BOOK REVIEW : ALL THAT IS BEAUTIFUL by ROXANE TEPFER SANFORD - ARRINGTON # 2

By : Roxane Tepfer Sanford
Published By : Llumina Press
Released : Available Now
Details : Paperback 320 Pages

RATING : 4.5 Tragic STARS!

BOOK REVIEW

BY GUEST REVIEWER

CAROLYN ROLFE

BOOK REVIEW:

Wow!  I couldn’t have imagined Lillian could get into so much trouble in a short period of time. Although the story starts off slowly it does pick up and becomes a real saga through the years.


After escaping from her grandmother and then getting away from Warren Stone she meets up with Richard Parker and his strange wife Judith. Richard promises to help her get back to her beloved Jasper Island but first she must hide out from the law with him in New York City. In return for living in his house, and being showered with gifts, clothes, dinners at fancy restaurants and going to shows, Richard asks Lillian to be a model that he can sketch for a magazine cover. Seriously that girl is so naïve it is almost frustrating.


Richard has a ploy to keep Lillian under his control. Maybe I am as naïve as Lillian, but I didn’t realise cocaine was around in the 1870’s. Poor Lillian, she really didn’t stand a chance. She is so trusting ...... he wants to draw her picture and thinks she should star in a Burlesque show.

After a couple of years Lillian finds herself alone and looking for a way to get back to her beloved Jasper Island. Enter Ned Griffin , yet another man who bestows what Lillian believes to be love on her , and again she gets hurt.

After finally making it back to Jasper Island and appearing to be happy, more dramas and problems arise for Lillian when she has to return to New York City. Everything seems to be working out until her life is thrown into turmoil and she has to make the hardest choice of her lifetime. Whatever she decides is going to hurt somebody she loves dearly.


Honestly this poor girl goes through so much in the first 30 years of her life that I couldn’t possibly imagine how she survived it all. I was crying like a baby by the end of this book and I generally don’t cry when reading books but this one just got to me. It really is a beautiful story and like the first one is very reminiscent of Petals in the Wind, the second in the Flowers in the Attic series by V.C. Andrews.

CAROLYN

BOOK REVIEW - THE GIRL IN THE LIGHTHOUSE by ROXANE TEPFER SANFORD - ARRINGTON # 1

By : Roxane Tepfer Sanford
Published By : Llumina Press
Released : Available Now
Details : Paperback , 250 Pages

RATING : 4.5 Dalton Brothers STARS!!

Book Review

By Guest Reviewer :

Carolyn Rolfe



BOOK REVIEW:

I can’t remember who it was that recommended this to me, but a big thank you to them. It is a really good easy to read book. And as I have a love of all things lighthouse I was immediately attracted to it.

The Girl in the Lighthouse is set in the late 1860's on the East Coast of America. Lillian is a 10 year old girl who has lived on a remote island with her mother and lighthouse keeper father her entire life. Her father gets transferred into the position of head lighthouse keeper on Jasper Island off the coast of Maine. Lillian finally gets to live on a station where there is not only another family, but that family has 2 boys around her age.

Heath is a handsome teenager of 14 years who aspires to leave Jasper Island and travel to Boston to university and become a doctor. He and Lillian hit it off immediately and become fast friends. Although as the years progress Heath grows up a bit too much for Lillian. Ayden is the same age as Lillian and although he starts off very off-handish and rude to Lillian, he becomes a very close friend to her. Lillian and Ayden share a secret that nobody else on the island is aware of.

Lillian loves being on Jasper Island as she now has friends to play with, can row across to the mainland with the boys and also gets the chance to attend a regular school. Although she does have a disaster on her first day and doesn’t want to go back she sticks at it and thoroughly enjoys herself and is soon skipping grades as she is a very intelligent young lady.

A terrible event in Lillian's life has her shipped off in the middle of the night by her father, to live with her  grandmother in Sutton Hall, Savannah and uncovers the dark secrets about her family's hidden past. Yes they even had skeletons in the closet back in the Civil War days. By this stage she is about 13 and starting to develop into a very beautiful young lady.

The only things that keep Lillian going through the dark, torturous days in Sutton Hall are her love for Jasper Island, Heath, Ayden, and  her attraction to the mysterious Warren Stone. I really felt sorry for Lillian having led such a sheltered life, then having to endure her grandmother and the horrors that are Sutton Hall. I found she was a little too naive and trusting of men, especially when she met Warren Stone and Richard Parker, and am worried about what will happen to her in the second book. She romanticises everything that happens and it will only lead to trouble, even in the 1870’s.

I did pick the POW that occurred towards the end of the book, as it does become obvious as you are reading. But it is still a bit shocking and revealing and I loved Lillian’s idea of justice.

It is definitely young adult, but some YA readers may not like it due to the era in which it is set and the way Lillian behaves, however I found it to be a really lovely book and can’t wait to read All That is Beautiful.

 

CAROLYN

BOOK REVIEW - KISS ME DEADLY - 13 TALES OF PARANORMAL LOVE

By: Trisha Telep (Editor), Maggie Stiefvater , Becca Fitzpatrick , Rachel Vincent , Karen Mahoney , Diana Peterfreund , Daniel Waters, Carrie Ryan , Justine Musk , Daniel Marks , Sarah Rees Brennan , Michelle Rowen , Michelle Zink , Caitlin Kittredge

Published By : RANDOM HOUSE AUSTRALIA
Released : Available Now
Details: Paperback ,  423 Pages

RATING: 3 STARS!!!


If  you can possibly thirst for more mysterious metaphysical accounts of love, Trisha Telep has organized some of the greatest and most thrilling tales of paranormal paramours since The Eternal Kiss. She presents the acclaimed literary talent of thirteen unique authors, creating a collection of stories that will undoubtedly capture the imagination of every soul who dares to read them. Werewolves, ghosts, zombies, vampires, and fallen angels drive the plot of these riveting romances.Kiss Me Deadly includes the exceptional writings of several authors, including: - Sarah Rees Brennan (faeries) - Becca Fitzpatrick (angels) - Caitlin Kittredge (witches) - Karen Mahoney (vampires: sequel to story from The Eternal Kiss) - Daniel Marks (ghost kids) - Justine Musk (sorcerers) - Diana Peterfreund (unicorns) - Michelle Rowen (demons) - Carrie Ryan (zombies) - Maggie Stiefvater (werewolves) - Rachel Vincent (banshees) - Daniel Waters (zombies) - Michelle Zink (gothic ghosts).

BY GUEST REVIEWER CAROLYN

BOOK REVIEW:

This is a book of short stories of paranormal romance by some well known authors. Each story is only about 20-49 pages long so is a great book for filling in time between books you have read and may be waiting for. This is why I started reading it. I was waiting for Fire to arrive after reading Graceling and didn’t want to start another book in case Fire arrived. I didn’t read this book in order but chose the stories by the authors I knew first then read the others randomly. I do like these books as you get a taste of what different authors writing styles are like. As a result of reading this and 'The Eternal Kiss' previously, I am now interested in reading some of the authors other work.



DUNGEONS OF LANGEAIS by Becca Fitzpatrick (24 pages)


This is the story of Chauncey who appears in Becca’s book 'Hush, Hush'. Anyone who has read that book will know who Chauncey is. The “Dark Angel” is mentioned throughout and this is about Chauncey’s hatred of said angel. He is never mentioned by name but we all know who it is. It did not change my opinion of Chauncey. I still don’t like him but now understand his motives towards Nora in 'Hush, Hush' and the “Dark Angel”, well somethings never change.


HARE MOON by Carrie Ryan (30 pages)


This story is about Sister Tabitha from Carrie Ryan’s book , 'The Forest of Hands and Teeth' (TFOHT) so I guess it is a backstory. At the beginning I felt sorry for the young Tabitha. She wants to know what is outside the fences and her parents don’t treat her very nicely. However by the end of it, I just went back to my original thoughts of her from TFOHT. She is just plain mean and nasty. I just can’t understand why she did what she did but can now understand her attitude towards Mary in TFOHT. She can see herself as a young girl in Mary and is jealous of her.


THE HOUNDS OF ULSTER by Maggie Stiefvater (20 pages)


I didn’t see the POW coming in this one. It was a bit of a weird short story, kept going back and forth and all over the place for the first few pages, then settled down into a really good story. It was interesting and I really wanted to know who “THEY” were. The main character wouldn’t name them but, wow,  I was surprised when I found out. I have read Maggie’s books 'Shiver' and 'Linger',  but haven’t yet read 'Lament' or 'Ballad' and she certainly likes to centre her characters around music.


MANY HAPPY RETURNS by Daniel Waters (26 pages)


This story was just plain weird. It starts off with 5 teenagers from a small town in a car crash. 3 of the boys and 1 girl die and the other girl survives but is in a coma. The parents all go to a counselling session where the counsellor tells them what to expect when if or when their children “return”. Apparently in this and surrounding towns when people die they quite often return within 7 days. The families are not allowed to bury the bodies of their loved ones before the 7 days is up. This is told from the point of view of Cal the local police officer. His daughter Mandy died in the crash, and it follows him for the 7 days after the crash. As I said before, just plain weird.


THE ASSASSIN’S APPRENTICE by Michelle Zink (22 pages)


When reading this I was thinking not another story about descendants of angels which is what this is about. Rose’s family are descendants of angels and have been killed by a demon named Bael and now she is planning on killing him herself. Enter Asher, an apprentice assassin sent to protect Rose and kill Bael. There is a bit of smexual tension between the two as they try to work together.


ERRANT by Diana Peterfreund (33 pages)


Errant ,  is set several centuries ago in France and is about a nun that is also a unicorn hunter. She and her unicorn named Enyo. They are sent to train a young lady named Elise for a hunting ritual that is to be held as part of the Elise’s wedding festivities. Her family has the Unicorn hunting blood in their veins meaning that they can call unicorns with their minds. It was quite a good story, a little bit hard to follow early but ended quite well.


THE SPIRIT JAR by Karen Mahoney (45 pages)


This is the second story about Marie O’Neil or 'Moth' as she is referred to. The first story about 'Moth',  the eternal 18 year old vampire , I first read about in ,  'The Eternal Kiss'.  In this story, Theo her creator has sent her to London to retrieve an ancient magical book from an obscure occult bookshop. She meets Adam, then they have an adventure involving a spirit.


LOST by Justine Musk (22 pages)


Sasha is a girl who has the ability to find things that are lost. Her best friend Josh is in a coma after a terrible car accident three weeks before and now she is feeling lost herself. She has the urge to go to the big white abandoned house up on the hill and there she finds Haiden.

This was really interesting and completely different to what I thought it would be about and the ending was totally surprising. I am sure anyone reading it will make a comparison to something that I cannot name without giving away the plot.


THE SPY WHO NEVER GREW UP by Sarah Rees Brennan (27 pages)


A boy is hired as a Super Spy for Her Majesty the Queen of England’s secret service. Judging from the title, it is the story of ........  All he asks for in payment is a mother. There is actually quite a bit of humour in this story.  There are a few adult type comments in there for us “older” readers, and I really liked it. I do wonder if there is a little boy who doesn't want to grow up in a lot of the secret service agents . They do like to play with the “big boy” toys.


BEHIND THE RED DOOR by Caitlin Kittredge (39 pages)


Jo, is a teenage girl who decides to enter an abandoned property called Ash House. When she enters she sees the ghost of a young man and then starts having nightmares about the house.  This story has everything, smoking, drug taking, drinking, lesbian relationship. Not your typical YA short story but interesting nonetheless.


FAMILIAR by Michelle Rowen (32 pages)


Brenda is a teenage witch-in-training that has to pick a familiar. A familiar is a witch’s pet, such as a cat, bat, snake, ferret or rat. Brenda picks a scrawny half-dead looking runt of a kitten with a rhinestone collar on.  I liked this story it was different to the other stories it was a good short story. Would be interested to read some of Michelle Rowen’s other books.


FEARLESS by Rachel Vincent (48 pages)


Sabine, a fifteen year old girl who is in trouble with the law,  has no family, has been living in foster care but got into trouble with a baseball bat and somebody’s car. She is sent to Holser House after breaking her probation curfew by staying out all night. It is a halfway house for wayward teenage girls. If she messes up again she will be going to Juvenile Detention. It was very interesting read and different from the others about witches, vampires, werewolves etc. Kind of ended a bit abruptly though.


VERMILLION by Daniel Marks (49 pages)


This is about a place called Vermillion which is in Purgatory. Velvet and her boyfriend Nick are asked to accompany Aime to hunt down a ghost that is haunting the living.  It was quite interesting to look at things from the ghosts point of view, however I did feel that it was a little bit too long. Probably could have cut around 10 pages out of it and it still would have been good. I did like it although the ending was pretty obvious.

Carolyn

BOOK REVIEW - FIRE by KRISTIN CASHORE

By: Kristin Cashore
Published By : Orion Publishing Group
Released : Available Now
Details : Paperback, 384 Pages

RATING: 4.5 STARS 

Book Blurb : Taken From Goodreads

Beautiful creatures called monsters live in the Dells. Monsters have the shape of normal animals: mountain lions, dragonflies, horses, fish. But the hair or scales or feathers of monsters are gorgeously colored-- fuchsia, turquoise, sparkly bronze, iridescent green-- and their minds have the power to control the minds of humans.


Seventeen-year-old Fire is the last remaining human-shaped monster in the Dells. Gorgeously monstrous in body and mind but with a human appreciation of right and wrong, she is hated and mistrusted by just about everyone, and this book is her story.
 
BOOK REVIEW :

BY GUEST REVIEWER , CAROLYN
 
I absolutely loved this book. I even liked it better than 'Graceling'. They are now both on my favourites list and I can’t understand why I hadn’t read them sooner. They were first suggested to me in late July 2010 but it has taken until now to get around to buying and reading them. I actually read an e-book version of 'Fire' on my IPod touch as my paperback didn’t arrive until yesterday. 
 Fire is a prequel to 'Graceling' , set approximately 30 or so years before. The prologue starts off with the birth of Immicker, who later became King Leck of Monsea and then switches to the story of Fire, a 17 year old monster human girl. She is extremely beautiful and most men fall in love with her immediately or they hate her and find her a threat. Most women don’t like her due to jealousy. She also has the ability to listen to others thoughts, sense their presence and communicate with their minds and manipulate their thoughts. She lives in the kingdom of the Dells and is the last of her kind. Her father Cansrel was the monster advisor to King Nax and had a desire to control everyone and everything he possibly could. As a result Fire is the complete opposite. She doesn’t like to use her powers unless it is to save her life or that of somebody she cares deeply about.


I found that there were quite a few “hidden messages” that were relevant to modern day life in this book. For example the former King Nax and Cansrel almost destroyed the kingdom because of their drug taking and stupid behaviour. This has lead to Lord Gentian and Lord Mydogg wanting to start a war and take over the kingdom. Another message I found in this book is that there is no point to war. I think the quote made by King Nash sums it up perfectly. “The world doesn’t care who wins. It’ll go on spinning, no matter how many people are slaughtered tomorrow. No matter if you and I are slaughtered. I almost wish it wouldn’t, if we aren’t allowed to go on spinning with it.”

Both 'Fire' and 'Graceling',  I believe have a moral message. Although these people (Gracelings and monsters) are different from everybody else, they have feelings too and shouldn’t be treated different as a result. This can be applied to everyday interaction with people. Kristen Cashore’s style of writing seems to be that although the settings of her books are in medieval times, they are very modern characters experiencing the same things that people today experience. 'Fire' also broaches the subjects of rape and casual sex and although some people think Kristen Cashore is ok with it, I believe that she is actually showing that all though these things happen on a daily basis, there are consequences. I can’t really go into those without giving away spoilers.


The main characters in the book are:


Fire – I loved her. She is a strong female character with her own independent thoughts, similar to Katsa from Graceling in that way. She is struggling with her monster powers of being able to hear and control the thoughts of those around her. She has declared that she will not fall in love, get married and have children, but....


Archer – He is just gorgeous. He has been Fire’s friend and protector since childhood.   He is a real player and  does love the ladies.


Brigan – What a hottie. I love him. Mr tough guy, the silent brooding type.  He is the Commander of the King’s Army and has a tough crusty exterior. The ultimate warrior, but underneath he is just a big marshmallow who is trying so hard to keep Fire out of his head and heart. Brother to Nash, Clara and Garan.


Nash – King of the Dells . He is weak and can’t control himself around Fire like the rest of the family can.


Cansrel – Fire’s monster father. King Nax’s advisor and horrible man. Was uncapable of caring for anyone other than Fire. Fire described him as her Bad Father.


Brocker – Archer’s father and former Commander of King Nax’s army.  Fire described him as her Good Father.


Clara and Garran – Twin brother and sister of Brigan and Nash. They deal with the spies in the kingdom. Clara is one tough cookie with a wicked sense of humour, and Garan is a very sickly man. They are Nax’s illegitimate children.

I recommend both these books to anyone who is thinking about reading them.




My favourite quotes:


“Tell me what I can do to help you feel better?” “Well, I always like it when you kiss me” “Do you?” “You’re good at it” “Well, that’s lucky because I’ll always be kissing you.”


“The fellow who tends the green house gardens? Trust me, Lady, you’d let him stake your tomatoes.”


CAROLYN

BOOK REVIEW - GRACELING by KRISTIN CASHORE

By : Kristin Cashore
Published By: The Orion Publishing Group.
Released : Available Now
Details : Paperback , 371 Pages

RATING 4 SILVER/GOLD PO EYES OUT OF 5 !!!


Book Blurb : Taken From Goodreads

Katsa has been able to kill a man with her bare hands since she was eight — she’s a Graceling, one of the rare people in her land born with an extreme, and in her case horrifying, skill. As niece of the king, she should be able to live a life of privilege, but Graced as she is with killing, she is forced to work as the king’s thug. When she first meets Prince Po, Graced with combat skills, Katsa has no hint of how her life is about to change.



She never expects to become Po’s friend. She never expects to learn a new truth about her own Grace — or about a terrible secret that lies hidden far away... a secret that could destroy all seven kingdoms with words alone.
 
BOOK REVIEW:
 
BY GUEST REVIEWER CAROLYN 



A Graceling is a person with an exceptional skill for something. They are distinguishable as they have two different coloured eyes. The particular grace can be something useful such as fighting, archery, cooking, accounting, mind reading or storytelling etc. or something totally useless such as eating rocks without getting sick. Once a Graceling’s eyes have settled (changed colours) they are usually taken away from their family by the king until their grace is revealed. They are also shunned and feared by the people of the kingdom.


I have always had a fascination with the medieval stories such as King Arthur and Merlin, Robin Hood etc. This is set in this era around the 7 kingdoms being Monsea, Lienin, Sunder, Westin, Middluns, Estill and Nander.


I would like to say that although this book is slow to start, I recommend that you keep reading as it does get better. I kept going and found that I had trouble putting the book down (really hated having to go to work) as I really needed to know what happened to all the characters. It's pace reminded me of  'The Forest of Hands and Teeth' by Carrie Ryan and 'The Host' by Stephenie Meyer. Two books that I found slow to start but had to keep reading to find out what happened in the end.


There are some interesting twists and turns and a little bit of smexi action, although being a YA book I can understand that a lot of it is implied rather than described. This may not be enough for some older readers, but hey use your imagination. It isn’t hard to work out what is going on.

The 3 main characters in the book:


Katsa – the main character, a girl of around 18. Both her parents are dead and she lives with her Uncle King Randa of the Middluns and Prince Raffin (his son). Katsa is a Graceling with one green and one blue eye. She has a grace for killing which is discovered when she was eight and a cousin of hers tried to molest her. She struck out and killed him instantly, hence her grace being discovered. Katsa hates her grace, but is used by her Uncle King Randa his personal hitman/thug, doing his dirty work for him and punishing those he believes have deceived him.


I really liked Katsa as she was a unique female lead in a book. She didn’t rely on others, in fact they were all afraid of her, but she does have trust issues and doesn’t let people in emotionally. She has vowed to never marry or have children, which is unacceptable/unheard of in the time this book is set.


Prince Greening Grandemalion of Lienid or Po as he is known to everyone – What can I say about Po. He is a Graceling like Katsa but he has one silver and one gold eye. His grace is for fighting and is the only person who can compete with Katsa in a fight. He has full faith in Katsa and in her grace.



 Princess Bitterblue – She is Po’s cousin, and is the daughter of King Leck of Monsea. She is smarter than her 10 years and is the future queen of Monsea.

The only issue I had was that I personally thought the ending fell short. I would have liked for it to go on further, and can’t wait for book 3 in the series which is about 'Bitterblue'. Hopefully there is more about these characters in that book as the 2nd book 'Fire',  is more of a prequel to 'Graceling' , from what I have read.

 

CAROLYN