"The Book of Life" by Deborah Harkness

This is a concluding novel in a trilogy. As with any book, whether it be a standalone or part of a series, I avoid any major spoilers. However, that doesn’t mean that there are absolutely zero spoilers. You have been warned!

The Book of Life (July 14, 2014) by Deborah Harkness.

Elizabethan London is truly back in the past now that Diana Bishop and Matthew Clairmont have returned to the present. They are surrounded again by their loved ones – with one glaringly significant exception – and are ready to track down the last missing pages of Ashmole 782, an enchanted alchemical manuscript. Their quest becomes urgent as a grave threat surfaces. This significant threat and Matthew go way back. His love of torturing is as strong as his abhorrence of the de Clermonts. Along with their painful deaths, he has obsessive plans for a super race and power over all. The disturbing question is: Just how does he plan to create such a race?

            The answer to that, amongst many others, is believed to be in the Book of Life (Ashmole 782). The witches believe that the book is a lost book of spells. Vampires believe that it is their lost history. (Daemons, apparently, are neutral.) The last time Diana saw it, it was in the Bodleian Library. If she calls it again, will it answer her? But what use will it be unless she can find the missing pages?

            There’s a significant change going on in the lives of Diana and Matthew that requires much adaptation. It’s not a bad change, but that doesn’t mean it’s without trepidation and plenty of questions without answers. That is all on top of the witchy skills Diana opened up whilst she was centuries back and to which she continues to get used to.

            There were two years between “Shadow of Night” and “The Book of Life.” Admittedly, I had to brush away some cobwebs in my mind in order to remember story details -- not the plot or any main points, but occasional supporting characters and locations and the like. And, while still full of history, it wasn’t overwhelming like all of the historical details of the second installment.

            This concluding, adult fiction novel is full of action, danger, a certain amount of mystery and plenty of intrigue. There is romance, blood rage, love, a firedrake, hatred, Sept-Tours, defeat, an orobouros and hope. There is a surplus of magic, full of color and even more complicated workings. History is woven into the story – it cannot be helped; after all, the author is a history professor – but so is strong emotion (both good and bad) and plenty of traveling (here, there, abroad and back again). I think what really upped my satisfaction with the story was the presence of humor, as compared to the other two novels. For example, I laughed aloud at Gallowglass crooning a sea chantey, because between each verse were lines such as, “What are you thinking, flying around the house like a demented parakeet?” Much soul is involved in this book, as evidenced by the strong characters – both main and supporting – that Harkness created. Overall, she has fashioned a masterful weaving with varied, colorful threads making up the fascinating, larger picture that is this trilogy.

            Book One in the All Souls Trilogy: A Discovery of Witches

            Book Two in the All Souls Trilogy: Shadow of Night

"A Bride in Store" by Melissa Jagears

A Bride in Store (Sept. 2, 2014) by Melissa Jagears.*

Special delivery! Mail-order bride Eliza Cantrell from Pennsylvania has arrived in [fictional] Salt Flatts, Kansas. She arrived by [robbed] train. She had decided to arrive early to meet her intended, but Axel Langston isn’t in town. Instead she meets his business partner, William Stanton, and has nothing of the $500 cash dowry she had told Axel she would be contributing to the general store. Fortunately, she is very adept at business, and she’ll try to keep her focus on the store, because otherwise …

            … it falls on Will. He knows Eliza’s Axel’s fiancée, yet he can’t help but picture her in his arms. She isn’t classically beautiful, and she’s stubborn, but her passion for the store and her tenacious spirit attract him too much. As his friend Everett Cline says of his feelings toward Eliza, another man’s betrothed, Will is “in a war … and war was ugly.” So true. But surely he couldn’t really be what Eliza would want. After all, she wants a general store, and she’ll have that with Axel. Will just wants to go to medical school, but saving up is slow-going, and he already helps anyone in town who asks for his medical advice.

            Things do not settle down when Axel finally returns to town. If anything, they worsen.  Someone’s stealing from the merchants and families about town, even though the train robbers were supposedly captured. Warring feelings are also at play. Eliza has fallen for Will, even if she doesn’t want to admit it, and Will is head-over-boots in love with Eliza, though he fears the love doesn’t reciprocate. Can Will leave town without Eliza? Can Eliza just watch Will leave?

            I am pleased that this book snagged my attention from the first chapter. The plot is sturdy, and the story isn’t without humor: “Why did Lynville just step closer to her? To prove he stank?” Despite pops of humor, this Christian historical fiction novel doesn’t downplay the hardships of eking out an existence in small town 1881. If anything, it hones in on it by including competing general stores and touching on the medical knowledge of the time. I found this story to be fairly fast-paced and appreciated the author’s attention to historical detail. I also liked how the main characters struggled with their faith as they became closer to God again, but that Jagears wasn’t all preachy about it. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys Christian historical fiction with a touch of romance, plenty of doubts, misunderstandings and stubbornness. And also faith and love and hope.

* Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Bethany House Publishers. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions are expressly my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Rutabaga's Reads 2014: Part 9

Despite all of the YA novels I have read this year alone, this is only my first Part YA post for 2014. In nickname, at least. Enjoy!

Icons (May 7, 2013) by Margaret Stohl.

On The Day, 13 Icons fell from the sky and generated an electromagnetic field so immensely powerful that it halted electrical activity within a certain radius. Electrical activity that didn’t only disrupt or disable modern technology, but also shut down chemical processes or reactions within this radius, this field. And by chemical, yes, good-bye to approximately one billion lives in one instant. Dol (full name: Doloria Maria de la Cruz) and her “best-and-only friend,” Ro (full name: Furo Costas) belong to none of the Silent Cities, but are Icon Children in a Grass Mission. They hide from Sympas – Occupation Sympathizers – and Embassy soldiers. Living in the Grass Mission is to live without electrical energy or technology. That’s all centralized in the cities. But Dol and Ro will wind up on Santa Catalina Island, very close to Ambassador (of the Los Angeles Projects) Leta Amare, whom they all fear, when they’re captured. The Ambassador is in direct contact with General Ambassador to the Planet Hiro Miyazawa, and he’s in contact with the House of Lords, the aliens. Dol and Ro will meet fellow Icon Children Lucas Amare (yes, the Ambassador’s son) and Timora “Tima” Li. Dol also meets Fortis, a Merk, who is a handy person to know, and Dr. Orwell Bradbury Huxley-Clarke. Doc is a Virtual Physician, a Virtual Human, a machine. There’s also Colonel Virgil William Catallus. He’s not an alien, but he is a monster.

            The four young people aren’t together by coincidence. They don’t know the details, but they may actually be part of the Grass Rebellion and a conspiracy. The arrival of the Icons may not have been such a surprise, at least not to some. If that’s the case, then how can the Icon Children’s very big emotions – sometimes scarily uncontrollable and explosive – be strength enough to overpower those with all the power?

            Another dystopia. This is not a negative thing, but I admit there are other dystopian fiction trilogies/series that I prefer over this one, the first in a series. Stohl is the co-author of the Beautiful Creatures series with Kami Garcia (see: “Unbreakable” below), and I’ll confess that I preferred Garcia’s supernatural thriller over this science-fiction dystopia. Both of those books represent the authors’ first solo forays in book publishing. However, I still found this story to be structured with layers that surely haven’t all been explored. Despite the fear shown by the main characters, there is also strength and a sense that they must figure out the part of themselves that’s super emotionally charged. Although I didn’t love the story, I still found it to be intriguing. I also liked how the author included bits of Embassy news at the end of each chapter. The news varied and added information and active interest for the reader. Not so interesting? The oft-seen love triangle.

Mystic City (Oct. 9, 2012) by Theo Lawrence.

Ooh, a forbidden romance, and now Aria Rose – daughter of Johnny Rose, head of the political party that controls the western half of Manhattan – is engaged to Thomas Foster – son of George Foster, head of Manhattan’s eastern side. They’re residents of the Aeries, in families that are richest of the rich and most powerful of the powerful. The Roses and Fosters have always been enemies until the engagement of their children brings their families together. It sounds like Romeo & Juliet with a happier ending. Except.

            Aria has no memory of being engaged to Thomas or loving him or even going on a date with him. She has no memories of secretly meeting him in the Depths, which is where the poor live, far below them and their skyscraper Aeries, at ground level where the waters are claiming more of Manhattan every year. The Depthshods barely scrape by and no Depthshod likes a Foster or a Rose. The Depths are also where the mystics have been banished to. Like witches or wizards, each mystic has her/his supernatural gifts which aren’t the same across the board. They are drained twice a year, looking pale and sickly. All because of the Conflagration. Aria should despise them, but she doesn’t, and much of that is probably thanks to Hunter. He’s a rebel mystic who may know the past she can’t remember. But how to unlock it?

            And is Aria really in love with Thomas? Or is it merely a political stunt? The Roses and Fosters uniting against the mayoral candidacy of Violet Brooks, radical mystic? Well, at least Aria’s best friend, Claudia “Kiki” Shoby, provides some humor.

            This is a story where the rich get richer and more powerful and the poor remain poor and, for mystics, quite literally drained. There are destructive secrets swirling about, and I like that Aria, despite her lack of memories, plods forward to try to find her memories and discover secrets. Instead of looking like a fragile, doe-eyed princess who follows her parents’ expectations, she becomes independent, fiery and defiant. The author doesn’t rush this transformation, which is important to things appearing more believable. I also like how he wrote Hunter. Hunter has enough cool cockiness to give him a fighting chance against the Roses and Fosters, but his head isn’t so inflated that he overwhelms scenes with Aria. Overall, this book is an easily readable, urban fantasy dystopia. Not the most inspiring, but the book will look lovely on your bookshelf. It shimmers!

School Spirits (May 14, 2013) by Rachel Hawkins.

It’s all in a day’s work for Isolde “Izzy” Brannick to vanquish vampires and banish spirits, but attend a real high school? Laughable! And the reason her mom, Aislinn, wants her to attend high school is to banish a ghost haunting students and faculty at Mary Evans High in [fictional] Ideal, Mississippi. But that is also laughable – in a ridiculous way – to Izzy, because ghosts “are nothing. They’re … They’re like Brannick training wheels.” So it should be a quick matter of reconnaissance on Izzy’s part – then get in, get the job done and leave before she’s even had the chance to make friends. She teams up with Romy Hayden, Dexter O’Neil and Anderson and joins their Paranormal Management Society. All in the name of research, naturally. [And yes, the acronym for the club is PMS.] But strangely, Izzy finds that she likes hanging out with them. Romy is the friend she’s never had, and Dex is the … friend? … she’s also never had. Dex makes her feel all unexpectedly tingly, and not in the way that she can sense Prodigium, though there may be that, too. The concept of having friends is new to Izzy, so how much can she trust them to know about her?

            The ghost haunting Mary Evans High is vengeful and unusually strong. Izzy will have to discover why if she expects to vanquish it for good. Did someone summon it? Did her newfound friends? No matter how busy she is finding answers and keeping the truth of herself secret, she’s ever thinking about her sister, Finley, missing for six months, and she expects her mom blames her for Finn’s disappearance.

            Hawkins, author of the Hex Hall series, does another masterful job of writing teenage characters who actually sound like teens. Dex can be over-the-top in his speech, but that makes his character all the more likeable and the dialogue all the more amusing. The banter between Izzy and Dex screams connection, but theirs is a friendship first with a non-mushy romance potentially blooming second. For example, Dex declares, with mock seriousness, that they are best friends because, “Three fries I’ve stolen from you. That cements it.”

            “School Spirits” is a fun ghost caper with a solid plot, some twists and an ending that’s mostly tied up neatly but with one thing sorely unsolved. This humorous novel is currently standalone, but I hope that that won’t always be the case.

Unbreakable (Oct. 1, 2013) by Kami Garcia.

Who doesn’t appreciate a good ghost story now and then?  Okay, so it’s not just a ghost story, but it does involve a secret society of ghost hunters that are tasked with protecting the world from a vengeful demon. That society is the Legion of the Black Dove, and Kennedy Waters learns the hard way that she’s part of it. Probably. Or so the boys say. First, her mom dies (though she originally has no idea that paranormal forces were responsible). Second, death tries to find her. Fortunately, she’s saved by mysterious twin brothers Jared and Lukas Lockhart. Circumstances provoke her to go with them for safety reasons, so she meets Priest, a young genius, and Alara, a beautiful but formidable girl. The four of them are part of the Legion, and Kennedy is supposedly the fifth member. But what can she offer the team? She has no ghost hunter training (okay, fine, vengeance spirits training) and is therefore totally ill-equipped to track down and destroy the demon Andras. She isn’t an expert in symbology, weaponry, alchemy, mathematics or engineering. All she has is an eidetic memory. Guess it’ll be on-the-job training for her, because the demon waits for no one and in fact would rather kill them all off so he can clear the way for his evil takeover. So they scour within a certain radius to locate pieces of the Shift which will destroy Andras. But they also have to find Andras’ hidey center, the Marrow. Can they succeed? Will Kennedy prove herself to be a member of the Black Dove?

            Best known for her Beautiful Creatures collaboration with Margaret Stohl, “Unbreakable” is Garcia’s first solo expedition, and I’d say it was successful. This YA supernatural thriller was at times tense, intense, edge-of-your-seat and creepy. And while there is jealousy and redemption and romance, the book is more thriller than anything. This was a fast-paced adventure that I would not want to take in real life, but it’s engaging to read. Garcia’s novel contained eerie twists and sinister locations. There were times I actually got goose bumps!

            “May the black dove always carry you.”

"The Longest Ride" by Nicholas Sparks

The Longest Ride (Sept. 17, 2013) by Nicholas Sparks.

French Slovakian Sophia Danko is a senior from New Jersey at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. She’s a dedicated student belonging to the Chi Omega sorority, and her roommate/best friend, Marcia Peak, is the reason she finds herself watching a bull riding competition. She has her doubts about attending, especially after her skuzzy ex-boyfriend shows up. Then in swoops young, ultra-attractive cowboy Luke Collins (“eye candy” according to Marcia). Neither is looking for a relationship; Sophia continues to deal with her failed relationship with cheating Brian, and Luke is competing in a sport he had walked away from, but has returned to in order to help make payments on his mom’s ranch. He feels responsible for her being in the financial situation she’s in. Still, despite their separate issues, Sophia and Luke find themselves inexplicably drawn to each other. Making their very different lives work, though – an art history major wanting to work in a museum and a lifelong rancher – will make for a difficult relationship, not to mention Luke’s omission to Sophia.

            Ira Levinson, an elderly man in his nineties, is in trouble. He’s gone off the road on the way to Black Mountain. His collarbone and arm are broken, and something is wrong with his shoulder. He’s got a bleeding head wound, and although there is a full thermos of coffee, two sandwiches, prunes and a bottle of water somewhere in the car, there’s no way he can reach it. Even the littlest movement has lightning bolts of pain shooting through him. Perhaps it’s the pain that causes him to hallucinate about his beloved wife, Ruth, gone for nine years. But no matter, for her company focuses him and helps him remain alert, as he also hopes someone will find him on the steep embankment, because there’s one more thing … Through Ruth, he’s trying to remain alert, but he feels himself “… shrinking, like a sand castle slowly being washed away with every wave.”

            Classic Sparks again. If you know Sparks’ books, then you know the template: an intertwining storyline with a sweet romance sometimes bordering on over-sappiness. Some of these most recent books have also visited the dark sides of characters, but the main characters remain kind-hearted and good. They also show us that love is stronger than just about anything. As it is classic Sparks, it is a good book if you’re in the mood for romantic fiction. There are points that make you laugh and perhaps even shed a tear; other moments may have you rolling your eyes or wishing that your life held that spark – that spark being someone who is truly special. The story is poignant, as it can be following someone’s likely end-of-days, but it’s much more than that. It’s a story of an extraordinary journey. Not fantastical in a superstar sense, but that it’s just a life well-lived. It’s the longest ride, full of happiness and pain, expectation and disappointment, ups and down, but always full of love, even in the darkest of times.

"A World Without Princes" by Soman Chainani

This post is about the sequel to “The School for Good and Evil.” Spoilers are included. Not much more so than what is implied by the title or found on the dust jacket, but if you’re planning to read this someday and haven’t yet, you may want to conclude reading this post right now.

A World Without Princes (Apr. 15, 2014) by Soman Chainani.

Both Agatha and Sophie, of Woods Beyond, are back home, where they should be living out their happily ever after, but they aren’t. Both girls make a wish unbeknownst to the other, but it is Agatha’s that propels them back to The School for Good and Evil. Except that it isn’t anymore. Princesses are mixing with witches and princes are chumming with henchmen: Evergirls and Nevergirls, Everboys and Neverboys. Girls versus boys. The School for Girl Education and Enlightenment; The School for Boy Vengeance and Restitution. The School Master’s Tower has moved, following the new School Master and the Storian. The new School Master is a certain muscular, golden-haired boy with his father’s glinting sword sheathed at his side. A boy named Tedros. There isn’t much time to dwell, as the girls get thrown into classes despite missing most of the school year. There’s a mysterious new girl named Yara who doesn’t speak, and the new Dean of the girls’ school, Evelyn Sader, is a “tall, ravishing woman” that’s more dangerous than she lets on.

            Agatha wants to undo her wish and send herself and Sophie safely back home. Too bad someone’s erased “The End” from their happy ending, and the Storian is missing. A new ending is up for grabs, and they all know that the villain always dies in the end, but who’s the villain? Is it Sophie? Tedros? Evelyn? Agatha? They need to restore the schools to Good and Evil. The tricky part will be making that happen without bloodshed, and unfortunately, blood will be shed in this world without princes.

            The best way I can describe this tale is to dub it epic middle-grade fantasy. Because it is. But which may sound strange, considering it is middle-grade. If you read the first one, you won’t want to miss this installment, and if you haven’t read the first one yet, what are you waiting for? This is middle-grade that is not meant for little kids or the faint of heart. Their second year’s Trial by Tale pits boys against girls, and the side with the most left standing wins. It’s as simple as that, except the trial could turn as deadly as a Hunger Games arena. Since The Hunger Games has already been done – quite dramatically and violently – I can’t say I liked the unoriginality of this trial format. But the trial is not the sole point of the story, and overall the book is a rousing, action-filled tale where good and evil are sometimes so skewed that it’s hard to tell who’s good and who isn’t. It is classy in its brilliance. It isn’t just a battle of lightness versus darkness, either. Sometimes it’s light versus light that battles. And at the end of the day, with true love on the line, who will prevail?

            Book One: The School for Good and Evil