RATING: FIVE STARS
Harry Potter is a normal boy, even if he is a bit downtrodden by the aunt and uncle he lives with. Harry's life at 10 Private Drive leaves much to be wanted: he is bullied by his family, forced to live in the cupboard under the stairs and has very few possessions, let alone friends! You can imagine Harry's surprise when he is visited by a giant of a man, a man who claims he is the grounds keeper for Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
For Harry is a wizard and his mundane life becomes one of spectacular imagination in an instant. Not only does he have magical powers which he can hone in one of the best wizarding schools in the world, but he quickly finds out that he's a celebrity. Harry Potter is the Boy Who Lived, surviving not a car crash as the Dursley's had told him, but being murdered by Lord Voldemort himself--the most powerful and evil sorcerer who has ever lived!
Yet not all of the attention Harry receives is for the best and, aside from new friends, he draws the eye of an evil that has been in hiding for the past 11 years. This evil, which should not be named, has its attention fixed on Harry, Hogwarts and a rare artificial of unimaginable power that is being hidden there--the philosopher's stone . . .
The Good
I grew up on Harry Potter as a child, being lucky enough to be at that perfect age when J. K. Rowling was actually writing them for my age! I remember falling in love with her characters and world from the first few pages of The Philosopher's Stone and reading this again (after about 10 years) was very nostalgic. What really impressed me though, was the sheer number of things I had missed or taken for granted as a child and I had forgotten what a talented writer Rowling actually is. Her characterisation and dialogue is simply stunning and she created a whole host of unique, believable characters that can easily be related to in a staggeringly short amount of time.
What's more, is now I know what's going to happen in the series (as I imagine you do), I was amazed at how ever clever Rowling's writing is. The book is filled with hints and clues to not only what's going to happen at the end of the first, but hints at what is going to happen in later books! Rowling clearly knew exactly where the series was going right from the start, which only adds to the depth of the world and proves the ability of her writing!
I don't really need to talk about the quality of the story here, since you'll be more than familiar with it, but why not? The Philosopher's Stone is an exciting book that's full of magic and imagination. It quickly drew me into the hidden world of wizards and witches and has left me with many day dreams of being a wizard at Hogwarts myself! This book is as good a reads for adults as it is for children and leaves the reader wanting for very little!
The Bad
It's a Harry Potter book . . . What more needs to be said?!
My Thoughts
Harry Potter & the Philosopher's Stone starts what is undoubtedly one of the greatest modern series in fantasy. The fact that it's so loved speaks as a testament to its quality and, if you're more familiar with the films than the books, it's high time you read them. Rowling writes with a fun, enjoyable style that you just breeze through and you can have read a dozen chapters before realising it. The book (and series as a whole) has a prized place on my Shelf of Fame and is truly deserving of that status!
Monday 28 September 2015
Monday 21 September 2015
The Divine Talisman - Eldon Thompson
RATING: FIVE STARS
When Torin, the young king of Alson, drew the Crimson Sword from the ruins of Thrak Symbos, he had know idea what he would unleash upon the world. Like his friends, like every living soul, he had no idea that the ancient talisman was a key, a key that held the insidious illysp trapped in the desolate void between universes. The monsters that seeped through the unlocked doorway were more terrible than anyone could imagine and steal the bodies of the recently deceased. The illysp enslave the very soul of their coil and use it to perform acts of unspeakable cruelty.
Torin left Alson to seek the last vestiges of the Finlorian Elves, the people who had first unleashed this horror and then locked them away. But his quest, as noble as it was, failed and Torin returned to the shores of Alson without the answers he sought. He returned to his capital city in the midst of a coup led by his chief general, a coup in which cost him more than just his crown. Alson was left as broken as the other nations of Pentatia, having no way to defeat the illysp swarms that are bearing against them.
Starving, afraid and beaten, the ever dwindling numbers of humanity forget old banners and country borders. They group together, accepting help from races they once shunned to resist the illysp. Attack after attack wears them down and their own soldiers rise against on the battlefields after being killed. Worse still, a new leader of the illysp has risen. Known as the Boundless One, this leader recognises the power in Mount Krakken, of possessing the very dragon that Allion and Kylac Kronus had so valiantly slain less than a year ago . . .
The Good
Eldon Thompson has finished The Legend of Asahiel off with a stunning book that is the best in the series yet! The story is fast paced and harrowing, filled with epic battles that only grow in scale as humanity is worn down by weakness, despair and lack of numbers. It's a true story of humankind fighting to save its its very right to exist and leaves little to be desired.
Furthermore, Thompson has finally corrected many of the little 'bugs' that annoyed me in the earlier books. Despite being fictional soul-enslaving spirits, his antagonists seem much more real then they have previously and no longer 'smirk' and 'snigger' at the evil things they do. His writing makes them seem much more like beasts in The Divine Talisman, which I think makes them all the scarier. His protagonists, too, have improved. You might remember me saying that they are too weak and docile in the earlier books and the horrors they have lived through had not really affected them in any way. His main characters are finally beginning to be changed by their suffering, growing colder and losing hope. As well as adding a realistic depth to them that the earlier instalments of the series was lacking, Thompson has clearly had a lot of fun delving into this and it adds an interesting aspect to the story.
Thompson has also introduced a number of new story arcs and PoV characters into the book, which helps to invigorate the story and allows him to come to a satisfying conclusion to both the book and the series as a whole, which he might have struggled to do plausibly otherwise.
The Bad
There isn't really much to criticise about this book and Thompson has really found his feet as a writer, producing a story of interesting characters, exciting events and a good pace, all on an epic scale of world disaster!
My Thoughts
The Divine Talisman is a fantastic end to a pretty good fantasy series. It's exciting, full of battles and has pages that burst with magic! It's a great example of what fantasy can be when it's done well and concludes The Legend of Asahiel nicely, while leaving it open for his characters to feature in sequels.
When Torin, the young king of Alson, drew the Crimson Sword from the ruins of Thrak Symbos, he had know idea what he would unleash upon the world. Like his friends, like every living soul, he had no idea that the ancient talisman was a key, a key that held the insidious illysp trapped in the desolate void between universes. The monsters that seeped through the unlocked doorway were more terrible than anyone could imagine and steal the bodies of the recently deceased. The illysp enslave the very soul of their coil and use it to perform acts of unspeakable cruelty.
Torin left Alson to seek the last vestiges of the Finlorian Elves, the people who had first unleashed this horror and then locked them away. But his quest, as noble as it was, failed and Torin returned to the shores of Alson without the answers he sought. He returned to his capital city in the midst of a coup led by his chief general, a coup in which cost him more than just his crown. Alson was left as broken as the other nations of Pentatia, having no way to defeat the illysp swarms that are bearing against them.
Starving, afraid and beaten, the ever dwindling numbers of humanity forget old banners and country borders. They group together, accepting help from races they once shunned to resist the illysp. Attack after attack wears them down and their own soldiers rise against on the battlefields after being killed. Worse still, a new leader of the illysp has risen. Known as the Boundless One, this leader recognises the power in Mount Krakken, of possessing the very dragon that Allion and Kylac Kronus had so valiantly slain less than a year ago . . .
The Good
Eldon Thompson has finished The Legend of Asahiel off with a stunning book that is the best in the series yet! The story is fast paced and harrowing, filled with epic battles that only grow in scale as humanity is worn down by weakness, despair and lack of numbers. It's a true story of humankind fighting to save its its very right to exist and leaves little to be desired.
Furthermore, Thompson has finally corrected many of the little 'bugs' that annoyed me in the earlier books. Despite being fictional soul-enslaving spirits, his antagonists seem much more real then they have previously and no longer 'smirk' and 'snigger' at the evil things they do. His writing makes them seem much more like beasts in The Divine Talisman, which I think makes them all the scarier. His protagonists, too, have improved. You might remember me saying that they are too weak and docile in the earlier books and the horrors they have lived through had not really affected them in any way. His main characters are finally beginning to be changed by their suffering, growing colder and losing hope. As well as adding a realistic depth to them that the earlier instalments of the series was lacking, Thompson has clearly had a lot of fun delving into this and it adds an interesting aspect to the story.
Thompson has also introduced a number of new story arcs and PoV characters into the book, which helps to invigorate the story and allows him to come to a satisfying conclusion to both the book and the series as a whole, which he might have struggled to do plausibly otherwise.
The Bad
There isn't really much to criticise about this book and Thompson has really found his feet as a writer, producing a story of interesting characters, exciting events and a good pace, all on an epic scale of world disaster!
My Thoughts
The Divine Talisman is a fantastic end to a pretty good fantasy series. It's exciting, full of battles and has pages that burst with magic! It's a great example of what fantasy can be when it's done well and concludes The Legend of Asahiel nicely, while leaving it open for his characters to feature in sequels.
Tuesday 8 September 2015
The War of the Worlds - H. G. Wells
RATING: FIVE STARS
Earth is a planet rich in resources. Its pristine oceans and verdant lands glitter upon it like facets on a spinning jewel. It has air to breath, water that falls as rain and heat from the nearby Sun. Humanity is blessed, unlike another race whose world died eons ago. The Martians covet Earth and have been studying it for countless generations, analysing our strengths and weaknesses. Planning and plotting to take what humanity has and make it theirs.
It is in the Nineteenth Century that the Martians finally commence their attack and launch their war machines upon mankind, a race who has never seen anything like them nor has anything to match them. The countryside of Southern England is soon over-run, its denizens blasted from their quiet lives by Martian heat rays and instruments of death.
One man is stuck in the midst of this carnage, lost from his wife and all those he has ever called friend. The man must take risks and use every thread of intelligence he has if he is survive the day and tell his tale of the Martian invaders and how he evaded them . . .
The Good
The War of the Worlds is certainly deserving of its fame and I found the book nearly impossible to put down. H. G. Wells has excelled once again and has produced a story of terrifying ambition and scope. Wells has really thought about the technology of the Martians and the weapons they bring to bear, thoroughly explaining how they use such weapons tactically throughout the book.
The main protagonist (who, as ever with Wells, isn't named in the story) is easy to like and I really got the sense that he has no idea what to do and is merely surviving through the common sense and intelligence we all have. The characters the protagonist meets through his journey are as interesting as him and really come across as individuals, coping with the carnage around them is different ways as people would in real life.
The Bad
Nothing. There's nothing I didn't like about The War of the Worlds.
My Thoughts
The War of the Worlds is undoubtedly a timeless classic of science fiction. I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book and H. G. Wells has proved himself a master of the genre yet again, producing a truly masterful novel. It has a proud place on my Shelf of Fame and is a must read for all of you readers out there! Especially now it can be bought from Amazon as an ebook for virtually nothing!
Earth is a planet rich in resources. Its pristine oceans and verdant lands glitter upon it like facets on a spinning jewel. It has air to breath, water that falls as rain and heat from the nearby Sun. Humanity is blessed, unlike another race whose world died eons ago. The Martians covet Earth and have been studying it for countless generations, analysing our strengths and weaknesses. Planning and plotting to take what humanity has and make it theirs.
It is in the Nineteenth Century that the Martians finally commence their attack and launch their war machines upon mankind, a race who has never seen anything like them nor has anything to match them. The countryside of Southern England is soon over-run, its denizens blasted from their quiet lives by Martian heat rays and instruments of death.
One man is stuck in the midst of this carnage, lost from his wife and all those he has ever called friend. The man must take risks and use every thread of intelligence he has if he is survive the day and tell his tale of the Martian invaders and how he evaded them . . .
The Good
The War of the Worlds is certainly deserving of its fame and I found the book nearly impossible to put down. H. G. Wells has excelled once again and has produced a story of terrifying ambition and scope. Wells has really thought about the technology of the Martians and the weapons they bring to bear, thoroughly explaining how they use such weapons tactically throughout the book.
The main protagonist (who, as ever with Wells, isn't named in the story) is easy to like and I really got the sense that he has no idea what to do and is merely surviving through the common sense and intelligence we all have. The characters the protagonist meets through his journey are as interesting as him and really come across as individuals, coping with the carnage around them is different ways as people would in real life.
The Bad
Nothing. There's nothing I didn't like about The War of the Worlds.
My Thoughts
The War of the Worlds is undoubtedly a timeless classic of science fiction. I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book and H. G. Wells has proved himself a master of the genre yet again, producing a truly masterful novel. It has a proud place on my Shelf of Fame and is a must read for all of you readers out there! Especially now it can be bought from Amazon as an ebook for virtually nothing!
Friday 4 September 2015
Flights of Fantasy - Michelle Miles
RATING: FOUR STARS
Flights of Fantasy is a charming anthology by the indie author Michelle Miles. As the name suggests, it's a work of high fantasy and is filled with elves, magic, dragons and more. The book leaves very little for a fantasy junkie to crave and contains several stories, which are listed below:
Dragons of Emhain: The Usurper
Eorwulf
Dragons of Emhain: The Dragon Master
A Dance Among the Faeries
Dragons of Emhain: An Ancient Magic
Mingled Yarn
The Good
Miles has done a great job with this book and has created a plethora of interesting characters that really grew on me despite the fact they are only present in short stories. Her characters are believable and I really felt for them through the disasters and events that unfolded through several, superbly written stories.
Miles really let her imagination run wild throughout this anthology and her Dragons of Emhain stories are particularly good. I'm not sure whether these are linked to a bigger piece of work she has done, but I really hope so! The stories in Flights of Fantasy seem like snippets of a larger book and I'm dying to know what happens overall!
The Bad
Like most anthologies, Flights of Fantasy has some stories that are better than others. As I've said above, I particularly enjoyed the Dragons of Emhain stories, but many of the others weren't really my thing and I found myself skipping through some of them. That being said, I would like to state that there was nothing wrong with the ones I skipped and they were as well written as all the rest in the collection - they just weren't my cup of tea as stories!
My Thoughts
I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised with Flights of Fantasy since I hadn't read any of Miles' works before. Her stories are well, written, immersing and imaginative. I really rate this anthology and suggest it as a good time-killer for all of you fantasy fans out there!
Flights of Fantasy is a charming anthology by the indie author Michelle Miles. As the name suggests, it's a work of high fantasy and is filled with elves, magic, dragons and more. The book leaves very little for a fantasy junkie to crave and contains several stories, which are listed below:
Dragons of Emhain: The Usurper
Eorwulf
Dragons of Emhain: The Dragon Master
A Dance Among the Faeries
Dragons of Emhain: An Ancient Magic
Mingled Yarn
The Good
Miles has done a great job with this book and has created a plethora of interesting characters that really grew on me despite the fact they are only present in short stories. Her characters are believable and I really felt for them through the disasters and events that unfolded through several, superbly written stories.
Miles really let her imagination run wild throughout this anthology and her Dragons of Emhain stories are particularly good. I'm not sure whether these are linked to a bigger piece of work she has done, but I really hope so! The stories in Flights of Fantasy seem like snippets of a larger book and I'm dying to know what happens overall!
The Bad
Like most anthologies, Flights of Fantasy has some stories that are better than others. As I've said above, I particularly enjoyed the Dragons of Emhain stories, but many of the others weren't really my thing and I found myself skipping through some of them. That being said, I would like to state that there was nothing wrong with the ones I skipped and they were as well written as all the rest in the collection - they just weren't my cup of tea as stories!
My Thoughts
I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised with Flights of Fantasy since I hadn't read any of Miles' works before. Her stories are well, written, immersing and imaginative. I really rate this anthology and suggest it as a good time-killer for all of you fantasy fans out there!
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