young adult Archives - Page 15 of 19

Yzabel / August 14, 2013

Review: When the World was Flat (and we were in love)

When the World was Flat by Ingrid Jonach

My rating: [rating=2]

Summary:

Looking back, I wonder if I had an inkling that my life was about to go from ordinary to extraordinary.

When sixteen-year-old Lillie Hart meets the gorgeous and mysterious Tom Windsor-Smith for the first time, it’s like fireworks — for her, anyway. Tom looks as if he would be more interested in watching paint dry; as if he is bored by her and by her small Nebraskan town in general.

But as Lillie begins to break down the walls of his seemingly impenetrable exterior, she starts to suspect that he holds the answers to her reoccurring nightmares and to the impossible memories which keep bubbling to the surface of her mind — memories of the two of them, together and in love.

When she at last learns the truth about their connection, Lillie discovers that Tom has been hiding an earth-shattering secret; a secret that is bigger — and much more terrifying and beautiful — than the both of them. She also discovers that once you finally understand that the world is round, there is no way to make it flat again.

An epic and deeply original sci-fi romance, taking inspiration from Albert Einstein’s theories and the world-bending wonder of true love itself.

Review:

(I received an ebook version of this novel through NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.)

This being an ARC, I won’t comment on grammar and editing.

I’ve got very, very mixed feelings on that one. On the one hand, the premise of the story was really intriguing; I like such stories of “previous lives”, especially if they’re tied to something else than supernatural causes (the blurb clearly mentioned sci-fi, which for me is yet another different matter). On the other hand, once I was done reading, I felt somewhat “cheated” out of more detailed developments.

Basically, the first half of the book (until approximately the 45% mark) deals with classic high school/teenager drama, and this was my first problem with it. It was awfully full of stereotypes: the jocks, the Mean Queen Bee, the not-cool-girls lumped together, the mysterious handsome and three times chiseled new student at school, along with a lot of slut shaming of one of Lillie’s friends (including by her own friends and Lillie herself, in a somewhat underhanded way). This was too much, and lasted way too long. I was on the verge of stopping reading when finally things kicked into the sci-fi part. And here’s the second problem for me: how little the sci-fi aspect actually played in, and how wonky it seemed by comparison. I honestly believe it would have deserved more: more exposure, more explanation, more science. This could have been fascinating, as well as able to enforce the tragic aspect of the revelations that ensued. As it was, though, it left room to a few plot holes as to how exactly things came out to be the way they were: the reasons behind the crash, how the Solution was found, or how far the Circle’s power extends. Those felt overlooked, and science used as an excuse, in favour of the high school drama setting.

There are interesting things in this book, things that are also logical. The suffocating small town syndrome, where everything quickly becomes rumour and is blown out of proportion. How things seem to be doomed to entangle and collide. Lillie’s dreams, what they really mean, and why some people were drawn towards making such choices. The sliding and merging. How the three girls begin as distinct personalities, each with their quirks, defects and redeeming points. The ending, too, I liked a lot; it gave closure to the story, while hinting nonetheless at more possibilities (a sequel, perhaps?). But I can’t shake up the feeling that “When the World was Flat…” could’ve been so much more, and that this “more” got swallowed by too-conventional tropes. To be honest, I would’ve given it 3 stars if not for that—and even 4 if it had dealt with the sci-fi aspect in a better way.

Yzabel / August 1, 2013

Review: Arrow of the Mist

Arrow of the Mist by Christina Mercer

My rating: [rating=3]

Summary:

Terror strikes the Celtic inspired kingdom of Nemetona when barbed roots breach the veil of a forbidden land and poison woodsmen, including 15-year-old Lia’s beloved father. Lia and three others embark on a quest to the forbidden land of Brume to gather ingredients for the cure. But after her elder kinsman is attacked and poisoned, she and her cousin, Wynn, are forced to finish the quest on their own.

Lia relies on her powerful herbal wisdom and the memorized pages of her late grandmother’s Grimoire for guidance through a land of soul-hungry shades, trickster creatures, and uncovered truths about the origin of Brume and her family’s unexpected ties to it. The deeper they trek into the land, the stronger Lia’s untapped gift as a tree mage unfolds. When she discovers the enchanted root’s maker, it forces her to question everything about who she is and what is her destiny. Ultimately she must make a terrible choice: keep fighting to save her father and the people of the lands or join with the power behind the deadly roots to help nature start anew.

Review:

(I got this book through NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.)

“Arrow of the Mist” reads fast, and is brimming with vivid descriptions. Throughout the whole story, I found it easy to picture what was happening, the places the characters went through, and even the plants themselves (I’m really not well-versed in that area at all). The world it is sent in seemed vibrant and vivid, pitching a normal-enough country (Nemetonia) against the mysterious and enchanted Brume, where many creatures dwell, and where magic is far from being extinct.

Lia is a strong character, who knows what she wants, doesn’t hesitate to take matters into her own hands, and uses her knowledge to the best of her ability to help her family and her fellow villagers, even though some of the latter don’t seem to always be too kind with her. Yet her courage goes hand to hand with stubbornness, and her eagerness to save her kinsmen sometimes causes her to make rash decisions. She’s reliable, but not perfect, and as such, connecting with her becomes easy. This is helped, I think, by the fact that she travels with family and friends; the bonds uniting them are here from the start, not forged through random encounters and other wishy-washy reasons.

Paradoxically enough, though, the book’s strong points felt like shortcomings at times. While Lia gains in self-confidence and discovers her powers, the other characters don’t seem to evolve, and as such remained somewhat flat throughout the story. I think we weren’t given enough to see regarding their own personalities and lives before the quest started. The romance bit was awkward, and might have been best kept for the end of the book, with potential development in the next installment; as it is, it looked to me like it fell out of nowhere, then was quickly shoved out of the way. It wasn’t an essential aspect of the plot (Lia had enough people to save back home without adding the hope of seeing her love interest again on top of it), and therefore felt a little misplaced. In the same way, the world was beautifully described, but some parts were barely brushed off (the village’s life, for instance, or why the official rulers dismissed “the old ways”), leaving maybe too much room to forest-wandering that didn’t allow me to get a proper grasp of some potential other stakes in the story.

All in all, I enjoyed reading it. However, if I end up picking the second volume, I hope those questions will be given answers to at some point.

Yzabel / July 29, 2013

Review: Fire Country

Fire Country by David Estes

My rating: [rating=3]

Summary:

In a changed world where the sky bleeds red, winter is hotter than hell and full of sandstorms, and summer’s even hotter with raging fires that roam the desert-like country, the Heaters manage to survive, barely.

Due to toxic air, life expectancies are so low the only way the tribe can survive is by forcing women to procreate when they turn sixteen and every three years thereafter. It is their duty as Bearers.

Fifteen-year-old Siena is a Youngling, soon to be a Bearer, when she starts hearing rumors of another tribe of all women, called the Wild Ones. They are known to kidnap Youngling girls before the Call, the ceremony in which Bearers are given a husband with whom to bear children with.

As the desert sands run out on her life’s hourglass, Siena must uncover the truth about the Wild Ones while untangling the web of lies and deceit her father has masterfully spun.

Review:

(Book provided by the author through ARR #118 in the We ♥ YA Books! group, in exchange for an honest review.)

A solid 3.5 stars for this one.

It took me a few pages to get used to Siena’s voice; however, it quickly grew on me, and soon I found myself quite appreciating it. She sounds authentic, with a unique voice, and her own way of viewing the world, even though she’s struggling here against beliefs hammered into her since childhood.

The world depicted by David Estes is frightening in itself. It immediately conjured in my mind pictures of a burning sun, of deserts, of tribes trying to scrape a living with few resources in the little time they had (thirty, thirty-five years, maybe fourty at the very most?). In that regard, the role of women as Bearers—or, rather, as “breeders”—totally made sense, although it’s a concept that scares me personnally. I really wouldn’t want to find myself in such a situation, having to face such prospects.

The plot is woven progressively, from day-to-day life to discoveries and challenges, in a coming-of-age story interspersed with hints of darker secrets. I also appreciated that there was no love triangle here—those are becoming so common, and for no reason except “it sells”, in way too many YA novels these days! The budding love between Siena and Circ, growing from “childhood friends” to “souls calling to each other, but forbidden to meet”, felt completely natural, and this was great.

On the other hand, it may be because the book is the only first one in the series, and more will be explained later on, but I kept having a feeling of “pocket universe”. I admit I’m still not sure whether the Fire Country is made up of several tribes scattered in several villages, or of one, big village that, considering the amount of people involved, would actually be more of a large town. This was a bit confusing, as if there were at once too many people and not enough.

I was a bit perplexed at the overall picture, too. Why did Roan act the way he did? We may never know if it was out of selfish desire, or if he had other schemes in mind, but couldn’t bear them to fruition nor tell anyone about them. I wondered also what was the whole deal with the Ice Country as well as the Glassies. The Fire Country people were described as quite backwards, like a tribe with very basic tools and weapons, and I didn’t understand what kind of interest the Glassies may have in them. (Having read the Dwellers saga, I feel safe in my knowledge of who *they* are, and perhaps this is why I couldn’t really understand?) Knowing the author’s skills in weaving his stories over several volumes, I suspect answers will be brought sooner or later. Yet I still think this may be perceived as a weakness by other readers.

Conclusion: Definitely a good beginning to a series, but I hope the following books bring more answers.

Yzabel / July 21, 2013

Review: Foreverland Is Dead

Foreverland is Dead by Tony Bertauski

My rating: [rating=4]

Summary:

Six teenage girls wake with no memories. One of them is in a brick mansion, her blonde hair as shiny as her shoes. The others are in a cabin, their names tagged to the inside of their pants. Their heads, shaved. Slashes mark the cabin wall like someone has been counting.

Hundreds of them.

There’s wilderness all around and one dead adult. The girls discover her body rotting somewhere in the trees. As the weeks pass, they band together to survive the cold, wondering where they are and how they got there. And why.

When an old man arrives with a teenage boy, the girls learn of a faraway island called Foreverland where dreams come true and anything is possible. But Foreverland is dead. In order to escape the wilderness, they’ll have to understand where they are.

More importantly, who they are.

Review:

(I got this book from the author himself, in exchange for a honest review.)

I read The Annihilation of Foreverland about one year ago; as a result, I was easily interested in knowing what happened next, and getting another side of the story. One of the very good sides of this second book is that you don’t have to read the first to understand and be pulled into the plot: since the characters wake up with most of their memories missing, the reader gets to discover everything along with them. On the other hand, if you enjoyed the “first volume”, you may find yourself wanting to read it again. At least, I did.

A warning, though: pay attention to details. No, really. Including names, for starters. This book is packed with little things here and there that aren’t so noticeable at first, but completely make sense once you reach the end. It’s not the kind of story you can afford to keep one eye on while doing something else on the side, because if you do, you’ll miss on something important, sooner or later, and find the plot “confusing”.

“Foreverland Is Dead” was quite the page-turner for me. Even though I knew the basics from the first part, I still enjoyed re-discovering the setting from the girls’ point of view. The relationships between those characters were interesting in more than one way: while apparently simple (the bad girl, the tentative leader, the one who does the cooking…), they actually go deeper than that, and not everything is what it seems. We’re taken into the plot mostly through Cyn’s and Miranda’s eyes, and as secrets unfold, so does the ugliness of human souls, once confronted to a situation threatening to go on for much longer than expected. The girls know they have to stand united in order to survive, yet they’re truly, only human, make mistake, and sometimes their darker side gets the best of them… for some more than for others. However, those who manage to overcome said dark side and fac their fears appear the braver for it.

I give FiD 4 to 4.5 stars. The one thing I wasn’t too sure about was, in fact, the writing style itself, often consisting of short sentences, which in turn sometimes makes it look jambled in places. Overall, it works for such a story, mirroring the girls’ confusion and how the world around them doesn’t make much sense; yet it might have the potential to bother readers who favour a more flowery style.

Yzabel / July 11, 2013

Review: DiSemblance

DiSemblance by Shanae Branham

My rating: [rating=2]

Summary:

Jason Tanner’s life has always been different from the ordinary citizen’s. It started when he was an infant and his parents were only teenagers. A computer science prodigy, Lloyd attended MIT but left a pariah in the eyes of the school’s dean—but a computer physics genius in the eyes of his primary investor. Then his theories and ideas created a holographic machine and their world shrunk as contact with the outside world became less and less frequent. A computer prodigy now himself, Jason is about to learn that the world never waits for you if you have the ability to change it: it will come for you.

Detective Bruce Durante has been handed the case of the Comfort Killer, a serial killer so named because he appears to abduct terminally ill patients before returning their corpses to their families in refrigerated coffins. When he picks up the trail, it leads straight to the home of Lloyd Tanner.

Jason has been living life through the world of Lloyd’s invention and wishing he could carry on a relationship with Boston, the beautiful girl next door. When his father is murdered and framed as the Comfort Killer, he is brought back to reality in a hurry. He is forced to destroy all of the planted evidence—and finds he is being targeted as the killer’s new fall guy. But the secrets of his father’s invention run deep and Jason, his brother Isaac,Boston, the Comfort Killer, and Detective Durante hurtle towards one another on a deadly collision course that leaves everyone’s life hanging in the balance.

Review:

(Book provided by the author through ARR #110 in the We ♥ YA Books! group, in exchange for an honest review.)

I’m having a hard time writing this review, because I’d like to rate the book a little higher, but am not sure I should. In all fairness, I’d give the idea and story a solid 4 stars, but I wasn’t too thrilled about the writing itself.

“DiSemblance” is a story that you need to pay attention to. Don’t read it in a packed train, or juggling several things at once. It contains a lot of little details that are easy to miss if you’re not focused, and that are the very ones which help you puzzle everything back together. The author definitely did a good job at blurring the boundaries here, and more than once you’ll find yourself frowing at some plot point, reading back and wondering if there was a mistake… and no, there wasn’t, everything’s working according to plan. There’s a point after which things become clear, and in hindsight what happened in the first part of the book suddenly makes total sense; and yet, even then, you keep on wondering what’s true and what isn’t, what’s part of reality and what’s make-believe. In that, I’ll recommend this book if you like being bounced back from clue to clue without knowing clearly whether you’ve read those the right way or not. It’s got quite an exciting quality.

Unfortunately, I had a harder time with the style and pacing. There’s a lot of short chapters and sentences that give a jumbled feeling to the text as a whole, as well as what I’d deem “telling” about the characters and their actions rather than really showing them, which I found distracting (and as I said right above, this isn’t the kind of story where you can allow to let yourself be distracted). Also, connecting with the characters proved difficult. They’re interesting in their own ways, but with things moving so fast, I felt like we were only grazing at the surface, and as a result, I didn’t empathize with Bruce, Lisa, Jason or Boston as much as I would’ve liked to. Part of this might be related to how limits between reality and virtual world(s) keep shifting—we never know if we’re dealing with the real person or not—but I’m not sure it’s the only, nor the main reason.

In terms of plot, the ideas explored within this novel, as well as how the author manages to carry us from beginning to end, are great. But I think it would benefit from more editing, to make it easier to focus on the story.

Yzabel / June 30, 2013

Review: This Dark Endeavour

This Dark Endeavour by Kenneth Oppel

My rating: [rating=2]

Summary:

In this prequel to Mary Shelley’s gothic classic, Frankenstein, 16-year-old Victor Frankenstein begins a dark journey that will change his life forever. Victor’s twin, Konrad, has fallen ill, and no doctor is able to cure him. Unwilling to give up on his brother, Victor enlists his beautiful cousin Elizabeth and best friend Henry on a treacherous search for the ingredients to create the forbidden Elixir of Life. Impossible odds, dangerous alchemy and a bitter love triangle threaten their quest at every turn.

Victor knows he must not fail. But his success depends on how far he is willing to push the boundaries of nature, science, and love—and how much he is willing to sacrifice.

Review:

2.5 stars. I’d deem this story “okay”. It wasn’t bad, but I expected more of it, and it didn’t leave me with a sense of completion, although I wish it had. There are lots of good ideas in this book, that didn’t work for me, the way they were exploited, and it’s really too bad.

Lots of potential, indeed. For instance, the beginning that hints at a darker side in the two brothers’ relationships. Or the love triangle that could’ve become something really interesting, something that could have seriously thwarted Victor’s motivations. Unfortunately, I think the author didn’t go deep enough with those—perhaps because really going through with them to the end would’ve been too dark for a YA audience? I don’t know. Things felt a little weird in that regard, as if in style and themes, the book was aiming at the older part of the intended audience, yet didn’t dare to go there in the end, and remained a little too “light”, for the sake of the younger ones.

The love triangle also fell flat in general, in my opinion, and more childish than the dark and tragic affair it could’ve been (or than what I expected from the blurb on the back cover). Victor’s love would’ve had more impact for me if it had been there from the beginning, and not apparently triggered at the moment he learnt Konrad loved the girl too. Elizabeth was a character I enjoyed, showing a lot of pluck and decision-making. This may be the reason why I also disliked the way Konrad treated her, as if he was only looking at her, and not “seeing” her for who she was. In itself, this could’ve added to the tragedy of that relationship, but felt a little wobbly instead. This said, to be fair, I’m not too attracted by love triangles in general, so I’m pretty picky about those anyway.

Finally, I would’ve liked the ending to be just a tad less abrupt. It was a necessary ending—it couldn’t have been otherwise—but it came a little too quickly. I guess I would’ve liked some kind of explanation, even a non-scientific one, as to how exactly the tables turned so fast.

What I appreciated, though, was how “This Dark Endeavour” paved the way for Shelley’s story, and could likely bring more people to read that one—which really deserves to be read no matter what. Maybe this is the reason why I couldn’t be so enthralled with the book: because I already know the original masterpiece, and because for me, the stories don’t play on the same level. Nevertheless, this novel could be a good introduction to its predecessor for younger readers.

Yzabel / June 5, 2013

Review: Showtime

Showtime by Chloe Kayne

My rating: [rating=2]

Summary:

The grandeur of the traveling circus is at its peak in the early 1920s when sixteen-year-old Laila Vilonia is searching for an escape from her bleak future. Behind the gates of the legendary Marvelle Circus, she is thrust into a mysterious world she never knew existed—a paradise populated with outcasts. It’s in this glamorous new home that Laila sparks a controversial romance with notorious sideshow performer, “The Disappearing Man,” and learns just how dangerous her new life can be.

Touring the picturesque eastern coast of America, Laila’s immersed in friendship, vaudeville, festivals, sequins, and serial killers. But behind the curtain, a sadistic plan is brewing that will crack the very foundation upon which she’s become so dependent.

Review:

I wanted to like this book more than I did, because it showed potential. Alas, it just didn’t do it for me in the end.

The author took care of writing vivid descriptions, and those really pull you in, giving a fairly good view of what the circus looked like, the routines its performers went through, and so on. However, there were moments when they interferred with the narrative, slowing it down and making things confusing. I also spotted several misuses of words, which was jarring.

More importantly, while you can tell the author is facinated with her subject and wants us to share this interest, the historical period wasn’t the best choice here. The action takes place mostly in 1918, yet no mention is made of World War I, nor of the impact it was bound to have on circuses (on how many people could afford to attend performances, for instance). The 1900s-early 1910s would’ve been a more logical choice, at least to me. If you don’t care the least bit about historical accuracy, it may not be such a problem, but I couldn’t get past this.

There were a lot of characters—something normal in a circus—and it helped me imagine how life went on there on a daily basis, with everybody’s routines and personal drama; on the other hand, some of them were perhaps given too much spotlight for too little “return on investment” (the story wouldn’t have changed one bit if they had been left out). Also, I think the “Disappearing Man”, and the trick behind his show, should’ve been introduced sooner. The way things went, I felt it odd that everybody talked about the one “dangerous” guy, yet never mentioned the other: they’re all working in the circus, shouldn’t they have known about this?

As for the plot, there were several interesting leads, yet overall it tended to be confusing, with some subplots left dangling in the way (Ethan’s and Jodelle’s never got a proper conclusion); so when some more important things happened, they made me think “oh, yes, true, there was that.” It was hard to picture a clear antagonist, and the one who appeared as the most obvious often behaved, well, too stupidly to leave an impression.

Overall, I’d say this book is worth a pick for its atmosphere and if you like rich descriptions; unfortunately, those weren’t enough for me to go past what I didn’t like in it.

Yzabel / May 29, 2013

Review: Thirteen Reasons Why

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

My rating: [rating=4]

Summary:

Clay Jenkins returns home from school to find a mysterious box with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers several cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Bakera–his classmate and crush who committed suicide two weeks earlier. On tape, Hannah explains that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he’ll find out how he made the list.

Review:

I’m not sure where exactly I stand regarding this book. I found it fascinating in many ways, including bad ones—sometimes like a trainwreack you can’t help but watch. This story may not be for everyone, and I feel that it has the potential to equally fascinate some people, and alienate others.

Hannah’s character is far from being perfect, far from being a pitiful victim: her stunt with the tapes, all things considered, is actually a pretty cruel one, at least for some of the people involved. Did Clay deserve to hear all that—and wasn’t his being on the tape just as strong accusation as the others (although a more implicit one)? Was the girl with the stop sign more guilty than the guy who wouldn’t take no for an answer at first? Didn’t Hannah bring a lot of her problems onto herself, just because she didn’t react when she should have, didn’t confront people directly, and remained on the side doing nothing? What gave her the right to impose the tapes to those involved (and to those who weren’t, such as the one in charge of keeping the second set)

And yet, it’s also hard to judge her negatively, because nobody reacts to a series of events the same way as the person next door. Had I been in Hannah’s case, I would’ve confronted people much sooner, and not resorted to suicide; but that’s me, a woman with a strong personality when confronted to a lot of stressors, while others that can take me down will do nothing to another person. I don’t think we can judge suicidal tendencies on the account of “Hannah’s problems were too petty to justify it”: it’s not a matter of what’s petty or not, it’s a matter of how people live with their problems. What snowballed for Hannah wouldn’t have done anything to someone else; what would prompt that same someone else to suicide may not have had such an effect on Hannah.

Hannah isn’t a particularly pleasant character, due to her planning the tapes and how it looked like a revenge of sorts. At the same time—something we barely scrape over at the very ending—her actions might also have the potential to bring people to start thinking differently, considering how what seems trivial, little things to them could have tremendous influence on others. In any case, I found this book to be quite a thought-provoking one.

Yzabel / May 27, 2013

Review: Eden

Eden by Janelle Stalder

My rating: [rating=2]

Summary:

Trapped within the cruel world of hormones and bullies, fifteen-year-old Aiden is convinced life has more to offer him. His instincts are proven correct on the night he is awakened by a voice calling to him from outside his window. As he sleepily peers into his yard, his eyes slowly focus on a woman who says she is there to take him to Eden. Aiden is about to fulfill the life purpose he never knew he had.

It is in Eden, a land on the brink of war, where Aiden will finally learn to trust himself and those around him. Accompanied by Wolf, his sidekick Logan, and the beautiful archer, Elisa, Aiden is soon thrust into a battle to save Eden. Meanwhile Elisa, the only girl in the King’s Army, is in the midst of her own struggles. Betrothed to a man she has no intention of marrying, Elisa is caught between the need to prove herself and her desire for true happiness. And now that she has met Aiden, she is more confused than ever.

In this action-packed fantasy tale, romance, adventure, and intrigue surround Aiden as he learns just what he is capable of when he discovers confidence and courage.

Review:

(Book provided by the author through Read It & Reap 144 in the Shut Up & Read group, in exchange for an honest review.)

Overall an entertaining book, with a world that seems interesting, and characters who have potential. However, there were several things I couldn’t really come to terms with.

Among its strong points lies the fact that most of the characters aren’t all black or white. The “bad ones” are able to show proper behaviour, and because they want to seize a kingdom doesn’t make them complete louts, in spite of their reputation. The “good ones” aren’t all perfect either—some are womanizers, can’t express their feelings, or are too proud to lay down their arms (manner of speaking). It paves the way for interesting relationships. The author took into account the training part of her hero, who doesn’t happen to already know everything there is to know as soon as he appears in Eden. As for the world itself, it seems to have potential too.

On the other hand, I regularly felt that this very potential wasn’t realised—which is too bad. For instance, a lot of time was devoted to training, but it would’ve been more believable if it had spanned over a few months, instead of a few days only. Some things were also cut short, or not explained enough. Rose seemed to be here mainly to highlight Callum, more than to create tension regarding her fate and that of her brother’s. I didn’t really understand the logics behind a couple of plot points: why didn’t the arrow turn the tide of the battle the other way, and how come things ended up so fast for the “good guys”? Why was sending Aiden back the only way to save him? (Diana said in the beginning that he couldn’t die while in Eden, which implied he could die in his own world… so what did she do that made it so that he would die in Eden, but not back home?)

Part of me liked the book, and kept on reading to know what would happen. Yet another part always wondered why some things weren’t explained, or seemed to be interrupted. Perhaps the next book will bring answers, but in the meantime, it’s quite frustrating; I could’ve done with a few pointers as to what might happen, so that I may form my own hypotheses in the meantime.

Consider this a 2.5 stars. This book isn’t bad, far from it, and will please some readers. I just think it left too many things unanswered, and moved too fast (in terms of time frame, not of chapter length) for some elements to be fully believable.

Yzabel / May 21, 2013

Review: Seraphina

Seraphina by Rachel Hartman

My rating: [rating=5]

Summary:

Four decades of peace have done little to ease the mistrust between humans and dragons in the kingdom of Goredd. Folding themselves into human shape, dragons attend court as ambassadors, and lend their rational, mathematical minds to universities as scholars and teachers. As the treaty’s anniversary draws near, however, tensions are high.

Seraphina has reason to fear both sides. An unusually gifted musician, she joins the court just as a member of the royal family is murdered in suspiciously draconian fashion. Seraphina is drawn into the investigation, partnering with the captain of the Queen’s Guard, the dangerously perceptive Prince Lucian Kiggs. While they begin to uncover hints of a sinister plot to destroy the peace, Seraphina struggles to protect her own secret, the secret behind her musical gift – one so terrible that its discovery could mean her very life.

Review:

Mixed opinion on that one.

Gorgeous cover, for starters. Also, pleasant writing, more sophisticated than what is usually found in books intended for the targetted audience (while this might be a bad point for some, I had no difficulty with the vocabulary, and enjoyed the use of less common words for a change).

Rachel Hartman created a world that quickly caught my interest. Among other things: dragons who can take on a human shape in order to understand humans and uphold a decades-old peace treaty, yet are alien to “emotions”, and even fearful of them; zealots on both sides of the fence, who would like nothing more than to see the treaty gone; knights who’re the only ones left with the knowledge of how to fight dragons. Moreover, I was quite fond of some of the secondary characters. Orma was interesting to read about. Abdo and Lars were definitely of the nice kind. Dame Okra and her reactions often made me smile. Glisselda was a pretty positive character, with a strong streak and appropriate reactions.

Alas, I wasn’t so thrilled about the main characters, who fell too flat in comparison. Seraphina could have been much more interesting if her reactions had made more sense; for instance, she spent her whole life hiding who she was, going on with a well-established daily routine, but then throws herself head first into the investigation (I wanted to tell her “Well, do you want to be noticed, yes or no? Because you can’t have both.”). The prince, well… Nice, but nothing to write home about.

The pacing itself was a problem. The first part of the book dragged for a little too long, before things started to pick up, and I also think that the end dragged as well, considering what it dealt with. In my opinion, it should’ve ended sooner, instead of on the love-relationship part. And here’s another problem for me: the romance. Seriously, why, why does it always have to be about romance and love triangles nowadays? The story would’ve worked exactly the same way, with the same things at stake (being accepted for who one really is, fear of rejection, etc.) had Seraphina found a *friend* in Lucian, and not a *love interest* (which, by the way, came out of the blue). It doesn’t help that said love triangle is a bit on the twisted side, going as it is behind Glisselda’s back.

Overall, a pleasant enough read, but that would’ve been better for me without the romance (which felt forced) and with more punch and logics added to the main characters.