The Fall of Five by Pittacus Lore

The Fall of Five is Lorien Legacies #4, so there may be spoilers for books #1-#3 in this review.

This is such a cool series!  Teens who are actually aliens who aren't evil and plotting world domination.  No stereotypes.  I like that they're unpredictable.  Since this is book #4, we already know the backstory and we know most of the characters pretty well, so the author is able to concentrate more on plot.  That's fun.

Six of the ten are united and hiding out together in a Chicago penthouse when the book opens.  They're busy working on their plot to fight and defeat the Mogadorians when they get a signal from Five.  Yay!  Finally!  Once they collect him, all living Loriens will be together!  However, things do not go as planned.

The whole "things don't go as planned" bit was actually a bit of a bummer for me.  I don't know if I'm jaded or if I'm just not a teen or if the writing was just a little off in this book, but I saw it coming a mile away.  Browsing some other reviews on Goodreads I see that I'm not alone.  I hate that such a big plot point ended up being too obvious and therefore rather anticlimactic.  I won't reveal what it is, just in case you're able to read The Fall of Five without guessing the outcome.

Five isn't the only character with a big reveal of a plot point!  Tiny, quiet Ten/Ella also plays a large role in The Fall of Five.  I'll admit, in the past I've gotten pretty frustrated with Ten.  She seemed like an overly weak character... almost borderline sexism on the part of the author.  But in The Fall of Five we get to see her strength.  It's a quiet strength, but it's there.  We get to see her struggle with and work through a kind of knotty situation.

While it's exciting to go along with the characters on their quest to save Earth, I also enjoy the quieter moments in these books, when the main characters act very much like everyday teens.  When they tentatively date or go on a joyride or make up silly games.  There are moments where I almost forget that they're aliens!

Overall, The Fall of Five is good but not excellent.  I really enjoyed it, because it's a continuation of a story that I've been enjoying through the first three books.  If you were picking it up without any context you might not like it at all.  I would certainly recommend it to someone who had read the first books.  I just hate that it wasn't very action-full.

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Posted by Tynga at 01:00

 Alien Contact, aliens, Fiction, HarperCollins, Library, Lorien Legacies, Pittacus Lore, Review, YA, young adult  Leave your mark

Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

I'm loving this wonderful series set in a fictional small town in South Carolina! The magic is magical and the setting is comfortable and the characters are really likable. Beautiful Darkness is the second book in the Caster Chronicles series, so this review may contain a few spoilers. To read the review of the first book, Beautiful Creatures, click here.

I just about started this review with "this is the first series featuring witches/witchcraft that I've enjoyed!" and then remembered Harry Potter.  But aside from Harry Potter, this is the first series featuring this much magic that I've loved.  The setting grabbed me and pulled me in heart and soul.  The books are set in Gatlin, SC, a small fictional town just outside of Summerville, SC, which is near Charleston, SC.  I grew up in SC!  The authors do a great job representing the state.  I love hearing the descriptions of the food and the culture.  Lena even makes a comment at one point about all the different casseroles that show up on her doorstep when tragedy strikes.  So true!  If someone you loves dies in the South, you can totally expect an avalanche of casseroles to be delivered to your house.  This book happens to take place in June, so there's mention of the climate also.  Again- the authors nail it.  There's mention of the weighty, oppressive heat peppered into the story.  It's all very natural and unobtrusive.  Being a YA book, the action continually moves forward without any lengthy descriptive passages.  Still, the setting itself, with the heat and the culture and the traditional magic (like the Gullah magic that Amma works) almost act as a minor character.

The characters are awesome too.  First, the uniqueness of point of view:  the book is told by Ethan Waite, a non-magical male.  Seems like most of the magical/witchy books are told from the female perspective.  (At least in the YA realm.  I haven't tried any "grown up" witchy books.)  Ethan is such a good guy.  I want to be his friend, and also can't help but wonder if I'd be worthy of being his friend.  He's not perfect- he definitely has some moments- but overall he's so good.  So much better than many actual teenage boys I know.  You can really see the influence of his Amma in him.  I love reading about how much he cares for his family and friends.

Lena is almost a secondary character in this book.  The whole plot is driven by her; is about her; but yet she's not a truly active player in all of it.  Instead, Ethan and Linc spend a large portion of the book "chasing" her.  (I don't want to say too much and spoil anything!)  Just like how the first book was all about a build-up to Lena's sixteenth moon; this book is about her seventeenth moon.  Lena is just as communicative as ever... *insert sarcasm*  And of course you'll have to read the book to find out if she claims herself for light or dark!  It's not obvious:  you'll be on the metaphorical edge of your seat as you read this book.  Along the way, you'll experience lots of Caster magic and all the members of the Ravenwood family and lots of mystery.

I listened to Beautiful Darkness, and the narrator did a fantastic job.  He had a Southern accent that wasn't too overdone or anything.  His pacing and enunciation were spot on.  I would definitely recommend this audiobook.  There were also some sound effects scattered throughout too, which is rare!  They were really well done.  Not too many; not too few.  And each time the seventeen moons song came up, it was actually sung by a female, to music.  I think this is one of those rare cases where the audiobook may actually be slightly better than the physical book!

Overall, a great series and a great book.  Two thumbs up!

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Posted by Tynga at 01:00

 Brown Books for Young Readers, caster chronicles, Fantasy amp; Magic, Friendship, Kami Garcia, Library, Little, Magic, Margaret Stohl, Review, YA, young adult  Leave your mark

The Wicked Will Rise by Danielle Paige

This series is so good, y'all!  Just the other night I was gushing about it to my mom, and she hasn't even ever shown interest in anything paranormal/fantasy/fairy tale/YA!  I just want to spread the word about this series.  Am I just too late to the game?  Was everyone else gushing about this two years ago and I somehow missed it?  Or is this a sleeper series?  Anyway, The Wicked Will Rise is the second book in this series, so there will be spoilers for the first book in the review below.  To read the review of the first book, Dorothy Must Die, click here.  We also have reviews of the prequel novellas- just check the Review Archive (above) and search for Danielle Paige.

The Wicked Will Rise picks up almost exactly where Dorothy Must Die left off, so we don't miss a moment of the action.  Amy Gunn is still in Oz and Dorothy is still around somehow.  Definitely still wicked.  Amy is going around Oz with some now-wingless flying monkeys and somewhat-brainless Ozma, trying to get back the gifts that the "Wizard" gave to the the Tin Man, the Lion, and the Scarecrow.  Sometimes when reading this series, I've kind of felt like they're building to a giant moral lesson... maybe.  Something about not letting power go to your head or to appreciate what you have or to count your blessings or the Golden Rule or something.  Not only is Dorothy evil, but the Lion, the Tin Man, and the Scarecrow are all evil too!  Amy has to figure out what parts of those three characters represent their gift, and then remove it.

This book is not for the faint of heart.  She has to figure out what parts of those three characters represent their gift, and then remove it.  And carry it around.

I often get bored with books where the plot is predictable.  When an author spells out at the beginning of the book that the main character is going on a quest to accomplish X, Y, and Z, then walks us through it... I'm done.  But Danielle Paige throws in plenty of twists to the storyline to keep even the most reluctant reader engaged!  Every time I started to feel even the least bit comfortable, another unexpected thing happened.  Ozma provided quite a few of these unexpected moments with random bits of lucidity, and the queen of the flying monkeys definitely provided a humorous distraction for a moment.  I can't say much more without spoilers, so you'll just have to take my word for it:  this book is not formulaic.  Amy doesn't just set out on a pre-planned quest and accomplish it.  There are pitfalls and misdirections and successes all mixed together.

I feel like the character of Amy gets a lot more rounded out in this volume.  I loved loved loved her in the first book, with all of her snark!  I'm a huge fan of sarcasm in real life and in my literature.  In The Wicked Will Rise we lose a little bit of the snark (not completely; don't worry) but we really get to know Amy better.  She's complex!  There were a few moments where I totally didn't agree with a choice she makes, but that's real life.  No one is perfect, especially when under stress, like she is.  She makes some mistakes.  She gives in to temptations.  She develops and shows feelings for other characters (both friendly and romantic).  I can very much appreciate that.  It takes talent to write as much back story and personality into Amy as Paige does in these books.

Now, the ending:  another cliffhanger!!!  Paige certainly wants to make sure we all keep buying her books!  I can't wait to start in on book #3 (an advantage to picking up an older series: I get to binge-read) and find out if the W.I.C.K.E.D. really will rise and reclaim Oz!

 

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Posted by Tynga at 01:00

 Danielle Paige, Dorothy Must Die, Fantasy amp; Magic, Fiction, HarperCollins, Library, Review, Wizard of Oz, YA, young adult  Leave your mark

Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas | Second Look

I recently read Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas.  I know, I know: I'm waaaay behind the game on this series!  I'm kicking myself for not trying them sooner; they're excellent.  On the plus side, I get to binge-read them now, since I waited until so many were released to start reading them!  This is a Second Look on Tynga's Reviews- Tynga herself reviewed this right after it was released in 2013.  You can read her excellent review here.

WOW.  I feel like I've just been on the most amazing roller coaster!  The book's official summary hints at a secret being revealed, but there's no way you could see this one coming.  It's a whammy.  It's going to be so hard to write this review and tell you about this amazing book without telling you the secret!  You will need to go read the book so that we can discuss in the comment section.  ;)

I wholeheartedly agree with Tynga's assessment that the characters really make this book great.  (And the first book, and the third, which I've just started reading.)  Celaena is the most kickbutt heroine I've ever read, I think.  Remember in the first book how hard she worked to overcome immense odds to get herself in shape to win the king's contest?  Now that she's the king's assassin Champion, she isn't slacking!  He has her killing people left and right.  She's dispatching them completely silently- no one in the whole kingdom has any idea how they're happening.  One thing is changing about Celaena, though: she's allowing herself to be slightly (very, very, very slightly) more open.  We readers definitely get to know a lot more about her; Chaol and Dorian get to know her better as well.  I think I mentioned in my first review, of Throne of Glass, that I love how "real" Celaena is.  She has hobbies (books!) and interests (warcraft and martial arts) and favorite foods (chocolate and candy!).  Often this type of book will have a main character with a goal/mission, and that's all they ever focus on.  Maybe they'll have a little romance on the side.  I can't remember ever before reading about how much a character enjoys unwinding with a good book!  I love that.

Chaol and Dorian continue to get rounded out as well.  Especially Dorian!  I think we got to know sweet, tough, chivalrous, smart Chaol in Throne of Glass.  By the end of Throne of Glass I was 100% "Team Chaol."  Even though the books have an almost medieval-type feel to them, I don't feel like Chaol ever looks down on women just for being women.  He might look down on someone who "simpered" or acted foolish, but he totally respects Celaena, and encourages her development.  To be honest, I wasn't entirely sure how to feel about Dorian by the end of Throne of Glass.  He was already showing signs of being quite a complicated person.  That's good- no one likes 1D characters- but it also complicated my feelings toward him.  In Crown of Midnight, however, Celaena isn't the only one with a secret:  we also learn a very interesting fact about Dorian in the second half of the book!

Throne of Glass wrapped up nicely.  Sarah J. Maas almost could've simply ended there.  (We'd all be clamoring for more, because she built an awesome world with an awesome main character, but the plot wrapped up for the most part.)  So there was a blank slate for Crown of Midnight.  I had no clue what to expect!  The opening was just a tiny bit slow, but once it picks up (about a third of the way in) it REALLY picks up!  If anyone were able to make this into a movie, it'd gross millions.  There's action and adventure and fighting and subterfuge oh my!  Then, at the very end, the much-anticipated huge reveal!  I cannot stress enough:  you need to read this book!  You'll be totally surprised by the secret!

I listened to Crown of Midnight as an audiobook, and it was great.  The reader spoke clearly and at a good, even, natural pace.  I love doing sci-fi/fantasy books as audiobooks so that I don't have to think about how to pronounce all the totally-foreign-to-me place and person names!

I definitely recommend this book!

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Posted by Tynga at 01:00

 action, Action amp; Adventure, Bloomsbury Children's, Fantasy amp; Magic, Girls amp; Women, heroine, Library, Review, Sarah J. Maas, Throne of Glass, YA, young adult  5 People left their mark

The Wizard Returns by Danielle Paige

The Wizard Returns is the third prequel to Dorothy Must Die.  It can be read as a standalone, no problem, but you can also read reviews of the other books by clicking on the titles:  No Place Like Oz (#0.1), The Witch Must Burn (#0.2), Dorothy Must Die (#1).

These prequels have been so enjoyable that I almost regretted coming to this final one!  I've already got a copy of The Wicked Will Rise from my library so that I can stay in this alternative Oz.  The Wizard Returns was, unfortunately, the weakest of the prequel trilogy.  Not to say that I hated it; it just wasn't as WOW as the first two.  The title is just slightly off- it turns out that the wizard never left Oz!  His balloon crashed, he landed in the field of poppies, and has been asleep for 20+ years.  When he wakes, all of his memories are gone.

This novella traces his journey from the field of poppies to the headquarters of the resistance.  Along the way, he's guided by an Ozian named Pete, who takes him through three "tests" to earn his memory back.  The story wasn't terrible, but it was pretty full of tropes.  I didn't sense a ton of imagination in this one.  Terrible person gets amnesia and needs to redeem himself?  Done before.  Three tests/tasks to earn a big reward?  Done before.  I even saw the grand finale coming, in a way.  (I didn't specifically see fairies, but you know what I mean.)

I also wasn't really "feeling" the wizard, as the young folks say.  ;)  He came across as rather whiny, petulant, and weak.  I understand that life isn't going as he'd planned, but come on!  Pete just explained that he was a terrible guy and that he gets a second chance!  Be grateful, not whiny!  Overall, I'm not entirely certain this particular novella was all that necessary.  :/

Something that made it all much better, though, was the narration!  I listened to the audiobook of The Wizard Returns and the reader was fantastic.  His voice was lively and upbeat; a real joy to listen to.  He also did different voices/accents for each character, without any of them sounding contrived or goofy.  Real talent!  I'd listen to more books read by Luke Daniels.

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Posted by Tynga at 01:00

 Danielle Paige, Dorothy Must Die, Fantasy amp; Magic, Harper Collins, Library, Retelling, Review, Wizard of Oz, YA, young adult  2 People left their mark

The Witch Must Burn by Danielle Paige

The Witch Must Burn is the second book of the prequel trilogy to Dorothy Must Die.  It's not necessary to have read Dorothy Must Die or No Place Like Oz in order to enjoy this one, but you can read reviews of them by clicking on the titles.

No Place Like Oz, the first prequel in Dorothy Must Die: Stories, was kind of dark.  Dorothy was the quintessential nasty, angsty teen... to the umpteenth degree!  So it was really refreshing to get into The Witch Must Burn, told from Jellia's point of view.

Jellia is a servant, the head ladies' maid, in Dorothy's castle.  Even though she's just a teen herself, she's still old enough to remember what Oz was like under Ozma.  Right from the beginning of the novella, the reader can sense her depression regarding Dorothy's rule.  She misses Ozma, and worries about her.  She despairs that things could ever improve again.  On top of that, she still has to work for the very mercurial and often mean Dorothy, and keep a big secret.  (You know I never give things away in my reviews!  You'll have to read the book to find out more!)

My heart went out to Jellia!  She's trying so hard to please Dorothy and to shield her subordinates from Dorothy's wrath.  She's not a naively blind follower, though- she knows that Dorothy is in the wrong.  She just doesn't know what to do about it.  Yet.  (*wink wink nudge nudge*)

If you've read Dorothy Must Die, you'll know what needs to be done.  Even if you've read it, though, you'll still be surprised at the path that Jellia takes to get there.  I know I was!  It was heartbreaking in places, but always inspiring, what with Jellia's never-say-die attitude.  There were even a few parts that were almost reminiscent of mad scientist horror tales, so it was a perfect October read for me.

The only small quibble I had was with the reader (I listened to the audiobook of The Witch Must Burn)- she just wasn't my taste.  I can't exactly put my finger on anything in particular that was wrong; I think the accent just wasn't my cup of tea.  It wasn't bad enough to distract me from the story or anything, so there's a good chance that other people will love the narrator.

 

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Posted by Tynga at 01:00

 Action amp; Adventure, Danielle Paige, Dorothy Must Die, Fantasy, Fantasy amp; Magic, General, Harper Collins, Library, Retelling, Review, Romance, Wizard of Oz, YA, young adult, Young Adult Fiction  Leave your mark

Second Look: No Place Like Oz by Danielle Paige

No Place Like Oz is the first of three prequel novellas to Dorothy Must Die, packaged together in Dorothy Must Die: Stories.  I listened to the package as an audiobook and thoroughly enjoyed them.  You can see Stephanie's review of Dorothy Must Die here, but it's not necessary to have read it first to enjoy No Place Like Oz.  And you can read Jonathan's original review of No Place Like Oz here.

No Place Like Oz opens on Dorothy's sixteenth birthday.  Even in the 1920's, this is a big deal birthday for a young girl.  She's going to have a party that afternoon, but everything starts to go wrong.  First, her Aunt Em disappoints her with a smaller-than-expected birthday cake.  Then she catches her friends gossiping about her and her tales of Oz.  The straw that breaks the camel's back?  Her aunt gives her a mustardy brown, long, spartan dress for her birthday instead of a new, hip dress.  She skulks off to her bedroom and wishes very hard to return to Oz.

This novella fills in the back story that is touched upon very briefly in Dorothy Must Die.  In it, we find out how Dorothy could go from the naive little farm girl in The Wizard of Oz to the monstrous sorceress in Dorothy Must Die.  It's not an overnight process.  It's a series of small decisions that change her personality little by little.  In fact, the whole novella could be read as a cautionary tale, or fable:  be careful what you wish for.

I was impressed with how well fleshed-out Danielle Paige's Dorothy was, especially considering the shorter length of this story.  She's complex:  even while feeling shame and anger over the upcycled dress gift she still recognizes that she should be grateful to Aunt Em.  She feels intense love and protection for her aunt and uncle, even as they exasperate her over and over again.  This is so true!  Who hasn't felt exasperation at a loved one?

I had read Dorothy Must Die before reading No Place Like Oz, so I was pleasantly surprised to feel compelled to listen.  I thought it'd be a somewhat ok fluff of a story; just something to fill out the story a little bit.  Wrong!  It's a very good story in it's own right.  Even with "knowing the ending," I enjoyed every twist and turn in the plot.  It wasn't overly predictable at all, with a few unexpected elements.

The narration was good, too.  I really liked the reader, Andi Arndt.  She did a fantastic job!

Another excellent aspect to this prequel novella?  I'm doing the PopSugar Reading Challenge 2016, and this will count as half of my "a book and it's prequel" item!  :)

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Posted by Tynga at 02:00

 Danielle Paige, Dorothy Must Die, Fantasy, Harper Collins, Library, Retelling, Review, Wizard of Oz, YA, young adult  Leave your mark

A Second Look: The Cage by Megan Shepherd

I'm taking a second look at The Cage by Megan Shepherd.  You can see Stephanie's original review from last year here.

I had the ARC of The Cage sitting on my bookshelf for way too long before I finally read it!  I love love love The Madman's Daughter trilogy by Shepherd, so I was anticipating enjoying this new trilogy just as much.  And I did!  Shepherd is one of my all-over fave YA authors.  I think I've compared her to a female Stephen King for teens in a previous review.  I get sucked into her writing and transported into the book's world and get actual physical goosebumps while I read!

Aliens!  It's not often that you find a book that features aliens that isn't campy.  The aliens in The Cage have kidnapped six teens from earth and placed them into an elaborate cage.  These aliens aren't little green men- they're a very sophisticated race that look vaguely human.  They have the same number of arms and legs and same facial features; the big difference is that their skin is kind of metallic.  They are described as being very solid and a bit on the tall side, which I imagine would make them formidable captors.  These aliens are definitely frightening, with their silence and stoicism and lack of emotions.

Then there's the cage.  The cage, to me, is very reminiscent of a zoo- it's got multiple "habitat" areas that are meant to mimic geographic features of earth, such as a desert area and a town area and a jungle area.  None of them are quite right, of course, but they're just close enough to bug the teens.  (For example, there's daily rain in the jungle area, but no bugs.)  Within the cage are multiple puzzles that the teens can solve over and over again to win tokens.  I kept thinking of seals or killer whales, who are often made to do a trick to earn fish.  It made me cringe.

The setting and the story are very well set up and elaborate.  I won't give anything away, but there's more to the caging of the teens than originally meets the eye.  Even with it's elaborateness and depth, though, the story is never hard to follow.  Shepherd is quite the writer!  However, I didn't feel that the characters were as well developed as they could be.  The reader sees the story from every character's point of view at least once, but a majority of the chapters are from Cora's point of view.  Even with that, though, I didn't always feel like I knew her.  I'd be cheering her independent spirit one moment, then completely confused when she turns around and has feelings for her captor.  We have a whole backstory on her that makes her sound really tough, then she starts to lose it in the cage.  This is the first book in a trilogy, so maybe we get to know other characters better in the second and third books.

The Cage was fantastic!  I'm kind of glad it took me so long to get around to reading it; now I can binge read right into the second and third books without waiting!  Even with the underdevelopment of characters, the unique plot and the whammy of an ending left me wanting more.

P.S. I'll say that I do kind of agree with Stephanie about the aliens' requirement that the teens mate.  (Like animals in a zoo.)  It is pretty creepy.  However, it fits into the story and adds to the terror and suspense, and when characters comply the actions are never described in any detail, so I'm actually ok with it being in the book.  I just wouldn't recommend it to young/immature teens.

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Posted by Tynga at 02:00

 Alien Contact, aliens, Balzer + Bray, megan shepherd, Publisher, Review, The Cage, Thriller, YA, young adult  Leave your mark

Tales of the Peculiar by Ransom Riggs | Sneak Peek!

Hello!  I was super excited to receive an advance copy of a chapter from Ransom Riggs' forthcoming novel, Tales of the Peculiar.  It is going to be a sort of companion to the Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children trilogy.  If you've read those books, then you've met the peculiar children:  children who have some sort of supernatural feature.  Maybe they're invisible, or levitate, or eat their supper with the mouth in the back of their head.  They can also travel through time loops, and don't age.  Tales of the Peculiar is half folktale collection/half history book, and tells of some of the first peculiars.  It also gives hints as to the locations of other time loops, other than Miss Peregrine's.

The chapter that I got my hands on was "The Splendid Cannibals."  Talk about shock factor!  It's not every day that you read about cannibals so casually.  The cannibals aren't the peculiars in this case, though:  the villagers in Swampmuck are.  They live happily, farming the swamps around their village.  They work hard for a little money, only just enough to get by.  Then one day some very wealthy cannibals come to the village, and everything changes.  You see, it's a match made in heaven:  Swampmuckians regenerate their limbs whenever they're lost (like a lizard can re-grow it's tail if it's bit off) and the cannibals are hungry.

Tales of the Peculiar has Riggs' expected excellent prose.  As I was reading it, I could totally imagine that I was reading a history book (of a very strange-to-me society).  There was just enough familiarity to the setting to make it believable... even though it was populated with people who could regrow limbs and others who ate those limbs!  And if you've read the Miss Peregrine's Home trilogy, you'll know that one of the great features to those books is the antique photos of peculiar people; in Tales of the Peculiar we get pen-and-ink drawings by Andrew Davidson.  They're gorgeous!

After reading this teaser chapter, I'm totally looking forward to requesting a full-length copy when it's released in September!

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Posted by Tynga at 07:39

 Dutton Books for Young Readers, Fairy Tales amp; Folklore, Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, Publisher, Ransom Riggs, Review, sneak peek, supernatural, time travel, YA, young adult  1 Person left their mark

Moonhead and the Music Machine by Andrew Rae

Joey Moonhead is just like any other teen... a bit average in grades and popularity.  He has a good friend who's nicknamed Spokes, and crushes on the prettiest girl in school.  Moonhead and the Music Machine follows Joey on his quest to win the school's talent show and the pretty girl's heart.  Along the way he discovers a hidden talent and the true friendship that he has with Spokes.

So what makes Moonhead and the Music Machine unique?  Joey literally has a moon for a head.  When school and bullies get to him, his head can just leave his body and go floating off on adventures in space or the jungle or the deep sea or whatnot.  There's kind of a hidden pun in the description of Joey's demeanor:  he comes across as very spacey!  (Ha ha ha ha ha... I think my job in youth librarianship gives me license to make puns like that, right?)  It's not just him, either:  his parents (who both also have moons for heads) are also very absent-minded about him.  When Joey decides to make his own instrument for the talent show, he just kind of halfheartedly throws things together.  He needs help in order to make a truly functioning "music machine," and this help comes from another supernatural kid:  Ghostboy.  (Yup- he's a ghost.)

Another unique feature to Moonhead and the Music Machine:  it's format.  It's a graphic novel!  It's in full color with bold lines and all text/speech in bubbles to make it "pop" from the artwork.  I especially enjoyed the scenes where Joey and/or his friends are playing music, and how that is represented by author Andrew Rae.  He uses these sorta psychedelic swirls and pops to show the flow of the music, and it really works!  I love it.

The reader doesn't get a ton of insight into supporting characters, but you do get to know Moonhead really well, and it's great to see his character grow and develop.  While I was reading the book, I really thought that I had the ending figured out- boy, was I wrong!  You'll never see it coming, I promise.  It's a good surprise, and you'll have to read the book to find out!

Two thumbs up to this YA graphic novel!

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Posted by Tynga at 02:00

 Alien Contact, Andrew Rae, Edelweiss, Graphic Novel, Nobrow Press, Review, YA, young adult  Leave your mark

The Here and Now by Ann Brashares - A Second Look

I'm the second Tynga's Reviewer to read The Here and Now by Ann Brashares.  For Helen's take on the novel, click here!

The Here and Now takes place in our current time, but the main character, Prenna, is from the future... about 75 years into the future.  She's part of a small group of "immigrants" who have traveled from the future to the here and now because things have gone sharply south- there's a blood plague that's killing millions of people and a shortage of food and runaway inflation of currency.  In order to save her new future she must work to save her current time.

I really enjoy books that involve time travel, like Helen, but sometimes they can get so bogged down in trying to explain the time-space continuum that the plot gets buried.  Not so in The Here and Now!  Ann Brashares does an excellent job of working little bits of information into the plot and dialogue to explain the time-space continuum play without ever having a character awkwardly explaining it all to another, or any lengthy flashbacks.  Even better- it was all understandable!  I'm definitely not a physicist, and I had no trouble following the logic explaining Prenna and her community's presence in our time.

Another great aspect of this book is the character line-up.  They're all great!  Well, I mean, all the good guys are good!  (The bad guys are written well, too.  They're not over-the-top goofily evil.)  I love Prenna and her strength and intelligence, and I love Ethan for his quirkiness and kindness and intelligence.  I love them together, too!  They "fit" together so well.  I agree with Helen's description:  they're "cute."

The writing in The Here and Now is also pretty good.  The pacing was great- I had trouble putting it down, but I was never so tense that I felt anxious.  There are also some letters interspersed in between chapters from Prenna to another character.  (Can't tell you who!  No spoilers.)  I like it when an author mixes things up like that.  Unfortunately, a few plot points weren't really fully explained, and a few other plot points got wrapped up a little bit too tidily.

Overall, a really solid time-travel YA light romance.  I could definitely see myself recommending this one to library patrons.

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Posted by Tynga at 02:00

 ann brashares, Delacorte Press, Edelweiss, Review, time travel, YA, young adult  1 Person left their mark

The Young Elites by Marie Lu

A Second Look...  for Stephanie's take on The Young Elites, click here!  She read it in December; I'm a little behind times and only just now read it.

Stephanie mentioned the premise of The Young Elites in her review:  a blood fever swept through the country, killing thousands and leaving hundreds of children scarred/marked.  The marked children are known as malfettos, and are discriminated against.  Some of these malfettos have been discovered to have extra powers, such as the ability to create illusions or controlling the elements.  Some of these special malfettos have banded together into a group known as the Young Elites.  The story follows Adelina, a malfetto and new recruit to the Young Elites, as she hides from the Inquisitors (the police force in this fantasy world) (she has to hide from them- she's been accused of murdering her own father) and trains with the other Young Elites.

One thing I found really cool about this book was the world itself.  It felt very much like old, old, old world Italy.  In fact, there's mention of gondolas, and many characters have Italian-esque names, like Raffaele.  (Different spelling, but in my head I pronounced it the same as you would the painter's.)  Everyone gets around by foot, gondola, or carriage- there are no motorized vehicles or electronics in this world.  Much of the story takes place below ground, in catacombs, and I could just picture it in my head- all twisty passages lit sporadically by candlelight!  I don't know about you, but I love reading books that involve old underground passages in Europe.  I know that this is a fantasy book in a fantasy world, but it reminded me so strongly of other fiction I've read where the characters spend time exploring this whole world under Paris or London.  Then there's the intrigue of a royal court of sorts.  The Young Elites find their patrons/supporters through their service in a sort of religious-sexual court.  There are rituals and costumes and masks.  I also love love love masked balls in stories!  As you can tell, the setting of the story was a major plus in my mind!

Like Stephanie, I also have a hard time reading books where a character is abused.  I don't know that anyone would want to read about a teen being abused!  But I was able to endure it in this particular book because I didn't quite "click" with Adelina.  I wouldn't say that she's a bad person, but she's definitely darker than some other YA characters.  Of course, a decent therapist would probably trace her inner anger back to her father's abuse, but there were a couple of scenes with Adelina that honestly made me cringe.  If we met in reality, I think I'd be pretty scared of her.  She doesn't stand out too much, though: due to the fact that society shuns these young malfettos, most of them are pretty jaded, and also act more maturely than their physical age.  (Yet there's no language or sexual situations- you could hand this book to younger teen.)

Overall, this book was a winner in my mind, and I intend to read the sequel, The Rose Society, soon.  Even if the characters are darker than I'm used to, I'm over the moon about the setting and definitely intrigued by the society, and I want more!

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Posted by Tynga at 02:00

 Fantasy, G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers, Library, Marie Lu, Review, The Young Elites, YA, young adult  Leave your mark

Meridian by Josin McQuein

A quick heads-up:  Meridian is the sequel to Arclight.  You can read my review of Arclight HERE, and there may be slight spoilers for Arclight in the review below.

When Meridian opens, the Arclight community is relatively stable.  Folks are back to somewhat regular routines.  Anne-Marie is now a teacher, Tobin is a perimeter guard, and Marina works in the Arbor.  Everyone knows now what Marina was, and what she is now, and most are ok with it.  At least they tolerate her.  And Marina is discovering that she may not have been 100% "cured" anyway.  For about 8 pages, the reader thinks that things may have finally settled down in the Arclight.  Marina even seems moderately happy when working in the Arbor, and with Tobin.

Then everything goes nuts again.  Of course!  It wouldn't be a very exciting book if Marina and Tobin and Anne-Marie simply grew up and lived happily ever after, right?  Before you can blink an eye, Tobin and Marina start having horrible, horrible nightmares.  In them, the Fade form a flood and drown them.  Anne-Marie's brother, Silver, and Dante all start to turn Fade.  What is going on?  The Fade are supposed to be somewhat neutral now- they keep to their own place in the Dark, but they're not active enemies, either.  So why are people starting to turn again?  How are the Fade even getting into the Arclight, with the perimeter back up and running?

This is a NONSTOP book.  Every time you start to think that the characters have the next challenge figured out, NOPE.  There they go again- change in plan, change in challenge.  In Arclight, they thought they'd figured out the Fade in general- turns out (in Meridian) that there might actually be an even bigger threat.  One that even the Fade they know are frightened of.  On a positive, there might also be other human survivors out there.  I'm reflecting back on the book this evening, and I don't think that any of the main characters sleep at all for the last 2/3 of the book.  That's how much action is in there!

(On sort of a side note to all the action... a coworker recently challenged all of us to come up with a list of YA books that don't involve romance.  While Tobin and Marina definitely care about each other, there is absolutely no time for any romance in this book.  I think there was one quick kiss.  No handholding, no declarations of love, no monologues about how beautiful the other is.)

As I wrote in my review of Arclight, Marina is a difficult character to connect to/empathize with.  It took me most of Arclight to start to empathize with her, and I never really came around to fully liking her.  Same in Meridian... maybe she's just hard to read?  But her actions and words never came across as very emotionally available.  She comes across very cold and indifferent.  Perhaps also there's just too much going on.  Only half of the chapters are from her point of view (the other half are from Tobin's), and there's so much plot going on that character development takes a backseat.  I couldn't even physically describe most of the secondary characters to you, they're so underdeveloped.

On the plus side- lots of plot!  As I mentioned, tons of action.  There's also plenty of description of setting.  Y'all, this is a very dark book.  Literally.  Most of it takes place at night, of course, and the characters are being pursued/attacked by clouds and swarms of dark nanites.  These are described as being black, like grains of iron, that drip off of the Fade and off of the trees and puddle in the ground.  I'm so glad that the author spends time on description.  The whole theory of sentient nanites that can be in a person's blood or in their skin, or even operate independently, is so foreign to my worldview that I needed the descriptions to be able to picture it at all.  There is, however, very little explanation of the theory or origin of the nanites in Meridian; you'll need to read Arclight first to understand.

Overall, not a bad read.  I definitely flew through it, because I couldn't put it down in the midst of all the action!  However, there was very minimal character development or growth, so that takes a few half-stars off my rating.  Also, the ending really feels like it sets up a third book, but the author's website makes no mention of any more Arclight books.  Bummer!

[inlinkz_linkup id=611473]

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Posted by Tynga at 01:00

 Action amp; Adventure, Arclight, Dystopian, Greenwillow Books, Josin McQuein, Publisher, Review, Science Fiction, YA, young adult  Leave your mark

John Dreamer by Elise Celine

John Dreamer had a really interesting and unique concept, but failed a little in it's execution.

The book opens when Andy wakes up to find herself in a vast white room with seven chairs.  She notices that one has her name on it, and the style of the chair fits her personality.  One by one, other teens appear in the room, all of whom have their own chairs (with different styles/personalities).  What are they doing there?  How did they get there?  Are they dreaming?  Or even dead?  And if not, how do they get out?  Eventually a very flamboyant guy called simply The Guardian appears and explains just a tiny bit to them:  they are all here to fulfill their dreams.  Then he disappears again.  What on earth does that mean?!?  And what's next?

First (of course), the good!  As I mentioned, this is a totally new-to-me plot.  It doesn't fit neatly into any of the more common YA genres, like paranormal or dystopian.  I suppose I'd call it "psychological suspense light."  I was definitely hooked from the beginning, wanting to know more, just like the characters.  I tried to guess at what The Guardian meant when he told them that they would all fulfill their dreams, and I couldn't.  Also, Andy was kind of an everywoman.  She wasn't overly smart or overly pretty or overly confident or overly shy.   Even the outfit she is described as wearing is average:  a white top with jean shorts and sneakers.  Almost anyone could identify with her.  The remaining six characters covered the gambit from short & nerdy to chubby & shy to an everyman (male)... something for everyone!

A big appeal of the book was the mystery, so I won't tell you what The Guardian means about fulfilling dreams.  But once that part of the story starts to unfold, it is rather neat to see each character's reaction, and what happens when they have attempted to fulfill their dream.

So now the flip side:  John Dreamer was a pretty short, quick read (only 203 Kindle pages), which didn't leave a lot of room for character development.  I felt like all the characters (even the main character) were very 2D.  And I wanted more!  This story was totally interesting, and I would have happily read a longer book with more character development.  Just as with the characters feeling a little flat due to short length, the action also fell a little flat due to the short length.  Again, I would have happily read a longer book if it meant more detail and development of the dreams!  No one is ever going to like every single character in every book, but I think I would have really liked most of these characters... if I got to know them better.

This is kind of a side note, but I would go see this if someone made it into a movie!  The Guardian is just screaming to be on the silver screen.  (I vote for Christopher Walken for his part.)  With Hollywood borrowing so heavily from the book store lately, I hope someone discovers John Dreamer for next year's YA summer flick.

A quick, slightly flawed, but still entertaining read.

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Posted by Tynga at 01:00

 CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, dreams, Edelweiss, Elise Celine, Fiction, Review, YA, young adult  Leave your mark

The Blood of Olympus by Rick Riordan

The Blood of Olympus is the fifth and final Heroes of Olympus book, and boy does the series go out with a bang!

Just as in the previous books, the action picks up immediately where it left off in the book before.  The demigods are still traveling the world in the Argo II with the Athena Parthenos statue, trying to complete their mission in time to stop Gaea from awakening.  Every time Rick Riordan would remind us readers how many days were left, I'd get more and more nervous!  How on earth would these teens get back to Athens in time?  And on top of that, they start hearing about an impending war between Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter, and they decide that the statue must get back to Long Island!

This young-YA series continues to impress me.  There are many characters, and many personalities, and much mythology, but I didn't struggle too much to keep up.  (I listened to the first four books on CD, and the first half of the fifth book... didn't realize until I picked up the hard copy to finish the story that there's a really handy glossary of characters and gods in the back of the hard copy.)  The pacing of the series is great; perhaps because Riordan has had practice laying out series?  I never felt overwhelmed with too many characters or plot points being introduced at once.  By the time you reach this fifth book, there are a lot of characters, but they're well-developed, so you feel like you know them.  I also love the "cameos" in this final book!  The Amazons make a brief appearance, for instance.  That's fun.

Speaking of characters being well-developed... the main characters all show remarkable growth through the series, but none of it feels forced.  A few natural relationships form, deep friendships are forged, and all of them mature.  Occasionally, younger-YA or MG books have moments in the ending that feel very "after-school special," but this book didn't.  Riordan trusts his readers to pick up on the growth and changes without being overly explicit.  I appreciate him trusting me like that.

As I mentioned in this review's opening, The Blood of Olympus ends on a huge bang.  It doesn't wrap up overly neatly too quickly.  (It is younger-YA, so it does eventually wrap up pretty nicely.)  There's lingering tension, even after the battle ends.  I won't tell you anything about it, but I LOVE LOVE LOVE the ending!  It was so right for this series.  I can totally see the readalike comparison to the Harry Potter series as far as writing and action go.  It's hard to describe, but Riordan manages to stage a huge battle with many Greek and Roman gods and demigods, where some campers even end up slain, without being gratuitously gory or descriptive.  It's amazing.

And finally, I both listened to and physically read this book.  (My audiobook checkout expired before I reached the end of the story!)  The narration is done by Nick Chamian, who did the previous four books as well, and he continues his excellent storytelling.  I would definitely recommend the audiobook... except that there's that great glossary of gods/terms in the back of hard copies!  I don't know... that throws a small kink in my audiobook recommendation!  No matter what format you choose, I do recommend that you try this series!

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Posted by Tynga at 01:00

 Action amp; Adventure, Disney-Hyperion, Heroes of Olympus, Library, Mythology, Review, Rick Riordan, YA, young adult  5 People left their mark

Wake by Amanda Hocking

There was so much to love about Wake! The main character, Gemma, is awesome: she's independent and fun and a good friend and a good sister and a good daughter. She's determined and she works hard, even under less-than-ideal circumstances. These less-than-ideal circumstances include a dad who works hard hours, a mom who lives nearly an hour away in a group home after suffering a traumatic brain injury, and an older sister who is having trouble letting go of her caretaker role as she transitions to college. Through it all, she remains a very active member of her school's swim team, maintains good grades, plan to go to college after graduation, and is a loyal friend who knows how to have fun.

I loved that Gemma and Harper, her sister, wasn't perfect. Because that's real. There is never, ever a question of whether or not they love each other: they love each other nearly to a fault. But that doesn't mean that they will always see eye to eye or never say a hurtful word to each other. That's just the way it is, and I love that Amanda Hocking is able to convey that fiercely loyal never perfect sisterly love.

I also love that there may or may not be mermaids in Wake. I love me some potential mermaidness. No spoilers! You'll have to read the book. Either way, the characters live on the coast, and there's lots of ocean interaction.

While I loved Wake and want to give it an enthusiastic five stars, there's one little thing holding me back a little: willing suspension of disbelief. Amanda Hocking does demand a little bit of willing suspension of disbelief at times. And by a little, I mean a good dose of willing suspension of disbelief. If you go into Wake fully committed to a great time and a fantastic story, you're in for a treat. If you're a skeptical person, this book may not be for you. But I loved it, and I also plan to hand over my copy to my own sister in the near future. I think she'll love it as much as I did.

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Posted by Tynga at 01:00

 Amanda Hocking, Fairy Tales amp; Folklore, Girls amp; Women, mermaids, Publisher, Review, St. Martin's Griffin, Watersong, YA, young adult  Leave your mark

The Ring and the Crown by Melissa de la Cruz

The book's synopsis opens with "Princess Marie-Victoria, heir to the Lily Throne, and Aelwyn Myrddn, bastard daughter of the Mage of England, grew up together.  But who will rule, and who will serve?"  Y'all, let me tell you that this book is so much richer than that!  I have a habit of jumping into books "sight unseen" (without reading the synopsis), and I'm so glad I did that with this book.  From that opening line, the synopsis gets a little muddy, before circling back around to Marie-Victoria and Aelwyn's plot to switch places.  That is a (cool but) quite minor part of the story.  Rather, this is a book of political intrigue, magic, alternate history, and courtships.

Told from multiple points of view, the reader gets a very good view of the politics of the time.  The Ring and the Crown is set in an alternate early 1900s England during the Season.  (We all know about the Season from Downton Abbey, right?)  There's lots of balls and dresses and social mores that must be followed.  I always find it slightly ironic how many societal rules there are to follow while the people involved are unabashedly chasing potential spouses.  It's a romantic free-for-all, where people follow all kinds of unwritten rules about who gets invited to which party and which people are allowed to dance with each other or visit each other, all while discussing others' financial statuses in detail behind their backs, jockeying for the best match:  most good-looking + most rich.  No matter how silly the customs of the times seem to us now (I might not be married if I wasn't allowed to approach a man!  The hubby is a bit shy, and I approached him first), I do relish the descriptions of the dresses and the balls.  I would go to one in a heartbeat if anyone offered me a time machine ride!

The Season described in The Ring and the Crown is amped up to eleven:  this year the Queen of England and France (they're joint kingdoms in this alternate history) has announced her daughter and only heir's engagement to the Crown Prince of Prussia.  It's a totally political arrangement; while Marie-Victoria and Leopold have known each other since childhood, they're friends and nothing more.  This marriage will tie the two ultra-powerful kingdoms together.

But there's more!  Not only are Marie-Victoria and Leopold not in love with each other, they are in love with other people.  Marie-Victoria dreams of running away with Gill, a commoner, and Leopold had to break an engagement to Isabelle (who is in turn pursued by a Duke) in order to participate in this new treaty-engagement.  Luckily, Marie-Victoria's best friend is the court magician's daughter and they make plans for her to use glamour to take Marie's place.  This is ok, because Aelwyn really likes Leopold.  To add to the romance and the who-loves-who tangle, there's also Leopold's brother, Wolfgang.  He's free to date around, since he's not the Crown Prince, and he has his eye on an American, Ronan.  That courtship can't be simple either, of course; Ronan is simultaneously pursued by two others.  Is your head spinning?  I didn't find it a struggle to keep up once I was in the story, and I did find a Goodreads review with a very helpful chart if you do get lost.

And for a final plus:  magic!  In this alternate history, magic is very real and very prevalent in Europe.  (The Americans have figured out electricity and have abandoned magic.  They're cool with it but don't use it.)  All the royals keep a powerful mage in their court to help their influence, especially with political maneuvers and battles.  I love how seamlessly Melissa de la Cruz fits magic into the story.  It never overshadows the romance; it only serves to enhance the story.

Unfortunately, I do feel compelled to point out the sheer number of "main" characters and points of views, as well as all the world-building necessary, leads to very little character development.  I finished the book very satisfied with the story, but not really feeling like I knew any of the characters too well.  Multiple sources tell me that this is the first in a series, though, so I'm sure we'll get to know the characters better in the upcoming books.

Overall, I definitely recommend!  I saw it described on Goodreads as "historical romance lite," and I think that's very accurate.  It's definitely YA, so no overly-steamy scenes but lots and lots of courtship.  And the dresses and balls!  And intrigue!  I loved it.

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Posted by Tynga at 02:00

 Disney-Hyperion, Edelweiss, Fantasy amp; Magic, Historical, Historical Romance, Love amp; Romance, Magic, Melissa de la Cruz, Review, Thr Ring and the Crown, YA, young adult  Leave your mark

Killshot by Aria Michaels

If you're looking for a book that has it all, this is it.  It's YA, which I love, and there's a mystery for the teens to solve and overcome.  There's almost a feeling of a quest of sorts, and a definite dystopian feel.  While you won't love every character the same way, you'll definitely agree that they are very real and very brave.

This is one of those books that I loved reading so much, I'm not sure I can do it justice in this review!  It's so well done, the pages flew by despite the length.  (474 pages)  The story focuses around Liv, a 17-year-old girl who has recently lost her parents and is in a separate foster home from her little brother.  Her life went from carefree high school students to seriously focused young adult.  Everything she does is focused on earning enough money to support herself and her little brother once she turns 18.  That is, until the night that she accepts an invite from her foster sister to a rooftop viewing party for a solar flare.

Just one of the many things Aria Michaels does really well is the way that she introduces characters.  First we meet Liv, and see a little of her backstory through her memories.  Then we meet her foster sister, Riley, when she comes to wake up Liv for school.  Each character that is introduced is introduced in a really natural way, and we're never bombarded with a whole room full of new characters at once.  I love that chance for character development!  Even though we end up with a group of about 10 teens surviving together, I never had to flip back and forth to try to remember who was who.  Also, the cast of characters was diverse without feeling forced.  There were multiple sexualities and ethnicities represented, but none of it was thrown in our faces, and none were exaggerated into stereotypes.  For example, there's a Black girl, but she's not ultra-sassy or ratchet or anything.  She's cool, and goes with the flow.  In fact, the reader knows Falisha for about two chapters before it's even mentioned that she's Black.  Michaels even throws together different religious belief systems in her characters without ever sounding preachy!  I couldn't tell you if the author herself is Christian or not.  (Personally, I can usually guess the author's belief system if belief is mentioned at all in a book.  Very impressed that it wasn't obvious in this one.)  Not only were the characters very real and introduced in such an awesome way, they also show great growth throughout the book.  This goes hand-in-hand with none of them being stereotypes, I guess, but it's still worth mentioning.

(A tiny warning:  I'd give this to older teens.  The characters don't shy away from occasional heavy-handed language.  But that just makes them more real!  It's not overdone.)

The characters felt natural and were introduced in a smooth way, and the plot unfolds in the same way.  In the whole book, there wasn't a single period when I was bored and skimming, and there also weren't any areas where the plot unfolded too quickly.  You know how sometimes you're reading and you have to stop and say, "ok, what just happened??  That came out of nowhere!"  None of that in Killshot.  And that's a big compliment!  We're talking about a solar flare that's decimated society, and I never felt confused or overwhelmed or out of my ability to grasp the situation.  Oh, and I also loved how even though the characters are teens, I never found myself seriously disagreeing with decisions that they made.  They weren't too mature for belief, but they also weren't stupid.  Awesome!

Only two tiny complaints:  I read Killshot as an eARC, and there was a serious lack of conjunctions in it.  This really might just be because I read a pre-edited version of the book.  Unfortunately, I found it a little distracting, especially when the characters were in conversation.  Everyone says "I'm" instead of "I am" when talking!  Also, the ending.  Michaels, if you're reading this, I'm going to need the sequel ASAP.  Like, yesterday.  I'm way too invested in these characters for that exciting of an ending!  I need more!

While the length might be off-putting to some, the story is very much worth it.  Exciting without being overwhelming, with characters you'll get attached to.  Highly, highly recommended!

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Posted by Tynga at 02:00

 Aria Michaels, Dystopian, Icarus Series, Publisher, Review, Self Published, solar flare, Survival Stories, YA, young adult  1 Person left their mark

Fire in the Sea by Myke Bartlett

I downloaded this little gem from Edelweiss forever ago, but I never heard any chatter about it, and kind of forgot, then picked up last weekend.  WOW!  So good!  My library doesn't own a copy, but I plan to suggest it.

Fire in the Sea jumps right into the action.  I read this on my Kindle, I believe I was at 2% when the first mysterious creature from the sea makes an appearance.  From that moment on, stranger and stranger things keep happening to Sadie.  I admired how the author allowed Sadie to recognize that all of the events occurring in Perth are absolutely ridiculous and hard to believe, while still having Sadie roll with the punches, so to say, and take an active part in deciding her fate.  For example, the synopsis mentions that there's a horned beast running rampant in Perth:  unbelievable, right?  Just an escaped bull or something, right?  NOPE.  Not only does Sadie quickly come to terms with the fact there's a beast on the loose, she quickly makes decisions to fight to protect her friends and family.  She's never afraid to stand up for herself and her family.  Even though Jake is really cute and she's feeling him, she doesn't hesitate to tell him off when she perceives that he's committed a wrong.  As the action builds and builds toward an epic finale, Sadie continues to be true to herself, her values, and her family.

I'm sitting here in America reading and reviewing this book, so the Australian author and setting were also bonuses for me.  When you read books by international authors, do you hear that country's accent in your head as you read?  I do, and I really enjoyed listening to the Australian teens!  There were, of course, just a few slang terms that I wasn't familiar with, but nothing that context clues didn't help me decipher.

While Sadie was an incredibly dynamic character, and the plot was super exciting, I had a bit of trouble connecting to the secondary characters.  Sadie's cousins are just barely better than stereotypes, and her grandparents are walking talking cut-outs.  (Her grandfather's a conspiracy theory war vet and grandma is constantly cheerfully offering everyone tea after coming in from the garden.)  At the end of the book a few final pieces fall into place and a few people gain a little more dimensionality, but not enough to be truly thoroughly 3D.

I suppose that's ok, because the reader is really consumed with all the action packed into this book!  I don't think I went more than 3 pages ever without some big fight happening or decision being made.  The mystery of the creatures from the sea, the horned beast, and Jake all unfold at a good pace:  it's never too slow/bogged down, or too fast to keep up with, and it's spread evenly through the book.  The finale really fits in nicely; there was a good build-up to it, so it didn't happen out of thin air, and the ending wasn't obvious, so it was definitely a page-turner!

Overall, I'd give Fire in the Sea 3.5-4 stars.  Can't quite make up my mind.  Loved the action and the main character; struggled with the secondary characters.  Maybe there'll be a sequel someday that fleshes them out more!

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Posted by Tynga at 02:00

 Action amp; Adventure, Australian, Edelweiss, Fables, Legends, Myke Bartlett, Mythology, Myths, Review, Text Publishing Company, YA, young adult  3 People left their mark

Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

Yes:  I'm reviewing that Twilight.  This was my first time reading it, and I feel like I can be a little more objective than I would have been if I read it in 2005 when it was first released, or in 2008 when it became a movie.  I was actually surprised at my reaction:  I thought it wasn't bad.  In fact, I downright enjoyed the first half of the book!  The writing was pretty good, the setting felt quite real, and I kind of liked the main character, Bella.

The book opens with Bella en route to live with her dad in a very small town in Washington.  She's lived a big majority of her life with her mom in Phoenix, but because of circumstances with her mom and her new husband, Bella moves to Washington just before the start of her junior year of high school.  Just like any teen undergoing a major change halfway through high school, she's nervous and has to figure out where she fits in the new school's social setting.  Teens aren't the only ones who will identify with the situation; adults will read about Bella's growth and remember their own first days of high school.  And is it really any different of a feeling when you start a new job?  The same questions unite us all:  will we "fit in?"  Will we make friends?

Bella is also dealing with a new climate.  At one point she tells another character that her favorite color is brown, because "brown is warm."  The reader knows that she's reflecting on the lack of green in Arizona's dry, warm climate.  Bella is struck over and over again with all the green and all the rain in Washington.  Stephenie Meyer doesn't beat the reader over the head with descriptions of setting, but she does pepper it into the storyline enough to really transport us to the wet northwest.  And no spoilers (can there really be anyone out there still to spoil this for?) but the setting ends up being pretty important to a few of the characters; this is a story that could not have taken place elsewhere.

I also spent the first part of the book really feeling like Bella was a well-developed character.  The book is entirely from her POV, so we know all of her hopes and fears.  She's a pretty average teen with slightly higher-than-normal klutziness.

Then, about halfway through the book, my opinions took a sharp right turn.  I'm trying to avoid spoilers, even though this is a well-known plot.... there's a relationship that develops halfway through the book, and it really tainted my opinions.  The writing continues to be pretty strong, but the relationship made me very, very worried for any young female readers.  Bella falls for a character with a very large chronological age difference.  While a person of a certain fantastic race may appear to be a teen for dozens and dozens of years, they would have the maturity and life experience of someone much, much older than a teen.  To my grown-up eyes, it appeared to be an older adult preying upon a teen.  Also, the relationship progressed really quickly.  Again, as a grown-up, I was downright scared for the character.  But I tried to remind myself that it was fiction, and that it involved vampires, so hopefully teens aren't actually taking romantic cues from it.  Hopefully.

My final little quibble was that there was very little action until CD 10 (out of 11 CDs).  I was enjoying the setting and character development, though, so the lack of major action until later was ok with me.  A reluctant reader, however, might give up before then.

So I guess we'll say that I had mixed feelings.  I enjoyed it way more than I expected to, and will probably read the sequels.  But on the other hand, some of the romance scared me a little, since the main character is just a teen.  Oh, and I listened to this on CD and the narration is absolutely perfect.  Not too fast, not too slow, nice and clear enunciation.  The whole thick book fit on just 11 CDs.  I didn't look at a physical copy; I suppose it could have a larger typeface.  I could see myself potentially selectively recommending this.

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Posted by Tynga at 02:00

 Library, Listening Library, Paranormal Romance, Review, Stephenie Meyer, Twilight, vampires, YA, young adult  4 People left their mark