Two Reviews for the Price of One

First up: The Eyes That Moved (short story) by Rachelle M. N. Shaw

Overview from www.amazon.com: Kendra is a young girl who has a knack for spotting unusual trinkets and abandoned houses that hold treasures of their own. When she meets Adam, a fellow sleuth and collector, they decide to embark on their biggest adventure yet: the Whitson house. The house is a marvel, and its secrets are even juicier than Kendra had imagined. The third and final floor of the house holds something Kendra has been waiting a lifetime for. But she may have signed on for more than she bargained. There’s a darkness in the house that wasn’t there before, a pair of eyes in every corner, watching, waiting for her time to come. And Adam isn’t at all who he claimed to be.

My Review:

This story was given to me to review by a fellow writer in any way I see fit so I’ll begin with this one. Our main character, a girl named Kendra, likes old houses and has a date with another young man to explore one close to her neighborhood.

At first she finds no one there. She begins looking around and finds an old family tree that fascinates her for a while but her friend Adam wants her to move on.

That’s when she finds the creepy dolls and the truth about why she has been brought there. But is it too late?

I don’t usually review short stories but I was approached by someone on Facebook and I agreed. I am glad that I did because I thought it was really well-done. For those who like supernatural stories that are not too scary, it is perfect.

Review of  Caledonii: Birth of a Celtic Nation by Ian Hall

Overview from www.barnesandnoble.com: The year is 69 AD, and the Romans have been lords of the southern part of Britain for over twenty years, but their roads stretch forever northwards. Knowing their armies will one day march on these roads, the Brigante King Venutius decides to send two of his young sons further north to safety.

Sewell, a northern druid, is given the task. He must first locate the boys, then get them safe to his homeland in the Caledonii nation.

It is a dangerous journey into hostile lands
He cannot fail.

My Review:

The next story for review was slightly longer but I think it was just designed as a teaser to get the reader into the series. And, as I suspected, at the end of the story there was a blurb about reading more books in this series.

But was it good enough for me to even consider that? The answer is a resounding yes. I hope the author is reading though because I am not sure if I can actually afford to buy future novels so if he would consider sending me a review copy I’d greatly appreciate it.

Our main character is a Druid named Sewell. The time is 69 AD in the South East of what would one day become Scotland.

His new assignment is to help a local king get his wife and children out of the area before the nasty Romans come through destroying everything in their path. And to top it off they also have to look out for their fellow monarch Cartimanda who has joined the side of the terrible Romans. She will no doubt be looking to curry favor with them.

The story combines some elements of Fantasy and the supernatural along with Historical Fiction. The writing is well-done and the characters are interesting.

Though I suppose it might not have interested me so much if it were not for my love of history and the fact that I remembered a lot of these characters (Cartimanda) from The British History Podcast.

There are some elements of sexuality but there was nothing graphic as I recall. Of course there is also some violence. Still, I found it engaging and well-done.

Peter Pan

Review of Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie

Overview from www.barnesandnoble.com: Scottish writer J M Barrie wrote both a play and a novel about the boy Peter Pan, who wouldn't grow up. This is the novel. Peter Pan lives with all the other Lost Boys in Neverland, where they never have to grow up. He visits Wendy Darling by flying through her bedroom window, and brings she and her brothers into Neverland where they encounter the fairy Tinkerbell, the princess Tiger Lily and the pirate Captain Cook.

My Review:

What could anyone possibly say about this classic that hasn't been said before? I am not sure but I am going to give it a go. Maybe nothing.

I will say that on this latest read of one of my favorite classics what struck me the most was how much the Walt Disney version retains from Mr. Barrie's original about the boy who refused to grow up. I grew up on all the Disney classics, including this one and read most of the books in later years. Most, if not all of them, had many details and nearly the entire stories changed in the film versions.

Peter Pan on the other hand  kept many characteristics. In reading it this time I remembered a lot of things from my reading that had also been in the movie. Namely the crocodile with the ticking clock inside his stomach. Don't ask me why I especially remembered that but I did.

The second thing that struck me was how Mr. Barrie often inserts himself in this story as it is told from an omniscient point of view. Maybe it is because I had recently read a book on the subject of writing that discussed this characteristic of Victorian literature and why it should probably be avoided in books for modern readers. But it was something that nearly hit me in the face this time around and I understood why my writing book suggests that it be avoid. Nevertheless, for me, this was just part of the book's charm.

So I am recommending this book particularly for children and those of us who used to be children. I think it is good reminder of what it is like to have fun, use your imagination, and never grow up, or at least don't take yourself too seriously.

The Book of Deacon

Review of The Book of Deacon by Joseph Lallo

Overview from www.barnesandnoble.com: The tale of Myranda Celeste, a young woman orphaned by a century long war, and her chance discovery of a fallen soldier's priceless cargo. The find will change her life, sending her on an adventure of soldiers and rebels, wizards and warriors, and beasts both noble and monstrous. Each step will bring her closer to the truth of her potential, of the war, and of the fate of her world.

My Review:

The Book of Deacon seems terribly misnamed since the book starts off with our main character that is named Myranda. Myranda is young girl who is forced to wander through the world on her own after the death of her mother and uncle as well as the presumed death or disappearance of her father.

The world as Myranda knows it has been at war for over a hundred years so war has become a way of life for her people who represent an alliance of Northern kingdoms. They are at war against a Southern country known simply as Tressor. But Myranda’s main problem is not necessarily the war itself but the fact that she is against the war in general and thus does not take a side. Apparently the only thing worse than someone in league with the enemy is “sympathizer” which is what she has come to be labeled as.

She goes from town to town trying to scramble up some food to eat while attempting to hide her true feelings. Unfortunately it usually isn’t a long time before she lets her true feelings out and is either kicked out of the town or given bad directions to somewhere else.

When her luck seems to change for the better one day after finding a dead soldier whose money she can use as well as his sword, her troubles are actually only just beginning.

As I said earlier, the story seems somewhat misnamed as the character of Deacon doesn’t appear until around the second half of the book and even then the story still tends to be mainly told from Myranda’s point of view. Perhaps Deacon will feature more in the stories to come. I would guess so.

I am still not sure that I would be as interested in reading them. The character of Myranda seemed more relatable to me when she was an outcast but when it becomes clear that she is a wizard prodigy, not as much.

On the plus side the story is engaging. And some of the characters, including Deacon, are very interesting. And there is a dragon. I don’t know why but I like dragons.

Also, there is not any bad language or sexually explicit material thus far so it is a story that teens or older children could enjoy.

I can recommend this one. I am not so sure about future installments yet but if I do get around to reading one of them, I will post the review here.

Space Junque

 


Review of Space Junque by L. K. Rigel


Overview from www.goodreads.com: The DOGs want to destroy the world. The gods want to make a new one. The trick is to survive both.
At the end of the 21st century, civilization is at the brink of collapse. When hydroponics agronomist Char Meadowlark is warned of an impending attack by the eco-terrorist group Defenders of Gaia, she flees to the airport hoping to get off planet. The DOGs strike in the midst of Char’s escape, and pilot Jake Ardri offers her only hope of survival. He takes her to the orbiting Imperial Space Station, the seat of world government.

When the conflict goes global and the planet threatens to implode, ancient gods return to take control of humanity and impose a new world order. Char and Jake are caught up in a divine plan to save the world - but first they have to get through the apocalypse alive.

My Review:

I had a close encounter of the weird kind just now when I sat down to write this review. Though I got it for free as a Barnes & Noble e-book on their website, it is no longer listed on their website. I am not sure why but I did find a listing for it on Good Reads so I can thankfully still post a photo here. Sorry if the size is different.

This story is a novella introducing the Apocalypto series. Space Junque is named after the space ship that one of the main characters, Jake, drives a ship with that name and apparently likes to use it as joke.

“He winked and said, ‘See you at the junk, Tyler.’”

“She ran to catch up with Tyler. ‘What did Jake mean, see you at the junk?’


‘J-u-n-q-u-e. He takes private pays up to Vacation Station on the Space Junque. His shuttle. He use that line on everybody, man or woman.’


‘Ah. You want to see my Junque? Got it.’” P.13

The story begins however with Char Meadowlark’s attempt to get “off planet.” But leaving the Pacific Zone will not be easy. She barely escapes with her life though it cost her new friend Tyler his.

 I don’t want to give away too much of the story so I will skip most of the plot description and talk about characters. Char is our most developed character and the only one I felt that I got to know well during this little jaunt.

 
She is one of a few “natural born” people currently alive some one hundred years into our future. She also has a twin sister engaged to man who Char basically believes is just a mid-level government official. Her sister Sky has vanished but the fiancé, Mike, is looking out for her and gets her when he senses danger or does he know more than what he is telling?


Then there’s Jake, the cocky pilot who likes to make jokes, but takes his devotion to his friends seriously.
 
But I think my favorite character of all is perhaps Rani. An unusually tall woman with a slight Hindi accent who is tough enough to look out for herself but nevertheless cherishes her connection with her boss Jake. When she runs into trouble though, she must ask some unusual strangers for help.


The last thing I want to point out here is that this story has elements of both Science Fiction and Fantasy which was a little different for me. I was all settled in for Sci-Fi when suddenly we have a goddess thrown into the mix for good measure. Weird.

 Still overall, it was an interesting book and, mostly, a good read. I am still undecided yet though about whether or not I’ll read the sequels.

 

Contains: scenes of sexuality, violence, a few words that may not be for children

The Sable City

 

Review of The Sable City by M. Edward Mcnally


Overview from www.barnesandnoble.com: "Matilda Lanai, she of the sickening fall and the miraculous, silt-spitting, quaking resurrection. It might be a sign at that. The Island girl wasn’t stupid. She knew how to work. And she had it inside her to be ruthless. Block had seen it plain as day."

Epic Fantasy, Muskets & Magic. Historical fiction in a fictional world

My Review:

Finally I found a book in the Fantasy genre that picked my interest for this week and it turned out to be a very good one. It is called The Sable City and is apparently part of a trilogy.

We begin our story through the eyes of one Captain Block who is a Miilarkian dwarf. Though the islands of Miilark are populated primarily with humans, Captain Block long ago adapted to the customs of the place (including shaving off his beard as Miilarkian men are all clean-shaven) and made it his home.

Block is tasked with going on a special quest assigned to him by his house, which is how Miilarkian societies are divided, and must choose someone to help him. Rather than searching for the top person for the job, Block seems to be looking for someone rather mediocre and choses Matilda Lanai who is also of the same house.

We are not told what “Tilda” and Block’s mission is and they also keep that information from others that they encounter in their travels. Later it is revealed that they are looking for a man who was long ago exiled from Miilark but they don’t say what they will do when they find them Dugan, a deserter soldier who they team up with on the road, assumes that their intention is to kill the man when they find him.

Dugan is looking for the same man and promises to lead them to the man if they promise not to kill him also. Thus, they come to an uneasy truce.

Soon the mission begins to unravel. They encounter strange giant mosquitos and a knight bent on vengeance against Dugan. And all the while, Tilda wonders why Captain Block has chosen her for this mission when he had his choice of the best of their house, yet she can’t ask him because it is somehow against their culture. How will she continue when she has so many questions and faces so many strange new places? She is a trained assassin but one who has never left her homeland. Everything is so new to her.

This is what the reader will uncover if she or he continues to read. The story is very engrossing as well as unique compared to many Fantasies of today. No stealing from The Lord of the Rings here.

I would love to go on about all the great characters in this one but I would give away too many spoilers I think. Suffice it to say it is well worth the time spent getting to know them and hearing their stories as well as their backstories.

I will end, instead, with a great quote from the story. “Good luck wears off, the Tulls had said. Bad luck lasts forever.” Isn’t that the truth? Well, seems like it anyway.

Contains: Fantasy violence, mild language, sexual innuendo

The Puppet Queen

       


Review of The Puppet Queen by Mira Zamin


Overview from www.barnesandnoble.com: After Selene's homeland falls to the Pari curse, she is forced to must contest for the throne by her insidious fiancé. When rivalries threaten to plunge the country into civil war, Selene must fight through magic and malice—her family's fate hangs in the balance.

The Puppet Queen is a young adult fantasy retelling of Sleeping Beauty infused with the folklore of the Middle East.

My Review:

The story this week is a retelling of the classic Sleeping Beauty tale but from the point of view of Sleeping Beauty’s sister, her twin sister. Selene, our main character, is the mischievous twin of the future sleeping beauty. She is constantly venturing outside when she’s not supposed to and getting into trouble.

One day she convinces her sister Auralia to go out with her. That’s when things start to get crazy. Some men from the palace follow them and summarily escort Auralia back to the palace. When she arrives back Selene wonders why her parents, the Emir and Emira of Aquia, never cared when she left the palace on her own but are obviously worried about her sister venturing out.

It is then that she is told the story about the Pari curse that was placed on her family. The night she (and her sister) were born lightning struck their sacred tree and the blame was placed on Selene since it happened at the exact moment that she came out of her mother’s womb. A Pari queen came to her parents but since Selene was somewhere else at the moment, she saw only the one child and assumed that this was the one responsible for the damage to their tree.

Her father tried to reason with the Pari queen but to no avail and Auralia was cursed to hurt her finger on a spindle which would usher in death for everyone in Aquia. The curse was later adjusted by the djinn so that they would only sleep and then only until Auralia’s true love released them with a kiss.

Of course the plot goes on but I will leave the rest for you to read. And it is really a great story worth reading. I loved the character of Selene and how she grows in the novel. Even when her mother is asleep Selene uses her words, and those of other family members to guide her in her quest to remove the curse and rule Aquia.

First, she must fight against an abusive husband and learn to rule in her own right. Later she goes up against his cronies as well as the other Emirs and Emiras in Ghalain with only the help of a few trusted friends as well as the djinn who have helped her family before. She will soon find a way to break the curse, find her sister’s true love and become the woman she was destined to be.

If there is any downside to the story, it would be the lack of editing. Several times I was jarred out of the story by typos and other errors that could have been prevented by the author hiring a good editor. However, it was not enough to make me stop reading. So as long as you’re not too bad of a stickler for these kinds of things and you like Fantasy, you should enjoy the story.

Contains: mild language, violence

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde

       


Review of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson




Overview from www.bn.com: "This Master Hyde, if he were studied,' thought he, 'must have secrets of his own; black secrets, by the look of him; secrets compared to which poor Jekyll's worst would be like sunshine.'" —The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

When Edward Hyde tramples an innocent girl, two bystanders catch the fellow and force him to pay reparations to the girl's family. A respected lawyer, Utterson, hears this story and begins to unravel the seemingly manic behavior of his best friend, Dr. Henry Jekyll, and his connection with Hyde. Utterson probes into both Jekyll and his unlikely protégé, increasingly unnerved at each new revelation. In a forerunner of psychological dramas to come, Robert Louis Stevenson uses Hyde to show that we are both repulsed and attracted to the darker side of life, particularly when we can experience it in anonymity.

My Review:

It is strange to think that though I knew the story of Jekyll and Hyde, or thought I knew it anyway, I had never read the book by Robert Louis Stevenson. In fact, until I saw this as a Free Friday book by Barnes & Noble, I couldn’t even have told you who had written it though I suspected it was Stevenson. So maybe I did know, somewhere in the back of my mind.

I have always had questions about this story. For example, what ingredients did Dr. Jekyll use to turn himself into Mr. Hyde? Why did he want turn himself into Hyde in the first place? How did he create the alternate name and personality? And finally what kind of man goes to this extreme in the first place?

These were the questions that I had in mind and though I wanted to enjoy the ride like I usually do with novels, I also kept the questions at the back of mind my mind throughout. But would the author answer them to my satisfaction? The answer turned out to be both yes and no.

I understood that the doctor created Hyde to indulge in his darker side and smaller but dark nature that lurked inside of him, hence Mr. Hyde’s small stature. What I didn’t get was why a respected doctor like Jekyll, known for his good nature, felt the end to indulge the dark side at all. Perhaps the answer is that he is not as good as his friends supposed him to be or that in the Victorian Era indulging any dark impulses could get a person into a heap of trouble. But for me that just wasn’t a good enough reason. We are supposed to try to weed this stuff out, not encourage it, if it was done under a different name. It made me like Jekyll less.

As to the ingredients in the potion, some of them were listed though in the end it turns out to be not what we expect or even what Jekyll expects. As they become harder and harder to find, Jekyll risks being stuck in Hyde’s body and facing death at the gallows for one of Hyde’s foul deeds when can’t make his potion anymore.

The alternate name and personality were easy to create owing to the resources at Dr. Jekyll’s disposal.

However I had a hard time understanding why Dr. Jekyll felt the need to do this in the first place as I said earlier, even after I read his explanation at the end. It just rang hollow. This also limited my sympathy for the man. Unlike the experiments of Dr. Frankenstein, Jekyll’s experiment seemed to have no intrinsic value whatsoever.

So while I still find the story interesting, the main character was not likable for me, either as Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hyde.
Contains: some violence

The Picture of Dorian Gray

Review of The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

Overview from www.bn.com: The novel tells of a young man named Dorian Gray, the subject of a painting by artist Basil Hallward. Basil is impressed by Dorian's beauty and becomes infatuated with him, believing his beauty is responsible for a new mode in his art. Dorian meets Lord Henry Wotton, a friend of Basil's, and becomes enthralled by Lord Henry's world view. Espousing a new hedonism, Lord Henry suggests the only things worth pursuing in life are beauty and fulfilment of the senses. Realizing that one day his beauty will fade, Dorian (whimsically) expresses a desire to sell his soul to ensure the portrait Basil has painted would age rather than he. Dorian's wish is fulfilled, and when he subsequently pursues a life of debauchery, the portrait serves as a reminder of the effect each act has upon his soul, with each sin displayed as a disfigurement of his form, or through a sign of ageing.

My Review:

My review for this week focuses on one of the works of Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray. Surprisingly I had never read this novel before. I think in my high school English class we only read, The Importance of being Earnest. While I liked that one I have always been curious about the other one. Now I have finally gotten around to reading it.

The tone of this novel is much different from “Earnest.” Whereas “Earnest” was a little comedy, this one is much darker—it’s opposite entirely.

The story centers around the title character who is convinced by another character, Lord Henry Wotton, that being young and good looking is the best think for his life. Having just had his portrait painted by an artist named Basil, he laments that the picture will stay forever young while he gets older, taunting him for the rest of his life. It is then and there that he wishes for the portrait to age while he stays as he is in that moment.

Not realizing at first that his wish has come true, he continues on with his life. He eventually falls in love with and secretly gets engaged to an actress. However, one night, in fit of anger, he denounces her and declares that he no longer loves her.

When he arrives home that night after that episode, he discovers that the image on his portrait has been marred, presumably by his cruelty.

The next day, he laments his earlier behavior and writes the actress a letter trying to make amends. He later discovers that she has committed suicide which he thinks probably accounts for the change in portrait—not only does the portrait age in his place, it seems to absorb all of his sins. But our “hero,” if he can really be called that only becomes worse in his behavior as his anger and hatred consume him.

The story is brief (less than 200 pages) but interesting, I think. The idea that Dorian thinks that he is getting away with so much but really is “losing his soul” made me wonder what my soul would look like if it were reflected on a painted canvas in all its glory (or ugliness).

The character of Dorian however, is not that likable. He has his moments of remorse but on the whole he seems mostly selfish. When he does something wrong he always finds a way to justify it no matter how far fetched the reason might be.

And everyone who challenges him makes him angry. He prefers to remain shallow so anyone who tells him he is not “the fairest of them all” is a threat to his ego.

Though the story is interesting, the main character is not. I guess it makes more sense with the ending that Wilde has written though. Anyone else would have tried to mend their ways long ago so in that sense his main character makes sense, even if we don’t like him. Still, the story is worth a look. At least it won’t take you too long to read it.

The Wanderers

Review of The Wanderers by Cheryl Mahoney

Overview from www.bn.com: The Wanderers is set in a world inspired by fairy tales--but with a bit of a twist! You might recognize the landscape, and you may think you know the rules, but you’ve strayed beyond the tales. Come join a wandering adventurer, a talking cat and a witch’s daughter as they fight monsters, pursue quests, and learn that sometimes, rules are no help at all.

My Review:

Cheryl Mahoney, a writer whose blog I sometimes read, sent me an email a few weeks back asking me if I would like a copy of her book The Wanders, presumably for review. Her blog “Tales of the Marvelous” features many fanciful stories that I often enjoy. And it is a free book! So of course I said, send it on over.

I imagined that I would like it since I liked her blog but I wasn’t prepared for how much I would like it. I like Fantasy fiction, I do. It is not however, my favorite genre. That would be Historical Fiction but Fantasy is a close second or third.

That being said, I really liked this Fantasy book a lot. In fact, I think I loved it. It was not only good but it put a humorous twist on the genre. Sort of like Shrek but without the ogre. Wait, actually, there is an ogre but he is not a main character let alone the good guy.

So just who is our main character? Well, actually I would venture to say that there really are three. But the first one we meet is Jasper who is the wandering hero type (though he prefers the term “wandering adventurer”).

He travels throughout the land saving people who need to be rescued, usually the damsel in distress type. One day, however, as he attempts to defeat a corrupt magician who is abusing his power—and don’t they all—he befriends Tom who is your typical tabby cat. He is typical except for the fact that he is under an enchantment and is thus able to talk.

After they defeat the magician Jasper invites Tom to join him in his wandering life of adventure and Tom accepts. Although Jasper realizes that he is breaking one of his rules, this one is about travelling alone; he decides it doesn’t count since Tom is a cat.

Enter Julie, our third main character. Julie is the next damsel in distress type that Jasper will try to save; this time his goal is to free her from the witch who is holding her captive. But there is something not quite right about her and the whole situation.

Jasper sneaks out the window after discovering that his reward for rescuing her is her hand in marriage. Jasper doesn’t want to get married.

But Julie also doesn’t want to get married and so she finds Jasper and begs him to let her join their party. Reluctantly he agrees to temporarily allow her to travel with him and Tom. Along the way, all three of our main characters will find their true selves and what it is they really want out of life while having some wild adventures.

What I liked about this most of all was that it was funny. I loved the way it takes accepted Fantasy norms and pokes fun at them. This is where it reminded me of Shrek the most.

I also appreciated that the story did not have a lot of crass content or an excess of violence yet all of the regular Fantasy norms were there. The adventures the characters go on are stories in and of themselves yet they really serve to bind our three main characters together. And it was just a lot of fun to read. Unless you hate the Fantasy genre altogether, I think you will like this one.