Rachel
Ozma of Oz is the third book in the OZ series, and the second featuring Dorothy Gale. It is set with a cast of both old and new characters. Notable new characters include wheelers, ticktock, gump, Mombi, the royal family of ev and the gnome king.
Much of this story was the basis for the 1985 film return to oz. Unlike the film, the book continues the choppy pace of the oz series. This book is actually the fastest of the three. There are lull points and i didn't like Ozma or Dorothy. Maybe it has to do with their age, but both girls felt like entitled brats. Bellina the chicken was my favorite.
Ahhhh I want more Dunk and Egg tales. A knight of the seven kingdoms is a compilation of three Dunk and Egg tales.
The first story is about how the two meet. I found this story hard to follow.
The second picks up pace with Egg traveling as Dunk's squire.
The third was perfect. Battles, mystery, plots, dragons. I want to read this third story again.
Looking forward to more Dunk and Egg tales. Unlike a Song of Ice and fire, this book moves at a faster pace, covers character development, and doesn't get caught up in all these extra boring tidbits. plus, at just over 300 pages, it's less daunting to read.
This is one of those cases where I wish Goodreads allowed half stars. I really give this book 3.5 stars. It's cute and creative, but not my cup of tea. Sometimes I felt there was too much explanation, other times I just said “why”?.... I should have expected a book about santa clause to be very unbelievable. It started as realistic with just a touch of magic. Around the halfway mark it left believable behind for the bizarre. Anna is killed by poisoned herbs only to be back by three wise men? That's where this book lost me. I could believe how Klaus and Anna met, I could believe the toys and the talking and flying reindeer. I could believe the north pole and the elves. I couldn't buy Anna's death and magic resurrection. I couldn't buy Anna's later injury and the loss of Dasher. I also couldn't buy the part where the guy turns into “fog” or “mist”. The first half deserved 4.5 stars, but the second half knocked it down.
I thought I really enjoyed this book. Looking back on my notes there were a lot of fillers. It was much better than A Feast for Crows, but too many pointless chapters to give it 5 stars.
Jon: Trying to get control of the nights watch. some chapters were brilliant, others a waste. Still one of the strongest characters in this book. Lived hearing more about the Wildlings.
Danaerys: if I hear one more thing about Daario I might scream. She didn't care about the city, so I gave up caring too.
Bran: That's it?.... sure his character is boring, but we finally were getting somewhere! Then silence. George could have easily swapped a pointless chapter for this one.
Theon/Reek. on his was to a redemption plotline. Easy my favorite chapters. The inner struggle, hiding from Ramsay. The chapters were cruel, but he had the best character development.
Tyrion: I'm on a boat. I found a dwarf friend. I get on another boat. I'm sold into slavery. get on another boat. finally almost meet Danaerys. she flies off. I try to find a new boat.
Sir Barristan: Important POV after Dany leaves, and he tells what's happening when she's too busy daydreaming about Daario. chapters just too long and boring.
Quentin Martel. hilarious. boy thinks he can whip a dragon into obeying him. moron.
other Martels : trying to screw over the lannisters I'm ok with that.
Melisandre: oooh visions. I'd be fond with more chapters from her. they actually made me like her.
Random Targaryan kid: who? why. stupidest plotline by far.
Asha Greyjoy: she's horny.... ok..... pointless chapter.
Arya: ooh closure. good. looking forward to what happens next with her.
cersei. got what she deserves. hope they behead her. what's with frankenstein??
Jamie and Brienne: I need more!! let's go!!
Davos: captured again. his plot seems done.
Victorian Greyjoy: I think he's someone to watch. using blood magic. hope Dany crisps him .
epilogue: best part. poor kevan, but FINALLY Varys shows back up. the boom missed his scheming.
Wrote an entire review, and Goodreads crashed....
I wanted to love this book. Dreamer's Pool was one of my favorite books last year. Juliet Marillier creates beautiful worlds. They remind me of old ancient Irish folklore. The fae are tricky and appear when they want something. The main characters, Blackthorn and Grim are worn out and flawed. Their journey began in the dungeons/cells of Mathuin of Laois. With the help of Conmael, they excape. Blackthorn is bound to a 7 year sentence. She must help anyone who asks of it.
Tower of Thorns is the second book in the series. We are given brief glimpses into the life of the characters from the first novel. The focus is on a new character, Lady Geleis. She has a monster in a tower who howls every summer from dawn until dusk. She's reluctant to tell the truth, yet she wants her problem solved. Readers are also introduced to Flannan, a childhood friend of Blackthorn. He wants to bring Blackthorn south to stand up to Mathuin. That could mean breaking her promise with conmael and leaving Grim behind.
Gileis never directly asks Blackthorn for help. Therefor Blackthorn is never obligated to help. She spends most of the novel planning to leave with Flannan and use Geleis' story as cover. Their plan is frustrating to the reader. There is so much back and forth between Blackthorn and Flannan that it becomes too much. It's as if Juliet needed to reach a page quota. She expanded on Blackthorn, Grim, and Gileis' thoughts so much that it was boring. At times I'd put down the book with no desire to pick it up again. At once point I even started to skim some paragraphs. The last 1/3 of the book is the strongest. Readers learn about Grim's past and Blackthorn finally agrees to solve the problem of the Tower of Thorns. Grim was by far the strongest point of the novel.
Overall, this felt like a typical second movie in a film trilogy. It was good. It had the characters I loved, but it didn't live up to the first one.
Halfway through I'm finally throwing in the towel.
This book has some interesting plot ideas, but terrible execution. Things are introduced, then discarded. It's as if the author set up all these extra plot lines for sequels, but never focused on the original storyline.
I kept hoping the book would get better. In spurts it did, then it'd fall back into a boring predictable unfinished YA mess.
I thought it'd be a hidden gem. Instead, it's just another humdrum YA novel in an ocean of others.
A long time ago I tried to read this book. I made it to page 65 before finally giving up. Tolkien uses so many descriptions and adds SO many characters! It becomes overwhelming and boring.
I opted instead for this audiobook. It was intended for radio audiences. It was SO much better. It doesn't say it was abridged, but it used different voice actors to differentiate the different character's dialog. That sped up the pace drastically. Finally I was able to enjoy the world that so many others have raved about.
Before I didn't want anything to do with the books. Now I can't wait to start the next one.
Life is too short to spend on bad books. Tim Curry tried his hardest to sell this to me, but I had to give up at 50%. This book is ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous. Instead of making a unique story with new characters it turns adults into children. It revives James Hook. It turns a lost boy into a girl just cause. It kills off Michael.
There are SO many better ways they could have gone. If you're looking for a good sequel to Peter Pan, read Peter and the Starcatchers. That series captures the magic of Peter Pan and Never land as it should exist.
disclaimer: I listened to the audio book version narrated by Tim Curry.
I've heard great things about this book, but could never get into it. Finally decided to give the audio book a chance.
The beginning caught my attention. Then it was a long slow march to the 50% mark. It takes awhile to understand what's happening. Most of the time I had to go back a few pages. Tim Curry kept me going.
I feel like this would be a great book to reread. It's hard to get into at first, because of the language, but I think I'd like to reread it at some point.
The search for the talismans continues! Dark Tide is the third book in Jennifer Donnelly's Waterfire saga. When I started the journey, I was wasn't sure I'd continue. I enjoyed the first book, but it didn't blow me away. By the time Rogue Wave came out, I was ready to give the series another shot. I loved it. It was a huge improvement on the first. Dark Tide is even better.
Dark Tide picks up where Rogue Wave left off. Sera and Neela are still on the run, Astrid is heading home, Ling is held captive, and Ava and Becca are still looking for their talismans. What I loved most was how many boundaries Ms. Donnelly crossed. Yes, on the surface the book is about mermaids, but it goes much deeper than that. The Waterfire saga is about finding inner strength and believing in yourself when everything seems hopeless. It's about friendship, and courage. The mermaids are off to save the day. They aren't relying on the mermen to rescue them. Miss Donnelly also lets her male characters show emotion! In the real world, there is still a stigma that men need to hide their emotions. I LOVE the Miss Donnelly let her characters show theirs!
I also loved the mermaid's courage. Without giving away too much, each of the mermaids must face nearly impossible odds. While Sera appears to be the sterotypical heroine, Astrid, Ava, Ling, Neela and Becca provide fresh “heroines”. Astrid, in a world of magic has lost hers. Ava, a blind mermaid must search the oceans for a talisman with death riders at every turn. Ling has a strained relationship with her mother, who has just about given up after the loss of Ling's father. Neela buries her problems in food and learns that eating does not make her problems disappear. Becca grows up an orphan, struggling often to make ends meet. That's what I love most about this story. It's not just about 6 beautiful mermaid princesses trying to save the world. Yes, Sera and Astrid are “princesses” of sorts, but Ling, Becca and Ava are ordinary mermaids that were chosen to help save their world. They aren't perfect. Heck, who would EVER put a BLIND mermaid as a heroine in her novel??
Dark Tide mostly focuses on Sera, Ling, and Astrid. We get a glimpse into what's happening in Miromara from Lucia's point of view, and we check in with Ava and Becca. While Sera's chapters become a little monotonous, Ling'd and Astrid's are filled with such beautiful imagery. Oondalina! AH! Astrid's ice palace was breathtaking! I wish I could erase the chapters from my mind so I could experience that awe all over again! Even now, my mind is back exploring her palace. Ling's chapters are darker. It's very similar to the concentration camps the Nazi's created during World War II. It was sad, and terrifying. The glimpses we were given of Ava's world were also impressive, but not as much as Oondalina. I suspect we'll see more of her world in the final book. I'm excited to see where Miss Donnelly heads next!
Either I've read too many of Jennifer Donnelly's books or I'm getting too old for YA. I was always way ahead of Jo and Eddie. At some points I wanted to scream at the characters and say ‘the answer is right there!!”Then I had to remind myself that Jo lived in the 1890's and was only 17 years old. I was more naive at that age too.
Even thought I figured out much of the storyline early, I still really enjoyed These Shallow Graves. There were some corny and predictable moments, but Jennifer knows how to weave twists and turns into her books. Every time i picked it up, I couldn't put it down. I loved the characters and want to read more about them. I'm secretly hoping Jennifer writes more books about Jo. I'd love to hear more about her and how her life is after These Shallow Graves. She was young and naive, but throughout the novel the reader watched her grow up. I'm hoping against hope for a sequel. PLEASE JENNIFER! I WANT MORE!!
The top reviews for this book are so negative. 2 stars? It's a book for 4th and 5th graders. They don't have the attention span for character development. They just want the story.
Unbelievably I never read any of the Goosebumps books until now. With the movie coming out, and the series now on Netflix, I thought it was time to read some of the books. I enjoyed this book. It took awhile to get going, but was still packed with creepy moments. I've heard it's not the best, but it is the first. When I need a quick read, I'd be interested in reading a few more.
This story has all the right stuff to be a true horror film. Problem is, there are no good film adaptations (that I know of). This may have to do with the difficulty in creating the Beast Men. The Beast Men are animals that were created by Dr. Moreau via vivisection. H.G. Wells does an incredible job in describing these creatures, however his vision would be difficult to create on film without intense CGI.
The story itself sets a great pace. Many times I found myself lost on the island with the narrator Pendrick. I felt curiosity and pity for the characters and creatures living on the island. I enjoyed the majority of the story, however I felt that Wells gave up on some chapters. Some chapters were choppy and time passed in odd spurts throughout the novel. It some instances it worked. Pendrick was recalling the events of the island. Of course he couldn't remember everything, however, I felt that it was a cop out. Wells didn't know where to go or how to transition. It's clear this was one of his earliest novels. Regardless, I still enjoyed it.
Sometimes you find a book. Other times, the book finds you. I picked A Monster Calls because I'd seen such great reviews for it. I wasn't prepared for what lay ahead.
Based on the summary, it sounded like a cross between Pan's Labyrinth and The Book of Lost Things. Was the monster real, or was he a coping mechanism for his mother's illness? Reading this book ripped apart my soul. Connor is reluctant to acknowledge his mother's illness. “She's getting better.” That's at least what Connor believes. Reading through the lines, it's clear she's not.
Having recently lost my best friend of 14 years (my dog Casey) I was unprepared for this book. She was sick for a long time before she passed. It was just like Connor's mom. I could see the decline, but I didn't want to admit it to myself. How can you? There is nothing worse than watching the decline of someone you love, knowing there is nothing you can do about it.
She passed away 3 weeks ago. I cried my tears, but I was oddly at peace with her passing. I had been prepared for over a year. Every extra day was a blessing. Reading this book brought all the pain out. Everything I had hid. Everything I had denied. It all came out. I was Connor. My dog was his mom.
I flew through the book with tears in my eyes. After finishing it, I buried it in my pile of books to return. I didn't want to look at it again. I loved the drawings, but the story touched a piece of me I didn't want to revisit. Correction, don't want to revisit. Perhaps that makes it a great book. Perhaps my judgement is clouded. This book found me at the best and worst of times. It's amazing how life works.
The Pomegranate Princess: And Other Tales from India is a collection of folk/”fairy” tales from India. The stories vary in length from 2-7 pages and predominately easy to read. Some of the stories can be dark and unsuitable for young children. The “evil” or “disobedient” women in the tales often receive cruel fates. One is sealed alive into the palace walls. Others are buried alive in a jungle. Most of the women in these stories are servants to men. It's a stark contrast to modern culture.
The book overall was very enjoyable. I was unfamiliar with most of the tales and found them to be an interesting glimpse into ancient indian culture. They were short enough to read in between other tasks, and each began with an image to accompany the story.
I would have liked the author to expand more upon the stories. Some transitions felt rather abrupt. At the end, the book contains and appendix that cross references Types of Indic Oral Tales, by Stith Thompson and Warren E. Roberts. I'm interested to see how that compares.
I didn't know what to expect at first. All I knew of The Invisible Man was that he was a horror movie icon from early Hollywood. As I began to read, I was transfixed by the story. I felt a whole range of emotions towards the invisible man and loved H.G. Wells pacing.
It's a mystery that turns into horror. After finishing the novel, I wanted to read it all over again. Indeed, this may be my favorite “classic” novel. The language isn't nearly as difficult as Dickens or Shakespeare. The length is short, and there is a nice pace set throughout.
This was my first Terry Goodkind novel. I know he is very popular fantasy writer, yet somehow I've never read anything by him until now.
I originally picked this up because I wanted a short novel to read. I finished it in under a day. While it was thought provoking, it wasn't a favorite. There were good moments. I liked the pacing and suspense, but the end killed it. Every other page was a plot twist. I see where he was going. Wizards are supposed to be unpredictable. There were just too many twists. I even began to roll my eyes and skim the final pages.
In summary, it was ok for an afternoon, but wasn't that great.