Tricked by Kevin Hearne

(Iron Druid Chronicles #4)
Genre: urban fantasy
Pages: 338 (handy Mass-market paperback)
Published: April 2012 by Random House
Recommended for: only those who've read the first three books in the series, but I recommend the Iron Druid books to absolutely any fan of urban fantasy or the paranormal genre

My Take:

At the start of this fourth book in the series, our hero Atticus O'Sullivan, last living Druid on Earth, has just returned from the realm of Asgard and a mission to kill the Norse god Thor to find that-- as per usual for Atticus-- a whole bunch of gods, goddesses, and mythological characters of various ilk and pantheon would like very much to see him dead.  After conscripting his old friend Coyote (of Navajo and other Native American tribal lore) to help him fake his old grand demise, Atticus just wants time to train Granuaile, the former philosophy major/hot-headed lady bartender he took on as his apprentice a few books ago, in the magical arts, to spend some quality hunting time with his Irish wolfhound Oberon, and generally lay low for a decade or so.  Unfortunately for Atticus, Coyote has something else in mind: he recruits Atticus to solve a seemingly innocent problem in the local Navajo tribe which turns out to involve defeating a couple of malevolent and nearly invincible local skinwalkers-- scary Western American shapeshifters.  Add to that already deadly mix the reemergence of Atticus's vampiric friend and lawyer Leif, a (characteristically violent) vampire political feud, a Navajo hatalii (medicine man) who is more than he seems, and a very foreboding encounter with the Norse goddess of the Norse underworld (appropriately named Hel) and her pet hellhound, and you have, well, another week in the life of Atticus O'Sullivan.  You have to wonder how the poor guy gets any downtime, after dealing with a millennium or two of this kind of stuff.

This is the third book in the Iron Druid Chronicles which I've reviewed (somehow I managed to miss the chronological third book, Hammered, but I'll get around to reviewing it sometime.)  I remain just extremely impressed and generally delighted by this unconventional and endlessly entertaining fantasy series.  Atticus's flashback-stories about his life in various countries and time periods, the modern urban Arizona setting, the eclectic-ness of the mythological people and creatures featured-- and how hilariously they are portrayed in many cases-- is just fantastic.  In Hammered (the volume I haven't reviewed yet), Atticus has an encounter with the Virgin Mary as well as of course her peace-loving son, Jesus Christ, a variety of valkyries, and of course the total jerk that is the Norse thunder god Thor.  In Tricked, we get to meet somewhat fewer new characters and deities than in the previous books, probably because the ranks of the series' large cast have already swelled with so many great characters.

There is the introduction of Hel and a dastardly hint about a possibly pending apocalypse (but what else is new??)  We get much better acquainted with Coyote-- one of my absolute favorites from the earlier books. Coyote definitely lives up to his reputation as a trickster god, but I came to love his distinct way of talking and pulling strings around "behind the scenes"-- oh, and the way he calls Atticus "Mr. Druid".  I don't want to dole out a ton of spoilers (it's hard with these books, because I just want to put my favorite of Atticus's quotes and pop culture references in the review and maybe frame them), but all of the running gags with Atticus and Granuaile and Oberon had me chuckling out loud every few pages.  (This, by the way, is not such good behavior to be exhibiting-- I'm in college and have a roommate now.)  Speaking of Atticus's hound Oberon, he featured quite a lot in this book, especially compared to Hammered, where his hilarious commentary, lovable naivety, and penchant for sausages were for the most part much missed.  I also enjoyed the (slow but definitely present) progression of Atticus and Granuaile's relationship, which is frequently less master-pupil than Atticus says he would prefer it to be.  (But we all know he belongs with Granuaile and Granuaile alone.)  Who knows, maybe their romance will take front seat in the next Iron Druid book, Trapped.  This fifth book will be released on November 27th, which is soon but barely acceptable-- I need another "fix" of this series very soon.    I'd absolutely love to hear from fellow Iron Druid fans or any other readers!!

My Rating:

Follow Friday (#31)

I'd like to extend a big hello to everyone stopping by from Follow Friday (hosted by the fabulous Parajunkee and the equally fabulous Alison of Alison Can Read).  To any old followers happening across my blog, another heartfelt hello, and it would be completely awesome to hear from you guys!  For those who don't know, I'm Kat-- reviewer of mostly fantasy, historical, and scifi-esque fiction (often I do venture into other genres, though).  I've been away from the blogosphere for a fairly long time and am just now getting back into the groove of everything.  Follow Friday is just about the funnest (this is a word) thing ever, and I'm so happy to be participating again!  If you leave your blog's link when you comment, whether old follower or new, I'll be sure to visit or follow you back.



So this week's FF question is:

Q: What are you reading right now? How do you like it?

And my answer: I'm currently reading a few books at once, some of them for literature classes and a few for fun.  I'm just getting into The Drawing of the Three, second book in Stephen King's Dark Tower series, and really enjoying it so far.

It seems kinda strange that I claim to be such a hardcore fantasy fan, and yet I'm just now reading The oh-so-classic Dark Tower books, but my only defense is: the spines of some of those later books are pretty darn thick.  I mean, the Wolves of the Calla may be a supposedly fantastic, unbelievably spectacular book, but how many pages is it?  Oh yeah, over 900.  But, if I continue to enjoy the series this much, I'm sure to get to it eventually.  I'd love to hear you guys' thoughts on Dark Tower, what you're reading right now, how much you love it/don't love it, whatever you like.  And don't forget to leave your blogs' links so I can follow you back! 

Wishing you all happy following and a great weekend filled with much reading,

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Genre: historical fantasy
Pages: 387 (paperback)
Published: September 2011 by Doubleday

Synopsis (from Goodreads): The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night.

But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands.

True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus per­formers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead. 

My Take: 
The Night Circus is like a mesmerizing performance written in short acts, chapters from different character perspectives and timelines which wind together to form a beautiful and intricate story.  The book itself has the feel of a very enchanting circus: along with the main show involving Celia and Marco, two young enchanters trained in two different schools of magic and made by their respective teachers to participate in a game to prove which is stronger, the reader is afforded brief glimpses into other circus tents. The subplots in this book are truly intriguing as well as relevant, and I'm discovering that some of the less-developed stories, like those belonging to the various circus performers and visitors,  are the ones which linger most potently in my mind.  I was captivated by the circus's mysterious contortionist, Tsukiko; by the tarot reader who helps to hold the fate of the circus in balance with a single card; by the German clockmaker who falls in love with the circus and becomes the first of its most ardent admirers, a reveur; and by the Murray twins, born on the circus's opening night and forever bound up in its web of magic and secrets.

This was a novel right up my alley in many ways: the Victorian elements paired with the subtle romance, a cast of characters with ambiguous motives and hidden depths, and of course, the magic.  It's so rare that a reader can become completely immersed in a fictional setting, but this is one of those unique books which helps us accomplish it.  Reading this spectacular novel, I can imagine with perfectly clarity what it would be like to walk down the chilly, winding roads of the Night Circus wrapped in a Victorian overcoat and a woolen red scarf, passing by black and white-striped tents and breathing in the scents of bonfires and caramel popcorn.  There are so few books with settings as lucid and characters as fully-realized as that of The Night Circus that I would be hard-pressed to come up with more than a couple more-- Hogwarts in the Harry Potter series as that kind of this-could-be-a-real-place feel, and maybe Narnia.  To successfully endow a book with that quality of perfect seamless immersive-ness is a kind of literary magic, the ultimate achievement in any genre, but particularly in fantasy.  I really wish there were more books in the world as beautifully-written and complex, yet sweet and simply intriguing, as this one.

My rating:

Top Ten Tuesday: Top 10 Books on My Fall TBR List

Top Ten Tuesday is an awesome weekly meme hosted by the bloggers over at The Broke and the Bookish.  This week's theme is the books at the top of our TBR piles which we're itching to dive into this fall.  Or, in my case, the select few books I've managed to become really, really excited about despite the utter chaos which going away to college has turned my once slow-paced life into.  But YES, my very appreciated yet very neglected followers, I do intend to frequent the blogosphere more, er, frequently throughout this semester, and I figured why not start with a Top Ten Tuesday-- my favorite meme of olde?!  So, with no further ado or rambling (you know it's difficult for me), here are some non-required-for-class books I can't wait to absorb myself in this fall.

1.

The Casual Vacancy by JK Rowling

Oh.  My.  Rowling. The title may be slightly mundane, the cover less than intriguing, and the synopsis much less captivating than those of the Harry Potter books... but I truly do have absolute faith in JK Rowling.   I can't wait to read her writing style again-- it's enchanting, but somehow cozy and familiar--, to just hold the book in my hands and read her name on the cover before plunging into what's sure to be a fantastic yarn.  This one is on a whole 'nother list of its own for me-- and the wait is less than a month now.

2.

The Wolf Gift by Anne Rice

Though it's an Anne Rice book, The Wolf Gift seems to have considerably less hype surrounding it than did/does many paranormal books these days.  And it's a shame, but I've been apprehensive to pick it up because of some meh and negative reviews which made me kinda sad.  Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles were some of my favorites growing up, but her other books didn't quite do it for me.  Maybe this one will be a pleasant surprise?

3.

 The Drawing of the Three by Stephen King

I read The Gunslinger at the beginning of this summer, but never got around to reviewing it or reading the next book (I have the Dark Tower boxed set).

4.

Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore
Another sequel I've wanted to read for a really long time, but haven't got around to buying yet.  I loved Graceling and Fire even more so, so I have high expectations for this one.

5.

 Aurorarama by Jean-Christophe Valtat

I bought this book yesterday as a treat and can't wait to start it.  It's set in a steampunk-esque Arctic city populated by Eskimos and a secret police force.  I love the cover, because it reminds me of The Golden Compass/Northern Lights by Philip Pullman.

6.

The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman

This book sounds fascinating and I've read a couple of good reviews-- it's nice to have a little historical type fiction among all of those sci-fi and fantasy books!

7.

Eve & Adam by Michael Grant & Katherine Applegate

I really love Michael Grant's Gone series and used to like the Animorphs series by his wife Katherine, too.  This sci-fi-esque YA novel will be released in October-- and I'm definitely pre-ordering.

8.

The Prisoner of Heaven by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

This is the recently-released sequel to the Spanish Gothic mystery novels Shadow of the Wind and the Angel's Game.  I love and recommend Shadow of the Wind in particular-- Angel's Game was less of a favorite-- but The Prisoner of Heaven promises to be a highly anticipated and addictive read even if it can't quite live up to the delicate horror and literary beauty of the first book in the series.

9.

Insurgent by Veronica Roth

Really have to get ahold of this one soon-- I loved Divergent!

10.

The Drowned Cities by Paolo Bacigalupi

Ship Breaker was one of my favorite YA books I've reviewed on this blog.  I'm so excited to read more about the devastated coastal world Paolo Bacigalupi created in the first book, and to catch up with the amazing characters.

OK, that rounds up my Top Ten for this week!  I love comments/recommendations, and I'd love to visit your Top Ten posts in return-- it's been far too long since I've been blog-browsing-- so feel free to leave your links.

Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok

Genre: contemporary
Pages: 293 (hardcover)
Published: 2011 by Penguin
Recommended for: anyone looking for captivating insight into the immigrant experience through the eyes of a girl you can cheer for


My Take:

UPDATE: I feel very out of practice when it comes to reviewing, so bear with me!  I hope more reviews will be on the way soon, but upcoming AP exams and college stuff are once again making my life crazy.  This review will be a "quickie", since I'm just now getting to the point where I feel like I have time to post about books I really enjoyed, rather than everything I read (which hasn't been too much recently, unless a review of 5 Steps to Getting a 5 on the AP European History Exam sounds thrilling to you).

Pre-teenage Hong Kong native Kimberly Chang arrives in New York City with limited command of the English language and a mix of anxiety and excitement stirring within her.  She and her mother are dismayed by the state of their new Brooklyn apartment (the conditions of which are truly horrible) and the long shifts they must work in a Chinatown sweatshop to skate by on very little money, but resolve to make do however they can.  Meanwhile, Kimberly finds herself both intrigued and somewhat repulsed (weren't we all?) by the world of American public school.  She was always one of the brightest students in her class back in Hong Kong, but here the rules of socialization and even math, the one constant in her life, are foreign to her.  Kimberly realizes that succeeding via her "talent for school" may be the only way she can ever get her mother out of their dinghy apartment and the sweatshop, though, and so she pushes herself to breaking point with dreams of getting into an exclusive private school and graduating at the top of her class.  Kimberly's Chinese values and her new-found American ones come to clash in realistic and heartrending ways as she grows older, as she is torn between two boys and two very different futures, yet the conclusion of this introspective novel is all the more satisfying because it is Kimberly alone who manages to rise above her circumstances and achieve her dreams, all the while never losing sight of her values and who she is.


In short, this coming-of-age type novel by debut author Jean Kwok really impressed me-- and it's especially cool that the experiences of Kimberly Chang strongly echo those of Kwok herself, whom, like Kimberly, emigrated from Hong Kong to New York at a young age to work in a sweatshop with her mother.  The synopsis of this semi-autobiographical book make it seem like something of a "downer", but it becomes quickly evident upon beginning Kim's story that her struggles will be matched with her triumphs, a strong supporting cast of characters, and a smidget of humor.  Girl in Translation is somewhere between the  categories of "deep" literature and chic-lit-esque contemporary fiction, but I was surprised to find it somewhat closer to the latter.  Kimberly was a narrator I could completely relate to-- not because I've ever relocated to a strange country and dealt with culture-clash in the ways that she did, but because her very Chinese perspectives on American culture and teenagers reminded me a lot of my own high school experiences.  As the daughter of a benevolent American tiger mom and an inherently overly serious, respectful person, I remember feeling like an honorary US immigrant during my freshman year of high school!  I definitely recommend Girl in Translation-- it's a quick, enthralling read by a smart, talented new author with fresh perspectives on the Chinese-American and immigrant experiences.

Premise: 5/5
Story/Plot: 4/5
Characters: 5/5
Overall Rating:

His Majesty's Dragon by Naomi Novik

(Book 1 in the Temeraire series)
Genre: fantasy-- alternate history
Pages: 356 (paperback)
Recommended for: fans of fantasy and historical fantasy, and most especially, dragons

Synopsis: Aerial combat brings a thrilling new dimension to the Napoleonic Wars as valiant warriors rise to Britain’s defense by taking to the skies . . . not aboard aircraft but atop the mighty backs of fighting dragons.

When HMS Reliant captures a French frigate and seizes its precious cargo, an unhatched dragon egg, fate sweeps Capt. Will Laurence from his seafaring life into an uncertain future–and an unexpected kinship with a most extraordinary creature. Thrust into the rarified world of the Aerial Corps as master of the dragon Temeraire, he will face a crash course in the daring tactics of airborne battle. For as France’s own dragon-borne forces rally to breach British soil in Bonaparte’s boldest gambit, Laurence and Temeraire must soar into their own baptism of fire.

My Take:

As a child, I was infamous for my obsession with dinosaurs.  As I got older, this fixation transformed into an unhealthy love for dragons, those most graceful, magnificent, and terrifyingly powerful draconian overlords of the sky.  While I love the Inheritance (Eragon) books and the appearances made by dragons in Harry Potter, the Temeraire has officially become my favorite literary dragon.


Will Laurence is a British navy officer with a gentleman-like disposition.  After his ship, the Reliant, captures a hatching dragon egg among the cargo of a French ship, Laurence quite accidentally becomes imprinted with the newborn dragon, whom he names Temeraire after a Royal Navy ship.  Thrust into the world of the aerial corps and the ranks of dragons, their captains, and the large crews who battle from dragonback, Laurence and Temeraire struggle to prove themselves among a class of soldiers quite different from the Navy, and whom are already prejudiced against them.  It cannot be said that this book is action-packed, per se, but what battles do rage between our British heroes and the French opposition, under an unseen Emperor Napoleon, are very well-written and definitely engaging.  Naomi Novik's writing style is wordy but refreshingly intelligent-- I felt like the dialogue was realistic to the time period, as were the characters' attitudes.  

The dragons themselves are fantastic.  Novik's portrayal of all the different species of dragons, from the mythical Chinese Imperials and Celestials to the enormous British Regal Coppers and Longwings-- a breed of dragons which only bond with female captains-- is very interesting and engaging.  It's incredibly cool to see some female dragon riders, too, despite the historical lack of involvement of women in military affairs in this era, and to learn of the history surrounding them and society's very tentative acceptance by them as warriors (most of the time they are forced to disguise their identity).  Laurence and Temeraire's relationship evolves so much and I liked seeing the bonds of affection and trust develop between them even as the plot twists in a way that, over and over again, threatens to separate the two of them against their will.  I completely recommend His Majesty's Dragon as well as its sequel, Throne of Jade, which I've just finished.


Premise: 5/5
Story/Plot: 4/5
Characters: 5/5
Overall Rating:

Wishing you all Happy Holidays/ A Quick Video Countdown of Best I've Read in 2011

Just wanted to check in to wish all my followers a very merry Christmas/ happy Hanukkah/ whatever it is that you celebrate around the winter solstice!  I hope you all receive lots of wonderful books and give a few wonderful ones as well.  :)

This is a short Animoto video I made featuring some of the very best books I read this year, but may or may not have had a chance to review on the blog:




The song is "I'm Reading A Book" by Julian Smith, and you can check out the original video on Youtube here.

Review: Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman

Genre: urban fantasy
Pages: 370 (paperback)
Published: 1996 by Avon
Recommended for: fellow Neil Gaiman fans; enthusiasts of a good urban fantasy

Synopsis (from Goodreads): Under the streets of London, there's a world most people could never even dream of. A city of monsters and saints, murderers and angels, knights in armour and pale girls in black velvet. This is the city of the people who have fallen between the cracks.

Richard Mayhew, a young businessman, is going to find out more than enough about this other London. A single act of kindness catapults him out of his workday existence and into a world that is at once eerily familiar and utterly bizarre. And a strange destiny awaits him down here, beneath his native city: neverwhere.

My Take:

This review comes with a inherent disclaimer, that disclaimer being that I personally consider Neil Gaiman to be something of a god in the world of fantasy literature.  The thing about Gaiman's books which captivated me when I was younger, and which still does now, is that as a writer he has the rare ability to make a reader feel like they've slipped through the cracks of the mundane, every-day world and found the extraordinary in the most unremarkable places along with his characters.  Urban fantasy can be fantastic-- ie American Gods, Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, The Magicians, any of Holly Black's books-- , but it can also come across as flat and totally unbelievable.  Neil Gaiman's books have a brand of witty dark humor which makes them really enjoyable to read, every last one of them, and his characters are unique and intriguing, even though I think most of his novels are overall very plot-driven.

Neverwhere isn't my favorite Gaiman book, but I did really enjoy it and found myself thinking back to the storyline and the characters long after I turned the last page.  All in all, the mostly unpredictable plot twists and mad-cap characters-- the inhabitants of London Below, an underground London which is as dangerous as it is fascinating-- are what made reading it such a wonderful experience.  I've always wanted to visit London, but if I do it's now going to be very tempting to chat with a few homeless people or random mice in hopes of their telling me a way into London Below... maybe I'll even try drawing a door on an alley wall.  For anyone who's a fan of urban fantasy, Neil Gaiman, or fantasy in general, I'd definitely recommend Neverwhere. 

As far as my sparse (to say the least) posting schedule goes, I'm really hoping to have a new home computer and get a few opportunities to post and visit blogs over Christmas break.  Merry Christmas to my readers in advance, if any of you are still visiting occasionally!