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Chrissy's Reading In 2014


Chrissy

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I am so late in checking out everyone's new threads this year. :( I would say 'have a happy reading year', but it seems you already are! I'm so glad your mojo is back and treating you well. :)

 

I've had the first three Mortal Instruments books on my TBR pile for a while now. I've always heard such good things about them. I must try to bump them up the list!

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Thanks Kylie. :smile:

 

'The Mortal Instruments' series is very readable, and I have enjoyed immersing myself in the universe created by Cassandra Clare, with this and her connected 'Infernal Devices'. They aren't challenging, but they are diverting.

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12) Sanctum by Sarah Fine & 12a) Captive by Sarah Fine

"My plan: Get into the city. Get Nadia. Find a way out. Simple."
A week ago, seventeen-year-old Lela Santos's best friend, Nadia, killed herself. Today, thanks to a farewell ritual gone awry, Lela is standing in paradise, looking upon a vast gated city in the distance - hell. No one willingly walks through the Suicide Gates, into a place smothered in darkness and infested with depraved creatures. But Lela isn't just anyone - she's determined to save her best friend's soul, even if it means sacrificing her eternal afterlife.

 

This book startled me with it's fluid pace and great descriptions. Lela is so well drawn the reader immediately forms a bond with her, despite her stubborn and sometimes foolish ways. Throughout you know where heart's compass steers her. I was drawn to the central premise of the book when I had read it's description and am glad I followed my gut and bought it, as it's an original and quite compelling story. I don't want to write any detail as I loved reading it and having the story unfold in front of me, rather than reading it with too much foreknowledge. 'Captive' is a few chapters long and recounts aspects of the story from another point of view.

 

13) Fractured by Sarah Fine

Following the events of 'Sanctum' things have truly been turned upside down, and the fight that Lela had been engaged in in the earlier book has been transported to this life, this time. Life for Lela is no easier for her, with this fast paced story propelling the reader edge-of-the-seat towards it's conclusion. All I can say is that I am looking forward to next instalment in this Young Adult (I presume by the age of the main characters) series.

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I think they are Young Adult books, although I didn't realise until I was quite a way into it. The age of the main character is what made me think that it might be! :smile: I tend to pick a book based on it's appeal to me rather than it's designated age group. It looks like I am drawn to the YA quite a bit at the moment though. :D

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  • 2 weeks later...

I love your review of Let the right one in! I really must read this at some point. Im glad your enjoying the cassandra Clare books, I've read them all too and really enjoyed them. Have you read any of Laini Taylors books? If you like Cassandra Clare you'll probably like her too  :smile: her books are epic!

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I love your review of Let the right one in! I really must read this at some point. Im glad your enjoying the cassandra Clare books, I've read them all too and really enjoyed them. Have you read any of Laini Taylors books? If you like Cassandra Clare you'll probably like her too  :smile: her books are epic!

 

I managed to miss your post here Shelley! Sorry.

 

Let The Right On In is definitely a book that stays with you long after finishing, and it's darkness casts a long shadow. *gulp & shiver*

 

I'm really looking forward to the last of the Mortal Instruments books in May, although part of me will be sad for it to end. I have the first of Laini Taylors books on my kindle, and I will have to throw them higher up the TBR list if you think they are good. :smile:  

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14) The Descent Series by SM Reine (7 Books)

I got the first three books of this series for free on my kindle. The story seemed interesting and I thought “Why not?” I am so very glad I did.

When my mojo wavered a few months ago I decided to have a re-read of these well-paced page turners that I had enjoyed last year.

 

From Amazon: Elise Kavanagh is good at one thing: killing demons, angels, and gods. For years, she was the death that supernatural creatures feared. More myth than woman, she walked the Earth as the embodiment of vengeance. James Faulkner is a powerful witch, and the only person she trusts.

 

Together they are Kopis (sword) a fighter, and Aspis (shield) the supporting witch. The Descent and Ascension series are gritty urban fantasy books that tell their story as they travel Earth, Heaven and Hell and all the dimensions in between.

 

15) Seasons Of The Moon Series by SM Reine (4 Books)  & 16) SOTM The Cain Chronicles by SM Reine (7 Books)

Opens with Rylie Gresham and her adventures while at summer camp. This series and the adjoining series of The Cain Chronicles look at the challenges that Rylie, Seth Abel and all the new people in their lives face - against their own nature, their families and all the way up to secretive and deadly government agencies.

 

17) The Ascension Series by SM Reine (6 Books, so far)

All that Elise has gone through has brought her to where she is now (something true of everyone!). She is essentially no different from what she always was, but there is now a firmer resolve and stronger motive guiding her and new abilities and talents that shape her approach to what she encounters in the books.

 

18) The Story Of My Face by Kathy Page

 From fantasticfiction.co.uk;  A young girl grows up an outsider, then becomes drawn into the life of a local family with some curious beliefs. They treat her as a daughter, and take her away with them to a religious holiday camp. It is here that she is introduced to the Finnish Envallist branch of Protestantism, and here that events start to take a terrible turn. Rejected by some of the sectarians for her non-commitment to their beliefs, Natalie creates a rift in the group which culminates in a climactic event. Later, as an adult in Finland, she tries to make sense of what happened and to unlock the secret origins of Envallism itself.

 

I wanted so much to like this book, and I persevered with it until the end, but it was a struggle. Kathy Page has a beautiful turn of phrase, and is able to depict a scene with searing clarity. For some reason the story just didn’t ring true on some level with me, and so I wasn’t able to engage my thoughts and feelings into the text in the way I would normally, and I ended up just not caring about the characters, or the whys and wherefores of the story.

Edited by Chrissy
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19) The Fault In Our Stars by John Green

From fantasticfiction.co.uk ; Despite the tumour-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten.

 

Well ain’t this the story of the moment? With the film now out I thought it might be about time that I read the book. A great read from beginning to end. It is a touching and intelligent story that manages to avoid most of the cheesy sentimentality that you would expect in a book with terminally ill central characters. There is humour and pathos and life affirming dialogue. Whenever I read a really good YA novel I always wish that it had been around for my teenage years. But sadly, as the book says, the world isn’t a wish granting factory.

 

20) Looking For Alaska by John Green

Having enjoyed TFIOS, I thought I would leap straight into Looking For Alaska by the same author. The story takes place at a mixed boarding school where the full time boarders are in frequent prank battle with the weekly boarders. Culver Creek is no Hogwarts style school though. The characters are vivid and real and flawed and funny, their quick development a real treat. Friendship, love, loyalty and the codes we live by accompany us on our journey through the months leading up to and from a devastating event.

 

21) A Big Hand For The Doctor (Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Novella) by Eoin Colfer

I bought each of the kindle 50th Anniversary stories as they came out last year, but have only just started them as my in-between-longer-books reads. I have seen enough of the Classic Who to feel that Eoin Colfer did a good job at capturing the 1st Doctor’s character well in this novella. Resourceful, brave and a tad cantankerous the Doctor takes on a merciless and cruel foe. If this is the quality to expect from the 11 stories in the Anniversary set I have some good stories ahead.

 

22) It Happens In The Dark by Carol O’Connell

I am a huge fan of Carol O’Connell’s work, so I always look forward to a new Kathy Mallory adventure. This one centres on a play, where on the opening night a woman dies in the audience, then on the second night the playwright has his throat cut whilst sitting in the same seat. And just who is ghost-writing the daily changes to the play on the chalkboard?

 

The plot is tight, the characters well fleshed out and believable, yet something was lacking in this book. I felt I had read a really good detective story, but not a GREAT one, and GREAT is what I have come to expect from Carol O’Connell. Analysing it, I have concluded that one aspect I have always enjoyed is the slow burning development of her main characters, but here there was little of that. There were no new nuances in their personalities, no added shading to their back stories. They just came as they were and went through the motions of what was a complex but follow-able (for want of a better expression) story. Give Ms O’Connell a quirky personality trait to play with and she is in her element, but this time her element was played out only on the transient players, not our main cast, who remain the quirkiest of the lot.

Edited by Chrissy
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The SM Reine books are fairly short, and I flew through them as their pacing makes you read on! I am (mostly) enjoying my reading at the moment Athena, which is great as it tends to come and go.

 

I really enjoyed Looking For Alaska. It has great characters that are instantly memorable and a plot that tugs you along nicely. I hope you enjoy it. :smile:  

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23) Neuromancer by William Gibson

 

I wondered how the technology had stood the test of time in this re read, the book having been written in the first 1984, and read by me within a year or two of then. The answer is, pretty well. It's the intriguing story of  Case, a burnt out techno cowboy hired to hack his way through cyberspace to access a conglomerate system run partially by Artificial Intelligences and partly by thawed out family members. Until the conclusion, we are never quite sure of what he is looking for, why or for whom. Yet these things don't bother the reader as they might, and I think it's because it is one of those reads where the journey is more important than the destination

 

As a reader you just have to submit to the universe of the story, accept that it is what it is and then enjoy the read. The characters are believable and tangibly grounded in their gritty humanity, their foibles and motivations revealing themselves as we step through the story. Case is a great anti-hero, and the modified fighting girl that is Molly a great partner in crime. The technology and it's associated lingo is a tad dated now, not quite the mind blowing stuff it was 30 years ago, but I would say it holds together well. The story is well paced, and the peripheral characters are vividly drawn.

 

Can you tell I'm a fan of this book? :D  I have the two other books from Gibson's Sprawl Trilogy, and having reacquainted myself with this first of the three, I think I should get around to reading the other two for what will be my first time.

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Nice reviews. I've struggled with a few of William Gibson's books and have never managed to finish one. I haven't completely given up on him though, and he still manages to grab my attention whenever he is mentioned. It could be that I was too young to understand his kind of books. :readingtwo:

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Thanks Bobbly. :smile:

 

Gibson is a certain kind of writer of certain kinds of books, and not the easiest to get along with. When I first tried to read Neuromancer all those years ago, I just couldn't get past the first 20 pages, despite running at them a few times. I then caught the blurb on the back of the copy I had and it referenced Raymond Chandler. I had a sudden light bulb moment and could read the book.

 

It is basically the world of Phillip Marlow set way in the future. The tone is similar, the sardonic vibe of the text, the gritty descriptions that instantly give you an image. Even to the characters, central and peripheral. It may sound loopy, but it worked for me with this one. Let's just hope it works on the others I have to read! :giggle2:

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  • 2 weeks later...

24) City Of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare

 

City Of Heavenly Fire is the sixth and last in the Mortal Instruments series of books, and is about 200 pages longer than the rest. What a great finale! Cassandra Clare created a great universe with this and her Infernal Devices series. With memorable characters and action by the bucket load this series has been entertaining and compelling. This last book contains all the right elements to make this a satisfactory end; love, friendship, betrayal, sacrifice, revelations, loss, and discovery. Fans of the series will not be disappointed.

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25) Doctor Who : The Tales Of Trenzalore by Various

 

Four stories from the 11th Doctor Who's time on Trenzalore, his incarnation's last planet. Although I enjoyed each, I could not see any of them as episodes, and they were a tad hot and miss with capturing the 11th Doctor complete personality. An enjoyable read all the same.

 

26) Doctor Who : Summer Falls by Amelia Williams

 

When I saw this book I didn't expect much from it, but was pleasantly surprised. A good Science Fiction Mystery short novel.

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  • 3 weeks later...

27) Bone Quill by John & Carole E Barrowman

28) The Book Of Beasts by John & Carole E Barrowman

 

I saw that the concluding book in the Hollow Earth trilogy was available, so decided to read the second book again to reacquaint myself with the story.

 

(From Hollow Earth website) Twins Matt and Emily Calder have imaginations so powerful that they can make art come to life. Their powers are sought by villains intent on accessing the terrors of Hollow Earth — a place where all the devils, demons and monsters ever imagined lie trapped for eternity. If Hollow Earth is breached, the world will be plunged into chaos. If Hollow Earth is breached … the twins are as good as dead.

 

Set mainly on two small islands off the western coast of Scotland, the story follows Matt and Em twins and animare, and those they consider family. In the first book they discover who they really are and the dangers that had surrounded them since their birth. In the second story they are reeling from the disappearance of their mother and the revelation of what actually happened to their father. Alongside the main story the books drop back in history to the early days of the islands and the monastic animare/guardian community that lived there. The third book is imaginatively action filled from beginning to end, with art and time travelling, loyalties and betrayals revealed and incredibly depicted beasts. They are great visual books, and throughout I could 'see' what the page described.

 

The series is intriguing and compelling. The characters are well drawn, and the story runs along at a good pace while remaining really well balanced between action and the quieter moments where the reader gains greater depth to the story.

Edited by Chrissy
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29) Criminal by Karin Slaughter

 

I didn't imagine when I awoke this morning that at some stage I would be typing the words, "I am a big fan of a good Slaughter", but it is true. Graphic and often gruesome brutality Ms Slaughter leaves nothing to the reader's imagination.

 The book blurb reads, A woman is found brutally murdered in a sordid Atlanta apartment. Her blood soaked body bears a chilling similarity to a woman found dead almost 40 years earlier.

 

Although this is a Will Trent story, and by the we will know so much more about Will's origins, it focuses more often on Amanda Wagner, his GBI boss and Evelyn Mitchell, Faith's (Will's GBI partner) feisty mother. It's he 1970's and Atlanta along with the rest of the world is rife with racism and sexism, in the workplace, at home and on the street. Two young policewomen are making their way in the force, battling for the victims, and battling for themselves.

 

The story shifts between the 1970's Atlanta, and the present day to great effect, driving you on to make the connections between past and present, seeing how Will and his tragic childhood fit into it all.

 

My heart has always ached for Will, and I was insanely happy when he got together with Sara Linton - a match made in bookish heaven. Sara appears here too, a bridge of sorts between what was and what could be.

 

A great read as always from Karin Slaughter, and I have already moved on to he next book in the series.

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23) Neuromancer by William Gibson

 

I wondered how the technology had stood the test of time in this re read, the book having been written in the first 1984, and read by me within a year or two of then. The answer is, pretty well. It's the intriguing story of  Case, a burnt out techno cowboy hired to hack his way through cyberspace to access a conglomerate system run partially by Artificial Intelligences and partly by thawed out family members. Until the conclusion, we are never quite sure of what he is looking for, why or for whom. Yet these things don't bother the reader as they might, and I think it's because it is one of those reads where the journey is more important than the destination

 

As a reader you just have to submit to the universe of the story, accept that it is what it is and then enjoy the read. The characters are believable and tangibly grounded in their gritty humanity, their foibles and motivations revealing themselves as we step through the story. Case is a great anti-hero, and the modified fighting girl that is Molly a great partner in crime. The technology and it's associated lingo is a tad dated now, not quite the mind blowing stuff it was 30 years ago, but I would say it holds together well. The story is well paced, and the peripheral characters are vividly drawn.

 

Can you tell I'm a fan of this book? :D  I have the two other books from Gibson's Sprawl Trilogy, and having reacquainted myself with this first of the three, I think I should get around to reading the other two for what will be my first time.

 

What a great review, Chrissy :smile:   I can't tell you the number of times I've looked at this book and been tempted to buy it, but never have done so.  Tempted again now! :D

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What a great review, Chrissy :smile:   I can't tell you the number of times I've looked at this book and been tempted to buy it, but never have done so.  Tempted again now! :D

 

I'd say................................ Read it! :D

 

I will now walk out of this thread with a swagger, in the knowledge that I have read a SF book that you haven't! :P

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