Book Review: Hunger by Michael Grant

Hunger: A Gone Novel by Michael Grant
Publisher: Katherine Tegen
Publication date: May 2009
ISBN: 9780061449086
Source: Library

Three months after all the adults disappear, things are far from normal in the Fayz.  Food has pretty much run out and kids are not willing to do anything about it.  When tension begins to break out between the supernaturals and those without powers, chaos seems to reign.  But there is a bigger problem - the monster in the dark who is calling to the kids.  What does it want and will they be able to stop its sinister influence before it is too late for them all?

Things I Liked:
Just like the first book Gone, this one was once again nonstop action.  There is always something horrifying or deadly happening.  I got angry and frustrated at the kids for their unconcern about having enough food, just like I got mad last time.  I loved how realistically it shows Sam, the leader who is still just a kid.  It is a fairly accurate account of what might happen with no adults and no one to assume responsibility.  It definitely keeps you wanting to know what happens next and also what's coming in the next book!  And what a surprise that ending was - definitely unexpected.

Things I Didn't Like:
There was a lot going on in the book.  It almost suffered from having too many plots and characters to keep track of and what each was experiencing.  I again found it to be pretty gruesome for me, but I'm sure many wouldn't be as bothered.  I admit I'm pretty conflicted about how much I "like" these books.

Read-alikes:
Read the first book in the series Gone by Michael Grant
Chaos Walking Trilogy by Patrick Ness
Lord of the Flies by William Golding
The Maze Runner by James Dashner

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !@
a few, none very strong

mrg-factor: X
mostly just talk and kissing

v-factor: ->->->->
quite a bit, some of it gory

Overall rating: ****

Do you have love-hate relationships with lots of different books?

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

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Posted in 4 stars , dystopian , gone series , paranormal , Young Adult

April Reflections

I could almost subtitle this one "finding my p(l)ace" because my pace seems to have drastically changed the past five weeks or so. I'm finding that a slower pace makes for a happier me. Which is a good thing, I think!!! I may not have as many posts per week in the months ahead. But if I'm *happy* with what I'm reading, then I think it will make a BIG difference.

So this month saw a few more changes in addition to "how often" I blog. For one, WHERE I blog. I have not reviewed a thing at Young Readers. So there will be no reviews of board books or picture books or early readers or children's books this month. Which is strange--though it may not seem strange to you--but it's definitely strange to me. I'm not sure what this means for the future of Young Readers. Though if I were to stop posting there, I'd just *have* to start reviewing those types of books here at Becky's Book Reviews. Maybe like how Amanda does Picture Book Saturdays? Except probably not every week. And definitely not tied to any one day of the week. Anyway, we'll have to see how May goes. Though at the very, very least I'm going to try to blog about YOUR MOMMY WAS JUST LIKE YOU by Kelly Bennett.

On a positive note, I have 30 posts on Operation Actually Read Bible this month. I've really felt led to devote my time there. And it's been a big blessing to me to follow my heart. I felt like I've made a new friend or two. And I really, really, really enjoyed my New Testament in week challenge!

As far as challenges go, I was able to read at least one book for each of these challenges: New Author Challenge, 2011 TBR Challenge, TBR Pile Challenge, Chunkster Challenge, 42 Challenge, Historical Fiction, Spring Reading Thing, Once Upon a Time.

This month I read 31 books.

Middle Grade: 4; Young Adult: 8; Adult: 6; Christian Fiction: 2; Christian Nonfiction: 9; Nonfiction: 1; Graphic Novel: 1. 

Review Copies: 8; Library Books: 14 books; Bought Books: 9.

Twelve books were from new-to-me authors!!! 


My favorite first lines of April:

• It was the middle of the night when the rooster crowed.
• There was a boy called Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved it. 
• Now that I've found the way to fly, which direction should I go into the night?
• It had snowed in the night. Tilja knew this before she woke, and waking she remembered how she knew. 
  
• This book owes a lot to Carlo Collodi's original story, Pinocchio. We mean a lot. You could say everything, and we wouldn't complain. We never could have dreamed up a wooden puppet whose nose grows when he lies. I mean, you can't make that kind of stuff up. Unless your name is Carlo Collodi, Then, apparently, you can.

 
My top five:

The Ropemaker. Peter Dickinson. 
Persuasion. Jane Austen
The Pilgrimage: The Unforgettable SF Masterpiece of the Strangers Among Us: The First Book of The People. Zenna Henderson.
The Land of the Silver Apples. Nancy Farmer.
Wither. Laura DeStefano.

Reviews at Becky's Book Reviews

Matched. Ally Condie. 2010. Penguin. 369 pages.
XVI. Julia Karr. 2011. Penguin. 272 pages.
Wither. Laura DeStefano. 2011. Simon & Schuster. 368 pages.
Outside In. Maria V. Snyder. 2011. Harlequin. 336 pages.
The Ropemaker. Peter Dickinson. 2001. Random House. 384 pages.
Sharp North. Patrick Cave. 2004/2006. Simon & Schuster. 528 pages.
The Land of the Silver Apples. Nancy Farmer. 2007. Simon & Schuster. 512 pages.
A Brief History of Montmaray. Michelle Cooper. 2009. Random House. 304 pages.
The Door in the Wall. Marguerite de Angeli. 1949/1990. Random House. 128 pages.
Inside Grandad. Peter Dickinson. 2004. Random House. 128 pages.
The Spellcoats. Diana Wynne Jones. (The Dalemark Quartet). 1979. HarperCollins. 280 pages.
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. C.S. Lewis. 1952. HarperCollins. 256 pages.
Persuasion. Jane Austen 1818/1992. Knopf Doubleday. 304 pages.
Jubilee. Margaret Walker. 1966. 512 pages.
The Pilgrimage: The Unforgettable SF Masterpiece of the Strangers Among Us: The First Book of The People. Zenna Henderson. 1961. 255 pages.
Elizabeth and the Prince of Spain. Margaret Irwin. 1953/2011. Sourcebooks. 336 pages.
The People: No Different Flesh. (The New Chronicle of  THE PEOPLE) Zenna Henderson. 1967. Avon. 225 pages.
Wickham's Diary. Amanda Grange. 2011. Sourcebooks. 208 pages.
What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knew: From Fox Hunting to Whist -- The Facts of Daily Life in 19th Century England. Daniel Pool. 1994. Simon & Schuster. 416 pages.  
Pinocchio: Vampire Slayer #1. Van Jensen. Dusty Higgins. 2009. SLG Publishing. 128 pages.

Reviews at Operation Actually Read Bible

The Practice of the Presence of God. Brother Lawrence. Joseph de Beaufort. 1982. Whitaker House. 96 pages.
ESV Seek and Find Bible. Crossway Publishing. 2010. 1888 pages.
How To Get The Most From God's Word. John MacArthur. 1997. Thomas Nelson. 168 pages.
God is Great: A Toddlers Bible Storybook by Carolyn Larsen. Illustrated by Caron Turk. 2011. Crossway Publishers. 44 pages.
No Other Gospel: 31 Reasons From Galatians Why Justification by Faith Alone is the Only Gospel. Josh Moody. 2011. Crossway. 288 pages.
Discovering Jesus: Why Four Gospels to Portray One Person? T.D. Alexander. 2010. Crossway Publishers. 144 pages.
Through Gates of Splendor. Elisabeth Elliot. 1956/2005. Tyndale. 296 pages.
Cries From the Cross: A Journey Into the Heart of Jesus. Erwin Lutzer. 2002. Moody. 170 pages.
The Judgment. Beverly Lewis. 2011. Bethany House. 336 pages.
How To Study The Bible. R.A. Torrey. 1896. Hendrickson Publishers. 90 pages.
How to Pray. R.A. Torrey. 1900. Hendrickson Publishers. 82 pages.
© 2011 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Posted in 2011 Reflections

Weekly Geeks: Catching Up On Reviews

This week's weekly geeks theme is one of my favorites. It's a Dewey Original. Though I don't think it's a favorite of other weekly geeks. (I'm not sure why.)

1) In your blog, list any books you've read but haven't reviewed yet. If you're all caught up on reviews, maybe you could try this with whatever book(s) you [hope to] finish this week. 

2) Ask your readers to ask you questions about any of the books they want. In your comments, not in their blogs. Most likely, people who will ask you questions will be people who have read one of the books or know something about it because they want to read it.

3) Later, take whichever questions you like from your comments and use them in a post about each book. I'll probably turn mine into a sort of interview-review. Link to each blogger next to that blogger's question(s).

4) Visit other Weekly Geeks and ask them some questions!

I happen to be all caught up on reviews. But I am currently reading a handful of books. So I will share what I am currently reading. And you can ask me questions about any of these! If you're not familiar with a particular book--you can ask me about the author or the genre!

• Pickwick Papers by Charles Dickens (Victorian literature/classic)
• Last Chronicle of Barset by Anthony Trollope (Victorian literature/classic)
• Enclave by Ann Aguirre (YA dystopian)
• Black Orchids by Rex Stout (adult mystery)
• The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck (adult literature/classic)

These are books that I have NOT started yet. But I hope to get to very soon. You can ask me questions about these if you prefer.

• Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen (classic)
• The Islands of the Blessed by Nancy Farmer (MG/YA Fantasy)
• Angel Isle by Peter Dickinson (MG/YA Fantasy)
• Mine is the Night by Liz Curtis Higgs (Adult Historical Fiction/Christian Fiction)
• The Gift by Bryan Litfin (Adult Fantasy/Science Fiction/Christian Fiction)

Want to help me pick the next book from my TBR pile? I'm participating in the TBR Pile Challenge, I'm feeling a little discouraged.

A Faraway Island. Annika Thor. (MG Historical Fiction)
War Games. Audrey Couloumbis and Akila Couloumbis. (MG Historical Fiction)
The Miles Between by Mary E. Pearson  (YA Realistic Fiction)

Even if you're not participating in the Weekly Geek event, I ask you to please ask a question or two!

© 2011 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Posted in weekly geeks

Library Loot Fifth Trip in April

New Loot:

Enclave by Ann Aguirre
The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
Black Orchids & the Silent Speaker by Rex Stout
Death of a Doxy by Rex Stout
Cold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann Burns
The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck
Sons by Pearl S. Buck
The Mother by Pearl S. Buck
Three Daughters of Madame Liang by Pearl S. Buck
Pavilion of Women by Pearl S. Buck
The New Year by Pearl S. Buck
The Promise by Pearl S. Buck
Imperial Woman by Pearl S. Buck
Dragon Seed by Pearl S. Buck
The Living Reed by Pearl S. Buck
Mandala by Pearl S. Buck
The Moon Opera by Bi Feiyu
Three Sisters by Bi Feiyu
The German Bride by Joanna Hershon

Leftover Loot:

Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
Pickwick Papers by Charles Dickens
Angel Isle by Peter Dickinson
The Islands of the Blessed by Nancy Farmer
Some Buried Caesar; The Golden Spiders by Rex Stout

Library Loot is a weekly event co-hosted by Claire and Marg that encourages bloggers to share the books they’ve checked out from the library. If you’d like to participate, just write up your post-feel free to steal the button-and link it using the Mr. Linky any time during the week. And of course check out what other participants are getting from their libraries.  

© 2011 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Posted in 2011 Library Loot

The Judgment

The Judgment. Beverly Lewis. 2011. Bethany House. 336 pages.

Tomorrow holds nary a promise, my dear Mamm often says. But thankfully some things are quite certain--we plow, we plant and harvest. We attend canning bees and quilting frolics. Our wedding season always begins on the first Tuesday in November. And this year there are many couples marrying and looking ahead to starting their own families.

The Judgment is the sequel to Beverly Lewis' The Thorn. It is the second in the trilogy; these books are set in the mid-80s in Pennsylvania Dutch Country. The novels focus on two sisters--Rose and Hannah.

Hannah (Hen) is married, but she's--for better or worse--separated from her husband. He is of the world, and he wants to raise their young daughter to be of the world. He doesn't think it's a "problem" for her to be watching Madonna videos, for example. Hen never knew how much her faith meant to her until she realized how far she'd fallen through the years. She sacrificed her family, her faith, her traditions to marry this man. Now that she's wanting to reconnect with her faith, her tradition, he's saying NO WAY. There is NO WAY he's going to stay married to a woman who dresses plain and frowns on the sinful "modern" world. He does NOT want his daughter to be brought up Amish. He's not willing to compromise. Hannah must choose between her faith--her way of life--and her marriage. If she doesn't give up--or give in--then he'll file for divorce and custody.

Rose should be content. She's engaged to Silas Good a perfectly respectable man in the community. She should be happy that he's courting her. She should be able to ignore the not-so-new woman in town who's been rather chatty with him. But. If Silas has a few secrets of his own, so does Rose. For Rose can't stop thinking about Nick--even though Nick left the community in disgrace. Nick's not around for her to talk to, to confide in. But he's never far from her thoughts.

So this one has some drama. Two sisters trying to make sense of their love lives. But it's more than just a romance. It's a family drama too.

Did I love it? I'm not sure that I did. I enjoyed spending time with Hen and Rose again. And I look forward to the conclusion of this trilogy. But it wasn't quite love, love, love. I liked it.

© 2011 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Posted in 2011 , adult fiction , Bethany House , CFBA Blog Tour , Christian fiction , review copy

A Brief History of Montmaray (YA)

A Brief History of Montmaray. Michelle Cooper. 2009. Random House. 304 pages.

23rd October 1936
Dear Sophie,
Happy birthday to my favorite little sister! I've been trying to recollect the day you were born so I can gush about it in an appropriately sentimental fashion, but I'm afraid it's all a blank.

Sophie FitzOsborne lives an isolated life with her younger sister, Henry, her cousin Veronica, and her mad-uncle John who happens to be King. Except for a handful of villagers and/or servants that make up the "kingdom" of Montmaray, they are the island's only residents. (Toby, her brother, and Simon, the housekeeper's son, being away in England for most of the novel.) But they may not stay isolated for long. The year is 1936, and for whatever reason--bad luck, bad timing, whatever--the Germans have become interested in the island-kingdom. Small though it may be, there is a library in the castle that one or two visiting Germans would just LOVE, LOVE, LOVE to be allowed to explore. But with mad-uncle John still incredibly, fiercely angry at the Germans because of The Great War, the two girls (Sophie and Veronica) dare not let them near the castle. For who knows what King John would do if he discovered Germans on HIS island.

Sophie, our young heroine, is coming of age at an increasingly dangerous time. Plenty of tension and conflict when it comes to European politics and the like. And of course, there is the every day drama of growing up. Should Sophie accept her aunt's invitation to "a season" in London? Should Sophie leave her island home for a big, grand adventure in the city? Her aunt's invitation included Veronica as well. But Sophie knows it would take a LOT of convincing to get Veronica off the island. Because she is VERY VERY busy writing a "Brief History of Montmaray." Sophie may just discover that "love" is a tricky business too.

Historical fiction with plenty of mystery--lies, secrets, murder!

I very much enjoyed Michelle Cooper's A Brief History of Montomaray. I can't wait to begin the sequel, The FitzOsbornes in Exile, which was released this month.


© 2011 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Posted in 2009 , brothers and/or sisters , Random House , review copy , war , YA Fiction , YA Historical Fiction , YA Mystery , YA Romance

Hard Magic

There are very few authors whose body of work makes us cackle with boyish glee. Chris Wooding is one. Jonathan Maberry another. Recently Sarah Pinborough has joined those ranks. For those of you keeping score, when Larry Correia writes something new we drop everything. You can then find us camped out with a flashlight in the living room under a tent made of sheets and blankets. Never mind we own our own homes.

We are just going to come out and say it: Larry Correia’s HARD MAGIC, book 1 of the Grimnoir Chronicles, is completely fun and awesome. Everyone knows how much we like his Monster Hunter series. We like this one more. Much more. Everything about HARD MAGIC is positively saturated with style…

…well, and explosions of course.

HARD MAGIC takes place during an alternate USA of the 20’s and 30’s (mostly 30's). Magic has been reintroduced into the world which has obviously changed it dramatically. There is some detective story stuff here and some magic. But apart from those automatic “win buttons” the main thing that Larry’s novel has going for it is its epic foundation. This is Epic Alternate Historical Urban Fantasy...with superheroes…kinda. Yeah. Tell us that doesn’t sound completely fun and awesome if executed right. And yes, Larry does it right.

You may be tempted to dismiss Larry as a pure action author. The style (and ‘splosions) over substance type. The explosions and violence are there, and they are GLORIOUS! But we’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again. Larry’s work is deceptive. No doubt we read his work for the gun-play (one of the best out there) and the B-movie feeling it all invokes. But if we are honest with ourselves—and you readers of course—we would have to admit we read Larry’s work for the characters. HARD MAGIC, in our opinion, has the best character work of all Larry’s novels so far.

To understand the characters, we should probably talk a bit about the main magic system of the novel. Rare individuals have the ability to perform a certain type of magic. Some can alter their own personal gravity. Some can teleport. Some use animals in a borderline possession way. Others can perform miraculous healing feats while their opposites can cause plagues. In the back of the novel you’ll find a list and description of them all. They sound a bit like superheroes, and there's nothing wrong with it. You readers of MISTBORN will feel very comfortable picking up the magic of this created world.

One of the main characters of the novel is Jake Sullivan. He is one of those individuals that can alter his personal gravity—a Heavy. He’s been in wars (we get some awesome history here), he’s been a P.I., and he’s been in prison. Now he’s on loan to the Feds. Simply put, Sullivan is terrific. He is very reminiscent of the Owen Pitt character from the Monster Hunter universe (some would say a tad too similar), but has enough differences to make him his own character. For starters, Sullivan is more intelligent. The sequences in the novel that show the research Sullivan is doing on magic are fantastic and are VERY character building.

While there are a ton of characters in the novel—none of with we can point at with dislike—the other main character we want to mention is Faye—a Traveler (aka teleporter). We want to mention this character specifically because Larry does such a great job of keeping her, well, female-ish. So many male authors have such a hard time writing female PoVs (just as female authors have trouble writing male PoVs). Faye goes through some traumatic events early in the novel, and there is a need to balance this “lost youth” and innocence with the incredible power he grows into as the novel progresses…not to mention all from a female’s PoV. Tough stuff, yet Larry pulls it off. We don’t mean to snub the female characters from his other novels, but Faye is not only the best female character Larry has put on paper, but she is one of his best overall characters, period.

We couldn’t wrap us this review without mentioning the world-building. It may seem hardly worth mentioning since this takes place in a familiar-ish 1930s USA, but Larry did an amazing job here. Information is never just dumped on you during the course of the story. Rather than killing the pacing, Larry puts all the historical changes and details in the chapter bumps. The chapter bumps (or leads, if you will) in HARD MAGIC are easily on the same level as those in Brandon Sanderson’s novels. We’ve mentioned before that we think Sanderson’s chapter leads are some of best in the business (if not THE best). Larry’s are THAT good. As you read through the novel, the attention to detail is noticeable. You can tell that a ton of research was done, and then effectively spun into the text.

When all is said and done, Larry Correia’s HARD MAGIC is one of them most entertaining novels we have read. What’s more is that it has all the qualities that make us love Epic Fantasy, only in a Raymond Chandler-esque, noir setting. No one type of reader will enjoy this novel more than another. This is one of the few novels that will capture every reader’s imagination and leave them—like us—begging for more.

Recommended Age: 16 and up.
Language: Yep. It can be strong, but never feels thrown in for shock-value.
Violence: It’s a Larry Correia novel, of course there is violence. The gun-play is perfect, and the set-piece action sequences are completely over-the-top and awesome.
Sex: Nope.

On a side note, we aren't too fond of the cover. We pictured something more along the lines of either of the Simon R Green Urban Fantasy series. But hey, whatever. We bought this book for the content, not the cover.

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Posted in Books We Love , Larry Correia , Urban Fantasy

First Impressions: Cover Sillies 2

Though the response to my first Cover Sillies post was not stellar, I am still interested in noting some strange first impressions I have on book covers.  My comments are not what I'd call criticism, more of strange or odd reactions to the covers.  Many covers I highlight are ones that I really love.  This collectin of covers is what I like to call the Awkward Bodies edition. 

Tell me I'm not the only one who thinks this position is awkward - it literally makes me uncomfortable to look at it.  Maybe I'm just seeing it wrong or something. 

Now I know this is odd on purpose, but I honestly think to myself "Don't try this at home, folks!"  It makes my back hurt imagining the model standing like that for any length of time.

 

I really love this cover, but since I've been experiencing neck problems recently, I cringe when I think about her neck pain. Hopefully she doesn't have to lie there for long (and is this a zombie or the main character?)

Now, I really really love this cover, but when I first saw it, I thought again of how painful her head position looks. Maybe it's just the placement of it in relation to his body, but it looks otherworldly. Probably part of its charm.

Do you notice these kinds of things or am I alone?

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

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Posted in cover sillies , not a review

The Land of the Silver Apples (MG/YA)

The Land of the Silver Apples. Nancy Farmer. 2007. Simon & Schuster. 512 pages.

It was the middle of the night when the rooster crowed.

The Land of the Silver Apples is the sequel to Nancy Farmer's The Sea of Trolls. And I must admit that I loved it. I just loved, loved, loved it! Even more than the first book. Perhaps because I already loved our hero Jack! Perhaps because I already cared for Thorgil, Brother Aiden, and the Bard (Dragon Tongue to some.) Perhaps because I really, really came to care for the new characters we're introduced to in this second novel! Or maybe it was just perfect timing--the right book at the right time! Lucy, Jack's younger sister, Jack's all-too-spoiled younger sister, has been acting very, very, very strange! Turns out there is a good reason! For their father has been keeping a HUGE secret from the family. A secret about Lucy. But this secret is forced into the open, as a new quest begins, a new adventure begins.

In The Land of Silver Apples, readers journey along with Jack into dangerous new worlds. We'll encounter hobgoblins (including the Hobgoblin king, Bugaboo) and elves (beware, beware!) and that's just the beginning.

If you enjoy a blending of mythology and fantasy, then you should definitely read these books! They're good fun. Plenty of action and adventure. Some humor. And I love the writing! It's just a satisfying novel!

© 2011 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Posted in 2007 , library book , Mythology , Simon and Schuster , YA Fantasy , YA Fiction

Book Review: The Vespertine by Saundra Mitchell

The Vespertine by Saundra Mitchell
Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books
Publication date: March 2011
ISBN: 9780547482477
Source: e-book provided by NetGalley

 

Amelia van den Broek is visiting Baltimore for the first time - leaving behind her small town secluded life to find a suitable match.  But when she starts seeing the future in the twilight, things become a lot more complicated than she expected.  Especially when she sees something horrible in the future that just might change all their lives.

Things I Liked:
I really enjoyed the interesting and unique nearly-paranormal mixed with historical fiction details.  I liked the way Mitchell described things so vividly.  The somewhat spooky, gothic and historical feel of the setting and atmosphere were my favorite things.  The relationship between Amelia and Zora was fun and I loved how they interacted and had so much fun together.  I felt like there was something missing from it at the end that should have been there (yeah, trying to be vague and avoid spoilers).  I also really liked the ending, since it was pretty unflinching and different.  Definitely not what I expected in a historical fiction or even a historical fantasy.

Things I Didn't Like:
I wish there was a little more historical detail.  It felt like there wasn't quite enough to make me feel like I was there.  At the beginning I really had a hard time following what was happening - it jumped around a lot from one thing to another.  Once I adjusted, it was easier to follow.  I wasn't too impressed with the romantic element either.  Definitely was too much like love at first sight.  Amelia acted a bit nauseating at times, but they did have some interesting interactions - up and down.

Read-alikes:
Dreamhunter by Elizabeth Knox
Prophecy of the Sisters and Guardian of the Gate by Michelle Zink
Sorcery and Cecilia by Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer
Everlasting by Angie Frazier

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !
a very few

mrg-factor: X
a little sensuality

v-factor: ->
not much

Overall rating: ***

I do wonder if my discontent at the beginning was a result of reading the ARC - anyone read the published edition and found the same thing?

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

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Posted in 3 stars , e-book , historical fantasy , Historical Fiction , review copy , Young Adult

The Unremembered

The hardest part of being a book reviewer is putting together a negative review of a book when you don't want to. This happens for a variety of reasons, but mainly has to do with the author himself (or herself as the case may be). If we hate the author, or absolutely hate a novel, writing a scathing review is simple and enjoyable--therapeutic even. But with a novel like THE UNREMEMBERED, well, we almost didn't even write this up. But then we realized the potential disservice we would be doing you, the readers, and the author, Peter Orullian, by leaving this unreviewed.

We are going to tackle this review a little differently from the other negative reviews we have written. Hopefully it comes across as constructive rather than destructive. Peter is generally regarded as a good guy by people we know. As you readers may be aware, we are alpha readers for several big-name authors. They send us an early draft of the completed novel, and we read it over and give detailed feedback on what we liked and/or had problems with. We are going to do the same sort of thing here for Peter Orullian--albeit in a spoiler-free way so you readers can still make your own decision at the end. That's right folks, we are going to be the "nice guys" today. Don't get used it.

Let's start off with the good from Peter's debut novel. The cover art is absolutely beautiful. It in itself will sell the novel to a good number of people. The map inside is perhaps the single best map we have ever seen in a fantasy novel--and we've seen some great ones. Our good buddy Isaac Stewart--you know him as the artist from the maps in the MISTBORN series and THE WAY OF KINGS--told us once that the person who did this map deserves a Hugo. We agree.

We aren't going to lie to you, that was about it for us. This book was a huge disappointment. Where does this disappointment originate? Well, from the beginning. From the story itself.

THE UNREMEMBERED starts off with a boy from a small town. He is fantastic with a bow. He has stars in his eyes about life outside the town. When out hunting one day, a mysterious and evil creature chases him, threatening his life. Upon returning to his village, he finds that two foreign strangers have come. They soon tell our main character and one of his friends that they need to leave their village because the evil bad guys are coming for them. Have you heard this before? We have. We've seen this story from Terry Brooks, and more specifically from Robert Jordan. At first we thought it just a coincidence arising from the "coming of age" type story we were reading. But as the novel progressed, we soon were predicting each plot point specifically as it came...based on the plot and progression of THE EYE OF THE WORLD.

THE UNREMEMBERED isn't just loosely similar to THE EYE OF THE WORLD. It follows it near exact. Think of every major plot point from the first Wheel of Time novel, from beginning to end, and you can find a parallel in Orullian's novel. Suppose we were in a writing group with Peter. The first thing we would have pointed out is this blatant similarity. Perhaps it is the industry's desire to have another Wheel of Time, but isn't this taking it a bit too far?

The characters follow the same template that Jordan's do. We could point at character and say, "Oh, this is Mat. That is Rand." One of the characters is Moiraine, only as a dude. The other is Lan, but a chick. Simply reversing the gender of roles is not enough to make it new. Now there are fans of this novel out there who are starting to foam at the mouth a bit. Doubtless they will want to point out that not every character has a WoT counterpart. True enough. But over half do, and most of the main players.

One of the mistakes it seems all first-time fantasy authors make is the whole "invented word syndrome." We've been trying our hand at writing, and we've each been guilty of this. Too many made-up terms for normal words doesn't add any freshness. They don't add uniqueness. All they do is pull a reader out of the moment as they spend a few moments trying to figure out what the word actually means. Words and names littered with apostrophes used to be super vogue. No so much anymore. Even the authors out there with the highest learning curves are careful about what they make up. Don't make it harder for the reader than it needs to be.

One of the storytelling techniques that bothers us the most is when information is completely withheld. "I'll tell you when you're ready." "This is not the time to discuss that." "I'm a mysterious bastard, and will berate you for not knowing what I refuse to tell you." These types of responses happen every single chapter. We could only shake out heads in dismay as the Moiraine/Allanon hybrid character would tell the other characters that there wasn't time to explain anything...as they rode slowly for days at a time...or as they sit around a campfire talking about history for hours at a time. To us, this isn't fair to the readers, nor is it good storytelling.

Like most first-time authors, transitions are extremely rough. There is a side story being told, for example, that when introduced has no time-anchor on it. It comes at a confusing time that immediately cripples the momentum of the scene it interrupts (can't get more specific than that due to heavy spoilers--it's pretty early on). We literally read that section a half-dozen times trying to figure out just what the heck was going on, and when it was happening. Part of this has to do with Orullian describing things that don't need it, while ignoring what needs clarification. These are the types of things that, as alpha readers, we point out. Even the most derivative story can be enjoyable if it is smooth and accessible.

We are ultimately left feeling the Orullian played it incredibly safe with THE UNREMEMBERED. Though it has some interesting theology mixed in, it still feels like EYE OF THE WORLD rewritten. The characters act in unbelievable, yet utterly predictable ways. This novel needed a few more heavy drafts in our opinion.

We've said a lot of negative stuff here. We just didn't like it at all. Hate? No. We didn't hate it. THE UNREMEMBERED feels half-done. It feels like a novel still in its draft form. It feels like a copy. The good news is that Orullian still has time to make it right. It's our opinion that you can't play it safe as a writer anymore. Writers have to take risks. Orullian isn't a bad writer, he's an inexperienced one. A lot of these issues can get worked out through simple experience. But the story? Sorry man, this needs a radical shift. There are readers out there that will like this novel due to its absolute similarity to that Jordan/Tolkien/Brooks story we've all read dozens of times from dozens of authors. But that isn't good enough for us. It isn't good enough for the thousands upon thousands of discerning readers out there.

We doubt Peter Orullian will read this review. That's fine. Regardless, we want him to know that we really WANT him to get better. Twist the crap out of this clichéd story with its clichéd characters. Stop playing so safe and predictable.

Again, writing a negative review like this is never easy. We could have sugar-coated it, or completely swept our opinions of this under the rug. No insults here, just our honest thoughts. You decide if you want to read this novel or not.

Recommended Age: 16 and up.
Language: Nope.
Violence: Mixed bag here. Sometimes it's well done, other times it is completely terrible--transitions and clarity are important in action scenes.
Sex: Rape is talked about pretty frankly.

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Posted in Books We Don't Like , Epic Fantasy , Peter Orullian

Sharp North (YA)

Sharp North. Patrick Cave. 2004/2006. Simon & Schuster. 528 pages.

The girl nearly didn't find out who she was. What she was.

Sharp North is a perplexing YA novel. Part mystery. Part thriller. Part dystopian. It's set in a future world forever altered by global warming. A future world with a corrupt government. (How many fictional future worlds don't have a corrupt government?) A future world threatened by an underground movement, a revolution in the making. Our heroine, Mira, has a role to play in this world--for better or worse. And it's a role that mystifies Mira. For Mira's future is just as uncertain as her past.

Sharp North begins with a murder. Mira witnesses this murder, this hushed up murder, and it forever changes the way she sees the world, the way she sees her community. In part because she finds out that she is connected to the victim. She finds a piece of paper, a mere scrap, with a list of names. Her name is on the list. And so is the name of one of her friends, Gil Moore. He's listed as "her watcher." But why is he watching her? Is he her friend or her enemy? Is he out to see that she survives? Or is he in place to eliminate her? That's what Mira can't forget, can't erase. Are the people who murdered this mysterious woman, this mysterious stranger, out to get her? What led to this crime? For even if the whole world chooses to ignore it, Mira can't. Was it the woman's curiosity? Well, Mira can't help being curious now!

So Mira sets out on a journey to discover the truth, the truth about who she is, what she is. In a way she's running away from danger just as much as she's running straight into it. For Mira hasn't a real clue who her enemies are and who her friends may be. Is there a safe place for Mira? Or is she destined to upset the balance of those around her?

We meet a few interesting characters in Patrick Cave's Sharp North. Including several members of the Saint family, one of the "Great Families" that govern in this new world.

Maybe other readers can piece together this mystery. Maybe other readers can read it without being confused by the ending--as for me, well, I'm puzzled by how it ended. I still don't know what really happened.

So did I like it? Yes and no. I liked the idea of it. But. It felt like two or three stories pieced together. And it didn't always work for me.

© 2011 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Posted in 2004 , 2006 , cloning , dystopia , library book , Simon and Schuster , Survival , YA Action , YA Fiction , YA Mystery , YA Science Fiction , YA Thriller

Book Review: A Tale Dark and Grimm by Adam Gidwitz

Posted as part of Tween Tuesday, hosted by GreenBeanTeenQueen.

A Tale Dark and Grimm by Adam Gidwitz
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Publication date: October 2010
ISBN: 9780525423348
Source: Library

 

Hansel and Gretel you may have heard of, but there is a lot more to their story than a child-eating witch.  Born to a king and queen who treat them unspeakably poorly, they run away and find that there is a lot they don't know about the world and about parents. 

Things I Liked:
I liked the story, but I loved the side notes.  I think they made the whole book more enjoyable.  They were humorous and alleviated the sometimes repetitive and simplistic fairy tale story writing.  This felt like the perfect read-aloud and I almost wanted to close the book and find an audio version.  I read the first story to my husband and he liked it.  It would be a lot of fun to read to older classes, though I still don't know how young an age group I'd read it to.  (Hey, it does have some scary stuff and quite a lot of "awesome," ie: blood.)  So fun and different from most retellings.

You know how it is with stories.  Someone tells a story.  Then somebody repeats it and it changes.  Someone else repeats it, and it changes again.  Then someone's telling it to their kid and taking out all the scary, bloody scenes - in other words, the awesome parts - and the next thing you know the story's about an adorable little girl in a red cap, skipping through the forest to take cookies to her granny.  And you're so board you've passed out on the floor. [Prologue]

Oh no! he thought. Now I'm cooking for certain! He sniffed at the air.  And I smell delicious!  But he wasn't cooking.  It was three strips of bacon that he'd tucked into his socks at breakfast.  p 46

For a moment she stopped and considered following the rain's advice.  But then she shook her head.  "You're being foolish," Gretel told herself.  "Rain can't talk."
No, of course it can't.  The moon can eat children, and fingers can open doors, and people's heads can be put back on.  But rain?  Talk?  Don't be ridiculous.  Good thinking, Gretel dear.  Good thinking.  p 97

If you are gambled away to the Devil (and this is a matter of public record - I'm certainly not making it up), you are damned to excruciating pain for all eternity, and no matter what you do, no matter how good you are, or how many times yu ask, "Please pretty please with a cherry on top?," the Devil will never, ever, ever let you out.  It's excruciating pain from the moment you arrive in Hell until the moment after eternity.  p 125

Things I Didn't Like:
One thing I've always been annoyed by is the simplistic fairy tale writing style.  There is nothing descriptive or beautiful that goes with the stark writing to make it more enjoyable.  The parts where the author interjected made it fun, but when it went longer without those parts it was less fun.  Also, almost too gross and bloody for me in places :)

Read-alikes:
The Grimm Legacy by Polly Shulman
Reckless by Cornelia Funke
Plain Kate by Erin Bow

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !
incidental when they visit Hell

mrg-factor: none

v-factor: ->->->->
lots and lots of blood and gore and scary stuff

Overall rating: ****

Do you like quirky or do you avoid it?

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

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Posted in 4 stars , fairy tale , Fantasy , humorous , middle grade , tween tuesday

The Ropemaker (MG/YA)

The Ropemaker. Peter Dickinson. 2001. Random House. 384 pages.

It had snowed in the night. Tilja knew this before she woke, and waking she remembered how she knew. Somewhere between dream and dream a hand had shaken her shoulder and she'd heard Ma's whisper.

The Ropemaker reminded me of all the reasons I love reading fantasy. Did I love it? I didn't want it to end! I wanted to savor every moment of it. Why? Well, because I loved not only the characters, not only the story, but the world Peter Dickinson created! My favorite character happens to be our heroine, Tilja.

Tilja's valley has almost always--twenty generations--been protected by magic. Protected from its neighbors--those who would love to tax, tax, tax in the name of "providing protection" and those who would invade and plunder and conquer. There is a story passed down through the generations--a story some scarcely believe these days--about how the valley came to be protected. A story about two people on a quest for a magician named Asarta. We learn this story in chapter two. Here is how it starts:

There was time in the Valley, of course--how could there not be? But there was no history. In all the rich farmland between the northern mountains and the forest there were no wars, or reports of wars, only days, seasons, generations. No kings or other rulers, only parents, grandparents, ancestors. For eighteen generations nothing had happened in the Valley that anyone would have thought worth putting in a book, or setting up a memorial stone to record. So, no history. Only time. And the story of Asarta. (17)

Did I mention I love the writing?! Well, I did!!! Anyway, Tilja, our unlikely heroine, joins three others on a quest to "save" the magic that protects them. For they know the magic is fading, that soon unwelcome guests might invade--when they realize the truth. So Tilja and her grandmother, Meena, and Tahl, and his grandfather, Alnor, set out on a dangerous and uncertain journey. Their quest is to find the magician, Faheel, the magician who first helped the Valley all those generations ago. Is he still alive? Can he be found? Does he want to be found? Will he help them? Can he help them? Has his powers grown stronger or weaker through the years?

The Ropemaker is about their journey, their quest, as they face countless dangers, as they meet many, many people along the way. This journey will require them to be wise and courageous and diligent. To protect the Valley, to protect their families, their homes, their villages, they may have to risk it all.

I enjoyed this one very much! I'd definitely recommend it.

© 2011 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Posted in 2001 , J Fantasy , library book , Quest , Random House , YA Adventure , YA Fantasy

Craziness Ensues and Name That Book

Sorry all, life is getting really busy and I didn't get a chance to do a new Name That Book episode this week.  But, since last Name That Book episode no one guessed the book titles, I figured I could send you to that one and hope someone wants to guess this time around.  Thanks and see you next time!

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

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Posted in name that book , not a review

Hawkmoon: The Runestaff

And alas, we come to the end of the tale. We've run the gamut, the bell has tolled, and the last of Hawkmoon's adventures have passed by our eyes. The pages have flown so fast.

THE RUNESTAFF is the fourth and final book of the Hawkmoon series by Michael Moorcock that Tor has been giving an upgrade and reprint to over the last year or so. These books hearken us back to the old days of classic fantasy fiction when the heroes were gallant gentlemen and their foes nefarious men of wickedness. Honor and virtue always triumphed over evil, and it was seeing how it would all play out this time around that always drew the readers in droves.

Dorian Hawkmoon and Huilliam D'Averc, friends and bretheren, have won the day and Hawkmoon has gained the Sword of the Dawn which allows him to summon a legion of supernatural warriors to his side when he has need of them. And though Hawkmoon wants only to return to Castle Brass and his lovely wife, the Runestaff has other plans for him--plans that will lead to one final fight with the wicked Baron Meliadus.

Reading this one was an interesting experience, as this part of the tale doesn't really stand by itself very well. When taken into context with the other books in the series, however, and when viewed in light of the fact that each of them was similarly short, the capstone of the tale here stands just fine. So if you're going to read this one, read the others beforehand. If not, I'm afraid that you'll probably be sorely disappointed.

As a single book, it has a surprising lack of characterization. What little we get has Hawkmoon pining for his wife and whining about being manipulated by a supernatural item of power. As the climax of the series though, there is little need for more characterization, as it has already come in the preceding books. The story is pretty straight-forward, moves along at a fair clip, and still has that great sense of adventure written into its folds as so many stories of this era have.

This is a classic. High-level reading, heroic quests, magical items collected that will help the hero save the day, and of course, the eventual conquest of evil. (And no, that's not a spoiler. You already knew it was going to happen.) In all honesty, I don't know that a new story like this would make it in today's publishing world. This one though, is something that's there to remind us of where we've come from. Of what we were. It's a way to remember the days when heroes were valiant and brave and strong.

As fantasy nuts, these stories are our history. Our roots.

And we are its legacy.

So even if you don't go out and buy this book, take a look at your local library and see if they have a copy of the set. Odds are pretty good that you'll be able to find something, as they've been getting print-time since the late 60's. Just good, old-fashioned fun, and something we should all be a part of.

Recommended age: 14 plus
Language: A few mild epithets
Violence: Mild, some people die--a surprising number, actually
Sex: None

Moorcock's Official Website

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Posted in Books We Like , Heroic Fantasy , Michael Moorcock

Sunday Salon: Week In Review #17

What I Reviewed at Becky's Book Reviews

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. C.S. Lewis. 1952. HarperCollins. 256 pages.
Wickham's Diary. Amanda Grange. 2011. Sourcebooks. 208 pages. 
What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knew: From Fox Hunting to Whist -- The Facts of Daily Life in 19th Century England. Daniel Pool. 1994. Simon & Schuster. 416 pages.  

What I Reviewed at Operation Actually Read Bible

Discovering Jesus: Why Four Gospels to Portray One Person? T.D. Alexander. 2010. Crossway Publishers. 144 pages.
Through Gates of Splendor. Elisabeth Elliot. 1956/2005. Tyndale. 296 pages.
Cries From the Cross: A Journey Into the Heart of Jesus. Erwin Lutzer. 2002. Moody. 170 pages.

© 2011 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Posted in 2011 Sunday Salons

Weekly Geeks: ABC's of Favorite Authors

I just LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this week's weekly geek theme! 

You know how when someone asks you who your favorite author is? And you feel a bit crazy coming up with just one? Now is your chance to come up with 26 (at least) favorite authors by making a list of  them ABC style.  (See my above link from the past for an example.) There are no rules, list a couple per letter if you feel the need. Skip a letter if you draw a blank. Make it be categories if you want to.  For instance, a favorite YA author list. A favorite classic author list.  A favorite "new to me" author list. A favorite mystery author list.

Or simply an all time favorite author list... from A to Z! 

A -- Jane Austen. Sense and Sensibility, Northanger Abbey, Persuasion, Emma, Lady Susan, Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park. Persuasion Revisited.

B -- Carrie Bebris. Pride and Prescience, North by Northanger, The Matters at Mansfield. Intrigue at Highbury.

C -- Agatha Christie. The Mysterious Affair At Styles. Murder on the Orient Express. Murder at the Vicarage. A Miss Marple Mystery. The A.B.C. Murders. (Hercule Poirot). The Body in the Library. (Miss Marple). Five Little Pigs. (Hercule Poirot), A Murder is Announced. 4:50 From Paddington. Cards on the Table. Agatha Christie. Appointment with Death. At Bertram's Hotel. Cat Among the Pigeons. Sad Cypress. And Then There Were None. The Moving Finger. The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. A Caribbean Mystery. The Big Four. Evil Under the Sun. Taken at the Flood. Dead Man's Folly.

D -- Charles Dickens. Bleak House, Our Mutual Friend. Little Dorrit.

E -- Julie Edwards. Mandy.

F -- Nancy Farmer. The House of the Scorpion. The Sea of Trolls. The Land of Silver Apples (coming soon!)

G -- Elizabeth Gaskell.  Wives and Daughters. Mary Barton. Cranford. North and South. North and South Revisited. 

H -- Georgette Heyer! Civil Contract,  The Foundling, April Lady, Beauvallet,  Convenient Marriage, Audiobook. Venetia, Bath Tangle, Black Sheep, Sylvester,  Cotillion, The Nonesuch, Lady of Quality, Cousin Kate, Regency Buck, The Reluctant Widow, Charity Girl, Convenient Marriage, Frederica, The Talisman Ring, The Grand Sophy, The Corinthian, Arabella, These Old Shades, Devil's Cub, The Black Moth, The Toll Gate, and Sprig Muslin.

I -- Eva Ibbotson. Countess Below Stairs.
J -- Diana Wynne Jones. Howl's Moving Castle. Castle in the Air, House of Many Ways. Enchanted Glass. The Spellcoats.
K -- Kate diCamillo. The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, The Tale of Despereaux, Mercy Watson Thinks Like A Pig, Mercy Watson to the Rescue, Mercy Watson Goes For A Ride, Mercy Watson Fights Crime, Mercy Watson Princess in Disguise, Mercy Watson Something Wonky This Way Comes. The Magician's Elephant.
L -- Lois Lowry. The Giver.  Gathering Blue. Messenger. Gossamer.  The Birthday Ball. The Willoughbys. Number the Stars.
M -- L.M. Montgomery! The Blue Castle, A Tangled Web, Chronicles of Avonlea, Emily of New Moon, Emily Climbs, Emily's Quest, Anne of Green Gables, Anne of Avonlea, Anne of the Island, Anne of Windy Poplars, Anne's House of Dreams, Anne of Ingleside, Rainbow Valley, Rilla of Ingleside, Kilmeny of the Orchard.
N -- Patrick Ness. Knife of Never Letting Go, The Ask and The Answer, Monsters of Men. 
O -- ORSON Scott Card -- Pastwatch: The Redemption of Christopher Columbus, The Worthing Saga. Empire. Lost Boys; Ender's Game, (Ender's Game), War of Gifts, Ender in Exile, Speaker for the Dead, Xenocide, Pathfinder. The Lost Gate.
P -- Terry Pratchett  Nation, The Wee Free Men. A Hat Full of Sky. Wintersmith. The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents. Wyrd Sisters.
Q -- Julia Quinn: The Duke and I, The Viscount Who Loved Me, An Offer From A Gentleman, Romancing Mister Bridgerton, To Sir Phillip, With Love, When He Was Wicked, The Lost Duke of Wyndham. Mr. Cavendish, I Presume.What Happens in London. Ten Things I Love About You.

R -- Rick Riordan: The Red Pyramid, The Maze of Bones, The Lightning Thief, Sea of Monsters, The Titan's Curse, and The Battle of the Labyrinth. The Last Olympian.

S -- Dorothy Sayers! Whose Body?, Unnatural Death,  Strong Poison. Have His Carcase. Gaudy Night.

T -- Anthony Trollope!  The Warden, Barchester Towers, Doctor Thorne, The Way We Live Now, Lady Anna, He Knew He Was Right. Framley Parsonage. The Small House At Allington.

U -- Anne Ursu. The Shadow Thieves, The Siren Song. The Immortal Fire.

V -- Vivian Vande Velde. Cloaked in Red. Tales From the Brothers Grimm and the Sisters Weird.

W --Scott Westerfeld  Uglies, Pretties, Specials, Extras, Peeps, The Last Days, The Secret Hour, Touching Darkness, Blue Noon, Leviathan, Behemoth.

X

Y --  Jane Yolen.  Sword of the Rightful King

Z -- Markus Zusak. The Book Thief. I Am Messenger.

© 2011 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Posted in weekly geeks

Book Review: The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff

The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff
Publisher: Razorbill
Publication date: September 2010
ISBN: 9781595143372
Source: Library

Mackie Doyle is allergic to iron, steel, and blood.  He is anything but normal.  But in the town of Gentry, you don't talk about those kinds of things.  You don't talk about the fact that a little girl just died and about the horrible things that have been replacing children for decades.  Those are the kinds of things you accept in exchange for luck and avoiding disaster.  But Mackie doesn't know if he can accept those things anymore.

Things I Liked:
It was a really unique book - it felt original and different and also just plain weird.  The creepy setting and story was perfectly written to inspire spine tingles.  I liked Mackie, the kid who doesn't seem to fit in anywhere and who wants to acknowledge what is wrong with his town (well, eventually he does).  There is a lot of good stuff on accepting different kinds of people and also not ignoring things that are important simply because we don't want to talk about them.  Ugly things happen and they matter.  It was a crazy reading experience, but also quite thought-provoking.

Things I Didn't Like: 
The biggest problem I had was that it was too odd for my liking.  The story and sometimes what people said just didn't make sense to me.  I had a hard time getting into the story and relating to the characters because I couldn't figure them out.  I believe this is entirely me and not a reflection of the author or her writing even.  Another minor problem was there seemed to be an abnormal amount of grammar problems - missing words or incorrect choices.  I was pretty surprised it had so many problems; it almost made me feel like I was reading the ARC.  Anyway, overall, I think this is just not the book for me.  Others have really enjoyed it though, so check out what others' had to say.
 
Read-alikes:
A little like Ballad by Maggie Stiefvater 

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !@#
lots, some quite strong

mrg-factor: XX
one or two incidents

v-factor: ->->->
some very disturbing images and gore

Overall rating: **

Am I the only one who didn't get this book?

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

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Posted in 2 stars , Fantasy , paranormal , Young Adult

Library Loot: Fourth Trip in April

New Loot:

Hereville: How Mirka Got Her Sword by Barry Deutsch
Miss Julia Speaks Her Mind by Ann B. Ross
The Hollow Earth by Rudy Rucker
Elantris by Brandon Sanderson
Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson
The Case of the Missing Books by Ian Sansom
The Bad Book Affair by Ian Sansom
The Book Stops Here by Ian Sansom
Some Buried Caesar; The Golden Spiders by Rex Stout
The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

Leftover Loot:

Angel Isle by Peter Dickinson
Entwined by Heather Dixon
Stay by Deb Caletti
The Islands of the Blessed by Nancy Farmer
City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare
I, Robot by Isaac Asimov
Pebble in the Sky by Isaac Asimov
Time's Eye by Arthur C. Clarke and Stephen Baxter
Till Human Voices Wake Us by Mark Budz
Chill by Elizabeth Bear
Double Star by Robert A. Heinlein
Starship Troopers by Robert A. Heinlein
The Gospel According to Science Fiction: From the Twilight Zone to the Final Frontier by Gabriel McKee
The Pickwick Papers by Charles Dickens
The Princess Bride by William Goldman
Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
Forever Erma: Best Loved Writing From America's Favorite Humorist by Erma Bombeck

Library Loot is a weekly event co-hosted by Claire and Marg that encourages bloggers to share the books they’ve checked out from the library. If you’d like to participate, just write up your post-feel free to steal the button-and link it using the Mr. Linky any time during the week. And of course check out what other participants are getting from their libraries.  

© 2011 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Posted in 2011 Library Loot