“What happens to you changes you. Fer good or ill, yer changed ferever. There ain't no goin back. No matter how many tears you cry.”

I LOVED Moria Young's debut novel, Blood Red Road, so I was super excited to read the sequel in this planned trilogy, Rebel Heart which just landed on the shelves this month.  I finished it a few nights ago and am still in the process of forming an opinon of it.  I gotta say, I'm feeling somewhat disappointed.  I find that with sequels I often have one of two reactions: 1) It is even better than the first book (ex: Catching Fire in my opinion), or, 2) It falls short of the first book.  Which is sadly what happened here. 

The books starts off on a high note.  We pick up right where we left off with Saba, Lugh, Emmi, and Tommo traveling west in hopes of a better life; Jack having left them to deliver the news of Ike's death to his sweetheart Molly.  There is a lot of interesting things going on with these people. Saba and her subconscious as her guilt over Epona's death (and many others) catch up with her.  The reader is also left wondering what is going on with Lugh; what really happened to him during his captivity and why is he having such extreme mood swings?  The character of Emmi is also becoming more intersting as we see her developing even more into a strong willed young woman.  We also see the side story of Tommo's developing feelings for Saba.  Most interesting is trying to figure out who exactly Jack is and what side is he on?

So clearly there is a lot happening here so I should be jumping up and down with excitement.  And I will admit, I was loving parts of this novel.  However, I really am not sure how I'm feeling about a side story that Young brought in halfway through the novel (and clearly is going to be a big plot point in the next book) involving the former Tonton leader, DeMalo.  It just felt somewhat out of place to the rest of the story as well as how out of character for some.  I don't want to give to much away for those of you who haven't read this yet so I will leave it at that!  I think I might need to reread this in a few months and see if a second reading changes my mind.  Despite everything I'm still really looking forward to the third book since I'm interested to see how Young ties up everything.

"I wish I could say I was afraid, but I wasn’t. Quite the contrary. This was by far the most interesting thing that had ever happened to me in my entire life”

I am in love with young Flavia de Luce, the young heroine of Alan Bradley's debut novel, The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie. 

When I first read about the premise of the novel, the first in a series of mysteries staring an eleven year old aspiring chemist with a passion for poisons, I just wasn't' sure what to make of the concept.  Most novels I have read that have a young adult as the main character either read like a YA or Teen novel or just read poorly, as if the author really has no idea how to write in the voice of a young person.  Alan Bradley does a wonderful job tapping into the mind of Flavia!  He gives her a unique voice that manages to make her seem wise beyond her years yet still give the impression of her youth.

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie takes place in the summer of 1950 when a series of unexplainable events occur at Buckshaw, the falling apart English Mansion that Flavia's family calls home.  A dead bird is found on the doorstep with a postage stamp pinned to its beak. Hours later, Flavia finds a man lying in the cucumber patch and watches as he takes his dying breath. For Flavia, who is both appalled and delighted, life begins in earnest when murder comes to Buckshaw.  

A delightful series for cozy mystery fans! I'm looking forward to having more adventures with Flavia!(and what a great name, right?)

Flavia de Luce Series

1. The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie (2009)
2. The Weed that Strings the Hangman's Bag (2010)
3. A Red Herring Without Mustard (2011)
4. I am Half Sick of Shadows (2011)
5. Speaking From Among the Bones (2013)
6. The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches (2014)
 

October / November Reads

I've been so busy reading good books that I've barely had time to write about them!  Here's what I've been reading in the last few weeks:

The Spindlers by Lauren Oliver

Imagine a book that is a mix between Neil Gaiman's Coraline and the children's classic Alice in Wonderland and you have Lauren Oliver's newest YA novel.  I would really love for her to publish an illustrated version of this because the imagery she creates with her words would be fantastic in large scale pictures.  Creepy and delightful, this was a very fun read!

Death on Demand by Carolyn Hart

My mom has been talking about this mystery series for years because she loved the book shop that the main character, Annie Laurance, runs.  After having read the first book in this mystery series I have to agree with her; I'm hooked!  What a fantastic book shop that our leading lady runs! All she sells are mystery books of all kinds!  One of the ongoing themes of the series is a contest whereby the first customer who correctly identifies a series of five mysteries from the clues in a painting hanging in the shop wins his or her choice of a novel.  There is also a coffee shop with hand painted mugs featuring the titles of famous mystery novels.  The location is amazing, the characters are fun, and the mystery at hand keeps you guessing till the end.  A fun series for cozy mystery fans!

In the Bleak Midwinter by Julia Spencer-Fleming

The first book in the Rev. Clare Fergusson and Russ Van Alstyne mystery series, this novel centers around an abandoned baby found on the steps of the local church one snowy night and the murder of a young woman found half frozen in the local river.  I found the angle of having the lead characters as a priest and a police chief quite interesting and look forward to reading more in this series!

The Perfect Hope by Nora Roberts

The final book in Roberts' Inn BoonsBoro series, this story deals with Innkeeper Hope and the third Montgomery brother, Ryder.  As per usual, Robert's delivers excellent dialogue (especially between women), a beautiful setting, and a tender and engaging love story.  A great end to a lovely series.

Ready Player One By Ernest Cline

One of the best and most fun book's I have read this year!  My inner geek screamed with happiness for pretty much the entire novel.  So many excellent 80's references! From video games, to sci-fi and fantasy novels, to films, and music, this book had them all!  Well written, engaging, fun, and action packed, Ready Player One is going to be on my favourite reads of 2012 list!

The Fabulous Susin Nielsen!

I have the opportunity to meet YA author, Susin Nielsen, this week and in preperation I decided to read a couple of her books.  Can I just say, WOW! 

Nielsen's latest novel, The Reluctant Journal of Henry K. Larsen, deals with big issues such as bullying and teen suicide.  It is the heartbreaking yet humourous story of Henry, the little brother left behind to pick up the pieces of his family and his life after the incident that left them all broken.  Written in diary style, this was such a fantastic read and one that I really recommend to both adults and teens.  I'm clearly not the only one who thinks books is great; it was nominated for the Governor General Award this year!

Dear George Clooney: Please Marry My Mom is Nielsen's second novel and very much a lighthearted and charming read.  After Violet's parents divorce and her dad moves to L.A. with his new wife and family, Violet begins to think life is never going to be normal again.  It doesn't help that her mom keeps dating all these losers that Violet knows aren't right for her.  So what does she do? Writes a letter to Hollywood heartthrob, George Clooney, to try and convince him that he is perfect for her mom.  While all this is going on, Violet is also dealing with a falling out with her father and his wife and new children (in a hilarious and horrifying scene) and mean girls and cute boys at school.  A great read for anyone who has had unexpected and unwanted changes in their life and for anyone who has ever had to deal with the trial and tribulations of growing up.

Next up: Susin Nielsen's first novel Word Nerd!

Coming Soon to a Theater Near You....

This fall / holiday season, Hollywood is taking the literary world by storm by adapting a number of well loved novels into feature films.  Here are some of the biggies coming to a theater near you (all plot summaries from Goodreads):

Cloud Atlas 
by David Mitchell

"A reluctant voyager crossing the Pacific in 1850; a disinherited composer blagging a precarious livelihood in between-the-wars Belgium; a high-minded journalist in Governor Reagan’s California; a vanity publisher fleeing his gangland creditors; a genetically modified “dinery server” on death-row; and Zachry, a young Pacific Islander witnessing the nightfall of science and civilisation—the narrators of Cloud Atlas hear each other’s echoes down the corridor of history, and their destinies are changed in ways great and small.

In his captivating third novel, David Mitchell erases the boundaries of language, genre and time to offer a meditation on humanity’s dangerous will to power, and where it may lead us."

Les Miserables
by Victor Hugo

"In this story of the trials of the peasant Jean Valjean--a man unjustly imprisoned, baffled by destiny, and hounded by his nemesis, the magnificently realized, ambiguously malevolent police detective Javert--Hugo achieves the sort of rare imaginative resonance that allows a work of art to transcend its genre." 

 

The Great Gatsby
by F. Scott Fitzgerald

"In 1922, F. Scott Fitzgerald announced his decision to write "something new--something extraordinary and beautiful and simple and intricately patterned." That extraordinary, beautiful, intricately patterned, and above all, simple novel became The Great Gatsby, arguably Fitzgerald's finest work and certainly the book for which he is best known. A portrait of the Jazz Age in all of its decadence and excess, Gatsby captured the spirit of the author's generation and earned itself a permanent place in American mythology. Self-made, self-invented millionaire Jay Gatsby embodies some of Fitzgerald's--and his country's--most abiding obsessions: money, ambition, greed, and the promise of new beginnings. "Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgiastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that's no matter--tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther.... And one fine morning--" Gatsby's rise to glory and eventual fall from grace becomes a kind of cautionary tale about the American Dream.
It's also a love story, of sorts, the narrative of Gatsby's quixotic passion for Daisy Buchanan. The pair meet five years before the novel begins, when Daisy is a legendary young Louisville beauty and Gatsby an impoverished officer. They fall in love, but while Gatsby serves overseas, Daisy marries the brutal, bullying, but extremely rich Tom Buchanan. After the war, Gatsby devotes himself blindly to the pursuit of wealth by whatever means--and to the pursuit of Daisy, which amounts to the same thing. "Her voice is full of money," Gatsby says admiringly, in one of the novel's more famous descriptions. His millions made, Gatsby buys a mansion across Long Island Sound from Daisy's patrician East Egg address, throws lavish parties, and waits for her to appear. When she does, events unfold with all the tragic inevitability of a Greek drama, with detached, cynical neighbor Nick Carraway acting as chorus throughout. Spare, elegantly plotted, and written in crystalline prose, The Great Gatsby is as perfectly satisfying as the best kind of poem."

 
Anna Karenina
by Leo Tolstoy

"Described by William Faulkner as the best novel ever written and by Fyodor Dostoevsky as “flawless,” Anna Karenina tells of the doomed love affair between the sensuous and rebellious Anna and the dashing officer, Count Vronsky. Tragedy unfolds as Anna rejects her passionless marriage and must endure the hypocrisies of society. Set against a vast and richly textured canvas of nineteenth-century Russia, the novel's seven major characters create a dynamic imbalance, playing out the contrasts of city and country life and all the variations on love and family happiness."

 The Hobbitt
by J.R.R Tolkien

"Written for J.R.R. Tolkien’s own children, The Hobbit met with instant critical acclaim when it was first published in 1937. Now recognized as a timeless classic, this introduction to the hobbit Bilbo Baggins, the wizard Gandalf, Gollum, and the spectacular world of Middle-earth recounts of the adventures of a reluctant hero, a powerful and dangerous ring, and the cruel dragon Smaug the Magnificent."  

Life of Pi
by Yann Martel 
  
"Growing up in Pondicherry, India, Piscine Molitor Patel -- known as Pi -- has a rich life. Bookish by nature, young Pi acquires a broad knowledge of not only the great religious texts but of all literature, and has a great curiosity about how the world works. His family runs the local zoo, and he spends many of his days among goats, hippos, swans, and bears, developing his own theories about the nature of animals and how human nature conforms to it. Pi’s family life is quite happy, even though his brother picks on him and his parents aren’t quite sure how to accept his decision to simultaneously embrace and practise three religions -- Christianity, Hinduism, and Islam.

But despite the lush and nurturing variety of Pi’s world, there are broad political changes afoot in India, and when Pi is sixteen his parents decide that the family needs to escape to a better life. Choosing to move to Canada, they close the zoo, pack their belongings, and board a Japanese cargo ship called the Tsimtsum. Travelling with them are many of their animals, bound for zoos in North America. However, they have only just begun their journey when the ship sinks, taking the dreams of the Patel family down with it. Only Pi survives, cast adrift in a lifeboat with the unlikeliest of travelling companions: a zebra, an orang-utan, a hyena, and a 450-pound Royal Bengal tiger named Richard Parker.

Thus begins Pi Patel’s epic, 227-day voyage across the Pacific, and the powerful story of faith and survival at the heart of Life of Pi. Worn and scared, oscillating between hope and despair, Pi is witness to the playing out of the food chain, quite aware of his new position within it. When only the tiger is left of the seafaring menagerie, Pi realizes that his survival depends on his ability to assert his own will, and sets upon a grand and ordered scheme to keep from being Richard Parker’s next meal.

As the days pass, Pi fights both boredom and terror by throwing himself into the practical details of surviving on the open sea -- catching fish, collecting rain water, protecting himself from the sun -- all the while ensuring that the tiger is also kept alive, and knows that Pi is the key to his survival. The castaways face gruelling pain in their brushes with starvation, illness, and the storms that lash the small boat, but there is also the solace of beauty: the rainbow hues of a dorado’s death-throes, the peaceful eye of a looming whale, the shimmering blues of the ocean’s swells. Hope is fleeting, however, and despite adapting his religious practices to his daily routine, Pi feels the constant, pressing weight of despair. It is during the most hopeless and gruelling days of his voyage that Pi whittles to the core of his beliefs, casts off his own assumptions, and faces his underlying terrors head-on. "

The Perks of Being a Wallflower
by Stephen Chbosky

"This is the story of what it's like to grow up in high school. More intimate than a diary, Charlie's letters are singular and unique, hilarious and devastating. We may not know where he lives. We may not know to whom he is writing. All we know is the world he shares. Caught between trying to live his life and trying to run from it puts him on a strange course through uncharted territory. The world of first dates and mixed tapes, family dramas and new friends. The world of sex, drugs, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show, when all one requires is that perfect song on that perfect drive to feel infinite." 

 

"But in the country death comes, uninvited, during the day."

I have recently discovered the wonderful Canadian author, Louise Penny, and I have fallen head over heels in love with the Quebec village of Small Pines where she has set her Chief Inspector Gamache series.  The setting is picturesque, the type of place you would love to visit and then possibly stay forever.  The town's people jump out from the page and make you feel as if you've know them your whole life.  They are delightfully flawed and yet still irresistible. 

I have so far read the first three books in the series and I can't wait to get my hands on the next installment.  The central crime / murder of each novel is very simple at first glance but as the story weaves around the village and the locals, the reader is treated to a plot that is not simple at all but very complex and left me guessing right up to the end.

A wonderful 'cozy' mystery series that will keep you reading past your bedtime!

Chief Inspector Gamache
1. Still Life (2005)
2. Dead Cold (2006)
     aka A Fatal Grace
3. The Cruellest Month (2007)
4. The Murder Stone (2008)
     aka A Rule Against Murder
5. The Brutal Telling (2009)
6. Bury Your Dead (2010)
7. A Trick of the Light (2011)
8. The Beautiful Mystery (2012)
The Hangman (2011)

Get Your Spook On!

In honour of Halloween, I decided to make a list of recommendations for the upcoming spooky season.  If you are looking for something scary or just plain fun, check out some of these books!

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

"After the grisly murder of his entire family, a toddler wanders into a graveyard where the ghosts and other supernatural residents agree to raise him as one of their own.

Nobody Owens, known to his friends as Bod, is a normal boy. He would be completely normal if he didn't live in a sprawling graveyard, being raised and educated by ghosts, with a solitary guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor of the dead. There are dangers and adventures in the graveyard for a boy. But if Bod leaves the graveyard, then he will come under attack from the man Jack—who has already killed Bod's family . . ."

A great story for both young and old by master storyteller Neil Gaiman. 

Dracula by Bram Stoker

An oldie and a goody for a reason! Written in entirely in letters and diary entries, the classic vampire story is a must read, especially for those of you who think you know all about vampires (hint: they don't sparkle)


Relic by Douglas Preston 
and Lincoln Child

This book scared the hell out of me the first time I read it and has continued to do so on my multiple rereads.  Definitely will make you nervous to go into a museum after hours!

 
The Passage by Justin Cronin
 
So scary I haven't even been able to finish it! If you want to be scared for a weekend then this is a must read! Have had so many recommendations from friends and coworkers that I know I'm going to have to tough it out and finish it.  I'll just have to make sure I leave all the lights on in the house while doing so... 


Happy Halloween!

The Happiest Place On Earth (For Book Lovers)

I was recently down in Portland visiting my sister-in-law and was able to visit one of my favourite places in the world...Powell's City of Books.  This is like Disneyland for book crazed adults with its floor to ceiling bookshelves taking up an entire city block.  Everytime I get so excited I almost need paper bag assisted breathing; it's that fantastic.  I have learned after my many visist that it is just to overwhelming to go into Powell's without some sort of plan or strategie.  The first few visits consisted of me wandering up aisle after aisle for hours on end and somehow accumulating more baskets of books then I could carry (I started sliding them down the aisles with my foot), much to my husband's chagrin as well as the already full bookcases in our homes.  This time I was smart and developed a list of specific books I wanted to look for as well as certain sections I wanted to browse.  We got out of the store after only a measly 2 hours and with only a little over $100 spent.  A personal best if I do say so myself.  Here's what I got:

The Cater Street Hangman (Book 1 of the Charlotte & Thomas Pitt Series)
The Face of a Stranger (Book 1 of the William Monk Series)
Both by Anne Perry

I had heard that both Anne Perry's Victorian mystery series were excellent not only as mysteries but as novels depicting life during the Victorian Ages, especially dealing with gender and class issues.  I have so far read The Cater Street Hangman and really enjoyed it.  This novel introduces us to Thomas Pitt and when he first meets Charlotte before they are married.  They have great chemistry as a couple and I look forward to reading about more of their adventures in later books.

Cleopatra by Stacey Schiff

Ever since this biography came out I have been wanting to read it.  It sounds so interesting and I really enjoy historical bios based on famous women.  I always seem to need more time reading non-fiction so I don't often get them out of the library since I always need more time then the alot 2-3 weeks.  I'm looking forward to this one!

Song of the North (Dalriada Trilogy, Book 3) by Jules Watson

I read the first two books in the Dalriada Trilogy (The White Mare and The Dawn Stag) some time ago and really enjoyed this series set in Roman Britain.  I had heard there was a third book but could never seem to find it anywhere.  It will be nice to be able to finish this epic story.

I Was Told There Would Be Cake By Sloane Crosley

I have been looking for a book of comedic essays that could hold a candle to the wonderful Jenn Lancaster and this was one of the authors that was recommend to me.  I've read a few essays and so far so good! Though not as laugh out loud funny as Lancaster, Crosley has a subtlety to her that I find delightfully amusing. 

The Book of Mordred by Vivian Van Velde

  A coworker recommended this to me and being a fan of Arthurian Legend, I decided to pick it up.  I'm interested in the idea that the story is from Mordred (a usual villain) point of view so we shall have to see how this one is.

Christmas Eve at Friday Harbour and Rainshadow Road by Lisa Kleypas

I have never read anything by Lisa Kleypas, however she sounds like my cup of tea.  I grabbed the first two novels in her Friday Harbour series and am looking forward to curling up with them closer to the Holiday season.

Banned Book Week!

Banned Book Week is happening right now! It's from September 30th - October 6th so make sure you celebrate the freedom to read by reading one of the many banned books from this year or previous ones!  There is a lot if great information here as well as links to lists of the books that have been banned over the years as well as reasons why...my favorite? "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian" is apparently racist....have they read the book / understand what it's about?

Also, here is a fantastic cartoon by the wonderful Grant Snider for your enjoyment!

Looking For What To Read Next?

First of all, check out this fantastic website that can help you find books based on what you last read / authors you like / etc...  What Should I Read Next?

I also love this fantastic Flow Chart which helps readers of all ages find books to read in all genres!  Thanks to The Out Of Print Clothing Blog Literary News You Can Use!

Where To Begin....

I have never read Stephen King but have had the desire to do so as of late.  I found this handy dandy chart which I think will be helpful and I thought I would share it!  Thanks to the book blog The Insatiable Book Sluts !