aka Robert Jordan

I picked this series up at the library simply because of who the author is. Robert Jordan has written my most favorite book series of all time, The Wheel of Time. He writes beautiful fiction, and I was really intrigued to see how he wrote early American History.

I was not disappointed. These books were wonderfully written, and sucked me right into the story from the get-go. The first book in the series is The Fallon Blood, which is during the time of the Revolutionary War. The second book, The Fallon Pride, follows a second generation of the Fallon family during the war of 1812. And finally, the last book, The Fallon Legacy, takes the third Fallon generation to the state of Texas, and it’s fight for independance.

One of the things I really, really loved about these books is that though they were fictional, and followed fictional characters, they were historically accurate. We met actual historical figures and learned a lot about the wars from a different point of view. It was incredible, and very obvious that the author did their research on these tumultuous wars.

What surprised me about these books was the frankness with which they were written, to be honest. I realize it’s not fair to compare a fantasy series like Wheel of Time to this historical fiction series, and yet, I found myself doing that just a tad. The Wheel of Time is a really “clean” series, for lack of a better word. There is no sex, no cussing, and the dubious behavior is done by villians. It’s pretty cut and dried good vs. evil, and it’s a series that I could recommend to my mother to read with no reservations (if you know what I mean). With the Fallon series, well, let’s just say that I was a bit shocked when it came to the, uh, escapades of the Fallon family- and others in the books as well.

I really enjoyed this book series. I loved how each book took one of the generations of Fallons and followed them through. I came to love that family and the trials and tribulations that came with Michael when he first immigrated from Ireland to America. I felt like I was cheering him and his success on, as well as the subsequent generations.

Overall, I recommend these books, if for no other reason than they paint a brillain, accurate portrayal of war in the southern states at that time. Just be warned that there are most definitely bedroom scenes in the books, as well as murder, deception, and all kinds of intrigue that makes the story mysterious as well as adventurous. I would definitely read these again.

I picked up and put down this book about six times at the library. I love historical fiction, but I have read very little about the time this particular novel is set in. Napoleon has just been exiled, and the 1814 Congress is trying to decide what to do with the many pieces of Europe.

What really made me put it back down was that I was concerned that it had the potential to be trashy- that was not at all what I was looking for. I knew there would be intrigues and love affairs, but I didn’t want the love affairs to be descriptive. I was not disappointed.

This book was refreshing. It was loaded with intrigue and romance, but none of it was described in any kind of offensive manner. We learned of the many affairs of the people at court, but we never had to witness any of the action.

The one complaint I had about this book was that it took a very long time to get the cast of characters straight. There were so many Princes and Princesses, and it seemed like every single person had the potential to have caused the murder of Princess Tatiana. Who did cause the murder? We join Malcolm and Suzanne Rannoch as they seek to discover exactly that. Along they way they uncover many different secrets and plots, and just how well did Princess Tatiana know Napoleon? Could she have been plotting some kind of treason to restore him to his former glory?

This was a very enjoyable read, and as I dug in to learn more about the author, I was surprised to find that other books have been written about our heroic couple, but they had different names. I will definitely be seeking them out. Ms. Grant is also working on the sequel to Vienna Waltz, and I look forward to seeing what new intrigues await the daring couple.

by Benjamin Alire Saenz

I picked up this book from the library because it looked different from what I’ve been reading lately.  I’ve kind of been alternating between Christian fiction (chick-lit type stuff) and fantasy, and this promised to be neither.  A psychological thriller is not in my normal scope of books I pick up, but when I read the description on the cover, I was intrigued, and thought I would give it a shot.

When we open up the book, we meet two characters, Thomas and Claudia, who appear to be normal people at first, but it doesn’t take us very long at all to find out that Thomas is a well-known author and professor with a very dark secret.  Claudia is the woman that no one knows about- literally.  Raised from the age of 7 by Thomas in the basement of his home, Claudia knows nothing of the world outside of Thomas’s house and garden.  During a dinner together, Claudia snaps and stabs Thomas with a knife, and her eyes are slowly opened as her lawyer and a team of detectives try to put together a case that will free Claudia from a lifetime of slavery and disappointment.  Claudia, of course, is not even the girls name.  We learn that her real name is Gloria, and I quickly became involved in her story, wishing that she could be set free from the mental turmoil her captivity has caused.

While this book was definitely a psychological detective story, it wasn’t the “thriller” it was purported to be.  Which was fine with me.  I found myself heavily invested in the lives of most of the characters, and I really wanted the good guys to win.  The book was beautifully written.  The author is also a poet, and this book shows it.  Other than the language used by the detectives and the lawyer, there was a beautiful flow to the story, and I kept wanting to turn the page.  The conclusion was somewhat satisfying.  Loose ends were tied up, and I felt that Gloria was going to be okay in the end.

This was a nice change of pace for me to read.  I haven’t really read any detective stories in a long time, and this was pleasantly different, while being familiar.  I almost felt as though I was watching an episode of Law & Order as I read the book though.  It was a vaguely familiar story, and I wasn’t really surprised  by the ending at all.  Overall though, it was a good read.  I wouldn’t read it again, simply because I know what will happen, and I think that’s the unfortunate effect of detective stories- once you know the answer, reading the book again loses some of it’s thrill.

I would most definitely pick up another book by Benjamin Alire Saenz.  He writes beautifully, with plenty of detail, yet not too much detail.  I recommend this book with reservations.  Someone who has been in an abusive relationship before may be disturbed by what Gloria went through, and there is also quite a bit of language strewn throughout.  The bedroom activity, while suggested, is not painted with a clear picture at all.  If you’re looking for a gentle psychological thriller, this may be what you’re looking for, as I didn’t find any of the “thriller” content to be there.  It was definitely more of a mystery than anything, so I would call it a psychological mystery instead of a thriller.

By Cornelia Funke

I’ve debated whether I should review these books all together as a trilogy or separate them, and review Inkheart alone, and then Inkspell and Inkdeath together- because that’s how they read.  Inkheart, while it left the reader wondering at the end, could stand alone as a great book.  Inkspell is nothing without either its prequel or its sequel, and if someone tried to read Inkdeath alone, well, they would be extremely lost.

So I’ll just review them as a whole.  Or try, anyway.

I read Inkheart in an afternoon in the dead of winter.   I had actually seen the movie over a year before, and really enjoyed the movie.  Of course, I wondered about the book, but honestly, it was junior fiction- not something I dig into unless I’m reading with the kids for school.  But curiosity got the best of me, and one day it followed me home from the library.

It sucked me right in, and it was a very quick book to read- as I said, I read it in an afternoon.  The story was like nothing I’d ever read or even thought of before.   We meet our heroine, Meggie, and her dad Moe, who definitely seem like the odd pair of people.  Moe repairs books for a living, but both of them love curling up with a good book over and over.  Books are dear friends to Meggie.   As the story progresses, we learn that years ago, Meggie’s mother disappeared while Moe was reading a book aloud- and we discover that Moe is one of only a few people who can read stories to life.  When we reads the written word aloud, characters and beings literally can jump out of the pages of a book- but only at a price- something from our world must swap places and go into the book.   Meggie’s mother is lost somewhere in the world of Inkheart.

A fabulous adventure ensues as one of the main characters that Moe read out all those years ago, Dustfinger, searches him out- desperate to be read back into Inkheart- where his beloved still is.  Of course there are evil men who want to use Moe’s ability for their gain, and we all wonder if Meggie will ever be reunited with her mother if Moe refuses to ever Read again.

I dare not say much more, as I don’t want to spoil the story for anyone.   We meet so many people along the way- charming characters, and not-so-charming.  We learn to hate several of them- and I was literally on the edge of my seat for the last few chapters of Inkheart.  And then I just HAD to get the other two books.

Where Inkheart was a quick read- and definitely in the junior fiction category, I hesitate to place the other two there.  For one, they do not read so quickly.  In fact, I took quite a few days to read both Inkspell and Inkdeath.  There was so much going on, that they were the kind of books that I literally needed to set them down and think about what was going on.  In a way, that was also a means to savor the story, but I did find myself turning back a few pages at times- and re-reading what had just happened to make sure I got it.   Not only did these ones read more slowly, but they also read more darkly.  Let me explain.

When I read Inkheart, if there had been a soundtrack playing during the reading it would have been light, and bright.  Oh, there would have been moments of danger music or some evil tones as the villain Capricorn was on the pages, but for the most part, the soundtrack would have been light and melodic.  For the second two, the tone changed.  The evil, minor-toned music took center stage, and at times, it almost seemed as if the books were just oozing from the darkness.  Cornelia Funke writes the dark side very, very well.  There were even plenty of times where characters seemed to cross over from hero to villain and back again.  One minute you loved Dustfinger, the next minute you hated him.

They were spectacularly written.  Really, which is why I would not categorize Inkspell or Inkdeath as junior fiction- they didn’t read like it at all.  You can literally see the author come into their own, as Inkheart was a wonderful, wonderful story, and then it’s like she totally blossomed and really developed herself as an author coming up with the other two books.

I loved these books, and they will eventually become a part of the home library.  I can’t wait until Abigail is old enough to dive in.  The whole concept of the importance of reading the written word aloud to bring it to life is something that has stuck with me ever since I read these.   Even though I found the second and third books to be more dark than anything, they were still very, very enjoyable, and when I wasn’t reading them, I couldn’t wait to dive back in.

If you are a fan of fantasy, these really are a must-read.  The world of Inkheart is rich and imaginative, and who wouldn’t want to think about themselves being read into the pages of their favorite books?  These books are definitely a favorite.