pub date: September 13, 2011
publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
pages: 341
appeals: historical fiction, based on fact, mystery, murder, small town, Newbery Winner
source: library
content: some fart humor, hunting, lots of blood(-y noses)
thoughts:
As you most likely know by now, this book won the Newbery Award this year. I was lucky enough to already have it checked out when the award was announced, so I missed out on the long hold list at the library. Lucky!
I went on a road trip to California last week with my sisters and ten-year-old nephew and we stuck the audio of this book in. My nephew LOVED it. We listened to about half of it on the way there, the rest on the way home. It might have been the potty humor (he is ten and thinks that sort of thing HILARIOUS), but for what ever reason while we were in California, any time we were in the car, even for three minutes, he'd say, "Can you turn the book on now?" It was really cute.
As for me, I enjoyed it, but I didn't love it. I'm surprised it won the Newbery (especially when there was Okay for Now by Gary Schmidt which I loved and enjoyed so much more and wanted to win--a lot). It had it's moments of humor, it was peppered with entertaining characters, the plot was exciting at points (meandered at other points) but as I think back on the story, nothing really sticks out.
And as for the audio aspect of this book--kind of blah. The author read it, which is cool. But he has kind of a boring voice. A lot of the funny situations would have been funnier if a more expressive reader had read them instead. Just my opinion.
It was enjoyable. But for me, not phenomenal. For a ten-year-old boy, it will probably pass muster.
summary:
Melding the entirely true and the wildly fictional, Dead End in Norvelt is a novel about an incredible two months for a kid named Jack Gantos, whose plans for vacation excitement are shot down when he is "grounded for life" by his feuding parents, and whose nose spews bad blood at every little shock he gets. But plenty of excitement (and shocks) are coming Jack's way once his mom loans him out to help a fiesty old neighbor with a most unusual chore—typewriting obituaries filled with stories about the people who founded his utopian town. As one obituary leads to another, Jack is launced on a strange adventure involving molten wax, Eleanor Roosevelt, twisted promises, a homemade airplane, Girl Scout cookies, a man on a trike, a dancing plague, voices from the past, Hells Angels . . . and possibly murder. Endlessly surprising, this sly, sharp-edged narrative is the author at his very best, making readers laugh out loud at the most unexpected things in a dead-funny depiction of growing up in a slightly off-kilter place where the past is present, the present is confusing, and the future is completely up in the air. Dead End in Norvelt is a Publishers Weekly Best Children's Fiction title for 2011. One of Horn Book’s Best Fiction Books of 2011.
pub date: February 7, 2012
publisher: Putnam
pages: 326
source: Library Thing Early Reviewer
appeals: historical, paranormal, witches, magic, family
content: some sweet kissin
thoughts:
I enjoyed this book. I thought Spotswood's world was interesting, as were her characters. I was mislead by the cover. I assumed the book took place in present times, but it's America in the past sometime (the mid 1800s or so?). Now, does that girl on the cover look like she lived 15o years ago? She's showing her knees! And has a seductive look in her (very make-uped) face! So, yeah, I felt a little mislead. But I still enjoyed the book.
Cate's world is controlled by the Brotherhood who preach against witches and accuse many innocent girls of possessing magic. Which makes it hard for Cate because she is a witch, as are her two younger sisters.
I liked the story. I appreciated what Cate was struggling with and the decisions she had to make and how she strived to protect her sisters. I especially, really, really liked the romance in the book. It was very well done.
I did have an issue with the magic possessed by some witches. I don't like magic that has the power to mess with other's minds. I just think it's too powerful. It makes it so there's no balance between good and evil. So that bugged me.
Also, I am so FRUSTRATED!!
****Slight spoilers follow...proceed at your own risk...****
I am frustrated on two counts, the first being that Cate is an idiot at times. She finds this important information in her mom's journal that involves all three sisters AND SHE WAITS AND WAITS AND WAITS TO TELL HER SISTERS ABOUT IT because ... well, I'm not really sure why. Except that the plot depended on the misunderstanding between siblings. Withheld information to move the story along is a plot device I loath. The more I think about it, the more it bothers me.
(also, as a side note...what the heck is Cate's mother doing keeping a diary the last year of her life that says, explicitly, that her daughter is a witch? Information that can potentially kill her daughter? why write that out on paper and put her whole family in danger? Don't get it...)
Second, though I am okay with the unresolved ending (but only because I have to be and I have hope in the rest of the series resolving the mess that this book ends with), I am not okay with the way Cate handles herself. Similar to frustration #1, at the end Cate once again doesn't discuss things with her sisters, leaving it to a woman she hates to explain her actions--which will not bode well for the next book. ARG. I am soooo upset about it, and so the last two pages of the book rather tainted my opinion of the whole story.
****Okay, slightly spoilery part of this review is over****
I enjoyed book for the most part. Really, I did. I just get so frustrated at times with characters who do dumb things. And withheld information just to make the plot work.
summary:
Everybody knows Cate Cahill and her sisters are eccentric. Too pretty, too reclusive, and far too educated for their own good. But the truth is even worse: they're witches. And if their secret is discovered by the priests of the Brotherhood, it would mean an asylum, a prison ship—or an early grave.
Before her mother died, Cate promised to protect her sisters. But with only six months left to choose between marriage and the Sisterhood, she might not be able to keep her word . . . especially after she finds her mother's diary, uncovering a secret that could spell her family's destruction. Desperate to find alternatives to their fate, Cate starts scouring banned books and questioning rebellious new friends, all while juggling tea parties, shocking marriage proposals, and a forbidden romance with the completely unsuitable Finn Belastra.
If what her mother wrote is true, the Cahill girls aren't safe. Not from the Brotherhood, the Sisterhood—not even from each other
pub date: October 12, 2010
publisher: HarperCollins
pages: 389
appeals: speakeasies, historical, flappers, romance, friendship
content: Cordelia sleeps with a few boys, but nothing is described. Some violence.
thoughts:
I picked this book up at a librarian conference I attended last year and meant to read it since then, but it was a promise to review this book for a coworker that finally got me to pick it up. And to keep picking it up, each time I put it down. Every time I put the book down, I didn't want to pick it back up. It took me almost two weeks to get through the almost 400 pages, and it felt like so much longer. The story didn't compel me to keep reading.
In short, it's about three girls who are more worried about their clothes and cars then they are about morals. And the adults in the book aren't much better.
I was giving a quick synopsis of the book to a friend and as I was talking I realized not much did happen, actually. Especially Astrid's part of the story. What actually did she do besides go back and forth between Charlie and her mother? Nothing. In response to my summarizing, my friend said, "Are you sure it isn't called 'Dumb Young Things?'" I thought that was pretty funny. Harsh, I know, but it just wasn't all that appealing for me.
So overall, not my kind of book.
summary:
The year is 1929. New York is ruled by the Bright Young Things: flappers and socialites seeking thrills and chasing dreams in the anything-goes era of the Roaring Twenties.
Letty Larkspur and Cordelia Grey escaped their small Midwestern town for New York's glittering metropolis. All Letty wants is to see her name in lights, but she quickly discovers Manhattan is filled with pretty girls who will do anything to be a star…
Cordelia is searching for the father she's never known, a man as infamous for his wild parties as he is for his shadowy schemes. Overnight, she enters a world more thrilling and glamorous than she ever could have imagined—and more dangerous. It's a life anyone would kill for . . . and someone will.
The only person Cordelia can trust is Astrid Donal, a flapper who seems to have it all: money, looks, and the love of Cordelia's brother, Charlie. But Astrid's perfect veneer hides a score of family secrets.
Across the vast lawns of Long Island, in the illicit speakeasies of Manhattan, and on the blindingly lit stages of Broadway, the three girls' fortunes will rise and fall—together and apart. From the New York Times bestselling author of The Luxe comes an epic new series set in the dizzying last summer of the Jazz Age
pub date: September 13, 2011
publisher: Scholastic
pages: 640
appeals: historical fiction, illustrations, adventure,
content: clean
Thoughts:
Brian Selznick is an amazingly creative person. I think this book and The Invention of Hugo Cabret are great works of art and literature. The format and the way he builds his stories is really cool. Wonderstruck takes two stories, one about a boy that is written in words, and another story about a girl that is shown by drawings. It's cool how they parallel each other, like in one story there's a lightning storm and then switches to the other story and there is also a lightening storm. Which was cool.
But...
Whereas I think the format is cool and the art is great, I was less than impressed with the actual story. I just didn't find either of them very compelling. And when the two stories actually connect, there was a great info-dump to explain all of the illustrations and what they meant and how the two stories tie together. Which takes away from the magic. It would've been cool to figure things out within the story, and not have to be told everything at the end.
Still enjoyable and I think that a lot of middle graders (and their parents) will enjoy this book.
summary:
Two independent stories—Ben's told in words and Rose's in pictures—weave back and forth with mesmerizing symmetry. How they unfold and ultimately intertwine will surprise you, challenge you, and leave you breathless with wonder.
Ever since his mom died, Ben feels lost.
At home with her father, Rose feels alone.
He is searching for someone, but he is not sure who.
She is searching for something, but she is not sure what.
When Ben finds a mysterious clue hidden in his mom's room,
When a tempting opportunity presents itself to Rose.
Both children risk everything to find what's missing.
With over 460 pages of original drawings and playing with the form he invented in his trailblazing debut novel, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, Brian Selznick once again sails into uncharted territory and takes readers on an awe-inspiring journey. Rich, complex, affecting and beautiful, Wonderstruck is a stunning achievement from a uniquely gifted artist and visionary.
pub date: November 8, 2011
publisher: Source Books
pages: 320
source: NetGalley
format: digital
appeals: historical fiction, romance, painting, magic, supernatural, spiritualism
content: some steamy kissing
thoughts:
The premise for this book is so great! I wish I thought of it. I loved how the portrait was introduced to Natalie and the relationship she has with it. I loved how she crossed into the painting. It was just cool, cool, cool.
I also liked that this novel is Natalie's journal. It made it more personal, I think, and more immediate. There was a lot of dry humor that I appreciated and made me laugh. And Natalie has such a fun personality that I enjoyed reading her thoughts.
However...
I don't enjoy paranormal books that bring in Christian religious ideas. I have yet to read a fallen angel book I like for this very reason. Darker Still brings in religion and the idea of angels and devils and God, and it turns an otherwise fun book into something ridiculous (to me). Sure, have a bad guy, but does he have to use religious aspects in his evilness? I wish he hadn't. I would've enjoyed this book so much more.
That was the main complaint for me, but that is just me and my issue. There were smaller things that I wasn't such a fan of. Like the romance turned cheesy instead of sweet. I didn't like the wrap up at the end--I wish it had just ended with Natalie's diary closing, but there were some other stuff that happened outside of Natalie's diary that I didn't care for and I didn't feel were needed. And the "spell" that the evil dude creates is like a grab bag of stuff--oh, lets use religion and a pinch of hieroglyphics, maybe some Latin, and I can't forget poetry! I got confused.
And yet, it was a fun book. Just not my favorite.
The setting reminded me of the Luxe series by Anna Godbersen and the mood of the novel reminded me of Sorcery and Cecilia by Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer.
summary:
The Picture of Dorian Gray meets Pride and Prejudice, with a dash of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
New York City, 1882. Seventeen-year-old Natalie Stewart's latest obsession is a painting of the handsome British Lord Denbury. Something in his striking blue eyes calls to her. As his incredibly life-like gaze seems to follow her, Natalie gets the uneasy feeling that details of the painting keep changing...
Jonathan Denbury's soul is trapped in the gilded painting by dark magic while his possessed body commits unspeakable crimes in the city slums. He must lure Natalie into the painting, for only together can they reverse the curse and free his damaged soul.
pub date: May 19, 2011
publisher: LoudCloud Publishing
source: author
format: ebook
appeals: Gypsies, magic, historical fiction, mystery, adventure
content: clean
thoughts:
This was a fun book. It has a lot of mystery, history, some Gypsy magic, and a little bit of romance. I thought it was very well written and had great descriptions. The writing flowed well. As someone who knows nothing about the game (all I know comes from the musical Chess), I loved the roll chess played in this novel and how it became so important to the developing plot.
In the beginning I did have a hard time getting into the story. There was a lot of jumping around in time between 1960 and 1065, and then a lot of flashbacks to other times. It made the story somewhat choppy and confusing. But once I got past that aspect of the novel, I finished the book rather quickly and really enjoyed it.
Also, I thought the clues that Durriken received from his mother seemed rather contrived, but it set Durriken and Dilia on a fun adventure, so I guess it's all good.
summary:
Fourteen-year-old Durriken Brishen has lost his parents, his grandfather, and though he doesn't know it, his Gypsy culture's dangerous gift.
Taken in and raised on the rails by the first woman to pilot a freight train, Durriken has one remaining connection to his Romani roots: a small wooden box that hangs from the hammer loop of his overalls.
The last gift he received from his grandfather, the box contains the world's first chess set. But a piece is missing: the Red Queen. According to Durriken’s family lore, the complete set awakens the power of Tărie, a mercurial gift that confers unique abilities on each new Master.
When a suspicious fire erupts in the Chicago rail yard, Durriken's escape produces an uneasy alliance, though not without its silver lining. Dilia is a few inches taller, several degrees cleverer, and oh yes – very pretty. While Durriken is uneasy allying with a girl whose parents were convicted of sedition, there's no doubt she is a powerful partner. And while it's not immediately clear to either, her own Guatemalan culture and family history are deeply entwined with the ancient Romani mystery.
Jumping box cars, escaping riverboats, deciphering clues, crossing swords with the brilliant madman Radu Pinch – with great American cities as its backdrop – Gypsy Knights is the page-turning saga of Durriken Brishen and his quest to rediscover his past.
pub date: April 5, 2011
publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
pages: 368
format: audio
appeals: historical fiction, realistic fiction, family, art
content: clean
thoughts:
Schmidt has a gift of writing real, fully developed characters, including those on the edges of the story.
In the beginning of the novel, there are some really jerky people in Doug's life. His brother and the gym coach at his new school being two examples. Yet Schmidt has a way of showing why a character is the way they are, and with that new insight, no matter how jerky they are, it's hard to hate them. Which is AMAZING storytelling. The only character that I never really understood, especially at the end, was Doug's father. I didn't feel forgiveness towards him. But all the rest...POW! What GREAT characterization.
He is also amazing at playing my heart strings. One chapter I was so happy because things were FINALLY going well with Doug. But by the next chapter, something would happen that made me cry, literally cry. Twice I had tears running down my cheeks, I was so involved with Doug and his story, I had to keep listening long after I arrived home (I listened to it in my car and the narrator was wonderful).
I was very happy in the way the book ended--very hopeful. There was a while there where I was wondering if that would be possible. But it was. Yay!
The organization of the novel was also AMAZING. I loved how Auduban's artwork tied in so well with the story and the lessons Doug learns throughout the year of the novel. And since I listened to the book, it was rather nice how well Schmidt described the bird paintings because I didn't have the book to seem the birds myself.
So, if you haven't figured out how I feel about this book, let me tell you right out. I LOVED it. LOVED it.
And I'm not lying.
summary:
Midwesterner Gary D. Schmidt won Newbery Honor awards for Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boys and The Wednesday Wars, two coming-of-age novels about unlikely friends finding a bond. Okay For Now, his latest novel, explores another seemingly improbable alliance, this one between new outsider in town Doug Swieteck and Lil Spicer, the savvy spitfire daughter of his deli owner boss. With her challenging assistance, Doug discovers new sides of himself. Along the way, he also readjusts his relationship with his abusive father, his school peers, and his older brother, a newly returned war victim of Vietnam.
pub date: October 4, 2011
publisher: Simon Pulse
pages: 322
source: Simon and Schuster Galley Grab
format: digital
appeals: contemporary, romance, family, historical reenactment,
content: I don't remember...
thoughts:
This is one of those instances where I read the book over a month ago and just realized that I never wrote the review that I was going to write and that I thought I had written. So, um...yeah, I can't remember details anymore, so here are some broad strokes of what I think I thought way back in August.
I remember that I loved Chelsea. She had such a fun personality. Very easy to read, her story just flowed from one thing into another. I really wanted her to find her place and get what she wanted. I wanted her to succeed.
The plot was fun and wild and so wacky. I laughed out loud on more than one occasion by the situations she found herself in.
I liked the main love interest. Not the ex-boyfriend (blah!), but the crush. I liked him!
There was no pat, perfect, ending. Which is sort of annoying as a reader, but also rather refreshing.
There was a lot of insight in this book, about family, love, and life. You know what I mean? When you read a book and things happen and after these things happen a character will sum up everything they learned in just a few sentences and those few sentences apply to things in life as a whole, not just to that one character. I like books like that.
I loved the setting--two reenactment camps across the street from each other. Which made for a lot of fun.
I'm thinking this might have been a completely pointless review. But, there you have it. I did enjoy this book a lot when I read it. I just wish I remembered more detail.
summary:
All Chelsea wants to do this summer is hang out with her best friend, hone her talents as an ice cream connoisseur, and finally get over Ezra, the boy who broke her heart. But when Chelsea shows up for her summer job at Essex Historical Colonial Village (yes, really), it turns out Ezra’s working there too. Which makes moving on and forgetting Ezra a lot more complicated…even when Chelsea starts falling for someone new.
Maybe Chelsea should have known better than to think that a historical reenactment village could help her escape her past. But with Ezra all too present, and her new crush seeming all too off limits, all Chelsea knows is that she’s got a lot to figure out about love. Because those who don’t learn from the past are doomed to repeat it…
pub date: June 21, 2011
publisher: Walker Books for Young Readers
pages: 352
source: ALA Midwinter Conference
appeals: ghost, historical fiction, supernatural,
content: clean
thoughts:
I am a huge fan of Harvey's Drake Chronicles. I love the humor and the romance. So I was super excited about Haunting Violet because I expected more of the same, just ghosts instead of vampires. Sadly, I didn't get it. There was a little romance and a little humor, just not what I had expected. I wanted more!
Because it wasn't what I expected it to be, I was disappointed in Violet's story. Which is really unfair to Violet, because honestly, who can compare to seven vampire brothers? No one.
The bones of the plot were fun...Violet's relationship with her mother, her own budding talent, her relationship with Colin (though I would've liked more of it), and the ghosts in general. But the particulars I wasn't a big fan of...the secondary characters I didn't like so much. Especially the very persistent ghost who's behavior I didn't understand. Did she want her murder solved, or not? I wasn't sure if she was helping or hindering. It wasn't even much of a mystery and I thought the book too long for what little story there was.
So, chalk it up to unfulfilled hopes, but this wasn't my kind of book.
blurb:
Violet Willoughby doesn't believe in ghosts. But they believe in her. After spending years participating in her mother's elaborate ruse as a fraudulent medium, Violet is about as skeptical as they come in all matters supernatural. Now that she is being visited by a very persistent ghost, one who suffered a violent death, Violet can no longer ignore her unique ability. She must figure out what this ghost is trying to communicate, and quickly because the killer is still on the loose.
Afraid of ruining her chance to escape her mother's scheming through an advantageous marriage, Violet must keep her ability secret. The only person who can help her is Colin, a friend she's known since childhood, and whom she has grown to love. He understands the true Violet, but helping her on this path means they might never be together. Can Violet find a way to help this ghost without ruining her own chance at a future free of lies?
pub date: April 5, 2011
publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
pages: 464
format: audio
appeals: historical fiction, realistic fiction, WWII, family, humor
content: a few scattered swear words, some interesting topics of conversation that aren't horrible, but that make me not classify this book as 'clean'
thoughts:
I listened to this book in my car, right on the heels of listening to the first of the Montmaray Journals, A Brief History of Montmaray. So for over a month I listened to Sophie's diary and lived in her world. And then it was over and I was so very SAD. I loved both books, but now have to wait for the third in the series, however long that takes. I wasn't ready to say goodbye to Toby and Simon and Veronica, and especially Sophie.
And I must say that the audio version was FANTASTIC. The reader added so much to the story.
What I loved about the book:
1--I loved the humor in these books. Obviously the author was making it funny, but Sophie wasn't trying to be funny. She just wrotes what she saw in her diary and it came across as so humorous because she was so serious. I laughed so much while listening to this book.
2--I loved the characters, especially the four main characters, Veronica, Sophie, Simon, and Toby. Their aunt was pretty great, too.
3--I loved the history in these books. This one ended just as WW2 is beginning. So there has been 4 years of build up to this point. There were a lot of 1930s politics in this novel, which I was surprised I didn't get bored with. But I didn't. Now the war had come, and I'm am so worried for these characters that I love! What will happen to them!?!?
Fantastic books. And I'm saying that when there isn't any romance in the book. That says a lot about how wonderful these books are.
summary:
Michelle Cooper combines the drama of pre-War Europe with the romance of debutante balls and gives us another compelling historical page turner.Sophia FitzOsborne and the royal family of Montmaray escaped their remote island home when the Germans attacked, and now find themselves in the lap of luxury. Sophie's journal fills us in on the social whirl of London's 1937 season, but even a princess in lovely new gowns finds it hard to fit in. Is there no other debutante who reads?!And while the balls and house parties go on, newspaper headlines scream of war in Spain and threats from Germany. No one wants a second world war. Especially not the Montmaravians—with all Europe under attack, who will care about the fate of their tiny island kingdom? Will the FitzOsbornes ever be able to go home again? Could Montmaray be lost forever?
pub date: March 1, 2011
publisher: Scholastic
pages: 313
appeals: historical fiction, realistic fiction, mob,
content: pretty clean but some stuff that happened off page
my thoughts:
Very interesting story. I thought it started out kind of slow, but by the end I was into it. I was even crying. It's beautifully written, with well-drawn characters. The historical backdrop was fascinating. It was a time in history I've never read a book about.
Half the story was what took place in Kit's present time, the end of 1950. The other half is told in flashbacks, sometimes only a month or two in the past, other times it was years. How the past was pieced together between the present was really cool and interesting. But by the end, sort of frustrating. I was intent on Kit's present story of what was happening in the fall of 1950, when there was a large chunk of flashback, making me wait to find out.
Once I finished, I thought about the story a lot. Even dreamed about it that night.
blurb:
From National Book Award winner Judy Blundell, the tale of a sixteen-year-old girl caught in a mix of love, mystery, Broadway glamour, and Mob retribution in 1950 New York.
When Kit Corrigan arrives in New York City, she doesn't have much. She's fled from her family in Providence, Rhode Island, and she's broken off her tempestuous relationship with a boy named Billy, who's enlisted in the army.
The city doesn't exactly welcome her with open arms. She gets a bit part as a chorus girl in a Broadway show, but she knows that's not going to last very long. She needs help--and then it comes, from an unexpected source.
Nate Benedict is Billy's father. He's also a lawyer involved in the mob. He makes Kit a deal--he'll give her an apartment and introduce her to a new crowd. All she has to do is keep him informed about Billy . . . and maybe do him a favor every now and then.
As she did in her National Book Award-winning What I Saw and How I Lied, Judy Blundell traps readers in a web of love, deceit, intrigue, and murder. The result? One stunner of a novel.
pub date: October 13, 2009
publisher: Knopf books for Young Readers
pages: 304
source: Library audiobook
appeals: historical fiction, WWII, family, journal fomat, politics
content: clean
thoughts:
I really enjoyed this book. Sophie is so humorous and honest and likable. I actually listened to it, and the reader added a lot to Sophie and her family and made the book that much more enjoyable.
There is so much sudtle humor in this book. I was laughing through it all, even through the sadness. It wasn't even that Sophie meant to be funny, it was the way she told of experiences and her observations of those around her that made me laugh so much. Her sister Henry was quite hilarious. I really enjoyed Cooper's characters.
I loved the setting of Montmaray. Sophie writes so honestly of the dire straights of the small kingdom, and also gives a brief history (which is also quite humorous in the telling) of what Montmaray once was.
The cover to the left is is the European paperback cover. I think it very appealing. Sadly, the US ones aren't so much. The hardcover is rather boring, as shown by the picture to the right. A castle on a rock? I like it now that I've read the book, but as a first glimpse of the book, it looks kind of boring. The US paperback is slightly better. I also think the title is a little off putting. A brief history? I think the title appeals to a very small audience, though feel free to disagree. And this makes me sad because I enjoyed the book so much. I want everyone to read it. I just wish it had better packaging.
blurb:
‘I need to write down what has just happened. I need to set down the truth. If I write lies or if I write nothing at all, this journal is worthless. I must do this, in case anything happens. All right. This is what happened tonight, every single terrible thing that I can remember . . .’
Sophie FitzOsborne lives in a crumbling castle in the tiny island kingdom of Montmaray, along with her tomboy younger sister Henry, her beautiful, intellectual cousin Veronica, and Veronica's father, the completely mad King John.
When Sophie receives a leather journal for her sixteenth birthday, she decides to write about her life on the island. But it is 1936 and bigger events are on the horizon. Is everything Sophie knows and loves about the change?
From Sophie's charming and lively observations to a nailbiting, unputdownable ending, this is a book to be treasured.
pub date: February 8, 2011
publisher: Viking Adult
pages: 595
audience: adult
source: ALA Midwinter
appeals: history, science, romance, paranormal,
content: swearing, blasphemy, and some sexual content
thoughts:
Wow, I loved this book. The thing is, I NEVER would have picked it up if I hadn't been given a copy and if I wasn't in a reading slump right now. It's HUGE. And ADULT. But I needed something different and it was just sitting there on my book shelf and my sister really liked it. The author was at the ALA Midwinter Conference in January signing ARC copies and as I was passing I was asked if I wanted one. I am not the kind of person to say no to a free book (even when it's 700 pages of adultness). And I'm so glad I didn't, because it's a really good book!
I loved the different characters. The daemons, vampires, and witches had their own distinct traits and talents. And though for the most part they don't like each other and do not work well together, it's amazing what a little yoga can do to make differences diminish. I loved Diana's aunts and their house, which was a character in and of itself. The different locations and the history was all so great.
I LOVED Matthew. He wasn't perfect, but he was a really good guy. I liked Diana. She was a strong heroine AND she wasn't stupid. YAY. Sometimes strong female characters behave stupidly and then bad things happen. But bad things happened to Diana and she wasn't stupid. I liked that. Does that make me weird? (don't answer).
I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the science and history of the book. It didn't bog down the story, though I stayed up into the wee hours of the morning reading and sometimes it was a little too deep for my sleep deprived brain.
Did I mention how long this book was? Well, it's LONG. Yet for all the story in it's pages, I want MORE. It wasn't enough. I CANNOT wait until the next book comes out. Whenever that is. I have no idea. Anyone else know?
blurb:
Deep in the stacks of Oxford's Bodleian Library, young scholar Diana Bishop unwittingly calls up a bewitched alchemical manuscript in the course of her research. Descended from an old and distinguished line of witches, Diana wants nothing to do with sorcery; so after a furtive glance and a few notes, she banishes the book to the stacks. But her discovery sets a fantastical underworld stirring, and a horde of daemons, witches, and vampires soon descends upon the library. Diana has stumbled upon a coveted treasure lost for centuries-and she is the only creature who can break its spell.
Debut novelist Deborah Harkness has crafted a mesmerizing and addictive read, equal parts history and magic, romance and suspense. Diana is a bold heroine who meets her equal in vampire geneticist Matthew Clairmont, and gradually warms up to him as their alliance deepens into an intimacy that violates age-old taboos. This smart, sophisticated story harks back to the novels of Anne Rice, but it is as contemporary and sensual as the Twilight series-with an extra serving of historical realism.
pub date: March 7, 2011
publisher: Harcourt
pages: 293
source: netgalley
challenges: ebook
appeals: historical fiction, romance, mystic, supernatural
content: clean
goodreads:
It’s the summer of 1889, and Amelia van den Broek is new to Baltimore and eager to take in all the pleasures the city has to offer. But her gaiety is interrupted by disturbing, dreamlike visions she has only at sunset—visions that offer glimpses of the future. Soon, friends and strangers alike call on Amelia to hear her prophecies. However, a forbidden romance with Nathaniel, an artist, threatens the new life Amelia is building in Baltimore. This enigmatic young man is keeping secrets of his own—still, Amelia finds herself irrepressibly drawn to him.
When one of her darkest visions comes to pass, Amelia’s world is thrown into chaos. And those around her begin to wonder if she’s not the seer of dark portents, but the cause.
me:
I enjoyed this book, a lot actually. It was a quick read and one I got lost in. I started reading at 6pm, and suddenly it was 9. I thought it was original and interesting and exciting and mysterious.
Though I must say that it isn't a happy book. A lot of sad things happen and though Amelia gets the guy, it's rather bitter-sweet.
I did feel like there was more story to tell. It's never explained why Amelia can see what she sees and why Nathanial can do what he does. There isn't a lot of set up and not much of a conclusion. This wasn't necessarily bad, I was just left wanting more of the story. (And a happier ending).
pub date: August 1, 2009
publisher: Little, Brown for Young Readers
pages: 352
source: library audiobook
appeals: historical fiction, sisters, paranormal, gothic, demons
content: clean
goodreads:
Sixteen-year-old Lia Milthorpe and her twin sister Alice have just become orphans, and, as Lia discovers, they have also become enemies.
The twins are part of an ancient prophecy that has turned generations of sisters against each other. To escape from a dark fate and to remain in the arms of her beloved boyfriend James, Lia must end the prophecy before her sister does. Only then will she understand the mysterious circumstances of her parents' deaths, the true meaning of the strange mark branded on her wrist, and the lengths to which her sister will go to defeat her.
me:
I actually own this book, but got the audio from the library and listened to it while on a road trip to Idaho this past weekend. I liked the reader and enjoyed the book a lot. It wasn't what I expected, which is always fun because it keeps me guessing. I was surprised to find that it's kind of a fallen angel book--and I listened to it just days after I said I wouldn't read another one of those kinds of books. But it wasn't an angel romance, and the fallen were more demons than anything else, so it didn't bother me too much.
I thought the world Zinks created was really interesting, and Lia and Alice's roll in the prophecy was rather cool. The characters were well developed and I especially liked Lia's friends. Alice makes a nice foil for Lia, and I'm interested to see where it goes in the next book.
Something that did kind of irritate me were the secrets. Lia's father kept secrets from her, then died. So Lia is left to search out the secrets when he should've just told her long before. I understand that without the secrets, then there would've been no story, but still it was annoying how ignorant Lia was when everyone around her knew what was going on.
Then at the end there is someone else that has information for Lia, and instead of just giving it to her, they hide it and evenually die. She then has to search out this other secret she spent half the book trying to find! I really don't get why this person didn't tell her sooner.
But Lia does the same thing--she doesn't tell her boyfriend what is going on, leaving him in the dark. Irritating! Nothing good ever comes of keeping secrets and it really bothered me that she wouldn't be honest with the boy she claimed to love. She had her reasons, but I thought they were kind of lame ones.
So besides all the secrets, I liked the book. This sets up the trilogy rather nicely.
Prophecy of the Sisters reminded me a lot of Libba Bray's A Great and Terrible Beauty.
