Book Blog #355: Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros

 

Title: Onyx Storm

Author: Rebecca Yarros

# of Pages: 527 (hardback)

Genre: Adult, Romance, Fantasy

Rating: ★★☆☆☆

Synopsis: After nearly eighteen months at Basgiath War College, Violet Sorrengail knows there’s no more time for lessons. No more time for uncertainty. Because the battle has truly begun, and with enemies closing in from outside their walls and within their ranks, it’s impossible to know who to trust. Now Violet must journey beyond the failing Aretian wards to seek allies from unfamiliar lands to stand with Navarre. The trip will test every bit of her wit, luck, and strength, but she will do anything to save what she loves—her dragons, her family, her home, and him. Even if it means keeping a secret so big, it could destroy everything. They need an army. They need power. They need magic. And they need the one thing only Violet can find—the truth. But a storm is coming...and not everyone can survive its wrath.

Review: Tell me your publisher is forcing you to write a 5 book series without telling me your publisher is forcing you to write a 5 book series.

All jokes aside, historically Yarros works are in the form of stand alone books or a 3 book series, so I can't help but think that someone saw dollar signs with the success of The Fourth Wing and force the monstrosity of Onyx Storm into existence. 

I started this back in February, so it was an over 5 month struggle to get through 527 only for the plot to BARELY progress. Yarros's editor really dropped the ball - if this book had to exist for $$$, at least help CUT OUT the fluff so fans aren't wasting hours of their time reading this nonsense. Save readers time, save some trees (for those of us who read physical copies), and all the while still lining the publisher's and author's pockets! What's not to love?

Violet and Xaden's relationship used to be addicting - the tension, the forbidden love, the whirlwind romance. But now I just want them to get a room; I don't need to have a more sex scenes that plot-important moments (if I wanted to read erotica, I would go read an erotica!). Yarros has seemingly already pulled all the stops to try to spice up their relationship, so we get some repeats - Xaden gets jealous, Violet's ex is in the picture, etc. It gets old, and I was not into it. 

Usually it's really boring for me to reread the recap/character reintroductions that authors intertwine into the latter books of a series, but this book really needed more of them. There's a lot of characters and only more get introduced in this one, so sometimes there would be a big reveal where someone surprising shows up, and I have no idea how I'm supposed to know them. 

The final nail in the coffin? First person POV switching. Not consistently nor as a one off in The Fourth Wing. At least 3 times randomly near the end with not a very good reason to do so, and without these characters having a distinct narrative. It should have been written in thirst person because the switching REALLY slowed me down even with my already slower-than-normal pace.

I would not recommend this book. At the moment, I'm resolved to not continue the series, but maybe I'll forget all the pain this book caused me by the time the next book comes out. 

Book Blog #350: Circe by Madeline Miller

 

Title: Circe

Author: Madeline Miller

# of Pages: 407 (ebook)

Genre: Adult, Fantasy

Rating: ★★★☆☆

Synopsis: In the house of Helios, god of the sun and mightiest of the Titans, a daughter is born. But Circe has neither the look nor the voice of divinity, and is scorned and rejected by her kin. Increasingly isolated, she turns to mortals for companionship, leading her to discover a power forbidden to the gods: witchcraft. When love drives Circe to cast a dark spell, wrathful Zeus banishes her to the remote island of Aiaia. There she learns to harness her occult craft, drawing strength from nature. But she will not always be alone; many are destined to pass through Circe's place of exile, entwining their fates with hers. The messenger god, Hermes. The craftsman, Daedalus. A ship bearing a golden fleece. And wily Odysseus, on his epic voyage home. There is danger for a solitary woman in this world, and Circe's independence draws the wrath of men and gods alike. To protect what she holds dear, Circe must decide whether she belongs with the deities she is born from, or the mortals she has come to love.

Review: I'm going to have high expectations for any book that has high ratings (4+ star average) and has won a Goodreads Choice award. However, I'm really struggling to understand the hype.

I can appreciate how Miller took a lesser known goddess from Greek mythology (Circe) and built out her story to highlight the roles she played in many famous Greek myths (think Odysseus and the Underworld, the Minotaur, the Golden Fleece). It's giving the same empowering-hidden-women-in-history vibes that I got from Hamilton (and is a common theme in many modern historical re-tellings). This concept, while not entirely original, was one of first popular Greek mythology re-telling I've seen since Percy Jackson.

However, this book is just okay. I had no idea who Circe when I started this book, and I had no idea where her story was going. Since she is immortal, there's some detachment from her narrative that isn't relatable to the reader. Her "life story" quite literally spans centuries, so there's no urgency since she has all the time in the world and more. The beginning half of the story really dragged because of the slice of life nature of it and is what caused me to take so long (almost 2 months) to get myself to finish reading it. 

Things pick up in the latter half, partially because there are more references to the recognizable Greek myths. It was a lot more fun to read when comparing how the original Greek myth compared to Miller's telling of it compared to the sludge that was Circe's character building (or lack thereof). 

You MUST read this book knowing that everything Miller is writing is in the framework of already written mythology. If Greek myths were written today, they'd get a lot of flack on their realism, character building, etc. A lot of the parts I didn't enjoy (e.g. a character's decision making is unrealistic/far fetched, events occur that are too convenient) are unfortunately part of the OG myths and have to be carried into this story as well. 

I can see how people who are really into Greek mythology might enjoy this book. I'm unfortunately not that type of person, and there wasn't enough original content to get a clear idea on whether Miller was particularly good at crafting a story. 

From what I've learned about Circe in this book, there's good reason why she is not famous - her story is not particularly interesting, and that's okay (and even part of the messaging of this book). But I think because of this, I don't think the book was particularly worth reading, and I question whether Circe was the story Miller should be retelling. 

I would recommend this only if you are already interested in Greek mythology/re-tellings.

Book Blog #345: Wicked: The Life and TImes of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire

 

Title: Wicked: The Life and the Times of the Wicked Witch of the West

Author: Gregory Maguire

# of Pages: 406 (paperback)

Genre: Adult, Fantasy

Rating: ★★★☆☆

Synopsis: When Dorothy triumphed over the Wicked Witch of the West in L. Frank Baum's classic tale, we heard only her side of the story. But what about her arch-nemesis, the mysterious witch? Where did she come from? How did she become so wicked? And what is the true nature of evil? Gregory Maguire creates a fantasy world so rich and vivid that we will never look at Oz the same way again. Wicked is about a land where animals talk and strive to be treated like first-class citizens, Munchkinlanders seek the comfort of middle-class stability and the Tin Man becomes a victim of domestic violence. And then there is the little green-skinned girl named Elphaba, who will grow up to be the infamous Wicked Witch of the West, a smart, prickly and misunderstood creature who challenges all our preconceived notions about the nature of good and evil.

Review: As a long-time fan of the musical and with the recent release of the part 1 movie adaptation, this seemed as good a time as any to finally read the original source material.

It's very important to know that the musical/movie is a VERY LOOSE adaptation of this book. I went into this reading with the goal to:

- Compare the book and the musical (identify what's different/missing)

- Appreciate the decisions made by Maguire vs writers/lyricists of Wicked to tell a similar story in their respective medium 

This review assumes spoilers comparing the book to the musical/movie is NOT a spoiler, proceed with caution. 

I already knew the following qualities/popular perspective of the book that I ended up agreeing with upon finishing:

1. The book delves deeper on the politics/racism/classism. 

In the musical/movie, Elphaba is the only one who is exaggeratedly ostracized based on her appearance, despite featuring a diverse cast. It was more realistic in the book that most of Oz struggled with accepting difference between people from different areas, even those from "Winkie" country where the popular Fiyero from the musical is from are looked down upon by other people in Oz (including musical love interest Glinda, who in the book explicitly cites the color of Fiyero's skin as a reason to not have had an affair with him). 

The Wizard and Madame Morrible are more totalitarian in the book than the musical. I actually preferred the musical's interpretation of these characters because they were more nuanced than blatantly power tripping as they are in the book. 

The book describes more of Oz, including Quadling Country which is perceived as being less advanced economically and technologically, thus inferior and is seen throughout the book as a class of people to disregard at best and take advantage of at worst. The political parts of the book were actually heavier than I expected, already indicating that the book is less family friendly than the musical/movie.

2. The book features beastiality. 

Obviously there none of this in the PG movie/musical. But I heard before reading that this book was "weird" and goes into "graphic" detail about sex with animals. With my expectations basically set to "beastiality smut", I actually didn't think it was prevelant enough to require that much of a fuss about it. There's mainly this one scene where theres beastiality rape, and there are some details about how it happens. It's definitely not something kids should be reading, but this is something that most young adults should be able to handle. 

However, there were still differences that surprised me:

1. Elphaba was portrayed to be even more "different" than she is in the musical. 

The musical has the color of her skin be her primary difference with her peers (which is clearer messaging of the racism theme). The book goes farther to make her different by giving her razor sharp teeth as a newborn and even bring into debate her gender at least twice. It's unclear whether these differences are meant to be taken literally or if this is because of unreliable narrators (there's third person POV switching), but giving her sharp teeth made her seem more like a monster rather than a protagonist people could sympathize with. 

2. The main characters (Elphaba, Glinda, Fiyero, Boq, Nessarose) are not as interconnected as they are in the musical. 

This is more realistic than having everyone pair off (or create a love triangle) like they do in the musical, but it introduces a lot more "extra" characters that are not important to the driving plot.  I can appreciate Maguire keeping the tin man's origin story true to The Wizard of Oz book. I actually liked the how these characters are related to the origin stories of the scarecrow and tin man in the musical, and we get a happier ending in the musical compared to the book. 

3. There's a drawn out period where Elphaba is in The Vinkus in the book that is completely cut out from the musical.

I think the musical made the right decision for this one. While this helps justify how Elphaba becomes "The Wicked With of the West" (since Vinkus is in western Oz) in the book, there's not much that actually happen. The little character development that does happen could have been included but with much less pages. 

For a book of this length written in this denser fantasy style (and being a relatively older book, originally published in 1995), I was surprised how gripping and fast the read was, and almost gave it four stars. However, I think if I was not already a fan of the musical, it would have been hard for me to keep track of the characters, the different areas of Oz, etc, and I would have been less engaged without having something to compare the story against. This in addition to having third person POV switching which caused parts of the story to drag made me give the three star rating. 

I don't plan to read the rest of the series and would only recommend reading if you're already interested in the movie/musical AND have expectations that the book will tell a very different story. 

Book Blog #340: Every Day by David Levithan

Title: Every Day

Author: David Levithan

# of Pages: 329 (ebook)

Genre: YA, Romance, Fantasy

Rating: ★★☆☆☆

Synopsis: It’s all fine until the morning that A wakes up in the body of Justin and meets Justin’s girlfriend, Rhiannon. From that moment, the rules by which A has been living no longer apply. Because finally A has found someone he wants to be with—day in, day out, day after day.

Review: I really wanted to like this book, but I slowly got more frustrated with the characters as the plot progressed.

This book is clearly not timeless. First published in 2012, it was fun to see how much the world has changed since then. The heavy use of email and ignorance around gender and sexual identity are some example of this book feeling dated. Most people would know what being transgender refers to unlike one of the characters in the book who claims to not understand what it means to be male but biologically female. 

The fantasy concept used Every Day is actually very cool - the protagonist A switches between 16 year old bodies and has to live their lives for a day. The reader gets to see perspectives from teenagers of different backgrounds which is the aspect of this book I liked the most. There is a lot of handwaving in terms of explaining HOW this body changing works (maybe something explained later in the series?). It would have been better if this first book leaned into explaining the "fantasy" aspect rather than having the reader accept this bizarre situation A finds themselves in. 

The romance aspect is what I disliked about this story. The whole plot is around A falling in love with Rhiannon, who already has a boyfriend. If the reader still thinks The Notebook is one of the greatest romances of all time, then maybe this story is also acceptable. As for me, I find it difficult to "cheer" for A and Rhiannon's relationship while Rhiannon is still in a relationship, regardless on whether Justin is a good boyfriend or not. Even Rhiannon implies that her relationship is complicated (he might be emotionally absent and inconsiderate but this still doesn't justify infidelity on Rhiannon's end). 

A is a frustrating character as well. They arguably have more experiences than most 16 year olds yet somehow falls in love with Rhiannon basically on-sight and doesn't prove to have any reason to be so in love with her (at the expense of the people A is inhabiting) other than thinking that they can be a better boyfriend than Justin. 

Honestly considered giving this book 1 star as well just because of how weak the romance was, but I really did like the concept of living a different life everyday. Overall not worth the read and wouldn't recommend this book. 

Book Blog #337: Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros

 

Title: Iron Flame

Author: Rebecca Yarros

# of Pages: 895 (ebook)

Genre: Adult, Romance, Fantasy

Rating: ★★★☆☆

Synopsis: Everyone expected Violet Sorrengail to die during her first year at Basgiath War College—Violet included. But Threshing was only the first impossible test meant to weed out the weak-willed, the unworthy, and the unlucky. Now the real training begins, and Violet’s already wondering how she’ll get through. It’s not just that it’s grueling and maliciously brutal, or even that it’s designed to stretch the riders’ capacity for pain beyond endurance. It’s the new vice commandant, who’s made it his personal mission to teach Violet exactly how powerless she is–unless she betrays the man she loves. Although Violet’s body might be weaker and frailer than everyone else’s, she still has her wits—and a will of iron. And leadership is forgetting the most important lesson Basgiath has taught her: Dragon riders make their own rules. But a determination to survive won’t be enough this year. Because Violet knows the real secret hidden for centuries at Basgiath War College—and nothing, not even dragon fire, may be enough to save them in the end.

Review: Much better balance of fantasy elements and romance than in the first book. HOWEVER, there are some gaps in the story that don't get addressed (and reading through the Goodreads Questions for this book shows that some things go unexplained by the end of the book). 

One critical point from the Fourth Wing is that Violet must live for Xaden to live - this is reiterated repeated. However, at one point in this book, that notion seems to be forgotten. There's also a returning character who's actions and presence at Basgiath don't make sense...but I bet (and hope) that Yarros will make something up to justify what's happening in this book. 

Overall the writing is still sloppy, but there's enough world building and attachment to characters to have a successful series going here. Iron Flame could have actually been broken up into two books since the first half and the second half are so different (but the first half dragged on longer than necessary). 

This series is strangely addictive - despite it's flaws, I'll consider reading the third book in the series when it comes out. If you enjoyed first book, you'll likely enjoy the second book. 

Book Blog #313: Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

 

Title: Clockwork Angel

Author: Cassandra Clare

# of Pages: 479 (paperback)

Genre: YA, Fantasy, Romance

Rating: ★★★☆☆

Synopsis: When sixteen-year-old Tessa Gray crosses the ocean to find her brother, her destination is England, the time is the reign of Queen Victoria, and something terrifying is waiting for her in London's Downworld, where vampires, warlocks and other supernatural folk stalk the gaslit streets. Only the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the world of demons, keep order amidst the chaos. Kidnapped by the mysterious Dark Sisters, members of a secret organization called The Pandemonium Club, Tessa soon learns that she herself is a Downworlder with a rare ability: the power to transform, at will, into another person. What’s more, the Magister, the shadowy figure who runs the Club, will stop at nothing to claim Tessa's power for his own. Friendless and hunted, Tessa takes refuge with the Shadowhunters of the London Institute, who swear to find her brother if she will use her power to help them. She soon finds herself fascinated by—and torn between—two best friends: James, whose fragile beauty hides a deadly secret, and blue-eyed Will, whose caustic wit and volatile moods keep everyone in his life at arm's length . . . everyone, that is, but Tessa. As their search draws them deep into the heart of an arcane plot that threatens to destroy the Shadowhunters, Tessa realizes that she may need to choose between saving her brother and helping her new friends save the world. . . . and that love may be the most dangerous magic of all.

Review: I don't think there's much else to be said about this book that I didn't already say about Clare's The Mortal Instruments series almost 10 years ago. Both were written only a handful of years apart - I wasn't expecting any major growth in that span of time and unfortunately was not pleasantly surprised.

The flaw that gets them all - third person POV switching. Honestly, since it was in the third person, the POV switching was less offensive that other books I have read. I wouldn't hold it too much against it even if there was slight overlap with some of the POVs. 

What REALLY annoyed me though (similarly to The Mortal Instruments) was the main character, Tessa. Surprise, surprise, she's a huge book nerd. People who are writers have a higher likelihood to ALSO be big readers, so if I were to take a guess, Tessa has adopted the same love of books that Clare does OR Clare is pushing this character trait to try to make her protagonist more relatable. Try as she might, she tried a bit too hard, and it came off disingenuous.  I'm supposed to believe this girl can only relate to others through relationships she's read about in books, yet also has no problem getting along with the wide variety of personalities around here?

Speaking of wide variety of personalities, while each character is very different, many of them have one over-exaggerated quality that defines them. Will is "tsundere" type, Jem is the un-ironic version of the "me, an empath" meme, etc. It makes the roles they play in the story SO predictable. 

On a positive note, I knew this would be a pretty mindless and quick read because of Clare's simplistic writing style. She reiterates important story points, so it's easy to skim quickly through the book and still basically be able to know what is coming next. It was also pretty easy to visualize each scene in my head - there are a lot of "thriller/horror"-eque moments that I'm sure would play out as a jump scares if it every made it on the big screen...

Not the worst thing I've read, but not a very original piece of fiction either. I probably wouldn't recommend it unless you already liked some of Clare's other books. 

Book Blog #303: The Queen of Tearling by Erika Johansen

 

Title: The Queen of Tearling

Author: Erika Johansen

# of Pages: 448 (paperback)

Genre: YA, Fantasy

Rating: ★★★☆☆

Synopsis: On her nineteenth birthday, Princess Kelsea Raleigh Glynn, raised in exile, sets out on a perilous journey back to the castle of her birth to ascend her rightful throne. Plain and serious, a girl who loves books and learning, Kelsea bears little resemblance to her mother, the vain and frivolous Queen Elyssa. But though she may be inexperienced and sheltered, Kelsea is not defenseless: Around her neck hangs the Tearling sapphire, a jewel of immense magical power; and accompanying her is the Queen’s Guard, a cadre of brave knights led by the enigmatic and dedicated Lazarus. Kelsea will need them all to survive a cabal of enemies who will use every weapon—from crimson-caped assassins to the darkest blood magic—to prevent her from wearing the crown. Despite her royal blood, Kelsea feels like nothing so much as an insecure girl, a child called upon to lead a people and a kingdom about which she knows almost nothing. But what she discovers in the capital will change everything, confronting her with horrors she never imagined. An act of singular daring will throw Kelsea’s kingdom into tumult, unleashing the vengeance of the tyrannical ruler of neighboring Mortmesne: the Red Queen, a sorceress possessed of the darkest magic. Now Kelsea will begin to discover whom among the servants, aristocracy, and her own guard she can trust. But the quest to save her kingdom and meet her destiny has only just begun—a wondrous journey of self-discovery and a trial by fire that will make her a legend . . . if she can survive.

Review: Almost gave this book four stars.

When I started this book, it was about what I was looking for; middle age-style fantasy. It was surprising because although The Queen of Tearling is considered as YA for some, the sexual references, rape mentions, pedophilia, etc. make this book definitely for the older side of YA if not adult. However, it never really gripped my attention like other similar fantasy books (e.g. The Graceling); I ended up taking a several month break from it, in fact. There were also several aspects of the book that I found odd:

1. This book takes place in the future. This threw me for a loop and is somewhat ignorable until the characters start talking about books and referencing the Harry Potter series, The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, etc. It's not believable that the future would be a regression to the past (it was easier to think of this book as a whole different world), so references to these books broke the immersion for me.

2. There is an obsession with Kelsea's, the protagonist's, appearance. Through the book, the characters and especially Kelsea herself will repeatedly mention how plain she is. I understood the necessity for mentioning it the first time (maybe even the first couple of times), but the characters just wouldn't shut up about it. I'm not sure what Johansen was aiming to go for here; if there is some positive message about body image hidden in here, obsessing about the protagonists appearance doesn't seem to be the best way to go about it.

3. The character building for Kelsea was weak. Most of what she does throughout the book is attributed to the her black-boxed past in exile. She at first seemed to be an underdog, but I found she was surprisingly capable when facing challenges through the book, with little indication on how she got the skills to be a Queen while she interacted with very few people during her exile. 

These problems made me lower the star rating to three stars. When I decided to finish this book once and for all, it wasn't too difficult to get into it, although as I said before, still not as gripping as other fantasy stories I have read. When I was finishing the book, I wanted to continue reading the series just to find out what happens next (although more than likely I will not end up reading the rest of the series). I don't regret reading it as it was reasonably enjoyable and an easy read. 

It wouldn't be the first fantasy book I would recommend; if you are already interested then I would say to give it a shot. But otherwise I would recommend other fantasy books (and MANY other dystopian books) before this one. 

Book Blog #302: Stealing Thunder by Alina Boyden

 

Title: Stealing Thunder

Author: Alina Boyden

# of Pages: 346 (paperback)

Genre: Romance, Fantasy, LGBT

Rating: ★★★☆☆

Synopsis: In a different life, under a different name, Razia Khan was raised to be the Crown Prince of Nizam, the most powerful kingdom in Daryastan. Born with the soul of a woman, she ran away at a young age to escape her father’s hatred and live life true to herself. Amongst the hijras of Bikampur, Razia finds sisterhood and discovers a new purpose in life. By day she’s one of her dera’s finest dancers, and by night its most profitable thief. But when her latest target leads her to cross paths with Arjun Agnivansha, Prince of Bikampur, it is she who has something stolen. An immediate connection with the prince changes Razia’s life forever, and she finds herself embroiled in a dangerous political war. The stakes are greater than any heist she’s ever performed. When the battle brings her face to face with her father, Razia has the chance to reclaim everything she lost…and save her prince.

Review: I definitely have conflicting feeling about this book.

I picked up this book on a whim; I was looking for a fantasy book that would help me in my reading rut. I saw this had decent ratings on Goodreads compared to the other books available to me. Skimming the back cover synopsis, I didn't realize that this book had anything to do with the LGBTQ+ community let alone attempting to make groundbreaking progress in transwomen fantasy literature. If that weren't enough, Boyden also worked with the trans Indian and Pakistani community and took it as inspiration in writing this book.

From skimming other reviews for Stealing Thunder, I have seen it receive a lot of backlash for being a trans white woman telling a trans Asian woman's story and other controversial topics on whether this lives up as a good representation for the cultural or LGBTQ+ community. I believe this issues are too big of a conversation for this review, so I will be focusing on the story rather than its representation of marginalized groups or the author's background. 

Surprisingly, controversy aside, I was addicted to this book. I just couldn't put it down. I have ALWAYS been a huge fan of cheesy romance, and this book is no exception. This book is MUCH more of a ROMANCE than a fantasy book; there's not much world building as I was hoping for. The romance itself is not even anything original; just two people who clearly love each other very much with only the world against them. But like I said, I am a sucker for cheesy romance.

Now if I put my own feeling aside, I would be giving this book two stars. The protagonist, Razia, seems to be a transwoman pipe dream. She is able to do it all PERFECTLY, and everyone always seems to be blown away by her hidden abilities. It's just not realistic, not relatable for the reader at all. That being said, I guess the whole riches to rags to riches again story is not very relatable in general; it's not that inspiring to hear about an underdog who experiences a rise in status when the so called underdog came from a privileged background. This is further magnified by how the character who had less privilege failed to rise in power like those who did. 

Not only that, but Boyden seems to reiterate the same points OVER AND OVER AGAIN throughout the story (e.g. Razia will make an observation about something, then she will tell everyone else, and then she will internalize the thought again...). 

In general, the story was predictable; there's very little stress while reading about whether things are going to work out in Razia favor because due to her many many talents, of course she's going to solve all the problems and save the day. 

I wouldn't recommend this book, but I cannot deny that I enjoyed reading it due to the romance. 

Book Blog #262: The Heir by Kiera Cass

Title: The Heir
Author: Kiera Cass
# of Pages: 342 (paperback)
Genre: YA, Romance, Fantasy
Rating: ★★☆☆☆
Synopsis: Twenty years ago, America Singer entered the Selection and won Prince Maxon’s heart. Now the time has come for Princess Eadlyn to hold a Selection of her own. Eadlyn doesn’t expect her Selection to be anything like her parents’ fairy-tale love story. But as the competition begins, she may discover that finding her own happily ever after isn’t as impossible as she always thought.
Review: I'm giving this book 2 stars because it was worse than I was expecting.

I thought I knew what I was getting into. I've read the first three books in this series, so I already knew the basic premise of this story: the previous main character had an heir (Eadlyn), and now she is holding her own Selection. I was in the mood for a quick, shallow read about a girl in a Bachelorette-esque situation.

However, this book did not meet my expectations. Eadlyn turns out to be more headstrong than the synopsis implies. She is so resistant to the Selection, it takes all the fun out of the story. Would people want to watch The Bachelor/Bachelorette if person in the spotlight didn't want to participate? No. And the same goes for this story.

The main take away from this story is also not great. Eadlyn doesn't want to get married (yet). She is a (self-proclaimed) "strong" and "independent" woman, but the world seems to be telling her that she needs a husband.

Eadlyn thinks to herself, “Everyone keeps saying that: it might be good for me. What does that even mean? I’m smart and beautiful and strong. I don’t need to be rescued.” This statement is something that should be said to more often. Women don't need to be with someone else to be empowered. However, when this statement is presented in the book, it as if this is setting the tone for her initial mindset that she will eventually grow away from as her character develops over time. This is NOT the correct direction she should be moving toward. Although she should grow to be more open minded, framing it in a way that implies she NEEDS a partner is not the way to do it.

Eadlyn: “Why haven’t you married?”
Lady Brice: “I am married. To this job! It means a lot to me, and I’d rather do it well than seek out a spouse…The only people I ever get to see are the other advisers, and I don’t think I’d want to be in a relationship with any of them. So I’ll just keep working.”

Lady Brice might be one of the only characters who is okay with being a single woman, but it's only because she is married to her job and doesn't find potential suitors attractive. She also implies that she can't do her job well AND seek out a spouse at the same time....

Overall, not really worth the read. I was disappointed to find that this isn't even the last book in the series. I was hoping to finish it once and for all, but now I have to consider whether I will read the final book or not for the sake of completeness, or if it really isn't worth my time.

Book Blog #259: The Little Prince 75th Anniversary Edition by Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Title: The Little Prince (75th Anniversary Edition)
Author: Antoine de Saint-Exupery
# of Pages: 224 (hardback)
Genre: Childrens, Fantasy, Classics
Rating: ★★★★☆
Synopsis: With a timeless charm it tells the story of a little boy who leaves the safety of his own tiny planet to travel the universe, learning the vagaries of adult behaviour through a series of extraordinary encounters. His personal odyssey culminates in a voyage to Earth and further adventures.
Review:
“It is much harder to judge yourself than to judge others. If you succeed in judging yourself, it’s because you are truly a wise man.”

I've heard so many people reference this book that I just had to read it for myself.

When I learned this book was categorized as "children's," I was shocked. I was even more shocked when I learned that there was a debate on whether this book is meant for children or adults. After reading, I think this story is best appreciated by adults who may have lost touch with the child within all of us. This does not mean children cannot read and enjoy this book too; there is just a difference in appreciation.

I checked this book out at the library, and it just so happened that the only available copy was the 75th anniversary edition. This version is much longer than the actual story because of all the bonus content. The beginning of the 75th anniversary edition has a lot of information on the author and those he knew, which might be useful for those doing a research project. I ended up reading The Little Prince story first (which appears in the middle of this book) and then went back to the beginning to read about the author. The real content is what comes after The Little Prince story: an analysis of The Little Prince by researcher and historian Delphine Lacroix. Her analysis of the story is almost more beautiful than the story itself.

The following is an excerpt from Lacroix’s analysis that particularly touched my heart.

“When you tame something, the fox teaches, you create a bond of affection with it: ‘But if you tame me, we’ll need each other. You’ll be the only boy in the world for me. I’ll be the only fox in the world for you…” Things become special to us when we’ve invested in them, when we’ve take the time to single them out, rescued them from the anonymity that comes of being one of the large number. And this is how something leaves its mark on us, beaks up the monotony of time, and gives meaning to our existence. To learn about friendship is to learn a sort of slow, choreographed dance. Finally, the fox delivers its biggest secret: ‘Anything essential is invisible to the eyes.’ And anyone able to see through this invisibility to the underlying bond that gives meaning to things will be the richer.” - 177

I recently found myself in a difficult situation with a friend of a couple months. I was advised by many others to cut this person out of my life, but despite what happened, I found this task to be very difficult. When I read this passage, I now believe it is because we have “tamed” each other. Although what happened will forever change our relationship, the investment into our friendship keeps me from cutting this friend completely from my life.

In The Little Prince, the fox knew that he would not be able to be with the little prince forever, yet he still insisted that he be tamed by the prince. He believes that that although he will be sad when the prince is gone, he would rather find meaning in the world when he is reminded of the prince than to not have those experiences at all. Although in my situation with my friend, I cannot say that I am glad what happened did happen, I know these experiences with this person have helped me learn and grow and changed how I view certain aspects of the world, just like the fox when he was tamed.

The story itself would earn 5 stars from me. However, the bonus content, while enlightening, was sometimes superfluous. I would recommend the story to EVERYONE.

Book Blog #257: Red Rising by Pierce Brown

Title: Red Rising
Author: Pierce Brown
# of Pages: 382 (hardback)
Genre: YA, Science Fiction, Fantasy
Rating: ★★★☆☆
Synopsis: Darrow is a Red, a member of the lowest caste in the color-coded society of the future. Like his fellow Reds, he works all day, believing that he and his people are making the surface of Mars livable for future generations. Yet he spends his life willingly, knowing that his blood and sweat will one day result in a better world for his children. But Darrow and his kind have been betrayed. Soon he discovers that humanity already reached the surface generations ago. Vast cities and sprawling parks spread across the planet. Darrow—and Reds like him—are nothing more than slaves to a decadent ruling class. Inspired by a longing for justice, and driven by the memory of lost love, Darrow sacrifices everything to infiltrate the legendary Institute, a proving ground for the dominant Gold caste, where the next generation of humanity's overlords struggle for power. He will be forced to compete for his life and the very future of civilization against the best and most brutal of Society's ruling class. There, he will stop at nothing to bring down his enemies... even if it means he has to become one of them to do so.
Review: “I would work. I would bow. Let me wash dirt from my hands instead of blood. I want only to live with my family. We were happy enough. Freedom costs too much.” 

The critics are right. This book is VERY much like Hunger Games. Readers who LOVE The Hunger Games and want to read more that are VERY similar to The Hunger Games (or any cliché dystopian YA), this is exactly the book for you.

I loved The Hunger Games, but I also read THG before dystopian YA became a huge fad. This story is nothing new, and it is very clearly only the first book of a whole series. You can't read this book and expect most of the major loose ends to be tied up; Brown knew he was making this a whole saga.

Honestly, a lot of scenes lacked a lot fo detail. Since this is a dystopian world, I would love more world building details. Brown provides the bare minimum to get by with telling the story, which might be fine for some younger readers.

If you are the correct audience for YA books, go ahead and give this book a try. However, you won't get anything from this book that you wouldn't get from tons of YA dystopian books out there.

Book Blog #256: Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman

Title: Good Omens
Author: Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman
# of Pages: 412 (paperback)
Genre: Fiction, Fantasy, Humor
Rating: ★★☆☆☆
Synopsis: According to The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch (the world's only completely accurate book of prophecies, written in 1655, before she exploded), the world will end on a Saturday. Next Saturday, in fact. Just before dinner. So the armies of Good and Evil are amassing, Atlantis is rising, frogs are falling, tempers are flaring. Everything appears to be going according to Divine Plan. Except a somewhat fussy angel and a fast-living demon—both of whom have lived amongst Earth's mortals since The Beginning and have grown rather fond of the lifestyle—are not actually looking forward to the coming Rapture. And someone seems to have misplaced the Antichrist...
Review: This book just wasn't my cup of tea.

I only decided to read this book because the TV show just came out, and I saw that Neil Gaiman is one of the authors (although I've only read one of Neil Gaiman's books). I just don't understand the British humor, and my biblical knowledge is pretty limited. It took me a while to finish (over a week), which means I just didn't want to read it.

There is third POV switching between multiple people, and it is VERY sloppy. It was hard to keep track of all of these people, especially since some of the character's POV would only come up once (because the character is insignificant beside the one moment they describe from their POV).

Not worth the read.

Book Blog #238: Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo

Title: Crooked Kingdoms
Author: Leigh Bardugo
# of Pages: 536 (ebook)
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Adventure
Rating: ★★★★☆
Synopsis: Welcome to the world of the Grisha. Kaz Brekker and his crew of deadly outcasts have just pulled off a heist so daring even they didn't think they'd survive. But instead of divvying up a fat reward, they're right back to fighting for their lives. Double-crossed and badly weakened, the crew is low on resources, allies, and hope. As powerful forces from around the world descend on Ketterdam to root out the secrets of the dangerous drug known as jurda parem, old rivals and new enemies emerge to challenge Kaz's cunning and test the team's fragile loyalties. A war will be waged on the city's dark and twisting streets - a battle for revenge and redemption that will decide the fate of the Grisha world.
Review: I wouldn't have read the second book if it wasn't highly recommended to me.

Sure, I liked Six of Crows well enough, but I didn't feel any urgency to find out what happens to all of the characters. However, with a recommendation and the fact that this book is the last book in the duology, I thought I might as well give it a read.

I liked this book about the same amount as I liked Six of Crows (perhaps a little less, perhaps a little more). I enjoyed reading how Kaz's complicated plans unfolded and seeing the relationships within the gang deepen over time.

I'm really, really sad Matthias died. There are three couples in the book: Kaz+Inej, Jesper+Wylan, and Matthias+Nina. Even though I always views Matthias and Nina as the secondary couple, I feel like they were cheated of a proper conclusion in this book. I'm not complaining about that fact that Matthias is killed off (although that does make me sad). The problem it how every couple seemed to get their own ending chapter (Wylan and Jesper are living in Wylan's father's mansion, Inej and Kaz are going to work on defeating slavers and other greedy/evil people in power together) but it's only briefly mention that Nina is going to bury Matthias in his homeland. If every other character has closure, the least Bardugo could have done is give the reader a little bit more on Nina; was her voyage to bury Matthias's body successful? Is she prepared to live her life without him or is she going to be crippled with the loss. There is just a little too much left up to the reader's imagination.

If you enjoyed Six of Crows, you will definitely enjoy this book. I recommend this to anyone who has read and loved Six of Crows.

Book Blog #229: The Enchanter Heir by Cinda Williams Chima

Title: The Enchanter Heir
Author: Cinda Williams Chima
# of Pages: 455 (paperback)
Genre: YA, Fantasy
Rating: ★★☆☆☆
Synopsis: They called it the Thorn Hill Massacre-the brutal attack on a once-thriving Weir community. Though Jonah Kinlock lived through it, he did not emerge unscathed: like the other survivors Jonah possesses unique magical gifts that set him apart from members of the mainline guilds. At seventeen, Jonah has become the deadliest assassin in Nightshade, a network that hunts the undead. Emma Claire Greenwood grew up worlds away, raised by a grandfather who taught her music rather than magic. An unschooled wild child, she runs the streets until the night she finds her grandfather dying, gripping a note warning Emma that she might be in danger. The clue he leaves behind leads Emma into Jonah's life-and a shared legacy of secrets and lingering questions.
Review: This shouldn't be part of the Heir Chronicles.

The series should have stayed a trilogy. Jonah and Emma are completely new characters. Although some of characters from the previous three books appear in the book, reading the first three books in the series is not at all necessary to read this book. For those of you who are wondering whether you should re-read the first three to maximize enjoyment of this book, don't bother. I haven't read the first three books in years but the characters from the previous books don't play a big enough role in this story to make a reread worth it.

I'm a HUGE fan of Cinda Williams Chima's Seven Realms series, but wasn't as big of a fan of the Heir Chronicles. The reason why she decided to add two more books that are for the most part unrelated stories (other than it takes place in the same world as the previous three) is beyond me.

The first issue is the third person POV switching. There's only two protagonists, so I was expecting a somewhat even distribution of chapters between these two characters. However, it seemed like there were way more chapters with Jonah than Emma (which made me feel like I knew less about Emma than Jonah).

The second issue is the poor character development. Emma is suppose to be a strong and independent teen with some delinquent tendencies. However, since there isn't a lot of focus on her in the book (because she didn't get as many chapters as Jonah), the author tells the reader these qualities rather than shows them through actions. Other characters (and sometimes Emma herself) say that she doesn't like going to school but emphasize how she isn't dumb (she's one of those types who doesn't think what she learns is school will be relevant to her in regular life). The reader is suppose to appreciate her spunk and how she "isn't like other girls." This character type is incredibly overused, especially in stories you'd find on Wattpad and/or on fan fiction sites. To top it off, I didn't buy her character portrayal; she seemed fake to me.

The third issue is the weak plot. This is half of a book; nothing is resolved in this book, which pretty much forces the reader to read The Sorcerer Heir if they want any kind of closure. It's not even that the book ends with a cliffhanger; when I finished the book I was thinking "This is it?!" The story just stops without any conclusion whatsoever. My theory; this story should have only taken up one book, but to make more money, it was split into two.

The fourth and final problem; the romance sucked. It was incredibly predicable and unpleasant to read. If it wasn't obvious by the general trend of YA books, the two protagonists Jonah and Emma are the couple under fire here. There's too much sexual tension between two characters who barely know each other. But sex sells so why not right? (I'm not saying there's sex scenes in this book; there aren't). I'm pretty sure most people would be put off if a guy they just met started spooning with them, but apparently that is not the case with Emma.

I almost gave this book 3 stars because I was biased toward the author. However, I was comparing it to City of Bones (by Cassandra Clare), and I realized this book might actually be WORSE.

For those of you who thought Warrior Heir (and/or the following two books) was mediocre or worse, don't waste your time with this book. If you're new to Cinda Williams Chima's books, start with the Seven Realms series instead. If you don't fall into either of those categories and you haven't read any of the Heir Chronicles books, start with Warrior Heir instead of this one and then refer back to this review after you've read it. Overall, I think it's not worth the read.

Book Blog #228: Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality by Eliezer Yudkowsky

Title: Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality
Author: Eliezer Yudkowsky
# of Pages: 2007 (ebook)
Genre: Fan Fiction, Fantasy, Philosophy
Rating: ★★★★☆
Synopsis: Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality is a work of alternate-universe Harry Potter fan-fiction wherein Petunia Evans has married an Oxford biochemistry professor and young genius Harry grows up fascinated by science and science fiction. When he finds out that he is a wizard, he tries to apply scientific principles to his study of magic, with sometimes surprising results.
Review: This is probably the best, most well-written fan fiction I've ever read.

This is not your ordinary fan fiction. It's not written by a 12 year old girl in her dark bedroom typing out her pubescent fantasies. Eliezer Yudkowsky is an AI researcher who put a playful twist on the Harry Potter story by making Harry more rational than he is in the original series. When you read HPMOR, you'll forget you're reading something that is technically clumped in the same genre as dracoxharry erotica.

I was wavering between giving HPMOR 3 stars and 4 stars (so it's actual rating is probably more like a 3.5). I loved the beginning and ending third of the book, but some plots made me lose interest in the story (and made me want to stop reading the fic in general).

One example of this would be Hermione's feminism subplot. I'm all for feminism, but the way it was portrayed was foolish and mostly useless to the rest of the story.

The second subplot I didn't enjoy was the ongoing battle between Chaos (Harry's army), Sunshine (Hermione's army), and Dragon (Draco's army). Maybe it's just my overall distaste for reading about a lot of action, but I found myself skimming a lot of those parts.

However, after I finished reading, I couldn't stop thinking about what I read. I browsed the HPMOR subreddit to fill the new void in my life (I've been slowly reading the first half of this book since January and read the second half over the last few days). I like a book that leaves me thinking, thus the additional star.

That being said, it's difficult to rate this book amongst traditionally published books. There are other factors working against it; it didn't get a run through by a professional editor (this could have helped Yudkowsky tie the subplots closer together or remove ones that are unnecessary).

It is also EXTREMELY long (this might be the nature of fan fictions as they are not constrained length-wise as ebooks). Goodreads has this book listed twice; one being one large book and the other being a series of 6 stories (the large book is broken up into 6 parts). If this were a traditionally-published work, this would be closer to how it would appear in book stores.

However, each of these 6 parts is not a self-contained story. It is best read as a whole, back to back, thus should be considered to be one book. The problem with this is 2000 pages is a huge commitment for most readers (I was reading it through the HPMOR website and was wondering why it was taking me so long to get through it). To prevent reading fatigue, this book SHOULD have somehow been broken up into multiple, self-contained parts.

Nevertheless, I would HIGHLY recommend this fan fiction to anyone who is already a fan of the Harry Potter series. Some parts of this fan fiction act as a parody of the original (which includes poking fun at it), but this is a big part of the fun of the book. Not only will it have you thinking about certain situations from the original Harry Potter books more rationally, but it will also have you laughing throughout the journey.

Book Blog #226: Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Title: Six of Crows
Author: Leigh Bardugo
# of Pages: 621 (ebook)
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Adventure
Rating: ★★★★☆
Synopsis: Ketterdam: a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price–and no one knows that better than criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. But he can’t pull it off alone… A convict with a thirst for revenge. A sharpshooter who can’t walk away from a wager. A runaway with a privileged past. A spy known as the Wraith. A Heartrender using her magic to survive the slums. A thief with a gift for unlikely escapes. Six dangerous outcasts. One impossible heist. Kaz’s crew is the only thing that might stand between the world and destruction—if they don’t kill each other first.
Review: I wish I read Six of Crows closer to when I read Shadow and Bone.

What everyone says is definitely true; you do not have to read the Grisha trilogy to read the Six of Crows duology. However, since they take place in the same universe, it would have been nice to start the book having already experienced the world building (so I could concentrate on getting to know the characters instead). Also, I would have liked to compare this book with Shadow and Bone; everyone seems to believe Six of Crows is worlds better, but I can't remember it well enough to make a fair comparison (I wouldn't be able to tell you if the four stars I'm giving this book right now is actually four stars or more like the 3.5 stars I gave Shadow and Bone).

I did not think I was going to like this book. The first chapter had me hooked, but it should have been labelled as the book's prologue instead because the characters don't really appear again in the rest of the book. The second chapter, on the other hand, was extremely confusing; not only is the reader just thrown into the world without any background, but there are a bunch of new characters who are introduced all at once. This is a risky choice; I bet there were a handful of readers who were put off from the book after reading this second chapter.

The following chapters were much better. This is definitely one of those books that gets better as you read. Something I noticed right away was something I also dread: POV switching. If it was first person POV switching, I might not have read the book at all. However, by the end of the book I found  I was pleasantly surprised. There are many authors who mess this up. What I usually don't like about it is how POVs tend to overlap (the book might be thick, but it's actually covering the same time period from multiple perspectives). However, Bardugo doesn't do this. Sure, every once in a while some of the POVs overlap. But for the most part, one POV picks up from where the other left off. If each chapter wasn't labelled with a different character, Six of Crows could have been a book told in third person (I wouldn't have labelled it as a book with multiple POVs as I distastefully do with so many others).

There was such a distinct cast of characters in this book. Although not all of them are explicitly together, the pairings are obvious.

Kaz and Inej: The "protagonist couple." Bardugo makes sure the hints are obvious. Although they don't get together at the end of the book, Kaz's not-so-hidden affection for Inej is the reason why there's a second book. Six of Crows delved deep into both of their backstories, but for some reason I feel like I know more about Kaz than I do about Inej. Since Inej is the quiet "spider" type, I always picture Inej to be younger than she is, and I'm never quite able to picture correctly in my head. Yes it makes sense that she has an acrobatic background, but personality-wise, I don't know what to think of her. Hopefully her character and her relationship with Kaz is more fully developed in the second book.

Matthias and Nina: The "second couple syndrome" couple. Every story with a lot of characters seems to have one (see Finnick and Annie in Hunger Games and Seo Dae-Young and Yoon Myeong-Joo in the k-drama Descendants of the Sun). This relationship is the only one that is truly "a thing" by the end of the book. What I love about their relationship is how solid it is; they've already fought (about some pretty serious topics too) and yet their love for each other is still as strong as ever. If this couple has survived each others' "betrayals," this couple can survive anything.

Jesper and Wylan: The "closeted gay" couple. Of course the author is not going to introduce these characters as LGBTQ+; she's going to ease these characters into the plot and make the reader wonder what their purpose is before the slow reveal that they're meant for each other. It's so subtle, some readers may miss it entirely (and for this book's conservative readers, it can be ignored entirely...for now). But the chemistry between these two characters is definitely there, even if they're not sure what their relationship is themselves. For example:
1. Wylan tells Jesper he's doesn't like a lot of things, but he likes math, numbers, and equations. Jesper then replies,

"If only you could talk to girls in equations." There was a long silence, and then, eyes trained on the notch they'd created in the link, Wylan said, "Just girls?" Jesper restrained a grin. "No, Not just girls."

If that isn't flirting, I don't know what is.

2. Wylan has been transformed to look like the Kuwei, and Jesper is upset because he might not be able to change back. Wylen asks,

"Why does it matter?" "I don't know!" Jesper said angrily. "Maybe I liked your stupid face."

Jesper doesn't even understand his own feelings. Hopefully Wylan will help him with that in the next book.

Would I read this book again? Probably not; I had a very entertaining read, but I don't think I need to read this book again. Would I read the second book? I'd be willing to give it a shot; I want to know what happens to these characters? Would I recommend this book to someone else? Yes and no. Six of Crows reads very much like a young adult novel to me (although it's story is unique, it still contains the same-old hints of romance and standard dramatic structure), so if you are interested in reading an interesting YA book, this is for you.

Book Blog #224: Dune by Frank Herbert

Title: Dune
Author: Frank Herbert
# of Pages: 512 (paperback)
Genre: Science Fiction, Fantasy
Rating: ★★★★☆
Synopsis: Set in the far future amidst a sprawling feudal interstellar empire where planetary dynasties are controlled by noble houses that owe an allegiance to the imperial House Corrino, Dune tells the story of young Paul Atreides (the heir apparent to Duke Leto Atreides and heir of House Atreides) as he and his family accept control of the desert planet Arrakis, the only source of the 'spice' melange, the most important and valuable substance in the cosmos. The story explores the complex, multi-layered interactions of politics, religion, ecology, technology, and human emotion as the forces of the empire confront each other for control of Arrakis.
Review: This is not the type of book that would usually draw my attention. In the past, I've read science fiction books, but these are more along the Divergent and Hunger Games variety. I've read some similar to Ender's Game (which I think has a similar writing style as used in the book I'm reviewing now), but I had very little interest in that.

I picked this book up because it was popular (so much for being hipster). I knew immediately after starting that it was going to take me a while to get through it (and I wasn't wrong). This is the type of book where the reader would most enjoy the story if it is read in big blocks of time (versus reading it for 10 minutes in between activities).

Part of what makes this book so difficult to read is because the reader is thrown straight into the world with very little context. The world Herbert created is so intricate, he had to include appendices (yup, multiple ones) just so the reader could keep up with the lingo.  The only character provided to the reader to learn about the strange-ties of this different world is Paul, the story's fifteen year old protagonist. Although he has already grown to adolescence in this world,  he is more ignorant than the other characters who's perspectives the reader gets to hear the story from (thankfully in third person). Most of the other characters (Jessica, his mother, or the Baron) are well-versed in certain sets of Dune specific vocabulary, it makes it difficult to stay immersed in the book because of the constant flipping to the appendices.

However, once having the time to sit down and read it, Dune was a very interesting book. Once getting past "Book 1" (after which I was mostly accustom to how the world operates), I was gripped up the tale of Paul as he grows up and struggles with those in power. The ending did not feel like an ending, but this is probably because there are other books in the series.

I would recommend this book to those who are interested but not to those who do not think they can handle a dense science fiction story.

Book Blog #211: Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

Title: Howl's Moving Castle
Author: Diana Wynne Jones
# of Pages: 429 (paperback)
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Magic
Rating: ★★★★★
Synopsis: Sophie has the great misfortune of being the eldest of three daughters, destined to fail miserably should she ever leave home to seek her fate. But when she unwittingly attracts the ire of the Witch of the Waste, Sophie finds herself under a horrid spell that transforms her into an old lady. Her only chance at breaking it lies in the ever-moving castle in the hills: the Wizard Howl's castle. To untangle the enchantment, Sophie must handle the heartless Howl, strike a bargain with a fire demon, and meet the Witch of the Waste head-on. Along the way, she discovers that there's far more to Howl—and herself—than first meets the eye.
Review: I love love love this book.

I've been a huge fan of Miyazaki movies for many years. However, I did not realize the iconic Howl's Moving Castle was based off of this book until a few days ago.

Although this book is labelled as YA, it is on the lower end as far as reading level. It's a suitable read for children, teens, and adults alike looking for a quick read. I was charmed by how Jones is able to develop the characters without putting a major emphasis on the romance as many modern books tend to do to draw in readers. Jones is able to captivate her readers through her storytelling rather than with a cheap romantic plot.

I love Howl and Sophie and wish the second and third books had more of them in them. However, this book is for sure a recommended read.

Book Blog #202: A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin

Title: A Clash of Kings
Author: George R.R. Martin
# of Pages: 969 (paperback)
Genre: Fantasy, Fiction
Rating: ★★★☆☆
Synopsis: A comet the colour of blood and flame cuts across the sky. And from the ancient citadel of Dragonstone to the forbidding shores of Winterfell, chaos reigns. Six factions struggle for control of a divided land and the Iron Throne of the Seven Kingdoms, preparing to stake their claims through tempest, turmoil, and war. It is a tale in which brother plots against brother and the dead rise to walk at night. Here a princess masquerades as an orphan boy; a knight of the mind prepares a poison for a treacherous sorceress; and wild men descend from the Mountains of the Moon to ravage the countryside. Against a backdrop of incest and fratricide, alchemy and murder, victory may go to the men and women possessed of the coldest steel...and the coldest hearts. For when kings clash, the whole land trembles.
Review: If you want to get technical, it took me over a year to read this book.

The details are more revealing: I started this book in July but only made it about 300 pages in before putting it away because it was too tedious to read. I was able to read (on and off) remaining 600-700 pages in 3-4 months. It's probably one of the longest times I've spent reading a single book, and the thousand pages it is made up of is no excuse.

I found it is a lot easier for me to keep up with the numerous characters by watching the HBO series, although watching the story beyond the book made me less interested in reading the book, so be weary of that. Overall, A Clash of Kings is probably as good if not better than A Game of Thrones, but due to the extended amount of time I spent reading it, it is difficult for me to compare.

Everything I've said in my review for A Game of Thrones still applies; although each character has an interesting perspective on the main plot, the third person POV switching is disruptive as some narratives are more interesting than others. The writer's style, especially of the battle scenes, are often overly descriptive and make it difficult for me to follow and stay engaged with the story.

If you like the first book, you will like this one just  as much. If you did not like A Game of Thrones, I would advise you not read the second.

Book Blog #197: Half Bad by Sally Green

Title: Half Bad
Author: Sally Green
# of Pages: 394 (paperback)
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Paranormal
Rating: ★★★☆☆
Synopsis: In modern-day England, witches live alongside humans: White witches, who are good; Black witches, who are evil; and sixteen-year-old Nathan, who is both. Nathan’s father is the world’s most powerful and cruel Black witch, and his mother is dead. He is hunted from all sides. Trapped in a cage, beaten and handcuffed, Nathan must escape before his seventeenth birthday, at which point he will receive three gifts from his father and come into his own as a witch—or else he will die. But how can Nathan find his father when his every action is tracked, when there is no one safe to trust—not even family, not even the girl he loves?
Review: I received a lot of grief for reading this book. Everyone who found out I was reading it told me it was a bad book or thought that a story about witches was ridiculous.

It was interesting that Green decided to call these all of these magical beings, regardless of gender, "witches" as it is more common (somewhat more accepted by society) to call the males wizards. But to each their own. Despite the criticize my friends had for this book, it's not half bad (see what I did there?). Especially for an author's first book, the story was actually quite interesting for a book that I expected to be a cliche paranormal-romance.

What I liked the most about that book is, although there is an underlying romantic plot, the story is mostly driven by Nathan's bond he has with his family and the way he refuses to believe in social norms. His character is rough, snarky, yet likable and definitely well developed.

Half Bad is an easy, quick read (especially since I spent the past year only reading classics...). While it did exceed my expectations, it did not reach the level of depth I am searching for in a book. I can't think of comparable books right now (perhaps Amanda Hocking's books? or Shatter Me?), but if you are looking for a read that has a plot that is simple to understand, this is a good book for you. As for me, I don't plan on reading the rest of the series.