July reads

[birdienl.livejournal.com]

The woman who died a lot by Jasper Fforde 4/5
After an assassination attempt in the BookWorld (subject of One of our Thursdays is missing), literary detective Thursday Next is forced into a semi-retirement and made head of the local library. But life is never simple in Thursday's world as the city of Swindon is scheduled to be struck by a divine smiting in a week's time, her eternal enemy Goliath is trying to replace Thursday with a synthetic version of herself at multiple occasions and her family seems to think Thursday has three children, while there are really only two.

Welcome back to the crazy world of Jasper Fforde, which seems suspiciously like the world we live in, but is different around every corner. In this seventh book of the Thursday Next series, there is again a great deal of adventures, tongue-in-cheek jokes, fun with literary allusions etc. Every time again I'm surprised by Fforde, how does he pull of all his crazy ideas and make them seem even likely? Thursday Next is a memorable character and I loved how in this book you really get a look at the loving relationship between her and her husband Landen. Fforde's best work and the best parts of the Thursday Next series however, take place in the BookWorld and The woman who died a lot does not go there... So even if this is a super-fun read, it's not Fforde's or Thursday's best adventure.
(Also, the storyline about the divine smitings could bother some people. Though I didn't mind too much, I would've like Fforde to keep his wit out of the religious terrain)

Elves of Zeoch: the last two by Kaden Hurley 4/5
Camilla and Ebeny are sisters leading an everyday life with their uncle. Until one day they are attacked by a strange creature and their life is turned upside down when their uncle tells them they are actually from another world: Zeoch. As they travel to this world, they meet unbelievable creatures, make new friends and learn a whole lot about themselves.

I downloaded this as a free ebook because it looked interesting: a fantasy novel from a Christian publishing house featuring elves and people going to a different world; what's not to like? It was indeed a very nice read, especially when you realize (as I only did at the end) that this book is written by an 11-year old girl! There is great imagination behind this story: the creatures, the landscapes etc. It is not your typical 'Medieval style' fantasy world, there are interesting twists and additions. The editing of the novel could've been a bit stricter, as the writing style was a bit wonky sometimes and some parts were simply stretched out too long. But for kids/young teenagers this should be a great read and there is definite promise in Kaden Hurley.

The lemon orchard by Luanne Rice 3/5
Julia is visiting her aunt and uncle's orchard in Malibu for the first time in five years after the disaster which struck her family. Roberto, the Mexican orchard manager strikes up a friendship with Julia and although they are from different world they discover they have something vital in common: they both lost a child. As Roberto tells Julia the story of his daughter Maria, Julia believes there might be a chance for Roberto and Maria to be reunited after all.

I love Luanne Rice's novels. I love her lyrical writing style and her true-to-life characters and the hope of healing she weaves into all of her stories. And most of all, I love the connection between humans, animals and nature which is such an integral part of all her novels. But, I was a bit disappointed by The Lemon Orchard. Even though the characters were wonderful and the story subject was poignant and well-described. I don't know, it might be because Luanne Rice took us with this book to a different setting; Malibu in stead of the North-West coast she so often sets her story. It just felt less well-written, less rounded.

Glamorous Illusions and Grave consequences by Lisa T. Bergren   4,5/5
Because I read these two books right behind each other, I'm going to 'review' them in one go.

Cora Diehl, daughter of a poor farmer of the Montana plains worries about her family's next harvest and her education to be a teacher, until her life is turned upside down when the richest man of Montana, copper baron Wallace Kensington arrives at their doorstep. He has startling revelations about Cora's parentage and before she knows it, she is swept from all she has known into a Grand Tour, a journey around Europe. Dressed in clothes she's never dreamed of and seeing world famous sights, Cora has to figure out who she is now and what she wants from life. And the presence of not one, but two suitors vying for her heart, does not make this task any easier.

I'd heard loads of good things about this trilogy on book blogs and having read the first two parts now, I absolutely agree! First thing, I love the setting of the Grand Tour. As you read about the group travelling through Europe, it's as if you follow them and you see all the famous sights for yourself. There is some interesting historical information spread throughout the novel is just the right quantity! I also love Cora, she's a well-rounded main character. Though maybe her thoughts become a bit repetitive in the second novel. But isn't this how real life is as well, we keep worrying about the same things? These books were just both endlessly interesting and I can't wait to see where part 3 is going to take Cora, her family and us as readers!

A constant heart by Siri Mitchell 4/5
The second book I read by Siri Mitchell takes me to a totally different place than her first. From the a Puritan village to the court of Elizabeth I! Margaret, daughter of a knight is to be married to the Earl of Lytham, a great honour. Lytham introduces Margaret at court, where a set of unspoken rules apply which Margaret must learn to obey for the good of herself and her husband. But is the good Queen Elizabeth can do for them worth the love Margaret has begun to feel for her husband?

A very interesting and frankly, claustrophobic look into the life of the courtiers at the time of Elizabeth I. I really felt for Margaret as she navigated the murky waters at court and everything she had to do to get 'in with the crowd'. I don't know how historically correct it is that Elizabeth did not like her courtiers to have a loving marriage, but if it is true: my goodness, what manipulation! I would've liked to have seen Margaret and Lytham's love for each other develop a little more evenly, but all in all, a very good historical novel.

Het recht op terugkeer by Leon de Winter 4/5
In 2024, Israël has shrunk to a heavily defended city-state surrounding Tel Aviv. Bram Mannheim, formerly a history professor, has a small agency searching for lost children. One day a violent attack takes place at a border post near Jaffa, where Bram is present because of his volunteer work as an ambulance driver. The organization behind the attack seems to have something to do with Bram's agency and even more with his live 20 years ago.

As a rule, I don't like Dutch current literature. I was scarred by my exposure to it in secondary school and have rarely picked up a book of this genre since. But, this book Het recht op terugkeer ('The right to return') was a gift and has been sitting on my shelf for at least 4 years. I decided it was time to either read it or give it away. I'm surprised to say I wasn't sorry I read it! Actually, the whole book was a surprise, the story line evolved really differently from what I expected. The character of Bram was intriguing and the whole near-future-setting very interesting and well described. I might just pick up another book by this author, if there weren't so many other novels I feel more comfortable reading....

Beeldenstormers en bruggenbouwers by W. van der Meide 3/5
I picked up this small booklet about the church/Christianity history of The Netherlands up from a display in the library on a whim. Though it turned out I knew quite a lot of
the information discussed herein already, it was an interesting non-fiction read nonetheless. Sometimes it's good to be reminded of some historical facts, so you can think about it a little more.

Books read in July: 8
Books read in 2013: 39