Mini Book Review: The Egg and I

Finished!!

The fact that it took me roughly 3-1/2 months to accomplish this has no bearing whatsoever on the content.

Quickies
4 out of 5
Recommended: with reservations
Categories: memoirs, humor, exceptional word use

Betty MacDonald is a genius with a pen {cil? Typewriter? Not sure what she used to put this on paper...}. Looking after thousands of hens in a remote ranch on the coast of Washington sounds about as much like a picnic as bread and water in a 15th century dungeon. In such situations, one must have a sense of humor or I think one would probably up and die. Betty MacDonald does - and her battles with pressure cookers, certified redneck neighbors, woodstoves, zero modern conveniences and the ranch itself are all cast in a comically cynical, laugh-or-cry style.

411
The reservations in recommending this book are as follows: there is quite a bit of language in this book and some characters who don't have the most genteel topics when it comes to conversation. Also, Betty doesn't always beat around the bush, so there are some rather blunt observations.

Till next time!

Book Review: Divergent {Take 2}

Quickies
1 out of 5
Recommended: No
Categories: Mind-candy, easy reading

Synopsis

In Beatrice Prior’s dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can’t have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.

Observations
Since I don't consider myself a fan of mainstream YA fiction, whether it be dystopian, fantasy, romance, or just plain teen drama, and I more often than not wind up disappointed when I read it, Divergent was never a book for me. However, I had gotten pulled into the Hunger Games and since Divergent seemed to be traveling a similar path {and I got a copy for free} I didn't see the harm in trying.

My main issues with Divergent are as follows:

1. I felt that, for a plot-driven novel, it didn't have an overabundance of plot.
The main idea of the book was an interesting one and, obviously, forcing multi-faceted human beings into choosing one all-encompassing character trait is going to cause issues somewhere along the line, but it just didn't seem to be fully developed, with important plot points tossed carelessly around and suffering from severe lack of explanation as to how they are accomplished.

The first five chapters {which are pretty short} ran through a lot of important information like character introductions, faction history, world-building, aptitude tests, and the Choosing Ceremony. It seemed a bit rushed - and it was hard to get your bearings and visualize everything - but since the book is thirty-nine chapters long, it seemed like a safe assumption that more information would be distributed later on.
The weird thing is that it wasn't - not really anyway - because in chapter six, Four came on the scene to stay.

2. As the book progressed, I began to feel more and more as if the focus of the story was not that Tris was divergent or that the factions were crumbling or even the growing pressure of competitive training, but that Four was hot. So much of the story seemed constructed around him that I felt it detracted from plot development. Obviously, I haven't read the other two books so I don't know if or how anything that seemed minor in Divergent may affect the plots of the trilogy, but taking Divergent alone I got the impression that more than a few scenes were written without further point than to tell the reader more about Four's complete dominance in the alpha male category. I know this is the trend in modern fiction, but it bothers me that so many books on the top seller lists are there because they have a demi-god hero and a heroine who doesn't mind looking.

3. In my opinion, the violence in Divergent was mostly unnecessary and over-the-top. Dauntless is the faction designed to protect the other factions, yet they neither seem to have much of anything to protect nor the appropriate training techniques to teach their initiates what protection actually is.

For instance, how does forcing sixteen-year-olds to beat each other up until one is unconscious supposed to foster anything but brutality and hatred?
And making them, even in a stimulation, shoot their own families supposed to help them overcome their fears or give them a desire to protect anyone?

The detriment of this reverse-psychology system is clearly seen in Tris as she battles her way through training. As she slowly loses her humanity and becomes more accustomed to devising revenge on the initiates she dislikes, steeling herself to be the last man standing in the fight ring, detaching herself from her softer emotions to coldly treat others with unforgiveness and grudges, giving in recklessly to adrenaline and hormones, she triumphantly calls it leaving Abnegation behind and embracing Dauntless.

  And Dauntless itself is less of a faction bent on doing their job and more of a penthouse of eighteen-year-old trainers and sixteen-year-old initiates where adrenaline is rampant and there seem to be no rules besides living as recklessly as possible to prove how dauntless you are.

411
1. There is a lot of body-gazing in this book. Tris doesn't let much of Four go unnoticed and I found it a little overbearing. If I'm supposed to like this guy, I'd rather it was because he had some depth to him outside of the fact that he's drop-dead gorgeous. I don't need his body thrown at my head every time he walks in the room. I get the idea and I'd appreciate a side of character to go along with his slightly over-the-top package.

2. There isn't any actual sex in the book, but there's a lot of cuddling, kissing {not just on the lips}, touching, Tris staying in Four's apartment overnight, and a scene of physical assault that doesn't go into detail, but is there nonetheless.

3. There's a smattering of mild swear words. The 'h' word gets tossed around and God's name is taken in vain on several occasions. I don't recall any others specifically, but there may be other instances of  unnecessary language. There is also a lot of juvenile joking and name-calling, which may or may not be offensive or annoying depending upon your personal views.

In Conclusion...
I personally think Divergent is mind candy of the first degree. That's my opinion, I know, and I'm not trying to impose it on anyone. My hope is that what I've said here has only given you an idea of what to expect and make an informed decision on whether Divergent is something you want to get into or not.

Till next time!

A New Look at Book Reviews

Previous post notwithstanding, I haven't been able to get the review for Divergent off my mind. And, I guess, not for Divergent alone, but book reviews on my blog in general. My last post sort of nipped all future reviews in the bud and I didn't mean to do that. I'm passionate about books and writing and I don't want to give up this aspect of my blog because I feel I can't say anything bad about a book. I've been giving some serious thought to the whole situation and I've decided not to stop writing reviews for fear of giving a negative view, but to modify my reviewing style instead. If nothing else, it will be an excellent exercise in speaking the truth in love.

So here's how it's going to be:

Section one will be the quick stuff. Rating, whether or not I personally recommend it and what sort of categorization it can be slotted into.

Section two will be the book's synopsis so you can get a feel for the story without any effort on your part at all.

Section three will be my honest observations. I've come to realize that a negative book review isn't a scathing of the author and their work, tearing what they've written to bits to relieve my feelings, but personal thoughts defining why I did or did not like it presented in a non-confrontational way and leaving the reader free to decide whether or not what bothers or interests me bothers or interests them.

Section four will be my 411 section. In it I will record {to the best of my recollection} anything I remember that might offend a potential reader: language, age-appropriate material, an overload of body-gazing, ect. I may or may not be specific depending upon the situation or how often it occurs within the book.

Section five will be for whatever else tumbles out on the page.

My goal with book reviews is to supply you with what I always want to be supplied with: an honest review that gives you facts about the book so you can make an informed decision on whether or not it is worth your time. I'm so honored that some of you were willing to take my non-recommendation as grounds enough to avoid Divergent, but I feel as if I should offer some facts - minus the scathing - so your decision is not based on my word alone.

Divergent Take 2 coming up next! 

Book Review: Divergent

Quickies
1 out of 5
Recommended: No
Categories: dystopian, easy reading, one-time reads

Review
The title misleads because this is not actually going to be a book review. Ladies, I read that book and let me tell you that I want so badly to write an absolutely scathing review. I want to whale into it and let everyone know just exactly why I dislike it. In fact, I did. I started to write a completely different review than the one I'm writing now.

I think now, though, that those righteous-rage opinions are best left unpublished.

I've written many negative reviews in the past. I've enjoyed writing them. I glory in tearing apart weak plots and cardboard characters and poker-stiff dialogue. As an aspiring writer, I'm quick to judge. I get angry when people like things that I personally consider poorly written and I burn to tell the whole world why they should never have been published.

But in those reviews my words aren't kind and, though my opinions are strong, they are critical and have the capacity to be hurtful. So as I planned my review for Divergent, I began to wonder why I had such a nagging sense that I shouldn't. I wanted to - very badly - but the more I wrote and thought about it, the more I felt that, as a Christian and a writer, I should shut up, live and let live. I took a break and gave it some thought and here's what I ended up with: is it really worth my time to throw my two cents into the pool of fans and haters and start a fire that isn't worth stoking? Will my words really do anything worthwhile?

No.

I can spend an hour or more writing a review that will turn people off or I can spend it more wisely writing something that won't polarize, criticize or draw lines. Those characters belong to someone who feels the way about them that I feel about mine. I may not agree with another author's writing style, I may question their motives and choices, I may be incensed by the fact that people find their work worth reading, but I don't need to give it voice. I'm entitled to my opinions, but unless they bring grace, I'm better off keeping them to myself.

So that's my review for Divergent. No, I wouldn't recommend it, but that's merely an opinion. Take it or leave it and form your own. :)

Till next time!  

Book Review: The Ever-After Bird

Quickies
4 out of 5
Recommended for: Y/A Fiction
Categories: historical fiction/easy reads

Synopsis
(amazon.com)

Now that her father is dead, CeCe McGill is left to wonder why he risked his life for the ragged slaves who came to their door in the dead of night. When her uncle, an ornithologist, insists she accompany him to Georgia on an expedition in search of the rare scarlet ibis, CeCe is surprised to learn there's a second reason for their journey: Along the way, Uncle Alex secretly points slaves north in the direction of the Underground Railroad.

    

Set against the backdrop of the tumultuous pre-Civil War South, The Ever-After Bird is the story of a young woman's education about the horrors of slavery and the realization about the kind of person she wants to become.

Review

I love Ann Rinaldi. I have ever since I picked up The Staircase at the library when I was a young teen. I've made it a point to own nearly every book she's written. I've recommended her work to nearly all my friends. I've followed her heroines from the Civil War to modern day to the Revolutionary War to Mexico to the Salem Witch Trials to 17th century England and back again and enjoyed nearly every ride. She's that good.

But when I picked up The Ever-After Bird I wasn't so sure I would like it. With the past few books I've read by her, I've been slightly disappointed. I don't know if that's due to the fact that I'm growing up and her writing style {which is still fresh and excellent in the worst of times} hasn't or if she just lost her touch for a few books {understandable; she's written at least thirty} and I happened to read them all in a row. However, my sister mentioned that she had liked it, so I thought I'd give it a try. 

Plot

It has become clear that Ann's best relationships are older male mentor to a young {usually early teen} girl - either a sister or a ward. She's a past master at creating literary crushes {I find one in nearly every book} and her writing just can't be matched. She's SO creative with her words, her dialogue is never dull, her plots are solid, her premises intriguing, her research exhaustive. 

Thus she creates CeCe. 

{I'm not going to recreate the synopsis, so you'll just have to go back and read it if you're anything like me and just skimmed or skipped it}

To be honest, I didn't really notice the plot. It escalated gradually and came to a quiet climax. What was important was each little domino that fell in turn. Something like slavery, with all the stories and horrors, is hard to portray. It's really impossible to comprehend cruelty unless you are either present for it or experience it yourself. CeCe portrays this well - the confusion over her feelings about slavery and the slow horror she develops as she witnesses its reality. {In the author's note, Ann Rinaldi discloses that most of the things she has CeCe witness were actual documented happenings and that she even toned some of them down for her narrative}

Really, the plot is an even pattern of traveling, stopping at a plantation, unpleasant experience, more traveling, find something along the road, stop at another plantation, another unpleasant learning experience, Earline causes some sort of trouble, back on the road again, ect. Uncle Alex's ornithology and his warnings of the slaves aren't what's important here. However, it is interesting to see how each plantation operates and how each individual owner's view of their property is reflected in the treatment of their slaves.

There are a few slightly mature moments and conversations since CeCe is a growing girl who can't keep her mouth shut and Uncle Alex is a doctor and somehow it's common for them to discuss things that might make some girls uncomfortable to read. 

Overall, it had a promising start, but unraveled near the end into a rather anticlimactic finish. 


Characters
CeCe McGill 
CeCe is a delightfully and also frustratingly obnoxious Rinaldi heroine. She's very typical of the author in being headstrong, plain-spoken, stubborn and tending to idolize the male who has her charge. Not everything she does makes sense {which I think is more a weakness of plot than a weakness of character} but her heart is usually in the right place even if she does disobey her uncle at nearly every turn.
I found her observations about slavery to be very sound and interesting. Her thoughts on anything else were generally less sound and she had an annoying tendency to be very appropriately immature. However, her confusion over her own treatment and views of slaves were honest and thought-provoking. Forced by her circumstances to act as if she agreed with slavery and also to treat the slaves around her - Earline included - in keeping with those views, she grappled convincingly with the consequences of such power.

Uncle Alex
Rinaldi literary crush extraordinaire. Much less realistic than the Rinaldi heroes of yore, he comes off way to strong in the romantic category. 
The man can do no wrong. There is nothing wrong with him. He's the perfect mixture of handsome, strength, vulnerability, rightness, wrongness and excels at nearly every activity known to man.
 I didn't buy it this time.
However, his back story IS intriguing {wish there was more of it} and he does have a very good tongue in his head when it comes to interesting dialogue. 
He treats CeCe a little more leniently than is good for her {she could do, on several occasions, with a darn good spanking} and I'm not sure why he has no control whatsoever over Earline when she appears to worship the ground he walks on. 

Earline
Incredibly confusing. She was a former slave with an extraordinarily complex history. CeCe often complains of not being able to understand a thing she does, and I am in wholehearted agreement. I can't decide if she was really complex or if she was just allowed to do anything and everything she wanted because the author needed a little action in the plot. She seems like the type of character who would be difficult to control. 
Earline does, actually, provide nearly all of the action with her independent defiance of the boundaries between slaves and whites. She's the one who CeCe first must treat as a slave {a difficult feat after how she treats CeCe in Ohio where she's free}. She's the one who goes on and falls in love with a white man in the middle of the Deep South. She's the one who stubbornly does exactly what she's been told not to do and she's also the one who pays the steepest price {even though CeCe makes a solid second} when the climax eventually rolls around. 

Conclusion
This isn't Elsie Dinsmore or Anne of Green Gables. Rinaldi's characters are usually pretty gritty and defiant. They're not obedient, quiet or sweet. Thus there is some language, a lot of disobedience and gobs of literary crushes. But there's also solid history, real-life issues, realistic characters and a refreshing lack of picture-perfect scenarios. 

It's life - with a lot of great dialogue thrown in.  
  
Till next time!

Book Review: The Singer of All Songs

Quickies
3 out of 5
Recommended for: I really have no idea
Categories: YA/Fantasy/Easy reads/Reader friendly

Synopsis
Calwyn has lived all her life behind the high ice-wall that guards the sisters of Antaris from the world of Tremaris. The sisters practice ice chantment -- one of the Nine Powers of chantment, a form of magic worked through music. But when Calwyn finds an Outlander man fallen, wounded, through the wall, she is drawn to him ... and drawn into a wondrous, dangerous adventure that takes her outside the wall and to the limits of her own powers, as she, the Outlander Darrow, and others unite to defeat the sorcerer Samis, who seeks to claim all Nine Powers and become the Singer of All Songs. (Amazon)

Review
I wish to state first and foremost that I am not and never have been a reader of fantasy. I've read The Chronicles of Narnia and fairy tales. I do not really enjoy fantasy. I do not like to write fantasy. In general, I spurn nearly the entire fantasy genre as unredeemable mind-candy. Thus I have no idea why I bought these two books when I found them for next-to-nothing at Goodwill.

Gradually they moved from the cardboard box of extra book storage to the top bookshelf (mainly because they are hardcovers and look better than a typical paperback). I intended to read them someday and that was where it stayed.
I brought this one camping with me and thought I'd give it a try. After reading the first few pages, I was unsure of whether or not I wanted to continue. There was a lot of mumbo-jumbo about a goddess and I felt that the reading level was rather low. However, I continued and was pleasantly surprised by the end.

Plot
My experience with fantasy is so limited that I can't say for sure whether or not the idea of a chanter is original or not. Basically, a chanter is a gifted human who, either through songs or the pitch of their voice, can do unusual and unnatural things such as create ice, call up wind, cut through walls, heal, stop or start motions in inanimate objects and so forth. Most chanters only have and only ever will have one power or chantment, as they're called in the book, so the idea of become a singer of all the songs is rather preposterous.

The book in general moves along at a good clip. It doesn't drag long over unnecessary details or contain much filler. It's simply written without much fuss made over a period-correct dialect. Aside from the discussions on chantment, the characters speak pretty ordinary English. The chapter endings are generally uncreative and abrupt, but since it's not lagging over useless plot lines, this doesn't really matter.
All in all, I was interested enough not to want to put it down for a long period of time and never ran across much of a reason to do so, since it's a very age-appropriate book. There's nothing at all suggestive or immodest about it. There's really only a promise of romance, which makes you more eager to read the next book and find out whether or not it buds.

The ending was my greatest peeve. It was rushed pell-mell and didn't make much sense. I found it so convoluted that I began to skim just to get it over with. Too much is revealed that should have been carefully distributed throughout the book and there are too many things happening at once with everyone practicing their different chantments that it makes it difficult to tell what is really going on. I would call it amateur for being so jumbled and then ending in such a disappointingly anticlimactic way.

Characters
Calwyn - Heroine and ice chanter
Calwyn is a very well-balanced heroine. She's not a damsel in distress but she's no Joan of Arc either. She's a very real girl who loses her temper and battles her fears and insecurities and is often confused by her surroundings and feelings. She doesn't always have the answer and doesn't always try to find it. She's endearingly human despite the hints of her less-than-ordinary destiny.

Darrow - Hero and ironcrafter
Darrow is a delightfully taciturn and puzzling character. He doesn't have much to say and what he does say is usually either mysteriously vague or dark and dire. It's the fact that he does very little explaining of himself that makes him such a fascinating person. I, however, find it difficult to believe the claim that he is near thirty years old.

Mica, Trout and Tonno - Girl, Boy, Man: the rest of the band
Mica is pretty awesome. I love her unquenchable spirit and never-flagging determination. Whenever the truth needs to be stated, she's there ahead of everyone.
Trout is odd yet amusing. He was the first character that really made me smile by saying something funny. His unique and critical outlook on life and his circumstances are typically the high humor points of the story.
Tonno is rather washed out for being such a predominant character. He's not a chanter, slightly too ordinary and very forgettable.

Conclusion
If this book was not part of a trilogy, I would have been very disappointed. However, the allure of a developing romance between two gifted individuals, Darrow's obviously hidden past, Calwyn's developing capacities and the quest for the union of Tremaris all make this a solid but probably the least interesting step into a promising direction.  

Till next time!

Book Review: Girls Gone Wise in a World Gone Wild

Quickies
5 out of 5
Recommended for any girl 13-15 {probably more along the lines of 15; it contains some rather mature topics} or older who wants to know how to live for God in a world gone wild
Categories: Christian self-help

Completely unrelated to this review is the disturbing fact that the last book I finished this year was in January and I haven't read another since.

Awkward...

Review
Going into this book, I was pretty comfortable in my conviction that most of it wouldn't be too relatable to my life. I am not a girl-gone-wild {to adopt Mary Kassian's pet phrase}. My upbringing was not conducive to that of even becoming a girl-gone-wild and I really have no interest in changing now.

However, despite myself {and my self-righteousness} I was challenged on several levels.

I found the chapter on modesty to be especially eye-opening. To that point in my life, I had always assumed dressing modestly was merely a point of order for a good, Christian girl and {aside from the fact that my father more or less makes me} I generally tend to cover up because I figure it's what God wants me to do.
Subsequently, I never drew the line that Mary Kassian does from Adam and Eve and the fall in the Garden of Eden to my shopping habits. She makes the point that clothing is a sign of God's redemption. In Adam and Eve's shame, He covered them. When we dress immodestly, we flout God's covering and glory in the shame of the fall. We reject His redemption.

Likewise, her discussion of the roles of males and females was also eye-opening. I am often judgmental of women these days for their feminist views, their destruction of the role of a men and rejection of their need for the other half of the relationship God designed, but tend to ignore the fact that it's not just the blatant, high-level acts that are detrimental.
As I read {Chapter 9, I believe} I was made very aware of my own treatment of guys. I'm not a I-am-woman-hear-me-roar type, but in my own small ways I can be very belittling in my mannerisms towards them. I don't like to ask for their help or admit that they can do things I cannot (or am not very good at. For instance, driving a car in reverse.) and I tend to take on a sarcastic persona when I'm with them and then {bear with me here} I complain that there are no "real men" anymore.
'Tis true that they are difficult to find - and that's partly my fault.
Mary Kassian {among other very revealing points, which I can't get into or we'll be here all day} delves into the relationships between males and females and what they once were and are not anymore in a very candid manner. I was quite convicted and recommend reading the book for further details.

Also interesting were her points on body language {how we appeal to men without using words}, the influence we exert on a relationship {whether good and uplifting or bad and detrimental} and our attitudes concerning the roles we've been given by God to fill in the aforementioned relationship.


For any and all other details, Girls Gone Wise {ect.} does a much better job than I am in the explanation process.

'Till next time!

Book Review: I Capture the Castle

Quickies
3 out of 5
Recommended for: anyone who likes chick-flicks and British drama
Categories: Brit lit, writing you don't meet every day, humor, reader-friendly

Synopsis
I Capture the Castle tells the story of seventeen-year-old Cassandra and her family, who live in not-so-genteel poverty in a ramshackle old English castle. Here she strives, over six turbulent months, to hone her writing skills. She fills three notebooks with sharply funny yet poignant entries. Her journals candidly chronicle the great changes that take place within the castle's walls, and her own first descent into love. By the time she pens her final entry, she has "captured the castle"-- and the heart of the reader-- in one of literature's most enchanting entertainments.

Plot
The thing to focus on in this book, I have discovered, is not the plot. If you focus on the plot, you may be sorely disappointed with Cassandra at the end. It's not fair that such a witty, gifted, original and spontaneously real and human girl like Cassandra doesn't have a plot that reads more eloquently than a typical chick-flick love triangle.
Her circumstances are certainly nothing but original. She's living in a crumbling old castle on a forty-year's lease with a riddle of a father, an artist's model {and fascinatingly sensible} stepmother, a rather ordinary {but rather funny} sister and a brother who becomes more and more likable as the book progresses. 
And Stephen. 
One cannot overlook Stephen {despite his overlook-ability} even though he makes about as much sense as an ocean liner in a desert.  
Her life is one of extreme "genteel" poverty. She can hardly scrape up enough paper to write out her journal and there seem to be scraping and darning and skimping at every turn.
Thankfully, Cassandra is blessed with a sense of humor and a knack for remembering chapter-long conversations which she can then record in her journal days later without dropping a word. 
It's the writing that makes this book what it is. 
Without Cassandra's inordinately amusing reflections on everything from bathing on roast platters to white-clad, fur-robed jaunts to London, this book would be a dismal failure. Such ludicrous situations and outlandish conditions couldn't possibly be pulled off without the pragmatic, off-hand descriptions from the heroine's gifted pen.
However, despite her best writing, even Cassandra cannot quite make up for the lack of depth in the plot when it hits its last chapters.  
As one of my friends put it, it's a "well-written bit of fluff".

Likes
The writing - obviously. Any book that starts out "I write this while sitting in the kitchen sink" and proceeds to uphold that level of creativity and spontaneity throughout should not be merely left unread.

Surprisingly, it's pretty clean. Aside from some kissing, occasional language, and sporadic mention of nudity (Cassandra's stepmother is, as already mentioned but now reiterated, an artist's model), I Capture the Castle is pretty innocent and carefree. Rather hard to believe when the movie is rated R, but Hollywood sometimes has different ideas concerning the spirit of a book.

I just loved the sheer craziness of the story. It is so erratic and so very British. Cassandra's honesty and bluntness about everything is engaging and easy to relate to. She's one of the best characters I've met within the realms of a book in a long time.

Dislikes
I was so disappointed with how the book ended. I know this probably isn't a common impression, but I thought that the book degenerated plot-wise as it went on instead of building to an ending that justified its marvelous beginning.

Okay, am I also the only one who wondered about Stephen? He seemed so...insipid. And it didn't help that the author either intentionally or unintentionally turned him out to be such a to-die-for guy that you almost didn't like him because of it.
However, I did appreciate his strength of character. He was rather sweet in an awkward, poetry-stuttered manner.

Conclusion
Ever since I heard that line "I write this while sitting in the kitchen sink", I've wanted to meet Cassandra Mortmain. Anyone who has the guts to write in a sink is bound to be a good friend for as long as a book lasts.
And, shoot. Green arms and Midsummer Eve dances and crumbling plot notwithstanding, she was.

Till next time, 

Book Review: The Wednesday Letters

Since I've missed a Christmas post, a pre-Christmas post and a post-Christmas post, I feel as if it would be a step backwards to try and make up for that neglect. Instead, I shall dig into the backlog of books needing reviews and work on that instead.

I'm also trying out a new, less intense form of book reviews. Like it or lump it, I guess.

Quickies

2 out of 5

Recommended for: I would not personally recommend this book

Categories: Christian fiction, one-time reads, book club selection

Synopsis

Their story begins with one letter on their wedding night, a letter from the groom, promising to write his bride every week—for as long they both shall live. Thirty-nine years later, Jack and Laurel Cooper die in each other’s arms. And when their grown children return to the family B&B to arrange the funeral, they discover thousands of letters.The letters they read tell of surprising joys and sorrows. They also hint at a shocking family secret—and ultimately force the children to confront a life-changing moment of truth… {From amazon}

Review

Although and intriguing premise {made all the more intriguing by an actual letter {in an envelope!} on the inside of the back cover}, I felt that this book didn't live up to its synopsis. Giving a plot with as much potential as this one inherently possessed to an author like Jason Wright is like giving me a royal flush in poker and expecting me, who understands nothing of the game, to know what to do with it.

I'm not saying that Jason Wright is a bad writer. He's actually quite witty and funny. The actual letters that Jack wrote to Laurel were the best part of the book. Jack's sense of humor was delightful. But the remaining plot was packed with twists and turns and surprises that were just mishandled. 

The characters weren't fully developed and their emotions weren't fully understood. The book was just too short and far too ambitious suspense-wise to allow the reader to connect with anyone. Not only that, but the twists and turns themselves weren't very clear or believable. I didn't understand how a smart girl like Raine couldn't understand the things that were right under her nose and why she was determined to marry a man that she herself knew she didn't really care for. It just didn't add up. 

The jumbled explanations as to Malcolm's past also came off as rather vague and unrealistic along with the other events that led up to the awkwardly handled graveside confrontation. 

The tell-all conversation at the end of the book was Nancy Drew-esque and the letter on the back cover was the finishing disappointment, being neither what you expected nor what you wanted.

Till next time!

Book Review: The Woman In White

This is going to just be a brief review because, let's face it, the book is 645 pages long and most of it can't be discussed for fear of letting the proverbial cat out of the bag. 

Quickies
4 out of 5
Recommended for: anyone who's up for 600+ pages of any book, likes mysteries and either adores or can at least tolerate classics
Categories: classics, benchmark reads

Synopsis
Generally considered the first English sensation novel, The Woman in White features the remarkable heroine Marian Halcombe and her sleuthing partner, drawing master Walter Hartright, pitted against the diabolical team of Count Fosco and Sir Percival Glyde. A gripping tale of murder, intrigue, madness, and mistaken identity, Collins’s psychological thriller has never been out of print in the 140 years since its publication. 

Review

The Woman in White is as remarkable as Marian Halcombe herself. It's written in Collins' signature "narrative of" form and this switching from viewpoint to viewpoint keeps the story from dragging due to the variety of writing styles. 

Most particularly I enjoyed the narratives of Marian, Count Fosco and Edward Fairlie (who are, incidentally, also my favorite characters). 

The plot is fascinating - Collins is a master of suspense and withheld information - but I would argue that it doesn't move quickly at all and is slightly bogged down by over-detailing. 

Marian and the Count overshadow every other character (I don't know if that was intentional or not, but I am (alas!) unable to apply to the author for particulars) which is slightly unfortunate for those who are more attached to the other populace of this novel. Laura and Walter especially are rather weak.

Additionally, as in The Moonstone, the writing here is not your typical "classic" language. It flows more easily than a (for example) Dickens novel. He doesn't run his sentences on interminably and he uses words and descriptions that are more modern in style. It's easier to read than a typical old-fashioned classic.

Would I urge any stranger on the street to read this book? Most likely not. But I definitely feel the better for having slapped it on the "read" shelf. 

Till next time, 

Book Review: Unbroken

o_O What an absolutely amazing book. O_o

(Yes, I do synchronize my pop-eyed awe faces, thank you very much!)

It's been on my to-read list for a...while and finally got around to reading it due to book club.

Quickies

5 out of 5

Recommended for: Readers 16+ (intense brutality, some mature incidents, language)

Categories: biography, highly recommended literature, couldn't-put-it-down

Synopsis
On a May afternoon in 1943, an Army Air Forces bomber crashed into the Pacific Ocean and disappeared, leaving only a spray of debris and a slick of oil, gasoline, and blood.  Then, on the ocean surface, a face appeared.  It was that of a young lieutenant, the plane’s bombardier, who was struggling to a life raft and pulling himself aboard.  So began one of the most extraordinary odysseys of the Second World War.

The lieutenant’s name was Louis Zamperini.  In boyhood, he’d been a cunning and incorrigible delinquent, breaking into houses, brawling, and fleeing his home to ride the rails.  As a teenager, he had channeled his defiance into running, discovering a prodigious talent that had carried him to the Berlin Olympics and within sight of the four-minute mile.  But when war had come, the athlete had become an airman, embarking on a journey that led to his doomed flight, a tiny raft, and a drift into the unknown.

Ahead of Zamperini lay thousands of miles of open ocean, leaping sharks, a foundering raft, thirst and starvation, enemy aircraft, and, beyond, a trial even greater.  Driven to the limits of endurance, Zamperini would answer desperation with ingenuity; suffering with hope, resolve, and humor; brutality with rebellion.  His fate, whether triumph or tragedy, would be suspended on the fraying wire of his will.

In her long-awaited new book, Laura Hillenbrand writes with the same rich and vivid narrative voice she displayed in Seabiscuit.  Telling an unforgettable story of a man’s journey into extremity, Unbroken is a testament to the resilience of the human mind, body, and spirit.

Review

This is a biography, so I'm not going to go all out for a review. I will say, however, that Laura Hillenbrand has written an excellent narrative.

I am not generally a lover of reality when it comes to books. Reality as in the sense that what I'm reading really happened. I don't know - it usually bores me and I can't stand all those little numbers scattered around that tell you to go to the back so that they can credit a source or give more information or what have you. 

But I almost felt as if I was reading a novel here. I found myself irritated at the author for not giving her characters a little more help until I remembered that they weren't hers - they were real - and she could do nothing but tell the story the way it happened. It's so intense that when I brought it with me to a five-hour work period and read it almost the entire time, I had to take a break and walk around to get my head back into the present. 

Unbroken is brilliantly written. It's a narrative. It's captivating. The story is intensely brutal (to the point where you become unable to absorb the cruelty and just read it because it's there) but there's also so much humor and hope. The uncrushable, indomitable strength of the human spirit. 

You have to read it to understand. 

And, good mercy, can she use adjectives and verbs!

Till next time, 

Book Review: Making Waves

I apologize beforehand for the length of this post. I needed to vent. 

As you all probably well know by this time, I loathe and despise mainstream Christian romance with a vengeance brought on by years of being steeped in well-written, wholesome literature. I only picked up Making Waves because it was a Kindle freebie (still is) and I was in Washington DC for a week and the metro commute was too long to just sit.

Quickies

1 out of 5

Recommended for: No one

Categories: What to read if you want constructive information on what not to write

Synopsis

When spunky Marguerite Westing discovers that her family will summer at Lake Manawa in 1895, she couldn't be more thrilled. It is the perfect way to escape her agonizingly boring suitor, Roger Gordon. It's also where she stumbles upon two new loves: sailing, and sailing instructor Trip Andrews. But this summer of fun turns to turmoil as her father's gambling problems threaten to ruin the family forever. Will free-spirited Marguerite marry Roger to save her father's name and fortune? Or will she follow her heart--even if it means abandoning the family she loves?

Plot

The words that come to mind when I think about this book are disorganized and incoherent. I don't think the author had a clearly defined plot to follow because everything is jumbled up and thrown in. There are no guidelines. It's almost as if she remembers incidents and people that she wanted to talk about earlier, but instead of going back and putting them where they're supposed to be, she just throws them in where she is and leaves it. 

The beginning is rather promising - I actually thought it might have something to it - but after the first chapter, Marguerite falls into the lake and nothing is promising again.

Mrs. Seilstad seems to be more interested in filling us in on minute details about sailing, the very bottom of the barrel of Marguerite's closet, anything and everything about Trip Andrews, ice cream in its various states of representation and other as illogical and unneeded items than she is about clearly developing her characters and defining her plot to make sense. 

Towards the end, I was flipping through pages because there were so many twists and turns that could have been expediently placed throughout the book, but were shoved to the end because we had to wade through stagnant and over-detailed chapters about the blossoming, failing, re-blossoming, failing, blossoming again, failing and eventually blossoming for good relationship between Trip and Marguerite (even though the village idiot's idiot could have figured out by reading the back cover that they were going to end up madly in love, despite their "anger at each other"). When you do the same things over and over again, they do start to get stale. It's waterlogged with such repetitiveness that you begin to get lost and wonder if perhaps you're reading the same few pages over and over. They have a sailing lesson, Trip gets mad because Marguerite lies to him, they make up at a dance and the whole vicious cycle begins again. The real plot of the book is brought in too late to do anyone any good. The reader, especially, is the loser in this game. 

God is given backstage to Marguerite and Trip. There's the usual tacky summer revival where the heroine gets choky over her sins and meets the hero afterwards (neat, elegant and worn-out way for you to discover that the man you could hardly tell was a Christian, is in fact born-again and, supposedly, very adamant about it).

Marguerite, though her conversations with the Lord are amusing, used God as a crutch and deliberately misinterprets Scripture to fit her spoiled, "headstrong" agendas. Very often, we find her asking God to forgive her for something she's about to do and justifying things with Him to serve her purposes. 

And we're supposed to believe that she's really enjoying a deep relationship with God?

It's about as deep as Trip's. 

And Trip's is nothing to write home about either.

The man actually uses the verse in Romans (Greet each other with a holy kiss) as an excuse to give Marguerite one. And Marguerite, good Christian girl that she is, doesn't call him out on his error, but instead says she likes his "interpretation" and then wonders - of all things - what he would do with the Song of Solomon!

Is this supposed to be Christian? Because it's not even funny.

Not only that, but there are other discrepancies as well. Margeurite repeatedly kisses Trip "for luck" and only on the last one does she say "I don't believe in luck. I believe in God." 

As if we're supposed to believe it now. 

Roger (the sadistically evil villain and the man Marguerite is forced to engage herself to) repeatedly announces that Marguerite "belongs to him" but it's not until the last few pages that Trip lamely speaks up and says "she isn't yours. She belongs to God."

A little late to the party, aren't you buddy? 

I could go on and on, but it would basically boil down to transcribing the book for you here.

Sadly, there are moments where true inspiration in the plot could have peeked out, but the author simply doesn't know how to handle them. Flimsy excuses are given to support circumstances that could create sympathy with the characters or suspense in the plot and nothing is fleshed out satisfactorily.  The last few chapters are pell-mell with action running downhill and everything coming to a head so quickly and illogically that the reader is left in the dust. 

I've read elsewhere that there are glaring errors in the historical content as well. For example, the driving point of the first half of the book is that it's improper for women to go sailing, when, in fact it was an encouraged summer activity for proper young ladies. 

Just because something sounds good doesn't always mean it's accurate. 

That's one of the first lessons a true writer should learn. 

Research is key.

Characters

Marguerite Westing - Heroine

Before I begin here, I'd like to point out an interesting detail: Marguerite's sister, who comes in for a brief and illogically uninformative time, is named Mary. Her younger brother is named, a little less  commonly, Mark. These are solid, typical names for secondary characters. But illogically, why do Mr. and Mrs. Westing decide, after a run-of-the-mill handle like "Mary" to name their second child Mar-guer-ite? It doesn't fit. If they've got Mary and plan on Mark, it's hard to believe that there'll be a jump out of character such as Marguerite. 

But so she is, and so we are. Stuck with a flighty, manipulative, petty, childish young lady who behaves so badly that you wish she would be stuck marrying that "cruel" and "vicious" tyrant of a Roger because he's the only guy in the book who could give her what she deserves. 

Of course she's the most beautiful creature ever to touch a foot on this hallowed earth, but aside from that, there's really nothing behind it except a lying, conniving, oh-so-helpless heroine who rarely thinks of anyone but herself. 

"Trip" Phillip Sutton Andrews III - Hero

You say white, I say black. You say chocolate, I say vanilla. You say right, I say wrong. You say dog, I say cat. You say Phillip Sutton Andrews III, I say, most naturally, dimples. 

It's the first thing that comes to mind with a name like that, especially after you've been greeted with those roguish craters every time you meet him. 

Honestly, I have never known a man so more defined by a physical trait except perhaps for Santa Claus. In the good times, in the bad, in the rocky places, in the smooth, in the drowning and the saving, you can always count on them to come through. And Marguerite informing the reader that she longs to touch them. Or that she notices them. 

Other than that, there's not much to the man aside from his muscular arms, his broad chest, his gold-flecked hazel eyes, his sun-kissed brown hair and how good he looks in a striped, Union suit bathing costume (eew!).

He's the typical all-perfect hero-man who is sensitive and courteous, but carries a hurt deep inside that the heroine (in this case our hapless, careless Mar-Guer-Ite) can't help but stir up. 

Apparently she sees something in him that I missed.

Roger Gordon - Villain

The only problem with Roger is that he's only really a villain in the last, oh, four chapters. Other than that, he's just boring and mysteriously evil. 

Marguerite doesn't like him because he's dull. And not handsome. And not Trip. And she treats him rather cruelly though it's only meant to come off as headstrong. 

Roger IS dull, but at least he's human. And I don't blame him a bit for wanting to bring Marguerite down. She could use it. 

Of course, since he's the villain, you're supposed to agree with the persecuted heroine that just because he isn't handsome, has a caterpillar mustache and round shoulders, doesn't let her order what she wants at a restaurant, frowns upon her wild and childish caprices, and attempts to make her become a respectable member of society he is woefully evil and thus undeserving to be treated in a kind and courteous manner. 

In fact, it's all this that makes his descent into villain-hood all the more laughably unbelievable. An intelligent man like Roger, with his steely business mind, would think of much better evil plots than the bumbling attempts he and his henchman make at the end of this wreck and ruin to destroy Marguerite's family and force her to marry him (though, by the end, I am still wondering why he wouldn't hand her over to Trip with a "good riddance" and a sigh of relief anyway).

I don't like Roger, but I can't imagine why even he would go through all this trouble just because he wants to "own" Marguerite. She's really not worth it and it's a weak reason to go through such pains for. 

Mark Westing - Heroine's brother 

Mark isn't bad. He has his flaws and he's often too conveniently tucked away so that Marguerite and Trip can be alone together, but he's actually one of the better attempts at characterization that this author makes. 

He's sweet and caring and willing to put his life on the line for the people he loves. At the end, we're supposed to have the impression that Marguerite is the loyal, caring one who will do anything to save her family, but really, it's Mark who steals that role - and with good reason. 

He actually cares. 

Mr. and Mrs. Westing - Heroine's parents

They're both pretty weak as characters go. Mrs. Westing is the typical doting mother who only wants her daughter to marry into wealth and prestige. Aside from her pushiness at getting Marguerite to be civil to Roger and knack for showing up at just the right moment to choose the ugliest dress in her daughter's closet for her to wear, she's pretty much relegated to the background and is quite forgettable. (One point I'd like to bring up here: why is it that the pushy mothers (and ect.) always choose the frocks that make their daughters look the worst when they go out with the man the mother wants them to marry, but when the girl is meeting the man they really love, they always get to choose the dress they like best and the mother is never around?)

Mr. Westing is supposed to be this wonderful man whom Marguerite adores, but somewhere in the tussle this book represents, he never gets around to revealing that side of his character. What we get is a soppy weakling who sinks his family into ruin and who deserves neither his daughter's sympathy (such as it is) or loyalty. 

He could have added a lot to the book if not for his woeful underdevelopment.

Lily - Heroine's personal maid

Poor Lily. Not only is she this petty creature's maid, she also has to put up with all her complaining and whining over Roger and her fantasizing over Trip and her extremely misguided beliefs about what God's word is actually saying to her. 

This much-to-be-pitied girl handles the situation well, though she's often pushed to the wayside as well.  

The host of minor and secondary characters

This bunch is a motley crew including assorted servants, childhood friends, sisters and Trip's crew. 

Most of them aren't bad, but since they're only pulled out when needed, it's hard to give them any sort of accurate review. Mary, Laura and Alice are treated with especial carelessness. 

Likes

Surprisingly, there actually are a few. 

- The beginning of this book is great. It's exactly what an author wants to get their reader hooked on a book. It's funny, clever, and defines character traits very effortlessly. 

- Ok, so Marguerite has some pretty funny thoughts and there is some good repartee hidden in and around the clunky plot.

- The research behind Lake Manawa is detailed and the Mrs. Seilstad does have a flair for knowing the name brands floating around (though she does end up using them in a rather liberal and choppy manner). It's little details like that make the book more believable.

Dislikes

I'll try to keep this short because I've already outlined most of them.

- I have a real peeve with obvious discrepancies in language and action. For instance, no decent, self-respecting man like Trip would even try to touch a girl the way it's accepted now and he touches Marguerite. It just wasn't done. I know it's technically "romantic" but only a boy of ill-repute or shady upbringing would dare to act in such a manner.

Roger isn't much better, but at least he's engaged to the girl. 

- The modern figures of speech tossed around show that the author has no feel for the vernacular of the time period she clunks her characters into. "Calling the shots", "daddy", "guys" "I blew it" - those are all too modern to flow with the story line and thus only detract from it. There are hundreds of more examples, but I only had time to go through a few pages. If you can't strike the right tone, write a modern book for heaven's sake!

- The use of God to basically justify situations. God wasn't really the focus of any of these people's lives and He was only brought in to make the book "Christian". It's really not worthy of that genre in any way, shape, or form since God is pretty much ignored and manipulated anyway.

Conclusion

Making Waves is actually a rip tide and we all know what to do around those. If you don't, Google it or ask someone else. 

Till next time,  

   

Book Review: The Betrayal

My first post after vacation is a book review. Figures. =D I devoured books while on the beach and on the way up, so here we go.

#1. The Betrayal by Helen Dunmore

Quickies: 
4.5 out of 5
Recommended for: Ages 17+ (language, grit and several mature scenes)
Categories: Historical, Sweet Romance, Solid Writing, Can't-Put-It-Down

Synopsis: Internationally-acclaimed author Helen Dunmore follows her bestselling novel, The Siege, with a riveting and emotionally absorbing portrait of post-war Soviet Russia, a world of violence and terror, where the severest acts of betrayal can come from the most trusted allies.

In 1952 Leningrad, Andrei, a young doctor, and Anna, a nursery school teacher, are forging a life together in the postwar, post-siege wreckage. But they know their happiness is precarious, like that of millions of Russians who must avoid the claws of Stalin’s merciless Ministry of State Security. When Andrei is forced to treat the seriously ill child of a senior secret police officer, his every move is scrutinized, and it becomes painfully clear that his own fate, and that of his family, is bound to the child’s. Trapped in an impossible game of life and death, and pitted against a power-mad father’s raging grief, Andrei and Anna must avoid the whispers and watchful eyes of those who will say or do anything to save themselves.
With The Betrayal, Dunmore returns with a powerful and stirring novel of ordinary people in the grip of a terrible and sinister regime, and an evocative tale of a love that will not be silenced. 


Plot: The synopsis here is absolutely, positively intriguing. I have a basic understanding of Stalinistic Russia. I know it was horrible and I know it was worse than horrible. But Gloria Whelan's books for children don't come close to delving into the horror that was post WW2, communistic Russia.

This book is brutal and merciless, but also heroic and heartwarming. The love Andrei and Anna have for each other is so sweet and caring. Each looking out so much for the other and only thinking about each other. Their marriage was beautifully solid and right.

But the circumstances in which they live are almost incomprehensible to a girl who has grown up in the US, where our rights are protected and freedom of speech is to us as natural as the air we breathe. To think about having to hush every conversation and trust no one, about not being able to go to college because of who your father was, living in fear of being reported by your neighbors for a minor infraction and forced to either leave your apartment or share it with another family, to be blamed for a difficulty in a child's treatment that is out of your field and beyond your control and treated to horrific consequences only because his father is high up in the government and has the power to do it, to have to constantly be afraid of everything, hide everything and guard everything...Absolutely unthinkable. And they say that communism/socialism and big government is a good thing?
Umm, perhaps if you're the government and you can live a life that's different than the populace you crush every day it's a good thing. But the citizens who have no rights would probably say different. If they knew they wouldn't be killed for opening their mouths.

Characters: This book was out-of-the ordinary in the way that the characters were never described. I have no idea what any of them look like and it's really unimportant. The characters of these characters is what endears them to you - not the fact that they have brown eyes, brown hair, pale skin, and ect. Also, I have no idea really what these people's last names are. Every other page someone would be calling them something different and I couldn't sort out why or how. So we'll go by firsts. And there are only a few.

Anna: I'm still not sure about her. I liked her, grew frustrated with her, put myself in her shoes, re-liked her, and ended up unsure. Quite definitely, she was thrown into a hellish situation that she did nothing to bring on. All she wanted was a peaceful home with her beloved Andrei, but with a government who has a stranglehold on every person and a finger on every vein, a thing like this is impossible. She is strong and loves too much to protect herself. And it hurts her. But she has what it takes to survive.


Andrei: He's the kind of man that any woman would be proud to call their husband. He's gentle, caring and unwilling to compromise or let anyone suffer to protect himself. It's Andrei's refusal to shrink away from what he is and what he believes is right is the compelling factor that drives the book and the price he pays to follow his conscience and sense of what is right and good is staggering, inhuman and completely unjust.

Likes:
I haven't read a well-written book in a while, so Helen Dunmore's three hundred and thirty-six page story was a welcome relief. Aside from the things that relegate it to the 17 and up category, I devoured this book and loved it. It was compelling and so horrific that I was glued to the page. I even missed Olympic swimming finals to finish it - which is a big thing for me. I love Olympic swimming. And reading it made me so incredibly glad to be American.

Anna and Andrei were great. Even though I wouldn't know them from Adam if I met them on the street because of the lack of description, they were really, really awesome. Andrei was so incredibly sweet and Anna was so considerate. They were perfect for each other. And Kolya was pretty good too. I loved his resilient piano playing.

Dislikes: Well, it was a book written for adults, and I can read books for adults, but I shy away from recommending them because of content. Even in some Christian fiction. I don't particularly understand why authors think we need to peek into the most private aspects of people's married (and unmarried) lives (though, sadly, I do know that many people read for that sort of thing) or why language is seen to enhance the experience, but that's how it is.
In some books, I can overlook it. If they're good enough.

Conclusion: The Betrayal was definitely good enough.
 
Till next time!

Book Review: Illusion

My first taste of the renowned and famous Christian author Frank Peretti. This is one of the only authors my brother will read and he's often badgered me to read This Present Darkness/Piercing the Darkness many times. I've flipped through them and have never been interested. When I saw Illusion, the cover caught my eye - and the synopsis snared my imagination. It sounded...good.

Synopsis: Dane and Mandy, a popular magic act for forty years, are tragically separated by a car wreck that claims Mandy’s life—or so everyone thinks. Even as Dane mourns and tries to rebuild his life without her, Mandy, supposedly dead, awakes in the present as the nineteen-year-old she was in 1970. Distraught and disoriented in what to her is the future, she is confined to a mental ward until she discovers a magical ability to pass invisibly through time and space to escape. Alone in a strange world, she uses her mysterious powers to eke out a living, performing magic on the streets and in a quaint coffee shop.
Hoping to discover an exciting new talent, Dane ventures into the coffee shop and is transfixed by the magic he sees, illusions that even he, a seasoned professional, cannot explain. But more than anything, he is emotionally devastated by this teenager who has never met him, doesn’t know him, is certainly not in love with him, but is in every respect identical to the young beauty he first met and married some forty years earlier.
They begin a furtive relationship as mentor and protégée, but even as Dane tries to sort out who she really is and she tries to understand why she is drawn to him, they are watched by secretive interests who not only possess the answers to Mandy’s powers and misplacement in time but also the roguish ability to decide what will become of her.
Frank Peretti has crafted a rich, rewarding story of love and life, loss and restoration, full of twists and mystery. Exceptionally well written, Illusion will soon prove another Peretti classic.


Plot: I must say that from all the hype I've endured from my family over this author, I expected a book I couldn't put down. I was disappointed. 
When I read the synopsis, I conjured the plot in my mind and the book didn't come close to my expectations (I really need to stop doing that...). It took a completely different track and I couldn't get into it. 
First off, as I got deeper into the book, I got bored. It's extremely repetitive and the aura of the unknown and mysterious happenings doesn't add tension. It's confusing and hard to get through. I felt almost as if Mr. Peretti himself didn't exactly known or understand what he was talking about and his confusion came out in the book. I found myself just going along with the flow and not trying to understand anything in an attempt to just finish the book. It's like a bad movie soundtrack. There are perhaps three good songs and the rest is dull filler.
I was also surprised that the Christian aspect of the book was so weak. There are a few mentions of church and the characters pray occasionally, Mandy often refers to events as "God things", but there is basically no message. In the author's note, Frank Peretti offers a few allegories between the book and Scripture that never would have occurred to me while reading. I've read other reviews and found this to be a common complaint.


Characters: 
Mandy Whitacre - Heroine
I got tired of Mandy rather quickly; she was such a repetitive character. Granted, she's confused and discovering things in the situation she's been thrown into, but she never really connected. Every once in a while she would have a flash of spirit, but most of the time she was a pale shadow manipulated by the plot. 

Dane Collins - Hero?
I guess you can call him the hero. He's the guy. The one the heroine falls in love with. But it's weird and slightly disturbing and just hard to understand. He's pretty bland too and his explanations of magic illusions are confusing at best.  

There are many more, but they don't seem very memorable or in need of a review. The plot is the dominating factor in this book - not the characters.

Likes: I love the cover. It's beautiful and eye-catching. Too bad what's inside doesn't do justice. This is a horrible book to judge by its cover.

There was some humor, I guess.

I found it rather interesting that Dane's name was actually a nickname for Daniel. I like names and that sort of thing.

Dislikes: The horrid repetitiveness. Mandy was always doing the same things over and over, explaining the same things over and over, going the same places over and over. This book spanned the country, but remained plodding and predictable.  Dane thought the same things over and over. And everything was just so SLOW! The plot didn't move an inch and is severely anticlimatic. 


The whole premise on which the book was built was difficult to understand, poorly explained and rather obvious in places. I figured out what Dane should have figured out CHAPTERS before he figured it out. All the scientific kerfuffle was boring and thick as pea soup. I began to wonder if anyone - including the author - really knew what they were talking about.


 It boiled down to two or three confused points and a climax that lost any semblance of sense and interest almost immediately. The bad guys were pretty helpless and didn't offer much suspense or tension. They were easily defeated, surprisingly inept and hardly threatening. They were built up to be so horrid that the end result was almost laughable. At page four hundred thirty, Mr. Peretti must have been as tired of his book as I was. 


At the end, I still had a bunch of questions without answers, but at that point, I didn't care for an answer anyway. I was just glad I was done.


Conclusion: I've heard that the "Darkness" books are Peretti's only triumphs, but after struggling through this five hundred and twelve page clunker, I'm not sure I'll be giving those a try any time soon. 


Till next time!

Book Review: Hide In Plain Sight

As requested by Madeline, here is a review for Marta Perry's Hide in Plain Sight. =D

Synopsis: She couldn't turn her back on her family in their time of need. So when her sister was injured, financial expert Andrea Hampton traded the big city for Amish country to help turn her grandmother's house into an inn.

But life with the Plain People took a treacherous turn when a string of accidents and pranks threatened her family. Someone didn't want the secrets the old house harbored to come to light. Trusting anyone-- even the handsome carpenter who seemed so genuine--was a battle for Andrea, but her life depended on her ability to find the truth.

Plot: Unfortunately, this book wasn't long enough for both a mystery/suspense plot and thorough fleshing out of characters, so one venue had to be chosen and utilized. Marta Perry chose the plot.
I must admit that, from the beginning (and finding out that it was a LoveInspired book), I wasn't expecting much. Of course, since it was recommended to me, I was expecting it to be readable. The end result was rather surprising.

The plot was a typical sabotage-and-prowler type. It's Nancy Drew-esque and rather anticlimactic. But it's a romance novel - suspenseful or otherwise - and I've noticed that pure romance novels never have surprise endings.

As was noted by a professional reviewer on a book I once read I would have to say that Hide In Plain Sight had "moments of brilliance". There were times when I actually thought "wow. I wasn't expecting such an accurate observation from a pulp fiction writer".

Despite its generic-ness, I was pleasantly surprised to find myself enjoying this book.

Characters:
As I said before, characterization was pushed a bit to the back burner here. We got a brief outlining at the beginning of the looks and characteristics of the three Hampton sisters (one of which was not even in the book) and then they sort of dissolved into the plot and let it take over.

Andrea Hampton: Main character and heroine
Andrea wasn't bad. She reminded me of myself - sort of efficient, organized and judgmental. I expected her to be a typical Christian romance female, but she was surprisingly tart and opinionated. It took her longer than I expected to thaw out to the hero. She had a lot of promise, but not enough page-space to really take advantage of it.

Cal Burke: Hero
Can't say I thought much of him until he started moving furniture out of the attic. He was too much a mysterious, quiet, cliche hero and I got tired of Andrea telling me about him. I think I can figure out that he's pretty buff from carpentry work without her mentioning it every time she bumps into him - which happened to be a lot. I found him to be rather colorless, though I appreciated the fact that he was careful about relationships (most of the time) and not getting entangled in one that would hurt both him and Andrea.

Likes: Though this book was set in Amish Country (and I've read enough Beverly Lewis to really garner a dislike for the genre) it was hardly Amish - something I was thankful for. We understand, they're different, but not that fascinating.

That the romance was discreet - though at times rather tacky - and there weren't a lot of messy kisses and gush and sappiness.

That there was actually some humor and good dialogue and creative descriptions.

Dislikes: I knew how it was going to end. It's the bane of pulp-fiction. It always ends happily, perfectly, cliche-ly.

The content that made it "Christian" was pretty weak. Out-of-the-blue Andrea suddenly thought "my goodness, the atmosphere here must be bringing God back into my life" and then she's suddenly praying and asking God for wisdom and ect. It's not believable or really challenging or thought-provoking. It's just put there so "inspirational" can be stamped on the cover and the I-don't-want-to-read-a-Danielle-Steele-type-book group will read it.

Conclusion: I can't say I'll ever read Hide In Plain Sight again but I can't say that it was a waste of time either. I got some good ideas out of it and anything that gives me an idea was worth the time spend on it. It offered some easy, summer reading and - though predictable - was pleasantly interesting.

Till next time!


P.S. Not that anyone would be surprised if I don't post for a full week, but I will say that I will be out of town from the 17th to the 22nd and will not be blogging. Have a great week, everyone! =D