Seraphina- by Rachel Hartman

Seraphina

by Rachel Hartman

I’m a little ashamed to say that I DO judge a book by it’s cover.

I picked this book up knowing NOTHING about it or the author.

And I’m glad I did.

Seraphina is a very well-written debut novel for Hartman. If a book looks interesting, but the writing style itself is horrible I won’t continue on with a series.

Oh I’ll finish the book- grudgingly- but after that I’m done.

This book has both. Good writing and an intriguing story line. If it’s got dragons as main characters, I’m probably going to like it. But Hartman does an excellent job of helping you connect with each character even though dragons are “cold and calculating with the distinct absence of emotions.”

From Amazon.com:

Four decades of peace have done little to ease the mistrust between humans and dragons in the kingdom of Goredd. Folding themselves into human shape, dragons attend court as ambassadors, and lend their rational, mathematical minds to universities as scholars and teachers. As the treaty’s anniversary draws near, however, tensions are high.

Seraphina Dombegh has reason to fear both sides. An unusually gifted musician, she joins the court just as a member of the royal family is murdered—in suspiciously draconian fashion. Seraphina is drawn into the investigation, partnering with the captain of the Queen’s Guard, the dangerously perceptive Prince Lucian Kiggs. While they begin to uncover hints of a sinister plot to destroy the peace, Seraphina struggles to protect her own secret, the secret behind her musical gift, one so terrible that its discovery could mean her very life.

*********************************************

I would HIGHLY recommend this book to just about everyone.

Book Review: Insurgent

Insurgent

Book 2 of the Divergent Trilogy

By Veronica Roth

It’s so hard to give a detailed synopsis of a second or third book in a series without giving away what happens in the first.

So here’s the one from Amazon:

One choice can transform you—or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves—and herself—while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.

Tris’s initiation day should have been marked by celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors. War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows. And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable—and even more powerful. Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guilt, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must fully embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing so.

*****************************************************

In my own words, this book was amazing.

It picked up right where Divergent left off. Tris, the heroine of the book, is as tough as ever while seeming real at the same time. She is a selfless, and at times unrealistically selfless, person that I would be proud to emulate. She finds a home in a group of people she had been taught to fear, she finds her friendships, her romances, and her family tested. But she overcomes them all by remaining true to herself and her cause.

The dystopian society is a theme that I’m sure will be taking off in the next few years due to the success of the Hunger Games trilogy books/movies and the anticipated success of the final book in this Divergent series (and hopefully movies)

If you like the sci-fi/fantasy/dystopian/future society genres, I would highly recommend you immediately go out a pick up Divergent AND Insurgent.

I couldn’t finish the second book fast enough, and I am going to pre-order the third as soon as Roth writes it!

Beaches, Birds, Books and Butterbeer

I just got back from my family’s yearly excursion to Ormond Beach, Florida.

The same beach and the same birds every year.

What was so different about it this time that it requires a blog post???

Only the fact that we got to visit Universal Islands of Adventure.

Which is home to……

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter!

Wooop Wooop!

Zonkos! Ollivanders! Filche’s Emporium! Dervish and Bangs! Honeydukes! Hogsmead! And Hogwarts castle itself!

Can a 25 year old say that they were beyond stoked to walk down the road in Hogsmead and buy a butterbeer…a real life butterbeer?

I hope so, because I think I took about 200 pictures while we were there.

Let me take you on a tour 🙂

Our first sighting of the Hogsmead!

The Hogwarts Express! My baggage was all ready to go but I guess I just missed it! (Which is why I’m writing this blog now instead of learning magic)

  

Hogwarts!! Finally!!

 

School seal and the Entrance Hall! And I think that’s Dumbledore’s office jutting off to the side!

  

Into the castle we go now!

Gryffindor is winning!

Moving pictures!

Look who we found in the Defense Against the Dark Arts room!

Look who else we found after saying “Sherbert Lemons”!

   

Our guardians were still watching over Hogsmead when we made it safely out of the castle!

   

After some wandering through the rest of Universal, we decided to head back over the Three Broomsticks to see what was up.

When we realized that the Hog’s Head Pub was practically part of it we sidled on over for something a little stronger than butterbeer 😉 Lucky we did because as soon as we’d sat down with our beers (If you ask for a Firewhiskey, they tell you that muggles can’t handle it….which I deem an utter falsehood!) an afternoon thunderstorm let loose and we were “stuck” there 🙂

So all in all, the trip was a success!

And did I get a wand?

Only the most powerful one of all time.

 

*****************************************************************************************

Although Harry Potter Wonderland did constitute a full day of magic, the beach and the wildlife entranced in an utterly different way:

Not too shabby of a welcome view in the first one huh?

The ever changing moods of Ormond Beach:

    

  

Not sure if these are a type of sandpiper, but they sure are cute when they run up and away from the surf!

 

 

 

 

Watching the Pelicans dive over and over and over is crazy.

This was the first year I have ever seen one of these Black Skimmers. It keeps its beak open in the surf while it flies- not sure what it was catching though!

Of course I never want to leave out Mr. Crabby who visits along with his many friends every year.

   

  

***************************************************************************************

I also had time, during the EVERY AFTERNOON thunderstorms, to finish two books. One of which I couldn’t put down and the other which I found a bit childish.

Mark my words. The Divergent Triology is the next blockbuster. It’s very similar in feel to The Hunger Games Triology. A world torn apart that healed in a way that worked at the time but is crumbling fast. I could not buy the second book fast enough.

This book I bought because I figured, it’s by James Patterson, it can’t be all bad. Even though it’s a young adult novel. Which it wasn’t. It was just very very easy reading and just a little too juvenile for my tastes. Not sure if I’ll finish out the series or not. I would definately reccommend it for the age 7-15 range though.

Books and Babies

I read. A lot.

I don’t know what it is, but a bookstore is like my monetary weakness. My husband knows that if I go into one, I WILL come out with something in my hand when all is said and done.

And I like Fantasy/Sci-Fi.

Yes, as my friends call it, “the weird stuff”

In that I take after my dad.

And I don’t care if it’s “weird”. I love it all.

Give me all the magic, monsters, mystery, and murder you can fit into one book.

Some may say I tend to lean towards the “young adult” section………

 Which means teenagers to publishers.

But I disagree.

25 is still a “young adult”. And I like what I like. So there.

I just finished reading Kristin Cashore’s debut novel, Graceling, and I loved it. It’s got both a strong female and male lead, love, deception, magic, murder, survival, family, strength, independence, and a way with words that draws you in so that you can see everything in that black print.

Some of my other loves that have a front and center place to live in my “library” (aka- small Walmart bookshelves stacked 2 deep and screwed together to look like a “designer piece”) are:

 

Harry Potter- J.K. Rowling.

 I grew up on these books. They taught me courage, friendship, and that magic is real….if only you believe. As Dumbledore said, “It is out choices…..that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities”. And I’m still waiting on my acceptance letter.

 The Hunger Games Triology- Suzanne Collins

Explaining these books to people who have seen the movie, but never actually read the books, is exhausting. They don’t get it. And they won’t. Set in a future America where WWIII has destroyed humanity, the Capitol controls everything. Including the lives of 24 children every year who must fight to the death. So down with the Capitol!

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy- J.R.R. Tolkien

I have spent hours reading these books and watching these movies. The entire world that Tolkien created, including full languages, is hard to comprehend. One person made ALL of this. Within those pages is a world of magic and treason, evil and goodness, darkness and light. It is a constant battle against those that would destroy the world. It all feels so real that you’re left wondering if Tolkien hasn’t actually been there and just hasn’t told us exactly where it is we too can find it.

The Edge Chronicles- Paul Stewart and Chris Riddle.

 Stewart and Riddle create a whole new world just like Tolkein did, albeit maybe not quite so detailed. But they invent characters and monsters that have never had a likeness in our world to compare them to. They give them names that make no sense in any language. But they are able to describe them in such an eloquent way that you’re left wondering why you didn’t know a gloamglozer, a fromp, or a wig-wig existed before.

Pegasus- Robin McKinley.

 Robin is a master with words. I’ve always loved horses, so I might have a little bias towards this book. But she’s good. It always amazes me that writers are still coming up with original and intriguing ideas to capture and ensnarl us with.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians- Rick Riordan.

Are these books make for ages 8-16? Eh- maybe. But I like them. Greek mythology of any kind is also a weakness of mine.  Adventure combined with fantastical creatures and race to save humanity- yeah, I’ll probably read it. And they are actually very very good. I couldn’t put them down.

Myst- Robyn and Rand Miller/David Wingrove.

I played the computer game before I read the books. With my brother. He loved them. (Even though we had to use the walkthroughs) And I loved it because we didn’t fight while we played. One of us would read the walkthrough while the other played the game. When I realized when I was older that they were actually based on books, I jumped on them. They are very good. Again, and entirely alien world that you get to create in your mind from a simple black and white page. It’s been a while since I read them, but they are awesome.

His Dark Materials- Philip Pullman

Yes, I know the controversy over these books here in the South. Yes, God dies in the last book. Yes, Pullman is an atheist. But they are good books and they make for a lighting speed page-turning read. I loved them. And honestly, I didn’t realize they were so atheistic while I read them- they were just a GREAT story to me and that’s all they are going to be.

The Pellinor Series- Alison Croggon

These books follow a young, brave heroine from close to far who must battle evil at all turns. Along the way, you meet an abundance of deep characters. The Crow was my least favorite in the series, but it had to be done- backstories had to be told. All in all, an excellent read.

The Host- Stephenie Meyer

Yes, this is the author of the Twilight Series. No, I don’t like the movies. This book is nothing like those. In a world where aliens have invaded most earthling’s bodies, including the main character of the book, some have managed to remain hidden and hope for a savior. It’s a bit romantic-ish at times, but it was very very good.

The Septimus Heap Series- Angie Sage

Yes, again, they are for kids. But they are an engrossing and easy read. They follow a young boy who finds out he is someone completely other than what he has grown up thinking. There’s magic galore in them and an new adventure in each book.

The Abhorsen Trilogy- Garth Nix

I FLEW through these books. In the first, a young girl must take the place of her father after he passes…the role of Abhorsen- Necromancer. In the second, another young heroine must take up the cloak of her inheritance- Remembrancer- Past Seer. In the third, both must fight together to save the world from destruction.

The Chronicles of Narnia- C.S. Lewis

Oh Narnia! How I wanted so badly to go there! These are a classic and every child should read them. So many different story lines and so many characters to love. And talking animals- who wouldn’t want talking animals??

The Inkheart Trilogy- Cornelia Funke

A book series about a book. Yes please! Ink. Spell. Death. Those three magic words are the keys to this series. A woman is trapped in a magic book and madman has been loosed into ours. These stories follow the woman’s family on the harrowing quest to return both worlds to balance.

The Inheritance Trilogy- Christopher Paolini

If it’s got dragons in it, I’ll probably love it. This series had me waiting on baited breath for each new installment. An evil king and his dragon have rule over all the land and it’s up to one small boy and the only dragon left to pull the forces of good together and defeat him once and for all. The fate of the dragons and the land depends on it.

Well, I guess that’s enough for now……I’ve more than likely bored you all to tears 🙂

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

And now on to babies. (Although I could seriously spend all day on just books)

Ever since I’ve seriously been ready to have a child, which was to say about 4 years ago, I’ve never really thought about what gender I wanted. I’ve always thought I wanted at least one of both. A girl would be fun to dress up and put bows in her hair. And I think about cherishing the childhood of a girl……based on the way my relationship is with my mom…….NOW.

 

But it hasn’t always been that way.

I used to be a nightmare. A heartbreaking, gut-wrenching nightmare.

I didn’t do anything bad per say…no alcohol, no drugs, no sex.

But I made my mother cry more times than I care to admit.

I was just plain mean to her sometimes. “I hate you” were my go-to words when I was mad. Now I never snuck out and did the things my dad and her prevented me from doing. But I gave her the silent treatment and I scowled at her and I made her sad because I knew I could.

Out of spite.

Spite is an ugly ugly thing.

It makes your whole being ugly.

Once I went to college, that spite seemed to dissipate.

And I became the “mom” figure in my group of friends. I cheered at a large University, so we got into a lot of things most people didn’t get to.

I picked drunk people up at  3 AM.

I made sure no one got lost when we went out at away games.

I cooked and I cleaned (which I’d never even attempted before).

I realized my mom had been right about a lot of things.

And I thought- oh my Lord- I just said those words I swore I’d never say.

Ever.

But my mom is an amazing woman.

I saw that when I started doing things for myself. Like cooking, cleaning, paying bills, making plans, keeping people happy.

And so is my dad. We’re more similar in a lot of ways- we have the same temper, we read the same books.

 (Although I think my hormone-fueled rages weren’t as directed at him).

So back to having a girl…..

I think about what I was like as a teenager……

And I look at what my Mother-in-Law is going through with my 15-year old sister-in-law…….

And I want to run screaming…..

1,000 miles away…..

in the opposite direction…..

from the idea of having a daughter that acts like that.

Because I’d be in jail.

From losing my temper with her.

Because that’s the only thing that would get through to her.

Sure, I pretended I was a rebel, but I never acted on it. Because I knew my mom and dad would kill me.

And I am ever so thankful for that fear.

It saved me from a LOT of stupid mistakes.

That I see, and can see in the future, my sister-in-law making.

(If you’re reading this- I do actually know what I’m talking about- I’ve been there, done that)

And I am over so thankful for their love and protection.

It saved me from thinking that beauty is on the outside only.

It saved me from hurting other people’ s feelings by saying mean things to their faces.

It saved me from making fun of people just because their different.

It saved me from thinking that I was the center of the universe and that everyone should be my minions.

It gave me compassion.

 The relationship I have with my mother now is wonderful.

We get along.

We actually talk.

I don’t yell at her.

(Minus during wedding fervor a couple months back)

(But unlike before, we both apologized)

And I think,

maybe,

 if I can manage to contain my temper for about 6 years,

from about age 12-17

I would love to have a daughter.

Because there’s nothing on earth like the bond of that relationship.

(Although I want boys too….and my husband wants a veritable army of them)