christianreader | Kiwiria's January Journals

Driven - Fred Alvrez, 4/5, 186 pages
I really enjoyed "Driven" and finished it in just two sittings. As with most suspense novels, it's hard to review this book without giving any spoilers away, so I will have to leave it at that it's a quick and fun read with quite a few twists and turns I hadn't seen coming. I was impressed that Fred Alvrez could find a way to write about a 50-hour drive that still made for interesting reading - despite the passenger being locked inside the car!!

While Mia came across as a spoiled brat at the start of the book, I really grew to like her, as I got to know her better and realized her reasons for acting the way she did. For once I would actually quite have liked the epilogue to have been longer to see what happened next.

Into the Drowning Deep - Mira Grant, 4.5/5, 440 pages
It lost it's last half-star it did take me awhile to get properly into it, but after one or two false starts, Mira Grant's magic drew me back in (the same magic that made me actually WANT to read about zombies :-O ) and I was hooked!

But of COURSE Mira Grant had to write about the kind of scary mermaids that nightmares are made of! At about 200 pages I seriously considered putting the book into the freezer for awhile - Joey-style. Don't think my Kindle would have taken too kindly to that though. I was glad to be reading it in the light of day - and on DRY LAND!!! It's absolutely fascinating that we know less about what happens just 1km underneath the surface of the sea, than we do thousands and thousands of km above it! And that makes this novel just that much more realistic than her zombie novels... and thus also that much more scary.

Not that I'm likely to be scared away from the sea because of this, mind you... but I'll perhaps think twice before I go diving in the Mariana Trench :-P

In the end, there were quite a few questions left unanswered, but I'm pretty sure that's to leave room for a sequel at some point. No cliff-hangers though - the main plot was nicely resolved.

Er du okay, Fie? - Anika Eibe, 2.5/5, 179 pages
(Are You Okay, Fie?)
It was okay, but I'm not very likely to read any more books of this series. Honestly - it was just too depressing!! I know that was pretty much the point, as this entire series is all about aiming the spotlight at taboos, and plotwise I think they handled that really well... but I'm just not there any longer. As a teen I'd probably have gobbled them all up in no time, but as an almost 40-year-old, I'd have to categorize this series as the type of YA where I'm just too far outside the target audience.

In an Absent Dream - Seanan McGuire, 4/5, 187 pages
I had a hard time deciding how to rate this, because it broke my heart a little. Most of it was definitely a 5-star read, but the heartbreak pulled it down a bit. For once I was grateful for the foreshadowing, as it meant I was prepared. Also, foreshadowing bothers me less when the narration style is "seen in hindsight".

I loved the Goblin Market and the idea of "fair trade", I loved the Archivist and Moon. It bothered me slightly that Lundy experienced so much in the Goblin Market which was only told off-page, but at the end of the day, I can see how it isn't actually relevant to the story itself... no matter how interesting I might think it would be to read ;)

Ravensong - T.J. Klune, 4/5, Audiobook ~20hours
I really enjoyed "Ravensong". It's not quite as good as "Wolfsong", but I think that's mostly because I just happen to like Ox more than Gordo. Still, T.J. Klune's strength is definitely in writing relationships (not just romantic ones - family/friends is almost even better), and that's just as apparent in this book as in all his others.

That's not to say the plot isn't worth reading as well. It's somewhat less contained than the first one, with more being left over for the next book in the series (out sometime in 2019, I think?), but the resolution was good enough not to count as a cliffhanger. I'm interested to see where it goes from here.

Portal - Fred Alvrez, 4.5/5, 286 pages
This book was right up my aisle, and I devoured it in just two days. A sort-of post-apocalyptic story set in New Zealand? What's not to like!! I was sold just by hearing the concept, and fortunately, the book completely lived up to my expectations.

One morning, strangers Casey and Nate wake up to discover that the world as they know it has changed, and that they're pretty much the only living creatures around. Even birds and insects seem to have disappeared! What has happened? And why do shimmering portals appear in some JETs (gas stations) that seem to show a glimpse of the world as they knew it?

I was hooked from the very first chapter, and had difficulties putting the book down. I'm a sucker for a good apocalyptic tale and just hoped Fred Alvrez could keep it up, and supply a satisfying resolution to the mystery that would neither seem like a cop-out, nor require too much suspension of disbelief.

Fortunately he delivered, and we're left with an absolutely brilliant sort-of post-apocalyptic, sort-of sci-fi, sort-of suspense novel that completely captured my attention. It's even a stand-alone novel, which is a nice change in these series-crazy times.

The Paper Magician - Charlie N. Holmberg, 4/5, 226 pages
Fascinating book! I only wish that the quiet days before trouble arrived had taken up more pages than they ended up doing. I love reading about people learning a new craft, and here it almost seemed to be over before it began. I would have liked to see more of Ceony and Thane getting used to each other, and Ceony learning her folds. Ceony's trip through Thane's heart was interesting, but seemed more like exposition than actual plot. Makes me wonder if it was used mainly to set the stage for the next book? No matter, I still really enjoyed it, and finished it in just one day.

Heidi at Boarding School - Charles Tritten, 2/5, 152 pages
I hadn't realized that this sequel wasn't written by Johanna Spyri, and unfortunately Charles Tritten did not have the same way with words, making the story very disjointed and it jumped around in time, so the last few months took up 80% of the book, and the last 20% covered several years!

I didn't dislike it, but without the rosy glasses of childhood nostalgia, it could only just make it to "It was okay".

A Wish Upon the Stars - T.J. Klune*, 5/5, Audiobook ~23hrs
My favourite since the first book in the series. It made me laugh, it made me smile, the end was sappy as anything, but the getting there was well worth the ride. It's so far removed from what I usually read, but I'm extremely grateful to Laura and Leslie for reviewing it on their podcast and pushing me out of my comfort zone. I never thought I'd come to love a wizard (no longer apprentice), a hornless (or not?) gay unicorn, an adorable half-giant, a dashing and immaculate knight and a sex-crazed dragon as much as I do. They'd go through fire for each other, and their friendships just work.

I do wish we'd heard more about the other dragons and the time spent in the Dead Woods, but absolutely LOVED Sam's entry back into the "real world". That couldn't have worked out better if it had been scripted.

Flora bora slam, mother-crackers!

The Martian - Andy Weir, 5/5, 384 pages
Just as good on my second readthrough, even though I've now seen the movie multiple times.

First Test - Tamora Pierce*, 4.5/5, 204 pages
Kel is by far the most ordinary heroine of Tamora Pierce's books, which is part of her charm... even if I do miss the magic. "Alanna" will always be my favourite Tortall quartet - especially since she was how I discovered Tamora Pierce in the first place - but "Protector of the Small" runs a close second.

Page - Tamora Pierce*, 4.5/5, 231 pages
This book covers 3 years, and while it mostly handles that well, it does occasionally seem a tad rushed... 8 months passing by in a single chapter. I don't mind books covering a lot of time as long as it's done consistently, instead of covering one week in three chapters and then 8 months in one. Still, it's a minor complaint. Mostly I love this book as I find it fascinating to read of the training pages have to go through in order to become squires.

Squire - Tamora Pierce*, 4.5/5, 339 pages
While I did miss reading about Kel's life at the palace, there was so much to love in this book - Kel getting Raoul as her Knight-Master, the tilting, the Yamani, Cleon - and of course, Kel finally meeting Alanna. I don't think I'd claim it my favourite any longer, because the two first ones are excellent as well, but it certainly is very, very good :-)

Wyrd Sisters - Terry Prachett*, 4/5, 360 pages
Wyrd Sisters, the play - Terry Pratchet & Stephen Briggs*, 4/5, 154 pages
While at uni I took part in a performance of Stephen Brigg's play adaption of this book, and played Granny Weatherwax so rereading the book made me want to reread the play as well. Without a doubt the best role I have ever had in my life, and the highlight of my acting 'career'. Amazing how many details I'd forgotten in the years since we performed this (2002). I just WISH we'd gotten around to getting a copy of the recording before the theater society disbanded.

Book of the Month: Into the Drowning Deep. So good and SO spooky!
Biggest Disappointment: Er du okay, Fie?. I know I rated Heidi lower, but this was a bigger disappointment.