christianreader | Books for March

There were a lot of mediocre books this month unfortunately. That's always a disappointment. But thankfully also a few REALLY good ones that made up for it.

Stolen - Kelley Armstrong, 8/10, 532 pages
The sequel to "Bitten" (which I loved). Unfortunately this one wasn't quite as good. I felt it lacked some of the passion of the first one, and there was far too little of the pack dynamics in it. Also, I felt Elena was too subdued during her captivity. I'd like to have seen her questioning her circumstances more. It seemed almost like she just accepted them.

All minor details though. It was still very well-written and fascinating enough that I had difficulties putting it down. Despite the length I finished it within 24 hours.

The Blue Castle - L.M. Montgomery*, 10/10, 224 pages
With the exception of certain Anne-books I think this is probably my favourite book by LMM. The way the marriage between Valancy and Barney is depicted is probably the main reason for this. Sure, the beginning is cliché and the ending utterly unrealistic and contrived, but the middle is just delightful. Unlike most of LMM's other books, we're actually allowed a glimpse into the life of a married couple, seeing how they live together, how they interact, how they learn that silence together with somebody you're comfortable with never gets awkward. With Anne and Gilbert running a close second, I think this is the most realistic portrayal of a marriage in LMM's books.

Marked - P.C. and Kristin Cast, 8/10, 268 pages
Harry Potter meets Twilight... probably enough to scare off most people, but for me, it worked. I really enjoyed the book and finished it in hardly any time at all. I've always found descriptions of life at a boarding school fascinating, and this was no exception, just because the students were also vampires-to-be.

Vampires in this universe worship a pagan-like goddess, which gives an interesting new angle to a by-now-oft-used vampire story (even though the Casts - like Meyer - steps away from the traditional vampire-legend).

I won't deny that Zoey could perhaps be seen rather Mary-Sue'ish (marked as a Daughter of the Night, immediately more powerful than the others, sought after by handsome guys etc.), but I've yet to come across a YA-novel where that isn't the case with the main character, and while I've now gotten to the point where I can see and recognise it, it still doesn't bother me when the rest of the book is as captivatingly written as is the case here.

The Book of a Thousand Days - Shannon Hale, 8/10, 306 pages
Based on a fairy-tale by the Brothers Grimm (whose tales I enjoy a lot more than H.C. Andersen - how unpatriotic of me! ;) ) I really enjoyed this story. It was charming, interesting and quickly read. I liked how it was told as a list of journal entries and by the maid rather than the princess.

I don't quite get why it's called "The Book of a Thousand Days" though. It spanned a lot longer than that.

Odalisque - Fiona McIntosh, 8/10, 496 pages
"Odalisque" isn't too different from many other YA fantasy novels, but what I really enjoyed about it is all the intrigues and alliances created and broken at the Zar's palace. It's very interesting to see the balance of power waver back and forth as you see who's using use, who's too naive and trusting, and who's learned sensible caution.

The plot is occasionally rather predictable and the characters straight-forward, so there aren't that many hidden nuances in the book, but if you know not to look for them, it's an enjoyable read. The ending is very open and obviously leaves way for a sequel.

Boundaries - Henry Cloud & John Townsend, 7/10, 391 pages
Well-written although just a tad too self-help'ish for my tastes. Still, it's good to hear that there's nothing 'unchristian' about saying "No" to other people's requests from time to time, and that "turning the other cheek" doesn't mean letting people walk right over you. I especially liked the chapter about forgiveness - forgiveness doesn't equal reconciliation. Forgiveness takes one, reconciliation takes two. Food for thought.

The Girl She Used to Be - David Cristofano, 7/10, 284 pages
Interesting story about a woman who's spent most of her life in witness protection. It was a good plot, but I felt it could have used a more thorough editing. It seemed rushed in some places and inconsistent in others. It wasn't enough to ruin the book, but it did prevent it from rating as high in my opinion as it otherwise would have.

What really fascinated me was reading the thoughts Melody had about her life as a "non-entity". Not only did she have to get used to a new identity, but she could never make anything of her life, as she couldn't run the risk of becoming famous and thus easy to find. I'd never stopped to think that a person in the WITSEC may be there for life, and that it affects all parts of that person's life.

Really makes me value my own life, and my own opportunities.

The Pillars of the Earth - Ken Follett, 9/10, 1076 pages
I'll admit it - I was utterly blown away by this book. Despite its length, it managed to capture my attention completely. I was immensely interested in the characters - especially Jack and Aliena.

The general complaint about the book is that there are many long descriptive passages. This is true, but I never actually felt it was too long, and appreciated the practical explanations. My biggest problem - and the only reason it didn't score a clear 10 - was that many of the characters were quite one-dimensional - the bad guys were thoroughly bad and had no redeeming qualities at all. It seemed a bit exaggerated that ALL their actions were despicable, and that they had no goodness in them whatsoever. I like a good villain as much as anybody, but it has to be somebody I can love to hate (like Count Fosco in "The Woman in White"), not somebody I hate to hate (like Umbridge in "Order of the Phoenix).

Historical fiction is one of my favourite genres, and "The Pillars of the Earth" most definitely lived up to my expectations. It's one of those books I couldn't put down, but hated to see finish. I'll have to see if "World Without End" is as good :-)

Enchantment - Orson Scott Card, 10/10, Audiobook ~18 hours
What if Sleeping Beauty wasn't just a fairy tale, but was part of Russian/Ukrainian history, so far back in time that the events weren't written down, but passed from mouth to mouth only to end up as part folklore? I had no idea what to expect when I first started listening to this audiobook, and actually almost gave it up within the first hour, because I had other things I'd rather listen to. But thankfully it quickly caught my fancy, and wasn't too keen on giving it up again! Enchantment is a delightful fantasy - mixing a well-known fairytale with time-travel and descriptions of what comes after "happily ever after". Definitely one of the best books I've 'read' all year.

The readers were excellent (one for the male and one for the female POV), and the book made for very pleasant listening in all regards.

The Reader - Bernhard Schlink, 8/10, 164 pages
What I most liked about this book was the writing style, which actually came as a huge surprise to me, because usually I'd find that way of narrating (telling everything from a distance, very little dialogue, hardly any characterisation at all) boring, but it worked very well to maintain the almost unreal atmosphere of the book, and had me wonder on several occasions if this might actually be a memoir, rather than a work of fiction.

I can't decide whether or not I agree with Michael's actions and reasoning. I probably would have acted differently, but that may just as well be me who's wrong and he who's right as the other way around. For the same reason I can't really figure out whether or not I liked the book. I was fascinated by it, and completely mesmerised by the narrative, and yet I felt like I was watching the events from afar, and never felt drawn to the characters.

I have a hard time picturing how this novella could suitably be turned into a movie, but if it's done well, I don't wonder at all that it was nominated for an Oscar.

Melting Stones - Tamora Pierce, 7/10, 241 pages
This came in the mail yesterday, and though I was technically in the middle of another book at the time, Tamora Pierce is one of my favourite authors, so I couldn't resist the temptation to pick it up instead.

With the exception of The Will of the Empress, the books in the Circle series seem to be targeted towards a younger audience than her Tortall books, and this was no exception - actually I felt it was even more so, as Tamora Pierce here used a first person narrative rather than a third person narrative, and as the main character is quite young (she sounds much younger than her fourteen years of age. I'd have guessed 12'ish), it made it a bit more difficult for me to relate to Evvy.

I did miss Briar, Trisana, Daja and Sandrine though. It seemed wrong not to have any of them around, and I would much have preferred to hear about Briar's and Evvy's experiences in Gyonxe, seeing as those were referred to both here and in TWotE.

So a bit of a disappointment, but not enough that I won't still pick up the sequels, once they become available.

Priestess of the White - Trudi Canavan, 7/10, 672 pages
I was a bit disappointed by this book at first. I had LOVED The Black Magician trilogy, and was sad to see that this book couldn't quite live up to the first in that series. It was obviously aimed at a younger audience (at least the beginning was - it did get significantly darker near the end) and the characters didn't seem nearly as complex. Still, it was good enough to keep me entertained through all 672 pages and I would in no way "dis-recommend" it... I'd just tell people to read the other trilogy instead, if they hadn't already.

Like in "Black Magician" Trudi Canavan manages to keep track of an impressively large number of characters, and though the focus keeps shifting from one to the other, she keeps all plot lines equally interesting, so that one doesn't mind abandoning one major character for another. Usually I prefer sticking to just one or two viewpoints, but it actually worked really well here. I was especially fascinated by the people of Si and Elai and hope we get to hear more about the latter in later books.

Book of the month: Enchantment by Orson Scott Card. TPotE was great too, but Enchantment seemed more original.
Biggest disappointment: Melting Stones by Tamora Pierce - which is a double disappointment as not only wasn't it terribly good, but I'd expected so much more from one of my favourite authors. Not that it was bad - it just wasn't up to her usual standards.