Reading at Dawn - Book Review Blog

The Waiting Sky by Lara Zielin

Book 26 in A to Z challenge

Yay! We made it through the alphabet. To top the awesome month off, here is a random book I found at the library. I actually was going for a different author as I looked for potential books online before going to the local small library, but when I saw this one, it had my attention and I decided to read it instead.

About the Book: One summer chasing tornadoes could finally change Jane's life for the better

Seventeen-year-old Jane McAllister can't quite admit her mother's alcoholism is spiraling dangerously out of control until she drives drunk, nearly killing them and Jane's best friend.

Jane has only one place to turn: her older brother Ethan, who left the problems at home years ago for college. A summer with him and his tornado-chasing buddies may just provide the time and space Jane needs to figure out her life and whether it still includes her mother. But she struggles with her anger at Ethan for leaving home and feels guilty--is she also abandoning her mom just when she needs Jane most? The carefree trip turned journey of self-discovery quickly becomes more than Jane bargained for, especially when the devilishly handsome Max steps into the picture.


My review: I didn't know what to expect from the book other than tornadoes and I was pleasantly surprised. In fact, I managed to read the book in just a couple of days, reading most of it on one of my days off. Okay, I partly hurried because it was due back the 24th and I also had to read Uglies by the 24th, but the book made it easy to accomplish. 

After an incident caused by her mom's drinking, Jane gets the courage to take a summer away from home, to gain some distance though she's determined it will be short term because her mother needs her. She has spent years being the one keeping them going, working hard and doing whatever she can to help her mother out. So naturally, the way to get away is to go chase tornadoes. Well, it's more her older brother happens to chase tornadoes and she likes taking pictures so spends the summer working for his crew as their photographer. From there we get tornadoes, cute boy from rival chaser team and drama. 

Yep, basically it's this:


It's like the movie Twister, but a young adult book version. Instead of the issues with divorce, the engagement to other woman and love triangle we get brother/sister dynamics, mom's drinking issues, bet with other chase team, struggle in their chase team between brothers, and of course a romance with a guy from the other chase team. And even though the one guy in the book says he hates the movie, this is totally similar to Twister. I would image the author at least liked the movie (I liked it actually).  The brother's chase team even has a device they are creating which will help detect information about tornadoes in attempt to create better warning systems and help save more lives. So, it's definitely like the movie except...

No cow.

 Overall, it was a good book. Plus, it has a great cover and title. While I questioned a couple things within the book, like the device they were using dealing with pollution in the atmosphere around tornadoes, it didn't distract me from the main story, which was about Jane and trying to come to terms with her life. The romance was cute, though I guess I should expect some romance in most of these YA books, had some great moments but also had some drama. I recommend this for anyone wanting to check out a young adult book with storm chasing and dealing with contemporary issues such as family drama and alcoholism. It is a good read.


Reviewed by:
Dawn Embers

Yaoi - manga and anime

Books 25 in http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/p/a-to-z-challenge-sign-uplist-2014.html

Since I write a fair amount of m/m, I have also come to appreciate Yaoi and Shouned-ai manga along with the animated versions. It's a very different form of story telling, the images and text compared to a novel, but I find them enjoyable once I figure out what the heck is going on, lol. But first I must add due to the nature of the images found in Yaoi:


Okay, better. Yes, Yaoi does get graphic and there are pictures. So it pretty much puts the Graphic in Graphic Novels, lol. And to be honest, I sometimes skim over the sexual images because that's not what I'm reading the story for, plus you don't need to stare at it much to know what is going on so they are easy to skim. What I read for is the plot and what puts the boys together. As a writer of boy/boy stories, it's nice to see what is already out there and while there aren't a ton of gay young adult or even adult books (there are some though), a fair amount exists in the world of manga.

It took me a while to get used to reading them. First off, the free manga sites like to slow my computer down. So, that doesn't help, but also... there are lots of pages and when I first tried, I didn't know the read right to left, or the whole how to interpret story through small bits of writing on top of images. But I'm getting better at it.

Then there is the trick. Fan art is fun and can show different series I'd never heard of before. But most of the time, an image of two boys kissing may not actually exist in the manga. Have to figure out if someone is posting an image from the manga, or if they are just doing fan art, as I have been tricked before.

If looking for less graphic, try searching Shounen-ai instead of Yaoi, but I'll be honest, some intermix cause I've seen some graphic content listed under the lighter one that could totally have been called Yaoi.

Also, like some romance (from what I've read on other blogs) at times in Yaoi the question of consent gets a little questionable. I'm not a big fan of force and then the whole "if they like it, it's okay," cause well... No. Don't do that. I'd like to see more where the conflict isn't "OMG how can I do stuff with a guy" and see more that are okay with being gay but other issues arise. Only on occasion does the questionable consent work and some suffering is involved in that, like in Junjou Romantica. But enough of rambles, here are my favorite Yaoi that I've read so far.

Junjou Romantica (both manga and the animated version)
My favorite is the first pairing, the "Junjou Romantica" one. While the other two stories are okay, the confusion and innocence of the main character as he tries to come to terms with his romance with another male was by far the best. It's one of the few times where I don't get too bothered by the consent question, because at the very beginning it's not romance, but near the end, we see him saying he wants to be the guy's special someone. And Usami does struggle later with his actions from the beginning, so that was good to see. However, it does get a little old with him taking control all the time. One of my favorite ones, in the animated version and in the manga, was when Misaki tries to do the moves. He may have no idea what he is doing, but he tries. That was a big moment for him and one of my favorites. Followed close by the conversation in the Ferris wheel.  Such a cute couple. Though I need to finish reading the manga cause I wonder if the brother ever finds out what his little brother and his best friend have been up to all those years... hehe


Monochrome Factor (animated version, haven't read the manga yet)

This one is more obscure. I have a friend who works in the gaming industry and goes to many anime conventions and he'd never heard of it. The Yaoi in the anime version is also minimal. Just kissing so it's far less graphic as it doesn't get sexual, though there is violence because the main character has to fight shadow demons. Though at times I understood Akira's struggles when Shirgone kept professing love for him. He's never sure how he feels and has to deal with that long with demons attacking, being part shadow and not knowing much about his own future. He also has some awesome friends to help along the way as they fight the growing darkness that threatens their world. I've also heard the boy/boy factor was amped up for the animated version, so it may not be the same with the manga. In fact, I wish there was more of the animated show cause I liked Akira. And this is probably the only thing I've ever attempted writing fanfiction for, because I want more story. Should read the manga, I suppose.

Other yaoi manga that I've enjoyed includes:
Gokujou no Koibito
Hey, Class President
Cello Mellow
Love Neko


Special mention for Black Butler and Betrayal Knows My Name, both ones I need to finish that may not quite qualify as yaoi (depending who is doing the defining) but are awesome.

Reviewed by:
Dawn Embers

Three Weeks with Lady X by Eloisa James

Book 24 in A to Z challenge

Three weeks with Lady X is a historical romance by Eloisa James and, I admit, was chosen because the character Lady X would fit this challenge. The other choice would have been Xenophon - but I decided you all would thank me if I skip the obscure Greek philosopher from 430 BC for some more modern regency romance.

I admit I dreaded it. I had read another book by Eloisa James and had hated it - so I did not relish a repeat. But then I told myself: Get on with it. To my own surprise, I loved it. Enough so that by now I have read the other six books in that series.

So, what is it about? Three Weeks with Lady X is the last in a long series called the Desperate Duchesses. It is the story of the illegitimate son of a Duke who decides he needs to marry - and Lady India, who specializes in bringing unsuitable houses, and Dukes, up to scratch. And whilst she tried to turn him into a man who would be welcome in the highest houses even though his birth is questionable, she... well, you can guess it.

As yet, that sounds like a fairly standard historic romance without anything special to it. What is special is the characters. They are not fragile little flowers - or stupid aristocrats who we are told are highly intelligent but who fall into one stupidity after another. They have wit and honour, humour and a fine sense of being alive. What the author manages is to create characters we can laugh with, we can understand, even from our 21st century perspective - but without letting them lose their regency life.

There are some historical inaccuracies - that is why it is called fiction, not a documentary. But overall she manages to show us the small practicalities of life, through the eyes of loveable, and loving, characters. These books are a welcome change for those who want to laugh, not cringe, when they read a regency novel - aware that what they are reading is some light entertainment, without being stupid. I thoroughly enjoyed it.


Reviewed by:
Christine Blackthorn
www.christineblackthorn.eu

The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson

Book 23 in A to Z challenge

Roshar is a world of stone and storms. Uncanny tempests of incredible power sweep across the rocky terrain so frequently that they have shaped ecology and civilization alike. Animals hide in shells, trees pull in branches, and grass retracts into the soiless ground. Cities are built only where the topography offers shelter.

It has been centuries since the fall of the ten consecrated orders known as the Knights Radiant, but their Shardblades and Shardplate remain: mystical swords and suits of armor that transform ordinary men into near-invincible warriors. Men trade kingdoms for Shardblades. Wars were fought for them, and won by them.

One such war rages on a ruined landscape called the Shattered Plains. There, Kaladin, who traded his medical apprenticeship for a spear to protect his little brother, has been reduced to slavery. In a war that makes no sense, where ten armies fight separately against a single foe, he struggles to save his men and to fathom the leaders who consider them expendable.

***

The Way of Kings is an interesting novel, in that its more than just a novel. Clocking in at just over 1,000 pages, it consists of 75 chapters, 9 short stories in the form of interludes, and a book worth of full-page illustrations throughout. It follows the stories of several characters in a fully-imagined and interesting world. The story is primarily about Kaladin, a soldier turned slave who is sold to Bridge Four, a bridge crew with a bad history. People are put on Bridge Four as punishment, and tend not to last very long.

The novel also follows Shallan Davar, a woman seeking to study under a heretic in an attempt to save her family, and Dalinar Kholin, a high prince on the Shattered Plains whose story sets up much of what appears to be the overarching story of the series.

Sanderson is not afraid to throw in more viewpoint characters, and some of them are just as interesting as the protagonists. The prelude is from the point of view of a Knight 5,000 years before the book. The prologue after it is from that of a Shin assassin wielding a shardblade and mysterious powers that affect gravity. The interludes, as well, introduce new viewpoint characters. Using throwaway viewpoints like this is something that can get out of hand (as it did in The Wheel of Time), but for the first book it was a useful tool for setting the stage, defining the scope and making the world feel real. I do hope it tones down a little, though, and sticks to the four main characters of the first book, Kaladin, Shallan, Dalinar and Szeth, the Shin assassin.

Sanderson, known well for his magic systems and worldbuilding, does not disappoint. The level of detail in this world is amazing (and sometimes annoying), and, as always, you can be sure the worlds various magic systems are all grounded in rules and logic.

Overall, The Way of Kings is a pretty great start to what promises to be a truly epic series that I know Ill have to have on my shelf. The second book, Words of Radiance, is out now, and I think Im going to go read it now.


Reviewed by:
Addison Smith

Voiltaire

Book 22 in A to Z challenge

Voltaire, or Franis-Marie Arouet, was a 18th century writer and philosopher best known for his sharp wit and contributions to the Enlightenment. His works are distinguished through their defence of the freedom of religion, freedom of speech and his support for the separation of church and state. His best known fictional work is Candide which was even made into a musical by Leonard Bernstein.

Candide is a satire about a young man, who, indoctrinated by his tutor, sees this world as perfect and has to live through a wide range of ever more outrageous, and funny, circumstances which seemingly challenge that view. Through robbery, murder, inquisition, betrayal, loss of love he has to find more and more contrived ways to justify how this world, and the narrow-minded selfishness in it, fits with his world view of perfection.

Candide is a clever parody, an attack on the core of the prevalent philosophical thinking as displayed by Leibnitz, who assures us that this must be the best of all worlds as God could not have created anything but. With laughter, sharp wit and, on occasion, a healthy shock, we follow through this satirical view of what it means to be willing to question everything. In the end we are, just as Candide, left with no proscribed philosophy which tells us what is right or wrong - but with a laughing admission that nothing can be taken for granted without giving it some rational thought.

Candide is a book for those who just want to laugh, and cry, whilst emerging themselves a little into the way the 17th century thought and wrote - and a book for those wanting to take a deeper look at the enlightenment and the source of our modern thinking. With its brevity it is a quick sojourn into a world we have almost forgotten but which has shaped our norms and constitutional perceptions.


Reviewed by:
Christine Blackthorn
www.christineblackthorn.eu

Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

Book 21 in A to Z challenge

I've had this book a long time. Many years and several people have recommended it. Well, I picked a fun time to read it because I had only a few days (after rushing Z so I could get it back to the library before it was due) to read all 400+ pages. My sister loved the whole series so I'd been meaning to read it for a while but having to rush made me worry a little because I wasn't sure how quick I could get through while enjoying reading it. I read it in 2 days.

About the book: Everybody gets to be supermodel gorgeous. What could be wrong with that?

Tally is about to turn sixteen, and she can't wait. Not for her license - for turning pretty. In Tally's world, your sixteenth birthday brings an operation that turns you from a repellent ugly into a stunningly attractive pretty and catapults you into a high-tech paradise where your only job is to have a really great time. In just a few weeks Tally will be there.

But Tally's new friend Shay isn't sure she wants to be pretty. She'd rather risk life on the outside. When Shay runs away, Tally learns about a whole new side of the pretty world and it isn't very pretty. The authorities offer Tally the worst choice she can imagine: find her friend and turn her in, or never turn pretty at all.

The choice Tally makes changes her world forever...


 My Review: Definitely a good book. I wasn't sure on where things were headed for a good part of it and I am okay with that. The whole world and concept was interesting with the operations at age sixteen, with both of them along with the characters keeping my attention. Though I will admit on occasion it was hard with the main character, but I think in ways that was helpful. Many of us writers worry about our readers liking the main character even when they had to make bad/tough decisions. And when it comes to promises to two different friends, there was no great choice for Tally to make. She had a long standing friend who became pretty first that she made a promise to, then she had her new friend Shay, who she made a counter promise too, which messes things up and that's just the beginning. Tally spends the book digging herself into a pretty big mess and while it's hard at time to root for a bit of deceptions, it's understandable in many ways.

It had quite a few surprises. I didn't expect the romance and in many ways Tally didn't expect it either. David made for an interesting character, once we got to know him a bit more. I'm glad it wasn't her, him and some other guy. The female friend made for a better angle, in my mind, when it came to conflict and it was much appreciated change of pace. Frienship had a very important role in the story, in fact.

I had to rush read this but I still feel that it didn't affect my experience of the story overall. Reading 300 pages in a single day isn't the most I've done in the last few years, but it made me want to keep reading, which helped. I don't often plan when I'll read sequels as I have so much to read, but I think I'll be finding book 2 some time this summer so that I can find out what happens next. I need to know!

This is a great book for people who read young adult novels or some who haven't quite checked them out because certain media coverage makes them leery. It has an interesting twist on the concept of beauty, self-esteem and what happens in a world where plastic surgery is normal.


Reviewed by:
Dawn Embers

Tamora Pierce, Author

Books 20 in A to Z Challenge

Instead of doing a regular book review. This time me and my sister are teaming up to talk about an author who influenced our reading as teens. As siblings we may have fought often and didn't have much in common, but when it came to books like those written by Tamora Pierce, we both had to read more. So, today we both reflect on this amazing author and her books we shared growing up.


Ashlee:

The first Tamora Pierce book I ever read was Alanna’s First Adventure. I was in the 1st or 2nd grade and it started a life long love of both young adult fantasy and a following of an author one could only call: mentorial. The progression of each Tamora Pierce book I read can outline the way information was provided to me and the discovery and growth of technology in the late 90’s and early 2000’s.

For the Lioness Quartet, in which a young girl pretends to be her twin brother in order to train to be a Knight, I discovered each one in the aisle of my revered local elementary school’s library. I would read them during the after school program and it took me a long time because I was just learning to read. These were the first chapter books I ever read.

Then I graduated to the Immortals series (those brought a young woman who could speak to and take the shapes of animals) and book fairs. I would go every year in my schools library looking to see if there was a new Tamora Pierce book I had not read for me to purchase. It was so exciting. I never knew if I was going to go home with the prized possession of a new book.

By the time I started about Keladry and her fight for those smaller than her and her quest for Knighthood I was learning the power of Google. I discovered Tamora Pierces homepage where she listed future books (which I followed like it was a sacred prophecy) and it was a miracle. I could look up when  a new book was coming out and just go to Barnes and Noble to get it. After that I never missed a release date. Every Adventure of Tris, Sandry, Briar and Daja and they learned to control their ambient magic and train their students. I followed Bekka in the slums of the Lower City as she became a Provost’s Dog. But the one thing I miss the most is that excitement of going to the book fair… hoping that there would be that one new book. It’s a feeling of such innocent excitement that could never be replicated and in someway always knowing absolutely everything about the things you love can take away the joy. And in some way it can increase it. You can count down the days to the next book. You can dress up as your favorite character and show up the midnight of the release date. All that matter’s in the end is the sound of the spine of the book cracking when you turn that first page… or, if you are using an ereader, the button click I suppose.


Dawn:

I don't quite remember exactly when I found my first book by Tamora Pierce, though like my sister I started with Alanna. Girl with purple eyes, cat familiar and who wanted to become a knight to the point she pretended to be a boy? It had me hooked from the start. I want to say it was jr high, but I can't quite remember for sure but it was around that time or maybe 6th grade where I started reading female main character fantasy stories (including Juniper Game, Juniper and Wise Child though I thought Juniper came before Wise Child but that's a different rant).

Along with adoring Alanna (the first two books in particular out of that series), I also discovered the Immortals series. I've always been a fan of characters who have a connection to animals, whether magic or not, so this character grabbed my attention. I loved the concepts presented in the book and still today remember certain parts of the story, even a little of the romance. Though compared to shape-shifting, which meant not having clothes when returning to human form, I'm pretty sure I never had to endure anything quite as embarrassing even though growing up I never understood the courtship and relationships that many of my peers focused on. The wild magic presented in this series was interesting to me as well, along with the different character dynamics. Plus, the small place being able to fight thanks to the help of animals was just plain cool to me. I even considered taking parts of the story for policy debate to use in a negative file on anthropomorphism, but didn't get the chance.

However, unlike my sister, those are the only two series I have read, so far. I have a lot of catching up to do as during my teen years I got distracted by school, John Grisham, Dragonlance and the start of The Wheel of Time series. But what my sister didn't mention was something else we both experienced in relation to this topic. Thanks to her searching, she found a neat little conference held in Colorado (as not many conferences were in our state of Wyoming) that was geared towards women in fantasy, called Sirens. We both went and had the honor of meeting Tamora Pierce. I'm not a squeal type fangirl but I did a little inward, along with yay for first writing conference since I know write novels as well. Having Alanna's first book signed by the author was a great moment and seeing my sister get to meet someone she looked up to, well that made it even better.



How we found the books, where we finished or kept going, all that may vary. But these two sisters, and co-bloggers, both can agree on at least one thing. Tamora Pierce books are awesome, definite must reads for YA fantasy lovers and beyond.