Lover's Doll - Mishima Kazuhiko

About the story: When Shin hears about a doll known as the "bloody doll" from his friends, he can't help but be curious. Instantly falling in love with the figurine he decides to buy it, but there are rumors about the doll and how it got its name. It can supposedly move and talk and some former owners even claim it drank their blood. Unfazed, Shin buys the doll anyway to find out that the rumors might not be as ridiculous as they sound...

My opinion: Manga story telling is interesting and well, different. And the ones I read are no exception. Most of these on this blog were from searching for shounen-ai, so boys love types. The one here was a bit weird in places. He buys this male doll and it comes to life, which is the basics of how the story line begins.  The characters were fun to read, especially the doll who had quite the personality. And with manga it's amazing what the writer can do with so little to work with and while the images help there is only so much a still frame image can add. So, to have just the story come through the dialogue and words written in the frames can be an astounding feat. I liked this one personally as a cute little boys love story. It's not sexual or graphic, for those interested or not interested in such. Just a fun little story about a boy and a boy doll.



Brave New World - Yamada Nari

About the story: Nikotama Souhei is transferring to a new school and vows to enjoy a new life, living a lifestyle true to himself...or herself, as the case may be. Adopting the name "Sara", Souhei heads to school in a girls' uniform, ready to grab life by the knads and twist. Sara's no pushover: bright, hyper and frequently violent. She's like nothing anyone at the school has ever encountered. Especially her sweet, upstanding classmate Naruse Kaito who finds himself knee-deep in Sara's "Brave New World".

My Opinion: A different story with unique main character. I enjoyed a couple stories about a boy who wanted to dress up as a girl in school, passing as one to those who may not have known before hand. This is one of two in particular and definitely stood out amongst the small crowd of ones I read. Sara is interesting and different for sure. I was thrown off at first because the character doesn't use first person when talking about him/herself. Instead, the character goes "Sarah wants" and such in third person when talking to others. And I'd wondered if it was just from the being in the female identity but nope: there is a part where Sara goes back to dressing as Nikotama for family reasons and also uses third person when talking about himself. So, that was a bit different. But Sara sure has quite the fireball personality. She's going out into the New World of hers and making sure people notice. Overall, a fun little story with some genderbending and light romance.


Sazanami Cherry - Kamiyoshi

About the story: Migiwa Kazuhiro has always been watching Ren, cute, admirable, and his first love. With all his courage, he finally managed to give her a love letter and confessed on a train, only to find that Ren is...!? (Spoiler coming!)

My opinion: This one is like Brave New World, only some difference, in particular the viewpoint because it's from the boy love interest's perspective. The boy gets the courage to approach this girl he has seen on the train and is in love with only to discover the one wearing the skirt he has admired is actually *spoils it* a boy. But he ends up getting to know and spending time with Ren, discovering things he never considered before and even has fun trying on a dress at one point. Also has family issues in the story, and a sister with a secret too. So, fun and tame story also with genderbending but less of a strong personality in this one.



Overall, if you haven't tried reading manga, check a couple out online. There are many different types and for the writers, it's possible to learn from different forms of story telling. Just remember, most read right to left (but a few on occasion read left to right. And have fun.

Have you ever read Manga before?
What are you favorites?

A review on site, finally. As some may notice, this isn't going to be my usual Reading at Dawn review and for a couple of reasons. First, it's not a novel. Shocking, I know. While our main focus on this blog is the reading and reviewing of longer works, mostly novel length items, I do believe it's good on occasion to break that boundary. There is much we can learn as writers (or even readers who don't also write) from writing that is shorter than a novel or novella. I'll showcase this point in my next review as well because I'll be showcasing manga I read online. That and I need to post here on a regular basis more often. My apologies to my neglected blog. Next, this is also a review for an activity on Writing.Com known as the WYRM Gauntlet, so the review will be a bit different for that reason too. But I hope some readers find this review helpful.

First, a little about the publication who posted the story. Because if submitting it's always good to look at the publisher and what they have published already. It doesn't hurt to do the same as a reader because it may lead to finding more things to read you didn't know existed.  Here is their link: http://www.kaleidotrope.net/

Kaleidotrope is in its essence an eclectic e-zine(had print issues till 2011) that publishes a variety of short work including poems, nonfiction and fiction. Explained on the guidelines page, the e-zine "tends heavily towards the speculative — towards science fiction, fantasy and horror — but we like an eclectic mix and are therefore always eager to read interesting work that falls outside those categories. Man does not live on space ships, elves and ghostly axe murderers alone, after all." And as a result of such, we get a story like the one I will now review.


"Rule 88" by Andrew Kaye
http://www.kaleidotrope.net/home/rule-88-by-andrew-kaye/

 This is a flash fiction story, coming in under 1,000 words, about a hunting expedition that showcases a set of rules the hunters have to follow. While we don't get to know all the rules, a few are showcased in the limited word count to illustrate the world and situation of the story. The viewpoint character is a hunter and on an expedition with a couple of his buddies in a sci-fi type of world the writer has set up. Those are the basic details of the story. Who should read it? Well, that depends on a few things.

If you're a reader looking for a character driven story... this one might not be for you. While we have a main character listed per se, it's not quite what one often expects when they have a first person story. The characters in the story are the viewpoint character (nameless first person pov), buddies Aaron and Gordon, and Larry the hunting guide. While we are in the one character's head, that whole first person point of view aspect, whatever his name is, I hesitate to call him a main character because the story isn't really about him. The action and consequences don't happen to him. He has a want sure, they are all hunting and want to have a successful hunt, but it's not his problem in the story in the end. That is why I call him the viewpoint character but not the main character, he is watching what happens and in that way the reader watches what happens with him because he is just their outlet to see the situation.

If you expect lots of action, fights against antagonists, a being as the antagonist, lots of tension, or well females... this one might not be for you either. This isn't that kind of a story and some of that well, have to consider what one can do in less than 1,000 words.  To me, a novel writer, I'm in awe at what people can do with flash fiction and how they can make it sound like a finished story. All of mine end up as scenes for novels as my plot ideas are viewed as too big for the short word counts I try to keep them under. A writer can do great things in a flash fiction story, but we still have to remember that it has its own limits and skillsets. And if you really need a female in a story maybe you should read this and give this little hunting story a chance.

Who is this story for? Well, it's for those who are interested in flash fiction. A reader who likes a plot that is more focused on a situation than on a character and their problems. Those who are interested in a "what if" scenarios may also find this story intriguing because to me it feels like a story created from what if questions. I can just picture potential questions with this story. Ones like: What if hunting had strict rules that must be followed? and What if someone or something got in the way of a regulated hunt? To name a couple, there is another but I won't list it because I don't want to spoil the story for anyone. There is much to the story if one looks into everything the author managed to provide in a tight set of words. It's an interesting idea especially for those who go to different countries and such for hunting (like my uncle) and I could imagine him enjoying this story because of the situation it showcases.

For writers, I suggest anyone wanting to see how to show their world without taking up chapters of info dumping to give this story a read. Especially anyone who has specific sets of rules or codes of conduct they want to show without having to list them off. Kaye does a great job at showcasing the world with the few rules that get listed in the story and the limited description of the world the hunters are in. Granted there are spots in this story that feel a bit of a set up, the beginning in particular and one can argue that the story needed more action and less info in it, but novelist have the same problem in 10,000 words and Kaye manages pretty well in under 1,000.  Flash fiction is a challenge, especially when trying to show character, world, setting and everything without taking up the word count. I think this story is a good example of what a writer can be capable of showing. If you're interested in see an example of how to write this way, then I'd say "Rule 88" is one to give a read with an eye for analysis and learning

Did I like the story? It was okay. I'm not really the target audience per say but I did find the piece to be well written and somewhat interesting. While I'm not a hunter and I prefer character focused stories, I didn't have any problems reading this one. There was one part that distracted me a little, a mention of ten fingers and toys that seemed questionable, but other than that I read the story with ease and even enjoyed it a little. I liked the aspect of how the world is shown, the rules and the little character tidbits that were provided. On the other hand, I am not a fan of first person pov and personally I don't like when I don't know the pov character's name. It's a personal quirk of my own, I need a character name even in less than 1k words. But it's short enough that I didn't stop reading because of no name (as I did with a novel once). I do also see that some may not like this one because the viewpoint character is rather passive. Having the first person pov person just watch what happens does sometimes make a story feel like it might be lacking something to a reader. But it's well written and does have merit, overall as a flash fiction story.  I might find myself checking out the e-zine and looking for the author's other flash fiction work in the near future out of curiosity. I do enjoy a strange story every now and then and this qualifies.

Are you curious yet? Check out the story and see what you think. It's less than 1,000 words, so why not give it a try.

Reviewed by Ashlee Burke

About the Book: "In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue--Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is--she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself." - Goodreads



In Veronica Roth’s novel “Divergent” we are introduced to a society that is ruled by factions. The idea being that our current government was run down by war and famine and as a result people decided that they could save the human race from it’s flaws by living by 5 basic life principles. Those who blamed the world’s problems on selfishness formed Abnegation: a faction dedicated to being selfless. Those who blamed ignorance formed Erudite: a faction dedicated to knowledge. Those who blamed deceitfulness formed Candor: a faction dedicated to absolute truthfulness. Those who blamed hate formed Amity: a faction dedicated to peace. And finally those who blamed cowardice formed Dauntless: a faction dedicated to bravery and ruthlessness.

Each of the factions lives separate from another but have a function in society. For example Abnegation runs the government whilst Dauntless polices the walls and guards the city. Amity grows the food but Erudite design the irrigation and the hydroponics that allow more food for entire city as well as act as teachers for all of the factions. However there are people who do not fit into these five groups they are cast out and become known as factionless. They do not play into the story however until the sequel: Insurgent. In Divergent they are merely mentioned as foreshadowing ideas.

The main character in Divergent is Beatrice. She is 16 and as such it is time for her to choose her faction. She was raised with her parent’s in Abnegation but every child is tested at 16 to see which faction they have an aptitude for by being put through a series of simulations. They are then allowed to choose to stay with their family or they can switch factions. It is considered a great betrayal if you switch factions. Now this is an interested parallel from the story to real life because I do feel when you are choosing any career there is a pressure even if it is unspoken to choose a certain way of life. For Tris it was even more complicated due to certain events that happen during her testing. However at the end of the day she knows that she must follow her path and not one set down by her faction or her parents. Can she live with her choice? Better yet can she survive her choice?

This book is interesting on so many different levels. On the one hand you have a coming of age story of a girl who has to choose between following a well laid path or carving her own. On the other there is a lot of philosophical undertones when it comes to the factions. Are people really that simplistic that we can be broken down into one personality trait? Can really smart people be neither selfless, kind, brave or truthful? Is one better than the other? Is it better to be honest, brave, selfless, kind, or intelligent: no matter what it costs you to be any one of those things.

Recommendation:
Divergent and its sequel Insurgent was on the "Top One Hundred Teen Books" article recently published by NPR and while I would strongly recommend it to teens. I would also recommend it to recent graduates who are choosing their place in life. It gives an interesting perspective on living a life chosen for you and choosing your own path and how sometimes doing the later is the only way to truly commit to the former.

Yeah, I'm a little late (okay, way late) to the party but I finished reading the Hunger Games back in April. I read it partly during my lunch hours at work, and now I can review the book.

From Goodreads: "Could you survive on your own, in the wild, with everyone out to make sure you don't live to see the morning?

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV. Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when she is forced to represent her district in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before-and survival."


My opinion: This is a pretty good book. I am normally not the biggest fan of first person point of view but in this case it really works. I do kind of wonder what it was like reading this book right after it came out instead of already knowing bits about the sequels. Reading it already knowing that she is in a sequel and so is someone else lightened the impact a little. The main character was likeable and easy to read about. The story has enough twists and turns to keep the reader interested in turning the page. I've always been a fan of young adult novels where the character has to struggle to survive but finds a way on their own to handle the situations they end up in. And the first person present tense flows well enough that it's almost hard to noticed it. Overall, a good book.

Recommendation: I recommend anyone who hasn't read this one to read it. Which probably isn't too many people.

Hello all. Some of you may have noticed the blog is still a little slow but don't worry. We are in the process of making some changes and will be back to posting reviews on a more regular basis in the near future.

This is a sequel to The Forest of Hands and Teeth. If you haven't read that book yet, I'd recommend reading it first because even though the main character in that one isn't the main character in this book, it's her daughter. Knowing what happened in the first book will really help when reading The Dead-Tossed Waves. Here is the review I did last year for The Forest of Hands and Teeth: link.

From Goodreads: Gabry lives a quiet life, secure in her town next to the sea and behind the Barrier. She's content to let her friends dream of the Dark City up the coast--home is all she's ever known and all she needs for happiness. 


But life after the Return is never safe.


Gabry's mother thought she left her secrets behind in the Forest of Hands and Teeth, but like the dead in their world, secrets don't stay buried. And now, Gabry's world is crumbling. 


In one reckless moment, half of Gabry's generation is dead, the other half imprisoned. 


Now Gabry knows only one thing: if she has any hope of a future, she must face the forest of her mother's past.



Overall: I like the book. I didn't quite read it in 24 hours like the first book but it only took a couple of days for me to finish. While I kind of hoped there wouldn't be a love triangle and even though there is one, it didn't hinder my enjoyment of the story. While I've never been into zombie stories before, these are the only ones I've read actually, I really do enjoy the world and stories that Carrie Ryan has created. Since I'd read the first one quite a long time ago, I couldn't remember all of the details and I kept trying to find connections between the two. Some places I was right and others I mixed names up. We do learn more about the villages, the infection, and even get some answers to things from book 1.

Characters: The main character, Gabrielle (Gabry), is well written and complex. She has many different moments of weakness, strength, group strength and even selfishness. The other characters in the story all served their purposes in moving the story forward and giving the reader more information about the world they are within. It's also an interesting side to see of Mary because in the first book we followed her story and survival, but in this one she is the mother. She even admits to how she was selfish when she was younger, which I know some people had issues with when reading her story. So, it was different having the characters point out their own flaws in that way. Again there are two boys that the main character has confusion about and some of those parts lost me a little. Overall, they did add to the conflict as things around them continued to crumble.

Story: One thing that I think Ryan does in a way that I almost envy as a writer is how she manages to make things worse for her characters without it feeling like she just added it to for more tension. It felt right for the story. In both books, things always get worse up to the very end and secondary characters certainly aren't safe. It's hard to tell who will survive and that makes for a need to read feeling that I enjoyed.


It was a good book that many others will enjoy.

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Today I am doing two different writing books. One I read years ago when I first started focusing on writing novels but over the past few weeks have been re-reading. The other is one I bought from amazon last year and have read off and on whenever I feel like checking it out. Both of the books work for the same audience but they are definitely different.

Having read a few writing books over the last 5 years, I have started to glaze over when reading them because there is only so many times I can read things like the difference between first and third person, who is a protagonist and other basic information. On the other hand, I am always learning something new.


Your First Novel by Ann Rittenberg and Laura Whitcomb

From Goodreads: In "Your First Novel," novelist Laura Whitcomb and seasoned literary agent Ann Rittenberg team up to provide you with the skills you need to write your dream novel and the savvy business know-how to get it published.

Section 1 - Writing Your Novel
This section focuses on, as you can tell, the writing end which is more than just the first draft. This is from preparations to writing to editing and more.

Section 2 - Publishing Your Novel
This section is focused on traditional publishing. Topics discussed included what a literary agent does, query letters, and publication day and beyond.

Throughout examples are provided by both authors to illustrate different points.


I purchased this book when I first started focusing on novels and for good reason since the title of the book is "your first novel." Also, what caught my attention about this book was it went beyond how to write the first novel to tips from an agent, which sounded cool and useful. The book discusses so many things in the less than 300 pages of the paperback book, so it might lack some in depth focus on all of the topics, however, it provides a broad basis for a writer to start with when learning to write. From there the reader could jump to a more focused book.

Reading the book over again, I find myself glazing over when reading certain section. Also, I sometimes skip the examples because they are small snippets of books I have never read. It's rare in a writing book to use something I've read as an example but there are a few. One thing that is fun about this book is that at the end of chapters there are recommended readings and some even have web sites and movies suggested. This is good for beginners but would also be a good refresher for veterans too.





Writing the Breakout Novel by Donald Maass


From Goodreads: Noted literary agent and author Donald Maass has done it again His previous book, "Writing the Breakout Novel," offered novelists of all skill levels and genres insider advice on how to make their books rise above the competition and succeed in a crowded marketplace.

Now, building on the success of its predecessor, "Writing the Breakout Novel Workbook" calls that advice into action This powerful book presents the patented techniques and writing exercises from Maass's popular writing workshops to offer novelists first-class instruction and practical guidance.



This is the first "workbook" that I've purchased as far as writing is concerned. I haven't actually read the book that inspired the workbook, so don't know if that factors into anything.

It is an extensive workbook but some of the topics were a bit lost on me, or so I felt. There are some things in writing that not everyone will do the same. For me, character building is one of them. I even noticed this when talking to a friend, as I looked up the section of the book because he was wanting help on developing characters. For now, all I've done is ponder some of the exercises presented in the book but I might try some of them in the near future.

This book is definitely something for a person who liked a hands on approach to learning. Reading advice on writing has its place but there has to be a time to put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) and this book is good step to learn how to do certain aspects of writing before taking that information to use it in a novel. It might be a good idea to check out the original book, Writing the Breakout Novel for those that are less of a hands-on approach type. This is not my favorite book on writing but it's something that I would recommend friends to at least look at and consider.

I know it's not regular post time but I couldn't let the occasion go without at least a small post to let everyone know. Reading at Dawn is a year old. Our first blog post was back on January 14th, 2011. So this message is a little late but that's okay. Happy blogiversary/b-day Reading at Dawn!

Thank you Denise (L'Aussie) and JJ (WritersBlockNZ) for all of your work with this blog. I appreciate you both and I wouldn't have made it to our first milestone without you.

This is a book that I started reading back in September... okay, by that I mean the second time reading the book was started in September 2011. I actually read the book originally back when I was in junior high. I decided to read it again because there were certain parts that I remembered and I wanted to get a peak at some middle grade books. It's interesting what I did remember and what I had forgotten.

About the Book: (from goodreads) "Ellen awakens one morning with a mysterious silver crown on the pillow beside her. What magic powers it possesses she has not yet discovered, but the sudden changes in her life are unmistakable: her house is burned down, her family has disappeared, and a man in a dark uniform is stalking her. Can Ellen ever find her family? Can she use the power of the silver crown to thwart the powers of darkness? What diabolical force hides inside the mysterious castle in the woods?"


About the Author: Robert Leslie Conly (also known by his pen name, Robert C. O'Brien) was an American author and a journalist for National Geographic Magazine. He is known for books including Z for Zachariah and the amazing tale of Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH.


Overall Impression: This is an older book but still rather good. There were parts that I remembered from when I first read it back in junior high-ish, since I can't remember exactly when I read it. I remembered perfectly the very beginning of the story, how she discovers the crown and the little pretend court she holds away from her house. I remembered the boy that the main character meets in the story who then travels with her and the mind control that they discover. But I didn't remember the cop killing that happens in the beginning and many other elements. Still enjoyed reading the story.

Second Reads: Like with reading any book a second time (and you'll get more about this when I review the first two books from The Wheel of Time series) there are interesting elements to reading a familiar story. Even in middle grade, there are things that I noticed now that I may not have caught onto the first time reading. But one of the things that makes a really good book is the ability to read more than once and still enjoy the story. Even though I've read the book before, I am older and all of that, there were still parts where I reacted and parts where I wanted to know what happened next. And that is a good sign.

Reading as a Writer: The main thing I felt that was different this time around wasn't so much my age, but now that I am writing and doing editing/acquisition for a small publisher, I look at books I read differently. I can't help but notice things, like a well planned "info dump" done in a way to make it fit into the story. Sometimes the phrasing distracted me a little bit when it came to certain sentences but those were very small moments and didn't happen very often. I see those things more now than I used to and that's okay.

2011 was a spectacular reading year for me: 108 books read in total. Most of them were YA, so my goal for 2012 is to not only read 112 books, but to aim to read at least 35 adult fiction novels. Therefore, I thought I'd start off with a review of Sushi for Beginners by Marian Keyes.

Blurb: Number one internationally bestselling author Marian Keyes works her magic once again in this charming tale of three modern women and their search for happiness.

Prada-wearing magazine editor Lisa Edwards thinks her life is over when her "fabulous" new job turns out to be a deportation to Dublin, launching Colleen magazine. No more jet-setting to the fall collections. No more fabulous parties and photographs in the society pages. The only saving grace is that her friends aren't there to witness her downward spiral. Might her new boss, the disheveled and moody Jack Devine, save her from a fate worse than hell?

Ashling Kennedy, Colleen's assistant editor, is an award-winning worrier, increasingly aware that something fundamental is missing from her life -- apart from a boyfriend and a waistline. And then there's her closest, oldest friend Clodagh "Princess" Kelly, who is apparently living the domestic dream in a suburban castle. So why, lately, has Clodagh had a recurring urge to kiss a frog -- sleep with a frog, if truth be told?

This novel is set in the fashion magazine industry, and I was primarily interested in this novel because I work in the media industry, and have had a lot of contact with magazine teams. However, in New Zealand it seems to be a lot more laid back than in Sushi for Beginners!

The Good: despite being chick-lit it had a fair bit packed into it, and I didn't once feel like the plot was dragging. It is set in Ireland, and the contrasting POVs between Lisa, from London, and Ashling from Dublin, were wonderful. There were a number of love triangles going on, and I'm happy to report that the results weren't as predictable as I'd assumed they would be. At times, it is a bitter-sweet tale, and although I'm a sucker for a happy ending, Keyes manages to keep away from the fairytale style ending often seen in chick-lit.

The Bad: Two of the characters, Lisa and Clodagh, were completely unlikeable, and my attitude towards them didn't improve much, even towards the end of the book. There were numerous in-scene shifts in POV that I found a little unsettling.

The Verdict: A light-hearted rom-com style novel, recommended for a lazy sunday at the beach.

Happy New Year fellow readers!

2011 was a hectic year for me - you may have noticed that I dropped off the blogging scene for a while. This was all due to my baby girl, Kiera Marie, born 22nd July 2011. Despite having my hands full, I still managed to reach my goal of reading 100 books in 2011 (in fact, I read a few more than 100!).

Some of my favourites:

Best series read: The Hunger Games Trilogy, by Suzanne Collins

Best sequel read: Clockwork Prince, by Cassandra Clare

Best debut author: Rapture, by Phillip W. Simpson

Best sci-fi read: Across the Universe, by Beth Revis

Best fantasy read: Graceling, by Kristin Cashore.

Best contemporary read: If I Stay by Gayle Forman

Best cover: Supernaturally by Kiersten White

What were some of your favourites for 2011?

Happy reading for 2012!

Writer's Block NZ