Amy's Bookshelf

The Spiderwick Chronicles: The Field Guide, by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi

2009-04-22T12:39:00.000-07:00

I had someone ask me just last night what I was reading. Although I haven't had time to read much in the last few weeks, this is the most recent book I've read.

The Field Guide introduces us to the Grace siblings. Mallory, oldest, is taking fencing lessons (one of my favorite lines from the book: "...Mallory would either be an Olympic fencer or in jail for stabbing someone with a sword.") and is a pretty decent older sister. Jared and Simon are twins. Jared is the one the book kind of centers around-- everything we read is from his point of view. Simon is portrayed as being the 'perfect one'. He's the one that's good at everything, loves animals, a straight-A student, and so on. However, Jared is the troublemaker-- he's been getting in a lot of trouble at school. In the beginning of the book, the Grace family (Mom, Mallory, Jared, and Simon) move into their mysterious great-aunt's old house. In their exploring (and trouble-making), Jared finds a secret room and an amazing old book with a warning on it: "Go away/close the book/put it down/do not look!" So what does Jared do? He reads it. From here on, the siblings are sucked into a magical world where the ordinary is the extraordinary. Faeries, boggarts, dwarves... they all really exist. And they're after The Book.

I saw the movie first (I know, shame on me) and loved it so much I decided to try the book. I was pleasantly surprised! I was expecting them to be kids' books, but they grabbed my attention right away. Realistic characters, great storyline, and fantastical ideas all lend themselves to make this a great series of books. Little did I realize that they're only around 100 pages each. Blast! Now it'll take me forever to get them all from the library! Oh, well. It's not like I actually have spare time to read, anyway.

Thumbs up!

The Host, by Stephenie Meyer

2009-01-30T11:37:00.000-08:00

Again with the freaky covers. I think I'm inexplicably drawn to books with strange, almost frightening pictures. So much for not "judging a book by its cover."

Anyway, simply put, The Host is about an alien invasion. The "soul", called Wanderer, is implanted in the "wild" human girl Melanie and takes over her life. Souls are virtually bodiless themselves and live by taking control of other species' bodies-- parasites, really. Once they take over a human, all the human's memories become property of the soul, and the human's soul (spirit, mind, whatever) disappear. It's different in Melanie's case. She fights Wanderer's presence and refuses to just go away while Wanderer is probing her memories to discover the hidden location of one of the few remaining human refugee camps. In the process, they become pleasant enemies (being that close to someone will do that to you). Once they reach the camp, they find the man that Melanie was in love with. Since Wanderer (who the humans call "Wanda") and Melanie share feelings, it becomes somewhat of a love triangle... that is, until Wanda develops her own feelings for someone else. Oi, could it be any more complicated? Well, yeah. See, there are souls who aren't fond of humans, and Wanda's original task was to flush out the resistance. And it just gets more interesting from there.

Stephenie Meyer is just about the most well-known author in the US right now, even though she's only released 5 books total. Classified as an "Adult Novel", The Host is about as different from her Twilight series as a book can be. Instead of vampires, we have aliens along with a totally different plot line. I read the Twilight books before The Host, and I must admit to having been wary. I was expecting another book very similar to the vampire/ human complication of Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse and Breaking Dawn. Although there are a few similarities in The Host, it's by no means a copycat. Once again, I wouldn't suggest letting younger (under the age of 13) kids read this book, i's a great book that I would highly recommend to anyone who's in the mood for a little sci-fi.

Thumbs Up!

Shoofly Pie, by Tim Downs

2009-01-16T21:11:00.000-08:00

There are people who have social issues. Forensic entomologist (a.k.a. "Bug Man") Nick Polchak is one of them. He doesn't "do" people. Can't stand being around them, really. He'd prefer to spend his time with his bugs. Unfortunately (for him) one of Kathryn Guilford's friends has been murdered... well, "allegedly" murdered and she needs Nick's help finding out exactly what happened. Oh! Did I mention she has a pathological fear of all insects? Oh, yeah. She does.

He may not be exactly famous, but Tim Downs is one fantastic writer. His books are along the same lines of the extremely popular TV shows CSI, Cold Case, Bones and others. Why is there such a fascination with forensics now days? Eh, beats me. All I know is that those are some of my favorite TV shows and this is one of my favorite series of books. Tim Downs is in no way rude, crude, gross or anything like that-- just very factual. His books are sold in Christian bookstores, but don't necessarily "preach", which is a very rare characteristic. There aren't necessarily any surprise twists, bit Downs does a good job of writing a very fascinating type of story that I've already read about 7 times... and I'm getting ready to read it again.

Thumbs Up!

Mr. Darcy Takes a Wife, by Linda Berdoll

2009-01-05T16:53:00.000-08:00

I'm not going to post a picture of this one, simply because I really really really really didn't like it. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for the idea of continuing the tale of Elizabeth Darcy. Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice is one of my all time favorite books. However, when you try to make it more interesting by inserting scenes depicting their married life (*nudge*nudge*), it completely ruins the entire concept. I made it through only about the first 2 chapters before I was sick of it. Honestly, I was hoping for much, much better. This book has all sorts of acclaims and recommendations for it, but I was severely disappointed.

[a very disappointed] Thumbs Down

Field of Blood, by Eric Wilson

2009-01-01T18:03:00.001-08:00

We all know the story of Judas Iscariot, right? The traitor, who betrayed Christ to the Roman soldiers and benefited from his death. But he hung himself, remember? The field where he hung himself can be known as "Akeldama" or "Field of Blood" (Hence the title). This book is about a girl named Gina Lazarescu who doesn't remember her past and is completely in the dark regarding her future. All she knows is that, somehow, undead creatures known as "Collectors" are after her. These creatures (or "demons", "vampires", whatever you want to call them) were raised by the blood shed by Judas which seeped into the earth-- into burial caves underneath his hanging body. Field of Blood follows Gina in her journey to uncover her past and map out her future.

Eric Wilson is one of my new favorite authors. He used to go to my church, but that's not why. His style of writing is comparable to some of my other favorite authors, Ted Dekker and Frank Peretti. I have to admit, though, I had my reservations about this book. My first reaction was "Christian vampires? How in the world does that work?" Strangely enough, it does work. Wilson always does his research, and this book is actually based on real legends which adds an amazingly real (strange though it may be) feel to his writing. Yes, this book is kind of dark and, yes, t's KILLING me that the next book doesn't come out 'til July.

Massively Huge Thumbs Up!

Twilight, by Stephenie Meyer

2008-12-28T18:10:00.000-08:00

There is no way for me to outline the plot without it sounding somewhat stupid, but here goes. Human teenager falls in love with 100-year-old vampire. 100-year-old vampire becomes obsessed with keeping human teenager safe. Teenager figures out vampire is a vampire and goes to meet his "vegetarian" (meaning they don't drink human blood) vampire family.... it goes on from there, but I can't continue without really ruining it.

If you haven't heard of this book (or the movie, recently released, based on the book), you must've been living in a cave somewhere... or maybe you have a life. Lucky. This book (and the rest of the series) have become some of the bestselling books of our time. I'm really not surprised. Edward (100-year-old vampire) is written as this perfect being who can do no wrong-- every teenage girl's dream of the perfect boyfriend. Morally, this book starts out okay. Bella (the human) is one we can all relate to-- the clumsy new girl at school. In the beginning of their relationship, Edward is dead-set against any physical relations (obviously sending a good message to teens, right?). Well, yeah, but the whole "blood-sucking vampire thing" isn't so great. Even though Edward is willing to lay down his life (go figure...) for Bella and there are some good messages in this book, it's not one that I'd suggest anyone younger than 14 or so read. Even so, I still liked it.

Thumbs Up! (with caution)

DragonQuest, by Donita K. Paul

2008-12-19T23:16:00.000-08:00

The sequel to DragonSpell, this book picks up as Dragon Keeper Kale Allerion is summoned to the Wizard Fenworth’s home in The Bogs to start training as an apprentice wizard. The meech egg that Kale found in the previous story has now hatched, and the meech dragon Regidor needs both training and guidance. Who better for this job than the Dragon Keeper herself? All is well until Kale finds out thaat the evil wizard Risto has captured another meech egg and has sinister plans for the dragon inside. It’s up to Kale, Regidor, and their new acquaintance Bardon to rescue the meech egg and foil Risto’s plans.

We’ve all heard it said, “Sequels are never as good as their precursors”. Most of us have even experienced it. Well, this is one book that doesn’t live up to that phrase. I admit to being wary as I began this book—because it is, after all, just a sequel. In my opinion, though, it’s even better than DragonSpell. We meet several new and more charming characters as we follow Kale on her quest as a servant of Paladin as she also expands her talents as Dragon Keeper. I really enjoyed reading this book. If only it were a few pages longer...!

Thumbs Up!

PAUSE!!!

2008-12-05T14:37:00.000-08:00

Uh-oh. Finals this week. I'm sorry, but it'll be awhile before I've recovered enough to read anything but textbooks. My next post'll have to wait! :(

I'll be back before y'all know it. Adiós!

P.S. I'm always open for prayers-- goodness' knows I need 'em!

DragonSpell, by Donita K. Paul

2008-12-01T10:44:00.000-08:00

Kale is used to being treated like the village slave she is. But when she is inexplicably drawn to the egg of a minor (small) dragon her life changes drastically. The village elders decide to send her to the Hall to be trained under Paladin as a recognized servant of Wulder and to learn how she is to defeat the evil wizard.

Though geared toward younger adults and teens, I enjoyed this book immensely. The allegory found in this book is along the same lines as in C.S. Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia series. The character Wulder is the Creator of the world and Paladin is his son, while the wizard Risto is the lover of darkness and evil. Both Wulder and Paladin are portrayed as very kind, loving and always there when you need them, although not interfering. These themes are woven into the story very nicely so as not to blatantly preach. This is one book that is a definite must-read with a huge thumbs-up from me!

Thumbs Up!

Skin, by Ted Dekker

2008-11-19T11:59:00.000-08:00

The cover looks questionable. The title is just plain weird. The plot line is totally what you'd expect from Ted Dekker. It could be viewed as an exploration into the idea of beauty. Or it could just be a great story about a questionably sane serial killer. It combines Dekker's signature twisting plot with the classic theme of beauty only being skin deep. The killer, whom we know as Red or Sterling, poses the question "What is beauty?" More than just a philosophical idea, Red takes it to another level when he forces a group of 5 random people into deciding who dies based on their beauty. But wait a minute. Is it really happening? Or are they dreaming? No one besides these 5 people seem to hear from the killer. No one else notices the tornadoes that cover the town in sand up to the rooftops. Interesting...

Holy mackerel. I can't do this book justice. WOW. It might just be my new favorite Ted Dekker book. Is it weird? A little... but that's just Dekker for ya. One of the best things about Ted Dekker is his way of getting his ideas and beliefs across without preaching. Somehow, he can create a book like this that is able to appeal to fans of authors such as James Patterson or even Stephen King. I definitely encourage y'all to read Skin-- it may not change your life, but you'll never look at sand the same way again.

Go, Dekker!
Multiple thumbs up!!!

The Princess, by Lori Wick

2008-11-15T20:51:00.000-08:00

Most little girls dream of being a princess. For Shelby Parker, that dream is becoming reality. The Prince of Pendarin is looking for a wife in name only, and Shelby is chosen. Prince Nikolai's first wife has passed away, and his parents urge him to find another. However, Nikolai has no desire to torture his heart in that way again. Shelby longs for real love, while Nikolai does not. Will the new Princess of Pendarin find the love her heart years for?

Lori Wick is definitely one of my favorite authors. There was a time when her novels were all that I'd read. Now, I have to be in just the right mood. The Princess is one exception. There's something in the way it's written that makes me feel like a daydreaming little girl again. Sappy, dreamy, and sweet, this book has the potential of making you cry—if you're one of those people.

Thumbs up! (if you're in the right mood)

Thr3e, by Ted Dekker

2008-11-15T20:40:00.000-08:00

Kevin Parson is an unsuspecting seminary student, trying to make sense of his life, when one day a stranger calls and tells him he has three minutes to confess his sin to the world. The punishment for not doing this? Death. What follows is an exciting, edge-of-your-seat thrill ride as the killer, known as Slater, haunts Kevin.
This is, quite frankly, my absolute favorite Ted Dekker book—so far. This book really has everything you could want in a book: suspense, murder, romance, action, and of course, a major twist at the end. This is one book that I'll never tire of reading. *WARNING* Reading this book will cause you to stay up until all hours of the morning in order to finish it!

Thumbs up!

Trying something new-ish

2008-11-14T10:08:00.000-08:00

So, I decided that since my real website is such a pain to update, I'd kind of continue it here. I figure that, since it's so hard to find spare time with Mom, that I would do it myself. (she's the one that's been updating my website for me). Basically, the whole point of afore-mentioned website was to review my favorite books for y'all to read about. This worked okay, except for the fact that I'd forget which books I read and how I liked them. I'm hoping this works better.

I'll do my best to up date often
and provide a wide array of genres.

If anybody has any suggestions, please feel free to contact me! I can't guarantee I'll be able to get my hands on them, or that I'll enjoy them, but I'll give it a shot.

If you don't agree with my opinions, well, sorry, but I'm an opinionated kind of gal.

So here goes. My blog.

Fin.