Category Archives: Book Reviews

Review: Tamora Pierce – Trickster’s Queen

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Trickster’s Queen
Tamora Pierce
Aly has survived the summer. Now she returns to the city, and must protect Sarai and Dove even more carefully, in order to set one of them on the throne.
Aly really comes into her own in this novel. The few things about the first novel, where she doesn’t seem suited to a life of slavery, are entirely suitable to this novel. She’s independent, she’s finally trusted, she just needs to make sure she doesn’t become over confident.
I like Dove. She’s sensible, and really has her head on straight. She’s much more likeable than the headstrong Sarai. The other characters, mainly the leaders of the rebellion, also ring true for me.
The love interest with Nawat is really understated and won’t have your teenager going ‘ugh’. Adult readers might wish for a bit more action, but it wouldn’t be fitting with the rest of the novel.
Readers will be unsurprised by the ending, but pleased by it nonetheless. I think there was only one way it could have ended, and so of course it does end in that way. Predictable but true.
Something I possibly should have mentioned about the first book in this series as well is the wonderful world building. Just like The Immortals Quartet, it’s good to see some world outside Tortall for a change. It shows that Pierce has really thought about the whole universe, not just the mainland.

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Review: Eoin Colfer – Artemis Fowl and the Last Guardian

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Artemis Fowl and the Last Guardian
Eoin Colfer
Artemis is facing off against Opal Koboi once again. That sneaking Opal is always getting into mayhem. This time she wants to wipe out all human kind, and make a mess of the fairy world as well.
9307674This final installment in the Artemis Fowl books is very much improved from the last book. Artemis may have lost some of his brains but the action continues on regardless.
It’s packed with action and adventure. There’s no clue to what is going to happen next and the suspense is killer. You have to wonder what Artemis’ brothers have to do with things…
There are laugh it loud moments in this novel particularly when dealing with Mulch. Ah I love the dwarf! At one point you think he’s a goner but there’s always more surprises.
Even without the last chapter this book is good. It irritates me a little that the ending leaves it open for yet another book but I live in hope that any further books are just as good.
This is one of the first blogger posts I have composed on my phone – apologies for its brevity. I’ve been a bit lax in my blogging lately, and have a bunch of posts to catch up on.

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Review: Tamora Pierce – Trickster’s Choice

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Trickster’s Choice
Tamora Pierce
Aly wants to be a spy like her da. Denied this option, and faced with the prospect of becoming her mother’s project, she decides to take a little sail to visit some friends. Instead, she’s captured by slavers and shipped off to the Balitangs to an unlikely role.
This is an old favourite of mine. Aly is a spunky, cheeky heroine that I enjoy reading every time. Nawat Crow keeps the humour alive, and you can see the potential in the two ladies from the start. You have to like Dove more though, even if she seems extremely mature for a 12 year old.
There’s enough action and blood in this book to keep most teenagers satisfied. You can’t feel too sad at the ending, even with some deaths. There’s several climax points which serve to keep the reader interested too.
This novel comes after The Protector of the Small series in Tortall, but concerns a different land. Additionally, there is a short story which I have previously review that concerns Aly and Nawat as well.
It took me just under 2 and half hours to read this novel. That makes it a light and easy read for when I just want to chill out and not think too much.

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Review: Sue Perry – Scar Jewelry

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Scar Jewelry
Sue Perry

Deirdre and Langston get more than they bargained for when they begin to pry into their mother’s life. Where has she been going every week? Why doesn’t she seem to have any friends? What they discover could change their lives forever.

I wanted something more concrete from the ending. Great, they’d found their family, but what about their mother? What about their father? I wanted a real answer to those questions. Not to mention where she was going on Thursdays!

I felt like there wasn’t quite enough information about their ‘dad’ in terms of letting the reader work things out for themselves. The revelations felt very guided. However, they till suckered me in enough that I finished reading this novel in less than a day.

Dierdre could have been a little more convincing as a character. She seems to be afraid of everything ,yet she manages to turn that around in the end. She does make a very convincing counterpoint to Langston though, and it’s hard to believe that they are twins sometimes.

Sandy sometimes speaks in odd ways that threw me out of the novel. There were a couple of occasions where I felt the editor could have given more attention to the dialogue in particular. It wasn’t neough to put me completely off though, as other parts did feel natural.

I won this book through LibraryThing and it took me a disgustingly long time to get around to reading it. I’m not sure I’m glad I did, but it was an enjoyable enough way to spend my afternoon.

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Review: Juliet Marillier – The Bridei Chronicles 3 – The Well of Shades

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The Well of Shades
Juliet Marillier
Faolan must return to his homeland and face his history. He encounters many obstacles, including one who may be more than she sees. Not all is right at home either, with Bridei’s court in disarray with the arrival of a new Light Isles Princess.
It’s amazing to witness the character development of Faolan in this novel. What was begun in Blade of Fortriu is lead to a stunning conclusion here. Faolan becomes more and more likeable for me, and a better person all around.
There are plenty of narrative threads in this novel, and plenty of action. Sure, there’s less warmongering than in the others in this trilogy but the people element is strong and carries the book well.
I can’t think of enough praise for this novel. I was desperate to finish reading it, but was very sad when I had done so. Marillier writes such great fantasy that if she was a touch more prolific she might be my favourite author of all time!
It seems to me that the 4th book in this series, as yet unpublished (and possibly not to be written) would do a good job of rounding up some open ends. In particular, the influx of the Christian faith is only briefly mentioned, and more could have been made of its inevitable progress.

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Review: Mercedes Lackey – Elemental Masters 3 – Phoenix and Ashes

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Phoenix and Ashes
Mercedes Lackey

Eleanor had expected to go to Oxford, but instead she finds herself as a drudge working for her evil stepmother and step sisters. She’s lived for 2 years with no hope, but when she starts seeing things in fire, she wonders about the existence of magic.

Like others in the Elemental Masters series, this is based on a fairytale – Cinderella. You couldn’t want for a more evil step mother! It’s an interesting rendition of the tale, complete with ball, but differing about the shoes. It means that you know how the novel is going to end up, but that’s not always a bad thing.

This novel has some more of the theory behind elemental magic that is both boring and interesting to read at the same time. The teaching method in this one is by Tarot cards, which in themselves are interesting because they are used by modern day Pagans and so forth. It makes a nice change from the other novels in the series where the student is taught by a real teacher.

Phoenix and Ashes is set during, I believe, World War 2, with the Germans and many pointless deaths. It’s powerful stuff. There isn’t that much focus on the war itself though, mainly the interest is what it does to the survivors of war, and the changing of social strata as a consequence of this.

I really enjoyed rereading this novel, and even though I remembered most of the storyline really well, this was like being enfolded in a warm comforting blanket. Just the right amount of thought provoking imagery, and the right connection with the heroine.

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Review: Juliet Marillier – The Bridei Chronicles 2 – The Blade of Fortriu

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The Blade of Fortriu
Juliet Marillier
Ana, a princess of the Light Isles, is being sent to make a strategic marriage for her King Bridei. Little does she know that her party will be changed, and that the self she presents will need to be ripped apart before life can proceed.
Ana’s character development is particularly convincing, as is Faolin’s. Drunstan is a bit more of an unknown element, but I think it suits him. Faolan is enigmatic, and it’s nice to see that shell finally crack a bit, even if it’s painful for it to do so.
The action in this novel is almost too powerful to read. I was gripped from start to finish. I couldn’t bear for Ana to end up with the horrible Alvin oaf. Something I did have difficulty reconciling with what I knew of him was that he actually was waiting for the wedding night to take her. It seemed to me like they were in a little isolated pocket and that they could have gotten away with anything they pleased.
Once again, I let this book go by without reviewing it promptly, and I’ve forgotten a lot of the good things I wanted to say about it. It’s entirely worth your time to read it though.

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Review: Mercedes Lackey – Elemental Masters 1 – The Serpent’s Shadow

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The Serpent’s Shadow
Mercedes Lackey

Maya has made a jump around the world from India to England. Still she is pursued by an unnamed shadow that threatens everything that she has worked for. More mundane problems hunt her steps too, as a female doctor in early English society.

I love Maya. She’s a strong female protagonist who won’t say die. She always takes the hardest path (a bit like me really), but always triumphs. It’s difficult for her though, because she doesn’t have all the tools she needs. Peter can provide her with those, and more than you would expect.

As an introduction to the Elemental Masters series, I think this novel is not as good as some others. More theory could have been discussed, and less abstract things by the counsel. Additionally, it doesn’t quite fit in, because as far as I know, it doesn’t have any fairytale elements like the others.

The ending of the novel seems too abrupt for me. I would have liked a bit more detail about the cleaning up of the temple, and the weddings. The letters in the epilogue just don’t cut it for me, and they break with the continuity that held the rest of the novel together.

I don’t know enough about British history to say whether this novel is accurate in the portrayal of Britain’s influences on India, and the number of Hindu people in London, but it’s a nice introduction even if surely it’s not all correct.

I’ve been a bit negative about this novel, but really it’s enjoyable. There’s plenty of action, and Maya’s path is never straight and narrow. It might even be possible to call this novel a bit of a romance, as well as being a strict fantasy novel.

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Review: Juliet Marillier – The Bridei Chronicles 1 – The Dark Mirror

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The Dark Mirror
Juliet Marillier
Bridei is being raised for great things, but he doesn’t know enough about them yet. When he rescues the foundling Tuala, he doesn’t know how this will change the course of his destiny.
The romance in this novel is very strong, and poignant – Marillier really gets it right. Some things you don’t see coming, and others you do, but all of them blend together beautifully.
I stayed up past my bedtime reading this novel – it was great, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I don’t know why I waited so long to read it!
The perspectives allow enough insight into each character that you feel like you know the important ones really personally. It would have been nice to have a bit more knowledge about the old druid, but you can’t fit everything into a book of this length.
The ending almost doesn’t feel like an ending. Bridei’s recovery and the events after this proceed at a very rapid rate, and while I was reading them I felt like I had missed something.
I made the mistake of reading this novel, then quickly picking up the next in the series before reviewing it. Oops! So this review is much shorter than what this wonderful book deserves.

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Review: Mercedes Lackey – Elemental Masters 2 – The Gates of Sleep

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The Gates of Sleep
Mercedes Lackey

Marina has lived  most of her short years in a quiet village with her aunt and uncles. She is gifted with Elemental Magic, but has not yet come into her full powers. She doesn’t know why she hasn’t known her parents, or why she has a sinking feeling of foreboding about her aunt…

This is a retelling of the fairytale Sleeping Beauty. It is intelligently crafted, just as I would expect from an early Lackey novel. Although predictable in nature, it is the little things that make it a reread for me. I really like the character of Marina, and also the brief insights into Andrew Pike that we get through the changing narrative perspective  For the most part it is told from Marina’s perspective however.

I do have one little grump about this novel. Marina and Andrew get along well enough, but I feel like there isn’t enough contact between them for this to grow into something more. I would have also loved to have heard more about his treatments, and the care of the insane.

Don’t you just love the cover of this novel? I’m not sure it adequately captures Marina, but the skulls are a giveaway that things might not be all as they seem.

I don’t know what draws me to fairytale retellings. In this case, I had just watched the Disney film of Sleeping Beauty, and it sparked a desire in me to reread this novel.

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