tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18596080279358766092024-03-13T13:19:05.292-07:00Writing Ex LibrisA Speculative Fiction BlogTravishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.comBlogger42125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-3771783928262844112012-07-05T12:11:00.000-07:002012-07-05T12:11:01.368-07:00Review of Diablo III: The Order by Nate Kenyon<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<i>Deckard Cain is the last of the Horadrim, the sole surviving member of a mysterious and legendary order. Assembled by the archangel Tyrael, the Horadrim were charged with the sacred duty of seeking out and vanquishing the three Prime Evils: Diablo (the Lord of Terror), Mephisto (the Lord of Hatred), and Baal (the Lord of Destruction). But that was many years ago. As the decades passed, the Horadrim’s strength diminished, and they fell into obscurity. Now all of their collected history, tactics, and wisdom lie within the aged hands of one man. A man who is growing concerned.</i><i>Dark whisperings have begun to fill the air, tales of ancient evil stirring, rumblings of a demonic invasion set to tear the land apart.</i><i>Amid the mounting dread, Deckard Cain uncovers startling new information that could bring about the salvation—or ruin—of the mortal world: other remnants of the Horadrim still exist. He must unravel where they have been and why they are hiding from one of their own.</i><i>As Cain searches for the lost members of his order, he is thrust into an alliance with an unlikely ally: Leah, an eight-year-old girl feared by many to carry a diabolical curse. What is her secret? How is it tied to the prophesied End of Days? And if there are other living Horadrim, will they be able to stand against oblivion? These are the questions Deckard Cain must answer . . .</i><i>. . . before it is too late.</i></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In true Gemini fashion, I am a coin, that is to say that I have two sides to my opinion on this book. The bad side or should I say the devil side or maybe even go as far as saying the infernal anger of the Burning Hells manifested from my misery side, actually has nothing to do with the book or book review. But it cannot be discounted so I must speak the words. My computer is a piece of technological poop! I say this with a grain of salt (albeit a bitter one). I love my computer and it has provided me with a means to an end, so I will continue to say nice things to it's face and only talk bad about it behind it's back. But you say, "You are typing this review on the computer! It will be able to hear you!". And I say, "No freakin' way! I got the resolution turned way down and the sound is muted, man!". So yeah, I don't have a beefy machine with dual 23" HD monitors and a huge rack, complete with 2 of the most stunning AMD Radeon HD 6990 graphics cards like the one I cheat on this one with at work. But hey? Waddayagonna do? Huh? All this to say that my sweet little computer just can't handle the demands of a game like Diablo III. Plus a 10.1 inch screen really doesn't cut the mustard if you know what I mean. All that being said, I really wanted to play this game. Good fortune did smile on me at that point. I was over visiting Bryce at <a href="http://seaks.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">The Stamp (of Approval)</a> when what did I see peaking at me at the bottom of one of his <strike>(very jealous making)</strike> book hauls. That's right folks, Diablo III The Order. I picked up that 10.1 inch screen and held it about 5" from my face just to be sure. I sat it back down. I said to myself, "This is just what I need!!!". And I thrust my fist into the air like I was reciting the prepare for war speech by that one guy sometime ago. It was only then that I remembered we had company over and my A.D.D removed me from the conversation at hand. Slightly embarrassing that was, yeah. The AMAZIN' folks over at Gallery Press were kind enough to honor my pitiful <strike>begging</strike> request for a copy to review. A few days later I got the book in the mail.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Strangely enough, I read this book almost exactly how I play a game. New games cost about 60 bucks in my parts... and that is a lot of coin for someone like me. If I am going to dish out that kind of jangle then whether I want to stop playing or not, I shut off the game right around about 45 minutes to an hour a day. Cause, I want it to last ya feel me? This really worked out well for me with the book. Cause I would've flew through this book if I didn't show a little restraint. The time in between really stretched out the intrigue and various things happening with the plot felt more tense because of it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If I have done my homework correctly, Diablo III: The Order takes place before the events of the game and that is just as well because this filled in the gaps between games 2 and 3. The book, of course follows Deckard Cain, one of my favorite protagonists. Cain is humbled, self critical, old and beardy. And boy you do NOT want to get on his bad side or else you are going to see the business side of his staff. Above all things Deckard Cain is a scholar. Someone who loves the warmth and smells of old books. The only way you know these things is because Nate Kenyon's writing is phenomenal. I would never have guessed it! I haven't read Nate Kenyon before... So, I was thinking game to book translation was going to pan out kind of like book to movie translation. It just doesn't quite do it justice. I mean come on? Do you think anyone could ever duplicate on a page the way you felt when you were playing Samus Aran and went up against Mother Brain for the first time. Nobody was in the house man.. it was 1986... I was about ready to call 911 and tell them they done put a brain behind glass and put that *&^% on a video game for me to kill! Like whoa Scoob! Zoinkies.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Deckard is on the road. And this book lays out his journey in search of answers. I read the book like it was a quest in the game. Some mis-happen events forces Cain to bring along Leah. A character I wish I could read more about. They will go through things in this book that in the end you will literally see the ties that are binding these two together. I really cared about these two and you don't get that with shotty descriptions and character development. There is a character in the book named Lund or Lunk or Damn I cannot remember right now... Anyway, all said and done he may have a page of facetime in this book but you are gonna really feel something for him by the turn of the page. That shows some real talent in writing in my humble opinion. You meet a character in the book named Mikulov that blew away my expectations for him. He does some really cool things in this book. SHHHHH!!! No spoilers, dammit!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As far as world building goes, I think Kenyon had it pretty easy. Fans of the series already have a decent picture of what Sanctuary looks like in their minds. So were dealing with more like settings and atmosphere here. And being the wordsmith that our author is the scenes were perfectly described in there dismal and dark ways. Nate Kenyon paints a formidable black cloud over the heads of his readers in Diablo III: The Order. A cloud that will have you on the edge of your seat up to the very end wondering if evil has finally overcome the heavens themselves. You oughta read it to find out. Thanks Nate Kenyon, you've made a Horadrim initiate out of me for sure.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4 out of 5 Dashingly debonair devils with disgustingly long ..... ummmm have you played to the end of Dante's Inferno... Don't look man! That @$#% is gross.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">P.S. Don't forget to check out all the cool things going on over at <a href="http://www.facebook.com/thefantasytavern" target="_blank">The Fantasy Tavern</a> on Facebook. Where we can discuss this book and many, many more things fantasy related.</span><br />
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</div>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-209287444754745212012-07-02T06:10:00.001-07:002012-07-02T06:10:30.504-07:00The Fantasy Tavern is NOW open for business!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Good morning all! Today I need a virtual paperboy to stand on the street corner and hawk the latest news. A little while back, a long time fellow blogging buddy of mine (Ross from <a href="http://cursedarmada.com/" target="_blank">Cursed Armada</a>), contacted me about starting up a Fantasy Fan based Facebook page to share all the things we weren't getting to discuss on our own individual blogs and to hopefully reach a bigger fan base to really get people talking about the things we have been enjoying for years and years. From the moment he mentioned it, I have been very excited about this project! Blogger has been a great tool for me to share my thoughts on some of the books I read, but I don't think I reach very many people, I read slow and thoroughly and that leaves big gaps in the frequency of my posts. For me personally (for the present time), I am still going to post my reviews to the various books I read here on Writing Ex Libris. I will be linking to these reviews on the The Fantasy Tavern, and hope to generate lots of good talk about them and many, many more things over there.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I spend a large amount of time reading some very well put together reviews on some very well put together blogs. We would like to help get these great blogs more exposure and I think I can help a little with The Fantasy Tavern being a meeting place to bring all these reviews together for people to read and hopefully discuss to some degree.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">AND THAT'S NOT ALL!!! Along with all the latest in upcoming books, reviews and great discussion, we are posting about all things fantasy related! Authors, bloggers, book reviews, comics, movies, games (board and console), tattoos and many, many more realms of the fantasy universe. So stop on by, we have a few things up already with a whole bunch more on the way. So go on over and "Like" our page and comment on anything that catches your eye. Then go spread the word about two sellswords starting a virtual bar on Facebook! Were not only going from coast to coast here people. We are talking about massing the world over!</span>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-65728520841179970892012-05-27T11:25:00.002-07:002012-05-27T11:33:40.472-07:00Review of The Troupe by Robert Jackson Bennett<div class="separator tr_bq" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>BOOK DESCRIPTION</i></b></span> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><b><i>FROM GOODREADS</i></b></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; line-height: 19px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Vaudeville: mad, mercenary, dreamy, and absurd, a world of clashing cultures and ferocious showmanship and wickedly delightful deceptions.</i></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>But sixteen-year-old pianist George Carole has joined vaudeville for one reason only: to find the man he suspects to be his father, the great Heironomo Silenus. Yet as he chases down his father’s troupe, he begins to understand that their performances are strange even for vaudeville: for wherever they happen to tour, the very nature of the world seems to change</i></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Because there is a secret within Silenus’s show so ancient and dangerous that it has won him many powerful enemies. And it’s not until after he joins them that George realizes the troupe is not simply touring: they are running for their very lives.</i></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>And soon, George is as well.</i></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Please forgive if I add all the blue material I can to this review of magnanimous proportions, I can only attest that I have been chewing the scenery for more than a few years. Hopefully it will be the freak act that I see it to be in my head!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Enter stage right, a strapping and upstanding young lad of only sixteen years who goes by the name of George Carole. George has many talents and secrets. He's going to share a few with you in these pages you're about to read. And in the end, a lucky few will know what it is to see first hand what magic, mystery and myth truly are. But I digress ...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I am one of the lucky ones. Books have always been a part of my life and maybe that in itself is what gives me the ability ... to let go. To pick up a book such as this one and be transported to another place, another time, another ... life. You see it all the time, advertisements for libraries transformed into gateways into other worlds. Right about now the theme song to Reading Rainbow should all be making it's way through the cobwebbed or maybe not so cobwebbed parts of your brain... "I can be anything ... da da da... Take a look, it's in a book, it's reading rainbow". Ahhhh, the good old days. It's funny after so many re-watchings of Star Trek: TNG, I can no longer imagine LeVar Burton narrating reading rainbow without his visor on! On with the show!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Be wary my faithful readers this book is going to take you on an adventure ride that may leave you a bit unhinged. Reflecting back on the various parts of this novel, I am even now struck by the fact that I can't really say that I have any parts of it that I did not enjoy. It is what a stand alone novel should be. A beginning (of sorts), a middle, and an end (also of sorts). Maybe it is just my coffee addled brain, but a good story blends these so well that you don't know which is which and in the end after the last page has been turned you realize that the book you have just read really came full circle. In the pages of this book you can attest to only following the life and goings on of George for a few months, but good writing will break the barrier of time and you will more likely feel as though you have yourself been traveling with the troupe for years and years. I applaud the fantastic elements of this story truly for what they are. I revel in them, breath them in, take them straight out of the novel and make a playground of them in my head... So sorry, bit overboard, right there. The writing lends itself to drawing vivid images of every scene in this made for my head movie, of sorts? Get me? No, no probably not. The characters in this book are unlike (most likely) anyone you will ever have the chance to meet in your real day to day life. And I am so so glad I have had the chance to have met them. There is an air of mystery in the whole cast, which added to the mystery of the overall plot leads to some enticing reading. But as the story treads on you will become familiar with these people ... almost intimately so. The Characters that make up the the actual troupe are all amazing each one with their own set of dynamics that only after a short time opens them up so you can see them for who they truly are. I have to say that Heironomo (Harry as he is referred to in the book) is probably my favorite. I would pine just as George does in the book for hours spent with him. Shoot ... I want to do a mind meld with him just so I can know everything he does. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Trust me, I think you will too.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Secondly, This other "person" in this "other" place was grandly "fleshed" out so that I just could not put the book down while "she" was in it. I have been waiting my whole life to meet her. In the end I guess I won't have the chance after what Silenus does to her. Not being able to tip the secret jar pains me so. The book as a whole is a true testament to the old adage, "Things aren't always what they seem. The reveals keep coming the whole way through the book and it seems that the wow factor just keeps growing. Honestly, if it weren't for persistent schedules and mundane things like sleeping, you could sit and read this novel from cover to cover. It is just that good. Just like sitting and watching a fireworks show or even possibly the best magic performance you have ever seen, you will not want them to end.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Robert Jackson Bennett, my stage hat is off to you. You have really put on the show of a lifetime in this book of yours. This story of George and The Troupe that he ultimately becomes a part of opened up doors in my mind that have been left unopened for a very long time. Thank-you for giving me the opportunity to travel the country and the spaces between with The Troupe. Now I just need to get my hands on your other books. First up, Mr. Shivers, I believe.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As is the case with most theme park rides, this one comes with a height requirement. Let's say 60". Silenus has a bit of a potty mouth. So, check your vocabulary requirements at the gate.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">5 out of 5 Benevolently beckoned boggarts bran-dishing berries of mind bending substance and origin.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Is it just me or would Jim Croce make the perfect Silenus if you put him in a top hat and checkered pants?</span>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-120887702530909232012-05-17T11:03:00.000-07:002012-05-17T12:18:36.524-07:00Review of Scourge of the Betrayer by Jeff Salyards<div class="separator tr_bq" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i><span style="font-size: large;">BOOK DESCRIPTION </span></i></b><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><b><i>FROM GOODREADS</i></b></span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Many tales are told of the Syldoon Empire and its fearsome soldiers, who are known throughout the world for their treachery and atrocities. Some say that the Syldoon eat virgins and babies–or perhaps their own mothers. Arkamondos, a bookish young scribe, suspects that the Syldoon’s dire reputation may have grown in the retelling, but he’s about to find out for himself.</i></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Hired to chronicle the exploits of a band of rugged Syldoon warriors, Arki finds himself both frightened and fascinated by the men’s enigmatic leader, Captain Braylar Killcoin. A secretive, mercurial figure haunted by the memories of those he’s killed with his deadly flail, Braylar has already disposed of at least one impertinent scribe . . . and Arki might be next.<br /> </i></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Archiving the mundane doings of millers and merchants was tedious, but at least it was safe. As Arki heads off on a mysterious mission into parts unknown, in the company of the coarse, bloody-minded Syldoon, he is promised a chance to finally record an historic adventure well worth the telling, but first he must survive the experience!</i></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>A gripping military fantasy in the tradition of Glen Cook, SCOURGE OF THE BETRAYER explores the brutal politics of Empire–and the searing impact of violence and dark magic on a man’s soul.</i></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Before I get into specifics of the beast that is Scourge of the Betrayer, let me start off by gushing half my blood supply out of my partially severed head from craning my neck to read this in the wee hours of the night just to boast about how good it is. Sorry if that last statement was a tad on the graphic side but if you are going to pick up this book, it's things like that that are waiting for you.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I don't read reviews prior to reading a book. I wait till after I finish them. Sure, I will scan a few lines, blurbs and what have you, that a base network of people and places that I have strategically, scoured and suffered putting together to achieve the necessary niceties that my fellow reading buddies I relate to well in reading choices have bled their hard pondered thoughts onto the world. {That may have been the longest run-on sentence in the history of run- on sentences but ... I am a rebel. And you blessed reader are just going to have to like it!} Sure this work is in the tradition of Glen Cook with his military fantasy, it has the grit of battle you will find in a Dan Abnett or Joe Abercrombie book. But it is not by those people either, this is Jeff Salyards and you would do well to remember his name. There are some works like this, that although good, don't quite hit the mark. I tell you now folks ... This is what dead center looks like. I cannot be certain as to the level or the amount of time and effort that went into this story, but if I were to guess my money is on a great deal. And although it isn't the expansive (at least not yet) titles like Sanderson, Jordan or Martin put out, rest assured that Salyards knows his tale frontwards and backwards. It's tight writing and does well with pace, plot and some other "p" word that I know I am forgetting to throw in there.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The fighting / battle / action sequences and narration of our main character (Arki) during said scenes are spot on. The mechanics of each are honed, well oiled and bite with their own brutal reality.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We all read things differently based on a thousand different variables that I cannot begin to get into here. So in the end it's simple, read what you like. I have been watching horror, reading horror, bizarro, fantasy, stuff you wouldn't even think can come out of somebody's head; see Carlon Mellick III, and yes in some cases experiencing these same things with shock values that are pretty high up on a scale that doesn't even exist. So yeah, when someone said, "It's gritty" or "that was some scary shit, dude". Well, I kinda gotta just nod my head, hope they don't catch my crafty ability to roll my eyes without actually rolling my eyes, and think I am going to have to experience it for myself and see. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There ... Yeah ... T</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">hat doesn't even cover it. Let me tell you that this is a new story that has not been done before. The dynamics of our characters are complex and meaty and I like it! Just the contrast alone between our young scrive and his charge, is a bear trap in waiting for good interesting dialogue. There are twists and surprises in this book that took me totally off guard. I laughed out loud several times and even once put the book down totally dumb founded and said... "That didn't just happen, did it?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In conclusion Salyards has created a well of opportunity here for the next couple volumes in this series. Seeing how the series name is Bloodsounders's Arc, we may be in for more than a trilogy and that does nothing but make me smile. There is a lot of directions this could go and I can't wait for the next installment. I can't wait to check out Braylar's sister. Wait that didn't sound right. That was almost like, "Hey Killcoin, would you mind if I, ahhh checked out your sister?" Probably, got me killed just now. No, it's going to be awesome. Thank-you Jeff, for a great, great read. I will be recommending this to all my literary friends and probably even ones that are not.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">5 out of 5 Bloody Sword Swinging Syldoons Singing Sweet Songs over Sour Wine.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This book is definitely deserving of some MM.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">WARNING strong language used in video above, please refrain from watching unless you are over the age of 200.</span>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-27550172180737213872012-04-14T09:09:00.001-07:002012-04-14T09:09:47.085-07:00Review of Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake<blockquote class="tr_bq">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i><span style="font-size: large;">BOOK DESCRIPTION </span><span style="font-size: xx-small;">FROM GOODREADS</span></i></b></span></blockquote>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Cas Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He kills the dead.<br /> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So did his father before him, until his gruesome murder by a ghost he sought to kill. Now, armed with his father’s mysterious and deadly athame, Cas travels the country with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat. Together they follow legends and local lore, trying to keep up with the murderous dead—keeping pesky things like the future and friends at bay.</span></i></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>When they arrive in a new town in search of a ghost the locals call Anna Dressed in Blood, Cas doesn’t expect anything outside of the ordinary: move, hunt, kill. What he finds instead is a girl entangled in curses and rage, a ghost like he’s never faced before. She still wears the dress she wore on the day of her brutal murder in 1958: once white, but now stained red and dripping blood. Since her death, Anna has killed any and every person who has dared to step into the deserted Victorian she used to call home.</i></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>And she, for whatever reason, spares his life."</i></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Trust me when I say that there was no judgement on the actual book itself when I first saw it. I just knew that I had to have it. It needed to be in my collection. It needed to be displayed where I could look at it. Before I could even dive into the pages this cover had me captivated, entranced, immobile and spellbound. Her name resounded in my head ... Anna, Anna, Anna .. Anna... Dressed in Blood. At that moment I knew I would follow her wherever it was that she would take me. That flowing black hair ... Her pale skin. It would be all I needed. She waited patiently on my shelf. She didn't worry about never being picked up. She knew I was circling around her like some shy boy at a school dance. A dance that while she was living she never made it to.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As you can tell, the scenery of this story is very close to me still. Having only turned the last of its pages just a few short hours ago, I am lost in my reverie of it, I wear it's memory on me like a shroud. I feel as Theseus Cassio must at the end. But that is the intention, isn't it? To put you in the characters place? Yes, that is the intention. and that is how you know that the words in this book are not just words, but a portal, a connection of life. Fiction to Non-fiction and back again. Over and over. I loved this book. I loved it from cover to cover.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The plot to <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Anna-Dressed-Blood-Kendare-Blake/dp/0765328658/ref=sr_1_1_title_0_main?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1334415607&sr=1-1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Anna Dressed in blood</a> is not really a new one, or is it? Hmmm. You know some of the best books you ever read are the ones when you are finished with you cannot place them on any one bookshelf. Well, it's a ghost story ... but it is more than just that. It's an urban fantasy ... but, it is more than just that too. It has dramatic, nail biting sequences that induce pretty gruesome (Isn't the English language great? Is it even legal to put totally opposite adjectives together and have it make sense? Someone help me out here.) images of the things that you are reading. But ... It is MORE than that. The description of the book is not wrong, but it is. I will example just the first line here and then you guys are on your own. "Cass Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He Kills the dead" Well, that is all fine, dandy and fo-fanna, candy. Me-my-mo mandy. But, Blake adds character to all that. With a character that not only kills the dead. He kills myths, he kills urban legend. Now that is something to get your boxers in a twist about... See that just doesn't sound as good as panties in a twist but I am a guy and it would be weird, ya know... yeah, you know.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Alright, I don't want to give away anything else to this novel. But I can praise the shit out of it without letting anything more out of the bag. I always come back to the characters and Anna Dressed in Blood has an array of great characters. Good, bad and yes of course ... Ugly. And they are all where they need to be in the story. The intricate details of each are cut and honed perfectly for the story. Not too much and never to little. Always the right amount to set the stage. The prose is spot on for this novel and to the observant ones among us, there are some great references to pop culture or more appropriately coined to my tastes, geek culture. The no fear pulse to attach characters to wiccan lifestyles. The mystic realms of voodoo. Man, you don't hear that one too often. A sentence or so ago I say "Not too much and never too little" But that slides a little when I think about Anna. I suspect she will have a bigger role in the novels to come. She plays the part of a ghost in this one not just in character but in context (<a href="http://penny-arcade.com/comic/2012/04/11" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">and context is always important</a>) as well. She is always just out of reach, somehow. I cannot wait to pick up Anna 2 <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12507214-girl-of-nightmares" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Girl of Nightmares</a>. Don't you dare read the description if you have not read this one!!! Damn, spoileriffic description givers away! I mean come on! They should have all flashy lights above it that says read this one first in it. So do it! READ THIS BOOK NOW! Thanks Kendare Blake for this fantastic story. And also thank-you <a href="http://nekro.es/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Nekro</a>. It was ultimately because of you that I picked this book up. I had never heard or seen of your work before. But it is awesome and you will not be forgotten.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I give Anna Dressed in Blood a whopping 5 out of 5 feverishly flashing filaments on my handy-dandy EVP Field Processor. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This one is dedicated to Anna. Your red dress has stained my memory...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-3258667760255462642012-03-18T07:11:00.000-07:002012-03-18T07:11:19.337-07:00Review of Wide Open by Deborah Coates<div class="separator tr_bq" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i><span style="font-size: large;">BOOK DESCRIPTION</span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> FROM GOODREADS</span></i></b></span></blockquote>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When Sergeant Hallie Michaels comes back to South Dakota from Afghanistan on ten days' compassionate leave, her sister Dell's ghost is waiting at the airport to greet her.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The sheriff says that Dell's death was suicide, but Hallie doesn't believe it. Something happened or Dell's ghost wouldn't still be hanging around. Friends and family, mourning Dell's loss, think Hallie's letting her grief interfere with her judgment.<br /> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The one person who seems willing to listen is the deputy sheriff, Boyd Davies, who shows up everywhere and helps when he doesn't have to.<br /> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As Hallie asks more questions, she attracts new ghosts, women who disappeared without a trace. Soon, someone's trying to beat her up, burn down her father's ranch, and stop her investigation.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hallie's going to need Boyd, her friends, and all the ghosts she can find to defeat an enemy who has an unimaginable ancient power at his command.</span></i></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As I am sitting here pondering what points I would like to talk about in my review for Wide Open, a word that I could use from the time that I opened up the package that it came in is, "ominous". As I had not heard about this title before, I was instantly intrigued by the foreboding cover. Ehhhhhhhhoooweewewewew... Jeepers, Fred, go pull around mystery mobile. Scooby Doo? Where are you? Well, this little novel here doesn't need the cast of Mystery, Inc., but who doesn't love a little Rooby Roo? Straight out of the box we are introduced to our main character Hallie Michaels and as the book description reads that is Sergeant Hallie Michaels. Hallie is coming home from the war in Afghanistan for ten days. She is told her sister is dead, an apparent suicide, but Hallie knows in her gut that it couldn't be that. Ms. Coates did something really great here by driving the point home from the very beginning that Hallie is only going to be home for ten days. This for me kicked the story into hyper-suspense mode as how do you solve the mystery of your sisters death in only ten days? I mean, come on... get moving already! Something that I have read a few of my fellow reviewers comment on in this story that cannot by any means be overlooked is the backdrop. I have never been to South Dakota, but, I had a really great friend once that grew up there and had described to me on several occasions the type of scenery that he had come from. Our minds fill in made up pictures of these conversations, but as I was reading Wide Open, I felt like I was actually there with Hallie, like I was just another one of her... AHHH! Not going to spoil... Seriously, Ms Coates has a great ability to put you right in the book with her vivid words describing the surroundings. The prairie, the Bob as is it's called is totally imaginable and exactly what you would think of in a relatively small town out in the middle of a seeming nowhere. Pete and his friends even have their own Straw Dog feel to the atmosphere. After all this I think the thing I was most impressed with by the novel was Hallie and the way the picture of her developed for me in my head as I was following her throughout the story. It is a real up-close and personal characterization as your stuck in her head for most of the novel and that does sooooo well for this book. Hallie was a believable character that you can feel compassion for. She is openly strong willed because she has to be. Always holding it together for the sake of everyone else or just maybe appearance, but while we the readers get a closer look inside her ideas and thoughts we know that she is one step away from breaking down. This above all else in the story, kept me reading. Not that we can forget about the mystery of her sisters death. The sixty-four-thousand-dollar question element opens the door for our author to plinko the pages of this book right into its very own urban fantasy... wait, urban? No, rural fantasy! Ladies and gentlemen we have a whole new genre of books! Make the the signs Books-a Million! RURAL FANTASY! Bring on the cowboy hat wearing, tractor driving disembodied space alien heads! Actually, this book doesn't have those, but what a cool idea huh?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That about sums up my review of Wide Open by Deborah Coates. Too much more and I will be giving away plot points that makes this novel what it is, a great new addition to the paranormal urban/rural fantasy, mystery that I think will be enjoyed by a wide range of readers. Whatever your tastes in reading are, Wide Open will surely have something tor you to enjoy. Thank-you Ms. Coates for a great read that I am happily recommending to friends and family.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4 out of 5 Kitty whiskers, because in the hearts and minds of the innocent, they are the strings that bind friendships to make them last through... Well... to stand the unforgivable things we do...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now here is a little Metallica with The Unforgiven II, for all the unspoken reasons...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-80415700514095203832012-03-04T11:18:00.001-08:002012-03-04T11:35:11.532-08:00Review of Thief's Covenant by Ari Marmell<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i><span style="font-size: large;">BOOK DESCRIPTION </span><span style="font-size: xx-small;">FROM GOODREADS</span></i></b></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i> She is Widdershins, a thief making her way through Davillon's underbelly looking to find answers, and justice with a sharp blade, a sharper wit, and the mystical aid of Olgun, a foreign god with no other worshipers but Widdershins herself.</i></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Thiefs-Covenant-A-Widdershins-Adventure/dp/1616145471/ref=sr_1_1_title_0_main?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1330865852&sr=1-1" target="_blank">Thief's Covenant</a> is the first in what I hope to be an ongoing series. And although I have not uncovered anything that tells me this outright, Mr. Marmell's <a href="http://mouseferatu.com/" target="_blank">website</a> lists these as "Widdershins Novels". AHA! That is a very plural, "Novels". My squad car is right out front, Thank-you very much!. Don't let the series part scare you though. We all know how skittish some of you get when the "S" word starts getting thrown around. No, this novel does come complete with its very own beginning, middle and end and would work very well as a stand alone novel. Either way, a step back into the life of our young protagonist will be a refreshing getaway when and if it comes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I thoroughly enjoyed this novel, albeit kind of short and not very quest driven for something I have seen labeled as high fantasy. If you have been following my blog for a while now, you may have noticed that I don't particularly care for the labels we <u>all</u> tend to give the books were reading. I personally don't know anyone actually qualified to make these labels, I definitely know that person is not me. I read a book and form my opinion of what it is and that is that. No harm, no foul. At this point you can stop and ask me what I am gibbering on about, because, I am not even sure I know myself. See this is my dilemma. You all will have to bare with me here, while I veer off into the more cobwebbed catacombs that is my mind. I say above "no harm, no foul" but that can't really be true can it? Let me show you what I am talking about. A buddy of mine and I met for drinks at the pub after work last week. After a bit of conversation he asks, what new books I can recommend him picking up. As I am nose deep in the streets of Davillon with the sleek and <strike>sexy,</strike> (Oops, can't use that word describing a minor can I?) thief. Anyway, with a little bit of the Irish Dew picking up the blarney, I spit out, "Well, I am reading this new young adult fantasy yarn called Thief's Covenant by Ari Marmell. As a known fan of Stephen King and reads of the like, my friend just kind of shakes his head up and down slowly and on reflection of my last sentence I see clearly my error. So, I back up and throw in some words that will likely appeal a little more to to my friends specific tastes. i.e. espionage, gritty, scenes (brief as they are) that are pretty graphic. And a favorite I through in there, "not a lot of romance". Which is a pretty good thing considering that when most people hear young adult anymore, they automatically assume love triangle. After that, I had him totally on board and downloading it to his kindle app on his phone... Man, you gotta love technology. Yeah, score one for me. Ultimately, my point is this, as people who recommend books on a daily basis. We need to be aware of the audience we are speaking to and make sure we are clear about things we like and don't like about the books were reading. On the other side of the coin though, I see a publisher putting the term "young adult" on a book like this one and I think after reading it... Do I really agree that this book is young adult? I don't freakin' know!?!? I am almost 35... And I totally dug this story. But I am glad this is in the young adult section as well, because if I seen this cover when I was 12 or 13 I would have totally picked it up. That leads me to a quick shout out to cover artist <a href="http://jasonchanart.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Jason Chan</a>. Really great stuff, man. Even better is the fact that this novel is going to appeal to younger boys as well as young adult girls. Which is great considering it can be a little more challenging getting most young males to read, at least, that is what I have heard from the general consensus. And growing up, a lot of my guy friends didn't have the voracious reading habit that I did... or reading habits at all for that matter. I am not some magic book recommending Zoltar here, people. Although, the thought of someone pitching money at me and asking me what there next favorite read is... kind of appealing don't you think? Huh, Huh?!?!?! Right?!?! Maybe someone asks me what they should read I should just spit out a card with the title of a book on it?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, I have guided you far enough into my madness for one day. Don't worry I won't leave you stranded there. On our way back out though, I will actually tell you a little bit more about this wonderful read. You know... That one I was suppose to be talking about all this time, but sucked you into controversial topics such as genre bending labels. Sorry. In the famous words of one of my all time favorite philosophers... Alf, "Hey, I know my rights, I watch Peoples Court." Ha! I kill me. Ok, [clears throat] Thief's Covenant follows a young female protagonist who has the rags to riches story about her. but then unlike most happy ending stories is forced by some very horrible happenings back into a less desired lifestyle. But this doesn't seem to keep Widdershins down. I actually think it is great that she adapted so well to all the things life has thrown at her. Be that as it may, the story goes through a bunch of back and forth which made me keep my thinking cap on as to where and when I was in her story. This played a huge part in my reading pace. I don't think it would have been as exciting as it was if the timeline was streamlined. The funny thing is that I have read novels in the past that at these time switching spots I put the book down, but here I was so engrossed in the current timeline that I buzzed right through the skipping just so I could get back to the present. Well played Mr. Marmell, well played. What does all that mean... This book is over way quick... quick like seeing the end growing ever nigh and I am thinking, sputtering, uh, bu, duh... It can't end there, I want more.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At the heart of all the great fantasy that this book revolves around, there is a mystery. This is another aspect that just took off from the very beginning. It's something that I think will hook a lot of younger readers. As the character development lays out in front of you, the more you want to find out who is behind all this chaos. All the while leaving little mysteries that will hopefully be picked out of the haystack to bring you back for the next novel. The reveal near the end of this one on who the shrouded lord is, is a prime example of what I am talking about and great storytelling. The addition of a minor deity to the already overflowing 120 major deities of the pact is an interesting concept that I personally have not read about before. A lot of doors could open with a god on your shoulder and I am anxious to see where that goes in future volumes. I really enjoy novels about thieves and assassins, mainly I think, because of the tense adrenaline rushing sensation you can acquire through well planned tense scenes and this book has a bunch of them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I personally would like to wish all the success to Ari Marmell with this novel. It has definitely broken onto the young adult scene with some hype and it is very well deserved. Readers young and old won't have to look to hard to find things to love about Thief's Covenant. And with a first novel like this on the Young Adult shelves, I am chomping at the bit to get my hands on his other books like <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Goblin-Corps-Ari-Marmell/dp/1616143770/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1330883406&sr=8-1" target="_blank">Goblin Corps</a>. I hope that will deliver the bloodbath a sci-fi, fantasy, military mash-up should.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4 out of 5 stones because it's solid like 4 out of 5 stones are.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I dedicate this one to Adrienne Satti. Read the book, you may understand why...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-56013804933361899842012-02-11T12:27:00.000-08:002012-02-11T12:27:54.627-08:00Review of Hounded by Kevin Hearne<div class="separator tr_bq" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><b style="font-size: x-large;">BOOK DESCRIPTION </b><b><span style="font-size: xx-small;">FROM GOODREADS</span></b></i></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>"Atticus O’Sullivan, last of the Druids, lives peacefully in Arizona, running an occult bookshop and shape-shifting in his spare time to hunt with his Irish wolfhound. His neighbors and customers think that this handsome, tattooed Irish dude is about twenty-one years old—when in actuality, he’s twenty-one centuries old. Not to mention: He draws his power from the earth, possesses a sharp wit, and wields an even sharper magical sword known as Fragarach, the Answerer.<br /><br />Unfortunately, a very angry Celtic god wants that sword, and he’s hounded Atticus for centuries. Now the determined deity has tracked him down, and Atticus will need all his power—plus the help of a seductive goddess of death, his vampire and werewolf team of attorneys, a sexy bartender possessed by a Hindu witch, and some good old-fashioned luck of the Irish—to kick some Celtic arse and deliver himself from evil."</i></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ahhhh.... The start of a new series. Some readers cringe, others cross their arms and shake their bloody gords with the expression that says, "NO! I will not start another series, I just... can't." Piss on that, I say and quit your whining sissy! Cause, this new series I got here, folks, this be the stuff of master storytellin'. This stuff right here... Is the Irish car bomb-diggity of story openers. Being of Irish descent could have been a teensy reason this novel meshed so well with me, but that definitely was not all it was. Part of it was the familiarity this book made me feel for the stories I was told and read about as a kid. The book puts a modern twist on some of the oldest stories in Irish folklore. I like books that get me excited in a nonchalant way about finding new stories and information about the stuff I am reading. Like how only after a nights worth of reading Hounded I was consciously scrolling the hinterweb for stuff on Druid myth, legend, religion, beliefs and countless other things that just kept popping up and I just kept on clicking away, filling my head with just goads of words and background to fuel my reading of the novel that started it. I guess that is what inspiration is and this book gave it to me. Hold on, let me just tone this little fan girl squeee down with a swig of Jameson. There's real life stuff in here too people, the town, the bar / restaurant, the store our hero works in... Well, that's really just a comic book store, but it is owned by a close relative of our very own author. Let's talk about the story shall we?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Atticus O'Sullivan is an honest to Pan, freakin' Druid. A very old Druid no doubt but to the human eye Atticus looks like he is twenty-one. The dude is just badass. Firstly, he is a Druid, second he has celtic tattoos that start at his ankle and wind the length of him and end down his arm to his wrist. I cannot even begin to say how cool that would be. He owns an awesome little occult book shop that he also has his own little apothecary set up in, where he makes teas and the like for customers. But, I won't give too much away. Just know that his character is a rockstar. Atticus, also has a dog Oberon, an Irish wolfhound to be specific. And just to add a thought to that... I don't think I have ever read a book with a dog in it that I liked more than Oberon. The scenes with this dog (and there are MANY of them) are just awesome even laugh out loud at times. Along with these two there are a host of several, and I mean several, awesome characters that I just can't wait to read more about. You've got demons, witches, Tuatha De Danann and gods. Everyone of which I cannot wait to read more about in the entries following this one. The book, for me anyway, moved super quick and before I knew it I was nearing the end. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The story in Hounded builds to an epic conclusion of its very own and leaves you with about 20 different directions to look forward to in the upcoming installments.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Writing this review I am battling in my own head whether or not just to start the next book "Hexed" or draw out the anticipation. Wish I had Fragarach to answer for me. If it's anything like this one, and I am betting on it being so, I just might sink my teeth into it tonight. Thanks Kevin for yet another great new series for me to follow.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">5 / 5 Pints of Guinness, because when it comes to beer, nobody does it better than the Irish.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Éirinn go brách!</i></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-73402524425793718062012-02-03T11:30:00.000-08:002012-02-03T12:22:58.611-08:00Review of Vampire Empire Book One: The Greyfriar<div class="separator tr_bq" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-A7sSkjn6kzk/Typ73FkVS3I/AAAAAAAAAMk/YxwzJWX64lw/s1600/VampireEmpire_FinalCoversmall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-A7sSkjn6kzk/Typ73FkVS3I/AAAAAAAAAMk/YxwzJWX64lw/s320/VampireEmpire_FinalCoversmall.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"><b><i><span style="font-size: medium;">BOOK DESCRIPTION </span><span style="font-size: xx-small;">FROM GOODREADS</span></i></b></span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Vampire predators run wild in this exciting steampunk adventure, the first in an alternate history trilogy that is already attracting attention. In 1870, monsters rise up and conquer the northern lands, As great cities are swallowed up by carnage and disease, landowners and other elite flee south to escape their blood-thirsty wrath.<br /> <br />One hundred fifty years later, the great divide still exists; fangs on one side of the border, worried defenders on the other. This fragile equilibrium is threatened, then crumbles after a single young princess becomes almost hopelessly lost in the hostile territory. At first, she has only one defender—a mysterious Greyfriar who roams freely in dangerous vampire regions. </i></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For me personally, this book deserves an award. Small cut scene for back story to fill you in so you all have a better understanding of some things. You see, somehow over the last two months or so, my mind (and body for that matter) has entered what I can only describe as a time warp, a wormhole that goes forward and backward and stays still all at the same time, a flux in the time space continuum maybe. As a long time fan of Star Trek, I have boldly gone where no man has gone before. Honestly, after about a week of recovery (and some seriously good vegetable soup) I am only now coming to grips with what I have just experienced. I tell you folks, the longer I take to digest the issue the less pretty it looks. I am going to take a brief minute to talk to you all about.... Skyrim. The developers of this game have exceeded hard core hypnosis. I am talking about serious brain and body function manipulation here. In fact, if Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (sorry Mr. Thompson) were a video game set in the Nordic age... it could be called Skyrim. And in conclusion, a warning to those thinking of tempting the hills, plains, mountains and dungeons of Skyrim, tread lightly young lords, you may never come back! MUAHHHAHAHAHAHA, MUAHAHAHAHAHA! LAAS! YAH! NIR! Holy @*#^! Where was I? Yeah, yeah... books BOOOKS BOOOOOOKS, Book review. OK.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The point of all that is this. I was on the verge of full body and social comatose, and it was Vampire Empire Book One: The Greyfriar that slapped me in the face and said, "Travis!! SNAP OUT OF IT, LAD! YOU... LOVE.... BOOKS!!!! Come back to us, we beg of you!". Clay and Susan Griffith have created quite a gem here that has everything that I look for in a good series starter. From the very beginning it immersed me in this new / old age where our planet has seemingly been divided in half. In the north, Vampires. Ruthless monsters, once held back to the depths of the earth. Now they have taken over whole cities with their rage and total animal instinct to rise in power to dominate the humans very existence. And then my fellow man, forced to abandon their homes. Whole villages, cities evacuated to find shelter in the warmer south where the vamps are more bothered by the heat. The writing in the novel was very well paced, equal parts fast and... well not slow per say, but.. toned down to a brisk walk. The Griffiths also paint a vivid picture where I could imagine almost every scene of the book laying out in front of me as I turned the pages. The world is a vibrant one where the characters told about flourish with a life you can totally imagine. At least that was the case for me. So, let me tell you a little of what I liked about the characters. Adele, our princess of the story blew away my initial expectations I had for her. I really don't like the prissy princess's who can't take a punch in the face every now and again. No, Adele really surprised me in that she knows her duties as a princess and she understands what is expected of her, because one day she will run an entire nation. I like that you could tell by some of the scenes that she has been trained for this. That her life before hand has not just been some silver spoon living. And although she has her reservations about going into some pretty shady things, she finds her backbone and gets on with it! Splendidly, I may add. Another thing that kept me reading was the sneaky little trick the Griffith's played me with, using the lovely heroine as bait. The more you read, the more hints are dropped that our princess is much more than even she knows about.... dun, dun, duuuuuun! I kept feeling like I was a horse with a carrot being fishin' poled in front of me. I kept expecting this pinnacle moment where Adele swings into action with her jeweled special blade a' flashin, and then opens her mouth and........... FUS! RO! DAH!!! Oh Snap! Wrong fu*&^ng story. Sorry, sorry! But, that is what I felt like. I REALLY hope she develops more as the series progresses. I could really snuggle into some bad ass princess snnaz. Alright, lets talk about the Greyfriar a little bit here.. Superhero persona, check. Cool as hell superhero steam punk costume, check. Solid sword wielding skills that slice the suckers to smithereens, check and check. So, we have man on the right, woman on the left... and BLAMO! Bad Romance. And what does Lady Gaga say about Bad Romance... yeah, " I want it " And so do I Gaga, so do I. Pause for brief musical interlude... </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I don't own the rights to the video of course... Hope they don't mind I just put it up here. I don't care who you are... You gotta love some freakin' Gaga. So do it... ROCK THE GAGA!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ok. After some awesome moves and some lip syncing we maybe good to go, lets finish this review, shall we? I really dug the whole thing between Greyfriar and Adele. Like a steampunk, Victorian-style fairy tale, lalalalala la, la. I cannot help myself today... </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Tale as old as time</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">True as it can be</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Barely even friends</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Then somebody bends</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Unexpectedly</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Just a little change</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Small, to say the least</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Both a little scared</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Neither one prepared</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">DADA, DADA, DAAA"</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I didn't make that up... I think it was Disney or someone. Come on! If Celine Dion can sing it... So can.... Well, maybe not. Alright... I am done, I promise. I am not giving ANYTHING AWAY, I TELL YOU, NOTHING. NOT ANOTHER WORD! Bottom line here is, I loved this book. Is it a little young adult ish'? Maybe. Is it maybe geared more toward the teenage swoon type girly girls? Meh, maybe. But who cares about stereo-types? I don't, and you shouldn't either. Because this book told an awesome story and kept me turning pages. Engaging characters that I want to know more about that drove my mind to the bookstore already to buy the second book. That is what makes it for me. It inspired something in me and I may not know exactly what that something was. But I like it. So what if it isn't your cup of tea. But ya gotta read it, if ya wanna find out. On an end note too... I am a HUGE Buffy fan and I was totally fan crazed salivating when I found out that James Marsters is doing the Unabridged audio of this first book and HOPEFULLY (fingers crossed) doing the rest as well. Hope to get my hands on a copy of that too!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As always, Thanks to the wonderful authors Clay and Susan Griffith. whose words walked me ever so carefully down from the mountain sanctuary of High Hrothgar. I think Vampire Empire will be a gem that shines for you for a very long time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Until next time,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Stay on the grass.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4.75 / 5 peaches cause there awesome!</span><br />
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</blockquote>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-32531738312155409202011-11-12T07:16:00.001-08:002011-11-12T10:54:25.050-08:00Review of Sword of Fire and Sea by Erin Hoffman<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">BOOK DESCRIPTION </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">FROM GOODREADS</span></i></b></span></blockquote>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Three generations ago Captain Vidarian Rulorat's great-grandfather gave up an imperial commission to commit social catastrophe by marrying a fire priestess. For love, he unwittingly doomed his family to generations of a rare genetic disease that follows families who cross elemental boundaries. Now Vidarian, the last surviving member of the Rulorat family, struggles to uphold his family legacy, and finds himself chained to a task as a result of the bride price his great-grandfather paid: the Breakwater Agreement, a seventy-year-old alliance between his family and the High Temple of Kara'zul, domain of the fire priestesses.</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>The priestess Endera has called upon Vidarian to fulfill his family's obligation by transporting a young fire priestess named Ariadel to a water temple far to the south, through dangerous pirate-controlled territory. A journey perilous in the best of conditions is made more so by their pursuers: rogue telepathic magic-users called the Vkortha who will stop at nothing to recover Ariadel, who has witnessed their forbidden rites.</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Together, Vidarian and Ariadel will navigate more than treacherous waters: Imperial intrigue, a world that has been slowly losing its magic for generations, secrets that the priestesshoods have kept for longer, the indifference of their elemental goddesses, gryphons—once thought mythical—now returning to the world, and their own labyrinthine family legacies. Vidarian finds himself at the intersection not only of the world's most volatile elements, but of colliding universes, and the ancient and alien powers that lurk between them.</i></span></blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The first thing that I would like to talk about with this review is what's right on the cover. The art. Fan'freakin'tastic is what this cover is. And after completion of the novel it is something that can be marveled at more so because I think that it really does capture the essence of the characters told of in the pages that follow it. Dehong He, whose other work can be found <a href="http://hdhcg.cgsociety.org/gallery/" target="_blank">HERE,</a> is truly phenomenal artist and I would never have known about him if it were not for this book. A good cover art can capture the imagination of the reader and take the reader to new heights when it is good. I have to be honest, I judge books by their covers. But here is the thing, I don't judge the story inside by the cover. There is a big difference in my opinion. I won't not read a story just because the cover threw me off, but I may buy a book based on the cover art over something that a didn't catch my eye. You know the old adage, It's whats on the inside that counts not the outside. Well, from personal experience I can tell you that I have bought books with these gorgeous covers and have had my heart broken because the story did not live up to the expectations the cover gave me. But in the case of Sword of Fire and Sea this was not the issue.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At the beginning of our story we get introduced to our hero, Captain Viderian Rulorat who is being forced to hold up his families end of a bargain that he wishes that he didn't have anything to do with. As the description above states, he is soon tasked with delivering a fire priestess (yeah, badass, right?!) to a water temple. And already I am giddy cause we get our own elemental priestesses who practice some good old fashioned earth, wind, fire and water magic awesomeness. Before the journey even gets started he knows that the way he is instructed to go is treacherous at best and he is quickly advised that the journey will be made even more difficult by the Vkortha. The mind manipulating scum of a people that will stop at nothing to kill the fire priestess because she became privy to a huge secret of theirs.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Along the way, we are treated with some writing that does well for drawing you in to the surroundings. Viderian and his crew make for easy acquainting to the goings on of ship life and routine. As with any good fantasy, trouble soon ensues and the battle sequences are wrought with a deep suspense that literally had me on the edge of my seat waiting for what was going to happen next. Arialdel quite literally adds her own fuel to the fire and her and Viderian fall into this almost too perfectly matched relationship. And how could he not, I ask?</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>"The scent of her skin, a peculiar aroma of mingled cinnamon and sandalwood, soared into his senses, revealing a dizzying depth to the tantalizing hints that had come to him before always from a distance."</i></span></blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">With the hypnotic lilt of such passages one cannot help being swept away with Vidarian and Ariadel on the Empress Quest as they sail the high seas of adventure. However, the adventure does lead our travelers onto land which is a good thing, because a whole novel at sea may have been a turn for the worse. Being the first of... Well, to tell you the truth I don't really know how many this series plans to take on. Maybe someone knowing the answer to that question could leave a comment? So, being the first in the series we have a barrage of characters good and bad. The sequence is small, but I am already a huge fan of Orchids. As I say, her part in this is small but I hope to see more of her and her skills in the future. And of course, who doesn't love gryphons??? There is a Gryphon on the cover and I just assume that it is Thalnarra, but I could be wrong. But there are more, lots more and that added it's own intricate part in the start of this series. The character development of the gryphons was a little strange to me at first but it takes nothing away from the story. With a great means of communication that rallied their part in the story for me, helped quite a bit and in the end I think it is an element of this series that will make it stand out.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I wouldn't call the end of this novel a cliff hanger, but there are definitely questions left unanswered and I will be anxiously awaiting the next in the series just to see where Ms. Hoffman takes the story of Captain Vidarian Rulorat. In a world where it seems magic was fading from it completely, this hero just might be the key to it coming back full tilt and that is really exciting for me. As with many first novels, our hero is stretching his proverbial wings (no pun intended) with his new strengths and just the anticipation of what he will be doing when he finally learns what he is doing is enough to keep me reading. Thank-you Ms. Hoffaman for an intriguing start to what I hope will be another great series of high magic and even higher adventure. This book soars for me and I hope many other will give it the chance it deserves.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4 out of 5 penguins! (Why penguins you ask? Because I would have given this a 3.5 but who has the heart to cut a penguin in half?)</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And I leave you with some of the most amazing music ever. We all miss you Syd!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span> </blockquote>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-73365542230799087902011-10-02T11:33:00.000-07:002011-10-02T11:35:02.139-07:00Review of Feast of Souls by C.S. Friedman<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">BOOK DESCRIPTION </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">FROM GOODREADS</span></i></b></span></blockquote>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i> C.S. Friedman, acclaimed author of The Coldfire Trilogy, returns to the epic style which has made her one of the most popular fantasy writers in the genre. In this first book of the trilogy, Friedman introduces readers to a world of high fantasy, replete with vampire-like magical powers, erotic interludes, treachery, war, sorcery, and a draconic creature of horrific power and evil that will have readers eagerly awaiting the next novel in the series.</i></span></blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I have to start this review out by stating that C.S. Friedman is one of my favorite fantasy and science fiction writers in all my years. I have read her Coldfire trilogy countless times. In Conquest Born and This Alien Shore have both been on my shelf for quite sometime and always come highly recommended when asked who and what to read in the science fiction / space opera realm. So when I seen that she was writing a new series I got all drooly and fanboy like and bought Feast of Souls the day that it went on the shelves. Needless to say, I devoured it. It was awesome and so much more. This blog didn't exist then and my Goodreads account didn't exist so, basically, I was a reading nobody. Not to say that people who don't blog or share their reading adventures are the pariahs of the reading world because I used to be on that boat too. Probably like most of us were. Anyway, to my point (what was my point again?). My point is this. I use to shread books. No, I don't mean I got the scissors out when I was finished and cut them up into little pieces or anything, that would be something like sacrilege, right? Yes, yes it would. No, what I mean is that I would read a ton of books and not really care what I liked about them. I just thought, man... that was fricken' awesome, ok, on to the next. Now, I guess you could say that I have matured... YEAH right, who am I fooling? Just call me Peter Pan. But seriously, this is the reason that I write a blog. C.S. Friedman is the reason I am writing this blog. I still re-read my favorites like everyone does on occasion but, I re-read this one for the specific purpose of talking about it on here. I don't even really know how I am. But I am going to give it a shot. C.S. Friedman deserves that and so much more from me.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I stated above that I was going to try. Why "try"? Because this book is massive. Not only massive on a page count level, I think the MMP weighs in about 576 pages. And when I say heavy, I am not talking in pounds here either. The scale of the story is large as well. That is why it is so captivating. I have always felt that in all her books Ms. Friedman's writing opens up into this huge spectrum. This vivid picture in my mind of a world so large. These masterful settings just enhance their inhabitants to the nth' degree. The realms of the Magister Trilogy are no exception. The backdrop is secondary of course but also necessary in knowing where our characters come from. Out of these realms our characters have back-story that gives a reader freedom to imagine what doesn't come out of the book. It is imagination in a bottle. So where do you even start reviewing a book so compelling. So thought provoking. Well, I don't know where you would start but, I am going to start with Kamala.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kamala, Kamala, Ka-ma-la... Sounds a lot like Lam-ba-da. That is right folks, the dance of love. Wait, where am I. Oh yeah. Kamala. This female protagonist is the exact reason why I read fantasy. She knows exactly what she wants. And she knows exactly how to get it. Tormented from a past that she cannot forget or live in any longer she hunts down a magister to make something of herself. Kamala is flawed in so many ways that it isn't even funny but, that does not stop her in getting what she wants. Albeit early on she doesn't have any idea as to what that is yet. But hey, who really does. Kamala is upended into a completely new life and sure she is scared to death of what is out there but she knows that after all the unfortunate events that have happened to her, nothing can hurt her anymore. Although, Kamala's character is fueled by so much revenge and hate she maintains a caring for humanity and an urge to protect the innocent. This makes her an uber-character in my book. You know the one... That one book of characters we all carry around with us. Yeah that one. Even if you don't know it, you have one too. You just might not be to proud to admit it. Were talking seriously flawed here people. I mean come on! Her and Andovan, dark traveling wagon, limited to know space and THAT happens. And she already knew what he was to her? AWWWW!!! Come on now, you thought I was going to tell you what happens? NOPE go read it yourself. I mean that is some horrendously screwed up AWESOMENESS there. So, lets move on to Andovan. I can only talk Kamala for so long. She literally drives me crazy. Anybody else hear Fine Young Cannibals in the back of their head like all the time?</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Andovan is another character that has so much going for him as a great character. Flawed physically but so strong spirited (no pun intended). Being the third son of the King of all the realms he's pretty much left to his own devices. But after the brief descriptions of the two heirs ahead of him. His brothers seem to pale in comparison to the natural kingly qualities he has inherited from not only his father but his mother as well. Let me pause here to point out that our wonderful author is killing to birds with these semi glimpses of the other two brothers. This gives the impression that there will be more of them to come and your just going to have to wait and see. And it let's you know just how broad the scope of the story can evolve into. But for now our focus is on Andovan and Kamala and a few other sub-character plots that are revolving around the two mains. One of which are the Magisters. But in the beginning there is not really a focus on one in particular. I think this was done mainly to describe how their society works before any one is really brought out into the spotlight. But by the end, Colivar stands out to me as the Magister that is going to stir up the most old people dust. I am not going to touch to much on Andovans Mom but she has a presence in this book that is worth mentioning but, I have a feeling were not seeing the last of her.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At the end of Feast of Souls on both occasions I am left with a feeling of, how is she ever going to wrap this story up in only two more novels. When you are taking into account that this world is coming full circle and things that once were are now here again. The legend of it is magically massive and it is hard to conceive that is already a third of the way over.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another reason that I am reading this one again is that I have just recently procured the second book to this series I know... I am a little late but life happens and books like these are the treats of life and are meant to be savored. Plus it has been a little while that I thought I needed a refresher before I dive into <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3577266-wings-of-wrath">Wings of Wrath</a>. Please stay tuned and as always, a final thank-you to Celia S. Friedman for without your words to fill my imagination and entertain my life, I would most certainly not be who I am today. Thank-you. You are one of the major reasons reading THIS is even possible.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">5/5</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I leave you all with a music artist and his video that I was recently introduced to. It is as epic as the book I just reviewed. I have to pass it on so it can hopefully reach some people who have not already seen it. It really is made of win on so many different levels.... Enjoy.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-75451911424529091002011-08-30T17:42:00.000-07:002011-08-30T17:42:12.784-07:00Review of Shadow's Lure by Jon Sprunk<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p4NYcdjxQTQ/Tl1_oN8tfHI/AAAAAAAAALE/I8ntAxnd8fs/s1600/Shadow%2527s+Lure.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p4NYcdjxQTQ/Tl1_oN8tfHI/AAAAAAAAALE/I8ntAxnd8fs/s320/Shadow%2527s+Lure.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><br />
<blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">BOOK DESCRIPTION </span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">FROM GOODREADS</span></span></blockquote><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>The unforgiving Northlands . . .<br />
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</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>In Othir, he was at the top of the food chain—an assassin beyond compare, a dark shadow in the night. But Caim left that life behind when he helped an empress claim her throne. And now his past has come calling again.<br />
</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i> Searching for the truth behind the murder and disappearance of his parents, Caim discovers a land in thrall to the Shadow. Haunted by temptations from the Other Side, he becomes mired in a war he does not want to fight.<br />
</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i> But there are some things a son of the Shadow cannot ignore, and some fights from which he can't run. In this battle, all of Caim's strength and skill won't be enough.<br />
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</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>For none can resist the Shadow's Lure. </i></span></blockquote><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>*** WARNING ***</b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This review contains spoilers for book 1 Shadow's Son.</span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Man! Was I glad to have this sequel in hand when I finished book one. In Shadow's Lure we start things off directly after the events in Shadow's Son so, if you have not read that one get on it straight away! Jon Sprunk brings his merry (and not so merry {Sybelle, this means you}) band of characters in for another round of chewing bubblegum and kicking ass.... And I don't think any of these characters ever heard of bubblegum.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The flow or pace of this series just keeps intensifying as we branch out into multiple plots. I was a little concerned about this at the end of book one as I knew that Caim was not sticking around in Othir and Josey was not going with him to the north. This all was a pretty smart move as it added a depth to Josey's character that I don't think we would have seen otherwise. Her plotline in my opinion was just as good as Caim's in this release. She really starts coming into her own as the new Empress and I was thoroughly impressed with her determination and strong sense of honor and duty despite feeling that she did not grow up with those things as primary concerns. In her new role it was like you got the whole political intrigue deal but it wasn't over the top and boring with a whole bunch of courtly duties and riff-raff. I honestly did not expect to see much action out of her character but, like I said I was </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">genuinely surprised because Josey kicks royal butt! The thing I am really liking about this series is that I just want to keep reading it. There is still a LOT that can happen with Josey's plot line. The outlook for order in the cities still doesn't look good but I am hopeful that Josey is on the right track to making things work.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now I would like to turn my attentions to the man of the hour, Mucho A'ssassino NO. freakin' 1.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Caim. Yeah, he da man, man! No seriously, I could have got away with calling his character in book one, ahhhh... Meh. But after the events of book two I have mad respect. I still think him and I are not connecting on a huge level but he is growing on me. By this I mean that If I were pretty much killing people for money from the time I was a pup, then why in the world would you not jump all over learning these shadow weapons. Well, it's not like he has had mad time in the woods to contemplate the mysteries of the universe for years, so I guess this is the way it is. I also get the feeling that he is somehow sensing that he will lose himself if he totally submits to the power of the shadows but, that could have just been that dark sword or something. I guess were just going to have to wait till book three to see what happens. Caim also comes across some pretty cool folks on his trek up north. People like Hagan that actually know who he is and can tell him a smidgen of who he is and what his father was like. Here again, this whole time sprunk is feeding us scraps of information but who cares when there is some really cool and gruesome bloodshed! This is where the writing really takes off for me. With Caim leading the action scenes in this one, these are some of the best battle sequences I have read in a long time. Sprunk also provides some pretty vivid imagery with his writing that I would like to tip my hat to. The scene where Liana and Caim are alone after their little snow-in and they stumble upon a recently attacked village that Liana recognizes and Caim walks on into some grotesque savagery. I think I went back and read that scene like three times.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This brings me to that little nasty named Sybelle. I might say that reading her scenes was kind of TORTUROUS, hehehehe. This chick has definitely got some Daddy issues. Her character POV's were just as good as any of the others and I was actually excited when they would pop-up to see how she was scheming. Like I tried to describe above with Caim I may better explain here with the simple illustration that I got all the badassery from Sybelle but kept hoping Caim starts doing some of the same stuff. Here again, this does not take away from the novel at all.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Trust me when I say that my review skimps on A LOT on some great highlights and more that I did not even mention i.e. more Kit (awesome fill-in backgroundie info), Keegan POV's and Sybelle's love child!! Let's just say the apple didn't even fall from the tree, it just rotted.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, in conclusion, here I sit, tapping my fingers on my keys.... waiting. Well, such is the life of a fantasy series reader. Take your time Jon, but just so you know this fan can't wait for Book three!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4.5/5</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/SurqXyOjLxE?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Tribute video for the amount of bloodshed in this novel... </span></div>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-83626376195129351552011-08-19T07:38:00.000-07:002011-08-19T10:21:46.236-07:00Follow my Blog Friday!!! Be like Abe and "Follow Me"<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Looks like a great way to get people to follow your blog... Hope it works, crosses fingers!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The Question: If you could write yourself a part in a book, what book would it be and what role would you play in that book?</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Answer: Although this is a really tough one for me, I am a huge fan of The Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan so I am going to have to go with an Asha'man!</span><br><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 16px;">But being a romantic at heart, I would want to be bound to an Aes Sedai. I think my girl would gladly play that role for me too!</span></span><br />
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</script>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-39056538585211923452011-08-10T14:46:00.000-07:002011-08-10T16:01:33.115-07:00Review of Shadow's Son by Jon Sprunk<blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-c-NdeGkAOKE/TkL0XtRG7FI/AAAAAAAAALA/hbn392YrI3g/s1600/Shadow%2527s+Son+by+Jon+Sprunk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-c-NdeGkAOKE/TkL0XtRG7FI/AAAAAAAAALA/hbn392YrI3g/s1600/Shadow%2527s+Son+by+Jon+Sprunk.jpg" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>BOOK DESCRIPTION</i></b></span> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><b><i>FROM GOODREADS</i></b></span></blockquote><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>In the holy city of Othir, treachery and corruption lurk at the end of every street, just the place for a freelance assassin with no loyalties and few scruples.</i></span></blockquote><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Caim makes his living on the edge of a blade, but when a routine job goes south, he is thrust into the middle of an insidious plot. Pitted against crooked lawmen, rival killers, and sorcery from the Other Side, his only allies are Josephine, the socialite daughter of his last victim, and Kit, a guardian spirit no one else can see. But in this fight for his life, Caim only trusts his knives and his instincts, but they won't be enough when his quest for justice leads him from Othir's hazardous back alleys to its shining corridors of power. To unmask a conspiracy at the heart of the empire, he must claim his birthright as the Shadow's Son . . .</i></span></blockquote><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Caim the main character in this story has had a pretty rough life. So much so that he has taken a life of crime, espionage and of course... Contract killing. Because we all know that devising complex assassination schemes is the only thing left to do when things start getting tough for a bloke. No, seriously, Shadow's Son is one of those novel's for me that I began and was not sold right away on the main character. It took me a little while to figure out if I was going to like him. I bring this up because I don't know if it was the authors intent to lay the story out this way or maybe I am being way to analytic. For me, it comes back to the age old debate of hero / antihero and good vs. evil and all that. Dictionary.com defines antihero as: "a protagonist who lacks the attributes that make a heroic figure, as nobility of mind and spirit, a life or attitude marked by action or purpose, and the like." Caim kills people and he does it well and without emotion. The act is just a job. But at the end of the story you may just have a different opinion. Caim and his story had one saving grace for me at the beginning and that was Kit. That is not to say however that I would have passed on this because if you like action, blood, knives, guts and arterial spray then this is definitely a boat you want to be on. A friend and fellow blogger at <a href="http://seaks.blogspot.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: yellow;">The Stamp (of Approval)</span></a> makes the remark, "I admit, I have a penchant for assassins. Am I the only one?" Well, I am here to throw in on the assassin band wagon. I don't know about everyone else but, I was gung-ho for creeping around in my ninja footed jammies as a kid. Sneaking around and getting the jump on Mom when I thought she wasn't looking, I was all about that stuff as a kid. Then onto my teenage years when I was plotting how I was going to sneak out of the house and furthermore, how I was going to sneak Mom's car out of the carport without her waking up. Yeah... I was an assassin with a car!? What are you going to say. Last but not least, there has to be a little bit of that same assassin in us that gets us up at 3:00 in the morning to make that trek in the near freezing cold to the solitude of a seemingly desolate mountain. The excitement that makes us climb a tree 20 feet in the air to sit with the bitter winds and contemplate the meanings of the universe. All for that one moment when everything goes quiet, you hear the small rustling of the brush below. The brief glimpse of your potential prey to be a stag of epic massiveness and horns that reach to the heavens. The blood racing through every vein in your body at mock speeds. Your increasing heartbeat that your mind tries to force down in seconds to keep you from leaping around like a monkey. But no, you quell your thoughts and ever so slowly pull up your well loved and honed bow. You draw the nocked arrow back to your cheek and wait. At that moment you are one with your surroundings. You feel nothing and yet everything about the moment. The only motion is the slow warm bursts of breath that seep into the air like a fine mist only to dissipate a few short seconds later. It is only you and the beast. And one of you is not going to leave these woods. You find your opening as if you were holding life itself in your hands, and then you let go. The world erupts like a volcano in your body. A thousand thoughts stream through your head as you scramble out of your nest in pursuit of your families food for the next few weeks. You've done well, you think to yourself... I am a master assassin. Maybe for me that is what makes me love these assassin books so much. Now on with the review!<br />
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The pace of Shadow's Son was, well... pretty perfect. It was fast pretty much the entire read with some of the intense scenes that keep you reading just to find out what happens next. Josephine (Josey) was introduced relatively early in the story and like Caim she had a rocky start but if you give her time, I think she rounds out really well and ends this story like a person of her station should. In this particular aspect of the ending it seemed very fairy tale storyesque but I think that it was appropriate and it works. I didn't really see it coming though and that was nice. Sometimes you see these things a mile away and it kind of ruins it. But this was cool and I loved it. Your probably wondering what I am babbling on about but I am not giving things away... So if your reading this then your just going to have to go read the book after your done listening to me babble and find out for yourself.<br />
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I am just going to briefly touch on Kit although she is probably one of my favorite aspects of the story. Kit is a ghost / spirit / demon / I don't have any more names to describe exactly what she is because partly it is still kind of a mystery even to Caim himself. Lets just say that our wonderful author has given us a sidekick or counterpart to our multifaceted con-hero that is beautiful, smart and sexy in a spirit like way and the real kicker is that nobody (atleast human) can see her except Caim. Awesome! I am really hoping we get to see a lot more development on the whole Kit - Caim dynamic. I have a gut feeling that together these two will wreak some pretty spectacular chaos when they come into their own. I think this lack of knowledge about their abilities slows the story down a little bit. But I am hoping this just adds to the development for the next two novels in the series.<br />
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Caim, Josey and Kit have a main opponent aside from other impending dooms that kind of glazes over my above stated lag. And that of course comes in the form of a little baddy named Leviticus. Yes, the real question this book asks is can the real evil in a book carry the hero's until they come into their powers and abilities. Was Mr. Pratchett correct when he said, "Light thinks it travels faster than anything but it is wrong. No matter how fast light travels, it finds the darkness has always got there first, and is waiting for it." The answer to that is "YES"! I looked forward to when the breeze would blow then slow as Leviticus entered stage right with a silence that chilled everyone in the room. Including me and I am not even in the book! His presence added new dimension to the scenes and I found myself gripping the edges of the book waiting for him to pop in. I was sad when the aliens came in their little space shuttles and took him away!***<br />
<br />
In summation, Shadow's Son is one fabulous first novel. Despite my little stumble with Caim at the beginning Sprunk has created some truly great characters that as the plot unfolds, thickens and wraps you up in it, just keep getting better. Your really going to want to have the next novel on hand for when you finish this one so you can jump right back into the action. I can tell you true that I am a 3rd of the way into <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8752906-shadow-s-lure"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: yellow;">Shadow's Lure (Book 2)</span></a> and it does just keep getting better. Something is building and it is going to be HUGE! Jon, if your reading this... No pressure and keep up the excellent work. I LOVE this series thus far. Thanks for giving me yet another good read that I can recommend and pass on to all my friends.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4.5/5 Quills</span><br />
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</span></div>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-49341963202056474782011-07-23T04:59:00.000-07:002011-07-23T04:59:13.054-07:00Review of The Last Page by Anthony Huso<blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-crZMWz0l7kk/Tin2s8jwuGI/AAAAAAAAAIk/rIsrODdUhd4/s1600/the+last+page.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-crZMWz0l7kk/Tin2s8jwuGI/AAAAAAAAAIk/rIsrODdUhd4/s1600/the+last+page.jpg" /></a></div><b><i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: large;">BOOK DESCRIPTION <span style="font-size: xx-small;">FROM GOODREADS</span></span></i></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>"The city of Isca is set like a dark jewel in the crown of the Duchy of Stonehold. In this sprawling landscape, the monsters one sees are nothing compared to what’s living in the city’s sewers.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>Twenty-three-year-old Caliph Howl is Stonehold’s reluctant High King. Thrust onto the throne, Caliph has inherited Stonehold’s dirtiest court secrets. He also faces a brewing civil war that he is unprepared to fight. After months alone amid a swirl of gossip and political machinations, the sudden reappearance of his old lover, Sena, is a welcome bit of relief. But Sena has her own legacy to claim: she has been trained from birth by the Shradnae witchocracy—adept in espionage and the art of magical equations writ in blood—and she has been sent to spy on the High King.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>Yet there are magics that demand a higher price than blood. Sena secretly plots to unlock the Cisrym Ta, an arcane text whose pages contain the power to destroy worlds. The key to opening the book lies in Caliph’s veins, forcing Sena to decide if her obsession for power is greater than her love for Caliph. </i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>Meanwhile, a fleet of airships creeps ever closer to Isca. As the final battle in a devastating civil war looms and the last page of the Cisrym Ta waits to be read, Caliph and Sena must face the deadly consequences of their decisions. And the blood of these conflicts will stain this and other worlds forever."</i></span></blockquote><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I wanted to start this review off by saying that I feel somewhat ashamed that I do at times... cringe... judge a book by it's cover. But, I gotta say that the Art Department at TOR hit this one out of the park. I just love that BAM of blue and smokey eye set with glyphs of magic... I want them. I don't care what I have to do... I want them. Wonders auspiciously if I can get a full poster of this cover to hang on my wall to just look at... wishfully thinking.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The synopsis for this book left my mouth watering. An age old book, holding secrets of a forgotten, inaccessible magic. Even more intriguing is that the books lock can only be opened with a recipe of blood and love. The novel focuses mainly on two character POV's and this was great for me because as the novel progressed I kept having ping-pong like battles in my head about which character I liked more. Wait, who am I kidding? The dice roll, this scenario comes up and, I am going to take the witch every time. I am really glad that Sena ended up having a major role in this book as I may have gotten tired of Caliph Howl. But, to be fair he had his strong points as well. After Caliph and Sena have left the High College the book took on this shroud of gloom over Caliph's head that did not let up the whole book and that was what kept his character interesting for me (sad I know). Was I actually going to read about a seemingly good guy being shoved into a position of power (that he did not want) and forced to go into civil war to keep his country and people free of a government run by a high council in lieu of a king? I guess I was. And I loved it to boot! Sena's scenes took the cake for me though. We got to see a little more of her background, her training, the </span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Shradnae witchocracy who play just as important a role in the politics as any other peoples in the novel. And who doesn't love a witch who is trained in the high art of.... well, your just going to have to read and find out!</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">I talk about prose a LOT in my reviews. This is not something new to me. When I was a lot younger I did not pay attention to it as much. It was, read for the adventure and the places a book took my imagination. Then over the years, that and other things started taking second string to the words and construction of sentences of a book. I can certainly still read for the story elements and plot points and character development but now, I really know I am going to love a book when in the first chapter or so it is palpable that an author has taken his time with the words he or she writes. When words effect you in a way that they almost seem tangible. Take for instance this first quote I picked out of the The Last Page, </span><br />
<div><blockquote>"<i>Numbers became symbols. Symbols compiled words. "Language shapes reality," said the philosophers and linguists. So the maths of the Unknown Tongue deconstruct reality; form new realities-whatever realities the mathematician desires. "In reality," claimed the holomorphs of Desdae, "there is none."</i></blockquote><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Wow... I think I may have read that sentence five times before I moved on. They may not be significant to the story or they may. They may not catch anyone else reading the book. But to me, they inspire. They make me smile and think happy thoughts. This is what reading does for me and this is why I will try to bury myself in books. Compelling as this may be for me, it may turn others away. The word usage in this book gets a little complex and it helps to read from a Kindle that has a built in dictionary where all I have to do is highlight the word and it can tell me the meaning in a second.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Anyway... On with the rest of the review. Another thing that made this book stand out for me is that it's a veritable garden salad mix of genre's that has something for everyone in it. I like books that are not willing to be pigeon holed into one specific boundary of genre. This book has equal parts fantasy, magic, industrial steam-punk, military (zeppelin dog-fights), and bold enough for the men to carry swords! Fan-freakin'tastic if you ask me! And... And... And... On top of all that we get monsters!!! Sorry, brief slip on monster drool overflow.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">This book does have a second part coming out called "Black Bottle" and I am REALLY excited about its release. The unknown untold meaning of the elusive title "The Last Page" provides me with enough mystery to keep reading and with a strong desire to find out what is in store for these characters that I have grown to care about. Thank-you Anthony Huso for this great story. Keep up the good work and good luck in all future endeavors.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">My Song for Caliph and Sena...</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/rYEDA3JcQqw?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div></div><blockquote></blockquote>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-80924297671310913202011-07-15T05:02:00.000-07:002011-07-15T05:02:07.010-07:00Review of Low Town by Daniel Polansky<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Bo7lexsQUsY/Tgpk96ns3dI/AAAAAAAAAIA/YkxZUsf4atk/s1600/low_town.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Bo7lexsQUsY/Tgpk96ns3dI/AAAAAAAAAIA/YkxZUsf4atk/s320/low_town.jpg" width="211" /></a></div><br />
<blockquote><i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>BOOK DESCRIPTION <span style="font-size: xx-small;">FROM GOODREADS</span></b></span></i><br />
<i>Drug dealers, hustlers, brothels, dirty politics, corrupt cops . . . and sorcery. Welcome to Low Town.<br />
In the forgotten back alleys and flophouses that lie in the shadows of Rigus, the finest city of the Thirteen Lands, you will find Low Town. It is an ugly place, and its champion is an ugly man. Disgraced intelligence agent. Forgotten war hero. Independent drug dealer. After a fall from grace five years ago, a man known as the Warden leads a life of crime, addicted to cheap violence and expensive drugs. Every day is a constant hustle to find new customers and protect his turf from low-life competition like Tancred the Harelip and Ling Chi, the enigmatic crime lord of the heathens. <br />
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The Warden’s life of drugged iniquity is shaken by his discovery of a murdered child down a dead-end street . . . setting him on a collision course with the life he left behind. As a former agent with Black House—the secret police—he knows better than anyone that murder in Low Town is an everyday thing, the kind of crime that doesn’t get investigated. To protect his home, he will take part in a dangerous game of deception between underworld bosses and the psychotic head of Black House, but the truth is far darker than he imagines. In Low Town, no one can be trusted. <br />
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Daniel Polansky has crafted a thrilling novel steeped in noir sensibilities and relentless action, and set in an original world of stunning imagination, leading to a gut-wrenching, unforeseeable conclusion. Low Town is an attention-grabbing debut that will leave readers riveted . . . and hungry for more.</i></blockquote> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Extra props to the good people at Double Day Publishing for sending me an early arc of this upcoming novel to be published August 16th. After reading the premise of this one on another bloggers site, I was enticed by the brief but descriptive look into the workings of this city and the man who I would be following. That first sentence was what hooked me actually, "<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><i>Drug dealers, hustlers, brothels, dirty politics, corrupt cops . . . and sorcery. Welcome to Low Town.". </i></span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">If ever givin' the chance to meet the author I invision some cheap version of that scene in Jerry McGuire with the coined phrase changed to something like, "You had me at drug dealers and magic." With such a vivid attention to the detail of the city that this novel takes place, it was just really easy to hop from scene to scene and put it together in my head. This one crosses a bunch of different genre boundaries but did it in a real fluid way and that will appeal to someone looking for something new and different. I guess what appealed to me the most was the noir, pulp fiction, crime sort of feel to it. I have been a huge fan of both Sin City (Frank Miller) If you haven't already done so... Read immediately and The WHOLE of the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher that just keep getting better and this one falls in there somewhere. In my humble opinion the writing of Low Town stands out just as well as those and more. It was a real effort on my part not to devour this one in one sitting. If I can add one thing I didn't like, it's that the pacing of the overall novel felt great and kept me turning the pages. Then I got to the end and it just felt like it came together too fast, then ended.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">T</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">he man, AKA The Warden, did not let me down. I really got into the whole "Anti-hero" thing on this one. And the author did a great job setting this up throughout the whole novel. Feeding readers pieces of his past that make you think, this guy has just been in the wrong place at the wrong time. And more over the sense that the government, city and people he grew into protecting and fighting for would no doubt roll him over and stick it to him the first chance they got. And they did. This is a guy that was a war vet and a die-hard type police investigator that just got fed up with the bureaucratic bullshit and decided that he could make a better living on and doing things his way. On his own for about five years, peddling Pixies Breath (a designer drug with a name alone that would probably have me trying some) and dreamvine a free based drug that sounds like when freebased would give aurora borealis a run for best smoke and light show. Having done this business for a while you know our Warden knows the city and it's inhabitants pretty well like the back of his hand actually. Not to mention this is where he grew up, on the streets, fending for himself, doing what he had to to survive. The one thing that I really like and stuck out to me on several occasions is that our main character, although turned to a life of crime and drug addled the for the better part of the novel, was an extremely intelligent individual. I guess I can say that went a long way for me to like his character and give people something to think about when they see people on the street and decide they have them pegged for who they really are just by a quick glance.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Along with the Warden, we get to look at a slew of other characters that help bring this whole thing into fruition better than your Grandma's stew. Amoung my favorites would be Ling Chi, Mesieke, and the Madam Dark Eyes. The dialogue between the characters is full of wit and banter that I just can't get enough of and at times, I could even call it flawless. Especially, conversations between Ling Chi and the Warden. For some reason this type of refined speech has always made me giddy and excited for more. Can people actually learn to talk like that and have extended conversations? If so, I need to find someone willing to take me on as an apprentice!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Understanding fully that this review is FULL of holes, I really do hope that I have peaked someones interest in picking this one up when it comes out. It has a lot to offer with fresh ideas and great characters. I am fairly certain that we have not seen the last of Daniel Polansky and his cast of Low Town and I for one am eagerly awaiting what is in store next. Thanks Daniel for a great story that kept me guessing up to the very end.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">4/5</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Song I thought about for in my review...</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://0.gvt0.com/vi/9s0zd_SvsZQ/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/9s0zd_SvsZQ&fs=1&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/9s0zd_SvsZQ&fs=1&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed></object></div>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-70038547983546914942011-06-13T17:17:00.000-07:002011-06-13T17:19:30.385-07:00Review of The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<i><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>BOOK DESCRIPTION <span style="font-size: xx-small;">FROM GOODREADS</span></b></span></span></i></blockquote>
<blockquote style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<i><span id="freeText9465642542767892918">Yeine Darr is an outcast
from the barbarian north. But when her mother dies under mysterious
circumstances, she is summoned to the majestic city of Sky. There, to
her shock, Yeine is named an heiress to the king. But the throne of the
Hundred Thousand Kingdoms is not easily won, and Yeine is thrust into a
vicious power struggle with cousins she never knew she had. As she
fights for her life, she draws ever closer to the secrets of her
mother's death and her family's bloody history.With the fate of the
world hanging in the balance, Yeine will learn how perilous it can be
when love and hate - and gods and mortals - are bound inseparably
together.</span></i></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Right from start of The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms I was hooked on finding out the fate of our young protagonist, Yeine Darr. With the recent death of her Mother she thought she knew entirely, she travels to Sky where she quickly learns that she doesn't even know half the issues, secrets, lies, games and whatever other skeletons her family hides. A quote from Cersei Lannister can sum it up the best, "In the game of thrones, you either win or you die." And that my friends is exactly what our young Yeine is up against. Understanding, that it probably was more fluff than necessary, I was kinda hoping to dig a little deeper into the back story of Yeine. Don't get me wrong, I don't think this took away from the story in any way shape or form. Being the character driven reader that I am, I was just curious at the peaks into her history that we did get and it left me wanting a little more, that's all.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">This book was a great change of pace for me in the fantasy worlds that I have been navigating lately. When Yeine is thrown head first into the raunchy politics of recently becoming an heiress to the throne of the Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, she has to act quickly and strategically to outwit what seems to be everybody else in the immediate Kingdom. A place where nothing goes unnoticed the odds are not stacked well in her favor. Especially, when put up against her cousins Scimina and Relad, the leading two candidates in the running for the throne. Oh, man, Scimina... How do I loathe thee? Let me count the ways... And to that same regard, I can only imagine the kind of justice for such behavior in the hands of a god. Man, I wish I were a fly on the wall for everything in store for her.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">It has to be said that Nahadoth is my favorite character of this story. Saying that he is a god just doesn't give him the credit that the complexity of his nature demands. The descriptions our wonderful author gives us of the Nightlord is in a word, remarkable. I love it when characters like Naha are so fleshed out you can close your eyes and see them standing right in front of you. It has to be said that this is not the only character that Ms. Jemisin does this with. All the main characters of the story have this and the story works so well around them.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Musical interlude not really related to the review but put in just because I was thinking of it and well, I can:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">The Universe that Ms. Jemisin has created for us, honestly is unlike any setting that I have read about in a very long time. The idea that gods and godlings walk and breath and communicate right along side humans was absolutely fascinating to me. What takes this idea even further is that these gods are enslaved to the humans. Using their power to bend the universe to our will. Over the course of the novel you find out just how this all happened and it is a history lesson that I would have been glad to sit through back in the day. This world is highly imaginative and is a great setup for future books in this series. And with the gods right there at each turn, I am super excited to pick up the next novel <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Broken-Kingdoms-Inheritance-Trilogy/dp/0316043966/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1307989798&sr=1-1">The Broken Kingdoms</a>. It is no wonder that the city in which this story takes place is called Sky because it really is a breath of fresh air. Thank-you so much Ms. Jemisin for a look into the depths of your imagination. And what a great world you have created for me to escape to. I have never been a student of language, but this story hooked me with great characters and great writing. And as it progressed the prose got better and better. Does the story develop the writing or does the writing develop the story? I don't even know if that question makes sense... But this is some awesome story telling magic.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">4.5/5</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">. </span><br />
<br />Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-81957828885463962812011-05-30T07:06:00.000-07:002011-05-30T07:47:34.232-07:00Review of Black Halo (Aeons Gate book 2) by Sam Sykes<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<blockquote>
<i><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>BOOK DESCRIPTION <span style="font-size: xx-small;">FROM GOODREADS</span></b></span></span></i></blockquote>
<blockquote>
<i><span id="freeTextContainer9641573330402971586">Lenk and his companions
set sail to bring the relic away from the reach of Ulbecetonth, the
Kraken Queen. Haunted by their pasts, plagued by their gods, tormented
by their own people and gripped by madness, their greatest foes may be
themselves.</span></i></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">When I finished Tome of the Undergates (book 1), I was astonished to say the least. I thought that I was on an actual 3D adventure in Disney Studio's in some Pirates of the Caribbeanesque' type ride. Point being, I wanted more, I needed to find out where this adventure would take me next. Being that Tome of the Undergates was Sam Sykes first novel, and such a great one, there was some apprehension about how Black Halo was going to turn out. Well, ladies and gentlemen, You can all relax because Mr. Sykes has done it again. In the words of Randy Jackson, "Sam Sykes is in it to win it!"</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">While the majority of book one takes place on a ship, the atmosphere among other things switches to an island after a brief but exciting introduction to an enormous sea creature. Said creature proves to not be of the soft cuddly variety. Gariath (our highly esteemed Dragonman) who is dealing with some mild depression with a strong case of suicidal tendencies thrown in thinks he can take this creature on by himself. This does not end well.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The next thing we know is our lovely band of miscreants are strewn about an island of unknown origin. Lenk, Kataria, and the Dragonman are separated from each other and the other three. It was at this point that I started to really wonder where the author was going with all this and I really started to worry about the the arc of the story <i><b>Coming Undone</b></i>.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Brief musical interlude 100% relevant to the story:</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> Awesome... Love that song. Anyway... I thought that this is where the story was going to take a turn for the worse. So, don't let this throw you off like it did me. Sykes opens the characterization flood gates and smacks you in the face with it like it was yesterday's tuna. I mean seriously, you get a whole new grasp on each of the characters through all this. You can get a more in depth look into someone and gain a certain understanding of a person when they are left to their own devices. More so than through countless pages of dialogue. This combined with a prose that just lifts you out of your seat will surely take your level of emotion for these characters up a couple notches. It's in the beautiful articulation of how these sentences are put together that you can see how our young author is growing and expanding. While Tome of the Undergates had some really great writing, you can just tell that more care was paid to these words so there shape was oh so more fluid. As a reader it is a great thing to look at a string of sentences and want to go back and read them over, say them out loud so that you can hear how they sound. This happens a lot more in this release and it is much better for it.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>"Poets, she had suspected, were supposed to have beautiful dreams: silhouettes of women behind silk, visions of gold that blinded their closed eyes, images of fires so bright they should take the poet's breath away before she could put them to paper"</i></span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">And that is just a glimpse of it...</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The tension, in so many ways that you would not think possible, between Lenk and Kataria is growing into an animal force all of its own. I mean, no wonder the guy is going insane. And yet again, our highly imaginative, and deeply cruel in his suggestive tones author is not letting that cat out of it's bag or proverbial box yet. This relationship gives all new meaning to flirting with disaster and I love it! I need to know and I can't wait to find out more!! </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">To add to the onslaught of madness that is continually shaping our characters, we go a little more deeper into the ways of the Netherlings, the long-faced purple people that attacked our band at Irontide in the first novel. We are introduced to a few characters on this side that create a whole mess of turmoil for Lenk and his crew. Also, the introduction of a couple other races of people, the Gonwa and Owauku who at first glance seem to be working together for a common goal are probably under different agendas entirely. Another great addition to the story is that of Bralston, a highly powerful and mysterious character, schooled rigorously at the Venarium, he is a Librarian. A term we will learn that is to not be taken lightly. The shear intrigue of this character leaves you wanting to know more and I certainly hope that he is developed even further in the next novel.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">At 26 years old Sam Sykes is a new powerful voice to be reckoned with in the hack and slash rag tag arena of sword and sorcery fantasy. Action packed and quest driven, Black Halo is an outstanding sequel in the The Aeons Gate Trilogy. Next up in the series is The Skybound Sea and I cannot wait to get it in my hands. Thanks Sam for another great installation to The Aeons Gate. Special thanks to the people of PYR for a copy of this book for me to provide a review that will hopefully bring more people to know yet another great author.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">5/5 </span></span>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-77829231010442123212011-05-09T05:51:00.000-07:002011-05-09T05:51:36.305-07:00Review of If I Stay by Gayle Forman<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kvj_Sg7ijQo/TcbA02CamEI/AAAAAAAAAGw/pA5zDtZK554/s1600/If+I+Stay+by+Gayle+Forman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kvj_Sg7ijQo/TcbA02CamEI/AAAAAAAAAGw/pA5zDtZK554/s320/If+I+Stay+by+Gayle+Forman.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><blockquote><i><b><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">BOOK DESCRIPTION <span style="font-size: xx-small;">FROM GOODREADS</span></span></span></b></i></blockquote><blockquote><div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>In a single moment, <i>everything</i> changes. Seventeen-year-old Mia has no memory of the accident; she can only recall riding along the snow-wet Oregon road with her family. Then, in a blink, she finds herself watching as her own damaged body is taken from the wreck...</i></div><div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>A sophisticated, layered, and heartachingly beautiful story about the power of family and friends, the choices we all make—and the ultimate choice Mia commands.</i></div></blockquote><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is the fabulous short novel of a girl named Mia. Within the first couple pages of the book we get a very brief description of what Mia's life is like. Her family, the rock & roll parents that have ever so slowly fell into the laid back lifestyle of parenthood that we all secretly wished we had to grow up around. The 10 year difference in age little brother that she has named Teddy. Her quintessential best friend Kim. And her emo-core / punk rock boyfriend Adam. These characters at the beginning of the novel are set up like chess pieces waiting to be played a little later on in the game.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The back drop for the story is a seemingly small town in Oregon. The kind of small town that gets a little crazy about a half an inch of snow and a drizzle of freezing rain. It is a day such as this that Mia and her brother have a day off school and their parents decide that it would be a good day to take a drive to the mall for some shopping and later dinner with the Grandparents. The next thing you know is that Mia is standing outside of the vehicle casting her gaze upon a catastrophic car accident. Mia discovers that she has not come out of this completely unscathed. She finds her body just as ambulances arrive on seen. These few moments of story go by breathtakingly fast and it is the perfect opening to a novel to suck you into the rest of the story. This begins the journey of a 17 year old girl and the very real decision that she needs to face. Does she stay or does she go. This was the question I asked myself probably a hundred times in the course of the few (too few) hours that I was reading this. While in the ICU of the hospital, Mia, is a bystander. She sees the doctors and nurses all frantically rushing around to see to all the damage that has been done to her. Throughout this time Mia's memory flashes back to different portions of her life. These little glimpses into her past are the glue that hold this story together. They mold what kind of person Mia is and the environment that she grew up in. This all made me feel a sort of knowing about Mia that had me pulling for to come out of this just as if I was her family waiting on the sidelines at the hospital. Another thing that I wanted to point out in this review is Mia's love for classical music. Opposed to her parents love for rock and roll and guitar strumming and drum banging music, Mia, at a very young age took an interest in playing the cello. This adds various kinds of interesting aspects to her story that continued to pull me along and keep reading. I got the impression that Mia's life before the accident was picture perfect. Of course she had her share of teenage angst but, the novel did not reveal any other huge stumbling blocks. This idea that her life was so seamlessly perfect is well played, and it is the main reason (I believe) that had her so conflicted about her decision to stay. How was she suppose to live when her family, the people she loved and cared about the most, were no longer going to be with her.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Thanks to the wonderful technological advances we have with such devices as the Kindle. I found out directly after the acknowledgements of the book that there was a sequel to this wonderful story. It is really a good thing too, because I wanted more due to the startling ending this book has. In fact, if this story did not have a sequel, I probably would have still loved it but, I would have been left to draw my own conclusions, and that doesn't usually sit well with me. Even though there is a continuation... This story will be with me for a long time. Thank-you Ms. Forman for an awesome, heart felt, emotional at times, story that has brought back thoughts to my mind that family and friends can make all the difference when you start to lose sight of hope. I Can't wait to check out <span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Where-She-Went-Gayle-Forman/dp/0525422943?ie=UTF8&tag=writi052-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Where She Went</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=writi052-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0525422943" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px !important; padding-left: 0px !important; padding-right: 0px !important; padding-top: 0px !important;" width="1" /></span>.</span><br />
<blockquote></blockquote>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-14910129907821529072011-05-01T11:29:00.000-07:002011-05-01T11:40:53.165-07:00Review of The Magicians by Lev Grossman<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ytj2VQM1Lp0/Tb12EkQWRvI/AAAAAAAAAGM/ZJSf3E4wQr4/s1600/the-magicians-by-lev-grossman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ytj2VQM1Lp0/Tb12EkQWRvI/AAAAAAAAAGM/ZJSf3E4wQr4/s320/the-magicians-by-lev-grossman.jpg" width="209" /></a></div><blockquote><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i><b>BOOK DESCRIPTION <span style="font-size: xx-small;">FROM AUTHORS WEBSITE</span></b></i></span></span></blockquote><blockquote> <i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Quentin Coldwater is brilliant but miserable. He’s a senior in high school, and a certifiable genius, but he’s still secretly obsessed with a series of fantasy novels he read as a kid, about the adventures of five children in a magical land called Fillory. Compared to that, anything in his real life just seems gray and colorless.</span></i><br />
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>Everything changes when Quentin finds himself unexpectedly admitted to a very secret, very exclusive college of magic in upstate New York, where he receives a thorough and rigorous education in the practice of modern sorcery. He also discovers all the other things people learn in college: friendship, love, sex, booze, and boredom. But something is still missing. Magic doesn’t bring Quentin the happiness and adventure he thought it would.</i></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>Then after graduation he and his friends make a stunning discovery: Fillory is real.</i></div></blockquote><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I want to start this review off with a blurb by George R.R. Martin:</span></span><br />
<blockquote style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>“These days any novel about young sorcerers at wizard school inevitably invites comparison to Harry Potter. Lev Grossman meets the challenge head on… and very successfully. <i>The Magicians</i> is to Harry Potter as a shot of Irish whiskey is to a glass of weak tea. Solidly rooted in the traditions of both fantasy and mainstream literary fiction, the novel tips its hat to Oz and Narnia as well to Harry, but don’t mistake this for a children’s book. Grossman’s sensibilities are thoroughly adult, his narrative dark and dangerous and full of twists. Hogwart’s was never like this.”</i></blockquote><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The above statement by a highly regarded author (in my humble opinion) in the fantasy genre is exactly what I was feeling when I was finished with this book. As the story progressed, I kept thinking about how I was going to review this novel without a nod and tip of the hat to Harry. I mean how is one fun loving book reviewer of the fantasy and speculative fiction world suppose to imagine a world without Harry Potter and his friends in it? It is not possible. Dan, a friend of mine on Goodreads pointed out in his review of the book that the similarities between them are purely superficial. Wizard... School... That is really where the similarities end. Mr. Martin has said it best, this is no Hogwarts.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Quentin Coldwater is a is a highly educated and fantastic character, but in a lot of ways he is severely flawed. Prior to his admittance into Brackebills, a highly secretive and exclusive school of magic and wizardry, his life is portrayed as semi-normal. He definitely isn't just your average teen graduating high school mind you because of his seemingly easy breeze through a public education then has him seeking out studies in an Ivy league school. This and a few other things give you the opinion that Quentin is grade A book smart and I found this aspect of him thoroughly interesting. The relationship with James and Julia at the beginning of the story adds another interesting element into the chemistry of Quentin's complex brain. These are Quentin's closest friends but there is a deep rooted underlying love that he feels for Julia that makes this friendship somewhat tedious and taxing on him. Growing up Quentin was hopelessly fond of the imaginary world of Fillory and Further, a series of novels reminiscent of The Chronicles of Narnia. And unlike a lot of other children who grew up reading such things, these novels stayed with Quentin and were still thought about through high school. So imagine his surprise while on his way from a particularly bizarre interview to Yale University he is sidetracked and mysteriously led through a passage to a school for magically gifted students. The whole interview process into Brakebills is probably what sucked me into the story so invigoratingly and then furthered through his matriculation there had me turning the pages with eagerness. Along with the totally inviting magic that is going on, Quentin is slowly growing an inevitable intimate relationship with his fellow classmate Alice. From the time we meet Alice, we can tell that there is something special about her. She is an astute student whose hard work does not go unnoticed. It is not long before her, Quentin and another fast learning student named Penny (a guy that I learned to hate throughout the entire novel) are asked to test out of the first year and jump right in with the second year students. It should not go unsaid that Quentin does develop other relationships while in his first few years at Brakebills but those were not as outstanding aspects of novel to me as others. For example, his friend Eliot plays a pretty substantial part in the story but he was not all that intriguing to me. I can even say that it is Eliot who walks Quentin down the fine line of life on the edge, so to speak. But it just wasn't the heart of the story to me. In his fifth year at the University, the novel again took off for me. The whole adventure Quentin and his classmates take to Antarctica to further their studies with the grandly interesting Professor Mayakovsky. I really wish there could be a whole novel based souly on his character. As things are, this is not the case and we only get a drivel into how he came to be professor at the totally secluded school in the antarctic. Where was I.... Oh yeah, this whole trek and stay at Brakebills Antarctica was just a great part of the story to me. From the way they arrived there, to the various look into the way they were taught and the rigorous amount of knowledge that was essentially force fed to them, and finally the final exam at the end had me breathless and wanting more.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">It is not long after this we arrive at the second part of the story where Quentin and I both fell off the wagon, literally. Quentin's downward spiral into a bleak existence post Brakebills had me right there with him. This actually had me struggling to pick up the novel and read further because I knew that his path was not going to lead to total fantasy based happiness. As I suspected, it did not. Even though, I was preparing myself for the result of his behavior, I don't think it was enough for the scene with Quentin walking up the stairs of there newly acquired place in upstate New York. After all his shenanigans I should have seen it more clearly. It was really more than I could handle... I literally broke down right there with him. But I trudged on and the story does really pick up after that, although it left an ominous cloud over me that I don't really know that I fully got over until The Momentous Event near the end of the story and Alice's fate is ultimately decided. Now that it is assured there will be a part two to this great story, I am banking on this not being the last we see of the lovely Alice.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Quentin's try of a return to normalcy at the very end of the novel just rounds his character out full circle to me. It goes to show you that once you enter certain doors and they are closed behind you. There is no going back, only forward.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I am so excited for the next novel and Quentin's inevitable return to the world of Fillory. It will be a reunion that I will gladly have with all the wonderful characters and great facets of Lev Grossman's intelligent writing. Mr. Grossman, how I would love to sit and pick your brain about the upcoming story and what I have read so far. You've really got a hold of the making of a great story. Thank-you for a look into the imagination that you are so extravagantly unveiling to us. </span></span>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-62975422621881504422011-04-27T11:58:00.000-07:002011-05-01T12:04:01.971-07:00Review of Bitter Seeds by Ian Tregillis<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WvLU0R1BE0o/Tb2tkgOempI/AAAAAAAAAGY/HIBaOAo4fAM/s1600/Bitter+Seeds.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WvLU0R1BE0o/Tb2tkgOempI/AAAAAAAAAGY/HIBaOAo4fAM/s320/Bitter+Seeds.jpg" width="210" /></a></div><blockquote><i><b><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">BOOK DESCRIPTION <span style="font-size: xx-small;">FROM GOODREADS</span></span></span></b></i></blockquote><blockquote style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i><span id="freeText15825587376419858343">It’s 1939. The Nazis have supermen, the British have demons, and one perfectly normal man gets caught in between<br />
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Raybould Marsh is a British secret agent in the early days of the Second World War, haunted by something strange he saw on a mission during the Spanish Civil War: a German woman with wires going into her head who looked at him as if she knew him.<br />
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When the Nazis start running missions with people who have unnatural abilities—a woman who can turn invisible, a man who can walk through walls, and the woman Marsh saw in Spain who can use her knowledge of the future to twist the present—Marsh is the man who has to face them. He rallies the secret warlocks of Britain to hold the impending invasion at bay. But magic always exacts a price. Eventually, the sacrifice necessary to defeat the enemy will be as terrible as outright loss would be.<br />
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Alan Furst meets Alan Moore in the opening of an epic of supernatural alternate history, the tale of a twentieth century like ours and also profoundly different.</span></i></blockquote><span class="readable reviewText" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span id="freeTextreview100263415">Right out of the box I have to say that if you follow this author's blog you will know why I am and always am going to be a reader and not a writer. True, I only know what Ian has been gracious enough to put on his blog for all his fans to follow but, it really sounds to me like he is getting the shaft left and right when it comes to getting his books published. To his credit though he posts about all his dealings with the entire process which leads me to believe that along with his own struggle with writing AND working a full time job, that he is genuinly aware that there are people out there that have read and loved his books and are wondering where the next in the series is. Well, I am not going to go into a full rant just know that I think problems like this are just hogwash! <br />
Now for the review... Bitter Seeds is a solid, fast paced, part historical fiction, part speculative fiction/fantasy debut novel. I have never been a huge, huge fan of history so out of the countless books out there plotted around WWII I have not read many. But this was a really great read for me as the opposing sides had warlocks and technologically advanced superhumans. To me it seemed like the Nazis had the upper hand for the majority of this portion of the story and it exacted to me just how ruthless and out of control they were. The literary prose in this book is absolutely spectacular. In fact this is the first line in the book and to me it speaks volumnes about the style and quality of writing that you are in for: "Murder on the wind: crows and ravens wheeled beneath a heavy sky, like spots of ink splashed across a leaden canvas." The book in a lot of ways is very character driven and that was appealing to me as well. Even though I have a real distaste for the methods of the S.S. military I found myself relating to the characters on that side. Getting a brief introduction when some of these key people were in there youth went a long way with me. Even on the British Royal Navy side of the war with Marsh and Will we got to see just how far people would go when desparation and loss really sinks in and takes control of you. And although she was more spoken about than anything, Gretal, I think was the real star of the show. I really hope in the upcoming parts she plays a bigger role in all the action. It is really eating at me to find out what exactly the Eidolan's have in their plot for the soul they weasled out of Will. And is Agnes REEEALLY gone? Don't know... It's a mystery that will keep me pining for the rest of the series. As always, Thank-you Mr. Tregillis for a great debut novel. May all your publishing woes vanish from the success and praise of this first novel. </span></span>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-78741797798364516002011-04-16T04:55:00.000-07:002011-04-16T13:02:01.495-07:00Review of Tome of the Undergates by Sam Sykes<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PCBoyw5aIqk/TamJGSPJbxI/AAAAAAAAAEA/ooLcc5YMVrM/s1600/tome-of-the-undergates-by-sam-sykes.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 212px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PCBoyw5aIqk/TamJGSPJbxI/AAAAAAAAAEA/ooLcc5YMVrM/s320/tome-of-the-undergates-by-sam-sykes.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5596154753052143378" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;"><blockquote></blockquote></span><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span><blockquote style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">BOOK DESCRIPTION </span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:78%;" >FROM AMAZON<br /><br /></span>The debut novel from an extraordinarily talented twenty-five-year-old author. Fantasy's next global star has arrived. Lenk can barely keep control of his mismatched adventurer band at the best of times (Gariath the dragon man sees humans as little more than prey, Kataria the Shict despises most humans, and the humans in the band are little better). When they're not insulting each other's religions they're arguing about pay and conditions. So when the ship they are travelling on is attacked by pirates things don't go very well. They go a whole lot worse when an invincible demon joins the fray. The demon steals the Tome of the Undergates - a manuscript that contains all you need to open the undergates. And whichever god you believe in you don't want the undergates open. On the other side are countless more invincible demons, the manifestation of all the evil of the gods, and they want out. Full of razor-sharp wit, characters who leap off the page (and into trouble) and plunging the reader into a vivid world of adventure this is a fantasy that kicks off a series that could dominate the second decade of the century. Right off the bat, I gotta say this book was just frickin' awesome. AND... I need the next one as soon as possible. The thing that made this a really enjoyable read (by far not even the best part of the book) was simply the dialogue between this mishap band of adventurers. And when I say mishap, I mean that Sykes started his story off with five adventurers that could not possibly be any more different in their personalities. So much so that their conversations with one another are filled to the brim with so much sarcasm, hostility at times and witty dry humor that you can't hide the smiles and sudden bursts of laughter at what they are saying.</blockquote>Lenk, the young, slight of build, silver haired human of the bunch is the leader of the band. His part in the start of this series doesn't dominate the script but, you can definitely tell that the story is centered around him. He faces tough decisions throughout the book that make me cringe and the majority of the time he is just in the wrong place at the wrong time or maybe the right place at the right time to take the position of the leader. His right as the leader may only be held onto the simple fact that he keeps his cohorts from killing one another. By the end of the novel though, as Lenk is starting to lose his grip on sanity, one wonders if he himself might not just start taking out his companions. The unknown conscience inside Lenk's head that is more and more present at the end is enough to keep me reading. My inquisitiveness has to know why this is happening to him and what is causing it. That is not to say that I think we have not already gotten some clues from the conversation he has on the ship ride home but, I still need to to know the nature of this thing that seems to be plaguing him. Which leads me to the next favorite character of the story, Kataria.<br /><br /> Kataria is a Shict. A race of people that are named after the sound of an arrow hitting it's target. How freakin' cool is that, right? She is of lean muscle and sinew. Her ears are long and pointed above her head and she hears a great deal. Also, her eyes are large and emerald of color. Her people were sought out to be destroyed by humans and she carries a hate for them that at times seems like a huge burden. Her relationship to Lenk is a strange one but almost instantly you see that there is going to be something more there. But will it actually happen? Who knows? I don't and, this is just another reason to keep me in the world of the Aeons' Gate. Their troublesome relationship really brought out the thought in my head that there really is a ever so fine line between love and hate. I don't know if this thing between the two of them can end well.<br /><br />Dreadaeleon or just Dread is the wizard of the band. A lanky thing and scared senseless most of the time boy has his own set of problems. It's like Harry Potter just graduated from Hogwarts and this is where he ended up. I really hope to see this one grow throughout the rest of the series. I think there is a lot of potential that this one shows, young padawan. Dread most definitely has a thing for Asper, although things could go awry there in a heartbeat. And what will become of him now that he has possession of the red stone? His most engaging quality to me (although not brought out a whole lot in this book) is his intelligence. I got the impression from the few parts of the story that talked about his studies at school that he is no slouch and most likely is mad smart. Yeah, most definitely interested in seeing were Sykes takes this character.<br /><br /> Asper is the healer of the bunch. Like a modern day traveling medic who is very religion conscious. A lot is revealed about Asper throughout the the book, most interestingly this curse that she cannot stand and also knows really nothing about. Here again this one aspect of her character is not really discussed a lot but, it is one of the things that is going to keep readers turning these pages to find out what in the heck is happening to her. What in the heck IS happening to her? Being a healer, she fights hard with herself to be warrior like any of the others that she travels with. I thought this was a great add to the people the story is centered around. It added just one more difference to them and kind of solidified in my mind that opposites attract and every piece has a place in the puzzle.<br /><br />Denaos, A rogue / assassin / specialized interrogation expert / well, I don't know what all else he is but, he may just be the most sane out of all of them. He reacts with the notion that his head is on straight anyway. In a lot of ways his character was elaborated on as much as the other five. This added a certain mystique to him that will hopefully be more fleshed out in upcoming installments.<br /><br />And finally Gariath... What can you say about Gariath? Gariath is a Dragonman. Supposedly the last of his kind. Gariath doesn't seem to like anyone and tells anyone that frequently. There just does not seem a gap anywhere in him that allows anyone in. But you get a pretty good look into how this came to be near the end of this volume. All in all Gariath turned out to be my most favorite of the bunch. He just doesn't care what anyone else thinks and sets out to do what he does best. He has respect for someone that can put up a good fight and more or less just tears down anything in his way. The fact that he is part dragon (tail and all) and part human is just icing on the cake.<br /><br />Well, there you have it. All in all this is a quest style fantasy novel with lovable aspects coming out the wazoo. But, at the heart of it, I kept reading for the characters. It is amazing how Sykes weaved together a plot that would keep this rag-tag bunch of misfits together throughout. There is so much more to the beginning of this series that I am not even covering here in this review. So many questions unanswered is why I will keep reading these books. You might not think it is possible to take some of the bleakest scenarios and add things into them that make them laugh out loud but Sam Sykes makes it happen. I applaud his great work here with Tome of the Undergates. And I look forward to the rest of this series. Thank-you Mr. Sykes for making an adventurer out of me through your story.<br /><br /><blockquote></blockquote>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-31900296482186056342011-04-05T16:08:00.000-07:002011-04-16T12:59:50.760-07:00Game of Thrones 15 min. Preview!I cannot wait for April 17th! If you have not watched it yet here is the 15 min. preview for the The Game of Thrones. If don't have HBO, get it. If you have not read A Song of Ice and Fire books 1-4, go get them and read them. I cannot say how epic this story is... You will just have to read it and find out.<br /><br /><iframe title="YouTube video player" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/fRZJpX4AdAM" allowfullscreen="" width="390" frameborder="0" height="390"></iframe>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-63683846229564721302011-03-13T15:37:00.000-07:002011-04-25T15:45:11.338-07:00Review of The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RKappyIXEcI/TbX4L_lMETI/AAAAAAAAAF8/4RR_neXhQ64/s1600/the-wise-mans-fear.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RKappyIXEcI/TbX4L_lMETI/AAAAAAAAAF8/4RR_neXhQ64/s320/the-wise-mans-fear.jpg" width="210" /></a></div><blockquote><i><b><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">BOOK DESCRIPTION <span style="font-size: xx-small;">FROM GOODREADS</span></span></span></b></i></blockquote><blockquote><i><span id="freeText9476834491804357841"><strong>Day Two: The Wise Man's Fear.</strong> <br />
"There are three things all wise men fear: the sea in storm, a night with no moon, and the anger of a gentle man." <br />
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An escalating rivalry with a powerful member of the nobility forces Kvothe to leave the University and seek his fortune abroad. Adrift, penniless, and alone, he travels to Vintas, where he quickly becomes entangled in the politics of courtly society. While attempting to curry favor with a powerful noble, Kvothe discovers an assassination attempt, comes into conflict with a rival arcanist, and leads a group of mercenaries into the wild, in an attempt to solve the mystery of who (or what) is waylaying travelers on the King's road. <br />
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All the while, Kvothe searches for answers, attempting to uncover the truth about the mysterious Amyr, the Chandrian, and the death of his parents. Along the way, Kvothe is put on trial by the legendary Adem mercenaries, forced to reclaim the honor of the Edema Ruh, and travels into the Fae realm. There he meets Felurian, the faerie woman no man can resist, and who no man has ever survived. Under her tutelage, Kvothe learns much about true magic and the ways of women. <br />
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In <em>The Wise Man's Fear</em> Kvothe takes his first steps on the path of the hero and learns how difficult life can be when a man becomes a legend in his own time.</span></i></blockquote>The words of Patrick Rothfuss will haunt you. They will invade your thoughts before you read, while you read and no doubt long after you have closed the book. Tell this story to a room filled with the world’s finest authors, minstrels, poets, actors and sideshow entertainers and they will laugh, they will shed tears, they will nod at the complexity, and they will weep that their own art looms in the shadows of the story they just heard. After The Name of the Wind (Day One [book 1] of the Kingkiller Chronicle) I was left awed and subdued by the mastery of this wonderful storytelling. In all honesty, I did not have any worries about how the continuation would turn out. Pat’s effort and resolve to take the necessary amount of time to put this epic tale together have definitely paid off. This story is long, dauntingly so. But the real horror I faced was that the end was coming faster and faster and thoughts of that in between reading were actually quite depressing. I felt like I was a ten year old kid who was just taken to Disneyworld for the first time and then told that I had to leave after only a few short hours of riding the best rides in the world. I am not even going to highlight my favorite parts of the book because I could in no way, shape or form do them the justice that they deserve. The whole book resonated within me like a new sun with my mind its closest planet. Twists and turns in the plot reverberated my thoughts back to me like only a set of ninety year old twins could finish each other’s sentences. Each scene is laid out perfectly and rich with detail. I loved it and that is really all that I can say. Except, Go out and read these books. Thank-you Patrick Rothfuss! I am deeply in your debt for the story that you shared with me. Godspeed.Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1859608027935876609.post-63560014529059301952011-03-03T14:30:00.000-08:002011-04-16T14:36:05.116-07:00Review of Impossible by Nancy Werlin<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-P0ByS2MUYnM/TaoLE_YrUHI/AAAAAAAAAEw/QKE85cNLt6k/s1600/impossible_book_final_pb.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-P0ByS2MUYnM/TaoLE_YrUHI/AAAAAAAAAEw/QKE85cNLt6k/s320/impossible_book_final_pb.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5596297667323580530" border="0" /></a><blockquote><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:130%;">BOOK DESCRIPTION <span style="font-size:78%;">FROM GOODREADS<br /></span></span></span></span><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:130%;" ><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size:100%;">"</span></span></span><span style="font-style: italic;" id="freeText16883993740117391346">Lucy has nine months to break an ancient curse in order to save both herself and her unborn daughter. <br /><br />Inspired by the ballad “Scarborough Fair,” this riveting novel combines suspense, fantasy, and romance for an intensely page-turning and masterfully original tale.<br /><br />Lucy is seventeen when she discovers that the women of her family have been cursed through the generations, forced to attempt three seemingly impossible tasks or to fall into madness upon their child’s birth. But Lucy is the first girl who won’t be alone as she tackles the list. She has her fiercely protective foster parents and her childhood friend Zach beside her. Do they have love and strength enough to overcome an age-old evil?"</span><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:78%;"><br /></span></span></span></span></blockquote> <span class="readable reviewText"> <span style="display: none;" id="freeTextContainerreview151846810">This is the first book of Nancy Werlin's that I have read and I must say that it was really, really well done. It's nice to see teenage characters actually using logic for once. I believe that Impossibles lead character Lucy Scarborough is great throughout the entire novel. It was great to see Lucy and Zach's relationship unfold as they were such great childhood friends. As many others have said in their own reviews the story that revolves around a curse in the lyrics of a song is just plain and<a class="actionLinkLite" href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6300287-impossible#">...more</a></span><span id="freeTextreview151846810" style="">This is the first book of Nancy Werlin's that I have read and I must say that it was really, really well done. It's nice to see teenage characters actually using logic for once. I believe that Impossibles lead character Lucy Scarborough is great throughout the entire novel. It was great to see Lucy and Zach's relationship unfold as they were such great childhood friends. As many others have said in their own reviews the story that revolves around a curse in the lyrics of a song is just plain and simple a great idea to keep people intrigued. Lucy has to go on a quest to quite literally keep her sanity and break the chain of torment that has plagued her family for so many generations. Thank-you Ms. Werlin for a great happy ending story that I was just in the mood for. I look forward to reading the other novels of yours that I have read many great things about.</span></span>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11466807967221859965noreply@blogger.com0