Warbreaker

Warbreaker is an epic fantasy novel written by Brandon Sanderson. This is a stand alone novel, as in its not part of a series, which is something of a rarity in the genre. I love the long, sprawling, epics, but having a complete story told in one book can be very satisfying as well, particularly when the writer is one as gifted as Sanderson. His novels always contain twists and turns, unique worlds and magic systems, and very interesting believable characters. All of these are present in Warbreaker. The story is that of a princess sent to a foreign country due to a treaty signed years ago. They send the unprepared sister to by time. The kindoms are on the brink of war and both sides believe it to be inevitable. In the grand capital of Hallandren, T’Telir, the city opposing that of the the princess sisters, is full of a culture that loves color, as opposed to the drab grays and browns of their homeland, and it shocks a revolts them initially. Color is worshipped in Hallandren, and their gods are men who are brought back to life mysteriously with no memory of their past. The magic system inolves a system known as biochromatic breath, which allows someone with enough breaths, eveyone has one, but they can be transfered amongst people a nd you need at least fifty to be able to do anything, you can expend those breaths temporarily to bring an object to life. This is another unique and complex magic system that works wonderfully in the world of Warbreakers society. The story also follows the characters of Lightsong and Vasher to immortal “gods”. Vasher is attempting to prevent war in the background and Lightsong is a humorous god who does not believe in his own religion. The story is told with subtle irony and is a prime example of Sandersons skill as a story teller and showcases his increasing skill as a writer.

And Another Thing . . .

And Another Thing . . . is another novel that has been picked up to be completed by a new author after the original had died. Sadly, it is not quite as successful a venture as was The Gathering Storm. Eoin Colfer, author of the young adult series, Artemis Fowl, was chosen to write book six of the Hitchikers Trilogy(yes you read that right) by Douglas Adams. The book is fairly humorous and generally the story his good enough I suppose, overall it is a more then adequate book. The problem is Douglas Adams is one of those authors whose books and humor are entirely his own, the books are less about their stories then about the unique and uncanny ability Adams had to make us laugh. Colfer does an admiral job, but I think this series, which did not really need another book, may have been better off left alone.

The Gathering Storm

The Gathering Storm is a recently released novel by authors Brandon Sanderson and Robert Jordan. This is the twelfth book in the hugely popular Wheel of Time series created in 1990 by Robert Jordan. Sadly Mr. Jordan succumbed to a rare blood disease in 2007 leading to fairly new author Brandon Sanderson to be chosen by Jordan’s wife to complete the series. I suppose it is important to point out that the last several novels in the series had been critisized for their slow pacing and a lack of developement. Brandon Sanderson is well known for his quick pacing and it clearly shows in this novel. Their could have been no other choice as for who could complete this book. He gives the series back everything it had been lacking in previous novels, and the characters feel and sound just like the characters of the last eleven books in the series. One major advantage to the novel is that it focuses on the main character, something that the last several books had not done. Rand al’Thor was relegated to the sidelines for a while now and his presence in this book is a blessing. He easily takes up at least half the book and his growing coflicts are written wonderfully as he deals with a broken world and his own growing insanity. The ending is a wonder and it will leave all wheel of time fans waiting impatiently, hungry for the next book, somehting they have not had in years.

Candy

Candy
By Kevin Brooks

Candy is another book that I can, and have, read over and over. It is an incredibly sad story of an innocent teenage boy who finds himself at war with the most dangerous drug-lord pimp in all of London. The boy, Joe, meets a beautiful and seemingly harmless girl named Candy at a subway station. He finds himself thinking about her constantly and can’t help but make contact with her. He skips school to meet her for an innocent date at the zoo, only to realize she might be a little more dangerous than he anticipated. He finds out she is addicted to heroin and forced into prostitution to support her addiction. Her pimp becomes the biggest, most powerful enemy Joe will ever face.
This book is for people who like to cry. It will break your heart. It is an extremely liberating story, though. It provides a sad truth about society today and inspires you to change it. I suggest this book for young adults, and anyone interested in young adults, like teachers and parents.

No One Here Gets Out Alive

No One Here Gets Out Alive
By Jerry Hopkins and Danny Sugerman

No One Here Gets Out Alive is a biography of the Doors’ lead singer, Jim Morrison. It is a very well-written biography in the sense that it keeps the reader interested, and is very plot-oriented. This could also be because Jim Morrison’s life was incredibly fascinating and fast-paced. He only lived twenty-seven years. In that time he was possessed by a Native American, became incredibly famous, wrote amazing poetry that some compare in quality to the work of Arthur Rimbaud, and was buried among royals in Paris after dying a mysterious death. It was obvious in reading this book that the authors were journalists. They both had experience in writing for magazines like The Rolling Stone, and that showed in their novel’s writing style. It has a very fact-by-fact tone, which is appropriate in a biography.
This novel led me into a phase of fascination with Jim Morrison. I think it’s a book I will read over and over just to recall the feeling of lying in the park, listening to the Doors, and reading No One Here Gets Out Alive. I passed this book on to friends and family. It’s just a great story, and it makes the Doors’ work that much more enjoyable to listen to. It’s the story of a tortured poetic genius from the 1960’s. How can it get any better than that?

Memnoch the Devil

Memnoch the Devil
By Anne Rice

After reading many, but unfortunately not all, of Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles, I came across Memnoch the Devil. I assumed it would be another action packed story of Lestat the vampire. I had no idea it would be as philosophical and intriguingly analytical as it was. Lestat de Lioncourt, a passionate vampire born in the 1700’s, struggles in this novel with his life purpose in a modern world. He is usually the dominant character in the vampire chronicles, although Rice sometimes writes from the point of view of other important characters.
From the beginning of Memnoch the Devil, any well-rounded Lestat fan would be able to tell that this was not an ordinary story of his. Instead of Lestat’s curiosity or pride getting him into trouble as the other novels tend to begin, Lestat found himself haunted by the devil himself. During a long twisting tale of Lestat’s love affair with a mortal, he is aware that he is being haunted. Even he has trouble believing the true vitality of his haunter.
When the climax finally comes, Anne Rice takes you on a journey that is truly amazing. Lestat becomes acquainted with god and the devil, who prefers to be called by his angel name, Memnoch. Rice narrates her geniusly twisted tale of how Memnoch came to be the devil, by taking you and Lestat back to ancient times, and even before creation.
I recommend this book to anyone who loves Anne Rice, loves Lestat, and loves religious controversy!

MobyLives

MobyLives is an intersting blog site, that is 100% literary. A well organized archive, and a large number of book and author news, and reviews. It also likes to cover lots of literary controversies and gives several different links for each of its topics resulting in a multitude of different perspectives. Visually speakig is not the most amazing set up I’ve ever seen, but it certainly is not boring, it just isn’t all that inspiring. It is known for imparting a fair bit of humor into its design, and this makes for frequently entertaining reads. Another interesting note is that MobyLives also has podcasts available.  MobyLives is a diverse and far reaching blog site, with a large amount of input and opinions. It also frequently updates old information, or it is revisited, when new light is shed upon it. I’d say this was an above average blogging site that deserves a good look.

The House of Blogs

I was impressed at the quality of reviews on this blog. They were quite wordy, so I was apprehensive to read them at first. Once I started reading the reviews, though, they held my interest. Not only do they give a well written synopsis of the book they are reviewing, but they provide pictures and favorite quotes from the book. The quotes were very effective, and made me interested in reading the books. You didn’t become so wrapped up in the reviewer’s writing style that you could care less about the author of the book. They even gave background information on the author, which I really liked. In fact, I will most likely read the first book they reviewed on this blog. It sounds very intriguing. The only recommendation is using a larger font for the wordy reviews. The many tiny words seem overwhelming at a first glance of the site. On the sides of the screen they provide current events in the literary world. They provide links to a full version of the current events, which is a great idea because more tiny words might hurt the eyes of their reader. I enjoy the search engine at the top of the screen, which allows you to type in the title of a book and find a review if one has been written.

The Old Hag

The Old Hag blog has a touch of humor to it. It provides information in a read-able, quick fashion. Her main day-to-day blogs are in the middle of the screen, while her book reviews, with pictures of each book, are listed on the sides. I think that is a great way to set up a literary blog. The only issue is that the font of the reviews is tiny and unreadable (I have terrible eyesight). The pictures are effective because they give you an idea of what she is reviewing. But, when you select the pictures it does not make the font any larger. Maybe she should make the pictures a link to a page where the focal point is the review. Overall, her blogs are a fast-paced, quick read. I would suggest this blog to anyone interested in keeping up with book tours and podcasts. She gives information on when authors will be on which podcasts. She is assuming her readers check the blogs and podcasts often. Her writing style is nice because it’s as if she is having an informal conversation with you. This style is very different from other blogs I have reviewed where the book reviews were very long and professional.

Guide to Literary Agents

This blog looks very professional and neat. The blog gives advice on how to be a writer. One of the recent posts was step-by-step advice on how to write an effective novel synopsis. It is very informational to surf around in. They provide a variety of styles in presenting advice. One day they posted an interview, another day they gave step-by-step instructions, and other days they post essay-style. After giving you advice, they provide very valid examples of good writing. I am not a fan of how they use dates instead of titles to maneuver through the blogs. I know what information I’m looking for, but I don’t know what date they posted that information. Otherwise, it is a decent site to go to for information on how to be a literary agent. It is clearly written by professionals who want to help new writers. It sometimes strays from the professional focal point to give background information on the author’s of the blog. For example, they recently posted a video of one of the agents’ band performing a Def Leopard song. I don’t think this sort of straying from the point is necessarily a bad thing, though, as it just proves the genuineness of their goal