Day 06 - Favorite Book of Your Favorite Series

I've mentioned before the the Redwall series was a huge part of my life growing up.  With twenty-two books in the series, it's no surprise that after about book 10, they all start blurring together.  I have vague remembrances of enjoying one more than another, but in general the stories were always pretty solid, if not memorable.  There is one exception in this series, and ever since my first time reading it (and upon many, many rereads of this series) it has always stood out as my absolute favourite book of the lot. 

Martin the Warrior is the sixth book in the Redwall Series, and it is the first time we go back to the history of the world Brian Jacques has set up.  In the previous books, you hear constant mentions of Martin the Warrior as a true hero to almost mythic proportions.  In the previous books it's been years (from what I recall it's basically at least a century), and it doesn't matter how far down the generations the books have taken us, Martin the Warrior remains a strong part of their history.  So when I discovered that we'd finally get to hear about this Martin fellow I was pleasantly surprised as it was a new twist to how the series had been progressing (aka, chronologically). 

This book has everything that I've come to realize that I expect in a fantasy novel to be worthy of my favourites shelf.  It's got heartbreak and tragedy, but humour and love, platonic and romantic relationships, epic worldbuilding (and food porn!), complex relationships...it's amazing. I'm not expecting anyone who hasn't read this story to read it, but in the interest of not spoiling it anyway, BEWARE SPOILERS.

Martin's main love interest is killed and my guess is that it was probably the first time I'd had a main character/love interest die (although Charlotte's Web may have happened before this, so who knows. But definitely the love interest dying bit.)  It was one of the only times in the series that a main character dies, and I was absolutely heart broken when I finished this book.  I always find that the books I found as a child that were more than just a happy story are the ones I was really drawn to.  (Hmm. Maybe this is why I am so morbid?)

END SPOILERS

And now I think I'm going to start rereading these books...I'm getting nostalgic haha

The House of Many Ways - Diana Wynne Jones

 

Summary

Goodreads:  A chaotically magical sequel to Howl's Moving Castle. Charmain Baker is in over her head. Looking after Great Uncle William's tiny cottage while he's ill should have been easy, but Great Uncle William is better known as the Royal Wizard Norland an his house bends space and time. Its single door leads to any number of places - the bedrooms, the kitchen, the caves under the mountains, the past, to name but a few. By opening that door, Charmain is now also looking after an extremely magical stray dog, a muddled young apprentice wizard and a box of the king's most treasured documents, as well as irritating a clan of small blue creatures. Caught up in an intense royal search, she encounters an intimidating sorceress named Sophie. And where Sophie is, can the Wizard Howl and fire demon Calcifer be far behind?

Thoughts

I have to say that while I enjoyed Castle in the Air, The House of Many Ways  is right back up at the level of Howl's Moving Castle.  Maybe I just prefer Diana Wynne Jones' heroines to her heroes?  I'm not really sure what it was, but I can tell you that the heroine of this book might be my favourite of the three I've read so far in this series.  (Also is Wynne Jones her last name or just Jones?  I've wondered this for years...)

While she's clever and clearly magically powerful, Charmain (which I kept reading as The Chairman which drove me nuts haha) is by no means a perfect heroine.  She subverts our idea of a traditional heroine, particularly one in a fairy tale setting - she's not kind, not domestic at all (and not in the charming clumsy way you often find in manga), she's lazy, stubborn, and in general rather irritable.  I say these like they're bad things (and they are - I suppose most people don't see these as good characteristics) - but she's not unlikeable.  While there's nothing wrong with unlikeable characters, I do have a harder time reading books with unlikeable main characters.  That being said I LOVE it when characters aren't perfect (or the sort of imperfect which is still pretty much perfect ala the charming clumsy girls of shoujo manga).  I mean look at one of my favourite characters of all time - Celaena is selfish, vain, and she knows she's good at what she does - and she revels in it.

There's also loads of Howl and Sophie (even if Howl isn't exactly...how you expect him to be. I don't want to say anything because spoilers!) which is always lovely.  This is set at least a few years after Howl's Moving Castle, so it's wonderful looking at how their lives have got on since then.  It's just as funny and disfunctional as their relationship was in the first book and yet just as charming.  We also see a return of my favourite character - Calcifer!  Although I have to say I've added another favourite character from this universe - I love, love, LOVE Waif.  (Waif is a dog in this book who is adorable and as main a character can be with no dialogue)  I particularly love how Diana Wynne Jones has built her worlds, so they're all connected in some ways, and you get to see all sorts of references to the other worlds, but they all follow their own distinct rules.  It's a perfect blend of familiar and something new, and when it comes to world building Diana Wynne Jones is absolutely one of the best.

TL;DR

If you are a fantasy lover and haven't read Diana Wynne Jones yet, you need to remedy this immediately.  Howl's Moving Castle is a great place to start, and if you liked Howl's Moving Castle, you should definitely give this book a read!  (In fact, you don't need to read HMC to read this book, although you will miss out on some of the joy in seeing Howl and Sophie in this book).  Yet another fantastic book from DWJ!

Why Fire is My Favourite Book of the Graceling series (Part 1)

On a scale of 1-10, staying up until 3:30 in the morning last night rereading Fire, that was at least a 9 on the decision scale.  (And before any of my family yells at me, I would like to point out that I wouldn't have been up that late if it weren't for my terrible, evil cat.  If I hadn't had to lock Lily in my room because she's been pooping in front of the refrigerator every night for the last two weeks and my room mates hate me now, then I would have been able to sleep.  It's very difficult to sleep when your cat decides headbutting the door is her best shot at getting out of your room)

I've officially reread all three books at this point, and it's let me reflect a little on the series.  It's clear to me on this reread that Fire is my favourite book in the series, although Graceling is only a hair behind at second, and Bitterblue a hair further behind in third.  What it really comes down to is this: Fire makes me cry the most.

I know, I know it sounds really hypocritical of me since I talk so much about how I procrastinate hardcore on sad books, but there you are.  And I would like to add there's also a big difference between sad books and books where sad things happen.  In fact, it's a similar distinction I make in general between YA and adult literature - YA literature is almost always hopeful, even at it's most tragic.  Most adult literature I come across is sad in that ever pervasive, hopeless, drudgery way.  If you're going to make me sad, you damn well better get a bucket of tears and heart palpitations from me.  Just saying.

THERE ARE SERIOUS SPOILERS AHEAD.  I would recommend scrolling really fast all the way to the bottom of your post and cautiously making your way up until you see the end spoilers words if you want to read the bits of the post without them!  In the interest of not spoiling the really really spoilery bits (and not just my reactions because I don't think you can make images sort of invisible) I will make some of what I write under the reactions only visible if you highlight it.

SPOILERS!!!








My progession on reading Fire:

1. First half, oh yeah I remember how much I love this!

2.* About halfway through...oh god. Oh wait.  Doesn't Archer die?! WHY DID I REMEMBER THIS JUST NOW??

3. Cry because of this realization.

4. Cry when it happens.

5. *Cry because of Fire's fingers, and how I can't imagine living if I ever lost even one of my fingers.  I have actually spent probably a longer time than is healthy thinking about what I would do if this happens, because you can't play the oboe if you lose a finger. 

6. Cry because the book ended.  

END SPOILERS!!!

I would also like to note, that while I am an absolute crybaby in most books, I very rarely cry because a book has ended.  If it's a decent book, I might put it down with a sigh of satisfaction and move on.  If it's quite good, I will probably lie in bed and think about it for a while.  If it's really good (a la Graceling and Bitterblue), I will become despondent for a good hour, think about all the characters and the worldbuilding, and whyyyyy did it have to end?!  But it's rare that ending the book actually makes me cry.  Off the top of my head, I can only think of the last Harry Potter book that put me there.


I'd make the educated guess that Graceling is the general favourite of the series. My guess is that Bitterblue is less popular because it is significantly less action packed when compared to Graceling and Fire, and at 563 pages, it's also a good 100 pages longer than the other books.  I still loved Bitterblue, and I love, love, LOVED, that it dealt with the aftermath of Leck.  My respect for books that deal with things not magically being ok afterwards (Different book spoilers: Mockingjay, Quintana of the Charyns) is insurmountable, and I think more of them need to be out there.

My guesses for why Fire is less popular are very different.  For one, I think people probably expected more Katsa and Po (and who wouldn't want more Katsa and Po?) and it was probably a bit of a shock to find yourself with completely different characters in a completely different land. It's also very outspoken about rape in a way that I think can both empower and infuriate women.  And from here on out it's probably going to be a little spoilery, at least about the world building.  It's always tricky to talk about rape, especially when it is built so deeply into the world building.  It's always a fine line to walk, and inevitably you are going to upset people.  I'd argue that as a whole, (and there are individual times when I might not agree, and I'm still uncertain how I feel about an entire book that deals with violence towards our heroine) that Kristin Cashore does this in a respectful way that doesn't use rape simply as a plot device, and that also opens up a dialogue about what makes people good or evil (or neither).  While at times it may seem like the book is saying it's Fire's fault that the men are acting this way (and that's never an ok thing to believe in my book), I'd also like to point out that usually, any time this was mentioned - the men who look to act this way against Fire generally were this way beforehand, it just happened more suddenly and violently.  At some point in the book she talks to Brigan about how she turns most men away from her tent, but the men that are truly violent, she let's attack her so that Brigan will dismiss them.  This is still a mixed bag, and I totally understand why a lot of people were really upset by the way this was approached.  I tend to take the positive out of what was said, but I'll get to that later.

(Sidenote: One of my only quibbles on this point is that it's mentioned multiple times that it's worse for Fire because she's a woman, with the implication only women are desired.  It's not only men who feel desire - I'm sure there were women who lusted after Cansrel.  Yes, physically speaking, it's generally much, much less threatening, but there are also gay men.  My point is that worldbuilding wise, it doesn't make sense to me that only women are desired.  It does make sense to me that it's much scarier for a woman - specifically a woman like Fire vs. a man like Cansrel.  But it's weird to me that it's pointed out on more than one occasion that Fire is desired because she's a woman, and that these problems don't apply to Cansrel)

I'd also like to say that Fire almost never blames herself for the way men act towards her.  Archer and Nash are perfect examples of this.  Both of them act in a manner that is wholly unwelcome to her, and she let's them know that it's up to them to get themselves under control.  I also think that Archer and Nash are brilliant studies in what makes a person good or evil.  We seem examples, like Leck and Cansrel, of people who are pure evil.  This is juxtaposed against people like Fire who is a "monster", but who isn't inherently evil.  Then you've got Archer and Nash who seem like mostly decent men, but are more or less unbearable around Fire. (I have really complicated feelings on Archer. I kind of hate him as a person, but he's not all bad. Spoilers: And I was still extremely upset when he died. I don't really get it, to be honest. I think he really tried to be good, but....I don't know.  Complicated feelings.)

All of these are reasons why I love Fire (and why if you haven't read this series, GO READ IT NOW. I know plenty of non-fantasy lovers who loved it if you aren't convinced).  I never really got to why this is my favourite book of the series - I talk about why I love it, but none of this is what makes this book so personal for me.  This post has gotten so insanely long that I will have to wait for another post to get to that though :)

Mini Reviews: Daughter of Camelot by Glynis Cooney

 Summary

Goodreads:  Raised in the shadow of a fort dedicated to training Knights of the Round Table, Deirdre thirsts for adventure. Instead, at 14, she is sent to court to learn the etiquette and talents of a young woman. Court life, however, is more fraught with danger than she expected, and Deirdre finds herself entangled in a deadly conspiracy that stretches deep into the very heart of Camelot. All Deirdre thought she knew and believed in—loyalty, love, bravery—is challenged when she embarks on a quest to defy Fate and save the King


Thoughts

I was pretty iffy about this book when I started.  It immediately separates Deirdre from all the other female characters by putting them down, which I strongly dislike.  Throughout the book though, it's clear that Deirdre grows up - so her opinions on the role of women in society changes as the book progresses.  She starts respecting what they do and the different sort of courage it takes to be a healer or to find out important gossip instead of charging into battle.  There's also a dwarf character introduced who I LOVE and who I think has a really interesting story (even if I can't remember much of it now).  The book appeared pretty well researched (even if our main character had that modern feeling we often get when we want a character to have our "more cultured" values than what was believed at the time), but I give the same disclaimer I make anytime I say this - I don't know anything about medieval history, so I could be ridiculously wrong on that front.

Overall, this book wasn't for me.  There were parts that I really loved - like when the dwarf becomes involved, and when Deirdre begins to respect her older sister, but there were lots of parts that weren't really for me either (and sadly I don't remember the specifics of why, or I'd tell you in case said things don't bother you).  I'd recommend it to the avid Arthurian fantasy readers.

Mini Reviews: Being Henry David by Cal Amistead

Soo...last week I got an e-mail from NetGalley being all like "Yo gurl where you been? Remember those books you got for free like a year ago? You totally owe us some reviews. PAY UP."  So I thought maybe I should get on that.  Unfortunately I actually DID mean to put up reviews for this before my hiatus...but now I've kind of forgotten a lot of stuff.  Commence mini review #1!

 

Summary

Goodreads: Seventeen-year-old "Hank" has found himself at Penn Station in New York City with no memory of anything --who he is, where he came from, why he's running away. His only possession is a worn copy of Walden, by Henry David Thoreau. And so he becomes Henry David-or "Hank" and takes first to the streets, and then to the only destination he can think of--Walden Pond in Concord, Massachusetts. Cal Armistead's remarkable debut novel is about a teen in search of himself. Hank begins to piece together recollections from his past. The only way Hank can discover his present is to face up to the realities of his grievous memories. He must come to terms with the tragedy of his past, to stop running, and to find his way home.

Thoughts

This book was interesting...in a way that at times I didn't entirely love, but in the end did touch me. I think my biggest problem is that it reads like an MG book, but the main character is 17.  A lot of the romance here felt awkward and forced (that might be why it felt like MG to me...that's how I feel about most hints of romance in MG books). And some of the lines both grossed me out immensely and made me laugh - with gems like "Music creates a bond between us, an intimacy. Like touching her with music instead of fingers."  I just...eww! I could totally get behind everything the author was communicating here...until those last three words. And I felt like that was what a lot of the book was for me.  As a whole this book was a great coming of age novel that deals with all sorts of different issues that comes along with that - relationships with girls and family, choosing what to do when you graduate high school, how transformative music can be.  I can get behind all of that, and these parts were my favourites.  But then there would be something like the line above and it would jerk me out of the story.  I don't want to make this sound like I hated the book, or even really disliked it because I didn't. I think it has a really heart warming story - I definitely teared up in spots (although admittedly that isn't hard to do in my case) and I really ended up caring for the characters.  In fact, I really want to more about what happens when the book ends! As much as the romance didn't work for me as a whole, there is a part towards the end where the main characters really connect through music. It might sound corny, but I have been there, where someone you are performing with can specifically draw something out of you that you couldn't have done on your own.  Music really can just...electrify a relationship.  It's parts like these that I think are really powerful in this book (it's clear the author is a musician) and that really made it for me. 


TL;DR

Overall while I feel like this book can have success with the age group its marketed at, I think it will have more success with a slightly younger group (maybe early high school kids or middle school).  And I think it might be the perfect book for a specific kid and that it might really open things up for them. I just don't think it's as a whole going to hold a lot of interest across a wide audience.

The Drowned Cities (Ship Breaker #2) - Paolo Bacigalupi

Summary

Goodreads: Soldier boys emerged from the darkness. Guns gleamed dully. Bullet bandoliers and scars draped their bare chests. Ugly brands scored their faces. She knew why these soldier boys had come. She knew what they sought, and she knew, too, that if they found it, her best friend would surely die.
 
In a dark future America where violence, terror, and grief touch everyone, young refugees Mahlia and Mouse have managed to leave behind the war-torn lands of the Drowned Cities by escaping into the jungle outskirts. But when they discover a wounded half-man--a bioengineered war beast named Tool--who is being hunted by a vengeful band of soldiers, their fragile existence quickly collapses. One is taken prisoner by merciless soldier boys, and the other is faced with an impossible decision: Risk everything to save a friend, or flee to a place where freedom might finally be possible.
This thrilling companion to Paolo Bacigalupi's highly acclaimed Ship Breaker is a haunting and powerful story of loyalty, survival, and heart-pounding adventure.


Thoughts

Ok, so I'm cheating. I have totally been slacking and not really reading much and I'm too lazy to go get my kindle and do the mini reviews I meant to do. So I'm posting a review I posted to Goodreads during my hiatus last month.

I just finished this book (well ok, I had when I originally posted this) and I am still reeling in the aftermath of emotions a book can give you when it's that good. This book is so powerful. I really, really enjoyed Ship Breaker, but it didn't speak to me quite the way this one did.   I think part of that comes from my absolute favourite character from Ship Breaker (Tool) becoming a main character in this story. I just connected with these characters, and particularly the ethics vs. survival situations our characters are put in time and time again. I'm not entirely sure of the timeline here, whether it was set directly after or ages after Ship Breaker, which is honestly my only complaint.  So if you're looking for a connection to our lovely MC's from Ship Breaker, and Tool isn't your idea of the best character ever...you might be disappointed.

Just like in Ship Breaker, the world that this is set in is terrifying - and so easy to see in countries around the world right now. It's much bleaker than the dystopias we've come to see in YA fiction these days with Diveregent and Delirium, and to some extent The Hunger Games (and no, I'm not knocking these books. I loved most of them and they have completely different messages and purposes. I'm simply using them as a comparative device to this one). In part this is because of the lack of romantic interest here, which would have felt out of place, and to be honest was one of the things I didn't love about Ship Breaker. What I take from this setting, and what makes it so terrifying, and the messages so powerful...is that it's real. This isn't an imagination of a distant future - it's an imagination of a distant American future. Which is to say that it is a real, current event in many places, most notably Africa. It's clear that Bacigalupi did lots of research on child soldiers, and it is brutal and effective.

There are just so many great things about this series that I think are eye opening about our world today - race, politics, environment on a larger scale, and on a closer scale, loyalty, greed, and power. I think these books really explore how humans operate - both good and bad - and immerses you in a world that feels like a dangerously real possibility.


Why you should read this

1. You loved Ship Breaker
2. Dystopias are totally your thing
3. You love your dystopias without an ounce of romance
4. Diversity, world building, awesome characters, thought provoking

(In other words read this. Unless you need romance, which I'm sure many of you do, in which case this might not be your thing. But I think it might be a little life changing if you do read this).

The Lies of Locke Lamora (Gentleman Bastards #1) - Scott Lynch

 

Summary

The Thorn of Camorr is said to be an unbeatable swordsman, a master thief, a friend to the poor, a ghost that walks through walls.

Slightly built and barely competent with a sword, Locke Lamora is, much to his annoyance, the fabled Thorn. And while Locke does indeed steal from the rich (who else would be worth stealing from?), the poor never see a penny. All of Locke's gains are strictly for himself and his tight-knit band of thieves. The Gentleman Bastards.

The capricious, colourful underworld of the ancient city of Camorr is the only home they have ever known. But now a clandestine war is threatening to tear it apart. Caught up in a murderous game, Locke and his friends are suddenly struggling just to stay alive...

Thoughts

Oh Scott Lynch you know exactly how to hook me in:

1.  Give little snippets of some BIG THING
2.  Jump to a different part of the story line that is connected in a way that doesn't seem obvious for a long time
3.  Jump back and forth between story lines, amping up suspense about BIG THING
4.  Reveal the BIG THING, but at this point you're already hooked on what's going to happen in the other story line, so no matter what the big thing is, if you might otherwise think it's not a big deal (it always is, but some people aren't as easily as impressed as I am)

This jumping between story lines might not work for anyone, and my bet that's probably going to be a complaint for a lot of people, but I don't feel like looking up bad reviews of a book I really enjoyed, so someone else will have to verify that.  I will say that the time lines aren't as perfectly streamlined as they are in the third book, which is no surprise since this is his debut and by the third book obviously he's grown as an author.

I will say I don't get his descriptions, usually of people's colouring.  What exactly is the skin color equivalent of shadowed honey?  And if you describe someone as very blonde...in the next sentence calling her hair color amber is a bit confusing.  Am I just confused about what color amber is?  Because I was pretty sure it was kind of a dark honey color...sort of brownish orangeish yellowish.  Which doesn't sound very blonde to me.  But maybe this in the context of the characters who all seem to be various shades of dark?

Things happened in this book that I had NO idea were going to happen so soon based on what I know of in the third book, and now I have zero clues what the @#$ is going to happen from here on out.  Like seriously.  I have zero clues what happens from the second half of this book through the second book, because everything I knew about already happened.  Also there was a death I was pretty shocked by because I am 90% sure I didn't know about it judging by the third book.  HOW AM I GOING TO SURVIVE THIS??

Other things 

- There is a drink described in here that I WANT to be real.  I want to try this drink because it sounds like the most amazing thing I've ever heard of, and sadly I gave the book away before writing down the description.  But I'm pretty sure if you've read this book, you'll know what drink in there I'm talking about.  Is there a real life version of that? ...must search...Oh Google, how I love you.  Yeah read this.  Tell me you don't want this.
 - The description of Locke as Vene whatever is totally swashbuckling and rogueish...and you KNOW I love my rogues.  I don't care that Locke is supposed to be supremely average looking...in this outfit?  I know he's a sexy beast.

TL;DR

Read it.  JUST DO IT.

Days of Blood & Starlight (Daughter of Smoke and Bone #2) - Laini Taylor

 

Summary

Goodreads:  Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love and dared to imagine a world free of bloodshed and war.

This is not that world.

Art student and monster's apprentice Karou finally has the answers she has always sought. She knows who she is—and what she is. But with this knowledge comes another truth she would give anything to undo: She loved the enemy and he betrayed her, and a world suffered for it.

In this stunning sequel to the highly acclaimed Daughter of Smoke & Bone, Karou must decide how far she'll go to avenge her people. Filled with heartbreak and beauty, secrets and impossible choices, Days of Blood & Starlight finds Karou and Akiva on opposing sides as an age-old war stirs back to life.

While Karou and her allies build a monstrous army in a land of dust and starlight, Akiva wages a different sort of battle: a battle for redemption. For hope.

But can any hope be salvaged from the ashes of their broken dream?


Thoughts

If Daughter of Smoke and Bone was all mysticism and wonder and magical, this book is pain and devastation.  I knew as soon as I started liking something - anything it didn't even have to be a character, something terrible was about to happen.  There are scenes in here that were graphic and terrifying...at least for me.  It's common knowledge on this blog that graphic and terrifying are not things I handle well in books, so while I found them...horrifying, some of you might be less disturbed haha.

I don't have near as much to say about this book.  If you liked the first book, this carries on in much the same vein, and luckily there's still plenty of Zusanna!  There are definitely some twists here that I definitely didn't see coming.  (And in one case I thought SPOILERS would be more emotionally invested in the angel's brother's death since he's supposed to be all sunshine and happiness, but I guess we just don't get much connection to him. END SPOILERS).  I'm not sure how I feel about where this book is going (Is there anything involving angels that doesn't involve war damn it?!), but I trust Laini enough to stick around to see where this will take us.  I'm third in line at the library for the book after it's released (and the library actually receives it) so yay!

TL;DR

You've read Daughter of Smoke and Bone and loved it.  Good, read this next.  You haven't read Daughter of Smoke and Bone.  Well what are you doing silly?  Go read it!

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Daughter of Smoke and Bone (Daughter of Smoke and Bone #1) - Laini Taylor

Summary

Goodreads:  Around the world, black handprints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.

In a dark and dusty shop, a devil’s supply of human teeth grown dangerously low.

And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherwordly war.

Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real, she’s prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands", she speaks many languages - not all of them human - and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she’s about to find out.

When beautiful, haunted Akiva fixes fiery eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?


Quotes:

“I don't know many rules to live by,' he'd said. 'But here's one. It's simple. Don't put anything unnecessary into yourself. No poisons or chemicals, no fumes or smoke or alcohol, no sharp objects, no inessential needles--drug or tattoo--and...no inessential penises either.'

'Inessential penises?' Karou had repeated, delighted with the phrase in spite of her grief. 'Is there any such thing as an essential one?'

'When an essential one comes along, you'll know,' he'd replied.” 


Thoughts

Guys.  Guys.  GUYS.  THIS BOOK!!!

I mean, I know I'd heard great things about it.  But...WOW.  I mean if there is an emotion in the human spectrum of emotions, this book takes you there.

But even more than the feels...oh my god.  I don't know how Laini Taylor does it, but I would read a book on sea cucumbers if she wrote it.  There's just something so evocative and exquisite and....it's almost impossible to describe how amazing her prose is.  And we all know that if there is anything that will make me forgive any flaws it's prose.  (Or well...almost anything.  After Bellman & Black, I now know that authors with the most gorgeous prose in the world are not invincible).  There were times I didn't trust you, Laini Taylor, particularly with the instalove...but I never should have doubted.  Each time I doubted, I was proved wrong.

And that ending???  Oh Laini Taylor you brilliant, brilliant woman.  All the clues were there.  They were basically shouting to be discovered.  And oh the heart break.  I should have known!  I never saw that coming in a million years.  I usually have a vague inkling of things that are about to happen in a book - I imagine most of us who are big readers tend to at least have a few vague theories, and one of those theories is generally right.  But complete 100% unprepared shock?  Very rare.  And the best part is...ALL THE CLUES WERE THERE.  I felt so betrayed by my mind (And also my heart because I'm pretty sure it stopped for a second), because I should have had a clue.  In fact...it's entirely probably I was just being an idiot and most of you who have read this book did have a clue.

Other things I love?  Zusanna.  Ahhhh girl friendships are the best.  This one made me so, so happy.  It's a bit like Kami/Angela's friendship or Anya/Scarlet's friendship in that they really are kind of codependent on each other.  It's not unbalanced and Zusanna doesn't fade into the background - she's WAY too awesome for us to forget!  Where Karou brings mystery and magic into Zusanna's life, Zusanna tethers Karou somewhere so that she's not aimlessly drifting about the world.


TL;DR

Read this.  Please for the love of god, if you like fantasy...if you even think you might like fantasy, read this.  Don't be put off with distaste of "angel" stories, because trust me, it's not structured how you think it is.  I regret putting this series off so late (well only a little, because now I only have to wait until April for the third book to come out!), and as I've mentioned...3rd book is coming out in April! You have no excuse.  The whole series will soon be available at your bidding.

Kushiel's Scion (Imriel's Trilogy #1) - Jacqueline Carey

 Summary

Goodreads:  Imriel de la Courcel's blood parents are history's most reviled traitors, but his adoptive parents, the Comtesse Phèdre and the warrior-priest Joscelin, are Terre d'Ange's greatest champions.

Stolen, tortured, and enslaved as a young boy, Imriel is now a Prince of the Blood, third in line for the throne in a land that revels in art, beauty, and desire. It is a court steeped in deeply laid conspiracies ... and there are many who would see the young prince dead. Some despise him out of hatred for his birth mother Melisande, who nearly destroyed the realm in her quest for power. Others because they fear he has inherited his mother's irresistible allure - and her dangerous gifts. And as he comes of age, plagued by dark yearnings, Imriel shares their fears.

At the royal court, where gossip is the chosen poison and assailants wield slander instead of swords, the young prince fights character assassins while struggling with his own innermost conflicts. But when Imriel departs to study at the famed University of Tiberium, the perils he faces turn infinitely more deadly. Searching for wisdom, he finds instead a web of manipulation, where innocent words hide sinister meanings, and your lover of last night may become your hired killer before dawn. Now a simple act of friendship will leave Imriel trapped in a besieged city where the infamous Melisande is worshiped as a goddess; where a dead man leads an army; and where the prince must face his greatest test: to find his true self.


Thoughts

Last year I discovered the amazingness that is the Kushiel series.  This is my fourth book I've read by Jacqueline Carey and I just have the utmost respect for how well she puts together fantasy novel.  The level of detail in her world building and the complexity of all her characters just never ceases to astonish me.

Upon reading this, I came to the realization that this isn't the fourth book in the Kushiel series, but that the series is comprised of two separate trilogies (sort of the way Tamora Pierce has quartets).  Even though this trilogy is set only a few years after Phédre's trilogy ends, I think it is an important distinction to make, because this book definitely didn't feel like a continuation.  It spent a large chunk of the book setting the ground for this trilogy which really confused me until I made the discovery about it being two different trilogies and not one long series.  That being said, and perhaps this is simply because my initial reaction is hard to remove from the equation, but I didn't feel like this book was as strong as Carey's previous ones.  There didn't really feel like there was a unifying story as a whole.  It felt like we followed Imriel growing up, mirroring the first book of the Phédre trilogy, but it didn't feel like the story was connected or that it was growing to a certain moment.  Instead it felt like a really long book of separate Imriel stories, which I guess is fine, but certainly wasn't what I expected.  I have to admit some of this feeling may have come from not expecting this book to feel like a first book, if you know what I mean.  I also felt like Imriel's voice was no different from Phédre's, which makes sense since it's the same author, and it's not like we were alternating narration or anything.  This was a mixed bag for me, as I would have loved to see Imriel's voice as a distinct, different feeling from Imriel's...but I also love Carey's writing and reading a character with a similar voice was easy for me to love, since I loved her previous trilogy.

I know a lot of this sounds like a complaint, but honestly it's like eating a Lindt truffle if you happen to prefer Ghiradelli.  In comparison to Jacqueline Carey's other books, no I didn't love this as much.  But compared to other fantasy novels?  I still would count this as one of the top novels.  What I loved most about this book is what I have always loved about Kushiel's world - the world building.  I absolutely love how much traveling they do throughout these novels so you aren't just getting the world building of one culture - at this point (and I'm counting the book after this because I can't remember which places Imriel travels in which book), but we've hit at least 10 separate cultures.  That's insane right?! I know they are loosely based on medieval cultures, but honestly what fantasy novel isn't?  (Don't answer that, I know there are a lot.  You get my point though).  But what other novel has managed to pack in that much world building without ever getting boring (in my opinion)?  I will say that as much I love seeing all the other civilizations in this world, I actually would love to see some of the other night houses explored.  Part of this is because I can't say my tastes run where Imriel's and Phédre's do, but part of this is I would just like to round out our knowledge.  I find the most interesting aspect of the world building here is the religion and the way it is interlinked with sex.  I think a religion and a culture that embraces both of these things and doesn't treat them as mutually exclusive concepts is just fascinating!  And it's interesting how Carey manages to wrap all this acceptance up in a society that's based on medieval culture (in some ways).  And then to see how different cultures react to this and...ahh basically I could read anything set in this world and be happy.  (Actually I tried to see if there was any good fanfic that explored the other night houses, but sadly there isn't any - or at least not any I could find in my brief skim.  I mean obviously Carey's writing would be preferable, but I'd just love to read anything about them.  Maybe she has a blog or something.  I should explore this...)


Overall

If you've read Phédre's trilogy, you know what to expect from Carey.  So you should read this.  Personally I liked Phédre a bit more, but I think a lot of that is just nostalgia for how it felt the first time I discovered Carey's writing.  If you haven't read Phédre's trilogy, I really, really recommend it.  It's not for everyone - you'd have to be comfortable reading bits that aren't afraid to get sexy and dark, but if you're looking for a really involved epic fantasy series?  Check this out.

Forest Born (Books of Bayern #4) - Shannon Hale

 

Summary

Goodreads:  Rin is sure that something is wrong with her…something really bad. Something that is keeping her from feeling at home in the Forest homestead where she’s lived all her life. Something that is keeping her from trusting herself with anyone at all. When her brother Razo returns from the city for a visit, she accompanies him to the palace, hoping that she can find peace away from home. But war has come to Bayern again, and Rin is compelled to join the queen and her closest allies—magical girls Rin thinks of as the Fire Sisters—as they venture into the Forest toward Kel, the land where someone seems to want them all dead. Many beloved Bayern characters reappear in this story, but it is Rin’s own journey of discovering how to balance the good and the bad in herself that drives this compelling adventure.

Thoughts

I thought this book was a perfect ending to the Books of Bayern quartet.  It addressed something that I thought was very important, but can't say what because of spoilers.  But I loved that Shannon Hale saw that something and decided to write a story around it, because I loved that.  Gah!  It's always so hard to talk about the books in this series because my favourite parts about them are always spoilers!

I really enjoyed Rin.  She's much more internalized than any of the other main characters in the series have been.  In that way she's very similar to Finn (who is one of my favourite side characters from the previous books).  Enna Burning also has a lot of internalized conflict, and this book contains a lot of the same darkness you find in Enna Burning, but this time the ensemble cast stops it from being overdone. 

As always, it was a delight to see our favourite cast of characters.  There's something so fun about reading a book from a different perspective, and a different set of priorities, but having main characters from other books become side characters, or make minor appearances throughout the book.  I'm sure there are more series that do this, but the only one I can think of is Jaclyn Moriarty's Ashbury/Brookfield series. 


This is the only book that doesn't have a main romance, but I really feel if there had been one it would have detracted from the story at hand.  And those of you who know what the spoiler bit I reference earlier probably know why I feel that way.  There wasn't a point in the story where I felt like it was lacking because of the absence of romance.  I wish there were more YA books out there like that!  Don't get me wrong, I'm all about the swoons, but sometimes it's nice to read a story without the instalove sexy times.


Overall

As I've mentioned before, Shannon Hale is one of those authors who should be on your TBR list if you haven't read her books before.  She's a standard to hold other authors by, a classic, and she writes a really diverse range of books.  As with all the other books I've read by her, this was a really great read and a wonderful ending to the Books of Bayern series.

The Tale of Mally Biddle by M.L. LeGette

I received a copy of the book from the publisher.  This did not affect my opinion of the book or the content of this review.

 

Summary

Goodreads:  When Mally Biddle agreed to spy upon the King of Lenzar and his overbearing knights she knew she was heading into danger. She didn’t know she’d find a family unlike any other.

Posing as a servant in Bosc Castle, Mally serves tea and restocks the fires for the most dangerous men in the kingdom. Her goal is to learn the truth of what happened sixteen years ago, when the infant princess met her death … a death that has more questions than answers.

Along her search for the truth, Mally meets the energized Lita Stump, the strict and matriarchal Meriyal Boyd, and the opinionated Archibald Diggleby. Then of course there are the knights: Sir Leon Gibbs who is slicker than a greased hog, Adrian Bayard, hot tempered and violent, and the worst of the lot: Sir Illius Molick, Captain of the Knights. And then there is Maud, a mysterious woman who just might know everything…

This is a republication of FOR THE KINGDOM by M.L. LeGette.

Thoughts

First of all can I say how beautiful I think this cover is?  I'm really not much of a cover enthusiast, but I honestly could not love this cover any more. (Although I have noticed since I started blogging that book covers DO matter to me more than they used, or more than I thought they did before.  I'm guessing it's in part every one else's cover love and that when you start reading in bulk judging by a cover starts becoming a survival technique).  It's just...perfect really.

But we're not here to talk about the cover, we're here to talk about the book itself.  Honestly this book was just such a delight to experience.  The writing was beautiful and had the level of description and finesse that I find common in the fantasy genre and have been missing as I've been reading more contemporary and sci-fi at the moment.  I will say that the passage of time in the beginning was quite confusing.  It's not really clear how much time has passed - I for some reason thought it was 5 years...but it's 16.  Once you get past the first couple chapters and realize this, it's smooth sailing for the rest of the book. I especially loved how the romance was handled.  I won't give spoilers, but it was subtly done and surprising, and definitely takes a backseat to the big parts of the story (which in my book is a good thing).  So if you are looking for swoons, you probably won't find many here.  There may have been a few things I wish more time had been spent on, like fleshing out the villain a bit more (why does he act the way he does??), and I would have liked more time on how she was going to figure out ruling the kingdom, but honestly the book was such a fun read that I just don't care that much. 

Overall

It was absolutely charming, fun, and addicting!  This is a good book to go for if you just want a really fun light read to get you through your day.

Defy (Defy #1) - Sara B. Larson

I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Summary

Goodreads:  A lush and gorgeously written debut, packed with action, intrigue, and a thrilling love triangle.

Alexa Hollen is a fighter. Forced to disguise herself as a boy and serve in the king's army, Alex uses her quick wit and fierce sword-fighting skills to earn a spot on the elite prince's guard. But when a powerful sorcerer sneaks into the palace in the dead of night, even Alex, who is virtually unbeatable, can't prevent him from abducting her, her fellow guard and friend Rylan, and Prince Damian, taking them through the treacherous wilds of the jungle and deep into enemy territory.

The longer Alex is held captive with both Rylan and the prince, the more she realizes that she is not the only one who has been keeping dangerous secrets. And suddenly, after her own secret is revealed, Alex finds herself confronted with two men vying for her heart: the safe and steady Rylan, who has always cared for her, and the dark, intriguing Damian. With hidden foes lurking around every corner, is Alex strong enough to save herself and the kingdom she's sworn to protect?


Thoughts

I was mostly entertained by this book, even if I got very frustrated at times.  I was on a road trip to a competition with my quintet when I was reading this, and needless to say THEY were entertained by my reactions.  Anytime a book includes a line that says "The artery in my neck pounded beneath my skin, and I felt light-headed with shock"  used as a romantic statement, it is hard not to share.

So...I have a lot of mixed feelings about this book.  On the one hand, I think it's an interesting premise and with some work I could come to enjoy the series.  On the otherhand....so much of it is cringeworthy and rather offensive.

I think part of my issue is that it was written in first person.  This is not my favourite style of narration because it is so limiting, and because it so often isn't done well.  For example, our main character Alexa often makes clear observations (or heavily insinuated ones) about people and how they appear to feel about her, but then she seems to become oblivious all of a sudden like she hasn't realized this.  This is the author's way of showing us how the other characters feel, but because it is filtered through another character who apparently hasn't actually realized these things, it makes your main character seem really dumb.  Or falsely humble.  It was also frustrating because Alexa would constantly tell us how a character was acting very differently (particularly the prince) and that it was weird and out of character...but we never saw the characters act any other way, so it doesn't actually feel like the character is acting strangely. 

 I've mentioned on the blog before that world building and character development are the most important things for me.  And simply put...this book doesn't have them.  It puts every effort into having them, but it's all talk and no show.  And the world building is the very bare bones.  And actually a bit confusing - I definitely needed a lot more not only on the actual feel of the area (not just this is a jungle.  This other country is a desert), but also the politics (the kind invaded this country and is invading the next?  Why?  Why should Alexa feel loyalty to this king if he technically just conquered her country?  I mean then he's not really her king is he?  I might have misunderstood some stuff, so maybe I just missed something as far as these questions go).  And the whole breeding houses thing....I mean what??  In the book it's explained that women are sent to breeding houses where they are....forced to have children to build an army.  I'm a little unclear as to what qualifies some women to go and some not since not everyone is in them...but more importantly uhhh....that seems like a really terrible way to build an army.  I mean it does take more than a few years for a kid to become strong enough to fight in a war.  And there's no explanation beyond that.  It serves as nothing but a simple plot device, and I absolutely do not approve of using rape to simply say, oh those guys are bad.  The guys who are in love with me also think they are bad, therefore they must be good guys.  NOT OK.  Also slut shaming.  I don't feel like going into it, but it happened, and it's my biggest pet peeve.  Ever.

Needless to say, I think my quintet was starting to think I had gone absolutely bonkers haha

I know this has pretty much been negative, but I will say that I did enjoy parts of the book.  I will also say that Alexa's confusion on spending the past 4 years of her life as a boy, and then being seen as a girl felt very real.  Her reactions and her place in how gender roles felt absolutely true.  It changes how people react to you and after four years as a boy, I can imagine that would be confusing, as there is a social stigma to react and behave a certain way when you are a woman versus a man.



Overall

This is not the strongest debut I've ever seen, but I really do believe that this author has all the parts there to turn this series into something pretty good.  I think she has potential as an author and I will be sticking around to see what happens in the next book.

Battle Magic (Circle Reforged #3) - Tamora Pierce

 I received a copy from the publisher's.  Trust me, this doesn't affect my review in any way because Tamora Pierce is fantastic, has always been fantastic, and will remain fantastic until the end of time.

Summary

Goodreads:  On their way to the first Circle temple in Gyongxe, mages Briar, Rosethorn, and Evvy pay a visit to the emperor's summer palace. Although treated like royalty when they first arrive, the mages soon discover that the emperor plans to invade Gyongxe, posing a fatal threat to the home temple of the Living Circle religion. Accompanied by one of the emperor's prize captives, the three mages rush to Gyongxe to warn its citizens of the impending attack. With the imperials hot on their trail, Briar, Rosethorn, and Evvy must quickly help the country prepare for battle. But even with the help of new allies, will their combined forces be enough to fight the imperial army and win the war?


Thoughts

It's pretty clear I love Tamora Pierce.  What can I say to convince you that if you aren't reading her that you should be?  I've talked over and over about how much she's influenced my life as a person and as a reader.  This book only proves everything I've always said about her.  Instead of hearing me say it again, feel free to search my blog for any mention of Tamora Pierce (or click those links). 

So feel free to assume everything that is magical and amazing about Tamora Pierce's novels also apply to this book.  But THIS book in particular, is one that I have been waiting for!  I'd say it was for ages (it feels like it!), but if we're going to be honest, I only caught up with the series in December so it would be a lie.  Why is this book so special you ask?  Well you might remember me mentioning in a review of an earlier book in the series that I felt very confused about parts of Briar's story because it kept referencing things that happened...but we didn't know about said events yet. This is the book that explains it all!  We finally get the details of Briar's war experience, of Gyongxe, and what happened that was so terrible.  And I have to say, after finishing this, I was not disappointed.  It was everything I could have hoped for and more.  There's adventure, and dire situations, and you finally get the background on how Evvy met Luvo (which is something I wanted to know about in the second book, so you get answers on that front too!)  There's a certain level of graphicness in this series that I don't think is quite at the same level in the Tortall series.  It's not over the top (we've discussed how much of a weenie I am before), but it's just enough to really pack a punch.  And I LOVE it!

 That being said, I have only one criticism of this book, and it's more a criticism of the entire Circle Reforged quartet.  If you have not read this series yet (and you really, really, REALLY should!) I would recommend reading this quartet out of order.  I would read this book first.  Even though it is the third in the quartet, it is referenced so often in the first two books that I think the series would feel more cohesive.  I might even read the whole quartet backwards, but I think whether you read the 1st and 2nd book in order doesn't really matter.  And in the grand scheme of things, if this is my only criticism of the book...that's NOTHING.  So go read this book, and if you're new to the series you are missing out on so much amazingness and you should remedy that.  Like.  Right now.

The Will of the Empress (Circle Reforged #1) - Tamora Pierce

Summary

Goodreads:  Sandry, Daja, Briar, and Tris, are older now and back together again, in an exciting and much-awaited, stand-alone novel by everyone's favorite mage, Tamora Pierce.

For years the Empress of Namorn has pressed her young cousin, Lady Sandrilene fa Toren, to visit her vast lands within the Empire's borders. Sandry has avoided the invitation for as long as it was possible. Now Sandry has agreed to pay that overdue visit. Sandry's uncle promises guards to accompany her. But they're hardly a group of warriors! They're her old friends from Winding Circle: Daja, Tris, and Briar. Sandry hardly knows them now. They've grown up and grown apart. Sandry isn't sure they'll ever find their old connection again - or if she even wants them to.


Thoughts

This book is probably one of my favourites in the whole series so far.  I feel like it succeeded where the very first book didn't.  Both books focus on all four mages, but this book must be triple the size of the first one, and it is exactly what was needed for that many main characters to work.  The only thing I didn't like was that there were all these references to Briar's past (that we don't know about).  It made me feel like I'd forgotten something.  I actually had to look it up to make sure that I hadn't skipped a book!

It was so uncomfortable having the four of them at each other's throats most of the book, but I loved it!  It's the right sort of feeling uncomfortable, especially because I think it mirrored how the characters felt after being reunited after 2 years. 

The character development in these books have been so amazing.  I really don't think I've read another series that rivals it (well, okay, probably Harry Potter.  But other than that, I don't think I have).  They've gone through so many different experiences, it's no wonder they've all changed so much as indiviuals!  And they've grown - and not all in ways that I liked.  I hate that Briar's become a lady's man :-/...it feels weird since we were first introduced to him when he was what...12? 14?  I suppose he's the right age for it now though *sighs*  And I particularly hated the assumptions they all made about Sandry -  who I felt bore the brunt of the ire, when I feel she deserved it the least.  She was the most open to reopening a connection between the four of them, the most supportive, and the others treated her like crap AND IT MADE ME SO ANGRY!  But this isn't me complaining about them doing that - it felt very in character with how they have grown as individuals.  This is me angsting out about how I felt reading the book haha.  So this isn't even really a review.  Do I even have the right to actually review a Tamora Pierce book?  Don't answer that.

Circle of Magic - Tamora Pierce

Summary

Sandry's Book:  With her gift of weaving silk thread and creating light, Sandry is brought to the Winding Circle community. There she meets Briar, a former thief who has a way with plants; Daja, an outcast gifted at metalcraft; and Tris, whose connection with the weather unsettles everyone, including herself. At Winding Circle, the four misfits are taught how to use their magic - and to trust one another. But then disaster strikes their new home. Can Sandry weave together four kinds of magical power and save herself, her friends, and the one place where they've ever been accepted?

Tris's Book:  Earthquake damage leaves Winding Circle vulnerable to pirate attack, so everyone - including the young mages-in-training Tris, Briar, Daja, and Sandry - is working to strengthen the community's defenses. When Tris's cousin Aymery comes to visit, he advises the "weather witch" to return to the family that exiled her, but she doesn't wish to leave her friends to face the threat without her.
As the onslaught begins, two things become terribly clear: The pirates have a powerful new weapon, and they have an accomplice within Winding Circle. But the attackers have failed to reckon with the fury of a young mage betrayed once too often and her very stubborn, very loyal friends....

 Daja's Book:  Outcast Trader Daja, along with her fellow mages-in-training, journeys from Winding Circle to the Gold Ridge Mountains, where drought threatens widespread famine. There, Daja creates an astonishing object: a living metal vine, and Daja's dealings with her former people reawaken a longing for familiar ways.
Daja must choose - should she return to the Traders or remain with the Winding Circle folk who have become her family?

Briar's Book:  Four elements of power, four mages-in-training learning to control them. In Book 4 of the Circle of Magic Quartet, former "street rat" Briar leads a comfortable life at Winding Circle Temple, learning plant magic from his teacher Rosethorn. But street kids are still his friends, and when one of them gets sick, she turns to Briar for help. As the mysterious illness spreads, Sandry, Daja, and Tris join Briar and their teachers to fight the epidemic. But just as the situation improves, the unthinkable happens. Will Briar be able to save what he loves most?

Quotes

"You're always reading," retorted Sandry.  The only way people can ever talk to you is to interrupt."

"Then maybe they shouldn't talk to me," Tris said.  – Briar’s Book

 

Thoughts

So my big undertaking in 2013 was reading all of Tamora Pierce’s Circle of Magic books.  I’m a HUGE Tamora Pierce fan (she has been the bread and butter of my reading since childhood) it’s a little bit amazing I’ve only read the her books set in Tortall.  Admittedly, that’s still a good 2/3 of her books, but if I’m going to call myself a true Tamora Pierce fan, I really should read that missing 1/3!

I have to say, as much as I love Tamora Pierce her first Circle of Magic quartet took me a while to get into.  I started out confused and like I didn't have a great grip on the characters, particularly the first book which felt like it was a quick introduction.   It’s only about 200 pages, and we’ve got FOUR main characters.  It means we only get a brief overview of each character, and I found it a bit confusing as the first book is titled Sandry’s Book.  It didn't seem like we spent much time with Sandry at all even though it’s her book because had to spend so much time laying in foundation for everything else.  Luckily, I read all four back to back, so by the fourth book you have some truly amazing character development.  When I say it that way, it sounds like it’s meant to be read that way, like it’s really one large book divided into four.  It’s not like that at all!  In fact one of my favourite things about how Tamora Pierce writes, is that all her books are books on their own, not cliff hangers (or very minor ones towards the end of a couple of her series).  You continue this series because you will always want to know more stories about her land and her characters, not because you HAVE to due to a cliffhanger. 
 

Out of all the books in the quartet, it’s Briar’s Book (the last of the quartet) that really knocks me off my feet.  This is definitely when I got 100% behind the Emelan books the way I am about the Tortall ones.  I enjoyed the second and third books more than I did the first, but Briar’s book is….ahhhh!  I honestly didn't know who was going to survive or not of the side characters (you know who I'm talking about if you've read the book).  Like seriously.  Up to like 3 pages to the end I honestly didn't know how it was going to go!  You know with Tamora Pierce that ultimately, it’s going to be a feel good book.  That being said, it doesn’t mean your side characters are safe - Alanna and Kel’s quartets in particular punched a hole in my gut with some of the deaths.  

 

Overall

It's Tamora Pierce.  I expected to love it, and I was not let down.  If you haven't read these, you should.  For so many reasons - I'm going to have a Tamora Pierce discussion post up tomorrow so if this review wasn't enough to convince you, let that convince you!

 

The Wolf Princess - Cathryn Constable

Summary

Goodreads: 

Alone in the world, Sophie dreams of being someone special, but she could never have imagined this.

On a school trip to Russia, Sophie and her two friends find themselves on the wrong train. They are rescued by the beautiful Princess Anna Volkonskaya, who takes them to her winter palace and mesmerises them with stories of lost diamonds and a tragic past. But as night falls and wolves prowl, Sophie discovers more than dreams in the crumbling palace of secrets.

Thoughts

Let's do something new!  We're going to make this review out of lists rather than cohesive paragraphs because I feel like this:

What I didn't like

-       The story is really predictable.  Like really.  I could tell you from the first chapter what was going to happen (more or less).   Which means no (or very few) surprises in the plot, and the same goes for the characters.  I could have forgiven the plot if the characters had something to offer, but they didn't.

-       I didn’t like the friendship between the girls.  Daphne comes off as catty and stuck-up, and Marianne isn't really with the program, and Sophie doesn't fit with the other two either.  It's like the author put the stereotypes together and made them all friends.  They do have their redeeming moments, but friendship, especially female friendship, in books is something I'm especially nitpicky about.

What I did like

-      Russia is a new twist.  I mean, I can't think of any books that set Russia as a dream place and that was refreshing.  The author made it sound so magical and beautiful!  The setting and description of the girls' surroundings was easily my favourite part of the book. 

-     In a lot of ways it reminded me of Anastasia, and I think the parallels are easy enough to draw that it was intentional.  That actually didn't bother me as I have a soft spot for the Disney version of this story and I've always enjoyed stories about Anastasia.  (I actually was secretly expecting Sophie to be Anastasia hahah)

Overall

It’s cute, and maybe younger readers will like it as it's got a sort of Chronicles of Narnia sense of wonder to it (as well as beautiful scenery), but it was too predictable and two-dimensional for my taste.