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 Sookie’s cousin Hadley has died and Sookie needs to go to New Orleans and sort out her apartment. First, however, Sookie begins to date were-tiger Quinn and learns that someone doesn’t want her investigating Hadley’s apartment. Her life is threatened more than once, and once again Sookie has to wonder who is out to get her this time.
I feel like my every review for a book in this series is the same. Again, I really enjoyed Definitely Dead. I haven’t noticed any real dip in quality, although I’m assuming it will happen eventually. Sookie’s suitors are diminishing in number. She gets rid of two of them permanently and she makes a discovery about a third in this book that really had me hurting for her. After six books, it’s so easy to care about Sookie, and it makes her struggles harder but more engaging reading.
I did enjoy the character of Quinn, though, and I was glad Sookie chose someone to actually date. The way he treats her in this book is so sweet and a nice contrast to the men’s previous treatment of her.
I didn’t like that there was a short story between this book and the last one. It wasn’t really necessary to read it, but I did feel lost as Sookie mentioned various things that had happened and I’d missed. I thought at first that I was on the wrong book before I realized it was a novella that I can’t get over here unless I buy the collection of them in hardcover. I understand why they do that sort of thing, but I prefer to be able to go from book to book without getting confused.
I’m eagerly awaiting the acquisition of book seven from my library now. I’m looking forward to seeing what happens to Sookie next. I am really enjoying this series and I anticipate this challenge will be one I am actually capable of completing.
I am an Amazon Associate. I borrowed this book from the library.
 When her dear family friend Greg is killed in mysterious circumstances, Kate Daniels goes on the hunt for his killer. She is a mercenary, if a poorly-paid one, with impressive magic skills and a tough attitude. Kate doesn’t expect to be drawn into a dangerous rivalry between vampires and shapeshifters, but she might just be up to the challenge as she searches for the enemy who is intent on turning these two powerful groups of society against one another.
This was markedly and interestingly different from the urban fantasy I’ve been reading lately. Yes, it has the traditional kick-butt heroine, as well as a large contingent of typical supernatural creatures, like vampires. But this world is not a familiar one, even if the book is set in Atlanta. For one thing, the magic is only up sometimes, and while it is average human technology often fails to work, until everything returns to normal before the next wave of magic. For another, these creatures are not sexy. Vampires are properly disgusting, their bodies morphing into hideous wall-crawling creatures as their minds completely vanish. They’re controlled by external people, who can even speak through them. Shapeshifters are similarly disgusting, their most powerful form lying between human and beast, and when they change they end up sweaty, naked, and shaking in human form.
I’ll admit that when I started this book, that world was not what I expected. I expected the magical creatures to be as sexy as they are in the rest of the books I’ve read. As I got accustomed to the world, however, I began to like this darker version of an urban fantasy world. It felt like something different, and while I obviously still love Sookie Stackhouse and Mercy Thompson, it was nice to be in a world where blood sucking is disgusting as I always thought it should be.
The beginning of the book was a little too consumed with info dumping to my taste, and Kate is snarky to the point of pushing people away, but somewhere around halfway through I really started to enjoy it. The plot picked up, I had a suspect for the bad guy, and there are some entertaining diversions. This is a good story, and I’m looking forward to more in this world when I don’t have to be informed all about it before I can begin to be engaged.
Magic Bites is a different, but still very engaging, version of urban fantasy. It appeals to my gritty fantasy side but would probably still appeal to fans of books with tough heroines and engaging storylines. Recommended.
I am an Amazon Associate. I purchased this book.
 Percy hasn’t even made it through his eighth grade year before he’s embroiled in another difficult magical situation. He and his friends Annabeth and Thalia attempt to save their friend Grover from a boarding school in Maine. In the process, they discover two new half-bloods, essential for the failing camp, but they also realize that a new enemy is after them. Following a prophecy, Percy goes on an adventure to save the world – and their friends – once again.
This is my favorite of all of these books so far. I’ve actually become fond of these characters and I enjoy the fact that the books are getting somewhat more serious. They’re still clearly written for children, but now I feel that I can more fully appreciate them, too. There are new tensions arising as the kids are starting to grow up, most particularly in my mind a romance situation between Percy and Annabeth, although neither of them seem to realize it just yet.
Besides that, I can more clearly remember eighth grade than sixth grade, and I think the books will continue to improve as the characters grow. Or maybe Riordan is just getting better at broader appeal. It’s hard to say.
This book is as full of action as the first two. Right from the first page, Percy and his friends are tossed into a suspenseful adventure, with some new characters added to balance out the absence of a couple of the older ones. We learn a little more backstory as well about the gods and a few of the characters, which was all very interesting and never slows the story down.
The Titan’s Curse was an enjoyable, very speedy read with some unexpected turns. I am looking forward to the next book in the series.
I am an Amazon Associate. I purchased this book.
 For once, Percy has endured a relatively uneventful year at a school, although he’s been stuck with an awkward friend, Tyson. That’s until a game of dodgeball goes wrong and Percy gets blamed. When he heads to his summer refuge, the camp for half-bloods, he finds that Thalia’s tree is dying and the camp’s borders are failing. It’s no longer safe. Even though Percy and his friends are told not to, they head off to save one of their friends and their camp from destruction.
Since I knew The Sea of Monsters was more of a MG book going in, I found myself enjoying it a lot more than The Lightning Thief. When I kept the audience in mind, I found this a very engaging read. The characters are all still endearing. I loved the addition of Tyson and I felt that he really helped Percy to grow and develop as a character, which if you’re reading this blog, you know I really appreciate. He also brought up an interesting issue that Percy needed to explore – that being the son of a god is not necessarily a wonderful thing that will get you out of every scrape you land in. It makes the story more interesting and more relevant for real kids, even if obviously no modern child is going to get on a ship to rescue their satyr friend.
This is a fast-paced, enjoyable book. Percy and his friends don’t rest from the first page onwards. This book does, however, stand alone a bit less than the first did. A reader new to the series would probably pick up on what was happening thanks to Percy’s explanations, but the story ends on an intriguing twist that will have readers looking for the next book in the series. There are also references to a prophecy that will probably apply when Percy is sixteen – if he makes it that far – which makes it clear that we’ll have to read the entire series to know what happens. I’m looking forward to continuing when I need a light, humorous, fast-paced read.
I am an Amazon Associate. I purchased this book.
 This is the third book in a series. If you haven’t read The Thief and The Queen of Attolia, don’t read this review yet!
Eugenides, the Queen’s Thief of Eddis, is now the King of Attolia. Through the eyes of a young guard, Costis, Eugenides is an incapable ruler deserving only his disrespect. When he punches Eugenides in the face, Costis expects dismissal, if not execution, but instead finds himself promoted and near the king at all times. As his derision for Eugenides slowly turns into respect, the rest of the court also realizes that this King of Attolia is far more capable than he wants to let on.
I have really, really enjoyed this series and I’m glad there is another one coming. There is just so much to like about this book. Having read the first two, I knew Eugenides was capable even without one of his hands and I was certain he was playing a game. While it’s frustrating to watch everyone mock him, given how fond I became of him, it’s incredibly gratifying to watch the tide change and his careful plan unveil itself. This is a well-plotted book and it unfolds in a way that made me want to keep reading to figure out what was actually going on. It’s subtle but fascinating and complex. Eugenides in particular has developed a ton over the course of the series, but he’s so well written that it’s obvious he’s still the clever boy turned into a man with a great amount of struggle behind him.
There is also the love story here between the King and Queen of Attolia. We never see things from their viewpoint, just from outsiders, which is a refreshing approach to a romance. We know they feel for each other, but their romance still changes and grows, and the fact that we’re never in their heads makes us curious as to what is going on. This is also great because Turner trusts her readers to figure things out for themselves. She doesn’t always spell out the fact that they’re in love, she just shows it.
I’m going to keep this review short because otherwise I’d just continue gushing about The King of Attolia. If you appreciate YA fantasy, I really recommend this series. You won’t be sorry.
I’m an Amazon Associate. I purchased this book.
 Caitrin arrives at Whistling Tor having fled her entire life. After her father’s death, she was abused by her distant cousins to the point where she runs away with only her writing box, for she is a scribe by trade. Whistling Tor is not the average Irish town. The lord is reclusive, bound to the hilltop, and the villagers are frightened to go away and fear he does not care for them. Throwing caution to the wind, Caitrin travels up the hill when she hears that the lord is in need of a capable scribe that can read Latin and Irish.
I adore Juliet Marillier’s work. I won this book in a giveaway before its release and I can’t express how excited I was to read it. I have huge expectations for this author and the best part is that she hasn’t let me down yet. Her fantasy world, with strong characters and often a large romantic sideplot, simply appeal to me in every way. Heart’s Blood was no exception and I loved it. This book is all about moving beyond the past and forging a new future.
Caitrin is interesting because she is a very damaged heroine. She’s been abused and lied to by people who claim they are her family. Her sister married and left her, not realizing what would happen. She flinches every time a man gestures in her presence. At the same time, she has a core of steel that hasn’t been beaten down, and a very large part of this book is her recovering her strength, her ambition, and her determination to live her life. I loved Caitrin’s character development. I felt like her struggle was very realistic; even when she knows, realistically, a man isn’t going to strike her, she’s been beaten into submission and it takes a long time for her to stop reacting in fear. Her struggles and her move towards becoming a courageous new woman makes her a character to cheer for. Besides this, she is a scribe and she’s often busy researching, an activity close to my heart.
Anluan, the lord of Whistling Tor, has been convinced of his own inferiority for a long time. He’s disabled from an illness, and moreover is bound to the hilltop because of his ancestor’s dark sorcery. That is due to the host – a hoard of ghostly figures brought back from the dead by accident who are only kept in control by the lord’s presence. They need to prove themselves, too. Every character, except for ultimately the villain, has something to grow beyond.
I loved both the story with the host, which has several members we get to know, and Nechtan’s sorcery, and the romance between Anluan and Caitrin. It takes true courage and strength for them to get past their individual handicaps and grow into loving one another, not to mention believing that they love each other. It’s beautifully done and this book is amazing. I grew to realize the ending of the host story before Caitrin did, but that didn’t make her revelations any less fascinating and compelling. Besides that, I love Marillier’s writing. I was doing nanowrimo while reading this and realized that I was actually imitating her writing, which is embarrassing, because I just love it so much.
Had it been Anluan whose presence I had sensed before, standing in the doorway watching me without a word? He was seated on the bench now … White face, red hair; snow and fire, like something from an old tale … I found it difficult to take my eyes from him. There was an odd beauty in his isolation and his sadness, like that of a forlorn prince ensorcelled by a wicked enchantress, or a traveller lost forever in a world far from home.
I loved Heart’s Blood. This is quite simply a perfect book for someone who enjoys fantasy and romance, and perhaps a little poking about in old books.
I am an Amazon Associate. I won this book in a giveaway.
 Other than the fact that he is brilliant and never grew out of a series of children’s fantasy novels, Quentin Coldwater is a fairly ordinary teenager in his last year of high school. When his interview to Princeton goes horribly wrong, Quentin finds himself in what seems like another world, where magic is real and he’s going to learn to be a magician. At his new magical college, Quentin meets extraordinary friends and learns that some of his favorite myths are more of a reality than he had ever dreamed.
I’m torn in writing this review. I think the concept behind this book is very clever. It’s billed as an adult Harry Potter, but it also draws on lots of children’s fantasy, most of which I recognized. The biggest sources are Harry Potter and the Chronicles of Narnia, and as I was reading, I could easily appreciate the slight mockery and satire that Lev Grossman uses to show how improbable such stories would be in “real life” and how adults would react to them. I loved these books as a child, so I did pick up on his cleverness. As I started it, I genuinely was enjoying it, especially during the early school years. I love boarding school stories, so I was immediately absorbed, but that regrettably didn’t last.
This is because I had a real problem with the main character, Quentin, and the behavior of some characters in general. I’m sure some people my age do behave the way these characters did, drinking and doing drugs on a daily basis and essentially throwing away their potential, but I’m not friends with them, and haven’t been, for a reason. Even in college, my friends and I largely avoided the drinking culture, so I had a serious problem relating to any of these characters except Alice, easily my favorite. The way Quentin then treats her appalled me and set me even further against the book. These characters do not live in my real world, and thus the book’s concept essentially failed for me. Not only is their behavior unfamiliar, Quentin is distinctly not a hero and is constantly determined to be unhappy with everything he has. He screws up over and over again, and neither his dissolute lifestyle nor his incredible achievements satisfy him. It frustrated him and it frustrated me, which is not something I want to feel while I’m reading. Maybe this was the point, but if so, no thanks.
I read this for an online book club and most of the members felt similarly about it. It’s a shame because I really wanted to love it. I adore Harry Potter and putting that on there was an instant attraction. I feel that it would have been better marketed as a satire on children’s fantasy. I can’t really recommend The Magicians. It’s interesting, but not enjoyable.
I am an Amazon Associate. I purchased this book.
 Aisling’s grief at her mother’s death was strong, but nothing compared to how she felt when her father also fell ill, shortly after taking a new wife. Ash, connected deeply with the forest, was forced to move to the city for her father’s care. When he died, her stepmother declared that Ash’s fathers debts had been so numerous that Ash would have to work as a servant for the rest of her life to pay them off. Ash’s unhappiness leads her to the forest, where she meets the fairy Sidhean and begins to hope that he’ll steal her away from her mortal life. But then she meets Kaisa, the king’s huntress, and Ash’s wishes begin to change.
My expectations for this book were severely lowered thanks to Nymeth’s review. She also adores fairy tale retellings, and in case you couldn’t tell, this is a version of Cinderella. So when she didn’t like it, I thought there wasn’t all that much hope for me to like it, and I started the book thinking that. Imagine my complete surprise when I sat down and read the entire book in one sitting, staying up late just to finish it. I enjoyed it that much. Maybe it was the fact that it was a Cinderella story, a fairy tale I have always loved*, or the fact that I was craving fantasy at the time, but this book worked out beautifully for me.
Ash has been publicized as the book where Cinderella falls in love with a woman, but it’s more than that. It’s also not nearly as big a deal in the book as it has been in the publicity. Same sex relationships are normal in Ash’s world, which was a refreshing viewpoint. It surprised me how completely normal it felt and made me wish that I lived in a world where the same was true.
Malinda Lo creates a whole world and a mythology here, and I felt that frame was absolutely perfect for the story that unfolded. While the introduction of all the lore at the beginning was fairly slow, it did help as the book went along. The depiction of Ash’s grief at the loss of her parents felt real, and, though not the best I’ve read, really was moving. I thought at first that the part of the story with Sidhean was going to take away from her relationship with Kaisa, which only begins in the second half of the book, but I enjoyed the way it was developed and wrapped up in the end. I really loved Ash’s romance with Kaisa. I felt that it was so organically written and so natural; they really became friends and then realized what they had. The whole storyline left me breathless, and for me that’s unusual but cherished.
I also really liked Ash as a character. As time passed, she grew as a person and as a woman, and her love led her to take a step back into having a life, not just wishing the fairies could whisk her away. She likes to read, which automatically endeared her to me. So I wanted her to escape her life of servitude and I relished every step on the way. If someone was brave enough to be her friend, I liked them too. I was not fond of the evil stepmother and her daughters, but I still appreciated the fact that Lo built credible family dynamics into their relationships. They’re all human beings, even if they are very selfish.
I know how the Cinderella story goes, but I was still captivated by Ash, still reading until the very end. To me, that’s the mark of a good retelling.
*Some useless knowledge about me: I watched the movie Ever After at the perfect age and I have basically adored Cinderella stories since. I don’t know what it is about that movie, but I still love it.
Also, I received this book from review from the Amazon Vine program and I am an Amazon Associate.
 First, if you haven’t read The Thief, stay away from this review to avoid spoilers. Second, I like the back cover summary, it reveals very little but hints at so much, so I’m going to be a little lazy and just use it here:
“When his small mountainous country goes to war with the powerful nation of Attolia, Eugenides the thief is faced with his greatest challenge. He must steal a man, he must steal a queen, and he must steal peace.
But his greatest triumph – as well as his greatest loss – can only come if he succeeds in capturing something the Queen of Attolia may have sacrificed long ago.”
Thinking about this book now, I believe I may love it even more than I did when I’d finished it. It just feels so well done, so well put together, that I’m still thinking about it days later, and I read it during the read-a-thon, when I couldn’t really give it as much attention as if I’d been well rested and had no other books on my mind.
The first thing that I noticed was a shift to third person narration, which was a little odd after being in Gen’s head for the entirety of the first book. When the view switched around, though, I realized how important this was, because Eugenides is not entirely the central character here. There is now a war brewing between his country, which is Eddis, Attolia, and Sounis, but Eugenides is out of commission for a while and instead we get the viewpoints of the queens as they manuever in this new war. There are politics involved and lives are at stake. The queens are strong, powerful women in their own rights and it was really wonderful to have a focus on women after the male-centered first book.
The world has expanded; this is no longer a boy’s journey, and Eugenides is definitely no longer a boy. He’s lost that playful thieving edge, but to be honest I loved him even more, for his suffering and the man he became because of it. There are a few gods in this book and they do manipulate events to suit themselves; it’s so fascinating to see the results and how they had a purpose in the way everything turned out. Gen is the clever one, of course, without or without the help of the gods, and his plotting is startling; all the plot threads come together in an astonishing way. It leaves the reader marveling at his strength, self-possession, mind, and remarkable ability to cope with adversity.
Then of course, there is the love story. I didn’t know what I expected, but it wasn’t what I got; what I got was beautiful and almost hard to believe, but somehow credible. An author who can convince you that something you’d never normally believe is possible and downright wonderful is an author to watch, and Megan Whalen Turner is definitely that.
I hope I haven’t spoiled anything in this wonderful book. I’ve done my best. I do hope that I’ve encouraged you to seek it out. Set aside a few hours and spend some time with The Queen of Attolia. You won’t regret it.
 After bragging that he could steal anything, and promptly laying his hands on the king’s seal, Gen finds himself in prison for that very theft. That is, until the king’s magus recruits him for the ultimate theft in another country, a treasure that no one has ever managed to steal. Of course Gen accepts, but he has ideas of his own, and he knows that once he gets out into the open, nothing is going to hold him back from freedom.
I’ve widely heard that this is the least of all the books of the series but I loved it. I adored the characters. Gen is a trickster and a liar, but he is just so clever. I really wanted him to succeed in his mission, whatever it finally turned out to be. I enjoyed the conflicts between all the travelers as they went along and the realistic way their relationships changed and grew. The magus genuinely learned who Gen was and what he was capable of and it was remarkable to watch his respect for Gen grow as the journey continued. In the beginning, Gen was marginalized, a prisoner and a thief, but as his companions got to know him, they considered him a person. I love books that do this and show how people are forced to reconsider those they classify as “other”.
The book is written in first person, which really works, but its difference lies in the fact that we still don’t know all about Gen. He doesn’t reveal who he really is or his past until the end. We’re given little tantalizing glimpses, like when he talks about his family and lets us know that it’s a big one, but his secrets for me kept the whole book very interesting. I wanted to know more about him. It was also a good choice for a read-a-thon book, as it’s very short and extremely absorbing.
I thought overall that this was a great little adventure story about identity. It’s well-written, with nice imagery, but the characters really stole the show for me. There was a reason I immediately picked up The Queen of Attolia and just writing this review has made me really long to read The King of Attolia as soon as possible. If you enjoy YA fantasy and haven’t read The Thief yet, I highly, highly recommend it.
I am an Amazon Associate. I purchased all books mentioned in this post.
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