Reading on a Theme: Fairy Tales Retold

I love a twist on a classic tale. This Reading on a Theme could be the first of many that feature fairy tales.

Cinderella:  
Who knew that what I was missing in my life was a cyborgian retelling of Cinderella? Just everyone who had already read Cinder. Cinder lives in a post World War IV world threatened by both a terrible pandemic and the Lunar Queen. Cinder is an orphan and a cyborg and a bit of an outcast, but she is also a famous mechanic which brings her to the attention of Prince Kai (he doesn't know about the cyborg part). Marissa Meyer's Lunar Chronicles are impressive in their scope, and they don't shy away from tough topics--death, disease, politics, oppression, impending war.

The Twelve Dancing Princesses:
Entwined by Heather Dixon is a story full of sisterly affection, sneaky magic, a little fairy-tale-style romance, and, of course, dancing. I enjoyed seeing how the girls' relationships with their father and suitors developed. Entwined is more of a middle-grade level book, and it reminded me of stories like The Goose Girl and Ella Enchanted. Also the cover is gorgeous. It's so much lovelier in person because of the shiny, silver leaves (which decorate the inside too). Ms. Dixon is also a talented artist, and it looks like she has another book coming out later this year.

Beauty and the Beast:
Cruel Beauty is Beauty and the Beast meets Greek mythology. The kingdom of Arcadia is cursed. Isolated from the rest of the world and ruled by The Gentle Lord who makes deals with his subjects that always turn sour. Nyx was raised knowing she must marry The Gentle Lord thanks to a deal her father made with the monster before she was even born. Nyx has also been trained the Hermetic arts, the magic of Arcadia, so that she can assassinate The Gentle Lord and free in land. The Gentle Lord, however, is not what Nyx expected. Rosamund Hodge's book contains layer upon layer, and that is what I loved about it. Cruel Beauty is out January 28th. Review copy from Edelweiss.

Rumpelstiltskin: 
In  Elizabeth Bunce's A Curse Dark as Gold Charlotte Miller becomes the reluctant owner of Stirwaters Mill when her father dies unexpectedly. She and her sister Rose struggle to keep the mill, and the small town that relies on it, going. But the mill is cursed, or so the locals whisper. Time and again just when Charlotte and Rose think they are going to get ahead something horrific happens making it absolutely necessary that they make a shady deal with a shady character if their mill is to survive the day. The setting that Bunce creates is just perfect. I really could visualize the mill and its surroundings hovering right on the cusp of the Industrial Revolution where the past and the future collide. This book is truly something special.

Little Red Riding Hood:
Jackson Pearce's Sisters Red is a retelling where the Red girls are like Buffy, the woodcutter is a good-looking young man, are there are lots and lots of wolves. Oh, and they are evil and soulless, by the way. After a Fenris attack that kills their grandmother and leaves Scarlett terribly scarred, Scarlett devotes her life to fighting the Fenris, and drags Rosie along in her quest for their annihilation. I liked the idea. I like the cover. I liked the fairytale prologue a lot. However, the twist wasn't all that surprising to me, and I wasn't really feeling love story either. I seem to be kind of talking myself out of a good review, but really at the time I thought it was okay.

Pair It With: Pivot Point and Just Like Fate

I kind of have this thing for parallel/ divergent realities right now. And Kasie West's Pivot Point is one of the best I've read. I loved it and wish I could read the sequel now (or better yet, yesterday). Addison Coleman lives in a compound with individuals who have supernatural mind powers. They can always tell if someone is telling the truth or influence another person's mood. Addison is a Searcher. She can see the futures that may occur if she makes one choice or another. Addison is told that her parents are getting divorced, and she has the choice to stay in the compound with her mom or leave and live life as a Norm with her dad. So Addison searches. What follows is the story of her two possible futures. Everything about this book came to together just right for me. I really liked Addison. I liked being in her head I liked her friends. I liked the way the paranormal elements were developed. I love a book that has a lot of normal and a little bit of weird. This fit perfectly. The two futures dovetail nicely and set up quite a bit of dramatic tension for the reader. Because the reader is privy to both futures she or he knows much more than the characters. The sequel to Pivot Point, Split Second, is out February 11th!

Caroline's grandmother is dying. Caroline makes one decision, whether to stay at her grandmother's side or go to a party, and from there the book takes the reader in two different directions. Just Like Fate has a Sliding Doors-type premise. What I loved most about the book is that neither decision made for a wholly terrible existence for Caroline (and can I add how much I loved her nickname, Coco)--both good and bad things happened in each scenario. It's been a long time since I've plowed through a book so quickly. I read Just Like Fate in two days. The writing is good, and Caroline is a great narrator. I didn't mind being in her head at all. I'm curious to know a little more about the collaboration between the two authors because the book is so seamless in its style and voice. Perhaps the best compliment of all is that now that I've finished it I'm itching to read more books by Cat Patrick and Suzanne Young.

 

Reading on a Theme: Girls Disguised as Boys

They are resourceful, plucky, and, in many cases, out of options. They are girls disguised as boys.

First in a New Series:
Defy by debut author Sara B. Larson is the story of Alexa who, disguised as a Alex, serves as a guard for the prince of Antion, a country at war. Alexa guards prince Damian because it's her duty, but she's pretty convinced that he is smug, stuck-up, and wimpy. Things are, of course, not as they seem, and more than one person wears a mask. The adventure in Defy is solid, the stakes are definitely high, and a lot happens. There are multiple layers of secrets, and the pace at which they are revealed is good. I liked that Alexa is a darn good sword fighter and able to hold her own. Here's hoping that Larson can make this fantasy series truly epic. Defy is out January 7, 2014 Review copy from NetGalley.
 

Steampunk World War I:
Leviathan is set during an alternate 1914. The world is on the brink of war. Alek, the son of murdered Archduke Ferdinand and Princess Sophie, must run for his life in his Stormwalker--a giant, mechanical war machine that walks on two legs. Deryn is a Scottish girl who disguises herself as a boy so that she can join the Air Services. The two cross paths aboard the Leviathan, the crown jewel of the British Air Force, a giant hydrogen airbeast, fabricated from the DNA of hundreds of animals. I loved Scott Westerfeld's Leviathan Series. The books are a fantastical romp around the world, from England and Austria to Switzerland and the Ottoman Empire to Russia and the United States. I wish I could read more about this amazing setting and the characters who populate it.

Fantastical China:
Eon is competing to become a Dragoneye. He is one of the few that can see the Energy Dragons. As a Dragoneye he will commune with his Energy Dragon to help control the forces of nature. The thing is, Eon is really Eona, a girl, and she doesn't just see one Energy Dragon, she sees them all. All that is, except the Mirror Dragon, who was lost eons ago.  Alison Goodman creates a captivating and complex world in Eon. The twelve Energy Dragons correspond to the animals of the Chinese Zodiac. Although I can understand her hesitation and fear due to the danger of being a woman in a man's world, I often wished that Eona would own up to her true self. I want Eona to really embrace her true self and her power.

Magic in the Regency Period:

Kim, of A Matter of Magic (Mairelon #1-2) by Patricia Wrede, knows life on the streets only holds a few options for a young girl so she lives her life disguised as a boy, thieving her way through the busy city. However, when she’s sent to steal from a mysterious travelling magician, her life is turned upside down. Mairelon offers to train Kim in the ways of magic and together they work to clear Mairelon’s name. This alternate history is part mystery and part fantasy and will leave you wondering how everything will come together.

The Classic Fantasy:
I could not write a post about girls disguised as boys without including Alanna, who, for me, is the ultimate girl in disguise. In The First Adventure Alanna and her twin brother Tom switch places so that Tom can get a magical education and Alanna can train to become a knight in a world where there is no such thing as female knights. The Song of the Lioness series is a great introduction to master story-teller Tamora Pierce's Tortall, which at present, spans 18 books with more to come. Alanna holds a special place in my heart and on my bookshelves. 



 

Reading on a Theme: Winter Reads

As I write this it is snowing outside. There is almost nothing I love more than a good seasonally appropriate read, especially when it's a winter read. Something about the cold and the snow make me want to curl up with a book that is equally snowy. If you are in one of those very cold regions of the country today, settling down to a wintery read may be just the thing.

Ghostly Winter: 
Sorrow's Knot is a tale of an indigenous people living in a ghost-filled land. The scariest ghosts of all are the White Hands, ghosts of dead people. To survive the community depends on its magic, especially the magic of the binder. Erin Bow sure can write, and her beautiful writing adds so much to the story. The book is so many things--a terrifying ghost story, a tribute to friends, an examination of traditions, a coming-of-age for the three friends, an exploration of the power of story. When I read a ghost story I want it to have a lot of atmosphere, and just thinking about the book takes me back to Otter's cold, cold wintery forest. Review copy from NetGalley.

Fairytale Retelling: 
Eowyn Ivey's The Snow Child is a retelling of a Russian fairytale about an old, childless couple who build a girl out of snow that comes to life. Ivey sets her story in 1920s Alaska. Mabel and Jack, our older couple, are new homesteaders in this harsh wilderness. The Snow Child is a novel about family, life and death, loss and love. The book is a lovely piece of magical realism. Ivey does a fantastic job adapting this tale. One never quite knows if Faina, the snow child, is real or not. And, with a title like The Snow Child, you know you are going to get a lot of the fluffy white stuff.

Historical Fantasy:  
After a job goes awry sneak-thief Digger must masquerade as a lady's maid. Isolated by distance and confined in their home by an avalanche all winter, what seems like an innocent party of friends is anything but. Secrets abound. I love this series, and I would love to see more people reading it. Elizabeth Bunce's Star Crossed is on par with some of the great fantasy novels. The world building is as intricate as that of Tamora Pierce. The court intrigue is just as fabulous as that of Megan Whalen Turner. The atmosphere of the book is as layered as that of Kristin Cashore. 
  
 

Wolves in the Winter:
Grace lives near the woods in Minnesota. Every winter she watches the wolves out her back window, one wolf in particular. Every summer the wolves are gone. Sam spends his summers in town doing odd jobs. In the winter he pines for Grace through wolf's eyes. When the two finally meet they have to figure out how to stay together. I can hardly imagine a more wintery book than Maggie Stiefvater's Shiver. Each short chapter begins with a temperature subtitle, so you will never forget just how cold it is.

Victorian Mystery:
In the second Lady Julia novel Lady Julia returns to England from Italy just in time for Christmas. Unbeknownst to her, Brisbane is one of the Christmas house-guests. When someone is found murdered in the March family chapel, Brisbane and Lady Julia are forced once again to take up their discordant partnership. This book was so much fun. I love the crazy March family. I love how Julia is just feisty enough to be a match for Brisbane. I love what Deanna Raybourn did with the old literary troupe: British house party, everyone's snowed in, someone is murdered, throw a ghost in there for good measure and let the games begins.