The Lightning Thief
Title: The Lightning Thief
Author: Rick Riordan
Copyright: 2005 (Hyperion); 375 pgs.
ISBN: 0-7868-3865-5
Series: Percy Jackson and the Olympians #1
Reading Level: 9 -12 years
Genre: Fantasy
The scoop: Twelve year old Percy Jackson is completely unaware he is the son of a Greek god. After strange things begin to happen, and he and his mother are attacked by a mythological creature, Percy ends up in a special summer camp for godlings. There, he makes new friends and learns his real father’s identity. However, the revelation is hardly good news on Mount Olympus: Zeus believes Percy stole his master thunderbolt. To prevent a war among the gods, Percy, along with his friends Grover and Annabeth, set out on a quest to find the missing item by the summer solstice.
Comments: The book is written in 1st person, so it had a definite “boy” feel to it — at least I thought so. I thought the book started off slow, but once Percy gets his quest, things pick up and I was hooked to the end. With the action comes violence. Greek myths are pretty violent to begin with — the hero battling the monsters who are trying to stop him from reaching his goal — so in that respect it’s no different from the other retellings. Percy meets each challenge bravely and does his best to protect his friends and the innocent bystanders.
Why I read it: I have three young nephews and an eleven-year-old niece. The niece — we’ll call her D — is already an avid reader, and it is something I hope stays with her. D’s read the Harry Potter series already and seems to like fantasy well enough. I probably could recommend this to her. However, her brother — henceforth referred to as A1 (there is a nephew A2) — told me that “reading is for girls”. I reminded him that his father reads. He’s a little too young yet for this series, but I’ll keep it in mind for the future (A2 and E are even younger).
Besides the above, I chose to read the book because it looked interesting. I was fascinated with the Greek mythology, probably around the age of 10 or 11, influenced, no doubt, by the original Clash of the Titans. As I was reading, I couldn’t help thinking about that movie. It also reminded me of Disney’s Hercules, as well as the television series, Hercules: the Legendary Journeys and its spin-off, Xena. It was a bit weird to have all those images floating about in my mind at the same time.
What I liked: I liked the summer camp (the concept, the setup, etc.); same thing about the Underworld. I also liked the real-world jobs some of the mythological characters had — I didn’t catch on to the gnome emporium right away. I also liked the reasons the author gave for the gods to be in the New World instead of Greece and why certain gods stopped having half-blood children.
What I didn’t like: As an adult with no children — and I know I’m not the target audience — nothing really stood out. However, due to the violence and what happens to Percy’s mother in the beginning and his step-father in the end, I would advise a parent to read it first so they can decide if younger children are ready to read such things.
Would I recommend it to The Younger Crowd?: As stated above, yes, I probably will recommend this to my nephews and niece — and I will ask their mothers first in regards to content.
Started: 15 March 2010
Finished: 24 March 2010
Rating:
Liked A Lot
Disclaimer: I purchased this book.
Demon Inside
Title: Demon Inside
Author: Stacia Kane
Copyright: 2009 (Juno/Pocket); 353 pgs.
ISBN: 978-1-4391-5507-3
Series: Megan Chase #2
Sensuality: Warm
Genre: Fantasy
Possible spoilers for the 1st Book!
Previously . . . Three months ago, Megan defeated the Accuser and became the leader of the personal demons.
So, how’s that working out for her? Lousy, thanks for asking. Meg isn’t giving the personal demons the time and attention — and leadership — they expect from their gretneg (ruler); and as a psychologist, part of her isn’t comfortable with letting them run amok, feeding on other people’s misery. Meg has also refused to perform the ritual that will make her a full demon and give her access to greater power. She’s afraid of losing what makes her human. To make matters worse, someone — or something — is killing her demons rather messily.
Huh. So, how’s her practice and the radio show doing? The show? It must be successful, since it’s still on-air. Her practice? Well, not so good. The other partners are questioning her commitment and even she can’t deny she’s been acting oddly lately.
Is anything going right for her? Oh yeah. Her love life. Greyson Dante is still very much her lover. But Meg harbors a bit of doubt about their relationship. Fortunately, she doesn’t dwell endlessly about how long they’ll be together.
Ah, Greyson. Let’s hear more about him. If Greyson didn’t care about Meg, he would have let her flounder on her own when dealing with the demon world. As a gretneg-in-waiting, Greyson is aware of the responsibilities and expectations that come with the job. He wants Meg be a good gretneg. He doesn’t pressure her, though. Greyson advises her to perform the ritual, but it has to be her choice and he leaves it at that. He wishes that she would give up her practice because it interferes with her duties to the personal demons — and not for some alpha, chauvinistic reason. He supports her decisions and helps her the best he can.
A supportive demon lover and exploding minions. Anything else? It’s one of the worse weeks of Meg’s life, and just when she has real plans for Christmas, too. Someone tried to run her and Greyson of the road; and a death in her family brings her back to the place where all her demon problems started. Tagging along for support are the ever-loyal demon bodyguard brothers and Meg’s friends Brian the reporter and Tera the witch. Plus, we meet a friend of Greyson’s.
What I liked: The boys — Malleus, Maleficarum, and Spud. Greyson, of course, and the new character Nick. I liked the fact that Meg is conflicted about her status. It seems more realistic than it would have had she did the ritual just because Greyson said she should. She got dragged into the demon world against her will and it’s only natural that she fight for a normal life.
What I didn’t like: Demon rituals. Ew. What Meg had to do to beat the big bad. Double ew.
Recommended to: Those who read the first book. I would advise reading that one first, to see how they all met and to understand what happened to Meg.
Started: 25 February 2010
Finished: 15 March 2010
Rating:
Liked A Lot
Disclaimer: I purchased this book.
by Christina on February 22, 2010
in 2009 "Pub" Challenge,5 Stars,Countdown Challenge,Fantasy,Ilona Andrews,Magic,Other Supernatural Beings,Paranormal Romance,Shape-Shifters,The Year of Readers 2009
On the Edge
Title: On the Edge
Author: Ilona Andrews
Copyright: 2009 (Ace); 309 pgs.
ISBN: 978-0-441-01780-5
Series: The Edge #1
Sensuality: Warm
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Once upon a time, there was a young maiden named Rose Drayton. She lived in the Edge, that place between magic and mundane, raising her two younger brother to the best of her ability. Rose has a menial job in the Broken (our world) and it is barely enough to keep them fed and clothed. Rose also has powerful magic. Yet, instead of being a blessing, it has been nothing but trouble for Rose. She’s been sought after – literally hunted – by lesser, weaker nobles of the Weird solely, for the purpose of providing potentially powerful children; even other Edgers, more interested in monetary gain than community loyalty, have tried to snatch her up for the reward money offered by desperate peers. The only thing Rose really has is her pride, and if she can’t have love and respect and be desired for herself, she would rather be alone and poor than lower herself to the status of mistress.
Then one day, a knight appears. Declan, Earl Camarine, doesn’t get the chance to say “Hello,” before he finds himself staring at a crossbow aimed at him by a lovely young woman who then proceed to tell him she won’t sleep with him. Intrigued by her out-of-nowhere announcement, Declan gets her to agree to issuing him three challenges: if he succeeds, she will be his; if he fails, he’ll leave her alone.
But all is not right in the Edge. Strange dog-like creatures who seems to have an affinity to magic are endangering the Edgers. Rose and her brothers are not safe, and Declan insist on staying at Rose’s house, to better protect them. Declan and Rose must convince the other Edgers that they band together to eliminate the threat.
What I liked: There is a lot going on in this book, stuff I didn’t even touched on — the above is just the main plot points. There’s William, the cute and mysterious guy who seems interested in Rose, but she can’t put her finger on the reason he seems a little off to her. Then there is George and Jack, Rose’s 10- and 8-year old brothers. Both are adorable without being cutesy. And of course, all the world building. There is quite a bit of it, since the Weird and the Edge are not simliar. Each has their own “rules” and culture. The elements seem familiar — the Weird sounds like a historical, but with magic — and even Rose thinks the nobles live the life of leisure attending parties and balls.
It took a bit, but I eventually warmed up to Declan. He comes across as your typical historical snooty noble — and you wonder why Rose isn’t falling for William instead. There’s more going on, of course. Once Rose gets to know Declan a little better, I started to like him.
What I didn’t like: Casshorn and the “hounds”. Yuck.
This book was the first full length novel I read on my e-Reader.
Recommended to: Fans of fantasy or paranormal romances (yes, this one is more a romance than the Kate Daniels books).
Started: 29 September 2009
Finished: 30 September 2009
Rating:
LOVED IT !!
Disclaimer: I purchased this book.
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