AdventureCategory Archives

The Wednesdays by Julie Bourbeau

Order from:

 

Reason for Reading:
  • I’m always on the lookout for solid, MG fiction.

I also recommend:

Summary from GoodReads:

Max’s village is absolutely normal in every single way and on every single day—except Wednesday.


Most of the townsfolk shutter their windows and lock their doors to hide away from the many peculiar things that happen—things like cats getting stuck in the vacuum cleaner and birthday cakes meeting fiery and horrific ends. But Max is too curious for that, and so, breaking every rule in the village, he searches out the cause of all the Wednesday weirdness.
What he uncovers is a secret so devious—so dastardly and mischievous—that life as he knows it will never be the same. Max himself is not the same. Suddenly the mysterious little accidents so common on Wednesdays are happening to him on Thursdays, Fridays—even Saturdays!
What’s come over Max? And more importantly, is there any cure for a case of the Wednesdays?
Mystery, magic, mischief and monsters abound in this slightly fantastical story of a human kid who wants to stay that way.

My Review:

Ever had a case of the Monday’s? Well, Julie Bourbeau explores that theme with a slight twist. In The Wednesdays, Max’s village is stuck with a huge case of the Wednesdays – on Wednesday of course! Anything and everything goes wrong one day of the week… so in order to avoid those things happening the entire town shuts down and everyone hides. After all, you don’t want to let a Wednesday into your house!

So what happens when Max peeks out of the window and lets a Wednesday in? Well.. that’s the story, isn’t it?

I was completely delighted by this middle-grade adventure. It had mystery, fantastic secondary characters, and riddles galore. I don’t often pick up middle-grade level books, but when I do I make sure that they have something unique about them, and The Wednesdays did not disappoint on that level. It was charming, full of fun, and definitely something I’ll be recommending to my nieces and nephews to read.

For you parents out there: this is a great book filled with a lot of action and adventure. I could not find anything to object to in the story for first graders on, but there is a bit of scary stuff toward the end of the book. I’d recommend a read-through first if that worries you. And even though the book seems long, I flew through it in just a few hours. Very easy to check out first.

Don’t just take my word for it! Check out what these bloggers say!

Journey of a Bookseller| So I’m Fifty | Mrs. Mommy Booknerds

  • The publisher provided this review copy via NetGalley.
  • Published by: Knopf Books for Young Readers
  • Release Date: 8/14/2012
Lydia
7 August, 2012
Adventure, Fantasy, Middle Grade, reviews
3 comments
, , ,

Seraphina by Rachel Hartman

Order from:

 

Reason for Reading:
  • The hype brought this one to my attention.

I also recommend:

Summary from GoodReads:

Four decades of peace have done little to ease the mistrust between humans and dragons in the kingdom of Goredd. Folding themselves into human shape, dragons attend court as ambassadors, and lend their rational, mathematical minds to universities as scholars and teachers. As the treaty’s anniversary draws near, however, tensions are high.

Seraphina Dombegh has reason to fear both sides. An unusually gifted musician, she joins the court just as a member of the royal family is murdered—in suspiciously draconian fashion. Seraphina is drawn into the investigation, partnering with the captain of the Queen’s Guard, the dangerously perceptive Prince Lucian Kiggs. While they begin to uncover hints of a sinister plot to destroy the peace, Seraphina struggles to protect her own secret, the secret behind her musical gift, one so terrible that its discovery could mean her very life.

My Review:

Seraphina by Rachel Hartman is making a splash in the book world, and every bit of that splash is well-deserved. This is a story for children and adults alike – with dragons, politics, war, intrigue, mystery, murder, and love.

I admit, I went into the book a bit biased toward loving it. The beautiful cover, the typeface, the idea of humanized dragons and a forbidden romance was enough to hook me – but once the story got moving Rachel Hartman’s astonishing writing and the complexity of what I was reading took me over. You see, it was so complex it was almost simple. I thoroughly enjoyed the Seraphina’s story as an adult and was able to appreciate the messages of acceptance, honesty, and forgiveness … but at the same time I know my nine year old nephew would love the action and the idea of old knights who speak of times when dragon fighting was the norm, and hidden secrets by a young girl who doesn’t know what to do with her life and the gifts she’s been given.

At the end of the book there is a page which details what influenced Rachel Hartman while writing this book and with the listing of polyphony, irish music, and more, it all began to make sense. There’s magic in this story. Dragons are treated here unlike any other fantasy I’ve read. At first I worried that it might come across dorky – like some mermaid books I’ve had the misfortune to read, but my worries were put to rest quickly.

This is a tastefully done fantasy, filled with everything one could hope for. If you try to steer clear of the hype on books, I advise you to ignore it and pick this one up on its own merit. If hype gets you, then trust me when I say the hype on this one is not wrong

Don’t just take my word for it! Check out what these bloggers say!

Candace’s Book Blog| Elizziebooks |Reading Between Classes

Lydia
10 July, 2012
Adventure, Fantasy, Favorites, reviews, Young Adult
6 comments
, , , ,

Double Feature – Crown Duel and Court Duel by Sherwood Smith

Order from:

 

Reason for Reading:
  • I’ve had this on my TBR for two years, figured it was time to get around to it.

I also recommend:

Summary from GoodReads:

A deathbed promise to their father sends a daring girl and her brother off to war. Filled with intrigue, romance, and magic, this spellbinding novel is a dramatic coming-of-age story about a girl who rises from impoverished beginnings to take command of her own fate.

My Review:

Sherwood Smith, why oh why are your covers so horrifically bad?  Because girl… you can write oh so good.  Seriously, as I read this fantastic gem of a young adult fantasy duo I felt like pumping my fist and shouting GIRL POWER quite happily.  Because this girl, this Meliara, she knocked my socks off.

So basically this story starts with an impoverished member of the court and his two kids, a boy and a girl.  The girl has been left to her own devices, she’s run wild, and she does not have a good impression of the finery and snobbery of the court off in the distance.  But now.. her father is dying and the duchy is left to both girl and boy.  And to make matters worse – it appears they are going to war.

Meliara is gutsy in a very good way.  She doesn’t have magical powers that allow her to pick up a sword and kick some butt, she’s too petite for that, and Sherwood realistically portrays that weakness.  Instead, she sneaks, she spies, and she does what she firmly believes to be best.  From captures to escapes, double-crossings and alliances, and then to the scene at court and the flirtations, parties and secrets, this story moves quickly and had me flipping pages and very grateful that the edition I read had both books combined.

This is a satisfying, little gem of a fantasy that is the perfect solution for those of you out there who are tired of cliffhangers and want to read a good, solid story that will have you cheering and maybe even tearing up a little bit at the conclusion.

Check out these reviews!

Steph Su Reads

Lydia
19 January, 2012
Adventure, Coming of Age, Fantasy, Favorites, reviews, Young Adult
5 comments
, ,

Touch of Power by Maria V. Snyder

Order from:

 

Reason for Reading:
  • I love reading Maria Snyder’s books.  This one was no exception.

I also recommend:

Summary from GoodReads:

Laying hands upon the injured and dying, Avry of Kazan absorbs their wounds and diseases into herself. But rather than being honored for her skills, she is hunted. Healers like Avry are accused of spreading the plague that has decimated the Fifteen Realms, leaving the survivors in a state of chaos.

Stressed and tired from hiding, Avry is abducted by a band of rogues who, shockingly, value her gift above the golden bounty offered for her capture. Their leader, an enigmatic captor-protector with powers of his own, is unequivocal in his demands: Avry must heal a plague-stricken prince—leader of a campaign against her people. As they traverse the daunting Nine Mountains, beset by mercenaries and magical dangers, Avry must decide who is worth healing and what is worth dying for. Because the price of peace may well be her life…

My Review:

I’ve come to expect awesome things from Maria Snyder.  She writes about strong females, the perfect touch of magic, action, a little bit of romance – basically everything that makes the teenager in me giggle with delight.  Her latest book, Touch of Power, provided all those things.

Seriously, if you want to lose yourself in a good book, and know you have an entire day to allow yourself to get lost in it, you cannot fail with picking up one of Snyder’s books.  With Touch of Power, I found myself trapped away in this world where healing is not considered to be a good thing, and the young heroine is on the run…constantly.  So much so, in fact, even I was out of breath reading it!

The imagination of Snyder is to be envied.  The Death Lilies were magnificent – so incredibly interesting. The choice having to be made by Avry was heart-breaking .. how would you choose?  The combination of interesting characters, rough situations, and action scenes kept me reading from beginning to end in one sitting.  And that, my friends, is fun reading.

Check out these reviews!

In the Good Books

Bookalicious

Lydia
13 January, 2012
Adventure, Fantasy, reviews, Young Adult
6 comments
, , , ,

Ganymede by Cherie Priest

Order from:

 

Reason for Reading:
  • Cherie Priest is the Queen of Steampunk authors, in my own opinion. 

I also  recommend:

Summary from GoodReads:

The air pirate Andan Cly is going straight. Well, straighter. Although he’s happy to run alcohol guns wherever the money’s good, he doesn’t think the world needs more sap, or its increasingly ugly side-effects. But becoming legit is easier said than done, and Cly’s first legal gig—a supply run for the Seattle Underground—will be paid for by sap money.

New Orleans is not Cly’s first pick for a shopping run. He loved the Big Easy once, back when he also loved a beautiful mixed-race prostitute named Josephine Early—but that was a decade ago, and he hasn’t looked back since. Jo’s still thinking about him, though, or so he learns when he gets a telegram about a peculiar piloting job. It’s a chance to complete two lucrative jobs at once, one he can’t refuse. He sends his old paramour a note and heads for New Orleans, with no idea of what he’s in for—or what she wants him to fly.

But he won’t be flying. Not exactly. Hidden at the bottom of Lake Pontchartrain lurks an astonishing war machine, an immense submersible called the Ganymede. This prototype could end the war, if only anyone had the faintest idea of how to operate it…. If only they could sneak it past the Southern forces at the mouth of the Mississippi River… If only it hadn’t killed most of the men who’d ever set foot inside it.

But it’s those “if onlys” that will decide whether Cly and his crew will end up in the history books, or at the bottom of the ocean.

My Review:

Clementine, by Cherie Priest, is one of my favorite of the Clockwork Century books.  So with that said, bringing the same characters back that kicked butt in Clementine for Ganymede pushed this book up into a frontrunner spot before I even began to read it.

It didn’t have to stay in that spot when I started reading it – but it held it by its own merit, because y’all, this book kicked butt.  Serious butt.  Seriously – submarines, zombies, tough girls fighting off zombies – I honestly think this is the best book of the Clockwork Century books yet.  So much action, it had me fist-pumping mere pages into the story and the classy touch of romance only helped matters – it was just enough.

I admire Cherie Priest so much.  She has such a distinctive, unique way of writing.  I love the layout of these books, the sepia ink, the fantastic covers, the awesome re-writing of history (making it much more cool).  There is so much style in each of her stories, and I think Ganymede really shows that style off.  I’ve been following each release of these books since reading Boneshaker, and anxiously hoarding them on my shelves – loaning them out only when I’m sure I’ll get them back in the same condition.

Ms. Priest, you have one loyal fan here, and you’ve above and beyond earned that loyalty.  I cannot wait for the next release!

Check out these reviews!

Fantasy Book Critic

Lydia
7 January, 2012
Adventure, Historical, Horror, reviews
3 comments
, , , ,

Kydd by Julian Stockwin

Order from:

 

Reason for Reading:
  • I picked this book off my TBR list for one of my 2012 challenges.

I also recommend:

Summary from GoodReads:

Thomas Paine Kydd, a young wig-maker from Guildford, is seized by the press gang, to be a part of the crew of the 98-gun line-of-battle ship Royal William. The ship sails immediately and Kydd has to learn the harsh realities of shipboard life fast. Despite all that he goes through in danger of tempest and battle he comes to admire the skills and courage of the seamen – taking up the challenge himself to become a true sailor.

My Review:

So imagine it’s the year is 1793 and you are sitting in a nice little tavern, enjoying a drink.  A shout is heard, and you immediately stand up and make your way to an exit – you’re just an ordinary wig-maker, not used to hard labor.  Instead, you are grabbed and, along with several other men, tossed into the hold of a ship – your future that of a pressed sailor for His Majesty’s Navy.

So begins the story of Thomas Kydd – a young wigmaker who is forced to look into living life as a sailor.  This book was harshly written, but once I got used to the language, the nautical terms, and – much like Thomas, finally got a feel for my bearings within the story, things started to come to life.  The descriptions of life on board a gunner are so vivid, I could almost smell the salt-water.  Julian Stockwin pulls no punches when it comes to life, death, or punishment in between.  (I also made the mistake of becoming attached to a character.. big mistake.)

I picked this book a while back because I thought, mistakenly, that it was about William Kidd, or Captain Kidd.  It isn’t – but it still is an interesting seafaring adventure as told from the eyes of a common, pressed man, rather than someone of higher ranking.  I very highly recommend this if you are a historical or wartime story lover.

Don’t just take my word for it! Check out what these bloggers say!

The Bookshelf, My Book Blog


Lydia
5 January, 2012
Adventure, Historical, reviews
2 comments
, , ,

Of Faith and Fidelity by Evan Ostryzniuk

Order from:

 

Reason for Reading:
  • I have a thing for books about orphans. I can’t resist them!

I also  recommend:

Summary from GoodReads:

As the papal wars of the Western Schism rage across Europe, a young man takes his first step on the journey of a lifetime.

Geoffrey Hotspur dreams of knighthood. As an English orphan-squire bonded to the court of Sir John of Gaunt, uncle of the English King Richard II, his prospects are few.

An inveterate gambler already deep in debt, young Geoffrey accepts an invitation to participate in a raid on French lands. His plans go awry, however, after a deadly street brawl results in his banishment from court. As further punishment, he is ordered to join a royal commission bound for Florence.

Accompanied by Jean Lagoustine, a mysterious Frenchman whose intentions towards the young squire are not all they appear to be, the ship upon which they journey is waylaid by corsairs. Barely escaping with their lives, Geoffrey and Jean find themselves forming part of a company of Catalonian crossbowmen en route to enlist with the Roman papal army.


My Review:

I am not sure how to review this book.  I really struggled with this one – but that’s not to say that I didn’t like it.  Just that I really struggled while reading it.

I’m not much of a war/wars type of reader.  I enjoy reading about the more personal (well, enjoy isn’t the word, but I find the more personal aspects easier to read) side, but not so much the strategy, historical facts, and world-building around the wars.  Which is funny to me, because I love world-building in fantasy books.

There’s a lot of building in this book.  A lot.  And it’s very frustrating if you aren’t already familiar with the historical basis behind it all.  I felt like I’d walked into a college level history course mid-way through the semester.  It was bewildering and I think I spent the first 30% of the book trying to get my bearings and wishing the story would just stay put on one character.

Because I loved Geoffrey Hotspur.  That character made me laugh so much, although I’m sure not all of it was intentional.  He was deliciously flawed, filled with life, and I wanted to cry every time the story veered away from him.

This book will take a commitment from you.  It’s over 400 pages long, and you will walk away having learned so much information when all is said and done.  Just prepare for it, set aside the time to really  read the novel, and do not be tempted to skim.  It won’t help, trust me.  You’ll just go back and have to read and re-read it again.

Check out these reviews!

Sawcats Book Blog

Living, Learning, and Loving Life

Lydia
29 December, 2011
Adventure, Historical, reviews
2 comments
, ,

The Hermetica of Elysium by Annmarie Banks

Order from:

 

Reason for Reading:
  • Medieval adventure? Sounds fun!

I also  recommend:

Summary from GoodReads:

1494 Barcelona. As Torquemada lights the fires of religious fervor throughout the cities of Spain, accused heretics are not the only victims. Thousands of books and manuscripts are lost to the flames as the Black Friars attempt to purge Europe of the ancient secrets of the gods and the bold new ideas that are ushering in the Renaissance.

Nadira lives a dreary life as servant to a wealthy spice merchant until the night a dying scholar is brought to the merchant’s stable, beaten by mercenaries who are on the hunt for The Hermetica of Elysium. To Nadira, words are her life: she lives them as her master’s scrivener and dreams them in her mother’s poetry. She is pursued as passionately as the fabled manuscript for her rare skill as a reader of Ancient Greek, Latin, Arabic and Hebrew that makes her valuable to men who pursue the book to exploit its magic.

Kidnapped by Baron Montrose, an adventurous nobleman, she is forced to read from the Hermetica. It is soon revealed to her that ideas and words are more powerful than steel or fire for within its pages are the words that incite the Dominicans to religious fervor, give the Templars their power and reveal the lost mysteries of Elysium.

My Review:

I. loved. this. book.

Gutsy heroine? Check.  Intelligence? Check.  Action and Adventure? Check.  A touch of romance? Check. Fantastic setting? Check.

Seriously – everything needed to make a very interesting, historical novel that is very, very, very difficult to put down.

Nadira is a special creature.  Yes, she’s bartered about the men in her life, but it isn’t for her body – oh no, it’s for her mind.  You see, she speaks quite a few languages, and has been called upon to help with translation.  She is treated well by each one of her “captors”, and as the story unfolds it becomes apparent that, indeed, she is something special.

I ended up reading quite a few historical novels, set in medieval times this year.  There have been a few disappointments, a few surprises, and some books that end up being the best books I’ve read in quite some time.  While The Hermetica of Elysium doesn’t really rank that high, I will say it’s one of the best medieval books I’ve ever read.  I really enjoyed strong Nadira, I loved that the book could be so clean without seeming unbelievable.  This author is a definite “must watch” on my list of authors and I cannot wait for book two to be released next year.

Check out these reviews!

Layers of Thought

A Bookish Affair

Lydia
28 December, 2011
Adventure, Fantasy, Historical, reviews
2 comments
, , ,

Harald Hardrada: The Last Viking by Michael Burr

Order from:

 

Reason for Reading:
  • This book was pitched to me by Knox Publishing and I figured I could use a little education on the Vikings =)

I also  recommend:

Summary from GoodReads:

In the dead of night, a band of Vikings ravage a lonely convent on the Brittany coast –and their fearsome leader makes a decision that will eventually lead to his downfall.

Ranulf de Lannion is fifteen years old. Crippled, deformed and abandoned by his family to the charity of the convent, he is seized by the Vikings during a midnight raid. Contemptuously nicknamed ‘The Scraeling” by his captors, his future appears grim.

Harald Sigurdsson, or ‘Hardrada’ as he will come to be known, is the leader of the Viking band. A violent mercenary with designs on the throne of Norway, Hardrada abducts The Scraeling on a whim.

Ranulf grows into an invaluable asset, smoothing Hardrada’s path over their thirty-five years together from mercenary to commander of the Varangian Guard, all the way to king of Norway.

My Review:

Between Linguistics and early British Literature this past semester, I got a crash course in the beginnings of the English language.  I watched YouTube movies, listened to lectures, experienced Old English (and read some of it out loud!), and got to read (for the first time) Beowulf and discuss it.  So some of what I was reading and expecting to read in Harald Hadrada did not come as a surprise.

What did come as a surprise was just how violently I reacted to the initial part of the story.  It was just so.. graphic and horrifying.  I know that’s how things were, how the “Spoils of war” were treated, but reading it put down there on the page just really made it hit home to me.

So, needless to say, I was on the side of the “Scraeling” throughout the entire story.

Harald Hardrada is based on the true story of Harald, the “last” Viking.  It chronicles his life through the eyes of his young squire, the “Scraeling”, a boy picked up after a raid on a convent that leaves the nuns raped and murdered.  The boy is crippled, due to a break in his hip and it being set wrong, but has incredibly high intelligence and does much for Harald’s campaigns and his victories.  But it’s all for a purpose.

This book was dense with history, facts and battles.  It read like watching a chess game between two matches is like.  I really had to keep my mind focused on each detail in order to fully grasp what was happening and see the effects of those actions coming.  I found it to be intellectually stimulating, engaging, and it has since been the topic of not a few conversations with friends.

Check out these reviews!

Susan Heim

To Read, Perchance to Dream

Lydia
23 December, 2011
Adventure, Historical, reviews
2 comments
, , , ,

The Skin Map by Stephen Lawhead

Order from:

 

Reason for Reading:
  • I enjoyed the Lawhead books I’ve read in the past, and decided to give him a go with this series.

I also recommend:

Summary from GoodReads:

Kit Livingstone’s great-grandfather has re-appeared with an unbelievable story–the ley lines throughoutBritain are not merely the stuff of legends but truly are pathways to other worlds. So few people know how to use them, though, that doing so is fraught with danger.

But one explorer knew more than most. Because of his fear of being unable to find his way home, he developed an intricate code and tattooed his map onto his skin. But the map has since been lost and rival factions are in desperate competition to recover it. What none of them yet realize is that the skin map itself is not the prize at the end of this race . . . but merely the first goal of a vast and marvelous quest to regain Paradise.

Enter the ultimate treasure hunt–with a map made of skin, a playing field of alternate realities, and a prize that is the greatest mystery of all.

My Review:

I don’t know what it is with all these books that deal with ley lines and time travel and alternate realities, but I’m totally digging it.  Stephen Lawhead splashes into this time-travel alternate reality thing with a bang, giving us a group of characters that are likeable and not so likeable and providing us with trips to Egypt, England and other fantastic places and times – no limits here!

There is a lot of set-up in The Skin Map, a lot of scientific explaining and figuring out how things work and, I won’t lie.. a lot of the Cosimo/Kit storyline had me bored to tears in places – but as I’ve learned in the times I’ve read Lawhead, it’s worth the payoff.

I think my favorite storyline deals with Wilhemina – it was just so perfect and had me giddy with happiness – but I won’t spoil it more for you.. just check the series out because it is worth it!

If you are a science fiction fan, or even wanting to be a sci-fi fan but are too afraid of the genre to dip your toes into it, then this is the perfect blending of history and sci-fi.  It moves slowly enough that it’s easy to grasp and has just the right amount of action in it to make it worth while.

Check out these reviews!

Inside the Wrong Mind

Lydia
14 December, 2011
Adventure, Christian, reviews, Science Fiction
2 comments
, ,