Mad About the Boy is Helen Fielding’s return to her heroine Bridget Jones after a break of 15 years. It is very difficult, if not impossible, to review Mad About the Boy without including spoilers, so if you have not read the book and do not want to be spoiled, please go away, read the book and come back later. We’ll be waiting.
House of Hades is the fourth, and presumably, the penultimate in Riordan’s Heroes of Olympus series. It continues the story of the seven demigods who are prophesied to work together to prevent the earth goddess Gaea from rising and populating the earth with her giants, presumably a VERY BAD THING. The overall impression I had was that House of Hades was Mark of Athena part II. It follows on directly from and continues the plot points from the previous book. In it the demigods continue to work on the task assigned to them in MoA – to close the Doors of Death. Books one and two form a pair – Jason and Percy’s swap – and so books three and four as well. Riordan has cleared the decks so to speak for the final push in book five, Blood of Olympus. I also had the strong feeling that this is Riordan preparing to say goodbye to the world of Percy Jackson. As far as I understand, his next project is a new series based on Norse mythology (Yeah! Loki! Odin! Thor! Sign me up for that!). Annabeth and Percy’s trip through Tartarus is pretty much a Percy and Annabeth’s Greatest…
House of Hades is the fourth, and presumably, the penultimate in Riordan’s Heroes of Olympus series. It continues the story of the seven demigods who are prophesied to work together to prevent the earth goddess Gaea from rising and populating the earth with her giants, presumably a VERY BAD THING. The overall impression I had was that House of Hades was Mark of Athena part II. It follows on directly from and continues the plot points from the previous book. In it the demigods continue to work on the task assigned to them in MoA – to close the Doors of Death. Books one and two form a pair – Jason and Percy’s swap – and so books three and four as well. Riordan has cleared the decks so to speak for the final push in book five, Blood of Olympus. I also had the strong feeling that this is Riordan preparing to say goodbye to the world of Percy Jackson. As far as I understand, his next project is a new series based on Norse mythology (Yeah! Loki! Odin! Thor! Sign me up for that!). Annabeth and Percy’s trip through Tartarus is pretty much a Percy and Annabeth’s Greatest…
One Great Year tells the story of lovers Marcus and Theron and spurned suitor Helghul who are from the lost world of Atitala (Atlantis). Marcus and Theron take on the role of Emissary, spiritual guide and leader to guide the world through One Great Year, the countless millennia while the world moves from a dark Iron Age to turn once again to a Golden Age. Helghul acts as the counterbalance to this goal. After the initial setup, for a good three quarters of this book I became increasingly frustrated and disengaged. My biggest issue was that I really, really didn’t like the protagonist, Marcus. He starts off the book as whiny and self absorbed, unable to look beyond the separation from his love. Several millennia and several cyclical regenerations later, the book finds him still whiny, still self absorbed and still obsessed with Theron. What made it worse for me was his neglect of his sacred duty as Emissary – I had the impression that, as far as he was concerned, the world could turn to custard if he could be with his Theron. I became really frustrated at the lack of character development for Marcus. In terms…
One Great Year tells the story of lovers Marcus and Theron and spurned suitor Helghul who are from the lost world of Atitala (Atlantis). Marcus and Theron take on the role of Emissary, spiritual guide and leader to guide the world through One Great Year, the countless millennia while the world moves from a dark Iron Age to turn once again to a Golden Age. Helghul acts as the counterbalance to this goal. After the initial setup, for a good three quarters of this book I became increasingly frustrated and disengaged. My biggest issue was that I really, really didn’t like the protagonist, Marcus. He starts off the book as whiny and self absorbed, unable to look beyond the separation from his love. Several millennia and several cyclical regenerations later, the book finds him still whiny, still self absorbed and still obsessed with Theron. What made it worse for me was his neglect of his sacred duty as Emissary – I had the impression that, as far as he was concerned, the world could turn to custard if he could be with his Theron. I became really frustrated at the lack of character development for Marcus. In terms…
Irianeth is the twelfth and final book in Robillard’s Chevaliers d’Emeraude, (Knights of Emerald) series. In her native Quebec and also France Anne Robillard has a following like that of George R.R. Martin, complete with conventions and banquets, music and merchandise. The series is, as of yet, not available in English, which is a real shame – it is a brilliant high fantasy series with compelling characters and wonderful worldbuilding. If Anne or any publishing houses are reading this, please, please publish this series in English so that fans the world over can share this fantastic tale. However, as there is no English language version available, I will have to review the series for you. In terms of plot, Knights of Emerald follows a pretty standard fantasy trope: the Dark Emperor wants to take over the continent of Enkidiev and destroy it and, only the Knights of Emerald and their allies stand in his way. Naturally, there is a prophecy predicting his downfall with both sides using magical means to ensure/prevent its fulfilment. There are twelve books in the series of which Irianeth is the final one. Although there is the overarching plotline of the final prophesied confrontation with the…
My review of Irianeth
The Elite by Keira Cass continues the story of America Singer and her participation in the Selection to win the heart and hand of Prince Maxon. In this book America must deal with the consequences of her being torn between two men, she learns more of the political reality of Illea and makes a dangerous new enemy. My reading of The Elite only served to consolidate my thoughts on the series as a whole. What I liked The concept. I continued to enjoy the Batchelor/Hunger Games idea behind the story. In the Elite, the number of contestants has been reduced considerably, so we really get to know the main candidates. I found it interesting that Cass gives the impression that America might not necessarily be the best candidate for the role, at least in terms of maintaining the status quo. Clearly though the caste system is being portrayed as inherently flawed, and America is likely the best candidate to change this. The world. I enjoyed what more we learned about the world. As part of their Elite status, the remaining candidates are introduced more and more into the politics of Illea. This necessarily involves a widening view of the world…
My review of Kiera Cass’s The Elite
The Elite by Keira Cass continues the story of America Singer and her participation in the Selection to win the heart and hand of Prince Maxon. In this book America must deal with the consequences of her being torn between two men, she learns more of the political reality of Illea and makes a dangerous new enemy. My reading of The Elite only served to consolidate my thoughts on the series as a whole. What I liked The concept. I continued to enjoy the Batchelor/Hunger Games idea behind the story. In the Elite, the number of contestants has been reduced considerably, so we really get to know the main candidates. I found it interesting that Cass gives the impression that America might not necessarily be the best candidate for the role, at least in terms of maintaining the status quo. Clearly though the caste system is being portrayed as inherently flawed, and America is likely the best candidate to change this. The world. I enjoyed what more we learned about the world. As part of their Elite status, the remaining candidates are introduced more and more into the politics of Illea. This necessarily involves a widening view of the world…