Book Reviews

Trials of Magic (The Hundred Halls #1) By: Thomas K. Carpenter

Trials of Magic (The Hundred Halls #1) By: Thomas K. Carpenter

Plot:

There are exactly one hundred halls of magic to choose from. Ever since our parents were killed I knew exactly which hall was for me.

Aurelia “Aurie” Silverthorne is one of the best and brightest to ever apply to the Hundred Halls, the only magical university in the world. To be accepted, she must pass grueling trials that claim the lives of aspirants every year.

But more than her desire to practice magic is at stake.

Aurie’s little sister has been courting powerful forces in hopes of protecting herself from the beings that killed their parents, but alliances come with complications. As things spiral out of control, and dangerous foes arise at every turn, Aurie knows the only way to protect her sister is to pass the trials—even if it means making a terrible sacrifice.

Review:

Once I got into “Trials of Magic”, which was pretty fast, I was so scared that YA tropes I hate would rear their ugly head, but they didn’t.  There was no stupid angsty teen moments or love triangles or gorgeous men/boys that loved our heroines. Those things alone cause me to like the book more.

Technically it’s New Adult, not YA, but I’ve noticed some of my most hated tropes are in both.

Anyway, Aurie and Pi were both interesting and different enough from each other but were still likable. The world was ours with the addition of magic and I could have used some more world building and some more character development on side characters. Hoping for more of that in the second book.

“Trials of Magic” was mainly spent with the girls overcoming the fact that their parents were killed when they were younger. It was sad, but they did well on their own, better than I would expect two young girls to do, but I guess we can attribute that to their powerful magic.

It was a good book, nothing really amazing, but it was interesting enough with interesting enough characters for me to buy the second.

3.5/5

 

The Crepes of Wrath (A Pancake House Mystery #1) By: Sarah Fox

The Crepes of Wrath (A Pancake House Mystery #1) By: Sarah Fox

Plot:

When Marley McKinney’s aging cousin, Jimmy, is hospitalized with pneumonia, she agrees to help run his pancake house while he recovers. With its rustic interior and syrupy scent, the Flip Side Pancake House is just as she pictured it—and the surly chef is a wizard with crêpes. Marley expects to spend a leisurely week or two in Wildwood Cove, the quaint, coastal community where she used to spend her summers, but then Cousin Jimmy is found murdered, sprawled on the rocks beneath a nearby cliff.

After she stumbles across evidence of stolen goods in Jimmy’s workshop, Marley is determined to find out what’s really going on in the not-so-quiet town of Wildwood Cove. With help from her childhood crush and her adopted cat, Flapjack, Marley sinks her teeth into the investigation. But if she’s not careful, she’s going to get burned by a killer who’s only interested in serving up trouble.

Review:

I’m currently on the lookout for a cozy mystery author I love as much as Jenn McKinley so when I saw this I snatched it up. I like restaurants so I figured I wouldn’t have the issue I had with Better Homes and Corpses.

This was a cute story and I didn’t guess who done it for a while, which was nice, however I didn’t think the characters were fleshed out very well. Marley had the most done for her but I felt like it was more facts and not personality created. Also, the little romance that was between the main character and another was boring and I didn’t get any chemistry from it.

The mystery was good, but since the character was going through all kinds of other things because of who was murdered it didn’t feel like the main focus, which is fine with a cozy. Maybe I would have liked it better if Marley had something else to think about.

3/5

Silence Fallen (Mercy Thompson #10) By: Patricia Briggs

Silence Fallen (Mercy Thompson #10) By: Patricia Briggs

Plot:

In the #1 New York Times bestselling Mercy Thompson novels, the coyote shapeshifter has found her voice in the werewolf pack. But when Mercy’s bond with the pack—and her mate—is broken, she’ll learn what it truly means to be alone…   Attacked and abducted in her home territory, Mercy finds herself in the clutches of the most powerful vampire in the world, taken as a weapon to use against alpha werewolf Adam and the ruler of the Tri-Cities vampires. In coyote form, Mercy escapes—only to find herself without money, without clothing, and alone in the heart of Europe…   Unable to contact Adam and the rest of the pack, Mercy has allies to find and enemies to fight, and she needs to figure out which is which. Ancient powers stir, and Mercy must be her agile best to avoid causing a war between vampires and werewolves, and between werewolves and werewolves. And in the heart of the ancient city of Prague, old ghosts rise…
 

Review:

I put off reading this book as long as I could because I just knew that it would swallow me whole and I wouldn’t want to do the things that I needed to do, like take care of my children. When I finally did start reading, I didn’t have a difficult time putting it down. Part of that was because I’m so behind on sleep and some of the time I was reading was during night time nursing sessions. The other part of that was because I just didn’t like the story as much.

Well, that’s not entirely true. I love the characters, Mercy, Adam, and all the side characters, but most of them weren’t even in the story. Mercy was in Europe because she was abducted by the Lord of the Night or whatever he called himself. He’s been mentioned in other books and I was expecting someone super scary or something and he was a major let down. Adam was of course there, but the rest of the pack wasn’t. Also, I totally guessed the big “twist” and wasn’t shocked by it at all.

I love Patricia Briggs and everything that she’s written and I’d really love to give this book 5 stars because it was still good, but I almost feel like it was a paint by numbers Mercy Thompson book. Coyote showed up, Mercy got into trouble, she got herself out, Adam nearly lost control of his wolf because he was worried about her, etc… The formatting was also different in this book. I didn’t mind the jumps from point of view from Mercy to Adam, but the fact that the POVs didn’t line up was annoying and I honestly didn’t see why it was done it added nothing to the story.

All in all, the book was good, better than most urban fantasy out there, but I don’t think it lived up to the quality I’ve come to expect from Patricia Briggs.

4/5

Side note: I’m a big new Doctor Who fan but I thought the references were overdone. Matt Smith? Even the title is a call to one of the big bads. It really dates the story, I know there are pop culture references in the other books, but for whatever reason they were too much for me in this one.

Frogkisser! By: Garth Nix

Frogkisser! By: Garth Nix

Plot:

Poor Princess Anya. Forced to live with her evil stepmother’s new husband, her evil stepstepfather. Plagued with an unfortunate ability to break curses with a magic-assisted kiss. And forced to go on the run when her stepstepfather decides to make the kingdom entirely his own.

Aided by a loyal talking dog, a boy thief trapped in the body of a newt, and some extraordinarily mischievous wizards, Anya sets off on a Quest that, if she plays it right, will ultimately free her land—and teach her a thing or two about the use of power, the effectiveness of a well-placed pucker, and the finding of friends in places both high and low.

Review:

I’ve been excited about this book since I saw the cover. How could I not be? That is such an awesome cover. Sadly for me the book didn’t quite live up to it.

It took me two weeks to finish which never should have happened considering it’s a middle school read. I just couldn’t get into it. It was slow up until the end and even then it was light on action.

All the things I like about Garth Nix were missing. The world was kind of interesting, but not really. I liked that Anya was a strong princess that rescued herself, but didn’t really like anything else.

It was a disappointment, but I’m still excited for anything that Garth Nix comes out with.

2/5

Island of Glass (The Guardians Trilogy #3) By: Nora Roberts

island-of-glass

Island of Glass (The Guardians Trilogy #3) By: Nora Roberts

Plot:

As the hunt for the Star of Ice leads the six guardians to Ireland, Doyle, the immortal, must face his tragic past. Three centuries ago, he closed off his heart, yet his warrior spirit is still drawn to the wild. And there’s no one more familiar with the wild than Riley—and the wolf within her…

An archaeologist, Riley is no stranger to the coast of Clare, but now she finds herself on unsure footing, targeted by the dark goddess who wants more than the stars, more than the blood of the guardians. While searching through Irish history for clues that will lead them to the final star and the mysterious Island of Glass, Riley must fight her practical nature and admit her sudden attraction to Doyle is more than just a fling. For it is his strength that will sustain her and give her the power to run towards love—and save them all…

Review:

Very excited to finally read this book, I waited until after my son was born because I didn’t want to have a library book out and then be in the hospital unable to return it.

Anyway, this was a great ending to the series and I would honestly love more in this world and with these characters. Since it’s Nora Roberts I don’t see that happening since she tends to do trilogies and move on, but maybe.

Riley was cool and logical, Doyle was brooding and tragic, and together they made a good couple. Their romance wasn’t very romantic, but it worked for them, plus there was so much going on in the rest of the story that it fit better. They weren’t overlooked at all, but this was the climactic conclusion of the series.

That being said, the end battle was pretty short, but again this isn’t really a fantasy book, it’s a romantic fantasy. Whatever, I loved the series and I’m going to buy it when I can cause I foresee wanting to re-read it.

5/5