Beauty's Daughter

Beauty's Daughter: The Story of Hermione and Helen of Troy
by Carolyn Meyer
352 pages

What is it like to be the daughter of the most beautiful woman in the world?

Hermione knows . . . her mother is Helen of Troy, the famed beauty of Greek myth. Helen is not only beautiful but also impulsive, and when she falls in love with charming Prince Paris, she runs off with him to Troy, abandoning her distraught daughter. Determined to reclaim their enchanting queen, the Greek army sails for Troy. Hermione stows away in one of the thousand ships in the fleet and witnesses the start of the legendary Trojan War.
     In the rough Greek encampment outside the walls of Troy, Hermione’s life is far from that of a pampered princess. Meanwhile, her mother basks in luxury in the royal palace inside the city. Hermione desperately wishes for the gods and goddesses to intervene and end the brutal war—and to bring her love. Will she end up with the handsome archer Orestes, or the formidable Pyrrhus, leader of a tribe of fierce warriors? And will she ever forgive her mother for bringing such chaos to her life and the lives of so many others?

This story was a little flat. I was amazed at how they took the 10 years in Troy and summed it up in a few sentences. So we don't really see Hermione grow while in the Spartan camp - she goes from child to woman, and somehow has developed feelings for her cousin that we never see. Of course it goes over all of the main points of Troy (Achilles, Petrocles, Ajax, etc.)  but just lumps them in at one end. It's not a bad story, and a unique look at the Trojan War, but I didn't get any solid feelings on the main character - I didn't hate her, but I didn't really care for her either. 

Deception's Pawn

Deception's Pawn by Esther M. Friesner
386 pages

Maeve, princess of Connacht, seems to have won her freedom. Her father, the High King, is finally allowing her to explore the world beyond his castle. But Maeve soon discovers that being the High King's daughter doesn't protect her from bullying or the attention of unwelcome suitors.

Struggling to navigate a new court, she must discourage the advances of her father's rival, who is vying with her host's son for her hand in marriage. Maeve is a pawn trapped between these two boys. Her bold defiance will bring her to the brink of disaster, but her clever gamble may also lead to her independence. Though she faces danger and intrigue, Maeve will also discover what kind of person-and queen-she's destined to become.

I didn't enjoy this as some of Esther Friesner's other Princess of Myth stories. This one, as one reviewer put it, was basically "Mean Girls of the Iron Age" - Maeve is placed in another household and her other female companions can be quite nasty. I would have preferred some serious sword slinging to mud flinging. 

The Map: A Jackaby Story

The Map: A Jackaby Story (Jackaby #1.5)

by William Ritter
57 pages
 
Abigail and Jackaby must tame an enormous (and carnivorous) rabbit, defend a castle, and master a dirigible if they want to find the treasure and get back to New Fiddleham alive.

Abigail hopes that her birthday will slip by unnoticed and uncelebrated, but her employer, detective of the supernatural R. F. Jackaby, has other plans. Using magical party crackers that teleport the pair to unknown destinations in time and space and a cryptic map that may lead to a forgotten treasure, Jackaby intends to give Abigail what he considers to be the best gift of all--adventure.

This e-novella came out as a teaser/bridger for those who are waiting for Beastly Bones to be published. Although I prefer to hang out with Jacakby and Abigail for longer than 100 pages, this was a great "filler" while waiting for Beastly Bones. Miss Rook would prefer that Jackaby forget her birthday, but what he has in mind takes them on a while treasure seeking quest across England and even goblin territories based on the song Whisky in the Jar. If you enjoy time with these characters, this madcap mini adventure won't leave you wanting. 

Beastly Bones (Jackaby #2)

Beastly Bones by William Ritter
304 pages
Expected publication Sep 22 2015***


“I’ve found very little about private detective R. F. Jackaby to be standard in the time I’ve known him. Working as his assistant tends to call for a somewhat flexible relationship with reality.”

In 1892, New Fiddleham, New England, things are never quite what they seem, especially when Abigail Rook and her eccentric employer R. F. Jackaby are called upon to investigate the supernatural.

First, a vicious species of shape-shifters disguise themselves as a litter of kittens, and a day later, their owner is found murdered with a single mysterious puncture wound. Then in nearby Gad’s Valley, now home to the exiled New Fiddleham police detective Charlie Cane, dinosaur bones from a recent dig mysteriously go missing, and an unidentifiable beast starts attacking animals and people, leaving their mangled bodies behind. Charlie calls on Abigail for help, and soon Abigail and Jackaby are on the hunt for a thief, a monster, and a murderer.

If (like me) you couldn't get enough of R.F. Jackaby, here he is again with his stalwart assistant, Abigail Rook, defending New England from the creatures of the paranormal world. 

The dialogue is still full of whimsy Brittishisms, and snappy comebacks between Abigail and her employer. The book is still filled with mythical creatures (some of which I've heard of, and some I'm not sure that William Ritter didn't entirely make up). We are introduced to a host of new characters: a massive, gruff and friendly hunter; a snappy female reporter; 2 bickering scientists: one a younger, charismatic fellow and the other an older, austere, and rather pompous gentleman; plus the locals of a small town, farming community. The plot was a bit slow and felt forced, and some of the supernatural elements left me with more questions than answers. 

The worst part is that now I have to wait another year for the 3rd installment. :-(

***This review based on an uncorrected proof sent out by the publisher for prepublication review.

Ink and Bone

Ink and Bone (The Great Library #1)
by Rachel Caine
352 Pages

Rachel Caine rewrites history, creating a dangerous world where the Great Library of Alexandria has survived the test of time.…
 
Ruthless and supremely powerful, the Great Library is now a presence in every major city, governing the flow of knowledge to the masses. Alchemy allows the Library to deliver the content of the greatest works of history instantly—but the personal ownership of books is expressly forbidden.
 
Jess Brightwell believes in the value of the Library, but the majority of his knowledge comes from illegal books obtained by his family, who are involved in the thriving black market. Jess has been sent to be his family’s spy, but his loyalties are tested in the final months of his training to enter the Library’s service.
 
When he inadvertently commits heresy by creating a device that could change the world, Jess discovers that those who control the Great Library believe that knowledge is more valuable than any human life—and soon both heretics and books will burn.…

Black market book buyers, alchemy, alternate history, boarding school, rivalries, murder, government secrets... whew. Of course I picked it up because the premise was an alternate history where the Great Library of Alexandria survived. But the Library Controls. All. Information. Nobody is really even allowed to own books or a written word. Citizens receive tablets, and the library sends them a book, but when the citizen is done with the book their tablet is erased. No owning anything. Even newspapers don't stay around, so there's no written history. Our protagonist is sent to Alexandria in a scholarly competition among 30 kids to see who can get the 8 open spots in the library. So there are rivalries as in any competition, a very hard to please teacher, a rather uncaring government entity, and a dangerous assignment that proves which the Great Library of Alexandria values most: lives or words. 

I had high expectations of this book and it almost lived up to them. The beginning was rather slow, and didn't get interesting until we got to school. And didn't get exciting until their first real assignment. And to be honest, I thought some of the minor characters were more interesting than our protagonist. Despite this I still stayed up too late one night desperately reading, and wishing for the sequel as soon as I closed the book. 

Vanishing Witch

The Vanishing Witch by Karen Maitland
512 pages

The reign of Richard II is troubled, the poor are about to become poorer still and landowners are lining their pockets. It's a case of every man for himself, whatever his status or wealth. But in a world where nothing can be taken at face value, who can you trust? The dour wool merchant? His impulsive son? The stepdaughter with the hypnotic eyes? Or the raven-haired widow clutching her necklace of bloodstones? And when people start dying unnatural deaths and the peasants decide it's time to fight back, it's all too easy to spy witchcraft at every turn.

Karen Maitland has the talent to pluck you from your comfy armchair and plop you right into the middle ages with such detail you can almost smell the tanner's vats (although thankfully you can't). While I didn't enjoy this one as much as The Owl Killers or Company of Liars, it still kept me reading. I like books that have characters who are flawed - books with "perfect" characters tend to be boring. There are only a few in here that I would actually root for, but most who met their end, although they could be awful people, didn't deserve such a fate. And there were a few ARC reveals that I saw coming - but a major one I totally missed. All in all a very long book but still enjoyable, even if you've predicted the ending. 

Reawakened

Reawakened by Colleen Houck 400 pages
Expected publication August 11th 2015

Lilliana Young, a 17 year old New Yorker from a wealthy family, likes to study people. Unfortunately, neither of her parents find this a suitable hobby for their daughter. While studying the crowds at the Metropolitan Museum of Art one morning, Lilliana stumbles across a tan, muscular, barefoot and bare-chested bald young man wearing a pleated skirt, who's actions and speech make Lily think he wandered away from a hospital where he was being treated for mental illness. Except that he's actually a resurrected Egyptian prince with godlike powers and a childlike bewilderness at the sights and sounds of the Big Apple. And when Lily said she'd help him find his brothers she had no idea that she would soon be taken to Egypt searching through tombs and pyramids, escaping zombie crocodiles and giant worms, flying on gigantic birds-that-are-actually-princes, in attempt to help her Egyptian prince complete a ceremony that will save mankind for another thousand years.

Well I went into it not expecting much. I thought I might be entertained a bit, maybe slosh through some sloppy insta-love, possibly love triangle stuff that is in way too many teen books nowadays. Maybe a smart heroine who turns to goo because a guy takes of his shirt. I am very happy to report that instead, I loved this book. There's no insta-love: just a slow mutual respect and understanding (you know, more like real life). There's no teen love triangle (one girl, three hot Egyptian princes, who all follow the bro code). Amon, not realizing he was transported to Manhattan or how much has changed in the world in the last thousand years, is really adorable as he tries to figure out New York City based on his ancient Egypt understanding (to a taxi he shouts "Stop golden chariot!"). Lily is a strong character who doesn't swoon just because there's a hot guy around. She makes choices: some slow and with careful thought, and some on impulse. This story has humor, adventure, and a tender romance that just might make you sniff a little at the end... until you realize YES! there will be a sequel.