22
Jan 2011

Wish by Alexandra Bullen

By 3 Comments

Olivia Larsen feels lost and lonely after the death of her twin sister, Violet. To start over, she and her parents move to San Francisco where she attends a new school with a new challenge in making friends.

Olivia then needs a dress to attend a function with her parents. Having given up finding something suitable in her own closet, she searches Violet’s stuff only to find a beautiful dress with a tear in it. She brings it to Posey, a dressmaker, for mending but Posey drops off a completely different dress the next day.

Not knowing that it’s a magical dress, Olivia simply wishes for her sister again. Lo and behold, Violet turns up in the middle of the night and Olivia’s life is almost back to normal again. They find out that Olivia has two wishes left and she has to use them carefully.

Olivia feels quite happy again now that she has her sister with her. She is also making friends with the popular and gorgeous Calla from school. Even Calla’s cute boyfriend, Soren, is taking an interest in her.

Don’t you think it’ll be wonderful to have three wishes to get whatever you want? I’m constantly wishing for more hours in a day. I also wish that I’ve done some things differently. I do wish for many other things (the list is endless) but in the end, I know I need to make do and appreciate what I have now. Be careful what you wish for, right? =)

I enjoyed reading about Violet’s return and liked the close bond between the twins. What put me on suspense was waiting to know how Calla would react if she discovered that her boyfriend was interested in Olivia.

I also liked how Wish wasn’t too fantastical despite having a dressmaker who provided magical dresses. It also explores on dealing with the death of a loved one, which is not easy for a teenager to cope, especially if it’s a very close twin sister.

Wish is a good story and I’m looking forward to reading the author’s next novel, Wishful Thinking, in which the magical dresses make an appearance again!

Popularity: 14%

Categories: Authors B, Genre - YA Fantasy, Titles W
18
Nov 2010

Wake by Lisa McMann

By 2 Comments

Janie, 17, is different from other teenagers. When somebody falls asleep around her, she’ll be involuntarily sucked into their dreams. This is why she could never get much sleep if she participates in sleepovers and she dreads if sleepy classmates doze off in class.

When she goes into somebody’s dream, she can only observe. But she’s trying to do something about it. She wants to try to resist being pulled into others’ dreams. Hey, it may be a special gift but it’s not worth it if she cannot handle it until it becomes a disruption in life.

Janie also gets friendly with a schoolmate named Cable. He was quite a mess when they were younger but he has changed since in terms of his looks. The other girls in school begin to pour attention on him but he is only drawn to Janie. They have a love-hate kind of relationship but while it was blossoming, it was sweet.

Janie’s friendship with her best friend, Carrie is interesting because Carrie is also good friends with other people who do not like Janie. Still, they turn to each other most of the time when there are problems. Carrie is not aware of Janie’s ability to see dreams though.

Wake was going pretty well in the beginning. I liked how the relationship developed between Janie and Cable. But it was a bit confusing when he started going out with another girl, right after he ‘broke off’ with Janie. He kept sending her ‘sorry’ notes though.

Unfortunately, I did not really like the way the book ended. I expected something more dramatic. I expected something more paranormal. The way the story turned out was just not how I imagined it would be.

However, the story behind the novel is fascinating. The author apparently had a dream that she was in her husband’s dream and was watching what he was dreaming about. That was how the incident inspired the creation of Wake, which is followed by Fade and Gone.

Other reviews: It’s All About Books

Popularity: 7%

Categories: Authors M, Genre - YA Fantasy, Titles W
22
Aug 2009

The Woman Who Rides Like a Man by Tamora Pierce

By 9 Comments

I’m now onto the third book in the Song of the Lioness series which is The Woman Who Rides Like a Man. Alanna, the only female knight there ever was in Trebond has set out on a journey with Coram, her servant, in a bid to find exciting adventures and villains to fight with.

After battling with some desert raiders, Alanna and Coram meet Halef Seif, the headman of the Bloody Hawk tribe who are of the Bazhir clan. They all then return to the Bloody Hawk village where they were eventually adopted by the tribe.

But not everyone was welcoming or accepting Alanna as she walks around wearing men’s clothes and her face unveiled unlike good Bazhir women. The one who is openly hostile towards her is the shaman, Akhnan Ibn Nazzir who believes that she was sent by the devil to corrupt them all. In a later event, both of them fight where Alanna triumphs over the unfortunate Akhnan. As a result, Alanna is expected to become the next shaman for the Bloody Hawk tribe.

Besides having to worry about her duties as the new shaman, Alanna is also bothered with the evil magic in a crystal sword that she’s using and also having to train her three young apprentices to be the next shamans of the tribe. Kara and Kourrem are obedient students while Ishak, the hot-headed one who also shows extreme interest in Alanna’s crystal sword.

Let’s also not forget that Alanna is somewhat caught in a love triangle with Jonathan of Conte and George, the King of Thieves. Jon plans to make Alanna his wife while George has promised to wait for her no matter what. Jon will always be Number One in Alanna’s heart but she’s not ready to walk down the aisle.

This book was alright where we meet new characters from different cultures and customs. You can expect a lot of events happening but don’t worry, you won’t get lost in the plot. Pierce has cleverly written out the story so readers don’t confuse themselves.

So who are you voting for to end up with Alanna? Jon or George? I know that some of you know how the story ends but don’t let it out, okay? If you ask me, I’m all for George. Jon just didn’t impress me much I guess.

Can’t wait to get started on the final book, Lioness Rampant!

Popularity: 4%

Categories: Authors P, Genre - YA Fantasy, Titles W Tags:
14
Aug 2008

Stardust by Neil Gaiman

By 17 Comments

I had no idea Stardust was written way back in 1998! I thought it’s a fairly new book since I’ve only just heard of it. Man, am I outdated or what!

All the same, I immensely loved the movie! Now that I’ve finally read the book, I found that it’s quite different from what I saw on the big screen. But it still was a magnificent read. Although the book looks like it’s meant for children, it certainly is not. There are parts and words in it which would not be appropriate for younger readers at all. That was another surprise to me too. I’ve always thought it’s a children’s fantasy book but it’s not.

So, at the beginning, Dunstan Thorn crosses the gap that separates Wall, England and Fairie or Stormhold. Fairie is nothing like Wall. Wall is like our normal world while Fairie is a magical place with creatures and objects you will not find in Wall. Dunstan then meets a pretty slave girl and falls for her. They slept with each other and nine months later, a baby was delivered to Dunstan. That baby was Tristran Thorn.

Tristran grew up to be an ordinary young boy with some extraordinary features like an ear which is almost pointed for example. He’s also in love with the beautiful Victoria Forester. Unfortunately, she’s not that interested with him. She’s broken lots of hearts anyway, so why should she show interest in an ordinary boy like Tristran?

However, one evening when Tristran managed to walk Victoria home, they witness a falling star. Hoping to win her heart, Tristran promised Victoria that he’ll find the star for her. In return, she should grant him anything he desires. Because of that, the love stricken young man bid farewell to his family and set off to find the star in Fairie.

During his journey, he meets a little man who helps him. He gives Tristran a special candle and a thin silver chain. In the movie, his mother gave him a Babylon candle and the chain instead.

Now, Tristran isn’t the only one who’s looking for the fallen star. The witch-queen is looking for it too. She and her sisters are old hags but if they eat the heart of a star, their youth and beauty will be restored for a while at least. Michelle Pfeiffer did a really good job acting as the witch in the movie.

Oh, I almost forgot to tell how the star fell in the first place! Well, she was hit by the topaz necklace which was released by the dying Lord of Stormhold. The son who manages to retrieve the necklace will be the next Lord of Stormhold.

Nevertheless, when Tristran and the star, Yvaine first meet each other, they didn’t get along well. She didn’t get along with him actually. She was just a miserable, bad-tempered fallen star and he was only interested in bringing her back to his true love, Victoria.

All in all, it was a great book. The movie’s fabulous too. I’ll watch it again and again. Oh, Captain Shakespeare’s not in the book. It’s Captain Johannes Alberic instead and his role was very small unlike Robert De Niro’s in the movie! This book was kind of serious with not much humour in it. Hmm, I don’t think there was any humour at all but I’m not complaining!

Other Bloggers’ Reviews: Care, Robyn, Kim, nylusmilk

Popularity: 8%

Categories: Authors G, Genre - YA Fantasy, Titles S
16
May 2008

In The Hand of the Goddess by Tamora Pierce

By 2 Comments

This is Book 2 in the Song of the Lioness series. Check out my review of Book 1, Alanna: The First Adventure.

Alanna is still pretending to be a boy at the King’s court and is now Prince Jonathan’s squire. So far, only a few people know about her secret. One night, Alanna meets a stranger in the middle of the night while she’s travelling back to the palace. The stranger happens to be a Goddess and she kind of advises Alanna to face her fears.

Then, Alanna is also cautious of Jonathan’s cousin, Duke Roger of Conte. She suspects of the duke’s intentions to wipe out the whole of the royal family and other important knights so that HE can be the King of Tortall. When there was war between Tortall and Tusaine, Alanna was captured by the Tusaines. The Duke knows that Alanna is against him and plans to get rid of ‘him’. He thinks Alanna is a boy.

Besides being worried about the Duke of Conte, Alanna also has to deal with George Cooper and Jonathan who are trying to win her heart. This makes Alanna pretty confused and she always says that love is not important to her at all. All she wants to do is be a knight and have many great adventures. Anyway, she’s also trying to act like a girl at times, for example wearing girls’ dresses and receiving lessons from George’s mother on how to act like a proper lady.

After Alanna’s eighteenth birthday, she has to go through the Ordeal of Knighthood. A few years ago, Jonathan and her other friends went through it and after the ordeal, they came out looking like they went through the worst in their lives. Therefore, she’s quite worried about passing the Ordeal and finally getting her shield.

There was one part where Alanna was not very bright. In the war with Tusaine, Duke Gareth, the queen’s brother, was ‘accidentally’ injured. Duke Gareth was supposed to lead the army against the Tusaine fighters. But then, Duke Roger was chosen instead to take over Duke Gareth’s place as leader of the army. It’s quite clear that Duke Roger had something to do with Duke Gareth’s accident and since Alanna was always suspecting that Duke Roger was up to no good, it’s quite surprising that she doesn’t know why he’s the army’s leader now. George had to explain it all to her.

Anyway, two more Song of the Lioness books to go!

Popularity: 5%

Categories: Authors P, Genre - YA Fantasy, Titles I Tags:
05
May 2008

Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce

By 11 Comments

It’s something like Mulan where the girl pretends to be a boy so that she gets to do what she really wants. In Alanna’s case though, she aspires to be a knight while her twin brother, Thom, prefers to be a sorcerer. However, their father was going to send Thom to the court of the King to train to be a knight while Alanna was to go to the convent to learn to be a lady.

Then, Alanna has a brainstorm. Why don’t they switch places? She’ll go to Corus to learn to fight and Thom will go to the City of Gods and learn to be a sorcerer. Now this is like the story from The Parent Trap! They will also need to tell Coram and Maude, who will be travelling with them to their destinations. Their father would be too busy with his books to even realize that the twins had switched places.

Alanna is lucky when she reaches the palace as she made a very good impression on Prince Jonathan and his friends. She calls herself Alan of Trebond. On the other hand, she also manages to make an enemy. Ralon of Malven is a bully and he decided to pick on ‘Alan’ when he spotted him.

Life isn’t peaceful if you’re constantly being bullied discreetly by somebody. Alanna is smaller in size but she’s adamant to not let anyone else think that Ralon’s been hitting and punching her. She is determined to fight her own battles. Therefore, she is determined to fight off Ralon herself for once and for all. But first, she needs to learn to fight properly. That’s where Coram and George help her learn the tactics of fighting. George is also Alanna’s new friend. He’s the King of Thieves, by the way. Robin Hood comes to mind now, eh?

The Sweating Fever happened next and one of Alanna’s friends succumbed to the sickness. That made Alanna feel guilty for not using her Gift of healing to heal him. When Prince Jonathan fell ill and was on the verge of dying, Alanna uses her healing gift to help him fight off death.

It’s believed that the Sweating Fever was deliberately caused to make the royal family fall ill. Is somebody after the throne? The culprit would be a really powerful sorcerer then. George and Alanna discussed this among themselves. They are also suspicious of Jonathan’s cousin, Duke Roger who has returned to the palace to teach Jonathan and Alanna how to use their Gifts properly.

I first read this book many years ago and immensely enjoyed reading about Alanna’s journey. It’s definitely a page turner and I just couldn’t put the book down. This book is one of a kind, a totally different fantasy story and also one that encourages girls to strive to achieve their goals. Well, we don’t really need to dress up as boys to do that, do we?

All the same, this is the first book in the Song of the Lioness series. There are 3 more books to go.

Buy Alanna: The First Adventure (Song of the Lioness)

Popularity: 9%

Categories: Authors P, Genre - YA Fantasy, Titles A Tags:
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