Inheritance, by Christopher Paolini - 4 stars (I loved this series. Arya and Saphira go on my list of favorite characters ever. I love Arya's determination, strength, loyalty, wiseness, insecurity, bravery and her long, flowing black hair - not to mention that she's an elf. I love Saphira's spunk, vanity, confidence and the fact that she was an actual leading character in the story rather than just an animal sidekick. She was fantastic; she made the series. There are so many things to say ---SPOILER ALERT IF YOU DON'T WANT THIS SERIES RUINED--- I love so many things about this story. Nothing will ever compare to the Lord of the Rings, but this was definitely in that style with the roaming travel of the characters to the detailed descriptions of the scenery, to especially how he takes 130 pages to wind the story down after the climax. It did feel a little wordy at some points, but other parts of this book were so, so, so exciting and well crafted that every word was wonderful. I love, love, love any time an author takes a character and has them grow and totally transform by the end of the story. We get to experience that with Eragon and come to know him as he grows into who he's going to be throughout all of his adventures. Alagaesia, and all the races that live there, are so real in my mind after reading this series that I feel like I've been there and these characters felt like my "friends". So much so that I hated closing the last book after I was finished because it ended so bitersweetly. I really wanted to see my favorite characters completely happy, and that didn't happen. It almost kept me up last night!)
Message From an Unknown Chinese Mother: Stories of Love and Loss, by Xinran - (Reading this book was like having the conversation with someone credible, honest, open, and knowledgable that I've been wanting to have for a long time. I've had questions about the one-child policy, why and if the Chinese really do value males over females, and why they abandon so many children for a long time. It was HARD to read the answers to those questions. This book, written by a Chinese journalist, is a collection of interviews with women she met across China who either killed their babies because they were girls, abandoned their babies, or worked in orphanages. Although a lot of the women's stories were from before 1990, this is a newly published book and the information in it is very relevant to today and the stories behind MY children's birth family history. It really helped me understand Chinese culture more and gave me a more concrete understanding behind the social issues regarding children that Chinese people have faced. They were heartbreaking stories. This book was important for me to read. When my children get older I can honestly tell them that the reasons they were abandoned were because their birthfamilies were desperate people in a very desperate situation and that yes, they were and are loved. I am SO glad I am not Chinese! I thank God that I was born in America.
I was going to write the answers I learned in this book, but they are too terrible to write. They are valuable to know, especially to anyone who has a vested interest in the life of a Chinese-adopted child, but if you want to know, you will just have to read the book. It's that horrible.)
Brisingr, by Christopher Paoline - Reread
Eldest, by Christopher Paolini - Reread
Eragon, by Christopher Paolini - Reread
Daughter of Smoke and Bone, by Laini Taylor - 4 stars (You can't beat Laini Taylor for storytelling. Her imagination is wild, brightly colored, and fantastical. I LOVE it. She is an artist.
This is a book I will read again. Partly because it's the first in a series and I'll want to re-read i,t like I do with all of my favorite series, when the next one comes out and also partly because I read most of it on vacation. I've decided while it sounds like a good idea to read on vacation, I'm so distracted - by good things - that I only read bits and pieces here and there and the the whole reading experience is very disjointed. I'm too busy living, breathing in, and absorbing everything around me on vacation that books are no good. The best time to read a good book is when you want out of the world you are in and not the other way around like you should feel on a good vacation. Times like when the kids are napping, after they go to bed, when you are on a plane (without kids) or driving in the car with kids (and wishing you weren't), and days when you spend the whole of it in bed sick. Those are the best times for a book. Oh. And every once in a while when one of the best books come out, you've waited a long time for it, and your husband lets you escape to your room for the whole day with junk food to read all day long - THOSE are the best days for reading. But this one I read on vacation and both were beautiful.
I loved this theme in the book, and it was beautifully written so I'm going to copy it here for me to remember:
"It's a wishbone," she told him, holding it out. "You hook your finger around the spur, like this, and we each make a wish and pull. Whoever gets the bigger piece gets their wish."
"Magic?" Akiva asked. "What bird does this come from, that its bones make magic?"
"Oh, it's not magic. The wishes don't really come true."
"Then why do it?"
She shrugged. "Hope? Hope can be a powerful force. Maybe there's no actual magic in it, but when you know what you hope for most and hold it like a light within you, you can make things happen, almost like magic."
I love that...and it's so true.
A Love that Multiplies, by Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar -1.5 stars (I still find this family, especially the mom Michelle, inspirational but this book is mainly just a repeat of the prior book but with the added detail of the story of their prematurely born newest daughter Josie. I read every word of the first half and skimmed the rest.)
The Forgotten Locket, by Lisa Mangum -3 stars (I kept switching back and forth about how much I liked this book. Some parts I thought were beautiful, creative, and wonderful and then other parts I found myself checking how many pages were left like a chore I had to finish. Things I liked: I LOVED Valerie, her characterization and her whole story. My favorite book in this series was book two just because there were some really creepy/awesome parts with her in it. I liked how the characters had developed and changed so much by the end. The writing was pretty in lots of parts. Things I didn't like: the whole time travel concept was so abstract and she describes it in such a visual and abstract way that I found myself having to really work understand what was going on and to picture it. Zo seemed a little flat and two dimensional which wasn't good because he was the main antagonist. At the end of three books I still had a hard time picturing what the characters looked like other than their hair color.)
The Duggars: 20 and Counting!, by Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar - 2 stars (This reads more like an autobiography than a parenting how-to book which I was glad about. I've watched a few seasons of their show and really admire them and after reading their story I admire them even more. When I first heard about them I thought they were crazy for having that many kids. Now I feel like they should have several more because that's how well their family is run and how well each child in their family is taken care of. They are just amazing!)
Forever, by Maggie Stiefvater -4 stars (I love Maggie Stiefvater. For my birthday Chris bought me the whole Shiver, Linger, Forever trilogy SIGNED by Maggie. Her writting is beautiful. The story is pretty good, but the words she uses make it a treat. She dedicates this book to "everyone who chooses 'yes' " and explains on her blog that what she wants for people to get away from reading this series is that you can choose to be the hero in your own life. This was just what I needed to hear about and I loved it. Here is a link to a really, really good blog post by Maggie where she talks all about that. It is awesome. My favorite character in this story is Cole. I love that he isn't even in the first book, but that the message of the whole series would be so incomplete without him. His parts were the most beautiful and true to me. Loved it.)
There and Back Again: An Actor's Tale, by Sean Astin -1.9 stars (This is his autobiography about his movie career and specifically his experience filming the Lord of the Rings Trilogy. LOTR is one of my favorite books ever and I think the movies are the most beautiful movies ever made. The friendship between Frodo and Samwise is what makes it extraordinary for me. When I watched the Return of the Kings and saw Sean Astin's performance of Samwise at the end on the volcano I was so impressed and moved. How could you not be? So it's been interesting reading about the actor's experience and learning more about him as a person. I'm not sure I admire him as much as before I read his book though. That will teach me. Ignorance is bliss. I'm left wanting to watch those movies again though!)
Skullduggery Pleasant: Dark Days, book four, by Derek Landy -3.3 stars (I have a slight crush on Skullduggery Pleasant, and how can you not - he's so charming. Reading his exchanges makes me smile and sometimes even laugh out loud, and I'm not an easy laugher. This was my favorite SP book yet. I was slow to pick this one up and convince myself to read it because although the characters in the previous three SP books were interesting, creative, witty, and charming I didn't really feel like they changed from one book to the next. The plotline changed, although it sometimes felt that it was the same predictable sequence of events in each book, but I didn't feel like the characters changed much and that left the overall story flat for me. HOWEVER this book was different. Skullduggery and Valkyrie finally became more. Skullduggery is beaten, more vulnerable, and because of his desparation he grows more powerful. Valkyrie has something and someone to fight for and she uses that motivation to really grow into her own. She becomes more than a sidekick in this book - she becomes important. And the years of practicing magic, fighting alongside Tanith, and hanging out with Skullduggery have heightened her natural stubborness and given her confidence. It was great. Plus Skullduggery's cockiness has rubbed off on her, and that was fun to read. All that equals more interesting. I'll be begging my sister to let me borrow the next one right away and looking forward to when the 6th one comes out, albeit in the UK because they aren't released here, this Fall.)
Beautiful Darknes, Book Two, by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl - 3.5 stars (This is a great series. My only criticism is that it feels a bit long and wordy, but the words are pretty so I don't really mind too much. This sequel was even more imaginative than the first one.)
Beautiful Creatures, Book One, by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl -3.9 stars (I really loved reading this book. I was drawn in from the first page and 50 pages in I felt like I wanted it to go on and on forever. The writing is fantastic. They are so good at it that it feels completely effortless, although I'm sure it wasn't. Everything was so well described, and succinctly at the same time, that the setting, the characters, the emotions all came so vividly to my mind. I loved it. This is a gothic romance/fantasy for teenagers book written well enough and with a good enough story that anyone who likes that genre would love it. Turns out I did.)
The Golden Spiral, by Lisa Mangum - 3.2 stars (I liked this sequel better than the first. I thought her writing had improved a notch, which is always fun for me to see an author progress, the plot was really fun, and there was less high school in it. Now that the original concept had been introduced in the first book we got to really explore the complications of it in this one. Time travel has been SO done, but she really pulled it off in an original and creative way. I really liked it. My favorite character was Valerie because she was complex, literally insane, and yet intuitive. I love, love, love how Mangum uses her to move the plot along, create suspense, and depth to the storyline and the tone that all of her chapter's created was fabulous. My favorite chapter was a Valerie one that I read late at night and had a hard time sleeping afterwards. It really was amazing how she wrote it. I loved that part. There was also a scene I really liked at the end where Abby is deciding something important and I loved how Lisa showed that. It's also fun for me that Lisa Mangum lives in the city that I grew up in.)
The Hourglass Door, by Lisa Mangum - 3.0 stars (Lovely fluff. Just perfect for the end of a hard week or summer night spent reading on my hammock in the backyard. It was just what I needed. At the same time, this book is about a bunch of teenagers - again. I guess if I want a book that doesn't revolve around the high school world I need to quit reading YA fiction. The problem is, I want to read interesting, imaginative fluff without too much sex or violence. Hmmm...There is nothing offensive about this book and it's quite entertaining, so I suggest reading it. It's not a life changing book, but it was nice and the writing style was a somewhat lyrical. The attraction between the two characters felt a bit forced at times though and the romance felt a little bit like it was ripping off Twilight. It was perfect for relaxing on a summer night though and I'm so glad I have the sequel sitting on my counter. I think I'll go start it right now!)
The Beyonders, by Brandon Mull - 3.0 stars (This one of his took me quite a while to get into and didn't hold me like his others, but that being said I still liked it. I had a lot going on while I read it so I got interrupted a lot too. Also, I'm really interested in his writing style and how he crafts a book so I kept finding myself getting caught up in the mechanics of how he does what he does which pulled me out of the story so that may have contributed to me not being drawn in so much. I love Brandon Mull though and I hope he just keeps on writing book after book. I will be there to read them all!)
Illusions, by Aprilynne Pike -3.0 stars (I didn't like this one as much as I liked the one before, Spells. I liked this book, I'm a big fan of hers, I'm excited to read the last one next year, but I didn't feel that the story was as entertaining as the last two and the chemistry between the characters wasn't as good either. Part of the chemistry thing was that Laurel is finding out that she isn't mature enough to have a "true love forever" yet, which is age appropriate for her as a character and also for the audience it was written in, but it's not where I am right now in my life. Also, it was missing a little of the magic for me. The first book in the series you get to discover the whole faerie reality as it pertains to Laurel, in the second you get to explore the whole faerie world as it pertains to all faeries including Laurel and Tamani in Avalon, in the third? Well, it felt pretty played out with not much magic to explore and so much of what happened was just normal high school stuff. Not as entertaining.)
Matched, by Ally Condie -3.2 stars (It's really fun to watch an author grow. I've read a few of her previous books and this is the first she's had published nationwide and in hardback. I've checked out her blog and it is really fascinating to me to see bits and pieces of what it would really be like to be an author, more of what writing a novel would be like, and peeks into what the publishing world is like. My secret? I want to write a novel. I'm actually in the beginning stages of doing it, and loving the experience so far, but I'm no where near being committed to the life of an author. I'd kind of, sort of like to have my book published someday, but mainly because I'd like to hold it in my hands and I'd like to go through the editing process with it so it could be that much better. However, I'm not sure I'd want a whole lot of people to read and judge it, I DON'T want to be famous or in the limelight, and I wouldn't want the pressure of feeling like I had to write one story after another which is what an agent would want if they chose to represent me. But I've been blog stalking a bunch of the authors of books I've read lately and I'm loving getting a glimpse into that life. Isn't learning wonderful? That's one reason I love to read: it broadens my perspectives and gives me a fuller reality to experience. Love reading. Love it. So other than that, did I enjoy this book? I think so? The quality of her writing was so much better than others of hers that I've read. It's about a distopian society, which I'm finding I don't really find pleasant to read about. It might be the Synesthesia in me. Compared to the Hunger Games this one was really tame and I love a book for YAs that doesn't have an ounce of smut in it. I would totally recommend this book to my mom's Jr. High students instead of Suzanne Collins. Not that hers was smut, but this was so much more age appropriate. So, I'm not sure if I really enjoyed it, but I thought it was pretty good and worthwhile and I'll be reading the sequel when it comes out. I think.)
Song for Summer, by Eva Ibbotson -2.8 stars (I liked the book a whole lot more than I liked the story. Let me explain. The book: The somewhat lyrical and descriptive style it was written in was pretty good. She used pretty clever literary devices. I liked the way she often described an event from shortly in the future and, because it didn't really fit with the flow of the narrative, it caught my attention and then she'd follow it up placing the event back in sequence of the narrative with more description and explanation this time around so that it then made more sense. I loved how it opens focused around her aunts instead of Ellen, the main character. I LOVED the setting and the pictures she gave me of this time and place have forever stretched a part of my imagination. I really liked how strong and precise of a picture the author gave me of Ellen. I felt like I knew her. Marek, the romantic interest, I liked and hated at the same time and because of that, and especially because Ellen who is almost perfect, wants him that made it interesting. I wasn't sure if I wanted her to want him; I wasn't sure that he was worthy of her. The story: I didn't like quite so much. It's hard for me to read a book where my morals are not a guiding force in the characters. This story almost ends in an unhappy but resolved sort of way and when I saw that it was going there I kind of really liked it, but then she tidies it up in the end in just the way you were always hoping for but in a way that you don't like. If I didn't have the morals I do I probably wouldn't have minded. But I do, so I did. It did give me a few minutes to think about how I prefer stories to end. Are you someone who only likes a book that ends "happily ever after" or is that boring? I realized that I do like books to end happily, even if it is a bit boring, but that every now and then I don't mind if the characters don't get everything I want them to have.)
On the Edge: My Story, by Richard Hammond - 3.5 stars (I've become quite the Top Gear fanatic. I LOVE that show. Why? It's beautifully filmed, the chemistry between the three "presenters" is fantastic, it is SO funny, they do really wacky challenges so it's not just about which car is prettiest or can out perform the others, through these challenges you get a real glimpse into life in other countries so it's almost a travel show, oh yeah, and the biggest reason: it makes me laugh out loud and not a lot of things do that. I just don't laugh like that very often. Sad, but just the way I am. When I watch that show my mind feels like I'm on vacation. This is the story of my favorite of the three guys, Richard Hammond and his accident and recovery from a crash in a jet car. His story is inspirational. Written half and half by him and his wife, it is a love story at it's core and an incredibly touching one. It expounded my ability to feel compassion for those who have suffered brain injuries and taught me quite a bit about what it would be like. One of my friends had an accident and suffered major memory loss and bits and pieces of his story give me a glimpse, and even more sympathy and and compassion then I already had, of what she has been through the past few years. My amazing friend has complete amnesia from before her car crash and has built her life all over again from scratch since. I really admire her strength. This book, even though the quality of the writing isn't stellar in my opinion, is worth the read. I loved getting the extra glimpse into one of my favorite TV personalities and it was a beautiful, honest, heart wrenching, story to which I'm so glad there was a good ending for. Read it! But watch Top Gear first because it's awesome and you will laugh.)
Heist Society, by Ally Carter - (I didn't make it past the first 100 pages in this book. The whole heist idea of this book was just too overdone. The fact that it's a story about a heist doesn't need to be alluded to in every single paragraph to the point of ludicrously and tedium. I don't know what's happened to me. I used to love a good heist.)
Spells, by Aprilynne Pike - 3.4 stars (Oh, did I love this book! So much better than the first one. It was page turning, fun, creative, romantic, fluffy, interesting. I loved, loved, loved seeing the world of Avalon and I'm a huge Tamani fan; I think I have a new book crush. I really liked the depth that comes in to the story by Laurel being caught between these two worlds and having to make a choice. Come on May, that's when the next one comes out, get her faster!)
Wings, by Aprilynne Pike -(See review from 2009. I re-read it to get ready to read the sequel and the nexty book in this four-parter is coming out in May so when it does I'll be all caught up.)
Forge, by Laurie Halse Anderson -3.5 stars (The sequel to Chains. I so, so, so loved Chains - I liked this one. Forge, named because most of the story is set in and around Valley Forge, was good but I missed hearing the story from Isabel's point of view. I think I identified with Isabel more than Curzon because she's the same sex as me and because of that I was more interested in the types of trials her character went through. I think I was also more dazzled by the idea for the story in the first book and the fascination had worn off a little by the second book. Also, I REALLY loved Isabel. She's one of my favorite heroines.
This story is told from Curzon's POV and the first 40-50 pages were so vividly real that it was too horrible for me to read, but I did anyway. During the first 50 pages you experience a brutal battle where Curzon if faced with huge moral dilemmas. In order to protect himself and a Patriot soldier that he identifies with he kills a young, innocent soldier fighting for the British. It was gory and heart wrenching, not gratuitous, but too much for me to take. This is followed by yucky descriptions of amputations in the Dr.'s tent. At that point I put it down and vowed not to read it. After a long conversation with my sister Heidi who also read and loved Chains and Forge she told me I had read the worst and that it got easier and better from there on out. So I picked it back up a month later and really liked the rest of the novel. Chains was really so much more enjoyable and mind opening, but this was a good sequel, a good continuation of the experience, and I'm eager to read the conclusion when the third in the trilogy comes out in a year or so.)
Savvy, by Ingrid Law -2.5 stars (A sweet, cute, simple story about a family where each member has a super power, or savvy, and that power becomes active on their 13th birthday. The themes of the story revolve around self discovery and being happy with your true self. It was a nice story, it was pleasant to read, but I did skim the last 15 pages so I guess I wasn't that invested after all. My favorite part was hearing about all of the different kinds of savvies and how each was discovered and mastered.)
The Kneebone Boy, by Ellen Potter -3.2 stars (Days later and I still can't quit thinking about this one. Quirky, spunky, incitefull, thought provoking, fluffy, definitely not fluffy, creative, fun, mysterious, page turning. I love the creative and unique way this book was put together. It's a story driven by three great characters, siblings, Otto, Lucia (pronounced Loo-CHEE-a), and Max and the adventure they have that changes their lives. As I shared the adventure with them Potter gave me the pleasure of getting to know her really lovely, distinctive characters; the author really knew who her characters were and for me they all had very specific, vivid voices. I love that one of the siblings, they never say who but I think it was Lucia, told the story in first person. I loved her spunk, charisma, and her thought provoking honesty.
***spoiler alert ahead so don't read if you don't want the ending ruined***. I wasn't prepared for how this book would make me feel or how it would end though. I thought it was going to be total fluff, because the first 90% pretty much is, but the ending totally wasn't and it kind of slapped me in the face. I'm not sure I liked it! One thing I've thought about lately as I've read books is something Shannon Hale said on her website which was, "If you don't like a book or something that happens in the book, think about why you didn't enjoy it and what that teaches you about yourself." So I've had one of those learning experiences as I've processed what I read.
At first after having finished it I really didn't like how it ended. I felt like the author "tricked" me into feeling like it was a fluffy book and then surprised me with bad news at the end. I didn't like the bad news. It turns out the mom isn't dead, the dad knew where she was all these years and the truth was that she was insane and living in a psychiatric ward. Then ending worked on one hand but then it felt out of the blue on the other. I wasn't surprised to read on her website that she wrote the whole first 205 pages without knowing what the big "mystery" was. The ending felt sort of mis-matched to me, and maybe that's why. But at the same time, the ending did work, was plausible, and added a lot of depth to the story. One of my other pet peeves was that I didn't feel like the characters resolved their emotions at all about this shocking truth and yet the author left them somewhat smiling on the last page. Was that on purpose? Maybe. Who knows. As I've thought more about it I've realized that by the character's not having resolved their emotional situation on the page it has caused me to be even more drawn in to the story line because I keep thinking about them. That's the thought provoking part and whether it was intentional or not, I find that clever and interesting. Also to be fair to Potter and her characters I don't think pre-teens would be able to process what it meant to them quick enough to have it feel resolved enough for me by the end of the book. I'm sure it would an experience that would take them the rest of their lives to process.
What it all comes down to is this. I loved the characters. I loved sharing their adventure with them. I didn't enjoy the ending, but I liked the book. As I've thought through this storyline with Shannon Hale's advice I've realized the real reason why I didn't like the end of the book was because it hit too close to home to one of my personal fears. Deep down inside the thing I worry about second most in the world is that something will happen that will prevent me from being capable of raising my children. And that's what happened here, so no wonder I didn't like it! See, I learned a lot about myself through this story.
The Graveyard Book, by Neil Gaiman -3.2 stars (One of the most creative books I've read. It's about a baby who is raised by ghosts and other assorted ghoulish creatures in a graveyard. It was extremely well crafted, a bit slow in the middle, but very touching in the end. I almost cried. I loved his mother and it's no surprise I identified with her seeing as how she had longed for so long to have a child and finally got her opportunity through adoption. Another neat thing about this book was that it was a retelling of the classic Jungle Bookby Rudyard Kipling and it was done in such a unique, completely different way. It was pretty clever and I can see why it won the Newberry. I liked it, but there have been books I've liked more.)
Clockwork Angel, by Cassandra Clare -3.8 stars (This is the first in the prequel to Immortal Instruments. I was a bit wary about her doing a prequel because I really liked the first series so much and I was afraid she was taking a good idea, stretching it past it's limits, and ruining it. I really liked Clockwork Angel though. It's the same world I fell in love with in Immortal Instruments but set a century or so earlier and in London instead of New York. I really, really liked how similar it felt, how true it felt to Immortal Instruments, but how clever and fresh it was at the same time. I'm really glad she revisited this world and that I got to tag along. The story line was clever and the problems were so different from the ones they face in Immortal Instruments that it could stand alone without the first series. She is so good at writing a compelling, page turning story. LOVE IT. I also really enjoyed that, I guess, because it's set a long time ago the promiscuity and coarse language that was in the first series was missing in the second. I'd recommend this series to anyone because of that. My one complaint was that the characters felt very similar to the ones in the first series. Strong female character introduced into the Shadow world, two male best friends who act a lot like brothers, uber beautiful and moody female side character, family member related to the heroine that brings major conflict to the story...Clary=Tessa, Jace=Will, Alec=Jem, Isabelle=Jessamine, Clary's Mom=Tessa's bro Nate. There were some differences in the dynamics of the characters and their stories but a whole lot of similarities. All of that being said, I loved it, didn't want to finish because I didn't want it to end, and hoped I'd dream about it after I went to bed last night. The biggest drawback to reading this right now? Having to wait years for the 2nd and then the 3rd to come out.
A quote I loved that I want to remember: Jem - "Whatever you are physically male or female, strong or weak, ill or healthy - all those things matter less than what your heart contains. If you have the soul of a warrior, you are a warrior. Whatever the color, the shape, the design of the shade that conceals it, the flame inside the lamp remains the same. You are that flame.")
Linger, by Maggie Stiefvater - 4 stars (The last few pages of Shiver were so beautifully written that when it came my turn to read the sequel at the library I made sure I'd have Shiver checked out too so I could re-read the last part before I started Linger. I'm so glad I did because it beautifully set up the sequel and got me right back into the characters. Most of the writing in Linger was just as good as the last few pages of Shiverand that's why I give this book 4 stars. I loved her use of poetry and I especially loved how the title of the book came from one of the poems and was woven so well into the plot. Her writing style is lyrical and beautifully descriptive in a simple way. She's an expert at describing tiny elements true to life, like a specific look or how a person would hold their hands, to convey emotion and this gives her characters depth, life, and makes them so easy to imagine. I really like the addition of Cole. Once again, I love how some of her characters are fragile, broken, imperfect and redeemable. I thought it was clever to have it written from her four main character's points of view first person, but at the same time I think it was a bit overdone and was switched so often that sometimes I'd forget who's point of view the story was coming from.)
Behemoth, by Scott Westerfeld -3.4 stars (I love the worlds Scott Westerfeld creates and I love his daring, that he's not afraid to take and idea and stretch it to it's limit or take actual events and warp them to fit his story. Love it. And for me it's so believable. I have really enjoyed seeing the world populated with Darwinist fabricated beasties and through Clanker eyes. My favorite new character in this book was Bovril because he added depth and most of all foreboding in such a clever way. Westerfeld is pure imaginative genius.)
