A Darker Shade of Magic - V. E. Schwab - Book Review

Published by Titan Books in February 2015




A fantasy book set in London, but not just one London. In this novel there are four Londons: Grey London, Red London, white London and Black London. This book is an urban fantasy, using the common themes you expect from a gritty fantasy novel; that being plenty of shady characters.

The main character Kell is a magician, one of two, who can travel between different Londons. In Grey London he encounters the young thief Deliliah Bard, who gets mixed up in a dangerous adventure with Kell to save all of the worlds.

This novel is nice a fast moving and reads well. I found this book an addictive read, with a good plot and interesting characters. My only criticism is that it leaves me wanting more, as there is the potential for more detailed world building and a further examination of the developing relationship between Kell and Delilah. Is the relationship just friendship or will it lead to more?

I would recommend reading this book if you enjoy reading books by Neil Gaiman and Brandon Sanderson. I am very much excited for the sequel which will be published next year.

Rating 8.8/10 'Addictive Reading'

Reading Update - Spring Time

I have spent the last two weeks in Australia visiting my dad, which was amazing. I certainly aime to go there again in the near future. Recently I have read A Darker Shade of Magic by Victoria Schwab, which was really god and I have re-read Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Currently I am reading The Name of The Wind by Patrick Rothfuss, which I am enjoying at the moment.

My TBR pile for the rest of May include The Name of The Wind by Patrick Rothfuss, The Hero of Ages by Brandon Sanderson and hopefully making a start on 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami. I also plan to post more book reviews this month, so watch this space.

Connecting Dreams with Reality

Recently I have read Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami, which got me thinking about how the imagination of human minds can change reality. Kafka on the Shore explores the story of a 15 year old boy who decides to run away from home. A story about a young person trying to create themselves a new identity enables Haruki Murakami to use dreams and philosophical ideas to develop a very interesting story.

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, is another book which connects dreams with reality. Alice is like any young girl who has a wild imagination, the mind can wander. I remember when I was young; I often daydreamed and escaped into my own Wonderland. I will not go into what my wonderland was like, it was a little weird, but what is normal anyway? In Alice's dream world she drink a potion which makes her smaller and eats cake to make herself smaller. I interpret this to relate to growing up, as an adult everything looks smaller until you explore the big outside world. The randomness of Alice's world may relate to how people will get confused if they are not accustomed to new things.

The human imagination is a powerful tool. Humans have invented planes, toasters, TV and many great inventions. Ideas and dreams manipulate our mental space but can also manipulate our physical space. Another example of how one idea can change the world is more related to arts and culture. The Lord of The Rings is considered one of the best geek franchises ever and the reason it exists is due to one Oxford University Professor; who wrote the Hobbit on the back of papers he was marking. The Lord of the Rings was the sequel and it helped set the standard for future fantasy books.

Ideas are inspired by observing the world around us and giving our observations time to mull over in our minds. My dreams are often half related to past memories. Moreover, must human creations are created using ideas created by our ancestors. Most electrical goods could not exist without Testla's scientific work around Alternating Current. History fascinates me because the events of the past are still impacting heavily on the events in the present. Early Science Fiction writers like H.G Wells and Jules Verne imagined human travelling in space and by 1969 we had sent man to the moon. Dreams become reality, but only if they are pursued. I am no expert in interpreting dreams, but one cannot deny the impact they have on the modern world.

Orcs Trilogy by Stan Nicholls - Book Review

Orcs is a fantasy series about a band of orcs. The war band called the Wolverines, led by Stryke, complete a mission to steal an object for Queen Jennesta. However, the object is stolen and Stryke decides to lead his war band in pursuit. Once they obtain the object they realise that it is a magical artifact that they call a star. Stryke decides to pursue the rest to find out the truth about his race and essentially deserts Queen Jennesta.

This book is simply a fantasy novel with lots of battles. The events of this novel take place at the same time as a religious war between humans. The Mannis believe in many gods and can be described as pagan, whereas the Unis are monotheistic and consider the elder races as an evil to be vanquished.

I like the fact that the orcs get a starring role in this series and that they are described as a race that is forced to kill others on the command of a Sorceress Queen. The dialogue between the orcs is funny and the Queen Jennesta takes pleasure in ripping out heart to absorb magic. This book is aimed at a mature audience. All in all a decent book.

On the other hand I did feel at time that the battles added little to the story and that the plot pacing was not perfect. The last few chapters were amazing with plenty of plot reveals and sword and sorcery. Read this book if you are a fan of gritty fantasy without a long complex plot.

Rating 6,9/10

Divergent by Veronica Roth - Book Review

First Published by HarperColins in 2011.

Synopsis 

Sixteen-year-old Tris is forced to make a terrible choice. In a divided society where everyone must conform, Tris does not fit in. 

So she ventures out alone, determined to discover where she truly belongs. Shocked by her brutal new life, Tris can trust no one. And yet she is drawn to a boy who seems to both threaten and protect her.

The Hardest choice lies ahead. 


In this book a world is imagined as a place where people are divided to maintain a peaceful society. Set in a future Chicago, people are divided into five factions, Abnegation, Erudite, Dauntless, Amity and Candor. Each faction expects its members to behave to a certain way, for example Abnegation members are meant to always be selfless whereas the Dauntless are supposed to be brave. Similar to the Hunger Games, Veronica Roth uses the story of a strong female character to spark conflict in a society of controlled liberties.

Tris or Beatrice is a sixteen year old girl who must choose her faction, either to stay at the faction she was born into, Abnegation, or to join a new faction. The problem is that during her assessment carried out in a simulation, Tris found out she was Divergent. Divergent are those who can make there own choices and later in the book you learn they can manipulate simulations, making them difficult to control.

This novel is a story about intense training, friends and enemies and some romance. As the book progresses more is revealed about the mysterious Four, Tris's instructor and lover. This book uses character development, along with world building to set the scene for hopefully and action  packed trilogy. I am looking forward to reading Insurgent.

The best things about this book were the world building and the fast paced action packed story. The one negative probably being a slightly sluggish start due to a lack of knowledge about the world Divergent is set in. Like many novels which rely on world building, it is always difficult to strike the correct balance between world building and plot progression. Although the next two books are more like to focus almost entirely on plot and character development, though I am hoping for more information about Candor and Amity.

Rating 8.7/10

Reading for pleasure making a comeback?

As a commuter I get a lot of reading done on my bus rides to and from work. However, I also notice many others, including teenagers and young adults, reading on the bus as well. Moreover, an article in the guardian shows the huge growth in the YA Fiction book market. Books such as The Hunger Games and Divergent have been adapted into movies. Evidence seems to suggest a new generation of readers is emerging.

Younger people are starting to pick up books more often because of a greater variety in fiction targeted at young adults. Young adults use youtube and social media a lot, and the most talked about books on youtube are YA. Genres including fantasy, dystopian, paranormal romance and contemporary fiction are the main players in the growing community of bookworms on the internet.

People who read for pleasure can sometimes be very introverted, so it is no coincidence that we readers blog or vlog about books. So read that book in public with pride and ignore the comments from people who say reading is boring. Both the Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter franchises were born from great books, and many consider them to be exciting and engaging.

I myself am doing a re-read of the Lord of the Rings and also planning to read Station Eleven by Emily St John Mandel. Keep reading :)  

Update, end of winter, books that I have read

Spring is on its way and I intend to post more often on this blog. I have read many great books recently; the one that sticks out is Wonder by R.J Palacio. A book review of Wonder will be on my blog this weekend hopefully.

On World Book Day I bought myself Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. I am looking forward to reading this book. Currently I am re-reading The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien, my favourite book. Bus journeys fly by whilst I am reading this epic novel.

I do intend to do some discussion blog posts where I talk about novels and the big issues: education, identity, culture, politics and society itself. The first discussion shall be on education, so look out for that blog post this month.

Keep reading :)