Review: Ender's Game (Orson Scott Card)

I will freely admit that when I started reading this book the first time a few months ago, I struggled with it. Perhaps it was because I had come off of Card's Empire not too long before the library had this one ready for me - and I was less than thrilled at the prospect of reading more of Card's books after that experience. I set it aside for awhile when Teeball started, so when I picked it back up again I was in a much different frame of mind and started over at the beginning.

On the 2nd attempt, I found this book much more enjoyable. Andrew "Ender" Wiggins is the stuff heroes are made of. He wasn't seeking a bloodbath to destroy an alien race of giant Bees (from what I can tell that's what they are supposed to be, the Buggers), but he reacted and learned to defend himself and the things he loves with a fierceness that bordered psychotic at times.

Narrated primarily through Ender's mind, we watched a remarkable 6-year old kid grow up far too fast and succeed at things most adults die trying to achieve. There's smarts, intelligence, wisdom...and then there's Ender Wiggins.

I don't know that this was enough to inspire me to read more of Card's books on a regular basis, but I'll stick to his space fantasies far more than his military conspiracies.

A solid 3.5 stars, and a book I plan to read to my kids when they are old enough as the character development and suspense was just the right balance to keep things interesting.

Happy Reading!
--Jennifer

Review: The Thirteenth Tale (Diana Setterfield)

I feel like I'm being generous when I give this book 3 stars, but not for the reasons you might think. The Thirteenth Tale gets 3 stars because I recognize there are plenty of people who like books like this, and then people like me where these are really not ideal types of books.

This is a dark, somber, and tragic tale that ultimately results in healing before the characters' final breaths. We follow the story of Margaret Lee, who is a writer with a tragic story. Margaret is requested by a famed writer, Viola Winter, to document her biography. It follows a ghost story, abandonment, intense (and let's be real, borderline psychotic) love, betrayal, and yes - even death.

The few heart-warming, joy-filled moments throughout the book come as slow yet craved as a good joint at the end of a shitty week - but only make it passable as the next tragedy builds up.

So for people who like these sorts of books, you likely will be immersed into this world and entangled stories with a joy and love of reading. You'd probably rate it 4 or 5 stars.

But for me? This was a bit too much tragedy for my tastes, and that is overwhelming in a different sort of way (hence 2 stars from me and a compromise at 3).

Happy reading!
--Jennifer

Review: The Thief (Megan Whaler Turner)

The internet is terrible for something - and that's the spoiler that comes with knowing there are several books in this series. Had i not known that in advance, I would have been perfectly content with The Thief as a stand-alone book.

Semi-predictable fantasy tropes and some obvious character personality shifting aside, I really enjoyed this book and plan to continue in the series.

Without spoiling the book for anyone who wants a popcorn type fantasy book with some depth to both character and world-building, let yourself get drawn into three kingdoms decades (or perhaps a few millennia - hard to tell) after "the invaders" try to disrupt a spiritual way of living, where the Gods of Earth and Sky and Wind and Water and and and are previously worshiped. These three kindoms - Attolia, Sounis, and Eddis - are fractured and each left with remnants of their identities in the wake of the invaders' retreat.

You don't learn about this until about oh, 70 or 80 pages in.

The book begins with the introduction of the magus (no name given) and Gen - short for Eugenites (which is Turner's version of the God of Thieves). Gen is in the King's prison and the Magus offers him his freedom provided he steal something the king needs in order to marry the Queen of Attolia.

So an adventure ensues - Gen is an easy character to like, as is Sophus. I get the impression Gen is young - youthful disregard for authority and humble attitude is clear throughout how Turner describes him. But as the book wears on, there is a vast countryside unfolding. Each leg of their journey is met with additional myths and tales of the great gods in how the land is carved.

Combining any love of mythology with a medieval flare (and not in the style of Tolkien at all) kept this book interesting, easy, and not so predictable that I got bored. I breezed through it in a couple of days and found myself a little disappointed when it came to the end.

This is somewhere between 4 and 5 stars - not because of the depth of writing (as in Huang's book),  but because I feel like this is a solid fantasy series that will appeal to diverse fantasy readers of all ages (even as young as 7 or 8).

Happy Reading!
--Jennifer

Reflections - Week 24

So I realized that I'm not capable of commuting for 2+hrs a day, coaching teeball, and reading multiple books per week. This is good to know as I've already been signed up to coach next year. That means between March and June I'll read significantly less than the rest of the year.

Happily, I'm back at it, and will meet my goal of at least 52 books this year. Hell, I'm on track for way more than that. I'm happy to report I've found some brilliant new authors as a result of challenging myself. And I've also found some I don't really care for.

I'll update the reading list next week, but I'm still plugging along.

Happy Reading!
--Jennifer

Review: Zero Sum Game (S.L. Huang)

I achieved a first with Huang's Zero Sum Game: I have already put a hold on the second book in the series and it isn't even released yet.

That's right - I've never enjoyed a book (or author) so much that I reserved a book before it was released.

This book was incredible. Mathematics as a superpower, an anti-hero heroine, a conspiracy, government (or maybe not government) plotline, and some wicked cool, evocative imagery. The main character, a reclamation specialist named Cas Russell, somehow gets caught up in a huge, complicated political game of epic proportions. Used to working alone, she makes professional acquaintances along the way that have different pieces of the puzzle and work with her to bring down the bad (or are they good) guys.

There are so many wonderful lines - and I found myself wanting more and more of the story. I could picture everything so clearly, the streets and neighborhoods, the characters, the explosions. Everything. Huang clearly has a unique skill set and wonderfully creative mind that has me craving more.

I think she just surpassed my favorite author of all time. Yep, i'm that serious - this book unseated a 30-yr run with a different author as my favorite.

5 stars is so not even adequate of a rating. But, it gets 5 stars all the way.

Happy Reading!
--Jennifer