Book Review Club ~ June 2012

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@Barrie Summy

For this month’s Book Review Club, I couldn’t pick just one book, so I’m offering up recommendations for two really stellar novels. It’s June–the start of summer–I’m sure you’ll have plenty of time at the beach…or the pool…or the lake to kick back with a page-turner and escape to another time…

I read the following two books back-to-back, with very little time on my hands.  I squeezed in every opportunity to escape to another century, a rougher, more dangerous time, and I loved every single minute!  The books?  GRAVE MERCY by R.L. LaFevers (whose Theodosia Throckmorton series I also love) and SCARLET by A.C. Gaughen.

The summary for GRAVE MERCY, from Amazon:

Seventeen-year-old Ismae escapes from the brutality of an arranged marriage into the sanctuary of the convent of St. Mortain, where the sisters still serve the gods of old. Here she learns that the god of Death Himself has blessed her with dangerous gifts—and a violent destiny. If she chooses to stay at the convent, she will be trained as an assassin and serve as a handmaiden to Death. To claim her new life, she must destroy the lives of others.      Ismae’s most important assignment takes her straight into the high court of Brittany—where she finds herself woefully under prepared—not only for the deadly games of intrigue and treason, but for the impossible choices she must make. For how can she deliver Death’s vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart?

Why did I love it?  I loved the blurb and cover.  A teenage assassin?  A handmaiden to Death!  Um…yeah!  And I was pulled in from the very first page by the tension surrounding Ismae’s arranged marriage, her scars, presumed to be given to her by Death himself, and then, her training in the arts of killing, and finally her pivotal assignment in the political intrigues of fifteenth-century Brittany.  I was as glued to the pages as I could afford to be.  As it was, I finished this 560 page book in record time (for me).  The story had me absolutely enthralled, but the writing was beautiful as well–the metaphors particularly, were beautifully crafted.  And there was romance…which I love.

If this brief, but gushing, review is not enough for you.  Booklist, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus, and School Library Journal all gave it a starred review!  And it’s the first in a trilogy…so there are two more novels to come in the His Fair Assassin series–I cannot wait!

The summary for SCARLET, from Amazon:

Many readers know the tale of Robin Hood, but they will be swept away by this new version full of action, secrets, and romance. Posing as one of Robin Hood’s thieves to avoid the wrath of the evil Thief Taker Lord Gisbourne, Scarlet has kept her identity secret from all of Nottinghamshire. Only the Hood and his band know the truth: the agile thief posing as a whip of a boy is actually a fearless young woman with a secret past. Helping the people of Nottingham outwit the corrupt Sheriff of Nottingham could cost Scarlet her life as Gisbourne closes in. It’s only her fierce loyalty to Robin—whose quick smiles and sharp temper have the rare power to unsettle her—that keeps Scarlet going and makes this fight worth dying for.
Why did I love it?  I’m smitten with that cover!  I couldn’t help but turn back to it over and over while reading.  And the deception involved in a female member of Robin Hood’s band?  Color me intrigued!  I loved the comradery among the bandmates, and Robin Hood was excellent hero material, but it was Scarlet who made the story.  She was so well-written, so complicated, so multi-faceted, so courageous and selfless… And the stakes are so very high.  The tension is racheted up over and over, with only brief passages time allotted for emotional catharthis.  This story is intense!  Scarlet has a lot of secrets, and they are very slowly parceled out–so you can’t help but keep reading!  This would make a really excellent movie (honestly, both books would).

Both of these novels are classified as Young Adult, but they have undeniable crossover appeal–adults would be completely drawn in.  I recommend them both very, very highly.  R. L. LaFevers is already one of my favorite authors, and I will definitely be on the lookout for A.C. Gaughen’s next book!

If you’re looking for other recommendations for your summer reading, click on the typewriter above and swing over to Barrie Summy’s blog!
Posted in book review club, books on 06/06/2012 02:54 am | 7 Comments

Week at a Glance

Whew!  Last week was even crazier than normal.  As the PTA Literacy Chair for my younger son’s school, it was my job to run the last Scholastic book fair of the year, and it was a LOT of work.  I was at the school almost every day from 7:45ish to 4:00.  Because who can resist a buy-one-get-one bookfair??

I took the day ‘off’ Wednesday to chaperone my son’s 4th grade field trip to the San Jacinto monument.  The field trip consisted of treking around the fields where the Texans and the Mexicans made camp before the Battle of San Jacinto (quite the pivotal battle in Texas history, which I’d forgotten about…)  The kids then took the elevator up to the top of the monument, which I think is as tall as the Washington monument.  Going to go check that…  I’m back!  And it’s actually taller by about 12 feet!  Anyways, there was the typical Texas heat, a dose of mosquitoes, and the disappointment (only mine) of not getting to go to the top of the monument.  But there were a gazillion baby frogs to catch, so the kids were in heaven!

Here’s the photo I took from the bottom…

Then on Saturday, I drove up to Austin to participate in an Austen in Austin event at BookPeople with Jennifer Ziegler and Patrice Sarath.  We had a thirty minute panel discussion, led by a lovely moderator, and then a couple questions from the audience, and then a signing.  Plus, they had iced tea and scones and butter cookies galore.  I thought it went very well.  Plus, several old friends came out to see me, including a friend from my long-ago work days, who was the inspiration for Gabe in AUSTENTATIOUS.  It was great!  The BookPeople staff was wonderful.

This week, I’m back to the old routine, and I’m LOVING it!  Just having time to go to the grocery store without having to hurry back to the book fair is such a nice feeling.  Better still, I had lunch today at Berryhill, which I try to frequent on Mondays due to their scrumptious $1.99 grilled fish taco deal.  Today, I became a regular!  When I walked in, there was a line of about five people, and a regular server of mine walked up to me, told me she had me covered and that I could go sit down.  (Admittedly she subbed my favored Dr Pepper with Diet Coke, but she quickly remedied that.)  When she brought me the check, she said, “Have a great day, and see you next week!”  I thought that was all kinds of awesome!

This week:  Field Day.  It’s expected to be about 90 degrees.  Awesome!

Posted in austentatious, books, life on 05/21/2012 09:15 pm | 2 Comments

Book Review Club ~ May 2012

Here we are again, with Barrie Summy’s Book Review Club. It seems like every other post on this blog is a book review club post! But in my defense, things have been crazy, and they’re going to get crazier still before they get sane. May is the fun month if you’re in school and it’s the last dash month if you have kids in school that are about to be glued to you for three months of summer. You do your absolute best to get everything on your to-do list done before the Last Day of School. Otherwise you’ll be dragging them around, while they whine, “Why do we have to do errands everyday?” At least that’s what boys say. So I’m in the final scramble. But I would not miss an installment of the Book Review Club if I could at all manage to avoid it.

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This month, I’m reviewing Amanda Stevens’  THE RESTORER. I met Amanda at a local RWA meeting, where I was speaking and she was signing.  I picked up her book, read the blurb, and was hooked.  I couldn’t wait to get started reading it.  But I was good–I dutifully finished the book I was reading, and finally got started on THE RESTORER.  I will confess, I have not yet finished this book. If I hadn’t had the Avon Walk and a deadline to contend with, I totally would have. As it is, I’m letting myself read for twenty minutes every night before I go to bed. But I will not let myself end on a really creepy part.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Because I’m not used to creepy.  I’m a happy-go-lucky book girl.  I don’t typically read books involving ghosts either.  But there was something about this one.  Maybe the fact that there were rules, and the heroine was breaking them…

[from the back of the book]

Never acknowledge the dead

Never stray far from hallowed ground

Never associate with those who are haunted

Never, ever tempt fate.

My name is Amelia Gray.  I’m a cemetery restorer who sees ghosts.  In order to protect myself from the parasitic nature of the dead, I’ve always held fast to the rules passed down from my father.  But now a haunted police detective has entered my world and everything is changing, including the rules that have always kept me safe.

It started with the discovery of a young woman’s brutalized body in an old Charleston graveyard I’ve been hired to restore.  The clues to the killer–and to his other victims–like in the headstone symbolism that only I can interpret.  Devlin needs my help, but his ghosts shadow his every move, feeding off his warmth, sustaining their presence with his energy.  To warn him would be to invite them into my life.  I’ve vowed to keep my distance, but the pull of his magnetism grows ever stronger even as the symbols lead me closer to the killer and to the gossamer veil that separates this world from the next.

I was reading this book on Monday, while eating lunch in a restaurant by myself, and when the waiter showed up to ask if I was ready for the check, I just stared at him.  The page I was on had me so utterly creeped out and freaked out that I couldn’t even speak. (It was slightly embarrassing.)  As I said, I love that there are rules, and Amelia is studiously living by them, until she can’t resist breaking them.  I love that it’s set in Charleston and other parts of South Carolina (which I visit every year), that it dips into Gullah magic and traditions, and that it’s full of interesting graveyard history.  The imagery is wonderful; the story has me mesmerized and wishing I could pick it up constantly.  I am positively agog to uncover the secrets of these characters!

And I am beyond excited that there are two more books in this series already out!  Must read faster…

Seriously though, I suspect this book will pique your interest, draw you in, creep you out, and get you hooked!

For more book recommendations, swing by Barrie Summy’s blog for a list of Book Review Club participants.  Click on the typewriter above.

 

Posted in book review club on 05/01/2012 11:48 pm | 10 Comments
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