Book Review-Shadowplay by Laura Lam

Title: Shadowplay

 Author:  Laura Lam

Series:   Pantomime #2

Published:  7 January 2014 by Strange Chemistry

Length: 400 pages

Source: netgalley

Other info:  I really liked Pantomime

Summary : The circus lies behind Micah Grey in dust and ashes.
He and the white clown, Drystan, take refuge with the once-great magician, Jasper Maske. When Maske agrees to teach them his trade, his embittered rival challenges them to a duel which could decide all of their fates. People also hunt both Micah and the person he was before the circus—the runaway daughter of a noble family. And Micah discovers there is magic and power in the world, far beyond the card tricks and illusions he's perfecting...

Review probably includes spoilers for book 1, Pantomime.

Review: Following the events at the circus, Micah and Drystan are on the run, wanted for murder. They end up at the Kymri Theatre, and learn magic tricks under Jaspar Maske, a  magician who lost his licence to perform after the break up of his magic act with Taliesin. While here, lots of things happen-Micah learns new things about himself, others, and what other people want with him too.

Micah is still quite angsty over the ending of Pantomime, but luckily it doesn't intrude too much on the action. He's a bit more sure of himself, and he's just as awesome as in Pantomime. Drystan's deadpan sarker comes through a lot, for comic relief-see fight with Taliesin's grandsons and .  I like him.

Shadowplay, plotwise, is very different to  Pantomime. We learn a few things about Micah that you -really- don't expect. Then there's everything about the Chimaera, which I thought would be a minor thing but are definitely aren't now.  Anisa, the Damselfly that wee didn't know much about before, is back, and I understand her a lot more now. I'd like the Penglass to be elaborated on a bit more, but I think that will happen at some point.

I'm still not entirely sure about the whole trees thing. I get there's a party  called The  Foresters who want the typical “down with the aristocracy who forget the workers thing” thing  but something makes me think there's more to them and whether or not there is is something i'd like to know or have explained.

The romance in this is nice. My OTP will --forever-- be  Micah/Aenea, but Shadowplay has made me like Micah/Drystan a lot more, because you can tell they grew closer after the last  night at the circus, putting across their romantic relationship more than in Pantomime when they were more of the best best friend type.

There’s a few infodumps at the start for backstories, but I don’t see how else you can get them in first person. Until we got to the middle where Anisa and Micah go through the  backstory of the Chimaera, which is just an amazing way of putting it through.

The thing that swayed this from a 4 to 5 was the chapter with the duel. Everything about that. The magic tricks are so beautifully described, and other things happen, and they  ending to that chapter was really nice because it showed character development and the magic tricks and...yeah. kudos for chapter

The ending was very sudden. I'm not sure where -that- came from, but I hope it gets resolved or furthered soon.

 Overall:  Strength 4.5 tea, just more a 5, to a great sequel to a magical series.

Links: Amazon| Goodreads| Author website |

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Book Review- Fearsome Dreamer by Laure Eve

Title: Fearsome Dreamer

 Author:  Laure Eve

Series:   Fearsome Dreamer

Published:   October 2013 by Hot Key Books

Length: 384 pages

Source: Publisher

Summary : There is a world where gods you’ve never heard of have wound themselves into hearts, and choice has led its history down a different path. This is a world where France made a small, downtrodden island called England part of its vast and bloated empire. There are people here who can cross a thousand miles with their minds. There are rarer people still who can move between continents in the blink of an eye. These people are dangerous. And wanted. Desperately wanted.

Apprentice hedgewitch Vela Rue knows that she is destined for more. She knows being whisked off from a dull country life to a city full of mystery and intrigue is meant to be. She knows she has something her government wants, a talent so rare and precious and new that they will do anything to train her in it. But she doesn’t know that she is being lied to. She doesn’t know that the man teaching her about her talent is becoming obsessed by her, and considered by some to be the most dangerous man alive.

Review: Rue is an apprentice to a Hedgewitch in technophobic Angle Tar , which stands alone against World, the merge of other nations that is reliant on the virtual reality system Life. She dreams of other places, can feel herself physically there. Then she gets taken to the city by Frith, a man who hunts down Talented fro a living, and is tutuored by White, a very powerful Talented. And then there’s a boy with silver eyes who keeps appearing in her dreams, and Rue learns how powerful said dreams can be.

I love the world of this. Laure’s English/French heritage shows through in this, as Angle Tar is quite French with language, titles and the name  (somewhere near the end, I realised Angle Tar is a derivation of Angleterre) but there’s some things that are decidedly British. World is totally different, a wonderful vision of overreliance on technology. Both worlds are excellent.

I liked Rue. She’s clever, makes realistic mistakes, talks back, sometimes to the point of annoyance , and is a very intriguing character. White, I didn’t like because of his arrogance as a teacher, but he was nice in between his first appearance and his arrival at the Capital.  Wren I didn’t mind. Frith was awesome.

I think some things at the Castle and World can be explored further. I look forwards to it.

Laure has a very distinctive writing style that’s hard to describe. If I had to put it into words, I’d say gently descriptive. It fills in all the details really well.

For something described as brimming with unresolved sexual tension, I didn’t see it. I say that as someone who’s pretty good at seeing it. That doesn’t make the book bad, in my opinion. Just the marketing. Rue and White infuriate each other to start with, and dancing a dance of intent doesn’t change it that much.  

It’s a slow book,  a lot of build up, then the end happens when everything happens,

I love the dreams and the idea of being able to jump. It’s a new take on teleportation, and this scifiy-country fantasy mix works well.

Overall:  Strength 3.5,very slightly a 4, tea to a book with a great setting and mythos.

Links: Amazon| | Goodreads| Author website |

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Hocus Pocus Hotel Michael Dahl

Illustrated by Lisa K.Weber

204 pgs.

Target audience: Ages 8 to 11

Rating: Wizard

 

Today at Blackstone Middle School, Charlie Hitchcock or Hitch, like so many unfortunate souls before him, receives the dreaded summons from the school bully, the biggest boy in seventh grade, Tyler Yu. But when he meets Ty in a back alley it is not to use Charlie as a punching bag, but to make use of is famous detecting skills. Ty lives with his parents in the Abracadabra Hotel which was built as a refuge for retired magicians. The prospects of Ty using his wages to buy his dream motorbike drop when a magician disappears before Ty can collect his rent money. Other odd and spooky happenings prompt this unlikely pair to form an investigative team. Ty’s knowledge of the hotel layout and Hitch’s acute visual memory plus cryptic messages from the elevator operator ensure success.  The boys turn the hotel upside down while discovering lots of magician’s tricks as they go. Brightly colored illustrations combined with the Sherlockian notes drawn in black and white by Hitch are sure to appeal to the budding detective who can use Hitch’s diagrams to solve the mystery along with them. This delightfully funny and entertaining first volume will surely become a fan favorite. (This book provided for review by Children's Lit - www.childrenslit.com)
 

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Finding Angel by Kat Heckenbach

291 pgs.
Target audience: Young Adult
Rating: Wizard

Angel’s past is a blank slate, her memories buried deep within her. She longs for her real parents and to find out what happened to take them away. Her foster family is very kind and caring but Angel knows she belongs elsewhere, she’s different. Immersed in her drawings of fantasy creatures, Angel lives the life of any ordinary teenager while looking after her younger foster brother, Zack. That is, until she meets an odd boy, Gregor, with a foreign accent in the library. She and Gregor have an intense and unexplainable connection similar to the tingly feelings she occasionally gets when near trees. One night Gregor saves her life with his Gatemaking magical talent and takes her to his world, the Island of Toch, which is incidentally Angel’s homeland as well. Soon Gregor helps her to learn magic and access her Finding talent. Even with the island’s protective magic, evil lurks in the woods, an evil that desperately wants Angel’s power. Kat has created a wonderfully imaginative one of a kind world in which fantasy fans will revel. The descriptions of the forest and its flora are delightfully rich and detailed. There are trees, such as the Silver Spruce and the Bronze Oak which are named after the metals or alloys they contain that serve as conduits for their magical power and protection – how cool is that? There’s also tamed and wild dragons of all sizes, an Elven musical rock band and an ancient prophecy not to mention the man using science to regain his own lost power by stealing Angel’s. There’s lots of suspense and a nice blend of magic and science. Readers will be anxious for the next installment in this new fantasy series. (This book provided for review by the author, Kat Heckenbach).

 

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Fyre by Angie Sage

Illustrated by Mark Zug
Target audience: Ages 8 to 12
Rating: Dragon

Sage wraps up the “Septimus Heap” series with the mastery of a true storyteller. She weaves all the threads of the six previous volumes together into a magnificent tapestry. Nearly all the characters are reunited in the final attempt to vanish the Darke forever. Marcellus Pye is busy deep beneath the castle intent on Awakening the Fyre which can be unpredictable and difficult to control. It is the only known substance powerful enough  to DeNature the Two-Faced Ring which holds the essence of the two most dangerous and powerful Darke Wizards. Over five hundred years ago the first Extraordinary Wizard, Hotep-Ra, trapped them in the ring and it is now Sealed inside the Wizard Tower.  Marcia suspects Marcellus is up to more than rebuilding the Alchemie Tower and Alchemie Way, so she assigns Septimus to him for one month. Septimus is torn between his desire to learn more about Alchemie and his love for his work at the Wizard Tower. Jenna is crowned queen and is determined to save the Dragon Boat, whose heartbeat she can no longer hear. Will the past come back to haunt them and pull them back into the Darke Domaine or will our Magykal troupe save the kingdom once again? Fans of this series will not be disappointed and get exactly what they expect from this gifted writer – swamp snakes, magical bowls, flying dragons, secret chambers, ghostly encounters, Fyre creatures, Djinn transformations, royal coronations, maps, humor, fabulous illustrations and much much more. We can only hope that Sage will continue to entertain us with more fantasy. It would be advisable to read this series in order. (This book provided for review by HarperCollins).

 

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Jinx by Sage Blackwood

360 pgs.
Target audience: Middle Reader
Rating: Dragon

Jinx lives up to his name, at least at first. His parents die and leave him their hut in one of the many clearings throughout the ancient Urwald forest. After his hut burns down, Jinx is shuttled off to his less than enthusiastic step-parents, Bergthold and Cottawilda, who after the arrival of their new baby see Jinx as rather unnecessary. The Urwald is a perilous place and those who stray from the path are easy prey for trolls, werewolves and other beasts plus wizards whom everyone knows are up to no good, especially the one named Bonemaster who “sucks out people’s souls with a straw.” Be wary and stick to the path is a rule known to each and every child. But one day Bergthold takes Jinx deep into the forest off the path and leaves him there. The wizard, Simon Magus, mysteriously appears and decides to take Simon in to help out with chores around his house. Even though Simon is a wizard, Jinx, knows it’s a far better fate than being alone in the Urwald. Jinx has a secret -  he can see people’s feelings as colored clouds. The work he performs makes him strong, but it’s the magic in Simon’s lab that draws his interest. Simon finally agrees to teach him to read and let him help out in his lab. As Simon explores the house and it’s immediate surroundings, he discovers that he can listen to the trees talk. Simon says there’s not been a Listener in over a hundred years and insists it’s just a myth anyway. Jinx runs away to find Simon’s witch friend, Dame Glammer, after a spell Simon casts takes Jinx’s power away. His adventures in the forest include making new friends, battling monsters, and sneaking into the dreaded Bonemaster’s lair. Each of the three adventurers has a problem that can only be alleviated by wizard magic. Jinx knows the trees are afraid of what is coming and that he and his companions must save the forest or all is lost, but whom can they trust? Simon who betrayed him, Dame Glammer who gave Simon the ingredients for that horrible spell or the Bonemaster whose motives are unclear. Blackwood has created a thrilling new fantasy filled with the characters you love to root for and deliciously tricky wizards. The reader won’t know what to expect next. Jinx may have an unlucky name, but his ingenuity, magic, and never-ending desire to help others make him the luckiest one of all. Let us hope for a sequel because no doubt Jinx and his companions will have many more adventures kids will love to read about. (Book provided for review by HarperColllins)

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A Tangle of Knots by Lisa Graff

Target audience: Middle Reader
Rating: Dragon
 

Cady lives in a magical land where most people have a special talent, those without talents are called Fair. Cady’s talent is baking cakes, in fact, her skill is so formidable she need only look at someone to be able to bake that person’s perfect cake. Miss Mallory’s talent is matching orphans with the perfect family. Cady is the last remaining orphan at the House for Lost Girls in Poughkeepsie, NY. Her adoption sets into motion a destiny that leads her to the Lost  Luggage Emporium, multiple powder blue suitcases, and an apartment building where young Marigold desperately searches for her special talent. The Owner is a Talent Thief putting everyone within his reach at terrible risk. This delightful tale is told from multiple viewpoints with Cady’s cake recipes sprinkled throughout. Katie Honaker easily conveys the warmth and charm with a well paced narrative. She uses pitch and tone to indicate slow and fast changes in the dialogue making the listener feel as if he or she is part of the story. Each recipe is accompanied by cheerful, jaunty music and the addition of baking sounds like beating eggs, clatter of pots and pans in the kitchen during the instruction part is pure genius. The author  has created a puzzle of seemingly random events and people and with slow precision has untangled these knots to reveal a large interconnected circle of family, friends, destinies and a place of belonging. Recommend to fans of “Savvy” by Ingrid Law. (This audio was provided by Penguin Audio)

Audiobook details:

Read by Katie Honaker
Publisher/Date: Penguin Audio 2/15/13
Unabridged
Listening length: 4 hrs., 9 mins.

 

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The Maelstrom by Henry H. Neff (Books of Tapestry, Book 4)

468 pgs.
Target audience: Middle Reader
Rating: Wizard

Astaroth is weakened and the demon Prusias seizes this golden opportunity to build his empire by attacking everyone else with his workshop powered war machines of course. Max returns to a hero’s welcome at Rowan. The celebration is cut short due to the threat of Prusias and the discovery that Max’s name is at the top of an assassin guild’s list. Max and his sorcerer friend, David, must once again work together to fight the famed workshop and stop Prusias’ invasion, while simultaneously dodging assassination attempts. Cooper, an old comrad, now possessed by a demon is sent as an assassin. Scathach returns to Rowan as Max’s bodyguard. This series is a marvelous blend of fantasy, mythology, science fiction, and mystery. The characters are endearing and well developed. Fantastic battles, cool spy-like inventions, fierce friendships and great illustrations await the eager reader. It is necessary however to read them in order to fully enjoy the experience because the overall plot of the series is intricate and complex. There is also a glossary at the end of this volume.

 

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The throne of glass  by Sarah J. Maas

406 pgs.
Target audience: Young Adult
Rating: Dragon

Celaena Sardothien is Adarlan’s most notorious assassin. Why has she been retrieved from the slave mines of Endovier and brought to the king’s castle? She has been chosen to compete against other worthy opponents in a series of tests to become the king’s own champion. Victory ensures her freedom after serving four years as champion. The task seems simple enough to someone whose skills are that of legend. For this reason she is made to enter the competition under an assumed name so her opponents will only see a common female thief. The Captain of the Guard, Chaol Westfall, oversees her training while Prince Dorian has his own motives for supporting her. As the tests begin, an evil magic stirs in the castle and one by one the competitors are found brutally killed. What once started as a means to secure her freedom, now has become a race to find the culprit behind the attacks and avoid becoming it’s next victim. Celaena struggles with her growing feelings for her handsome trainer and Prince Dorian’s romantic overtures. This is a fabulous first entry in a compelling new fantasy series. It has mystery, suspense, adventure, magic and romance. What more could you ask for?

 

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 The Golden door by Emily Rodda
264 ps.
Target audience: Ages 8 to 12
Rating: Wizard

The city of Weld is surrounded by an enormous wall that protects its citizens from the dangers outside. It is here that Rye lives with his mother and two older brothers, Dirk and Sholto. Now their safety is endangered when the flying creatures known as Skimmers begin their nightly attacks. The Warden of Weld issues a summons for volunteers over the age of seventeen to leave Weld on a quest to find and destroy whoever is responsible for the Skimmer invasion. The reward is marriage to the Warden’s spoiled daughter. Rye is not old enough but Dirk and Sholto sign up and never return. When Rye’s mistake brings a Skimmer attack on his home and crops, he and his mother move to the castle for protection. Convinced his brothers are still alive, Rye lies his way into the Chamber of magical Doors, picks the Golden door and leaves the city walls. Accompanied by an escaped orphan, Sonia, Rye ventures into the perilous unknown.  Will Rye ever find his brothers again? What if he went through the wrong door? And if he does find them, what will they have to do to stop the Skimmers? From the author of the Deltora series, comes a fantastic new trilogy full of magic, monsters and mayhem. Rye and his brothers are drawn with unique personality traits endowing the cast of characters with a more complex and realistic tone. Rye, unlike a more traditional hero, is motivated by finding his brothers and reuniting his beloved family rather than winning the prize at the end. The adventures are well-plotted and set the stage for the next exciting installment.

(Book provided for review by Children's Lit - www.childrenslit.com)

 

 

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Keeper of the lost cities by Shannon Messenger

488 pgs.
Target audience: 8 to 12
Rating: Wizard

Sophie’s secret telepathic ability sets her apart from everyone. To keep the constant nagging voices away, she becomes a loner. On a school field trip to a museum, she meets a young boy who claims he can also hear thoughts. To prove his authenticity, Fitz transports Sophie to the Eternalia in the Land of Lumenaria where the elves live. Sophie learns that she is in fact an elf and must leave her human family forever. She’d always been an outsider, so finding out she’s not human makes a small bit of sense even though it pains her to say goodbye to that life. She is taken in by a couple who run a sanctuary for mythical creatures. Although she does make friends at her new school, there are those who oppose her return. Reading thoughts are not Sophie’s only powers, she is able to send thoughts as well. The gaps in her memory hold valuable secrets, information that others would kill for. Sophie is a simple yet likeable character, whose eagerness to harness her new powers and unveil the secrets in her mind make her a target. Dex, her best friend, is loyal and true, but there are many whom she shouldn’t trust. This a fast paced, well plotted fantasy debut with hints of a sequel.

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Crystal Bones by c. Aubrey Hall

313 pgs.
Target audience: Young adult
Rating: Griffin

Half Fae twins Dielho and Cynthe, born of a Fae mother and human father, are painfully aware of the prejudice against half breeds and know it’s better just to blend in. They eagerly await their thirteenth birthday when their mother will bestow upon them their magical gifts. But when the day arrives, nothing goes as they planned. Instead of celebrating at the village fair, they’re given chores and sent on a boring errand. After delivering cloth to the castle, the temptation is too great to check out the fair, but this detour proves deadly. They are spotted and pursued by a goblin. They escape and return home only to find it burned to the ground, their mother dead. Their father’s last words plunge them into a world of family secrets, enemy goblin hordes, powerful swords and magic. Along with a talking wolf pup, and a half goblin creature named Scree, they set off to find their only relative, a Fae uncle they’ve never met. This fantasy has many traditional elements – magic, mysterious swords, sorcery, quest. Although the plot moves along at a good pace, the characters develop slowly at first giving the book a sluggish appeal at the beginning. The magical gifts of both children seem to be injected into the storyline making it seem like they just knew stuff without learning it. The author cleverly uses language to alter words for this world like “walner” for walnut tree, giving the descriptions a multi-textured, magical feel. The heavy issues of grief and prejudice are addressed realistically keeping the story from becoming too depressing. The end is left open for the next in the “Faelin Chronicles” series.

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Shades of Milk and Honey by Mary Robinette Kowal

304 pgs.

Target audience: Young adult and adult

Rating: Wizard

This was a wonderful melange of Victorian England and a bit of artistic magic. Enter two sisters who couldn't be more different. Jane, or as she calls herself Plain Jane, has a talent for magical glamour while the beautiful and flighty Melodie gets all the attention from the gentlemen. This is perfect for those Jane Austen fans who like a bit of fantasy. The magical element, which is purely to decorate and entertain underlines the romantic thread and doesn't overwhelm the story. It was a fun story to read and I had all sorts of imaginings of what type of glamours I'd create if I had that talent.

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The Enchantress: The secrets of Nicholas Flamel, volume 6 by Michael Scott.

509 pgs.
Target audience: Young adult
Rating: Griffin

 This sweeping saga comes to a close with a bang – a ten on the action Richter scale. There are earthquakes, collapsing bridges, monster battles, major magic, fighting atop a pyramid, and a spectacular airship crash into a legendary tree. The end of the world battle takes place on two planes. The Perenelles try to save San Francisco from the final monster invasion before their powers are depleted and they die. Sophie and Josh, the twins of legend, travel ten thousand years into the past with the magician Dr. Dee and Virginia Dare where they are coerced by Osiris and Isis to usurp Aten’s power and rule over Danu Talis. Of course beloved characters Scathach, Prometheus, Shakespeare, Joan of Arc and Palamedes make an appearance as well as more than a few new ones. Meanwhile dark elders are combining forces against those fighting on Alcatraz.Readers will be relieved that questions behind Abram’s prophecy “The two that are one must become the one that is all. One to save the world, one to destroy it” are nicely resolved. The author’s knowledge of mythology is astounding and he layers the plotline with the most fantastical, historical and legendary characters with customary ease. The story is so packed full, almost too full with multiple plotlines overlapping, long dead characters coming back to the story alive and well through time travel, major revelations, characters abruptly switching loyalties, a family reunion, and an all-out humani rebellion against the Elders. Despite its fractured and cluttered storyline, it is a satisfying conclusion to the series and a must for fans.

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Dragonborn by Toby Forward
344 pgs
Target audience: Juvenile
Rating: Wizard

Synopsis from inside front cover
"When Flaxfield the great wizard dies, his apprentice, Sam, is left alone. Same has great power -- but he doesn't know it yet. All he knows is that he needs a new master if he wants to finish his education in magic. With his dragon, Starback, at his side, Sam sets out on his quest. But there are those who want Sam's power for themselves, dangerous forces that are waiting for an opportunity to attack....
And his dragon may not be able to save him."

This was a great beginning to a compelling new fantasy series. Sam starts out his journey with his loyal dragon, Starback, not knowing whom to trust.  I love the dragon and we find out more about Sam's connection with him as the story progresses. There are excerpts from his apprentice's notebook where he describes many of the magical creatures that inhabit the Deep World below with charming silliness. When Sam attempts to learn more magic at the college, he realizes that he has enemies there as well. The college library is fabulous with fake books hiding multiple secret rooms. What I wouldn't give to work there. Anyway, as the author sets up this world, things get a bit crammed with all the characters and their motivations. He does meander a bit in doing so, but just keep with it. I'm glad there is so much foundation building because that hints at how rich and comprehensive this series will be.

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