Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

I have known about Ender’s Game from a long time, as long as I can remember. I tried reading it in high school. I got it from the library; unfortunately, I didn’t get the first (because the library didn’t have it) but some other book in the series. I thought it didn’t matter, and in a lot of series it doesn’t, but in this one it does and I gave up on Ender’s Game too soon. I was too confused. I picked it up again and finished it overnight, it was so good. I was up until the wee hours of the morning and intensely tired when I woke up, but it was worth it.

So the world . . . that is as interesting as the main character, Andrew Wiggin, Ender for short. Ender is a product of his world; it was invaded twice by aliens and now there are population controls in place everywhere. One of the rules is that only the first two children get a free education. Ender is a third and gets a special dispensation to go to school. He and his two siblings are geniuses, fairly equal in brains, but vastly different in temperament. The military first add its eye on his older brother, but he was too mean to make a good commander; his older sister was too mild; Ender was perfect. All three of them were birthed with the express purpose of getting a genius military commander.

The military inserts a chip of sorts into children to determine if they would make good soldiers. At the age of 6, Ender’s chip was taken out. But then on his way out of school, he was attacked by bullies and ended up killing the main one. Not that he knew that; he didn’t and he cried after because he had to hurt the bully. He needed a decisive victory to keep from attacking him day after day, but he didn’t like it. So later a military officer arrives and asks why; Ender tells him and they decided he is good candidate for battleschool because of his reasons.

There was a lot of that kind of manipulation and deception in this story. Not just on the part of the teachers in an effort to turn Ender into a brilliant commander, but in the part of his siblings. They were just as smart he was; his brother (with this sister’s help) embarked on a quest for world domination. He succeeded.

They (Ender’s teachers) lied to him and he destroyed the alien’s homeworld for them. He wouldn’t have done it if they had told him the truth; his life so far had cost too much. And he didn’t actually like killing. In the end, he and groups of other extra children colonized and lived in the alien’s world. There he discovered that the aliens had not intended to attack; they were insect like creatures and could not conceive of another sentient race without constant hive-like communication.

edit: It seems I forget to give this a grade.

Grade: B+

Ender's Game is one of those books that is touted as a science fiction classic. It did blow me away (I spent all night reading it!) but I can't see myself reading the whole thing over again so I am thinking B+ is probably a good grade to give it.

Pawn of Prophecy by David Eddings

Long ago, so the storyteller claimed, the evil God Torak sought dominion over all and drove the world to war. Now the one talisman keeping this sinister force from seizing power has been disturbed—and no one will be safe. . . .

Raised on a quiet farm by his Aunt Pol, Garion spends his days lounging in his aunt’s warm kitchen and playing in the surrounding fields with his friends. He has never believed in magic, despite the presence of a cloaked, shadowless stranger who has haunted him from a distance for years. But one afternoon, the wise storyteller Wolf appears and urges Garion and his aunt to leave the farm that very night. Without understanding why, Garion is whisked away from the only home he has ever known—and thrown into dark and unfamiliar lands.

Thus begins an extraordinary quest to stop a reawakened evil from devouring all that is good. It is a journey that will lead Garion to discover his heritage and his future. For the magic that once seemed impossible to Garion is now his destiny.

I first read Pawn of Prophecy in high school. Back then, I wasn’t as familiar with the fantasy genre as I am now and I did not realize it abounds with clichés. You have the prophecy, the chosen one and on and on. At least, they are clichés now. Pawn of Prophecy was published years and years ago, and I have no idea if they were clichés then. Maybe they weren’t and David Eddings broke some new ground (not entirely new – Tolkien came before him.) Just somewhat new. He could have – his books are still in print and certainly popular enough.

In anycase, I loved Pawn of Prophecy in high school and it remains one of my favorite comfort reads. Why? I don’t really know why. It is just somehow comforting to read – if I am in the mood for nothing else, I can always read this. Or one of the books in this series (there are five). I cannot begin to count how many times I have reread this. I didn’t read it last year of course (odd!!!), but normally I manage to read one of the five books once a year. On rare occasions, I manage to read all five. It just that it is easy to read and it still makes me laugh.

It has flaws of course but I ignore those. :P

Strange Brew edited by P. N. Elrod

Strange Brew is an excellent anthology and I am sorry I didn’t read it sooner. It has 9 stories: Seeing Eye by Patricia Briggs, Last Cal by Jim Butcher, Death Warmed Over by Rachel Caine, Vegas Odds by Karen Chance, Hecate’s Golden Eye by P.N. Elrod, Bacon by Charlaine Harris, Signatures of the Dead by Faith Hunter, Ginger: A Nocturne City Story by Caitlin Kittredge and last Dark Sins by Jenna Maclaine. None of the stories are truly short, but neither are any of them long enough to qualify as a novella. All of them feature witches and magic in some way. There are also no bad stories.

Vegas Odds by Karen Chance is the best. This story was action filled and excellent. There is a mystery, a sexy werewolf boyfriend and betrayal, all packed into a few dozen pages. I am not if sure if it is related her new dhampire series, but it might be and I am going to read the first one (Midnight’s Daughter) to find out.

Soulless by Gail Carriger

Synopsis: Alexia Tarabotti is laboring under a great many social tribulations. First, she has no soul. Second, she's a spinster whose father is both Italian and dead. Third, she was rudely attacked by a vampire, breaking all standards of social etiquette.


Where to go from there? From bad to worse apparently, for Alexia accidentally kills the vampire -- and then the appalling Lord Maccon (loud, messy, gorgeous, and werewolf) is sent by Queen Victoria to investigate.


With unexpected vampires appearing and expected vampires disappearing, everyone seems to believe Alexia responsible. Can she figure out what is actually happening to London's high society? Will her soulless ability to negate supernatural powers prove useful or just plain embarrassing? Finally, who is the real enemy, and do they have treacle tart?


SOULLESS is a comedy of manners set in Victorian London: full of werewolves, vampires, dirigibles, and tea-drinking.

Warning: Spoilers

Soulless is the first in the Parasol Protectorate series. It is hilarious. I delayed in reading this because I thought it would be silly, because how do you kill vampires accidently with a fancy umbrella? All in a Victorian society. But it wasn’t. It really wasn’t and I am so glad I read this. Soulless is one the funniest stories I’ve read in ages.

I knew it would be funny when Alexia is holding her wooden hairpin to the vampire throat, hitting him with her parasol and saying, “Manners!” She hit a little too hard, the hairpin went through his throat. And that was just the first few pages.

I am not sure whether to call Soulless paranormal romance or urban fantasy. The romance isn’t the focus, not really, but it is a very important of the story and they end up married by the end. The mystery aspect is just as, if not more important, than the romance. Without the mystery there wouldn’t be a romance, because I don’t think the romance would have happened at all without it. Or happened at a glacial slow pace. Both Alexia and Lord Maccon needed a kick in the butt for the romance to get going.

If this story as weakness, it is that sometimes the POV changes quickly in the same scene (usually to forward the romance). Even that wasn’t confusing, not really, so it is not that much of a black mark.

I want to read the next book! I wish it were already published. It is not. According to the Amazon, Changeless, Parasol Protectorate book 2, comes out on March 30 2010.

Grade: B

Wyvernhail by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes

HAI HAS ALWAYS been an outsider. With a falcon mother and a deceased cobra father, she is considered a mongrel by most, an ally by some, and a friend by few. Hai's broken falcon wings are a painful reminder of the life she once led on the island of Ahnmik. And here in Wyvern's Court, the avian and serpiente royal family keep their distance, refusing to acknowledge her cobra bloodline. They know that Hai's magic is so volatile, she can barely control it, and images of the past and future threaten to overwhelm her.

When Hai's cousin, Oliza Shardae Cobriana, abdicates the throne of Wyvern's Court, Hai has visions only of destruction: the serpiente king Salem, dying in her arms; the dutiful guard, Nicias, unable to save a generation of children; and Wyvern's Court engulfed in flames.

Now Hai will do anything to protect her new home - even if it means betraying the very people who need her most.

Wyvernhail is the fifth book in the Kiesha'ra series by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes. It is also the first book I read by her. I knew it was the fifth and that I was reading them out of order and I usually try not to do that, but I figured, what the hell. It was a short book and a quick read. Despite not reading the first four in the series, I was never lost.

The world involves shapeshifters, wolves, ravens, snakes and falcons. But it is not urban fantasy; it is written very much like a traditional fantasy story with a strong dash of romance. You have the prince, the princess, the mixed blood misfit, all with both human and winged shapes. Hai is the misfit. She also has visions of the future.

I liked this book very very much. If it has a weakness, it is that scene transitions are a bit abrupt. Sometimes that can be confusing. I didn’t expect to like it so much. I have read other non-urban fantasy involves that involve shapeshifters and I liked few of them this well. They were better written, maybe, but they lacked something Wyvernhail has. I am not sure what that is.

The scene I liked best was at the end when Hai was contacting her empress and realized that though she thought of the empress as a mother, the empress never loved her like that.
Grade: B-

Fired Up by Jayne Ann Krentz

More than three centuries ago, Nicholas Winters irrevocably altered his genetic makeup in an obsession fueled competition with alchemist and Arcane Society founder Sylvester Jones. Driven to control their psychic abilities, each man's decision has reverberated throughout the family line, rewarding some with powers beyond their wildest dreams, and cursing others to a life filled with madness and hallucinations.

Jack Winters, descendant of Nicholas, has been experiencing nightmares and blackouts—just the beginning, he believes—of the manifestation of the Winters family curse. The legend says that he must find the Burning Lamp or risk turning into a monster. But he can't do it alone; he needs the help of a woman with the gift to read the lamp's dreamlight.

Jack is convinced that private investigator Chloe Harper is that woman. Her talents for finding objects and accessing dream energy are what will save him, but their sudden and powerful sexual pull threatens to overwhelm them both. Danger surrounds them, and it doesn't take long for Chloe to pick up the trail of the missing lamp. And as they draw closer to the lamp, the raw power that dwells within it threatens to sweep them into a hurricane of psychic force.

Fired Up is the latest in the Arcane Society series. I think it may be the first book where a whole family has decided to stay away from society and away from Jones & Jones.  Staying away from Jones & Jones is harder and when Chloe learns one of her uncle’s works from them, she is horrified. Says the whole family would disapprove. It was funny. I am also pretty sure this is the first book that goes into the legend of Nicholas Winters, the enemy of the original Jones, the one who came up with the founder's formula that both enhances their power and drives them insane and that is now causing such problems (such delicious problems!) for Jones & Jones. No one has not read the previous Arcane Society can fully appreciate that, of course, but it doesn’t matter, because the book can stand alone. Most of it is explained, in a very natural, non-lecturing way.

The part I liked best was at the end when Chloe was kidnapped. She had to deal with a dying teenage boy, a doctor certain of his (erroneous) conclusions and being injected with the founder’s formula. It was here that we learn the founder’s formula works by opening dream energy to the waking mind, and that’s why it is unstable, because dream energy is inherently unstable.

There are hints of other legends, of the enemy leadership being involved with them. But best of all the current Jones got an assistant! This means nothing until you realize for the last half dozen books Jones had obviously needed an assistant and was resisting getting one. She walked in and told him she was going to be his assistant. Hilarious! I can only imagine what the background check will tell Jones.