The Spirit Thief by Rachel Aaron

   

 

Set in an animistic, fantasy world of kings, Spiritualists, thieves and swordsman, The Spirit Thief is an easy, fun read that follows Eli, the greatest thief of the age, and Miranda, the Spiritualist who is tasked with apprehending him.

    As a Spiritualist it is Miranda's sworn duty to ensure that the balance between the spirits that inhabit the world and the wizards who are capable of using them. Eli is an irreverent wizard thief doing his best to increase the bounty on his head and ruining the wizards reputation along the way.



Overall Opinion:

    Ms. Aaron, while not writing deeply, did write a book that engaged me enough to look forward to the next book in the series. I found myself interested in the outcomes of the characters and dropped just of an opening on two more characters to add to that interest.



Rating:

7
 

The High King The Chronicles of Prydain - Book 5 by Lloyd Alexander

Youth Fiction Pick  

   Written in epic style, The High King, was a good fantasy adventure that thrilled its reader. My only complaint is that there wasn't enough review of the previous story; I felt a little adrift during the story. The book looked like it was going to close kind of lamely for a second, but recovered nicely.


Favorite Quote:

"Memory lives longer than what it remembers."


Overall Opinion:

I think boys will enjoy the series. If they are familiar with the Lord of the Rings series, this one should be a welcome addition.


Rating:

8

Tales from Watership Down by Richard Adams

   My only acquaintance with Watership Down is the movie...which I saw maybe 26, 27 years ago. (Gasp! Could I have made myself feel older?)  Even so Tales from Watership Down was easily understood and enjoyed. Part I of Tales is composed of stories told around the warren by different rabbits and Parts II and III are stories that pick up where the last left off. Part II is the continuing story of El-ahrairah and Part III are stories about the Watership Down rabbits after their settlement.
  

Favorite Quotes:

"You don't need to impress your people with more great struggles and journeys. You've done enough. They already love and admire you as much as is good for them or for you."

" ...'that pestilential fellow with a face as long as a rook's beak...' "


Overall Opinion:

The Part I stories were nice enough, but the book got better when it felt like there was a continuity to the stories and a flow that you could follow.


Rating:

7

Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt

   Number 50!!!

   Whoo hoo! Fifty books since my venture began almost twelve weeks ago! Very excited which, when translated, means lots of !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am a bit surprised that it was Tuck Everlasting actually. I usually read my children's pick when I am at the gym since they are paperback and I can hold them comfortably with one hand and read while I run on the treadmill (a definite timekiller!). I thought my fiftieth book was going to be... you didn't really think I was going to say did you? But, as I was at the gym tonight it was Ms. Babbitt's book instead.
   On to the book!
   I was surprised by the story, having seen the movie, I know, I know, never judge a book by its cover and never!, ever!, evereverever!!!, (think Smokey from Friday when you say that) think you know a book because you have seen the movie. Ugh! Quelle horreur!! I must be part philistine to have done that (and more than once too, eek)!
   Back to the book! (That sentence didn't really call for emphasis; I just feel a bit obliged now, especially after my translated statement. See above.)
   Good golly! I think I might be rambling now just because I can't think of much of anything to say about the book. Which after all this time is Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt. In case, like me, you've practically forgotten by now.
   Yes! The book!
   It was okay. Gently written. Gently read. Sheltered Winnie Foster happens upon the Tucks who have been blessed and or cursed (they're not sure which) with immortality. The secret must be kept and, in order to impress the importance of that, they keep her overnight in their hidden home to explain all the where's and whyfor's (those esses might have need apostrophes, not quite sure). Yes, they look better now that they have them. While Winnie is with the Tucks she comes to love them (it's a long day) howsomever at this point the villian (as there must be) enters the picture.
   As I said, it's a gentle story. Winnie learns a lesson and develops character and perhaps makes some friends (different from the Tucks).


Favorite Quotes:

"The house was so proud of itself that you wanted to make a lot of noise as you passed, and maybe even throw a rock or two."

"Outside in the ring of trees around the pond, the birds were celebrating, giving the new day a brass band's worth of greeting."


Overall Opinion:

I think a third or fourth grade girl would find the story lovely. I would probably like it more if it was packaged with the nostalgia that comes from reading a book from your childhood.


Rating:

7

The Dream Thief by Shana Abe

   Second in Shana Abe's Drakon series is The Dream Thief. The Dream Thief follows Amalia, youngest daughter of Rue and Kit Langford, and Zane, erstwhile apprentice to Rue. Zane is sent by the Langfords to locate and return Draumr, the drakons legendary diamond. Unexpectedly and unhappily, to Zane, Amalia appears on the same trail.
   Amalia sees the future in her dreams, a secret she has kept from everyone. Another secret? She dreams of Zane, and her dreams bode naught but ill for her kith and kin.
   I liked the first and third book in the series. The first, The Smoke Thief, was new and there was just enough to keep me interested. The third, Queen of Dragons, well, the gap in between the two had me interested because I had to work to figure out what I was missing. There just wasn't enough in The Dream Thief to keep me hooked.
   Reading this book after its following title left me with more questions than I originally had reading the third before the second. I think that's one of the reasons I struggled so much with it. I was reading for answers and seemed to come up short. Odd.


Favorite Quotes:

??? (That is a direct quote; it just so happens to be mine and not the author's.)


Overall Opinion:

Definitely read the books in order. You avoid confusion and will probably enjoy it more.


Rating:

Eh.


P.S. Look for this one in the large print section. :)

Queen of Dragons by Shana Abe

   This is the third in Shana Abe's Drakon series (the first was Smoke Thief, reviewed earlier). It picks up nicely and reads well even without having read the second book. Queen of Dragons follows Kimber Langford, Darkfrith's sitting Alpha and first son of Rue and Christoff of book one, and Maricara, the princess from Carpathia, as they face the threat of the sanf inimicus, or drakon killers.
   As in the first book, there is a first person tale interspersed throughout the book that embellishes the story as it's told. I like the addition.

Favorite Quote:

Huh. Just realized I didn't find one.

Overall Opinion:

Shape shifting dragons, love scenes, mysterious disappearances; an easy read for the afternoon.

Rating:

Why not? Go ahead and give it a whirl.

The Smoke Thief by Shana Abe

   Succintly put, I liked the book. The Smoke Thief is fantasy fiction that tells the story of a tribe of drakon living in England in the 1700's. It is a romantic novel that has a predictable ending, but has enough backstory to be enjoyable. This is the first Abe book I've read and was good enough to keep me from not feeling dread at having two more of her books to read.
   Huh...I'm not sure what else to say. I think succintly put, was sufficiently put. Oh, one last thing. Abe does a great job of writing a love scene.  ;)

Favorite Quote:

"Society must be far, far more beef-witted than I even thought."

Overall Opinion:

In case you missed it; I liked the book.

Rating:

Good Beach Read

Watersmeet by Ellen Jensen Abbott

   Teen fiction selection that wasted no time lollygagging and got right down to brass tacks. In a fantasy world of humans, dwarves, centaurs, etc. etc., Abisina is born an outcast in her village. As are all born possessing any of the wrong characteristics, to wit, not blond haired and blue eyed. Abisina must leave Vranille for Watersmeet, to find the father she just learned of. She encounters the "demons": dwarves, centaurs and others; in doing so she learns that all is not what she has learned growing up in prejudice.
   Is it just me or did this review seem terse and unremarkable?
  
Favorite Quotes:

Didn't come across anything that struck me.

Overall Opinion:

 Fine for any age. The story is a predictable good vs. evil, overcoming fear, prejudice, etc., etc. tale, but would most likely engage a young reader, particularly girls.

Rating:

Why not read? There are better books, but this one is not a complete waste of a couple of hours.