Jepp, Who Defied the Stars by Katherine Marsh ★★★★☆ Fate: Is it written in the stars from the moment we are born? Or is it a bendable thing that we can shape with our own hands? Jepp of Astraveld needs to know. He left his countryside home on the empty promise of a stranger, only to become a captive in a luxurious prison: Coudenberg Palace, the royal court of the Spanish Infanta. Nobody warned Jepp that as a court dwarf, daily injustices would become his seemingly unshakable fate. If the humiliations were his alone, perhaps he could endure them; but it breaks Jepp’s heart to see his friend Lia suffer. After Jepp and Lia attempt a daring escape from the palace, Jepp is imprisoned again, alone in a cage. Now, spirited across Europe in a kidnapper’s carriage, Jepp fears where his unfortunate stars may lead him. But he can’t even begin to imagine the brilliant and eccentric new master—a man devoted to uncovering the secrets of the stars—who awaits him. Or the girl who will help him mend his heart and unearth the long-buried secrets of his past. Jepp, Who Defied the Stars is a fantastic read. Highly philosophical but definitely grounded, Marsh’s tale tells the star-crossed story of a court dwarf. Often overlooked in history, tales like Jepp’s are intriguing and surprising. Marsh does an excellent job of mixing the fictional with the historical and does so with beautifully written language, believability, and unique characters. You’ll feel as if it’s Jepp speaking to you. The plot twists and turns without being predictable, and the setting(s) are beautifully depicted and described.
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The Book Thief by Markus Zusak ★★★★★ It’s just a small story really, about among other things: a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist-fighter, and quite a lot of thievery…. Narrated by Death, Markus Zusak’s groundbreaking new novel is the story of Liesel Meminger, a young foster girl living outside of Munich in Nazi Germany. Liesel scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist – books. Soon she is stealing books from Nazi book-burnings, the mayor’s wife’s library, wherever they are to be found. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, Liesel learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids, as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement. This book is thoroughly mind-blowing and downright incredible. What else would you expect from a book narrated by Death? I can hardly begin to describe my love for this book. It’s thought-provoking and poignant and full of unforgettable characters, scenes, and sentences. This book made me laugh, and cry, and more than any other I’ve read, painted me a picture of World War Two. Which is another reason I love this book. Lots of people know the story of the Jews in concentration camps or Victory Garden growers on the home front, but the people living in Nazi Germany are often looked over or thought of as Party members. Not all of them were. Some of them hid Jews in their basement, or played the accordion, or stole books. And a lot of them died. Death is ever-present in The Book Thief, and not just because he’s narrating it. Death's character is a huge part of why I like this book. Death isn’t cruel, he doesn’t kill. He doesn’t like carrying broken souls, but it’s his job. He comforts the dead and watches the sky. He isn’t something to be feared, but in the end he comes for us all, even those of us who steal books from a Nazi fire. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern ★★★★☆ The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night. But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands. True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus performers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead. The Night Circus is, in a word, enchanting. Within the first few pages I’d fallen in love with the circus and its performers. The magic is perfectly utilized, making it believable (or as believable as real-and-true magic can be, I suppose). I love the layout of this story, the foreshadowing, the setting, the romance - I am simply in awe. My one and only quip with this book is that if you don’t make note of the dates (under each chapter title) it’s a little confusing, but if you do pay attention to the dates it only adds more to the story. I honestly cannot choose my favorite part of this book, but I would probably say the circus itself. The circus is as magical as Celia and Marco, and it is truly a wonder. I thank Morgenstern profusely for giving me the opportunity to wander through its tents. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens ★★★★☆ With his sublime parting words, “It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done…” Sydney Carton joins that exalted group of Dickensian characters who have earned a permanent place in the popular literary imagination. His dramatic story, set against the volcanic fury of the French Revolution and pervaded by the ominous rumble of the death carts trundling toward the guillotine, is the heart-stirring tale of a heroic soul in an age gone mad. Just so you know, I’m a little bit timid to post a review of such a classic. So all you Dickens fans, don’t hurt me. My first impression of Tale was complete and total hatred of it. The first chapters were unbearably slow, and so laced with metaphor and symbolism that I reread them several times. But the book didn’t stay boring at all. Once Doctor Manette is introduced, it’s all uphill. The more you read Dickens, the better you understand him, until his symbolism and foreshadowing, etc, only add to the story. The beginning is slightly painful to get through, only because nothing’s happening. The middle is vaguely interesting, and occasionally quite suspenseful. The end of the book is by far the best part. It’s written wonderfully and emotionally, with both suspense and dramatic irony. The last chapter is the most amazing; the last few pages are written beautifully. If you can get through Dickens’ slow beginning, you’ll fall in love with A Tale of Two Cities. It takes him a while to get going, but once he does, he’ll leave you crying and smiling and speechless. The Alchemist by Paul Coelho ☆☆☆☆☆ Paul Coelho’s story is about an Andalusian shepherd boy named Santiago who travels from his homeland in Spain to the Egyptian desert in search of a treasure buried in the Pyramids. Along the way he meets a Gypsy woman, a man who calls himself king, and an alchemist, all of whom points Santiago in the direction of his quest. No one knows what the treasure is, or if Santiago will be able to surmount the obstacles along the way. But what starts out as a journey to find worldly goods turns into a discovery of the treasure found within. Lush, evocative, and deeply humane, the story of Santiago is an eternal testament to the transformation power of our dreams and the importance of listening to our hearts. To give fair warning, if you liked this book, I highly suggest you don’t read my review of it. And if you haven’t read it yet, spoilers. Because, to be honest, I hated The Alchemist. I disliked almost everything about it. The relationships between the characters were so unrealistic - I can’t even describe. At one point, Santiago meets Fatima, who is apparently his great love. He hasn’t spoken a single word to her yet, and he knows he’s irrevocably in love with her. So what does he do? He marches up and says “I love you.” That might have been okay (not good, but okay) if she hadn’t told returned the sentiment. If a strange guy you’ve never met before walks up to you and confesses his undying love, under no circumstances do you reply “Love you too.” Then there was the scene in the marketplace, where Santiago just hands a guy his money and then wonders why his “new friend” is running off with it, and shouldn’t he wait up? Or the scene where Santiago is talking to the wind and the sun, and then he is the wind - Sorry, Coelho, you lost me. I understand that Coelho was trying to impart some deeper meaning - spiritual, religious, whatever - on us, but The Alchemist just didn’t do it for me. There are plenty of books that manage to convey deep messages while still having believable storylines and characters who don’t turn into wind. The Twenty-One Balloons by William Pene du Bois ★★★★★ Professor William Waterman Sherman just wants to be alone. So he decides to take a year off and spend it crossing the Pacific Ocean in a hot-air balloon the likes of which no one has ever seen. But when he is found after just three weeks floating in the Atlantic among the wreckage of twenty hot-air balloons, naturally, the world is eager to know what happened. How did he end up with so many balloons … and in the wrong ocean? I found this book in a little bookstore in a tiny town. I was only allowed to choose one book and I deliberated for quite a while over buying this one. I am so, so glad I did buy it, because The Twenty-One Balloons is one of my favorite books. The story, both realistic and whimsical, of Professor Sherman made me smile. It felt like reading a picture book again, back in the days of Doctor Seuss and The Kissing Hand, but a picture book for the most sophisticated of children. The Twenty-One Balloons won’t make your heart pound as our pretty young heroine takes down the corrupt government, it won’t make you melt like your favorite romance (we all have them). So why do I love it so much? The Twenty-One Balloons is the rare kind of story you can’t help but love, when you didn’t even know you wanted it. The Diviners by Libba Bray ★★★★☆ Do you believe there are ghosts and demons and Diviners among us? Evie O’Neill has been exiled from her boring old hometown and shipped off to the bustling streets of New York City - and she is pos-i-tute-ly ecstatic. It’s 1926, and New York is filled with speakeasies, Ziegfeld girls, and rakish pickpockets. The only catch is that she has to live with her uncle Will and his unhealthy obsession with the occult. Evie worries he’ll discover her darkest secret: a supernatural power that has only brought her trouble so far. But when the police find a murdered girl branded with a cryptic symbol and Will is called to the scene, Evie realizes her gift could help catch a serial killer. As Evie jumps headlong into a dance with a murderer, other stories unfold in the city that never sleeps. A young man named Memphis is caught between two worlds. A chorus girl named Theta is running from her past. A student named Jericho hides a shocking secret. And unknown to all, something dark and evil has awakened… If that summary doesn’t give you chills, wait until you meet the villain of Evie’s world. The Diviners is full of creepy scenes featuring the killer, guaranteed to make your spine tingle. The imagination behind him and his background is astounding, like getting several stories in one. As Libba Bray spins her tale, she weaves the many stories into one perfectly. I love 1920s NYC. The speakeasies, flappers, the vernacular. The setting of The Diviners had all that and more, the pages filled with memorable characters and a thrilling plotline. From the moment I met her, I loved Evie, the bold, brash girl too big for Zenith, Ohio to handle. Evie seems like the kind of girl you could meet on the street and just tell there was something different about her. I love Libba Bray’s writing - I think she’s fantastic and she’s my second favorite author - and I lovedThe Diviners too. My only quip with this book is that it leaves so many loose ends. Usually I like a book that doesn’t tidy up after itself and tie all the bows. But with this one I almost feel like there’s too much left unsaid, like even though the book has ended, I have nearly as many questions as I did at the beginning. I can't wait for the sequel! The Diviners was a great book - well worth the 578 pages. There’s no doubt about it. - The Diviners is the cat’s pajamas. Cleopatra’s Moon by Vicki Alvear Shecter ★★★★☆ Cleopatra Selene has grown up in a palace on the Nile with her parents, Cleopatra & Mark Antony—the most brilliant, powerful rulers on earth. But the jealous Roman Emperor Octavianus wants Egypt for himself, & when war finally comes, Selene faces the loss of all she’s ever loved. Forced to build a new life in Octavius’s household in Rome, she finds herself torn between two young men and two possible destinies—until she reaches out to claim her own. As a lover of ancient history, Egypt, and Cleopatra, I was doomed to fall in love with this book. Full of intrigue, power struggles, and wonderfully accurate history (I’ll come back to this point in a minute), Cleopatra’s Moon is just fantastic. The heroine, Cleopatra Selene, daughter of the Cleopatra we all know and love, is a brilliantly imagined character. She has many of the usual heroic characteristics, but the best part is - she has flaws. Cleopatra Selene doesn’t excel at everything in the unrealistic way some heroines and heroes do. Shecter’s portrayal of the Romans and Egyptians is obviously well-researched, and portrays them quite realistically. Obviously, some artistic liberty is used. Case in point: Julius Caesar, Cleopatra, and Marc Antony are all portayed in a somewhat unrealistically flattering light. However, I thought this fit with the story. Selene, who’s telling the story, would be likely to cast her family in a light somewhat more flattering than history textbooks. Overall, Cleopatra’s Moon is one of the best historical fiction books I’ve read dealing with ancient Egypt, especially since its heroine is Cleopatra’s daughter, who is often overlooked in favor of her mother. Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare (The Infernal Devices #2) ★★★★★ In the magical underworld of Victorian London, Tessa Gray has at last found safety with the Shadowhunters. But that safety proves fleeting when rogue forces in the Clave plot to see her protector, Charlotte, replaced as head of the Institute. If Charlotte loses her position, Tessa will be out on the street—and easy prey for the mysterious Magister, who wants to use Tessa’s powers for his own dark ends. Clockwork Prince is, if possible, even better than its predecessor. While the Shadowhunters scramble to protect the Institute from Benedict Lightwood’s shady plans for it and catch Mortmain before he can build a terrifying clockwork army, Tessa is also struggling to come to terms with her own issues. The Jem-Will-Tessa love triangle comes to a head in Clockwork Prince; and as if that weren’t enough, Tessa is a key part of a madman’s plan to take over the world (or at least England), in which her traitorous brother also has a part. Clockwork Prince is a book that will rip your heart out and stomp on it, but the pain’s worth it. Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare (The Infernal Devices #1) ★★★★★ When Tessa Gray crosses the ocean to find her brother in Victorian England, something terrifying is waiting for her in London’s Downworld. Kidnapped by the mysterious Dark Sisters, who are members of a secret organization called the Pandemonium Club, Tessa soon learns that she has the power to transform into another person. The Magister, the shadowy figure who runs the club, will stop at nothing to claim Tessa’s power for his own. Friendless and hunted, Tessa takes refuge with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the world of demons. She soon finds herself fascinated by - and torn between - two best friends: James and Will. As Tessa is drawn deep into a plot that threatens to destroy the Shadowhunters, she realizes she may need to choose between saving her brother and helping her new friends save the world…and that love might be the most dangerous magic of all. Clockwork Angel is, in a word, incredible. Chock-full of dramatic irony, plot twists, and suspense, you won’t be able to put it down. Details like Jem’s illness, Henry’s eccentricity, and Tessa and Will’s shared love of books only add to the book and draw you in further. I have to say, before starting this book, I had a few reservations. A love triangle? A girl who doesn’t know her power? We’ve all been down those roads before, and I was worried that Clockwork Angelwould be a rehashing of them. But I had no reason to worry - Clockwork Angel completely blew me away; the ending was brilliant. Throughout the whole story I felt for the characters and couldn’t wait to see what came next. Definitely worth the read. |
Once Upon a Time...As a longtime lover of stories and a believer in the power and magic of books, I've spent my life seeking out the best reads. This blog is dedicated to reviewing the books I read - good, bad, or magnificent - to help other readers find their next favorite books. Currently ReadingKing Zeno
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