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It looks like Twilight is going to be a story that'll keep coming back in different formats for us to enjoy. Just when I thought I couldn't possibly read/see it again and enjoy it as much as I did the first time, I opened this book and let it consume me all over again.
I picked it up on Saturday afternoon with the intention of looking at a few pages because the art is so stunning, but before I realised it, I was closing it. I'd read the whole thing in one sitting, with the sun setting behind me, just as it did for Bella and Edward.
There's no point in talking about the actual story, everything I had to say about it is here, but I do need to say that this book is a work of art. The way the characters look, the intensity of each frame, the different art techniques used--it's all simply amazing. Inspirational, even.
I'm going to keep this breathtaking graphic novel alongside the Twilight quartet and know that I'll pick it up again, just so I can gaze at the wonderful vision of Young Kim.
Twilight: The Graphic Novel is another wonderful incarnation of this intoxicating tale. Reading and looking at the gorgeous art was like visiting Forks all over again. I managed to get swept up in Bella's confusion and obsession in the same way that I did when I read the book a few year ago.
I loved it. It's an essential book for any true Twilight fan to own. :)
Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Volume 1, March 2010, ISBN 978-190-565466-6, Orbit Hardback
This is a book that grabbed my attention as soon as I read the blurb. I also thought the cover was charming and wanted to know more.
Emily's just a teenager, but her mother (Dulcie) recently died. Now she's moved to the town of Mullaby to stay with her grandfather. A giant of a man she's never met, and lives in an enchanted house all alone. This is the same house where her mother grew up, the town that holds a secret strong enough to drive Dulcie away and never return. Actually, she never spoke to her daughter about the town, her past there, or the father she hadn't seen in years.
Julia lives next door, and is a woman with a two-year plan. She wants to get out of Mullaby as soon as she can, and only has six months to go. She bears a lot of emotional and physical scars from the past, and the life with the father she could never impress enough to actually see her. No matter what she did or how bright she made her hair, he'd never had enough time for her while growing up, he was too busy with his wife. Julia loves to bake cakes, and sells them at the restaurant to very eager customers, but is filled with ambition of her own. She's also keeping a secret that might actually be a blessing in disguise.
Although this story at first glance appears to be set in a real-life setting with secrets, misfits, and mystery, it's a lot more. It's a place filled with magic. A place where wallpaper changes designs on its own, a place where dancing lights haunt the night, and a place where a cake can lead someone home. It's a magical town, and every person in it possesses their own type of magic.
I loved this well-written and enchanting tale so much I devoured it within twenty-four hours. I enjoyed all the characters because each had their own quirks and touch of magical air, but I found myself developing a soft spot for Julia and Sawyer. Their story was heartbreaking and I couldn't wait to find out if they'd work the past out, so they could get on with the present. Or if they'd just allow circumstance to push them apart. It's why I loved the ending, it brought a tear to my eye.
The Girl Who Chased The Moon is a wonderful and magical story that was filled with hope. A story that'll make you hold your breath as you wait to see what will unfold next. It's a story about the sins and mistakes of the past. A look at what happens when one doesn't know the whole story and simply assumes, letting the years slip away. It's also a beautiful tale about lost souls finding their way to each other.
This really is an unforgettable tale that's earned a place on my keeper shelf.
Also, check out the book trailer, it really captured the essence of this story...
Girl Who Chased the Moon, April 2010, ISBN 978-144-470662-8, H&S Fiction Paperback (C)
After reading the excellent, I CAN SEE YOU by Karen Rose, I was interested to read more about Eve, and what had happened to her before ICSY.
But this isn't her story, Eve just happens to be one of the many victims of a vicious killer who's hellbent on revenge. A woman willing to do just about anything to get what she wants.
Sue's been in jail and has now kidnapped a twelve-year-old deaf boy from a rich couple. She wants them to pay five million dollars to get him back, and not tell the police. She takes the boy and escapes to Chicago. Here she seeks shelter in Hanover House, a women's shelter. Where she poses as an abused woman with a son.
Dana runs the shelter and is more than eager to help every abused woman who comes to her, but she also tries to help them get on their feet. So when she starts talking to Sue (who goes by the name of Jane) and notices that something's not quite right, she starts to worry.
This is another non-stop thriller that keeps the reader on their toes, and features a chilling, demented, and truly evil villain. Sue's a horrible person.
Nothing To Fear is another great story that slowly unravels and is told in the point of view of a variety of characters. It focuses on a truly scary woman, but also offers a taste of some wonderful people trying to help others, as well as a nice romance angle. I enjoyed this one too. :)
Nothing to Fear, September 2008, ISBN 978-075-533703-3, Headline Paperback (A)
I have to admit that before this one, I'd never read anything written by Jacqueline Carey. I'm not sure why, but when I got this book for review, I decided to give it a go.
Moirin is of mixed blood and spends most of her early life living in the wild--inside a cave--with her devoted mother. But her mother is full of secrets, including who Moirin's father really is. Yet, when she befriends a young boy called Cillian, and starts to grow into a woman, her mother has no choice but to let her spread her wings, as well as explain a few things. Starting with the fact that her father was a D’Angeline priest.
What follows is an adventure through Moirin's life, because her destiny lies elsewhere, away from the natural life she'd known and loved as a child. It takes the reader through the many loves and heartaches that follow her as she moves from one place to another, allowing Naamah's gift of desire to lead her.
I found the characters to be interesting. The writing intoxicating. It moved at a slow pace, revealing Moirin's very sensual journey.
Naamah's Kiss is a memorable story with a lush and vivid world. It's filled with interesting characters and very complicated relationships. Yet, as much as I enjoyed this book, it took me a while to get into the swing of things after she left the wild. The instant intrigue that sucked me into the beginning of the story began to fade with every new chapter.
Still, I have to say that the writing was wonderful, it's what kept me reading to the end. It's always great to get caught up in a nice, fluid character voice, and this author certainly has that.
Naamah's Kiss, March 2010, ISBN 978-057-509357-7, Gollancz Paperback
Let me start with this: I'm a huge zombie fan. I love all-things zombie. So, as soon as I saw the cover for this book online, I knew it was a book that I desperately wanted to read. Don't you just love that creepy, cool, and gross cover? It certainly captures the essence of this wonderful collection of stories.
LAZARUS by John Connolly is a zombie short of biblical proportions. It's a quick, well-written, and totally engrossing tale that I found to be a nice nibble-bite introduction for this very cool anthology.
WHAT MAISIE KNEW by David Liss: Wow, what an amazingly haunting story! This is the tale of a man who keeps a secret reanimate stashed away. Sounds pretty simple, right? Well, it's not. But it is a page-turner. I hung on every word and didn't want it to end. But when I got to the end, OMG... what an amazing way to end it. I should've seen it coming. The hints were there--amongst all that gross, intense awesomeness.
I LOVED it! Utterly brilliant.
COPPER by Stephen R. Bissette is a fragmented story told through the eyes of a very confused man. As the story progresses, he reveals enough for the reader to put the story together. But what actually happens isn't something I expected.
IN THE DUST by Tim Lebbon: Here's another amazing story. Toby, Jamie and Bindy are trapped inside their town. High fences keep them inside their dying town as the military and scientists keep an eye on them, to make sure they can keep the plague contained, as well as figure out how it started. Of course, they hate being trapped inside. After all, they haven't done anything wrong.
What I loved the most about this story--asides from the excellent writing and storytelling--was that their entrapment ends up being their salvation. Another brilliant tale!
LIFE SENTENCE by Kelley Armstrong is an awesome addition! I love Kelley's Otherworld series, and it was great to see that this story is set in the same world. I love how she does that. Anyway, this story's about a very powerful but sick man who is trying to cheat death and will do whatever it takes to do it. Another story with twists, turns, and an ending that satisfied my wicked side.
DELICE by Holly Newstein: Happens to be another delightful tale. I knew there had to be a voodoo zombi in this anthology and this one didn't disappoint. It's a revenge story. Even if that revenge is taken by someone else, but on behalf of tortured slaves.
THE WIND CRIES MARY by Brian Keene is a short and wonderful story with a twist ending. I enjoyed how quick, yet sharp it was. It captured the emotion of a powerful love that defied death. Great story.
FAMILY BUSINESS by Jonathan Maberry is an outstanding, well-written, and very sad story about a young boy and his older brother. A brother who people say is a killer in a world where zombies live outside the fences surrounding the town. When it's time for Benny to find his own job, he finds he has no other option but to go out with his brother to learn the business, and finds out the truth. A truth that leads to a very sad ending. This story made me cry. I loved it!
THE ZOMBIE WHO FELL FROM THE SKY by M.B. Homler: A hilarious tale that weaves an intricate tale where everything that happens is connected. Of course, you don't realise that at the beginning, but by the time you're reading the last word you just can't help but stare at the page in amazement. A story that starts with a zombie falling from the sky and getting stuck on the town's spire turns into one loser's struggle to survive with a chihuahua by his side. I did a lot of LOLing with this one.
MY DOLLY by Derek Nikitas. I don't know what to say about this one. I enjoyed the writing and couldn't wait to see where it was going... but in the end, I didn't like it as much as I thought I would. It was pretty average, to be honest.
SECOND WIND by Mike Carey: Oh, I loved this one! Nick's tale was an awesome adventure, and a totally different look at the zombie genre. Who would think to become a zombie by choice? And go through everything he does. I loved that in the end, he might be totally alone, but manages to hold onto some of his humanity.
CLOSURE, LTD by Max Brooks: I don't know if it's because I haven't read any stories in the World War Z world, but I just couldn't get into this one. The writing style kept jolting me out of the story. :/ Maybe the novel's better. I don't know.
AMONG US by Aimee Bender isn't really a story, but a collection of observations, really. I didn't enjoy this one. I'm glad it was short, because I was getting ready to skip ahead. :(
GHOST TRAP by Rick Hautala is a very interesting tale about a man who thinks he's helping to rescue someone he finds beneath the water, but actually turns into a nightmare. A nightmare that the residents of this town were positive had been buried beneath the water years ago. I particularly enjoyed that a zombie outbreak had already happened in the past, and had been cleaned up. Awesomely gruesome ending.
THE STORM DOOR by Tad Williams is another one that made it onto my favourite list. Instantly. I got caught up in the story as soon as I started it. What an amazing tale Tad manages to weave with this character, which I was hoping we'd get to read more stories about. But, um, I don't think so... not after what happens. Still, brilliant!
KIDS AND THEIR TOYS by James A. Moore: This is another excellent story. It's actually quite horrific. It's gross, and I found myself feeling sorry for the poor zombie that this group of boys find and decide to torture. And the ending, I'm still thinking about it. Poor Jack. :(
SHOOTING POOL by Joe R. Lansdale: Uh, next story.
WEAPONIZED by David Wellington is a story set in the near future, when the army has found a new solution to save lives and money on the frontline. A journalist initially sent to investigate one thing, winds up stumbling on these new soldiers--zombies. I'm usually not a fan of war stories, but I really enjoyed this one!
TWITTERING FROM THE CIRCUS OF THE DEAD by Joe Hill: While I enjoyed the uniqueness of this... story. Can I really call it a story? lol. I think it's great in a way that all of us who love to spend time on Twitter can appreciate. It was a fun, quick read.
Zombie: An Anthology of the Undead offers a fantastic mix of zombie stories that will satisfy any zombie lover. I think this is one of the best anthologies I've ever read, simply because I absolutely LOVED so many of the stories. There were only a handful that didn't satisfy my zombie itch, but that didn't matter because the other fourteen did! And that's an amazing accomplishment.
I think Christopher Golden did a great job at selecting and editing this gem of a book. This one's a definite keeper. I know I'll be picking it up again to re-read a bunch of these stories. :)
Zombie: An Anthology of the Undead, March 2010, ISBN 978-074-995293-8, Piatkus Fiction Paperback
Schuyler Van Alen has decided to go to Venice--with Oliver--in search of her grandfather. Before her grandmother was killed in the first book, she mentioned that Lawrence Van Alen was the only one who could help her get to the bottom of the Silver Bloods mystery. But when Schuyler meets him, he tells her she's wasted her time. So, she heads back to New York. Where the preparations for the Four Hundred Ball are in full swing.
Now that Schuyler knows the truth about Jack Force and his sister, Mimi, she's trying hard to convince herself that she no longer has a crush on him. But he confuses her by paying attention to her, as well as flirting. Luckily for her, her exiled grandfather decides to surprise her by returning to New York. He moves into the mansion that her grandmother let go for so long and is keen to help her. Now that he's here, she's able to spend a lot of time with him, learning a bunch of vampire powers that The Committee doesn't want the younger Blue Bloods to know. He's a great teacher, and she's a very powerful student, but she's still a half-blood and it slowly takes a toll on her.
Meanwhile, Bliss Llewellyn is suffering through her own problems and confusion. She keeps blacking out and wakes up in places she doesn't remember going to. She also gives into the temptation of taking a human familiar. Mimi Force is as bitchy as ever, and when she teams up with a mysterious newcomer with his own agenda, she sets her sights on getting rid of Jack's distraction--Schuyler. With devastating results to herself.
I love the tangled web of these characters' lives. Because of the many lifetimes they've each lived and where they originated, many of them find themselves being parents, sisters, brothers, and even lovers in different lifetimes. It's quite an unconventional thing to get your head around, but as soon as you stop looking at it through human eyes and through the eyes of the mythology Melissa de la Cruz has created, everything starts to fall into place and makes sense.
Masquerade is a nice addition to the series, and has thrown me further into the mystery of the Silver Bloods. Also, the author's laid-back writing style gives this book a feel that turns serious subjects into a fun and easy book to read, while still keeping me intrigued every step of the way. Not to mention the little twist she threw in right at the end! Now the third cover makes sense.
I can't wait to see what happens next...
Masquerade: Blue Bloods Bk 2, March 2010, ISBN 978-190-565477-2, Orbit Paperback
ALSO AVAILABLE ON KU!
Kindle & Paperback are now available
ALSO AVAILABLE ON KU!
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