This. This is it. This is the bridge I needed to get from young adult fiction into more 'adult' fiction, but keeping my foot in the supernatural/fantaThis. This is it. This is the bridge I needed to get from young adult fiction into more 'adult' fiction, but keeping my foot in the supernatural/fantasy world that I've always loved.
Granted, I watched the TV show first, but hey, what can you do?
The obvious comparison is 'adult Harry Potter', and to be fair, for the first two thirds of the book, that's actually a pretty decent comparison. Quentin Coldwater finds himself in a new school where they teach magic; but there's more sex and drugs and booze than at Hogwarts, that's for sure. But then everything gets turned on its head at least twice as the book continues. The last third of the book is more like 'Demented Narnia' than Harry Potter, and yet it's unputdownable.
The main character's mindset is so well described; Grossman's descriptions are exceptional, and you can feel the rollercoaster of emotions that poor Quentin goes through as the book goes on.
If there's one thing I didn't really like it was the abrupt ending, more the inclusion of a character who hadn't been in the book very much at such a pivotal point - but from the TV show, and from what I've heard about book two, they get a lot more exposure later on, so it's a small thing.
I loved the TV show; it's possible I love the book even more. ...more
If you love Harry Potter, you'll probably love this. Don't expect anything massively deep in terms of story, since it's basThis'll be short and sweet.
If you love Harry Potter, you'll probably love this. Don't expect anything massively deep in terms of story, since it's basically a greatest hits of all the previous books mashed together (not that that's a bad thing), and the themes that Harry and his kids go through during the story are pretty well executed.
I could give this -4000 stars and everyone on the damn planet would read it anyway, so whatever.
This one took me a while to get into, and I'm still not 100% sure what I thought of it, even hours after finishing and allowing myself to digest.
I'm sThis one took me a while to get into, and I'm still not 100% sure what I thought of it, even hours after finishing and allowing myself to digest.
I'm sure everyone knows the story by now, what with the TV series incoming and the fact that the book's been out for ages, so I won't recap that here. Suffice to say a war of eras for different gods was something that really intrigued me, and yet, I feel like something was missing here.
It could be the fact that the gods plot is almost secondary to everything else. A lot of the story follows Shadow through different events that hold little to no bearing on the overall plot. I feel like I've missed the point of the Lakeside story entirely, since you could remove all that stuff, and the fight between the gods would play out exactly the same. It's like Gaiman didn't want to have the war so early so he needed a way to play for time.
The actual idea behind the new gods was good, and all the little asides that showed us how the old gods came to be were probably my favourite parts of the book. And of course the ultimate resolution to that plotline is great too, but then the book goes on for another 50 pages resolving the Lakeside plot which again I didn't feel was needed at all.
I dunno. This was my first foray into Gaiman's literature, since I love all the comic work he does, but this just didn't seem to hit the right notes with me. I'll check out the TV series though, maybe that'll enlighten me a bit better....more
Angela as a character was kind of mishandled when she first arrived in the Marvel Universe at the end of Age of Ultron. She flo[Read as single issues]
Angela as a character was kind of mishandled when she first arrived in the Marvel Universe at the end of Age of Ultron. She floated around with the Guardians of the Galaxy for a bit, was brought into the Thor mythos during Original Sin, but then was left to her own devices until Kieron Gillen and Marguerite Bennett got hold of her and worked their magic through a six issue ongoing series, a Secret Wars tie-in, and now (with Bennet taking the reins alone), her final series that brings her story to a close for now.
Dealing with all the unsolved plotlines from the past two series, this one sees Angela heading into Hel to rescue Sera, her lost love from Heven. Of course, it wasn't going to be easy, and she must fight the hordes of Hel, take its throne for herself, and even battle a twisted alternate reality version of herself along the way.
This is a great action comic. That'd be enough to get it a good four star rating. What really pushes it over the top is the humour, the love, the diversity, the characterization, and the top notch dialogue that Bennett infuses the pages with. She brings back characters and plots long forgotten, and weaves a narrative that has a proper beginning, middle, and end. She's a great advocate for LGBTQ characters, and this book is packed with them, and they're all written wonderfully well.
The artwork is split between Kim Jacinto, who draws the battles through Hel in the present with visceral glee, and Stephanie Hans who paints beautiful sub-stories in each issue that give us some insight into Angela's life and her and Sera's evolving relationship. The pair each take an issue at the end of the run to themselves too, which really showcase their individual talents.
Angela's story may be over for now, but this ending means it will last for a long time in my memory....more
Let's be fair, even if this was awful, it'd still get 5 stars because it's the last one, and there's never going to be a writer quite like Terry PratcLet's be fair, even if this was awful, it'd still get 5 stars because it's the last one, and there's never going to be a writer quite like Terry Pratchett again. But of course, it's not awful. You can tell there's something missing, some scenes seem a little lacking in detail compared to others since Pratchett wasn't finished putting his finishing touches on the story, but as the afterword says, there's a beginning, a middle, and an end, and it's all the usual Pratchett hilarity, complete with asterisks at the bottom and random asides and all your favourite characters. And that second chapter is a gut-punch and a half.
If we have to say goodbye to the Discworld, then this is a wonderful farewell, even if it wasn't intended as such....more
A fun little entry into the Naruto world that, whilst being called Sakura's Story, also features a healthy dose of Ino and Sai too. It's interesting tA fun little entry into the Naruto world that, whilst being called Sakura's Story, also features a healthy dose of Ino and Sai too. It's interesting to be inside Sakura's head since she's probably the least developed of the main 3 characters in the series due to Naruto and Sasuke overshadowing her quite a bit usually.
The story itself, like both Kakashi and Shikamaru's stories, builds nicely off of the end of the series with some fun callbacks to both the series itself and some of the offshoot material.
It's easy reading, with no translation problems (unlike Shikamaru's story), although there are a few times where Sakura is referred to as Sasuke which is a little confusing, and Kakashi gets called Kido, the villain of the book, once near the end too, which is just weird. Well done editors....more
You would think after writing 5 Percy Jackson books, 5 Heroes of Olympus books, and a trio of crossover novellas with the Kane Chronicles, Rick RiordaYou would think after writing 5 Percy Jackson books, 5 Heroes of Olympus books, and a trio of crossover novellas with the Kane Chronicles, Rick Riordan would have plumbed the depths of the Greek/Roman mythologies and dug up every monster, demon, god, titan, and giant for his characters to fight.
So of course, with his new series of 5 novels, the Trials of Apollo, he flips it all on it's head and have the gods deal with demi-god problems for a change as Apollo himself is transformed into a human, just in time to discover that the Oracles he's meant to be the patron god of have all been captured by a mysterious new enemy that might have been pulling the strings for the past 10 books already. Uh oh.
Riordan's sense of humour, peppering of pop culture references, and self-aware storytelling make this the start of what's bound to be another great series of books. It's quite confined in terms of scope compared to the Heroes of Olympus, with the majority of the action taking place within the confines of Camp Half-Blood, but that's mainly because the bulk of the story deals with Apollo coming to grips with his new role as a human, and later books will no doubt branch out further.
Everyone's favourite characters from the other series' do appear every now and then, with of course Percy showing up when he's needed, but the vast majority of the main characters from the past are absent, although again I expect they'll appear as-needed in the later books. So if you're searching for a new Percy Jackson adventure, you'll be mistaken, but that shouldn't stop you from enjoying this.
There's a reason they call Rick Riordan the Myth Master....more
Atticus and friends return for the next installment of their ongoing battle against Ragnarok. Also included here is a novella that precedes the book, Atticus and friends return for the next installment of their ongoing battle against Ragnarok. Also included here is a novella that precedes the book, handily collected in the back with a warning note at the front for people to go read it first. I wish they'd done that with the other ebooks for this series which I've still not read.
The story is mostly told in three separate parts as Atticus deals with the vampire threat, Own tries to establish his own grove of Druids, and Granuaile works with the Polish witches to remove Loki's tracking mark on her. The three stories dovetail together at the end for the final battles which is nice, and there's a definite optimistic note to the ending which makes a change too, although it's clear there's more to the story to come. ...more
It's been heavily hinted at before in both the Heroes of Olympus and the Kane Chronicles, but now for the first time two of Rick Riordan's mythologicaIt's been heavily hinted at before in both the Heroes of Olympus and the Kane Chronicles, but now for the first time two of Rick Riordan's mythological series crossover.
These three stories unite Percy and Annabeth with the Kane siblings as they tie up a loose end from the Kane Chronicles book; the escape of Setne the magician. The idea of linking the Greek and Egyptian Gods initially seemed quite odd, but once the historical president is explained, as always Riordan runs with it all really well.
The similarities and differences between the two sets of characters is interesting, and their brief time together does make me want to see them together again. I just hope it takes a little less time next time (especially since these stories have been available digitally for ages)....more
The writer of this novel needs to find out what a tautology is and then avoid them. The amount of paragraphs in this volume that say the same thing twThe writer of this novel needs to find out what a tautology is and then avoid them. The amount of paragraphs in this volume that say the same thing twice is ridiculous, and almost put me off finishing the book entirely. It picks up a little in the second half, but it's a fairly basic plotline overall. I enjoyed the inner turmoil that Shikamaru grapples with in the wake of the Ninja War, but the resolution is convenient and pretty much everyone in the book is more interesting than Shikamaru is here. Disappointing, Kakashi and Sakura's stories were much better....more
Anthology books are always difficult; I've said as much in my many reviews for anthology comics. But I've not read a collection of short stories beforAnthology books are always difficult; I've said as much in my many reviews for anthology comics. But I've not read a collection of short stories before, and from what I've seen before, they're not usually all by the same writer.
Garth Nix is the author of the Abhorsen series of books which are pretty much my favourite YA fantasy series, and this book leads with a story set in the Old Kingdom, which is a really good place to start of course.
What follows are a cross-section of stories from different genres, grouped together into little sections with similar themes like Coming of Age, or Combat, etc., and for the most part, it's all really strong stuff. It must be hard to tell a story in 20-50 pages, especially one set in an entirely different world each time (and none of them are set in a straight forward one, either), so it's great to see how much world building can be done in such a short space of time. There are a few times when it becomes an exposition dump, but most of the stories here are varied in tone and setting to make them all memorable in their own way.
The only two that didn't sit right with me were the Hellboy one, which felt weird being collected with a load of original stories (especially since it could easily have been a story without Hellboy in it), and The Heart of the City, which was so full of complicated sentences that ran on for half-pages that I actually couldn't finish it, and that says a lot since I am the King of Run-On Sentences....more
I probably should have read this years ago, but there you go.
This is a collection of short stories set during the first Percy Jackson saga, each of whI probably should have read this years ago, but there you go.
This is a collection of short stories set during the first Percy Jackson saga, each of which is fun, engaging, and basically everything the longer Percy stories are as well. In fact, the final story of the collection directly influences Percy Jackson and the Olympians later on too, which I'd never noticed until now (and I've read all of the other books, so I'm disappointed in myself for not realising actually)
There are also some factfiles and a few puzzles for the younger readers to enjoy (don't you dare draw in your books! Photocopy the puzzles and do them like that!) too to round it all out.
Another collection of Rick Riordan's short stories, this time set during the second Percy Jackson saga.
We lead with a story from the past, with ThaliAnother collection of Rick Riordan's short stories, this time set during the second Percy Jackson saga.
We lead with a story from the past, with Thalia and Luke battling an evil house and some monster lions; it's nice to see these characters again, and to get inside Luke's head, but it's a bit hamfisted in its 'Look, Luke goes evil and here's why!'-ness. That, and it's touted as the story of how they met Annabeth, but she's on something like 4 pages of the story, so it's all a bit coincidental.
Percy and Annabeth team up to tackle a fire-breathing giant to help out Hermes in the second tale which is probably the strongest of the three main stories, whilst the third is about Piper, Leo, and Jason fighting some maenads and chasing an animatronic table. Yes, really. A fun little story, but nothing too essential.
The real gem however comes in the final story, Son of Magic, written by Riordan's son (and the inspiration for Percy Jackson in the first place). This story answers a few lingering questions about what happened between The Last Olympian and The Lost Hero, as well as introducing us to some interesting (if oddly named) characters that I'd like to see again at some point....more
It's rare that I really want a book to end. Like, cannot wait to get to the end because I am bored of reading it. The first two books in the Kingdom KIt's rare that I really want a book to end. Like, cannot wait to get to the end because I am bored of reading it. The first two books in the Kingdom Keepers series weren't fantastic, but at least they didn't outstay their welcome. Book 3 comes in about a hundred and fifty pages too long, and with severe pacing problems that mean everything is wrapped up in 3 pages and the fight scene that should be short and snappy takes about 20 pages to conclude, it's just too much of not enough.
I'm taking a break from this series; I've read 3 in a row, and I don't think I can stand the next one just yet....more
More like 2.5 out of 5, since this is a vast improvement on the first volume, yet still plagued with problems.
I'm not sure if it's Pearson or his ediMore like 2.5 out of 5, since this is a vast improvement on the first volume, yet still plagued with problems.
I'm not sure if it's Pearson or his editors who are to blame, but this book has spelling mistakes and story inconsistencies that make me angry. The story is actually really solid this time and shows a lot of forward planning for the rest of the series, but when characters say things they have no right to know, or when they appear out of thin air and then disappear again because they're not meant to be there, it's all a bit of a mess.
That said, the characterisation is stronger this time around (even if it's highly stereotypical, at least it's consistent), and Maleficent isn't made out to be a total wimp. The plot's a bit of a re-hash of last time around though, with the same character getting kidnapped and needing to be rescued.
I'm not sure what the fascination is with DS's and the Disney Virtual Magic Kingdom is here either; I know the kids are meant to be 14 or so, but not having borrowed their parents phones or having phones of their own (which yeah, I don't approve of, but most kids these days have them) makes the story fumble too.
That said, this does give me hope - if the series continues improving, hopefully it'll actually be something solid by the end. *opens first page of third book - main character's name is wrong* Okay, maybe not....more
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