Grave Witch (Kalayna Price)

Title: Grave Witch
Author: Kalayna Price
Copyright: 2010 (ROC); 325 pgs.
ISBN: 978-0-451-46380-7
Series: Alex Craft #1
Sensuality: Warm
Genre: Urban Fantasy

From Goodreads.com:  As a private investigator and consultant for the police, Alex Craft has seen a lot of dark magic. But even though she’s on good terms with Death himself — who happens to look fantastic in a pair of jeans — nothing has prepared her for her latest case. Alex is investigating a high profile murder when she’s attacked by the ‘shade’ she’s raising, which should be impossible. To top off her day, someone makes a serious attempt on her life, but Death saves her. Guess he likes having her around . . .

To solve this case Alex will have to team up with tough homicide detective Falin Andrews. Falin seems to be hiding something — though it’s certainly not his dislike of Alex — but Alex knows she needs his help to navigate the tangled webs of mortal and paranormal politics, and to track down a killer wielding a magic so malevolent, it may cost Alex her life . . . and her soul.

Comments: Another case of “I wish I could remember what prompted me to get this book” syndrome. I can’t remember if it was a review, bookshelf bingo, or some meme that brought it to my attention. However it happened, I’m glad I picked it up.

The back blurb is accurate, and I want to avoid spoilers, so there is no need to re-hash the plot.  Instead, I decided that I will talk about the things I liked.

The world building — Nekros City sounds like a normal US city.  It’s not.  The magic opened up folded areas, and now the US has four more states.  Magic and the fae are tolerated, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t any discrimination.  Some of the non-magical have even formed a political party, called Humans First Party

Alex — I liked her a lot.  She has her small circle of friends for support, and her dog.  Death hangs out with her sometimes, which can be a bit awkward because she can’t always be sure if he’s just visiting, or if he’s there to do his job. I liked her power.  Morbid, and comes with a price, but can be handy for solving murders — only if there wasn’t such resistance to the idea.  In fact, at the start of the book, Alex is scheduled to assist with the first-ever testimony of a shade at the trial of her suspected murderer.

Falin Andrews — Mr. Grumpy Pants.  It’s his murder investigation that Alex is poking her nose into.  If he isn’t yelling at her and threatening to have her arrested, his saving her life and feeding her.  Yes, feeding her.  The man can cook.  And clean.  She should keep him.

I really enjoyed the story.  Some things I guessed right off — like I knew who would be the killer’s last intended victim, but not the why.  There are a few things that I’m hoping will be addressed in a future book — the soul collectors, for instance.  And is Roy really sticking around?  He’d be great at surveillance and she wouldn’t have to pay him!

I have the second book and I plan to read it soon.

Start:  1 January 2012
Finished:  5 January 2012

Rating:

Liked It A Lot!

Disclaimer: I purchased this book.

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Flying Blind (Deborah Cooke)

Title: Flying Blind
Author: Deborah Cooke
Copyright: 2011 (NAL); 309 pgs.
ISBN: 978-0-451-23388-2
Series: The Dragon Diaries
Sensuality: Kisses
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal

From the Back:  Zoë Sorensson is perfectly normal — well, as normal as a girl obsessed with drawing dragons can be.  The thing is, she’s always been told she’s special and destined for great things.  It’s not just because of her good grades, either.  Zoë is the Wyvern of the Pyr — the one female dragon shape shifter with special powers.  But Zoë is at the bottom of the class when it comes to being Pyr, and her powers are AWOL.  Worse, there’s no reference book to consult, and the last Wyvern is dead.  Everything changes when Zoë’s best friend is bullied and Zoë reacts.  Before she can blink twice, her inner dragon is loose, and she’s suspended from school and headed to a shape shifter boot camp with guys she’s known all her life.  But soon she’s doubting her powers — and even some of her friendships .

~&~

1. Reason for choosing this book:
One of my favorite paranormal romance series is Cooke’s Dragonfire series. When I heard that she was doing a Young Adult spin-off featuring Zoë on her journey to become the new Wyvern, I was excited. The Dragon Diaries a trilogy, with the second book due in December and the third in June 2012.

2. Reasons for liking/disliking this book:
I thought the author did a great job with Zoë. She’s a smart girl, but she’s still insecure about things — particularly her near-absent Pyr abilities. But she also thinks, and worries, about the type of things an ordinary 15 year-old girl would be concerned with. Zoë’s not perfect, nor is she the most popular or prettiest. She isn’t one of the cool kids and I like that about her.

Can the trilogy stand alone (separate from the adult series)?  Probably. But there are some things about the Pyr world (that are known to the readers of the adult series) that Zoë is unaware of, despite being raised by her both parents. Though it’s understandable that her father, Erik, can’t teach her how to be the Wyvern, but what about the recent history of the race and more of its lore? For instance, Zoe doesn’t know why there could never be anything between her and Nick Shea, Donovan and Alex’s son. New readers learn along with Zoë.

Beside making it more accessible to new readers, there is a possible “in-story” reason for Zoë’s lack of  knowledge.   Eileen, her mother, is not happy about Zoë’s supposed destiny as the Wyvern and may have forbidden Erik and the others from revealing too much. Mother and daughter have the following exchange early in the book:

“Well, you father will be pleased, at least.”
Really?
I might live to tell about this after all. I glanced up in time to see her turn away in disgust.
“I thought it was my destiny,” I dared to say.
My mom was impatient with the idea. “Well, you can’t blame me for hoping that destiny might pass you by, that you might just be a normal teenager.”

Having knowledge of the Pyr world can work against you. I found it a little disconcerting to learn about the mages, as if they had been around for a while. They don’t play a role, so far, in the adult series.  There has been some interesting tidbits in Whisper Kiss and Darkfire Kiss that could be paving the way for expanding the world building. I’m even more interested than before to read the next Dragonfire book as well as the second book in Zoë’s trilogy.

3. Reasons for recommending this book:
Readers who like dragon shifters and who enjoy reading Young Adult.

Started: 9 October 2011
Finished: 11 October 2011

Rating:

Liked It A Lot!

Disclaimer: I purchased this book. ETA:  I also won an ARC of this book in a charity auction.

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Kindling the Moon (Jenn Bennett)

Title: Kindling the Moon
Author: Jenn Bennett
Copyright: 2011 (Pocket); 360 pgs.
ISBN: 978-1-4516-2052-8
Series: Arcadia Bell #1
Sensuality: Warm
Genre: Urban Fantasy

Arcadia “Cady” Bell is a magician who co-owns a successful demon bar and frequently helps her elderly, Earthbound-demon neighbor lady with her pesky imp problem. She has a few friends, but because of what happened with her parents, she doesn’t let anyone get too close — she’s hiding out and she can’t tell them the truth about her past: Cady’s parents were accused of murdering several people and they are on the run from the law. Cady believes it was a set up, but proving it has been difficult. Enola and Alexander, her parents, are powerful magicians. Though the regular people (called savages) just think it was an occult killing, the magical community believes it was a power struggle between rival organizations.

When her parents are unexpectedly spotted in Texas, the Luxe Order– a major occult organization — demands that Cady’s former order surrender her parents, or give up Cady in their place. With a deadline looming, Cady needs to find the demon that was supposedly a witness to one — or more — of the murders with the hope that it can prove their innocence. The problem: the information she has is sketchy and her resources are limited.

Cady is introduced to Lon Butler, someone who might be able to help her, by a mutual acquaintance. Lon has the mother lode of demon reference books in his possession. He’s famous photographer (though Cady’s never heard of him) and a bit of curmudgeon — which is understandable, once you learn about his “knack” (Lon is an Earthbound demon). Lon is also a single father to a 13-year-old son, Jupe. Initially, it seems like he is unwilling to help, but he eventually agrees and begins researching her mystery demon while Cady tracks down someone who might have useful information about one of the murders.

Comments:  I really enjoyed this book. Cady is likable — well-adjusted for someone who’s life has been mostly lies. Lon’s a frustrating mystery to Cady at first, but he’s a great guy — a devoted father and he does care about Cady. What we learn about him hints of a wild past. Jupe is a bundle of boundless energy and enthusiasm, and he and Cady hit it right off the bat.

There are two types of demons in this book: Earthbound and Æthyric. Earthbound are almost as harmless as your average psi. Some low-level Æthyric demons got stuck in human bodies a couple centuries back. They reproduced with each other over the years, so there as still “pure” Earthbound demons — human/Earthbound pairings produce human children. Their knacks range in usefulness — minor healing, lock picking, empathy. Æthyric demons are potentially more dangerous.

I plan to continue this series and I’m looking forward to the next book.

(cross-posted from Good Reads)

Started: 28 August 2011
Finished: 2 September 2011

Rating:

Liked It A Lot!

Disclaimer: I purchased this book.

Darkness Dawns (Dianne Duvall)

Title: Darkness Dawns
Author: Dianne Duvall
Copyright (Author): 2008
Copyright (Kensington): 2011; 345 pgs.
ISBN: 978-1-4201-1861-2
Series: Immortal Guardians #1
Sensuality: Hot
Genre: Paranormal Romance

From the back: Once, Sarah Bingham’s biggest challenge was making her students pay attention in class. Now, after rescuing a wounded stranger, she’s landed in the middle of a battle between corrupt vampires and powerful immortals who also need blood to survive. Roland Warbrook is the most compelling man Sarah has ever laid hands on. But his desire for her is mingled with a hunger he can barely control. In his nine centuries of immortal existence, no woman has tempted Roland as much as Sarah. But asking her to love him is impossible — when it means forfeiting the world she’s always known, and the life he would do anything to protect…

1. Reason for choosing this book:

I picked this book to fulfill a shelf requirement for the bookshelf bingo I’m participating in over at Good Reads (link is to the team’s official thread). One of the rules is to post a rating and tell the rest of the team what you liked/disliked about the book (it is required to post something or the the team won’t get credit for the “stamp”). Since that’s the case, I thought it would save time to re-post what I wrote there, here on my blog. I might not do this with every book. It will depend on what I wrote at the time. I chose this one to start with because I wasn’t going to add anything to what was already said.  Other than some formatting difference, this write-up is the same as this one here in the official thread. I also thought what I’d already written fit the Three Reason Review format.

2. Reasons for liking/disliking this book:

I liked this book a lot. What I liked:

The world building. Immortal Guardians and vampire have a lot in common. The fangs, sensitivity to sunlight, increased strength and speed, and a need for blood. What makes them different is their “gifts”. Immortal Guardians were born with certain gifts (telepathy, empathy, healing, teleportation, etc.). Once turned by a vampire, their uniqueness transforms the virus. They are less sensitive to sunlight and they don’t have the same level of dependency on blood. Vampires go crazy from the blood lust, have shorter life spans, and rarely work together as an organized group. The Guardians are led by Seth, the oldest (Roland is 937 years old and Seth is still older than that). They protect humans and destroy vampires. They also have a network of human support staff.

The romance. The author took the time to allow Sarah and Roland to get to know each other. Though he initially conceals the truth about himself out of necessity, once Sarah learns Roland’s not human , he answers her questions. They talk about themselves, sharing things about their pasts, and they even discuss the reality of sustaining a long term relationship. There’s no big misunderstanding, no trying to push away from her on his part due to some well-intentioned, but misguided sense of nobility.

Roland. Besides the above, he was likable. A warrior, but not overly alpha. He’s been betrayed, more than once, by people he cared about, people he thought cared for him in return. A couple of them had been women, but that didn’t turn him into a woman-hater. It made him standoffish and hard for him to trust others. He avoids social interactions with humans, so there’s a couple of times throughout the book where he’s at a loss at how to handle things, especially in the beginning. Even his interactions with other Immortal Guardians over time were kept to a bare minimum. He’s a loner. I think his gift made him a naturally compassionate, caring person.

Sarah. Though she wouldn’t last long going up against a vampire alone, she’s no helpless damsel-in-distress either. She save Roland’s life. She strong enough not to fall to pieces at the first sign of danger. She’s pretty good with a gun, having learned to use one while she was living in Texas, and she can definitely fight back — she stabs someone in the butt.

I thought the pacing was pretty good, considering all the talking that goes on in the book. There are two story lines: who has been targeting Roland and how did he manage to amass a small vampire army, and the search for the mysterious person Seth can hear psychically calling out in pain. Maddeningly, the author allows Seth to find out what so special about the person he finds but leaves it as a cliffhanger for the reader. The other story gets a resolution.

I did have one niggling problem: you can see it coming a mile away — because it is a romance novel after all — but I think I would have preferred the Guardian’s scientists doing the “Eureka!” moment than having Seth basically saying “Hey, remember those cockroaches and tornadoes?” Those who’ve read the book will know what I’m talking about.

3. Reasons for recommending this book:

A different take on vampires. Some interesting secondary characters that I hope the author gets the chance to write more about.

Started: 16 April 2011
Finished: 17 April 2011

Rating:

Liked It A Lot!

Disclaimer: I purchased this book.

Magician's Gambit (David Eddings)

Title: Magician’s Gambit
Author: David Eddings
Narrator: Cameron Beierle
Length: Unabridged (11 h, 33 m)
Published: 2003 (Books in Motion)
Genre(s): Fantasy
Start: 15 January 2011
Finished: 28 January 201l
Source: Library

From Audible.com: Ce’Nedra, Imperial Princess of Tolnedra, is confused. Everyone knows the tales of the Orb protecting the West from the evil god Torak are just silly legends. But here she is, forced to join a dangerous quest to recover that stolen Orb. No one believes in sorcery, but Garion’s aunt and grandfather seem to be the fabled sorcerers Polgara and Belgarath, who would have to be thousands of years old. Even young Garion is learning to do sorcery. He’s just a farm boy, totally unsuitable for an Imperial Princess. Yet for some reason, she has the urge to teach him, brush back his tangled hair, and comfort him. But he is going to a strange tower in the center of all he believes evil, to face some horrible, powerful magician, and she can’t be there to watch over him. She may never see him again! Thus continues The Belgariad, an epic prophecy still unfolding..

Why this book?
It is the third book in the Belgariad, a favorite series of mine that I’m re-discovering in audio format. Since I’m very familiar with the story and characters, this is more my thoughts on the audiobook experience than a review of the story.

Notes:
My notes for Magician’s Gambit are sketchy. I didn’t take time to write much down. Mostly, I noted I’ve been pronouncing Taiba wrong (it sounds like TIE-ba).

This book also differs from the others in the fact that we see some of it through the eyes of Ce’Nedra.

The major characters introduced:  Aldur’s other disciples, Beldin and the twins Beltira and Belkira; the Holy Gorim of Ulgo and Relg; Taiba, the Marag slave woman; Adara;  the gods Aldur, Mara, and UL;  Errand; Ctuchik; Taur Urgras; Yarblek, the wily Nadrak trader is briefly introduced, and just like in the books, he’s one of my favorite side characters.

Significant events — birth of the colt in the special cave; the death of Brill; confronting Ctuchik.

Ratings
Story: 4 Stars
Overall Reading: Very Good
Characters: Good

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For 2011 “pages read”: 305 pages (own a paperback copy of book)

Queen of Sorcery (David Eddings)

Title: Queen of Sorcery
Author: David Eddings
Narrator: Cameron Beierle
Length: Unabridged (12 h, 44 m)
Published: 2003 (Books in Motion)
Genre(s): Fantasy
Start: 3 January 2011
Finished: 13 January 201l
Source: Library/Own

From Audible.com: Legends tell of the evil god Torak coveting the power of the Orb of Aldur, until he was defeated in a final battle. Prophecy also speaks of a time when he will again awaken to seek dominance over all the world. Now the Orb has been stolen by a priest of Torak, and that time is at hand. Belgarath the Sorcerer and his daughter, Polgara the arch-Sorceress, are on the trail of the Orb, seeking to regain it before the final disaster. With them goes Garion, a simple farm boy only months before, but now the focus of the struggle. He had never believed in sorcery, wanting no part of it. Yet with every league they travel, the power is growing within him, forcing him into acts of wizardry that he can’t accept. His fate is inextricably woven into the fabric of an unfolding prophecy for glory or doom.

Why this book?
It is the second book in the Belgariad, a favorite series of mine that I’m re-discovering in audio format. Since I’m very familiar with the story and characters, this is more my thoughts on the audiobook experience than a review of the story.

Narrator: Cameron Beierle
Once again, Mr. Beierle narrates the story. It was during this reading that I realized that he made Belgarath sound a little like Sean Connery. Or, I should say, that’s who he sounded like to me.

The group gain a few additions to their party. The first two are Arends, Lelldorin and Mandorallen. I was a bit surprised by their voices. Though, looking back, I really shouldn’t have been — at least, not as far as Mandorallen is concerned. He has always reminded me a little of Lancelot, so the French accent Mr. Beierle gave him shouldn’t have thrown me. Lelldorin, on the other hand, I had always pictured more of an Englishman.

My favorite new character is Ce’Nedra. She has a very girlie, lightly Italian-accented voice that I thought was adorable. I thought he nailed the little Imperial Princess’s personality perfectly, whether she’s screeching at Garion or using a wheedling voice to get what she wants. And the accent makes sense: Tolnedra is modeled after Imperial Rome.

Speaking of Ce’Nedra, I’ve always had a problem with how her name was supposed to be pronounced. When I first read the series in the 80s, I pronounced it “See-Nee-Dra”. I eventually realized “Sa-Ned-ra” was probably a more accurate pronunciation. Mr. Bieirle, probably taking into account how an Italian would would pronounce a “c + vowel” word, gives it a soft “cha” sound. It’s not an unreasonable assumption: Italian for hello/goodbye is “ciao”, which is pronounced “chow”. I found it interesting.

As for Silk and Durnik — I think Durnik’s accent has been more consistently Australian than anything else. And Silk’s is still all over the place — but it stands out from the others, oddly enough, and really doesn’t distract. I’m beginning to think it fits his personality.

I think Mr. Beierle did a good job with the Dryads — all those female voices, and Salmissra’s court — all those hissing lisps, petulant-sounding eunuchs, and Issa the Snake-God. To me, it sounded like he had fun with them.

Miscellaneous Notes:
I ended up buying a copy of this audiobook. My library check-out time expired before I finished the book and it wasn’t available for re-check out. This series seems to be very popular at the local library.

I’ve also noticed, when I was researching when the Belgariad audiobooks were published, that I was using the date it was added to my library’s “stacks” or when it first became available in Audible.com’s catalog — instead of when it was produced by Books in Motion. I think 2003 is a more accurate date for this series, since it is the copyright date for the back-blurb used on Audile.com’s site.

Ratings
Story: 4.5 Stars
Overall Reading: Very Good
Characters:  Very Good

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For 2011 “pages read”: 327 pages (own a paperback copy of book)

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Roald Dahl)

Title: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Author: Roald Dahl
Narrator: Eric Idle
Length: Unabridged (3 h, 18 m)
Published: 2004 (Haper Audio)
Genre(s): Children’s, Fantasy
Start: 22 November 2010
Finished: 29 November 2010
Source: Library

From Good Reads.com:
The gates of Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory are opening at last . . . and only five children will be allowed inside.

Why this book:
I chose this book because of the fond memories I had of reading the book when I was younger.

The Narrator: Eric Idle
Eric Idle was the perfect narrator for the Wonka books! As a comedian, he’s got a talent for voices. All the children sounded different and the voices he gave them fit their personalities. Even Charlie’s parents and grandparents, and the various “second villager on the left” by-standers, had distinct voices. His best character? Willy Wonka.

However, I was disappointed with his reading of the Oompa-Loompa songs. He just read them; he didn’t doing anything special with his voice or read them in a sing-song fashion. I was hoping for something like what Jim Dale did with the Sorting Hat in the Harry Potter books.

The story:
Speaking of Harry, I could just imagine Wonka and his chocolate factory in Harry’s world. The Oompa-Loompas, the candies, the factory itself all sound like they belong to that world.

I would recommend this audio version to readers who loved the Wonka books. I really enjoyed listening to this adaptation.

Ratings
Story: 4.5 Stars
Overall Reading: Excellent
Characters: Excellent

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For 2010 “pages read”: 155 pages (from paperback description on Good Reads.com)

Black Wings (Christina Henry)

Title: Black Wings
Author: Christina Henry
Copyright: 2010 (Ace); 295 pgs.
ISBN: 978-0-441-01963-2
Series: Madeline Black #1
Sensuality: NA
Genre: Urban Fantasy

Madeline Black escorts the soul of the recently departed to the Door, the portal to the Here-after. Being an Agent of Death comes with wings and some magical abilities, yet Maddy rarely has to call on those abilities. And the only type of fighting she, occasionally, engages in is the verbal type — some of the dearly departed aren’t keen on leaving and will exercise their freedom of choice by refusing to be escorted. This is frowned upon by management and it is considered a failure on the part of the Agent.

Maddy’s life is pretty routine: discharging her duties as an Agent; butting heads with her boss J. B.; worrying about whether or not she can get a tenant so rental money will start coming in again; working on articles as a freelance writer; hanging out with her best friend Patrick; and spending quality time with her gargoyle, Beezle. Things start to look up, or so Maddy thinks, when a good-looking guy shows up to view her rental. Beezle doesn’t like him, but he won’t tell Maddy why. Other than his asking a few odd questions, Gabriel seems harmless, and Maddy is confident that Beezle would tell her if he was a threat to her.

But shortly after Gabriel’s arrival in Maddy’s life, chaos erupts. She’s attacked by demons. The death of a fellow Agent makes Maddy question what happened to her mother and if there are other Agents who’s deaths are suspicious. Her boss doesn’t believe in demons, so he thinks she’s nuts and won’t help her investigate (vampires, werewolves, and the fae exist, but not demons as far as J. B. is concerned). Secrets come to light and Maddy finds herself tapping into powers she never knew she had and she has no idea how to control. And to top it all off, she finds herself in the middle of the political machinations of the fallen angels.

Comments:
Despite her flaws, I really liked Maddy. She sometimes acts or speaks without thinking, but I can understand why she does what she does at times. Her life is completely up-ended. She’s trying to fight enemies stronger than her — and if she does succeed in destroying them, she’ll be in big trouble with the fallen angels. She’s being manipulated by others with hidden agendas and she resents how some of them are trying to run her life.

Of all the males in Maddy’s life — not counting Beezle — Gabriel is the only one who I think truly cares for Maddy for herself, and would have her best interest at heart, regardless of his situation. And because of his predicament, any relationship between them is at a stand-still. A LOT of things have to change in their world for them to be together.

The world building is pretty interesting. I like the concept of the Agents. I’d like to know more about how and why the whole business of soul-collecting ended up a bureaucracy, and I hope the author gives us more back story on this.

I also liked Beezle. I wonder how many other readers thought of the gargoyles from Disney’s “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” whenever Beezle was in a scene.

The story is nearly non-stop action. I found it hard to put down at times because I was caught up in what was going on and I wanted to know what would happen next. I will definitely be reading the next book.

Start: 1 January 2011
Finished: 4 January 2011

Favorite Quote:
“And where does Lucifer live?”
“Los Angeles.”
“Of course he does.”
– Maddy, Gabriel

Rating:

Liked A Lot

Disclaimer: I purchased this book.

Pawn of Prophecy (David Eddings)

Title: Pawn of Prophecy
Author: David Eddings
Narrator: Cameron Beierle
Length: Unabridged (10 h, 24 m)
Published:  September 2007 (Books in Motion)
Genre(s):  Fantasy
Start: 4 December 2010
Finished: 15 December 2010
Source:  Library

From Audible.com: Long ago, so the Storyteller claimed, the evil god Torak sought dominion and drove men and gods to war. But Belgarath the Sorcerer led men to reclaim the Orb that protected the West. So long as it lay at Riva, the prophecy went, men would be safe. That was only a story, and Garion did not believe in magic dooms, even though the man without a shadow had haunted him for years. Brought up on a quiet farm by his Aunt Pol, how could he know that the Apostate planned to wake dread Torak, or that he would be led on a quest of unparalleled magic and danger by those he loved, but did not truly know. For yet a little while, his dreams of innocence remained safe, untroubled by knowledge of his strange heritage. For a little while… thus begins The Belgariad, an epic fantasy of immense scope set against a history of 7,000 years. It tells of the struggles between ancient gods and mighty Kings, and of men in strange lands facing fated events, all bound by a prophecy that must be fulfilled.

Why this book?
I first discovered this series in the mid-80s, when we were stationed in Heidelberg, Germany. The Belgaraid was my first exposure to this type of epic fantasy — the Chronicles of Narnia was the closest I’d ever got before this.  David Eddings told a complete epic story in five books, all under 400 pages apiece. After attempting to read Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time books in the late 90s, I realized that Eddings had spoiled me for longer epics like Jordan’s. I can’t remember which book I finally gave up on — I just remember feeling frustrated with keeping track of what was going on with various characters and what the ORIGNIAL goal was in Jordan’s series. In five books of the Belgariad, the mystical object is recovered, the lost king is revealed, Light triumphs over Dark, and the hero gets the girl.

Eddings went on to write the Mallorean, a five-book sequel to the Belgariad, two more books connected to the series, and publish his series’s “bible”. Yet, the reader does not have to read any of them. The Belgariad stands on it’s own.

The Narrator: Cameron Beierle
I was excited to learn that this series was available in audiobook format. However, the first time I heard a sample of Mr. Beierle’s reading, I was a bit worried. It sounded a little mechanical to me. After listening to samples from other narrators, I realized it might not be a problem with the Mr. Beierle, since several others sounded a bit tinny. I checked it out of the library and took a chance.

Mr. Beierle has a pleasant reading voice. I think he has an accent because, even though he carefully enunciates his words during the narrative parts, a word will sound a little off occasionally and a bit of his natural speaking voice comes through. Some people might be turned off by this, but I don’t think it detracted from the overall listening experience.

I also thought that Mr. Beierle did a great job on some of the voices and accents. I particularly liked his Mister Wolf. I could picture the old man and I thought the voice fit him well, regardless of which guise he was in. I also liked that the narrator made the Chereks sound Nordic, as they are modeled after the vikings. Their “J”s have a “Y” sound, so Jarvik — which I’ve always mentally pronounced as “JAR-vik” — was pronounced “YAR-vik”. I though it added a level of authenticity to the story.

However, when it came to other characters like Silk and Durnik, he wasn’t always consistent with his accents, even in the middle of a conversation. With Silk — my favorite character — one expect the little thief to change his speech patterns and accent to fit whatever roll he is playing at the time (Ambar, Kheldar, etc.), but not in mid-sentence.

My love of the book, and my familiarity with the characters and the story allowed me to enjoy the experience, despite the accent quirks. I plan to continue listening to the rest of the series, and I plan to purchase my own copies some day.

Ratings
Story: 4.5 Stars
Overall Reading: Very Good
Characters: Good

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For 2010 “pages read”: 258 pages (own a paperback copy of book)

Magic Bleeds by Ilona Andrews

Title: Magic Bleeds
Author: Ilona Andrews
Copyright: 2010 (Ace); 349 pgs.
ISBN: 978-0-441-01852-9
Series: Kate Daniels # 4
Genre: Urban Fantasy
**** SPOILERS ****

From the back:  Kate Daniels works for the Order of Knights of Merciful Aid, officially, as a liaison with the mercenary guild. Unofficially, she cleans up the paranormal problems no one else wants to handle — especially if they involve Atlanta’s shapeshifting community. When she’s called in to investigate a fight at the Steel Horse, a bar on the border between the territories of the shapeshifters and the necromancers, Kate quickly discovers there’s a new player in town. One who’s been around for thousands of years — and rode to war at the side of Kate’s father. This foe may be too much even for Kate and Curran, the Beast Lord, to handle. Because this time, Kate will be taking on family.

**** SPOILERS ****

1. Reason for choosing this book:
I chose this book because it’s my #1 favorite Urban Fantasy series.

2. Reasons for liking/disliking this book:
The characters. Kate’s a strong person, but she still can be hurt, both physically and emotionally. Same with Curran — Gordon’s Curran POV for this book illustrated how much Kate means to him.

Some observations/thoughts:

• After reading the prologue, way back before the book came out, I speculated that the reason Curran was a no show was due to loups. It was the first thing that made any sense to me. I never believed for a moment that he’d stand her up on purpose: he won a bet involving food and a scantily clad Kate — he’d been hauling rocks for weeks and he’s had plenty of time to fantasize about the evening. Nothing short of his duty to the Pack and injury/death would keep him from attending.
• Did Mahon have a hand in the two challenges that prevented Curran from going to Savannah? I can’t see him deliberately goading his people into challenging Curran — that would be throwing aways lives, plus one might have gotten REALLY lucky and beat Curran (I know, impossible, but still…). Yet, it seems too coincidental to be a random, unrelated thing.
• Even if Curran had gone to Savannah, some variation of the breakfast table conversation that takes place later in the book would have occurred — and with the same results.
• It’s good to know that I wasn’t wrong about Roland targeting the Pack because they’ve become too powerful. Makes me even more interested to know the details behind why and how Greg gained Friend of the Pack status. Did he know about Curran’s background?
• Aunt B explains it all. Again!! One of my favorite scenes in the book.
• Some interesting new characters: Barabas, Jezebel, and Naeemah. I wonder if we’ll be seeing Naeemah again in future books. And Grendel.
• Still don’t like Saiman. Still don’t trust him.
• Good to see Dali again.
• Great antagonist! And what a hoot. The scene in Kate’s apartment is great. Calling the apartment a hovel! Giving relationship advice. Too funny.
• Looking forward to seeing what happens with Andrea and the Order.

3. Reasons for recommending this book:
There’s a little of everything in it: action (okay, maybe more than a little of this), romance, humor, great characters (as I type this, I can’t help thinking about Peter Falk’s character in The Princess Bride movie — the book gets a number of mentions/references in Magic Bleeds)

Favorite Quote:
“We should clap or something,” Curran said. “She’s trying so hard.”
“Maybe we could scrounge up some panties to throw.”
– Curran, Kate

Rating:

LOVED IT !!

Started: 16 May 2010
Finished: 16 May 2010

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Other books in the Series:

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Disclaimer: I purchased this book.