Book Review: "Lathe of Heaven" by Ursula Le Guin

My Rating: 

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Plot Tease

George Orr is a man who discovers he has the peculiar ability to dream things into being - for better or for worse. In desperation, he consults a psychotherapist who promises to help him. It soon becomes clear that he has his own plans for George and his dreams.

Book Review

I really need to begin by explaining my review to you. The concept of this book is amazing and intriguing from start to finish. But Lathe of Heaven loses its gripping pace in the last half, and what was awesome becomes merely cool and just a little old.

That said, you'll still zip through the book easily. Because the main character is a drug addict that can unravel worlds but has no control over his ability. Sounds crazy right?

George Orr is a unique take on the over-powered hero archetype. He has 'effective' dreams: what he imagines changes reality, but he has no control over when or how this happens. No one else in the world has memories of these past realities except for George. This first came about the day that George lay dying in a holocost that destroys the world in the early 2000's. Slipping out of consciousness from blood loss, he dreams... And wakes up in an entirely different life where there has been no war. The result? Earth is overcrowded and life is miserable for everyone. Is it better or not?

Book Review: "Homeland" by R. A. Salvatore

(Legend of Drizzt #1)
My Rating: 

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Plot Tease

Travel to strange and exotic Menzoberranzan, the vast city of the drow and homeland to Drizzt Do'Urden.

The young prince of a royal house, Drizzt grows to maturity in the vile world of his dark kin. Possessing honor beyond the scope of his unprincipled society, young Drizzt faces an inevitable dilemma. Can he live in a world that rejects integrity?

Book Review

Salvatore is a very famous fantasy author: for good reason. What he sometimes lacks in style, he makes up for in great content and characters.   Homeland is a great book with a lot of emotion and some amazing environments.

As you travel with Drizzt, you witness an exotic underground world where all societies are brutal and cut-throat. Drow are the antithesis of elves in every way. They revel in chaos, deception and violence. Make no mistake, drow are the bad guys. They are also the focus of this series. So why should you care?

Book Review: "A Game of Thrones" by George R. R. Martin

(A Song of Ice and Fire #1)
My Rating: 

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Plot Tease
Long ago, in a time forgotten, a preternatural event threw the seasons out of balance. In a land where summers can last decades and winters a lifetime, trouble is brewing. The cold is returning  and in the frozen wastes to the north of Winterfell, sinister and supernatural forces are massing beyond the kingdom's protective Wall.

At the center of the conflict lie the Starks of Winterfell, a family as harsh and unyielding as the land they were born to. Sweeping from a land of brutal cold to a distant summertime kingdom of epicurean plenty, here is a tale of lords and ladies, soldiers and sorcerers, assassins and bastards, who come together in a time of grim omens.

FAIR WARNING: This book is not for children. I would not recommend anyone under 18 read this without great discretion. It deals with many adult themes and Martin is graphic.

Book Review
This book - this series - is seriously a character gold mine in fantasy. There are 10+ main characters, and Martin is a master. This mix of viewpoints never feels clumsy or overwhelming. I've found that the characters are varied enought to each appeal to a different sort of reader, which is brilliant. Backstabbing and betrayal abound and you're left wondering if anyone really has integrity in this world. (In humanity?) No one is safe.

Book Review: "The Hobbit" by J.R.R. Tolkien

(Middle-Earth Universe)

Genre: Fantasy Fiction

My Rating: 

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Plot Tease

Now recognized as a timeless classic, this introduction to the hobbit Bilbo Baggins, the wizard Gandalf, Gollum and the spectacular world of Middle-earth recounts the adventures of a reluctant hero, a powerful and dangerous ring, and the cruel dragon Smaug the Magnificent. 13 fortune-seeking dwarves have arrived on the hobbit's doorstep in search of a burglar, and before he can even grab his hat or an umbrella, Bilbo Baggins is swept out his door and into a dangerous adventure.

Book Review

I have to begin this fantasy fiction review by saying I have been a life-long Tolkien Addict and lover of fantasy fiction. At the end of the day, the man was a creative genius. The Middle Earth books have been staples of fantasy fiction for quite some time, and I would wager from remain so years from now. Though some people find his books a little difficult - and for good reason.

Character development in The Hobbit is tricky though. I find myself torn. This is partly due to the reason that many people find it hard to read Tolkien in general. Let me explain and tell you why I still believe you should give this book a try.

Book Review: "The Ask and The Answer" by Patrick Ness

(Chaos Walking #2)
My Rating: 

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Plot Tease
Todd and Viola did no find healing and hope in Haven. They found instead their worst enemy, Mayor Prentiss, waiting to welcome them to New Prentisstown. There they are forced into separate lives: Todd to prison, and Viola to a house of healing. Soon Viola is swept into the ruthless activities of the Answer, while Todd faces impossible choices when force to join the mayor's oppressive new regime. Torn by confusion and compromise, suspicion and betrayal, can their trust in each other possibly survive?

Book Review
From a character development view, The Ask and The Answer does a lot less than The Knife of Never Letting Go. The first book of Chaos Walking was about growth and discoverey. The second installment is focused on endurance. Honestly, compared to the first, I thought this one was a little disappointing. Why?

Book Review: "The Knife of Never Letting Go" by Patrick Ness

(Series: Chaos Walking #1)
My Rating: 

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Plot Tease
Prentisstown isn't like other towns. Everyone can hear everyone else's thoughts in an overwhelming stream of Noise. Just before the birthday that will make him a man Todd and his dog, Manchee stumble upon an area of complete silence. In a town where privacy is impossible, something terrible has been hidden - a secret so awful that Todd and Manchee must run for their lives.

But how do you escape when your pursuers can hear your every thought?

Book Review
The Knife of Never Letting Go feels really unique straight from the beginning. Ness' writing style in this book is stream of consciousness and Todd is a pervasive, sometimes overwhelming character. That, combined with the fact that the other people on this world are telepathic, makes it a very vivid, fast paced story.

Before I review the main characters, I have to tell you about Ben and Cillian, Todd's adoptive parents. These two are really only in the book for a few chapters at the most, but man. Talk about bravery and love.

Book Review: "The Giver" by Lois Lowry

My Rating: 

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Plot Tease
Jonah's world is perfect. Everything is under control. There is no war or fear or pain. There are no choices. Every person is assigned a role in the Community. When Jonas turns twelve, he is singled out to receive special training from The Giver. The Giver alone holds the memories of the true pain and pleasure of life. Now, it is time for Jonas to receive the truth. There is no turning back.

Book Review
The Giver is definitely thought-provoking. When the dystopian environment is introduced, you get this weird feeling. Something isn't quite right behind the curtain, even though what you're seeing isn't necessarily 'strange'. Lowry captures that uncanny sense perfectly and simply.

Jonah is very kind, and adheres to the community rules: no lying, use precise words, stay with your assigned parter, and take pills to suppress Stirrings (love, emotions), among others. The Giver literally brings color into the mundane community world. He is the only surviving human that knows anything about emotions, pain or love of any kind. He is the only person who has memories of humanity as it was before.

Book Review: "The End of the Whole Mess" Short Story by Stephen King

(Short Story in an Anthology)
My Rating: 

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Plot Tease
Bobby Fornoy, the genius younger brother of the story's narrator Howard, discovers that the water in the small Texas town of La Plata contains a chemical that suppresses the agressive side of human nature. Tormented by the cruelty of humanity with nuclear war imminent, Bobby works to put a stop to it all. But his pursuit of world peace turns deadly when an unexpected complication comes to light.

Book Review
The End of the Whole Mess (EotWM) is one of the first works by Stephen King that I have read. The characters in it affected me more than nearly any other short story I've ever reviewed. Within the first few lines, Howard makes it clear that together the brothers doomed most of humanity, and that he doesn't have much time left to live.

The narrative is an attempt to explain what his brother wanted, down to his last shaking breaths. I can count on one hand the number of times I have honestly cried for a character. The Fornoy's are on that list.