The Griffin's Feather by Cornelia Funke

After finishing Dragon Rider, I quite eagerly continued on to The Griffin’s Feather, which takes place a few years later.

In The Griffin’s Feather, Ben is now a happy part of the Greenblooms, living in a sanctuary for marvelous creatures and helping to save those in danger. One day, word arrives that the mare of one of the last pegasi has passed away. Without her, her eggs can’t hatch and the Pegasus fowls will die. Their only chance of survival is with a sun-feather from a Griffin, the mortal enemy of dragons...

Like The Dragon Rider, this was a fun read. We alternate between Ben’s chapters, where he and Barnabas Greenbloom search for a Griffin with Guinevere’s chapters, which emphasises the short deadline that Barnabas has. I enjoyed seeing both Greenbloom children, especially since Guinevere didn’t have as much page-time in The Dragon Rider. It was touching to see how much care they had for others.

And poor Ben, struggling with his feelings! He loves his new family, but he so clearly misses Firedrake. And with Firedrake’s children about to hatch, which means fewer visits from the dragon, Ben has to make a choice about where he wants to live.

Firedrake was great, as usual. A bit wiser than the first book, which is to be expected. Sorrel, on the other hand, seemed a bit meaner (rather than just grumpy) compared to the first book, especially at the start. But that might be due to the narration rather than a change in character.

Speaking of the narrator, it isn’t Brendan Fraser this time. It’s a bit of a pity, because I really enjoyed his narration and the voices he used in The Dragon Rider. But once I got used to everyone’s new voice, I found that I quite enjoyed this version. Plus the background music and effects were very well-done.

Overall, The Griffin’s Feather is a great sequel to The Dragon Rider. There is a much greater sense of “you must care for the earth” in this book, and luckily that message never becomes preachy. I think younger fantasy fans will really enjoy this.

Disclaimer: I received a free audiobook from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Dragon Rider by Cornelia Funke

When I was younger, I absolutely loved Inkheart and The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke. So when I received an invitation to review The Griffin's Feather, the second book in the Dragon Rider series, I decided that I had to start with book one.

Dragon Rider follows the adventures of Firedrake, a dragon searching for the mythical place called the Rim of Heaven, where dragons can live in safety. It's not that he wants to leave his home, but the humans are coming and the dragons in his valley must either leave or die.

Yes, humans are coming. I went into The Dragon Rider not knowing what to expect and was surprised to find out that this was set in the present day. And Ben, the lonely boy that Firedrake meets and who accompanies him on his journey is equally surprised by the existence of dragons. But Ben quickly adapts and along with Sorrel, the bad-tempered brownie, and Twigleg, the homunculus, the four begin their quest. Unfortunately, their quest attracts the vicious Nettlebrand, hunter of dragons.

To be honest, I was a bit confused at the beginning, but that is definitely because I am not used to audiobooks but borrowed the audiobook of this. Once I got the hang of it (and skimmed the Wikipedia page for a summary of what was going on), I really enjoyed this story. It's broken into several segments, as the team visits different places in an attempt to figure out exactly where the rim of heaven is.

Even though this is called The Dragon Rider, I feel like the book really is about Firedrake and his quest. True, Ben gets a bit more airtime in the latter half of the book, but the beginning of the book almost always sets the tone for me and the tone was: this is Firedrake's story. Ben was a nice character, although a bit too oblivious at times, but my favourite character was definitely Firedrake, the kind dragon.

The supporting characters, Sorrel and Twigleg, were interesting too. Sorrel basically played the role of the grumpy character with the heart of gold. Twigleg was a bit more interesting and probably had the most character development in the book - he starts of serving Nettlebrand but traveling with Ben and the others help him to change.

The audiobook I read was narrated by Brendan Fraser, who was brilliant. He did a whole range of voices for the characters, which helped me to distinguish them from each other and made them more endearing to me. I wish I found out about this book earlier because I can imagine younger me enjoying this even more than present me.

The Paper Menagerie by Ken Liu

The first time I saw this book, a stranger was reading it in Japanese. I thought it looked interesting, but didn't give it a second thought. But after enjoying The Three Body Problem (which he translated) and having loved The Grace of Kings (which he wrote), I decided to pick this up. As you can probably guess, I had high expectations for this collection.

The stories in this collection are:

- The Book Making Habits or Select Species: This is just an exploration/worldbuilding piece on how other alien species might read. There isn’t any plot but it’s still a cute piece.

- State Change: I loved this one! It’s about Rina, this girl who’s soul is an ice-cube. Her life revolves around making sure her soul doesn’t melt, until she meets an interesting guy in the office. I felt that this was such a great story because it had a good plot with twist, great characters, and a unique setting.

- The Perfect Match: Think of Google’s ledger, if it came to life. But, the story questions of the huge company running the internet is good or bad, which adds another layer of nuance to this story about preferences, algorithms, and free will. Another story that I loved.

- Good Hunting: A story about hunting hulijing and what happens when Western ‘magic’ invades. An East vs West clash kinda story but very captivating.

- Literomancer: Another East meets West story, but this time of an American girl who moves to Taiwan and meets a Literomancer, a man who divines meanings from words. It adds in politics to turn the charming story into a sad one.

- Simulacrum: Another very strong story that I really enjoyed, centered around a father and daughter, about how holograms, recording memories, and what it means to betray another.

- The Regular: Someone is killing high class prostitutes. Ruth Law is asked to find out why. I almost skipped this because the first section is pretty graphic but it turned out to be a good crime story.

- The Paper Menagerie: About a half-Chinese boy who tries to reject his Chinese half, and his mother who makes living, moving paper animals for him. It’s a good story, but somehow, it didn’t touch me.

- An Advanced Readers’ Picture Book of Comparative Cognition: I did not understand this one.

- The Waves: A story about people on the space ship and the choice between immortality and letting your kid grow up. I felt that it started strong but I lost interest halfway, probably because the ending wasn’t really related to the beginning.

- Mono no Aware: It’s the story of this sole Japanese guy on an American spaceship that managed to escape the destruction of earth. Despite the fact that parts of this took place in Kitakyushu and Kagoshima, I didn’t feel like the characters were there at all (I know this is alternate reality but on some level, it should at least feel like the Kyushu I lived in). Which means that I don’t know why he picked a Japanese main character when any other would do.

- All the Flavours, A Tale of Guan Yu, the Chinese God of War, in America: I didn’t think I would like this but I did! It’s about someone who probably is Guan Yu, moving to America to pan for gold, and the little girl he makes friends with. A good story about how different cultures can meld together.

- A Brief History of the Trans-Pacific Tunnel: An alternate history story where Japan became a world power peacefully and there wasn’t WWII. This story didn’t really engage me for some reason. And I was quite puzzled by these lines:

“ “Hoka no okyakusan ga imasu yo. Nani wo chuumon shimasu ka?” Her Japanese is quite good [...] though she is not using the honorific.”

I didn’t quite understand the “she is not using the honorific” line. The Japanese was in standard Japanese, the kind that is fine for strangers and that I’ve heard in many restaurants. So I don’t get why it’s singled out. If the author is referring to “keigo”, then yeah I get it but I would think that if they were going the five-star service way, there’s no way that she would have said “hoka no okyakusan ga imasu yo”, even in the ultra-polite form.

I feel like if I said that at my former workplace, the managers would have told me off for making the customer uncomfortable because we are not to rush them.

- The Litigation Master and the Monkey King: I loved this historical fiction story. It’s based on the Yangzhou Massacre and asks the question: “is it more important to do what’s right, or to keep yourself alive?”

- The Man Who Ended History: A Documentary: The last story in this anthology, it’s about a Chinese-American and Japanese-American couple that claim they can get people to literally experience history. I’m not sure if it’s because of the narrative form, but I did not get this story and ended up tuning out halfway.

Overall, I thought this was a pretty good collection! There were a few stories that I just didn’t get, but that’s more on my part than the story’s (I can see that the story is well-written, but it just did not resonate with me emotionally). I would definitely recommend it to fans of science fiction and fantasy.

The High King by Lloyd Alexander

This is the last book in the Chronicles of Prydain and it is AMAZING! I really loved it and it’s definitely something you should read straight after Taran Wanderer because it’s tied very closely to it and the other books.

In The High King, the story comes full circle and Taran and his friends must once again face Arawn and his Cauldron-born. While the first book dealt with Arawn’s servant, the Horned King, this book deals with the evil lord directly.

In The Book of Three, Taran dreams of being a hero. Now, many adventures and wanderings later, Taran knows more about what being a hero entails and he feels the weight of the quest a lot more acutely. In many ways, this quest is similar to the one in The Book of Three, but the difference lies primarily within Taran. He’s grown from an assistant pig-keeper into a leader, although he won’t admit it out loud.

For a YA fantasy, this series really doesn’t shy away from death. While important characters have died in previous books, the body count for characters I remember and like is probably the highest here. This is where Taran fully suffers the loss that war brings, and that’s where he learns a valuable lesson:

"A grower of turnips or shaper of clay, a Commot farmer or a king - every man is a hero if he strives more for others than for himself alone."

Wise words from Taran.

I really loved this series! It is everything a fantasy series should be - filled with related characters, magical, giving us hope, but at the same time not shying away from the darker side of life. It’s a pity that I didn’t read this earlier, but I am glad that I’ve finally finished it!

Taran Wanderer by Lloyd Alexander

Like I mentioned in my review of The Castle of Llyr, I borrowed the remaining books of the Prydain series as soon as I could. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get The Foundling and other Tales of Prydain, but at least I got the last two books of the series!

In Taran Wanderer, Taran decides to leave Caer Dallben and search for this true parentage. Well, the truth is that he’s hoping to find out he’s of noble parentage so that he can ask Eilonwy for her hand in marriage. And so, Taran and Gurgi wander through the land, meeting people and having adventures.

Truth be told, I thought that this was the weakest book in the Chronicles of Prydain series so far. While Taran does have a quest to find out his parentage, much of the book reads like a series of loosely connected adventures rather than a story with an overarching focus.

That said, there are plenty of great moments in the book, especially in the second half of the story. Taran starts to learn about the true value of things and he starts to see that his original goal of hoping for noble blood isn’t what he thought he was. And as he wanders through the land and tries his hand at different skills, he also learns more about who he isn’t - an important lesson for everyone as they try to figure out who they are.

For me, the character that really shone in this book (even more than Taran) was Gurgi. Gurgi was introduced as an odd creature who is cowardly. And though Gurgi retains his old manner of speaking, I’ve noticed that he has really grown in courage and loyalty - it is no small feat to keep following Taran around. I find that this is the book where I really start to appreciate Gurgi as a character.

Overall, while this wasn’t as strong as the other books in the series, it still has a lot to offer. Taran’s journey of trying out different things mimics what a lot of us will do, and I think the lesson of learning to try things that may not work out is a valuable one for everyone reading it.

The Castle of Llyr by Lloyd Alexander

Finally continuing with the Chronicles of Prydain series! The Castle of Llyr is the third book in the series and continues the story of Taran.

At the start of this book, Eilonwy is sent to the Isle of Mona to learn how to be a lady. As a kindness, Dallhen allows Taran and Gurgi to accompany her to Mona before returning. However, shortly after they reach Mona, Eilonwy is kidnapped (by Achren) and Taran must go with the incompetent Prince Rhun of Mona and rescue her.

Despite the fact that this story is centered around (and ends with) Eilonwy, she doesn’t really appear because she’s kidnapped for most of the book. It’s a pity because the more I se or Eilonwy, the more I like her. She’s a feisty outspoken girl who’s the complete opposite of the “damsel in distress”.

Instead, the story is about Taran and his feelings for Eilonwy. To be honest, I (and probably all the other characters) could tell that they liked each other in the previous book (The Black Cauldron), but Taran only starts to realise it in this book. And since Taran learns that Eilonwy is supposed to be betrothed to Prince Rhun at the start of this quest, the book is really about Taran trying to come to terms with his jealousy.

What I really liked about this book is that I can see that Taran has learnt from the previous books. He’s not the noble perfect hero yet, but he has come along way from the impatient boy in The Book of Three. It’s been awesome seeing him grow and it’s good to know that this growth isn’t temporary.

With each book of the series, I regret not reading it earlier. This is classic fun fantasy and I’m really enjoying it! I’ve got a couple of other books checked out, but once I’m done with them I’m very tempted to just get the last two books plus short stories to binge read.

One Dark Throne by Kendare Blake

I have finally finished this and OH MY HEART I NEED THE NEXT BOOK NOW!! One Dark Throne takes place right after Three Dark Crowns ends, so it’s a good thing I read Queens of Fennbirn recently and was still familiar with the world.

Ascension Year has started after the ending of Three Dark Crowns. And because of the ending, the futures of the three queens aren’t as assured - Mirabella, the strongest Queen, has lost a lot of standing, while her two weaker sisters are faring better. But the Queen can only be crowned after she’s killed both her sisters, which means that all three of them still have a chance...

I don’t really want to talk too much about the plot because I’ll end up giving away the ending of the previous book (and if you haven’t started the series it’s best not to know) but I was really taken for a ride in this one! I loved Three Dark Crowns but it did spend quite a lot of time laying the groundwork and as a result, the plot of One Dark Throne moved at a good pace. I really couldn’t wait to finish the book because I was desperate to find out who won.

Character-wise, Mirabella is still my favourite character because she really has the best heart. Sometimes to her detriment, but I really liked her and she was my favourite candidate. That said, Arsinoe’s development surprised me. I wasn’t really a fan or her or her best friend Jules, but by the end of the book, I was also rooting for both of them to have a happy ending. I think that the author did a good job in showing their growth and motivations which helped me sympathise with them.

Katherine, on the other hand, I disliked. She was just nasty and since she was just weak in the previous book, didn’t endear herself to me. But I did find out why she changed to become like that towards the end, so while I still don’t like her, her character motivation is real to me.

As for the supporting characters, I would end up with a way too long review if I talked about them all. So let’s just say that there were many of them and if you can keep track of who’s who, their personal motivations and feelings start to become clearer and they become people rather than filler characters.

Overall, I really, really loved this book. It definitely helped that I read the novellas before this because I would be lost without a refresher, but this book gripped me from the start and now I cannot wait for the next book because I need to see how things end!

The Queens of Fennbirn by Kendare Blake

I LOVED Three Dark Crowns so when I saw this in the library today, I immediately snatched it up and devoured it. Queens of Fennbirn is a collection of two novellas and it is so good!

The first story is The Young Queens and it’s about Mirabella, Arsinoe, and Katherine, the protagonists of the Three Dark Crowns series. This is really more of a prequel that explores their lives, so it doesn’t really have a plot. But it does answer some questions that the first book raised and I was so happy to be back in the world (as strange as that sounds, given that their world is violent and bloody). And the story only cemented Mirabella as my favourite because she was the only one with any loyalty. I mean, I guess I understand why the other two are like that, but I still prefer Mirabella as Crowned Queen.

The second story is The Oracle Queen and purports to tell the true story of the last Oracle Queen: Queen Elsabet. This story was heartbreaking because of its ending, and especially if you consider what her legacy is. I know it’s not a big plot point, but I would like to see justice for Elsabet. And now I really dislike the Poisoner group (sorry, Katherine but unless you grow a spine, you’re guilty by association).

Fans of Three Dark Crowns will love these two stories. I know I did, and reading this just made me more excited for One Dark Throne: now I have to find it in the library.

The Shepherd's Crown by Terry Pratchett

Well, here it is. The last Discworld novel. I was both excited and sad to read this; excited because I love Discworld and found this series through the Tiffany Aching books and sad because this is the end (it's amazing that I managed to postpone my reading of it for so long). And like with the other Discworld novels, Terry Pratchett did not disappoint. There are mild spoilers for the series (especially the Witches line of books) below so be warned.

The Shepherd's Crown starts off with the death of Granny Weatherwax. Which I quite mixed up with the death of Miss Treason and got momentarily confused (despite them not being alike. But you don't expect Granny Weatherwax to die). And with the death of Granny Weatherwax comes a hole and a thinning of the barriers. As her appointed successor, acknowledged by You and the bees, Tiffany takes over Granny's steading and runs herself ragged going between Granny's place and the Chalk. But even though Tiffany is an immensely capable witch, the barrier is still thin and the elves are plotting.

I must say that this book feels so fitting in so many ways. Apart from my personal experience of having the Tiffany Aching novels be my introduction to the series (although I haven't read quite a few Rincewind books and the conman one so this isn't the end for me), this fourth book has so many echoes of the first book. There are the elves, for one, and Tiffany makes another pivotal step forward as a witch.

And as someone who was very excited about Tiffany and her relationship with Preston, I was excited to see him mentioned here. Sadly, it wasn't a happily ever after, but they both seem to be happy so I'm happy for her. And of course, I loved loved loved reading about Tiffany's journey as she learns more about who she is.

The Nac Mac Feegles also play a pretty big part in the book and it was a pleasure, as always, to read them. They even managed to get Lord Vetinari to say 'Crivens', which is something I definitely was not expected.

If you're a Discworld fan, and especially if you're a Tiffany Aching fan, you need to read this. The Tiffany Aching series might be for YA readers but Discworld fans of any age will enjoy this.

The Fifth Elephant by Terry Pratchett

This book is the reason why I was grinning like a fool in public while I was reading it (I really should know better than to try and read a Discworld novel and hope to look dignified).

The Fifth Elephant is part of The Watch subseries of the Discworld novels and it has His Excellency Commander Sam Vimes going to attend a dwarf coronation as the Ankh Morpork ambassador. Naturally, he finds a crime because Sam Vimes is the Watch.

While he does leave the watch in the capable hands of Carrot, Carrot suddenly finds the urge to resign and authority of the watch falls to Colon, with side-splitting consequences (for the reader. Also, this subplot will make a lot more sense if you’re already familiar with the Watch).

And like the best of the Discworld novels, Pratchett weaves in a deeper meaning, this time looking at the meaning of tradition, living with other races, and how identity (specifically dwarfish identity) is defined.

While I love this book, I don’t think that this is a good first book for people looking to get into the Discworld series because it assumes the reader knows about pre-existing relationships. But it’s definitely a must-read for fans of the Watch. And I don’t really need to go on about the book because I will just rehash my old feelings for the characters (p.s. if you’re invested in Carrot and Angua’s relationship, you have to read this book!)

The Labyrinth of Dreaming Books by Walter Moers

I borrowed this book because I really enjoyed The 13 1/2 lives of Captain Bluebear (my introduction to the author) and because the title has the word 'books' inside. What I didn't realise that this is part of a series and that I probably should have read The City of Dreaming Books before reading this.

The Labyrinth of Dreaming Books is set two hundred years after the events of The City of Dreaming Books. As the narrator and protagonist Optimus Yarnspinner will gladly tell you, he's grown incredibly rich and popular since the events of the previous novel. However, the 'orm' has left him and he is unable to write. Intrigued by a letter claiming that the Shadow King has returned, Optimus returns to Bookholm and discovers that much has changed since he left.

Although the start of the book promises a mystery and adventure about this Shadow King, most of the story is concerned with the ways that Bookholm has changed. In a way, this is a travel guide about a fictional place in narrative form. The reader gets to see (through illustrations) Bookholm, learn about its different inhabitants, and even enjoy some puppet shows. The novel does end with the Shadow King, but it seems like the rest of the story is being kept for another book.

Despite the lack of plot, I really enjoyed this story. Bookholm is a fascinating place and I enjoyed reading about it. And since I didn't read The City of Dreaming Books, everything felt new to me so I wasn't bored at all. The only thing I didn't like was that there was a section of the book that used a Gothic font which made it a little hard to read.

Optimus is also an entertaining narrator. He's fairly pompous, but he clearly enjoys stories and I found him to be very endearing. I also enjoyed his interactions with his old friends in the later half of the book and that made me want to read The City of Dreaming Books.

Overall, this is a book that will appeal to bibliophiles looking for their ideal fictional city. I'm not quite sure if I want to live in Bookholm, but I definitely want to pay it a visit.

The Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander

I enjoyed the first book in this series, The Book of Three, that I made sure to borrow this book from the library! Although this book shares its name with the Disney movie, it has a lot less in common with the movie than the first book. It’s still a delightful story, though.

The Black Cauldron continues some time after The Book of Three ends. Despite his heroics in The Book of Three, Taran is back to being an assistant pig-keeper. However, one day, a council gathers at Caer Dallben - Prince Gwydion has decided that it is time to take and destroy the black cauldron, to make sure no more cauldron-born can be made. To Taran’s pleasure, he’s invited to go along on this quest. To his displeasure, one of the people he’s paired with is the proud and difficult Ellidyr.

All of the characters from the first book make a re-appearance in this one. Eilonwy is as flighty but smart as ever, Gurgi has become slightly braver, and Fflewddur is still dealing with his habit of exaggeration (but with the harp to remind him).

To these are a few new characters - the difficult Ellidyr mentioned above and Adaon, a warrior as brave as he is good a hard. Adaon takes the mentor-role to Taran in this story and I really like how he grounds Taran and helps him to grow.

Taran gets to grow a bit more in this book, as he realises that being a man is not all heroics. He also learns something about the nature of mankind, which I will refrain from stating her to avoid spoilers.

If you liked the first book, I’m pretty sure that you’ll like this one. The language is the same and the book managed to balance the quest with Taran’s growth journey wonderfully. This is definitely one for fans of high-fantasy.

The Gatekeeper by Nuraliah Norasid

My first book for 2018’s SEA Reading Challenge is from Singapore! It’s called The Gatekeeper and it’s a fantasy novel heavily influenced by Malay culture.

Obviously heavily inspired by Singapore, the novel takes place in Manticura. It starts when the young medusa Ria experiences betrayal and in her panic, freezes an entire village of people. Since this makes her a criminal, her sister Barani and her run to the underground city of Nelroote. When the war comes, Ria becomes the Gatekeeper of the city, which is how she meets Eedric, a human with monster blood.

Despite the fantastical elements and setting, this isn’t really a fantasy novel. There is no quest for the hero, instead the novel focuses on the developing relationship between Ria and Eedric, which some thinly-veiled criticisms of race relations in Singapore. Er, I mean monster-human relations in Manticura.

What I loved about this book was the setting. It was amazing to see a world with Greek and Malay influences and I very much enjoyed the language in the novel. It’s a refreshing change from most fantasy books.

What I wasn’t too fond of was the plot. It started strong, with Ria and her sister having to go into hiding, but then it slowed down considerably. It felt like a good portion of the book was on world-building and the slowly-developing relationship between Ria and Eedric, which is a pity because I feel like the beginning promised a much more exciting read. Not to mention that it almost becomes message-fiction at times, which is a bit too heavy-handed for my tastes.

And there were a couple of things I didn’t understand. At first, I thought that Nelroote was where the monsters hid from humans, but then I saw that monsters live in Manticura too. Then I thought that perhaps these monsters were just in complete hiding, but ‘surface relatives’ are mentioned and one monster is even sent to the outside world for schooling.

In that case, what is the point of hiding? Are they even hiding, if they have enough documentation to get into schools? And if so, why did it take the authorities so long to find Ria? Those are questions that were not answered satisfactorily in the book.

Overall, I liked this book. The setting was very well-done and it had a strong start. Although I’m not a fan of the slow plot, you should consider reading this book if you’re looking for a fantasy with a twist.

P.s. The ebook isn't available yet so it's only available in paper form (according to the publisher, they don't release the ebooks until 2 to 3 years after the book is published)

The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander

I wonder if you’ve watched the move The Black Cauldron? It’s not one of the more famous Disney movies, but I like it quite a bit. So when I found out that it was based on the Prydain series by Lloyd Alexander, I decided to try the first book - The Book of Three.

At the start of this book, Taran is an assistant pig-keeper to Hen Wen, Prydain’s ordinary pig. He dreams of heroic quests and adventures away from what he thinks is his humdrum and boring life. But when Hen Wen runs away, Taran leaves his life and comes into the sphere of the dreaded Horn King.

The start and the setting are both fairly traditional in terms of high-fantasy but what makes this book different are the characters. Taran may dream of being a great hero, but his companions are quick to remind him that he’s not. There’s Eilonwy, an enchantress in training who has a quick tongue and a kind heart, Fflewddur, the ex-king who can’t make it as a hard (and who has a harp who refuses to let him lie), and poor, self-pitying Gurgi.

These aren’t very noble companions, especially compared to Prince Gwydion (who’s actually a very practical person), but they are who Taran travels with for the bulk of the book and they help him to grow.

I enjoyed this a lot. It reminds me a little of The Lord of the Rings, although the humour introduced by the characters make this a much lighter read. A lot of the book is spent on introducing the characters, but the plot moved along at a good pace.

I will definitely be continuing this series and now, I really want to rewatch The Black Cauldron! Obviously the movie takes liberties with the book, but both are fun and should appeal to fans of fantasies.

Feathered by Rachel Wollaston

I am a huge fan of fairytales, as you all know by now, and when I heard about Feathered, I had to read it. A retelling of The Swan Princess? Yes, please!

Feathered is a bit complicated, but let me try to sum it up. The book opens with Marion being executed for being a witch. But since she had a deal made with an evil wizard to save her father, Elward, he takes her soul and puts it into the body of a swan. She has only one hour a day where she can return to her original form. However, Marion has also managed to create a double - Ida. Ida was created out of the darker parts of personality and when Elward discovers her, he demands that Marion take over Ida's body to pose as a princess and get close to the royal family. But Ida has a mind of her own, as Marion and Elward will soon see.

I found Marion's struggle to be fascinating. This book takes the idea of a "darker half" literally and turns it into the plot (sort of like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, but with swans and princess). Ida and Marion's struggle for power was fascinating, although it seems a bit unfair that [possible spoiler alert] that Ida seems to be able to "see" through Marion's eyes a lot more than Marion does through Ida's.

Another thing I enjoyed was the ambiguity of Elward, the wizard. At the start, he's the evil wizard, but by refusing to let him reveal his true plans plus his occasional 'rescue' of Marion has her doubting if he's as evil as he seems. Plus, a 'Healer' wizard as a bad guy was an interesting and unusual decision.

That said, I wasn't really convinced by the romance aspect of the book. Having two personalities split between two human and one swan bodies makes it difficult for me to believe that Marion can spend enough time to fall in love with anyone. Add in the fact that this takes place over a few days and Marion being upset that "he doesn't realise that's Ida and not me" sounds a bit odd to me. I mean, Ida is a part her and they just met after all. (Trying to be vague so not as to spoilt the book. Sorry if it doesn't make much sense).

Overall, I thought this was an interesting take on the Swan Princess. I think that you'll enjoy this if you're into fairytale retellings.

Disclaimer: I got a copy of this book from the author in exchange for a review as part of a blog tour. I also knew the author from WriteOn (I thought her name sounded familiar and her afterword confirmed it!)

The Girl in the Tower by Katherine Arden

The Bear and the Nightingale is one of my top reads for 2017 and I was super excited when I was invited to review the sequel! And then my heart broke when the NetGalley page said that my email wasn't included. But luckily, I managed to contact the person who invited me to review and get the ecopy!

The Girl in the Tower picks up where The Bear and the Nightingale leaves off. Vasya has managed to subdue the Bear, but the villagers still think that she's a witch. Desperate not to be sent to a convent or married off, Vasya runs away with her horse, Solovey. Disguising herself as a boy, she runs into her beloved brother Sasha and ends up in the middle of fight between the Grand Prince of Moscow and the bandits burning down the city.

A lot of sequels fail to live up to the first book but The Girl in the Tower is just as fascinating and absorbing. Most of the key characters from the first book - Vasya, Solovey who is the best horse ever, and Morozko the frost demon - are here and minor characters like Sasha get their day in the sun. I love the fact that I recognised Sasha and the other characters because they were in the first book, so their appearance and expanded role felt natural.

Oh and by the way, Konstantin (the priest) appears too. He doesn't have as big a role as he did in The Bear and the Nightingale, but he is still as misguidedly evil and irredeemable as ever.

Another thing: I'm not a big fan of romance so I liked that there were no forced romances or love triangles in this. Vasya makes the choice to leave to avoid getting married and I'm glad the book doesn't sabotage that decision by having her fall in love. There is something between her and Morozko, but it's a doomed romance and I like that they didn't force it. Plus it sort of carried over from the previous book (though it wasn't as obvious so I didn't talk about it in my review) so I didn't find it weird.

If you loved (or even just liked - although I don't believe that's possible) The Bear and the Nightingale, you need to pick up The Girl in the Tower. The series continues to enchant and although you can read both as standalone novels, many elements of the first book were so naturally carried over and developed in the second in a way that made The Girl in the Tower even more of a delight to read.

Disclaimer: I got a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for a free and honest review. The gushing was voluntary.

Shades of Milk and Honey by Mary Robinette Kowal

I first heard of this book from Wendy at Literary Feline and as soon as I heard it, I was intrigued. Regency era fiction with magic? Yes please!

While the blurb talks about Pride and Prejudice, the opening pages (and the characters) remind me of Sense & Sensibility. Jane Ellsworth is the ‘ugly’ sister, but she has a cool head and incredible skill with glamour - creating illusions from the Ether. Her sister, Melody, is a charming beauty. The book starts with Jane and Melody pining after the same man, Mr. Dunkirk.

However, this love triangle quickly becomes more complicated when Mr. Dunkirk’s sister, Beth arrives. At the same time, Captain Livingston, the charming nephew of their neighbour moves in, and the talented but tactiturn glamourist Mr. Vincent is hired by Lady FitzCameron (Captain Livingston’s aunt).

Since I was in the mood for Austen (and will be rereading Persuasion after this), this was exactly what I wanted. I’m normally not a huge romance fan, but I found myself captivated by the messy relationships (romantic and familiar) and rooting for Jane to have her happy ever after.

Jane Austen fans will probably find similarities between Austen’s characters and the characters in Shades of Milk and Honey, but each character is more than the sum of their tropes and have their own desires and motivations. So while there are delightful references to Austen, the book is able to be enjoyed on its own.

My favourite characters were Jane and Beth. Jane because of her heart and skill, Beth because she reminds me of Georgina from Pride and Prejudice (but given a lot more pages than the novel). Melody was rather flighty most of the time, but if this was a homage to Sense and Sensibility then her character totally makes sense.

Fans of Jane Austen and readers who like their historical fiction with a dose of magic will enjoy this book. Given the tidy ending, I was pleasantly surprised to learn that there are at least two more books in the series and I look forward to reading them.

Tales of the Peculiar by Ransom Riggs

I was initially torn between getting my own copy of Tales of the Peculiar, since I heard that the binding was beautiful, and borrowing an ecopy from the library and eventually the cheapo in me won (though if the paperback is substantially different/1000x better please let me know).

Tales of the Peculiar is a book set in the Miss Peregrine series! If you haven't read the trilogy, it's the story of the brave and peculiar children who fight the monsters in the world. I finally finished the series a few weeks back and it was fantastic!

Anyway, this book played a pretty big part in the series, and since it is part of the trilogy, Tales of the Peculiar is supposedly authored by Millard Nullings, the invisible boy.

The book itself is a collection of ten of the tales that the peculiar children heard and supposedly contain clues to where other loops are found. One story, The Tale of Cuthbert, is actually mentioned and plays a role in the trilogy. The other nine stories were completely new to me. Each tale comes with a beautiful illustration.

I am going to be honest and say that while I enjoyed these extremely strange tales, I did not get any references to hidden worlds and such unless they were very obvious, like the story of the first Ymbryne or about the peculiar pigeons. But the stories are enjoyable (and more than a little unsettling) even without the context of the trilogy.

Millard Nullings, as editor, occasionally adds forwards and even alternate endings to the stories. I found these to be really interesting and if there was an annotated version (in those fake but legible handwriting fonts), with notes and deductions scribbled in the margins, I would probably buy my own copy.

If you are a fan of the Miss Peregrine series, you will definitely want to read this. If you haven't read this, I think you can still enjoy the stories as a short story anthology, but the concept of peculiars will not make as much sense. So you might as well start with the first book of the series.

The Goblins of Bellwater by Molly Ringle

The Goblins of Bellwater was inspired by the poem: Goblin Market. I've read the poem before and liked it, which is why I was super excited to read this retelling.

While The Goblins of Bellwater contains goblins and fruit (like the poem!) there's also something called a "Goblin liaison" in the book. The goblin liaison is Kit and his job is to basically steal gold for the goblins. In return, they give him the ability to steal and not get caught. He makes it a point to invoke protection for his cousin, Grady, when he comes, but that doesn't really help. You see, the goblins have enchanted Skye, the sister of the girl who will eventually be Kit's love interest and well, one thing leads to another.

This is supposed to be a romance, which is not a genre I read often, but I found this book to be really interesting. It's obviously not for kids or teenagers (though I can't really say how explicit the romance gets because I skimmed (basically skipped) those sections), but I thought that the world building was very well-done and I'm always up for a story involving plots and loopholes and trying to outsmart crafty creatures.

Kit, Lib, Skye and Grady were all well-developed and I really liked reading their story. I thought the romance developed naturally and made sense within the plot.

If you're into fantasy, and especially if you're a fan of romance, then you'll probably enjoy this book.

Disclaimer: I got a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for a free and honest review.

I Shall Wear Midnight by Terry Pratchett

Note, I read this a long, long time ago (in 2012) but I found new things on a second read, so here's another review (though truth be told, my first review was longer). 

I am so pleased that I managed to get this one sale (for only 300 yen!) I Shall Wear Midnight is the fourth book in the Tiffany Aching books, which in turn is part of Terry Pratchett's Discworld series. I actually found the Discworld series through Tiffany Aching, which is why her books hold a special place in my heart.

When I Shall Wear Midnight starts, Tiffany is running herself ragged as the witch of the Chalk. But along with the advent of Roland, her former maybe-beau's impending wedding, Tiffany finds that someone - or something - is poisoning the minds of people, inciting them to hatred against wishes. With the help of the Wee Free Men, Tiffany must find the cause of the poison and face what may be her greatest enemy so far.

I found this book to be lots of fun, especially since Granny Weatherwax, Granny Ogg and Ankh Morpork (which means the Watch) all make an appearance. Even the King and Queen of Lancre appear (though I'm not so familiar with those books). If you're familiar with the Discworld series, you will definitely appreciate seeing all these characters together.

Plus, any book with the Nac Mac Feegle is sure to be fun. I loved reading about them and any scene with them had something that made me chuckle. They even get to find a long-lost family member in this book!

On a slightly more somber note, I thought that this book was a great exploration of how hate spreads. The hatred of witches was explained through the following saying:

"Poison goes where poison's welcome."

And I think it rings true. For hatred of something/someone to take root in someone, there must be something (maybe fear, maybe prejudice) that made the person susceptible to hatred. This is a poison that only works in the right environment.

Overall, this was a fun and surprisingly deep read. I enjoy seeing this older version of Tiffany, though in my mind she is forever that nine-year-old girl who rescued her brother from the Fairy Queen. I am tempted yet reluctant to read the last book in this series because it is also the last Discworld book. There are some things that I would prefer not to end.