Skybreaker by Kenneth Oppel (sequel to Airborn)
Read for: Canadian Books Challenge
This one was almost as good as the first one. Right from the first page it was action, action, action! This time around the legendary ship Hyperion has been spotted in the air and Matt is the only one who knows the coordinates. The Hyperion is rumoured to be carrying a fortune in gold. And whoever gets to it first gets to keep the riches. The Hyperion is also said to contain quite a nice collection of animal artifacts, which surprise, surprise, Kate is dying to get her hands on. The only problem is that the Hyperion is drifting at an impossible height so Matt and Kate have to find someone to help them who owns a very specialized ship. And of course, Matt, Kate and their two new companions aren’t the only ones on the world searching for the Hyperion. So you can imagine all the action and adventure that is packed into this novel.
If I hadn’t just read the first book I don’t think I would have found this one to be lacking at all. But since I did just read it, yesterday, I remembered the suspense and tension I felt while reading Airborn. But Skybreaker was still amazingly entertaining. I’m already deep into the third book of this trilogy and loving it just as much. Of course, there’s a little bit of romance thrown into these books, but it’s done well. There are no over-the-top declarations of love and it doesn’t seem to be an add-on to the plot. It flows well with the story, without taking over. And I love Oppel’s writing. He has a way of describing things that allows me to see the events unfolding in my mind without getting too bogged down in long, flowery explanations. This one gets a 10/10 too.
Other Reviews:
Did I miss yours? Please post a link in the comments.
Alright, I’ve given in. I’m joining the challenge. Carl at Stainless Steel Droppings is hosting R.I.P IV. I’m going aim for Peril the First:
This involves reading four books from Sept 1 – Oct 31 from the following genres:
Mystery.
Suspense.
Thriller.
Dark Fantasy.
Gothic.
Horror.
Supernatural.
I’ve decided to read City of Glass by Cassandra Clare and Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger. I know they fit the bill because a lot of other people have chosen them (and that’s all I have to go on…I’m not too familiar with these genres).
That’s all I’ve got so I need some help with the other two. Any suggestions?
Check out what everyone else has read at the review site.
This week Booking Through Thursday asks “What’s the lightest, most “fluff” kind of book you’ve read recently?”
I had a hard time with this one because I haven’t read anything I would really consider truly fluffy since about June. But I did just read City of Bones and City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare and while they aren’t super fluffy, I don’t think they are super serious either.
Airborn by Kenneth Oppel
Read for: Canadian Books Challenge
Why haven’t I read this sooner?! I loved the Silverwing books and somehow I just forgot about Kenneth Oppel. Then just last week I read a review somewhere (sorry, I can’t remember where) for the third book in this series and remembered that Oppel is Canadian and realized I’d better get on these books! I read this book in a day and I couldn’t put it down!
Matt Cruse is a cabin boy on a luxury cruise ship but this cruise ship doesn’t float in the ocean, it floats over the ocean! From the first page Matt and the crew on the Aurora are in for some major adventure. And just when one mishap (or worse) seems to be just about cleared up, something else comes along to cause more mayhem and definitely some of the most captivating story I’ve read in a long time. I don’t want to give anything away about what happens to Matt and the rest of the crew so I guess that’s going to have to be my summary for this one!
Not only was this book very well written, it really was adventure from start to finish. And I just felt like I was right there in the middle of it. And it was truly unpredictable, I was never sure what was going to happen next. As I read, my heart was pounding, I was chewing on my thumbnail the suspense was so great! (And it’s not often a book can do this to me!)
Overall this book was amazing. My library had it shelved in the juvenile section but I’m not sure it should be there. Not that there is any mature themes or anything, I’m just not sure a younger child could understand everything that went on. (And there were people killed in the book.) All I’m saying is that I wouldn’t read it to my 6 year old. I remember the Silverwing books to be aimed at a younger audience. Overall I would give this book a 10/10. I’m so glad I have the next two sitting on my night stand waiting to be read!
Other reviews:
City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare
Can I just say that I love this series?! It’s everything I was hoping Twilight would be, but wasn’t. I know I always bash Twilight, but I have to say that I liked the story. I just hated the writing and the characters were so one-dimensional and sometimes everything was just a little over the top, ya know? It definitely had potential and I actually liked the movie a whole lot more than the book!
Anyway, back to the review at hand! Also, a warning, if you haven’t read the first book yet, there’s no way I can summarize this one without spoilers from the first one.
So, anyway, Clary has rescued her mother, but she’s still in a coma in the hospital. So Clary is living with Luke and is avoiding Jace because he’s her brother (but he’s not really, I can so see this coming, I was so sure it would be in this book, but so far so proof) and she’s in love with him. (So not “ew” as it sounds, somehow.) Anyway, Valentine (the bad guy) is slowly gaining more power and working toward his final evil plan and the governing body of this other world is totally blind to the whole plot because they are more worried about getting Jace to confess that he was in on the whole “your father is really the evil bad guy” thing, even though he wasn’t. So this crazy “inquisitor” (who BTW is uncannily Umbrage-like) comes to take Jace into custody and ends up wrecking all kinds of havoc on Jace, Clary and everyone else’s efforts to try and stop Valentine. Of course there are lots of demons to fight and Jace and Clary both discover that they have special abilities to help them as Shadowhunters.
This book was equally as well written as the first and just as action-packed too. There isn’t a whole lot of boring/cheesy dialogue (like Twilight - another complaint). Every page in this book counts. As I mentioned in my review of the first book, City of Bones, I know this genre isn’t for everyone. But, if you like this genre, this book is definitely a must read. I can’t wait to get the third one (there are 56 people ahead of me on the hold list) and read it too. And I just read online that Clare is planning a fourth to go with these three and she’s also planning a prequel series with an entirely new cast of characters. I would rate this book a 9/10.
So in September there are two weeks of Banned Books Week (one week is Canadian, the other is the American one.) The Biblio Blogazine has challenged readers to take this opportunity to read some banned books! Since there are quite of few of these on my TBR list I’m going to try to read at least one of them next month.
Here are a few of my options:
- The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
- A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
- Farenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
- Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
- The Giver by Lois Lowry
Here is a list of frequently challenged books. Let me know if there is something on this list that I just have to read!
City of Bones by Cassandra Clare (Book One of The Mortal Instruments Series)
Read for: What’s in a Name Challenge, Book with a body part in the title
Clary is 15 when she sees a shadowhunter for the first time. Shortly thereafter, her mother disappears and she finds herself immersed in world of demons, vampires and the shadowhunters. I can’t say more without giving away too much of the plot.
This novel just jumped right into the action and then never stopped. There were several plot twists (some of which were fairly predictable and others that were completely unexpected). I want to compare this book to Twilight, but there really is no comparison. The books fall into the same young adult genre that deals with otherworldly beings but that is where the similarity ends. Clary, the teenage protagonist, is so much more likable and believable than Bella who I always found to be insipid and annoying. In fact all of the characters were more real. They had depth and dimensions. And the writing – well it can’t even be compared. Clare can actually write! I found this book to be very witty. The characters quite often had fun, clever comebacks and the prose was clever as well.
Once I got into this story (and it didn’t take long) I couldn’t put it down. I just had to keep reading to find out what happened next (my husband was getting pretty annoyed with me, when I kept bringing the book to the dinner table!). It was definitely an easy, fun read which didn’t require a lot of extra thought (I read a bunch last night while watching the Miss Universe pageant and I didn’t miss much of either). I’m sure this isn’t destined to become a classic but I can definitely agree that it deserves to be a bestseller. I can’t wait to read the next one.
I don’t want to sound like I’m gushing over this book, because I can see that there is probably a lot of people who wouldn’t enjoy this novel. If you are into this genre, it’s definitely worth a read, or even if you are looking for some mindless summer reading (even though summer’s almost over). I don’t generally read this type of book so I’m having a hard time coming up with a rating. I think I’d give it a 9/10, keeping in mind that this type of novel isn’t for everyone…
23Aug
In Category: Weekly Geeks
By: Lahni
This week weekly geeks asks:
This week, tell us about a book (or books) you have been meaning to read. What is it? How long have you wanted to read it? And, why haven’t you read it yet?
When I first read this, I wasn’t really sure how to answer. I have several books on my TBR list, I also have a TBR to my son list. I could just post those on my blog, but I thought that might be kind of boring. Then I remembered The Handmaid’s Tale. I’ve been meaning to read this for several years. I want to read it because I feel it’s a Canadian classic and because, come on, who hasn’t read it? The reason I haven’t read it? I’m pretty sure it’s not really my kind of book. I’m not usually a fan of the whole dystopian future thing or the ultra feminist thing. I’m sure it’s a great book, and I know that Margaret Atwood is a great writer (I love The Blind Assassin and Alias Grace) I’m just not sure I’m ready to tackle this one quite yet. Some day, but probably not soon. I’m not sure it’s a book I can handle right now. (I’m pregnant and somehow it’s changed my response to what I read. I’ve not noticed this with my previous two pregnancies, but this one has been totally unique in every way!)
Anyway, someday I will read The Handmaid’s Tale, but I haven’t yet.
Casino Royale by Ian Fleming
Read for: 1% Well Read Challenge
This is the first James Bond book by Ian Fleming. It wasn’t made into a movie until just recently. I do enjoy a good James Bond flick, but they are usually fairly cheesy and unrealistic in a good way, don’t get me wrong!). I was expecting the book to reflect that but I was pleasantly surprised. The book was originally published in 1953 and didn’t have any of the ultra-modern, unrealistic technology that James Bond films are known for. In fact, Bond didn’t have any special toys at all. He did drive a nice car and he did wreck it (as he typically does in every Bond movie), but at the end of the book they were having it repaired. Perhaps it appears in the next novel?
The other thing that made the book more realistic than the movies is that Bond actually admitted to being fearful. In the movies, he always ends up in these terrifying situations and yet he always responds with a stoic face and never seems to fear for his life. In this book, he was scared and he even felt that he was going to die and in fact had resigned himself to this fact. Of course, we all know that Bond survives to appear in the next book/movie.
I was also impressed by how true to the novel the movie was. There were some minor details changed and there was a lot more action in the movie (of course there has to be lots of action – it’s a Bond movie!) but the major story line was very similar. (Even down to the horrifying torture James is forced to endure.)
In the end, I was actually really surprised by the quality of the writing in this novel as well. I’d expected a good, action packed story, but I wasn’t expecting too much as far as the writing was concerned, but it was actually pretty decent. (Definitely better than Dan Brown or Stephenie Meyer!) I’m not sure I’ll be reading any more of Fleming’s books but it has nothing to do with the quality of the story or the writing, I’m just not sure I’m all that interested in this genre of books. I would give it an 8.5/10 though. (I’ve included this in the general fiction category because it doesn’t fit anywhere else. Any suggestions for what genre this would be considered?)
Other reviews:
Stainless Steel Droppings
Has anyone else reviewed this book? Please post links in the comments.
This week Booking Through Thursday asks:
“What’s the best book you’ve read recently?”
This one is easy. The best book I’ve read recently is The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. I’m not lucky enough to have an advance copy like some of you so I’m eagerly anticipating Catching Fire. Only a few more days!
