's a bad boy, but underneath he seems like a decent guy. However, the only reason he's a decent guy is because he's obsessed with Rosie, for no reason I could discern other than she has a nice rack and pretty hair.

Lawrence is another character that has potential. He seems like a jerk in the beginning but you find out (spoiler) that his life force, his soul essentially, was stolen by his father for disobedience. That explains the statue demeanor I suppose. (end spoiler)

Either way, call me shallow, but I have a hard time spending hours on a book where I just can't stand the characters. I found I really couldn't care less what happened to any of them. The world and Aetherials were intriguing, but definitely not intriguing enough to wade through the muck of the Wilders' and Foxes' lives.

Overall, I'll give this at least a 2 / 5. I may give this one another try. It wasn't totally irredeemable. The story was slow but I did want to know more, and the writing was very good. I guess I just wasn't in the mood for unlikeable, ridiculous, pretentious characters.

Prospero in Hell by L Jagi Lamplighter

WARNING: I try to avoid spoilers, but they are possible (even probable), since this is the second book of the Prospero's Daughter Trilogy. Prospero Lost is the first. I recommend reading them in order.

I don't think I've ever read a series that so seamlessly mixes history in with high magic. While many describe this as urban fantasy, I feel like it is more akin to a modern fairy tale than anything else.

Book description from goodreads.com: The search of a daughter for her father is but the beginning of this robust fantasy adventure. For five hundred years since the events of William Shakespeare’s The Tempest, Miranda has run Prospero, Inc., protecting an unknowing world from disasters both natural and man-made. Now her father has been taken prisoner of dark spirits in a place she could only guess. Piecing together clues about her father’s whereabouts and discovering secrets of her shrouded past, she comes to an inescapable conclusion she has dreaded since Prospero was lost.

Prospero has been imprisoned in Hell, kept there by demons who wish to extract a terrible price in exchange for his freedom. As the time of reckoning for Miranda draws near, she realizes that hundreds of years of their family’s magic may not be enough to free her once-powerful father from the curse that could destroy them...and the world.

It's pretty hard to review Prospero in Hell without major spoilers, because the plot twists are such a great part of this novel, I think. There are some fairly enormous, integral pieces of information you receive in this book. Nonetheless, the plot is exciting and I felt like it moved faster than the previous novel did.

I found this story to be darker than the first. The first half of the novel feels like a continuation of Prospero Lost: a fairly lighthearted exploration of Miranda's world and history. We finally meet the rest of Miranda's siblings, and we are given more information about their extensive lives. I can only imagine the historical research Lamplighter must have done for this book to fill in 500+ years of the siblings' lives, not to mention all the mystical creatures and classic literature references.

Some not so great things happen, though, and the last half takes a darker turn. The Prospero siblings, as hinted at in the book description, finally make it into hell. It isn't fire and guys with pitchforks. It's a dark, horrible, twisted, sickening place, modeled after Dante's Inferno for the most part. The bad guys present in this book are truly evil, something which isn't really elaborated on in Prospero Lost. The portrait Lamplighter paints of hell is disturbing, putting it mildly.

Generally, I don't particularly like sequel baiting, and this book has a big one at the end. Things are going great, you think you've got it all figured out, and then literally in the last two pages or so everything goes bad. I'm not looking forward to having to wait for the next one at all.

There is a fair amount of character development in this book. You find out more about Miranda, who finds her own very steady personality and temperament changing after 500 years. As you meet her family, Miranda shares her memories of her siblings, giving you a better idea of what they are like. However, we still do not know much about Cornelius and Ulysses. I'm hoping we will find out more about them in the next book.

As previously mentioned in my Prospero Lost review, while the cosmology is distinctly Christian, there is a smattering of other religions thrown in. However, there is more talk of salvation in this novel, and we encounter more angels and demons. It is gnostic and mystic enough, though, that I did not feel I was being preached at. It doesn't read like Christian fiction, which I appreciate.

All in all, Prospero in Hell is a very enjoyable read, and left me wanting more. I'm so excited that a writer like Lamplighter is on the scene. These books deserve far more publicity than they receive. I can't wait to read the concluding novel of the series, Prospero Regained. No firm publication date is set yet, just sometime in 2011, but I very much hope it comes out soon!

Bottom Line

Overall Rating: 4 / 5

Buy or Try? Buy
More? 2 / 3 in projected trilogy. All are written, 2 are published

Content

Plot: 4 / 5

Setting: 5 / 5 (wowsers.)

Characters: 4 / 5

Style 
Pace: Middlin' to Fast (while only over a few days, LOTS happens to move the story forward)
Descriptiveness: Prose
Fantasy factor: Magical Realism (most of the book still takes place on earth)



Amazon.com link

Prospero Lost by L Jagi Lamplighter

Prospero Lost was an impulse pick-up for me at the library when it came out in 2009. I love being the very first person to read a new release, and this one has stayed fairly obscure.

I picked it up again when I received Prospero in Hell, the sequel, from the library. It was rather confusing since it had been awhile since I read the first, but it was doable. Nonetheless, I decided to reread the first and review it because I just love this series.

More than four hundred years after the events of Shakespeare’s The Tempest, the sorcerer Prospero, his daughter Miranda, and his other children have attained everlasting life. Miranda is the head of her family’s business, Prospero Inc., which secretly has used its magic for good around the world. One day, Miranda receives a warning from her father: "Beware of the Three Shadowed Ones."

When Miranda goes to her father for an explanation, he is nowhere to be found.

Miranda sets out to find her father and reunite with her estranged siblings, each of which holds a staff of power and secrets about Miranda’s sometimes-foggy past. Her journey through the past, present and future will take her to Venice, Chicago, the Caribbean, Washington, D.C., and the North Pole. To aid her, Miranda brings along Mab, an aerie being who acts like a hard-boiled detective, and Mephistopheles, her mentally-unbalanced brother. Together, they must ward off the Shadowed Ones and other ancient demons who want Prospero’s power for their own.

I think my favorite part of the Prospero's Daughter trilogy (so far anyway) is that it weaves history and legend in with magic and the modern world. Prospero and Miranda, at least, have been around for about 500 years and in the modern world they run a company which controls magical forces so humanity's technology can exist. Lamplighter seamlessly works these characters into the last half-millennium of human history. Miranda was almost burned as a witch. One of her brothers was a Pope. The Prosperos were involved in Milanese politics.

The way Lamplighter writes makes this a fairly easy read, I think. The descriptions are vivid but I feel as if I'm looking through a soft focus. We also find out more about Miranda and her family slowly as the book goes on. Little hints and pieces of her past are spread throughout Prospero Lost. It's one of those books that I just enjoy reading from start to finish.

One critique that I saw made on another review was that there was an anti-Catholic sentiment. I found that amusing, considering I, as a non-religious person, found it almost a little too Christian for me. Miranda and her family, with the exception of two, are all protestants. As previously mentioned, one of her brothers was the pope, and although I don't know much about papal history, I got the impression he was one of the better ones. There is a very Greco-Roman description of hell, but I found the cosmology to be mostly Christian. "The Almighty" is mentioned, along with his angels. There exist other gods, but they are weaker. There's a half-page where Mab, the Northeast wind, talks about the origins and nature of Jesus which I found interesting.

I find that people who read fantasy, however, by the nature of the books need to be rather open about god/s so I imagine this won't even register for most people who would read this book anyway.

My only other critique (tiny one) of the book is it seems to be very much a "quest" book. There is a definite goal, and it's not a broad sweeping exploration where you have no idea what will happen. Miranda wants to save her family before 12th Night. S'it. A simple plot, but I must say I don't find I have an issue with it. Perhaps if the world travel, history, religion, and magic weren't so intriguing, it might be problematic. As it is, I only really notice if I sit here and contemplate the book.

Prospero Lost is probably one of my favorite books. It's one of those that makes you want to curl up by a fire with some hot chocolate and just read on a chilly day. I guess it's a comfort book for me. Simple story, but intricate exploration of a world that "exists" within our own. I have the next one in hand and am already enjoying it.

Bottom Line

Overall Rating: 4.5 / 5

Buy or Try? Buy
More? 1 / 3 in projected trilogy. All are written, 2 are published

Content

Plot: 4 / 5 (a little weak, see above for explanation)

Setting: 5 / 5  (love love love)

Characters: 4 / 5 (soft focus, but well-written)

Style 
Pace: Slow (over the course of only a few days)
Descriptiveness: Prose
Fantasy factor: Magical Realism

Amazon.com link

The Red Tree by Caitlin R Kiernan - RIP V Review V

I picked up The Red Tree for the RIP V Challenge. I had gotten it from the library because it was recommended by amazon, but never got around to reading it. It was a perfect Halloween season book for sure. From the back cover:

Sarah Crowe left Atlanta, and the remnants of a tumultuous relationship, to live alone in an old house in rural Rhode Island. Within its walls she discovers an unfinished manuscript written by the house’s former tenant—a parapsychologist obsessed with the ancient oak growing on a desolate corner of the property. And as the gnarled tree takes root in her imagination, Sarah risks her health and her sanity to unearth a revelation planted centuries ago…

At the beginning of the novel, you are immediately told on the first page that Sarah Crowe is dead, and she has left behind this diary which was later apparently published. The editor makes some notes, but for the most part the novel is all snippets of Sarah's journal.

I don't really know what I was expecting from this book, honestly. I don't generally read horror books, but this sounded almost...noir. Gothic. Overall, I really enjoyed it. At first, the writing style grated on my nerves. It's a very informal narrative, as you'd expect a journal to be. Also, Sarah goes off on tangents like you wouldn't believe. It makes the narrative confusing, and after awhile I started to skim.

You slowly get impressions of something...wrong. Snippets. A lot of the creepyness comes from legends that the previous tennant had collected. There are weird things that happen actually in the narrative, but alone they really aren't all that scary. The prose that Kiernan uses is original and elegantly done.

There's never really any explanation of anything. I kept waiting for it, because I wanted to know more about why these things were happening, not just that they were. The reasons never came. I sort of feel that that was done on purpose, and that Kiernan was relying on the anticipation of being scared shitless rather than actual events.

Something that is worth mentioning is some explicit content in this book. Sarah is a lesbian, and that plays a fair role in this book. She thinks about sex a lot, there are some fairly graphic descriptions of some really...strange sexual practices. Putting it mildly. It seemed like they were just tossed in there for shock value. I consider myself fairly worldly and a few pages had me a little squicked. Sarah also curses like a sailor, so if that bothers you I'd recommend steering clear.

I'm glad I gave this a try, but I'm also glad to be moving onto another book. It gave me the willies but it won't keep me up tonight. There were a couple of scenes that had me on the edge of my seat, but for the most part this wasn't un-put-down-able. I'll probably pick up another Kiernan book at some point, but I'm not in a hurry.

Bottom Line

Overall Rating: 3 / 5

Buy or Try? Try
More? Standalone

Content

Plot: 3 / 5 (pretty predictable, really)

Setting: 4 / 5  (creepy, and beautifully "illustrated")

Characters: 3.5 / 5 (I really didn't like her, but Sarah was well-written)

Style 
Pace: Slow
Descriptiveness: Mix of poetry and prose
Fantasy factor: Magical Realism

Amazon.com link