First of all, thank you to the Book Pushers for being so patient with me ever since asking if I’d like to contribute a guest post. I took my sweet time getting it to them. No, like, a seriously sweet, long time. Partly because of work and home stress – if anyone’s clicked over to my own book blog lately, you’ll see a dearth of inactivity – but I also kept stumbling on what the heck to even talk about.

Then I started thinking about how my reading habits and likes and dislikes have changed over the years. I started out reading as a primarily fantasy reader. I thought about how largely the Heralds of Valdemar series by Mercedes Lackey influenced me as a young reader, how its main character, a young girl named Talia and her adventures in becoming a herald of Valdemar completely swept me away. I realized that the reason I love that series so much – and I plan to reread it again this year for the upteen millionth time – is because the main character is female and she is…profound. So profound to me. She faces unspeakable horrors and comes out of it all a strong woman. And she does all of this as someone who is actively involved in influencing the plot, not simply as a character that everything happens to.

Now, I realize I’m remembering Talia through the haze of a long ago childhood love of the books she’s in, but this also made me realize how, as I’ve grown older, I truly have come to appreciate a female character with agency in fantasy novels. Agency is a term I’ve just recently come to know in regards to reading, thanks to its use on various other book blogs. That’s the term I was missing from my vocabulary soup to show why female characters had become so important to me. I want them to be strong and lead the book, not just sit back, wait for things to happen and for other characters to bring the book’s opportunities to them.

Let’s not confuse this with the dreaded TSTL syndrome, though – Too Stupid To Live, an acronym I learned thanks to romance reading, but it no less present in any other genre. I don’t care to read about any character that can’t either make a smart decision from the get-go, or at the very least can’t make a dumb error but then fix it. But often the TSTL moment is a contrived device anyway and that’s why it’s so frustrating – it’s rarely acknowledged in the characterization or plot as a dumb move.

I think female characters hauling a bag full of agency can make mistakes. They can be full of faults and imperfections and things that make a reader wince. Bad things can and will happen to them. But they have traits that balance those as well. They have the ability to think past and beyond their faults, or to find a way to turn those bad traits and situations into something useful. Those are the kinds of female characters I like. The ones that figure things out and, yes, somehow end up saving the day.

It’s amazing to me that, in our day and age, that women are treated so completely poorly in many ways still – it’s no wonder I look for instances of strong, positive and heroic fictional women to entertain me. Ones that fight hard and aren’t afraid to love. Ones who believe in something and gain respect while striving for that belief. I love it when I find them in a fantasy novel.

I was hoping maybe we could all discuss fantasy books that feature some amazing female characters. And not that the guys can’t be wonderful as well (I hold a special place in my reading heart for Harry Dresden, for example), but I felt a particular need to highlight the ladies this go around. I’ve included a small list of books I’ve read in recent years that I feel featured particularly noteworthy female characters. What are some of yours?

My list is in no particular order..well, unless What Pops Into My Mind First counts.

The Spiritwalker books by Kate Elliott – Cold Magic and Cold Fire

The October Daye books by Seanan McGuire – every single one! 

 The Dragoneye series by Alison Goodman – Eon and Eona

The Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews – but of course, right?

The Rachel Morgan/Hollows series by Kim Harrison

The Allie Beckstrom series by Devon Monk

OK, so those are just a jumping off point – let’s hear what books you’d rec for some great, woman-empowering reading.

(And thanks, Book Pushers, for the invite and space to talk on your great blog!)

Fantasy Celebration: Guest Post with Kmont is a post from: The Book Pushers | Book Reviews | Book Chatter

Publisher: Ace Books
Publish Date: 2000
How I got this book: Purchased

All the creatures of forest, field and riverbank knew the baby was special. She was the princess Briar-Rose, cursed by the evil fairy Pernicia on her name-day. But Katriona stole her away to the small village where Kat lives with her aunt, and they raise the princess as if she were their own. No other human, not even Rosie herself, knows her true identity.
But Pernicia is looking for her, and two village fairies and all the animals in the realm may not be enough to save her.
This blurb came from the author’s website here.

In my opinion, fantasy is based on fairy tales or myths and legends depending on how you like to phrase them. As many civilizations as have existed different stories some about what/who came before, others intended as a teaching or a warning tool. Those stories change from civilization to civilization and as time passes. In fact some of the stories become “watered down” from their older versions as the need for those lessons/warnings disappears. Here in the US most people are familiar with Han Christian Andersen, Andrew Lang and his series of colored fairy tale books like The Yellow Fairy Book, or Walt Disney’s versions. Growing up I spent a lot of time seeking out and reading as many different variations of fairy tales, myths and legends as I could find. One of my favorite tales happens to be Sleeping Beauty. I have enjoyed all of the different variations I have found including Disney’s movie (my favorite of their animated movies) so when I heard that Robin McKinley was coming out with a retelling I had to get it. Over the past 12 years I have worn out two MMPB copies of Spindle’s End.

The basic story is the same, King and Queen have a little girl, the country rejoices, a party is thrown in her honor, an evil witch/fairy visits and gifts a curse, the child is hidden, the evil witch/fairy finds her and arranges for the curse to happen, after a series of events good manages to triumph over evil. What makes this version special is the world-building, the characters and their personalities, and the twists that are added. Even though I knew Spindle’s End would have a happy ending I was still swept along the journey towards that ending and wondered how that happy ending would look.

I have found that Ms McKinley always pays attention to the details. After she has described something I can almost see, smell, and taste it as I continue to read which makes it really easy for me to suspend disbelief. Nothing is mentioned or included that doesn’t have a purpose even if it seems like it is just part of the scenery. I really enjoy being able to just sit back and read knowing that nothing will jar me out of the world she has created. Ms McKinley puts the same amount of detail into her characters, human or otherwise, primary or supporting cast. They are all three-dimensional and how they interact with each other directly relates to their respective viewpoints of the world. The different animals still retained a sense of otherness combined with their various traits.

I enjoyed watching the slow unfolding of an understanding between Katriona and Barder along with their eventual family. The initial meeting between Rosie and Peony and their mutual awkwardness that turned into best friends was a great thing to see. I also really enjoyed how time passed for everyone except for Narl, who while a mystery to the entire town was also a key member of the town. The rest of the villagers were rooted in the very ordinary and filled all niches you find in a small mainly self-contained group of people. They provided the grounding, which made magic, fairies, and everything associated with them seem part of everyday life. The twists that were also caused in part by the characters are what pushed this beyond just a retelling into a really good retelling. Those twists are major spoilers so I am not going to discuss what they are just that they fit perfectly and ensured that I was satisfied with the happy ending.

The combination of Ms McKinley’s world-building, characters, their interactions with each other and some really neat twists have provided me with a well fleshed out fairy tale that each time I re-read provides me with hours of entertainment.

I give Spindle’s End an A.

Links to purchase:
Amazon Book | Kindle eBook | Barnes & Noble 

Fantasy Celebration: Review – Spindle’s End by Robin McKinley is a post from: The Book Pushers | Book Reviews | Book Chatter

Because of a thousand-year-old alliance between humans and pegasi, Princess Sylviianel is ceremonially bound to Ebon, her own pegasus, on her twelfth birthday. The two species coexist peacefully, despite the language barriers separating them. Humans and pegasi both rely on specially-trained Speaker magicians as the only means of real communication.

But it’s different for Sylvi and Ebon. They can understand each other. They quickly grow close—so close that their bond becomes a threat to the status quo—and possibly to the future safety of their two nations.

*Blurb taken from author’s official website*

I’ve heard many good things about Robin McKinley from our fellow bookpusher, E_booklover, and generally around the blogosphere, but I had never picked up a book by hers. When I was in Forbidden Planet in the last meet-up, I spied a signed copy of Pegasus and Has told me instantly, READ IT! So I bought it, but it stayed hidden away on my bookshelf until the other night. I read the first 40 pages, and by golly, I was already in love with McKinley’s author voice and her extraordinary talent for story telling.

Pegasus is like a fairy-tale story but has so much more scope and attention to detail that I was kicking myself for not reading this author before. It’s a Young Adult fantasy that features Humans, and the Pegasi in which both are bound by a treaty signed many years ago that binds the two different species together. The Pegasi are flying horses with magical abilities, and itty bitty hands that I found to be fascinating. And the story starts and centers around 12 year old, Sylvi, youngest child and only daughter to the King. All of the royal family have bindings to the Pegasi, and as she is coming of age, it’s Sylvi’s turn — but she is not looking forward to it and is scared of the prospect. When that day comes, the most extraordinary thing happens. When Sylvi and her Pegasus, Ebon, are binded together in a ceremony that is watched by everyone — including the Magicians — they make the startling discovery that they are able to speak to one another mentally which has never happened before as the Pegasi and Humans both speak different languages, and they are unable to communicate with one another properly without the aid of the Magician speakers. This causes upset and worry amongst people as even though they signed a treaty, touching a Pegasus is considered to be a sort of taboo. Sylvi and Ebon’s friendship and extraordinary bond changes everything, and not everyone is happy about it.

Firstly, if you’re looking for any sort of romance in this book, there is none. It’s all about the world building and relationship between the Pegasus and Humans, and Sylvi and Ebon are the ones that have changed the status-quo so to speak. There is a lot of attention to detail in this book, so it starts off quite slow but I liked that there was no action immediately. I found myself wanting to know about the details and past history, and it’s definitely a fantasy novel that you can’t rush reading otherwise you’ll miss details that are pertinent to the story — at least, I found it to be that way. Sylvi is not an extraordinary character, and she has no distinct personality, but what makes her special is her friendship with Ebon — who was just awesome. He has so much sass and wit for a horse that it was hilarious, especially his first encounter with Sylvi at the ceremony. And whilst they both cherish their friendship, they know that there is a huge barrier between both species that’s put there by humans. And as the story goes on, it becomes much more obvious that not everything is as happy as it seems on the surface.

What’s so great about this book is the story telling, because it’s so unique and magical that you just want to keep on reading and learning more about why the Pegasus never talk to Humans, and why do some of the Magicians want to keep Sylvi and Ebon apart. It’s so very much like a mystery, and I did find myself getting a little annoyed by how slow things seem to be happening towards the latter part of the book. I was also not expecting this to be a series, so I was pretty miffed when things were not wrapped whatsoever at the end of the book, and I felt like where is the rest of the story? Is that it? And because of that, my grade of the book lowered which makes me super mad because I loved everything about it — except for the ending.

Pegasus is a rich fantasy tale that takes its time to explore and reveal its world, and if you’re looking for a high adventure, this is not the book for you. But I would definitely recommend it for McKinley’s talent for world building, and its almost sleepy fairy-tale aspect that leaves you wanting to know and learn more.

I give Pegasus a A-

Barnes & Noble |

I think this is one of the most wonderful YA fantasy books I’ve read to date, and I want to giveaway one copy of Pegasus. Giveaway is open internationally to wherever the Book Depository ships too. All you have to do is comment below.

Fantasy Celebration: Review & Giveaway: Pegasus by Robin McKinley is a post from: The Book Pushers | Book Reviews | Book Chatter

For me, being able to escape into a different world with different races, creatures is the pinnacle height of imagination, and there is serious skill in creating a new world and setting out its own rules.

Through out the two weeks, we have Interviews, Guest Posts, Reviews and Giveaways with authors, and bloggers.  I really hope that you’ll join us, and hopefully readers who haven’t yet tried reading in the genre, this might give you the incentive to dive in .

Fantasy Celebration: Introduction is a post from: The Book Pushers | Book Reviews | Book Chatter

“Hazel — Promise me you won’t give up on your dreams.”

“I won’t, Mom!” Hazel swears, assuming Mom means that she should try to be whatever she wants to be, a doctor, or lawyer, or even a mermaid. Hazel is just nine, but she really means to keep that promise.

Seventeen years later, she wonders if she’s broken it – or maybe just failed to fully realize it, because she hasn’t become a doctor, or a lawyer, or a mermaid. Or anything much, really. Yet, in one way, she has kept her promise — because Hazel is a Grand Champion Dreamer. When she’s asleep, she dreams a dazzling universe full of heroes and monsters, princesses and goddesses, cities and temples and gardens that make the most wonderful places on Earth seem dull in comparison.

During the day, she does what she has to do to pay the bills. At bedtime, she turns in, confident that she will dream, and that the sun will come up in the morning. So on the evening of her last day, she embraces the night wholeheartedly and drifts into the universe of her imagination.


But when the alarm goes off, she opens her eyes to darkness. The sun hasn’t come up, the world outside has become a City of Night, and the dwellers there are Night Shifters — gods and elves, daemons and djinns, dreamers and wizards. All of them have their own agendas, all of them are chasing Hazel, and as she fights to understand this world of dreams and her place in it, she can’t help remembering what her mother said.

And she wonders. All those years ago, when she swore to never give up on her dreams, did she really understand what she was promising?
This blurb came from Goodreads.

Back when I was on an extremely limited budget – allowance from chores—and I had exceeded my parents’ pockets on books from the bookstore, exceeded the library’s weekly checkout limit I lived for the Friends of the Library semi-annual book sales. We were members which meant we would show up early help organize them and get to shop a day before everyone else. Those sales provided my introduction to I don’t remember how many authors. One of the books I found was called Larissa and happened to be by Emily Devenport. I really enjoyed reading it and often wished I could find any other books by Ms Devenport, this was also during the heyday of Usenet and BBS (Bulletin Board System) so I didn’t have the capability of finding her website on the internet like we can today.

When we were contacted with a review request for The Night Shifters I liked the premise of the book and thought the author’s name sounded familiar, so I did a little research, found out it was the same author and leaped on the chance. Ms Devenport created an extremely vivid sort of world that reminded me of Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland and Neil Gaimen’s Neverwhere while containing some unique twists. As Hazel explores the City of Night she is faced with some interesting characters, choices and things that aren’t quite right. In the process she learned a lot about herself, her values and who she really was. I enjoyed watching Hazel triumph over some of her old fears and start paying attention to her instincts instead of what other people told her.

While the story as a whole flowed some of the scenes didn’t quite match up. I admire Ms Devenport’s use of that technique because it was very similar to how different scenes in a dream don’t necessarily appear to go together while you are experiencing it. I felt that added to the overall atmosphere in the City of Night. It was also interesting to see how characters continue to show up and morph according to the scene again making it more dreamlike. Unfortunately, while well written, I really struggled finishing The Night Shifters. Ms Devenport happened to hit a button I didn’t know I had which caused me to remember some of my neverending dreams that weren’t exactly nightmares but were not comfortable either. As a result I was never able to settle down and just enjoy. Just as a side note I wasn’t able to get into Alice in Wonderland or Neverwhere either.

I give The Night Shifters a C+

Links to purchase
Kindle eBook | Barnes & Noble 

Review – The Night Shifters by Emily Devenport is a post from: The Book Pushers | Book Reviews | Book Chatter

My personal favourite is the Immortals series that is set in the Tortall Universe. I’ve been meaning for a while to do an overall review, and this past week, I’ve done a major re-read of the series so I thought it was the perfect time.

I’m going to do a review of each book through out a time period. I’ll try and not totally gush and express my total book love of the most awesome mage EVER, Numair Salamin *grins*.

“Young Daine’s knack with horses gets her a job helping the royal horsemistress drive a herd of ponies to Tortall. Soon it becomes clear that Daine’s talent, as much as she struggles to hide it, is downright magical. Horses and other animals not only obey, but listen to her words. Daine, though, will have to learn to trust humans before she can come to terms with her powers, her past, and herself.”

Our heroine of the series is young Daine, a 13 year old girl orphan who has the most extraordinary gift which allows her to communicate and talk to animals. In Wild Magic, it’s the story of Daine’s introduction to the Tortall Kingdom and her learning about her abilities and finding a place to call home. We meet again characters we grew to love from the Alanna series who make appearances quite often — not only in Wild Magic — but throughout the rest of the series. If you’re a big fan of animals, you will enjoy this series a lot. What Tamora Pierce is best at is her ability for world building, her imagination for creating magical beasts and gods, and for creating characters that are unique and so full of personality that you’ll remember them for a long time to come.

Wild Magic I don’t believe is the best book in the series. It’s a little slow to start with, but once it gets going, it goes to strength to strength. Daine for the past few years has had a terrible and traumatic time after raiders killed her mother. She’s never had a father and doesn’t know who he is, and except for her horse, Cloud — who she can communicate with — she’s been alone for a long time, expect for when she was with the wolf pack. When she meets horsemistress Onua, and becomes her apprentice, it’s a lifeline for Daine. She tells a few porky pies, but Onua likes what she sees and hires Daine. From there, the two begin a friendship, and it’s not long into the journey they encounter trouble from monsters, they meet my book crush, Numair. *happy sigh*

Daine is very much young and naive despite the horror she had to endure, but there is also a core of strength in her that is similar to Alanna when she was young, but in a much quieter way. Daine can seem perhaps to others as ‘too perfect’ but she is a major contrast to Alanna and I think having another strong and in your face character as Alanna would have been overbearing. Daine though is thrust quickly into using her gifts when terrible creatures from the Immortal world, the Divine Realm, have escaped. Daine is forced to use her gifts to battle these terrible creatures, and there is a realistic amount of violence that doesn’t escape into graphic territory. I loved the scenes when they travelled to Pirates Swoop, and it’s there where a big-ass battle commences where animals, monsters, sea monsters and a dragon appear in scenes that showcases the awesome world building. I think said it before, but I would have LOVED to have read this series when I was kid. I think I would have loved it even more back then. Not only is the world building so solid, the dialog and characters and just as fantastic. There is wit and humour that makes reading Wild Magic so engrossing.

Wild Magic is more of an introductory piece than anything as the subsequent books go into a lot more depth. But it’s one that invokes such imagination that you’ll find it very hard to put down. I give Wild Magic a B+.

B&N | Amazon Book | Kindle eBook | Book Depository

REVIEW: Wild Magic by Tamora Pierce is a post from: The Book Pushers | Book Reviews | Book Chatter

When Harlequin started their LUNA imprint several years ago, little did I know that they would expose me to several authors who quickly made it to my autobuy list. I have been reading Michelle Sagara’s Chronicles of Elantra since about 2007 when the third book CAST IN SECRET was released. I don’t know why it took me so long to start reading them because I remember seeing the first CAST IN SHADOW on bookshelves. Before I get into my review since this is the eighth story set in Elantra, following one novella and six novels, I will provide you with a quick background. At the bottom of this review you can see the covers of the previous books, some of which you can click to find out more about that particular book.

Elantra is a rather large city that at the time this series starts is populated with six different species called Castes each with their own Castelord (ruler) and their own language. The six Castes are Human, Aerian, Barrani, Leontine, Tha’alani and Dragon. Some Castes have different forms of innate magic while others have some members who deal with more external forms of magic and yet others forbid all magic. Within Elantra each Caste has an area that is primarily theirs, yet there are common areas as well. In the Caste area Caste specific laws as dictated by their Castelord take precedence unless a crime is committed between different Castes or an appeal is made to the higher authority. The higher authority is the Dragon Emperor, he rules Elantra and what he says goes. He has created a set of codified laws that govern inter-Caste relations and provide an overall structure for the running of the city. To enforce those laws the Dragon Emperor created three enforcement branches; the Swords – like the Army, the Hawks – like the police and detectives, and the Wolves – who go after what the Hawks cannot handle and are not necessarily expected to bring their targets back alive.

On certain edges Elantra is bordered by what are called Fiefs. The Fiefs do not fall under the control of the Dragon Emperor and are ruled by the strongest person there. The Fief takes the name of that ruler so as the ruler changes so changes the Fief’s name. There, instead of a written set of laws, might makes right provided it doesn’t go against what the Fieflord wants. As a result people in the Fiefs do whatever they have to do to survive. So is extremely rare for someone born and raised in one of the Fiefs leaves and is able to successfully transition to life in Elantra. The heroine of this series, Kaylin Neya, has managed to make that transition.

When I finish a book I usually wonder what happens after the immediate celebration of the hero/heroine when they solve the main crises for that particular book. Everything that led up to the crises and the event itself caused an effect on the world and it’s characters. Ms Sagara is very good at included the “what happened next” when she starts each succeeding novel. CAST IN RUIN picks up with the aftermath of strange, unnerving magical events, dragons flying overhead and walking through the streets of Elantra and a large number of a new species about 8 foot tall and well armed emerging in the middle of the city out of practically nothing.

If that wasn’t enough…
“Seven corpses are discovered in the streets of a Dragon’s fief. All identical, down to their clothing.
Kaylin Neya is assigned to discover who they were, who killed them–and why. Is the evil lurking at the borders of Elantra preparing to cross over?
At least the investigation delays her meeting with the Dragon Emperor. And as the shadows grow longer over the fiefs, Kaylin must use every skill she’s ever learned to save the people she’s sworn to protect. Sword in hand, dragons in sky, this time there’s no retreat and no surrender….”
This blurb came from the author’s website here.

I loved this latest entry into Kaylin’s life! Ms Sagara did a wonderful job of demonstrating yet again that even after you “save the world” you still have to go back to your day job and deal with what happens after. As with each of the previous stories Kaylin’s surprisingly innocent yet jaded point of view provides the reader with a glimpse into the inner workings of one or more of the Castes. This one happens to focus on the Dragon Caste and answers several questions that both Kaylin and I had been wondering since she asked them in earlier books. I really enjoyed finding more out regarding the dragons since I think they have always been my favorite fantasy creature.

During the course of Kaylin’s investigation she demonstrates that she is able to take what she has learned through her early life in the Fiefs, what she has picked up about Dragons and blend that with more traditional investigating techniques to attempt to solve the puzzling murders. Her tenacity and determination reminded me of a dogged hardbitten detective in murder mysteries of yore, yet her youth and impatience with the longer lived Castes’ apparent lack of urgency kept CAST IN RUIN from being too dark.

Ms Sagara continues to develop Kaylin as a person and a character. While that growth has been evident throughout the series, it struck me that in this book Kaylin is actually starting the final steps of the transition from childhood to adulthood. Despite what she has done in the past, Kaylin still retained a childlike view of certain things. One of her conversations demonstrated that she is stepping away from that shield. It will be interesting to see how she deals with the realization that she has two men, both extremely powerful in their own ways, each with a mentally intimate connection to her who are definitely interested in her as more then just another person.

My only regret is that I wish I could have seen more of Kaylin’s typical interaction with the Barrani, Tha’alani and Leontines. She had a few encounters but compared to previous books they felt shallow. Granted that could certainly be because previous books delved deeply into those three Castes’ cultures. Overall, I really enjoyed reading this and can’t wait for the next one.

I give CAST IN RUIN an A

Clicking on the cover image will bring you to an excerpt if one is available:

Barnes & Noble | Amazon Book |Kindle eBook

Review – Cast in Ruin by Michelle Sagara is a post from: The Book Pushers | Book Reviews | Book Chatter

Where did you get this book from: ARC from Publisher

Release date: Out now

This review contains some minor spoilers.

Blurb taken from author’s official website:

…Pride and Prejudice meets Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell. It is an intimate portrait of a woman, Jane, and her quest for love in a world where the manipulation of glamour is considered an essential skill for a lady of quality.

Jane and her sister Melody vie for the attentions of eligible men, and while Jane’s skill with glamour is remarkable, it is her sister who is fair of face. When Jane realizes that one of Melody’s suitors is set on taking advantage of her sister for the sake of her dowry, she pushes her skills to the limit of what her body can withstand in order to set things right—and, in the process, accidentally wanders into a love story of her own.

When I received this book for review and saw the very intriguing title, I didn’t know what I was going to expect. Then I read the blurb, and there I was, immersing myself into this romantic fantasy tale.

Jane’s world is full of glamour that is created by threads and folds that come from the Ether. And ladies are expected to be accomplished at glamour. Glamour is an illusion that can be used on anyone and on anything: a person, a house, on a landscape and even used while playing a piano, it can even be used to create things. But it takes a toll on the person manipulating the glamour, and our heroine Jane is very accomplished in the glamour arts; she is considered to be the best in her neighbourhood.

But while Jane is astutely accomplished in the arts, she is considered to be plain of face while her younger sister, Melody, is the beauty of the family. Melody attracts the attention of suitable beaus, while Jane is considered to be the wallflower. While Jane is most sensible, and very calm, she becomes jealous of Melody who becomes enamoured of Mr Dunkirk, a man and neighbour whom Jane has deep feelings for. But Jane’s world of glamour becomes very exciting when Mr Vincent arrives on the scene. Mr Vincent is considered to be thee best glamour/illusionist in the country. And when Jane sees his work at a party, she is spellbound by what she sees. From there, Jane’s calm and not so content world is rocked with secrets that can cause scandals, and she has to endure the grumpy, but oh so fantastic Mr Vincent.

I found Shades of Milk and Honey to be the utmost charming read that features the touch of magic and the fantastical. While in some ways this is an adaptation, in other ways, it’s completely different.

Jane was a great heroine: smart, witty, and most importantly, she wasn’t the perfect, quiet, and meek heroine who didn’t let petty feelings get the better of her. She felt jealousy, she felt sorry for herself, and she expressed anger at her sister. And she wasn’t above letting her sister know those feelings. Jane also didn’t hide away her talent of glamour.  While I enjoyed reading about  glamour and what you could accomplish with it, I did wish it was explained in more detail. The background story of the Ether is not explored, there aren’t any explanations on how it came to be, who discovered it, and how did a person simply reach out into the Ether and manipulate the folds? But despite this, it didn’t distract me from the enjoyment of the book.

Jane’s relationship with Mr Vincent was very slow, but it’s not lacking in the least.  It stuck to the conventions of what was proper in those days (at least I think it did). It was like Lizzie’s and Mr Darcy’s courtship from P&P, but Jane wasn’t as mean as Lizzie . So there’s not much to say on the romance side because declarations of love didn’t come until the end of the book, but Jane’s and Mr Vincent’s interactions were like special occasions that I eagerly looked forward to.  And there’s an important and quite lovely scene in which Mr Vincent gives Jane a gift that was the changing point for their relationship.

This book has a little of everything: romance, magic, fantasy, and some action towards the end which revealed true personalities of characters – especially Melody who had insecurities of her own. Jane’s relationship with her sister was not easy, and both women craved what each other had. And even though Melody did come across as selfish and immature, she wasn’t all bad, even though what she came out with made her seem that way.

I wouldn’t hesitate in book pushing this book onto others, and I can’t wait to see if Mary Robinette Kowal will be writing any more books set in the world of Shades of Milk and Honey.

I give Shades of Milk and Honey 5 stars.

And here’s a very cool, and quite unusual trailer for Shades of Milk and Honey, featuring a style of Puppetry called Shadow Masks. The trailer  is featured over at Mary Robinette Kowal’s website.

Review: Shades of Milk and Honey by Mary Robinette Kowal is a post from: The Book Pushers | Book Reviews | Book Chatter

Where did you get this book: Won in a contest

Release date: Currently available

This review contains spoilers!

Blurb taken from authors’ official website:

Sixteen year old Anne thinks her life is pretty ordinary – until she smacks into handsome, mysterious, and okay, annoying Ethan on her way to chemistry class. Now Anne has powers she doesn’t understand, a history altering mission she may not want, and a growing attraction to this blue-eyed stranger. And Ethan- who at eighteen made some choices he’s starting to regret – realizes that Anne is the girl for whom he’s been searching – for a very, very long time. Stir in doomed Russian Grand Duchess Anastasia – who is definitely not quite as dead as the history books say – and Baba Yaga, the legendary witch from Russian folklore, and you’ve got DREAMING ANASTASIA, a contemporary YA fantasy that alternates between the voices of Anne, Ethan, and Anastasia as Anne and Ethan join forces to battle the bad guys and save Anastasia. Only problem is – no one’s quite sure who’s really bad and who’s good. And everyone has some secrets.

I have to say, when I read the premise for this story, I was really excited. I’ve always been fascinated by the mystery surrounding the demise of the Romanovs. And when I first started reading the novel, I thought it was going to live up to my expectations.

The visions Anne had of Anastasia were interesting. Ethan popping up in unexpected places was fun. In short, I initially enjoyed discovering the situation with her. But over time, the excitement wore off. I still enjoyed the novel, but it wasn’t as winning as I’d hoped.

Having said that, the basic story itself is very engaging and the characters are interesting. I like how strong Anastasia stayed through her captivity, and I liked the fact that, unlike many YA stories, Anne had a generally good relationship with her parents. Ethan was cute and kind of clumsy with Anne, which was a nice change from the alpha males often seen in YA. And I enjoyed the inclusion of the Baba Yaga mythology. In other words, there were a lot of things I liked.

The problem is there was a lot I wasn’t fond of too. First, while multiple first person stories aren’t a turn off, I need all the narrators to have very distinct voices. I didn’t feel that with Dreaming Anastasia, particularly with regard to Anne and Ethan’s chapters. And while I liked the inclusion of Anastasia’s journal/letters, I’d like to deck whoever picked the font. It was horribly difficult to read, especially by book light late at night. (Though I don’t hold the author responsible for that choice, it still affected my reading pleasure.)

The way Anne kept worrying about things like skipping class (when Baba Yaga’s giant disembodied hands were chasing her) or getting her driver’s license (when she’d just been shot at) really bothered me. I felt it was a forced way to make her sound more like a teenager. For me, if a teenager is getting attacked by monsters or bad guys, they’re probably thinking the same thing as the average adult, which would be more along the lines of “Oh #*($, I’m glad I’m still alive!” The thing with the much older guy as a love interest bugged me. At first, I liked how they both approached their attraction in an oh-no-can’t-go-there kind of way, but considering the short timeframe of the story, they got over it way too fast. If it was squicky in when she finds out how old Ethan is it would still be squicky a few days later. And lastly, I could well be wrong, but to me it seems logical that an early twentieth century princess would have known how to ride a horse. Why, in that case, would Ethan put Anastasia to ride double on one of the three available horses with Anne, rather than having her ride the third horse alone? It seemed like the logic was twisted there with no explanation just to make it possible for the bad guy to follow them.

All in all, I wanted it to be a great book, I really did. For me though, the plot issues mentioned just made it not measure up to what I’d hoped for. It could have been fabulous, instead it was just okay.

I give Dreaming Anastasia 3.0 stars.

Review: Dreaming Anastasia by Joy Preble is a post from: The Book Pushers | Book Reviews | Book Chatter

Sometime early last year I was either browsing my favorite book related blogs or looking on Amaxon.com for their list of recommended upcoming releases when I came across a book called Rosemary and Rue by Seanan McGuire.  The back cover blurb caught my eye with the mention of a half Sidhe-half human Private Investigator, October Daye, who had lost 14 years of her life.  At first I thought the 14 years were the price she had paid for working some magic spell.  Boy was I wrong.  Instead of paying a price, she was unwillingly transformed into something other then human or fae and spent those 14 years unable to sense or comprehend the passing of time. Intrigued I picked up a copy when it was published and Ms McGuire sucked me into a dark, complex enjoyable tale.

When The Bookpushers were contacted to see if there was interest in reviewing her upcoming book called A Local Habitation that just happened to be the sequel to Rosemary and Rue, I leaped on the chance.  Per the FTC I am obligated to inform you that I received an ARC of this book from the author for the purpose of reviewing it.  (Confidentially I will admit that I will purchase a copy release week.) I will attempt to avoid major spoilers from Rosemary and Rue but some smaller ones are inevitable.

Excerpt from the Back Cover as stated at http://seananmcguire.com/alh.php

“Half-human, half-fae, outsiders from birth, most changelings are second class children of Faerie spending their lives fighting for the respect of their immortal relations.  Toby is the only changeling who has earned knighthood, and she re-earns that position every day, undertaking assignments for her liege, Sylvester, the Duke of Shadowed Hills.

Now Sylvester has asked her to go to the County of Tamed Lightening – otherwise known as Fremont, California – to make sure that all is well with his niece, January O’Leary, whom he has not been able to contact.  It seems like a simple enough assignment – but when dealing with the realm of Faerie, nothing is ever as simple as it seems…For Tamed Lightening has somehow been cut off from the other fiefdoms, and now someone has begun to murder January’s key people.  If Toby can’t find and stop the killer soon, she may well become the next victim…”

Ms McGuire has succeeded in taking a common theme, the Sidhe, and adding some unique twists that sucked me back into October’s life.  Set once again in San Francisco, home to October “Toby” Daye, the opening scene showcases Toby in a much lighter mood then than readers of the first book are accustomed to seeing.  Fans of this series might also be interested in the fact that we also get to see Tybalt, a very powerful Cait Sidhe and the local King of the Cats *waggles eyebrows* very early on.  Don’t worry I promise you that Tybalt appears again.

Throughout the course of Toby’s investigation in A Local Habitation, I was treated to more information about the Sidhe culture, its various members and Toby herself.  I found it to be a mark of Ms McGuire’s skillful writing style that her character and world building were seamlessly merged with the pace of the story so I never lost my reading enjoyment as the story unfolded.  All of the characters showed unexpected depths, including those victims who died before Toby arrived at Tamed Lightening.  Based on the other characters statements about one of the victims I had painted a particular picture but when Toby examined their office area my mental picture drastically changed.  In another instance I thought I had figured out who one character was attracted to and found I was entirely wrong.   Toby and her sidekick (name is a major spoiler for Rosemary and Rue) also learned some interesting lessons and faced some situations when Toby’s connection to her liege wasn’t necessarily believed or even helpful.

The murder mystery was complex enough that while I guessed some of the roles the different characters played I was not expecting all of the twists nor did I accurately guess the culprit.  Despite the gritty nature of the investigation, Toby and the cast of assorted characters do experience some lighter moments.  Ms McGuire’s October Daye series does not shy away from showing how the Sidhe have a very different viewpoint on life and what death really means.   I also got to see the manifestation of power and what it means to have and control that power.  While dark and gritty A Local Habitation ends on a note of hope.  I enjoyed reading it and look forward to the next installment in October Daye’s life, An Artificial Night.  Ms McGuire has very kindly provided the reader with a sneak peek of into that third novel due to release in September 2010.

I give it a rating of 4 of 5 five stars for the slight predictability in some of the characters and their roles and the fact that I believe in order to fully enjoy the book and understand at least one key scene you need to read Rosemary and Rue.  A Local Habitation releases in North America on March 2 as a DAW Mass Market Paperback.

ARC Review: A Local Habitation is a post from: The Book Pushers | Book Reviews | Book Chatter