book comments 29

"The Fairies of Nutfolk Wood" by Barb Bentler Ullman
--fun, heart-warming story of Willa, who finds new friends both great and small as she struggles to get through her parents' divorce
Minus the family struggles part, this story is what we all dreamed about when we were kids: finding life-changing magic in our own back yards.
--great story for kids who want fun, or even for kids who are dealing with the same problems Willa faces
--recommend

"The Traveler" by John Twelve Hawks
--multiple-POV story of Maya, born into the mercenary clan known as Harlequins, whose task is to protect dimension-crossing Travelers against a nefarious organization known as the Tabula
--set in present day, but feels sci-fi
--interesting plot, vivid characters
--BUT.
For some reason, I had a terribly hard time connecting with this novel. Even though Maya’s struggle to protect her Traveler was a hard one and caused her to grow as a character, I caught myself thinking several times, “Huh. I just don’t care.” Part of this, I’m sure, stemmed from the fact that as a Harlequin, Maya can’t afford to let herself become emotionally involved with anyone or anything. The purpose for her detachment is to keep emotions from clouding her judgment. I get that. Unfortunately, the side effect was that *I* remained detached from the story from start to finish and had to force myself to keep reading from chapter to chapter.
There’s a sequel, but I don’t plan on reading it.
--still, a fascinating premise; I really did enjoy the sections written from the Traveler’s POV; and the descriptions of other dimensions were pleasantly reminiscent of C.S. Lewis’s Perelandra novels.
--don’t recommend

"Kushiel's Dart" by Jacqueline Carey
Cursed from birth by her god and sold into slavery as a child, Phèdre tries to find her place in the schemes of her own increasingly large circle of acquaintances and friends.
Phèdre ends up a key player in politics. Her choices and her character development lead her to save her whole country from invasion.
Wait. This sounds familiar. Where have I read this story before? Oh, yes. I basically already reviewed it.
No, I'm not accusing Carey of plagiarism. Far from it. Had I read her novel five years from now, I wouldn't have been irritated that the basic plot is the same as Adams's (i.e. sex slave rises to become savior of her country). But the Adams read was just a year ago. Carey's story made me feel as though I were reading the same book again.
BUT. Carey is a brilliant storyteller and a master worldbuilder. Oh my, she's good. In this story, she takes European history -- particularly church history -- of the past 2000 years and infuses it with magic. Literally. Fallen angels and demigods all over the place, and a country that's located where our world's France is, but it's not France. People worship "Elua," and there are "Yeshuites." Not to mention "Tiberians." Carey weaves pieces of real-world history into a lush, vivid fantasy story that's breathtaking.
That said, I won't be reading the sequels. As with Adams's novel, this story was packed with way too much gratuitous sex for my taste. I guess that's kind of unavoidable, when your main character is a sex slave. But it made me hunger for a fantasy heroine who doesn't have to sell her body in order to save her world.
Read at your own risk.

"Flawed, Book One: Empath" by Rebecca J. Campbell
--story of Jade, struggling to turn her special disability into a truly more-than-human advantage -- while she's on a collision course with a particularly gifted psychopath
Yes, I'm being intentionally vague. ;o) I know the author, and this is an unpublished work, so I don't want to give anything away! But it's a well-written story with vivid, fun, interesting characters -- and a unique, gripping premise that I think is going to pack quite the punch once it's all polished. I wish *my* first novel had been this fascinating and had shown this high a skill level.
Shoot, I wish my third and fourth novels had been this skilled and interesting!
Recommend. OH yes. :o)


2010 Book-Count To-Date: 26.5.