Memory Lane: THE RED NECKLACE & THE SILVER BLADE

The Red Necklace - Sally Gardner
Genre: Historical Fiction, mixed with a little fantasy
Originally read: November 23-25, 2009
What I Gave It: A-
I always love a good historical fiction story, but I'm a tad picky about them, too. They're one of my favorite genres. It was so fun to discover a new author, Sally Gardner, and I really enjoyed her work. The Red Necklace takes place French Revolution Paris (and London) and combines all the elements needed for a fun thrill ride. I read this book over Thanksgiving break last year, which was colder than normal, and there just seems to be something fun about reading when it's cold outside. Makes it all seem cozier :)
First of all, I enjoyed the time period. There's something fascinating about French history, and Gardner certainly did her research to bring her story to life. I'm fuzzy about some of the details, but I remember being impressed with her ability to capture the chaos, confusion and over-the-top extravagance of the Revolution. Besides that, she's just a strong writer, and her lyrical prose was beautiful to read.
The Red Necklace was part history, part mystery, part romance, and part supernatural thriller. It didn't always succeed in every element, but the story of Sido, daughter of a doomed aristocrat and Yann, a gypsy performer who becomes a Scarlet Pimpernel-like character, was ohh-la-la devouring :)

The Silver Blade - Sally Gardner
Direct sequel to The Red Necklace
Genre: Historical fiction, mixed with a little fantasy
Originally read: November 26-28, 2009
What I Gave It: A-
I read TSB right after finishing Red Necklace because, well, I'm a forgetful person and didn't want to forget the characters and who was related to whom, etc. As far as action and intrigue, I think I enjoyed this installment a little more than its predecessor. However, the fantasy aspects were more pronounced in this book, and for me, they fell a little flat. Gardner's strengths were in her historical storytelling, and as a result, she never really took the time to explain the "magical universe" of her story, causing confusion and a mouthful of "huh?"'s on my part.
I do recommend you read both books!

Like historical fiction? Like France? Like books with cute, mysterious guys on the cover? Read The Red Necklace and The Silver Blade! They're not as good as Ann Rinaldi's books (she's the MAN when it comes to historical fiction!) but they are fun, entertaining, and definitely worth your time!

Have you read these books? If so, what did you think?

Review - I AM NUMBER FOUR

I Am Number Four (Lorien Legacies #1) - "Pittacus Lore"

Genre: YA Science Fiction/Paranormal (aliens count as paranormal, right?)
# of pages: 430 (hb)
Publisher: HarperTeen
I Am Number Four @ Parental Book Reviews
I was especially excited to read this book because, as of now, I can't think of another "alien book" that I'd ever read, and it's always exciting to try something brand-new.

Simply put, I Am Number Four was a fun, enjoyable and incredibly action-packed read. It's a title that I would definitely recommend to all of you!
There are some things about alien books that I expected to be included here, and so to a certain extent, Number Four was a bit predictable and not exactly a "high suspense" kind of book. There's one planet that's been destroyed by a bigger, meaner planet (read: Star Trek's Romulans... and I can't believe I just wrote that. You see, I come from an in-your-face Star Warsy family) Anyway, the fugitive aliens from Lorien have been hiding away on Earth for several years, waiting for their legacies (powers) to develop. That's the general premise.
There's not a lot of suspense, but there is a lot of action, and on top of that, the author really gave a lot of attention to detail regarding the culture and background history of Lorien and rival planet Mogador (I read that and thought "MORDOR"!). The action sequences were very well done. While over-all physical descriptions were a little sparse, the action sequences were written with an eye for detail. A reader like me, who appreciates action sequences more than other elements, will like this.
Characterization time. I read a lot of reviews (many of yours!) before I started Number Four, and so I prepared myself for less-than-impressive characterization. Actually, I was pleasantly surprised. The main characters - Number Four and his guardian, Henri, as well as Four's love interest, Sarah, and nerdy space-obsessed best friend, Sam, all seemed to be strong enough characters. Could there have been more character development? Oh yeah. Sarah in particular could have had some more work done - there was just something about her that just seemed underdeveloped, and her dialogue segments with Four were a little too sugary sweet. However, I would rather have a love interest who's too nice than mean and snappy. *shrugs*
There's one thing in particular that I want to praise Four for, and it's something that's pretty hard to do. The pacing of this novel was practically perfect. I know that's probably not a big deal for most folks, but I can't help but notice if a novel drags on in the middle, or at the beginning, or if it wraps up too quickly. Number Four followed the 'literary structure' almost to the letter: the final action sequences, in particular, were timed *perfectly*. All the story-elements, plot wise, came together very nicely, making Number Four a very neat, precise read.
All in all:
For me, characters could have had a little more depth to them, and the writing style was sometimes choppy: "Pittacus Lore" makes Katniss Everdeen sound like Wordsworth. However, I was pleasantly surprised by just how much I enjoyed this book. I Am Number Four will definitely be an amazing movie! Got an interest in aliens or science fiction? Just looking for a fun, quick action-packed read? This is the perfect holiday book.

Final Grade:

Imagination in Focus BLOGOVERSARY CONTEST!!!

It's time for my blogoversary contest! Woo-hoo!
Let's cut right to the chase:
There will be 2 winners.

Winner #1 will get:
- their choice of any book released in 2010 (as long as it's under $15)
- and any book that's been reviewed here on this site (as long as it's under $15)
Winner #2 will get
- any book that's been reviewed here on this site (as long as it's under $15)

I'm using The Book Depository, so this contest will be INTERNATIONAL!

Extra Entries:
These are **optional** but I would love help spreading the word! You can tweet the contest info, add it to your sidebar, add my new button (it's a new button from my new design), add the contest picture to sidebar/post, etc...

IMPORTANT...PLEASE READ THIS!
There are 2 "requirements" for this contest...
1) you must be a follower
2) there's a question in the Form that asks what your favorite book of 2010 was (and why).
All you have to do is tell me what 2010 release was your favorite, and something quick about it that was enjoyable. Can't wait to read the responses!!

The contest will end at Midnight (Central Time) on December 20.

Click Here!

In My Mailbox [26] + CONTEST ANNOUNCEMENT!

In preparation for the holidays, I've put myself on a "no-buying" restriction till after Christmas.

I was so excited to receive, for review

Tempestuous by Lesley Livingston (the 3rd and final book in the Wondrous Strange trilogy!)
and
Plague by Michael Grant (book 4 in the Gone series)
from Harper Collins. Thank you, HC! Christmas definitely came early for me!

Just finished/writing review for...
Just started...
And now... Contest information!
One month from TODAY will be my blogoversary - WOOHOO! One whole year of reviews, rants, raves, and networking :)
**Tomorrow** I will have the link up for the contest. Please enter! You have until 12/20 at midnight (central time).
Want to know what's up for grabs? Be sure to read tomorrow's Contest post!
See you then!!
:D

What do yall think?!

I'm not usually one for book trailers, but I had to share this one!
By the way, this is not at all how I pictured Teagan :P



Tyger Tyger is in stores now!

What is up with all the triangles?

I've spent the last 10 or so minutes looking at the books listed in Goodreads' 2011 Debut Authors for Young Adults and I noticed one particular thing that a lot of these books have in common. I counted five books, among the ones that I randomly clicked on, that mentioned in their synopsis a very familiar plot device known as the Love Triangle.
?????
I'm still not really sure what to think of this cliche, err, plot device. I admit that I can't recall a book or series that (I thought) executed the situation well. Probably the most famous triangle in recent fiction has to be the Gale-Katniss-Peeta quagmire of the Hunger Games series. For me, that was a love triangle that had a whole lot of potential: it started out well, then it just went downhill and served in part to alienate me from the narrator, Katniss, and make me feel quite bored with the overall story...
But I'm probably being unfair. What I want to know is, why are so many authors writing these? Because, skeptical conspiracy-theorist that I am, I have to wonder if they (new authors) feel like this will give their manuscript an advantage or make their book more enjoyable. Triangles seem to be 'in' now, right?
Why, though? Tell me, why are they popular? I know all you can see is the print on the screen and you can't hear my voice, but let me assure you I'm not trying to be snarky or sarcastic. This is definitely a phenomenon that I don't understand. Is it like a girl's secret fantasy, to have two absolutely physically perfect guys chasing after her? Because you and I both know that both candidates are usually portrayed as being...well, not horrible to look at. For me, it's a turn-off for a girl to 'play' two guys at the same time. When I say 'play,' I mean lead them both on, kiss them/make out with them, yet keep them at arms' length by not making a decision and committing. That also seems to hint at a double-standard, too, because if a boy did that with two girls, well we'd all be up in his Casanova grill.
But I must be missing something. What is it that yall like about love triangles? Or not--basically, what are your opinions? Do you like books that feature triangles as a major plot device, or does it make a difference?

By the way, the "Triangle books" for 2011 that I noticed included:
Unearthly - Cynthia Hand
Possession - Elana Johnson
A Beautiful Dark - Jocelyn Davies
Girl of Fire and Thorns - Rae Carson
Hemlock - Kathleen Peacock
** Note: none of these books are published. I'm only going on what I read from the synopsis :)

The Holiday Season TBR Pile (RAAAAWWWRRRR!)

Isn't it ginormous?! I plucked out every book on my shelf that I have yet to read and had them pose for a lineup... there's no way I'll get all of these finished by the time second semester starts, but I want to tackle as many as I can!

I was thinking of making these "first" priority: Princess of the Midnight Ball (seems like a fun, easy read), The Knife of Never Letting Go, Everlasting and of course, Darklight!
Which ones do you suggest?

My full TBR includes:
Deadly - Julie Chibbaro
Haven - Kristi Cook
Darkness Becomes Her - Kelly Keaton
Those That Wake - Jesse Karp
The Iron Daughter - Julie Kagawa
Princess of the Midnight Ball - Jessica Day George
Beautiful Darkness - Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl (I'm still reading Beautiful Creatures!)
The Knife of Never Letting Go - Patrick Ness
Lock and Key - Sarah Dessen
Darklight - Lesley Livington
Everlasting - Angie Frazier
The Scorch Trials - James Dashner
Need - Carrie Jones
The Golden Spiral - Lisa Mangum
I Am Number Four - "Pittacus Lore" (reading right now!)

How big are your TBR piles, and have you started making holiday reading goals yet?