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The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken is a young adult dystopian novel which tells the story of Ruby, a young survivor of the IAANS plague.  IAANS killed off most of the children between the ages of about eight and fourteen and those who survived, like Ruby, are left with supernatural powers.  This frightens the government who responds by placing them in “rehabilitation camps.”  The Darkest Minds is about Ruby’s escape from such a camp and her search for a way to live a normal life. What I liked Multi-layered characters.  The people we meet in The Darkest Minds are generally neither wholly good nor wholly evil.  There are a lot of shades of grey in the characters and it’s often difficult to tell whose side a person is on.  Even those characters who are not, shall we say, altruistically concerned about Ruby’s welfare have good and believable motives for their actions.  This adds a great deal of depth to the characters and a nice level of narrative tension.  Even the mute Suzume has a real personality. Beautifully descriptive writing style.  I immediately fell in love with Bracken’s way of writing.  She has a wonderful way of describing things that made…

The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken is a young adult dystopian novel which tells the story of Ruby, a young survivor of the IAANS plague.  IAANS killed off most of the children between the ages of about eight and fourteen and those who survived, like Ruby, are left with supernatural powers.  This frightens the government who responds by placing them in “rehabilitation camps.”  The Darkest Minds is about Ruby’s escape from such a camp and her search for a way to live a normal life. What I liked Multi-layered characters.  The people we meet in The Darkest Minds are generally neither wholly good nor wholly evil.  There are a lot of shades of grey in the characters and it’s often difficult to tell whose side a person is on.  Even those characters who are not, shall we say, altruistically concerned about Ruby’s welfare have good and believable motives for their actions.  This adds a great deal of depth to the characters and a nice level of narrative tension.  Even the mute Suzume has a real personality. Beautifully descriptive writing style.  I immediately fell in love with Bracken’s way of writing.  She has a wonderful way of describing things that made…

City of Glass by Cassandra Clare is the third in the Mortal Instruments series and ties up the first three books in the series.  In it Valentine’s end game is revealed as is the truth about Jace’s lineage. What I liked Visiting Alicante, the so-called City of Glass.  I was fascinated to see Alicante, the capital of the Shadowhunters.  I personally would have liked to have seen more of how its inhabitants manage without electricity. Logical plot progression.  All of the plot development within the book was entirely logical within the framework of the story.  There were some surprises, certainly, but nothing to disrupt the internal logic of the story.  The foreshadowing was well done and very subtle. The relationships.  I was invested in all the key relationships: Jace/Clary, Luke/Jocelyn, Magnus/Alex.  They were all beautifully written and I was happy that they worked out the way they did. What I didn’t like Pacing.  For once I felt the pacing was slightly off.  For a book that was supposed to tie up a lot of loose ends, there were a lot of slow moments, especially towards the beginning.   Scenery chewing villains.  Personally, I prefer my villains to be a little…

City of Glass by Cassandra Clare is the third in the Mortal Instruments series and ties up the first three books in the series.  In it Valentine’s end game is revealed as is the truth about Jace’s lineage. What I liked Visiting Alicante, the so-called City of Glass.  I was fascinated to see Alicante, the capital of the Shadowhunters.  I personally would have liked to have seen more of how its inhabitants manage without electricity. Logical plot progression.  All of the plot development within the book was entirely logical within the framework of the story.  There were some surprises, certainly, but nothing to disrupt the internal logic of the story.  The foreshadowing was well done and very subtle. The relationships.  I was invested in all the key relationships: Jace/Clary, Luke/Jocelyn, Magnus/Alex.  They were all beautifully written and I was happy that they worked out the way they did. What I didn’t like Pacing.  For once I felt the pacing was slightly off.  For a book that was supposed to tie up a lot of loose ends, there were a lot of slow moments, especially towards the beginning.   Scenery chewing villains.  Personally, I prefer my villains to be a little…

Hello, I’ve spent some time this afternoon adding my virtual library to my blog.  You can find it under Virtual Bookshelf on the top menu – the books are under sub categories.  They link to amazon.ca if you are interested in buying one of the books. For audiobooks, I’ve not imported my entire collection – the ones there are ones that I particularly enjoyed listening to in audiobook format. Enjoy!

Hello, I’ve spent some time this afternoon adding my virtual library to my blog.  You can find it under Virtual Bookshelf on the top menu – the books are under sub categories.  They link to amazon.ca if you are interested in buying one of the books. For audiobooks, I’ve not imported my entire collection – the ones there are ones that I particularly enjoyed listening to in audiobook format. Enjoy!

Although it’s not a book, this week I have been enjoying Peter Jackson’s extended edition Blu Ray of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. The Hobbit An Unexpected Journey Extended Edition directed by Peter JacksonGenres: Epic FantasyFormat: Blu Ray DVD Starring: Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage, Ian McKellanLength: 3 hours 2 minutes Buy from Amazon •  Now, The Lord of the Rings is the first book that I can remember being truly gripped by back when I was a teenager.  I just couldn’t put that book down.  I took it with me on a family holiday and couldn’t keep my nose out of it.  When Peter Jackson made The Lord of the Rings trilogy a decade ago I was initially anxious until I saw the initial trailer.  I knew then that my beloved tale was in good hands with Peter Jackson and crew.  For the trilogy, Jackson tended to release an extended edition several months after the theatrical version release on DVD/Blu Ray.  This extended edition contained additional/extended scenes as well as commentary and hours and hours of background material and he has done the same for The Hobbit. While I don’t necessarily agree with all of the creative storylining decisions made on The…

Although it’s not a book, this week I have been enjoying Peter Jackson’s extended edition Blu Ray of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. The Hobbit An Unexpected Journey Extended Edition directed by Peter JacksonGenres: Epic FantasyFormat: Blu Ray DVD Starring: Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage, Ian McKellanLength: 3 hours 2 minutes Buy from Amazon •  Now, The Lord of the Rings is the first book that I can remember being truly gripped by back when I was a teenager.  I just couldn’t put that book down.  I took it with me on a family holiday and couldn’t keep my nose out of it.  When Peter Jackson made The Lord of the Rings trilogy a decade ago I was initially anxious until I saw the initial trailer.  I knew then that my beloved tale was in good hands with Peter Jackson and crew.  For the trilogy, Jackson tended to release an extended edition several months after the theatrical version release on DVD/Blu Ray.  This extended edition contained additional/extended scenes as well as commentary and hours and hours of background material and he has done the same for The Hobbit. While I don’t necessarily agree with all of the creative storylining decisions made on The…

OK I admit it, after reading The Shadowhunter’s Codex, I gave in and dipped back into The Mortal Instruments, even though I have lots of books I should be reading, and, quite frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn.  Reading for me is a real pleasure, and so I choose to read what I want to read, not always what I should.  I have burned through City of Ash and intend to marathon my way through City of Glass, City of Fallen Angels and City of Lost Souls. My review of City of Bones wasn’t all that glowing, but City of Ashes builds on the aspects I loved – the pacing, the worldbuilding, the clear goals – and strongly improved on the things I didn’t enjoy so much – the characters.  My conclusion was that although CoB wasn’t great, it did sow some seeds for a great series, and City of Ashes fulfils that promise.  If you didn’t enjoy City of Bones, please give City of Ashes a try – it’s well worth it. What I liked The worldbuilding.  One of Cassandra Clare’s real strengths as a writer is her worldbuilding.  The world of the Shadowhunters is so beautifully…

OK I admit it, after reading The Shadowhunter’s Codex, I gave in and dipped back into The Mortal Instruments, even though I have lots of books I should be reading, and, quite frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn.  Reading for me is a real pleasure, and so I choose to read what I want to read, not always what I should.  I have burned through City of Ash and intend to marathon my way through City of Glass, City of Fallen Angels and City of Lost Souls. My review of City of Bones wasn’t all that glowing, but City of Ashes builds on the aspects I loved – the pacing, the worldbuilding, the clear goals – and strongly improved on the things I didn’t enjoy so much – the characters.  My conclusion was that although CoB wasn’t great, it did sow some seeds for a great series, and City of Ashes fulfils that promise.  If you didn’t enjoy City of Bones, please give City of Ashes a try – it’s well worth it. What I liked The worldbuilding.  One of Cassandra Clare’s real strengths as a writer is her worldbuilding.  The world of the Shadowhunters is so beautifully…