Tag Archive for: Fantasy

Neverwhere

NeverwhereTitle: Neverwhere
Author: Neil Gaiman
Series: London Below #1
Genre: Fantasy
Format: Kindle
Pages: 400
Reason Read: Book Club
Rating:

My Thoughts

I’m not quite sure what I was expecting when I picked up NEVERWHERE but it’s not what I read. I felt like I was reading a less comedic and engaging story about the sewer mutants under New New York in Futurama, just with the addition of assassins, vampiric-like creatures, and angels in the story, which truth be told, could happen in Futurama.

London Below also was nothing like I imagined it’d be. I thought it’d be more magical, beautiful, and clean; instead, it was just the sewer systems with a few interesting quirks. I was really disappointed with that aspect of the story. I did like the characters and I think I would’ve liked the story more if Richard had kissed Door before he left London Below to return home. I didn’t mind the lack of romance throughout the book, but he thought about kissing her enough that I think he should’ve before he left.

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The Bear And The Nightingale

The Bear And The NightingaleTitle: The Bear and the Nightingale
Author: Katherine Arden
Series: Winternight Trilogy #1
Genre: Fantasy, Historical Fiction
Format: Kindle
Pages: 347
Reason Read: Book Club Backlist
Rating:

Also in this series: The Girl in the Tower, The Winter of the Witch
My Thoughts

Right from the beginning, I adored THE BEAR AND THE NIGHTINGALE. I loved the setting of medieval Russia and the Russian words and names. I was all aflutter as I was taken back to my Russian class in high school. It actually took me a little longer to read than it should’ve because I purposefully looked up all the Russian words I didn’t recognize and even transliterated them back into the Cyrillic alphabet. It was so much fun! Я люблю русский язык.

I also loved the story. I loved the dichotomy of the magic and fairy tales with the new Christian religion and whether or not the two could coexist together. Of course, the whole conflict of the story suggests not. It was an interesting ride to see how the characters forsook their traditions because of an over zealous priest and a terrified princess who didn’t know what to make of the fantastical world around them.

I really liked Vasya. I thought she was a wonderful heroine. I enjoyed watching her grow up, see her be a strong and precocious girl who wanted to be just like her brothers. I also thought it was interesting how she just assumed the world around her was the way it was. If she saw something in the fairy tale world, she figured others could see it too until her awful stepmother came along and showed her otherwise.

I also adored Solovey and Morozko. I wish there had been more of them in the story. I hope they will be around more in the sequels. And, I hope Morozko is more than just a helper, if you get my meaning.

Anyway, it was truly a treat to read THE BEAR AND THE NIGHTINGALE and I can’t wait to read the sequels.

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Midnight Sun

Midnight SunTitle: Midnight Sun
Author: Stephenie Meyer
Series: Twilight Saga #5
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult
Spice: 0.5 / 5
Format: Hard Cover
Pages: 662
Reason Read: Just Because
Rating:

Also in this series: Life and Death
My Thoughts

I’ve been waiting to finish Edward’s version of events for 12 years. I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was worried I was going to be let down. First, I wondered if Meyer was going to let the movies influence her at all. Second, I wondered if she’d let the fans influence her. And, finally, 12 years changes you. Whether she let the movies or the fans influence her, time certainly had in some way.

However, I needn’t have worried. MIDNIGHT SUN was everything I wanted it to be. It felt like it did the first time I read TWILIGHT, just from a different perspective, a more knowledgeable perspective of the paranormal. Being in Edward’s head was truly enlightening. Not only did I learn more about him and his motives (it shed so much light on NEW MOON and why he left), but I learned more about the Cullens and the vampiric world too. I also learned more about the students around Bella, Jacob, Charlie and Renée, and James and his coven which I was looking forward to almost the most.

It was an absolute treat to discover these new truths and to be in Bella and Edward’s world again for the first time. I’m so happy that Meyer decided to finish MIDNIGHT SUN and share it with her fans.

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Orphan Island

Orphan IslandTitle: Orphan Island
Author: Laurel Snyder
Genre: Fantasy, Middle Grade
Format: Kindle
Pages: 288
Reason Read: Book Club
Rating:

My Thoughts

I liked the LOST-esque feel of ORPHAN ISLAND (e.g. more questions than answers, supernatural elements, mysterious island), but I didn’t really care for any of the characters. I couldn’t get fully onboard with the story. Partly, I think this was due to the age of the main character. I just got annoyed with her whining and wanted it to stop.

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Finnikin Of The Rock

Finnikin Of The RockTitle: Finnikin of the Rock
Author: Melina Marchetta
Series: Lumatere Chronicles #1
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult
Format: Kindle
Pages: 417
Reason Read: Book Club
Rating:

My Thoughts

I was hooked from the moment I started reading FINNIKIN OF THE ROCK. I had a hard time putting the book down. I loved the characters and the world Marchetta created. I wanted to know how it would all go down. My only complaint is that there wasn’t enough kissing, lol. I’m excited to read the sequels at some point.