The Invasion of the Tearling is the second in Erika Johansen’s YA Tearling fantasy trilogy. It continues the story of young queen Kelsea Glynn as she prepares to deal with the aftermath of her actions in the first novel, The Queen of the Tearling. I’ll start this review by stating that I hadn’t actually intended to continue with this series, given that I had significant issues with Johansen’s worldbuilding and character development in the first book. However, I recently read the book blurb which indicated to me that Johansen was taking clear steps to address some of the issues with the worldbuilding at least and so I decided to give the series a second chance. What I liked Additional point of view character. For this second outing, Johansen has added a second point of view character, Lily. Lily is a woman from the pre-Crossing era who has a strange connection with our protagonist, Kelsea. Through her eyes we learn more about the history of the Tearling’s founding and what led William Tear to strike out to begin his utopia. I absolutely loved Lily’s story and, personally, I was far more engaged with her plight than Kelsea’s. These sections were wonderful…
The Mime Order by Samantha Shannon is the second in her dystopian fantasy series – it is the follow on to The Bone Season which I have read and reviewed. It follows straight on from the ending of The Bone Season and deals with the aftermath of the events of that novel. I will say straight off that I enjoyed The Mime Order much more than the series opener. Much of the heavy lifting in terms of worldbuilding has been done – although there is naturally much more to learn – so Shannon is able to concentrate on weaving a strong narrative. What I liked Very strong narrative. For me this worked very well in this book. Our protagonist has a clear, logical goal towards which she is working – the uniting of the clairvoyant underworld to provide a viable opposition to the Raphaim – and while there are lots of twists and turns in the way, it remains the backbone of the story. Personally, I was invested in this plotline and enjoyed watching it coming to fruition. I also felt Shannon kept the plot moving on briskly and had me wanting to keep turning the pages. Engaging protagonist. The…
Fairest – Levana’s Story by Marissa Meyer is a prequel to her fairytale reimagining series The Lunar Chronicles. It provides the backstory to series antagonist Queen Levana Blackburn of Luna. If you are new to The Lunar Chronicles, PLEASE don’t start with this book – go read Cinder, Scarlet and Cress and then come back to it. It will be more engaging in that way. This book is a very focussed character study of Queen Levana and how she turned from a naive, self absorbed young girl into the tyrant our heroines are trying to depose. There is little in the way of worldbuilding or major plot development. It remains mostly confined to the Lunar Royal Palace. What I liked Character development. This is the focus of the book and is excellently done. We follow Levana’s progression from a self absorbed, naive young girl to the vicious despot of the later books. I appreciated how each step and decision she took along that path was small and logical at the time but each developed her character as it turned out to be. I found her an interesting character, and at many points she gained my sympathy for what she went…
Firefight by Brandon Sanderson is the second in his YA contemporary fantasy trilogy Reckoners about ordinary humans turned megalomanic villains when they received superpowers. It continues the story – begun in Steelheart – of David and the Reckoners who aim to bring down the despotic Epics. If you enjoyed Steelheart, you’ll likely have fun with Firefight – it’s more of the same. It continues on the theme of power corrupting and strength of spirit perhaps overcoming this. What I liked Expanded world and character set. In this instalment David and the Reckoners leave Newcago, the location of the first book, to go take on a new Epic, Regalia, in Babylar, in other words, New York. It’s always fun when an author takes you new places, and Sanderson’s world building is excellent. His take on New York is unique and adds to the whole scope of the novel. As well as new locations we also meet new characters. They are a lot of fun and and are reasonably fleshed out. New layers in the whole origin of the Epics plot. In this book, David learns more about the cause of the Epics’ superpowers and their weaknesses. I imagine we’ll learn even…
Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins is a companion novel to Anna and the French Kiss which I reviewed a while ago. Lola focusses on a different character who forms part of the same social group as Anna, the protagonist from the first book. Like Anna and the French Kiss, Lola and the Boy Next Door is a cutesy YA romance novel with great characters. It is an easy, fun read and I really enjoyed it. What I liked The character. Lola is an engaging protagonist and I enjoyed reading about her emotional journey. The challenges she faces were well portrayed and I liked how she overcame them. The supporting characters were also well developed, particularly Nora, and gave a good foundation for Lola’s romance. Although I didn’t enjoy the love triangle, it was consistent with Lola’s growing self understanding in the book. The writing style Perkins’ writing style is very fresh and immediate and easy to read. I fairly flew through the book. Lola’s non traditional family. It’s fair to say that Lola is growing up in a rather non traditional family. I appreciated the way Perkins portrayed this as just a variation of contemporary family…
Robin Lafevers’ His Fair Assassin series is a young adult historical fantasy series set in sixteenth century Brittany. It tells the stories of three young women who are affiliates of a convent dedicated to Mortain, god of Death. Yup, we’re talking teenage nun assassins. In old Brittany. With supernatural powers. LaFevers has blended historical fact into her fictional world, most notably the struggles of Anne, Duchess of Brittany, and her attempt to keep Brittany free of French rule. Each of the three novels focuses on and is told from the viewpoint of one of the young nuns and each of books progresses the overall plot. I picked up the first book, Grave Mercy, while I was in the midst of a reading slump and had already picked up and rejected several good books. Within a chapter I was hooked. LaFevers’ narrative style, world building and characters drew me in right from the start. I ended up marathoning all three books in the series one after another – I just couldn’t put them down. What I liked The historical setting. I really enjoyed LaFevers’ basing her world on real historical facts and people. I felt this gave a very strong, solid…
Endgame by James Frey and Nils Johnson-Shelton is a YA novel in which a group of young people, known as Players, have to fight for the survival of a section of humanity in Endgame. For generations, certain bloodlines have been privy to a secret; Endgame is coming in which humanity will be judged and culled by a mysterious group of aliens. Only a subset will survive. Which groups will survive will be determined by the winner of Endgame. I understand that this book contains real-life puzzles for readers to solve which will lead to a real world prize. I will start by saying that this book ended up in my didn’t-finish pile. I thought the concept was interesting, but I had several issues with the execution. I read around 50% and then found that I was really struggling to pick up the book to finish. What I liked The concept. This is what drew me to the book. I found the idea of a group of people battling for the survival of their ethnic group intriguing. I liked that humanity in general is unaware of its pending destruction and only those who are chosen to represent their groups and their…
Epistle by Max Thompson is the latest in a series of fun cat memoirs written by handsome feline Max, aided and abetted by his human caregiver Karen. I follow Max’s blog and love reading his musings on life as a house cat. I was excited this morning when he announced that the digital version of his latest book was now available from Amazon – hard copy to follow soon – and immediately picked it up and devoured it. This particular instalment was written as a letter by Max (who is now a senior kitty) to his younger self giving his kitten self tips and tricks. What I liked The format. I felt this works very well. The letter to Young Max gives a cohesive structure and approach to the book. It contains a mixture of amusing and practical tips for Young Max, often ways of “persuading” the humans in the household to give him more food, as well as more philosophical thoughts on human nature. I am certain my cat has been talking to Max on the sly as she uses many of the same tricks. He also attempts to educate Young Max in his new role as a house cat…
The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion tells the story of the romance between Don, a university professor clearly on the autism spectrum, and Rosie, a young woman he assists in her search for her biological father. Their relationship is complicated by Don’s insistence that any potential partner prove her compatibility by completing and passing a multi page questionnaire. Causes for rejection as a potential partner include; being a vegetarian, smoking, being continually late, all of which apply to Rosie. I adored The Rosie Project – it engaged me in the characters and had me at times giggling at Don’s antics, and generally rooting for them. I listened to it in audiobook format which was excellent. What I liked The characters. I adored them. Don’s social ineptness was very endearing (although I don’t think I’d want to deal with it personally on a day-to-day basis) and Rosie was such a lot of fun. I was rooting for them, both in their romantic relationship and their quest to identify Rosie’s biological father thanks to Don’s genetics know-how. Even the minor characters, such as Don’s friends Gene and Claudia, had their own issues which kept them interesting as well. Don’s character development. I…
Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel is an apocalyptic tale about the fall of human civilisation and the struggle of the survivors after a pandemic wipes out 99% of the population. It follows several characters as they attempt to survive in this new world and come to terms with what has happened to their civilisation. I Iistened to this in audiobook format and enjoyed it very much. What I liked Interesting narrative structure. Rather than have a straightforward linear narrative, Mandel tells her story through a series of non sequential vignettes taking place before, during and after the Collapse as it is called. These snapshots are loosely connected through the character of Arthur Leander. Although Arthur dies in the very beginning, shortly before the Collapse, his presence is felt throughout the book. These snippets of life give more of an impression than a comprehensive narrative, but it is very effective at conveying the idea of a society after a collapse. Interesting characters. Mandel has a wide cast of characters with each given his or her moment in the spotlight. The points of view covered include characters who remember society before the Collapse, some who have only vague memories of…