Review: The Alloy of Law by Brandon Sanderson ★★★★

The Mistborn trilogy was the first experience I had with Brandon Sanderson, and I loved it. I loved the world, the magic system, the characters, the concept, everything. Loved it.

Now, revisiting the world after 300 in-story years and about 3 real-life years, during which time I read The Way of Kings (fantastic) and Elantris (pretty good), I find myself having something like mixed feelings about Alloy.

First, a little about the world itself. I was surprised how much I missed this system of magic! It took a little bit to get used to the rules again, but it was like riding a bike. I loved the kind of Gunslingeresque feel to this book as well, and thought that the technological advancement to the age of guns, newfound electricity, trains, and motorcars was well handled and fit perfectly. The old gang are legends, the Church of the Survivor is still around, and surely parents threaten naughty children with Ironeyes when they misbehave. I would.

It was a little hard coming back to this world but not coming back to the characters that I loved so much from the original trilogy. It made me nostalgic seeing them referred to as legends. But the characters here were great, so that eased the sting of missing Vin and Elend and Spook and the rest some. I loved Wayne. He's funny, intriguing and my imagination of him fighting was incredibly sexy. (What? I can do that!) I also really liked Wax, although at times I feel like he was a little too good, too perfect, too predictable. But that's something that I can live with. He is a great character, and he Wayne together kept making me giggle - they should go on tour. Wax and Wayne. Geddit?

I also really liked the dichotomy between Wax and Miles. Miles especially was intriguing to me, but both he and Wax had me thinking WWKD? I thought Miles was a very understandable position, and while I don't really agree with him regarding the way he's helping, I can see why he feels that is the best path to achieve his goals.

But then, and here comes the mixedish feelings, when it comes to the female characters, I just felt that they were too familiar. Maybe this is due to the fact that the last BSands book I read was Elantris, but I kept thinking of Sarene as I read this. Her traits seem to be split up between Steris (I had to stop to think about her name just then) and Marasi. Also, in Marasi, there were shades of Shallan from The Way of Kings.

These aren't BAD things, because, aside from Steris, who was kind of blahsome, I really liked all of the characters I just mentioned. I just kind of want more individuality between them. I like that BSands writes intelligent, independent women into his books, and that they aren't the standard "Whore With A Heart Of Gold" or "Well Connected Madame" or "Naive Maiden/Damsel In Distress" tropes, they are better than that. But they seem to all be intelligent and independent in too similar ways to each other between books. And truly honest, this recycling tendency isn't limited to the ladies. The menfolk are similar to each other as well... but it's just the women that really stood out to me here.

Still, that's a small nitpick. I DID enjoy these characters, and I would be more than happy to read quite a bit more about them. And I hope I do, because the ending was definitely left open for some sort of follow up. I really loved the concept of "Twinborn" Allomancer Feruchemists. The way it was handled was impressive, while still leaving a lot of room to grow. I know that this is not the start of a new trilogy, but it's also not quite a standalone either. We'll see where BSands is going with this, and what the official start to the next Mistborn trilogy brings.

I am excited just thinking about it. :D

Review: The Amityville Horror by Jay Anson ★

Spoiler Warning: If you actually do intend to read this book at some point, you may want to skip this. 

No? OK then. :)

This "true" story is about as scary as a Ke$ha/Charlie Sheen lovechild. It's terrifying... but it's not the baby's fault. It was created out of a union of glitter-vomit and Tiger Blood. Mama SLutz is an attention whore just in it for the money and notoriety, and Daddy  is a talentless hack who just spouts random words emphatically and claims they make sense. It's like it was written by a 12 year old with ADD and then edited by someone who speaks English as a 2nd language... and started taking the classes just yesterday! Exclamation point! But hey, they did something right, because I just read this pile of steaming poo! Exclamation point!



So let me tell you about the book, m'kay? There's this family called the sLutzes. They moved into this house on the 18th of December - no the 23rd of December - no the 18th of December because when they moved out on January 14th that was 28 days and Jay Anson can count, yayyyy! Exclamation point!

So the Putzes SLutzes - Wait. Did we meet Father Frank yet? Father Frank has a BAD FEELING. And then he gets sick with the flu a lot and that makes him feel bad! So then the SLutzes move in on the 18th-23rd-18th of December and then weird stuff starts happening in their house like the windows opening and it being cold. They have money problems and can't afford their boat or their wardrobe but never go to work. Also Officer Gionfriddo is the most badass ninja policeman! Exclamation point! He can drive down the street and totally not see that guy going into the WITCHES' BREW until 50 feet after he passes him, and then recognize his beard, the way he walks, and the shape of his body! Crouching Gionfriddo, Hidden Ninja! Multiple Exclamation Points!! HIGH SCORE!

Father Frank had blisters on his hands.


Then there was a lion.

Then George was all like "LET MY PEOPLE GO!" and then Gionfriddo sat quietly in his police car with the lights off watching in a non-creeper way while George acted all "like a lunatic" but later Gionfriddo said it was OK because they were closing the windows so he drove away with his lights off... totally not like a creeper, I said!

SCARY PIG!


Jodie says he's an angel but he's really a BEAST! RUN! Then there is a storm and they are TRAPPED IN THE HOUSE except for when they got in the car to go to the doctor's office for some band-aids and baby tylenol. Also, call Father Frank.

Then they moved out and then the story was over except when they levitated some more and then moved to California where levitation is illegal.

Congratulations. You've now read The Amityville Horror.

I'm sorry.

Review: The Lions of Al-Rassan by Guy Gavriel Kay ★★★

This book has come highly recommended by almost all of my friends, and so naturally, I was very excited to read it. This was my first experience with Kay, and the consensus seems to be that this is his best work. Certainly the Goodreads average rating bears that up. Lions of Al-Rassan currently has a an average rating of 4.27 of 5. Pretty impressive, and the highest of all of his books.

It just didn't quite get there for me. Maybe it was the expectation of greatness that let me down, but I don't know. Maybe the fact that I don't have much knowledge of the history of the Iberian peninsula, but again, I don't think so. By all accounts, it's not really necessary to have external knowledge prior to reading Lions. It's not that this was bad, or that I didn't like it... In fact I'm having a hard time putting my finger on just how I'm feeling about it, now that I'm finished. On the one hand, I liked it quite a bit, but on the other, I felt like there was just something missing or off about it, and I had several issues that I can't ignore.

So this is going to be something of an itemized review...

Characters: This was by far my favorite thing about this book. I am a character reader, and I need characters that I can identify with in order to enjoy a story. This one was full of brilliantly real characters. There was quite a cast, as shown by the full character list at the beginning of the book, but I never felt confused by who was who. I loved the four main characters: Ammar, Rodrigo, Jehane and Alvar. (I also loved Rodrigo's wife Miranda, who was awesomely bad-ass. I would have loved to see much more of her.)

Ammar and Rodrigo kind of represent their people and cultures in the book, although not well at all. Most of their respective cultures are caricatures of pious intolerance and hatred, whereas Ammar and Rodrigo are both good, honorable, and open-minded men, who are willing to accept and trust based on character, not purely on belief in the "right" god. So while Ammar is an Asharite and Rodrigo is a Jaddite, they still find a way to work together.

There were quite a few emotional moments while reading this, and though I feel like they could have been better written (which I will get to in a bit), I still felt for the characters and the things that happened to them. I did feel like some of the follow-up with some characters left something to be desired, but the characters themselves were well done and fleshed out and real.

Worldbuilding: The worldbuilding here was one of the aspects that I struggled with the most. At times it was overwhelming in the amount of information given at once, but still I felt like there was still more I wanted to know. There were places named that we never got to see, but were clearly important to the history, like Aljais, or Soriyya. The descriptions were gorgeous, and I could see everything clearly, but I wanted to know more about the places that were important but never shown.

Religion: The religious aspects of this book were well done, and the dividing lines between the three different religious groups were drawn clearly, but I wanted to know more about what each believed in, not just who they hated and wanted dead because they believed in something different.

Not knowing what they actually believed in, it was hard for me to identify with either the Asharites' or the Jaddites' beliefs. Are these gods so bloodthirsty that the only valid form of worship is saying that you do and then killing those that don't? Was there no other form of worship? The Asharites abstain from alcohol, but unless I missed it, I don't see anything at all that differentiates them other than the name of the god they worship and whether or not they'll have some wine with dinner.

The Kindath were different though. I don't know much about their beliefs either, but it seems to me that they were to be equated with Jews, at least in the way that they were treated and persecuted. They at least seemed peaceful, wanting nothing more than a place to live peacefully. This apparently equates to baby-killing monsters to the bloodthirsty Asharjaddites, who both hate the Kindath. Because who better to persecute than the people who aren't allowed weapons? That being said... it was realistic and believable that different religious sects would want to kill each other. Not logical, but religious belief rarely is.

Writing: For the most part, I liked the writing. I thought that it was readable and in general, the prose was beautiful. There were some unexpectedly funny parts, and overall I liked it.

But I did have a big problem with the writing in one aspect, which was that anytime there was a moment of suspense, Kay would write the scenes in such a way as to draw it out to unnatural lengths. For instance, the one that bothered me the most was a scene in which a character died. For nine pages, we were left wondering who it was, theorizing, trying to determine who it could be. By the time the name was finally given (and it was an unexpected one), I was more annoyed with the delay tactics and manipulation than I was distressed about the character's death. I was upset about the death, but it was kind of overshadowed by a feeling that I was being manipulated. I felt that it cheapened the loss, and took away from the emotional impact it should have had. This was done in different ways and in different situations all throughout the book, and it was incredibly frustrating.

Another issue that I had was Kay's tendency to skip action, and then tell us about it later. I can sort of understand the decision for doing this. It allowed him to not only tell us what happened in condensed form, but gave us insight into some of the characters as well. I just didn't like it. I want to see the action. I want to be part of the story, not an outsider being filled in on the details later.

Pacing & Plot: At around the 75% mark, I started wondering where this story was going and how it would possibly be resolved in the remaining pages. We've been with these characters for a while, and there's been a lot of build-up and pieces moving into position, little battles and maneuverings, but nothing has really happened yet. The huge campaign to reconquer the disparate peninsula lands and reunite them into one large kingdom of Esperana hasn't even started. Of course, the epilogue sorts out what happened and fills us in on the important details. All the build-up and then the climax felt rushed and almost like an afterthought. Disappointing.

I wanted to love this book. Maybe if I'd read it before reading some of the amazing epic fantasy I've read in the last year, I would have. But the writing here just felt like it got in the way of the story. Yes, it was beautifully written at times, but the need to be mysterious and drag out the suspense, and circle back to tell us about the action or important events rather than just showing them to us to begin with really didn't work for me.

TL;DR Review: I liked it, but thought parts could have been better.

Friday Flashback Review: Lamb by Christopher Moore ★★★★

Friday Flashback is hosted by Jen @ The Introverted Reader

Originally reviewed: April 18, 2010.

I should probably start this review by saying that I found this book in what I now think is probably the most inappropriate place possible.. the Young Adult section of my town library. I'd wanted to read this for a long time, but whenever I browsed the Moore books in the adult section, it was never to be found. I always figured, "Eh, someone probably has it checked out... I'll snag it next time." Oh, silly me. I was foolishly thinking that my library would shelve a mature book full of extremely adult humor, sex and fart jokes, sodomy, sex, alchemy & magic (AKA "The Occult"), sex, abominations, bestiality, group sex with tiny Chinese women with names like "Divine Dance of the Joyous Orgasm", cursing, fantasies about sex and dreams of having sex when not having any, in the adult section. I was mistaken. Apparently the word "childhood" in the title qualified this as YA.

But here's what I find most interesting... Either the kids who've checked it out are wise enough to keep their mouths shut to their parents about what their reading material contains, or this book looks boring enough that not a single kid has actually read it.

I live in a pretty Christian area. It's no bible belt, but people here take God seriously. I'd never even heard of some of the religious dietary restrictions that people practice here. Not that I'm saying that's a bad thing, just that it was new to me to order meat on a Friday and get a I-Pity-Your-Immortal-Soul look. Something to get used to, you know? So anyway, I say this to point out that had any one of the kids who may have read this book actually tipped their hand, there would be outrage. Mass outrage. Because not only should this book have a NC-17 rating (if ratings were given, which I would very much disagree with), it turns Jesus's short life, and the nature and origins of the Christian religion on it's head, and could make many people very angry. This book practically begs to be banned... at the very least challenged.

So of course I loved it. :D

I want to rub elbows with Christopher Moore, if only so that I can try to steal some of his Funny. I was giggling like mad through big chunks of this book, and in places where the action dragged a little, the humor kept everything moving right along.

Biff is the kind of person that everyone wants around. He's hilarious and stupid, and hilarious because he's stupid. But he's not REALLY stupid, he's just not exactly head of his class, or the brightest bulb on the tree. His goal in life was to be a professional mourner, or failing that, a village idiot. Biff, sadly uncredited, created sarcasm. Where would I be without him?? I'd have no way to communicate at all! I'd have to grunt and point at things.

The story starts with Biff watching Joshua (aka Jesus) healing a poor lizard in his mouth after his younger brother brained it with a rock. He then gives it back to the brother, who brains it, J heals it, and the cycle continues. Starting off on a properly blasphemous foot, yeah? We follow J and Biff as they both meet and love Mary Magdalene, learn stonemasonry, witness a murder, try to raise the dead and have many adventures and acquire much learning. Much of this learning comes from ancient Chinese philosophy and Buddhism, so there was a lot of meditation and sitting and thinking and sitting. And sitting. The story ends, of course, with the crucifixion, which brought a tear to my eye, even though it was not drawn out or graphic or gory. It was just that, reading that section, you could feel Biff's love and devotion and agony for Joshua, and my empathy nerve kicked me in the tearduct. (It does that.) Moore is generally known for writing humor and satire and generally funny/quirky/absurd stuff, but here he showed off his ability to make the reader wish they had a time machine to stop the torture and death from happening. If you believe that it did happen, of course. I'm down with Jesus being a real person, I'm just not sure about the "Son of God" part.

Anyway, here are some quotes (by no means all of them) that had me cracking up:

1) Back story: Biff is frustrated trying to learn to speak hip-hop from MTV.
"Why is it that one can busta rhyme or busta move anywhere but you must busta cap in someone's ass? Is 'ho' always feminine, and 'muthafucka' always masculine, while 'bitch' can be either? How many peeps in a posse, how much booty before baby got back, do you have to be all that to get all up in that, and do I need to be dope and phat to be da bomb or can I just be 'stupid'? I'll not be singing over any dead mothers until I understand."

2) Back story: 10 year old Biff loves Joshua's mom, Mary, whom people think is crazy.
...I think that when I'm a man, and your father dies, I will take your mother as my wife."
Joshua made a face now as if he had bitten into an unripe fig. "Don't say that, Biff."
"I don't mind that she's mad. I like her blue cloak. And her smile. I'll be a good father, I'll teach you how to be a stonemason, and I'll only beat you when you are a snot."
"I would rather play with lepers than listen to this." Joshua began to walk away.
"Wait. Be nice to your father, Joshua bar Biff" -- my own father used my full name like this when he was trying to make a point -- "Is not the word of Moses that you must honor me?"
Little Joshua spun on his heel. "My name is not Joshua bar Biff, and it is not Joshua bar Joseph either. It's Joshua bar Jehovah!"
I looked around, hoping that nobody had heard him. I didn't want my only son (I planned to sell Judah and James into slavery) to be stoned to death for uttering the name of God in vain. "Don't say that again, Josh. I won't marry your mother."
"No, you won't."
"I'm sorry."
"I forgive you."
"She will make an excellent concubine."
Don't let anyone tell you that the Prince of Peace never struck anyone. In those early days, before he had become who he would be, Joshua smote me in the nose more than once. That was the first time.

3) Back story: Joshua cannot know a woman (in that way), so Biff tries to teach him about the sin of fornication by proxy.
Back out at the front of the inn I shopped for my teaching assistant. It was an eight-harlot inn, if that's how you measure an inn. (I understand that now they measure inns in stars. We are in a four-star inn right now. I don't know what the conversion from harlots to stars is.)

... Harlot is selected, and brought into a stall, with Joshua in the next stall, listening ...

"How does her body feel? Do you feel sinful? Is it like Satan rubbing against you? Does it burn like fire?"
"Yeah, you got it. That pretty much has it."
"You're lying."
"Oh wow."
Then Josh said something in Greek that I didn't catch all of and the harlot answered, sort of.
"What did she say?" Josh asked.
"I don't know, you know my Greek is bad."
"Mine isn't, I couldn't understand what she said."
"Her mouth is full."
Set (the harlot) raised up. "Not full," she said in Greek.
"Hey, I understood that!"
"She has you in her mouth?"
"Yeah."
"That's heinous."
"It doesn't feel heinous."
"It doesn't?"
"No, Josh, I gotta tell you, this really is -- oh my God!"
"What? What's happening?"
"She's getting dressed."
"Are you done sinning? That's it?"
The harlot said something in Greek that I didn't understand.
"What did she say?" I asked.
"She said that for the amount of money we gave her, you're finished."
"Do you think you understand fornication now?"
"Not really."
"Well then, give her some more money, Joshua. We're going to stay here until you learn what you need to know."
"You're a good friend to suffer this for me."
"Don't mention it."

I think that's enough to be getting along with. This is the kind of stuff that just had me cracking up. If you aren't the squeamish or easily offended type (and sorry if you are, for all the above stuff), you should read this. It's worth it. :)

Review: The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness ★★

I've heard so many great things about this series, and about Patrick Ness in general, that I was very excited to read this series. After reading the prequel, The New World, and his standalone novel A Monster Calls (and adoring it), I was really looking forward to this one. Unfortunately, I find myself disappointed.

Todd lives on New World, which is a relatively new (20 year old) colonization full of people from Earth. In Prentisstown, the settlement where Todd lives, there are no women, and the men hear all the other 164 mens' thoughts, called Noise, constantly. There's no escaping it. He has been taught that the Spackle released a germ that caused the deaths of all the women, and that the same germ caused the Noise, and also allowed animals to talk.

So when Todd finds a quiet patch out near the swamp, everything in his life changes and he's ushered out into the greater, supposedly empty, world with only his dog Manchee to accompany him. Of course he then begins to find out that things aren't exactly the way he'd been told.

Sounds intriguing... but it just didn't work for me...

Review: The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson ★★★★★

This book. Wow.

I kinda don't even know what to write about this book. The scope of it, the detail, everything is just so... epic. And then I think about the fact that there are a proposed nine more books, and I just...

The EPICNESS.

As I was reading this, I admit to being unable to see how this story, already ginormous all on its lonesome, could expand to a whopping 10 book series and do it well. Keep the pacing, the excitement, the world, the magic system, the awesomenes all consistent.

Oh me of little faith. O_o

This is BRANDON SANDERSON. I should have known better. His leg hath been metaphorically humpeth'd by thy humble review writer thrice previously, and I anticipateth this trend to continueth.

The last 150 pages or so of this book brought things together in such a way that... well, a whole world of possibility has opened up. It seems a bit silly to say that, because a book, any book, EVERY book opens up a universe of possibility just by virtue of what it is... but in regards to my not seeing how this story, which seemed as though it could be a standalone for so much of it, could spawn a potential 9 sequels... the last 150 pages clinched it. And then I went back to the beginning and read the prologue again (having to stop myself from just continuing...) and it becomes clearer just how vast this story could be.

The world-building alone here is fantastic. This whole world, so many peoples and creatures and beliefs and societies, the weather patterns and landscapes and the history... all of it has the feeling of both being barely touched upon and described in depth. I can see it all so clearly in my head, it's almost as if I were there. I need my own Worldsinger to come tell me more. I am so curious and so excited about the scope and depth of this series, I can't even describe it.

And that's just the "background" stuff.

One thing about the beliefs in this book. Religion plays a big part in the daily lives of the characters here, as it did in his Mistborn series as well. If you aren't aware, Sanderson is a Mormon. I don't know anything about Mormonism, but I remember worrying as I was reading the Mistborn series how the religion in that story would be handled. I hate being preached to.

I don't worry about that anymore with Sanderson. I think that the way he approaches religion in his books is intriguing and unique and thought-provoking, but never preachy. These are fantasy-world religion/belief systems that one can think about and take with them as they will, but Sanderson doesn't force or push his beliefs on anyone. And I very much respect that.

The characters in this book... I just have no words. No, I lie. I have a word: Amazing.

But before we get into that, let me tell you about this bad habit I have. I don't read chapter or section titles. There, I said it. It's true. I don't read chapter or section titles. Too often, they give something away, which I really don't like. So I skip them. Which means that, unfortunately, sometimes I miss key things and have to either pick them up elsewhere, or backtrack.

I had to backtrack a couple times while reading this one. There are a lot of perspective shifts, and sometimes they threw me off. A switch to a known character is one thing, but there are these sort of 'intermission' sections with characters that come into the story only briefly to give us something and then leave again.

So, getting back to my point about characters, I was a little thrown off when I realized that the Jezrien and Kalak I'd met in the very beginning (aka: the prologue I didn't realize was a prologue until much later) weren't the characters I'd be following and that the world was very different. One backtrack later, and it makes sense... 4,500 years separation between prologue and chapter 1. Got it.

I have no regrets regarding the characters that I spent the last two weeks with, though. Like I said: amazing. I loved all of these characters. All of them. Even the horrible ones. And the weak ones. All of the characters have such a depth to them. Their lives seemed 100% real to me, as if they could step right off the page (or screen in my case, since I read this whopper on my nook) and into my life.

I cared about these characters. A lot. They live in a world in chaos. They are in the midst of a lingering, brutal war. The seasons are in a constant state of flux. Highstorms are only semi-predictable, but seem to be getting stronger and stronger. There's betrayal everywhere and trust is a luxury that almost nobody can afford. Is it any surprise that I read in this sort of state of constant fear about What Might Happen? It was thrilling, but at the same time, I was a nervous wreck.

I love that feeling... of actually caring what happens to characters. I like exciting books as much as the next person, but if I don't invest anything in the characters that the excitement is happening to, then it's just kind of hollow. Enjoyable? Sure. But forgettable.

I want reading to affect me. I want to feel it. I want my hands to shake, my heart to race, or break, or ache, my eyes to be filled with tears and my stomach queasy with worry. And it was. This book gave me all of that, and more.

The more I think about this book, the more I piece together. The more theories I form, the more excited I get for the next installment. I loved it. Loved it loved it loved it. In case you hadn't noticed.

This feeling that I have right now, this awe and wonder and excitement... This is why I read.

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Review: Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin ★★★★★

4.5 Stars

I admit that I'm a little torn on what to rate this book, so I split the difference, although I'm really tempted to go all StarSearch™ up in this piece and do 4.75 stars. (Wait, did they have a 5 star rating system? No, I think it was only 4. Crap. Well, anyway, you get the point. That is, unless you're younger than me and don't even know what StarSearch is. In that case, you're a jerk, and go away.)

Anyway, I'm torn because, having seen the movie before, I think that Roman Polanski nailed the ending... He stopped at just the right point, and left us with that lingering empathetic horror, the mystery, the "What the fuck?!" feeling. We get just a hint, and the rest is Rosemary's reaction, and that subtlety's often better than the giving up the whole shebang.

The book takes the ending just a smidge further, and with a smidge more detail to the what, and that smidge further opens a line of possibility that is horrifying in itself. The things that a mother will accept, the things that a PERSON can accept, it's scary to think of in extremes like this. Imagine raising this baby with the eye of the world watching. Jeez. The terrible twos would be... apocalyptic. So... yeah, I'm torn. I don't know which ending I prefer. They are both great in their own ways.

I listened to this one as an audibobook, and I LOVED it. It was read by Mia Farrow and honestly, I think that her reading may have upstaged her movie performance. Not that she wasn't great in the movie, because I think she was, if a teeeeeensy bit melodramatic, but the audio relied solely on her voice, and so it was a bit more subtle and intense at the same time. I'm not sure how to really explain it, but just trust me, it was awesome.

Mia portrayed Rosemary's naivete perfectly. Perfectly. I feel like, perhaps if I'd have read this, I'd have found some of it a bit ridiculous. The things that Rosemary goes along with, I'm thinking, "No! Don't drink the putrid drink again! Are you STUPID?!" but then Mia does such an insanely great job at showing us this small town, kinda sheltered girl on her own in the big city, with her barely-married-a-year husband, in way over her head, super excited that she's FINALLY pregnant, and just wanting to do the right thing, even though she's not sure just what that is. She's manipulated on all sides, she's tricked and fooled over and over, and even though she's smart, she just doesn't know to be suspicious until it's too late. Mia Farrow shows all of that perfectly. The wavery quality in her voice, the whispers, the hesitation, the doubt and fear... all of it comes through, and really adds a lot to this story, I think.

Then there's Ira Levin's writing in general. Really great stuff. It's so... layered. But it doesn't FEEL layered. It feels straightforward and almost simplistic, but it's like seeing tree after tree after tree, and then finally stepping back far enough to realize that it's a forest after all. It doesn't change what it is, but the big picture is a sum of the parts. I loved the little things, the tiny details that Rosemary saw as a whole lot of trees, never realizing that she was too close to see the forest.

Also, I was really kind of impressed by Guy Woodhouse in this, although it feels very strange to say so. He managed such a ridiculously fine line of manipulation, it's hard not to be impressed that he carried it off for so long, even while being feministically pissed at his audacity and selfishness.

I was also struck by the emotional and mental abuse tactics that Guy used to keep Rosemary in line. Always keeping her home, with no money and no means of getting any, cut off from friends and family. She was always watched or followed. He didn't even let her do her own shopping - the neighbors would do it in the guise of being neighborly and helpful in deference to her sickly condition. Even without the paranormal bent of this book, it would be terrifying just for those reasons. I kept hoping that she'd leave, go to a friend's house, anything, but she didn't. I knew the storyline already, but I still wanted her to just GO. Guy wasn't physically abusive, but he was emotionally neglectful and distant and cruel (not to mention all the rest), and she just wanted so badly to have a happy family that she couldn't see it.

This is a fantastic book. I'm so glad that I splurged on it. Highly recommended.

Horror October 2011: #8

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Quote: The Hero of Ages by Brandon Sanderson

"How did men believe in something that preached love on one hand, yet taught destruction of unbelievers on the other? How did one rationalize belief with no proof? How could they honestly expect [him] to have faith in something that taught of miracles and wonders in the far past, but carefully gave excuses for why such things didn't occur in the present day?"

The Hero of Ages by Brandon Sanderson

Review: Shine by Lauren Myracle ★★★★★

(I received a copy of this book for review through Star Book Tours.)

I've never read any of Lauren Myracle's other books. I'm not much into the whole "txt-spk" thing, so those books have never sparked my interest. Not my cup of tea. Other than those, I couldn't have named another book Myracle had written before today. But this... this book called out to me. Not only because of the absolutely gorgeous cover, but because of the premise, and because it's set in the South. I love me some books set in the South. And because it has Issues. Issues with a capital 'I'.

And boy, did this deliver. If it hadn't been written with such grace and honesty, and a light touch and sense of innocence, it could have gone so very, very badly wrong. The Issues in this book are the kind that outsiders abhor and denounce, while those living in and around and with them are almost oblivious to their existence as an 'Issue' at all. To those people, it's just life. Normal. Everyday. This book touched on a lot of things. Poverty, addiction, class division, alcoholism, abuse, homosexuality and homophobia, fear and hatred, small-town politics, friendship and loyalty, etc. So many things that some could have easily gotten lost and confused. But even with all of these issues entwined throughout the story, I never felt that it forgot what it was.

I loved the way this story was written. I love the way it was parceled out, little by little, edging closer to the truth and the consequences and the brokenness, like a hungry mouse sneaking closer to a crumb not far from the cat's bed. The mouse knows that rushing will cause it to lose its chance, to be hurt -- but caution and stealth may win it a chance to survive. This book was like that. It crept along, building momentum, until it reached where it needed to be.

I instantly fell in love with these characters, especially Cat and Patrick. My heart broke for the things that they lost, both before and after Patrick is beaten and left for dead. I loved their friendship, and the simple acceptance of it. I loved Mama Sweetie, Patrick's Grandma, and her kindness and wisdom and faith. I usually find it hard to accept religion in books, because so very often it comes across as preachy. That was not the case here. It was less religion and more a matter of faith - a simple knowledge that there's something and someone there for us. No judgment, no fire and brimstone, no recriminations for every little thought, just a sense of "If you want, you can - if not, that's OK too." I liked that.

This book is gorgeous and amazing from cover to cover, and I was so wrapped up in this community and these lives that I almost didn't want to see, but I couldn't look away. I found one thing, one little thing, about the very end to be a bit unbelievable, but I understand it, and I wasn't disappointed. All in all, I loved this book and I think it's one that I will need to own, to re-read and absorb and love.

It's that good.

Review: Crusade by Nancy Holder & Debbie Viguie ★★

I received this book as part of an ARC tour from Star Book Tours. I had actually forgotten that I had requested it, and when it showed up on my doorstep, I was a little surprised. But opening it up, I can see why I would request it - it looks like it would be awesome. Dark and gritty and bloody, just like a vampire book should be.

In in many of those aspects, this book delivered wonderfully. The vampires were vicious and cruel and bloodthirsty, and there wasn't a sparkle to be seen. The fights were pretty intense, and the action was written well and was exciting. I also liked the political facets of the story, and how they corresponded with other wars from our past. History repeats itself, just with a new bad guy each time around. If these are the things that you're looking for, you will enjoy this book, and probably the series.

I was hoping for a little more, and so I admit that I am a bit disappointed with this one. I think that this book had great potential, but I think that it got lost on the way.

First, the characters didn't feel authentic to me. Almost all of them were very stereotypical and one dimensional to me, with few exceptions. Holgar was one exception. I loved his character throughout the story until the last 50 pages or so, until he seemed to change before our eyes into someone suddenly dark and secretive - most likely a lead-in to the next book in the series. The same with Father Juan. We're supposed to ask: Who are they really?

The rest of the characters didn't do much for me. Jenn was at her most interesting when she was on her own. With the others, she was bland and boring. The group dynamic quickly got on my nerves with all of the in-fighting and I kept thinking that they would be better off if they went their separate ways and each had a book to follow their adventures alone. Maybe then we'd get to see more of their character and the focus would help them to come alive. I doubt that will happen though.

Then there is the writing itself, which was inconsistent. I know that the edition I read was an uncorrected edition, so I'm not talking about the grammatical errors or spelling errors, but the writing itself. For example, in the midst of running for her life from a pack of vampires who want nothing more than to kill her, and trying to rescue her sister from still more vampires, we have this:

"The sun was setting; she could feel it as surely as she felt the pounding of her own heart.
The heart that beat for Antonio."

It then goes on to talk about how afraid she was that she would never see him or her sister again. And then back to Jenn trying to save her own life so that she could try to save her sister. It just seemed incredibly out of place to insert a line about her heart beating for someone else when she is literally running for her life. I know that in times of stress and fear, we think about those we love, but the line itself is strange and awkward to me, like it was inserted to create a relationship link to him.

Not to mention the chapter headers that contain Jenn's diary entries. These are written in such flowery and formal language that it doesn't mesh with the self-conscious and unsure 17 year old "Just Jenn" from the rest of the story.

And then finally, my biggest issue with the book is the way that religion and faith is handled. This book could be considered a Good vs Evil story, and so it stands to reason that a certain amount of religious comparisons could be made. That isn't really my complaint, although it does get quite preachy at times.

My complaint is that in this mixed cast, we have several different religions and belief systems interacting with each other, but no matter which belief system a character lived by, they approached it in a Christian-oriented way, or otherwise acted in Christian ways that did not fit with their own beliefs. I felt like, since it seemed that it was a deliberate choice to have so many different personalities and faiths, they should have rung more true, rather than all centering around what is referred to more than once in the book as the "One True Faith".

For instance, we have a Wiccan "White Witch", who practices magicks and worships the Goddess and the moon and nature, etc. But then, in a moment of uncertainty, she considers going to a Catholic priest to give her absolution, rather than relying on her own beliefs. This is just one of the examples of this from the book, and there are quite a few. This, more than anything else, made this book less than enjoyable for me. I couldn't help but wonder: Why go to such an effort to include the variety of religions and faiths if the characters do not act according to them?

I think that if handled differently, this book could have been a very enjoyable one for me. I think that people should believe what works for them, but this just felt like the message we were supposed to take away is "You can believe whatever you like, but in the end, it's all the same thing, you'll see."

Overall, I thought that this book was OK. I think that people who are just looking for an exciting read will really enjoy it, especially those who are fans of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Friday Flashback Review (8): Harry Potter & The Bible ★

Friday Flashback is hosted by Jen @ The Introverted Reader.

So I thought that it would be kind of appropriate to post this review now, since Banned Book Week was not very long ago, and since the 7th Harry Potter movie is coming out soon. I received this book from my friend Kandice, whose son was given the book by some mysterious person at his school. If there's anything I dislike, its creepy people spreading ignorance in schools. Rather than encouraging intelligent thought and analysis, Abanes encourages people to hide behind fear and ignorance in order to avoid anything they don't understand.

So without further ado, my review, which was written way back in February:

Ahh, right. Where to start... I have so much to say! I wish that you could all see my notebook. Aside from my atrocious handwriting, it is 12 full-size pages filled with my scribbled, jotted, many underlined thoughts, reactions and questions, as well as quotes, semi-quotes, references to quotes and page numbers for still more quotes.
It's not pretty. Really. But it WAS necessary. So many of the things that I jotted down had me rolling my eyes, thinking "Is this guy SERIOUS?". I just read this entire book, and I still don't understand most of his claims, arguments, assumptions and conclusions. I like Harry Potter, so I am obviously one of the "undiscerning" readers mentioned in Douglas Groothuis's foreword, in which he proclaims that I am about to read a "rare voice of sanity, reason and biblical discernment" regarding the Harry Potter books. Hmm. Well. Good thing he hasn't started off by annoying me or alienating me as a reader... Oh. Oops.

Anyway, offended by being called incapable of reason and insane before the book even starts, I still tried to read it objectively. From what I could see, Abanes's case comes down to several extremely repetitive points:

1) The setting of the "real world" makes it difficult for kids to differentiate between fact and fiction.
Apparently, because this is a fiction book that takes place in the United Kingdom where people actually live or can visit, it makes it nearly impossible for the reader to understand that it's not real. He makes reference to comments on message boards and letters (etc) which have kids saying things like "Wow! I wish I could do magic..." or "I wish I could go to Hogwarts..." and the like, and claims that these kids are dangerously close to becoming official occult followers. Which is utterly ridiculous and a huge logic leap. Kids whimsically wishing for something doesn't imply that they can't understand it's not real. I used to WISH I had a real My Little Pony to ride, but I didn't actually believe they WERE REAL. Kids know how mundane and normal and boring their life is. School. Homework. Bed. Repeat. They have no control over anything at this point - parents decide their lives. They just wish for some fun.

And, kids are much, much smarter than they are given credit for, in my opinion, although apparently not in the author's. Abanes seems to think that kids who read and like something will then rush off to try it with no thought. And while that may be true of some people, it is untrue of most. He gives an example in his book (after talking about how wormwood is used in HP and is an actual ingredient in absinthe) of someone looking up a recipe for absinthe online, making it and getting sick. He writes it in such a way as to insinuate that the person who did this was somehow influenced by the wormwood mention in HP. Another big leap. He also seems to forget parents, even while writing a book geared toward them. It is a parent's responsibility to teach their children, not JK Rowling's.

He goes on later in the book to say how Christian writers CS Lewis and JRR Tolkien both wrote fantasy stories involving magic, but these are OK because their magic is not HUMAN magic, and it is clearly in a fantasy world.

2) The magic described and portrayed in HP is actually representative of the Occult, which is denounced repeatedly and harshly in the bible.
Abanes's argument here seems to be that because JK Rowling researched and used real modern and historical practices, ideas, references, and substances (like wormwood above), as well as mythology and legend etc, that she is "thinly veiling" her belief in the occult, and not only introducing children to it, but grooming them towards it.
His "biblical" definition of occultism is extraordinarily all-encompassing, and ranges from astrology to conversing with spirits as a medium. Anything, essentially, that tries to understand or influence the world or ourselves that is NOT Christian in nature or done for the glory of God, is defined as being of the occult, and therefore dangerous and evil. He references many passages in the bible which denounce occultism, but never answers the ever present "WHY?" question. But hey, rules are rules, and the rule-maker need not explain, right?

Moving on, Abanes makes another huge leap in talking about the pets in HP, stating that they are familiars to their owners. Witches' familiars are defined here as a "low-level demon" in the assumed shape of an animal. He says, "Mrs. Norris, owned by the school's caretaker, exhibits some of the characteristics of a familiar. In Book III, Hermione gets her own familiar -- a cat named Crookshanks." He then quotes a renown Wicca practitioner, Starhawk, on the tradition of familiars, and then quotes a passage from "Witchcraft In England" which rehashes again what familiars are and confirms (again) the belief that witches used them in "the later centuries of [the:] witchcraft-belief". Abanes then says, "Obviously Harry and his friends are indeed making contact with the spiritual world." What? How is that obvious?

Abanes did include a very small section each to explain Paganism, Wicca and Satanism. I think he kind of shot himself in the foot if he was trying to turn people away from these, though. He failed miserably at making them unattractive, and to be honest, actually succeeded in piquing my interest in learning even more about them. Pagan and Wicca followers have a "reverence for the Earth and all it's creatures, generally see all life as interconnected, and strive to attune one's self to the manifestation of this belief as seen in the cycles of nature." Ooooh! DANGER! DANGER! (Sorry, I couldn't resist.)
I'm not going to go into the major points and details, but it is interesting, and I would recommend reading about them yourself. I did see a lot of my own "worldviews" represented in Paganism and Wicca, such as my relativism (a view that ethical truths depend on the individual or groups holding them -www.Merriam-Webster.com), which essentially means that what is good for me is not good for everyone else, and what is good for others may not be what is good for me. I'm OK with that. Abanes is not, and apparently has a problem with personal and private beliefs not in accordance with his own. He seems to feel that his way is the only way.

He did portray Satanism as being "bad", although he made clear that modern Satanism is not technically worship of Satan, but worship of the individual. Satanism "emerged when various aspects of all these (pagan, et al) traditions were blended together by persons seeking to fight Christianity's growing theological and moral influence [between 400s -1600s A.D.:]." (I got a real chuckle out of that. Apparently the Crusades and mass murders in the name of Christianity represent the "moral influence" of the faith. Best. Euphemism. EVER.)

He mentioned Sean Sellers, who was physically and sexually abused, neglected, and abandoned as a child and teen, who found himself getting involved with Dungeons & Dragons as an outlet, and later Satanism. There he found acceptance and understanding, until things started getting too deep and cult-like, which is very different from the religion started by Anton LeVey. Sellers, fearing for his sanity, reached out repeatedly for help... his parents, their Christian ministers, church run support groups, etc, and they turned their backs on him each and every time. In the end, he immersed himself in Satanism completely, and ended up murdering three people, being arrested, sentenced to death, and becoming a born again Christian in prison. Abanes blames the D&D as the "gateway" to Satanism for his downfall, but fails completely to mention the many, many people who let Sellers down when he needed help the most. (This is just one of many examples of how Abanes cherry-picks his arguments.)

3) Vulgarity, profanity and general lack of biblical morality in the Harry Potter books. (Characters lying, stealing, cheating, cursing, drinking, etc. And the amount of "gore" in the books, including Nearly Headless Nick and the Headless Hunt.)
His point is that he doesn't feel like there is enough delineation between "good" and "evil". The good guys should be all good, or if they falter, they should pay for it immediately. Bad guys should be all bad, and should absolutely pay and fail.
But MY argument is that the world, and life, is rarely delineated in such stark, black and white terms. Good people do bad things, bad people can do good things, it's the way of the world. And the real world doesn't always mete out appropriate punishment for misdeeds based on a religious belief. The world is impartial... Religion is not.
Abanes's first example of the immorality of the children is that they disobey rules. I think this is the main stick in his craw, because so much of organized religion centers on obeying without question. He also really has a problem with the word "git", which is a derogatory word that means idiot. He claims that this is profanity, which I guess is subjective, but to me, it's slang, not profanity.
Children are children, and they ACT like children. They disobey, mouth off, curse, treat each other unkindly, hold grudges, make enemies, make up, cheat, etc. But even as they do so, they are learning. Holding them to adult standards of behavior is unrealistic and unfair, especially a religious standard that was never intended to be in the equation at all.

He also repeatedly laments the increase of "New Age Spiritualism" in modern times, causing what he calls a "Post-Christian" world, which is helped along by books, movies and media, namely "occult" books like HP, etc. He repeatedly inserts statistical data, which in itself is suspect to me, as 7 out of 8 people know that 60% of all statistics are made up on the spot (as this was... :P), so... I'm a little wary of just accepting his claims. He acts like popularity itself is cause for alarm. More than once, Abanes seems to indicate that because Rowling was poor before she wrote Harry Potter that her popularity was helped along by, if not evil, definitely occult forces. He also seems to take issue with the fact that JK Rowling has not publicly made known her personal religious beliefs. As if it matters. Her beliefs are personal, and her books are fiction. They have nothing to do with each other in my mind and opinion, but Abanes thinks that because she's not proclaimed her Christianity, that she's probably an Occultist. Again with the black and white, 'with us or against us' theme.

I think that's what bothered me most about this book. I tried to read it objectively and fairly, even though I myself am agnostic, but so many of his arguments are just statements without any basis in fact. Comparisons which are... ridiculous. It's like he was writing this for people who think exactly as he does, but just didn't know it yet, and who wouldn't question his claims. At the end of the book, he gives practical advice for Christians (who should now have many, many concerns about the book) to go forth with gentleness and kindness when discussing the book(s) with others that they feel the need to educate. Good advice, yes, because I do not want someone calling me a "heathen" for enjoying these books, BUT this book only succeeded in making claims, not proving them.

Not only that, but as I mentioned before, he clearly, blatantly and shamelessly picked around the things that he didn't want to address, and beat into the ground the few points he did.

For instance, he mentions CS Lewis's Narnia series, and *spoiler* Aslan sacrificing himself for Edmund */spoiler*, but Lily's own sacrifice for Harry goes without mention. And he's not unaware, just to be clear, as he quotes Voldemort telling Harry that his mother died to save him, and that she will have died in vain, as well as Dumbledore's explanation of Lily's love sacrifice. He just ignores the sacrifice of the one, and lauds the sacrifice of the other, because it suits his theme.

He claims that the HP books are vulgar and full of violence etc, and that they are inappropriate reading material for children, yet ignores the fact that there is ridiculous amounts of violence and death in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. And the bible, for that matter.

He also derides the use of runes in HP, but makes no mention of the fact that Gandalf used them in Lord of the Rings. Apparently that's OK because, while runes are definitely "Real Occult", LOTR was not set in the real world.

I could go on and on, (12 pages of notes, remember?), but I think this is enough to get my point across. In the end, it seems like Abanes is saying, "Christianity is right, and anything that doesn't shout that from the rooftops is wrong. Period. End of story." That's an opinion, but it doesn't make it the right one. I think people are entitled to believe what they choose, just as readers (of all ages) are entitled to read and enjoy what they choose. Parents have a responsibility to talk to and teach their kids right from wrong, and morals and ethics, etc. That is not the job of the Harry Potter books, or ANY books. Religious texts are wonderful and useful to many people, but that does not mean that fiction and entertainment should seek only to rewrite/retell them.

Read and make up your OWN mind about books. :)

Review: The Reapers Are The Angels by Alden Bell ★★★

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I received a review copy of this book from the publisher, and I must say that I was thrilled with the offer because 1) I love zombies, and 2) I love apocalypses and this story has both. It didn't disappoint in either of those regards.

It took me a little while to get into this story, honestly, even though the premise is one that appeals to me so much. The story is told in a 3rd person omniscient narration, but also through Temple's eyes, in a way. Her unique take on life comes through the narration perfectly, and helps us to get to know her, but unfortunately, it was a bit of a distraction to me as well, and made it a little hard for me to really focus on and enjoy the story.

I grew up in the south, and I've been to many of the areas where this story took place: Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Tennessee, Texas - but I've never heard the type of language that Temple used in any of these places. She is illiterate and uncouth and almost feral, and spends almost all of her time alone, or at least without anyone to converse with, so it isn't hard to imagine that her language wouldn't be pristine. It feels as if it's her own vernacular bastardization, taking words and morphing them into something that she likes the sound of. But, then other characters also use the same type of nonexistent "upgrade" words she does, like "marvelment" rather than just "marvel" and I have to wonder at the author's choice in writing it this way, because for Temple to use these words makes sense, but for other characters to do so doesn't, really. Some of the sentences just seemed to be awkwardly phrased and strange sounding to me, and left me feeling that the writing was trying hard to be something that it's not.

That's not to say that the writing was bad, because it wasn't. There were many beautiful sections that I found myself re-reading to absorb again, and I enjoyed many of the descriptions and the observations communicated through Temple, and sometimes through Moses, who seemed to be both her opposite and her equal.

I am not sure if I liked Temple, honestly. What she lacks in social grace she more than makes up for in ferocity, but I was a little disappointed in her harshness and brutality in situations that I don't think called for such methods. But then again, I don't live in that world, so those kind of coping mechanisms are probably necessary. I just thought it was a little out of character for someone who believes in the beauty and wonder the world can hold, as Temple does. It's like she's got two diametrically opposed parts of herself contained in one shell. I wasn't really sure what to make of her, but I will say that by the end I was rooting for her.

There was a bit more religion than I'd have really expected in this story. There were many, many references to God and angels and miracles and the like, mainly from Temple's interpretation, but nothing very definitive, and nothing that removed the mystery of the world or proved a deity's existence or hand in anything. Mainly it was Temple's own personal religious beliefs coming through in her observations of the world, and her own morality. I was just surprised by this, as she isn't the type that I would usually think of as being religious. In fact, I would have expected her to be the type to shun religion, since a world full of zombies is hardly a miraculous occurrence. But then miracles are open to interpretation, as is everything else in life.

Moving on to the zombie aspect of the story, nothing was explained in this regard either. The world has been overrun by the undead for 25 years, and this world is all that Temple has ever known. I like the way that the zombies were portrayed here. A bit different from the usual zombies as instinctual, eternally hungry, brainless death-machines. These zombies tended to keep a bit of their human characteristics in death. Not love or honor or anything, but mainly habit, or routines that have been ingrained in their human lives for so long that they continue them, to a certain extent, in death. For instance, returning back to their homes or places of work, holding hands, trying to ride carnival rides, etc. These were inclined to adapt - when their preferred food was not available, they would feed on animals or even each other, culling the weak. And then there was the Family... but you'll need to experience them for yourself. I won't ruin it.

The main difference that I noted, and this could just be me reading into this, was that it seemed that ANY dead person could return as a zombie, bitten or not, as long as their brain was intact. Temple made it a point to destroy the brain of every human that she had to kill, to ensure that they would not come back. This makes me think that perhaps it was a kind of airborne virus or something that caused the undead outbreak, rather than a supernatural cause.

There was quite a bit of gore and vivid descriptions of the undead, as well as the horror that they inflict, and that which was inflicted on them. This one isn't for the weak of stomach, but it is a short and enjoyable book on the whole for someone who is looking for something a bit different from the norm when it comes to zombie fare.

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Review: The Passage by Justin Cronin ★★★★

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I am really torn on what to rate this book. On one hand, I really, really liked it, and was engrossed in the story, and could identify with the characters and loved the "feel" of the story, but on the other hand, I feel like there was just something more that was missing, some line that would pull it together and make it great.

I was sucked in from the start, and having now finished it, I can definitely see why there are comparisons made between "The Passage" and Stephen King's novel "The Stand". It also brought to mind Richard Matheson's "I Am Legend" as well as the "Resident Evil" franchise. But this was different too, and stood on the shoulders of giants, so to speak, but then became something else entirely. I loved what it became, but I just wish that there was more of it, that things were explained and fleshed out a little more fully. I'm ok with there being a bit of mystery - obviously we can't know everything, and there was enough explained along the way so that we don't feel completely in the dark, but I just wanted more of an understanding of the world that Cronin created here.

I loved the realistic feel of the story, and loved the different methods of narration that Cronin used throughout. It shifted around, but each section was enhanced by the way it was relayed to us more than hindered by the change from straight omniscient 3rd person narration. In fact, the narration was just about perfect - it moved the story along, provided details and back story where necessary, and generally went unnoticed until it shifted to a different style. I actually found myself flipping back to a previous section a few times because the story just seemed to flow so effortlessly that I hadn't even noticed HOW.

Two things mainly bothered me about this story. Ok three. The first one I mentioned before - I wanted more.

The second thing that bothered me was the luck that popped up just a little too often and made it seem as though Cronin was adding a little deus ex machina in here, but just wasn't committed about it. In places, it seemed like there was an undertone in the story of "Yeah, God might be moving things along a bit... but then again, he might not. Who knows?" Religion played a role in the story, a kind of largely subtle one. It was there, but it was understated and could be picked up by those who have a mind to do so, or accepted and moved past for those who are more skeptical. I accepted it in the story for what it was, and so the wishy-washy aspect of the possible "hand of God" slightly annoyed me. You can't have it both ways: Either there IS a God who is taking an active role in the story, or there is not.

The final thing that bothered me was the ending. It was very ambiguous. I am OK with an ending that leaves things open and lets the reader decide for themselves what happened, but this one tried for that, and didn't pull it off well. The reader understands where the story will need to go, and is able to go there on their own. So that part's fine, but there is a last little segment tacked on to the end that sets up this expectation and then just cuts it off, like an amputated limb, and THAT is what was disappointing. The abruptness of the end and the sudden evaporation of the expectation that he'd set up so carefully. It just seemed unnecessary to me, after everything.

Anyway, overall, I really did like this story. I found myself thinking about it when I wasn't reading it, and that is always a plus, but the things that bothered me wouldn't allow me to give this 5 stars, despite how much I really enjoyed the rest of it.

{Edit: Since writing this review, I have since found out that this book is only part 1 of a proposed trilogy, so I will get the more that I wanted, and the ending obviously was left unresolved in order to be picked up in book 2. So, this information definitely changes how I feel about the book - for the better - but still the 2nd point that I felt bothered me stands, and is why I will leave this as a 4 star rather than a 5 star review.}

Review: The Prophecy's Child by W.E.D. Wilson ★★

This was my second "For Review" read, and unfortunately it wasn't as good as the first one I read. I'd had high hopes for it, but much of the religious aspect of the story just didn't do much for me, and I found much of the story to be unbelievable... I know what you're thinking - it's a book about demons and a prophecy and possession etc, how believable could it be? That's not what I mean. I mean things were unbelievable like a 2000+ year old star artifact being left in the cave it was discovered in when disintegrating shrouds were removed to a museum. That's unbelievable. Anywho... I'm not trying to review the book before I copy my review here... Don't mind my ramblings! :) Here's my review... I received this book, signed and personalized, after winning the GR First Reads giveaway. Based on the information I read about the book, I was very much looking forward to reading it. The concept of a "special needs" child being linked to the occult was especially interesting to me. When Beth and Gary Carter were in Israel working as contractors for the military, they stumbled on an ancient site, which set into motion a series of events that were foretold almost 3000 years ago. Their now 6 year old daughter, who was born about 5 1/2 months after the visit to the site, is a shut-in who spends all day writing and drawing in her room with little to no interaction with anyone, even her parents. Two friends, Bill Monroe and Clay Harker get involved as they try to help Allyson to have a normal life. Allyson connected instantly with Clay, a linguist, who is trying to help decipher her drawings in order to find out what is going on, and the conclusion they come to is very unusual indeed. Allyson's condition was a mystery that I wanted to figure out. Why was she so terrified to be around people? Why did she not communicate with her parents, or with other people who were "safe"? Why did she connect instantly with Clay, before he ever said a word to her? As I mentioned, the concept was interesting to me. I was very intrigued as to where everything was going and was looking forward to the big reveal that would put everything together. Unfortunately, only some of the questions I had were answered, leaving new questions in their place. I'm very torn on what to rate this book. This usually is an easy process for me, as I'll rate the book on the overall experience of reading it, and on whether I enjoyed the story. On the one hand, I kept turning the pages to see what would happen, so the mystery kept me interested, and I was enjoying the progress, especially the scarier aspects of the story. (There were some chilling moments, the main one in my opinion was the description of Allyson's drawing of the "birdmen" -aka demons. It just gave me chills to think of a little girl drawing what she saw as demons.) On the other hand, there were quite a few issues that I had with this book, many of them editorial in nature, and many issues that tested my ability to suspend my disbelief. I generally have no problem with that; I read a lot of fantasy, and a lot of horror, many of it supernatural or "spiritual", for lack of a better word, and I generally can just let go of my disbelief in the unreal aspects and just go with the flow. This book was a real challenge in that aspect, for several reasons, which I hope I can communicate clearly. First, I should say that I am not a religious person. I am agnostic. I don't claim to know that any God exists, or that he (or she) does NOT exist. I simply do not know. It seems to me that many people do claim to know, but the way I see it, the knowledge that they claim is simply a belief. Strong, persuasive, widespread even, but still a belief. I am not saying that because I do not share a particular belief I cannot read and enjoy books about it, as that is not the case. Every book has a voice, and every story has a message that it would like to convey. There is absolutely nothing wrong with conveying that message. But delivery is everything. In my mind, there is a major difference between a book presenting its belief, or in having the characters "know" something, which allows the reader to take the information they've been given and apply it to their life if they choose, and a book presenting its contents as "truth" and potentially alienating or offending readers who don't see things the same way. For me, this book fell into the latter category, and it was hard for me to truly immerse myself in the story when I have an ideological difference of opinion with it. I feel like I was asked to forgo my agnosticism, to forgo my skepticism and just accept that there not only is a "God", but that there is a "right" God (AKA the God of Abraham), which is the "True God" and all others are "false" gods, or Satan. According to the book, man invented "false" gods when believing in an omnipotent God was seen as too simple to solve life's problems. Then God would destroy the "false" god and man would invent a new one, etc etc. As the bible is written by man, and man is fallible, isn't it possible that man invented the concept of "God" in general, and then just applied this concept to whichever problem they happened to have at the time? This pesky drought is killing our crops! Hey, we should have god send us rain. Now we've got a Rain God! Problem solved. I'm certainly not trying to belittle anyone's belief or religion, but just pointing out the flaw that I saw in the argument that only "false" gods could be invented by man. As a person who does not hold any theistic beliefs, but has an open mind toward them, I was slightly offended on behalf of others by the "false" god usage in the book. It showed up 14 times. Maybe that doesn't seem like a lot, but when you consider that EVERY god in history which was not THE "God" of Abraham was likened to Satan, it becomes a lot, especially to someone who thinks people should believe what their heart tells them to believe. Belief, in my opinion, is a personal matter, and nobody has the right to say whether someone's beliefs are right or wrong. I think a big part of my problem is that the book's belief system was presented as The Truth, and assumed that the reader agreed, which made me take a step back to wonder whether that was on purpose or not. I just don't know. The last thing that I will mention regarding the religious aspects of the book is that it seems that free will was removed. At one point, one of the characters was lamenting the tragic loss of his family, and questioning how God could be so cruel, to which another character chastised the first, saying that it is not "our right" to question God. Perhaps it is semantics, but we have EVERY right to question. I'm no religious scholar (which is probably painfully obvious by now), but as I understand it, the basis of free will is in knowing that we're loved and accepted no matter what, that we are able to wonder and question but still decide whether to believe or worship, even if we don't like the answer, if one is given at all. Anyway, that was a much-longer-than-intended explanation of the main issue I had with the book, but I'd mentioned editorial issues as well. I'll try to be brief. There was a bit of inconsistency regarding the method used to show characters' thoughts. One instance would use italics and quotation marks, the next would be italics only, then no italics and no quotation marks. This is definitely something that an editor should have caught. Also, measurements in the book left me a little baffled. In particular, during a car chase scene, the driver was said to have prepared for the "180 degree turn". This confused me a bit, because 180 degrees is a straight line, half of a circle. The dialogue was clunky at times, and certain action/reaction situations didn't make sense, such as a character covering her ears before a noise starts, or a hospitalized person referred to as "not expected to make it", and then a few pages later with no update, a character who would have had no way of receiving other information claims that they "look like they're going to pull through". Lastly, one glaring issue had me baffled. All of the artifacts from the ancient site which Beth and Gary discovered were removed to a museum for research, including a cloth that was covering an alter or table... except for a large 10-pointed, jewel encrusted star mounted on the wall. Why would that have been left untouched when clay or stone cups are recovered from archeological digs and considered great finds? As much as I hate to say it, it seems like it was just more convenient to have it left behind than to have to deal with the logistics of having to bring it back to the the site. I know that this review seems harsh - there was much that just had me scratching my head - but overall, I did enjoy the story. I had to consciously try to ignore my skepticism at times, but that, and the inconsistencies mentioned above aside, I did enjoy it. For a first novel, it was not a bad effort at all, and I hope that the next book is even better. :)