Review: Servant of a Dark God by John Brown

Servant of a Dark God is John Brown's debut novel. At the end of the novel, I felt very similar to when I read Sanderson's first Mistborn novel. I think this series could go somewhere awesome- but it's going to depend on Brown. First thing first, I got into it pretty easily. As a moody reader, my interest has to be grabbed pretty much right away. And I had a hard time putting it down at the end, so thumbs up to Mr. Brown for that. There are also some creative and unique elements to the story. The system of magic took me awhile to grasp, as well as the political situation. I think that's my biggest issue with the story. Even after reading, I'm not entirely sure I understand everything, though most things have been cleared up. The main character could have been more compelling. I understand what the author was trying to do, but Talen still came off a little flat. His transformation was maybe a bit too sudden after so long resisting it. But the "villain" of the story is definitely one of the better ones out there. Hunger is like an alien consciousness gaining human consciousness. It adds something to his character that is touching, even if it is a little contrived. I am excited to see whether or not Brown can do more with the villains, add a little subtlety to their characters. Recommended to anyone who likes epic fantasy. The uniqueness of Brown's ideas will hold you- it's not the quest-based usual. A little more polish and he could make it an extremely compelling story. Four stars.

I didn't forget!

I didn't forget that I promised to write more- you know, for my two followers, haha!

Anyway, my top ten list for 2009, though I think the current book I'm reading- My Soul to Keep- will be on this list rather high up.

In no particular order-ish:
1. Maggravandias Chronicles by Storm Constantine
My favorite author ever, never been disappointed. The line between good and evil has never been so unsure.
2. Duma Key by Stephen King
One of King's best, maybe THE best.
3. The Fire's Stone by Tanya Huff
One of her earlier attempts at writing, a romantic slash story that is somehow very touching.
4. Hart's Hope by Orson Scott Card
Whoa, dark fantasy by Card? You bet your ass.
5. The Moon's Shadow by Catherine Asaro
Continues the story of Jaibriol III and his struggles as the new emperor of Eube. I want the ending of fifty years down the road, dammit!
6. The Silver Metal Lover by Tanith Lee
Sounds trite, but it made me cry. It haunted me for a few days afterwards, too.
7. Homer's Odyssey by Gwen Cooper
See my review on librarything. Heartlifting story about a blind cat and how it changed a woman's life.
8. The Gathering Storm by Robert Jordan/ Brandon Sanderson
Sanderson breathes life into Jordan's story. I'll be sad when it's over, truly.
9. Watership Down by Richard Adams
Awww, anthropomorphised bunnies! What's better?!
10. The First Law trilogy by Joe Abercrombie
What cynical fun. A little sad, though. Nobody got off well here, fair warning.

Books I did NOT like:
Catcher in the Rye- what the hell was the point?!
Stardust- Not up to Neil Gaiman standards.
The Annunciate- I thought it could've been done better. She has more talent.

Wow!

Another new blog to follow, urban fantasy-like. I just became her 400th follower! Huge congrats to her! Here's her blog, if you're interested:
http://tyngasreviews.blogspot.com/2009/11/300-followers-giveaway.html

It's time to get serious about blogging!

So I'd like to start by showing my blog off to people through their giveaways! (That would be something I'd like to do... eventually.) But I have to have followers and actually write things. Hence this post.

Giveaways I'm looking at right now!
YA Books- new to following this blog- giving away $16 worth at the Book Depository.
http://yavampirebooks.blogspot.com/2009/11/international-giveaway-buy-books-for-16.html
Check it out!

Also found SFF Chat, another blog I'm now following, giving away a choice of the store's books along with a few extra. Check out the bookstore at: http://www.42-scifi-fantasy.com/. The giveaway itself is posted at:
http://blog.42scifi-fantasy.com/

Check 'em out!

Review- The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon

Stephen King's The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon was my sixteenth read of the year, in search of 50. I'm ahead of the game a little bit. So here are my thoughts on this latest book.
I'm a huge SK fan, always have been. His books have this magical quality; you can't get the kind of climax he delivers anywhere else. A lot of his more recent books have been magical realism, which is a more mature direction for him to take, although he has always had a bit of that in his stories. This is probably one of his more grounded works. It's likeable enough, but not really true to King style. It might be a good lead-in for someone new to his style, as he can be an acquired taste for some. I personally think something like Duma Key or Insomnia would be better suited to that, though.
In this particular story, aforementioned girl is nine years old and lost in the forests of west Maine. A short detour for her becomes a nightmare, full of hallucination and terror, and of learning of the things in the world that bite. King manages to make her story believable, making you feel her fight-or-flight instincts that have just woken up. As King describes it, that something that sleeps in the world of malls and airports and city lights comes awake in the forest, a primeval instinct to survive. And a nine-year old girl has to learn to fight even the things that make her shake with fear.
Tom Gordon comes into the picture as a sort of savior for the girl. He's her favorite baseball player, the Red Sox closer, her dream hero, almost. As her journey into the forest takes her to the limits of her health and sanity, she starts to believe he is there with her. She talks to him, listens to his games on her tiny walkman; he's her only connection to the outside world now. He becomes a symbol of all humanity, what she needs desperately to keep her sane.
Probably the most exciting part of this story is that you never know if she'll live or die. The scary thing haunting her, the thing that might be a monster or just a plain predator (what else? It's Stephen King, after all, even if he takes a detour to a more "normal" place than usual.) Will it get her? Will she succumb to the more mundane death of starvation, thirst, and illness? You don't always get a happy ending in his novels: it's one thing to be aware of, and also something to keep you reading. Will her hallucinatory remaining connection to humanity save her? Is he, in some more real way than we imagine, truly there?
I won't answer that, but suffice it to say the little girl is more resourceful than one would imagine. Her story opens up a few good questions, like is it better for one so young to experience hardship or to remain naive and tender? You have no doubt she grows up on her journey, for good or ill, and isn't that the most realistic lesson of all in a story?
King spins a relatively simple story and adds a touch of magic to it. He manages to keep it grounded enough to be believable. It's not his best work by far, but it's a nice little diversion from the mundane life you or I live. Not that I'd wish her journey on anybody, least of all myself.
7/10

Old habits die hard.

So like, today followed an old pattern. One I am not sure how I feel about. Damn prepositions at the end of sentences.
I had nightmares all night. I slept 12 hours. I got up horny, have been horny all day, finally decided to do something about it. Then spent a long time at the edge of orgasm. Unfortunately, I went over. Several times. (And please don't ask me why that's unfortunate; you'll open a whole huge can of worms with that question!) I got the old adrenaline rush, which by golly gosh I admit I've missed a great deal. And I'm totally not going to my afternoon appointment. Or cleaning, or doing paperwork, or any of the trillion things I have to do. Even though earlier I was fantasizing about asking my husband to "punish" me for not doing said paperwork.
Anyway, the adrenaline has me all chilled out, so at least that's something. Never had a high like a masturbation high, I admit it. That's why I was so addicted years ago. I just hope it goes away tomorrow so I can function like a normal human being.

Thoughts on American Idol

OK, so am I the only person who feels like Jasmine is being forced on us? The judges like her because she's commercial- ok, I get that. She's got a great voice and is very pretty. I just don't think she's got that special thing. I would have preferred Mishavonna Henson or Kristen McNamara in her spot.
Also, I think I'm the only person in the world who likes Tatiana. Sure, she's annoying and insane. But her voice! Same thing with Nick/Norman. They weren't chosen because America can't handle that much personality.
I've got some early favorites, but it's still up for grabs for the most part. Let me just say that I was so happy Anoop made it... I was about to get very mad last night!