Book Review: Every Other Day by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Book: Every Other Day
Author: Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Published: 2012
Source: Local Library

Half the time, Kali D'Angelo is a normal, if lonely, teenage girl. She goes to school, she comes home, she avoids talking with her dad. The other half, she's a demon hunter, with supernatural reflexes, superfast healing abilities, and an urge to find all the things that go bump in the night and kill them dead. She doesn't know why or how she makes this switch at sunrise, human one day and supernatural killing machine the next, only that she does.

But on one of her human days, she realizes that popular-girl Bethany Davis has a deadly little parasite. Chupacabras drink all your blood within a few days, and Bethany doesn't have much time left. Kali takes the gamble that she can survive to the next sunrise, and coaxes the parasite to jump over to her instead.

But oh, there's so much more to this than a simple bloodsucking demon. Before she knows it, Kali is fighting bigger and badder things than ever before. Even having allies--Bethany, "little bit psychic" Skylar and her brother Elliot, and a mysterious voice in her head only known as Zev--doesn't mean that Kali will get any of them out alive.

When this first came out, I actually requested it from NetGalley. Unfortunately, it expired before I got to it. (Everyone else who uses NetGalley knows the pain of this.) That's why I was so excited to read this. Now that I have? Aw, man, I wish I had read this a year and a half ago!

I'm probably not the first person to make the Buffy comparison, but I'll do so anyway. Combine supernatural beasties, a tough and snarky demon killer, and Ominous Bad Guys, Inc, well, the name of the Slayer is going to be invoked. Does this book stand up to the comparison? Yes, I think so.

What I loved best was that the most important relationships in this book weren't with boys. They were with other girls. Sweet and chirpy Skylar and bitch-queen Bethany form Kali's Scoobies, and the boys (and most of the potential romance, triangular or not) are firmly on the back burner.

While the end seems to make it clear that this is a standalone, I wouldn't mind reading a sequel.

Book Review: Keeping the Castle by Patrice Kindl

Book: Keeping the Castle
Author: Patrice Kindl
Published: 2012
Source: Local Library

Althea Crawley is a very beautiful girl. She's also very practical, and knows that her beauty is the only thing that's likely to save her family and her ancestral home from ruination. She has to marry for money.

Unfortunately, all the best catches seem to be slipping through her fingers. So when the wealthy Lord Boring (no, really) comes back to the neighborhood, Althea sets her mind and all her considerable charms to catching him, and she seems to be succeeding. If only his blunt, sarcastic cousin, Mr. Fredericks, didn't insist on hanging around, quarreling with Althea at every turn.

One of my first book reviews on this blog, lo these many years past, was this author's Owl in Love. The thing I remember most was how the humor and the warmth came organically from the characters, and it's the same in Keeping the Castle.

Althea could very easily have been a really difficult character to like, mercenary and manipulative. After all, it's her stated intention, right from the start, to marry the biggest fortune she can find. That's balanced out by a clear portrayal of how desperate her situation is. Living in a castle that needs a new repair every time she turns around, remaking ballgowns every time there's a party, and pinching pennies until they scream, Althea is very aware that her family is just hanging on by their fingernails. (And the obnoxious stepsisters, who refuse to share even a penny of their own money with the household, don't make life any easier.) Her quest therefore becomes entirely reasonable and practical.

My favorite character, for obvious reasons, is Mr. Fredericks, who really is astonishingly bad at social intercourse, but proves a wonderful foil for our main character. The world of a small country neighborhood is built on polite fictions, and it's those polite fictions that Althea is navigating and manipulating in order to get what she wants. Mr. Fredericks has no capacity or patience for polite fictions, but he proves a better neighbor and friend than the people who have known Althea all her life.

My only quibble with this book is precisely who the audience is. Though content-wise, I wouldn't mind giving it to a middle-grade reader, I wonder how interested they're going to be in the marriage machinations of a time long ago. The best audience, I'm guessing, will be those kids who already enjoy a light romance.

But for this reader? Touches of Cinderella, Jane Austen, and Georgette Heyer made this book all I hoped it would be.

Book Review: The Unseen Guest by Maryrose Wood

Book: The Unseen Guest
Author: Maryrose Wood
Published: 2012
Source: Local Library

Fresh from a madcap adventure in London, the Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place are about to expand their ornithological horizons. That is, they're about to go on a hunt for an ostrich. Unfortunately, the ostrich's owner thinks that three wolfish children would be a dandy addition to his traveling wildlife show.

Who will save them from this fate? None other than plucky governess Penelope Lumley, with the help of all the unlikely allies she can muster. It might take a wolf mother, a seance, and a really awfully nice young man that makes her heart go pitter-pat, but she's going to ensure that the children stay right at Ashton Place where they belong.

While stuffed with all the madcapacity (I hereby declare that a word) and tongue-in-cheek asides of the first two, this book felt slower-moving. It could be that I was fairly tired while reading, but still I wish that it had been trimmed down some.

The larger mysteries of the childrens' origins, and the origins of Penelope herself, seem to be moving at a glacial speed. I don't know how long Wood has planned this series for, but we got very few clues in this book as to what, exactly, is going on around here.

I'll keep reading this series, because I do love Penelope as a character. She is staunch in the face of every danger, from feral children hanging out windows to possibly-dead-possibly-not gentleman who clearly don't mean any good. I also really want to figure out just what is going on around Ashton Place, and how everybody is involved.

Book Review: Ink by Amanda Sun

Book: Ink
Author: Amanda Sun
Published: June 25, 2013
Source: review copy from publisher via Netgalley.com

Katie Greene is a stranger in a strange land. Transplanted to Japan to live with her aunt after her mother's death, she feels out of step and confused about everything from following along in math class (in Japanese!) to remembering to change out of school slippers and into street shoes. Lonely and grieving, she just wants to return to North America.

Then she meets mysterious Tomohiro Yuu, who acts like a jerk sometimes and other times like a sweet and sensitive artist. What's more, his drawings are so realistic she could swear they sometimes move. But that's impossible, isn't it?

She soon discovers that Yuu is a kami, a magical spirit who can bring his own drawings to life. But this is about more than flowers and birds. People, including Yuu, have suffered the effects of his drawings before, and the criminal underworld wants to use him as a weapon against his will. She keeps getting warnings to stay away from him, but she can't stop herself from seeking him out.

I really love a book with a strong sense of place. This novel has that in spades. Katie provides us with a window into modern Japan, replete with schools, sports, and teen hangouts, as well as some of the mythology that underlies a culture so different from our own. It does require the non-Japanophile to pay pretty close attention. Luckily, there's a glossary/dictionary in the back to explain Japanese terms and traditions. I found myself getting especially confused over all the different names, but manga-loving teens will probably be just fine with that.

Katie is unfortunately more a witness than a protagonist. She spends most of the time looking on, trying to get and stay in Yuu's orbit, and it's only close to the end that we even realize she has anything to do with the ink magic. I'll pick up the second book in order to return to Katie's Japan, and to see how she becomes a more active player in her own story.

Reading Roundup: June 2013

By the Numbers
Teen: 17
Tween: 6
Children: 2

Sources
Review Copies: 5
Library: 18

Standouts
Teen: The Space Between by Brenna Yovanoff
The daughter of a demon and a fallen angel falls in love with a suicidal human boy. Oh yes, it really is that tortured and glorious. I don't think I would have turned off my oh-please meter for anyone but Brenna Yovanoff, but that woman's Facebook statuses probably ooze atmosphere.
Tween: Zombie Mommy by M.T. Anderson
When you're in a bad mood, there's nothing for it but some madcap lunacy, and this fits the bill. Click the title to see the actual review I wrote.
Children: The Spindlers by Lauren Oliver
A good old-fashioned kiddie adventure, in the vein of Gregor the Overlander and E. Nesbit. Not what I was expecting from this author.

Because I Want To Awards
Still Good Stuff: The Secret of the Fortune Wookiee by Tom Angleberger
How can you hate on this series? Answer: You cannot. It's impossible for human types.
Need Some Buffy Methadone?: Every Other Day by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
What else can you call a book about a tough, snarky demon hunter and her human friends? Luckily, it stands up to the comparison.
Where is the Third Book?: Messy by Heather Cocks and Jessica
While it's dressed up in the Fug Girl's tradesnark, this is at heart a sweet and unlikely teen romance, and I lapped it up. Can we please have a third book, because I want to see where Brooke is going, like now.

Late Roundup this month

I'm just back from ALA and in no shape to do a roundup tonight. It'll be up tomorrow!

Book Review: Wrapped by Jennifer Bradbury

Book: Wrapped
Author: Jennifer Bradbury
Published: 2011
Source: Local Library

At seventeen years old, Agnes Wilkins is about to make her debut into Regency London's high society. Most girls would be thrilled. But Agnes prefers reading to parties, languages to flirting, and adventure to social success. It seems she's doomed to get the latter and not the former in all cases.

When her suitor, Lord Showalter (such a catch, her mother insists) throws a mummy-unveiling party, Agnes is looking forward to the chance to brush up against new and exotic worlds, even if she does have to wear a party dress. Then she finds a tiny jackal head in the mummy's wrappings, and suddenly Agnes, who longed for adventure, is catapulted into the middle of one. Egyptian artifacts, international espionage, and the safety of the British Isles are all at stake.

Agnes, of course, is having the time of her life.

When I first heard of this book, the promise of a mix of Regency London and an adventure story straight out of Indiana Jones caught my attention. I'm happy to report that I wasn't disappointed. Although I did get a little impatient with her blindness regarding the identity of the villainous French spy (seriously, how could you not know it was that dude?) I seriously enjoyed this, especially her relationship with British Museum drudge Caedmon. Is it a particularly realistic portrayal of the social mores of Regency London or espionage during the Napoleonic Wars? Nah, but gosh it's fun.

Book Review: Zombie Mommy by M.T. Anderson

Book: Zombie Mommy
Author: M.T. Anderson
Published: 2011
Source: Local Library

What ho, chums! Lily Gefelty and her pals are back - in peril, that is. It seems Lily's mom came back from her vacation very different than how she left. It could have something to do with her going to Todberg, a town infested with the undead. Because where else are you going to go on vacation?

There's clearly nothing for it. Lily, Katie, Jasper, and Drgnan must journey to Todberg themselves to investigate. But this time around, they're saddled with Madigan Westlake-Duvet, Katie's snobby cousin from New York City. Still, they're not going to let her intimidating wardrobe and overwhelming nastiness stop them, because nobody's going to save Lily's mom if they don't.

There are some book series that I give up on because it's the same thing over and over again. There are some that I joyfully return to because it's the same thing over and over again. This is one of the latter. I can pretty much count on a Pals in Peril! book to be a kooky romp, with plentiful potshots taken at the tropes and cliches of kids' books past and present.

One of the clearest potshot targets in this one is the Gossip-Girl genre, in the form of Madigan. The jokes come fast and furious - she has an iSquawk, drops brand names like rain, and goes to Snott Academy. That last leads to a joke about snotballs that made me imagine Anderson giggling over his keyboard for days on end as he slowly set it up.

Smart and silly in equal measure, this was just what I needed for a fast and funny read.

Book Review: Enchanted by Alethea Kontis

Book: Enchanted
Author: Alethea Kontis
Published: 2012
Source: Local Library

The seventh daughter of a seventh daughter, Sunday is overshadowed by her more extraordinary siblings. But when she meets a talking frog in the forest, he's the first creature who's ever paid attention to just her. Even though he's an amphibian, she tumbles into love.

Then her frog disappears, she learns that she has an extraordinary magical destiny, and the long-missing Prince Rumbold comes back to the kingdom, prompting a three-night/three-ball celebration. But there's more drama afoot. Three royal balls mean more than just three nights of pretty dresses and sparkling jewels. Sunday's lovely and ethereal sister Wednesday will become engaged to the king, a strangely long-living king whose former wives have all died. Sunday will meet the prince and find that she's slipping into love with him, too.

But what about her frog?

While I enjoyed this book and read it straight through, there were so many characters and so many plotlines that I had a hard time keeping hold of them all. I also had a really hard time figuring out where the story was going and who was supposed to be the antagonist until about halfway through. I also had a hard time believing that they could have fallen in love in a couple of talks in the forest. (That being said, I felt more sure of it during the balls, when they connected more strongly.)

I liked Sunday and Rumbold very much. It was also fun to pick out the fairy-tale touches and I think I'll read the sequel, Hero, since this book hints that it's about Sunday's long-lost oldest brother, Jack. I just hope it's a more focused story than this one.

48-HBC Finish Line!

Hours read (including audiobook): 19:36
Hours blogging: 3:17
Hours networking: 0:54
Total: 23:47

Woohoo! For a 48-hour period in which I had to work eight of those hours, just under 24 hours of reading is not shabby at all. The audiobook certainly helped. I found that I really battled the sleepies on Friday and Saturday nights, but today was much better.

I didn't have any marathon-length books this year, but I also only had a couple that were fast reads. Most sat pretty comfortably in the 250-400 pages range. This helped out because I got a regular rhythm going, particularly today when I could wake up and just hit the books.


I didn't network as much this year. I think a big part of that was because I was out of loop for most of one day. I did miss that, and I hope to do better next year.

With nine books finished, that's at least ninety dollars going to charity. I'll wait a couple of days to count up comments on the blog and see how much the final total is.

 So now I have nine (count 'em!) reviews to schedule throughout my summer, and a reminder that yes, this review-writing stuff is really not that hard when you buckle down to it. A valuable thing to remember, always.

Another great year! Thanks to Ms Yingling for hosting, and everyone who joined in the adventure!

48-HBC Audiobook: Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers

Time: 5:15
Source: Local Library

As I said in my starting line post, I've really been wanting to re-read this book ever since I finished the second in the series. The first time around was back before publication, and I was tearing through it, trying to get a handle on the political machinations and wanting to get to the good stuff between Duval and Ismae. This time around, because I was listening instead of reading, I got to slow down and I saw just how well-drawn the characters were, and how the good stuff was there between Duval and Ismae from the start.

I found it fascinating to see Ismae again. At the very, very beginning, raised with a brutish father and married off to a pig farmer at the age of fourteen, she has nothing and nobody. So her fierce loyalty to the convent and her pride in her own deadly skills are understandable. After all, before she acquired them, what was she?

Speaking of that, her attitude toward death is downright unsettling. I've been using the "assassin nun" as a booktalk hook basically since I read this the first time. But now as I listen, I realize that Beginning-of-the-Book Ismae views murder solely as an exercise of power. She is very casual, almost flippant, in considering murder because someone is being inconvenient. Her first kills are greeted with glee and a sense of accomplishment. Look! I won! Knowing how her views change at the end of the book makes this a more impressive starting place for her.

I've also been considering why I was so thrilled at the love story in this book. Besides my general bias toward romance, I think the answer lies in how Duval sees Ismae as compared to how others do. As a child, Ismae was an annoyance, an unwanted mouth to feed. In the convent, she is being honed as a weapon, like a beautiful knife. Neither setting permits her to be a full person. While in the beginning, he often gets exasperated with her impulsiveness and her black-and-white outlook, I never got the feeling that Duval viewed Ismae as anything less than a person, with strengths and vulnerabilities. Yes, she is an extraordinary killer, but she's also a loyal Breton and an intelligent woman, and the fact that Duval sees all these things in her is what made this romance really swoonworthy for me. You can have your star-destined love and your sparkly vampires, girls, I'll take this one.

48-HBC Book 9: The Secret of the Fortune Wookiee by Tom Angleberger

Time: 46:18
Source: Local Library

I picked this one out because I knew it would be under an hour, leaving me ample blogging time. Also because I knew I would enjoy it mightily.

Capsule Review: "Seriously, how can you have an Origami Yoda book without Dwight? Luckily, that's a question we won't need to answer, because Dwight pops up here and there. Only this time, he's the one who needs help. The third book in this enduringly popular series is still fresh, funny, and realistic."

Well, that's the last book I have! With only about 40 minutes to go, I'm going to rest my eyes by listening to the audiobook for the rest of my time.

48-HBC Book 8: The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith

Time: 1:04:42
Source: Local Library

This one went unexpectedly fast. I am now debating whether to start the shortest book I have or just listen to my audiobook for the next two hours. Hmmmmm.

Capsule review: "The thing that kept drifting across my brain, especially as I got toward the end, was that this was not a romance. It's not the story of Hadley-and-Oliver. It's the story of Hadley, period. (Full stop, if you're reading in the UK.) This is a book about Hadley finally accepting the upheavals of the past couple of years, understanding her parents' imperfections, and still being able to love them. Oliver, for all his swoony quirky cuteness, is a mirror that allows her to see things clearly."

48-HBC Book 7: Every Other Day by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Time: 2:14:34
Source: Local Library

Nom, nom, nom! I started reading this book and eating lunch at the same time. Considering the first scene is a hellhound slaying, that says something about the strength of my stomach. How was the rest of it?

Capsule review: "I'm probably not the first person to make the Buffy comparison, but I'll do so anyway. Combine supernatural beasties, a tough and snarky demon killer, and Ominous Bad Guys, Inc, well, the name of the Slayer is going to be invoked. Does this book stand up to the comparison? Yes, I think so."

I have about four hours left of my allotted 48, and I think I can fit in two more books if I push, and one more if I take it easy. Although I'm doing better right now than I have in past years, I'm going to take it easy.

48-HBC Book 6: Keeping the Castle by Patrice Kindl

Time: 1:29:58
Source: Local Library

My first full book of the day! I've been looking forward to this one. Kindl is one of those authors who simply doesn't write fast enough.

Capsule review: "My only quibble with this book is precisely who the audience is. Though content-wise, I wouldn't mind giving it to a middle-grade reader, I wonder how interested they're going to be in the marriage machinations of a time long ago. The best audience, I'm guessing, will be those kids who already enjoy a light romance.

But for this reader? Touches of Cinderella, Jane Austen, and Georgette Heyer made this book all I hoped it would be."

Some lunch and then back to the TBR shelf!

48-HBC Book 5: The Unseen Guest by Maryrose Wood

Time: 1:51:00
Source: Local Library

I think yesterday hit me harder than expected. That's what I get for working during the 48-HBC. Ah well. Last night's (and this morning's!) book was the next Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place. And what did I think?

Capsule Review: "While stuffed with all the madcapacity (I hereby declare that a word) and tongue-in-cheek asides of the first two, this book felt slower-moving. It could be that I was fairly tired while reading, but still I wish that it had been trimmed down some."

Off to peruse the TBR shelf!

48-HBC Book 4: Legend by Marie Lu

Time: 1:58:14
Source: Local Library

I seem to crash in the early evening, especially if I've worked that day. I'm letting it happen. I would rather read fewer books with all my attention and energy than read more with only a few working brain cells. Besides, I seem to get a second wind late at night and I'm good for at least one more book. Anyhoo, Legend!

Capsule review: "What I would like to know is why I haven't seen this on the big screen yet. It seems to have all the elements: a star-crossed romance, a cruel dystopian future, lots of pulse-pounding action. It was even, famously, optioned months before publication. So? Guys? What are we waiting for?"

Next up? Networking, a little of the audiobook (Ismae has just met Duval! I forgot how charged that first interaction was), and then I'll see what my TBR shelf holds.

48-HBC Book 3: Wrapped by Jennifer Bradbury

Time: 1:50:23
Source: Local Library

This was my work-day book. I read a little last night, a little this morning before going in, and a little during lunch, finally finishing it up after I got home. 

Capsule review: "When I first heard of this book, the promise of a mix of Regency London and an adventure story straight out of Indiana Jones caught my attention. I'm happy to report that I wasn't disappointed. . . . I seriously enjoyed this, especially her relationship with British Museum drudge Caedmon."

Next, some networking, a knitting break and some audiobook, then I think I want to tackle something meaty. I've been going for fun and lightweight and I'm ready to change that up.

48-HBC Book 2: Zombie Mommy by M.T. Anderson

Time: 45:58
Source: Local Library

I don't know whether it was my late-night second wind or my choice of books, but I blew through this one, cackling to myself all the way. The Pals in Peril series is one of my consistent favorites.

Capsule review: "There are some book series that I give up on because it's the same thing over and over again. There are some that I joyfully return to because it's the same thing over and over again. This is one of the latter. I can pretty much count on a Pals in Peril! book to be a kooky romp, with plentiful potshots taken at the tropes and cliches of kids' books past and present."

I picked out a longer one to read next, to ensure that I don't finish it tonight before I fall asleep or tomorrow during my lunch hour. Good night all!

48-HBC Book 1: Enchanted by Alethea Kontis

Time: 2:11:50
Source: Local Library

As always, I worried that I wouldn't be able to focus on my books during the 48-HBC. Something about the onset of Summer Reading just blows my concentration to pieces. And once again, when I make the effort to focus, I can power through my books and find that I enjoy them and think about them deeply enough to write a reasonable review. Probably it helps that my phone was across the room.

So how was this pick, as my first?

Capsule review: "While I enjoyed this book and read it straight through, there were so many characters and so many plotlines that I had a hard time keeping hold of them all. I also had a really hard time figuring out where the story was going and who was supposed to be the antagonist until about halfway through."

Ah well. I think I did pretty well, even if I did crash a little bit after a long day at work and another one tomorrow. I plan to listen to some of my audiobook and start a fairly lightweight and zippy book for my next one.