Tag: fiction

Review: Spies and Prejudice

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Spies and PrejudiceTalia Vance, Spies and Prejudice

Berry Fields isn’t exactly your typical teenage girl. Working as an assistant for her P.I. father, Berry is more likely to spend her weekend tailing a suspect than hanging out at the mall. She has also caught so many cheating boyfriends and husbands in the act that she doesn’t fully trust any of the guys she meets. So when drop-dead gorgeous Tanner and his stepbrother Ryan show up at her school, Berry is immediately suspicious and hostile — especially when she overhears Tanner dismiss her as “nothing amazing.” Meanwhile, Berry continues to grieve for her mother, who died eight years ago in a supposed accident. But Berry can’t help suspecting that there’s more to the story…and the more time she spends with Tanner, the more she’s convinced that he’s hiding something.

First off, this is definitely not a book you want to judge by its cover (which is pretty awful, am I right?). It has been described as a cross between Pride and Prejudice and “Veronica Mars,” and if that concept appeals to you, I think you’ll enjoy this book! I found Berry a very believable and interesting character, and her investigation into her mother’s death was a great way to propel the story forward. The romance between her and Tanner was well done, not too melodramatic or sappy, and the mystery balanced out the love story very well. I didn’t 100% understand the final solution to the mystery, but I was reading pretty quickly by that point, so I probably just missed a few background facts along the way. Finally, I really liked the way P&P was incorporated into the story; there’s enough for Austen fans to pick up on and appreciate, but it’s not an exact replica of the original plot. I like the fact that this book uses the P&P framework but incorporates its own spin. Definitely recommended to YA and Austen fans!

Review: This Burns My Heart

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This Burns My HeartSamuel Park, This Burns My Heart

This novel, set in 1960s South Korea, tells the story of Soo-ja, the daughter of a wealthy factory owner who has never had to work for a living. She longs to become one of South Korea’s first female diplomats, but her family wants her to uphold tradition by making an advantageous marriage. When Soo-ja meets the handsome Min Lee, she’s convinced she’ll have the best of both worlds: She will be married to an attractive young man, and she’ll be able to move to Seoul and pursue her dreams. But when she marries Min, she learns that she is expected to stay in the house and be a servant for her new in-laws. As Soo-ja comes to terms with her new life, she remembers the young medical student who once urged her to marry him instead of Min, and she wonders how different her life could have been if she’d made a different choice.

I found this book very readable at the time, but the more I think about it, the fewer good things I can find to say about it. I just didn’t really feel like I got to know any of the characters…something about the tone of the novel kept me at a distance. The book was (as far as I know) originally written in English, but it feels like a translation, if that makes sense. The language was too simplistic, maybe? I also thought that the character portrayals were too black-and-white — Soo-ja’s in-laws are basically portrayed as monsters, while it seems like Soo-ja is supposed to be always right. Personally, I didn’t find her very sympathetic, so maybe that’s why the book didn’t work for me. I don’t mean to sound harsh; I don’t think this is a bad book, by any means. It just wasn’t the right book for me, and I don’t plan to seek out more by this author.

Review: Dark Triumph

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Dark TriumphRobin LaFevers, Dark Triumph

This installment of the His Fair Assassin trilogy features Sybella, a novice of the convent of St. Mortain whose troubled past has driven her to the edge of madness. Chafing under the convent’s restrictions, Sybella is eager to receive her first assignment…until she learns that she’ll be staying in the household of the traitor D’Albret, who is waging war against the rightful duchess of Brittany. Not only is D’Albret faithless and cruel, but he also happens to be Sybella’s own father, the man who has made her entire life miserable. Sybella’s only hope is that the convent will allow her to kill him, but her actual orders are very different: She must rescue the Beast of Waroch, a skilled knight who is vital to the duchess’ cause, from D’Albret’s dungeons. As Sybella and the Beast engineer their escape, they begin to develop a strong bond. But will they reach the duchess in time to inform her of D’Albret’s latest treachery?

This book is very hard to summarize, mostly because it’s the second book in a series, and it definitely does not stand alone. The action essentially begins where the first book left off, and most of the major players have already been introduced. So if the premise of this book sounds interesting to you, I would definitely go back and read Grave Mercy first! If you’ve already read and enjoyed it, you’ll like this one too. As with the first book, there’s a nice mix of action, political maneuvering, and romance. I liked Sybella’s character but wished that the Beast had been fleshed out more; for this reason, I wasn’t totally captivated by the love story. The overarching plot of the duchess vs. D’Albret continues to be interesting, and I look forward to seeing what happens in the third book. I also want to learn more about the convent and its role in the political turmoil; there is definitely more going on there than meets the eye! As you can tell, I’m invested in the world of this series, and I highly recommend it to fans of YA and historical fantasy.

Review: Niccolò Rising

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Niccolo RisingDorothy Dunnett, Niccolò Rising

In 15th-century Bruges, commerce is intimately linked to power: the more astute and skillful the merchant, the greater his position in society. So while nobility and ancient bloodlines are still important, ordinary men and women have unprecedented opportunities to raise their social standing. This novel follows the fortunes of Claes, a dyer’s apprentice whose easygoing demeanor disguises an extremely shrewd mind. Among his friends and employers, Claes is regarded as little more than the village idiot, which makes it all the easier for him to obtain useful knowledge simply by keeping his ears open and his mouth shut. When he learns about a risky business opportunity that could result in a huge payoff, Claes doesn’t hesitate to act on the information. But his quest for riches causes him to offend some powerful people, including a Scottish nobleman who has both financial and personal reasons to hate Claes.

Dorothy Dunnett is one of those authors I really want to like. I’ve heard great things about her books, and I love well-written historical fiction, so I thought she would be right up my alley. But when I tried the first book in her Lymond Chronicles a few years ago, I couldn’t get past the first chapter. I was hoping that this book from a different series would work better for me, but unfortunately it didn’t. My first problem was the number of characters; there are too many people to keep track of, and there’s a lot of hopping between different points of view. Secondly, I couldn’t figure out what was happening for a large portion of the novel. Dunnett likes to allude mysteriously to things instead of describing them directly, which I found incredibly frustrating. I didn’t understand even the main plot until the book was almost over! I think Dunnett’s intention was to build suspense and then have a big reveal at the end, but in my opinion, the resolution didn’t make up for the hundreds of pages of confusion I had to endure first. I did enjoy the setting of late medieval/early Renaissance Bruges, but I wouldn’t recommend this slog of a book to anyone!

Review: Star Crossed

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Star CrossedJennifer Echols, Star Crossed

Wendy Mann is a PR expert whose job is to keep rebellious celebrities in line. She’s great at getting PR nightmares to clean up their acts, but not so great at getting them to thank her for it. As a result, her firm is losing business, and her job is on the line. Wendy has one last chance to prove she’s an asset to the firm: she’ll fly to Las Vegas to rehabilitate the image of a young starlet who’s in the middle of a very messy — and public — fight with her ex-boyfriend. Wendy is confident that she’s up to the challenge…until she discovers that her old college nemesis, Daniel Blackstone, is representing the ex-boyfriend. Daniel is just as good at his job as Wendy is at hers, and he’s just as determined to make sure his client comes out on top. When Wendy and Daniel meet again in Vegas, they are surprised to discover a strong mutual attraction. But can they make a relationship work when they’re on opposite sides of someone else’s breakup?

I’m a big fan of Jennifer Echols’ books and have eagerly devoured each one as it comes out. Sadly, however, I think I should have skipped this one. It’s not a bad book, by any means…the writing is fine, and the story is certainly a fun, easy way to spend an afternoon. My problem is that it’s no different from hundreds of other contemporary romance novels; there was nothing unique or compelling to make it stand out in my mind. I also wasn’t terribly interested in the setup of this book. I don’t particularly care about lifestyles of the rich and famous in Vegas, and I would never have picked up this book if Echols hadn’t written it. I was hoping she would be able to interest me in a book that’s not my usual taste, but unfortunately, I wasn’t convinced. I’m still really looking forward to Echols’ next YA novel, Dirty Little Secret, but I won’t continue with this adult series.

Review: The Count of Monte Cristo

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The Count of Monte CristoAlexandre Dumas, The Count of Monte Cristo (trans. Robin Buss)

This classic novel tells the story of Edmond Dantès, a naïve young sailor who seems to be on the verge of getting everything he’s ever wanted: The owner of his ship wants to promote him to captain, and he’s about to marry his true love. But Edmond has jealous rivals, both professionally and romantically, who would like nothing more than to get rid of him and take his place. These men concoct a plan to accuse Edmond of being a Bonapartist — a deadly serious crime in a time when Napoleon has just been exiled to Elba and the French monarchy is still unstable. Although Edmond is innocent, he possesses a highly incriminating letter that seals his doom, and he is sent to France’s most notorious prison. With nothing to do but brood over the cruelty of his fate, Edmond becomes consumed by thoughts of vengeance. When he finally escapes from prison, he creates a new identity as the Count of Monte Cristo and sets out to destroy the men who ruined his life.

First of all, this novel is HUGE — the edition I read was over 1200 pages long — so I was surprised to discover how much of a page-turner it was! Although the plot is very slow-moving, Dumas cleverly builds suspense throughout the novel as Edmond’s plan of vengeance slowly reveals itself. The main thing that surprised me about this novel was how little time (comparatively speaking) it spends inside Edmond’s head. About the first quarter of the book is from his point of view, describing his feelings when he is arrested and imprisoned. But when he escapes and returns as the Count of Monte Cristo, the book barely ever relates his thoughts or feelings. Rather, the most developed characters turn out to be Edmond’s enemies (and a few friends), which makes Edmond’s actions more morally ambiguous. All in all, I’m very glad I finally took time to read this novel, whose status as a classic is well-deserved. I’ve been planning to read The Three Musketeers this year as well, and now I’m really looking forward to it!

Review: Hamlet, Revenge!

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Hamlet, Revenge!Michael Innes, Hamlet, Revenge!

Something is rotten at Scamnum Court. The noble English estate is hosting a large house party in order to produce an amateur performance of Hamlet, but things go wrong almost immediately when cryptic threats — some of them taken from the text of Hamlet itself — are delivered to various houseguests. Then Lord Auldearn, a guest who also happens to be the Lord Chancellor of England, is murdered onstage during opening night. The sheer audacity of the murder makes it particularly hard to solve; although the scene of the crime was packed with actors and spectators, it appears that no one saw a thing. Also, there is no shortage of suspects or possible reasons for the crime. Was Lord Auldearn murdered for the confidential state papers in his possession, or was the motive more personal? Inspector Appleby of Scotland Yard must unravel this complex case and discover a diabolically clever murderer.

I have to confess that I spent most of this book being completely bewildered. There were so many characters to keep track of, and I wasn’t sure who would turn out to be important to the plot, so I exhausted myself trying to keep tabs on everyone! This is also a very cerebral mystery; most of the “action” is conversations between Inspector Appleby and his friend Giles Gott. However, I definitely enjoyed the book more as I got further into it, and the ultimate solution was both ingenious and unexpected. I would definitely recommend having read Hamlet, or at least being familiar with the plot, before reading this book; otherwise many of the allusions and plot twists will be very obscure. Overall, I’m not sure this is quite “my kind” of book, but I did enjoy it and would consider reading more by Innes. There’s a whole series featuring Inspector Appleby, and this book is #2, but I was able to follow everything without having read the first book.

Review: The Ashford Affair

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The Ashford AffairLauren Willig, The Ashford Affair

In this book, Willig takes a break from her Pink Carnation series and visits a different setting, the 1920s in England and Kenya. Addie Gillecote is a poor relation living with her aunt and uncle at Ashford Park. Her deceased parents were bohemian artists, so Addie finds it hard to adjust to her new life, which is bound by etiquette and propriety. Her only solace is the friendship of her cousin Bea, who is outgoing and confident where Addie is quiet and modest. The two girls grow up the best of friends, but when they become marriageable young ladies, their relationship changes forever. Bea marries a handsome young earl but soon finds herself unable to control her husband’s wandering eye. Desperately unhappy, she rushes into an affair of her own — with the man Addie loves. Addie and Bea’s story is framed by the contemporary trials of Clemmie Evans, Addie’s granddaughter, who accidentally uncovers a scandalous secret in her family’s history.

I really enjoy Willig’s Pink Carnation books; they’re a bit silly sometimes, but I love their exuberant treatment of romance and espionage during the Napoleonic Wars. This book has a much more serious tone, which is an interesting departure from Willig’s usual style. Also, where the Pink Carnation books primarily focus on romance, this book is really about the relationship between Addie and Bea. In fact, I think that Bea is the true main character in this novel. She is catty and manipulative and such an unconventional protagonist that the novel felt unique and original to me. The modern-day sections of the book were quite boring by comparison; I didn’t care about Clemmie or her job or her romantic problems at all. It’s understandable that Willig would want to stick with her tried-and-true formula, but I’d like to see her attempt a book without the contemporary framing story. Overall, though, I was very impressed with this book, and I hope Willig continues to write books outside the Pink Carnation universe!

Review: My Life Next Door

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My Life Next DoorHuntley Fitzpatrick, My Life Next Door

All her life, Samantha Reed has been fascinated by her next-door neighbors, the Garretts. They are a loud, messy family with eight children, and they live in a state of almost constant chaos. Samantha’s uptight mother has always told her to stay away from the Garretts, but Samantha is jealous of their seemingly carefree lives. However, she’s only ever watched them from afar…until one day, when Samantha is 17, Jase Garrett climbs up to her bedroom window and introduces himself. Jase is handsome and sweet, and he has a strong sense of responsibility, unlike most of the privileged guys Samantha knows. The more time Samantha spends with Jase, the more she falls for him. But eventually a terrible tragedy forces Samantha to choose between the Garretts and her own family.

I’d heard so many great things about this book that I finally just had to read it! It didn’t quite live up to my very high expectations, but overall I enjoyed the book. I really loved the depiction of the Garretts; it’s rare to see a large family portrayed in fiction at all, much less in a positive light. The romance was sweet and straightforward, without the endless angst and love triangles that fill a lot of YA novels. I also found the plot with Samantha’s mother very interesting…I honestly had no idea where it was going to go! I loved some of the secondary characters, particularly Tim; I would have liked more of his story. Overall, this is a very well-written and enjoyable YA novel, and it would definitely be a perfect summer read!

Review: The Birth of Blue Satan

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The Birth of Blue SatanPatricia Wynn, The Birth of Blue Satan

Set in England during the reign of George I, this book follows the turbulent fortunes of Gideon St. Mars. Gideon is a handsome and rich aristocrat who hopes to marry Isabella Mayfield, the most sought-after beauty in London. His father, however, disapproves of the match, so Gideon visits him in hopes of persuading him to change his mind. Unfortunately, they have a violent quarrel, which becomes a damning piece of evidence against Gideon when his father is murdered later that day. Although Gideon is innocent, his so-called friends in London society immediately begin to suspect and shun him, including Isabella. Only Isabella’s companion, Hester Kean, believes in Gideon’s innocence; with her help, Gideon must hide from the law until he can bring his father’s real murderer to justice.

This is one of those books whose plot seems custom-made for me: a murder mystery, a wrongly accused hero, an interesting period setting, and a slowly developing romance. So perhaps it’s needless to say that I really enjoyed it! The early 18th century is a period I don’t know much about, but it seems fascinating and ripe for dramatic conflict. George I, the first Hanoverian monarch, is on the throne of England, but there are plenty of dissenters who would like to restore the Stuart line to power. This larger conflict is woven into Gideon’s story, and I’m interested to see how events will unfold in future installments of the series. The only jarring aspect of this book, for me, was that all the women were addressed as “Mrs.” regardless of their marital status. An author’s note explains that this was apparently the custom at that time, but it definitely confused me at first! Otherwise, though, I liked this book a lot and will definitely seek out the sequels.