Fantasy

Newt’s Emerald By: Garth Nix
Love this cover

Love this cover

Newt’s Emerald By: Garth Nix

Plot:

Lady Truthful will inherit her family’s most valued heirloom on her eighteenth birthday. Until the Newington Emerald is stolen.

Lady Truthful, nicknamed “Newt” by her boy cousins, discovers that to her horror, the people closest to her have been framed for the theft. But Newt won’t let their reputations be damaged by rumors from a false accusation. Her plan is simple: go to London to recover the missing jewel. Despite her best intentions, a young lady travelling alone is frankly unacceptable behavior. So Newt and her aunt devise another plan…one that entails men’s clothing and a mustache.

While in disguise, Truthful encounters the handsome but shrewd major Harnett, who to her amazement volunteers to help find the missing emerald under the assumption that she is a man, Henri de Vienne. But once she and her unsuspecting ally are caught up in a dangerous adventure, Truthful realizes something else is afoot: the beating of her heart.

Truthful has far more than romantic complications to worry about. The stolen emerald is no ordinary heirloom-it is the source of the family’s luck and has the power to yield vast magic. It would be completely disastrous if it fell into the wrong hands. The fate of England depends on Truthful securing the emerald.

Review:

This was very much a Regency romance with a few fantasy elements thrown in. Honestly, it wasn’t what I was expecting at all from Nix. The only similarity between this and his Abhorsen series was how well written it was.

The fantasy took a back seat to the romance and the period. There were little bits of magic thrown about but they weren’t used in much detail, though, magic did come into play throughout, it just wasn’t as prevalent as I had expected.

Truthful was a great character and similar to a Julia Quinn heroine. She was a lady, but she easily disguised herself as a man to get stuff done. She and the hero were a good match and fun to read.

It was a good book and I enjoyed it, but really the only remarkable thing that it brought to the table was that Garth Nix wrote it. I would very much enjoy more and if he’s trying to mirror the Regency series he had plenty more characters to work with, but I haven’t been able to find anything online about a sequel so we’ll see.

4/5

Side Note: This was marked as YA, but the heroine is eighteen and even though it’s a romance the most that happens is a kiss. I would have no problems recommending this to any age group

A Discovery of Witches (All Souls Trilogy #1) By: Deborah Harkness

A Discovery of Witches

A Discovery of Witches (All Souls Trilogy #1) By: Deborah Harkness

Plot:

Deep in the stacks of Oxford’s Bodleian Library, young scholar Diana Bishop unwittingly calls up a bewitched alchemical manuscript in the course of her research. Descended from an old and distinguished line of witches, Diana wants nothing to do with sorcery; so after a furtive glance and a few notes, she banishes the book to the stacks. But her discovery sets a fantastical underworld stirring, and a horde of daemons, witches, and vampires soon descends upon the library. Diana has stumbled upon a coveted treasure lost for centuries-and she is the only creature who can break its spell. Debut novelist Deborah Harkness has crafted a mesmerizing and addictive read, equal parts history and magic, romance and suspense. Diana is a bold heroine who meets her equal in vampire geneticist Matthew Clairmont, and gradually warms up to him as their alliance deepens into an intimacy that violates age-old taboos. This smart, sophisticated story harks back to the novels of Anne Rice, but it is as contemporary and sensual as the Twilight series-with an extra serving of historical realism.

Review:

Have you ever read a book and from the first sentence, paragraph, page you knew that you were in for a treat? The words have latched onto your brain and they’re already painting a picture in your mind and you know that if it can just keep going you’ll never be the same.

That’s the feeling I got when I read the first few words of A Discovery of Witches. Then I put it down because I didn’t have time to get lost in a book. It took me a couple days to pick it back up and unfortunately that feeling didn’t stay with me. It’s possible it was just because I couldn’t allow myself to get lost in a book, or I could have just been in a very fanciful mood when I read that first sentence. Oh well, it was still a good read.

It’s a paranormal romance written by someone who reads mainly literature. At least, that’s the feeling I got. That’s not bad at all, it just means less sexiness and more describing old manuscripts, architecture, history, and other things that would normally be glossed over or left to the readers imagination.

Throughout the first half of the book I just wanted to put it down and start researching something. Harkness did a great job describing Diana’s research and while at times it was tedious occasionally crossing over into boring, it made me want to pick a topic and become an expert. I felt a powerful urge to just leave everything and move to a large college and spend time in their library. The fact that my daughter was a little monster the entire time I was reading this might have been a contributing factor to those feelings.

The second half of the book was less enjoyable for me. I felt like the character completely changed. She went from being a loner, incredibly smart, very independent and very stubborn to becoming a damsel in distress. She couldn’t do anything without Matthew. It was almost as bad as Twilight. She left all decision making up to him as though if she didn’t it meant she didn’t trust him which is total bullshit. I felt like Harkness could have used Diana to push vampires out of their comfort zone and make them see that women don’t need to be managed, she has plenty of strong female characters, but everyone in charge is a man. It was disappointing.

I also had issues with pacing throughout. You could go forever with nothing happening at all. I understand that at times Harkness was trying to do a whole calm before the storm or show the characters happy, but it got dull and I just wanted something to happen.

I will read the next in the series, but I’m not in a desperate rush and will just wait for it to become available from the library.

3/5

Shards of Hope (Psy-Changeling Series #14) By: Nalini Singh

shards of hope

Shards of Hope (Psy-Changeling Series #14) By: Nalini Singh

Plot:

Awakening wounded in a darkened cell, their psychic abilities blocked, Aden and Zaira know they must escape. But when the lethal soldiers break free from their mysterious prison, they find themselves in a harsh, inhospitable landscape far from civilization. Their only hope for survival is to make it to the hidden home of a predatory changeling pack that doesn’t welcome outsiders.

And they must survive. A shadowy enemy has put a target on the back of the Arrow squad, an enemy that cannot be permitted to succeed in its deadly campaign. Aden will cross any line to keep his people safe for this new future, where even an assassin might have hope of a life beyond blood and death and pain. Zaira has no such hope. She knows she’s too damaged to return from the abyss. Her driving goal is to protect Aden, protect the only person who has ever come back for her no matter what.

This time, even Aden’s passionate determination may not be enough—because the emotionless chill of Silence existed for a reason. For the violent, and the insane, and the irreparably broken…like Zaira.

Review:

The world just keeps getting more and more complex. The cast of characters is expansive and the romance is not the main focus anymore. Well, relationships are still a major part of the books, but it’s not just about romance, the relationships have gotten as complex as the world just about. Everyone is so damaged and powerful.

Zaira and Aden were a great power couple. We’ve seen them in a few books at this point but it was nice to get a deeper look. Both are fairly damaged, though, Zaira is the most. Aden’s parents suck but not like hers. They complimented each other very well and I enjoyed watching Zaira realize she couldn’t run from him.

The world, holy cow, the amount of detail and politics and just everything that Singh has put into it at this point is mind boggling. I have to actually stop myself from trying to figure out how to fix societal issues going on in the world because it’s a freaking fictional universe and Singh clearly needs no one’s help. It’s staggering and amazing and I’ve seen only a few series this complex outside of epic fantasy. Never am I bored or skimming, though. It’s interesting and intriguing and makes you think of the real world.

I think with the last book I was wondering where she was going to go from there. She’d done so much that with Shield of Winter she could have stopped and things would have been fine, now I really just want to know more. Will they be able to break down barriers and work together? Of course they will, but people will always try and stop it.

5/5

Side note: I’d love to have a human love interest in the next one, see their perspective. At this point I can’t really remember, but I’m not even sure that’s been done yet.

Tomorrowland (2015)

tomorrowland

Tomorrowland (2015)

Director:

Brad Bird

Starring:

George Clooney

Britt Robertson

Hugh Laurie

Raffey Cassidy

Plot:

Bound by a shared destiny, a teen bursting with scientific curiosity and a former boy-genius inventor embark on a mission to unearth the secrets of a place somewhere in time and space that exists in their collective memory.

Review:

It makes me sad that this movie bombed and no more will be made. It has such a ridiculously positive message and I loved it so much.

I read that critics felt it had pacing issues, but I honestly don’t know what I’d change. One minute it was balls to the wall action, the next it was lots of talking, but that’s what the story called for and I don’t think it made it bad. I never got bored, I never wondered when it was going to be over, I just wanted more.

My favorite part was near the beginning when Britt Robertson’s character was being told by the cast of Stargate: Atlantis (not really they were her teachers) that the world was basically fucked in every possible way and she asked how do we fix it. I loved that.

It’s silly to say but the movie resonated with me and it could very well be my favorite movie of the year. Definite buy and re-watch and hopefully indoctrinate my daughter.

5/5

The Master Magician (The Paper Magician Trilogy #3) By: Charlie N. Holmberg

The Master Magician

The Master Magician (The Paper Magician Trilogy #3) By: Charlie N. Holmberg

Plot:

Throughout her studies, Ceony Twill has harbored a secret, one she’s kept from even her mentor, Emery Thane. She’s discovered how to practice forms of magic other than her own — an ability long thought impossible.

While all seems set for Ceony to complete her apprenticeship and pass her upcoming final magician’s exam, life quickly becomes complicated. To avoid favoritism, Emery sends her to another paper magician for testing, a Folder who despises Emery and cares even less for his apprentice. To make matters worse, a murderous criminal from Ceony’s past escapes imprisonment. Now she must track the power-hungry convict across England before he can take his revenge. With her life and loved ones hanging in the balance, Ceony must face a criminal who wields the one magic that she does not, and it may prove more powerful than all her skills combined.

Review:

Another great cover, sadly I was disappointed with this conclusion. Emboldened by her success in the previous books at avoiding being killed my stronger more experienced magicians, when her enemy escapes, she searches for him. Since everyone, except for herself, is incompetent she finds him not once but twice.

I realized while writing this review that I don’t believe Ceony experienced any kind of character growth. My complaint with each book has been that she runs into things without thinking, and yet is supposed to be incredibly smart. In this book not only is she studying her own magic but several others and she is of course excelling, and yet she can’t stop and think for one instant that maybe the escaped homicidal maniac shouldn’t be pursued by someone that is inexperienced.

The first two books can be explained with the fact that they happened months apart, but this one is almost two years later. She’s had time to think and reflect and realize that she’s the reason that her friend died. Nothing. She’s clearly one of those books smart street, stupid people.

The conclusion ended the series on a low note in my opinion. Ceony throughout this book has finally found out that several people think that she’s a loose woman for her situation and nothing is done about that. She doesn’t come to some realization that they’re all idiots or that maybe she shouldn’t have been so obvious with her affections. It’s never brought up by Emory and whenever she’s in his presence all she really thinks about is how amazing he is.

She’s a love sick school girl and doesn’t appear to do any growing. The very ending, the resolution to the romance, left me wanting. Holmberg could have done an epilogue that went into more of the future Ceony had seen in the first book but instead it ended abruptly. This isn’t an eighties action movie, I want more than just a hanging question and end scene credits.

I know I’ve mentioned a lot of negatives and I honestly didn’t hate the book, I just thought it could have been better. The world created was very interesting and with the revelation in this series it would be very easy to go into more in the world with completely different characters. Holmberg could also write in a different time period, all that world creation shouldn’t go to waste and I would definitely read more, maybe not with these people though.

3/5