Quick Update

OK, so I've been crazy busy with school, and am now greviously behind in my reading, but reviews are coming, I promise. Coming up, my reviews of Elfland and Tara Maya's debut novel The Initiate, part of a new series, which is my first (drum roll, please) free review copy!!!!!! I am so very excited about this, and a big thanks to the author for contacting me and giving me this opportunity!

So, yes, Good Things are forthcoming. In the meantime, here's something happy-beagle dinner time:

REVIEW: The Wake Trilogy by Lisa McMann

Source: Library

I've decided to group all three into one review, since I basically read them all in together like one big novel, but I'll separate them by book…maybe that'll make up for it being so damn long. Sorry 'bout that.

Book 1: Wake

Janie has an unusual gift, and, as cool as it sounds, she's pretty damn sick of it. She falls into other people's dreams, totally against her will. Although she sometimes can get out of trivial dreams (especially those icky sex dreams that guy on the football team has when he falls asleep in study hall), she can't get out of nightmares, and they usually leave her paralyzed, numb, and blind after. Needless to say, she has enough to worry about, between high school and an alcoholic mother.

Enter Cabel, the weirdo Goth kid who lives a few streets down. He seems kind of nice, but he has a secret, which she only begins to figure out once she falls into his nightmares. As Janie gets closer to Cabel and to a blind woman at the nursing home where she works, she begins to understand more about her gift/curse, and about how she can shape it to suit her needs.

OK, I'm feeling slightly mixed about this first book, and I think it's because it sort of feels unpolished to me. The way the book is narrated took a few pages to adjust to, but I don't think that was it. The story is arranged tiny segments with the time as a heading, and short, declamatory sentences, which worked well, since Janie's world is always broken up by dreams. Here's an example of how it sounds:

"Janie Hannagan's math book slips from her fingers. She grips the edge of the table in the school library. Everything goes black and silent. She sighs and rests her head on the table. Tries to pull herself out of it, but fails miserably. She's too tired today. Too hungry. She  really doesn't have time for this."

Although it did work on one level, I also felt that this led to things I wanted to be stated left out, particularly in dialogue, which sometimes came across as way going way too quick, particularly when issues were being resolved. This was particularly a problem in the last third of the book, when the plot comes together, and it's more Janie talking to others than her making her way through dreams. The ending was what really bugged me: it was so rushed, and everything came together so perfectly at the last second. Considering how complicated everything in Janie's life is (like, super-duper complicated), Cabel's secrets and their relationship issues were resolved in about 50 pages. How convenient.

The final reason that the writing style bugged me was that there seemed to be little character development (in this book). I never really got a handle on who Cabel was, and I knew a lot more about other people's dreams at some points than Janie's thoughts and feelings. Again, some key moments in the story were too rushed, which is probably why I felt like I was left hanging.

Still, the concept of Janie's dream-catcher curse was soooo cool. I loved the story, in that it included both Janie's struggles at dealing with her family and her gift, as well as her budding romance with Cabel. So even though the narration worked for me at some points, it bugged me at others, and the ending really didn't work for me. Still, I thought that it was still a pretty fun book. I was eager to get to the next book.

Grade: 3.5/5

Book 2: Fade

*****SPOILER ALERT: Spoilers for first book, you've been warned!********

Now that Janie and Cabel are on board with the police department (I'll refrain from saying how it happens, so it's not super inundated with spoilers), and Janie is learning to control her powers, they are really put to the test. A tip that a sexual predator is in their high school leads them to team up to solve the mystery. And Ms. Stubin left a notebook for her successor which involves some dire news about dream-catching, which Janie must deal with, as well as new skills that she can use to further help her assignment.

This book was so much more exciting than Wake. Geez, Ms. McMann really puts her characters through hell in this book. I mean, I was biting my nails at the end. The pacing was so much better, and the plot was much more together. The story had multiple threads, and they were very skillfully tied together. The ending was much more satisfying, and everything was explained in a much more detailed way, without the quickly-paced narrative being dragged down.

Plus, the other main quip I had with Wake, a seeming lack of character development, was not a problem in Fade. Janie and Cabel always make the effort to sit and talk through their problems (which I really liked, more on that in a second), and there's one scene I loved, where they were having trouble expressing what was bugging them, and communicated really eloquently through emails. That's where I felt I really got a better handle on what was going on in Cabels' head, which was great, because it's really important later on in understanding how he feels about Janie.

Janie and Cabel's relationship really developed. I loved that their relationship was so much more natural and healthy than is seen in other YA novels (cough, Twilight, cough). Cabel's always concerned about Janie, but it's partly due to the trauma he experienced as a boy, and he recognizes when he's overbearing and tries to back off. As in, he's responsive to what his girlfriend is saying. Janie tells him when to back off, and when she wants him to hover. They communicated really well, for the most part, and they seem to be on equal footing (as in, Cabel is the kind of guy who can cry, and he even cooks!). It was so great that their relationship, and their characters, didn't just confirm stereotypes. They both have strengths and flaws, without any of it being overbearing. Maybe it's because they matured as characters, and maybe it's because the writing itself seemed to mature, but I felt like the characters and their relationship was much more well-drawn, which was great to see.

Everything about the second book was so much better. I could not put it down, even though there were definitely some moments that were hard to get through (again, this book involves sexual predators and rape, and Janie gets into a pretty sketchy situation). Still, there wasn't an excess of awfulness. The narrative style and the characters were more well-established, and the pacing of the novel was very well done. I'm so glad that the series is improving so dramatically! On to the third book!

Grade: 4/5

Book 3: Gone

********Once again, SPOILER ALERT!*************

Graduation's done, the three teachers are in jail, and Janie and Cabel can finally be together. So everything should be great, right? But Janie feels like Cabel's feeling lingering doubts about staying with her as she goes blind that he won't talk about. Then, she gets a call that ruins her vacation: her friend Carrie had to drive her mother to the hospital after she found her stumbling drunk in the front yard. Turns out, her mother was upset because a former boyfriend is dying. Not just a former boyfriend, but Janie's father. Janie's torn about this new development, especially after she's sucked into his insane nightmare.

I felt like the action of the series was all contained in the second book, with the first book introducing the action and the final book tying up loose ends. Not entirely, but it's certainly true that the third book was not nearly as exciting. Basically, the entire thing is Janie contemplating the decision before her: isolate herself, leave Cabel, and stay healthy (although that gets complicated in the end), or stay with her friends and family and lose her sight. Her figuring out her dad's history by entering his nightmare helps her figure this out.

Now, although there was not nearly as much action as the second book, I was still riveted in figuring out all the final mysteries concerning the dream-catching gift. New dimensions were added to it, and there were a few new mysteries added, which solidified and enriched the entire concept of the dream-catching. This was great, because it kept the series from becoming stagnant (and, seriously, the ideas were so cool, especially with what her dad is seeing as he gets sick, and why he is sick). It was great that the series kept strong in plotting the whole way through, and I appreciated that Ms. McMann trusted us to keep up with the ideas she presents and adds new ones to it.

I only had one major beef with the book, although it's something that's kind of bugged me throughout, and it was mostly resolved by the end. I do not understand her mom at all, and their relationship. She's completely absent in the first two books, and Janie does as she pleases. OK, if the neighborhood is aware of the problem (that her mother is usually staggering or comatose, she's so damn drunk), and she's still in high school, why the hell does no one call child services? Is the school so clueless that they don't know one of their students is dealing with complete awful crap at home? I mean, yeah, OK, she lives in the poor section of town, but I still feel like it was a really bizarre situation. Then, in the third book, because Janie has to get information about her dad, she forces her mom to talk. I was shocked at how sick her mother is…jeez, the woman can barely speak English! And Janie just yells at her and is totally disgusted that her mom acts like a child. Now, I totally get that she's mad, since her mom seems to resent her and doesn't give a damn. But by the end, it's sort of left in the open about what, exactly, she's going to do (I guess help her, but it wasn't as specific as I'd have liked). Plus, I sort of got a blame-the-victim vibe for a few pages…I might be reading this totally wrong, and I felt, once she went to an Al-Anon meeting, she understood her mom's disease a little better, so that redeemed her for me. It's nit-picky, sure, but her relationship with her parents was key in the third book, and, again, because the narration is so clipped, it's sometimes hard to see how characters are developing until the end. This is really a blessing and a curse, since it's a cool style and a refreshing change, but it also leaves some plot points unresolved.

The final book was like the first one in terms of action (well, lack thereof, actually), but the writing was as strong as in the second book. It was basically in-between the two in quality. I was fairly well-pleased with it, and the series overall; they were all fun reads, and the idea of dream-catching was awesome.
Grade: 3.5/5…it was lacking enough in action to knock it back down

REVIEW: The Red Tree by Caitlin R. Kiernan

Source: Bought

I don't remember where I heard about this book, but I forgot I had bought it used until it came in the mail, and I read the back and decided it sounded really cool. I'd never really read a modern ghost story (or is it…?), so I was really excited to try something new.

Sarah Crowe, a writer struggling for inspiration and motivation, has moved up to an old house in Rhode Island, leaving behind Atlanta and the baggage of her now-dead girlfriend. What seems like a decent situation (solitude and affordable rent) turns into something spookier, after she uncovers an old typewriter and an incomplete manuscript. This brings to life all this back-story about the huge red oak located a few hundred yards from the house, including stories of human sacrifice, murder, demons, and werewolves. As Sarah progresses through the manuscript, she starts her own journal on the typewriter, cataloguing the events concerning the tree.

The story is told in a combination of Sarah's journal entries, Harvey's manuscript, and even a short story by Sarah. I really liked Sarah's voice: she's sarcastic, smart, and direct. There were, however, a few moments where I wasn't quite sure where the story was going (as Sarah herself says more than a few times, she has a problem with digressing). At first, the story seemed like it was just her working through her health problems, issues with writing, and the grief she feels from her girlfriend Amanda's suicide. Not that it wasn't interesting, I just sometimes like to get hints; at times, I wasn't even 100% of what genre we were in. But as it was confusing, it was also refreshing, and I kept with it. A cool, albeit strange, way to forward the story was Sarah's tendency to narrate her dreams, to the point where reality and dream became incredibly blurred. This later led to some absolutely bizarre and freakin' creepy events.

Sorry if this is a tad rambling, but I'm having some trouble organizing my thoughts about the book. It makes since, as the book itself was a tad unfocused at points. Whether she's being truly haunted or is just seeing things (she's epileptic, after all) is never fully explained. Plus, the entire thing is in first person, so if Sarah was never sure about something, it won't ever be cleared up for us. On the same thread, there was one really key moment (which I can't reveal details of, I don't want to spoil the spookiness) involving the basement, where she sees something, but we never figure out what it was, because it freaked her out so much, she decides to leave it (she stopped when she has a seizure while writing). Which bugged the crap out of me!

Another element that sometimes made the story drag when it could have been exciting was the fact that Sarah was the narrator, writing in her journal. Where a sense of immediacy would have made the story really exciting, her writing about the event the next day takes it away. There are even times when she adds that she has a fallible memory and, since the habit dies hard, fills in gaps in the story with fictitious details. So she's telling us everything after it happened, and it's not even necessarily true. At the same time, though, her voice really drew me in. It made for a very interesting reading experience, following such an unreliable, yet fascinating, narrator. That, plus the mildly unresolved ending (no grand explanation, to me, although you could very well take it as a complete ending; it depends on how reliable you think Sarah is), left me baffled.

What I found super, super cool about this book was the way traditional Gothic elements were used. Finding a manuscript in the basement, bones near the tree, leaves in the house that didn't blow in, etc. Then, there was the way the book was presented: a manuscript discovered by an editor and printed, without someone changing the story, and the editor giving the back-story and details seemingly verifying the authenticity of the document. It reminded me so much of what is considered the first Gothic novel, The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole, who first presented his novel like an authentic manuscript found in a decaying Italian castle.

Overall, I found this book a very interesting, albeit spooky, experience, and I really enjoyed it. I'm currently studying lots of Gothic novels and their successors in my British literature classes, and seeing how those elements are still being used was very cool. I loved that the classic elements are still out there, 200 years after they were first used. I also liked Sarah, even though she's a very unreliable narrator, which made the novel both confusing (even rambling at points), but incredibly personal. It was very rich in details, and I was able to picture many of the scenes. Ms. Kiernan is a phenomenal writer, and even though the plot sometimes bugged me, I really enjoyed the novel. I definitely plan to check out her other novels.

Also, check out her website for some very cool evidence here.

Grade: 4/5

DOUBLE FEATURE

This is a monthly feature I'm going to try out, where I'll review two books together. Most likely, it'll be the first two books in a series I just started, or two books by an author that go logically together.

This month, The Forest of Hands and Teeth and The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan.

Review: The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan.

Source: Bought

Mary grows up knowing three truths: the Sisters know the truth, the Guardians protect us, and the Unconsecrated will always be there to infect, always. Plus, their tiny village is all that is left; they are the only humans who have lasted since the Return. Still, this isn't enough for Mary. Her mother told her stories about the ocean, about huge cities that once existed. Surely, someone is still out there.

Then, Mary's world is shattered when her mother is bitten and thrown into the Forest of Hands and Teeth once she returns as one of the Unconsecrated. Her only choice is to become a Sister, since no male seems to want her. Now that she's seen more of the Cathedral, she begins to understand that maybe the Sisters know more than they're telling. Then, she sees footprints in the snow that lead from the gate and path to nowhere (which are forbidden) to the Cathedral: the Sisters were wrong, there are others, and they've been lying!

But then the strange girl disappears, and suddenly Mary and her friends are left of the paths leading to nowhere. They are left with no information, other than the rumors of oceans and other villages, and only one option: move on.

This book might have started out a little slow for me, but once the action picked up, it was nonstop tension, mainly created by the fact that, no matter where they go, there are always Unconsecrated. The main reason the beginning bothered me was because it was mainly Mary talking: questioning the truths she feels she should accept, questioning her feelings for the boys she grew up with, questioning her place in the village. She feels like an outsider. Once the action picked up and I realized the entire book wasn't going to focus on Mary telling us about everything happening around her, it was just setting up the world, which is fine.

I liked Mary's character, particularly her relentless drive for truth. She suspects the Sisters are lying, and she wants to know why. A particularly cool scene involves her sneaking downstairs to the catacombs to find where they took the strange girl, and but once she gets through an ancient door, her candle blows out (a lovely traditional Gothic element, I must say). She's really independent and strong, but she's more aware of her weaknesses than anything else. Sometimes YA heroines/main female characters are too, well, bad-ass. Not that it's a bad thing, but it's refreshing to find a female character who is strong, but also very aware of her failings, and questions her own abilities, but is able to overcome that, as well.

What got a little tiresome was the love triangle between her and Travis and his brother, Harry-basically, both love her, she wants Travis, but is Harry's betrothed…basically, it carries through most of the book, and they're always skirting around the issue. I got frustrated that they couldn't all just sit down and talk about it. Now, it's true, they grew up in a village where the only way things went was that marriage isn't about love, it's about commitment, but Mary's the only one to question it, and she doesn't really push the others into questioning it, either. It seems, under the circumstances, they could just agree that maybe making their own rules could work. Now, it does kind of happen that way, but it's more an accident than anything else, and it's not until well past the halfway point of the book. So, once we got over that point, again, it was fine, but I felt like the love triangle, and Mary worrying over it, really slowed down the story at a few points…on a path, hungry, constantly surrounded by moaning zombies, would you really have that much time to focus on your love life more than anything else?

Still, other than the few dragging moments (which were few, I promise), the pacing was excellent. There were some absolutely awesome moments where they have to get out of really sticky situations that had me biting my nails. Ms. Ryan did an excellent job of highlighting how completely impossible it seemed to get out. Her descriptions of the Unconsecrated were very spooky, and there were some moments when it's also heartbreaking, since it's a reality for them to perhaps find a family member or friend turned and be forced to kill them. The prose was wonderful, although adjusting to present tense, which is used throughout most of the novel, took a moment, but it worked for me, since it really sounded like Mary was just telling us the story as it happened.

Although there were a few dull moments, there was enough action  that I was able to thoroughly enjoy this story. It was spooky, heartbreaking, complex, and a very fun read, leaving me with plenty of questions about what discoveries in this world were left.

Grade: 4/5

Review: The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan
Source: Christmas present

****WARNING: There are spoilers for the first book, so avert your eyes if necessary!*****

Gabry is not like her mother, who escaped from the Forest and the hordes of Mudo to reach the ocean. Still, she's sure that there's nothing back there, and the thought of leaving her home in the lighthouse, of going past the safety of the fences, absolutely terrifies her. Still, her best friends Catcher and Cira convince her to pass the Barrier to the ruins of the old city for a bit of fun. When they realize the ugly truth, that Mudo can breach the old fences, her entire world is turned upside down. Catcher, her one true love, has been bitten, and she runs home, leaving her friends, to escape the punishment of breaking one of the biggest rules: never go past the Barrier.

With her friends either dead, turned, or imprisoned, Gabry is miserable. She betrayed her friends, and it's obvious that she's a coward. Still, when Cira tells her to find Catcher, that he must be alive, Gabry reluctantly leaves safety to find him. There, she finds an entire bizarre world of its own, and a new boy, Elias, who lives outside the safety of a village and rules. Then, her mother reveals a truth even more shattering, and Gabry finds herself on the same road her mother once tread, facing the same dangers and questions.

OK, I really liked the first book, and the things that bugged me about it (a drawn-out love triangle and a really long opening involving a teenage girl telling us about her problems) were so drawn-out in the sequel. Which is really unfortunate. Now, it's true that Gabry's relationships with Catcher and Elias are much more complicated by factors beyond her control, but I felt like I was watching New Moon, and Bella's constantly oscillating between Jacob and Edward (and I suppose I'm Team Elias, here). And again, her choice is more out of her hands, but it becomes more than obvious that Catcher realizes he can't really be with her, and yet she insists on going back to him, since she's desperate to restore as much of her old life as possible. OK, understandable, she's been through hell, and a lot of things she thought were constant have changed…but, really, at the two-thirds mark, and she's still after him, when Elias is clearly interested…come on. Again, the Mudo are all around, Cira's really  sick, why  is there so much time for you to think about this?

Now, as for the really slow beginning…Mary's opening might have been slow, but I needed the explanations, and she was questioning her world as much as telling us about her life, so that was fine, but, I'm sorry, Gabry just…well, whined. Her being afraid of leaving safety wasn't a bad thing at all (seriously, it's a pretty well-known fact that there's Mudo in the ruins, I'd be scared as hell to go out there, totally understandable), but then it turns into her telling us over and over and comparing herself to her brave, strong mother. Then, later, even after she's done all these pretty brave things, she's still telling us what a coward she is, and Elias literally has to spell out why she's not a total coward and failure as a human being, and her mother later does the same. Basically, something happens, she's questioning herself, and her mother or Elias tells her why she was awesome, and she then has this aha moment, and everything's OK. Jeez, are you really so slow you couldn't figure a single thing out for yourself? She's was completely self-involved at points, and constantly going over everything that happened, and she still couldn't figure any of this out? Plus, it was right after they said something to her that she got it…at least a little pondering would have made it realistic. I just didn't like Gabry all that much, and that really killed my enjoyment of the story.

Plus, there was very little action as compared to the first book, except at the end (which was totally awesome, I was freaking out!), and I was, at times, incredibly bored and questioning if this story was going to ever come to a climax. I absolutely hate to say that, especially considering the fact that I liked the first book so much, but, really, I was starting to question whether I could finish the book. I'm really glad I did, since I want to read the third book (which I really hope is a strong finish), and I really wanted to know more about the world. That we did was great, and questions that her mother Mary raised in the first book were answered, so I really felt like I was beginning to flesh out their world more. But, still, it was way too much of Gabry talking. It's true that she had a lot to think about, and that's fine, she was thinking over things she needed to, but much of it was the same thing over and over. The unevenness is what bugged me the most-she would go over something a thousand times, then her mother would say one thing, and the entire thing was resolved. I saw very little of Gabry thinking critically and coming to her own conclusions. I don't mind a character with flaws, and some of her flaws were fine (being scared, running and leaving her friends, not being strong enough to save them), but I had a huge problem with her lack of perception, because she didn't seem aware of it. She wasn't stupid, necessarily, but a lot of what she figured out seemed so obvious, and everything she said just started grating on my nerves.

Still, the writing was just as lovely. The story arc reflected the story of the first story, but in reverse (not exactly), which was a very cool effect. The world began to take more shape, and the Unconsecrated/Mudo scenes were just as harrowing. The thing that really saved the book was the ending, which was AMAZING! I still can't wait for the final novel, which will definitely introduce a character I can't wait to meet, and hopefully explain even more about what the world looks like. I just hope it's as strong as the first novel.

Grade: 3/5

REVIEW: Trapped by Michael Northrop

http://www.librarything.com/work/10314028

Source: Bought

Scotty Weems and his friend, Pete, are talked into staying after school by their friend Jason, who wants to show them his go-kart project. Unfortunately, it's started snowing heavily, and they're going to miss the last buses leaving at 1:30. Still, Jason's dad has a truck, and, really, how heavily could it snow? But by 5, about 3 feet of snow have buried the road, and they and four other students are waiting in the hallway, watching more and more snow come down. When a truck stalls on the way up the school driveway, the teacher staying with the students decides to brave the snow to get help. Once he's gone, the seven realize they're on their own, that Mr. Gossell probably won't come back.

Although the thought of having the entire school to themselves is pretty cool at first (since one guy, Les, is a hooligan and can bust open any door, including the door to the cafeteria), things begin to get a little hairy as soon as the power fails, and the heat with it. Plus, when they wake up the next morning, stiff from a night on tile floor, it's clear that this storm is like no other, because only two feet of the ten-foot windows are clear, and it's still snowing. As the storm progresses, it becomes more and more dangerous to be inside the school, as the roof begins to give under the weight of the snow, and the snow climbs even higher. The students have to work together in order to make it, until rescue finally arrives.

I read this book by candlelight, after another nor'easter dumped five inches of wet snow on Northern Virginia. So I was cold and hungry (no microwave, after all), and it was the perfect read for the time. To me, five inches seems like a fair bit of snow, so I couldn't even comprehend what a foot-an-hour of snow would even look like. Basically, the plot was simple: seven teens trying not to freeze. The story could have been dull, especially since they didn't have to really fight to survive until the last 50 pages or so. But the tension between the characters kept the story interesting. It's high school, after all, and cliques will be cliques. There was some sexual tension (girls make everything more complicated), plus there was the weird kid Elijah, and Les, who's scary as hell to anyone with sense, and the three average Joe's.

It was interesting to see the cliques disappear as everyone worked together, and then reform as they got sick of each other and frustrated with being stuck there. Plus, Pete and Julie kept sneaking off together, no one can find out if their families are OK, and Scotty wants Krista, the really hot girl, to like him, but feels like a moron in front of her. I also liked how the situation caused them to all see each other in a different light. For example, the freak, Elijah, actually has a sense of humor, and Les isn't quite as scary as he seems, he just resents authority. Plus, Scotty finds the courage to talk to Krista.

Then, it turns into a survival story, which was harrowing to read. As the roof begins to give, it becomes imperative that they get word to someone that they are there, meaning someone has to risk leaving. Which leads to a somewhat expected, but still well-done, ending. This was the part I wasn't too happy with-the ending was really abrupt. I liked that it involved Scotty really coming into his own as a sort of accidental hero, but there wasn't enough information on how the experience affected everyone in the story in the long-term, and how the school returned to normal, which bugged me, because I wanted to know.

What I did like was the way the story was told, from Scotty's perspective. I felt like a teenager was speaking, without it being over-the-top (as in, constant slang), and the things that popped into his mind worked well (I hope my mom's OK, I can't believe I left my phone at home, Krista's so pretty, I really feel weird now that I haven't checked my email in 3 days, etc.). I also liked that Scotty tended towards self-reflection at times, like when he considered it amusing that it bothered him so much to think over all the things that he could be doing in his online games. I liked that, even though he's a jock, he's smart enough to think about the events going on around him. This worked nicely, considering he's our narrator-he tends to notice more than perhaps Pete or Elijah would have noticed.

Basically, it was a quick and pretty intense read, but not the best thing I've ever read. I enjoyed Scotty's telling the story, and the story was cool, but I thought the ending was way too abrupt (at 232 pages, there was room to continue a little). Mr. Northrop has another novel out, Gentlemen, which I hope to read soon, having read the Book Smuggler's review, which is how I heard about Trapped in the first place. I definitely plan to check it out.

Grade: 3.5/5

REVIEW: Santa Olivia by Jacqueline Carey

Source: Bought

I am a huge Jacqueline Carey fan! Although I was a little hesitant to leave Terre d'Ange, I was confident that Santa Olivia would be just as well-written, and I'm glad I was willing to try it.

Santa Olivia is a border town, but when Mexican leader El Segundo declares war on the US, Santa Olivia is transformed into a buffer zone, and they are forgotten about. Carmen Garron  is now stuck in this town in a dead-end waitressing job, and the only thing that changes is which soldiers come through town. Her first true love is a good-old-boy who is one of the General's boxers, but he's killed, leaving her and his baby son behind. Carmen's next love, though, is different-as in a genetic experiment; he's a Lost Boy, a group of wolf-men raised in a lab in Haiti, and he's trying to escape to a place in Mexico where others like him are rumored to be. Although he wants to stay when he finds out Carmen's pregnant, people in the town are suspicious, and Carmen urges him to flee.

So, Tommy and his little sister Loup grow up with just their mom. When she urges them to go to school, they're kicked out the first day because of Loup. As it turns out, she's just like her father-strong, fast, and not afraid of anything, including the teacher. Wandering around town, they end up in the gym, where citizens hone their boxing skills (since winning a boxing match against the General's champion is the only ticket out of the town). Tommy begins working, then training, and Loup follows him. When their mom dies and Loup goes to the orphanage, Tommy lives and trains at the gym, working to win his chance for him and his sister, while Loup tries to fit in with the kids she's now with. When they notice she's weird, she shares her secret, and they use that knowledge to begin righting some of the injustices imposed on Santa Olivia.

I wasn't quite sure what I was going to get with this book. I guess the easiest way to categorize it is urban fantasy (of which I'll admit to having very little), but the paranormal is really a small part, in a way. Yes, Loup has, for lack of a better term, superhuman powers, but it's not really all that she is. That aspect of Loup is just a fact, and we move on-the other characters and her relationships with them play a much bigger part of most of the story.

The characters were what made me fall in love with this book. They are unique and interesting. I loved the odd mix of kids at the orphanage and how their little clique changed as they all hit puberty and started pairing off in couples, and then would break up and re-arrange. Basically, although aspects of the story don't seem like they could be real, the characters are; they seem like people I'd meet on the streets. The characters also complicate the story wonderfully; it's not just Tommy trying to win a boxing match, with Loup looking on. Instead, there are undercurrents of romance, anger, and, later, heartbreak, which is all tied together in a beautifully written coming of age story, something at which Ms. Carey excels.

Although this is not a super fast-paced novel (although there are definitely some moments), I never really got bored, because there's so much that does happen. So when there's not a fight/boxing match, there's a romance developing, or friendships developing. Plus, the prose is very elegant and flows so well that there never seems to be a discernable drag in the story-telling. There is a pretty epic scene towards the end that had me on the edge of me seat, but it's not inundated with blood and gore (definitely not a typical werewolf story). Which was highly refreshing-I love conventional ideas told in new ways (although, like I said, I don't read very many werewolf books, so this might not be as new to other people).

The story might not have tons of action, but it's character-driven and beautifully written. I was not really expecting to like it (boxing is not really my thing), but I was completely drawn in. The sequel, Saints Astray, is due in November, and I'm very excited. I absolutely cannot wait to see how the story turns out.

Grade: 4/5, leaning towards 4.5/5

REVIEW: The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N. K. Jemisin

Source: Bought

This is the first book of the Women in Fantasy challenge. I haven't really been reading fantasy as of late, and I was almost reluctant to get back into it (because, with school, I prefer really short reads, and I sometimes get bogged down in longer books). Boy, was I surprised! This book was such a quick read, because I could not put it down! I was not expecting to like it nearly as much as I did.

Yeinne is the leader of a back-water little kingdom that most of the rest of her world considers a land of barbarians. She is surprised when she is summoned to the city of Sky, the center of the kingdoms, where the most powerful family, the Arameri, reside; technically, the Arameri are her family, since her mother was an heiress disowned for wedding far beneath her. Thus, Yeinne is beyond surprised when she is told she has been named her grandfather's heir, and is part of the contest of succession, and is no longer a baroness of her former home, but must live there in Sky. As she becomes acquainted with the huge, intricate palace, she realizes that there is more than meets the eye: defeated gods commanded by the noble Arameri and her two scheming cousins who want nothing more than to get rid of her.

The gods, or the Enefadeh, are the siblings of Itempas, the central god, and their children. They take an unusual interest in Yeinne-but as she spends more time with them, the odder she feels, as if there's someone else inside her. That plus a potentially budding romance with none other than the Night Lord, Nahadoth, plus her scheming cousins and grandfather, create an exciting story.

The way the story was told was one of my favorite parts of the book-it was a richly textured story with beautiful prose, and the interchange between perspectives was beautifully realized, although confusing at times, until All Is Explained. In a way, this book reminded me of Jacqueline Carey's D'Angeline trilogies, particularly the first one-politics, romance, and mythology all wrapped up beautifully. The politics made for a fun read, with the scheming Arameri trying to outdo each other. It was just enough, without a huge cast of actors and branching family trees. Instead, the other set of actors is the Enefadeh, which was really cool, and not something I was expecting.

The Enefadeh were my favorite characters. I loved the relationships that developed, almost against Yeinne's will, especially with Sieh, who saw her as a mother (why is explained in the Big Reveal) and Nahadoth, who saw her as a lover. Again, the romance with a god was another completely unexpected and wonderful element.

And finally, the world-building was absolutely fantastic. Even though it was an incredibly complex world, the story isn't bogged down with unnecessary details, just enough for you to understand Yeinne's story, and yet the details reveal a rich and complicated world, made up of warring kingdoms (basically, medieval feudal Europe on steroids). I thought that the semi-floating palace (it's on a single pier, basically), with only circular rooms, was so cool, especially because the dead spaces were where the Enefadeh dwelled.

Everything about this book was just pure awesomeness-the characters, the story, the romance, the politics, the world. It served to remind me of how fun it can be to read fantasy-I really needed the prodding. It's also making me want to re-read all my Jacqueline Carey books (not that I haven't read them 80 times!)-I absolutely love authors that include a detailed and complex world and mythology. Speaking of Jacqueline Carey, next up is my review of Santa Olivia, a much different, but no less fantastic, story than her usual.

Grade: 5/5