The Mad Reviewer’s 2013 Holiday Book Buying Guide (Part One)

Last year I did a teen book buying guide, but I figure it’s about time to recommend a little something for everyone.  So if you’re struggling to find a book for a friend or relative of yours, look no further!  My suggestions aren’t perfect, of course, but I certainly hope they’re a good start for that bookish person in your life.  (All links go to my reviews, where you can find links for Amazon and Barnes & Noble.)

FANTASY FICTION

The Devil's Concubine by Jill Braden1.  The Devil’s Concubine by Jill Braden

If you’re into non-traditional fantasy (especially when it’s set in an island culture) with strong female characters you can’t go wrong with The Devil’s Concubine.  It’s well-written and fast-paced to boot!  This is the first book in The Devil of Ponong series and trust me when I say that once you finish this one you’ll clamour for the rest of the series.  I was so anxious to dive back into QuiTai’s world once I finished this book that I immediately just started reading it again.  It’s that good and it’s well worth your money.

Prophecy of the Most Beautiful by Diantha Jones2.  Prophecy of the Most Beautiful by Diantha Jones

Yes, Diantha Jones is a self-published author but you won’t catch any editing mistakes in her books.  She writes fantasy based on Greek myths with a dash of romance and a whole lot of action.  Prophecy of the Most Beautiful is the first of five books in the Oracle of Delphi series and each book is an improvement on the last, which is really saying something considering how good this first book is!  At first it seems like pretty typical YA but Chloe really shows herself to be an unique main character.

Slumber by Tamara Blake3.  Slumber by Tamara Blake

Like fairies?  Not the beautiful, loving fairies of your typical YA story.  I mean the vicious, malicious fairies of old that think of humans as playthings.  Then you’ll love this amazing story of sisterly love set in a terrifying fantasy world within the real world.  Believe me when I say this is definitely not your typical teenage love story.  It’s pretty dark so I wouldn’t recommend it to everyone but if you’re looking for a grittier take on fairies just like the fairies of old, this is definitely the book to go with.

A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin4.  A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin

If you’re someone who’s sick of traditional high fantasy, you need to check out A Game of Thrones.  Yes, the series is over-hyped because of the TV show, but judge the books on their merit and you’ll love the series.  George R. R. Martin demolishes all of the high fantasy tropes while creating a story with amazing characters and subtle politics.  And the amazing thing is that he creates such a diverse cast of characters, particularly women.  There are so many strong women in his books that everyone will find someone to root for.

Sins of the Angels by Linda Poitevin5.  Sins of the Angels by Linda Poitevin

This is one of the latest books I’ve read and it’s fantastic.  Linda Poitevin created such a vivid, believable world where angels and humans collide in unexpected ways.  The main characters are awesome and the new take on Lucifer’s fall is so unique (and blasphemous to some).  Alexandra is an unique character and she really carries the story even though Aramael is also a pretty good character.  Together they both make the book simply amazing and when their mutual disgust with one another turns into something more you’ll be cheering for them to overcome the odds. Continue reading →

Your Open Book Recommendation Thread

I’ve been having a trying week, so let’s do something a little more light-hearted today, shall we?  If you’re reading this blog, you probably like books.  I like books.  My other readers like books.  But sometimes finding good books is hard and that’s where you come in.

Have you read a good book recently?  Share it with everyone else!  Why was it good?  Is it a standalone or part of a series?  Why should other people reading this blog want to read your recommendation?  Basically, if you’ve read a good book I’d like to hear about it.  And if you want to add links to the Amazon, Goodreads and/or Barnes & Noble page(s) go ahead!

There are only two rules:

1.  You cannot be the author of the book you recommend.  (If you are then your comment will be deleted.)

2.  Don’t trash other people’s recommendations.

Have fun!

Discussion: Insta-Love

If there’s one thing I hate about YA (and depending on the day, there are multiple things) it’s the fact that all of the main characters seem to fall in Insta-Love.  There is, of course, no formal definition for Insta-Love so I usually define it as: “A type of attraction in which the main character becomes obsessed with another character within a short amount of time, usually in under a week.  Can result in ridiculous declarations of being ‘soulmates’ or some other variation of the word.”

Okay, I get that you can be very strongly attracted to someone you just met.  It’s happened to me before.  However, you can’t proclaim ‘love’ on the basis of someone’s looks alone, as seems to happen in YA so much.  The (usually) female main character will look at a boy and immediately think of him as ‘cute’, ‘hot’ or ‘handsome’ and spend the next few days mooning over him and generally making a fool of herself.  Then, when the boy seems to return her interest, she proclaims that their love is real and everlasting.

Yuck.

Teenage love can be more than a little obsessive because of hormones and a general lack of life experience.  But really, not all teenagers are immediately going to fall in love with the nearest good-looking person.  That’s why it baffles me why Insta-Love seems to occur in so many YA novels.  Of course the polar opposite of Insta-Love is the now cliché Slap-Slap-Kiss when main characters hate each other and then suddenly start making out and proclaiming their love.  But that’s a discussion for another time.

Now I want to hear from you: What do you think of Insta-Love?  Is it healthy for novelists to portray this as a legitimate type of love when their books are aimed at a teenage audience?  Are you as tired of Insta-Love as I am?  Or do you think a little Insta-Love is okay?

Cover Reveal: Hero, Cursed by Diantha Jones

Before he knew the Oracle…

Before he knew the Quad…
Before the Great Unknown threatened his world…
He was a hero, cursed forever.
Cover Designed by: Colin F. Barnes
Publication Date: March 18, 2014
Genre: YA Mythology
Series: Mythos: Stories from Olympus #2/Oracle of Delphi #3.5
 
*WARNING* To be read after Prophecy of Solstice’s End (Oracle of Delphi #3). 
Contains MAJOR spoilers!
 
Shunned by a family that doesn’t understand him, demigod Lenka Tahile aka “Swindle” is a complete loner and he likes it that way. Then he meets the hero, Ace Remedy, the brother of an infamous demigod Prince, and his life goes from bad to worse. Ace is loud, rude, and disruptive to his peaceful existence in every way. He’s also hilarious and daring, and Swindle ends up finding a friend just when he thought he’d never have another.
 
But little does he know, becoming friends with Ace was all part of the Fates’ plan. Now his past is slowly coming back to haunt him and there’s nothing he can do to stop it. Nothing but try not to bring to light the lost love, the failed hopes, and the cursed existence that he would kill to keep in the dark.
 
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Five Facts about Hero, Cursed
 
1. Lenka Tahile is a South African name. The MC was born in South Africa.
2. “Swindle” is Lenka’s celestial name. He is a son of Hermes. Figure it out.
3. The hawk on the cover is not a tattoo. His name is Bill and he’s Swindle’s Fauna Morph, an animal that morphs into a weapon on command.
4. Though it isn’t showcased on the cover, Swindle has extremely curly hair. Out of control, I tell you.
5. Just like Solar, Defeated, this novella switches back and forth between the present and the past, and reveals what life was like for Swindle before the Oracle of Delphi came along.
Mythos: Stories from Olympus #1Amazon  |  Barnes&Noble  |  Goodreads

Diantha Jones was born the day thousands of turkeys sacrificed their lives to fill millions of American bellies on November 22 which also happened to be Thanksgiving Day (Her mother says she owes her a turkey). She is a Journalism graduate who wants to be a career novelist (of books, not Facebook posts). When not writing or working, she is reading on her Nook, being hypnotized by Netflix or on a mission to procure french fries.

The Oracle of Delphi fantasy series is her first series. She is also the author of Mythos: Stories from Olympus, a companion series, and there is another fantasy series in the works. She also writes (new) adult fantasy/paranormal romance under the name A. Star. Invasion (An Alien Romance) is her first title released under this pen name. Future releases under A. Star include, Mythos: Gods and Lovers series, the Love & Steampunk series, the Purr, Inc. stories, and more.

Website  |  Twitter  |  Facebook  |  Goodreads  |  Amazon  |  Pinterest  |  DJ’s Book Corner

The Eagles’ Brood by Jack Whyte

The Eagles' Brood by Jack Whyte(Cover picture courtesy of 49th Shelf.)

The Eagles’ Brood continues the saga of the Colony known as Camulod, and the tale of the descendants of those brave Romans who forged a new way of life for the Celt and Roman peoples when the Roman legions departed Britain.

Most know the new leader of the Colony as Merlyn; all call him Commander. Cauis Merlyn Britannicus is responsible for their safety, and all look to him for guidance, leadership, justice, and salvation. It is a harsh life but a good community, and Merlyn is dedicated to spreading the influence of Roman culture beyond the Colony’s borders.

Uther Pendragon, the man who will father the legendary Arthur, is the cousin Merlyn has known and loved since they were birthed, four hours apart on the same day, the year the legions left Britain. He is the tireless warrior–the red dragon to Merlyn’s great silver bear–and between the two of them, the Colony knows few enemies.

As different as they can be, they are inseparable: two faces of the same coin. In a world torn apart by warfare and upheaval, each is the other’s certainty and guarantee of the survival of the Colony . . . until a vicious crime, one that strikes at the roots of Merlyn’s life, drives a wedge between them. A wedge that threatens the fate of a nation . . . .

For me, The Eagle’s Brood was such a sad book.  I had to say goodbye to some of my favourite characters from the previous two books: Picus, Publius Varrus and Equus.  Although Caius Merlyn doesn’t have the flair and sense of humour of Publius Varrus, I really did grow to love him as a narrator.

The characters were great in this.  We see everything through Merlyn’s eyes, with all of his judgments and flaws.  He’s a good person but not a perfect character and gradually realizes his flaws.  He can be more than a little judgmental and arrogant at times, but I love how the perspective is told from his older self looking back on his youth.  It brings a little more balance to the equation and I loved Merlyn all the more for it.  Uther was an okay character, but we didn’t really get to see much of the good side of him at all.  That’s why I feel I need to reread Uther (the standalone Jack Whyte later wrote from Uther’s perspective) to fully understand him better.

The plot wasn’t the most fast-moving at the beginning, but the last few hundred pages went fast.  The familiar Arthurian mythology we all know and love is now present almost all of the way through the novel and combined with the other events like the war with Lot, this made for a fast read.  If you’re just picking this book up without reading the first two in A Dream of Eagles you won’t appreciate it as much, but each of Jack Whyte’s books can stand on their own.

I can’t and won’t really comment on the historical accuracy of The Eagles’ Brood.  Although the main events of the novel are correct: the Romans withdrew from Britain, the Saxons started raiding the shores, tribes squabbled for control while the remaining Romans in the province tried to restore some order.  I have a feeling that most of Jack Whyte’s novel is historically accurate because of what I know of ancient Rome as well as how he really sucks you into that period of time.  You really do feel like you’re there and that’s something I’ve always admired in him as a writer.

Despite some rather graphic, disturbing scenes I really did enjoy The Eagles’ Brood.  I’d highly recommend A Dream of Eagles series to anyone who enjoys the Arthurian legends, with or without magical elements.

I give this book 5/5 stars.

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