TITLE: WONDROUS STRANGE
AUTHOR: LESLEY LIVINGSTON
GENRE: YOUNG ADULT FANTASY
RATING: 3 STARS
I just finished reading Wondrous Strange. It was pretty good. I'd probably give it 3 - 3 1/2 stars. I had to read this book when I saw that the main character's name was Kelley, and she even spelled it the same as me! I know that may seem funny to some, but when you have a rather common name like Kelley, but never see it spelled the same way that you do, it's fun when you can find it!
The main character in this story is an actress in New York City. One day while walking through Central Park, she runs into guy who later seems to keep popping up wherever she is at. What she doesn't know is that he is a guard for the world of the fairies and he's about to pull her right into that world.
Anyways, it was a interesting start to a series. I thought that there did need to be some more character development, especially on some of the minor characters. I never really felt like I got to know anyone very well! Also, I thought that Kelley handled the whole thing way too well. If you weren't ever someone that believed in anything beyond the normal, would you really accept the presence of fairies quite so quickly? Just seemed a bit far fetched. Also, there was some romance, but I never really felt the passion that was supposedly there. I enjoyed it enough that I'll probably pick up the next book though.
One thing that was really fun was I listened to the audiobook, and the reader was the author! So I was hearing things exactly how she wrote them! That was fun!
Showing posts with label Young Adult Fantasy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Young Adult Fantasy. Show all posts
1/17/10
Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr
TITLE: WICKED LOVELYAUTHOR: MELISSA MARR
GENRE: YOUNG ADULT FANTASY
RATING: 4 STARS
Aislinn is one of the very rare humans that can see faeries. She's always learned that that world is dark and brutal, and it would be extremely dangerous if any faeries were to ever learn that she can see them. Aislinn has grown up constantly being reminded of "the rules". The top three being, #3 Don't stare at invisible faeries, #2 Don't talk to invisible faeries, and most important #1 Don't EVER attract the attention of faeries. But what should Aislinn do when she finds that she's somehow attracted the attention of not just one faerie, but seemingly all of them.
This is a really great young adult urban fantasy. It does have a darker edge to it, but that's one of the things that I found extremely intriguing. I loved how unique this book was. First off, you have a "leading man" that is very atypical. He has bars in his eyebrows, a ring in his lower lip, wears black fingernail polish, and lives in a couple of renovated train cars. Definitely not your typical protagonist. Also, as I started reading this novel, I was sure that I knew how it was all going to end. After you read as many books as I have in this genre, you tend to see patterns. So I was delightfully surprised when the book went into a completely different direction from what I had assumed. Very refreshing change!
This is a book that I strongly recommend to fans of urban fantasy. Also, as a side note. I know that you should never judge a book by it's cover, but I just have to say that I absolutely love the cover of this book, as well as the later books in the series. I've posted a picture of it on the left side of my blog, but it just can't do the cover justice. If you are at a book store, you should check it out!
Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead
TITLE: VAMPIRE ACADEMY
AUTHOR: RICHELLE MEAD
GENRE: YOUNG ADULT FANTASY
RATING: 5 STARS
What a great start to a young adult series! I recommend it to anyone that likes some fantasy, action, and a great kick-ass main character.
This isn't your traditional vampire book. The vampires (called Moroi) are protected by a race called Dhampir. They are half human/half vampire. They don't drink blood, and don't have any problem with the sun. But they also have some of the strength of a vampire. It is a guardian dhampir's job to protect the moroi from the Strigoi (an evil race of creatures).
The series follows the lives of a Moroi, Lissa and her best friend, dhampir and future guardian Rose. They have a special bond were Rose can actually feel what Lissa is feeling or thinking. I loved watching they way that these two interacted with each other as well as with the other characters throughout the novel. I'm not really going to say much about the story line, because I could never do it justice. Just read the book!!!
I will say though that I love Rose. She's daring, tough, and doesn't let anyone step all over her! I loved her attitude and strength. I also enjoyed watching her learn to balance that attitude with responsibility for the those that she needs to protect. It's a great coming of age story as we watch Rose grow and learn.
Read it! You'll love it!
AUTHOR: RICHELLE MEAD
GENRE: YOUNG ADULT FANTASY
RATING: 5 STARS
What a great start to a young adult series! I recommend it to anyone that likes some fantasy, action, and a great kick-ass main character.
This isn't your traditional vampire book. The vampires (called Moroi) are protected by a race called Dhampir. They are half human/half vampire. They don't drink blood, and don't have any problem with the sun. But they also have some of the strength of a vampire. It is a guardian dhampir's job to protect the moroi from the Strigoi (an evil race of creatures).
The series follows the lives of a Moroi, Lissa and her best friend, dhampir and future guardian Rose. They have a special bond were Rose can actually feel what Lissa is feeling or thinking. I loved watching they way that these two interacted with each other as well as with the other characters throughout the novel. I'm not really going to say much about the story line, because I could never do it justice. Just read the book!!!
I will say though that I love Rose. She's daring, tough, and doesn't let anyone step all over her! I loved her attitude and strength. I also enjoyed watching her learn to balance that attitude with responsibility for the those that she needs to protect. It's a great coming of age story as we watch Rose grow and learn.
Read it! You'll love it!
1/8/10
Graceling by Kristin Cashore
TITLE: GRACELING
AUTHOR: KRISTIN CASHORE
GENRE: YOUNG ADULT FANTASY
RATING: 4 STARS
This is a very interesting young adult fantasy novel. The main character, Katsa, lives in a world where certain people posses extreme skills or talents, called a "grace". These people are called Gracelings, and they are easily recognizable by the fact that their eyes are two different colors. Katsa's grace is the ability to kill, and she's forced to use her grace as the King's enforcer. But what should she do when the King's orders go against everything that she believes and feels?
This was a really good fantasy novel! I enjoyed it quite a bit. Lots of action and a good touch of romance. The only reason that I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 was because of the ending. There was this whole build-up around who the "bad guy" was and evading him and such, and then it ended really abruptly and was very anti-climatic. There was another section of the book after that to wrap up a few loose ends. I kinda liked that section, but at the same time it seemed a bit odd to me. Maybe it's trying to set up another book? Not sure. But overall, I am really glad that I read this.
The only other problem I had was that I listened to the audiobook and I'm not sure if I recommend that. It was a full cast audio, so basically one reader for everything but the dialogue, and then a bunch of readers for the dialogue. And honestly, they were all pretty good. It took me a bit to get used to that kind of setup because I am so used to just one or possibly 2 readers. But I got used to it pretty quick. The problem I had was the music that they kept inserting into it! That drove me crazy! I kept feeling like I was watching some old movie where some says something that's supposed to shock or surprise you, then you hear "Dum, dum, dum" (or whatever the music happens to be). I just felt like laughing every time that they did it! Which is probably not a good thing since they were adding it to the parts that were supposed to be suspenseful! So, I think that I'd recommend reading it, not listening to it.
AUTHOR: KRISTIN CASHORE
GENRE: YOUNG ADULT FANTASY
RATING: 4 STARS
This is a very interesting young adult fantasy novel. The main character, Katsa, lives in a world where certain people posses extreme skills or talents, called a "grace". These people are called Gracelings, and they are easily recognizable by the fact that their eyes are two different colors. Katsa's grace is the ability to kill, and she's forced to use her grace as the King's enforcer. But what should she do when the King's orders go against everything that she believes and feels?
This was a really good fantasy novel! I enjoyed it quite a bit. Lots of action and a good touch of romance. The only reason that I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 was because of the ending. There was this whole build-up around who the "bad guy" was and evading him and such, and then it ended really abruptly and was very anti-climatic. There was another section of the book after that to wrap up a few loose ends. I kinda liked that section, but at the same time it seemed a bit odd to me. Maybe it's trying to set up another book? Not sure. But overall, I am really glad that I read this.
The only other problem I had was that I listened to the audiobook and I'm not sure if I recommend that. It was a full cast audio, so basically one reader for everything but the dialogue, and then a bunch of readers for the dialogue. And honestly, they were all pretty good. It took me a bit to get used to that kind of setup because I am so used to just one or possibly 2 readers. But I got used to it pretty quick. The problem I had was the music that they kept inserting into it! That drove me crazy! I kept feeling like I was watching some old movie where some says something that's supposed to shock or surprise you, then you hear "Dum, dum, dum" (or whatever the music happens to be). I just felt like laughing every time that they did it! Which is probably not a good thing since they were adding it to the parts that were supposed to be suspenseful! So, I think that I'd recommend reading it, not listening to it.
1/2/10
Erec Rex: The Dragon's Eye by Kaza Kingsley
TITLE: EREC REX: THE DRAGON'S EYE
AUTHOR: KAZA KINGSLEY
GENRE: YOUNG ADULT FANTASY
RATING: 5 STARS
This book was an extremely fun read! I was intrigued at page 1 and hooked by page 50. It's the first in a series that I could easily see becoming as popular as Harry Potter. It’s written as a pre-teens fantasy, but will appeal to readers of all ages. This book follows the adventures of Erec Rex as he searches for his mom and finds himself thrust into a world that he never imagined existed. He explores new lands, meets new people and tries to figure out where he and his mother fit into this bizarre world.
Kingsley did a fantastic job of creating a fun, intriguing world with great characters that you could easily identify with. I loved how she took ordinary, every day things and twisted them up. For example, instead of just using the common name for a fast food place, she called them fastaurants. Just simple things like that added to the feel of the story. Kingsley did a great job of creating suspense, mystery and quite a lot of fun. There were times that I found myself laughing aloud, including a scene with a suit of armor that sent me into a flashback of the days when I watched Monty Python and the Holy Grail over and over again. This first book left quite a lot of mysteries and questions unanswered and I can’t wait to pick up the next novel to see what is revealed and to experience more of this great adventure.
I highly recommend this book to everyone that enjoys a great fantasy. And if you personally don’t like fantasy, but you have any kids in your life, you should definitely pick this up for them. It’ll be a hit!
AUTHOR: KAZA KINGSLEY
GENRE: YOUNG ADULT FANTASY
RATING: 5 STARS
This book was an extremely fun read! I was intrigued at page 1 and hooked by page 50. It's the first in a series that I could easily see becoming as popular as Harry Potter. It’s written as a pre-teens fantasy, but will appeal to readers of all ages. This book follows the adventures of Erec Rex as he searches for his mom and finds himself thrust into a world that he never imagined existed. He explores new lands, meets new people and tries to figure out where he and his mother fit into this bizarre world.
Kingsley did a fantastic job of creating a fun, intriguing world with great characters that you could easily identify with. I loved how she took ordinary, every day things and twisted them up. For example, instead of just using the common name for a fast food place, she called them fastaurants. Just simple things like that added to the feel of the story. Kingsley did a great job of creating suspense, mystery and quite a lot of fun. There were times that I found myself laughing aloud, including a scene with a suit of armor that sent me into a flashback of the days when I watched Monty Python and the Holy Grail over and over again. This first book left quite a lot of mysteries and questions unanswered and I can’t wait to pick up the next novel to see what is revealed and to experience more of this great adventure.
I highly recommend this book to everyone that enjoys a great fantasy. And if you personally don’t like fantasy, but you have any kids in your life, you should definitely pick this up for them. It’ll be a hit!
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