The Devil's Queen: A Novel of Catherine de Medici by Jeanne Kalogridis

Genre: historical fantasy
Pages: 468 (available in paperback)
Published: 2009 by St. Martin's Press

Synopsis:
The passionate story of a queen who loved not wisely . . . but all too well.

Confidante of Nostradamus, scheming mother-in-law to Mary, Queen of Scots, and architect of the bloody St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre, Catherine de Medici is one of the most maligned monarchs in history. In her latest historical fiction, Jeanne Kalogridis tells Catherine’s story—that of a tender young girl, destined to be a pawn in Machiavellian games.  Born into one of Florence’s most powerful families, Catherine was soon left a fabulously rich heiress by the early deaths of her parents. Violent conflict rent the city state and she found herself imprisoned and threatened by her family’s enemies before finally being released and married off to the handsome Prince Henry of France. 

Overshadowed by her husband’s mistress, the gorgeous, conniving Diane de Poitiers, and unable to bear children, Catherine resorted to the dark arts of sorcery to win Henry’s love and enhance her fertility—for which she would pay a price. Against the lavish and decadent backdrop of the French court, and Catherine’s blood-soaked visions of the future, Kalogridis reveals the great love and desire Catherine bore for her husband, Henry, and her stark determination to keep her sons on the throne. 

My Take:

So, I had read exactly one other book about Catherine de Medici, the Florence-born Medici girl who was basically auctioned off to marry Prince Henri of France and ended up mothering many children and becoming the infamous Madame Serpent due to her conniving and sometimes cutthroat moves to keep the throne.  (Whew.  That's Catherine in an unwieldly nutshell.)  It was this book: The Confessions of Catherine de Medici by CW Gortner.  I keep getting the feeling while reading The Devil's Queen that it wasn't as historically accurate as this other book, which also cast Catherine in a sympathetic light, which bugged me a little. 

Part of the premise of this historical fantasy novel is, you know, fantastical.  Catherine supposedly did terrible magic in order to conceive all her children and keep them and her beloved husband Henri healthy and on the throne.  This has some historical basis, since Catherine did have an astrologer for a close friend-- Cosimo Ruggieri-- and she was a firm believer and practitioner of astrology.  It was an interesting take on history, anyway, though the story took dark turns because of the sacrifices Catherine was forced to make for France and for her family.  Like I said, there are some glaring historical inaccuracy thingies which may get on the well-read history lover's nerves (I didn't mind, but then I'm not that well-read in history!).  Like, most of Catherine's ten children aren't mentioned in the novel and the ones that are have been re-named (probably because half of them were named Henri, to avoid confusion).

The story is consistently interesting and flows at a great pace for a historical novel: not a thriller by any means, but much faster-paced than many I have read.  My favorite minor character-- Catherine herself and Cosimo Ruggieri, her astrologer and a sorcerer who aids her throughout her long life, were my favorite major players-- has to be the young Mary, Queen of Scots.  She's completely devious, to be such a young woman, and oddly enough a bigger rival to Catherine in this version than the infamous Diane de Poitiers (wasn't impressed with Diane in this novel-- liked her better in Confessions and even in AP Euro History).  The conflict between the Catholic Catherine and her children and the Navarre faction of Huguenots was the more action-packed part part of the novel, though her relationships with her husband and sons and daughters were interesting, too.

The novel really makes a reader re-think whatever they've heard about the so-called Black Queen and Madame Serpent, Catherine de Medici.  Catherine is a very sympathetic and realistic character-- even when she has to horrible things in order to save her family, I was able to understand why she did them.  The saddest thing was how all her children kept dying as soon as they reached the throne-- it must have been a horrible thing for Catherine as a mother, for all her many children save one (Margot) to die before her.

The twist ending of the story-- both the surprise twist of the action, which involves a betrayal I never saw coming, and the romantic twist on the very last page of the novel-- completely threw me off.  The Devil's Queen is a very entertaining yarn about Catherine de Medici, a mix of history, romance, royal court intrigue, witchcraft, and suspense.  I 100% recommend it, if this sounds like the kind of mad-cap mix you would enjoy.


Rating:

Interview with the Vampire: Claudia's Story by Anne Rice & Ashley Witter

Genre: graphic novel
Pages: 256 (hardcover)
Published: November 2012 by Yen Press

Synopsis: A richly-illustrated adaptation of Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire, told through the eyes of the vampire Claudia, who was just a little girl when she was turned by the vampire Lestat. Though she spends many years of happiness with her two vampire fathers, she gradually grows discontent with their insistence upon treating her like a little girl, even though she has lived as long as any mortal man...and her lust to kill is certainly no less than theirs...

My Take:
I had to have this beautiful graphic novel.  Firstly, because Interview with the Vampire is one of my all-time favorite books and Anne Rice has been one of my favorite authors since I was a pre-teen.  Second, just look at that gorgeous cover!  I had serious cover lust over Claudia's Story, and the pages between the covers are no less beautiful or intriguing.

The art is beyond gorgeous: every illustration is perfectly shaded, with splashes of carefully-placed crimson which perfectly compliment the story's dark feel.  The three main characters-- the doll-like Claudia, sensitive, dark-haired Louis, and of course, the arresting and impulse Lestat-- are portrayed as very similar to their characters in the movie Interview with the Vampire.  Some of the illustrations are gorgeous enough to frame and artist Ashley Marie Witter definitely proves that she's a fantastically-talented artist in this graphic novel, her debut.

Claudia's Story essentially follows the exact same storyline as Interview with the Vampire, examining the conflict and dynamic between Claudia and Louis and Lestat, her two vampiric "fathers", to whom she must cling because she is an eternal little girl and cannot care for herself.  As Claudia, a vampire created as a child, grows mentally and emotionally older, she begins to resent her fellow vampires for creating her, for trapping her inside a child's "doll-like" body forever.  She has no hope of gaining independence, of fulfilling her terrible blood lust on her own, or of becoming the woman she became long ago in her heart and mind. 

Many direct quotes from Interview are used in Claudia's Story, along with some of Claudia's internal monologue, written in the slightly melancholy narrative style typical of Louis's monologue style in Interview.  I don't feel like we readers learn very much about Claudia's character, or a single new thing about the plot, that was not revealed in the original novel.  I didn't really mind, though.  This graphic novel is entertaining and faithful to the original Anne Rice canon.  The art, as I said, is beyond belief.  Anything Ashley Marie Witter illustrates in the future, I will almost certainly be reading.  I really hope this book sells a ton of copies-- at least as many as the Twilight graphic novels have, especially considering that the art of Claudia's Story is about ten times more mature and well-drawn.  And, you know, Claudia and Louis and Lestat do a very minimal amount of sparkling.

Rating:

Legend by Marie Lu

 (Book #1 in the Legend series)
Genre: YA dystopia
Pages: 305 (hardcover)
Published: 2011 by Putnam

Synopsis:
What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic’s wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic’s highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country’s most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem.

From very different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths—until the day June’s brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family’s survival, while June seeks to avenge Metias’s death. But in a shocking turn of events, the two uncover the truth of what has really brought them together, and the sinister lengths their country will go to keep its secrets.

My Take: 

I stumbled across Legend in my university's library, of all places.  I was, like, wait, ya'll don't have any fun books!  Who donated this fun book which I've seen all around the blogosphere to your collection of psychology textbooks and ancient Babylonian tablets?  Needless to say, I snatched what's probably the most entertaining book in my uni's library and took it back to my dorm.

Legend is definitely a YA dystopia, and a decent one at that.  It has all the elements I've come to know and love (maybe know a little too well).  The story alternates between the POVs of June and Day; their POVs are very similar in nature, despite their vastly different backgrounds-- June being a rich and brilliant military girl and Day a superb athlete and tactical genius from the slums and the Republic's most wanted criminal.  He's also a fifteen year old teenage boy-- must try to suspend disbelief.  Day and June have some Insta-love going on, and I wasn't all that captivated by their romance despite liking both characters fairly well.  (Day more so than June.)  
  
But, anyway, the dystopia cliches are everywhere.  This part of the former United States is called "The Republic of Panem".  There is a mysterious group of people from outside their borders, called District Thirteen the Colonies, who are considered terrorists trying to break the idealism and peace of the Republic.  (Yeah, right.)  The Republics are plagued by terrible strains of plagues which mysteriously seem to hit the slum districts with surprising accuracy.  On every child's tenth birthday, they are forced to undergo a government-mandated Trial to see if they are intelligent and strong enough to become a worthy member of the Republic, or fail and are sent to a "labor camp".  (Uh.  Huh.)  Needless to say, the-government-is-lying-- that's the biggest dystopia cliches there is, but it goes far beyond that.  The nature of the military, June's initial disbelief that her Republic could be hiding anything, the incredibly athletic and planning skills of the teenage protagonists, and the Insta-love despite June having a good reason to hate Day when she first meets him.  

In short, I don't feel like Legend is an original kind of dystopian story.  That's not to say I didn't enjoy it: this is a great quick read, perfect for, say, breaks between studying for finals week.  I think Marie Lu is a pretty skilled writer, even if a little cliched, and I liked the characters of Day and June and her brother Metias.  (The villain, or probable villain-- this is the first book in a series-- was one of the flattest I'd ever read about, though.  The "president" figurehead type is just about like President Snow.)  I thought it was cool how the Colonies seems to be the people in the Southeastern US (waves) and how the residents of the Republic don't realize they were once joined in the union of the United States, but see them as terrorists.  

The next book hints that we will see a lot more of these Colony spies and so-called terrorists-- I can't wait, because I have the feeling that, like District Thirteen, they have more than a few more tricks hidden up their sleeves than the Republic is willing to admit to its citizens or soldiers.  You know how the citizens of dystopian civilizations are: they know nothing.

If only these citizens/military personnel would read more dystopian YA, they might realize that their government is: poisoning people/ kidnapping them and experimenting on them in laboratories/ turning them into flawless soldiers or that those government-mandated pills are actually causing them to be devoid of emotion/follow all orders, then, well, I guess there wouldn't be a dystopian genre.  And that would be no fun.

Rating:

End of the Year Book Survey 2012

 

I've never done an end-of-the-year survey before, but it sounded like a fantastic idea.  Especially since I hardly posted during the first half of 2012, and honestly, I read so many great books which I never reviewed on my blog but really want to feature.  Anyway, this End of Year Book Survey is hosted by Jamie over at The Perpetual Pageturner, where she has her initial post and a linky to tons of other bloggers' round-ups of the best and worst books they read this year-- BONUS: anyone who adds their post to the linky before January 10th has a chance to win a book of their choice that was featured on somebody's list!  Without further ado...

1. Best Book I Read in 2012

Best YA: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Best Adult Fantasy: A Storm of Swords by George RR Martin

Best Adult Historical: Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel

2. Book I Was Excited About & Thought I Was Going To Love More But Didn’t?

The Gunslinger (Dark Tower #1) by Stephen King & The Casual Vacancy by JK Rowling

I liked both of them, actually, but neither were as good as I'd hoped.  The Casual Vacancy was doomed never to live up to my expectations, I guess, and The Gunslinger just didn't live up to its hype...I've heard the next books in the series are supposed to be better.

 3. Most Surprising (in a good way) Book of 2012

Moloka'i by Alan Brennert

This is a book about a Hawaiian island inhabited by people slowly dying of leprosy.  It's also one of the most amazing, poignant, and just beautiful books I've ever read-- definitely a new favorite.

 4. Book I Recommended Most to People in 2012

The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien-- because of the movie coming out (in just a few days!) 

5. Best Series I Discovered in 2012

The Temeraire Series by Naomi Novik (first book= His Majesty's Dragon): excellent fantasy series about dragons in the Napoleonic Wars

The Wolf Hall series by Hilary Mantel: I still haven't read Bring Up The Bodies, but I definitely can't wait to!   

A Song of Ice and Fire: Technically, I read the first two books in this series early last year, but it was only over this summer that I started to become really and truly obsessed with the series-- the HBO show probably contributed to this, and the release of A Dance with Dragons  

6. Favorite New Authors I Discovered in 2012 

Terry Pratchett (I decided to try his Discworld books and other books after reading Good Omens, which he co-wrote with Neil Gaiman(!)

Carlos Ruiz Zafon (I read The Shadow of the Wind and The Angel's Game this year-- he has a beautiful writing style)  

7. Best Book That Was Out of My Comfort Zone/ From A New Genre 

Beloved by Toni Morrison 

Read this one for school.  It was fairly good, but so different from the books I usually like to read.

8. Most Thrilling, Unputdownable Book in 2012

BZRK by Michael Grant 

 Wouldn't expect less than consistently thrilling from Michael Grant.  I'm excited to read the next one in this series next year.

9. Book From 2012 That I'm Most Likely To Re-read Next Year

Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling

Well, I have re-read it every year since it first came out.  

10. Favorite Cover of A Book I Read in 2012

I didn't read many books with pretty covers this year...like hardly any at all.  I liked the cover for China Mieville's Railsea.

11. Book That Had The Greatest Impact on Me In 2012

Hmm, tough one...I guess The Fault In Our Stars, again.

12. Book I Can't Believe I Waited Until 2012 To Finally Read

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

13. Shortest & Longest Books I Read in 2012

Longest: A Storm of Swords by George RR Martin (1,128 pages)

Shortest: A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess (213 pages) 

14. Best Book That I Read Based Solely On A Recommendation

Never Let Me Go By Kazuo Ishiguro 

17. Book(s) I'm Most Anticipating for 2013

 Splintered by AG Howard

Light by Michael Grant

Dualed by Elsie Chapman

In My Mailbox #26: The Urban Fantasy Edition

This post is so named because I'm seeing a definite theme in the books I bought and received this past week-- it's all very fanciful in nature, and all very urban in setting.  I've been very stressed out lately, what with the semester drawing to a close and studying for exams, so a little escapism and some fun reads are exactly what I need right now!

Here's what I got:

YA

Adult

--Shadowhunters and Downworlders: A Mortal Instruments Reader (an anthology) edited by Cassandra Clare

--Sweetly (Fairy Tale Retellings #2) by Jackson Pearce

--Trapped (Iron Druid Chronicles #5) by Kevin Hearne
--Legend by Marie Lu

All in all a very good, though small, haul!  I'm so happy to finally get my hands on Trapped, and I'm finding the Mortal Instruments book really interesting.  

So, what's in ya'll's mailboxes this week?

Follow Friday (#33)

Yay, it's the last Friday of the Fall semester!  This means the end of classes, but also the start of exams.  *Sigh*.
Anyway, a warm hello to everyone stopping by from Follow Friday (hosted by the fabulous Parajunkee and the equally wonderful Alison of Alison Can Read).  For those who don't know, I'm Kat-- reviewer of mostly YA, fantasy, historical, and scifi-esque fiction.

If you would like to keep up with my reviews, general bookish babblings, or are interested in some giveaways which will be coming up during the month of December (hint, hint), then I'd love to have you as a follower via GFC, RSS, email, or even my sparkling new Twitter account-- whichever you prefer.  Leave a comment with your FF, and I will be sure to visit/follow you back!


The FF question this week is:

Who do you want to be? If you could choose any character from a book. What do you think that character looks like and what do you have in common?

My answer:  Ooh, very tough one!  My first thought, like our featured bookworm's, was Hermione Granger, for obvious reasons of her being awesome and somewhat like a magical version of me (and every other bibliophile).  Arwen from The Lord of the Rings would be a close second: whether you choose to remain an immortal, magical elven woman or give up your mortality to be with Aragorn (a young Viggo Mortensen is like nearly as good as immortality), being Arwen would be a pretty sweet deal.  Arya from the Inheritance (Eragon) books would be another good one-- again immortal elven woman, this one with bad-ass powers and (SPOILER ALERT...A dragon).   

If I'm allowed to be a guy character: Gandalf the Grey, also from The Lord of the Rings.  To be that wise and powerful and... wizardly, with a wizard hat and a wizard staff and wizard eyebrows.  I always wonder: are there female wizards in LOTR?  'Cause that would be kind of sexist, if there weren't.  Then again, in a series which only has, count them, three named female characters of any importance...


Anyway, I wish all you visitors and followers a fantastic weekend (filled with lots of quality reading time, rather than exam-cramming, like mine).  Hope to see all of you around the blogosphere!

Rotters by Daniel Kraus

Genre: YA contemp/ horror
Published: 2011 by Delacorte Press
Pages: 448 (available in paperback-- check it out on Amazon)

Synopsis: Grave-robbing. What kind of monster would do such a thing? It's true that Leonardo da Vinci did it, Shakespeare wrote about it, and the resurrection men of nineteenth-century Scotland practically made it an art. But none of this matters to Joey Crouch, a sixteen-year-old straight-A student living in Chicago with his single mom. For the most part, Joey's life is about playing the trumpet and avoiding the daily humiliations of high school.
    
Everything changes when Joey's mother dies in a tragic accident and he is sent to rural Iowa to live with the father he has never known, a strange, solitary man with unimaginable secrets. At first, Joey's father wants nothing to do with him, but once father and son come to terms with each other, Joey's life takes a turn both macabre and exhilarating.
    
Daniel Kraus's masterful plotting and unforgettable characters make Rotters a moving, terrifying, and unconventional epic about fathers and sons, complex family ties, taboos, and the ever-present specter of mortality.

Cover Thoughts:
Definitely like this cover better than the original hardcover, with all the gloomy tombstones!  It has the neat feel of a collage, like it could be scribblings on the inside of a young grave-robber's notebook.  Dark, yet whimsical, and downright intriguing. 


My Take:
Rotters is definitely not your typical YA book, or your typical book, period!  It's utterly unpredictable, extremely absorbing, and both thought-provoking and disturbing in ways that matter.  I totally wanted to read it because of that interesting cover and because I'd read reviews saying that it's a completely different kind of read-- having read it, I couldn't agree more.

Forced to move after his mother's sudden death, our protagonist Joey is shocked to find himself an instant outcast at his new high school.  His father is the local parish-- the Garbageman, everyone calls him, and Joey has inadvertently become the Garbageman's Son.  Living in his new home, a ramshackle house which indeed does smell of something strange and foul, and dealing with his bizarre, reclusive father, Joey finds himself unprepared for the incredible, sickening truth, even as he comes to suspect it: his father is a grave-digger, and worse, a grave-robber.  He is part of an ancient and dying order of men, nicknamed the Diggers, who make their unorthodox living by traveling the country and digging up the treasures buried with the newly-dead.  At first, Joey is repulsed... but also fascinated.  The Diggers are a strange and dying breed of men, and as he begins to understand their creed, he also begins to unravel the mystery of his father's dark past and the secret of his father's one-time best friend, a man known as Boggs, who is a parish even among the outcast order of the Diggers. 

Rotters is written in first-person, easy to read except in a very few slow parts in the middle of the book, and fairly fast-paced.  Despite this, it manages to be strangely philosophical-- kudos to Daniel Kraus for doing that while still keeping the book entertaining!  It's difficult to explain exactly what a "rotter" is-- and no, it's not simply a corpse-- without having read the book, but the revelations Joey makes constantly come as surprises-- there is nothing predictable about this mad-cap, ingenious plot.   
Rotters doesn't go on my shelf of favorites, simply because it isn't the kind of book I would re-read again (that's kind of top criteria for that mental bookshelf).  But it is the kind of book I will always remember very clearly: Rotters is a story both exhilarating and haunting, one that I think all but the most faint of stomach or heart readers will enjoy if they give this terrific book a chance.

Book Rating:

Extras:
--Rotters on Goodreads
--Daniel Kraus on Rotters and his other books & a book trailer

Similar Reads:
--The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey (male narrator, with a similar but more Victorian feel: scary monsters and Jack the Ripper)
--Devil's Kiss by Sarwat Chadda (girl inherits a legacy as dark as grave-digging-- but there's more paranormal and more romance)

The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien

Genre: high fantasy
Pages: 330 (this paperback edition)
Published: 1937 (but republished many, many times)


My Take:

Keeping in mind that this book is no Lord of the Rings (one of my first fantasy obsessions), I really enjoyed this book.  The Hobbit has a charming, kind of Old World feel to it-- I kept thinking how very British Tolkien's writing is.  (Not that there's anything wrong with that-- I love Britishness.  Harry Potter is British.  So is Doctor Who.  And Neil Gaiman.  All very wonderful things.)


 Bilbo Baggins is a typical hobbit in many ways: he enjoys the occasional parties and house guests (as long as those guests don't overstay their welcome); and he is generally very comfortable in his Hobbit-hole and cares little for adventures of the fantastical or unusual sort, thank you very much.

But then the fabled wizard Gandalf the Grey enlists the reluctant Bilbo to accompany him and a troupe of thirteen dwarfs to the faraway Misty Mountains, where they hope to steal back legendary dwarven treasures from the very old and very wicked dragon, Smaug, who slumbers in a high mountain amongst his hoard of treasures.

 Bilbo, Gandalf, and the dwarfs travel far across Middle-Earth, through deep forests where millions of tiny eyes watch them from the trees at night.  They stay in the house of a shapeshifter and in the ancient house of Elrond and the elves and are not entirely roasted, boiled, or fried by a trio of trolls. 

Alone and hiding from goblins in the depths of a watery cave, Bilbo engages in a deadly game of riddles with the strangest and most sinister of beings: the creature which we will come to know as Gollum.  From Gollum he wins a beautiful ring, a ring of power and magic which can help its wearer turn invisible at will, but can also cast a dangerous spell over its owner.  In the end, there is a great battle as the people whose villages the dragon has devastated for so long attempt to take vengeance against Smaug at last...and Bilbo proves to be a far more valuable addition to the company of dwarfs and wizard than he would ever have expected.

Anyway, I enjoyed doing that-- nice way to liven up a book review with pretty pictures.  I loved the illustrations in my edition of The Hobbit, and definitely recommend that edition: the cover is so colorful and the style of the little patchwork drawings perfectly pits this book.  The Hobbit is a wonderful read: a good book for savoring and definitely one for reading aloud to kids, if you have kids or little siblings, etc.

The only thing that bothered me about the book wasn't about the book at all: it's how in the world Peter Jackson is going to make this barely 300 page book into a three-part movie series!  How will that work, exactly?...One movie about the party in the beginning, one about the journey, and one about a battle?  It seems like one Lord of the Rings movie might have more plot action than all three Hobbit movies put together.  I'm guessing the pace of these latest films will be a little more plodding... lots of beautiful shots of New Zealand.  But a creepy cameo by Gollum and a lot more Gandalf.  I've always really liked Gandalf (the Grey variety preferred), and wizards and wizardly hats in general.  Anyway, I'm glad I read this delightfully wonderful book, because it's made me even more excited for the upcoming film The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, which will premiere (yay!) on December 14th.

Book Rating: