This will be spoilerly for Nevermore if you have not read it.
Isobel will never give up on Varen, even though she knows it will be difficult to re-enter the Dreamworld. Her one hope lies with catching the Poe Toaster aka Reynolds as he brings roses and brandy to Poe's grave on January 19. She knows she must manipulate her parents to bring her to Baltimore and she pretends to be interested in college and the cheer squad there. While waiting for their decision, Isobel experiences dreams that involve Varen, which she hopes are real and dreams with Pinfeathers, the Noc, which she hopes are not. She sort of fills in Gwen on her plans, but Gwen is terrified when she learns they involve Lilith. Gwen helps Isobel figure out that Lilith is a demon with control of Varen, but Isobel refuses to be disuaded from her plan to save Varen. If she can convince her parents to take her to Baltimore, she thinks she stands a chance, but could it be too late to really save Varen?
Enshadowed picks up shortly after Nevermore with Isobel depressed and desperate to get back to save Varen. The book is extremely slow paced and the action only picks up in the last 20 or so pages, but wow what a last twenty pages! I did enjoy delving into Isobel's relationships with her family. It is interesting to see her obsession with Varen and how that overpowers all of her other relationships. The cliffhanger ending has me eagerly awaiting the sequel.
Favorite Character: Gwen. I love Gwen's quirky attitude and her loyalty to Isobel, despite her fears.
Favorite Quote: "Sleep now a little while, Till within our dreams we wake, Unfolding our Forever, If only for Never's sake." I liked the eeriness of the song in the story.
It took me a long time to read this book, because the action is mainly in the end. Second books in the series are not usually as exciting, so I was not surprised. I do like the characters and only wish Varen was in the story more. However the third book is set up to be really great! 4 cups of cocoa.
Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Caught by Margaret Peterson Haddix
I decided with this review to change from bars of chocolate to cups of cocoa, because if I ever put graphics on here, bars of chocolate could look like something else. ;) I will try this new system for awhile and see if I like it.
JB warned them to have fun while they could and now that time is coming to an end. Jonah and Katherine are shocked when time stops in the middle of their school day. They run into Angela, who is able to take them in her car powered by an Elucidator to Chip's house. There Jonah and Katherine overhear part of a message from JB warning them about problems in time, before they are accidently sent to 1903. They learn that JB has sent a child back, despite promising them he wouldn't. The child happens to be the daughter of Albert Einstein. Complications ensue when Mileva Einstein gets control of the Elucidator and begins to learn the truth about time travel. It is up to Jonah and Katherine to save time, but they must decide what they are willing to sacrifice.
The fourth book was my least favorite and seemed really slow in pace, but Caught, the fifth book in the series made up for it. Caught read like the first two books in the series, with lots of suspense and a great historical tie. I loved learning about Mileva Einstein and her life and the debate about just how much she influenced Albert's work. I loved how the children handle the moral dilemmas and how much they grow with each book. The twist at the end was a major surprise and I can't wait until the next book.
Favorite Character: Jonah. Jonah really matures in this book and comes to realize how important people in the overall scheme of things. Haddix does an excellent job showing how his character grows and I can't wait to see who he really is.
Favorite Quote: "'You're saying our lives are like light waves/quanta?' JB asked. 'We have fate and free will all at once?' 'Exactly!' Jonah said."
I really enjoy this series and only wish that the books came out closer together. Haddix does a great job with historical detail and has convincing time travel ideas. 5 cups of cocoa!
JB warned them to have fun while they could and now that time is coming to an end. Jonah and Katherine are shocked when time stops in the middle of their school day. They run into Angela, who is able to take them in her car powered by an Elucidator to Chip's house. There Jonah and Katherine overhear part of a message from JB warning them about problems in time, before they are accidently sent to 1903. They learn that JB has sent a child back, despite promising them he wouldn't. The child happens to be the daughter of Albert Einstein. Complications ensue when Mileva Einstein gets control of the Elucidator and begins to learn the truth about time travel. It is up to Jonah and Katherine to save time, but they must decide what they are willing to sacrifice.
The fourth book was my least favorite and seemed really slow in pace, but Caught, the fifth book in the series made up for it. Caught read like the first two books in the series, with lots of suspense and a great historical tie. I loved learning about Mileva Einstein and her life and the debate about just how much she influenced Albert's work. I loved how the children handle the moral dilemmas and how much they grow with each book. The twist at the end was a major surprise and I can't wait until the next book.
Favorite Character: Jonah. Jonah really matures in this book and comes to realize how important people in the overall scheme of things. Haddix does an excellent job showing how his character grows and I can't wait to see who he really is.
Favorite Quote: "'You're saying our lives are like light waves/quanta?' JB asked. 'We have fate and free will all at once?' 'Exactly!' Jonah said."
I really enjoy this series and only wish that the books came out closer together. Haddix does a great job with historical detail and has convincing time travel ideas. 5 cups of cocoa!
Fall Into Reading 2012 Challenge
This looks like a fun, straightforward challenge, which may help me with finishing up my last few reads of the year. You just make a list of books to read between September 22 and December 21 and try to read them. The link for the challenge is here.
The books I would like to read before the year out include the following:
Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan
Legend by Marie Lu
The Fire Chronicle by John Stephens
Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
I will stick with these four for now, because I still have a few more challenges to finish.
Sunday, September 23, 2012
Progress Report
I am almost finished with Caught, Enshadowed, and City of Lost Souls for the September is for Sequels challenge. I hope to finish Caught today and the other two by the end of the week. I am only a third of the way through Unwanteds 2, so I don't know if I will finish it before the end of the month. For some reason it took me a very long time to get interested in my books this month, although I do like them. I will update soon with a review of Caught.
Sunday, September 16, 2012
The Hero's Guide to Saving Your Kingdom by Christopher Healy
This was my Random Read for September and it was very funny.
The story revolves around the Princes Charming, the nameless heroes or not so heroic princes in the stories of Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel, and Snow White. Frederica, Cinderella's prince, is a pampered, protected prince who wants nothing more than to live his life with Ella, enjoying quiet picnics and doing nothing dangerous. Ella, however, is a free spirit and now that she is no longer under the control of her stepmother and stepsisters, she wants to travel the world having adventures. Ella, although she cares about Frederic, leaves to have an adventure, and Frederic follows to try to convince her to come back. Along the way he meets Gustav, Rapunzel's prince, who has had a fight with Rapunzel. Gustav agrees to help Frederic and the two travel on, learning that Ella has been captured by Zaubera, the witch from the Rapunzel story. Zaubera has kidnapped all the bards, the ones who basically made the princes into the generic Prince Charming. Her plan is to take over all the kingdoms by destroying the armies who come to save the bards. Ella manages to escape, but Gustav and Frederic still think they need to save her. They team up with Liam, who is on the run from the mean Briar Rose aka Sleeping Beauty, and Duncan, Snow White's prince. Along the way the four princes learn what it is like to be despised, adored, and ignored. Even though the four dislike the bards they join forces to try to save the day and make themselves into the League of Princes. Can they save the day or will they prove they are only worthy of the title Prince Charming?
This was a humorous look at the fairy tales and it was interesting to see the flaws of each of the princes and princesses. Healy has a ten year old villian who flicks spitballs at his enemy, a giant who knows his manners, and a Prince scared of everything. This is a great first book in the series and this will be a series I want to keep reading.
Favorite Character: I think Frederic and Ella were my favorites, although I am not for sure if they will stay together by the end of the series. Ella is brave and loving. Frederic knows his limitations and despite his flaws, he becomes brave.
Favorite Quote: "Some of you may not even realize that there's more than one Prince Charming. And that none of them are actually named Charming. No one is. Charming isn't a name; it's an adjective."
Reading a junior fiction book was a nice change of pace from all of the young adult books. The story was light and funny. 4.5 bars of chocolate for this one and I will definitely want to read the other books when they are released.
The story revolves around the Princes Charming, the nameless heroes or not so heroic princes in the stories of Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel, and Snow White. Frederica, Cinderella's prince, is a pampered, protected prince who wants nothing more than to live his life with Ella, enjoying quiet picnics and doing nothing dangerous. Ella, however, is a free spirit and now that she is no longer under the control of her stepmother and stepsisters, she wants to travel the world having adventures. Ella, although she cares about Frederic, leaves to have an adventure, and Frederic follows to try to convince her to come back. Along the way he meets Gustav, Rapunzel's prince, who has had a fight with Rapunzel. Gustav agrees to help Frederic and the two travel on, learning that Ella has been captured by Zaubera, the witch from the Rapunzel story. Zaubera has kidnapped all the bards, the ones who basically made the princes into the generic Prince Charming. Her plan is to take over all the kingdoms by destroying the armies who come to save the bards. Ella manages to escape, but Gustav and Frederic still think they need to save her. They team up with Liam, who is on the run from the mean Briar Rose aka Sleeping Beauty, and Duncan, Snow White's prince. Along the way the four princes learn what it is like to be despised, adored, and ignored. Even though the four dislike the bards they join forces to try to save the day and make themselves into the League of Princes. Can they save the day or will they prove they are only worthy of the title Prince Charming?
This was a humorous look at the fairy tales and it was interesting to see the flaws of each of the princes and princesses. Healy has a ten year old villian who flicks spitballs at his enemy, a giant who knows his manners, and a Prince scared of everything. This is a great first book in the series and this will be a series I want to keep reading.
Favorite Character: I think Frederic and Ella were my favorites, although I am not for sure if they will stay together by the end of the series. Ella is brave and loving. Frederic knows his limitations and despite his flaws, he becomes brave.
Favorite Quote: "Some of you may not even realize that there's more than one Prince Charming. And that none of them are actually named Charming. No one is. Charming isn't a name; it's an adjective."
Reading a junior fiction book was a nice change of pace from all of the young adult books. The story was light and funny. 4.5 bars of chocolate for this one and I will definitely want to read the other books when they are released.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
I have put this review off long enough.
Charlie has lost a friend to suicide and really seems to have no other friends. He decides to write letters to an anonymous person sharing what happens to him and his memories about events in his life. Charlie feels lost until he becomes friends with Patrick and Sam, two seniors, while he is just a freshman. Patrick and Sam introduce him to their friends and they spend the year partying, performing Rocky Horror Picture Show, and falling in and out of love. Charlie falls hard for Sam, who tells him to not fall in love with her, and ends up staying in love with her even past the end of the book. Patrick, Sam, and all their friends have major issues, like sexual abuse, being gay and having a partner who is not openly gay, being addicted to drugs, and having abusive relationships. Despite all the problems, the teens feel infinite in the way you do when you are young and have a life to look forward to living. In the end that is what Charlie's friends teach him, to live his life.
The book is like a mix of Catcher in the Rye and The Bell Jar, but something about it just did not appeal to me. Possibly it is the fact that it is written in letter form or that I spent most of the book trying to figure out what was really wrong with Charlie and did not get as involved in the actual story. It was not all bad, I think there are several parts with which teens will identify, like listening to a song that makes you feel alive and bickering families.
I did not really have a favorite character in the book. I thought his parents seemed pretty realistic, not bad parents, but not all there for Charlie either.
Favorite Quote: "And in that moment, I swear we were infinite."
It took me awhile to decide on the rating, but I think 2.5 bars of chocolate is about right. I thought the book was ok, just not for me. I can see why some people love the book and others not so much. For me it was ok.
Charlie has lost a friend to suicide and really seems to have no other friends. He decides to write letters to an anonymous person sharing what happens to him and his memories about events in his life. Charlie feels lost until he becomes friends with Patrick and Sam, two seniors, while he is just a freshman. Patrick and Sam introduce him to their friends and they spend the year partying, performing Rocky Horror Picture Show, and falling in and out of love. Charlie falls hard for Sam, who tells him to not fall in love with her, and ends up staying in love with her even past the end of the book. Patrick, Sam, and all their friends have major issues, like sexual abuse, being gay and having a partner who is not openly gay, being addicted to drugs, and having abusive relationships. Despite all the problems, the teens feel infinite in the way you do when you are young and have a life to look forward to living. In the end that is what Charlie's friends teach him, to live his life.
The book is like a mix of Catcher in the Rye and The Bell Jar, but something about it just did not appeal to me. Possibly it is the fact that it is written in letter form or that I spent most of the book trying to figure out what was really wrong with Charlie and did not get as involved in the actual story. It was not all bad, I think there are several parts with which teens will identify, like listening to a song that makes you feel alive and bickering families.
I did not really have a favorite character in the book. I thought his parents seemed pretty realistic, not bad parents, but not all there for Charlie either.
Favorite Quote: "And in that moment, I swear we were infinite."
It took me awhile to decide on the rating, but I think 2.5 bars of chocolate is about right. I thought the book was ok, just not for me. I can see why some people love the book and others not so much. For me it was ok.
Enchanted by Alethea Kontis
I picked up this book based on its cover, which I am including with a link to Goodreads. Hopefully this is ok to do, because I could not find anything about the legality of this.
However it took me just a page or two to get into the story. Sunday is the seventh daughter of a seventh daughter, so she knows she will have an interesting life and because of her name she is expected to have a happy life. Each of the sisters is gifted in some way, because of their fae blood. Sunday is cursed by the fact that anything she writes will come true, so she limits herself to writing down what has already happened, believing her life is not interesting. One day as she is writing in her journal, a frog comes along and speaks to her. She shares her story with him and eventually falls in love with him. After her fae brother Twix, sells their cow for a handful of beans, Grumble the frog gives her a gold ball to make up for the cow's loss. Sunday kisses Grumble and leaves, not realizing he turns into Rumbold, the prince her family hates and blames for her brother's death. Complications ensue as the two fall in love again as humans and as her family realizes they have an important destiny to play.
Favorite Character: I loved each of the sisters and their unique powers. Friday is kind and a wonderful seamstress, Monday is a princess trapped in her marriage, but still strong, Thursday is a pirate queen, Saturday is strong and fearless, Wednesday knows the future and hides herself because of her power, and Sunday is Sunday. She has powers, but still doubts herself. She loves her family and Rumbold and is willing to forsake her own happiness for other. However she does know she will have a happy ending, because of her curse, yet she seems to fear it.
Favorite Quote: "It can't be "true" love without the truth, Rumbold." "Child, no one is ever ready for anything. I would never doom you to that. What sort of adventureless life would that be?"
I enjoyed her twists on all of the fairy tales. Even though she includes almost every common fairy tale, it does not become confusing or over the top. I love twists on fairy tales and this is one of the best. The characters are wonderful and well-developed. I hope she does a sequel or sequels with the other sisters, because they were very interesting. Definitely a five bars of chocolate book!
However it took me just a page or two to get into the story. Sunday is the seventh daughter of a seventh daughter, so she knows she will have an interesting life and because of her name she is expected to have a happy life. Each of the sisters is gifted in some way, because of their fae blood. Sunday is cursed by the fact that anything she writes will come true, so she limits herself to writing down what has already happened, believing her life is not interesting. One day as she is writing in her journal, a frog comes along and speaks to her. She shares her story with him and eventually falls in love with him. After her fae brother Twix, sells their cow for a handful of beans, Grumble the frog gives her a gold ball to make up for the cow's loss. Sunday kisses Grumble and leaves, not realizing he turns into Rumbold, the prince her family hates and blames for her brother's death. Complications ensue as the two fall in love again as humans and as her family realizes they have an important destiny to play.
Favorite Character: I loved each of the sisters and their unique powers. Friday is kind and a wonderful seamstress, Monday is a princess trapped in her marriage, but still strong, Thursday is a pirate queen, Saturday is strong and fearless, Wednesday knows the future and hides herself because of her power, and Sunday is Sunday. She has powers, but still doubts herself. She loves her family and Rumbold and is willing to forsake her own happiness for other. However she does know she will have a happy ending, because of her curse, yet she seems to fear it.
Favorite Quote: "It can't be "true" love without the truth, Rumbold." "Child, no one is ever ready for anything. I would never doom you to that. What sort of adventureless life would that be?"
I enjoyed her twists on all of the fairy tales. Even though she includes almost every common fairy tale, it does not become confusing or over the top. I love twists on fairy tales and this is one of the best. The characters are wonderful and well-developed. I hope she does a sequel or sequels with the other sisters, because they were very interesting. Definitely a five bars of chocolate book!
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