Magical Action; Humorous Story
357213
The Martian, the film and the audible book, are just plain fun. I listened to the book first and loved the way it picked up speed right to its breathless ending. The author's imagery proves beautifully vivid. It was easy to place myself in the action and go for a ride in the rover. The visual effects in the film version stayed true to the story. A majestic mars, coupled with an expansive score,  provide the perfect backdrop for a hapless human with "in-the-nick-of-time" survival brilliance to manage the impossible while retaining a wry sense of humor. And the disco songs? You never know when disco can save a life.
4693056
I was immediately drawn into this story by the characters and the author's sense of humor, which definitely shines through the text. The dynamic between Schvarts's "band of bastards" is captivating and fun, and their dialogue is entertaining and authentic throughout.

This felt very much like a classic fantasy novel with the characters having to go out on an epic journey when things in their world start to go terribly awry. There are definitely elements that are reminiscent of Tolkien, yet at the same time, the author's wit and unique writing style make this the perfect read for a modern audience.

The world-building is phenomenal. The best part about a fantasy novel where you get to travel through the world alongside the characters is that you get to see so much of it. It's fascinating to visualize the fantastical geographical elements that Schvarts incorporates in the story as well as the more real and recognizable ones. You get a world that is a beautiful balance of magical and believable.

I also really enjoyed the magic system. It has very clear limitations, which is something I very much appreciate. I enjoy fantasy novels that have magical elements, but where the characters still have to struggle to overcome the roadblocks standing in their way instead of having conflicts easily resolved by magic. And Schvarts does a brilliant job of balancing this.

This is also one of those books where the more you think about it, the more you appreciate it. I started this review with a four-star rating, but it's transformed into a five-star as I've really been thinking through how well-done the various elements of this story really are. Almost like magic.

This is a new series that is wildly entertaining, sure to be a hit with fans of both YA and adult fantasy novels, and simply isn't to be missed.
4046827
I really enjoyed the storyline in this book along with the supporting characters. You get drawn into the different realms and creatures you meet along the way. It's a great piece with technical language as well as wonderful humorous moments that bind the characters together. I strongly suggest reading this!
3850927
What a fun, creative, inventive and magical story. Brian Harris has a superb sense of humor with excellent wit and charm in conveying a story that deals with the human condition. I cant wait to read the next in his series!!
1015942
And magical it is. I loved the story.  The way the plot unfolded was very clever and carefully plotted.  The characters were charming, well thought out, full of quirks and fun, and it was very easy to be transported into that magical kingdom.  The build up of tension with the sometimes not so subtle antics of the tokoloshes, the descriptions of the variations in the African bush, the houses and magic potions, the school boys faced with drama and adversity, all added up to a really wonderful read.  I sincerely hope there is a sequel in the making.
1526959
I loved this face-paced fantasy! It's full of action and adventure, with clever plot twists and spunky characters that leap off the page. A delightful read!
1886738
This is a terribly amusing story, mostly narrated by the Djinni Bartimaeus who thinks quite highly of himself and his abilities, despite the fact that he is constantly getting caught up in different scrapes. He's a delightfully sarcastic demon and it makes for pretty entertaining reading. A few times some of the "humorous situations" seem a bit forced, but overall it's a very enjoyable read. I was wary because Boy Wizards in London are all the rage these days, but this story stands on its own, and bears almost no resemblance to Mr. Harry Potter's adventures. *smile* Set in a modern day London where wizards run the government it's an interesting premise.
1725424
I loved this book! A lot of my favorite books have really strong female characters, and Kyra fits the bill. She's only sixteen, but she's a Master of Potions, and knows how to fight better than most men. After an unsuccessful assassination attempt on the princess, she's been on the run until she can find the princess again for a second try. Along the way, she manages to acquire a piglet named Rosie who's supposed to help track the princess, and a companion named Fred who, along with being very handsome, also knows how to cook and make Kyra laugh. It's tough to review this one without spoilers so I'll give you a list of what I loved below.

What I Loved

1. Kyra: She's a badass. She's only sixteen, but knows hand to hand combat, how to precisely measure potions to make someone tell the truth without killing them, and has utter loyalty to her kingdom and her friends.

2. Rosie: Rosie is a tiny piglet that helps Kyra track the princess. She's adorable, carries a little basket around her neck and is best friends with a giant dog. What's not to love?

3. The world: Potions in the kingdom of Mohr can heal, change your appearance, put someone to sleep, turn them into wood or kill someone. There are witches and magical creatures, gypsies and magical jewelery. It all felt really effortless and I never questioned why something worked or the rules because I was completely immersed in it.

4. The plot: I had to give a somewhat abbreviated review because I wanted to avoid spoilers. The plot keeps you guessing till the end and there are little twists and turns throughout. I loved not know what the full story was until the end.

5. The humor: The characters are like reading about a good friend. They joke around, have witty comebacks and you generally enjoy getting to know them. The light-hearted dialogue is central to the book.

If you're looking for a fun, light-hearted fantasy read, I can't recommend this enough. It's entertaining and will keep you guessing until the end.

Read this review and more over at [...]
3438260
This is a great adventure story in the line of the best magical and delightful tales (The Phantom Tollbooth, the Lemony Snicket stories, etc.). Kids would love it, but it's one of those stories that reveals more with time...the story will grow with re-reading!

Especial loves:

*tips'o'the hat to mythmakers like Tolkein, Lewis Carroll, Jonathan Swift, G.K. Chesterton, and more.

* I love an adventure story (a pretty simple and clear storyline: hero goes on a quest, at bottom line) that is not simplisticly told. The story is delightful in its telling as well as for it's own merits.

*vocabulary! I don't teach anymore, but as a teacher I would have loved the prospect of vocabulary lists from the story: *meddlesome* *haberdasher* and *pandemonium*. Wordplay is also rampant with "the Just Deserts" and other literary hijinks.

*Characters that are both familiar to fiction in this genre and unique to this story. The characters feel true to the world in which they are set.

*Narration. It isn't fashionable to like narration, but as with Kate DiCamillo's 'A Tale of Despereaux', here it works admirably and the Narrator adds a sense of fun and harks to the adventure-legend sensibility.

*Illustrations. The author was able to illustrate the small chapter heading sketches, and I love the slight illumination this gives to the tale.
2386828
Upon A. Time is a Bard who gets caught on a stolen pig. He has to persuade the two city guards to let him go rather than put him in jail. He distracts them with an amusing tale about Lavender, a most Persnickety Princess.

Lavender lives in a purple castle with a resident witch to help ward off undesirable suitors. Princess Lavender has waited at her window a long time for the perfect Prince to rescue her. Finally Hugo the Happening, a handsome Prince who meets her criteria shows up. But instead of responding to her he rides off to rescue her sister, Petunia, who is carried away from the castle by a fierce dragon.  Lavender determines to put herself in need of rescue and ends up in one silly predicament after another. But every time she is in a fix, Hugo's companion, Dave, who she believes is his squire, comes to her rescue instead of Hugo.

The story reads easily and is delightfully entertaining with a few twists and surprises. The descriptions include fun characters, a few creatures and settings fitting to a fairytale castle and surrounding forest, including Mount Chipmunk, which Lavender renamed Mountain of Horribleness.  Upon plays a fine trickster. I think this story could be enjoyed by middle graders as well as younger. It will be fun for parents to read to their children too. I appreciated the light break from my usual reading of romances and thrillers.

I received this ebook for review as part of Novel Publicity Book Tour.
3685351
I was sent this book in exchange for an honest review.
Aurora was looking for a way out of her everyday life.  Mistreated by those whom she considered her family, and often bullied at school, 16 year old Aurora was looking to runaway. Until, one night she was kidnapped, and transported to a magical world of mage, fae, pegasus', and a Queen willing to do anything to rule all seven kingdoms.
The author is able to create a detailed world in which her characters live. The characters were fun and their interactions comical, and each under go a large amount of character development as the story progresses. Aurora starts the book unsure of her self, and never feels like she fits in. As the story unfolds, Aurora becomes more confident, starts trusting those around her, and is eventually able to make friends. Speaking of characters, I cannot fail to mention the mysterious mage, the "Black wolf" aka Rafe. I just love this character, and need more of him in my life.
The only con, I can think of is the ending seemed a bit rushed, while other parts seem to be be a bit slow. Overall, I enjoyed the book, and I cannot wait to get my hands on book two, and see where Aurora, and her friends will end up next. The Last of the Firedrakes, is a quick, magical read that fans of YA fantasy will enjoy.
3235772
Shrinking Forward is an action-packed fantasy in which good battles the forces of evil.  An evil wizard, Edgar, has destroyed the enchanted Faerie Kingdom of Fairmont Island.  He is searching for a magical book which has the power to make him immortal.  He believes the inhabitants of Fairmont Island know the where-abouts of this book.  He is determined to torture and kill the faeries until the location of the book is revealed.

Meanwhile, in the "human world," fifteen-year-old Samantha and her friend Catharine decide to explore an old abandoned house.  They inadvertantly find themselves lured into the magical world of the faeries where they face great danger and possible death.

Shrinking Forward is an imaginative story filled with magical creatures and supernatural events.  There are wizards, faeries, and terrifying beasts.  In addition, the main characters find themselves turned into different animals (which get increasingly smaller - hence the title, "Shrinking Forward").  Every chapter has a new challenge which keeps the reader turning the pages, wondering what's next.

Author, Nathalie LeBlanc has produced an excellent tale that weaves in an important message:  Even if you are small, you can do big things.  Readers ages ten and older, who enjoy fantasy stories, will enjoy reading this first book of the three-part Magic Coat Series.
2737688
This is a truly entertaining action-adventure fantasy story.
I enjoyed the diverse and complex characters.
The plot is driven with the high-pace adventures and mishaps of the main character Eliza. Leaping from reality into multiple magical worlds, Eliza finds herself torn between helping her friends and fulfilling her destiny as a descendant of Pandora.
I found myself easily wrapped up in this story.
However, there are a fair number of grammatical errors: missing words, wrong words, typos. So much so that they broke up my reading causing me to pause and try to workout what I had just read.
Had it not been for these errors, I would've given the book a higher rating.
So do I recommend this book? Yes. But I'd add a cautionary warning that the reading is choppy in places.
Readers of supernatural, mythic, and paranormal fantasy are likely to enjoy this book.
2101639
Frogkisser! by Garth Nix is a fun tale full of re-imagined versions of your typical fairy-tale happenings such as princesses stuck with evil step-parents (or in this case, step-step-parents), princes turned to frogs, talking dogs, and even an appearance by Snow White and the Seven Dwarves though not in the way you might expect.

The action in this humorous tale kicks off quite early, and the pace ticks along nicely for the rest of the story. I thought the plot was well realized with plenty of depth to make the world feel immersive. It sucked me right in and I could see Mr Nixs world unfolding clearly in my mind.

Princess Anyas (no, not that one) life is in immediate danger thanks to evil machinations of her step-step-father who wants to rule the kingdom through wicked sorcery. Her sister and heir to the throne is easily distracted by the songs of a handsome prince, but Anya is made of stronger stuff.

The evil sorcerer, her step-step-father plans to kill her, so Anya is forced to flee the home she knows and loves with only a stalwart talking dog, Ardent, and a frog (transformed prince) for company. This begins her quest where shell stumble upon a giant, a good wizard, and various other fairy-tale creatures along with an ever increasing number of quests all in order to save the her sister and the citizens of the land.

Plenty of good character growth along the way, and full of twists and turns that kept me engrossed to the end. As I read I found myself picturing this as a book that could be easily adapted as a movie and was rather pleased to find out its going to be. Picked up by Fox to be a live action + CG animated movie, one Ill be happy to see once it hits the cinemas. It has the hallmarks of being an instant classic.
4963668
Having just finished The Story Sisters by Alice Hoffman before reading this, I was happy with the action and fully developed fantasy aspect of Jim's book.  His characters are enchanting.  I feel I know them more thoroughly than I ever knew the sisters of the previously mentioned book. In fact, if Jim is so inclined I want to read the rest of this series, hoping that it includes many flashbacks to Brazil.  As I'm looking at this review I see 5 stars at the top of my Kindle. Yet when it's on Amazon it only says I gave 3 stars. This an awesome read.
2615283
An exciting mix of fantasy and humour. Pepper is a kindhearted spunky character with a big imagination, which often gets her into trouble. She has her hands full caring for two energetic children, but that turns out to be the least of her worries. The storyline is very exciting and the characters are well-developed and endearing. I had trouble putting the book down. It's certainly one of the best stories I've read :)
3808851
The cover and blurb perked my curiosity on this one. I didn't read the first book in the series, but that didn't prove to be a problem. This can be read as a stand alone.

I had a pretty open mind when starting this story, which is important. Magic and all the creatures usually seen in a fantasy world are a given, and they are mentioned and appear as if they are as common as the flick of a wrist. That said, this book is placed in our normal, modern day world.

The first pages are simply a treat to read; the way the elf is introduced-and his magic-is poetic and beautiful. The introduction to his thoughts and character immediately drew me in, making me like him before the plot even began.

The plot itself held a nice, even pace. There's never a dull moment, and action is nicely mixed with quieter but still tense moments. Even the slower scenes had enough mystery and flair to keep them from dragging. Part of this has to do with the side characters. They maintain their own secrets and hints of dangerous sides, which kept me on my toes guessing at what was really going on or happening.

That said, this is a story which has an anime feeling. The main character is snarky and his actions a bit spontaneous. There are moments where the character speaks directly with the reader, which is a style I'm not necessarily fond of but won't hold it against the book either. There's humor mixed in with the tense scenes, keeping the story refreshing and never too dark or bogged down. It's definitely entertaining and makes for an easy read.

Summed up, this is a short, fun read which is packed full of personality, magic, danger and humorous snark. I only wish it would have been a little longer because I really would have enjoyed getting to know this fey better.

I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review.