Tuesday 29 December 2015

H10N1 - M. R. Cornelius

RATING: THREE STARS

The world has been thrown into disarray by a coordinated terrorist attack that unleashed the deadly Korean Influenza virus, H10N1, across the globe. Not even the terrorists could have predicted just how destructive the virus would be and humans have been all but eradicated. There are just a few thousand left across the world and civilisation has ended. There are no workers to produce new foods, medicines and electricity. The lucky survivors are fighting for whatever is left, desperate for help from the scant few hospitals that are still able to provide it.

Dr. Taeya Sanchez is one such medic and works in one of America's last remaining hospitals. The staff there are overworked and the only way they are able to help their patients is through assisted suicide, making the pain of H10N1 disappear forever. When Taeya finally has enough and speaks out against the new regime, she is forced to flee her sanctuary at the hospital. She is plunged into a brave new world that is ruled by the gun, surviving only because of the help of an unlikely alliance with a defecting supply gather, Rick DeAngelo.

The Good
M. R. Cornelius has done a fair job with this story and both of the main protagonists are interesting, telling the story from different mindsets. They quickly form a love-hate relationship which Cornelius develops throughout the book as their friendship turns into something more, despite both of them not really wanting it to and disbelieving that the other likes them in a romantic way.

The story itself is also exciting, with lots of action and surprise events, but Cornelius has stayed away from the traditional viewpoints of post-apocalyptic worlds. The book isn't all about violence and people fighting for resources, which features in the book only as pivotal events. Instead, the book is more of a journey of self-redemption, love and survival, which is nicely refreshing.

The Bad
Sadly, some of the characters in H10N1 are a bit bland and stereotypical. Some of them are villains for no real reason and do things which don't actually benefit anyone, even the antagonist themselves. This does make the book slightly implausible at times and, as a reader, I just had to suspend my disbelief and roll with it.

Cornelius' prose it also lacking in description and focuses more on events and dialogue. This does help keep the story moving at quite a fast pace, but it's difficult to imagine the world around the characters some of the time and he often uses generic description to set the scene, such as 'cars pulling up in a forest.'

My Thoughts
Overall though, H10N1 was an interesting read and I enjoyed it. It was more of a story about love and redemption than a grisly post-apocalyptic horror of murder and violence and M. R. Cornelius has a few nice ideas about what living in such a world would be like.

Friday 18 December 2015

The Phoenix Darkness - Richard L. Sanders

RATING: FOUR STARS

The Empire is still in disarray and wanting for a legitimate monarch. Princess Kalila, scion of House Akira, is desperate to reclaim her father's throne and birthright from the usurper Caewyn Martel. The two have already clashed in a devastating battle that halved their fleets and destroyed the Apollo Shipyards - a resource that will be sorely missed in the impending war. For war is coming and the Rotham are mobilising their fleet outside of the Demilitarised Zone. Their ships are being called for one reason: the invasion and occupation of human space.

Calvin Cross is the sole provider of this information, having ventured deep into Rotham space with a small handful of his crew. His mission is dangerous and the warships he scans are not without scanners and he had a Rotham spy in his midst, whose loyalties are ambiguous at best . . . Calvin desperately wants the Nighthawk for this mission, but his ship has been entrusted to Summers. Summers, who must find and destroy the last of the isotome weapons before they can be brought to bear against humankind and its space.

The Good
Richard L. Sanders had written yet another story that is full of twists and turns, The book is exciting and difficult to predict with the sheer number of people trying to create the universe they desire through chicanery and deceit. This means that the story is fast-paced and it gets going straight away, maintaining tension and uncertainty throughout.

The Bad
Once again, Sanders' writing is sadly lacking in description and this did detract from my enjoyment of the book slightly. The Phoenix Darkness is full of novel warships and a whole host of different worlds and environments, yet none of them have been described so there's little guidance for their visualisation. It's a shame really because it means his writing is quite 'stripped down' and predominantly focuses on events. The same is true for his characters and alien races; except for a few vague descriptions here and there, Sanders largely glosses over what they look like.

Another issue with the book is the use of words like should've and hasn't in its prose. Although this isn't a major issue and doesn't really detract from the story, it just doesn't look professional and is a constant (and unnecessary reminder) that the novel is self-published.

My Thought
Overall though, The Phoenix Darkness is pretty good and makes for an exciting and enjoyable read. It's a great instalment to The Phoenix Conspiracy series as a whole and I had a lot of fun with it! It's part of what is one of my favourite science fiction series at the moment and Sanders remains one of my favourite indie authors! I would definitely recommend this book (and series) to anyone who is looking for a sci fi series of action and subterfuge!

Thursday 17 December 2015

Let's Drown Out on 'The Eye of Argon'

One of my friends has just introduced me to a fantasy novel called The Eye of Argon by Jim Theis. Surprisingly, this isn't because the book is a fantastic must-read and the recommendation was actually because the novella was so bad! While I genuinely don't like criticising an author's work, The Eye of Argon is widely considered to be the worst novella ever written and (quite simply), is hilarious to read. I'm not exaggerating when I say that every word the author has used is an adjective and he's basically strung a story together using a theasaurus and terrible fantasy names.

I doubt I'll ever read the actual book per se, but Let's Drown Out have a hilarious video on YouTube where they try to read Theis' work without laughing! It's much funnier than it sounds and is definitely worth checking out!



Wednesday 16 December 2015

The Fellowship of the Ring - J. R. R. Tolkien

RATING: FOUR STARS

When young Frodo Baggins inherits Bag End and a strange ring of invisibility from Bilbo, his eccentric uncle, he pays no mind to it and settles down for the quiet life of a respectable hobbit. Little does he know the significance of the ring and that his possession of it will lead to a dark and arduous adventure. For the ring is none other than the Ring of Power itself and the dark lord Sauron has returned to Middle Earth. His thought is bent on finding the Ring and his only lead as to its whereabouts comes from the creature Gollum. Searching for 'Baggins' in the 'Shire,' Sauron's Ringwraiths speed from Minas Morgal to seize it for their master.

Frodo is forced to flee his home in the Shire and is determined to bring the Ruling Ring before Elrond in Rivendell as Gandalf the Grey instructed. Yet even delivering the Ring to a sanctuary deemed safe is not enough and Frodo is the only one the quarrelling Free Races trust to carry it forth and forever destroy it in the fires of Mount Doom in Mordor. Frodo becomes one of the Nine Walkers to oppose the Nine Riders and, with the help of Aragorn, Gandalf, Boromir, Legolas, Gimili, Merry, Pippin and Sam, means to end Sauron forever.

The Good
So where do I start here?! The Lord of the Rings is still one of the finest works of fantasy ever written and it has a depth to it that has inspired an entire genre. J. R. R. Tolkien is the grandfather of fantasy and The Fellowship of the Ring is a reflection of that. The mythology behind it, the cultures of the races, the history of Middle Earth... The scope of all of these things is staggering and no other author has come close to it as of yet. This book has inspired every generation since it was published, which speaks for the story's enduring quality! It is superbly written and is filled with detail and back-stories that an avid fan can literally lose months of their life reading about.

Furthermore, it's exciting and full of peril. The quest to destroy the Ring truly "stands upon the edge of a knife" and the Fellowship has to give everything of itself for the quest to succeed. I'm sure most people have seen Peter Jackson's stunning film, so I don't really need to go into the plot and characters too much - you all know what it's about!

The Bad
Criticising The Fellowship of the Ring feels like blasphemy, but, to be brutally honest, it was written in a time where authors emphasised description over dialogue and events. The book is quite dry in places and doesn't make for the easiest, page-turning read. In fact, Tolkien spends the first part of the book constructing a very detailed backstory which can get a little stale at times.

My Thoughts
The Fellowship of the Ring is a little dry and over-descriptive at times, but don't let that put you off reading it. It's worth every dry page and the scope of Tolkien's story is simply mind blowing. It really is like you're reading a story from a real world, with a long established history, and the fact that it has birthed the entire genre is evidence enough of its mastery. It's more than worthy of its place on my Shelf of Fame and is a must read for anyone who has only seen the film.

Tuesday 1 December 2015

Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows - J. K. Rowling

RATING: FIVE STARS

Dumbledore has fallen and the Order of the Phoenix has all but broken. None other than the treacherous Death Eater, Severus Snape, is now the headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry and Harry Potter knows that his life will be forfeit if he should return to study there. Even if that was not the case, he knows that he has something much more important to do than continue with his magical education: Dumbledore entrusted him with what is perhaps the most important task of the age and, along with his friends Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger, Harry must find and destroy each of Voldemort's Horcruxes. Harry is the Boy Who Lived and fate has prophesied that he must face Voldemort, for neither can live while the other survives.

Harry's task borders on the impossible and he's forced to become a fugitive on the run from Voldemort's Death Eaters and the Ministry of Magic, which the Dark Lord now controls. His life becomes challenging and full of danger, but Harry knows that he must face the adversity before him with a stout heart if he is to defeat Voldemort and finally put an end to his subjugation and terror campaign.

The Good
The Deathly Hallows is an interesting, exciting book that is certainly unique among the Harry Potter series. This is largely because Harry doesn't actually return to Hogwarts this year and most of the book involves his roaming of the British countryside. That being said, the book isn't boring in the slightest and it's as exciting as any of its predecessors, maybe even more so!

J. K. Rowling has proven her unparalleled ability to bring her characters to life once again and they are as real and engaging as ever. As well as adding to the scope and enjoyment of the story, this makes the inevitable deaths in the war against Voldemort all that more tragic and it's extremely difficult to read about the passing of characters that I kind of regard as actual friends!

I also particularly liked Rowling's epilogue, where she describes Harry and his wife, Ginny Weasley, dropping their children off at Platform Nine and Three Quarters so they can board the Hogwarts Express. This provides a nice little tease for what happens after the story and it's nice to know that even after all of the pain and death in the series as a whole, there is a happy ending at the end of it. I also like the way this scene continues the story forward via the new generation of students at Hogwarts and leaves room for the imagination to delve into what is happening at the school and what it would be like to study there yourself (which I think is one thing we've all secretly done and probably has a role in the series enormous success). It's also nice how Rowling doesn't actually say what Harry did after he defeated Lord Voldemort, leaving this open to the reader's interpretation. I like to think that Harry's seventh year at Hogwarts was so disrupted that he--along with his friends and the other students that were forced to flee the school for their lives--were allowed back to complete their education (where Professor Mcgonagall is the new headmistress), finally having a year of peace where evil doesn't rear its dark head. Once Harry graduated Hogwarts with his N.E.W.T.s, I've always liked the idea that he's so sick of fighting and war he sets aside his ambitions to be an auror in favour of the coveted life of a professional Quidditch player. Once his sporting career invariably wound down, I like to imagine Harry becoming the Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, working in Hogwarts alongside his friend Neville Longbottom. Obviously, this is just how I like to imagine 'what comes after' and everyone will have their own ideas!

The Bad
Once again, Rowling's storytelling is excellent and The Deathly Hallows is the perfect ending to an outstanding series of fantasy and adventure that highlights the importance of friendship and love! I have just one fault with the book and that is it being the final instalment of the series! Don't get me wrong and Rowling concludes it perfectly, but I'm always disappointed that my great Harry Potter adventure is over and I have to find something else to read . . .

My Thoughts
Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows is the perfect ending to Rowling's world renown series and I can't stress how good a job she has done with it. It's a real page turner, just like the other Harry Potter books and is a must read for anyone - Harry Potter is a definite must for anyone's education and should be added to your reading list immediately if you are only familiar with the series through the films.

Sunday 15 November 2015

Harry Potter & the Half-Blood Prince - J. K. Rowling

RATING: FIVE STARS

After Harry Potter's epic mishap at the Ministry of Magic at the end of his fifth year at Hogwarts School of Witcraft & Wizardry, the wizarding world is now aware of Lord Voldemort's return. The erstwhile Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, has been dismissed for trying to ignore and cover the problem up instead of dealing with it and Harry is once again considered a hero. Yet it is too little, too late and Voldemort has not been idle in his secrecy. He has seized more power than many dare to realise and is as dangerous as ever.

So it is with a heavy heart that Harry returns to school for his sixth year of study. Aside from his worries concerning the Dark Lord and his advancement to N.E.W.T. studies, he has learnt that Professor Severus Snape has finally managed to procure the position of the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher and will he will be taking over Harry's favourite classes! Yet Professor Dumbledore has finally taken more of interest in Harry's studies and has invited him to special lessons in which he reveals just why Lord Voldemort is such a dangerous adversary. Before he took on the mantle of the Dark Lord and changed his name, Tom Riddle did something unspeakable and split his soul into a number of Horcruxes that effectively make him immortal and immune to physical death. Dumbledore reveals that each of these Horcruxes must be found and destroyed before the Dark Lord can fall in a task that will prove to be less than easy . . .

The Good
Harry Potter & the Half-Blood Prince continues J. K. Rowling's precedent of darker writing and delves deeper into Voldemort's ever tightening control of the wizarding world. Murder, torture and mysterious disappearances are now common place and have even begun to affect the Muggle world, in what proves to be an interesting development where Rowling reveals, without doubt, that the Muggle Prime Minister of Britain is aware of the existence of magic and its secretive communities! This adds as nice depth to the story and it's really beginning to sink home just how dangerous Voldemort is and how dark the times are becoming.

Rowling also uses this book to reveal more about Snape's mysterious background and why, or why not, he may actually be helping Dumbledore and the Order of the Phoenix to resist Voldemort's new regime. This is a great insight into one of the more complicated characters in her world and it's fun, especially if you're new to the story, applying this to Snape in an effort to work out whether he is actually good or evil!

The Bad
Yet again, there is nothing to criticise with Rowling's story and she has done as fantastic a job as ever!

My Thoughts
J. K. Rowling writes the penultimate instalment of the great Harry Potter adventure with her typical talent of vivid storytelling, engaging characters that seem like real people and page-turning events. The book, as is the series as a whole, is a true testament to the fantasy genre and can be enjoyed by children and adults alike -  there's really no reason not to read it!

Sunday 8 November 2015

Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix - J. K. Rowling

RATING: FOUR STARS

After the fiasco of the Triwizard Tournament at the end of his forth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry, Harry Potter was involved in a terrible incident that saw the death of fellow champion Cedric Diggory and the Lord Voldemort's rebirth! Yet none but Professor Dumbledore are keen to believe Harry's tale and, worse still, Cornelius Fudge (the Minister of Magic) believes Voldemort's apparent rise is a plot of Dumbledore's to seize power. Fudge is desperate to cover the whole thing up and has begun a vicious slander campaign at Harry and Dumbledore's expense. Fudge has even gone as far as appointing Dolores Umbridge as the Hogwarts 'High Inquisitor,' a position he has invented to control the spread of rumours at Hogwarts itself!

Yet Fudge's closed-minded fear does not deter Albus Dumbledore. The headmaster is busy at work and re-establishes the Order of the Phoenix - a secretive group that is dedicated to defeating Voldemort and his campaign of terror whatever the cost. Harry is quickly drawn into the group and must use all of his wits if he is to survive his fifth year of study and ready himself, friends and peers for the war to come . . .

The Good
The Order of the Phoenix is the point where the Harry Potter story begins to grow darker and J. K. Rowling's writing becomes more gritty as she delves into the atrocities Lord Voldemort is committing as he gathers new and old Death Eaters alike to his cause. Rowling has put a lot of thought into the story and it is more a tale of intrigue like the early novels in the story were. I found the twists and turns of this book very exciting to read and she's really beginning to set the precedent for later instalments of the series.

Rowling has also done a brilliant job with Umbridge's 'love to hate' character. Umbridge is truly a despicable woman and her actions frequently left me seething to rage, even though Umbridge cannot be called 'evil' in the same way as Voldemort and his followers are. Yet there are different shades of darkness and Umbridge is certainly not good or innocent!

The Bad
Once again there is nothing to fault with this book per se and the only issue I have with it is a bit of upset involving one of my favourite characters and a certain, mysterious archway . . .

My Thoughts
The Order of the Phoenix continues the Harry Potter series in a darkening instalment that finally sees Lord Voldemort return to power and begin preparations for a new war to purify wizard-kind. It's exciting, superbly written and is almost impossible to put down!

Monday 2 November 2015

Harry Potter & the Goblet of Fire - J. K. Rowling

RATING: FOUR STARS

Harry Potter's fourth year at Hogwart's School of Witchcraft & Wizardry promises to be his most exciting one yet. True, the inter-house Quidditch league has been cancelled this year, but this is due to the fact that Hogwarts will be hosting the Triwizard Tournament - a competition that hasn't been seen for a terribly long count of years! The representatives of Durmstrang Institute are arriving for the competition from Scandanavia, along with those from the French, Beauxbatons Academy of Magic.

Each of the the three world renown magical schools will have a champion chosen by the Goblet of Fire, who will compete against each other throughout a series of dangerous and possibly fatal challenges for the glory of their school. Yet there are those who seek to ruin harmless fun and twist it to their own purposes. Even as Cedric Diggory, Fleur Delacour and Victor Krum are chosen as champions, so is Harry Potter in a mysterious and unprecedented violation of the tournament's rules! Yet Harry is bound by magical contract to compete, despite his fears and those of Albus Dumbledore that something sinister is afoot . . .

The Good
The Goblet of Fire is one of the most exciting instalments of the series so far and has several interesting aspects to its story. The first is the feature of the Quidditch World Cup (which was sadly left out of the adapted movie), which sees Harry and the Weasley family travel via portkey to see Ireland play Bulgaria somewhere in the English countryside. As well as being fun and novel to read about, it gives a nice introduction to Krum, the early activities of Voldemort's Death Eater's and builds an essential backstory to the 'Triwizard Conspiracy' as a whole.

As well as the beginning, the Triwizard challenges are also great fun to read about and J. K. Rowling has detailed Harry's anxiety and misgivings about competing well. I admit that although I am a fan of Quidditch of the matches Rowling describes, Gryffindor winning almost every match can get a bit repetitive. The absence of the school's league in this book helps give a nice break from it and means it's even better in the next book when it all kicks off again!

The Bad
Once again, I have nothing to fault with the book and Rowling has done a fantastic job bringing her world and characters to life!

My Thoughts
Harry Potter & the Goblet of Fire is one of the most exciting and unique books in the series and continues Rowling's story in the same manner of literacy excellence as its forebearers. The characters are lively and realistic, it's exciting and Rowling writes with a vivid, flowing style that makes the book almost impossible to put down!

Tuesday 27 October 2015

Harry Potter & the Prisoner of Azkaban - J. K. Rowling

RATING: FIVE STARS

Harry Potter has just finished his second year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. That year was a dangerous time and saw several attacks on muggle-born students when an eidolon of Lord Voldemort opened the fabled Chamber of Secrets. Harry played a large role in saving the school and, as the summer holidays draw to a close, he's hoping for a quieter year.

Yet fate seems to have its own ideas and the notorious murderer Sirius Black has escaped from the wizard prison, Azkaban. Harry doesn't know why, but the Ministry of Magic has suddenly taken an unprecedented interest in his personal safety and he soon comes to suspect that the murderer may be connected with his past and the first war against Lord Voldemort. Harry and the staff of Hogwarts are on high alert, but Black has his own ideas and was a master trouble-maker when he studied there, knowing several ways into the school's grounds that even Dumbledore doesn't know exist . . .

The Good
The Prisoner of Azkaban was always my favourite Harry Potter book when I was growing up and that certainly hasn't changed now. Re-reading the story was very nostalgic and I quickly lost myself in Rowling's wonderful world of magic and imagination. Once again, Rowling's story is excellent, being well-paced and properly developed. Her characters are as dynamic and realistic as ever and the book doesn't lack for excitement.

One of the other things I really liked about this book is how it goes into Harry Potter's past and Rowling has begun to build a backstory for Harry's origins, of his parents and the first war against Lord Voldemort that is critical to the overall series, but is also fun and interesting to read about.

The Bad
Once again, there is nothing I didn't like about this book and even the hardest critic would struggle for negative points. Despite being a children's book, it still stands up to an adult's mind and is a real gem for all ages of reader alike.

My Thoughts
The Prisoner of Azkaban is a superb instalment of the Harry Potter series and did not disappoint me. The book is exciting and full of all the magic and characterisation that first made me fall in love the series all those years ago . . .

Friday 9 October 2015

Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets - J. K. Rowling

RATING: FOUR STARS

Harry Potter is very different from other teenagers, mainly because the summer holidays are his least favourite time of the year and he dreads having to spend those hot months with the Dursley's in Private Drive. For Harry Potter is not like normal boys. He is a wizard and spends most of his time at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, where the fantastic has common place,

And so he waits patiently in the muggle world for his second year at Hogwarts to begin, excited and full of anticipation. But Harry soon finds that not all is what it seems this year at Hogwarts and old forces that are full of chicanery are at play. The Chamber of Secret's has been opened for the first time in 50 years. The deadly monster that lives there has been unleashed and it is set on but course: to continue the iniquity of Salazar Slytherin and purify Hogwarts of all muggle-born students . . .

The Good
J. K. Rowling continues her Harry Potter series with a fantastic book that's full of suspense and intrigue as she unravels the mystery of a sinister plot. She has established the events well and even leaves clues throughout the book as to what exactly is going on, which are fairly obvious if you already know the story beforehand and is yet another example of how clever her writing is. Rowling has stayed true to the dogma she established in The Philosopher's Stone and the book is bursting with magic and imagination in every page!

Rowling's characterisation is simply superb and she had an uncanny way of bringing her world and characters to life. Her prose style is very light and flows easily meaning that I read chapter after chapter without stopping for a break as I do in some 'heavier' works that require more concentration. I think this is largely due to the fact that the series is aimed for children and young adults, but, her colourful writing and characters make the book just as enjoyable for adults!

The Bad
Like I said before, this is Harry Potter . . . What could be bad about it?!

My Thoughts
The Chamber of Secrets continues Harry Potter's great Hogwart's adventure in a vivid, page-turning style and makes a great instalment to the acclaimed series. Rowling has shown once again why her books have been so successfully and I had a lot of nostalgic fun reading this book!

Monday 28 September 2015

Harry Potter & the Philosopher's Stone - J. K. Rowling

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 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.

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!

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!

Friday 14 August 2015

The Chronicles of Riddick: Ghosts of Furya - Angela B. Marcala-Guajardo

RATING: THREE STARS

Left for dead in the ruins of a desolate world, Richard B. Riddick is alone and wild. He is little more than a child who survives in the brutal rainforests of Furya. His people would not be cowed by the Necromongers and fought until the last, until nothing remained except a newborn babe who was strangled by his own umbilical chord during his birth and left for dead.

Riddick was alone, until Waters and her team managed to find him. An elite squad of marines sent from Earth to investigate the rumours surrounding Furya's fall, they decide to bring Riddick back to their home when they finally return. Riddick is quickly pushed into the marines by Waters, whose unparalleled physical abilities quickly turn those he trains with against him . . .

The Good
Angela B. Marcala-Guajardo has done a fair job with this work of fan fiction and has created an interesting story into Riddick's origins, although I'm not sure whether these are her own ideas or if she has merely pieced a story together from what the creators of the Riddick franchise have already established. Regardless, the story paints an interesting picture of the Furyan's early life and I enjoyed reading about a man who, after watching the films, has become my favourite anti-hero protagonist.

The story is far from a long one and it probably didn't take much more than an hour for me to read on and off, but it has a good pace for a novella and Marcala-Guajardo has a good balance between descriptive prose, dialogue and events so the book was never stale.

The Bad
Sadly, Ghosts of Furya falls into the classic pitfall of many indie books and is riddled with grammatical and spelling errors. While this isn't a major issue, there were too many to be overlooked. I am an indie writer myself (publishing works under the name of Taylor P. Davidson), which may have made me a little pedantic about this and I found the mistakes subtracted from the story at times.

Another aspect with the book I didn't like was Marcala-Guajardo's use of words such as 'gonna' and 'gimme' in her normal prose. I'm not really a fan of authors doing this and, although I hate to say it, believe it makes for bad writing. It's reflective of how people speak so I can see why it's used, but Marcala-Guajardo over did it and I think such a technique has no place in descriptive prose, which quickly became old and irritating.

My Thoughts
Despite a few flaws that affected my enjoyment of Ghosts of Furya, it was a good read and provides an interesting look into Riddick's early years. It's a short book that is quick to read, making it perfect for any Chronicles of Riddick fan who's looking to kill a bit of time.

Sunday 9 August 2015

The Path of Daggers - Robert Jordan

RATING: FOUR STARS

Rand al'Thor is the Dragon Reborn, The Lord of the Morning, the storm prophesied to bring doom to the Dark One, to reseal him in the accursed prison Shayol Ghul. But he has grown arrogant and cold in his power. Gone is the carefree and modest boy he was when his life was that of a simple farmer, before Ishmael touched the world for the first time since the Age of Legends. He sheds no tears now and thinks nothing of dealing judgement and death. He is a ruler, wearing stolen crowns upon his brow. He is a general, leading vast armies that fight and die in his name. He is the Dragon Reborn; the world will both weep and rejoice at his passing.

Sitting upon the throne of Ilian, Rand seethes at the Seanchan invasion of Arad Doman. He has a war to prepare and can't continue to fight it on so many fronts. The Shaido Aiel are everywhere and are as insidious as ever. Many of the Forsaken still make their plans against him and the White Tower, even divided, is determined to use him. Too many fronts and too little time. So Rand decides to strike out at the Seanchan and drive them into the sea in a repeat of his victory at Falme. Legions of damane, shackled women who are powerful in the One Power, walk with them and Rand seeks another trump card should his Asha'man fail. He looks to use an artefact of legend to his advantage, not understanding its power or the strange illness that's afflicting all those who can touch the Source. He makes his first mistake, one that may shatter the Black Tower and breed him more enemies than allies. Worse still, the Bowl of Winds has been used. The unnatural long summer that has afflicted the lands has broken into storms and blizzards that leaves whole armies shivering in their wake. Winter is coming and the Dragon Reborn is more alone than ever . . .

The Good
Once again, Robert Jordan has created a seamless masterpiece of high fantasy. His world and characters are rich and detailed to the point where I'm beginning to understand his major protagonists as people. It's interesting how each character and faction have their own relatively selfish goals and dilemmas in their various storylines, which all work to defeat the Dark One, yet have very different mechanisms and outcomes. They work with Rand because it suits their end rather than blindly following him, which is redolent of real life where people work to benefit themselves as much as others and adds a real edge of realism to The Path of Daggers and Wheel of Time as a whole. With the notable exception of George R. R. Martin, this is something many authors overlook and fantasy protagonists are often simply just amazingly altruistic.

I also like how Jordan's been developing Rand's character throughout the series and just how much he has changed has become evident in this book. The events Rand has survived through, along with the burden of saving the world and fulfilling the Karaethon Cycle, have taken their toll. Add that to the insanity that stems from using saidin and nobody could remain the same, which creates one of the most fascinating and deepest layers of the story.

The Bad
Sadly, the last few books in The Wheel of Time have been following a trend where nothing much really happens for large parts of it. The Path of Daggers has fallen into the same pitfall and is predominately telling a story of people walking around and talking. Once again, it seems to be laying the ground work for future events rather than carrying the story forward itself. However, it's worth noting that the story picks up towards its end and I have the feeling that Jordan is going to break this mandate soon, allowing The Wheel of Time to grow as exciting and addictive as it was in its early books.

My Thoughts
The Path of Daggers is a fantastic read and don't let my criticism of it being slow put you off it or The Wheel of Time as a whole. Set against a stunning backdrop that even rivals New Zealand as Middle Earth, the book is full of epic struggle, betrayals, failure and success. It's got swords and battles and users of magic, being a masterful work of fantasy. I can't wait to continue the series with Winter's Heart, its ninth instalment, and can't stress enough how anyone who likes fantasy needs to begin their adventure into The Wheel of Time.

Tuesday 4 August 2015

Waterstones Releases the Ending of A Song of Ice & Fire!!!

What?! Waterstones has released the ending to A Song of Ice & Fire?! I probably thought exactly the same thing as you when I saw the article's headline pop up and could barely contain a sense of terrified, confused excitement. I'm a huge fan of the series and, since discovering George R. R. Martin, he has become one of my favourite authors. But should Waterstones have released the ending ahead of GRRM's books and HBO's television series?

My answer is 'no,' although, in all fairness, I don't know if Waterstones actually have. After a moment of weakness that I nearly acted on, I decided not to read the article and plan to wait for the upcoming books and series to have the story told properly. I did read the article's description though and apparently Waterstones have released the original outline of the epic series, which GRRM made when he was trying to sell his idea to publishers. The description said the storyline has since diverged somewhat, so who knows how similar the ending will be to GRRM's original idea now ASoIaF has matured.

I guess you have the choice to find out for yourself and can read the article here. To read or not to read? The choice is yours and only one thing is certain, there's no turning back if you go through the looking glass . . .

Sunday 2 August 2015

The Obsidian Key - Eldon Thompson

RATING: THREE STARS

When Soric, an insidious and conquering sorcerer, declared war on Alson less than a year earlier, Jarom was forced into a birthright he had never asked for. Torn from his quiet life as the Farson of Diln, he soon found himself floundering as the new king following his father's brutal assassination. Jarom's quest to defeat Soric and an awakened demon queen from a bygone age drove him to seek out the fabled Crimson Sword, the magic of which promised to be Alson's salvation. But the talisman was more than just hidden away and served as a key, locking a more dangerous enemy than anyone could imagine in the astral plane they come from.

The Illysp rose on mass when Jarom took the Crimson Sword and began, in secret, a new invasion of Pentania. It is not long before the new king learns of the Illysp and he embarks upon a dangerous quest to the distant shores of Yawacor. Legends say that the remnants of Finlorians, elves who are ancient and wise in the use of magic, fled to the most inexcessible regions of the far continent after their civilisation on Pentania collapsed. The Finlorians, who had once pervailed over the Illysp and locked them away. Jarom must find them if he is to save his country and friends. He must speak with their elders and learn their dearest secrets,

The Good
The Obsidian Key is fast-paced and exciting, being full of the same gripping danger and strife that made The Crimson Sword so exhilarating. Many of the enemies Jarom made in the first book resurface and Eldon Thompson has managed to end many of the story arcs that were left open in favour of new ones that should develop interestingly.

The Bad
Once again, Jarom's character was one of the worst things about the book and he was understanding and docile to the point that it wasn't plausible or reflective of real life. No matter what happened to him, he never became angry or hurt over events or betrayals and worked things through logically so he could emphasise with that person. Even the nicest and wisest people in real life aren't that understanding and forgiving, which added an unbelievability to an already bland character, Furthermore, it rendered Jarom's acts of violence slighty absurd when he suddenly dove into battle and began hacking down enemies left, right and centre.

As in the series first book, The Obsidian Key is full of extremely stereotypical villains and cheesy mannerisms. They 'snicker' and 'smirk' over the 'evil' things they do at every chance, which, again, is slightly unrealistic. Criminals in real life commit crimes and hurt people because it works to benefit them in whatever way, rarely because they enjoy being 'evil.' A man doesn't 'smirk' and 'snicker' when he robs or store or shoots someone dead, and I find it a bit unplausible when Thompson's antagonists do this.

My Thoughts
Overall though, The Obsidian Key was a good read and was a nice instalment to The Legend of Asahiel. I enjoyed reading it and am looking forward to finishing the trilogy in The Divine Talisman sometime soon.

Friday 24 July 2015

Biggun: A Short Story - L. X. Cain

RATING: TWO STARS

Biggun: A Short Story tells the tale of a young mother who is trapped in her house during a zombie apocalypse. Her resources are dwindling and she is left with Biggun -- a shotgun given to her by her father -- to protect her young baby. Zombies are everywhere and they quickly realise that the young woman is barricaded in her home. Their attempts to invade it are relentless and eventually they are bound to ooze through her defences . . .

The Good
L. X. Cain has done a pretty good job with the story and has managed to paint a convincing picture of a mother desperately trying to protect her baby. He has thrown an interesting aspect into the story (which I won't spoil for you, but will be fairly obvious if you read it), which helps make it stand out from the other, more conventional zombie kill-fests out there.

The Bad
As with any zombie apocalypse book, the story itself is fairly predictable and isn't anything special. It's full of rotting corpses, gnashing teeth and the death the doom of the world brings. If you're looking for something new and deeply engaging, Biggun will definitely leave you feeling a bit disappointed.

My Thoughts
Biggun is exactly what it is says on the cover and is undeniably a short story. I doubt it'll take you much longer than fifteen minutes or so to read, but those fifteen minutes are fairly enjoyable. Cain has done a reasonable job in establishing a character and a snippet of her life in the short amount of prose he has used. The book certainly isn't something that you should rush online to buy, but it's perfect if you just want to kill a bit of time by diving in gristly horror.

Monday 1 June 2015

GRRM is all set to release A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, a prequel to ASoIaF!

Anybody who's familiar with George R. R. Martin, who is often affectionately called GRRM by his fans, will know that he is writing a hugely complex work of fantasy intrigue called A Song of Ice & Fire. These critically acclaimed novels are international best sellers in themselves and have been adapted into Game of Thrones, one of television's biggest shows.

While it is taking GRRM a long time to write The Winds of Winter, the sixth instlment of the series, he is managing to get a few spin-off novels into print. He released The World of Ice & Fire in 2014 and now has another book ready, which comprises all three prequel novellas about Aegon Targaryen's early life, where he is know as Egg and squires for Ser Duncan the Tall . . .

I expect that A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms will be a must-read for any ASoIaF fan and is available for preorder now, being set for release on 6th October 2015! I think this book is well worth watching out for and will provide a much needed Westerosi fix! One that I'm certainly eager to get!

Thursday 21 May 2015

Release Date of Ridley Scott's 'The Martian' Is Announced!

The Martian by Andy Weir is one of my favourite books ever and is firmly placed on my Shelf of Fame. It's not just me who has recognised its quality and the book was actually voted the best science fiction novel of 2014 in the Goodreads Choice Awards! Without going into too much detail, which can be read in my review, the story outlines the struggles of Mark Watney when he is stranded alone on Mars. Presumed dead by his ship-mates, NASA and the peoples of Earth, Watney must use the scant resources available to him to produce food, water, oxygen and, ultimately, find a way to send a message back home . . .

You can understand then why I was excited to learn that Ridley Scott had taken an interest in the book when he announced that he would be adapting The Martian into a feature-length movie staring Matt Damon as Mark Watney. The book will undoubtedly adapt well to a film and it's original release date of March 2016 has recently been moved forward to 25th Novemeber 2015! This is a huge announcement for science fiction fans and Scott's The Martian will probably be one of the biggest sci fi films of the year! If you don't believe me, there's plenty of time to grab a copy of the book and see for yourself before the film is released!

Scott has now released the official trailer for the movie, along with two teaser trailers to wet our appetites:




Monday 13 April 2015

Messenger's Legacy - Peter V. Brett

RATING: THREE STARS

Peter V. Brett continues The Demon Cycle and the story Mudboy (which was first published in Unfettered in 2013). Messenger's Legacy is set just after the events of The Daylight War and introduces a new character to the series, Briar Damaj. Born as a son of two people's, Briar Damaj is only a child when a tragic accident sees his family killed in a vicious Coreling attack. But rather than accept the help of his village, Briar flees into the wilderness and makes his home amidst a refuse dump where he must hone his physical and mental skills if he hopes to survive the demons that hunt there . . .

The Good
Messenger's Legacy provides an interesting insight into one of the series new characters and develops his background well, using the fact he personally knows Ragan, Arlen's mentor, to help develop his history in the story, rather than just introducing him as a random person. As well as this, Brett uses the story to reveal more about demon behaviour and introduces some new ways of fighting them in circumstances where warded weapons are not available.

The Bad
Sadly, Messenger's Legacy isn't quite as exciting as the other intermediary novellas Brett has written for The Demon Cycle and I would have liked to have read more about Arlen's past than anything (as in The Great Bazaar and Brayan's Gold). The story is lacking the same excitement seen in the others and, since many of the characters are new, it's hard to engage with them in the same way because the story isn't long enough for them to be developed fully.

My Thoughts
Messenger's Legacy is an interesting introduction for who is clearly going to be a prominent character in the later books of The Demon Cycle. It's definitely worth a read for any fan of the series and has really wet my appetite for The Skull Throne, which is due to be released on 9th April 2015 in the UK!

Tuesday 7 April 2015

The Crimson Sword - Eldon Thompson

RATING: THREE STARS

Although King Sorl has driven Alson into the dust financially, it was a quiet and peaceful place. Jarom loved his life as the Farson of Diln and relished in the responsibilities of protecting his village. But the peace and tranquillity Jarom loves is shattered when an evil wizard invades Alson and lays siege to Kyrnwall. Even as the wizard's mercenaries raid and plunder the surrounding countryside, Jarom is charged with a great mission and, along with Allion, his best friend, heads to Kuuria to beg help from their aged emperor.

Yet things do not plan and a terrible evil has woken from its two thousand year slumber. A demon queen, forgotten by the ages, sees only weakness in the island continent of Pentania and decides the Age of Man is all but over. Her armies of dragonspawn ride out to bring the continent to its knees and Jarom knows that only one thing has the power to stop her - the fabled Crimson Sword, one of the great talismans the Ceilhigh Avatars used to forge the world . . .

The Good
Eldon Thompson has managed to create a story that is full of peril and adventure, which reads like cheesy, old-school fantasy (despite being written in the 2000's). I really enjoyed this 'feel' to the book and it was nice to read about a hero embarking on an epic quest to slay evil and save his home. The small size of Thompson's map also helps because it cuts down on the long, arduous travelling that fills many works of fantasy, allowing him to greatly increase the pace of the story so it's pretty much non-stop action all of the way through!

The Bad
I'm not going to say that The Crimson Sword is a bad book and I certainly enjoying reading it, but it did have a few problems that detracted from my enjoyment of the story. The first, and probably the worst one of these, was with Jarom, one of the main protagonists. Jarom's character was very passive, thoughtful and forgiving, which didn't really fit with him becoming a great hero and vicious warrior. Despite all that was happening to Pentania, he never really got angry about it and his motives for trying to save it were pretty much just to be noble and fulfil what he perceived to be his destiny. I found this slightly odd and didn't really think it was believable - anybody would be raging if their country has been assailed by armies of darkness that are going about slaughtering people and burning settlements to the ground!

The second issue I had with the novel was with its villains, who were very stereotypical. Thompson frequently had them being evil just for the sake of being evil, which authors such as George R. R. Martin have made me sceptical about by showing me that evil actions are usually committed due to a person acting in their own self interests rather than to harm people. In addition to this, all of his antagonists were frequently described as 'smirking,' 'sneering' and 'snickering.' This got old quite fast and I don't really think these expressions are ever much use in trying to portray wickedness in a character. No matter how evil someone is, would they really smirk after they've burnt down a village and slaughtered it's inhabitants? Would they really snicker when people are captured to be fed alive to dragonspawn? Sadly, I think this easily avoidable mistake made the story's antagonists pretty bland and unremarkable.

My Thoughts
Eldon Thompson has really let his imagination go wild when writing The Crimson Sword and has created an epic story where light faces darkness. The novel is fast-paced, exciting and I highly recommend it to anyone who is looking for an immersing read. I can't wait to continue Jarom's adventures in the next book in The Legend of Asahiel, The Obsidian Key!

Thursday 2 April 2015

GRRM Releases Another Excerpt From 'The Winds of Winter'

George R. R. Martin has just released a new excerpt from his upcoming novel, The Winds of Winter, the next instalment of his popular and critically acclaimed series, A Song of Ice and Fire. Although this isn't quite as exciting as announcing a release date for the book, it's certainly interesting and provides a good teaser for the widely anticipated sequel.

The excerpt, which can be read on his website, features the Lady Alayne as the PoV character, who is apparently being forced into a political marriage. For obvious reasons, I don't know enough about the plot to speculate on this too much, but Lord Petyr Baelish is involved in the scene so the arrangement can't be good for Alayne! Anyway, never mind what I think and read the excerpt for yourself - afterall, it's only a click away!

Monday 30 March 2015

A Crown of Swords - Robert Jordan

RATING: FIVE STARS

Rand al'Thor, the Dragon Reborn, is not a man to be trifled with as he grapples with madness and bears the weight of the world upon his shoulders. He has taken Tear, Cairhien and Andor, uniting their peoples and armies beneath his banners. Now he turns his attention to Illian and Sammael, the Forsaken who has taken up residence there. Rand has made his plans and it is time to for them to be put into motion. His armies of Aiel, knights, footsoldiers and Asha'man bear down on the city, either to their ruin of that of the forces of darkness , , ,

Even as Rand declares his latest war, Elayne of House Trakand continues her search for the Bowl of the Winds. The climate is only getting hotter and lands which should be seeing the first of winter's snows are arid and barren. Crops and forests are dying and, soon, the cities and free folk of the world will begin to starve. Along with Mat, Aviendha and Nynaeve, she continues her search for the relic in Arad Doman, a dangerous city that is ruled by knives and those skilled enough to wield them. But the city is on the coast and that itself brings other dangers. Eyes of ambition and conquest are turning there; the Seanchan are not defeated lightly.

The Good
Robert Jordan has continued to develop the tension from the previous book and he finally allows it to come to a head in A Crown of Swords. We get to read about Rand's plan to destroy Sammael and the break the hold he has over Illian in action! I think this has been a long time coming because Rand has spent the last few books holed up in the cities he had already taken. This did subtract from the excitement of The Wheel of Time a bit and it was nice to see the story pick up again!

Jordan has also begun to develop some of things that have only been mentioned so far, such as stasis boxes and the infamous gholam that even the Forsaken fear! He has introduced new characters of terrifying power that I think will help to heighten the danger of later books, mainly because the story's protagonists have become so powerful now that the Forsaken and Trollocks pose very little threat to them.

The Bad
Once again, I feel that the book was a little too long and it was very padded out with mundane matters that Jordan could have quite easily compressed without taking too much from the story. There are a lot of scenes where Rand is just stalking about one of his various palaces and the problems between Perrin and Faile and beginning to baffle me a bit since I can't really see where they are stemming from anymore, which has got slightly annoying! The story would have been faster and a bit more exciting without some of these scenes, but that's the only problem I had with the book really.

My Thoughts
Despite it's flaws, which aren't really major issues, A Crown of Swords is a superb book and Jordan has outdone himself once again! I found the book very difficult to put down and it was a real Godsend for some of the more boring physics lectures I was stuck in at university! I thoroughly recommend The Wheel of Time to any fan of epic fantasy and can't wait to continue the story in The Path of Daggers!

Friday 20 February 2015

The True Cleverness of Harry Potter

Some authors are cleverer than others and although people often notice this, with it being evident in works like Game of Thrones and The Lord of the Rings, some series seem to be overlooked. One such series is Harry Potter and I recently read an article online that outlined 21 cases where J. K. Rowling had been exceedingly clever. She had made clear predictions about events that would happen later in the series and even revealed things about certain characters.

The article (which can be read here) is extremely interesting and is definitely worth a read by all of the Harry Potter fans out there!

Wednesday 4 February 2015

Stardust - Neil Gaiman

RATING: FIVE STARS

Tristran Thorn is just an average boy from the Victorian-English village of Wall, which has an unparalleled history with Faerie - a world of magic and fantastical beings that most consider unnatural. Wall is aptly name for the great escarpments of stone that enclose it, but its once solid defences now contain a hole. Through this hole is a meadow and, through this meadow, is something else - a world that is filled with magic and things too strange to understand. It is through his hole and into this world, that Tristran must pass through on his search for the fallen star that will win the hand of his one true love . . .

The Good
Stardust is best described as a charming, light-hearted fairy tale that is written for adults, rather than children. Neil Gaiman has really shown why he is so acclaimed as a writer and I felt myself myself drawn into his strange story right from the first few pages. It is heart-warming and bold, being full of emotion and imagination as it tells Tristan's story in a way that makes the book extremely hard to put down!

I really felt for all of Gaiman's characters while I was reading the book and found myself routing for Tristan and the fallen star more and more as they make a whole host friends and allies during their adventure, Even the story's villains were relatable since none of them turned out to be truly evil and sought the fallen star in a world that was as vivid as it was strange.

The Bad
Honestly, I had nothing to fault with Stardust and really enjoyed reading it. That being said, the novella won't be for everyone: it is slightly strange, written in a polite, quirky manner and isn't about the classic struggle between good and evil as most works of fantasy are. Instead, it's a pleasant fairy tale about a young man who sets out on a quest to find a fallen star for the woman he loves. There is very little fighting and epic dialogue, which may not appeal to readers who are looking for an action-packed book filled with swords and evil on a terrifying scale.

My Thoughts
I am huge fan of 'heavy' fantasy like The Wheel of Time and The Lord of the Rings, and really enjoy books with heroes that struggle through adversity to fight for good beyond all call of reason. But there is something about Stardust that I really liked and it was one of the most heart-warming books I have read in a long time. Instead of great battles, the book is a story of love, greed and redemption. Gaiman really has done a fantastic job in writing it and I recommend that you give it a go. I have no doubt that this story will stay with me for a long, long time, even though I've finished it and moved onto books.

Thursday 29 January 2015

Lord of Chaos - Robert Jordan

RATING: FOUR STARS

The White Tower of Tar Valon is broken and the Aes Sedai are divided. Two sets of eyes burning with saidar have turned to Rand al'Thor, the Dragon Reborn, who sits upon the Sun and Lion Thrones. Along with those of Tear, he has brought the lords and lady's of these great nations to heel and is determined to use their united force to destroy Sammael in the lair he has made of Illian. Thousands of Rand's Aiel are ready to die for him; a possibility they are going to have to confront as both factions of Aes Sedai try to win his favour and bind him to their Amyrlin . . .

Tension is growing as Rand's amnesty for men who can Channel begins to attract soldiers to his cause and the unseasonably hot weather has created a draught that threatens to starve the world. The weather should be turning into the cool breezes of autumn, but is instead hotter than the hottest summer day. The land drips in sweat and the Dark One's forces are everywhere. Elayne is determined to rectify this and restore nature back to its proper balance, believing that she may have found a powerful relic from the Age of Legends that may allow her to do just this. But finding the relic will be far from easy and she will need the help of her friends as she ventures into the cut-throat city of Ebou Dar.

The Good
Robert Jordan continues The Wheel of Time saga in his usual epic fashion and all of the tension that has been developing in the previous books is beginning to broil. The politics surrounding the Dragon Reborn and the Aes Sedai are beginning to develop, becoming more important and developing into things that I imagine will be important for later books in the series. Although this is not as exciting as some of the previous story-lines, it's still fairly interesting to read about and leads to a shift in Rand al'Thor's character, seeing him become colder like the champion he is destined to be.

The Bad
The main problem with Lord of Chaos is its plot, wasn't actually that good. I mentioned this in the paragraph above, but politics dominated the book to a much greater extent than in other books and the story was a little bland in places, with very little actually happening through most of it. I got the feeling that Jordan was using Lord of Chaos to establish a foundation for events later in the series, since he's invested a great deal of time in hinting at plans and developing events etc. I think this is a shame in a book of this length because he had ample opportunity to do this, while ensuring the book was exciting all of the way through and not just at its end.

My Thoughts
Overall though, Lord of Chaos is a superb example of epic fantasy at its best and I really enjoyed reading it. Once again, I cannot stress the benefits of adding The Wheel of Time to your 'to read' list if you're a fan of the genre and haven't already done so. You won't be disappointed and will quickly fall in love with Jordan's world as I have done. If you only read one book this year, it should be the first book in the series (The Eye of the World)!