The Golden Spiral by Lisa Mangum

Genre: YA, sci-fi/fantasy
Published: May 2010
Source: Publisher--Shadow Mountain
Review: 3/5



Brief Summary: The story continues right where Hourglass leaves off.  I'll leave it at that to avoid spoilers.
My Thoughts:  My reaction to the second installment of The Hourglass Door series is much like the first. It has an interesting premise, likable characters, plenty of romance (a little too much sometimes), and a thickening plot.  I'm not the intended audience so the teenage romance gets pretty sappy at times.  My 12 year-old daughter loves these books and has read them all at least 3 times.
Recommendations: Great for those looking for a clean romance with fantasy elements set in a modern world.
Ratings: 2.2.1  There's plenty of kissing and affection, some violence, and mild (if any) profanity.


Thanks for reading!

The Forbidden Sea by Sheila A. Nielson

Genre: YA fiction, Fantasy

Published: 2010, 304 pgs.

Source: Personal library (I first read a borrowed copy but then bought my own)

Other info: Local author, book club selection

Review: 4.5/5 stars

I don't know if it stems from some personal fantasy of my own, but I'm a sucker for this kind of story. I'm talking about the stories where the plain, insignificant girl becomes a great heroine of a fantastic tale. The kind in which a girl who doesn't think much of herself comes to realize how wonderful and important she is. I love books like Jane Eyre and Precious Bane. All those Regency romances in which the little spinster snags the heart of the handsome rake are my guilty pleasures.

When one of the ladies from my book club suggested Forbidden Sea because she knew the author and thought that she would come to our discussion, I have to admit that I was skeptical. I really didn't think I would like a "mermaid" book. What I discovered as I started reading was that this was not a book about mermaids as much as it was a wonderful coming-of-age story of an interesting and lovable heroine. The book hits the ground running as fourteen-year-old Adrianne is out on a stormy beach searching for her missing younger sister when she encounters a beautiful but sinister mermaid trying to kidnap her sister. The story unfolds from there as she tries to figure out the mystery of the mermaid and why she wants her sister, Cecily, while at the same time trying to take care of her family which depends on her despite her young age. There's adventure, unrequited love, mystery, and all the makings of a great story.

Sheila Nielson did come to our book club and it was so fun. She is awesome and I'll tell you all about it in another post. I highly recommend this book to all lovers of YA fiction. After I came home so excited about our book club meeting my husband decided to read it and he really liked it, too.

Rating: 1.1.1 A perfectly clean read. The mermaids are even fully clothed! :)

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle

Genre: Middle grade, fantasy/sci-fi, Newbery Medal

Published: 1962

Audiobook

My review: 2/5 stars

My husband had been telling me for years that this was a book he had read growing up that he loved. I picked it as one to read for the Shelf Discovery Challenge because it seemed like I was one of the few who hadn't read it yet. Well, I can now say that I've read it and I can check another Newbery Medal winner off my list but I can't say that I liked it. It just seemed a little silly to me. Meg, the main character, was a little too whiny but maybe that was just the way it sounded since I listened to the audiobook. However, Madeleine L'Engle, herself, was the reader so it seems like she would portray her the way she intended.

Since I have the book Shelf Discovery, I decided to see what Lizzie Skurnick had to say about it. She seems to really like it. She identifies with Meg and likes her "bullheadedness". She says that she's read it 18 times. Hmmm. Probably an exaggeration but I don't think you'll catch me reading it twice. I think it probably depends on what age you are when you read this for the first time. What are your thoughts?

Rating: 1.1.1 Nothing offensive to me.

Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier

Genre: YA fiction, fantasy

Published: 2007

Audiobook

Review: 3.5/5 stars

Wildwood Dancing is a retelling of The Twelve Dancing Princesses. Jena is the second of 5 sisters who live with their father in a castle in Transylvania. Each full moon the sisters pass through a portal to go dancing with creatures of the Other Kingdom.

I enjoyed this book but thought it was a little too predictable and a little too long but this could be because I listened to the audiobook version. The narrator drove me a little crazy because she spoke in a little girl's voice. Maybe because of the voice, Jena seemed a little whiny; and for being such a smart girl, she could be a little clueless. Overall, the story was interesting and enjoyable. I know a lot of people loved this book. I think I would have enjoyed it more had I read it. Maybe I'll try it again in a few years.

Rating: 1.2.1 Includes a little violence.

Rapunzel's Revenge by Shannon Hale and Nathan Hale

Category: Middle grade, Graphic Novel, fantasy

Published: 2008, 144 pgs.

Review: 3/5 stars

This is not your mother's Rapunzel story, it's Rapunzel with a wild west flavor. I thought this was a cute book but I didn't love it. I'm not sure the graphic novel is for me. I found myself annoyed when I had to infer the intended meaning by looking at the pictures. I know. That's the whole point of a graphic novel--the pictures are supposed to tell the story and the words are just there to assist in the telling. I personally prefer words that paint the picture in my head.

I don't know if I'll read very many more graphic novels. But before I completely write off this genre, are there some out there that I shouldn't miss out on?

Rating: 1.1.1 I can't remember anything offensive

Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale

Category: YA, fantasy, romance

Published: 2007

Review: 4/5 stars

After I finished reading this book I felt stupid when I read the book description on the inside of the jacket cover. It describes the book as a retelling of a Grimms fairy tale "reimagined and reset on the central Asian steppes." Duh! I had spent the first chapters imagining the characters as blond-haired and blue eyed. Then even when there were some sketches of people who looked Asian I had a hard time changing what was in my head. But I should have known from the beginning when it referred to the leaders of the people with the title of Khan that this story was set somewhere like Mongolia long ago. It also calls some areas of the land "the steppes." I think I would have enjoyed this book a little more if I'd had the right pictures in my mind.

I know a lot of people have loved this book and although I enjoyed it a lot, I didn't love it. I think I expected too much because I had heard so many great things about it. I do recommend it but it didn't grab me like I wanted it to.

Rating: 2.2.1 There were a couple of places with nudity that I thought were a little weird. Maybe I'm such a prude that I can't even read about nudity without feeling a little uncomfortable.

Princess Ben by Catherine Gilbert Murdock

Content Rating: 1.1.1
Category: YA, fairy-tale, fantasy
Published: 2008
Audiobook
Review: 3.5/5


Princess Ben is another in a growing list of embellished/expanded/reworked fairytales. I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to those who like Shannon Hale and Gail Carson Levine books. Ben, short for Benevolence, has been raised very differently than a normal princess would be and doesn't understand what is required of her to behave as royalty should. Her aunt tries to teach her how to behave properly but Ben is very stubborn and self-centered. Ben is the narrator so she doesn't say this about herself but you start to realize after a while that although she is funny and likable, she also has some character flaws. That's the thing that sets this book apart from some of the other fairytale books I've read. Ben is not the normal princess that we usually find. I've wavered back and forth between giving this 3.5 and 4 stars. I've finally decided on 3.5 but I'm not exactly sure why. The romance part of it was a little underdeveloped, I think, but it's worth reading if you like this genre.

Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer

Rating: 3.2.2

Recommended audience: Mature teen to adult

Category: YA, fantasy, romance

Review: 4/5

First off, let me say that I really liked this book. It was engrossing, unpredictable (to me, anyway), and a really fun ride. I want to be very careful about spoilers so I'm going to try to not go into too much detail, but I do want to talk a little about some of the problems I had with this book without giving too much away. As a married woman, I can read this book without blushing and I can understand that these relationships are fictional and they don't resemble real relationships in the real world. That may seem very obvious but when I think back to myself as a teenager, I realize that I wasn't always able to make that connection. If you had asked me about it, I would have responded that I was very mature for my age and of course I understood that vampires are not real and that human relationships are not like those of superhuman, immortal vampires. (Duh!) In reality though, I think my perceptions of life and relationships were greatly influenced by the books that I read and, unfortunately, not always in a good way. I'm just a little concerned about the millions of teenage girls that are reading these highly entertaining books. Do they understand that they can't fall asleep every night in their shirtless boyfriend's arms without getting into trouble? Do they understand that they can love someone without being completely obsessed with them? Do they understand that's it's not right to string along a male best friend when you are engaged to another man? Anyway, there's more but I don't want to get into that because it would give away part of the plot, but you probably get my drift. I wouldn't say that teens shouldn't read this, but I think a good conversation about it with a parent is definitely a good idea.

Again, with all that being said, I thought this was a good book. It may be that I'm taking it all way too seriously and my concerns are really not a big deal. What do you think?

Far World: Water Keep by J Scott Savage

Rating: 1.2.1

Recommended audience: 10 and up

Category: YA fiction, fantasy

Rating:

I am finally back from my unscheduled hiatus. I don't know exactly why it has been so long since I've reviewed a book but I'm back and promise to have several posted soon. This is an exciting one to start with because its a giveaway post! Shadow Mountain, this book's publisher, will send one of you lucky commenters a preview copy of this fun YA book. Just leave a comment and you will be entered to win--easy as that. And now to the review and an interview with the author.

Marcus is a 13 year-old boy from Earth and Kyja lives in Farworld, a far away planet that has a magical connection to Earth. These two are the most unlikely of heros--he has been disabled since he was a baby and she is the only magic-less (yeah, I don't know if that's a real word) person in all of Farworld, but they seem to be destined for great things. This is a fun story with interesting characters, fantastical creatures, and a wild adventure. I think kids are going to love it.

I sat down with the author, Scott Savage, in a little bakery somewhere in Alaska to chat about his book. (I chose to pretend we were in Alaska because I'm getting pretty tired of the summer heat--and our conversation actually took place over email. :) ) I had a hot, gooey cinnamon roll and he had something cream-filled (it's all about the cream). Here's how the conversation went.

Me: Tell me a little about yourself.

Scott: I’m forty-five and the father of four kids ranging in ages from 8 to 20. I didn’t write my first book until I was thirty-eight. Water Keep will be my fifth book since then. I have always loved reading and actually used to cut school to go to the library, but it never occurred to me someone would actually pay to read my stories.

Me: What was your major in college? Did you have a career before you became a writer?
Scott: A little from column A and a little from column B. I was never an English major, but I enjoyed all types of communication classes from creative writing to drama to speech and debate. I’ve always loved to tell stories, but somehow it never occurred to me that I could be a published novelist. I really kind of feel into the whole thing.

Me: Why did you choose to write a young adult fantasy novel?
Scott: I really didn’t “choose” to write YA or fantasy, even though I love reading the genre. I didn’t think I could write it, because it was so different from what I have read in the past. But I had this idea stuck in my head that wouldn’t let me sleep. I started writing this book at 2:00 AM to prove to myself I couldn’t do it and get this crazy storyline out of my head. But five hours and five thousand words later, I realized I was writing a fantasy and I was having a ball doing it. The rest of the book seemed to flow almost as easily. Now that I’ve done it though, I’m really glad I did.

Me: It seems that most authors are avid readers. Are you? What are some of your favorites from the past few months?
Scott: Oh yeah! I never go anywhere without a book. I just finished Neil Gaiman’s Neverwhere. It was absolutely amazing. That guys imagination is a national treasure. I also finished the first book in the Percy Jackson series. Younger audience, but very entertaining. Now I’m reading John Saul’s “The Devil’s Labyrinth.” I haven’t finished it yet, but I like it so far.

Me: In books like Harry Potter and The Da Vinci Code there are some anagrams such as "Tom Marvolo Riddle" being rearranged to spell "I am Lord Voldemort" or "O, Draconian Devil" becomes "Leonardo Da Vinci". You have an anagram in your book, too. I've always been curious about the process for making an anagram. What was your first step?
Scott: It wasn’t a big surprise for the reader, because they know who he really is from almost the beginning. But I loved the image of the burning letters on the dry grass. The first thing I did was start with Bonesplinter and look for a normal first name. Then I had to play with the letters to come up with a last name that worked.

Me: Most of the fantasy novels that I've read primarily include mythical creatures from our world, such as, unicorns, dragons, creatures from Greek mythology, and so on. You created many new creatures in Farworld and seemed to even steer clear of our own mythical creatures. Is there a reason for that?
Scott: I like the mythical creatures too. The Percy Jackson novels did a great job with those. But one of the things I really liked about the HP novels was that you never felt like you completely knew all about Rowling’s world because she threw knew things at you. You couldn’t just say, “Oh that’s a troll, I know all about it. That’s an elf.” She had centaurs, but she also had dementors. I wanted Farworld to feel like a truly knew world, not just a rehash of the typical fantasy.

Me: I liked the characters of Marcus, Kyja, and others. Do you base any of your characters on people you know?
Scott: Not directly. I find that if you envision someone you know when writing a character, you lose the ability to let the character become who they need to. I see bits and pieces of people I know in my characters, just like you might say this guy reminds me of my brother in law because they have the same sense of humor. But by the time I’ve written the first book, my characters have become as real to me as anyone I know in real life.

Me: We know that Water Keep is the first book in a series. Are you working on the next one now and when do you hope to have it done?

Scott: I am. And I have to say that I am having a total ball with it. I love writing a book that makes me laugh out loud and gives me goose bumps. Land Keep has definitely done both.

Me: Thanks so much. I enjoyed your book and predict that you'll have great success.

Scott: Thank you! That would be great.

Very nice guy. If you'd like a chance to win a preview copy be sure to make a comment. I'll hold the drawing on Sept. 3rd.

Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine

Rating: 1.1.1

Recommende audience: 8 and up

Category: Juvenile Fiction, Fantasy, YA Fiction

Review: 4/5 stars

I listened to the audio version of this book and I kind of wish that I hadn't. The narrator read in a little girl voice that distracted me. I'm sure it was intended to be listened to by children and the voice may have been appealing to children, but it wasn't to me. That being said, I thought it was a good book with a wonderful story. As I had been told, it is quite a bit different than the movie and I enjoyed both as separate, though similar stories. In the story, Ella is given a "gift" as a newborn by the completely clueless fairy, Lucinda. Lucinda gives her the gift of obedience so whatever Ella is told to do, she must obey. This turns out to be a curse rather than a gift as evidenced by the many difficult situations Ella finds herself in. Despite this curse and maybe because of it, Ella is a strong-willed, independent character who just wants to be able to do what she wants to do, instead of others dictating to her. I recommend this Newbery Honor book but I would suggest reading it rather than listening to it.

Messenger by Lois Lowry

Rating: 1.2.1
Recommended audience: Ages 10+
Category: Fantasy, YA fiction, juvenile fiction
Review:


This is the book that brings The Giver and Gathering Blue together. I'm not going to say very much about this book because I don't want to give anything away about the other two. I will say that this does bring up some good points about greed and materialism. What are we sacrificing when we become too greedy and are consumed with getting "things"? Are we actually giving up something in our efforts to get more? This was an interesting book and a good ending to this trilogy. I thought it ended a little abruptly but other then that I really enjoyed it.

Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry

Rating: 2.2.1 (PG)
Recommended audience: 10+
Category: Fantasy, juvenile and YA fiction
Review:


This book is set in the same time period as Lowry's The Giver but in a different part of the land. It is the story of Kira who is the only crippled person in the whole village, because usually when a baby is born with a defect, it is taken to "the Field" and left for dead. The village is very primitive and the people just barely eke out a living; everyone is required to work every day but most people live in poverty. Kira was saved from being left in the "Field" because her mother fought to keep her and Kira's grandfather was on the Council of Guardians and had great influence. Now Kira's mother is dead and she is threatened again to be taken to the "Field". She is saved however because of a special gift that she has. I really like the way Lowry writes. In this book and The Giver I could feel that something is not quite right and she slowly gives more information so it keeps me turning the pages. The characters are interesting and so is this society that lives in the distant future.

This is a stand alone book. Though it is connected to The Giver it is not necessary to read The Giver first.

Stardust by Neil Gaiman

Rating: 4.3.4

Recommended audience: Adult

Category: Fantasy, romance

I read this book after seeing that someone on another blog had called it one of the best books she read last year. Maybe I was expecting too much but I didn't think it was that great. It is about a boy of 18 who sets off to the land of Fairy to find a fallen star that he sees one night. There are others looking for this star--which happens to be a young women. There's a lot of adventure and intrigue. However there is also a pretty graphic sex scene in the first chapter and one f-word, thus the ratings above stated. I thought the ending was a little anti-climatic too. This book may just be a little too fantastical for me--too many weird creatures and strange phenomena. Overall it's not bad. I wouldn't just recommend to it anybody though, only to those who really like fantasy.

The Giver by Lois Lowry

Rating: 2.2.1

Recommended audience: 10+

Category: Fantasy, YA fiction

Set sometime in the distant future, this book takes place in a community in which all diversity has been eliminated. Everyone is given an assignment at the age of 12 in which they will serve until they are considered too old and then are placed in the "Home of the Old". The book is about a boy named Jonas and his unusual assignment. It is fascinating, thought provoking, infuriating, and just an excellent read. My only problem with it was that I didn't want it to end. Many people don't realize that Lowry also wrote companion books called Gathering Blue (2000) and Messenger (2004) that connect the characters of all three books. I haven't read them yet but I'm anxious to.

The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale

Rating: 2.2.1

Recommended audience: Teen to adult

Category: YA fiction, fantasy, romance

I listened to this one on cd's and I really think I would have preferred reading it. The recording of this book is one with a different actor reading each voice and I found it quite distracting in the beginning. Eventually I got used to it and I didn't think about it anymore but I just have a feeling that I would have enjoyed this book more if I had read it. This a retelling, not a twist, on the Goose Girl fairy tale. I had never heard of the Goose Girl before so the whole story was new to me but knowing many fairy tales, I was able to predict fairly easily what was going to happen but that didn't prevent me from enjoying the ride. It has a slow start but it gets much better. Like all of Hale's characters that I've read so far, the heroine is interesting and worth getting to know. I definitely recommend this book to any lovers of fairy tales, young and old.

Dragon Rider by Cornelia Funke

Rating: 1.2.2

Recommended audience: 9 and up

Category: Fantasy

(Audiobook)


This was a fun listening experience. Brendan Fraser is the narrator and he did quite a good job, giving each character a different voice and interesting accents. The book tells the story of a dragon who travels half-way around the world looking for a legendary refuge for dragons. He does this because humans are encroaching on the area where he and his fellow dragons have been living for a hundred years. I haven't read very many dragon books so maybe it's not that unusual, but I was surprised that this book was set in modern times. I usually think of dragon tales as being set during medieval times or some fantasy world that seems like a medieval time. This is a book found in the children's section and I can see kids eating this stuff up, but I did enjoy it too. I wouldn't call it great literature but it is a light, fun read.

Princess Academy by Shannon Hale

Rating: 1.2.1

Recommended audience: Pre-teens and up

Category: Fantasy, romance, YA Fiction

I've heard it said that this is the "golden age of children's literature." When I heard that I thought, "Yeah, Harry Potter is so awesome," and didn't think much more about it. As I've read other book blogs I've decided to look into some of these young adult and children's books and now I'm excited to read a lot more. This is my first book by Shannon Hale and I can't wait to read her other books. Princess Academy is set on Mount Eskel in a mystical world that the author describes so well that it feels like it really exists. It's not the kind of fantasy world where there are elves or sorcery or talking animals, just a few things with magical properties. All the girls ages 12-17 of Mount Eskel are required to leave their village and attend a Princess Academy where they learn what they need to know to be a princess. Then the prince of the lowlands will choose one of the girls to be his princess. It sounds silly and simple but it's not. The main character, Miri, is admirable and interesting, funny and kind. I definitely recommend this book for tweens and teens but their mothers would probably enjoy it too.

Wicked by Gregory Maquire

Rating: 5.3.5

Category: Read at your own risk

I haven't finished this book and I'm not sure if I will. I've been listening to the audio version while I run and though I have enjoyed it, I've about decided that I should just wait for the musical. It is definitely not a clean read. I have heard that it is a very good book and I can see that it would be very interesting and entertaining but there is just a little too much sex, innuendo, and crudity for my taste. Since the musical is so family friendly I have heard of many people being caught unaware by the content of this book so I thought that I'd try it out and see for myself. With 3 F-bombs in the first third and more to come I'm sure, I've given it a 5 rating on profanity. The 5 for sex is deserved but the 3 for violence is just an estimate of what may come since there hasn't been much violence yet. If you really want to read this book I would guess that you could skip parts and be okay because it doesn't have profanity throughout like some books I've been unfortunate enough to pick up. If I do finish I think I will try the book version instead of the audio because I might be able to control what I read a little better. I would definitely not want my teenage daughter to read this.

Eclipse by Stephanie Meyer

Rating: 3.3.2

Recommended audience: Mature teen to Adult (16+)

Category: Romance, thriller

Another fun read by Stephanie Meyer. Similar concerns as in the first two books. The physical aspect of Edward and Bella's relation gets a little more edgy in this book and I've said before that it concerns me. I know there are books out there that are much worse but I think this one is held to a higher standard because of the religious beliefs of the author. I think morally it gets a little gray in there but most unmarried people (teens or not) come up against these kinds of issues (pre-marital sex). With the standards of today's society, choosing to wait until marriage is not only almost unheard of, it can often be ridiculed. Edward and Bella deal with this issue, if not always in a mature way (Bella), they do at least make the right choice--in my humble opinion. :)

New Moon by Stephanie Meyer

Rating: 2.3.2

Recommended audience: Mature teen to adult

Category: Romance

Another fun read but I did see it coming. I won't give anything away but this one seemed a little predictable to me because of fore-shadowing. Still, not all of it was predictable and it introduced some interesting characters. Bella drives me a little crazy because she just seems too dumb sometimes but, again, I'm afraid I identify with her stupidity a little too much sometimes, maybe that's why I can't stand it. I know some people who were quite bored with the middle of this book and I understand that opinion but I didn't think it was too boring. My biggest problem with this book though was the poor proofreading. There were so many errors that it really bugged me. I'm pretty nit-picky about that kind of stuff though so hopefully it doesn't bother you. Anyone know how I can get a job as Meyer's proof-reader?