October 20, 2013

Kushiel’s Chosen by Jacqueline Carey

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KushielChosenFormat: eBook
Pub. Date: 4/6/2002
Publisher: Tor
Type: Fiction, Fantasy
Pages: 678
Read: 9/16/2013
Rating: Liked it ♥

(Phèdre’s Trilogy #2)

Mighty Kushiel, of rod and weal
Late of the brazen portals
With blood-tipp’d dart a wound unhealed
Pricks the eyen of chosen mortals

In the second book of this Trilogy we continue with the political intrigue following the young queen of Terre d’Ange. The people love her but there are some who feel another should wear the crown.

Phèdre has once again stumbled onto a plot that threatens her homeland from an old enemy and she goes in search of her. There is treachery and Phèdre is betrayed and has to survive and thwart an assassination threat by her wits. This includes how the assassination is going to take place.

We are again reminded of Phèdre’s beauty, resourcefulness and how she is born to experience pain as pleasure by every time she melts when a certain person gets near. We also get an overwhelming dose of Phèdre’s self pity, all the people who have died because of her and how guilty she feels. She also treats Jocelyn horribly and feels guilty about it, but doesn’t change her behavior.

Something else that bothers me is the way Phèdre just shrugs off being raped as the inevitable consequence of being a courtesan. If you can ignore all this and concentrate on the plot line you would probably feel this is well written, however it could have been a much shorter book without all the guilt trips, and constant repetitions.

Posted by on October 20, 2013 in 2013, Acquisitions, Fantasy, Fiction, Novel and tagged , , , , .

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October 16, 2013

Torn Trilogy #1, #2, #3 by Erica O’Rourke

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Since I am reviewing all three books in this series, it is possible there will be minor spoilers in the last two reviews

TornTorn (Torn Trilogy #1) by Erica O’Rourke

Format: eBook
Pub. Date: 6/28/2011
Publisher: Kensington
Type: Fiction ~ Library Book
Pages: 336 pages
Read: 9/13/13
Rating: Liked it ♥

Everyone has secrets.
Even best friends.

The story begins with Mo ‘Mouse’ Fitzgerald in the emergency room, she tries to find her friend Verity only to be told Verity is dead. Mo witnessed Verity being murdered but by what she is not sure. Whatever they were, they weren’t human.

Thus Mo learns Verity has been keeping secrets and things are not always what they appear to be. In her quest for answers and vengeance for Verity’s death she plunges unprepared into a world of magic and shifting alliances. She also has to keep up appearances at home, working for her mother, trying to get into college and deflecting the investigation into Verity’s murder by a very determined police detective who has a grudge against her uncle.

Throw in some hunky guys and we’ve got the ingredients for a YA Fantasy Series.

This was a quick read, all three books are and I read them one after another. Each one picks up right where the last one stops so they flow very well. Things happen quickly and sometimes the reader can see what’s coming before Mo does. I would say these are predictable YA books but still enjoyable.

TangledTangled (Torn Trilogy #2) by Erica O’Rourke

Format: eBook
Pub. Date: 1/31/2012
Publisher: Kensington
Type: Fiction ~ Library Book
Pages: 313 pages
Read: 9/14/13
Rating: Liked it ♥

Constance started to keen as the air around us began to thrash and twist, the caustic scent of ozone burning my nose. As I watched, her dark gold hair began to lift and kink into knots.

“I’m here. It’ll be okay.” It was the last thing I said before my best friend’s little sister went supernova in the second-floor girls’ bathroom, taking me with her.

Ever since Verity was murdered and Mo survived Constance has hated her, now it appears she has magic powers and so needs Mo’s help. As Verity’s little sister it makes sense she would be magic, but since neither of their parents have powers, as a matter of fact they are both completely clueless, it is kind of head scratching but necessary for the plot.

In getting her revenge Mo thought she had fixed things, but in the world of magic things are going terribly awry. Luc is back to ask for her help and there are some in the magic community who insist that she has to fix the problem SHE caused. It seems to me she didn’t cause the problem, it was their problem to begin with, but Mo feels obligated to Constance. Constance just wants to hurt Mo. Colin wants Mo to just forget about the magic.

This book is more of what was in Torn but the story is progressing nicely, characters are staying in character and there are surprises popping up when you least expect it. Another enjoyable quick read.

BoundBound (Torn Trilogy #3) by Erica O’Rourke

Format: eBook
Pub. Date: 6/26/2012
Publisher: Kensington
Type: Fiction ~ Library Book
Pages: 350 pages
Read: 9/15/13
Rating: Liked it ♥

The problem with writing the review for the last book in a trilogy is EVERYTHING COULD BE A SPOILER! Here goes, you’ve been warned.

Mo has decided to stay in Chicago with Colin, no more magic. As the reader we know this isn’t possible. Magic won’t let Mo go and Colin won’t forsake his obligations. We learn some surprising things about one of Mo’s classmates which explains a lot about why she handled things the way she does.

I thought this last book really tied things up nicely in a satisfying conclusion, while their future is unknown, all the current issues have been dealt with. Another enjoyable read.

Posted by on October 16, 2013 in 2013, Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, YA Fiction and tagged , , , , , , .

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September 24, 2013

Kushiel’s Dart by Jacqueline Carey

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KushielDartFormat: eBook
Pub. Date: 2001
Publisher: Tor Fantasy
Type: Fiction, Fantasy
Pages: 1015
Read: 9/4/2013
Rating: Liked it ♥

Phèdre nó Delaunay is from the land of Terre d’Ange which is described as a place of great beauty. Discovered by angels and the resulting race of people descended from them. Their god gave them one simple rule: Love as thou wilt. What that means is the people worship by having sex. Courtesans like Phèdre are honored and given extensive training. However the emphasis on appearance means any flaw makes one damaged and undesirable. Phèdre is born with a scarlet mote in one eye and thus considered undesirable, until Anafiel Delaunay who recognizes that the mote means she is pricked by Kushiel’s Dart, chosen by the gods so to speak. She experiences pain and pleasure as one.

The training Phèdre receives from Anafiel Delaunay is more than the courtly arts, he trains her to be a spy. To observe, remember and analyze. Because of this Phèdre discovers a plot against the ruling party. This is when the excitement begins.

Before I read this book I started to read Kushiel’s Scion (Imriel’s Trilogy #1) not realizing is not the first book, but the first book of the second part. After reading partway and realizing I was starting in the middle I put that book down and picked up this one. The book moves rather slowly setting the stage, learning about Phèdre’s childhood, how she came to be a courtesan and the reasons Delaunay wants her to spy. The plot line was rather complicated, it involved political manipulations, and people not being what they appeared, since I had read part of the fourth book I know what was coming, that is probably why I am still reading. It was not too hard to follow the plot line, once you understand who the main players are and what their eventual goals are.

What annoyed me about these books is how often Phèdre repeats herself, we are constantly reminded that D’Angeleans value appearance and beauty and that she is beautiful, that their god Elua told them to ‘love as thou wilt’, that she was a skilled courtesan and spy, that she is aroused by pain and when aroused can’t resist the one administering the pain all because she has been pricked by Kushiel’s Dart. It’s like Ms. Carey was afraid we would forget things from one chapter to the next. Also Phèdre is an anguisette, and much is made of the fact that one has been born in many years, yet they have a temple to the god Kushiel and in this temple are adepts who practice what would be considered sado-masochism, this makes me wonder how is she the only one when obviously there are others who derive pleasure from pain? This is something that doesn’t make sense, if she was the first one born in 50 years, wouldn’t they have to dust off the temple for her?

These are just the thoughts and questions that occurred to me while reading the book, there are others but telling them would reveal too many things that happen in the book. I did like this book, but if these problems hadn’t existed I would have enjoyed it more.

Posted by on September 24, 2013 in 2013, Acquisitions, Fantasy, Fiction, Novel and tagged , , , , .

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September 15, 2013

American Gods by Neil Gaiman

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AmericanGodsFormat: eBook
Pub. Date: 6/19/2001
Type: Fiction ~ Library Book
Pages: 656
Read: 8/28/2013
Rating: Liked it ♥

The premise of American Gods is that when people came to this country (United States) they brought their gods with them. Their pagan gods and assimilated them into their lives here, but that over time people have forgotten the old gods and they are being replaced by new gods, gods of technology. If you pay attention while reading, and if you’re familiar with Norse, Greek and Roman mythology and some other lands folk stories, you will recognize some of the gods. The old gods don’t want to be replaced, the new gods want the old gods gone.

Shadow is in prison, he does his time, he keeps his mouth shut and looks forward to leaving prison and going back with his wife. We never learn the whole story of why Shadow is in prison, just that he loves his wife very much. A few days before his release he gets the news that she has been killed in an auto accident. As he travels to home and the funeral he meets up with Mr. Wednesday who hires him and they start driving through America, Mr. Wednesday is a god and he is meeting up with the other gods because there is a storm coming and either the old gods will survive, or the new gods will survive.

This is the main story, but there are many other stories throughout this books. Back stories and side stories, the story of why Shadow went to prison, never fully explained, the story of who Mr. Wednesday’s associates are, the story of Mr. Wednesday and Shadow, and some stories seem to just be thrown in to take up space.

While I enjoyed this book I felt it went on and on. Many of the stories added seemed to be just filler, they didn’t seem to help the story along. In short a good story very masterfully told, Mr. Gaiman takes all the threads he scattered about and brings them together in the end, I just felt the end was too long in coming and there were too many ‘side trips’.

Posted by on September 15, 2013 in 2013, Fantasy, Fiction, Novel and tagged , , , , .

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September 9, 2013

The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie

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SecretAdversaryFormat: eBook
Pub. Date: 1922
Type: Fiction
Pages: 268
Read: 8/13/2013
Rating: Liked it ♥♡

This is different from my usual Agatha Christie fare, I’ve read plenty of Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple but none of the Tommy and Tuppence which are more spy novels than detective stories. After the war when London had more people than jobs two old friend meet by chance and form a company “Young Adventurers Ltd.” ‘willing to do anything, go anywhere’, and it lands them in all sorts of trouble.

The action is fast paced with plenty of twists, if you decide to read this remember it was written in 1922 and the expressions and settings are from that time period so some things may seem weird to you. I enjoyed it, the same style that Miss Christie had for mysteries works well with political intrigue.

Posted by on September 9, 2013 in 2013, Classic Literature, Fiction, Mystery, Novel, Suspense and tagged , , , .

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September 8, 2013

The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle

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BaskervillesFormat: eBook
Pub. Date: 1901
Type: Fiction, Classic
Pages: 256
Read: 8/12/2013
Rating: Liked it ♥♡

Probably one of if not THE best known Sherlock Holmes stories, I have read all of them and I can’t pick out a favorite. I believe this was my first and it got me hooked. In the interest of saving time I am just going to slap an “I recommend this book” on it and post the synopsis from GoodReads. I will say that this was a quick read as the story moves along quickly. Since it was written in 1901 there are old terms, most not explained because of when it was written, the author know his readers would understand. It is not hard to figure out, you just need to keep in mind the time period it was written.

Holmes and Watson are faced with their most terrifying case yet. The legend of the devil-beast that haunts the moors around the Baskerville families home warns the descendants of that ancient clan never to venture out in those dark hours when the power of evil is exalted. Now, the most recent Baskerville, Sir Charles, is dead and the footprints of a giant hound have been found near his body. Will the new heir meet the same fate?

Posted by on September 8, 2013 in 2013, Classic Literature, Fiction, Mystery, Novel, Suspense and tagged , , , , , .

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September 8, 2013

The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

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OceanatEndofLaneFormat: eBook
Pub. Date: 2013
Publisher: William Morrow Books
Type: Fiction, Fantasy ~ Library Book
Pages: 248
Read: 8/7/2013
Rating: Liked it ♥

When a middle-aged man returns home to attend a funeral, he takes a side trip to his old house, or rather where it used to be. He drives on to the end of the lane to the Hempstock Farm where there is a duck pond. He seems to remember the little girl, Lettie called it something else. Sitting at the edge of the pond he remembers she called it an ocean, and then “having remembered that, I remembered everything.”

Told from the view of the little seven-year boy, whose name I don’t remember (the problem with putting off reviews and not taking notes, although another reviewer says the boy is never named) as he deals with forces too strong, events too strange, frightening and dangerous for a little boy to deal with, even with the protection of a very special eleven-year-old girl. And she does protect him.

The start of this book is rather rambling, and it continues to ramble, although the story progresses it does so at a rather slow pace. Like Mr Gaiman had an idea for a story and just kept stretching it. It was because of this I took off a heart. I did like how he kept the child’s perspective, how children think and that he made the young boy rather clever, and also his great attention to the details that children feel are important. I’m not sure if I can recommend this book wholeheartedly, but I also feel that if you are a Neil Gaiman fan you will like it. From my limited exposure to Neil Gaiman I feel this is classic Neil Gaiman but too long.

Posted by on September 8, 2013 in 2013, Fantasy, Fiction, Novel, Suspense, Thriller and tagged , , , , .

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August 29, 2013

Insurgent by Veronica Roth

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InsurgentFormat: eBook
Pub. Date: 2012
Publisher: HarperCollins Children’s Books
Type: Fiction ~ Library Book
Pages: 496
Read: 7/30/2013
Rating: Liked it ♥♡

(Divergent #2): Possible SPOILERS

One choice can transform you, or destroy you.

This book picks up where Divergent ends, with Tris on the run, along with a few others that have survived with her. Now they are mainly concerned with staying alive and ending the conflict.

There are surprises in this book, more things about how unsettled things really were come out. I had two problems with this book. One was that I kept thinking Tris and her friends were all much older than 16, I also didn’t like how Tris felt she had to solve everything herself and couldn’t trust anyone else. The first led me to thinking why is she acting like that? Only to remember, she’s only 16. The second was very annoying and old fast.

I didn’t enjoy this book as much as the first, but I still recommend it. Nothing gets to crazy, the story still moves quickly and the values of friendship and teamwork, which pretty much have to be hammered into some people’s head prevail.

There is another book coming out in September, I haven’t decided if I will read it. I’m not tired of this series I just have a lot of books to be read.

Posted by on August 29, 2013 in 2013, Fiction, Novel, Suspense, Thriller, YA Fiction and tagged , , , , , , , .

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August 29, 2013

Divergent by Veronica Roth

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DivergentFormat: eBook
Pub. Date: 2011
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Type: Fiction ~ Library Book
Pages: 487
Read: 7/25/2013
Rating: Liked it ♥♡

After the war society was divided into 5 factions, it was believed that this would prevent another war. The factions are: Candor, Abnegation, Dauntless, Amity and Erudite. Each has specific responsibilities, Erudite are the scientists, inventors and doctors; Amity provide food for the rest of the faction; Dauntless are the security forces; Abnegation are the rulers and Candor, I can’t remember what they did, but they are honest. The way each faction conducts themselves and appear identify which faction they belong to. Adults marry in their faction and children grow up as whatever faction their parents belong to until they are 16, on an appointed day, all the 16-year-olds must select which faction they want to belong to. There are those who are factionless, sort of like homeless people, and these are cared for by the Abnegation.

The story is told from the viewpoint of Beatrice Prior, who grew up in Abnegation, starting with the day of her aptitude test, a test which is supposed to ‘tell’ her which faction she is suitable for. It continues through her choosing and then the initiation process.

Although classifying people into different factions was believed to be a way to prevent war, we see there is unrest and antagonism between different factions and within factions. There is a conflict threatening. Beatrice has renamed herself Tris and has a secret that could help her survive the conflict but at the same time is a target. It’s a secret that she learns she shares with others.

The characters in Divergent were well created, I formed opinions of them, who I liked and so one, and the emotions they displayed were genuine. The plot is solid and fast paced, there are not to many twists and turns or surprises, those that come are not unbelievable. The only problem is that since the story is told from Tris’s view we have to rely on what others tell her about events she is not witness to. Overall I enjoyed this book and recommend it.

Posted by on August 29, 2013 in 2013, Fiction, Suspense, Thriller, YA Fiction and tagged , , , , , , , .

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August 14, 2013

The Treatment by Mo Hayder

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TreatmentFormat: Trade Paperback
Pub. Date: 2001
Publisher: Random House UK
Type: Fiction ~ Library Book
Pages: 357
Read: 07/24/2013
Rating: Liked it ♥♡

This it the second novel featuring Detective Jack Caffery, however I haven’t read the first one. There are some references to the first, but there is also enough back story that you are not lost. I’m not sure if I’ll read Birdman but I have requested it from the library so we’ll see. This book opens with the imprisonment of a family and the abduction of their eight year son. Caffery’s brother was abducted at about the same age as this young boy, his brother was never found, the similarities in the event make this case difficult for Caffery since he has to try to solve the case and deal with his inner turmoil.

The way this book is written we know what the criminal is planning and even who the next victims will be, we don’t know who the criminal is. Although the story is primarily told from Jacks’s viewpoint, we also get glimpses of what is going on with other people, eventually all these little parts come together. The ending is ironic and heartbreaking, but inevitable considering the people involved.

I liked this book but I did not like the ending, however with the characters Mo Hayder has created any other ending would not have worked. It would have given the ending a thrown together feeling which many readers would object to. Since I don’t want to give anything away I will leave it at that.

There are some disturbing elements in this story, it deals with the sexual abuse of children and child pornography and child murder which may upset some people. I though the writing was good, even with the dark subject it was written in a way that did not sensationalize it. The author keeps the feeling and actions of the people realistic although there is one part that is a little unnerving. The plot is solid, there are many threads started which are woven together during the story so that by the end they are all wrapped up, and the characters stay true to their created personalities. The story takes place in England and so there were some expressions and procedures that were foreign to me but it was not enough to effect my enjoyment of the book. I would recommend this book, but please take note of the warning above.

Posted by on August 14, 2013 in 2013, Crime Fiction, Mystery, Novel and tagged , , , , , , , .

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