The Ropemaker, and Dragon Spear

Instead of showing the covers of both books I'm reviewing, I'm only showing the cover for Dragon Spear, because it's easier than trying to put two pictures side by side, and because it's pretty.
Dragon Spear is the third and final book in the series, and concludes Creel's adventures. All seems peaceful for the dragons in their new home when Creel visits them. But all too quickly that peace is shattered when Velika, queen of the dragons, is kidnapped. This book was just as wonderful as the first two, with the same quickness of plot and interesting characters. The plot was wrapped up very well, with no real loose ends. But it didn't seem like a contrived ending; it just made sense. I really liked this book and I recommend it to anyone who likes a good story. 5 stars.

And, The Ropemaker. I also liked this book. I'm kind of bad for judging books by their cover, which I know traditionally you aren't supposed to do. So at first I was a little apprehensive about this book because the cover looked kind of dumb. But I read it anyway, and I really enjoyed it. I actually stayed up until 7:30 in the morning the other day reading it. It has an interesting plot, although some of the characters felt a little flat to me. Overall it was a good book despite that, and I'd also recommend it. I give it 3.5 stars, because I liked it, but I didn't love it.

In a couple of days I'll post my review of Fragile Eternity, which I waited a long time to finally read!

Forest Born

So Forest Born is now out, as of yesterday. I was so excited to go buy it, so I went to the nearest Chapters bookstore. And they didn't have it. They had a full table of Twilight-themed stuff, including t-shirts, but they did not have Shannon Hale's latest book! I think something is wrong about that. And I searched their computer, and the other outlet of the bookstore doesn't have it either! I was shocked, and dismayed. Why didn't they have it? I have no idea. it doesn't make sense. Whenever a new book like that is released, they always have it. Not this time. The only book by Shannon that they had was Enna Burning. I think I'll keep on checking their website to see when they get it. Hopefully before I leave. What do you make of this?

September

I don't know about you guys, but I'm super stoked for the fall. I'm moving on to university, and moving out! I have just under 2 weeks now until I move into the school's residence dorms. My twin sister has already got an apartment, so we'll be living in the same city which is good. She going to a different school, one that doesn't have residence. So right now I am packing... and realizing how much stuff I need to take! I've already got 4 boxes fully filled, and 3 half-filled. And I've barely started with my clothes. I decided to bring most of my books, because I just can't bear to part with most of them. It's so exciting starting school! I'm going to study what I want to, not only what's required of me. Anyone else doing the same thing and going to university this year? Any advice?

Oh, and you see that the book on the left is Wuthering Heights? Guess what that little red sticker says? "Edward and Bella's favourite book." I was shocked when I saw it. They ruined a classic, a book that has been loved for over a century, by associating it with Twilight. That made me really sad. I suppose they're only doing it to get kids reading, but still! What do you make of this?

Forest Born

Anyone else excited for this book? The other day on Shannon's website I read the first chapter. It's absolutely beautiful, and is as enchanting as the other books. I think what I love most about these books is the lyrical style of writing she does so well. The stories really have that fairy-tale sense to them, and I really love that. So I think there are four more days until this one, and after that I'm heading to the nearest bookstore!

Another book I'm excited for: Catching Fire, the sequel to The Hunger Games. I bought the first one, so I have to buy the second one too. And in October, (just in time for my birthday) The Maze Runner comes out. Yay for books!

And, on a side note, has anyone else seen the movie of The Time-Traveler's Wife? I saw it a few days ago and loved it. What did you think?

Two Books-The Amaranth Enchantment, and Austenland

My first book is Austenland, by Shannon Hale. I'm actually surprised I never read it before now. So I decided to give it a try, because all other Shannon Hale books have been well-received by me.

I really liked this book. It was witty and charming, and very enjoyable. I discovered a side of the author I hadn't seen before. I liked the parallels to Pride and Prejudice, and I thought that the book was well-researched. 4 stars for being a witty and very entertaining book to read.

The Amaranth Enchantment is kind of a Cinderella-type story. Lucinda lives with her uncle and his wife, who fits the evil-stepmother archtypal perfectly. She's and orphan, and lives a miserable existance under her dominating aunt. But one day she has the chance to change it when two powerful people enter her uncle's jewelry store.
I found this book to be pretty entertaining, but I wasn't all that captured by the story. Maybe it was because of the age group it was aimed at? I'm not sure. But it really was a lovley story, and was quite funny at times. Good for passing time on a long trip. I give it 3.5 stars.

Any suggestions for books to read and review? And in the next two weeks I may not have much time for blogging because I'm going to start university in September so I have a lot of things to do to prepare.

Cybele's Secret

I absolutely loved this book! It's the sequel to Wildwood Dancing, which is a retelling of the Twelve Dancing Princesses fairytale. It had everything a good story needs: mystery, adventure, romance, and good heart. I also liked the love triangle, and I usually don't. The pace was good, and the story was exciting. I liked that I wasn't able to predict farther than the middle of the story. I liked the characters, especially Duarte. He was an interesting one; not quite who you think he is. Some things I found a bit predictable, but I didn't mind.

In this book we find that first impressions aren't always as they seem. This was a wonderful sequel to the first book. I think I even liked it better, and I loved Wildwood Dancing. 5 stars! Highly recommended.

Sunshine-Robin McKinley

I picked this book because it's Robin McKinley, and she's supposed to be an awesome writer. I've read Deerskin and Spindle's End by her, and generally liked them, even if I thought Deerskin's ending was very strange. This book is set in our world, but there are added dangers, like the ever prevalent vampires in novels today. It's the story of Sunshine, a baker at a coffeehouse, and a strange vampire she happens to befriend.
At first the book seemed promising. The colloquial style of the writing allows for more of a connection to the narrator, Sunshine. But while it starts out well, I found the book to get increasingly slower and not enjoyable to read. Mere seconds of events take pages to occur because Sunshine stops to discuss something else to the reader. While the information is probably necessary, the info dumps make a reader want to skim rather than fully read. And one of the strangest things I found about this book was the randomly inserted incredibly graphic almost sex scene. I was not expecting that. It made no sense to happen. I didn’t pick up this book intending to be scarred. If I had wanted to read something that graphic, I could have picked up a harlequin book. So this book disappointed me.* I think it could have been better. One star, for starting off well and ending with a crash.

*This review is only my opinion. If you read this book and liked it, then that’s great. But it just wasn’t my cup of tea.

Children of the Serpent Gate

So with this book, Sarah Ash ends her trilogy. This book developed ideas that were only starting to emerge in the previous book, until they took over the plot. In some ways I liked the takeover, but it got a bit tiresome sometimes. There were so many subplots in this book. Things happened, but some never were concluded, which annoyed me. A major problem was ignored at the end, reduced to, "oh I'll figure it out later." Lame, Sarah Ash. Lame. I think the exact wording was, "she would find a way; she was sure of it," which is kind of dumb, in my opinion. Except for that one thing, most of the loose ends were tied up well. But that thing bugged me. A lot. Why put in a major plot twist, and then leave it hanging? It seemed almost as if she couldn't think of how it would be resolved. But I liked the sense of myth that came into the story, and cultural beliefs. That was cool. So overall, I enjoyed this series. Nice writing style, full characters, and an interesting plot. 4 stars, I'd say.