Showing posts with label Fantasy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fantasy. Show all posts
Sunday, February 3, 2013
Outlander
Sometimes I run into a wall with my reading. I keep starting books but never finishing them. Nothing holds my attention. When this happens the best cure is to revisit an old favorite. Its like hanging out with your best friend when you're really not in the mood to meet new people. Outlander is the book I revisit the most. The thing I find funny about Outlander is how it birthed a whole genre of crappy romance books behind it, none of them touch at all upon what makes this book so wonderful. They just take the hot Scottish warrior in a kilt trappings and put it on a romance novel plot. At its heart Outlander is an historical novel about the times of the Jacobite Risings in Scotland. It uses time travel as a plot device because when the author, Diana Gabaldon, started writing the book the female lead didn't talk or behave as she would have in that time. To solve the problem she made her more modern which helps give us an entryway to the times. It definitely has romantic elements and tons of hot sex scenes but as they are between a husband and wife that doesn't make it fit the mold of a typical romance either. Its about love, loyalty, politics, survival and family. It fits no genre really but the relationship between Jaime and Claire is the one many of us yearn for, partners who love each other, trust each other and fight to the death (literally) for each other. This is my favorite book and interesting my father's as well although we discovered it completely separately. It's not for everyone. Some romance readers don't like it because its too historical, fantasy readers don't like it because the time travel is just a means to an end not a major plot point and fans of historical novels find the romantic, sexual and fantasy elements of it not to their liking. Those who love it like me, however, adore it and all its sequels. It rises to the level of obsession for many of us. Now if only the author could write faster dammit!
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
The Blood Books Vol 1 - Blood Price/Blood Trail
I picked up this book because I was enamored of the new Lifetime series, Blood Ties which is based on this series. I figured if I like the series I would love the books. I was right.
Victoria Nelson is a former cop turned PI. She suffers from a degenerative eye disease which is slowly sapping her of sight. She is nearly completely blind at night. It was due to this that she had to leave the force. In the first book, Blood Price, she witnesses a murder, albeit hazily. The victim's girlfriend hires her to prove it was a vampire. Vicky doesn't go in much for the supernatural but she's looking for a chance to prove to her former colleagues that she is still capable of catching the bad guy so she takes the case. As she unravels the mystery, she discovers that it is not a vampire but a demon who committed the crime and in fact has continued taking victims. In fact the only vampire she finds is a very charismatic, charming and handsome one, named Henry Fitzroy. They team up to stop the demon and have some fun along the way.
In the second book Blood Trail. Henry asks for Vicky's help to find out who is trying to decimate a family of werewolves who just happen to be good friends of Henry's. They team up again to stop the murderer while Vicky ponders this new turn her life has taken. The chemistry between her and Henry comes to a boil in this one and secrets are revealed to her former partner and lover Mike Cellucci.
I love these books. They are fun and don't take themselves too seriously. They also eschew much of the superstitions involving vampires and other creatures. For example Henry is a good Catholic and wears a cross. He can also be seen in a mirror. It's an interesting way to ground these creatures of fantasy in a more realistic world. The pairing of the night blind detective and the creature of the night works well. As they each cover their own place in their investigations. I highly recommend them.
I picked up this book because I was enamored of the new Lifetime series, Blood Ties which is based on this series. I figured if I like the series I would love the books. I was right.
Victoria Nelson is a former cop turned PI. She suffers from a degenerative eye disease which is slowly sapping her of sight. She is nearly completely blind at night. It was due to this that she had to leave the force. In the first book, Blood Price, she witnesses a murder, albeit hazily. The victim's girlfriend hires her to prove it was a vampire. Vicky doesn't go in much for the supernatural but she's looking for a chance to prove to her former colleagues that she is still capable of catching the bad guy so she takes the case. As she unravels the mystery, she discovers that it is not a vampire but a demon who committed the crime and in fact has continued taking victims. In fact the only vampire she finds is a very charismatic, charming and handsome one, named Henry Fitzroy. They team up to stop the demon and have some fun along the way.
In the second book Blood Trail. Henry asks for Vicky's help to find out who is trying to decimate a family of werewolves who just happen to be good friends of Henry's. They team up again to stop the murderer while Vicky ponders this new turn her life has taken. The chemistry between her and Henry comes to a boil in this one and secrets are revealed to her former partner and lover Mike Cellucci.
I love these books. They are fun and don't take themselves too seriously. They also eschew much of the superstitions involving vampires and other creatures. For example Henry is a good Catholic and wears a cross. He can also be seen in a mirror. It's an interesting way to ground these creatures of fantasy in a more realistic world. The pairing of the night blind detective and the creature of the night works well. As they each cover their own place in their investigations. I highly recommend them.
Monday, March 5, 2007
Daja's Book - Circle of Magic book 3
This is the third book in the Circle of Magic series. My whole family reads this series. It's a great deal of fun. It's written for the young adult market but it works well as a straight fantasy that adults can enjoy as well.
Daja is one of the four mages who each of the Circle of Magic books are about. Her magical gifts involve metal and flame. She can control both. She is an outcast from her people as she was the only survivor of the boat wreck that killed her entire family. Her tribe, called Traders, believe this means she carries bad luck. While traveling with her friends and teachers she encounters a caravan of Traders. When one of them sees a piece of organic metalwork that Daja has created the Traders have to find a way around her exile to negotiate a purchase with her. This contact reminds Daja of how much she misses her people.
This is a fun series. Quick, light and an easy read. The characters are engaging and their inner turmoil is explored in interesting ways. It's not great literature but it is damn good fantasy. I enjoyed this nearly as much as the first book. I look forward to the fourth.
This is the third book in the Circle of Magic series. My whole family reads this series. It's a great deal of fun. It's written for the young adult market but it works well as a straight fantasy that adults can enjoy as well.
Daja is one of the four mages who each of the Circle of Magic books are about. Her magical gifts involve metal and flame. She can control both. She is an outcast from her people as she was the only survivor of the boat wreck that killed her entire family. Her tribe, called Traders, believe this means she carries bad luck. While traveling with her friends and teachers she encounters a caravan of Traders. When one of them sees a piece of organic metalwork that Daja has created the Traders have to find a way around her exile to negotiate a purchase with her. This contact reminds Daja of how much she misses her people.
This is a fun series. Quick, light and an easy read. The characters are engaging and their inner turmoil is explored in interesting ways. It's not great literature but it is damn good fantasy. I enjoyed this nearly as much as the first book. I look forward to the fourth.
Monday, January 8, 2007
Looking Glass War
Completed 1/15/07
The Looking Glass war is an interesting take on the Alice in Wonderland story. In the end though I could not help but feel this was a very masculine take on it.
Alyss Heart is the princess of Wonderland. When her family is slaughtered by the Red Queen who wants the crown for herself, Alyss flees her kingdom and escapes to our world. Where she grows up. Of course in the end a princess must become queen and so Alyss returns to Wonderland to face her evil aunt.
This a very fast read, and a fun story. It takes an interesting tilt on the Alice in Wonderland story, making it a much darker more adventurous tale. I couldn't get over the feeling that something was missing however and when I reached the last quarter of the book I realized, it's a boy book. Both Rinaldo and Avery loved this book, but when I read it I think it was the lack of heart that I noticed. It was more about good over evil but not the interpersonal relationships of the people involved. I've decided this was not a flaw in the book it was exactly what it set out to be it's just made for those with a bit more testosterone flowing through their veins;)
All in all it was a fun adventure and I will certainly read the sequels it so obviously sets itself up for.
Completed 1/15/07
The Looking Glass war is an interesting take on the Alice in Wonderland story. In the end though I could not help but feel this was a very masculine take on it.
Alyss Heart is the princess of Wonderland. When her family is slaughtered by the Red Queen who wants the crown for herself, Alyss flees her kingdom and escapes to our world. Where she grows up. Of course in the end a princess must become queen and so Alyss returns to Wonderland to face her evil aunt.
This a very fast read, and a fun story. It takes an interesting tilt on the Alice in Wonderland story, making it a much darker more adventurous tale. I couldn't get over the feeling that something was missing however and when I reached the last quarter of the book I realized, it's a boy book. Both Rinaldo and Avery loved this book, but when I read it I think it was the lack of heart that I noticed. It was more about good over evil but not the interpersonal relationships of the people involved. I've decided this was not a flaw in the book it was exactly what it set out to be it's just made for those with a bit more testosterone flowing through their veins;)
All in all it was a fun adventure and I will certainly read the sequels it so obviously sets itself up for.
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