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reviews July 30, 2013

A Secret Alchemy by Emma Darwin

A Secret Alchemy by Emma Darwin

Two murdered princes; a powerful queen betrayed; a nobleman riding towards his certain death…

The story of the Princes in the Tower has been one of the most fascinating – and most brutal – murder mysteries in history for more than five hundred years.

In a brilliant feat of historical daring, Emma Darwin has recreated the terrible, exhilarating world of the two youngest victims of the War of the Roses: the power struggles and passion that lay behind their birth, the danger into which they fell, the profoundly moving days before their imprisonment, and the ultimate betrayal of their innocence.

In A Secret Alchemy, three voices speak: that of Elizabeth Woodville, the beautiful widow of King Edward IV; of her brother Anthony, surrogate father to the doomed Prince Edward and his brother Dickon; and that of present-day historian Una Pryor. Orphaned, and herself brought up in a family where secrets and rivalries threaten her world, Una’s experience of tragedy, betrayal and lost love help her unlock the long-buried secrets that led to the princes’ deaths.  (Goodreads)

I really liked the portrayal of both Elizabeth and Antony. They’re both usually the villains and power-greedy people and it was refreshing to see them in another light. Antony’s story begins when he is taken to Pontefract Castle and knows he is being executed there. Elizabeth is in Bermondsey Abbey where she lived during Henry VII’s reign. We don’t hear the whole life story of either but few selected episodes. I have to confess I’m not usually huge fan of Antony but couldn’t resist falling for him just a bit.

I didn’t care for the present day story that much and could have lived without it. Also I had problem with too many narrative switches.. One minute it’s Una telling her story, then the next Antony is about to die and then it switches to a scene where he’s on a horse riding somewhere. So confusing!

3,5/5
Published: Headline (2008)
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 416
Source: library

reviews July 30, 2013

Divergent by Veronica Roth

Divergent (Divergent 1) by Veronica Roth

In Beatrice Prior’s dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue–Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is–she can’t have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are–and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating boy fits into the life she’s chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she’s kept hidden from everyone because she’s been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her. (Goodreads)

When people are sixteen they have to choose a faction that values different virtues and where they want to live the rest of their lives. Beatrice is torn because while she doesn’t feel like belonging to Abnegation, leaving would mean not seeing her family again. Before the choosing ceremony everyone goes to a test that tells a recommendation which faction they should choose. But the test gives a shocking result: there’s not one faction she should belong but several. People that has that kind of result is called Divergent.

For once I agree with all the raving and hyping: I loved this book!

I liked Tris who was both brave, strong and same time vulnerable. She learned to stand up for herself even if her old faction taught people to be selfless. She learns to merge the best parts of two faction.

And of course there was the romance part. And for once there wasn’t a triangle that every YA book seems to have. Gotta love that. And it wasn’t too much like teen-age drooling. And I liked Four. There could have been little more telling about how he looked but oh well, worked fine for me. Maybe he’s past didn’t come so much as a shock but that didn’t ruin anything. I loved to see their relationship grow and getting to know each other.

I wish there would have been more about Tris’s mother’s past but I hope we learn more in the future. But that’s pretty much the only complain I have.

What a great debut from the author and I’m definitely reading the next book!

5/5
Published: HarperCollins Children’s Books (2011)
Format: Paperback
Pages: 487
Source: library

reviews July 29, 2013

Matched by Ally Condie

Matched (Matched 1) by Ally Condie

On her seventeenth birthday, Cassia meets her match. The Society dictates that he is her perfect partner for life, except he’s not.

In Cassia’s society, Officials decide who people love.
How many children they have.
Where they work.
When they die.

But, as Cassia finds herself falling in love with another boy,
she is determined to make some choices of her own.

And that’s when her whole world
begins to unravel… (Goodreads)

In the Society everything is controlled; they work at the place that is best suited for them, they’re given specific foods to make sure they stay healthy, they’re free time is monitored and the Society decides with who you are married to.
When Cassia turns 17, she will know to who she is matched. When she learns that it will be Xander, her friend since childhood, she’s thrilled. When Cassia plugs in her microcard at home which is supposed to have information on her matched. But then another face flashed on the screen and then disappears. It’s Ky Markham and she has known him also from childhood. The Society isn’t supposed to make mistakes but Cassia is starting to question the Society.

Again here is a book that people has been raving about and I was little afraid how I would like it. And I was afraid for a reason.

I didn’t feel connected with the characters at all and couldn’t care less what happened with them. I didn’t feel any connection between Cassia and Ky or with Xander. So Ky’s face pops on the screen and the next time they meet she just notices how perfect he is. Even if they’ve known since childhood and never noticed him before. Xander is supposed to be her best friend, they can tell everything to each other and how much she cares about him. She certainly didn’t care about him when she started drooling after Ky. And I didn’t believe that Xander would be just ”oh well” and then help her to find the other guy. I mean really??

Okay I was really disappointed in this and I’m not reading the second book for sure.

2/5
Published: Razorbill (2010)
Format: Paperback
Pages: 366
Source: library

reviews July 29, 2013

Shieldwall by Justin Hill

Shieldwall by Justin Hill

The year is 1016 and England burns while the Viking armies blockade the great city of London. King Ethelred lies dying and the England he knew dies with him; the warring kingdoms of Mercia, Wessex and Northymbria tremble on the brink of great change. One man lives to bear witness to the upheaval: Godwin, barely out of boyhood and destined to become one of his country’s great warriors. When Ethelred’s son Edmund takes the throne, determined to succeed where his father failed, he plucks Godwin from domestic peace to be right-hand man in his loyal shield wall. Godwin must traverse the meadows, wintry forests and fogbound marshes of Saxon England, raising armies of monks, ploughmen and shepherds against the Viking invader. With epic courage and ferocity, Godwin and Edmund repel the butchering Danes in three great battles. But an old enemy, the treacherous Earl Eadric, dogs Godwin’s footsteps, and as the final battle approaches, around the valiant English the trap begins to close. (Goodreads)

After Godwin’s father falls out with Alderman Eadric, he is held as hostage at King Ethelred’s court. The king’s son Edmund saves his life and they become friends. Godwin rises from being the second son to be the king’s right-hand man. They have the same vision of England and Godwin stays loyal to him even when things go from bad to worse.

I’m having some troubles writing this review but I’m not sure why is that.

To say this was action packed is an understatement. There was battle after battle and while I do like battles it really took the center stage when someone dies it’s told in great detail. The problem is that I didn’t get to really know the characters besides Godwin or what they were thinking. Lot of back-slapping and other manly activities but I kept missing for something else. I did like Kendra who first nursed Godwin’s father in the end and became Godwin’s mistress after that. But I would have liked to know what happened to her later on.

I know this gives the idea that I hated the book but I did enjoy it. It just had the action as the main point instead of historical things. I liked Godwin and Edmund but Knut was just like a spoiled brat. Haven’t read many books about this era and some of the characters were so different from what I’ve thought them to be.

3,5/5
Published: Little Brown and Company (2011)
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 402
Source: publisher

reviews July 29, 2013

Wake by Lisa McMann

Wake (Dream Catcher 1) by Lisa McMann

NOT ALL DREAMS ARE SWEET.

For seventeen-year-old Janie, getting sucked into other people’s dreams is getting old. Especially the falling dreams, the naked-but-nobody-notices dreams, and the sex-crazed dreams. Janie’s seen enough fantasy booty to last her a lifetime.

She can’t tell anybody about what she does — they’d never believe her, or worse, they’d think she’s a freak. So Janie lives on the fringe, cursed with an ability she doesn’t want and can’t control.

Then she falls into a gruesome nightmare, one that chills her to the bone. For the first time, Janie is more than a witness to someone else’s twisted psyche. She is a participant…. (Goodreads)

Janie was 8 years old when she discovered that when she is close to someone who is asleep, she gets sucked into the dreams. She slowly starts to learn more about how to control it and then she meets Cabel who can speak to her in his dreams and remember it. Janie has never told anyone what she can do, nor even her mother, but is forced to told Cabel after he sees Janie getting paralyzed while getting into a dream. She gets to know Cabel better and learns that he is hiding something.

I hadn’t read many reviews about this before reading it and had vague idea about what’s it about. And what a mistake that was.

I had problems with the writing style which was choppy and there was lots of short sentences one after another and there’s date and time told when everything happens.

She sees it, vividly.
Cabel, leaving the house. Slamming the door.
The man on the steps, yelling. Following.
The punch to Cabel’s face.
The lighter fluid to his belly.
The fire and screaming.
The transformation.
pg. 168

It grew old very quickly and plainly started to annoy me pretty soon. It also made it sound like children’s book more than ya book. Actually my friend saw me reading it and seeing how the pages looked said that it looks like children’s book.

I absolutely loved that after reading few books from library about dreaming of course solves all the problems and she learns all about her gift and all. Why is it never that easy in real life? And the twist near the end is the most ridiculous and so not needed in long time I’ve read.

I believe this is the first in a trilogy but I’m not planning to read the rest. This was more than enough for me.

2/5
Published: Simon Pulse (2008)
Format: Paperback
Pages: 210
Source: my own