The Demon's Covenant by Sarah Rees Brennan

**Warning: the following review may not be unsuitable for some readers due to inordinate amounts of drooling over deadly sword-wielding boys, brilliant girls with pink hair, and gun-slinging guys who can quote Malory.**

I'm just going to go ahead and say it: Sarah Rees Brennan is frickin' brilliant. An evil genius to be sure who has managed to infuse her books with such wit and candor that I find myself wholly ruined for anything else. I don't know how the woman does it but she has managed to blow my mind. Yet again. After naming The Demon's Lexicon as my Favorite YA Fantasy of 2009, I began the endless wait for the release of The Demon's Covenant, not quite sure where Ms. Brennan would take me next, but fully willing to stick around for the ride.

Let me also take a moment to verbally adore this astoundingly cool UK cover. Stormy London, Nick kicking somebody's trash on the bridge, and a pink-haired Mae watching it all. It's not the one my copy came with - which makes me infinitely sad - but is most excellent and is the version I NEED for my own collection.

Not much time has passed since Mae and her brother Jamie have returned home after successfully facing down an entire Circle of deadly magicians led by enormously powerful Black Arthur. In her head Mae knows Jamie is now safe, thanks in large part to the help of Alan and Nick Ryves, but Mae can't help but remain tense, constantly looking over her shoulder, waiting for the next attack to appear. When the unthinkable does actually happen and Mae discovers magicians circling Jamie again, she panics and calls the only people who she trusts implicitly to help. Like the cavalry, the Ryves brothers swoop back into Mae and Jamie's life without a thought. Ready to protect, ready to defend. Mae has always had trouble staying in complete control when it comes to Alan and Nick and this time proves to be no different. She's torn and stuck in the middle of their ever-increasingly explosive relationship and above all, ready to do anything to rescue the ones she loves from harms way.

After falling hard for the Ryves brothers in The Demon's Lexicon, I will admit to some slight hesitation upon discovering that The Demon's Covenant centers around Mae. Who I also liked, just maybe not as much. But boy howdy - I changed my mind. There are infinite quotable selections from Mae, but one of my favorites happens when she is heading to meet Alan and Nick for the first time after calling them for help with Jamie.

She went downstairs and told herself with every stop that she was fine, that she had called them because she needed help, that she hadn't particularly wanted to see either of them. She prepared a number of calm and practical things to say.

When she opened the door and saw their faces, she forgot them all.

She and Jamie had lived with them for over a week; their faces were as familiar to her as old friends', but she hadn't seen them since the day she'd killed someone and they'd found out the truth about Nick. They looked different to her, new even though they were familiar, and she felt new as well, as if she'd been broken apart and put back together with the pieces not fitting quite right. They were real. It was all real, that world of magic so different from the world of Exeter. They were part of magic and of danger and the blood she woke remembering every night.

"Hi," she said, and opened the door to let them in.

"It's good to see you again, Mae," said Alan, and gave her a hug.

She was startled not so much by the gesture as by how it felt. It made her recall her first impression of Alan, when she'd seen a skinny but sort of cute redhead with kind eyes behind wire-rimmed glasses and thought that he seemed nice, harmless and not at all her type.

She knew better now, but there was still a moment of complete cognitive dissonance when he put his arms around her. He looked like one thing and felt quite like another.

His chest and arms were surprisingly hard, lean muscle against her hands, and under his thin T-shirt he was carrying a gun. Mae felt the shape of it press briefly against her stomach.

Alan wasn't harmless. He didn't mind if she knew it.

Shivers down my spine and all that. She is something else. Fiercely determined to stick by and protect Jamie, their relationship is something to behold. Truly, Sarah Rees Brennan is a master at crafting sibling relationships because even Nick and Alan take their crazy, volatile brotherhood to a new level. I am over the moon about both those guys. One brother is supposedly the normal, nice, good guy - but who in actuality is a consummate liar; while the other is seen as evil and wicked but who actually cannot lie and is full of loyalty.

Bit of a conundrum, ain't it?

And the twists just keep on coming. Once again, Sarah Rees Brennan manages to catch me completely off guard with her unforeseen ending, leaving me shaking my head over the sheer brilliance of it all. I can't even begin to imagine where she plans to go next, but I know I'm in for whatever it is.

series reading order:
~ The Demon's Lexicon - my review
~ The Demon's Covenant

Because Everyone Likes a Second Opinion:
Angieville review & interview
The Book Butterfly review
The Book Smugglers review
Cry Havoc! Book reviews
WhatMissKelleyIsReading review

book source: my local library

The Devlin Diary by Christi Phillips

Claire Donovan, a visiting history professor at Cambridge University, is in over her head. After helping historian Andrew Kent to uncover a centuries old secret as told in Christi Phillips' previous novel, The Rossetti Letter, she's now at Cambridge upon Andrew's request but instead of enjoying her time in the history-filled campus, she's feeling out of place and abandoned. Awkwardly alone in such an unfamiliar, traditional English environment, it's not until she stumbles upon the diary of one Hannah Devlin that Claire once again finds herself in the midst of what she loves best: unraveling the mysteries of history. Because Claire will soon discover that Hannah is unlike most usual 17th century women. She's a talented physician (which is uncommon in itself) whose experiences in the royal court of Charles II could shed light on a series of brutal murders left unsolved for generations.

Told from the alternating perspective of Claire and Hannah, The Devlin Diary moves along at a fast clip, yet the more fascinating story by far resides with the woman doctor Hannah. Her experiences are documented with such feeling and detail that I could picture the contrasting filth and splendor of 17th century England. While Claire's lackluster account of her dealings within the backstabbing community of Cambridge failed to ever capture my interest. Which shouldn't come as a surprise as the focus of the novel itself leans very heavily upon Hannah's unfolding story and not so much on the historian Claire. Unsurprisingly, I found myself much more drawn to Hannah and her mystery than I ever did to Claire. I think I might have liked Claire more as a character if I had been able to spend more time with her, but as it was, I didn't. I have however heard many, many good things about The Rossetti Letter - which I know follows Claire much more closely - so I'm thinking my opinion could differ from those who have already had the opportunity to meet and like Claire.

The Devlin Diary immediately brings to mind a Da Vinci Code-like chase where instead of the clues being found in art, they are discovered in historical documents. Intriguing for any fan of historical fiction to say the least. Although it did seem like every time the story switched back to Claire I found myself constantly pulled out of the adventure due to her misguided attempts at crime-solving. I'm thinking if The Devlin Diary had simply been Hannah's story, without the unimaginative addition of Claire, I would have eaten it up with a spoon (which I did) and then passed it without hesitation to friends.

series reading order:
~ The Rossetti Letter
~ The Devlin Diary

Because Everyone Likes a Second Opinion:
The Avid Reader review 
Book Hounds review 
Reviewing the Evidence review
Rundpinne review
S. Krishna's Books review

book source: provided by the publisher

The Fabulous, Marvelous, Wonderful Day of Books

Yesterday was a Red Letter Day book-wise. I got no less than TWO special bookish deliveries.

Package #1:  

The Road Home & Welcome to Vietnam by Ellen Emerson White

Another, wholly unexpected, Mother's Day gift from the Hubby - the shipping just took forever. After seeing how well his Anniversary Present was recieved, he's decided he can't go wrong with Ellen Emerson White. I agree.

Package #2 (one of my most anticipated reads of the 2010):

Magic Bleeds by Ilona Andrews

 !!!!

Someone needs to come and scrape me off the floor, because I am basically a puddle of goo at the moment. *dies*

Amazon Queen by Lori Devoti

Nothing ever stays the same and that is something Amazon queen Zery is slowly coming to understand. For the past ten years, Zery has staunchly enforced the strict Amazon way of life in her small tribe but it seems that within a matter of days everything she holds near and dear is coming apart at the seams. Until recently, Zery considered her tribe's only enemy to be a group of sons - men who had been born to Amazons, but who had been abandoned at birth in order to preserve the all-female Amazon way of life. But it seems now a new enemy is stepping forward, one who would threaten to destroy every Amazon tradition and belief. With her leadership under question and help coming from the unlikeliest of groups: the Amazon sons, Zery must try to discover the source of betrayal. Before it destroys the entire tribe.

Although intriguing in premise, Amazon Queen failed to deliver on a variety of fronts. I for one was extremely intrigued to learn more about such a fierce group of women who distance themselves from society in order to protect and maintain their ancient abilities. Unfortunately, Lori Devoti never manages to make me fond of any of her characters. Time after time, I found myself exasperated with Zery's lack of foresight - I mean, the woman supposedly had been chosen as queen for her leadership and brains, but all I saw was indecision and someone who was unable to connect the dots until every piece of the puzzle was laid out plainly for her to see. No foresight, no ingenuity. Maybe warrior Zery needed to spend a little less time at the gym and a little more time reading or studying. And that leads me to another issue: supposedly, the Amazons eschewed all types of technology in order to keep their distance from mainstream society, but I would think as an ancient civilization, they would have had to adapt and change their ways over the years in order to not obviously stand out anytime they were around normal humans. I mean, Zery had never even used a computer? Seems a little far fetched. And that's just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to my issues with this book. Very disappointing. And although Amazon Queen could have been a real page-turner, I was put off by the clumsy writing and my utter lack of emotional attachment to any of the characters. Definitely not one I'm going to be recommending.

series reading order:
~ Amazon Ink
~ Amazon Queen

Because Everyone Likes a Second Opinion:
A Journey of Books review
Bitten by Books review
BookHounds review
Gnostalgia review
The Avid Reader review

book source: provided by the publisher

Simone Elkeles Winners!

And the winners are...

Jill of the O.W.L. Blog who asked for Rules of Attraction

&

Becca who asked for Perfect Chemistry

Congrats to both ladies!! I've sent you both emails, so please be sure to send me your address within the next 48 hours. And a big thank you once again to Walker Books for sponsoring this giveaway! 

Retro Friday Review: Tangerine by Edward Bloor

Retro Friday is a weekly meme hosted at Angieville and focuses on reviewing books from the past. This can be an old favorite, an under-the-radar book you think deserves more attention, something woefully out of print, etc

As a parent, I feel like there is often quite a bit of pressure to make sure you instill a love of books and reading into your children at an early age. And since I have a little boy, I'm a little out of my reading comfort zone and therefore constantly on the prowl for books that I think might appeal to him either now or in the future. And just because the little turkey happens to only be two at present doesn't mean that I should wait years to start collecting books he'll like, right? Right. At least that's what I keep telling myself and the clerk at Barnes & Noble.

In my quest for boy-friendly books, I kept hearing good things about this odd middle-grade book called Tangerine by Edward Bloor. My former library co-workers always said it was the perfect boy book: sports, mysterious going-ons, heros, villians, and tangerines. Wait, tangerines? Intrigued ever since, it's been on the list to acquire and when I came across it at my local library booksale the other day, I snatched it up and ran home to start reading right away.

For as long as he can remember, seventh-grader Paul Fisher has lived in the shadow of The Erik Fisher Football Dream. Ever since Paul's older brother Erik kicked his first successful 50 yard field goal, it seems to Paul that the entire Fisher household has revolved around Erik getting a football scholarship in hopes of one day advancing to the Pros. But there are two big things Paul just can't understand: 1) why everyone adores Erik, who he truly knows to be cruel and underhanded, and 2) why those same people are also in love with football. Now soccer, that is a sport Paul can get really get behind. Even though he happens to be legally blind, Paul is a talented goalie and is more than ready for the soccer season to begin at his new middle school in the town of Tangerine, Florida. Though, as usual, Paul is the first to notice that their seemingly idyllic planned community is not what it appears to be as natural disasters strike again and again and neighbors turn against one another; all while football and soccer games continue to be won. And lost.

I can now fully understand why Tangerine is often embraced by educators. Its many themes could easily foster intriguing and highly relevant discussions in any classroom. Truly, it is astounding that such a small book could contain such a wide range of significant topics yet still remain so accessible to teens on a variety of levels. A list of themes discussed include clashes between the haves vs the have-nots, the impact of family relationships, the treatment of those with 'disabilities', environmental issues, race discrimination, and even bullying scenarios. And that's not even a comprehensive list. But even with its appeal to teachers, Tangerine can still readily resonate with any reader be they young or old, student or parent due to the honest and captivating narration of the observant Paul. His voice is clear, insightful, and above all, entertaining. A hero with coke-bottle glasses and courage to spare. I'm glad I found room on my shelves for Paul Fisher and Tangerine. It's one I'll be sure to share with my own son. Even if I have to wait a few more years to read it with him.

book source: purchased

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows

Reading good books ruins you for enjoying bad books.

In starting off this review, I think it's safe to assume that many of you out there are book lovers. Bibliophiles. Bookworms. Readers. So my lovely readers, what is the one thing all book addicts adore more than anything (other than free books) when reading a book for the first time? Well, at least in this readers case, it would be cracking open a book only to discover it is all about other people discovering and loving books too. le sigh. It's like meeting another kindred spirit, only in book form, who too understands just exactly how paper and ink can be turned into something breathtakingly profound.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society is a witty and ever-so-charming epistolary novel set just after the end of World War II in London. Juliet Ashton, a successful young novelist, has just finished an exhausting book tour for her publisher (and dear friend) Sidney Stark when she receives a letter from a farmer/fisherman from the Channel Island of Guernsey asking for book recommendations for his literary society. Currently between book ideas, Juliet is intrigued by this simple request and eagerly continues her correspondence with the fisherman and other Guernsey Literary Society members. What she receives are countless letters detailing individual accounts of life during the German Occupation of their small island - some hilarious, some heartbreaking, and others simply charming. Above all, Juliet receives a collection of letters explaining how and why these average working men and women fell in love with books and became true readers. And just because some accounts were so profound, let me share this passage where Eben Ramsay explains why he feels Shakespeare was "thinking of men like me when they wrote their words":

It seems to me the less he said, the more beuaty he made. Do you know what sentence of his I admire the most? It is "The bright day is done, and we are for the dark."

I wish I'd known these words on the day I watched those German troops land, plane-load after plane-load of them -- and come off ships down in the harbor! All I could think of was damn them, damn them, over and over. If I could have thought the words "the bright day is done and we are for the dark," I'd have been consoled somehow and ready to go out and content with circumstance -- instead of my heart sinking to my shoes.

That, is why I read books. 

Of course all these honest and witty letters and telegrams lead Juliet to make the voyage to Guernsey herself where she finds herself falling in love with not only the people but the island itself. As she states in a letter to Sidney:

Quite apart from my interest in their interest in reading, I have fallen in love with two men: Eben Ramsey and Dawsey Adams. Clovis Fossey and John Booker, I like. I want Amelia Maugery to adopt me; and me, I want to adopt Isola Pribby.

And let me continue with Juliet's thoughts by adding: Juliet Ashton and Sidney Stark, I want to have as pen pals and Kit, I want to play "dead bride" with.

If you, like me, are one of the very few people yet to read this surprising little book, please do yourself a favor and do so at once. I have no idea why I let it languish on my bookshelf for months on end, but I am just kicking myself for not diving in sooner, because it is absolutely wonderful. History, love, humor, heartbreaking trials, and of course, books. A must-read for any bibliophile.

Because Everyone Likes a Second Opinion (there are lots): 
Bermudaonion's Weblog review
Booking Mama review
Maw Books Blog review 
She is Too Fond of Books... review
Small Reads Reads review

book source: purchased

The Iron King by Julie Kagawa

Certainly there are a good many books that catch my eye on a hourly daily basis due to their just so covers. But I have to say there haven't been many to capture my complete interest like Julie Kagawa's debut The Iron King in quite some time. First off is the title font: I'm loving everything about those sharp, pointy letters that wind up evolving into these twisty, curling vines. It's bold, yet whimsical and almost dangerously thorny looking at the same time. Then we have this stunning, bright blue-eyed girl almost obscured by the same greenish vine motif - all of which scream faery. Honestly, I found the entire cover so visually appealing that I knew I would wind up reading it just to find out if the story inside was half as good as its brilliant outside.

Meghan Chase isn't enjoying her sixteenth birthday like any other normal teenager. Instead of parties and cake and adoration, she's shunned by her classmates and forgotten by her family. And then the unthinkable happens, her little half-brother Ethan is kidnapped by faeries and a horrific changeling is left in his place. Not knowing how she is going to rescue Ethan (just knowing that she will), Meghan sets off for the Faery realm with her best friend Robbie as her guide. Although Robbie isn't exactly human himself and turns out to have some handy connections within the high courts of the fae. Completely unprepared for dealing with countless vicious faery creatures, Meghan inevitably finds herself discovering allies in truly unexpected places: the moody yet clever cat Grimalkin and the young Prince of the Winter Court, Ash, who is as dangerous as he is striking.

Notwithstanding the many recognizable fae elements in Julie Kagawa's world of faery (the Summer and Winter Courts as presented in A Midsummer Night's Dream), Kagawa has managed to create a fantastical world that mixes so seamlessly with the modern landscape that I was totally caught up in her storytelling and believed every single word. Of course the nonstop adventure could have added to its appeal too. ;) Without fail, I find myself drawn those faery stories that clearly detail the sharp danger as well as the glamour and beauty of the faeries. And let me tell you, The Iron King does not shy away from the dark and dangerous side of the fae whatsoever. Literally the action in The Iron King is constant and completely engrossing. There are trolls and ogres to be fought, hounds to elude, Kings to outsmart... the list goes on and on. And although Meghan is in waaay over her head, she is still resourceful, intelligent, and unfailingly loyal. Three cheers for a strong YA female lead!! Not to mention the inclusion of a surprisingly realistic romance - which I saw coming from a mile away, but still swooned over anyways - that utterly captivated me with its selfless quality. So let me just go ahead and say it for the record: after that wide open, cliff-hanger ending, just know that I'll be picking up Kagawa's sequel, The Iron Daughter, to be sure.

series reading order:
~ The Iron King
~ The Iron Daughter (August 2010)

Because Everyone Likes a Second Opinion:
The Book Pushers review 
Dark Faerie Tales review
Jenn's Bookshelves review
La Femme Readers review
The Story Siren review

book source: my local library