The Eye of Zoltar (The Chronicles of Kazam #3) By: Jasper Fforde

The Eye of Zoltar

The Eye of Zoltar (The Chronicles of Kazam #3) By: Jasper Fforde

Plot:

Orphans Jennifer Strange 16, manager of Kazam mages, and apprentice Tiger Prawns 12, stand in the way of The Mighty Shandar. Shandar must kill last two dragons for King of Snodd in Ununited Kingdoms. Jen needs legendary jewel The Eye of Zoltar, last seen on pirate, and to tutor spoiled Princess Shazzarine. Perilous journey has 50% Fatality Index.

Review:

So I’m pretty pissed off at the ending of this book. Basically a huge cliffhanger, have no idea what’s going to be done with the Eye of Zoltar or what’s happened to most of the side characters and no idea when the next book will be published.

The last Nursery Crimes book came out in 2004, and there’s been a third book listed on Goodreads for a long time now. Fforde’s also got another series that ended on a cliffhanger this big and yet the last I read he was writing a book that wasn’t involved in either universe.

Ugh.

Annoyed.

Angry.

Someone else is going to be locked up in my writer’s dungeon.

Anyway, the story was good, hilarious at parts, moving at others. Lots happened, lots. My favorite quotes are:

“If we didn’t execute bankers and rogue traders found guilty of financial mischief, it might give them a clear signal that it’s actually okay, and then where would we be?”

 

“She did break the law—what do you think they should have done? Given her a bonus for her daring and ingenuity?”

 

Enjoy the series, now I just have to wait god only knows how long before I get the next book.

4/5

 

Star Wars: Before the Awakening By: Greg Rucka Illustrator: Phil Noto

Star Wars Before the Awakening

Star Wars: Before the Awakening By: Greg Rucka Illustrator: Phil Noto

Plot:

A companion piece to the “Journey to Star Wars: The Force Awakens” character novels, Star Wars: Before the Awakening is an anthology book that focuses on the lives of Rey, Finn, and Poe before the events of the Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

Review:

The book is broken up into three short stories, one about each of the new Star Wars characters.

I liked Finn’s/FN-2187’s story, though it was the shortest by a lot. It really helped build his character and filled a lot of holes that the movie left. You still don’t know much about his history, how he became a storm trooper, but you find out that he was in the top 1%, that he excelled at everything, and that he was very empathetic. That Captain Phasma picked him out specifically and was watching him. The story ends immediately before the movie.

Rey’s story I didn’t like so much. I ended up skipping some pages of it so I might have missed some stuff, but it was so depressing and from the minute the new characters were introduced you knew they were going to take advantage of her, and they did. I guess the point of the story was to show how she was such a good pilot, she ran simulations, and it showed just how much she wanted to stay on Jakku, though it didn’t give any more details about her family. It didn’t do much to make Rey’s character seem interesting or fun or awesome in any way.

The story you learned the most from was Poe’s. You got his back story and more about the New Republic and the Resistance. It ends right before the movie starts, but you get to see Leia and C3-P0 and there’s lots of space flying. The First Order is even a part of it.

Overall, if you loved the characters and demand to know more, I would recommend reading this. Other than that, though, I really don’t think there’s a reason to.

3/5

Side note: Illustrations were cool to look at

The Song of the Quarkbeast (The Chronicles of Kazam #2) By: Jasper Fforde

The Song of the Quarkbeast

The Song of the Quarkbeast (Last Dragonslayer #2) By: Jasper Fforde

Plot:

Long ago, magic began to fade, and the underemployed magicians of Kazam Mystical Arts Management have been forced to take any work their sixteen-year-old acting manager, Jennifer Strange, can scare up. But things are about to change. Magical power is finally on the rise, and King Snodd IV, of the Ununited Kingdoms knows that he who controls magic controls everything. Only one person stands between Snodd and his plans for a magic-grab–and that’s Jennifer.

Yet even smart and sensible Jennifer would have trouble against these powers-that-be. The king and his cronies will do anything to succeed–including ordering a just-might-be-rigged contest between Kazam and iMagic, Kazam’s only competitor in the magic business. With underhanded shenanigans afoot, how can Kazam possibly win?

Whatever happens, one this is certain: Jennifer Strange will not relinquish the noble powers of magic without a fight.

Review:

A great installment in a series that I’m already feeling like is an old favorite. I’m comfortable with the characters and I love the quirky world. It’s classic Jasper Fforde.

I did feel like the epilogue at the end was kind of weird. It was like an ending, as though there were no other books, which kind of reminded me of the last Thursday Next book I read. Maybe Fforde wasn’t sure his publisher was going to let him write another book in the series? Not sure. Now a days, if the readers are there if a publisher doesn’t pick up a series, I don’t see why authors don’t just publish themselves.

Anyway, love the series, already have the next book on hold at the library.

5/5

Carry On By: Rainbow Rowell

Carry On

Carry On By: Rainbow Rowell

Plot:

Simon Snow is the worst chosen one who’s ever been chosen. That’s what his roommate, Baz, says. And Baz might be evil and a vampire and a complete git, but he’s probably right. Half the time, Simon can’t even make his wand work, and the other half, he sets something on fire. His mentor’s avoiding him, his girlfriend broke up with him, and there’s a magic-eating monster running around wearing Simon’s face. Baz would be having a field day with all this, if he were here—it’s their last year at the Watford School of Magicks, and Simon’s infuriating nemesis didn’t even bother to show up. Carry On is a ghost story, a love story, a mystery and a melodrama. It has just as much kissing and talking as you’d expect from a Rainbow Rowell story—but far, far more monsters.

Review:

Rainbow Rowell has joined Ilona Andrews and Patricia Briggs in the very short list of authors that I will buy whatever they do. I love her, she reaches a part of my soul that no other author I read does.

I’ll stop being sappy now.

I loved Fangirl and I thought the parts about Simon Snow and Baz were fun so I thought it was pretty cool that Rowell was taking it a step further and writing a full book about the characters. I did not expect this, though.

It was like reading the eighth book in a series, there are mentions of exploits from past adventures, but the book isn’t really about those adventures or even the current one, it’s all about the relationships. It’s—awesome.

Even in a fantasy novel Rowell’s characters are so real and common, but not too common, they’re normal, but a weird normal. I love them.

Simon is stupid, but kind of on purpose. He doesn’t want to look any deeper into anything because the magical world he’s apart of is the best thing in his life. Baz may not be the chosen one, but he’s been given just as many obstacles to overcome.

The romance in the book is perfect and filled me with all kinds of warm fuzzies. I just really loved this story.

Fair warning, this is not a normal fantasy book. There’s magic and monsters and spells and all that jazz, but that’s not what makes it so great. It’s the characters and their reactions. You still care about the whole end of magic mystery going on, but because it affects the people you’ve come to love.

5/5

Foyle’s War (2002-2015)

Foyle's War

Foyle’s War (2002-2015)

Network:

ITV/PBS

Creator:

Anthony Horowitz

Starring:

Michael Kitchen

Honeysuckle Weeks

Anthony Howell

Plot:

As WW2 rages around the world, DCS Foyle fights his own war on the home-front as he investigates crimes on the south coast of England. Later series sees the retired detective working as an MI5 agent operating in the aftermath of the war.

Review:

Wow was not expecting this, it was crazy good. Foyle’s War was recommended to me by Netflix after my parents visited and used my Netflix account. One day I thought, why not, next thing I knew I was spending a month and a half watching this show. It was hard to get anything else done because all I wanted to do was watch.

I loved the fact that Foyle, Michael Kitchen, didn’t let people use the war as their excuse for being bad. So many people would tell him there’s a war going on, what I did was for the greater good, and he would just look at them and give that dad look that says, ‘I’m so disappointed with you and that the ends doesn’t justify the means.’ Loved it.

Foyle had a moral compass that could not be corrupted.

The side characters were just as interesting. Sam, Honeysuckle Weeks, made it through the entire season and I liked to see the development. Milner, Anthony Howell, didn’t make it in the final few seasons and the last season he was in was kind of rough, but he was still a good character.

Honestly, that’s my only complaint with the show. The first five seasons are amazing, but the last few aren’t as good. Foyle is no longer a police detective or not really and Milner eventually gets a promotion but he changes when that happens. He seemed to really learn from Foyle, but then all of a sudden he’s just as bad as everyone else.

It didn’t make the show horrible or even bad, but it wasn’t as awesome as those first few seasons.

Highly recommend Foyle’s War.

5/5