Mildly Misty, Mildy Ruined

A Court of Mist and Fury
By Sarah J. Maas

Feyre and her people are in the midst of a great showdown against Hybern - the most evilist-fae because he hates humans.

Please know, that this review contains non-specific spoilers, in the attempt to discuss the weakest part of this book.





War. What is it good for? Absolutely nothing.

Unless you're on Feyre's side, then you escape with barely any lasting damage. Superficial cuts and bruises.
Death? No.
Sacrifices? Almost.

Just this time, EVERYONE LIVES!!!

Don't get me wrong. I enjoyed every single moment of reading this book. It was slow going as this book is 700 pages. BUT Maas's writing is candy - you munch and munch and want more.

The ending bothered me the most. There were lost moments where Maas could've really made what was being fought for seem that much more impactful. Only side-side characters lost their lives. None of the main characters suffered. People lose their lives in war. Good people. Yet, by the end, anyone who did make some serious sacrifice it was softened with magic and loopholes.

I do not like fantasies where it's too easy. I want to fear for characters. When characters don't die (and in their situation, should have), it feels cheap. Like Maas just couldn't go there.

Best advice from a professor:

KILL YOUR DARLINGS

Save your darlings for your own drafts, but they only bog down the main material.

I'm only hoping that in her 'Throne of Glass' series, she decides to be a little more ruthless.

4/5 STARS

Biggest elephant in the room: The cauldron? Where people go in it and become something different. I've read this exact fantasy item before. EXACTLY. Lloyd Alexander - an original of fantasy - came up with the cauldron. I'm incredibly angry at the blatant rip off. See my review for "The Black Cauldron" here. 

"Samurai" Bandits

Flame in the Mist
By Renee Ahdieh

Mariko finds herself in heaps of trouble when she is betrothed to the Prince's brother and on the way is attached by bandits. With thorough smarts and a willingness to adapt, she manages to join the bandits in the attempt to destroy them from the inside out.

Sold to me as a Mulan retelling, I can comfortably say this is NOT. It's closer to the 47 Ronin story - the Japanese setting, the disgraced Samurai, and a fight against the throne.

The writing is smooth and poetic. Always in the right places, staying away from bogging down action in any form. Ahdieh finds her moments of peace well. A Japanese-inspired fantasy (I'm pretty sure this is supposed to be that) lends well to gentle poetry.

Mariko as the main character: thorough, logical, adaptable. These three traits help her to analyze and assess situations before jumping headfirst in. It is refreshing to have a character that you get to read their thinking through actions first.

There is a romance. Only know that it was a good, slow build with a cliff-hanger on their status. 

The story was lacking for me. There was no spark. I love me some Japanese culture. This felt a little too much like a checklist: kimono - check, samurai - check, hot springs - check, geisha - check, etc. Which makes me wonder if she termed it a "fantasy" in order to escape criticism for lack of research. She could pick and choose what parts of the culture she wanted and made up the rest. The only part that read like 'fantasy' was the hints at something sinister...

The only part that I sat up straighter while reading was the itty-bitty interjections of magic. *gasp* what?! Magic?! Yes, but very slight. And I was hanging onto every bit. Sadly, it left as soon as it appeared.

If you want a Japanese-inspired "fantasy", an analytical main character, and poetic writing, definitely give this a read.

3/5 STARS

Mid-Year FreakOUT

Hi Book-Sniffers and Librocubicularists,

Oh hey. It's this time of year again. It's a Friday and my brain is dead. It's also 4 days before summer and I can't wait!!!

Mid-year and it's the best time to reflect on what's been achieved. Check out my ongoing Challenge here.


Total Books Read: 33
Total Pages Read: 11,796


Rereads: 3
YA: 13
Adult: 20

Best Book so far...
YA - Strange the Dreamer (Laini Taylor)
Adult - The Mime Order, II (Samantha Shannon)

Best Sequel
The Mime Order, II (Samantha Shannon)

New Release Haven't Read
Firebrand, VI (Kristen Britain)

Most Anticipated Book in the 2nd half of 2015
Tower of Dawn (Sarah J. Maas)

Biggest Disappointment
YA -The Master Magician, III (Charlie N. Holmberg)
Adult - The Passage (Justin Cronin)

Biggest Surprise
Dragonwyck (Anya Seton)

New Favourite Author

Adult - Anne Bishop

Newest Fictional Crush
Simon Wolfguard from Written in Red (Anne Bishop) AND renewed love for Po from Graceling (Kristin Cashore) AND still Emery from The Paper/Glass/Master Magician (Charlie N Holmberg)

Newest Favourite Character
YA - Snow White from Frogkisser! (Garth Nix)


What book made you cry?
Strange the Dreamer (Laini Taylor)

What book made you happy?
YA - Violet Eyes (Debbie Viguie)
Adult - Green Rider, I (Kristen Britain)

Best Book to Film Adaptation
Have not seen any yet.

Favourite Review
Frogkisser! (Garth Nix)

Most Beautiful Book Acquired
Too Like the Lightning (Ada Palmer)

What books need to be read by the end of this year?
For a full answer see my Books To Read tab. But the Top 5 I need to read are:
1. Too Like the Lightning (Ada Palmer)
2. Firebrand, VI (Kristen Britain)
3. The Burning Page (Genevieve Cogman)
4. Babylon Steel (Gaie Sebold)
5. Daughter of Blood, I (Anne Bishop)

Month of 300: 2017

Hi Book-Sniffers and Librocubicularists,

June approaches. One of my favourite times of year:

!!! THE MONTH OF 300 !!!

The only name of the game is read books under 300 pages. It boosts books-read, makes you feel super productive, and allows you to read-off many of those lingering TBR reads.

~Happy Reading~

Spring Cleaning Tag

Hi Book-Sniffers and Librocubicularists,

Spring has.. been here for a while. Cleaning before the summer has begun. I present:

! The Spring Cleaning Tag !

 original here

The struggle getting the cleaning started:

What book or series have you struggled to start because of its size?

The Dark Tower series by Stephen King - first book was terrible, 

all the other books are 500+ (some 900).

 

Cleaning out the closet:

What book would you like to unhaul? 

Knight Errant by R. Garcia Y Robertson - it was an ok book, 

a gift from a friend, but nothing worth remembering 

Opening windows and airing out the house:

What book was refreshing?

The Paper Magician by Charlie N Holmberg - I fell in love in a chapter, 

incredible world, lovely characters, and a different twist exploration of magic.

Washing the sheet stains:

What scene do you wish you could rewrite?

Mirrorsight by Kristen Britain - There's one scene between Estora and Zachary... 

It's terrible. It should not exist. In fact, in my head, it doesn't.  

Throwing out nick knacks:

 What book sequels were unnecessary? 

Anne of Green Gables by LM Montgomery - it is said that she didn't want to write them.

You can tell. After the third one, there's no heart any longer.  

(I did like Anne of Avonlea and of the Island)

Polishing the doorknobs:

What series has a good clean ending? 

Into the Land of the Unicorns by Bruce Coville - With 10 years gaps between publishing,

Coville managed to make this series incredible and with a strong finish. 

Reaching to dust the fans:

What book reached too hard for a message?

Low: Delirium of Hope by Remender and Tocchini - a graphic novel,

heavily inspired by pessimism vs optimism... written by a pessimist in which he tries to 

portray how an optimist  thinks. Swing and a miss for me. 

The art work, however, was stunning.

Tiring, yet satisfying finish of Spring Cleaning:

What book series was tiring/satisfying to finish? 

Penryn and the End of Days by Susan Ee - 

All the excitement, action, and emotion. Punch, punch, dodge. Every book. Fantastic.

See you for Bout of Books 19!

~Happy Reading~