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Tag Archives: fantasy
Lover of Dragons? – Robin Hobb is the one to read
Since picking up the Farseer series, I’ve been hooked on her writing. Following the Farseer series was the Liveship Traders series, then the Tawny Man series, after which she diverted to another “world” in the Soldier Son series (which although was interesting, didn’t quite grab … Continue reading
Posted in Distractions
Tagged fantasy, Farseer, liveship traders, rain wild chronicles, robin hobb
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Carnival of souls…more please
The worse part about finding a most excellent read worthy can’t stop thinking about it book – is the end! And double that when the end leaves you hanging off a cliff so high there is no sight of the next book in the near future and you just know you will be wondering about the characters until you meet them again for a resolution.
Melissa Marr curse you in a wonderful way !!! Can you tell I totally enjoyed Carnival of souls?!?!
I love the parallel worlds and the different caste systems. Mallory is a great lead character and Kaleb is a demon I would want on my side. The plot has different twists and turns yet it is a smooth and easy read.
In The City, daioms live witch free and there is a battle of opportunity where any daimon can fight for a chance to live in the upper caste system. Unfortunately each battle is to the death.
Mallory lives in the human world protected from The City with no knowledge of what goes on there or how it will come to directly impact her very existence. Aya and Zeki are also great characters and as the story develops you find yourself page turning – eager to know what happens next.
Well, I will look for another book to read now, but I know that it will be a hard act to follow and I will be thinking about the characters and how they are faring.
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Posted in Book reviews
Tagged Carnival of souls, fantasy, Melissa Marr, Teen Fiction
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The time keeper – Not keeping time this time!
It’s Mitch Albom surely it’s good as his other books have been enjoyable. Expecting a great storyline with a depth of meaning and philosophy but I found myself becoming increasingly agitated and depressed. Father time starts out as a young curious boy who invents how to read time and marries the love of his life only to have major life changes and ends up in a cave having to listen to people constantly ask for more time in is head. Then we follow a couple of other character storylines…..a young girl with unrequited love and a rich old man dying of cancer….. I have to say I was thinking about the book when I wasn’t reading it, and feeling sorry for father time stuck in a cave.
However, halfway through I wanted to put it down and give up but I persevered. It started to change a little about the 3/4 mark and I thought finally…. but no the journey takes us to a sad place. It does finish on a positive for some and a negative for others (not to spoil the story should you read it), but I have to say I didn’t enjoy it and maybe I missed the whole point but I am happy to swiftly move on and find more useful things for my time like other happier reads!
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What or where is the wheel? Read The Forsaken to find out…..
The Forsaken is an insanely vivid, gritty, face-paced adrenaline ride. Lisa M Stasse’s novel takes the reader to ‘the wheel’ in a dystopian world full of harsh rules, strict isolation, warring tribes and an all domineering government regime. The story starts with a brief history of ‘the wheel’ and an introduction to the main character, a teenage girl who’s life is about to change in ways she would never imagine. In this dystopian world all teenagers must take a Personality Profile Test at the age of 16 – failing this test means automatic and immediate abolishment to ‘the wheel’. It’s the governments way of getting rid of anyone who may pose a threat to its command.
Aleena Shawcross fails the profile test and from the very moment she wakes up on ‘the wheel’ she is forced to act swiftly in order to survive. She first meets David, a boy who has arrived at this terrible place the same day and they decide to stick together. It’s not long until they are attacked by a tribe of masked lunatics. Aleena manages to escape thanks to a girl named Gadya who takes her into her tribe but David is captured. As a result Aleena and David’s experiences on ‘the wheel’ are radically different.
They both must adapt to this new brutal life, a life where the choices they make will determine how long they will survive! While David is forced to live as part of the masked lunatics Aleena is taken to a group of more civilised teens who are planning to find a way off ‘the wheel’.
The novel is very much plot driven but the characters are also well developed. The story has multiple layers and successfully combines genres by including fantasy, family relationships, romance, conspiracy theories and mythology. The way it is written gives the reader just enough detail to understand what is going on but leaves you to guess the rest.
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Posted in Book reviews, Distractions
Tagged Dystopia, fantasy, Lissa M Stasse, Teen Fiction, The Forsaken
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A disapointing dystopian read
My favourite subject of the moment…dystopian fiction but this time not the exciting read I have come to expect from this genre. Sadly I was very disappointed with Wither. I found it extremely difficult to follow. Nonetheless, I will attempt to tell you a little of what it is all about. It has a futuristic feel so I would say its set about 100 years in the future after the government has made a complete mess of an experiment that aimed to create the perfect human race. Instead it has significantly reduced human lifespan and has delivered grave consequence for the younger generation. Babies born during the time of the botched experimental activity have an expiry date! Girls are dying out at age 20 and men at age 25. In a ploy to rapidly re-populate the population with healthy people a group of older men who call themselves the Gathers are kidnapping teenage girls to impregnate. Sixteen year old Rhine is kidnapped by these men forced into marriage and is expected to start producing offspring right away. Understandably Rhine is repulsed by her predicament and feels helpless against this regime. Until….she meets a young male servant named Gabriel, its instant attraction and together they start to plot an escape plan. A plan that has numerous ramifications and the story twists and turns at every chapter. The subject matter is quite controversial with some scenes making me cringe. While I am not turned off books by uncomfortable subject matter I like to see the purpose of such detail. What was really disappointing was the main theme which didn’t stray far beyond the silly quick fix idea of populating the world again after bungled governmental experimentation.
From the start I couldn’t get over the story’s implausible premise, I appreciate dystopia for what it is – pure fantasy, but this idea is just plain ludicrous. The proposal that girls die at the exact age of 20 and boys exactly at 25 is too far-fetched. It felt too random, too calculated and too exact to me. Furthermore, the story didn’t capture me and I didn’t bond with the characters. I never felt like I was involved in the story and I need to form a relationship with the characters in order for me to truthfully recommend you read it. At one stage I was touched withRhine’s helplessness during the chapters following her kidnapping ordeal. However, her character seemed to change towards the last third of the book and I lost touch with her. I did like Gabriels’ character yet he lacked any real depth. Maybe his character will be explored in the follow-up books of the series. Usually I find that debut authors write amazing first novels but I am sorry to say DeStefano failed to impress me. I still might read the follow-up books in the series but I will shelf them for a later date.
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Travel across the universe with this unique novel
Across the universe by Beth Revis is a novel not a travel memoir but I figure it has a slight connection to this months spotlight on theme. Travel comes in all forms and this book will take you on a journey you won’t ever forget. It will spark questions of immortality, morale, science and we see the future.
Lyn from the Helensvale Library says “If you were ever thought to freeze yourself hoping for eternal life – or at least life in the far distant future, this story may puzzle you with a fascinating insight into the science of cryogenics. Our heroine watches her mother and father get frozen in order to travel to a far distant planet. She then has to choose to accompany them or to stay behind without her beloved family. The story grips you right from the start, the description of the process is truly compelling and quite ghastly. A journey of a life time!”
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Posted in Book reviews, Distractions
Tagged Across the universe, Beth Revis, fantasy, science fiction, travel, Travel Memoirs
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A fantastic fantasy series
Robert Jordan has penned an epic fantasy series called The wheel of time. The series consists of thirteen books beginning with, The eye of the world. It centres around a small group of sheep herders and villagers who leave their quiet, out-of-the-way village after it is attacked by creatures called Trollocs. Led by Moirane, an Aes Sedai who can summon magic, and her protector, Lan, the story follows the characters as they try to flee from the Dark One and his creatures.
This book kind of reminds me of – The lord of the rings – a group of characters (good) who are trying to defeat a powerful yet distant and ethereal “Dark One”, who is trying to turn the characters to his side. What I like about it is that it is set in a world that I can imagine easily – they have horses, villages, inns, swords, bows and arrows but there is the element of the fantastical with the magic and the strange creatures. For those who are just starting out with fantasy, this series (or at least this first book) is a good place to start.
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Posted in Book reviews, Distractions
Tagged fantasy, fantasy series, Robert Jordan, The eye of the world, The wheel of time
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Going Postal
I caught Terry Pratchett’s Going Postal on TV recently & really enjoyed the televised adaptation so I borrowed the book from the library. The story is part of Pratchett’s Discworld series (it’s the 33rd book), but if you haven’t read any of them this book is a great one to start with. The majority of characters are new and there is plenty of interesting explanation about the world. I think the show helped me understand what was going on in the book but if you didn’t see it I still recommend reading the book.
The star of the story is Moist van Lipwig. He is a conman who escapes persecution for his many crimes & is instead ordered by the city’s leader, Lord Vetinari to revive the dilapidated Postal Service. A strange instruction as the city has evolved & the inhabitants are now using “clacks” to communicate. As far I as can tell “clacks” is a shutter telegraph system of sorts. Anyway, Moist takes up the job with intentions of fleeing at the first opportunity. Much of the plot consists of Moist trying to revamp the Postal Service, evade people trying to kill him, impress the young pretty activist Adora Belle Dearheart, keep his parole officer Mr Pump happy & battle it out with the city’s leader Lord Vetinari.
Pratchett uses wry wit, brisk dialogue, laugh out loud humour & magical description to create a truly amazingly different world. He is a talented story teller & is able to transport the reader into the story. You will feel as though you are there alongside Moist and the other characters. I like Moist, he is funny, very smart and also very determined in his endeavours.
I would recommend this book to all readers, not just fans of fantasy, as its more than just an enjoyable read it will provoke the reader into thinking about what actually motivates people to do things. I started to think about how communication has evolved over time. It really is a multi-dimensional unique read.
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Tagged Discworld, fantasy, Going postal, Terry Pratchett, tv shows
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The Spider Goddess
Tara Moss continues her paranormal book series with a second book, The Spider Goddess. In this story the reader is taken further into the life of Pandora English as she has some fun with knitwear, designers & supermodels while battling it out with the supernatural weirdness that has plagued her life since moving in with her great aunt Celia. With the help of her great aunt and a good looking ghost named Lieutenant Luke, Pandora starts to understand that she is the heir to a great gift & posses the ability to submerge into the other world.
This second novel is even better than the first as it hints at more to be revealed about the supernatural, its every bit as fun as the first only creepier! There are scenes that made my skin crawl & if you have a particular phobia of spiders you should be prepared that there are some spine tingling moments.
While Tara Moss gives her central character, Pandora, the main focus the supporting characters are also developing nicely. The reader will learn more about Lieutenant Luke’s visits, great aunt Celia’s strange relationship with the undead & exploration and reference to ancient legends and mythology.
It’s an amazing reinterpretation of the classic horror characters & the names like Pandora, Morticia & Deus provide an additional spooky element . This series can be read by all ages & dabbles in various genres – supernatural, chick lit, historical fiction, fantasy and thriller so it can be enjoyed by many. I think if you liked the first one, you will love this second installment. I can’t wait for the third book 
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Posted in Book reviews
Tagged Australian author, Australian books, Chick Lit, fantasy, tara moss, The Blood Countess, The Spider Goddess, vampires
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