Kiwiria's Books for August
Sep. 1st, 2011 09:06 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
kiwiria.livejournal.com posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
christianreaderI'm in the middle of a LOT of books at the moment, which is excellent, but means that there's longer between each time I finish a book! I only just made it to 12 reviews this month - BSC books don't count ;)
The Magicians - Lev Grossman, 4/5, 416 pages
The first half of this book was amazing. Imagine suddenly discovering that Narnia was real all along and that though Hogwarts doesn't exist, there is such a thing as a magician's college, and you've just passed the exam to enter.
That was basically what the first 200 pages of "The Magicians" were all about. I immediately got sucked completely up in the story, and did NOT want to put it down. This was the stuff dreams were made of.
Unfortunately the second half didn't quite live up to it. After Quentin left college the book suddenly got very black and bleak. I understood the reason, but it made for a somewhat less engaging read, and I do wonder where Lev Grossman is going to take this in the sequel, "The Magician King".
So 5 stars for the first half, 3 stars for the second half, so 4 stars on average.
The Last Dragonslayer - Jasper Fforde, 4/5, 281 pages
An interesting mix of classic fantasy and modern technology. Rather different from what I have expected, but I guess I should have known better than to expect anything traditional from Jasper Fforde. I tend to like the absurdity of his universes and fortunately this was no exception.
I loved Jennifer Strange as a main character, and got quite fond of Timmy Prawn as well. I would have loved to hear more about Kazam! so I wonder if Jasper Fforde is planning any sequels. I'm not entirely sure if the universe would allow it, but if anybody can make it work, he can.
Divine - Karen Kingsbury, 2.5/5, 384 pages
I started off really liking this book, but unfortunately it ended up going way over the top, and I ended up only finding it okay. The bad parts were really, really, bad; the good parts were toothache-inducing saccharine; every Christian was a wonderful person, and every non-Christian was an evil, evil monster (or, at the very best, neutral). All in all, it was just so black and white that it just got annoying.
I loved the relationship between Mary and Emma, but didn't buy the relationship between Terrance and Emma at all, and the relationship between Mary and Nigel just bugged me. Karen Kingsbury means well, but I think she tries too hard to give her books a Christian message, that it comes out as being unrealistic and stylized. I have read one amazing book by her though (Halfway to Forever) so I'm willing to not quite give up on her yet.
In Between - Jenny B. Jones, 4.5/5, 343 pages
This is one of those treasures that I picked up more or less on a whim, and ended up loving. I read it in two sittings and while I can see its flaws, I was mostly so charmed by it, that I think it deserves a 4.5 rating. This is YA at its best, with a troubled teen who makes mistakes, but who learns from her mistakes, and doesn't end up repeating them. It had a realistic depiction of a youth church (which actually came very close to my own experiences), and of Christian teens in general. It was rather interesting to discover that it was Christian fiction though, as I hadn't picked that up from the book blurb (not the one above), and only discovered it a couple of chapters into the book.
The end was perhaps a bit too perfect, but I thought it fit the style of the book quite nicely, and now I'd really like to read the next two books in the series.
The Saving Graces - Patricia Gaffney*, 3/5, 418 pages
Okay, this I had not expected. When I last read this, I gave it 5 stars and listed it as one of my favourites. I've dialled down a rating before, but never before by this much!
Back in 2004 I wrote: A very sweet book about lasting friendship. Nice light book, but still has enough depth to leave you thinking about things. I ended up feeling really jealous of the people in the book. I would LOVE to have so many such good girl friends...
Yes, it is a sweet and light book with quite some depth, but honestly, I didn't think it was all that well written, and while definitely not bad, the fact that it took me over a month to finish speaks volumes. It just didn't capture my attention the way it used to. Another reason may be that I actually do have a number of close girl friends now, and therefore didn't have the same need to live vicariously through the women in the book - which is definitely a good thing, and I'd gladly give up a favourite book for it :)
Life As We Knew It - Susan Beth Pfeffer, 4/5, 337 pages
One of the few post-apocalyptic books that actually include a description of the apocalypse. Also unusual in that it offers no resolution - the main characters aren't really any closer to a solution by the end of the book than at any point during it. It's basically just an account of the first 8 months after an apocalypse.
That's not necessarily a bad thing though. I usually prefer my books to have a resolution, but it actually fitted quite well into the style of the book. The writing style reminded me a lot of "The Way We Fall" by Megan Crewe, and just like that book, it had the power to pull me completely into their situation, so I actually found myself almost discombobulated when I dragged myself back, and discovered that I was neither cold nor hungry, and that the moon was right where it ought to be. That's the sign of an excellent writer, and basically worth an extra star just by itself.
I'm still debating whether or not I want to read the next book in the series though, as it seems to be not as much a sequel as a companion novel.
The Dead and the Gone - Susan Beth Pfeffer, 3.5/5, 336 pages
I hadn't actually intended to read this - at least not so soon after the first one - but I discovered I couldn't stop thinking about the series, so I figured I might as well.
Despite taking place more or less over the same period of time as Life As We Know It, The Dead and the Gone is very different both in atmosphere and in the way the characters respond to the disaster. LAWKI was an epistolary novel, this is a third person narrative. I definitely preferred the epistolary style, but think Susan Pfeffer still did a good job at making the reader feel for the main characters - but of course the happenings can never be as shocking when you know what to expect. I think that might also be why I never got to care as much for Alex, Bri and Julie as I did for Miranda and her family. Still, it's a fascinating book, and I'll definitely be following the series with interest.
The World We Live In - Susan Beth Pfeffer, 3.5/5, 256 pages
After the way The Dead and the Gone ended, it made sense to move straight on to This World We Live In. We're now back with Miranda and back with the epistolary novel, as I prefer. But honestly, I'm not too sure what I thought of this one. On one hand I couldn't put it down - on the other, it seemed like nothing happened, and I got so annoyed with Matt, Miranda's mother and Alex. Sheesh, guys!
I don't really like open endings, but I can understand the need for one here - something had to happen for the series to move on, without being stuck in the same place all the time. It does seem to be getting a bit "Gone"'ish though (series by Michael Grant) in that the ultimate resolution is still denied us. I wonder how many books Susan Pfeffer has planned - I know there's at least one more, coming out in 2012.
Waterfall - Lisa Bergren, 3/5, 384 pages
I'll admit it - my main reason for reading this was that I could get it as a free Kindle book from Amazon. But YA, time-travel and historical fiction sounded like a good mix, so I was eager enough to read it. Not all that eager to finish it though. It's one of those books that you enjoy while reading, but that doesn't leave too much of an impression on you afterwards. I did think Gabi had just a hint of being a Mary Sue at times which meant that the entire book read a bit like wish-fulfilment, and the level of writing didn't exactly dispell that notion.
It was enjoyable enough though, so I think I'd still like to read the next book in the series. Especially as I am actually a tad curious as to what happens next. It had shades of Outlander in its love story, which could be a good thing, depending on where Lisa Bergren takes it from here.
Tortall and Other Lands - Tamora Pierce, 4/5, 392 pages
I'm usually not a great fan of short stories, but I figured I couldn't go all wrong with Tamora Pierce, and fortunately I was right :) I really enjoyed all these tales from the Tortall universe, although found it somewhat telling that I definitely enjoyed those with characters I knew better than those with characters I didn't - the one exception being Lost which I think may just have been my favourite... guess I'm still just a math-geek at heart ;-)
I didn't care as much for the stories set in present day though. Somehow it just seemed misplaced somehow. Especially the last story, Testing, which - though good - I really couldn't see how fit into the theme set by the rest of the short stories.
But all in all I really enjoyed the stories, and am now in the mood for more Tamora Pierce.
Wild Magic - Tamora Pierce*, 4/5, 250 pages
Like I said - I was in the mood for more Tamora Pierce ;-) While I like Daine, I'll never love her the way I do Alanna and Kel. I don't know why, and it's not really fair, but her story never grasped me the same way. But that doesn't mean I don't still enjoy this quartet, and especially the first book is great fun. Hearing her reactions to meeting the characters we know and love from Song of the Lioness is always interesting.
Wizard's First Rule - Terry Goodkind*, 5/5, Audiobook ~33hrs
Wizard's First Rule has been one of my all-time favourite fantasy books ever since I first discovered it, almost 15 years ago. I've probably read it about 6-8 times since then. While the later books in the series definitely have their weaknesses, this first one is fantasy when it's best (certainly beats LotR any day... but then I never was a Tolkien fan ;) ).
I always find it a lot harder to write reviews of books that I love rather than books I just like, because it feels like it just ends up as too much gushing. But I love the characters and the plot and the universe that Terry Goodkind has created. It's all neatly tied together in his writing, and I feel like I can disappear into it completely. This was my first time listening to the book rather than reading it myself, and I found myself doing extra loads of dishes, just so that I could listen to another chapter or two ;-)
5 BSC books - Ann M. Martin, a total of 750 pages.
Book of the Month: In Between.
Biggest Disappointment: Divine.
The Magicians - Lev Grossman, 4/5, 416 pages
The first half of this book was amazing. Imagine suddenly discovering that Narnia was real all along and that though Hogwarts doesn't exist, there is such a thing as a magician's college, and you've just passed the exam to enter.
That was basically what the first 200 pages of "The Magicians" were all about. I immediately got sucked completely up in the story, and did NOT want to put it down. This was the stuff dreams were made of.
Unfortunately the second half didn't quite live up to it. After Quentin left college the book suddenly got very black and bleak. I understood the reason, but it made for a somewhat less engaging read, and I do wonder where Lev Grossman is going to take this in the sequel, "The Magician King".
So 5 stars for the first half, 3 stars for the second half, so 4 stars on average.
The Last Dragonslayer - Jasper Fforde, 4/5, 281 pages
An interesting mix of classic fantasy and modern technology. Rather different from what I have expected, but I guess I should have known better than to expect anything traditional from Jasper Fforde. I tend to like the absurdity of his universes and fortunately this was no exception.
I loved Jennifer Strange as a main character, and got quite fond of Timmy Prawn as well. I would have loved to hear more about Kazam! so I wonder if Jasper Fforde is planning any sequels. I'm not entirely sure if the universe would allow it, but if anybody can make it work, he can.
Divine - Karen Kingsbury, 2.5/5, 384 pages
I started off really liking this book, but unfortunately it ended up going way over the top, and I ended up only finding it okay. The bad parts were really, really, bad; the good parts were toothache-inducing saccharine; every Christian was a wonderful person, and every non-Christian was an evil, evil monster (or, at the very best, neutral). All in all, it was just so black and white that it just got annoying.
I loved the relationship between Mary and Emma, but didn't buy the relationship between Terrance and Emma at all, and the relationship between Mary and Nigel just bugged me. Karen Kingsbury means well, but I think she tries too hard to give her books a Christian message, that it comes out as being unrealistic and stylized. I have read one amazing book by her though (Halfway to Forever) so I'm willing to not quite give up on her yet.
In Between - Jenny B. Jones, 4.5/5, 343 pages
This is one of those treasures that I picked up more or less on a whim, and ended up loving. I read it in two sittings and while I can see its flaws, I was mostly so charmed by it, that I think it deserves a 4.5 rating. This is YA at its best, with a troubled teen who makes mistakes, but who learns from her mistakes, and doesn't end up repeating them. It had a realistic depiction of a youth church (which actually came very close to my own experiences), and of Christian teens in general. It was rather interesting to discover that it was Christian fiction though, as I hadn't picked that up from the book blurb (not the one above), and only discovered it a couple of chapters into the book.
The end was perhaps a bit too perfect, but I thought it fit the style of the book quite nicely, and now I'd really like to read the next two books in the series.
The Saving Graces - Patricia Gaffney*, 3/5, 418 pages
Okay, this I had not expected. When I last read this, I gave it 5 stars and listed it as one of my favourites. I've dialled down a rating before, but never before by this much!
Back in 2004 I wrote: A very sweet book about lasting friendship. Nice light book, but still has enough depth to leave you thinking about things. I ended up feeling really jealous of the people in the book. I would LOVE to have so many such good girl friends...
Yes, it is a sweet and light book with quite some depth, but honestly, I didn't think it was all that well written, and while definitely not bad, the fact that it took me over a month to finish speaks volumes. It just didn't capture my attention the way it used to. Another reason may be that I actually do have a number of close girl friends now, and therefore didn't have the same need to live vicariously through the women in the book - which is definitely a good thing, and I'd gladly give up a favourite book for it :)
Life As We Knew It - Susan Beth Pfeffer, 4/5, 337 pages
One of the few post-apocalyptic books that actually include a description of the apocalypse. Also unusual in that it offers no resolution - the main characters aren't really any closer to a solution by the end of the book than at any point during it. It's basically just an account of the first 8 months after an apocalypse.
That's not necessarily a bad thing though. I usually prefer my books to have a resolution, but it actually fitted quite well into the style of the book. The writing style reminded me a lot of "The Way We Fall" by Megan Crewe, and just like that book, it had the power to pull me completely into their situation, so I actually found myself almost discombobulated when I dragged myself back, and discovered that I was neither cold nor hungry, and that the moon was right where it ought to be. That's the sign of an excellent writer, and basically worth an extra star just by itself.
I'm still debating whether or not I want to read the next book in the series though, as it seems to be not as much a sequel as a companion novel.
The Dead and the Gone - Susan Beth Pfeffer, 3.5/5, 336 pages
I hadn't actually intended to read this - at least not so soon after the first one - but I discovered I couldn't stop thinking about the series, so I figured I might as well.
Despite taking place more or less over the same period of time as Life As We Know It, The Dead and the Gone is very different both in atmosphere and in the way the characters respond to the disaster. LAWKI was an epistolary novel, this is a third person narrative. I definitely preferred the epistolary style, but think Susan Pfeffer still did a good job at making the reader feel for the main characters - but of course the happenings can never be as shocking when you know what to expect. I think that might also be why I never got to care as much for Alex, Bri and Julie as I did for Miranda and her family. Still, it's a fascinating book, and I'll definitely be following the series with interest.
The World We Live In - Susan Beth Pfeffer, 3.5/5, 256 pages
After the way The Dead and the Gone ended, it made sense to move straight on to This World We Live In. We're now back with Miranda and back with the epistolary novel, as I prefer. But honestly, I'm not too sure what I thought of this one. On one hand I couldn't put it down - on the other, it seemed like nothing happened, and I got so annoyed with Matt, Miranda's mother and Alex. Sheesh, guys!
I don't really like open endings, but I can understand the need for one here - something had to happen for the series to move on, without being stuck in the same place all the time. It does seem to be getting a bit "Gone"'ish though (series by Michael Grant) in that the ultimate resolution is still denied us. I wonder how many books Susan Pfeffer has planned - I know there's at least one more, coming out in 2012.
Waterfall - Lisa Bergren, 3/5, 384 pages
I'll admit it - my main reason for reading this was that I could get it as a free Kindle book from Amazon. But YA, time-travel and historical fiction sounded like a good mix, so I was eager enough to read it. Not all that eager to finish it though. It's one of those books that you enjoy while reading, but that doesn't leave too much of an impression on you afterwards. I did think Gabi had just a hint of being a Mary Sue at times which meant that the entire book read a bit like wish-fulfilment, and the level of writing didn't exactly dispell that notion.
It was enjoyable enough though, so I think I'd still like to read the next book in the series. Especially as I am actually a tad curious as to what happens next. It had shades of Outlander in its love story, which could be a good thing, depending on where Lisa Bergren takes it from here.
Tortall and Other Lands - Tamora Pierce, 4/5, 392 pages
I'm usually not a great fan of short stories, but I figured I couldn't go all wrong with Tamora Pierce, and fortunately I was right :) I really enjoyed all these tales from the Tortall universe, although found it somewhat telling that I definitely enjoyed those with characters I knew better than those with characters I didn't - the one exception being Lost which I think may just have been my favourite... guess I'm still just a math-geek at heart ;-)
I didn't care as much for the stories set in present day though. Somehow it just seemed misplaced somehow. Especially the last story, Testing, which - though good - I really couldn't see how fit into the theme set by the rest of the short stories.
But all in all I really enjoyed the stories, and am now in the mood for more Tamora Pierce.
Wild Magic - Tamora Pierce*, 4/5, 250 pages
Like I said - I was in the mood for more Tamora Pierce ;-) While I like Daine, I'll never love her the way I do Alanna and Kel. I don't know why, and it's not really fair, but her story never grasped me the same way. But that doesn't mean I don't still enjoy this quartet, and especially the first book is great fun. Hearing her reactions to meeting the characters we know and love from Song of the Lioness is always interesting.
Wizard's First Rule - Terry Goodkind*, 5/5, Audiobook ~33hrs
Wizard's First Rule has been one of my all-time favourite fantasy books ever since I first discovered it, almost 15 years ago. I've probably read it about 6-8 times since then. While the later books in the series definitely have their weaknesses, this first one is fantasy when it's best (certainly beats LotR any day... but then I never was a Tolkien fan ;) ).
I always find it a lot harder to write reviews of books that I love rather than books I just like, because it feels like it just ends up as too much gushing. But I love the characters and the plot and the universe that Terry Goodkind has created. It's all neatly tied together in his writing, and I feel like I can disappear into it completely. This was my first time listening to the book rather than reading it myself, and I found myself doing extra loads of dishes, just so that I could listen to another chapter or two ;-)
5 BSC books - Ann M. Martin, a total of 750 pages.
Book of the Month: In Between.
Biggest Disappointment: Divine.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}