Moon Called by Patricia Briggs | I've Missed This World!

Moon Called by Patricia Briggs

Mercy Thompson Universe #1
Date Read: May 19, 2012 & March 12 to 13, 2018

First Published: 2006

Paperback

Adult, Urban Fantasy

Rating:

Re-Readability:

Mercedes Thompson, aka Mercy, is a talented Volkswagen mechanic living in the Tri-Cities area of Washington. She also happens to be a walker, a magical being with the power to shift into a coyote at will. Mercy's next-door neighbor is a werewolf. Her former boss is a gremlin. And she's fixing a bus for a vampire. This is the world of Mercy Thompson, one that looks a lot like ours but is populated by those things that go bump in the night. And Mercy's connection to those things is about to get her into some serious hot water...

Re-Reading the Mercy Thompson series feels a little bit like meeting up with your best friend again after years of being apart.

It's an interesting thing, the process you go through with novels reading them a second (or third, because I'm fairly certain I did another re-read before this one) time. In the case of MOON CALLED, I actually ended up enjoying the first installment in the series a lot more than I did the first time around.

Don't get me wrong - I've always considered MOON CALLED to be a good book. It's a fantastic introduction to this world as it immediately tells you this is a dark place (I'm still sad, okay?!), but it's told to you by such a fun storyteller that you almost forget that. It shows you how complex it is, but in a manner that makes everything crystal clear. And despite all this, despite the introduction to everything from werewolves to vampires, witches, and fae, the world-building doesn't actually overpower the plot of the book, and leaves enough room for it to be expended and dived into further in future installments.

And who is that fun storyteller? Meet Mercedes Thompson - a mechanic, a walker, and the main character of the story. But everyone just calls her Mercy. If you like independent, strong-willed, and stubborn ladies who would sooner be the prince than the damsel in distress, then you're are going to love this girl. Because she is all of that and more.

A girl like Mercy needs a good man by her side. Sadly, she has two, and she's not quite sure what to do with that. Let me warn you that this doesn't get resolved in this novel, but neither does Mercy string everyone along in a confusion ping-pong between the two men. So love-triangle, but not quite that bad, you know what I'm saying?

Okay, so who are these guys? Entering stage left is Adam Hauptman, Mercy's backdoor neighbor, alpha of the local pack, and all-around total book boyfriend! If I was Mercy I would jump on this one in a heartbeat. He grabbed hold of my heart from the first time we heard of him, and for me he is the perfect match for Mercy - he loves her wildness, he doesn't try to control her (overly. He is an alpha, after all), he appreciates her abilities and talents and isn't afraid to ask for her help. Oh, and he can banter with her like no one's business. Swoon.

Entering stage right is Samual Cornick. My general reaction? meh. Look, this guy should be total crush material. He's a healer, Mercy's first love, one of the most powerful werewolves in America, and he loves children. What's not to like? Well, this guy is annoying. I just kind of wanted him out of the picture. I never felt like he really loved Mercy, the women. Rather, he loved what she symbolizes. And for all that Sam knows Mercy really well, it doesn't feel like he wants her the way she is. He wants her to change. I don't like that in my couples, at all. So Sam, an okay character on his own, is a total no-no as a romantic interest in my opinion.

Now, Adam is clearly my favorite and obviously, I adore Mercy, but there were several scene stealers in this that are neither. First up is WARREN. Let my swaggering gay sweetheart live his best life with Kyle and leave him alone! Like, Warren is one of my favorite characters, and Kyle is his perfect match in every way. I love them. They are total #relationshipgoals and I wouldn't mind a book or two about them.

Then, we have BEN. I know, I know, what am I doing liking the asshole British guy? Well, even the first time around, not knowing things to come, I found Ben an interesting character with surprising depth. The second time around I simply loved him. Idk man, I just love this jerk.

Some other noteworthy characters are Stefan the vampire, Zee the fae, and Jesse, Adam's daughter. All really fun and colorful characters, but this is not their book to shine. Although, Jesse kind of shines in every book.

Honestly, the thing I was most impressed with in this re-read is how many things Briggs actually set up in this one. More than once I blinked at the novel in confusion because I thought this and that happened later on but nope, they were there from the very beginning and apparently Briggs knew exactly what she wanted to do with them. Kudos to that!

Which is also kind of why I am even more disappointed about the villain than I was the first time around. Like, there are no hints for some of it. You've got this really elaborate plan, at the end of the day, searching for clues bore very little fruit, and that bums me out.

Still, a great novel all in all!

Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer | Book Review

Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer

Last Survivors #1

First Published: 2006

Kindle

Young Adult, Dystopia

Rating:
Re-Readability:

Miranda’s disbelief turns to fear in a split second when a meteor knocks the moon closer to the earth. How should her family prepare for the future when worldwide tsunamis wipe out the coasts, earthquakes rock the continents, and volcanic ash blocks out the sun? As summer turns to Arctic winter, Miranda, her two brothers, and their mother retreat to the unexpected safe haven of their sunroom, where they subsist on stockpiled food and limited water in the warmth of a wood-burning stove.
Told in journal entries, this is the heart-pounding story of Miranda’s struggle to hold on to the most important resource of all--hope--in an increasingly desperate and unfamiliar world.

Good god, I loved this book so much! 

Honestly, I didn't really expect to. Me and dystopians have a rocky relationship - I just don't really like the genre and the depressing situations and stories it tells. That doesn't stop me from trying out really hyped dystopias, but more often then not I'm underwhelmed by them.

Life as We Knew It wasn't one of those dystopias. First, despite it being super popular on GR, I hadn't really heard anything about it prior to the book being on sale on amazon. But the cover looked familiar, and I read the synopsis and something just clicked, so I decided to just get it.

Best. Decision. Ever. 

Most dystopias start after the end, in a world ravaged and ruined, and introduce us to the new rules and reality of that world, but Life As We Knew It shakes that old and tried formula by starting not after the end, but before it even comes.

We get a glimpse of normal, every day life. Life we could very easily be a part of, because it's our world, until something big happens to shake everything down. Something moon-sized big, and everything goes bat-shit crazy.

But what's even better about this novel is that there is no quest to save the world, no chosen one, or rebellion, or people trying to uncover what's really going on or anything of that sort. Instead, we have one family... struggling to survive. To keep each other alive as life as they knew it cease to exist.

And it was beautiful.

Miranda's narration was both thought provoking and inherently human, chronicling the end through the eyes of a teenage girl. And she's just that; a teenage girl. She reacts as a teenage girl, even though she's forced to think past it and make tough decisions. And I thought it was absolutely brilliant.

Her mother, Laura, and her two brothers, Matt and Jon, complete this four people unit, and they were all fantastic because they were flawed. Sometimes, they let things get to them. They fought. They worried. Sometimes, they were unfair.

And it made it all that more perfect.

This book is slow - no way around that, especially since the agonizing wait and the uncertainty is such a big part of the story - but in no point did I get bored. I was riveted, and so connected to the characters and their stories that I teared up, especially in the good times, because I could literally feel how precious they were to these people.

Word of warning, though; this book will make you want to stock on food, water and batteries and really savor every pint if ice-cream and chocolate you get to eat. It will make you irrationally paranoid when you hear of earthquakes or tsunamis. And it will make you thankful you're not living in that version of our world... yet.  

New Moon by Stephenie Meyer | Book Review

SPOILER // SPOILER // SPOILER // SPOILER // SPOILER // SPOILER 

New Moon by Stephenie Meyer

The Twilight Saga #2

First Published: 2006

Paperback

Young Adult, Fantasy

Rating:

I knew we were both in mortal danger. Still, in that instant, I felt well. Whole. I could feel my heart racing in my chest, the blood pulsing hot and fast through my veins again. My lungs filled deep with the sweet scent that came off his skin. It was like there had never been any hole in my chest. I was perfect - not healed, but as if there had never been a wound in the first place.

THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS. TRIED TO WRITE IT WITHOUT IT BUT IT JUST DIDN'T WORK

I've previously mentioned the Twilight Saga is one of my favorite series, so this rating might come as a shock. To be completely honest, I really enjoyed New Moon the first... three times I read it or so. It wasn't until I was more versed with reading that all the issues I had with it sprang at me all of the sudden.

And once I realized all those things, I couldn't unknow it.

Because in terms of plot, this book would now make me throw it against the wall in a raging fit. Like, I'll be the first to protect the Twilight Saga - I still proudly admit to loving it, even when people scoff at me. But this book... This book...

Twilight by Stephenie Meyer | Book Review

Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

The Twilight Saga #1

First Published: 2006

Paperback

Young Adult, Fantasy

Rating:

About three things I was absolutely positive.
First, Edward was a vampire.
Second, there was a part of him—and I didn't know how dominant that part might be—that thirsted for my blood.
And third, I was unconditionally and irrevocably in love with him.
In the first book of the Twilight Saga, internationally bestselling author Stephenie Meyer introduces Bella Swan and Edward Cullen, a pair of star-crossed lovers whose forbidden relationship ripens against the backdrop of small-town suspicion and a mysterious coven of vampires. This is a love story with bite.

Yes, I consider Twilight a five-star read. In fact, it's one of my favorite series. I read all the books in five days, re-read them countless times in the following couple of years after and they share an honor with HP - they got me into reading. While Harry Potter did start it all, Twilight rekindled that love. 

The first book in the saga is my favorite by far; It was before we encountered SERIES SPOILER annoying love-triangles and abandoning boyfriends. Before unplanned pregnancies and imprinting on babies END SPOILER. It was the simplest and purest of the four.

If you don't know the heroine of the Twilight Saga, you've been living under a rock. Her name is Bella Swan, and in this book she is very likable; she's smart, active, knows what she wants and pretty much goes after it. Even if it's a hundred years old sparkling vampire.

Her love interest is Cedric Diggory I mean, Edward Cullen. I think he's pretty swoon-worthy in Twilight. Definitely one of my earliest book boyfriends. He is sweet and caring, always putting Bella's safety first - even if the biggest danger to her is he himself.

The romance between these two is pretty sweet - it really does feel like they're meant for one another. And every turn, they chose each other. She chose to sit with him after she had a good idea of what he were. He chose to stay with her even when he knew things will never be easy. And nothing is too big a sacrifice to help each other.

All those are surrounded by colorful supporting characters from the bitchy friend to the cool sister, who add volume to the story. Which was, admittedly, a pretty simple one. It's not meant to be serious or anything like that - it's a book that's fun to read. A book that's there when you need a break from life and just want to read about two people finding each other.

Anything else is just decoration, and in this particular story I couldn't help but love it #sorrynotsorry

The Most Complex of Love Stories in His Majesty's Dragon by Naomi Novik | Book Review

His Majesty's Dragon by Naomi Novik

Temeraire #1
First Published: 2006
Kindle Version
Adult, Alternate History
Rating:

Aerial combat brings a thrilling new dimension to the Napoleonic Wars as valiant warriors ride mighty fighting dragons, bred for size or speed. When HMS Reliant captures a French frigate and seizes the precious cargo, an unhatched dragon egg, fate sweeps Captain Will Laurence from his seafaring life into an uncertain future – and an unexpected kinship with a most extraordinary creature.
Thrust into the rarified world of the Aerial Corps as master of the dragon Temeraire, he will face a crash course in the daring tactics of airborne battle. For as France’s own dragon-borne forces rally to breach British soil in Bonaparte’s boldest gambit, Laurence and Temeraire must soar into their own baptism of fire.

Last year, I read Novik's Uprooted and absolutely adored it, so when this came up bargain price on kindle, I didn't even blink before one-clicking it. Finding myself soon after in the mood for a fantasy, I started this story... and got sucked in in mere seconds.

I have always been a fan of stories that take our history in a slightly different, more fantastical direction (such as the Parasol Protectorate series). There is just something so charming about making our own dry history something that everything and anything can happen in.

And His Majesty's Dragon is no exception. In fact, it's one of the best examples for an alternate history done right. In this world, Dragons have always existed, and are both rare and important beings and the most advanced and unique of weapons - because they have brains and thoughts and are intelligent and intellectual creatures.

They are the army's best resource, especially now as America is fighting against Napoleon. I admit I'm pretty rustic on the Napoleonic Wars (wasn't a subject we covered in school, in all honesty), but everything had such an authentic feel to it, and I wouldn't be surprised if some of the battles I read of were real - only changed slightly to confine with the reality of dragons.

Which is something I really appreciate - because it makes you feel that if Dragons were real, this is how our history would've went. I feel so strongly about the setting to this story that had the actual plot and characters not been phenomenal I would've still recommended it. However, it was, so there  was no such trouble.

At the core of things, His Majesty's Dragon is a love story... between one man and his dragon.

Captain Will Laurence is a navy officer, and proud of it. While he works his crew hard, everybody respects him for his fair treatment and how he expects from them exactly what he expects from himself. His determination and fairness helps him win over many people he encounters along the way. Honestly, I'm half way in love with the Captain. He's such a great person, above everything, and if I wasn't sure I would lose to Temeraire in a contest for his heart, I would've tried something already.

But who is Temeraire? He is the super intelligent, solid black dragon Captain Laurence finds, and despite being ten times the size of Toothless from How to Train Your Dragon, he shall forever be the talking version of Toothless in my head and you can do nothing to change that.

It has to be the fact Temeraire is so adorable and sweet and cute that makes it impossible not to see Toothless in my head. So if you liked Toothless, you will fall head over heels in love with Temeraire! 

And if you liked the relationship between Toothless and Hiccup, you will adore the relationship between Laurence and Temeraire, as both are very similar at their level of devotion, though His Majesty's Dragon takes it even a step farther as Temaraire can talk and converse, making an even deeper bond emerge between the two.

I'm curious to see if Laurence could even get into a committed romantic relationship at this point, as Tem is in a way both his soulmate, his pet and his child, and that leaves very little place for anything else. But I didn't mind it at all.

If I had to find a word to describe their relationship, both in progression and content, I'll probably say "gorgeous".

So if you like complex love stories that are not necessarily "romantic"and set in an intricate world that provides for the occasional heart pounding battle... 

The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson | Book Review

The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson
Mistborn #1
First Published: 2006
Paperback
Young Adult, Fantasy
Rating:

In a world where ash falls from the sky, and mist dominates the night, an evil cloaks the land and stifles all life. The future of the empire rests on the shoulders of a troublemaker and his young apprentice. Together, can they fill the world with colour once more?
In Brandon Sanderson's intriguing tale of love, loss, despair and hope, a new kind of magic enters the stage— Allomancy, a magic of the metals.

YES I FINALLY READ THIS.

Admittedly, the Mistborn trilogy hasn't been on my radar for long, I didn't even know it existed before last year, but then it cropped up on BookTube and seemed to be everywhere. And everyone were saying how good it was and I wanted it. Gosh how much I wanted it.

After some mishaps with TBD shipment, I finally had it in my hands. And then proceeded to abandon one of my most anticipated reads ever, Winter, in order to read it.

I was not disappointed! I was sucked into this fantastic world from the first paragraph, falling in love with the writing and the characters almost as soon as each was introduced. They were just such a likable band of misfits, brave and daring where those qualities are oppressed, joyful and cheerful where there shouldn't be any reason to be, and flawed to the point of perfection.

Firstly, we have Kelsier. Has there ever been a more charming bandleader? The fact he sometimes really really really really worried me, as the rest of the crew worried, somehow just added to everything. Because I felt myself willing to believe him, in him, alongside everybody else.

Then there's Vin, the only woman in the crew, and the youngest by many many years. She's sixteen, has lived her life trying to be invisible in a landscape that only meant her harm, trusting no one. And she has a unique ability. She becomes Kelsier's apprentice, in a way, and she is the true hero in this story for me.

I loved, loved, loved her. Loved watching her slowly open up to her friends. Loved watching her come to put her faith in something so intangible as "trust".

Not to mention all their abilities as Mistborns! They were so interesting to read of, definitely one of the more interesting magic systems I've ever encountered. I can't wait to learn how the mistborns were created, because this book hints that we're going to discover all that in this series.

The whole novel spans around a year in time, and that year is spent planning and hatching plans--some of which misfire, some of which succeed--on how to overthrown the evil ruler of this world. And let me tell you this - you will believe it all. Sometimes, these things seem too easy or too far fetched. But Sanderson definitely worked hard to make sure every bit of it made sense and could, possibly, happen in RL. 

Now, the weakest point of this novel is probably the romance. Not because I didn't like the love interest, because I adored his keen mind and dishevelment, but because Sanderson spent no time establishing them.

We're told they've been hanging out for a few weeks and stuff, but we see very few of these conversations and interactions, leaving us to wonder why the heck everyone say they're in love when all you can see is attraction and the possibility of more.

Romance is not a big factor in a novel like this, but if you're already putting it in I feel like you should at least give it some thought and not just throw in "yep, they're in love".

Aside for this, there were a few other points that didn't make sense to me while reading this novel. Make sure to come back tomorrow for spoilery discussion questions that I'd love to brainstorm with you!

But overall, a fantastic read that I couldn't put down!

Get Ready to Bawl Your Eyes Out With Pandora Hearts by Jun Mochizuki | Manga Review

Pandora Hearts by Jun Mochizuki
Completed at 107 out 107 Chapters, 24 volumes
Reading Status: Finished

Published: May 18, 2006 to Mar 18, 2015
Adventure, Mystery, Fantasy, Shounen, Supernatural
Rating:

The air of celebration surrounding fifteen-year-old Oz Vessalius's coming-of-age ceremony quickly turns to horror when he is condemned for a sin about which he knows nothing. He is thrown into an eternal, inescapable prison known as the Abyss from which there is no escape. There, he meets a young girl named Alice, who is not what she seems. Now that the relentless cogs of fate have begun to turn, do they lead only to crushing despair for Oz, or is there some shred of hope for him to grasp on to?

If you're looking for a funny, cutesy manga to pass your time with, LOOK AWAY BECAUSE PANDORA HEARTS IS NOT THAT. While immensely funny at times, Pandora Hearts is heartbreaking in it's core, weaving through dialogues, characters and beautiful art style an intricate, gut wrenching tale of love, loss and obsession.

From the very beginning, Pandora Hearts engulfs you in this sense of mystery and intrigue. What is going on here? What is the truth? What is the motives behind the characters actions? It piles questions on top questions, wrapping it up with a cast of endearing, funny, sweet and somewhat broken characters.

The main core of the manga are Oz, Alice and Gilbert. And yes, there are some very clear elements of both Alice in Wonderland and The Wizard of Oz interwoven into the tale.

Oz is the successor to the house of Vessalius, one of the four dukedoms of this fantasy world. He is a lovable but odd child. He has a hard time believing he is lovable. Believing he is worth something. He doesn't fight for anything, and at times seems oddly detached from this world. Someone might need to literally beat him up in order for him to realize his own self worth.

None of it is helped by his disastrous 15th birthday coming of age ceremony, where the party is disrupted and Oz gets cast into The Abyss, a twisted, eternal prison, for the simple sin of "existing".

The Abyss is what gives birth to "Chains" - strangely toy-like creatures with superpowers who can only exist in the real world by forming a contract with a human... and eating other humans. There, Oz meets Alice - a human shaped chain who offers to help him escape this prison if he forms a contract with her.

Oz does, forming a connection beyong a simple contract with the spunky girl. Alice is a peculiar chain. First of all - she has a proper name. She is human in her looks and behavior - acting a bit like a naughty child; she loves food; she is funny and sweet and innately attuned to Oz's feelings and moods. She tries to cheer him up constantly, because he "is her manservant and only she is allowed to make him sad". In short, she is a delight.

But why is Alice so different? Yet another mystery slowly unraveled by this manga.

cool Gil!

.... Real Gil...

And finally, the person who awaits Oz and Alice in Real Life, working to free Oz on his end - Gilbert. Oz's servant and best friend, he defines himself by his master, he will do anything for him, he is a bit weak and he's very insecure. He balances Oz's devil-may-care and Alice rush enthusiasm perfectly.

These three are squad goals and I love them dearly. Together, they work to find the truth behind what happened to Oz, what happened one hundred years ago... and what is about to happen next.

Around them are funny, odd, sweet, smart and crazy characters; from the Mad Hatter whom I long to give a hug, to Liem and Sharon, the count, UNCLE OSCAR (I love him), Ada, Elliot, Leo and of course... Vincent. Wacked-up, strangely endearing, impossibly impossible Vincent.

Everyone in this manga are such a mess, but a mess I loved.

Now when I first started this series, it was still on-going, and in it's relatively happy-go-lucky, just-fun-and-games stage. So I was not expecting it to punch me in the face suddenly and then keep punching non stop. Seriously, I started crying at around chapter 54 and continued crying up to the end.

I am not okay. This is not okay!

If you're looking for a manga that could really hit you in the feels and make you both engross and interested and completely heartbroken for everyone at the same time, manga with bitter-sweet endings, then... this one is for you.

Otherwise , stay away because this will break you.

Hope this review made some form of sense! lol