Dealing with Dragons

Dealing with Dragons
by Patricia C. Wrede
Point, 1992. 212 p. Young Adult

Princess Cimorene no longer wants to be a princess. Princesses are not allowed to do interesting things they cannot learn to fence, cook, or Latin. When her parents try to marry her off to a prince who has no intelligence to speak of that is the last straw and Princess Cimorene runs away to live with a dragon. Where she chases off knights and catalogs magical objects, and helps deal with pesky wizards.

This is one of my favorite stories. It is a short series with only 4 books and it is absolutely delightful. I love Cimorene I love Kazul who is a wonderful character. It is just a fun light read and I love the message that you don’t necessarily have to be what everyone expects you to be.

 MH

The Cross of Lead

The Cross of Lead
by Avi
Hyperion Books For Children, 2002. pgs 262, Young Adult

On the day of his mother’s funeral a 14th century peasant boy called Asta’s Son is accused of murder and must flee his village never to return. On his path to avoid detection from the village enforcer he comes across a juggler and together they begin an adventure of a life time.

I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would. I really enjoyed the plot and the process of Crispin discovering his name and what that meant to him. This is one of the few books I would not recommend listening to. It was voiced by an older man and his tones and pace did not fit the story. So if you tried listening to it and his voice got in the way I would totally recommend trying again and just reading the book because at that point I really enjoyed the story and taking a step back in time which is very different from the world I have experienced.

MH

Monster Hunter Vendetta

Monster Hunter Vendetta
by Larry Correia
Baen Books, 2010, 656 pgs. Sci Fi

Owen Zastava Pitt has faced werewolves, zombies, and a pack of man eating chupacabras but nothing compares to planning a wedding and trying to figure out how to introduce your fiancé to your family. Everything goes helter skelter when the Immortals put a ransom on Pitt’s head and they will use whomever they need to get their hands on him. The gloves come off when the Shadowman attacks his family and Pitt will have to face a whole lot more than zombies to keep those he loves alive.

I am really enjoying reading this series. Who knew I am not a B-rated horror films fan but I really enjoy the banter between all of the characters as they kick supernatural butt. The plot had me on the edge of my seat and “Oh my gosh” when you find out who Agent Franks is!!! I really had a lot of fun reading this book.

MH

The Blue Sword

The Blue Sword
 by Robin McKinley
Puffin Books, 2000, 272 pgs, Young Adult.

“Harry” makes the long journey to the desert to live with Sir Charles and Lady Amelia ,her elder brother’s benefactors, after her parents death. While there she is a witness of a strange encounter with the king of the Free Hillfolk who is trying to protect his people from invasion and comes seeking the help of the Outlanders. The Outlanders cannot help and so the king is compelled for reasons he does not entirely understand to kidnap Harry and take he with them on their journey, she is soon found to be invaluable to the camp and may change the future forever.

This is one of my absolute favorite books I love Harry’s personality and the friendships she makes along the way. I love her strength as she learns the ways of the Hillfolk and her force of personality as she confronts the king. I have loved this book since I was 12 and it gets better with every reading.

MH

Mercy Thompson: Homecoming

Mercy Thompson: Homecoming
by Patricia Briggs
Ballantine Books. 2009. 112 pgs. Graphic Novels

Have you ever wondered what life was like for Mercy when she first moved to the Tri Cities? Mercy has just graduated college and wants to find a teaching position in the Tri Cities and she is having a hard time because the school values someone who can coach sports more than how well they teach history to their students. And in true Mercy like fashion she got in way over her head within hours of showing up in town.

So I am slowly easing my way into the world of graphic novels. It is such a different story telling mechanic than the traditional way books are presented. I loved the way the art conveys the emotion and the setting without having a long explanation. Personally I loved imagining the characters more than seeing them on the page but I thought they tied in a lot of the set up information presented in other books really nicely.

MH

From Ash and Stone

From Ash and Stone
by Julie Daines
Covenant Communications, Inc. 2018, 240 pgs, Romance

Lady Margaret Grey from Hartfell had everything. Her father was a knight with a loving family, until one day when the raiders came and she lost everything and gained an ability she would rather not have. She has spent many years in London stealing to survive and has finally returned home to take her revenge on the man who stole everything she held dear from her.

This was a nice feel good romance and it was a lot of fun imagining the countryside this took place in. It was interesting following this character and the struggle she experienced from having to spend so much time without physical contact because when she touches someone she can hear and feel all of their passing thoughts and feelings.

MH

A Madness So Discreet

A Madness So Discreet
by Mindy Mcginnis
Harper Collins, 2015, 384pgs. Young Adult

Grace Mae has been incarcerated in an insane asylum. She has been committed to hide the shame and unwedded pregnancy brings to a family and is treated in the most deplorable manner. Her life suddenly changes when she is offered the opportunity to use her talents to help a doctor with his practice. What will become of this young woman so close to the edge of sanity herself and will she be able to make a difference in the world.

Can I just say there are facets of this story lights a rage inside my soul for the history of mental health fortunately there are many forces at work making sure such things happen less often but asylum history and lobotomies make me angry. That soap box aside, I really enjoyed this book. I found it to be an engaging read as I wondered what would happen to Grace and if she would find the strength to pick up the pieces of her life and carry on. I feel like this would be a fascinating read for anyone who is interested in a fictional representation of some of the history in psychology.

MH

Monster Hunter International

Monster Hunter International
by Larry Correia
Baen Books, 2009, 736 pgs, Sci-Fi

One day Owen Zastava Pitt got to live the true American Dream, he got to throw his horrible boss out of a fourteen story window and smush him with a desk when his boss turned into a werewolf and tried to kill him. Owen wakes up in the hospital covered with injuries, an notice from his accounting firm informing him he was fired due to breaking the no weapons at work policy, and a job offer. What the Feds don’t want you to know is monsters are real and everything you can imagine from a B-horror film is waiting in the shadows. Because there are all of these creatures there is also a team who hunt the things which hunt the edges of your nightmares, they are known as Monster Hunter International. Join Owen and a group of survivors as they go head to head with creatures which haunt normal peoples nightmares and earn a nice commission as they go.

Can I just say how much I loved this book? This was such a fun read for me; I loved the dialog between the characters. I LOVE OWEN and his views on running he and I agree 100%. He is a gun nut and it was really entertaining to read about how excited they got over the variety of gun modifications they were able to come up with. There is some language so some readers may not enjoy that but overall wonderful story wonderful plot and I hope you have as much fun reading this as I did.

MH

Hocus Pocus & The All New Sequel

Hocus Pocus & The All New Sequel
by A. W Jantha , Matt Griffin
Disney Press, 2018, 528 pgs, Young Adult

The first half of this book is the Hocus Pocus from the 90’s all about Max the virgin who lit the black flamed candle which brought the Sanderson sisters back to life for the night of Halloween. Max, his little sister Danny, and Allison partner up with the 300 year old cat Binx to stop the Sanderson sisters from killing all of the children in Salem. Fast forward 25 years to tonight on All Hallows Eve, Max and Allison’s daughter Poppy can barely handle the mention of Halloween after she had a horrible experience being teased after telling friends about her family’s history with Halloween and the Sanderson sisters. Poppy has a crush on her classmate Isabella and is dying with worry of what her superstitious parents are going to say on this one Halloween night they invite the entire school to their house for a party. When Poppy and her friends sneak over to the Sanderson house they accidentally summon the sisters and have to work to send them back to Hell or risk losing her family forever.

I am a total 90’s child I loved listening to the first section of this book and re-living all of my childhood memories. I had a lot of fun going through the second half of the story and finding the parallels and imagining the characters going through all of this tonight. This book was a lot of fun and I really enjoyed it.

MH

Willowkeep : a Regency romance

Willowkeep : a Regency romance
by Julie Daines
Covenant Communications, Inc., 2016, 267 pgs. Romance

Charlotte Darby is left to take care of her special needs sister when her mother dies and shortly after her father is lost at sea, when suddenly a solicitor from London brings news that she has inherited an estate in Kent. She quickly relies on the estate’s steward Henry Morland to help her navigate this new life she has been introduced to. She soon has a lot of decisions to make when people start plotting to take her new life away from her and her sister.

 This was a fun feel good romance. I loved how the author handled the special needs sister and while she never specifies what kind of need she had she illustrated very well how hard it would have been for this young woman to have a job which could pay for their needs and still take care of her sister. I loved the variety of relationships which were included in this story and not all of them were warm and loving.

MH

Storm Front 
by Jim Butcher
New American Library, 2000. 322 pgs. Fantasy

 Harry Dresden is a professional wizard who knows that the world that we all know and love is more complicated than we think. The world is full of strange magical things and most of them do not like humans, so he works as a detective consultant. When the Chicago Police Department brings him in to consult on a double homicide reeking of black magic, Harry is ready to go to war but there is always someone behind the spell and now they are after Harry.

 So I have heard people mention this series for a long time but hadn’t ever gotten around to reading it. It was so much fun to listen to. Harry is a very compelling main character he is tall wears a canvas duster and his dialogue is fascinating. I love his advisor who happens to live in a skull Bob. Overall a fun book and I am excited to read the rest of the series.

MH

Iron and Magic

Iron and Magic 
by Ilona Andrews
NYLA, 2018, 406 pgs. Fantasy

 Hugh d’Ambray Warlord of the Builder of Towers has only ever served Roland a nearly omnipotent master who has cast him aside. Hugh is broken but when his Iron Dogs appeal to him for safety he has a decision to make, drink himself to death or be the leader his men need him to be. When Elara Harper needs some mercenaries to keep her people safe she will stop at nothing not even marrying the warlord over the men she needs to protect her castle.

 Alright so if you have not been reading the Kate Daniels Series put this book down until you have read everything from Magic Bites to Magic Binds, it makes a difference I promise. While it is technically a standalone series everything will be so much better if you have all the background. That being said I really had a lot of fun with this branch of the story! I laughed so much and Elara and Hugh fought over the moat and held my breath right along with the characters as they fought necromancers and vampires. Not a clean read but I really enjoyed myself.

MH

Bygone Badass Broads: 52 Forgotten Women Who Changed the World

Bygone Badass Broads: 52 Forgotten Women Who Changed the World
by Mackenzi Lee
Harry N. Abrams, 2018. 176pgs. Young Adult Nonfiction

There are so many people who have contributed to make our world what it is today and this book works to highlight in particular 52 women who have in their own way had a powerful impact on the world. The stories begin in fifth century BCE and continue to the present.

I personally had never heard about most of the women mentioned in this book and I thought that it was fantastic that Mackenzi Lee did such a good job finding such influential women and then condensing their life stories into two pages, and the art work was beautifully done. I in particular loved Agnodice the first female to pretend to be a man so she could practice medicine. I also loved Khutulun who won thousands of horses because no man could beat her in a wrestling match and she died undefeated. I found it absolutely enjoyable reading about so many women who accomplished astounding things for their people and their countries.

MH

The Traitor's Game

The Traitor’s Game
by Jennifer Nielsen
Scholastic Press, 2018. 388 pages. Young Adult Fiction

Kestra Dallisor is coming home after three years in exile, on the way her caravan is attacked and she is kidnapped by the Coracks who want her to overthrow the evil and seemingly immortal king, Lord Endrick. The Coracks end up blackmailing Kestra to have her bring them the Olden Blade simultaneously forcing her to betray family and country.

I really enjoyed reading this book I love the growth that Kestra went through as she learned about what the state her kingdom was in and eventually finding the courage she needed to face the challenges in her future. I loved the action and the romance that was involved and I thought Jennifer Nielsen did a really good job writing a story from two perspectives.

MH

The Whydah : A Pirate Ship Feared, Wrecked, and Found

The Whydah : A Pirate Ship Feared, Wrecked, and Found
by, Martin W. Sandler
Candlewick Press, 2017. 170 pgs, YA Non-Fiction

This book goes into the history of The Whydah, her captain and crew. It tells how a slaver laden with payment after a trade was captured by pirates, sunk in a brutal storm the same day it was the most successful pirate vessel. There is adventure, betrayal, and some awesome pirate history.

This was a fun read for me. I have always been fascinated by pirates and I learned a lot about why an average person in the 18th century would contemplate piracy as a way of life. This book had a lot of cool facts and was super interesting. Samuel Bellamy sadly is not well known in history but as far as pirates go it was really cool to read about him, and his life and why he became a pirate. I found it to be an fascinating and quick read.

MH

Raven's Shadow

Raven's Shadow
by Patricia Briggs
Ace Fantasy, 2004, 334 pgs. Science Fiction

Seraph is a Traveler her particular order is Raven who has magical capabilities, when her clan is killed by plague and her brother by superstitious town folk . She is spared from the same fate by the retired soldier Tier who happened to be passing by at the same time. Tier has now been kidnapped and Seraph is on a quest to save her husband from the mages who grabbed him.

I really enjoyed this duology. All of the characters had beautiful development without the plot dragging. I loved the magic system in the series and I love the growth that the characters went through as they were developing. I found the plot engaging and I loved listening to it.

MH

Burn Bright

Burn Bright
by Patricia Briggs New York : Ace, 2018. 308 pgs, Science Fiction

Charles and Anna Cornick are facing a threat that is hitting way to close to home. There is someone attacking the Wildlings; the werewolves who are too unstable and broken to live among the general populace. While Bran is out of the country Charles and Anna must face this threat and find out who is threatening the safety of the pack.

As always I love Patricia Briggs. I love Anna’s personality and I love the nuances they mention between the relationships in the pack. I loved learning about the Wildlings and their special place in the Marrock’s pack. The magic in this particular novel was unique and a fun combination of Brigg's style and fairytales. Patricia Briggs just creates this world of magic that I can get lost in for hours.

MH

The Wicked Deep

The Wicked Deep
by Shea Ernshaw
New York, Simon Pulse, 2018. 310 pgs Young Adult

The town of Sparrow Oregon is haunted by three sisters who were drowned because the jealous townspeople suspected them of witchcraft. Two hundred years later the town is still plagued by mysterious drownings during the “Season” but Penny is determined to find a way to stop them to save the boy she loves.

The Wicked Deep balanced beautifully telling a story that takes place in the past to bring depth to the actions happening in the present. I loved the ghost story that was built into the plot. Overall a fun Teen read.

MH

Dragon Bones

Dragon Bones 
by Patricia Briggs
Ace Books, 2002, 295 pgs. Fantasy

Ward has recently inherited his family’s estate when his father dies on a hunting trip. As Ward is adjusting to his new position and debates whether or not to drop the façade of being the castle idiot the King sends soldiers to take Ward to an asylum. Ward goes on a quest with key members of his family’s household to go about reclaiming his home.

I love Patricia Briggs, I loved listening to this book the reader beautifully portrayed Ward’s deep voice. I really enjoyed Ward’s growth and his awareness of the people around him.

MH

The Bone Witch

The Bone Witch
by Rin Chupeco
Sourcebooks Fire, 2017, 411 pages Young Adult Fiction

Tea has a very strong gift for death magic which causes most of the people in her land to fear, avoid, and respect her. After raising her brother from the dead, Tea undergoes the training to become an Asha, someone who can wield elemental magic. She will have to face many obstacles and make choices that will impact the world.

This was a book with beautiful world building. Think Geishas with magic powers; it was absolutely fascinating exploring this world where magic and tradition are so saturated in the culture. This is not a standalone book, and because of this I am very excited for book two Rin has set up a fantastic story and I am excited to read the follow through.

MH