"A Court of Mist and Fury" by Sarah J. Maas

This is a follow up book to A Court of Thorns and Roses so obviously I had to pick it up and read it immediately.  This book has some PG-13 to Rated-R moments....read at your own discretion.

Summary:  Feyre survived Under the Mountain and battled her way to happily ever after.  Except she's anything but happy.  Feyre can't cope with the cost of her freedom, even though thousands were saved along with her.  As Feyre sinks into a deep depression, her fiance Tamlin struggles with issues of his own.  Determined to protect Feyre at any cost, he locks her in his manor house, isolating Feyre from the very things that give her hope.  On the day of Feyre and Tamlin's wedding, Feyre realizes that she absolutely can't marry Tamlin.  As her heart wishes for someone - anyone - to save her, the High Lord of the Night Court appears and whisks her away, claiming that it's time Feyre makes good on their bargain to spend time at the Night Court.  Feyre's time in the Night Court helps her heal her soul, but also plunges her into the dangerous world of High Fae politics and the potential of a brutal and terrible war.

My Thoughts:  I liked this sequel, even though it wasn't what I expected.  Although longer than your usual YA novel, "A Court of Mist and Fury" was jam packed with plot, character development and action that made turning the pages quick and fun.  And now to the meat...

First of all, how did I not notice that Tamlin was such a dirt ball in the first book?  "A Court of Mist an Fury" paints Tamlin as a fairy equivalent of an abusive boyfriend.  While Tamling never raises a hand to Feyre, he locks her in the house when she asks to go outside.  This is not ok and is actually really scary, as at first Feyre seems to think its OK as Tamlin claims to be protecting her from the creatures on the lose in his realm.  Further, Tamlin mentally abuses Feyre by convincing her not to take an active role in his life, or even in her own.  He undermines her sense of self by convincing her that she's not as capable as she is.  Maas tries to use the excuse that Tamlin was damaged by his experience Under the Hill (and I think that it right on) but it is done in such a secondary way that it seems like it comes out of nowhere.  I felt this was sloppy on Maas' part, and an excuse to break the epic love story of Feyre and Tamlin a part.  I think its fine for the characters to grow apart, I just wish there had been more of a buildup instead of a lot of the action taking place between books.

Secondly, I disliked Feyre much less in this book.  I will even admit that, at times, I may have even liked her.  While I found her depression and lack of will in the first few chapters frustrating, I thought it was well done and true to depression as I've seen it experienced.  I also enjoyed Feyre's journey into self reliance and self discovery.  Her time with the Night Court and the relationships explored there help her become if not a certified bad ass, well on the road to bad-assery.  Don't get me wrong.  Feyre is still petulant and cocky, but her heart grows to care for others in a way I wasn't sure was possible.

Lastly, I really enjoyed the setting and character development in "A Court of Mist and Fury".  Maas has a masterful sense of description - I could see the lights of Velaris, see the beauty of the Night Court Palace and imagine every fabulous outfit worn by the main characters.  The new supporting characters were interesting and integral part of Feyre's development.  I wanted to learn more about them even as they skimmed in and out of each chapter.

Rating:  Definitely read this, if you've read the first series.  I'm going to re-read books #1 and #2 again as I feel if I missed a ton of setup in ACOTAR.

Reviewed By:  Tami

Also Read By:  A Court of Thorns and Roses (Book #1)

"A Court of Thorns and Roses" by Sarah Maas

Lately Instagram has been my go-to for finding new books to read.  The Young Adult #bookstagram movement is as strong as it is fabulous.

Summary:  Feyre lives in a small town with her depressed, emotionally dead father and two older, ungrateful and nasty sisters, in a shack that is all the family can afford since their fall from grace, money and power.  In order to survive, Feyre does what she can to put food on her family's table.  She hunts, she trades and she works twice as hard as she should to keep her family alive.  During a hard winter with death looming over her shoulder, Feyre takes to the woods to find meat - any meat - for her family.  She spies a deer in the forest and can't believe her luck...until she sees a larger-than-life wolf hunting the same prey.  On instinct, Feyre shoots the wolf, killing him almost instantly while the deer gets away.  Feyre soon learns that the wolf wasn't an ordinary wolf, that she in fact killed a member of the high Fey in disguise.

In order to keep peace between their two peoples, Feyre must trade her life for that of the Fey she murdered.  But there's a twist.  Instead of being put to death, Feyre must live in an enchanted castle at the Summer court of the Fey, surrounded by creatures she can't always see and magic she can feel but cannot touch.  What at first seems like a land of plenty and prosperity soon begins to wither, as Feyre learns that even the Fey are not all powerful.  An evil greater than she can understand threatens all she knows and all she's come to care for.

My Thoughts:  I loved this book.  The pacing was excellent, the story unique, characters vivid, and the plot as twisty and deep as an old river.  What starts out as a Beauty and The Beast retelling soon turns into its own saga, complete with magic, forbidden love and a battle to the (literal) death.

I mostly liked Feyre...as much as I can like any teenager.  Maas does a superb job capturing the iron will of someone who's had to grow up too soon and mixing it with the rash decisions and selfcentric world view of the young.  Feyre is both strong-willed yet scared, cunning yet naive, compelling yet shallow.  She is real in all her imperfections and I couldn't have asked for a better young adult heroine.  (Note:  I had no idea how to pronounce Feyre, so I called her Farrah the whole time.)

I also enjoyed the secondary characters.  Tamlin is fascinating in his strong yet silent way.  He suffers in a role he did not want yet works hard to succeed at anyway.  He loves, but must hide it.  And he comes off sexy in an alpha-male sort of way.  Rhysand is the classic bad boy/dark lover character.  He is both evil (like really evil) and alluring and I can't wait to see where book 2 takes his character.  (But please not a love triangle.  That is too expected and honestly, that would be disappointing.)

I did feel like the book was 100 pages too long.  Don't get me wrong, it was good, but good lord did it take forever to read.  If I was the editor, I would have cut the scene where Feyre goes home to her family.  I understand that her family finally comes to appreciate her, and that this is (hopefully) set up for the sequel, but it was slow going for me.  I also would have shortened the final challenge scenes, because this is where the book feels disjointed and rushed to me.  I understand that Feyre needs to kick ass and prove her worth, but in the end it felt like the entire sequence was set up for Rhys instead of closure for Tamlin.

Rating:  I'll read it again.  Check it out if you like Young Adult or Fantasy.

Also Read By:  N/A

Reviewed By:  Tami

"Beauty" by Robin McKinley

This story has been recommended to me countless times, but I've always put off picking it up.  I stumbled across the book on instagram and finally gave it a try.

Summary:  Beauty is a retelling of the classic Beauty and The Beast fairy tale.  After losing their fortune to the winds of fate, Beauty and her family sell all they own and journey to the outskirts of civilization in order to make a new life.  When her father's error of judgement brings a curse upon his family, Beauty, the youngest of three sisters, promises to spend the rest of her life with the Beast to save her father's life.

or

Disney read this book and made a movie from it.

My Thoughts:  One thing I enjoy about all of McKinley's books is the vibrant and rich detail she gives her settings, characters and plots.  While the true meat of Beauty is the story of how Beauty comes into her own at the enchanted castle, eventually leading up to her love for the Beast, the back story McKinley gives her cast is what truly captured my interest.  I was captivated by Beauty and the gang's life on the edge of the enchanted forest as they learned how to survive outside of their lives as members of the privileged class.  I believed Beauty's exhaustion as she used her muscles.  I could appreciate Hope and Joy's goodness of heart as they learned to keep house and tend children.  And I absolutely sympathized with their father as he unknowingly make a judgement of error that cost him his youngest child.

I also was pleasantly surprised that Beauty had a backbone.  Beauty knew full well what she was getting into when she sacrificed her own life for her fathers.  She took a known risk, trading her life as the youngest sister with few prospects but the love of a good family for a life of unknown but potential possibilities.  Yes she makes a sacrifice for her family, but she doesn't pity herself (much) and makes her decision with self actualization and logic.  Hurrah!  A heroine I can be proud to share with the children in my family.

I really enjoyed this book, so much so that I can over look the cheesy happily-ever-after ending.  I will also admit that I'm the type to find the beast more interesting as a beast instead of as a man.  I thought McKinley did a phenomenal job on the Beast's back story as well as on his character development.  He very well may have been my favorite character.

Rating:  This is a fabulous story for readers of any age.  Pick it up if you like fairy tales, Disney or incredibly well written young adult fantasy.

Reviewed By:  Tami

Also Read By This Author:  Chalice, The Hero and the Crown, The Blue Sword, Sunshine, Shadows

"Stardust" by Neil Gaiman

I asked "what should I read next" on our Facebook page and Alex told me Neil Gaiman - Stardust specifically.  Alex didn't disappoint.

Summary:  Tristran Thorn is in love with town beauty Victoria Forester and will do anything to gain her love in return...including promising to retrieve a star that has fallen beyond the wall and into the land of Faeire.  When Victoria agrees to Tristran's quest, he packs his bag and with his father's help heads beyond the wall.  Tristran soon learns that Faeire is a complicated world with strange rules, stranger creatures and danger hidden around every corner.

My Thoughts:  I thought this book was quite lovely.

The action was really well paced in "Stardust" and cleverly played out.  Tristran's quest for the star (which really turns into his quest for self discovery) introduces him to a hairy little man that helps him outfit himself for the adventures to come - escaping a killer forest, managing a murderous family feud and escaping the clutches of countless villains.

And there was an airship, y'all.  AN AIRSHIP.

The language was excellent - each word chosen to evoke a feeling or memory for the reader that keeps them (or at least me) eagerly turning the pages.

My only complaint was that the story ended much too soon.

Rating:  I'll read this one to Owen when he's older.

Also Read By:  The Ocean at the End of the Lane - Tami  |  Nick

Reviewed By:  Tami

"The Ocean at the End of the Lane" by Neil Gaiman

Well, when I saw this audio book at the library I had forgotten that Tami had already written a review, but this book is new to me, and so I wanted to write my own review.  Ah, well. Neil Gaiman has a very good reputation among certain reading circles that I know. He is guaranteed to provide quality writing and creative storytelling. 

Summary: This book is presented as a man trying to recount his childhood on a rural road with some interesting neighbors, the Hempstocks. The tale starts with the family renting out a room and one of the tenants dying. This leads to a series of supernatural events that involve a spirit that goes around giving people what they want with disastrous results.

Much of the story has the next tenant, Ursula Munkton, as something of a villain. She seduces the boy's father and controls their lives. Much of the boy's problems come directly from Ursula.

Lettie Hempstock is a young girl living with her mother and grandmother. The three of them know more about the universe than they let on, with only hints sprinkled about the story. Lettie helps the boy with his problems and that forms the bulk of the book.  

What I Liked: This story is written almost in the style of magical realism where the world is presented as normal, but normal has a broader definition in the book than for we in the real world. This is partly because the main character is a child who is still getting oriented in the universe and asks questions more out of curiosity than disbelief.

What I Didn't Like: This is a forgettable story, for the most part. I couldn't write this review without reading a synopsis first, which I find surprising.

Rating: Entertaining.

Also Read by this Author: The Graveyard Book.

Reviewed by: Nick

"The Fairy Godmother" by Mercedes Lackey

The Fairy Godmother is yet another book my fabulous Aunt loaned me while I was in college with the guarantee that I'd like the story....and somehow between classes and quarter taps I neglected to read it. A good eleven years later I finally picked it up.  And she was right.  As always.

Summary:  Everyone knows the story of Cinderella.  A beautiful young woman is forced to wait hand and foot on her nasty stepmother and wicked stepsisters until her Fairy Godmother gifts her one enchanted evening that kicks off her Happily Ever After.  It's a classic good things happen to good people tale with a satisfying side of revenge when the husband hunting step sisters see their lowly abused sister blissfully happy as she's crowned a royal princess and married to the hottest hottie of the land.  [Side bar:  do people still say hottie?] 

But what happens when the kingdom's royal prince is just a baby and there isn't a glass slipper in sight? 

Elena Klovis lives a hard life.  Her stepmother runs her ragged and her step sisters aren't any better.  What's worse, even though she dreams of finding a way to escape her days of hard labor, it seems she's doomed to a life of servitude.  When Elena's step-family skips town to avoid angry creditors, she takes matters into her own hands by showing up to the local mop fair in hope of finding employment and a chance at a happier life.  Although Elena's one of the first to arrive, she's one of the last standing when the mop fair closes at sundown.  Before she can give up, Elena spots a small cart pulled by a strange horse and an even stranger passenger.  When the woman in the cart offers Elena an apprenticeship, she thinks she's dreaming.  Little does she know that her acceptance will change the course of not only her life, but those of others all over the 500 Kingdoms. 

What I Liked:  As a former young girl, I've got a soft spot for the fairy tales made popular by Disney.  Show me a glass slipper or talking crab and I am in.

The Fairy Godmother has the trappings of a disney fairy tale but with a grown up twist.  Instead of Cinderella (or in this case Elena "Ella Cinders") marrying her Prince Charming and living the trophy wife life, she gets a job as the fairy godmother who's job is to facilitate happy endings for others in her situation.  Using magic and the unseen power of the Tradition, Elena uses her wits to craft happy endings out of tragic circumstances and teaching handsome princes to know their place.

The Fairy Godmother is clever, funny and has just enough references to modern fairy tales that I got a little giddy each time and kept wondering who would show up next.  Needless to say I've already started the second in the series.

What Drove Me Nuts:  Not a seashell bra or dinglehopper in sight.  But I hear this is a series so there's hope.

Rating:  Disney with a side of practical, sass and kick ass.  If you like the tv show Once Upon a Time this series is quite possible for you.

Reviewed By:  Tami

"The Ocean at the End of the Lane" by Neil Gaiman

This book was chosen based of a recommendation from a friend that is as much (if not more) of an avid reader as I am.  I got this book from the library and started reading it without knowing a single thing about it.

Image via Wikipedia

Summary:  A young boy (and now that I think about it....he is nameless) and his father find their stolen car at the bottom of a hill a mile from their house.  Sprawled across the backseat is the body of their boarder, dead from asphyxiation.  This gruesome discovery triggers an extraordinary chain events commencing with the appearance of Lettie Hempstock and ending with a terrible evil that must be banished.

What I Liked:  I'm finding it hard to put this story and my feelings toward it into words.  It's almost like it was more of an experience that a story, and one that I think is probably very personal to each reader.  So lets start with the basics:  "The Ocean at the End of the Lane" was quickly paced, extremely well written and had a rich plot that was both beautiful, enchanting and at times terrifying.

The story was told from the point of view of a 7-year-old boy, and while the main character's reactions were appropriate for a young boy, I found that the author used language that put me in the place of the main character and solicited adult reactions.  The story completely sucked me in and I found myself reacting to situations instinctively as the narrator experienced them

I also enjoyed that outside of the narrator all the main characters were women.  And these aren't run of the mill women...they were powerful, strong and moved the plot along.

What Drove Me Nuts:  There were moments in this book that made me uncomfortable, and I'm not a fan of being uncomfortable.  While I understand and appreciate a great books' ability to take the reader through multiple emotions, I was really disturbed by the bathroom incident towards the middle of the book.  I was further disturbed when the narrator accuses the antagonist of forcing his father to do something, and the antagonist replied "I don't force anyone to do anything."  It was mentioned multiple times that the antagonist was trying to give people what they want, so that response haunted me a bit.  Could a parent really want that for their child?  There were also several moments where I felt something like fear...but I'm a chicken so the average reader might not notice.

Rating:  To be honest, I'm still working through how I feel about this book.  I enjoyed it, but parts of it were unsettling enough that I don't know if I'll read it again.  Could be hormones.  Could just be my reaction.  I do, however, think you should check this book out.

Also Ready by this Author:  Nothing, but I'm curious to read more.

Reviewed By:  Tami

"Dealing With Dragons" by Patricia C. Wrede

I first read this book in junior high, when I stumbled across it while procrastinating in my school's library.  I came across it again on a display at my local library and decided to see if I liked it as much now that I was an adult (and had access to the internet).

I did.

Image from http://pcwrede.com

Summary:  Cimorene is not your usual princess.  Etiquette and embroidery bore her and she doesn't particularly want to settle down with Prince Charming.  To avoid an arranged marriage and a destiny of boredom, Cimorene runs away to the enchanted forest in the hope of finding her own way in the world, outside the normal rules for a princess.  As she runs farther away from home, Cimorene finds herself in the Mountains of Morning and in the company of the fiercest beats in the forest....dragons.

What I Liked:  This story was created by a local Minnesotan author, which always gives me a little tingle of pride.  However; even if Wrede hadn't been from my favorite state, I still would have enjoyed this book.

This alternate take on traditional fairy tales is witty----the main female characters are smart, practical and self sufficient.  "Dealing with Dragons" makes fun of the more ridiculous fairy tale traditions while still embracing the magic and fun of the genre.

"Dealing with Dragons" is incredibly clever.  Wrede uses traditional fairy tale structure, characters and plot lines but gives them a twist that allows for the main female characters to have strength and help themselves and others.

What Drove Me Nuts:  Not much.  At times the story seemed a little slow, but I'm rather impatient so other readers may not notice this at all.

Rating:  A great book for fantasy fans age 8 and up!

Also Read By This Author:  I read all four installments of the Enchanted Forest series in the 90s and hope to re-read them again.

Reviewed By:  Tami