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Showing posts from June, 2013

Review--Ashes of Honor

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Ashes of Honor by Seanan McGuire My rating: 5 of 5 stars If Ms. McGuire chose to stop writing October Daye stories today, I'd be satisfied. This sixth book brought much of Toby's personal life to a great place, and keep the pages turning with a storyline that revealed much, and didn't leave people's lives dangling. SPOILER ALERT October finally acknowledged what the readers have known all along: She was meant to be with Tybalt, the King of Cats. In addition, her personal life, while still full of danger, has progressed to the point where she has a place and a role in the Fae world. I do look forward to more stories in the October Daye universe, but Ashes of Honor was what we needed to see in terms of Toby's character development and personal growth. View all my reviews

Review--Assassin's Gambit

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Assassin's Gambit by Amy Raby My rating: 4 of 5 stars As the rating indicates, I really enjoyed this debut paranormal/fantasy. The faux Roman setting was different than the usual medieval trappings, the heroine was intelligent, resourceful and not TSTL, and the hero was cunning and brave without being larger-than-life. In fact, as an amputee many sell him short thinking he can no longer be a warrior, but he proves a warrior's greatest asset can be his mind. The other thing I liked about the book was it passed the Bechdel Test ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bechdel_... ) The two assassins, Ista and Vitala, have a complicated relationship that does not have a man at the center of it.  I liked that, a lot. I'm looking forward to the next book in Ms. Raby's Hearts and Thrones series. TRIGGER WARNING--discussion of and scenes of sexual assault may be difficult for some readers. View all my reviews

Father's Day

     “‘Walk the plank’? Wherever did you get that idea, child?”      "Mama told me stories of the buccaneers and the pirates who live in the islands. She said my Papa was the fiercest pirate of all!”      He wasn’t about to deny such a sterling character reference.      “Fiercest of all, am I? Hmmm…it occurs to me that if you are going to join the crew of my ship we need to give you a pirate name.”       She stopped skipping and looked up at him, and one would think he’d just handed her the moon on a platter.      “A pirate name! Oh yes, please, Papa!”      They resumed walking and he thought about it, swinging her valise as he walked. She began skipping again.      “Not that there is anything wrong with Mathilde,” he assured her. “It is a perfectly lovely name for a young lady. It strikes me though as not being piratical. Women who are pirates have names that are simple, but do not detract from their fierceness. Girls like Anne Bonny and Mary Read.”      “There are girl pirates?

Flag Day

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“You underestimate the will of the American people, Doctor,” he poked his finger in the air for emphasis. “When you push us, we push back. Hard. John Bull cannot bully America into surrendering now any more than you could 40 years ago. Have you already forgotten the lesson of Fort McHenry?” He rummaged in his desk and pulled out a tattered newspaper, much folded and creased. “My mother sent this to me with the letters, a newspaper from home. A Mr. Key wrote a poem about the battle, Doctor, titled ‘The Defence of Fort McHenry’. Look here–‘the land of the free and the home of the brave’. That’s America, Charley!" --- SEA CHANGE June 14 is #FlagDay, the day the United States honors our nation's star spangled banner.  If you've got a flag, fly it proudly!

Review--The Speckled Monster

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The Speckled Monster: A Historical Tale of Battling the Smallpox Epidemic by Jennifer Lee Carrell My rating: 4 of 5 stars Some of us are old enough to remember lining up at school for polio vaccine. It's hard to convey what it meant to our parents to know this childhood terror could be prevented with a simple oral dose of medicine (bless you, Dr. Salk). In the 17th & 18th C., smallpox destroyed populations, upset the balance of power in European courts as it killed rulers and heirs, and terrified communities at the first sign of the distinctive pox. Prior to Edward Jenner making the connection between cowpox and smallpox vaccination, two brave individuals, a Boston physician named Zabdiel Boylston and an English aristocrat, Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, risked ridicule, censure and even death threats to spread the idea of inoculation against smallpox. They didn't fully understand the disease, but they did see how people in Turkey, and African slaves, exposed themselves t

Review--The Sword Dancer

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The Sword Dancer by Jeannie Lin My rating: 4 of 5 stars I loved this book. It's for fans of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", Jackie Chan movies, great love stories, and historical romance. I really enjoyed how the characters were drawn, their relationship developing in a thoughtful fashion with true issues and problems, not fake or spurious conflict. It was a real page turner, and I look forward to reading more from Ms. Lin. View all my reviews