A Modern Witch by Debora Geary
This is an ebook I read on my netbook. I was given a copy for the purpose of reviewing the story, though it did take a little while for me to actually read it. Hard to keep up at times when reading 3-5 books at a time.
From Goodreads:
Can you live 28 years without discovering you're a witch?
Lauren is downtown Chicago's youngest elite realtor. She's also a witch. She must be - the fetching spell for Witches' Chat isn't supposed to make mistakes. So says the woman who coded the spell, at least.
The tall, dark, and handsome guy sent to assess her is a witch too (and no, that doesn't end the way you might think). What he finds in Lauren will change lives, mess with a perfectly good career, and require lots of ice cream therapy.
An interesting story overall and I'm always a fan of witches.
Characters: While Lauren is listed as the main character, the novel is written in multiple point of views. There are some chapters that have different character viewpoints but it's all in third person. The main story is about Lauren, who suddenly finds out at age 28 that she is a witch. Another story, and one I wish there had been more shown of, is her friend Nat and the male witch who shows up to assess Lauren as a witch. It does get a little confusing at first with the different characters the story is told through and that there are many character names near the beginning. But there are some fun characters. Nat and Jamie are developed and interesting to read about. Plus, who can't fall in love with a mischievous little boy with major witch skills. Impossible I say.
Story: Wasn't too bad. It doesn't have the exact drama of most fantasy stories that have witches. There isn't some villain to defeat. Instead the story focuses on how the development of Lauren's skills changes her lives and the ones around her as they train her to be a witch. The modern part of the witchcraft was really cool. Witches that code and own an online gaming community with a chat room that uses spells to bring witches in to the online room. An awesome idea. I love how she developed the modern world to add the elements of witchcraft that makes total sense.
For Me: This is an interesting read for me as someone who identifies as pagan. Granted I'm not a good one. I haven't even used my tarot cards in at least 3 years. I have only been part of one circle in my life, during Samhain one year and I don't remember which element/direction I was in charge of calling. But I do have small experiences, which made this book a good book for me.
Dawn's Verdict: 7/10
Friday, May 13, 2011 | Labels: contemporary fantasy, ebook |
A Silent Land, by Graham Joyce
The story begins on a slope in the French Alps, when the whisper of skis on snow is suddenly “displaced by a rumble”. The only two people inhabiting this snowy world are an English couple, Zoe and Jake. They of course have no hope of outracing the avalanche heading their way. They're both quick thinkers and they take cover, clutching desperately for something to hang onto as they’re engulfed.
“Total silence, total darkness.”
The terror does not end there. This is dark and fascinating fiction. What happens next is even more frightening. They manage to claw themselves out of the snow, find the lift operator's post, munch on some chocolate and wait to be rescued. They soon realise no one is coming, so they struggle back to their resort, Saint-Bernard-en-Haut. It is completely deserted. What? Has the village been evacuated? Or has something else, something even more sinister happened? Has the resort been evacuated? Is everyone dead? Jake himself suspects that they’ve both died—but then Zoe begins seeing furtive figures and hearing snatches of speech that suggest this likely explanation is more complex than it seems.But could anyone really have survived the avalanche Zoe and Jake have just endured?
British author Graham Joyce’s latest novel rests upon a familiar horror premise: the idea of being caught in an eerie place where the everyday and the eldritch co-exist. The Silent Land is a most delicate literary balancing act. To make the story work, Joyce has to bring something new to the party to act as a counterpoint. Joyce’s necessary solution, which works at both an emotional and technical level, is to focus on his protagonists, Zoe and Jake, a DINKY (double-income-no-kids-yet) couple who find themselves in an extraordinary situation. They'd planned a luxurious holiday but all is not going to plan, far from it. Luckily, they have each other.
As the full focus is on only two characters, Joyce has made them well rounded, using their present dilemmas and interspersing the odd flashback into their previous lives. Jake is full of himself while Zoe has at times a fragile vulnerability, yet shows an inner strength. The couple bicker playfully, with the usual gender difference jokes. (Zoe to Jake when he plays a tasteless joke: “‘You know what?’ she said. ‘Even as a dead person you can be such an arsehole.’”)
Joyce sketches out the emotional landscape of their marriage as their ordeal runs into days that begin to blur into each other with the strangeness growing exponentially. There are shared memories,there’s a revelation of infidelity, there are secrets they've not shared. Within the constraints of this small, icy world where they only have each other, the microscope is applied to their relationship.
The Silent Land is a short novel. Joyce does not waste words or linger on detail. His prose is spare and to the point, which really works for this storyline. The book is as crisp as new snow, even to the point where you sometimes long for more detail, but that is not the way of this much-awarded fantasy writer.
The book is so compelling. Partnership, the hard slog and joy of marriage, is one of the book’s major themes, and another is death and loss – in particular, how do we carry on when faced with these? Without giving too much away, Joyce’s answer seems to suggest that humans have an innate ability to cling to life, enjoy every last moment, until there’s really just no point in holding on any longer. But what lies ahead?
To return to where I began, Joyce’s novel may start in a familiar territory to readers who may recognise the landscape of skiing, but it’s where it finishes and the emotions that it explores along the way that grab you and won't let you go. This is fantasy fiction at its best. The whole story is engaging, interesting, haunting, and entertaining. I predict you’ll laugh nervously; you’ll weep a little, recognising your own humanity, (unless you’re completely heartless); you’ll appreciate your nearest and dearest more than you did before reading this novel. What more could you want from a novel?
L'Aussie's Verdict: 8/10
Sunday, May 08, 2011 | Labels: fantasy, Graham Joyce, The Silent Land |
Wither by Lauren DeStefano
This was a surprise. I really wanted to read this but was stuck waiting or so I thought until I was in my sister's room and noticed she had an advanced reviewer's copy. And she has no idea why she had a copy. Lucky for me because I started reading it right away and only took three days to read the whole thing, which is fast for me right now. This was an advanced copy, so things might be a little different in the one published last month. But either way, the overall reaction is summed in one word. It was... wow.
Thanks to modern science, every human being has become a ticking genetic time bomb—males only live to age twenty-five, and females only live to age twenty. In this bleak landscape, young girls are kidnapped and forced into polygamous marriages to keep the population from dying out.
When sixteen-year-old Rhine Ellery is taken by the Gatherers to become a bride, she enters a world of wealth and privilege. Despite her husband Linden's genuine love for her, and a tenuous trust among her sister wives, Rhine has one purpose: to escape—to find her twin brother and go home..."
This book is amazing. Seriously. A-Maze-Ing
Story: The idea of the world is an intriguing one. My only concern was the two males shown as interested in the one female main character, but this is the type that I can handle and even enjoy. It's not the girl/woman is indecisive or trying to even pick. Instead, it's a matter of circumstances. And I ended up liking both males. I loved the little elements that were shown in the world. The music of the piano, the fish illuminations in the pool and the attempts to recreate existences from the past to make the harsh reality of the truth in their world more bearable.
Characters: All of the characters are well developed. I liked Rhine, the main character. She was interesting and easy enough to feel empathy towards. Linden may have three new wives, but he really isn't a bad guy and his character was well developed. And the servant, Gabriel added dimension to the story. His interactions with Rhine were good to read. The female characters had their own depth and the variety of characters dealing all with the situation made for a great story. Variety in characters was great to read and having them stand out with decent development was a relief to see. I enjoyed this book mostly for the characters.
Overall: I didn't want to stop reading. The only difficult parts I had with the copy I read is sometimes the flashbacks would catch me off guard and I would be confused for the first paragraph. Even with the stranger subjects like polygamy, death happening at ages 20 and 25, and the strangeness of the world, it was easy to visualize the story. I found it to be an amazing read and hope others give it a chance. Read this book.
Dawn's Verdict: 9/10
Friday, May 06, 2011 | Labels: ARC, dystopian, young adult |
Fake Boyfriend, by Kate Brian
I'll admit it, it was the cover that hooked me!
Synopsis from Goodreads:
He's absolutely perfect.
If only he were real.
Lane and Vivi have had it with Isabelle Hunter's boyfriend, Shawn Littig (a.k.a. Sluttig). He is the only person who can turn their smart, confident best friend into a complete mess. When Shawn Sluttig cheats on and dumps Izzy just months before the prom she's been planning since the ninth grade, Lane and Vivi decide to take action.
With a few quick keystrokes, they create a MySpace page for "Brandon," the perfect guy to get Izzy out of her revolving-door relationship with Shawn. Too bad he's totally fake. Vivi's younger brother, Marshall, who they hire to be the "man" behind the profile, is way too into being Izzy's fake boyfriend. So they turn to cute, prep-school Jonathan to be the face of Brandon. But when Vivi falls for Jonathan, and Sluttig tries to wedge his way back into Izzy's prom picture, the whole plan starts to go south faster than you can say "fake boyfriend."
I picked Fake Boyfriend up because it looked like it was a fun read, and it didn't disappoint. While it wasn't the most thought provoking or meaningful novel out there, I did enjoy reading it. The characters are likable, and the plot, while predictable, was fast paced enough to keep me reading on. My favourite character by far was Marshall, the mistreated younger brother of Vivi. I wish he had got to play more of a part, and while there his IM conversations with Izzy are mentioned a lot, we don't actually get to read much of it. The book could have done with more on the MArshall/Izzy fake relationship, instead of concentrating on Jonathan, the 'face' or the fake boyfriend.
The 3rd person POV switches from Vivi to Lane throughout the novel, and not having anything from Izzy's POV was actually a refreshing twist. While it would have been fun to see things from her POV, the story wasn't really about her, or her boyfriend problems. It was more about friendship, and how the 'right thing' can really be the wrong thing!
A fun read overall.
WritersBlockNZ's Verdict: 7/10
Tuesday, May 03, 2011 | Labels: young adult |
Willow by Julia Hoban
One last book read on my sister's nook. This is one I hadn't planned to read but she really insisted and I had to read it fast to get it done in time so she could have her e-reader back. This is the epitome of how our general reading preferences differ. I love epic fantasy and adventure, which she has read a few more than me oddly enough, but she really loves young adult and very sad books. This one is both YA and sad.
Told in an extraordinary fresh voice, Willow is an unforgettable novel about one girl’s struggle to cope with tragedy, and one boy’s refusal to give up on her.
It was a bit better than I expected and a nice break in that the novel isn't in first person. The novel does involve self-harm, as the description mentions and from the very beginning of the story. So, it may be hard for some people to read. It was even hard for me at some points but overall I handled it and I'm sure most would too.
Characters: Willow is the main character, obviously, and even in third person the story is told from her point of view only. She is very distant and the third person helps create that feeling. Normally, I say that third person isn't distancing but in this case, it had to be for the story. At times I didn't feel close enough to the main character but I had to keep reading to know what happens. The one I had the hardest time with, was the boy named Guy with his knight in shiny armor mentality. There are a few times where I didn't really believe his character and one time where I really didn't believe. It was like "really, you are going to say that is a way you can protect her, really?" I won't say what I'm referring to because I don't want to give anything away but if you read the novel I think you will see what I mean. Overall, though, the characters weren't too bad. Seeing them through Willow's eyes and then seeing how she wasn't quite right about her assessment's brought the story more to life.
Story: The story was a little slow in spots and I wondered where it was going to go because it wasn't quite obvious even though the end made total sense. It was emotional but also had some funny moments, which makes sense as well. When I studies Shakespeare, it was always the tragedies that had the most humor because tragedy and humor accentuate each other in story telling. I started to care for the main character, though it wasn't easy in the beginning, and how her relationships with others developed, especially with her brother. It is a tamer story if comparing to one with action and adventure, but it's an emotional journey.
Overall: It's a sad, distant book that is a decent read. I hadn't planned to read it but I am a little glad that I did listen to my sister. It's not my usual style but it's good to branch out from time to time.
Dawn's Verdict: 8/10
Friday, April 29, 2011 | Labels: contemporary, young adult |
A Thousand Days in Venice by Marlena de Blasi - a travel memoir
Travel memoirs are one of my favourite forms of escapism and I have many favourites, charming books that tell the often-enhanced travel stories of people just like us but who get to travel, then write about it, then travel some more...and write about it. Now that's Utopia!
Another much-loved author is the effervescent Italian, Adrianna Trigiani, who has this to say - "The great Marlena de Blasi writes fairy tales for grown ups." Well, this book, and others that Marlena has since written, are my kind of fairy tale.
I was writing my entry for the A - Z Challenge and as my V is for Venice, I thought, why not review this luscious book?
A Thousand Days In Venice is a charming story about love found late in life and straight away the story will resonate with many readers. Marlena is a divorced American chef who decides to leave her material possessions and America behind and travel to Venice, Italy, and lo and behold she finds love with a "blueberry-eyed Venetian." At first she thinks she is too old for romantic love and intimacy and wants to run away but is inexplicably drawn into a romance which would seem to most, utterly impossible. It is a true-life memoir, and Marlena chooses to take a risk, to follow her heart and venture out into a world of new possibilities. She leaves her well-established life in the US, two grown children and a beautiful home in St. Louis to begin a new life with a Venetian she calls "the stranger."
Which I thought was a bit strange. It bothered me how she called this man, Fernando, "The Stranger," not just when she first met him, but through most of the book. But maybe it was deliberate. Maybe it added to the strange allure of Venice, a city where the idea of meeting and making love to a stranger is folklore during Carnavale.
Fernando, "The Stranger" is at times demanding in his wishes, which was strange since it was Marlena who was making the big changes, not him. He really wasn't the one giving up anything. He was also rather controlling in day-to-day living, just as you would expect of the stereotypical pampered adult male used to getting what he wants. He imposes his wishes on her and expects her to conform, yet you can tell Marlena isn't the type who would usually be pushed around by a man. I'm glad I gritted my teeth at his at times mincing habits as he did change later as the relationship developed.
As you can imagine, this is a mammoth crossroads in Marlena's life and she turns to her best friend Misha for advice. As Marlena is struggling with her feelings about this new-found love and discussing the ramifications with Misha she receives some poignant advice. "Now that it has presented itself to you, could you dare to imagine turning away form it for anything or anyone?" Misha tells of love she has once known. "I was afraid that the sentiments would change. I was afraid of some form of betrayal and so I walked away. I betrayed it before it could betray me. And maybe I thought life inside that intensity would suffocate me. So I chose a sort of pleasant, safe compromise, an emotion less than passion and more than tolerance. Isn't that what most of us choose?"
Don't most of us more often than not choose the "safe road" in our lives? Doing a Robert Frost and choosing 'the road less travelled' can be a scary thought and there are not many of us that have the stomach for it. I've read other memoirs of 50-somethings who run away from their life, find another country, find another man, and live either happily or confusedly ever after (check our the Australian Mary Moody's books on escaping to France. Hot. Hot. Hot.) Marlena's story was bringing up conflicting emotions for me as I both admired her for it, and felt maybe she was a little crazy for it too, especially with 'The Stranger' who I know I couldn't live with for a minute! But, ah, Venice I could live with forever!
Marlena de Blasi has a very descriptive writing style which is beautiful and lush. She takes you right into the streets of Venice. You can smell and see the foods that she describes with her chef's eye and palate and I could visualise myself walking down those same fascinating streets or sitting by the Adriatic Sea. (I've since visited Venice and followed in Marlena's footsteps but I took my own 'stranger' with me.) There were many thoughtful and insightful paragraphs that grabbed me in this book. Marlena. de Blasi makes you ponder choices in life and imagine wonderful world of possibilities that might just be in reach after all. But possibly more so in Venice than anywhere else seeing as it is one of the most fascinating and romantic cities in the world.
This was the first book of Marlena de Blasi's that I had read. I've since read all her travels through Italy - Tuscany and Umbria. Beautiful. Exciting. Being a chef, she has written at least two cookbooks on regional Italian food.
Would you like to be swept off your feet by an unexpected romance?
Would you give up your home country for your new love?
Do you enjoy reading travel narratives? Tell me about them...
L'Aussie's Verdict: 8/10
Monday, April 25, 2011 | Labels: Marlena de Blasi, Travel Memoir |
Hard Magic by Laura Anne Gilman
Back to paperback books and guess what... This is not YA. Shocking, I know, since I've been reading a lot of YA books lately. This is a book I found at random when I was walking through Barnes and Noble last year. It seemed interesting, so I picked up the book.
My name's Bonnie Torres. Recent college grad, magic user and severely unemployed. Until I got a call out of nowhere to interview for a job I hadn't applied for. It smelled fishy, but the brutal truth was I needed the work—so off I went.
Two days later I'm a PUPI—me and Nick, Sharon, Nifty and Pietr. Five twentysomethings, thrown into an entirely new career in forensic magic.
The first job we get is a doozy: proving that the deaths of two Talents were murder, not suicide. Worse, there are high-profile people who want us to close up shop and go away. We're sniffing out things they'd rather keep buried.
Looks as if this job is gonna get interesting. The only problem is, we're making it up as we go along…"
This ended up being better than I thought. In general, I don't watch the CSI type television shows, so I wasn't sure if I was going to like a book labeled as a paranormal version of CSI.
Main Character: Bonnie is a fun character with a bit of an attitude. She is amusing and there are some great lines that really made me chuckle. Bonita (that is her first name actually) is also a bisexual main character, though men get her attention a bit more than women. Overall, I liked her except for one thing. She really needs to get control of her libido because it gets a little old with her losing attention on important topics by different guys. Strangers, client's relatives, witness', coworkers, bosses, doesn't matter, she gets distracted. What did help was there were consequences for it some of the time and having the tension helped. Having her occasionally mention women did make her a little more relatable to me than some of the other girl MCs I've read recently who spend too much time focusing on who they find attractive. But there are a few times where the reader could have seen Bonnie discover clues that are later heard about in dialogue instead of just seeing her distraction over some one's appearance and her interest in them.
Story: It was mostly interesting. I've not read many mysteries before, so trying to figure out how two people magically died wasn't easy. I liked how the plot of the story interlaced with the world, where magic and non-magic humans existed among other beings too. I liked the magic type, the concept of current and how the characters, MC especially showed the reader its uses. The only problem with a story like crime scene investigation is that the end feels a little anti-climatic. There was an exciting commotion towards the end that confused me a little about what was going on, and that made me feel more in the story.
Minor issues: There are many characters and many many names. Each of the P.U.P.I. characters are called by first, last and nicknames at different points in the novel. Two of them are named Nick (one often called Nifty). It was a nice break to read an adult book and I barely noticed at times that the book was in first person. Sometimes it was hard to tell who was talking when a lot of dialogue was happening at once. Line after line within the P.U.P.I. organization discussing certain evidence was good but I had no idea who was saying what. Didn't detract from the story but I did notice it.
Overall: I am looking forward to the next book, Pack of Lies. I didn't see it in the bookstore today but it was published at the beginning of this year. Those that like paranormal, magic and a little crime investigation might like this book. And even if you're like me and don't watch crime stuff, you might still like this book.
Dawn's Verdict: 8/10
Thursday, April 21, 2011 | Labels: paranormal |
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