Dina
The writing is 2.5 at best, but my enjoyment makes it more like 5 stars. Wow, did I have fun with this, despite all its flaws. Give me more, please!
This was part very good and part very bad. The lack of plot made it a surprisingly slow read and the fluid writing style made it hard to put down. You can see I'm a little torn here. To read exactly how torn and why, here's my full review: http://sffbookreview.wordpress.com/2012/07/07/kristin-cashore-fire/
Wow! Brandon Sanderson really is as good as everybody says.
My full review can be found at SFF Book Review.
Brandon Sanderson is a star, there is no doubt about that. He knows how to write a story that is so gripping it will make you go “just one more chapter” until you're done. There are a few moments to catch your breath but when Vin's story isn't full of action and intrigue, the characters' growth and development makes it impossible to put the book down.
I devoured this chunky novel in a couple of days and started immediately with book 2. The world is fresh and original, if not exactly happy, the magic system - and you know there is a great one when Sanderson is involved - completely blew me away. It took a while to hit me but when you read that scene where Kelsier, the cocky master thief who stole my heart right away, uses Allomancy for the first time, you'll know why everybody raves about it.
Sanderson did pretty much everything right. He gives us epic fantasy with almost none of the tropes, he puts a spin on recognisable things but surprises us with new ideas every other chapter. The only negative point I could bring up is that - for my personal enjoyment - I could have used more descriptions of surroundings. And maybe less use of the word “maladroitly”. Seriously, Brandon, you seem to like that word. :)
As you can tell, excitement and general awe completely outweigh these minor qualms. Which is why I will put this book into the hands of anybody who calls himself a fantasy reader. Must read!
As always, my full review can be found at SFF Book Review.Let me say that I've had some bad luck with YA fiction this year. Some of the very hyped books have disappointed me terribly and I had almost given up hope. Patrick Ness convinced me with his small but striking book [b:A Monster Calls 8621462 A Monster Calls Patrick Ness http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1356015593s/8621462.jpg 13492114], so I thought his trilogy would be worth a shot.And I was rewarded. This fast-paced YA adventure is a romp through the New World which is as strange as it is fascinating. I was positively surprised at some choices Patrick Ness made for his characters. They aren't perfect in any way, they make mistakes and sometimes, they have to make decisions between one of two evils. At a certain point, the author had me in tears, and at many others at the edge of my seat.I also loved the underlying theme of death, responsibility and courage. The book was much darker than I expected but I enjoyed it so much that I'll be starting [b:The Ask and the Answer 6043849 The Ask and the Answer (Chaos Walking, #2) Patrick Ness http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347305027s/6043849.jpg 6219422] right away. The cliffhanger at the end of this book may have to do with it. But honestly, this is one hyped YA book that didn't disappoint!7,5/10
Wow. I did not expect this. While I really liked book one, there were a few things that botherd me. This was pretty close to perfection. Oree is an incredibly compelling narrator, I fell in love with the characters (especially the ones where I least expected it) and the plot took me by surprise several times. Mostly though, I adored this for its originality. I can't remember reading anything like this, and in such beautiful language. And the ending was bittersweet perfection!
Read my full review over at the SFF Book Review
Excellent book with a few minor flaws. Full review: http://sffbookreview.wordpress.com/2012/05/16/n-k-jemisin-the-hundred-thousand-kingdoms/
Full review at: http://sffbookreview.wordpress.com/2012/04/20/nnedi-okorafor-who-fears-death/
A wonderful and unique book that totally took me by surprise and left me happy, sad and wanting more, all at the same time.
Full review at SFF Book Review.Catherynne Valente doesn't take single wrong step. On the one hand, I am shocked it took me until the first Fairyland book to discover her, on the other hand, I am happy about the amount of unread Valente books I have sitting on my shelves.This novella (which you can read for free on the Clarkesworld Magazine page - or even listen to on audio) creates a sort of mix between a science fiction story about an AI and mythology. There has to be mythology! It's beautifully written and even though it took me a while to get into, it paid off in the end. If you've never read Catherynne Valente, I'd suggest you start with [b:The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making 9591398 The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making (Fairyland, #1) Catherynne M. Valente http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1317793528s/9591398.jpg 6749837]. But if you want a little bite-sized book that will leave you melancholy and thinking for yourself, you may as well choose this one.
After really bouncing off the author's debut (YA), I am so happy that this one hit the mark. Eerie, mysterious, atmospheric - it was everything I had hoped it would be, and this was the perfect time to read it. If you're looking for something a bit spooky with fairy tale vibes, this is it!
Wow! A very good book. Even though I didn't like the ending too much, that was a surprisingly wonderful read. Full review at: http://sffbookreview.wordpress.com/2012/06/06/arkady-boris-strugatsky-roadside-picnic/
What a soap opera, including caricature villains. Very disappointed. I had such high hopes. :(
2.5 stars.
I was told there would be plot twists, but everything was pretty obvious and straightforward from the start. Except for one minor twist at the end, and that didn't really save the book from its very slow middle part. It was okay, I guess.
Yeah, this is firmly YA, no matter what it says. The story beats, the tropes, the freaking love triangle... but also firmly 3 stars.
My full review is over here.
This book started out very promising, only to do lots of little things wrong along the way and disappoint with a predictable, lukewarm ending.