Ironskin

Today's post is on Ironskin by Tina Connolly. It is the first in her Ironskin Trilogy. It is 302 pages long and is published by TOR. The cover has the main character in a silver dress with her iron mask on looking at the reader. The intended reader is someone who likes retellings, steampunk, and some romance. There is no sex, some mild language, and some violence in this book. The story is told from the first person perspective of the main character. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the dust jacket- Jane Eliot wears an iron mask. It's the only way to contain the fey curse that scars her cheek. The Great War is five years gone, but its scattered victims remain- the ironskin.

When a carefully worded listing appears for a governess to assist with a 'delicate situation'- a child born during the Great War- Jane is certain the child is fey-cursed, and that she can help.
Teaching the unruly Dorie to suppress her curse is hard enough; she certainly didn't expect to fall for the girl's father, the enigmatic artist Edward Rochart. But her blossoming crush is stifled by her scars and by his parade of women. Ugly women, who enter his closed studio... and come out as beautiful as the fey.
Jane knows Rochart cannot love her, just as she knows that she must wear iron for the rest of her life. But what is neither of these things is true? Step by step unlocks the secrets of her new life- and discovers just how far she will go to become whole again.

Review- It was one of the best books that I have read so far this year. Everything about this book was great. The writing was solid, both original and at the same time you can see the effects of Jane Eyre on the style. The plot was mysterious, grand without being overdone. The character's were again unique but you can see where Connolly is borrowing them from. The descriptions were wonderful, lush and clear. In fact the only thing that I did not like about this novel is that it is only 302 pages long instead of the full length of Jane Eyre but that is it. Everything else I loved about it. The Fey were powerful and dangerous. The mystery was drawing and frightening when understood. Jane is an excellent character. She is smart but unsure of herself and her face. I look forward to reading the next in the series Copperhead.

I give this book a Five out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I bought this book with my own money.

1913:The Year Before the Storm

Today's nonfiction post is on 1913:The Year Before the Storm by Florian Illies. It is 266 pages long including a bibliography and is published by Melville House. The cover is a picture of couples skating on a frozen pond. The intended reader is someone interested in history, ground work for World War I, and about famous people for one year of their lives. There is no language, talk of sex, and talk of violence. Teenagers and adults would get the most enjoyment out of this book. The story is told in third person with some first person letters added for favor. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the dust jacket- Just before one of its darkest moments came the twentieth century's most exciting year.

It was the year Henry Ford first put a conveyor belt in his car factory, and the year Louis Armstrong first picked up a trumpet. It was the year Charlie Chaplin signed his first movie contract, and Coco Chanel and Prada opened their first dress shops. It was the Proust began his opus, Stravinsky wrote The Rite of Spring, and the first Armory Show in New York introduced the world to Picasso and the world of abstract art. It was the year the recreational drug now known as ecstasy was invented.
It was 1913, the year before the world plunged into the catastrophic darkness of World War I.
In a witty yet moving narrative that progresses month by month through the year, and is interspersed with numerous photos add documentary artifacts (such as Kafka's love letters), Florian Illies ignores the conventions of the stodgy tome so common in “one year” histories. Forefronting cultural matter as much as politics, he delivers a charming and riveting tale of a world full of hope and unlimited possibility, peopled with amazing characters and radical politics, bristling with new art and new technology... even as ominous storm clouds began to gather.

Review- This was an engaging read. Illies does a very good job with both his history and his storytelling. Everyone of importance is talked about here. Who was born this year, what artists and writers were doing, what business men and world leaders were planning. Everyone who has or had impact on society is talked about. The way the year is told is as a narrative. The reader goes from one or two lines about what Kafka is dreaming out to two or three pages about who Picasso is sleeping with or running away from. I knew most of the people in this year but not all so now I have more I need to read about. The threat of 1914 is not overwhelming. At times the reader can see where something is going to go wrong but most of what is told is in the moment. Just like we do not know what 2015 will be the people in 1913 really had no idea what was going to come in 1914. Illies makes the book just that about 1913 with really no idea about what is going to happen next. A lot like life.

I give this book a Five out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I borrowed this book from my local library.

MARS volume 6

Today post is on MARS volume 6 by Fuyumi Soryo. Is the sixth in the series and was published by Tokyopop. The cover has Kira on it. The intended reader is young adult but all the drama adults can enjoy this too. There is no sex, some mild language, and some violence in this volume. The story is told from Kira's perspective. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the back of the book- Tales from the Dark Side.

Kira and Rei are definitely in love- but no one said love was easy. When a new guy enrolls in their school, he instantly develops a big crush on both Rei and Kira. (Gulp!) To make matters worse, it turns out that this mysterious stranger is actually a face from Rei's violent past. Slowly, Kira begins to discover Rei's darker side, but she's not so sure she likes what she sees. As scandalous stories and shocking secrets are revealed, Kira hopes beyond hope that their love will be able to conquer all.

Review- This volume is about Rei's recent past just after his brother's death and again we have to put Kira aside. We knew that Rei had lost his mind in grief and rage after Sei's death but we get to see what some of that looked like. The new character is very creepy and how Rei reacts to him is even more so. But Kira being a whole-hearted believer in people, she can see past all that. She helps Rei remember who he really is. That is what this volume is really about Kira helping Rei get back to who he really is. I do wish that we had gotten more of what is really going on with Kira but they have very little alone time because of the new stalker. More drama in general and about the stalker next time!

I give this manga a Five out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I bought this manga with my own money.

The Mark of the Tala

Today's post is on The Mark of the Tala by Jeffe Kennedy. It is the first in her The Twelve Kingdoms series. The cover has the main character looking at a black-red feather. The intended reader is someone who likes fantasy and romance. There is some mild language, multiple sex scenes and violence in this book. The story is told from the first person close of the main character. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the back of the book- Queen of the Unknown
The tales tell of three sisters, daughters of the high king. The eldest, a valiant warrior-woman, heir to the kingdom. The youngest, the sweet beauty with her Prince Charming. No one says much about the middle princess, Andromeda. Andi, the other one.
Andi doesn't mind being invisible. She enjoys the company of her horse more than court, and she has a way of blending into the shadows. Until the day she meets a strange man riding, who keeps company with wolves and ravens, who rules a land of shapeshifters and demons. A country she'd thought was no more than legend- until he claims her as its queen.
In a moment everything changes: Her father, the wise king, becomes a warlord, suspicious and strategic. Whispers call her dead mother a traitor and a witch. Andi doesn't know if her own instincts can be trusted, as visions appear to her and her body begins to rebel.
For Andi, the time to learn her true nature has come...

Review- This book does so much wrong. I wanted to like this book or at the very least have a good time reading it. I did not have a good time reading it. The hero is a high-handed ass who cannot hear the word no. The heroine is not brave. She gets pushed into a corner by the hero and the plot and gives in. I could not even read them having a kiss without feeling a little sick to my stomach. I just out right skipped the sex scenes because just thinking about them now, as I am writing this review, makes me feel ill. The writing is not terrible. The plot feels too high-handed for me. I believe that the writer wanted to have a reluctant heroine, for whatever reason, and that comes across very well. Everything felt like it was stacked against her from the beginning. The word no is not used in the sex scenes, I did skim for that, but I do not believe that the heroine could have said no. The hero is very sexual and very interested in getting to have sex with the heroine, who he has only meet three times for just a few minutes each. Andi even thinks that about him, that she is only to be used for her vagina. I believed that too. If damsel cannot say not say no to overly sexual hero is your thing then read this. You will like it. If the word no or the ability to say no means something to you, skip it.

I give this book a One out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I, thank god, borrowed this from my local library.

The Girls of Atomic City: The Untold Story of the Women who helped win World War II

Today's post is on The Girls of Atomic City: The Untold Story of the Women who helped win World War II by Denise Kiernan. It is 371 pages long including notes and index. It is published by Simon & Schuster. The cover is a picture of Oak Ridge with women walking towards the camera. The intended reader is someone who is interested in women's history, forgotten history, and World War II. There is no language, no violence, and no sex in this book; any one interested in the topic can read this. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the dust jacket- At the height of World War II, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, was home to 75,000 residents, consuming more electricity than New York City. But to most of the world, the town did not exist. Thousands of civilians- many of them young women from small towns across the South- were recruited to this secret city, enticed by solid wages and the promise of war-ending work. Kept very much in the dark, few would ever guess the true nature of the tasks they performed each day in the hulking factories in the middle of the Appalachian Mountains. That is, until the end of the war- when Oak Ridge's secret was revealed.

Drawing on the voices of the women who lived it- women who are now in their eighties and nineties- The Girls of Atomic City rescues a remarkable, forgotten chapter of American history from obscurity. Denise Kiernan captures the spirit of the times through these women: their pluck, their desire to contribute, and their enduring courage. Combining the grand-scale human drama of The Worst Hard Time with the intimate biography and often troubling science of The Immoral Life of Henrietta Lacks, The Girls of Atomic City is a lasting and important addition to our country's history.

Review- The book does a lot right and wrong. The right is the facts about the women who lived, worked, and helped win the war. The wrong is the writing. The story at times was so very interesting but the writing was so dry. It was an act of discipline to finish this book. Kiernan takes what should have been interesting history and makes it boring. The stories of the women are told from the moment they are recruited to come work until the end of the war. It talked about why they wanted to help, brothers/fathers in the war, wanting more from life from marriage and children, or just needing the money. Kiernan writes about the women who helped discover plutonium and were 'forgotten' by the Nobel prize society. She talks about the women who cleaned the offices and other rooms. She does not hold back from the questionable things that happened to make the bomb happen and she talks about the human cost of the bomb itself. It should have been wonderful but it was so boring. The writing was just so dry that I will not read another thing by her.

I give this book a Two out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I borrowed this book from my local library.

MARS volume 5

Today's post is on MARS volume 5 by Fuyumi Soryo. As it is the fifth in the series, you need to have read the first 4. It is published by Tyokyopop. The cover has Rei on it looking at the reader. The intended reader is someone young adult, likes teen drama, and intense plots. There is some mild language, no sex, and no violence in this volume. The story is told from Kira's perspective. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the back of the book- Under Pressure

Kira and Rei's roller-coaster romance continues! Rei suddenly gets ill, Kira takes care of him at his apartment... and ends up sleeping over. After their night together, Rei finally tells Kira the real reason his twin brother Sei killed himself: Rei told him a secret he know Sei would never be able to handle. Kira tries to comfort Rei, but secretly wonders if mere words have the power to ease the pain Rei harbors deep inside. Meanwhile, Kira's best friend, Harumi warns Kira if she doesn't start sleeping with Rei soon, he'll probably break up with her. Ouch! Kira's worries deepen when Rei' ex-girlfriend tells him she's still in love with him- and will do anything to win him back. With the pressure mounting by the minute, Kira is about to make the biggest decisions of her life!

Review- Rei's ex-girlfriend problems get resolved and we are starting to get into Kira's character. Rei talks about what he feels when they are being teenagers and I like the foreshadowing that is happening. I like Rei but we have had now five volumes all about him. Let's get into Kira now. The plot is this is more about Kira and Rei being more together and the reader seeing that they are not having sex. That something is stopping Rei whenever he tries to take things to the next level. One interesting thing is that Rei is not pressuring Kira to have sex with him. Other people are. Rei does not understand what is going on with Kira but he does not push her. Kira never says no but Rei is connected to her so he can feel when he has gone too far and stops. Not realistic in a seventeen-year-old boy but it is a nice fantasy. Rei's kindness is good for her.

I give this volume a Five out of Five. I get nothing for my review and I bought this book with my own money.

Inland

Today's post is on Inland by Kat Rosenfield. It is a standalone novel. It is 382 pages long and is published by Dutton Books. The cover is grey with the main character on it backed into a corner with waves rushing towards her. The intended reader is young adult, someone who likes horror, and old stories about mermaids. There is no sex, some mild language, and no violence in this novel. The story is told by the main character Callie. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the dust jacket- There was a shadow in the water and when it moved beneath out boat, the Sea opened its yawning blue mouth and swallowed my mother whole.

After nine years spent suffocating in the arid expanses of the Midwest, far from the sea where her mother drowned, Callie Morgan and her father are returning to the coast. And miraculously, Callie can finally breathe easily. No more sudden, clawing attacks, and weeklong hospital stays.
But something is calling to her from the river behind their house and from the ocean miles away. Just as her life begins to feel like her own, and the potential for romance is blossoming, the intoxicating pull of the dark water seeps into her mind, filling her with doubt and revealing family secrets. Is it madness, or is there a voice, beckoning her to come to the sea? To answer the call of the dark waves.
To Come Home.

Review- This was a great read. The mythology of older mermaids is very present. The pull towards the ocean and away from land is very strong. I liked that the reader could decide for themselves if what Callie was experiencing was real or not. To me it felt very real but if you wanted to, it could be easily read as not. Callie is a very unreliable narrator and that makes the odd things in this book even odder. She does not know if what she is seeing or feeling is real either. She believes but sometimes there is a thread of doubt. The story is very compelling with a young woman who does not know who she is but wants to so badly. I think that Rosenfield did a good job making Callie believable and pitiable. The world does not believe in mermaids, only in drowning; it does not listen to very sick girls, even when they are telling the truth. Rosenfield makes the reader feel how Callie feels. Pushed aside, forgotten, and no one wants to change that. But Callie does try to fit into humanity but she cannot. As I said this can be read as a horror story about real mermaids or a story about a girl losing her mind. I, personally, pull for mermaids.
 

I give this book a Four out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I borrowed this book from my local library.

Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind

Today's post is on Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari. It is 464 pages long including notes and is published by HarperCollins. The cover is white with the title in red and human fingerprint above it. The intended reader is someone who is interested in human history, science, and culture. There is no language, talk of sex and violence, and some disturbing content like about how animals are treated. Older teens and adult only is for the best. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the back of the book Fire made us dangerous. Gossip helped us cooperate. Agriculture made us hungry for more. Mythology maintained law and order. Money gave us something everyone can trust. Contradictions created culture. Science made us the masters of creation. And non of these made us happy. This is the trilling account of our extraordinary history- from insignificant apes to rulers of the world.

Review- This was a very interesting and well written book. Harari gives the reader the beginnings of humankind all the way to present day. He talks about the different things that helped humankind survive and what we have done with that survival. He talks about all the different ways that we affect the world around us, both bad and good. There some philosophy, religion, and other cultural things but this book is mostly about the revolutions that humankind has experienced. Like the agricultural revolution that made us from hunter/gathers into farmers and all that had meant since. Harari talks about gender, sex, how we eat, what we think about, and how happiness has escaped us. Like all good philosophy books he does not give any answers, wanting the reader to make their own mind about what he was presented. I recommend this book.

I give this book a Five out of Five stars. I was given this book by HarperCollins in exchange for an honest review.

MARS volume 4

Today's post is on MARS volume 4 by Fuyumi Soryo. It is the fourth in the MARS series and is published by Tokyopop. The cover has Kira on it looking cute. The intended reader is someone who likes teen drama, real life troubles, and more drama. There is no language, no sex, and talk of suicide. The story is told from Kira's perspective. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the back of the book- Burned by An Old Flame
Just when things are beginning to heat up between Kira and Rei, Rei's old girlfriend shows up and confesses that she never stopped loving him. When Rei tells her not to come around again, she walks into traffic and Rei is forced to rescue to her. His act of heroism only intensifies her obsession, and soon the exiled ex refuses to get out of bed or eat until Rei agrees to see her. When Kira tried to give him some girlfriendly advice on the matter, Rei lashes out at her and reduces her to tears. Emotions continue to escalate until the anniversary of Sei's death, when repressed memories are unearthed and hidden secrets revealed.

Review- Some of the reason behind Sei's dead are revealed but not all. Rei and Kira are trying to get closer but unresolved issues are stopping them. Rei trying to deal with his brother's death and Kira trying to be forward are the main issues in this volume. The storytelling is really starting to get off the ground. With lots of character interaction, plot development, and of course drama the real beauty of MARS is starting to show. The art is beautiful mixing finely detailed drawing for emotional impact with more simplistic style for humor. The art, like all manga, is very important to the way the story is told. So much about the plot and character's is told in how they are drawn, the backgrounds used with them, and the way shadows are played. We can see Kira's innocence in her softer style, when Rei is feeling the weight of Sie's death the art changes around him. Soryo knows what she is doing and does it well.

I give this volume a Five out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I bought this manga with my own money.

Gift of Magic

Today's post is on Gift of Magic by Lynn Kurland. It is the third book in her second Nine Kingdoms trilogies. It is 310 pages long and is published by Berkley Sensation. The cover has one of the main character's on it looking ready for a fight. There is no sex, no language, but some fantasy action in this book. The story is told from the third person close perspective of the two main character's moving from one chapter to the next. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the back of the book- Sarah of Doire knows the pattern of spells is no accident. With each page, each powerful rune, she and Ruith are being led somewhere, to someone- but by whom, she cannot tell. Sarah's gift of sight only allows her to see the spells themselves, not the person behind them.

A reluctant sorcerer still earning to trust his own magic, Ruithneadh of Ceangail knows he's woefully unprepared for the adversaries they'll face. But he and Sarah must collect and destroy his father's Gair's spells soon. Many mages seek their power, and in the wrong hands, Gair's magic would plunge the Nine Kingdoms into an eternity of darkness.
But as they purse the final spells- acquiring strange companions, welcome allies, and unexpected foes along the way- Sarah and Ruith realize that their true quest has only just begun. The real enemy is closer, darker, and more power hungry than they every imagined, and until he is defeated, the fate of the Nine Kingdoms hands in dire peril.

Review- This was a great way to end the second trilogy. Ruith and Sarah get their happy ending and threads for the next trilogy are in place. The action is very fast paced in this one. With all questions answered the answers are interesting. I think that the only one who died at the well was Ruith's mother. Ruith makes peace with himself. He realizes that just because he is his father's son, he is not his father. Sarah does not get as much comfort in this volume. I think that she is just is going to do her best and dim her sight when she can. The only thing that we still do not know is what a dreamweaver is. But we do get to see some of what Sarah can do. She is the one who stopped Gair from winning in the end. She unleashed the light inside her and stopped him. The writing is so imaginative. The magic is powerful and at times scary. The setting is so fun and beautiful. I look forward to reading the next trilogy.

I give this book a Five out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I bought this book with my own money.

Predators, Prey, and Other Kinfolk: Growing up in Polygamy

Today's nonfiction post is on Predators, Prey, and Other Kinfolk: Growing up in Polygamy by Dorothy Allred Solomon. It is 396 pages long and is published by W. W. Norton & Company. The cover has a blue butterfly in a jar but the picture is a little out of focus. The intended reader is an adult, someone interested in religion or other odd lifestyles. There is some language, talk of rape and incest, and talk of violence. The story is told by the author in first person with other people quoted for added detail. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the dust jacket- “I am the daughter of my father's fourth plural wife, twenty-eighth of forty-eight children- a middle kid, you might say.” So begins this astonishing memoir of life in the family of Utah fundamentalist leader and naturopathic physician Rulon C. Allred. Since polygamy was abolished by manifesto in 1890, this is a story of secrecy and lies, of poverty and imprisonment and government raids. When raids threatened, the families were forced to scatter from their pastoral compound in Salt Lake City to the deserts of Mexico or the wilds of Montana. To follow the Lord's plan as dictated by the Principle, the human cost was huge. Eventually murder in its cruelest form entered when members of a rival fundamentalist group assassinated the author's father.

Dorothy Solomon, monogamous herself, broke from the fundamentalist group because she yearned for equality and could not reconcile the laws of God (as practiced by polygamists) with the vastly different laws of the state. This poignant account chronicles her brave quest for personal identity.

Review- I found this to be a very open and honest memoir. Now that does not mean that I believe that Solomon is giving the whole unpolished truth but I believe that to the best of her ability, she is telling the truth. Solomon talks about how hard it is to be honest about what her family is, was, will be, and even where they are going. She talks about how the first thing the children in the family learn to do is lie to outsiders. The world on the other side of the fence is evil and out to get you. She talks about how hard it was to learn that was not true. This is more than just one woman's memoir of growing up in polygamy but how her family started in polygamy. She traces her family from Europe to the America's on both sides. She gives records about her grandfathers and grandmothers. She also follows her siblings lives as much as she can. Solomon is an outsider to her life now. She is seen as the devil's seed and wants to lead others into hell. When she talks about that, I felt her sorrow that her family cannot understand her. If you are looking for an interesting memoir, give this one a try.

I give this book a Four out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I borrowed this book from my local library.

MARS volume 3

Today's post is on MARS volume 3 by Fuyumi Soryo. It is the third in a fifteen volume series and was published by Tokyopop. The cover has Rei on it being shy. The intended reader is young adults but with all the drama adults can have fun with this series too. There is some mild language, no sex, and no violence in this volume. The story is told from Kira's perspective with some thoughts of some of the other character's for plot and character development. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the back of the book- Winner Takes All

Although Kira and Rei are opposites in every way, their bond just keeps getting stronger and stronger. Rei finally trusts Kira enough to ride his beloved motorcycle. Just when Kira and Rei's romance is getting hot and heavy, Rei is called away to ride in the race of his life, the Suzuka 8-endurance. Kira would give anything to be there to support him, but her mom forbids her to go along. As Kira roots for him across the miles, Rei fights his way to the finish ling in this mile-a-minute manga.

Review- The drama in this volume is all about Rei getting to race. Kira's is painting the whole time he is gone but the development is great. Rei is so alive on the racetrack and Kira's at peace as she paints. The pacing is slower because of this. When the racing is going on it feels fast but the whole volume is only 8 hours long. I liked reading about the racing because I love motorcycles too. There really is not much about Kira and Rei's relationship in this volume but the outside character development is worth it. Rei is very passionate about racing and I felt that the reader was shown why he feels that way. At the end Kira has finished her painting of Rei and is showing it at a local art show. More drama on the way!

I give this volume a Five out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I bought this manga with my own money.

Fiendish

Today's post is on Fiendish by Brenna Yovanoff. It is 341 pages long and is published by Razorbill. The cover has a broken house on it with thick roots coming from the foundation. The intended reader is young adult but the world is so interesting that an adult could enjoy this book too. There is no sex, some language, and violence in this book. The story is told from the first person perspective of the main character. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the dust jacket- Clementine Devore spent ten years trapped in a cellar, pinned down by willow roots, silenced and forgotten. Now she's out and determined to uncover who put her in that cellar and why.

When Clementine was a child. Dangerous and inexplicable things started happening in New South

Bend. The townsfolk blamed the fiendish people out in the Willows and burned their homes to the ground. But magic kept Clementine alive, walled up in the cellar for ten years, until a boy names Fisher sets her free.

Back in the world, Clementine sets out to discover what happened all those years ago. But the truth gets muddled in her dangerous attraction to Fisher, the politics of New South Bend, and the hollow- a fickle and terrifying place that seems increasingly temperamental ever since Clementine reemerged.

Review- I was just expecting a fun book. But instead I got a thick plot, interesting characters, and a magic system that was both fun and terrifying. Clementine is a good main character, she is full of hope, she does not stop trying to help those around her, and she wants the truth. The magic system is so weird, fun, and a little scary. Clementine does not really have much power herself but she makes everyone else around her much more powerful than before. The mystery of what happened is very drawing. The Fiends are really the best part, in my opinion. They are like what the original stories about the Fae are. They are more than a human can really understand. The people from New South Bend act the real people would. Something weird is going on, it's their fault. The reckoning at the end of the book is very tense but really great scene. Yovanoff has a good hand with weird moving on scary.

I give this book a Five out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I borrowed this book from my local library.