strange and random happenstance

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
Published by: Viking Adult
Publication Date: February 8th, 2011
Format: Hardcover, 592 Pages
Rating: ★★★★★
To Buy

Creatures are dying out. The power of the witches is waning and they are having less children. The vampires are unable to sire successfully. As for the daemons, they are becoming more and more erratic, that which once made them brilliant is now driving them mad. They have one hope. Rumors of a book that holds all the answers to their origins and their decline. Each species has a different theory as to what is contained within its pages. Witches believe it is the first grimoire. And it is a witch who finds the book after all hope had been lost of ever finding the missing manuscript. Diana Bishop is a witch. The last descendant of Bridget Bishop who was hanged at Salem. When magic killed Diana's parents when she was seven she decided then and there that magic would have no place in her life. She has created a great academic career for herself, she is the foremost authority on alchemy and its symbology. Which is what she is studying at the Bodleian. She has taken a year-long sabbatical from Yale to conduct research in Oxford. One day she calls a book from the stacks, Ashmole 782. This book isn't what it seems, it reeks of magic and is a palimpsest. She refuses to interact with the magical so treats it as any other book. She takes her notes and as soon as she's done with it she sends it back to the stacks. But the wheels have been put in motion. The creatures know the book has been found. They start to gather at the library. Watching her intently. Hoping she will recall what was thought lost. And they are willing to do anything to get it back. Witches, vampires, and daemons aren't supposed to interact. They have a Congregation that enforces these laws. Too many of them in one place draws the attentions of the humans. And what's happening at the Bodleian is drawing their attention. Enter Matthew Clairmont. Matthew is tall, dark, and brooding, everything you'd expect a vampire to be. He takes a keen interest in Diana, not just because of the book, but because something draws her to him. Soon the two of them are inseparable. Falling for each other but denying that it is happening. But Diana, not the book, might be the answer to everything he has ever searched for. He is a scientist and has been studying creature DNA in an attempt to solve their decline. He doesn't hold with the Congregation and their segregation of the creatures. Diana proves to be an outlier. Her power isn't waning, it's unlimited. Her DNA shows traits long since forgotten. She must be protected at all costs. When Oxford becomes too dangerous for Diana Matthew spirits her away to his family estate in France, where Diana will have to face Matthew's mother and her disapproval. But Diana's problems are more than the average woman facing a potential in-law, the Congregation has heard they are consorting. Matthew and Diana are breaking their laws and the Congregation won't take this lying down. Soon nowhere is safe. Not even Diana's family home in upstate New York. They need time. Time to find out the true reason that Diana and Matthew prove such a danger, and time for Diana to embrace her heritage.

When I first read this book I couldn't help but be bemused that this is nothing more than literary Twilight. And, just like Twilight, the fanbase is fanatical. So I have rarely in the past called out the book for its absurd family dynamics, its angst, and its heroine, who is almost too dumb to live. Diana does next to nothing to protect herself while Matthew is carrying her around like a spider monkey. I mean, if you can't see the humor in that, or the parallels, I don't know what to say. To fans of the book, I get it. To detractors of the book, I also get it. But sometimes you just need an absurd book full of love and angst and a large found family that while not quite filling the Buffy sized hole that will always exist in my heart is an acceptable simulacrum with its cozy vibes on the edge of the apocalypse. Because I love my messy vampires. If The Vampire Lestat has taught me anything this year its that I need more of that level of chaos in my life and A Discovery of Witches brings a cozy version of that with ghost-filled houses and the golden spires of Oxford. While there are wonderful discussions on science and evolution and literature and language this isn't what the book is about. It's about complete and utter escapism and you have to take the book on its own terms in order to enjoy it. So knowing what it was, not the touted book in the front of Barnes and Noble for the entirety of February in 2011, but adult Twilight, I gave myself over to it. And I loved it. I unabashedly loved it. I can finally face my friends who adore this series without a guilty conscious. I was always holding back my opinions because there were scenes that I just couldn't deal with. Congregation defiant yoga classes with vampires, witches, and daemons? Seriously!?! I just couldn't get around how absurd this is. And yet this was something they in particular just adored. Maybe it's just my hatred of yoga and not this yoga in particular that is the crux of the problem. So yes, while I would have probably loved this book more had it proceeded as it had began, minus the yoga, with Diana living the dream; researching at Oxford, spending all her spare time in the Bodleian, having anxiety attacks, OK, that's not cool, but I can relate. But this book started almost with a different Diana coupled with Oxford. So what was lost was a lot. What was gained, well, I've come to love that in it's own special way. And now I do rate it higher than Twilight. Though I should note that only the first book in that series had anything slightly going for it and I have never been a Twihard. An All Souls Fan? Now that I can get behind.

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: A Discovery of Witches, All Souls Trilogy, Ashmole 782, Buffy, Creatures, Daemons, Deborah Harkness, Diana Bishop, Matthew Clairmont, Oxford, Science, Season of the Witch, Spider Monkey, The Vampire Lestat, Twilight, Vampires, Yoga

I was on the bandwagon for the All Souls Trilogy since the beginning. I am not fanatically devoted to the series as some of my friends are, I do not spend my spare time rereading the books over and over again, but I can honestly say I'm a fan. Though when Matthew Goode was cast as Matthew I was like nope. I don't know why, my mind just revolted, and I am a fan of his! But I was so darn curious about the series... so I waited until they all aired and got a one week free trial to Shudder and binged the whole first season. It only took me five minutes to see I was completely wrong about Matthew Goode's casting. He is Matthew, and not just because they have the same first name. I can never picture anyone else now. So good on you Goode for convincing me! Therefore a show that was originally a "show I'd one day see" became eagerly awaited viewing... and oh, the wait for season two seemed so long, but it was worth it. Season two is based on the second book in the series, Shadow of Night, which is hands down my favorite in the series because Elizabethan England! Also, wonderful cameos from historical figures like Kit Marlowe, but did I mention Elizabethan England? But what brought this season into a whole other stratosphere was the genius casting of James Purefoy as Philippe, Matthew's "father." Here's to Goode again who lobbied and cajoled to get Purefoy cast. Now Purefoy is a favorite of mine and I will literally watch anything he is in, but his acting in this was sheer perfection. His final episode where Matthew and Diana are married and mated elevated the whole show to a new level. There are just some actors that bring out the best performances in everyone and this is what happened. They all knew the importance of this episode and though it is a bottle episode with only really three characters, it's just perfect. Even my brother and father were talking about how this episode and James Purefoy's acting raised the show from cheesy fun to Emmy worthy genre television. I'm sad that this is likely the last we'll see of Purefoy as Philippe, but he's left his mark on this series that won't be forgotten as I settle in for the long wait for the final season to drop.

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: A Discovery of Witches, All Souls Trilogy, And the Emmy Goes To, Binge, Bottle Episode, Elizabeth England, Emmy, James Purefoy, Marlowe, Matthew Goode, Philippe De Clermont, Shadow of Night, Shudder

The World of All Souls by Deborah Harkness
Published by: Viking
Publication Date: May 8th, 2018
Format: Hardcover, 496 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A Discovery of Witches introduced Diana Bishop, Oxford scholar and reluctant witch, and vampire geneticist Matthew Clairmont. Shadow of Night and The Book of Life carried Deborah Harkness's series to its spellbinding conclusion.

In The World of All Souls, Harkness shares the rich sources of inspiration behind her bewitching novels. She draws together synopses, character bios, maps, recipes, and even the science behind creatures, magic, and alchemy--all with her signature historian's touch. Bursting with fascinating facts and dazzling artwork, this essential handbook is a must-have for longtime fans and eager newcomers alike."

It's called Deborah Harkness is going all Outlander on us!

Lumberjanes: The Moon is Up by Mariko Tamaki
Published by: Amulet Books
Publication Date: May 8th, 2018
Format: Hardcover, 208 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Welcome to Miss Qiunzella Thiskwin Penniquiqul Thistle Crumpet’s Camp for Hardcore Lady Types. The five scouts of Roanoke cabin—Jo, April, Molly, Mal, and Ripley—love their summers at camp. They get to hang out with their best friends, earn Lumberjane scout badges, annoy their no-nonsense counselor Jen...and go on supernatural adventures. That last one? A pretty normal occurrence at Miss Qiunzella’s, where the woods contain endless mysteries.

As the camp gears up for the big Galaxy Wars competition, Jo and the gang get some help from an unexpected visitor—a Moon Pirate!

Book Two will focus on Jo, the ingenious inventor of the group who also happens to be trans."

Does anyone else find the labeling of Jo a little against the vibe of the comics. They are what they are and that's why we love them... perhaps it was the marketing department trying to be woke. 

On the Road and Off the Record with Leonard Bernstein by Charlie Harmon
Published by: Imagine
Publication Date: May 8th, 2018
Format: Hardcover, 272 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A celebratory, intimate, and detailed look at the public and private life of Leonard Bernstein written by his former assistant. Foreword by Broadway legend Harold Prince.

Leonard Bernstein reeked of cheap cologne and obviously hadn't showered, shaved, or slept in a while. Was he drunk to boot? He greeted his new assistant with "What are you drinking?" Yes, he was drunk.

Charlie Harmon was hired to manage the day-to-day parts of Bernstein's life. There was one additional responsibility: make sure Bernstein met the deadline for an opera commission. But things kept getting in the way: the centenary of Igor Stravinsky, intestinal parasites picked up in Mexico, teaching all summer in Los Angeles, a baker's dozen of young men, plus depression, exhaustion, insomnia, and cut-throat games of anagrams. Did the opera get written?

For four years, Charlie saw Bernstein every day, as his social director, gatekeeper, valet, music copyist, and itinerant orchestra librarian. He packed (and unpacked) Bernstein's umpteen pieces of luggage, got the Maestro to his concerts, kept him occupied changing planes in Zurich, Anchorage, Tokyo, or Madrid, and learned how to make small talk with mayors, ambassadors, a chancellor, a queen, and a Hollywood legend or two. How could anyone absorb all those people and places? Because there was music: late-night piano duets, or the Maestro's command to accompany an audition, or, by the way, the greatest orchestras in the world. Charlie did it, and this is what it was like, told for the first time."

For my brother!

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: A Discovery of Witches, All Soul's Trilogy, Deborah Harkness, Leonard Bernstein, Lumberjanes, Mariko Tamaki, Outlander, Shadow of Night, The Book of Life, The World of All Souls, Tuesday Tomorrow

The Book of Life by Deborah Harkness
Published by: Viking Adult
Publication Date: July 15th, 2014
Format: Hardcover, 576 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"After traveling through time in Shadow of Night, the second book in Deborah Harkness’s enchanting series, historian and witch Diana Bishop and vampire scientist Matthew Clairmont return to the present to face new crises and old enemies. At Matthew’s ancestral home at Sept-Tours, they reunite with the cast of characters from A Discovery of Witches—with one significant exception. But the real threat to their future has yet to be revealed, and when it is, the search for Ashmole 782 and its missing pages takes on even more urgency. In the trilogy’s final volume, Harkness deepens her themes of power and passion, family and caring, past deeds and their present consequences. In ancestral homes and university laboratories, using ancient knowledge and modern science, from the hills of the Auvergne to the palaces of Venice and beyond, the couple at last learn what the witches discovered so many centuries ago.

With more than one million copies sold in the United States and appearing in thirty-eight foreign editions, A Discovery of Witches and Shadow of Night have landed on all of the major bestseller lists and garnered rave reviews from countless publications. Eagerly awaited by Harkness’s legion of fans, The Book of Life brings this superbly written series to a deeply satisfying close."

Not very surprising to me that no other books are coming out this week. No one wants to compete with the juggernaut that is Deborah Harkness...

Seconds by Bryan Lee O'Malley
Published by: Ballantine Books
Publication Date: July 15th, 2014
Format: Hardcover, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Katie’s got it pretty good. She’s a talented young chef, she runs a successful restaurant, and she has big plans to open an even better one. Then, all at once, progress on the new location bogs down, her charming ex-boyfriend pops up, her fling with another chef goes sour, and her best waitress gets badly hurt. And just like that, Katie’s life goes from pretty good to not so much. What she needs is a second chance. Everybody deserves one, after all—but they don’t come easy. Luckily for Katie, a mysterious girl appears in the middle of the night with simple instructions for a do-it-yourself do-over:

1. Write your mistake
2. Ingest one mushroom
3. Go to sleep
4. Wake anew

And just like that, all the bad stuff never happened, and Katie is given another chance to get things right. She’s also got a dresser drawer full of magical mushrooms—and an irresistible urge to make her life not just good, but perfect. Too bad it’s against the rules. But Katie doesn’t care about the rules—and she’s about to discover the unintended consequences of the best intentions.

From the mind and pen behind the acclaimed Scott Pilgrim series comes a madcap new tale of existential angst, everyday obstacles, young love, and ancient spirits that’s sharp-witted and tenderhearted, whimsical and wise."

I'm of two minds with regard to the new Bryan Lee O'Malley book (BTW, this is exempt from Harkness conflict, because they are so different). One mind is going, OMG, finally, something new since the final Scott Pilgrim, other mind, but his other standalone, Lost at Sea, sucked... see, two minds.

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: A Discovery of Witches, Bryan Lee O'Malley, Comics, Deborah Harkness, Scott Pilgrim, Seconds, Shadow of Night, The Book of Life

Shadow of Night by Deborah Harkness
Published by: Viking
ARC Provided by Viking
Publication Date: July 10th, 2012
Format: Kindle, 592 Pages
Rating: ★★★

To Buy

Diana and Matthew did it! They have successfully arrived in 1590 at Matthew's house in Woodstock. Diana thought that getting there would be the hard part, but that was easy compared to being thrown directly into the middle of the School of Night. The smartest and savviest and most renowned and infamous men of the age seem to view Matthew's house as their home... and they do not care for Diana, at first, or forever as the case may be with the lovestruck Marlowe. Soon it becomes apparent that maybe this wasn't the best idea. Matthew has drastically changed from the man he was then, not to mention the lack of a beard. And Diana... well, she obviously doesn't fit. From language to comportment to behaviour. She. Doesn't. Fit. Though as scary as being found out is, the summons from Matthew's father is even scarier. He could bring this world down around them in a flash.

Travelling to Sept Tours and living amongst Matthew's past is trying for Diana, as is the fact they have done nothing that they planned to do. She is still ignorant of her abilities and Ashmole 782 looks as if it is never to be found in the past. Matthew and Diana are buffeted around by all the people who have a claim on them, from Philippe to Queen Elizabeth to Emperor Rudolf II to the Congregation, from France to London to Prague, they try to fit there lives and their needs among the demands of these great people. As time goes on, there is more and more of a chance of effecting the past and there is more and more of a need for Diana to learn her craft and find her book and get home. Luckily, fate does seem to occasionally shine on them and sometimes their tragedies turn into greater joys.

Shadow of Night literally picks up right where A Discovery of Witches ended. While I enjoyed the first book, though didn't view it as a staggering piece of genius, but more as Twilight for the more educated adults out there, I found myself liking this book more. There were still times when I felt it was too Twilighty, what with the importance of Matthew's family, his desire for a wedding before coupling, the desire for Diana mixed in with feelings of blood lust, but at least it's obvious that Harkness knows this and she does parody it with a conversation about modern literature at Sept Tours. There where a few other mild annoyances I will mention here because they seem to fit this "Twilight" category versus any other. If Diana and Matthew had only been together for 40 days, how could her period be "off" when it barely had time to be on? Supposedly her torture changed her cycle... but only having your period different once doesn't indicate a trend of irregularity. Continuing in the vein of bodily functions, some of there sex scenes where veering towards the eww versus the aww.  "With my spine bowed, he was poised at the entrance to my womb." Icky, no thanks!

Now, let's discuss what really annoyed me, Diana's ignorance. For someone who is supposed to be a historian written by a historian, I might add, Diana is really dumb sometimes. Diana mistook a silver shaker, aka a Pounce Pot, for a salt shaker. Even if you don't know the technical term, anyone who has watched any period drama knows that there is a silver shaker that is on all writing desks that contains sand, or a similar substance, and it is an aid for absorbing excess ink in letter writing. Not one person I know would go, "oh look, salt" and then complain about it's grittiness. Grrr Diana. Also, how does a historian not know that at the time of Queen Elizabeth St. Paul's wasn't the St. Paul's by Christopher Wren, seeing as that wasn't for almost two hundred years and a great fire needed to happen. Then there's the use of the word tisane, which is an herbal tea. I can allow that Diana would use it, because she's from modern times, but the fact that others would understand it is impossible. It's from the 1930s! Then there's the quintain. I've known what a quintain was most of my life, probably because I have a younger brother who loved medieval jousting. Again, Diane must have seen a movie or a reference to the sandbags on pivots used to train in jousting. Even if she didn't know the name, she should at least know it's NOT a gibbit. The real shocker of ignorance though was when she asked a kindly Jewish man why he had a golden ring embroidered on his clothing. Facepalm Diana, facepalm. Even the Nazis used a similar method for the demarcation of being Jewish. Girl, you need to catch up on some history.

The School of Night was also another note of contention for me. Mainly because we are thrown, with Diana, head first into this group of intellectual men and have to spend the entire first part of the book listening to them bickering and sharing barbs and witticisms while desperately trying to remember who's who. These people are nothing to me. They are historical figures that are there to add to the mystique of Matthew's past, but instead just pissed me off. I liked Kit being a bitchy little boy, but other than that, I could take them or leave them. Which is much how I felt for many of the historical sections of the book... oh, who am I kidding, almost all of the historical sections. When I had an investment with Diana or Matthew or another character, than the history mattered and fascinated me. The characters she created of the young witch Annie and the street urchin Jack where lovely and broke my heart. When they where in Prague I couldn't put this book down. Yet previously I felt that we where being led on a tour of Elizabethan England. I was reading a travel guide for the time, not historical fiction. I quite literally cheered when Diana said it was "time to stop treating our sojourn here as an advanced seminar in Shakespeare's England." Because that was what the book was! Hundreds of pages of exposition, when they came to search for the Ashmole 782 and get Diana learned in the dark arts. I didn't need them playing Elizabethan house for the whole first half of the book!

Though the negatives, which I can pinpoint, while occasionally taking me out of the book (tisane, grummble grummble), didn't take away from the fact that this is a fun book. Once everything started to come together that is. When the magic started to be incorporated and we didn't dwell on the barbs and witticisms of the men, I felt the book finally became what Diana had set out to find. The way that spells are different than magic, at least for witches other than Diana. The familiars that would reside in you. Also, the way other religions magic was touched on, like the Jewish witch's Golem. A total aside, but golems are awesome, ever since I read Terry Pratchett's Feet of Clay I have been a friend of the Golems! Though not Tolkien's Golem, just so we're clear, my preciouses. This was when the book became what I was hoping it would be. We went beyond the typical challenges of a girl and a vampire love story and Harkness brought something new and interesting. Of course, seeing as this is the second book in a trilogy, we where left hanging to some extent, but at least I was satisfied enough till the next book.

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: A Discovery of Witches, Ashmole 782, Deborah Harkness, Emperor Rudolf II, Golem, History, Marlowe, Prague, Queen Elizabeth, School of Night, Sept Tours, Shadow of Night, Terry Pratchett, Twilight

Marine Biology by Gail Carriger
Published by: Wilberforsian Ink
Publication Date: October 4th, 2011
Format: Kindle
Rating: ★★★
To Buy
Alec is not your typical werewolf. Firstly, he never expected to survive the transformation. Secondly, he'd rather bring sushi to the pack meetings instead of raw meet. Thirdly, he's more the geeky sciencey type, what with being a marine biologist. And finally, he's gay, but very much in the closet because he doesn't know how the rest of the pack would take this revelation. He is convinced that the rest of the pack don't like him and is therefore very hesitant when Jack, his father's resident drag queen spectre calls him saying there's going to be a pack meeting that night. When he arrives Alec is shocked to find that he is needed by the pack. The biker, bandanna wearing, red meat eating, fight loving pack needs the help of a marine biologist... or at least someone who loves the ocean, because there is a Selkie problem. Two merepeople, Giselle and her brother Marvin, have requested the packs help because some Selkies embezzled millions of dollars for reef preservation from them and have apparently ended up in Alec's neck of the woods.

It doesn't hurt matters that Marvin is gorgeous and knew Alec in high school... in fact, Marvin had a bit of a crush on Alec, so he's not about to sit quietly back and let this opportunity pass him by. As they flirt through town looking for where the money has gone, it becomes clear that Alec has a lot of secrets to face up to. Being gay and open about his sexuality is just one of the many secrets this powerful werewolf is hiding. Can the pack accept the changes to come if Alec embraces his life?

Carriger once again shows her ability to create convincing and cute interspecies romance, not to mention adorable and sweet gay couples. Alec and Marvin are just perfect for each other and it's so sweet how Marvin is able to draw Alec out of his shell and help him accept who he is. With the pack, Carriger also shows that perhaps, those people who we assume to be prejudiced aren't given the chance to show how willing they are to embrace people who are different than themselves. If you assume the worst of people, they might lose the chance to surprise you. Also, the funniest line in the whole story is a gay subculture joke beyond bears called "werebears." Couldn't stop laughing. "And I am so not into werebears."

What I found wonderful in this story is that with some of the clues dropped early in Alec's journey and the final denouement show that this is truly in the same would as Carriger's Parasol Protectorate Series. I won't spoil it, but watch for the clue, it's there if you look for it! Only a few things niggled me a little in the story, mainly, once the romance aspect was resolved, the crime aspect wasn't... sure they found who took the money, but not what happened to all of it. Also, what's up with supernaturals and yoga all of a sudden? I know this was written before A Discovery of Witches, which focuses A LOT on supernatural yoga, and here it is more a throw away line, but still, this new preoccupation of supernaturals and yoga I find odd. Maybe it's just because the thought of a wolf doing a dog pose is funny... perhaps...

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: A Discovery of Witches, Freddie Mercury, Gail Carriger, Marine Biology, Mermaid, Merman, Selkie, The Parasol Protectorate, Werewolves, Yoga

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
Published by: Viking Adult
Publication Date: February 8th, 2011
Format: Hardcover, 592 Pages
Rating: ★★
To Buy
Diana is a witch. Something she has always denied herself. Magic killed her parents and magic would have no place in her life. She has created a great academic career for herself and is researching alchemy in Oxford for the semester. Then one day she calls a book from the stacks, Ashmole 782. This book isn't what it seems, it reeks of magic. As soon as she's done, Diana sends it back to the stacks and far away from her. Yet this book will change her life. Soon she learns that this book had been considered lost for hundreds of years and every kind of supernatural and preternatural want it, believing it to be their holy book. Vampires, Daemons and even her own kind are willing to do anything to get it. Enter Matthew Clairmont. Matthew is tall, dark and brooding, everything you'd expect a vampire to be. He takes a keen interest in Diana, not just because of the book, but because something draws her to him.

Soon the two of them are in an inseparable web. Falling for each other, but denying that it is happening. Oxford becomes too dangerous for Diana and Matthew spirits her away to his family estate in France, where Diana will have to face Matthew's mother and her disapproval. She has to be conciliatory to Matthew's wishes that she curtail her active and independent lifestyle in the face of danger. Soon though, it's not just Ashmole 782 which is the true danger, but her feelings for Matthew. Witches and Vampires are not to consort. The Congregation is an organization that rules over the otherworldly. Three members from each group lay down the law. Matthew and Diana are breaking their laws. Soon Diana is kidnapped and rescued and on the run, yet again. An ancient order of knights is called into action and a shadow council is unwittingly formed at Diana's family's home in upstate New York. If there's one thing they need, it's more time. Time to find out the true reason that Diana and Matthew prove such a danger, and time for Diana to embrace her heritage.

This book started out so good. Diana was living the dream. Ok, Diana was living my dream. Researching at Oxford, spending all her spare time in the Bodleian, having anxiety attacks, ok, that's not cool, but I have them, so I can relate, rowing, hey, I always wanted to do rowing, until I realized you had to get up at dawn. She was living the dream life. Then a tall dark stranger entered into her life and it started to get weird and silly. I was ok with the occasional weird multiple species yoga class, yes, there are vampires, witches and daemons doing yoga, because the book had Diana and Oxford. She was strong, independent, active. She kicked some serious ass, all the while in the city of Inspectors Morse and Lewis. Then off the France and she becomes the damsel in distress. She has power, but she can't access it unless certain things happen, mainly, if Matthew is there or in danger. So Deborah took this strong female lead and instantly made her Bella. The Twilight comparisons come fast and quick once Diana because vulnerable. Diana embraces Edward's... oh, wait, I mean Matthew's family, over her own. She continually gets injured and has to be protected, despite the fact that her genes show that she might be the most powerful witch ever. Matthew's siblings all argue over Diana but in the end accept her as one of their own. Sheesh... it went quickly from being a fun read to being an adult Stephenie Meyer's book.

Yet, there's so much silliness I can't stop listing it! Vampires, Daemons and Witches are worried about their races dying out and are obsessed with Darwin. Diana's family house is full of tons and tons and tons of ghosts. It's this weird house that gives and takes as people need, like a room of requirement but house sized. Of course Matthew has an evil ex that almost destroys them randomly thrown in at the end. Diana didn't choose her own fate, she didn't turn away from witchcraft because she wanted too, but because of some juju her parents worked on her. Diana has become a puppet that does yoga. Don't get me wrong, I'm still going to read the next book, but now we'll have the silliness of time travel on top of everything else. It's almost as if Deborah Harkness took every single trope in popular romance and fantasy and made it into one book. Some of it worked, some of it didn't. The way she describes the world is beautiful, and she is a talented writer, she just needs to learn you don't need to throw in everything AND the kitchen sink. Also, never, ever do anything that can make someone see parallels between your work and Twilight.

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: A Discovery of Witches, All Soul's Trilogy, Daemons, Deborah Harkness, Diana Bishop, Matthew Clairmont, Oxford, Stephenie Meyer, Twilight, Vampires, Wicthes

A Red Herring Without Mustard (Flavia de Luce Book 3) by Alan Bradley
Published by: Delecort Press
Publication Date: February 8th, 2011
Format: Hardcover, 416 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"Award-winning author Alan Bradley returns with another beguiling novel starring the insidiously clever and unflappable eleven-year-old sleuth Flavia de Luce. The precocious chemist with a passion for poisons uncovers a fresh slew of misdeeds in the hamlet of Bishop’s Lacey—mysteries involving a missing tot, a fortune-teller, and a corpse in Flavia’s own backyard.

Flavia had asked the old Gypsy woman to tell her fortune, but never expected to stumble across the poor soul, bludgeoned in the wee hours in her own caravan. Was this an act of retribution by those convinced that the soothsayer had abducted a local child years ago? Certainly Flavia understands the bliss of settling scores; revenge is a delightful pastime when one has two odious older sisters. But how could this crime be connected to the missing baby? Had it something to do with the weird sect who met at the river to practice their secret rites? While still pondering the possibilities, Flavia stumbles upon another corpse—that of a notorious layabout who had been caught prowling about the de Luce’s drawing room.

Pedaling Gladys, her faithful bicycle, across the countryside in search of clues to both crimes, Flavia uncovers some odd new twists. Most intriguing is her introduction to an elegant artist with a very special object in her possession—a portrait that sheds light on the biggest mystery of all: Who is Flavia?

As the red herrings pile up, Flavia must sort through clues fishy and foul to untangle dark deeds and dangerous secrets. "

Flavia de Luce returns! My heart sings like Gladys' tires on a back country lane!

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
Published by: Viking Adult
Publication Date: February 8th, 2011
Format: Hardcover, 592 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"In Harkness's lively debut, witches, vampires, and demons outnumber humans at Oxford's Bodleian Library, where witch and Yale historian Diana Bishop discovers an enchanted manuscript, attracting the attention of 1,500-year-old vampire Matthew Clairmont. The orphaned daughter of two powerful witches, Bishop prefers intellect, but relies on magic when her discovery of a palimpsest documenting the origin of supernatural species releases an assortment of undead who threaten, stalk, and harass her. Against all occult social propriety, Bishop turns for protection to tall, dark, bloodsucking man-about-town Clairmont. Their research raises questions of evolution and extinction among the living dead, and their romance awakens centuries-old enmities. Harkness imagines a crowded universe where normal and paranormal creatures observe a tenuous peace. "Magic is desire made real," Bishop says after both her desire and magical prowess exceed her expectations. Harkness brings this world to vibrant life and makes the most of the growing popularity of gothic adventure with an ending that keeps the Old Lodge door wide open."

Being hailed as an adult version of Harry Potter I'm in. See, I'm just to easy a sell. But then again, they sold Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell as Harry Potter for adults, and it's one of my most favorite books ever.

Mr. Chartwell by Rebecca Hunt
Published by: The Dial Press
Publication Date: February 8th, 2011
Format: Hardcover, 256 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"In her sad, hopeful and very original debut, Hunt examines two battles with depression, one that has already been lost and one where there is still a possibility of winning. The story follows the parallel lives of a lonely young London librarian, Esther Hammerhans, and the celebrated statesman, Winston Churchill, during the days before he retires in July of 1964. Esther, whose husband committed suicide two years earlier, is renting out the spare room in her home, but when she opens the door to her new tenant, Mr. Chartwell, she finds herself face to face with a huge talking, upright walking, black dog. Esther soon learns that when Chartwell (aka Black Pat) leaves the house, it is to pay regular visits to Churchill and psychologically torture him, which he has been doing for years. Chartwell is no mere talking dog; he is a dark, lingering presence that has come to try to torment Esther into depression, much like he did her late husband. Taking a hard look at the demons that haunt people, Hunt's story is an clever illumination of the suffering of so many, their status on the social scale offering no protection."

Librarians? Winston Churchill? I'm in. Plus, just look at that beautiful cover.

So Shelly by Ty Roth
Published by: Delacorte
Publication Date: February 8th, 2011
Format: Hardcover, 336 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"Until now, high school junior, John Keats, has only tiptoed near the edges of the vortex that is schoolmate and literary prodigy, Gordon Byron. That is, until their mutual friend, Shelly, drowns in a sailing accident.

After stealing Shelly's ashes from her wake at Trinity Catholic High School, the boys set a course for the small Lake Erie island where Shelly's body had washed ashore and to where she wished to be returned. It would be one last "so Shelly" romantic quest. At least that's what they think. As they navigate around the obstacles and resist temptations during their odyssey, Keats and Gordon glue together the shattered pieces of Shelly's and their own pasts while attempting to make sense of her tragic and premature end. "

A young adult novel with inspiration from the Romantics. Sounds like it could be interesting.

The Iron Witch by Karen Mahoney
Published by: Flux
Publication Date: February 8th, 2011
Format: Paperback, 312 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"When she was seven, a horrific fey attack killed Donna Underwood’s father and drove her mother mad. Her own nearly fatal injuries were fixed by alchemy—the iron tattoos branding her hands and arms. Now seventeen, Donna feels like a freak, doomed by the magical heritage that destroyed her parents and any chance she had for a normal life. Only her relationship with her best friend, Navin, is keeping her sane.

But when vicious wood elves abduct Navin, Donna is forced to accept her role in the centuries-old war between human alchemists and these darkest outcasts of Faerie. Assisted by Xan, a gorgeous guy with faery blood running through his veins and secrets of his own, Donna races to save Navin—even if it means betraying everything her parents fought to the death to protect."

I have a weakness of faries.

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: A Discovery of Witches, A Red Herring Without Mustard, Alan Bradley, Deborah Harkness, Harry Potter, Karen Mahoney, Mr. Chartwell, Rebecca Hunt, So Shelly, The Iron Witch, Ty Roth, Winston Churchill