Review: Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson

Steelheart is the most enjoyable book I've read this year and it is Sanderson's best stand alone book he has to date (Elantris, The Rithmatist, Warbreaker). That's right I said it. Look, don't get me wrong, I don't think it's Sanderson's best book, the most intriguing, the best magic system or most unique. Simply, it reads so smoothly, there is nothing complicated and it is non-stop action. It will probably be the first Sanderson book I'll recommend to others from here on out.

 One day "Calamity", an explosion in the sky, granted superpowers to men and women at random known as Epics. Without any warning, these Epics take over parts of the country (USA). Epics kill those who resist (or looks at them funny) and subjugates everyone else. The most powerful of them all, Steelheart, reigns supreme in Newcago.

Not bending the knee are The Reckoners. A group of  "humans" who will not abide by the atrocities that these Epics have wrought. They hide, plan and kill off the Epics that they can. See, every Epic has a weakness. Some can be killed normally yet some seem impervious to harm until you find their "kryptonite". 

The story follows David, an ordinary teenage boy who is obsessive compulsive about Epics. When David was 8, he saw the murder of his father by the Epic known as Steelheart. Steelheart is invincible. Bullets, explosions, fire...nothing! can harm him. Yet the moments before David's father died, Steelheart was grazed by a bullet that David's father had fired. He has a weakness...but what caused that weakness?

As I said, this is the most enjoyable book I've read this year. While teaching, I don't have a lot of time to read yet I read this in a few days. The story moves along at an extreme pace, there is no dull chapter and you are constantly guessing what Steelheart's weakness could be. I knew it was Sanderson, so it wouldn't be anything obvious as the man has a knack for surprise. The subtle twists of Epics having weaknesses is great. I hate Superman (the character) because he's invincible and by making Epics having weakness really balances them out.

Although the story in the book only spans a month or two, you do see David's character grow. He starts off obsessed and starts to realize there are other parts of life worth enjoying as well. Seriously...after my ramblings how could you not go out and get Steelheart?

Check out Laurentius' review as well if you are not convinced! Oh and we have two copies of Steelheart to giveaway, so you can make up your own mind! ^_^

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Thanks to Hachette NZ for providing an ARC of Steelheart to be reviewed and for giving us a copy to giveaway!

Review: The Rithmatist by Brandon Sanderson

The Rithmatist, is a compelling piece of Young Adult fantasy that delivers the whole way through. Sanderson hits all the right notes when it comes to all the usual YA themes; coming of age, the meaning of true friendship, loyalty, perseverance, and even a didactic against bullying. As expected in a Sanderson novel, the magic system is completely unique. The basic idea is that specially gifted individuals can write complex diagrams which control chalk drawings (called “chalklings”). At times the magic system is overly complicated, but it’s original and by the end of the book it all comes together quite masterfully.

The characters are a fun bunch to read about – every one of them is unique with their distinct personalities and idiosyncrasies. Sanderson does a good job here and the characters keep you fully entertained. I especially liked the contrast between Melody, a Rithmatist student who doesn’t take her studies seriously, and Joel, who lacks Rithmatist powers. The story centers on Joel, the son of a lowly chalk-maker.

Due to some special circumstances, Joel attends one of the top schools in the country; however, what interests him are not the mundane studies, but rather the Rithmatic classes – special classes that the magically gifted attend. As a non-rithmatist, Joel is unable to pursue Rithmatic studies, except for occasionally sneaking into Rithmatic classes.

The setting is a bit Harry Potter-esque – a magic school of sorts. You’ll definitely see some of the similarities to Harry Potter as you progress through the story. Think of Joel as a sort of Harry Potter, but a Harry Potter who can’t actually perform magic and can only watch in envy as his peers do. Joel being extremely bright but not magically talented adds an interesting dynamic to the story. Sanderson uses this to create an absolutely brilliant ending. The story, setting, and magic system also reminded me a bit of The Name of The Wind – especially the part where Kvothe attends magic school and studies a rigidly structured magic with specific rules.

The world is pretty similar to our world near the turn of the century with magical elements added to it. It almost feels a bit like 20th century England with parts of Lord of the Rings added into the geography. Overall, The Rithmatist is a fantastic book that will guarantee to keep both adults and kids entertained. My only complaint is we will have to wait another year to continue the story. Review by Ben.

Notes from me (Jon!): I have to agree with Ben on every point here. I think this book is really fun to read, it has a great ending (I called it!) and never did I feel cheated. One of the strengths Sanderson has is being able to pull his readers into his world. To make the unbelievable just a little bit believable. You'll want to cheer for the good guys and boo at the bad guys. A great pick up if you haven't read it already. Sanderson has hinted that this is going to be a two part series.

Review: Quintessence by David Walton

In this alternate reality the world is flat. Untold rumours of treasure, the ability to turn lead into gold and death into life is what drove Lord Chelsey to sail to the end of the world. As he comes back, he has barrels of diamonds and a treasure troves of gold. Yet not 24 hours after he lands that every one of his crew members are dead, including himself. His treasure? Not treasure at all but barrels of sand and even more troves of sand.

This historical fantasy book is set just before Queen Mary's reign where protestants duck and hide when Mary takes the throne. To examine a human body after death is seen as sorcery and mercury is used to cure most.

We follow Stephen Parris the King's physician who is still mourning his son's death many years before. He secretly opens up corpses in order to learn, but he must do this in secret. A brave coward who will go to extreme lengths to find cures for diseases, when he hears that there is potential to find the elixir of life, quintessence, he jumps at the chance.

Christopher Sinclair is an alchemist with huge ambitions. Sinclair was the there when Chelsey died and told him secrets from the end of the world. Sinclair is reckless and throughout the story goes to new extremes time and time again, no one is too precious for his ambitions in the search for Quintessence.

While there are other characters in this story, Parris is probably the shining light. David Walton writes him as an unlikely hero, someone who just wants to better mankind and holds onto the faint hope that maybe, just maybe his son is out there somewhere. He holds no magical powers, no physical strength but you'll root for him none the less.

Quintessence by David Walton is as the cover says, wildly imaginative. There are so many different elements that comprise this book. There are philosophical, scientific and religious debates which fascinated me. It was like having a bit of sci-fi element in the book without being sci-fi. The book is written at a really fast pace and the story keep moving a long. There are strange creatures, a bit of 'magic' and characters that you can believe are real. The dialogue in this book between characters make you seem you are in there listening to the conversations.

The ending to the book was perhaps a little bit predictable but it doesn't stop this from being a great read and I chewed through this pretty quickly (even with my busy school life). Give this author a go, I'm even giving you that chance!

Review: The Steel Remains

The Steel Remains by Richard Morgan is his first book in fantasy. Morgan is known for writing Sci-Fi but as we all know, there can be a lot of overlaps in both genres. Joe Abercrombie quotes the book as 'Bold, brutal, and making no compromises'. I would have to tend to agree with this quote. The characters are harsh, the way they speak and the way people treat each other, it makes a hard to stomach read at certain points.

The story follows several characters, but the main one is Ringil. A hero of sorts after the last war against the Lizard men, but now just another person getting by. One day, his estranged mother comes and finds him, to tell him that his cousin's husband went into debt and she got sold into slavery. He must get her back. At first he doesn't want to, this bucolic life style suits him, but every part of his body is screaming to do it.

The other "main" character is a female called Archeth who early on the book we learn is someone mysterious and is of a dangerous and powerful race. She's on the other side of the country as Ringil. She serves her Empire because her people are dead and/or have left her. Emperor Jhiral finds her useful and uses her to his advantage.

I haven't told you much have I? That's because really there isn't much to tell. This book really felt like watching the first series of 'Lost'. I had no idea what was going on, every chapter was new information but it begged more questions. Each chapter answered one question but asked three more. While doing so, it is using crass language. Everyone is swearing, high born, low born, super-natural. The f-bomb is as natural in this book as it is breathing.  Just when you think you're desensitised to it...BAM! Morgan shoves some balls down your through. Oh yes...I said that. Remember the top quote. The first word was SEX. Morgan doesn't skimp on this and he doesn't skimp on the details too. A lot of it is male on male. I'm not sure of the reason, but perhaps because it is more shocking to the reader. I mean, when was the last time you read about someones balls...oh never mind. Let's keep it PG shall we.

Morgan writes all this like it is the norm and it isn't. If his goal was to shock me, then yeah he did it. Very graphically. Yet while shocking my system, as I said before, he leaves me begging for answers. I'm drawn to him like a train wreck, I can't turn away. I'll need to read The Cold Commands. If you like sex, drugs and violence then this is the next stop. All aboard the train wreck.

"Sex, drugs and violence: Those would be the three words I would use to describe The Steel Remains" - Sleeping With Books

Win A Memory of Light!

If you guys are long time followers of Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time then you will undoubtedly know that the final book is out.

If you are waiting for the e-book/kindle version then you will have to wait until April.

Now it you aren't in a hurry or you want something free! Then it's easy. Click the following link to go into the draw to win a copy (3 if you are from New Zealand!)

http://bestfantasybooks.com/blog/giveaway-a-memory-of-light-for-us-residents/

So many books!

I just bought 95 books for $150nzd (approx $120usd)

Review: Darth Vader and Son by Jeffrey Brown

Ok, so this isn't a novel. It's not even a novella.

Darth Vader and Son is a simple picture/comic book with many different scenarios of, if Darth Vader was raising a 4 year old Luke Skywalker.

Mostly this book reminds me of Farside calendars, they are silly little scenarios with puns etc. except this one is mostly with Star Wars scenarios. Not all of them hit the mark but overall it's a good cheap book with laughs and will keep many a guest that comes to your house entertained. The pictures are well drawn and the book itself is well made and sturdy (you can let kids rifle through it).

My only gripe is that I wish every scene was something to do with Star Wars rather than a generic father raising a son scenario.

So if you are looking for a nice present for someone who likes Star Wars, I think you've got your ticket here.

Here are a couple of pages from the book.

Review: Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence

Dark, gritty and full of death. That's pretty much sums up this book. From the first moment you read, you are thrust into a world of destruction and nothing seems to be fair game. Mark Lawrence's first book Prince of Thorns is set in an alternate reality of our Earth. He references Plato and Sun Tzu but none of the countries he uses are of the same name. "Technology" is part of this book but it's masked by using spirits/ghosts and alchemy to disguise it.

Lawrence's story is in first person, told by Prince Jorg Ancrath a 14 year old boy who witnesses the murder of his mother and little brother. Pain, anger and confusion leads him to run away from home with a band of wandering brigands. Jorg's main goal is to kill Count Renar whose men were the ones that killed his beloved mother and brother. Yet after years on the road, Jorg is no closer to killing Renar. Something draws him back to his homeland, back to his father but there are other forces at work, danger is afoot.

What Lawrence does really well in this book is the pace. There is something happening all the time, there is no down time. No chapter is filler; if he wants to say 3 months have past, well he'll say just that and we're off again. The book is dark and gritty. Others have said that's what they like about Abercrombie's writing, but Lawrence would put him to shame. Jorg's character is an anti-hero. He is sometimes confused but mostly he is just angry, and who wouldn't be after watching their mother and brother die, without having the ability to help. Jorg has no moral's and often does things on a whim, and just when you think he's going to do something that protagonists usually do, he dashes your brains all over the wall.

What I also really liked about Prince of Thorns are the little quotes or paragraphs before a new chapter. It gives us insight to the characters and also a little bit more information about Jorg.

There were a couple of things that Lawrence didn't sell me on. Perhaps it is really subjective but when I was reading, I didn't feel like it was a 14 year old boy talking to me. The voice inside my head said older, more grizzly man. The book mentions his tutoring at a young age, but academic learning doesn't translate to articulate speaking or the things he does in the book. Also for the whole time until about two thirds, three quarters of the book, I actually thought Jorg was a normal sized 14 Year old boy and not 6 foot in stature.

These things certainly do not make a bad book. As I said, those last two points are very subjective. This book isn't ground breaking fantasy but great books don't have to be. Prince of Thorns is essentially what every fantasy reader loves. Magic, check. Lots of fighting, check. Betrayal, check. Impossible odds, check. Likable but flawed characters, check. Trilogy (all the rave these days), check.

If you haven't read this book or heard of Mark Lawrence, well now you have. The second book to this trilogy the King of Thorns was released earlier this year and have had rave reviews from our forum members and Ben the owner of BFB himself. Emperor of Thorns the last of the trilogy will be out approx 1st of August 2013.

Most Anticipated Books of 2013

2012 was a decent read. There was King of Thorns and Red Country. However, I think 2013 is a much better year. Lots of conclusions to trilogies and perhaps the biggest closer of them all, A Memory of Light. With the help of Ben from www.bestfantasybooks.com, we've compiled this list. Enjoy 

Memory of Light by Robert Jordan/Brandon Sanderson will most likely be the most anticipated book (by the masses anyways) of 2013 and it comes out in January! This is the last and final book of the Wheel of Time series. It has been a long time coming. At first there was only going to be one book after Jordan's death but Sanderson is a genius writer and knew it couldn't be finished in one. Those that groaned about this needed not to worry as Sanderson worked on it furiously and was able to get them out speedily and now the final tome will be out soon.

The Prologue is now out if you want a sample taste of what's to come. WHEEL of Time took a bit of a hit in recent years due to Jordan losing control of the plot threads, but Sanderson has done a great job at bringing it back to heel.

The Daylight War by Peter V. Brett. When I read the Painted Man, I was really skeptical because it is portrayed as one of those boys gains super power and is all powerful. I was quickly thrown off my perch of presumption and landed solidly on my backside. I loved The Painted Man (also known as the Warded Man in US) and quickly finished off The Desert Spear. The Desert Spear was quite a disappointment because the story just seemed to go off in a tangent. Things did not add up to me, however, it is a series and sometimes things don't seem right because you don't have full information. I'm looking forward to The Daylight War and will pre-order it right after Christmas!

Ben: I'm looking forward to this one. I hope Brett learned from the mistakes he made with The Desert Spear. My hopes are up though and I will be looking forward to this one. I'd even go as far as to say it may be my most anticipated book of 2013 (assuming the big hitters like Martin and Rothfuss don't release their books).

Emperor of Thorns is the conclusion to a very good debut trilogy by Mark Lawerence. King of Thorns was perhaps one of the best reads of 2012 from owner Ben. So if you haven't given this new author a go yet, perhaps now is the time just before the trilogy ends!

Ben: Prince of Thorns was a great debut with a lot of promise to the future books. King of Thorns was outstanding. This man knows how to write sharp prose. My favorite read of 2012 by far. Dark, brooking, intelligent, with a likeable unlikeable hero. Lots of sharp insights by Lawrence on the nature of man through the soliloquies of Jorg Ancraft, the hero or villain, depicting on your view.

The Rithmatist by Brandon Sanderson

Ben: Well, when Sanderson is not finishing off the Wheel of Time or cooking up about a zillion other writing projects, he finds time to release yet another book. And here’s my bet he’s going to have another novel and interesting magic system. Just a guess.

Enchante: Don't shoot me but I kind of wished The Rithmatist wasn't coming out this year. Hey, don't get me wrong, I'll pre-order this baby and read it in a few days but...I really wish it was a Mistborn book or even better yet a Stormlight Archive book.

The Tyrant's Law by Daniel Abraham

The Tyrant's Law is the third book in the Dagger and Coin series by Daniel Abraham. Best known for his Long Price Quartet and collaborating with none other than George R.R. Martin for some things. The Dagger and Coin series is fast shaping up to be one of the better fantasy trilogies out there – take some of Martin and add some of Abercrombie then filter it through Abraham’s perspective and wit and you have something grand. The series is a more intelligent take on the the Wheel of Time with more realistic characters who flaws and an interesting world with a deep back-story to it.

Keep an eye or two on this one folks. Abraham is quickly becoming one of my favorite writers in the genre and he has yet to publish anything that's not A quality. And if you haven't read The Dragon's Path (first in the series), your crazy!

The Dark Defiles by Richard K. Morgan

Ben: Book three in Morgan’s outstanding fantasy series. Dark, gritty, genre bending and breaking. This is fantasy gone wrong but so right. It's not a series for "everyone" and Morgan shatters the typical heroic stereotypes by featuring a gay protagonist. But it all works. If you like vicious action, flawed characters, a dark world, this series delivers. Morgan took a look at standard epic fantasy and then wrote his version of it in a way to subvert some of the norms. I'd say fans of Abercrombie and Martin would love this series.

Enchante: The Dark Defiles is the third book in The Land Fit for Heroes series by Richard Morgan. The first of this series The Steel Remains was read by a good friend of mine and she thoroughly enjoyed it. Sigh...wish I had more time to read.

(this isn't up for pre-order yet)

River of Stars by Guy Gavriel Kay

Set in the same alternate historical china as his outstanding Under Heaven, but several centuries later. If this is anything like his Under Heaven, this is a must read for any fantasy fan that likes superbly written prose, well-crafted characters, and an exotic Asian landscape.

Blood of Dragons by Robin Hobb

Hobb’s new entry in the Dragon Keeper series, a series so far that has more in common with her Liveship Traders series in tone and feel than with her Fritz Chivalry series. Typical Hobb with complex characters with plenty of conflict between them. Fans of dragons will love this series as Hobb adds the Dragons as living breathing characters with motivations (and speech!) of their own. If you liked the simplistic dragon-human relations in say a book like Eragon, you'll be stunned by Hobb's ability to create dragon characters that are real personalities.

The Unholy Consult by R. Scott Bakker

Ben: I’m looking forward to this one, the concluding novel in The Aspect-Emperor trilogy. This trilogy didn’t have the same bite as the original one, but it’s still very good.

(Not available for pre-order, no pictures!)

The Crown Tower (The Riyria Chronicles #1) by Michael J. Sullivan

Ben: Truth be told, I'm not a big fan of the Riyria series as of yet. I've read the first in the series (The Crown Conspiracy) and didn't find it very well written and the characters were clunky; I can definitely see the self-publishing history behind this series as it seemed more like a fan fic production than a real book. However, having said that I haven’t read the sequel novels and word on the street is the author finds his stride later on in the series.

Despite my ambivalence,  the series seems to have hit a chord with fantasy readers who want a more light-hearted, less witty version of Lies of Locke Lamora. Just don't expect anything too complex plot wise or deftly, witty prose.

The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

I haven't read anything by Gaiman that I've disliked. American Gods, Anansi Boys and Neverwhere are all brilliant books. Coraline is a favourite of mine to read to the kids in class. You also know you've made it when you've made a cameo on The Simpsons.

Review: Red Country by Joe Abercrombie

Abercrombie stormed into the fantasy like no other. His debut book 'The Blade Itself' was an instant hit and his trilogy is now pretty much a staple to everyone's recommended reads. His strength is his characterizations. He is able draw the reader into the heart and soul of the characters, any flaws or bad character traits are accepted and any that provoke anger are soon to be dispelled in consequent chapters. All of his characters go through hardship and because of this, is why we are so drawn to the characters.

Red Country was probably the most anticipated book of 2012. Yes there were some other fantastic books, but after 'The Heroes', everyone wanted more.

Red Country is about a small family who owns a farm. Shy South, the protective big sister of Ro and Pit, is a woman bent on forgetting past mistakes and living her new life to the letter of the law. Her past has made her an angry person, often verbally abusing Lamb her "father", who she deems as a coward. However, she also regards him as a father figure as he looks after Ro and Pit as if they were his own (He's kind to her as well). Perhaps giving them the childhood that she never got.

Lamb is a hulking brute of a man. He has seen many winters and through them has lost a finger but traded it for many scars. Yet, for someone who is such a hulk, he avoids confrontation at every avenue, he can't barter or haggle, he doesn't want to fight and just bobs his head when Shy yells at him. What happened in his past that has totally paralyzed him now?

After a day of bartering and selling her crops, Shy and Lamb head back to their farm. As the last hill was crested, they find only the smoking ruins of their farm. Gully, one of their workers is hanging from a tree; Ro and Pit gone.

The corner of Lamb's mouth twitched but he didn't look at her. "We'll follow." Like it was a fact agreed on. "Might be we can talk this out. Buy'em back." 
"Buy'em back? They burn your farm, and they hang your friend, and they steal your children and you want to pay'em for the privilege? You're such a fucking coward!"
Still he didn't look at her. "Sometimes a coward's what you need." His voice was rough. Clicking in his throat. "No shed bloods going to unburn this farm now, nor unhang Gully neither. That's done. Best we can do is get back the little ones, any way we can. Get'em back safe." This time the twitch started at his mouth and scurried all the way up his scarred cheek to the corner of his eye.
"Then we'll see." 

I think you can safely assume what this kind of book will entail. What Abercrombie does well in this book, like all his others, is the characterization of his POVs (point of view). You really get to know the characters of this book, you feel their strengths, their weaknesses and their desires.

There are other main POVs in the story. A man named Temple who is the Lawyer to Nicomo Cosca, infamous leader of the mercenary band called The Gracious Hand. Through him we get reintroduced to Nicomo Cosca (who made his first introduction in Best Served Cold) and other recurring characters. With that said, like all stand-alones you don't have to read the previous books, but the book contains more depth when the other books have been read (especially this one, compared to Best Served Cold and The Heroes).
Ro the sister of Shy also gets a few pages from her POV. Through her thoughts and feelings, we gain even more understanding of Shy and the woman she is.

Now, to the nitty gritty. Red Country is perhaps the most anticipated book by Abercrombie, but after reading it, I felt it was very weak compared to the other 5 books he has written. Yes, he does stay true to his style and perhaps he has gotten better at writing scenery and describing locations. The town called Crease was a good example of this, but then again, when comparing to Crease, Ashranc another town was severely lacking.

There were lots of little semantics throughout the story that irked me.  Stories that were left untold. I'm not sure whether or not Abercrombie was afraid to make this book a tome. It sits at 451 pages, but I thought it could have been a 600-700 page book if he flesh out more parts of it. In this modern age of fantasy, we are blessed with many good books; my friend often says that is has 'spoiled me', after I critique a book to him. I've read lots and lots of good books over the last 10 years and I like the little details that add up. You can't pan away from a difficult situation and then moments later have that situation solved 'off screen', even if that said character is awesome at what they do.

I thought Ro should have had many more chapters in her POV. Her captors are interesting, I wanted to know more but I was left with a feeling of wanting. You can argue that this is a sign of a good writer (I don't dispute) but with the way this book ends, I thought Abercrombie should have elaborated more. If you look at the series The Daylight War, you get many chapters and character background of both 'the good guys' and the 'bad guys'. It makes for better reading in my opinion.

With all that said, Red Country is still a good book. It is well written and I guess my biggest critique is that it needed to be longer. As an Abercrombie fan, I can see that he has grown as a writer and this bodes well for his next trilogy.

If you haven't read any of his books. I wouldn't recommend this as a starting point, just because I feel you would get more out of this book once you have read his first four books. Either read The Heroes first or go straight into the deep end with The Blade Itself.

Review: Magician by Raymond E. Feist

Everyone once in a while I feel obligated to read one of the old classics. I'm usually hesitant (unless it is sci-fi) to read older fantasy books because most of them just aren't up to the standard of modern fantasy books. Too often they are about the world that's been built, rather than the story line or characterization which I look for when reading a fantasy book. As I said though, once in a while I dabble to increase my fantasy knowledge.

Magician is a typical fantasy book (Farm boy with a sword) written in the time after Tolkien and before George R.R. Martin. The story begins in the city of Crydee where a boy named Pug, who is nothing more than ordinary is spotted by the Duke's Magician, who detected something 'special' about the boy. When it was time for their time of choosing (apprenticeship), Kulgan the Duke's Magician chooses Pug. While Pug's boyhood friend Tomas gets his chosen path of Swordsmanship. After a few years, Pug is struggling with his magic. He's learnt all the theories but when it comes down to executing them, there is something that is blocking his magic from flowing. Yet, one day when escorting the Princess Carline (the Duke's daughter) they are set upon by trolls. When all looked lost and our protagonist about to die, Pug unleashes some pure magic which caused the trolls to strangle themselves to death. Yet, after this ordeal, Pug is still unable to use his magic naturally.

One day a mysterious ship is beached upon the shores of Crydee. Pug and Tomas are first to the scene and rescue a strange looking man who speaks an alien language. While in the infirmary, using magic, The Duke is informed that this dying man is not of this world. He is from an alien world who used a portal to gain access to Midkemia and are set for an all out invasion. With this distressing news, the Duke and a small band, including Pug and Tomas venture to Krondor, the Capital of Midkemia, to warn King Rodric of the upcoming invasion.

Nothing at the beginning of this book surprised me. I mean, the book is called Magician. So it sets me up for what is to come. However, what I didn't expect was the different perspectives the book was written in. I had assumed that the book would focus mostly on Pug and his adventures, but there are many protagonists in this story. This isn't a critique, just a bit of misdirection from the title is all.

What I liked about the book was the overall world Feist set up. He introduced a lot of history throughout the book without slowing the pace down. Feist sets up new races on top of old ones like goblins, elves and dwarves. He has little twists on what we readers would deem classic fantasy, which kept me interested. A pity that is all I liked.

What I disliked about the book was the little amount of characterization there was. I was exposed to many different characters views which is a good thing, but Feist doesn't spend nearly enough time fleshing out each character. I wanted to know each one a bit more intimately but in the end there was no character I favoured or disfavoured. Plot devices which aren't integrated smoothly really annoy me, and there were plenty in this book. Typical example from this book is stumbling upon a dragon's cave. The dragon decides he likes these intruders and decides to give them some magic weapons and armour, not before dying from natural old age I might add. Perhaps this kind of writing was acceptable in 1982, but modern writing would get lambasted. Another thing I didn't like about the book was that the book spanned too many years. Sometimes this can help the story move along or help sequels, but the book is primarily about a 9 year war and things happen in between which should be explored and not ignored. The worst thing about this book however, is the deus ex machina ending. Never an excuse for me. There was a very tenuous link near the beginning of the book, but to me it is all but a blatant deus ex machina.

"Resolution of a plot must arise internally, following from previous action of the play." - Aristotle 

It wasn't a terrible book by all means. It was well written, it has lots of good elements that could have been much better if this book was say two 600 page books (Yes I know there are sequels, but this was meant to be self containing). It needed more detail and more information for my liking. In this day and age, there are many quality books to satiate your needs. I don't think you are missing out on anything if you don't read this book.

Win a Kindle thanks to Bestfantasybooks.com

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Review: The Alloy of Law by Brandon Sanderson

Wax is a Lawkeeper in the Roughs. He is probably the most famous and successful of the Lawkeepers out in the Roughs. He is dedicated to his job but gave it all up and moved back to the big city when tragedy struck. In the city he decided to stick with the family business but a mysterious crime happened. Trains were being robbed; whole carts were emptied but no one ever sees the robbers and the train is always undamaged and locked. Wax tries to stay out of it but when robbers started to kidnap people well...

Mistborn: The Final Empire was the first book and series by Brandon Sanderson which really captivated me. It is easily my most favourite trilogy of all time. So pre-ordered it as soon as I could.

If you haven't read Mistborn before you won't miss out on anything as the book is a standalone.

If you have then...

The Alloy of Law is set in the same world as Mistborn but around 200 years later when automobiles are just coming onto the market and guns are a plenty. I know for a fact that a lot of fantasy readers are immediately put off as this book suddenly changes to a "Steam punk" genre. However, I was never disturbed by the fact that there was technology in the book. I felt that because of the magic system Sanderson uses in this world, technology only helped to enhance it.

The intriguing part is that Mistborns are no longer; only Mistings. However, the frustrating part is that Sanderson doesn't solve this issue in this book so it feels like a season of lost where you've read it, but only asks more questions.

As for the book itself, it is written in the same Sanderson manner. Fast paced, small little twists and characters that you cannot help but like.

Another winner by Sanderson.

I'm Reading: A Dance With Dragons

Am reading this now. I will review it. I feel all tingly.

Review: Fahrenheit 451

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury was written more than 50 years ago. Books written more than 20 years ago have a very different style. Sci-fi books written in the past can sometimes be a bit of a comical read, so when I was reading it (to review), I took all these things into consideration. The important thing I wanted to get out of reading this book was to see if this book  could past the test of time.

Fahrenheit 451 is set in the future where knowledge has been cast aside and outlawed. The government regime is about making people happy; things like poetry and plays can get people upset; they don't want that. Ignorance is bliss and so books are burnt. People are brainwashed.

Guy Montag is a firefighter. He doesn't put out fires. He starts them. When there is a call out, Montag and his co-workers jump down a golden pole, put on their kerosene packs and set off to burn books. However one night, Montag is traumatised when an old lady refused to leave her burning house and gets burnt alive. It began the seed of doubt of whether or not what he was doing was right.

As I was reading the book, there were resemblances to A Canticle for Leibowitz  in the sense that it is set in the future and knowledge is discarded. The writing style is very dream like, as it almost seems to skip parts which made it hard for me to follow at certain times. There isn't a lot of meat to the book. The bases of the book is very interesting, but I wanted more detail and more character development.

Does this book stand the test of time? I think Ray Bradbury does a good job of portraying what the future might hold and the philosophy and ethics behind the book are interesting but I'm not sure if it is worth recommending to others. The book is short at 147 pages long, so a days reading would suffice. I think if you haven't read A Canticle for Leibowitz then this book is a good place to start, but if you already have...then maybe not.

Review: Fool Moon

Harry Dresden has been out of work for the last few months. Things are bad. Well...if you consider not knowing when the next pay check is coming in, worrying about feeding yourself and whether or not your friends are keeping on contact bad...then yeah...things are really bad for Harry Dresden. However, Murphy (Harry's friend) who worked in Special Investigations for the Chicago Police Department rings Harry after months of non-contact. A murder? Someone who's face has been eviscerated? Body disembowel? Paw marks? Harry knows what is going on...even a fool does.

Fool Moon by Jim Butcher is the 2nd book of the Dresden Files. As a lot of you may know, the Dresden Files is already a successful TV series, but books and TV are a lot different.

What I can tell you is that I loved this book. It was even better than his first book. Harry's quick witted humour makes you laugh often and his heroism is tempered with believable fight scenes (if you accept that fact that magic exists....psst....it does).

Butcher skill in writing is his ability to get you to love his main character, his cliffhanger chapters which cause you to read on and on, and his ability to adapt and denounce what you though you knew of about mythology.

We all know what werewolves are. We've seen lots of films and read things about them, but Butcher takes what you know, smashes them and then reconstructs them for you.

If you haven't read this series before, then do so. I was told that his series picks up after book 3...that information is wrong...it picks up now!

Review: Swords at Culver

Two boys, Tim and Merthyn study at Culver Academy. Avid lovers of fantasy, they were very eager to visit the sword display at the Academy's library, among the swords were the famed swords Excalibur and the Sword of El Cid. Unbeknown to the boys, an ancient evil had arrived around the same time they happened to be viewing the swords. What would the two boys do? What else could two lovers of fantasy do? They break the cases containing the swords and fight their way out!

Swords at Culver is the first of a series of books written by Richard Gwyn Davies. It is a fantasy novel set in modern day times. A lot of real references are used to help the reader relate to the book. The story has 4 main characters, Tim and Merthyn (the boys) who stumble upon the evil, and Mr. Meek and Mr. Davies, two teachers at the Academy, whom together help the boys in dire straits.

At the first mention of Excalibur I couldn't help myself but groan, but as I read on, the focus was more on Native American Indian lore, which intrigued me. Yet that one thing that interested me, wasn't explained in detail, everything seemed rushed as if the Davies thought it would bore the reader. With the main characters being teenage boys and the length of the book being short (225 pages), perhaps Davies was targeting YA readers, and this is how I treated the book when I read it.

What I have learnt from reading many YA books is that a successful YA book contains young characters, they have special powers, it is fast paced and readers can relate to the main characters. I think Davies has the first three done, but the last one I am not so certain of. Yes, readers can relate to the books, as it is set in modern times but relating to the boys or the teachers? I'm not too sure of.

Davies has a sequel to this book called Buddha at Culver, which I will read and review at a later time as I am hoping for more ancient lore.

Review: Bookmarks

I thought I would do something a little different than usual. This item is pretty much essential to all readers of books but is never really talked about. I don't go into a lot of detail but try to enlighten you guys and put a little bit of humour into it as well.

A bookmark is a thin marker, used to keep one's place in a book when the book is put down, and allows the reader to return to it with ease.

As I was growing up, a bookmark was something set in stone for me. It was a piece of paper or card and it was laminated. Now it is a different story. I was inspired to write this article after receiving what is probably the best bookmark in the world.

I want to breakdown the different types of common bookmarks people use these days.

I was going to say this is perhaps one of the oldest forms of bookmarks, but the more I thought about it the more I think I am wrong. It is perhaps one of the most recent forms of bookmarks, and the worst. Why is it the most recent? Well because paper and books were scarce a few hundred years ago and it would have been sacrilege to have bent pages in the book (I still feel this way about dog ears).

Pros: You don't need a real book mark.

Cons: I regard you as a lower life form than an amoeba.

Probably the oldest form of bookmark. A bound bookmark is usually a piece of thin fabric that is attached to the book itself. Prevalent in older books or books that are leather bound. Now it is usually found in bibles.

Pros: Right there when you need it.
Cons: Non-transferable.....unless you really want to

First used by the filthy rich and now by the most common of people. Quite a prevalent form of bookmark these days. Used because it is handy.

Pros: Usually readily available. You can also use the $1, $5, $20, $50 or $100 bill.

Cons: Don't use them for library books or borrowed books. You might find yourself poorer.

Laminated bookmarks are probably the most prevalent kind of bookmarks these days. They can be bought straight up from a store or they can be made. An excellent activity to do with your kids.

Pros: Looks good, can be personalised, lasts a long time.
Cons: Feeling guilty when you lose one that someone made for you, but then feel utterly relieved when you find it a day later on the street!

Probably the best bookmark in the world. Seriously. Just look at it! I received this from a friend for Christmas 09' and I must say, it has been my favourite. It is a little bit smaller than a small sized paperback and only a few millimeters thick.

Look at me rambling.

The fabric bookmark is becoming more popular these days. They come in different sizes and usually are in the shape of a normal bookmark. Felt is a common fabric to use and can be also layered with other different coloured felt to give it a cool effect.

Pros: Way more stylish than laminated ones. Also has all their pros.

Cons: Harder to make than laminated ones, can get dirty.

I hope that I've made you think a little more about bookmarks now. Yes I know there are other forms of bookmarks, but these are the ones that are worth writing about.

Just another reminder to look at my sexy sexy bookmark.

Review: The Briar King

Two millennia ago, the world was enslaved by Demons. Humans were enslaved until the Born Queen Virgenya Dare and her army swept across the land to free all of humankind...

In the present, Crotheny, the greatest nation of the world is under threat by countries in the north. Hansa and Saltmark are stirring trouble and war is just around the corner. In the south, tales of unearthly creatures roam the King's Forest. People have died and fled their homes. The King's Holter, Aspar White is to find the source of the trouble. Is it because the Briar King...the harbinger of death has awoken?

The Dares are conflicted on both sides of the borders but also from within. King William the Second is a good man but by no means a good King. He has a wife who knows about his many mistress'. A daughter who isn't happy with her marriage, another who is about to get married and the youngest who is rebellious. William also has a son, Charles, but he is simple, 'touched by the Saints' and because so, William decides to name his daughters heirs to the throne. The Church does not not like this at all, not one bit.

The Briar King by Greg Keyes is nothing short of an amazing read. It is the first of four in the series called 'The Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone'. There was so much familiarity when I was reading this book. Almost all the characters felt like someone from Assassin's Apprentice (Farseer Trilogy). Keyes has a wonderful way of writing characters who keep growing and developing. The chapters were separated by the different characters and the locations they were in, which reminded me of A Game of Thrones. It is similar on another level in that each chapter teases you with a little bit of information and then switches locations. Some have said that this got annoying in A Game of Thrones, but because the world in which Keyes writes is smaller, we don't have a lot of different story arcs at one time.

While The Briar King is similar to those great books, when you have included the plot, this book is distinctly Keyes. Each chapter is a page turner and each one eggs you along like a kitten chasing after a rolling ball.

The plot is very deceptive. It starts off like a very typical fantasy storyline and as you read and the chapters begin to crumble, the story becomes more intricate and like a vortex sucks you in.

The first book of the year has been an absolute joy. I have finished The Charnel Prince, the second of the series and was equally captivating. I look forward to the rest of the series.

"The Briar King has a deep plot and full of characters that keep giving." - Sleeping With Books