Hey guys! Normally I write book reviews, but sometimes I’ll have such strong feelings about a book that the review ends up being all CAP LOCKS and lols and đ đ đ± đŹ đđ€đ đ€đ đ đ€Ł; in cases like that (which is what happened with my review of Shadow’s Edge ((Night Angel #2)) by Brent Weeks), it’s just easier to talk about it instead of translate my feelings to typeface. I would love to know what you think- about the video, about the book, about how messy my book shelves look, anything! đ I hope you enjoy!
Posts Tagged ‘High Fantasy’
Shadow’s Edge (Night Angel #2) by Brent Weeks ~ Video Review & Discussion
Posted: May 14, 2017 in Book Review, BooktubeTags: Adult Fiction, audiobook, Book Review, Booktube, Fantasy, Feminism, High Fantasy, Recommended Fantasy
Words of Radiance (The Stormlight Archive #2) by Brandon Sanderson
Posted: February 4, 2017 in Book ReviewTags: Adult Fiction, Fantasy, Five Stars, High Fantasy, Highly Recommended, Recommended Fantasy, Religion
About:
The Way of Kings launched readers into Roshar, the world of The Stormlight Archives, by introducing us to key members of the cast. We learned Kaladinâs backstory and we got some teasers about the magic in store for us in this ten book series. But as you can probably tell from the title of book II, Words of Radiance, this second installment begins revealing some of those secrets we wondered about in book I: secrets about the Radiants, about spren, about voidbringers and parshmen, and about the mysterious oaths that gave Kaladin his own powers in the exciting battle scenes of book one.
And Bonus!
Shallan is the backstory character for this second book, and behind her veneer of âscholarly Brightness,â she hides some pretty dang scary secrets. Epic High Fantasy published March 4th 2014 by Tor Books.
SPOILERS FOR BOOK 1! Not too many, but thereâs at least one big one!
And if I tried to summarize book II, I would spoil it, so Iâm going to skip the plot details. Because the actual plot-development of a ten-book series like this is so slow, revealing almost anything will seriously, seriously spoil the books. In fact, here’s my advice: if you like high fantasy, I recommend just skipping the rest of this review and picking up The Way of Kings. But if you want more than my blanket recommendation, by all means read onâŠ
Thoughts :
I seem to be in good company when I express my potential inability to properly review Words of Radiance. The Way of Kings was my #1 favorite read of 2016, but book II is even better.
The pace starts off at a sprint and pretty much keeps going, only slowing down in Kaladinâs POV sections and during the Interludes. Even Shallanâs backstory feels like forward motion as we learn about her past and how it affects her present-day narrative. And thereâs plenty of conflict to keep the main storyline hopping, too, as two major high princes of the war camps openly battle each other for allies and the prophesied Desolation draws nearer, clue by menacing clue.
As in book I, Dalinar Kholin continues to cop a King Arthur-like role, working to bring together Roshar’s equivalent of the Round Table. He pushes the main plot forward in a way lesser-ranked characters donât have the ability to do. And itâs. So. Exciting! He doesnât get as many scenes in Words of Radiance as in The Way of Kings, but Iâm looking forward to looking backward on his life. Heâll get his backstory eventually, Iâm sureâŠ.and it sounds like he was kind of a bad boy.
Kaladin, my favorite narrator from book I, spends most of book II fighting metaphorical demons from his past. He leaves book I as an angry, bitter soul, despite managing to pull himself and his men from the depths of Hell by his cracked and bloody finger nails (with Sylâs help, of course). Basically, he wavers back and forth on one all-important character-building and plot-development decision, and can I just say that itâs completely agonizing to read about? Haha. But in a good way. That way a good book can give you an ulcer.
And SHALLAN! I literally cheered (on Goodreads) when we started getting Shallanâs backstory! In book I, Shallanâs tense narrative feels like a subplot (as opposed to Kaladinâs and Dalinarâs sections, which interact more); but in book II, Shallan slams herself into the main plot, refusing to be benched from the action. Now that Sanderson has loosed her into the middle of things, Shallan is a really really really ridiculously good lookin-âŠI mean, proactive narrator. I love her! Like many of Sandersonâs women characters, she continues to challenge the status quo for women in ways that make for totally entertaining or enlightening moments of social impropriety. I could go on and on about the characters, all of whom are doing interesting things (Adolin and Jasnah Kholin, the princes of war, the bridgemenâŠeven Renarin Kholin and the spren!).
But I must mention the plotting and worldbuilding: the new secrets revealed in Words of Radiance color both Shallanâs arc and Kaladinâs in really engaging and interesting ways, not to mention how they set up the plotlines of the seriesâŠand I canât share any of them here because they would spoil you đ But rest assured, we learn a ton about Roshar and its history in this book.
Everything about Sanderson’s writing, in this series, distinguishes itself noticeably above the first books I read by him (his original Mistborn series, which I enjoyed largely for their setting, creatures and plot twists). In terms of humor and messaging, there’s no comparison. I canât stress enough the subtle and effective way Sanderson manages to keep up a running commentary on big topics, especially racism, elitism/classism and sexism. He does it with genuine insight and emotion and without harping on any crowd in particular. Kaladinâs sections in this book strike an especially thematic chord, as he deals with the trying situation of being a powerful darkeyes in a culture of elitist lighteyes:
ââŠOf course. I keep looking at those captainâs knots on your shoulder, butââ
âBut Iâm just an ignorant darkeyes.â
âSure, if thatâs how you want to put it. Whatever.ââ
Yeah, thatâs gonna put him in a great mood, haha. And as I mentioned earlier, Shallanâs narrative also shares moments like this. Here sheâs remembering some advice from her enormously pragmatic mentor Jasnah Kholin, as she masters the art of [Highlight to read SPOILER: conning everyone around her].
âUsing a fetching face to make men do as you wish is no different from a man using muscle to force a woman to do his will,â sheâd said. âBoth are base and both will fail a person as they age.ââ
Yeouch!
I really enjoyed alternately reading and listening to this book, as I did with book I. (Unfortunately, I donât have the time to sit and read through back-to-back tomes of 1,000+ pages, but this worked out really well!) I recommend either or both forms; get ready for some late nights!
Overall :
A High Fantasy that reads quickly, despite its huge scope, largely because of the highly personable cast of humans and other species. The series will give you a second home for 10,000+ pagesâand give you a serious book hangover.
*****5/5 STARS
Elantris (Elantris #1) by Brandon Sanderson
Posted: January 12, 2017 in Book ReviewTags: Adult Fiction, Books To Buy, Fantasy, High Fantasy, Highly Recommended, Recommended Fantasy
The Shaod, it was called. The Transformation. It struck randomlyâusually at night, during the mysterious hours when life slowed to a rest. The Shaod could take beggar, craftsman, nobleman, or warrior. When it came, the fortunate personâs life ended and began anew; he would discard his old, mundane existence, and move to Elantris. Elantris, where he could live in bliss, rule in wisdom, and be worshipped for eternity.
Eternity ended ten years ago.”
A lot has changed in the decade since Elantris fell: the Shaod transformation has become a curse; a militant religion called Shu-Dereth has risen in Arelonâs theocratic neighboring country, Fjorden; and almost every nation has fallen to the Fjordell Empire. Now only Arelon and Teod stand free.
Prince Raoden of Arelon betroths himself to Sarene, the princess of Teod, hoping to create an alliance against Fjorden. But his plans change, suddenly, when the Shaod descends on him and his parents, the king and queen of Arelon, secretly exile him to the rotting city of Elantris.
A short time later, Princess Sarene steps off her ship from Teod into Arelonâs capital city of Kae, only to find herself a âwidowâ to the âdeceasedâ prince Raoden. However, never one to waste an opportunity, she uses her new station and powerful personality to begin digging into the diseased heart of the crumbling kingdom, searching for strength necessary to keep her new home safe from Fjordell.
Meanwhile, Hrathen, a Derethi priest from Fjordell, plots domination of Arelon as he also arrives in Kaeâand his plotting involves the Elantrians. Elantris is adult Fantasy authored by Brandon Sanderson and published 2005 by Tor.
Thoughts:
It took about two seconds for the mystery of Elantris to grab me. Who were the Elantrians? What happened to them? Could their sickness be cured? The characters work to answer these questions in different ways.
In fact, the three main narrators maintain a continuous duel of wits, throughout most of the book, hoping to reach their own ends before the others can stop them. Itâs difficult to express just how fun a conniving dance of a novel like this can be, but letâs start with the cursed Prince Raodan.
Raoden makes it his goal to discover the secret behind the Elantrian curse. Itâs almost like an Undercover Boss moment, for him, when he realizes how the city next door has been suffering during his parentsâ reign. I loved following him around Elantris as he brought small, but clever changes that made all the difference to the Elantrian standard of living. Raoden uses his curse to solve problems constantly, and itâs just so much fun to read! For example, at one point he needs to escape the guarded walls of Elantris. He knows of a river that runs under the city to Kae, so he takes advantage of the fact that he canât die: he holds his breath and lets the river drag him, underwater, to freedom.
Now is that clever or what? And all this while plotting to thwart Sarene’s and Hrathen’s plans for the city of Elantris and keep his old identity a secret from everyone around him.
Sarene comes up with equally clever plans to destroy the power of a certain Derethi priest from Fjordell (hrm hrm, Hrathen). If Hrathen wants the people to hate the Elantrians, Shallan will start a food drive for those poor souls. If he wants a certain noble sympathizer to topple the king, no problem, sheâll marry someone else to give her own sympathizer a step up over the competition.
I seriously love this chick.
These characters pull the best tricks on each other, but Gyorn Hrathen might be the most conniving of the three. To him
Elantrians represented the ultimate flaw of human arrogance: they had set themselves up as gods. Their hubris had earned their fate. In another situation, Hrathen would have been content in leaving them to their punishment
However, he happened to need them.”
All three really came alive, for me, with their clear motivations and proactivity. Occasionally Sanderson would âtellâ a characterâs feelings, instead of showing them, but even in the âtelling,â their motivations felt so truthful.
While I did enjoy the setup of all these tensions, the pacing does drag, at times. I think the biggest reason for this drag has to do with the questions about Elantris. We wonder about the Elantrians from page one, but it takes a long time to start getting answers. I raced through the pages when Raoden made a discovery, or a big plot twist happened. But other times, I was just plugging along to get on to the good stuff. A few other, smaller things contribute to this. For exampleâŠit’s a little maddening that Raoden wonât just tell Sarene his identity! Also, it took me some time to get into Hrathenâs POV, although he really came alive before the end.
My only other beefs with this book have to do with the ending, which feels a little rushed. First of all, Raodenâs mother sort of disappears. [Highlight to view SPOILER: What about her heroic death? Why isnât she buried with honor near the king and Hrathen?? Did Sanderson just forget about her or something?] But Queen Eshen feels slightly shell-like, to me, anyway. I mean, what mother wouldnât tear down even the walls of Elantris to reach her sick son?!? Other than that, I just have a few unanswered questions that Iâm hoping might find answers in book II or Arcanum Unbounded: The Cosmere Collection. [Highlight to view SPOILER: What âpossessesâ Hrathen, near the end? And where do the Fjordens get their power? Through a corruption of the Dor?]
Overall :
Fantastic debut. Absorbing mystery, compelling characters and a world that I would love to explore in further books.
Characters: 4.5/5
Plot: 3.5/5
Worldbuilding: 5/5
Writing: 3.5/5
****4/5 STARS
Recommended To :
Anyone who already loves Brandon Sanderson will enjoy Elantris. Itâs also a great place to start with him, being a standalone, although I would recommend other works (*ahem* The Way of Kings *ahem*) as even better starting places, since theyâre more polished than Elantris. Anyone looking for a really original fantasy with fleshed-out characters, cultures and religions will enjoy this novel.
Truth can never be defeated, Sarene. Even if people do forget about it occasionally.â
Have you read any great standalones lately?
The Way of Kings (The Stormlight Archive #1)
Posted: January 7, 2017 in Book ReviewTags: Adult Fiction, audiobook, Fantasy, Five Stars, High Fantasy, Highly Recommended, Recommended Fantasy
About:
Roshar is a land ruled by Highstorms and Shardblade warfare. But as a cycle of Desolation approaches to destroy humanity, four people will play key roles in the outcome:
Szeth-son-son-Vallano, Truthless of Shinovar, assassinates King Gavilar and begins a cycle of vengeanceâthe âVengeance Pactââbetween two races. He weeps as he is forced to kill for his masters.
Kaladin Stormblessed, an apprentice surgeon, is forced to become a soldier in the armies fighting for vengeance. After suffering the betrayal of a âlight-eyed” noble, this dark-eyed soldier fights for his life and that of his dark-eyed crew.
Brightlord Dalinar Kholin commands an army like the one that employs Kaladin. But as he is drawn to an ancient text of law, The Way of Kings, he finds himself questioning the purpose of this war.
Young Shallan Davar, Brightness of a small, struggling estate, risks everything to plan a daring theft. The first step of her plan is to train as a scholar with the heretic Jasnah Kholin, Brightlord Dalinar Kholinâs niece; but as she gains Jasnahâs trust, she realizes that the woman studies much more than obscure academia: she studies the secrets of the fabled order of the Knights Radiant, their shards and the Desolations they fought so long ago. Adult High Fantasy Published August 31st 2010 by Tor Books.
My Thoughts :
Wow. 1,000 pages of wow. Just let me fangirl for a moment, here.
Donât let the size of this tome fool you: The Way of Kings is a compulsively readable, highly character-driven high fantasy. The characters always let you know what they want; but you never know what twists lie in store for them.
And there are so many twists! They start coming early on. Itâs almost funny how I continue to guess and theorize because Iâm always totally wrong. Everything is sailing along as the characters expect, and then BAM! You werenât getting comfortable were you, Christy? Because this guyâs being sold into slavery and this galâs not the naĂŻve young bookworm you thought. You think you know whatâs going on? Trust me, you donât.
I canât talk overmuch about the plot without spoilers, but:
I dare you to get bored during a Kaladin scene. Seriously. I bet you canât do it. Early on in the novel, heâs drafted into a hellish portion of the army known as âbridge dutyâ (wherein generals force crews of unarmed men to rush first into battle, set bridges across chasms and draw enemy fire away from the ârealâ soldiers) and his goal becomes one thing and one thing only: keep his bridge crew alive. He constantly schemes up crazy ideas to meet that goal, and I promise, itâs worth your time to read The Way of Kings just for this one innovative soldierâs arc.
But Dalinar Kholinâs arc is a close second favorite. Uncle to the king and brother of the slain King Gavilar, Dalinar dominates the battlefield. Known as the Blackthorn, he fiercely wields a weapon called a âShardblade,â a giant sword with unimaginably destructive power. As the bookâs description says, wars are fought for and won by these ancient, mysterious weapons that appear from mist and kill souls as easily as they kill bodies. Dalinar is a cultural hero among his war-obsessed countrymenâbut he has lately been troubled by Highstorm visions that may or may not be the onset of madness. As everyone including his sons and the king begin to question him, Dalinar has to navigate the visions, public opinion and private family business. A complex man with a complex path. Iâm totally obsessed with Dalinar.
I think Shallanâs arc qualifies as the most complex among the four main narrators. She possesses the potential and desire to become a great scholar, but family secrets close that option to her. While innovation and leadership concerns characterize the narratives of Kaladin and Dalinar, Shallanâs narrative blossoms more slowly, and it feels almost self-contained until we find out more about Jasnah’s research. Nevertheless, I love Shallan’s scenes. Her intelligence and ambition make her arc tense and painful, at times, but always twisty and keenly satisfying.
Szeth the assassin is the most mysterious of the four narrators, but IÂ suspect that he holds the secret to the coming Desolations. We shall see.
The worldbuilding itself is like a fabulous character. Itâs so big! And it feels that way, paradoxically, by detailing the small stuff.
âKaladin stared out over those grasses blowing in the mild breeze. Whenever the wind picked up, the more sensitive of the grass stalks shrank down into their burrows, leaving the landscape patchy, like the coat of a sickly horse.â
Although we expect large amounts of setup and worldbuilding in a novel like this, Sanderson incorporates it all smoothly into the secretive and engrossing characters arcs. The swords, the storms, the mysterious âstormlightâ that connects everything togetherâŠand don’t even get me started on the countries, social prejudices and religions! One society lives on an endless, shallow lake, and citizens just…stay wet. All the time. And Alethi men and women must eat gender-specified foods! It’s craziness. The smooth writing let me slip easily into the world of Roshar, never drawing attention to itself. I got lost in this engrossing giant of a novel.
When plot twists pay offâwhen the action startsâit’s explosive. This is totally clichĂ©, but the battle scenes really are heart-rending and pulse-pounding. Very âvisuallyâ effective (better than Mistborn‘s action scenes, I would say). The tactics and strategy are extremely well drawn.
I switched back and forth between the audiobook and the hardcover copy, so I can confirm that the story reads easily in both. Hearing all the unique names pronounced with such assurance made the audio version a favorite with me; but the easy writing makes the hard copy equally as engrossingâand the illustrations! Theyâre gorgeous!
Overall :
Combines the intrigue of Elantris with the action and themes of Mistborn. X1000. Itâs definitely my favorite thing by Sanderson, as yet. As I was reading, I kept wishing the book could last forever. Thankfully, 9,000 is a conservative estimate of pages remaining in the series, right?
Recommended To :
It sometimes feels like I was the last person to this Stormlight Archives partaaay, but I know thatâs not true! The books are so gigantic, I was intimidated away until I saw the list of contents in Arcanum Unbounded. Then I knew I needed to get on these books already. But seriously, if you like character-driven fantasy, I highly recommend trying The Way of Kings. You might be surprised how the pages fly by, once you start to get to know the characters.
*****5/5 Stars
The Way of Shadows by Brent Weeks
Posted: September 6, 2016 in Book ReviewTags: Adult Fiction, Fantasy, Five Stars, High Fantasy, Highly Recommended
It was the dimmest sort of hope, but hope had never come in the blinding bright variety in Cenaria.
Premise :
No one is safe in Cenaria, a country where kings are protected because they’re inept and the powerful underworld leaders known as SaâKagĂ© rule the streets. Azoth, a street urchin with no power at all, knows this well. That’s why he idolizes Durzo Blint, the most famous, deadly wetboy to ever exist. Azoth wants to be Blint, so when he gets the chance to train under the famous assassin, he hardly bothers to consider what he’ll have to sufferâwhat heâll have to lose. The alternative is worse. So Azoth disappears and becomes Kylar Stern. And with that decision, the world is forever changed. Adult Fantasy published 2008 by Orbit.
What I Loved :
Basically everything.
The Way of Shadows is gritty, humorous, character-driven and action-packed. The first scene is a good indicator of the rest of the book: Iâm so deep in Azothâs head, I can feel his panic as he stuffs his face into the mud to slide under a low-lying beam. But the plot is a little disorienting because Azoth is often the last person to learn about the secrets that surround him.
Weeks pulls every trick in the book to keep readers invested through the setup of the first half, and it totally worked on me. I kept thinking, this writing isn’t very good. Why am I still reading it?
But I couldn’t put it down.
It reminds me of 24, but with better characters and swords instead of guns. Even during the setup of the first half, I was immersed in the non-stop action and unexpected humor. The lord general Brant Agonâs interactions with his king, whom the general mentally refers to as âNiner,â are priceless:
âKing Aleine IX barged in. âBrant! You pile ofââ the lord general mentally erased the long list of repulsive things he resembled and refocused his attention when Niner got to the point. âWhat happened last night?â
âYour majesty,â the lord general said, âwe donât know.â
Another stream of curses, some of them more creative than usual, but Niner wasnât terribly creative, and no one dared to swear in his presence, so his arsenal was limited to variations on the word shit.â
Then, suddenly, around halfway through the book, all the setup starts paying off. Secrets, bombshells and treason galore. Important characters die and wetboys examine the pitiful tatters of their souls. (I love every minute of the soul-searching; it reminds me fondly of Louis from Interview With the Vampire.)
To put it succinctly, the payoff is huge.
Why You May or May Not Like This Book :
This book is never on my libraryâs shelf. It was published in 2008, but itâs still always out on loan. So clearly a few other people found themselves as addicted as I was. (Okay, okay, as I AM!) Brent Weeksâ writing voice is very personal, very emotional. I never thought, âMAN IS THIS PROSE THE BEST THING EVER!â But I was laughing so hard and cringing so often and reading so quickly that I didnât care.
Itâs got heart, folks. It wonât be everyoneâs favorite, but I love it. Another Goodreads reviewer said it felt like âvideo-game fantasy,â which might be a fair way to state it. If you can let yourself enjoy a book despite a few weaknesses in the writing (the last scene, mainly, and the fact that a few secondary characters feel like archetypes/fantasy tropes), youâll enjoy The Way of Shadows.
Overall :
A fast-paced read with lots of unexpected humor, redemption and (funny) swearing. The plot can be tough to follow (sometimes itâs only tied together by the prophecies of a seer who doesnât get much face time), but the action never stops and the plot threads do come together at the end in surprising, emotional revelations. If it sounds like it might be your kind of Fantasy, I highly recommend giving it a shot. Also, if you like audiobooks, I recommend this one. The plot gets disorienting, in places, but it smooths out if you can manage to keep everyoneâs names straight.
*****5/5 STARS
Trigger Warning :
The very beginning depicts child abuse of every kind and is the hardest part of the book to read. Thankfully, the reader doesn’t live on the streets with urchins like Azoth for very long, so I recommend reading past the beginning before you judge whether or not this book is for you.
The Thief of Kalimar by Graham Diamond
Posted: August 19, 2016 in Book ReviewTags: ARC, British, DNF, Fantasy, Genre-Fans-Only, High Fantasy, Middle Eastern, Skip
Premise :
Ramagar, the self-styled Thief of Kalimar, and his partner Mariana, accompany a mysterious stranger on a quest to free the land of Speca from its dread conquerors.
About :
This is an older book, originally published in 1979; but Endeavor Press is republishing it, along with several other books by the author, Graham Diamond, whose book The Haven apparently has a cult following.
I confess to some confusion about why Endeavor republished this one. I think a lot of men must have read and enjoyed it as youngsters (which I gather by reading the Amazon reviews, not through Goodreads where the current overall rating is a rather low 3.22), so perhaps Endeavor expects these nostalgic readers to buy copies for old timesâ sake. Fortunately or unfortunately, stories and storytelling have changed a lot since 1979, and this book had little staying power, at least to my tastes.
I enjoyed the first half of this book quite a bit more than the latter half, even though none of it is really âmy styleâ (by which I mean, âhas a fast-moving, but character-driven plot and atmospheric proseâ). In the beginning, the middle-eastern feel attracted me, and I found myself subconsciously nabbing books about Sindbad and Aladdin from library shelves.
But when the story leaves Kalimar for the north, all the charm stays behind. Soon after that point (perhaps some 15% later), the cardboard characters and the predictable plot got the better of my patience and I gave up reading this one.
DNF at 61%. Why?
The Characters :
They have no personal ambitions; or, when they do have personal ambitions, the plot quickly overpowers them. They also have no consistent personalitiesâthey all hang their heads, sneer coldly, nod gravely and purse their lips in grim smiles. Needless to say, I couldnât, could not connect with them.
Iâm also not sure why this book is titled âThe Thief of Kalimar,â since itâs really more about âThe Prince of Speca.â (Except, of course, because the former title sounds way more epic and eastern. But the plot revolves around the prince’s agenda, not the thief’s, so the title doesnât makes sense to me.) Perhaps the final 39% would have enlightened me, but even that (not so) compelling question wonât convince me to finish this one.
The Plot :
It was fun, at first. The heroes mentally and physically overcome a few entertaining obstacles, such as swimming through waist-high sewage; they also outwit a few clever antagonists, such as a terrifying and warlike race of baboons and a bevy of soldiers who, thankfully, do not have the benefit of fingerprint criminal databases.
But after about 50%, I lost interest. The âplanningâ sessions always go like this: someone suggests a âcrazy!â plan; everyone pelts him with baboon poop; the man with the plan points out x, y & z, which clearly make the plan necessary; everyone else grudgingly agrees. I mean, if it were a bit…clevererâŠI might still enjoy these scenes. But it was too formulaic to keep me interested.
Other Complaints Because I Spent Hours Reading This Thing :
(1) The new cover does not fit at all. (2) I would have like a map. (Maybe the finished version has one?) (3) Feminists, you will hate this book. Donât even try it. (4) âOver the low wall jumped Ramagar, thief of thieves.â This is an actual sentence from the book. And I respond, âAt the book laughed Christy, reviewer of doom!â
Overall :
The first half has some nice moments and adventures, but everything goes downhill in the second. I canât imagine that anyone who has read much fantasy would find this book very interesting. AlthoughâŠitâs actually not at all inappropriate for children and teens. It might be a bit long for the MG crowd, but if those Amazon reviewers are any indication, boy readers might eat this book up.
Read at your own risk.
1.5/5 STARS
Mid-August Bookshelf Roundup
Posted: August 17, 2016 in Book Review, Book TagTags: ARC, Children's, Children's Fantasy, Fantasy, Five Stars, High Fantasy, Highly Recommended, Historical Fiction, Science Fiction, TBR, YA Fiction
Bookshelf roundups” are just what they sound like: they “roundup” my latest reviews and upcoming reviews.
Recent Reviews
Yo readers! I’ve been reading a TON of YA, this month. Here’s the roundup, thus far:
First up was The Children of Icarus, a YA Fantasy by young author Caighlan Smith.
Kiersten White’s fabulous Alt Historical YA, And I Darken, was next:
My favorite of the bunch was a crossover fantasy from the 1980s: The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley.
I’m always looking for fantasies like this book, so I welcome your suggestions! This was a five-star, for me.
My latest review was of a new serial YA Dystopian called “ReMade,” put out by Serial Box Publishing.
Multiple authors, including the author And I Darken, Kiersten White, will contribute to this serial; episode one, authored by Matthew Cody, will be released on Sept 14th, 2016.
Upcoming Reviews
But in the next two weeks, I’ll be reviewing a couple of adult picks, in addition to an upcoming YA:
The Thief of Kalimar by Graham Diamond, a 1979 middle-eastern-flavored Fantasy that was recently republished as an ebook.
The Golden Torc by Julian May, book 2 of The Saga of the Pliocene Exile, an adult sci-fi published in the 1980s and republished by Tor in 2013.
Aaaaaand Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Cordova, a Latin-flavored YA Fantasy which will be published Sept 6th by Sourcebooks Fire. [Review now available!]
Isn’t that cover creepy!?
What have you been reading lately? What are you planning to read next? I do hope you’ll link your next “bookshelf roundup” to this post so I can see what you’re reading, too!
The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley: How to Write 5 Star Fantasy
Posted: August 13, 2016 in Book ReviewTags: Adult Fiction, Adults Who YA, Books To Buy, British, Children's Fantasy, Fantasy, Five Stars, High Fantasy, Highly Recommended, Recommended YA, YA Fantasy, YA Fiction
If I were marketing a new edition of this book (*hint hint, publishers*), I would only half-jokingly market it as Jane Austenâs Mansfield Park meets Alanna The Lioness: The First Adventure.
Premise :
Harry Crewe, an orphan, lives on the charity of an upper-class Homelander family in the desert country of Damar. But when the king of a native, magical Hillfolk population senses with his âkelarâ magic that Harry will be important to his people, he spirits her away to his desert tribe.
Harry soon exceeds the Hillfolk kingâs expectations by developing a military skill that marks her a symbol of hope for the downtrodden Hillfolk. To them, she becomes known as âHarimad-sol,â a legend in the making, and among them she finds purpose she never found among the Homelanders. When the King declares her a kingâs rider and gifts her with the legendary blue sword of Lady Aerin, Harry carries it to war for her adopted country.
High Fantasy, first published 1982, winner of Newbery Honor (1983), Rebecca Caudill Young Reader’s Book Award Nominee (1988) & Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children’s Book Award Nominee (1984).
My library has copies of The Blue Sword in both the childrenâs section and the adult sf/f section; but if this book were published today, it would probably be marketed as YA, even though it doesnât feel like modern YA (kind of like Sabriel by Garth Nix doesnât feel quite like YA). It would also probably have more romance and less of a European feel.
As is, it appeals as much to adult-me as I think it would have to teenaged-me.
The Plot :
The first few chapters start slowly, but the writing is so lovely, I didnât mind a bit. The plot fits nicely within the Heroâs Journey/Quest plot, except that itâs about a girl, instead of a guy. I love the âtrainingâ portions of the novel, since those often get skipped, in modern YA Fantasies.
The Worldbuilding :
The worldbuilding is a delightful mix of Victorian English, almost-American-western and middle eastern societies, as impossible as that sounds. The Homelanders have civil servants, rickety trains and fabulously fresh orange juice, and they spend their time hosting fancy dinners with the militia to find eligible mates for their daughters. Meanwhile the conquered Hillfolk, a clan-like desert people, live in the real world where wars and magic and concerns over a dwindling population take precedence.
It’s quite a fun world.
The subtle âkelarâ magic reminds me of The Lord of the Rings. Nobody knows how the magic works, exactly; it just does. It appears to be more of an uncontrollable, fates-driven thing than an ability.
The Characters :
Thereâs so much to love about Harry Crewe. Sheâs my very favorite kind of protagonistâone who is complex and compelling, but also very good. Sheâs a heroine not just because sheâs skilled, capable and loyal, but because she has a mind of her own and accepts responsibility for her own choices without complaint. She doesnât expect the world to be fair; she just does her best to make it better.
She reminds me so, so much of Keladry in Tamora Pierce’s Protector of the Small series.
Modern heroes and heroines are often flawed, but Harry proves that âgoodâ doesnât have to mean âsimple,â âboringâ or âformulaic,â just as âflawedâ doesnât always mean âcomplex.â
The Style :
The Blue Sword deemphasizes voice in favor of worldbuilding, a technique I love. McKinleyâs unaffected, genteel and lightly humorous third person objective narration is, I think, more difficult than the more far more common and subjective âthird person limitedâ and “first person” narratives that populate YA today. A lot of older Fantasies seem more adept at this technique; perhaps the style was more popular, then.
Recommendation :
The Blue Sword wonât be to everyoneâs tastes, but I would HIGHLY, HIGHLY recommend this book for fans of Tamora Pierce, Rosemary Sutcliff and Cinda Williams Chima. (Also, possibly fans of Sherwood Smith. I havenât tried her, yet, but she sounds promising.) Anyone who just wants a good story.
Iâm already rereading it and enjoying the lush worldbuilding all over again. Itâs no wonder Robin McKinleyâs books have survived and thrived decades after they were written.
Do you know any great books like this one? If you have any recommendations for me, please tell me in the comments!
The Once and Future King & Lots of Quotes
Posted: July 27, 2016 in Book ReviewTags: AF for YA, Books To Buy, British, Children's, Fantasy, Five Stars, High Fantasy, Highly Recommended, Literature, Recommended Fantasy
Premise:
About:
What I Liked:
(1) Book I. All of it. It’s adorable, hilarious fun (Merlyn is…so funny. And The Wart is adorable), and it really brings the Middle Ages to life, especially for children. My favorite joust in all of literature:
âThe knights had now lost their tempers and the battle was joined in earnest. It did not matter much, however, for they were so encased in metal that they could not do each other much damage. It took them so long to get up, and the dealing of a blow when you weighed the eighth part of a ton was such a cumbrous business, that every stage of the contest could be marked and pondered.â
(2) The whole book really enlivens the Middle Ages in humorous, detailed ways:
“The Dark and Middle Ages! The Nineteenth Century had an impudent way with its labels.â
âDid you know that in these dark ages which were visible from Gueneverâs window, there was so much decency in the world that the Catholic Church could impose a peace to all their fightingâwhich it called The Truce of Godâand which lasted from Wednesday to Monday, as well as during the whole of Advent and Lent? Do you think they, with their Battles, Famine, Black Death and Serfdom, were less enlightened than we are, with our Wards, Blockade, Influenza and Conscription?â
(3) T. H. White manages to humanize everyone, especially King Arthur, Queen Guenever and the knight Lancelot, despite their questionable decisions and outright mistakes. Arthur, despite his preoccupation with justice, prefers to overlook the affair between his wife and Lancelot. Lancelot, despite his preoccupation with holiness, cannot keep himself from the queen. And the queen herself?
âPeople are easily dazzled by Round Tables and feats of arms. You read of Lancelot in some noble achievement and, when he comes home to his mistress, you feel resentment at her because she cuts across the achievement, or spoils it. Yet Guenever could not search for the Grail. She could not vanish into the English forest for a yearâs adventure with the spear. It was her part to sit at home, though passionate, though real and hungry in her fierce and tender heart. For her there was no recognized diversions except what is comparable to the ladiesâ bridge party of today. She could hawk with a merlin, or play blind manâs buff, or pince-merille. These were the amusements of grown-up women in her time. But the great hawks, the hounds, heraldry tournamentsâthese were for Lancelot. For her, unless she felt like a little spinning or embroidery, there was no occupationâexcept Lancelot.â
What I Didnât Like:
(1) I didnât enjoy book II or think it necessary. It drags, it’s dark, and most of it seems unnecessary. The point of it is to humanize âthe Orkney factionâ while Arthur, Lancelot and Merlyn conceive of the idea of âthe Round Table.â But mostly, it’s a lot of unpleasant or boring episodic âshowingâ that could have been condensed into a few scenes. (2) King Arthurâs questions, the questions asked by the whole book, get only very vague answers, at least to my understanding. The thematic questions are mainly these: (a) Why does humanity fight and go to war? (b) How can we stop ourselves from doing so?
His solution appears to be that humanity must rid itself of political boundaries.
âThe imaginary lines on the earthâs surface only needed to be unimagined. The airborne birds skipped them by nature. How mad the frontiers had seemed to [the birds], and would to Man if he could learn to fly.â OH, OH, and also EDUCATION! “The hope of making [the new round table] would lie in culture. If people could be persuaded to read and write, not just to eat and make love, there was still a chance that they might come to reason.”
I donât really mind the vagueness of the dear kingâs answer to his own troubling questions; perhaps his are the best humanist answers. And the book is too lovely for me to really mind; the answers arenât the point, after all. Fortunately, this little piece of culture (or, rather, big piece of culture, coming in at 639 pages), instructs us in history, empathy and how to laugh at ourselves.
Overall:
Recommendation:
*****5/5 STARS
What’s Up Next?
Brandon Sanderson Lecture Series
Posted: June 25, 2016 in Booktube, Opinion Piece, Writing AdviceTags: Fantasy, For Writers, High Fantasy, Highly Recommended, Science Fiction, YA Fiction
So, fellow speculative fans and aspiring authors, you may or may not have known that Brandon Sanderson, author of the Mistborn trilogy, The Way of Kings, Elantris and several series for teens and children, is also a professor. He teaches writing classes at BYU.
You also may or may not have known that he made one of those classes available for free on Youtube. I listened to this lecture series and LOVED IT! It’s about 79 videos long. I listened to them constantly, addicted to the very end. Walking, driving, washing dishes–I was listening.
Some of the material is really basic, but it’s always interesting to hear a successful author talk his game. Also, some of the lectures delve into industry insider info and those are definitely worth hearing, if you’re thinking about publishing your work either traditionally or DIY.
BUT WAIT, before you rush off to watch these videos, I have some exciting news. In this recent blog post, Sanderson announced that he is releasing a series of newly recorded and updated videos!!! The videos will be released once a week.
Highly recommended, folks. Here’s the first of the new series:
Aaaand I’m gonna go watch it!