Deep Blue by Jennifer Donnelly is the first in the Waterfire Saga and tells the story of mermaid princess Serafina, who, along with several of her friends, is called to fulfil an ancient prophecy and prevent an untold evil from rising. What i liked The worldbuilding. There are not that many mermaid books around that I’m aware of – Anna Banks’ Syrena Legacy series excepted – so I found this a fresh change. I loved the world Donnelly created, complete with languages and histories and mythologies. The little fishy reference such as merlfriend instead of girlfriend were rather amusing. The pacing. Donnelly keeps the plot moving along briskly with something always happening and a new danger to escape. What I didn’t like Bland characters. While the characters were OK, and their mermaidness added some interest, other than that they were cookie-cutter YA heroines with little depth to them. Generic plot. The plot is your generic teens have to bind together to track down the McGuffin to prevent the Big Bad from doing what he or she wants to do. So far there were no interesting twists to this. The narration. I started listening to the audiobook, but within…
Midnight Crossroad is the first in a new supernatural mystery series from Sookie Stackhouse writer Charlaine Harris. it has a very similar feel to Sookie and if you enjoyed that series you will likely get a lot of pleasure from Midnight Crossroad, too. This new series is set in Texas rather than Louisiana, but keeps that small-town feel. It centres on the inhabitants of a small town, Midnight, and the secrets they hide. I’m not certain if this is intended to be set in the same world as Sookie. It’s perhaps a little early to tell – it could go either way. There is nothing to say one way or the other. In any case, it is very enjoyable. What I liked Ensemble cast. Unlike The Southern Vampire Mystery series, which concentrates mainly on Sookie, and is told from her point of view, Midnight Crossroad has multiple points of view from interesting characters. I enjoyed hearing from all of them, and it was interesting hearing the story from different sides. Each of the characters had his or her own secret and reason for moving to this small town. Sometimes I did struggle to remember which characters know…
Midnight Crossroad is the first in a new supernatural mystery series from Sookie Stackhouse writer Charlaine Harris. it has a very similar feel to Sookie and if you enjoyed that series you will likely get a lot of pleasure from Midnight Crossroad, too. This new series is set in Texas rather than Louisiana, but keeps that small-town feel. It centres on the inhabitants of a small town, Midnight, and the secrets they hide. I’m not certain if this is intended to be set in the same world as Sookie. It’s perhaps a little early to tell – it could go either way. There is nothing to say one way or the other. In any case, it is very enjoyable. What I liked Ensemble cast. Unlike The Southern Vampire Mystery series, which concentrates mainly on Sookie, and is told from her point of view, Midnight Crossroad has multiple points of view from interesting characters. I enjoyed hearing from all of them, and it was interesting hearing the story from different sides. Each of the characters had his or her own secret and reason for moving to this small town. Sometimes I did struggle to remember which characters know…
Ironskin by Tina Connelly is a retelling of Jane Eyre with a fantasy twist. Unlike similar classic/fantasy blends such as Pride and Prejudice and Zombies or Jane Slayre, Ironskin avoids the humorous side of such a juxtaposition and plays it relatively straight. It tells the story of Jane Eliot, a young woman who must wear an iron mask to contain the effects of a injury sustained in the war against the fae. Although the war is long over, she is still very much an outcast and takes employment with one Mr. Rochart looking after his young daughter, Dorie. Dorie, it seems, has also been affected by the fae. What I liked The adaptation. This version, while not following the exact plotline of Jane Eyre, does an excellent job of maintaining the characterisations and emotional beats of the original story. Like Jane Eyre, our Jane Eliot lives at the fringes of her society, and this has a large influence on her character. Edward too, is very similar to the Edward Rochester of the book – his guilt for his past is a block in his admitting his feelings for Jane. Ironskin focusses mainly on the Jane/Edward relationship and hits most of…
Ironskin by Tina Connelly is a retelling of Jane Eyre with a fantasy twist. Unlike similar classic/fantasy blends such as Pride and Prejudice and Zombies or Jane Slayre, Ironskin avoids the humorous side of such a juxtaposition and plays it relatively straight. It tells the story of Jane Eliot, a young woman who must wear an iron mask to contain the effects of a injury sustained in the war against the fae. Although the war is long over, she is still very much an outcast and takes employment with one Mr. Rochart looking after his young daughter, Dorie. Dorie, it seems, has also been affected by the fae. What I liked The adaptation. This version, while not following the exact plotline of Jane Eyre, does an excellent job of maintaining the characterisations and emotional beats of the original story. Like Jane Eyre, our Jane Eliot lives at the fringes of her society, and this has a large influence on her character. Edward too, is very similar to the Edward Rochester of the book – his guilt for his past is a block in his admitting his feelings for Jane. Ironskin focusses mainly on the Jane/Edward relationship and hits most of…
Life After Life by Kate Atkinson is the story of Ursula Todd who has the ability to rewind mistakes in her life. I actually found this quite a difficult book to review. There was a lot I liked about it, but a lot that really irritated me, too. I was really torn about what rating to give it. There are minor spoilers in here, so I will hide them after the cut.
Life After Life by Kate Atkinson is the story of Ursula Todd who has the ability to rewind mistakes in her life. I actually found this quite a difficult book to review. There was a lot I liked about it, but a lot that really irritated me, too. I was really torn about what rating to give it. There are minor spoilers in here, so I will hide them after the cut.
The One by Kiera Cass is the final book in the Selection trilogy which tells the story of America Singer and her participation in the Bachelor type contest to win the heart and hand of Prince Maxon. I absolutely ADORED this book and would have happily read it had it been three times as long. Cass continued to develop the things I loved about the earlier books and my minor gripes about the series were all resolved. Before I start I would like to reecho the comment I made in an earlier post about the Selection Collection – the ebook compendium that includes all three novels plus the two novellas, The Guard and The Prince. I honestly don’t know what the editor who put it together was thinking: they have the two novellas following on after The One which makes zero sense. The Prince is set before The Selection and The Guard is set between The Elite and The One. If you read them in the order presented in the compendium you’re going to end up frustrated because all of the great character development of the later books is reset. What I liked The blend. In The One, Cass…
The One by Kiera Cass is the final book in the Selection trilogy which tells the story of America Singer and her participation in the Bachelor type contest to win the heart and hand of Prince Maxon. I absolutely ADORED this book and would have happily read it had it been three times as long. Cass continued to develop the things I loved about the earlier books and my minor gripes about the series were all resolved. Before I start I would like to reecho the comment I made in an earlier post about the Selection Collection – the ebook compendium that includes all three novels plus the two novellas, The Guard and The Prince. I honestly don’t know what the editor who put it together was thinking: they have the two novellas following on after The One which makes zero sense. The Prince is set before The Selection and The Guard is set between The Elite and The One. If you read them in the order presented in the compendium you’re going to end up frustrated because all of the great character development of the later books is reset. What I liked The blend. In The One, Cass…
Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins is a young adult supernatural novel which tells the story of Southern belle teen Harper Price who, being in the wrong place at the wrong time, finds herself with supernatural abilities and the awesome responsibility that comes along with them. While there was a lot I liked about the book, there was still a great deal I felt could have been handled better. What I liked The writing style. This is the first book by Hawkins that I have read and I did really enjoy her fresh, witty writing style. There was a lot of humour to be mined from the juxtaposition of Harper’s Southern belle character and her new kickass ninja powers and I enjoyed that very much. I also felt the pacing was kept brisk and the storyline moved along nicely. The narration. I listened to Rebel Belle in audiobook format, which is narrated by Amy Rubinate. Now, I’d not been too fond of Rubinate’s narration of Kiera Cass’s The Selection series, but I did enjoy listening to her read Rebel Belle. Perhaps the smart, sassy heroine of this book is better suited to Rubinate’s narrative style. Here’s a sample…