This Hit Should Be On Your List

TITLE: Hit List (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, Book 20)

AUTHOR: Laurell K. Hamilton

REVIEWED BY: PrincessLadyBug

BRIEF SUMMARY: “A serial killer is hunting the Pacific Northwest, murdering victims in a gruesome and spectacular way. The local police suspect “monsters” are involved, and have called in Anita Blake and Edward, US Marshals who really know their monsters, to catch the killer.

But some monsters are very real. The Harlequin have been the bogeymen of the vampire world for more than a thousand years; they are a secret so dark that even to speak their name can earn you a death sentence. Now they are here in America, hunting weretigers…and human police.

The Harlequin serve the Mother of All Darkness, the first vampire. She was supposed to be dead, but only her body was destroyed. Now she needs a new one, and she’s decided that Anita Blake’s is the body she wants. Edward thinks the serial killings are a trap to lure Anita closer to the most dangerous vampire they’ve ever hunted. The vampires call Edward “Death,” and Anita the “Executioner,” but Mommy Darkest is coming to kill one and possess the other, and she doesn’t care how many others have to die along the way.” (Summary from the published book)

WHY I PICKED IT UP: I have read ALL of her books. In 2000, my sister had just finished reading the first book in Laurell’s Merry Gentry series, A Kiss Of Shadows. After I devoured it in just over a day, she says, “You know she has a vampire hunter series, right?” And an addiction/obsession was born.

WHY I FINISHED IT: I love all of Laurell’s books but the last few in this series have gotten a bit off track. But with this book, Anita is back in fighting shape. She’s kicking butt and not even bothering to take names. Plus, Edward is along for the very bumpy ride and that suits me just fine. I also love that Anita continues to redefine what a family is. Showing that sometimes your family consists of loved ones you “collect” along the way. Family is about love and not blood.

WHO I’D GIVE IT TO: My sister for sure. Anyone who likes books with a strong female lead character, vampires, weres, & other supernatural beings.

OTHER NOTES AND CONTENT WARNINGS: While there is still violence & adult language, there is far less sexual content than her previous books.

Broke-down "Palace"...

TITLE: The Midnight Palace

AUTHOR: Carlos Ruiz Zafón

REVIEWED BY: Cleggy

BRIEF SUMMARY: "In the heart of Calcutta lurks a dark mystery...

Set in Calcutta in the 1930s, The Midnight Palace begins on a dark night when an English lieutenant fights to save newborn twins Ben and Sheere from an unthinkable threat. Despite monsoon-force rains and terrible danger lurking around every street corner, the young lieutenant manages to get them to safety, but not without losing his own life...

Years later, on the eve of Ben and Sheere's sixteenth birthday, the mysterious threat reenters their lives. This time, it may be impossible to escape. With the help of their brave friends, the twins will have to take a stand against the terror that watches them in the shadows of the night -- and face the most frightening creature in the history of the City of Palaces."  (Summary from the published book)

WHY I PICKED IT UP: I love Carlos Ruiz Zafón.  Absolutely love him.  This is the second book in the "Mist" series, and his fourth English language title.  I had to read it.

WHY I FINISHED IT: I had to see if it ended how I thought it would.

WHO I’D GIVE IT TO: People who like supernatural thrillers, Young Adult fiction, or Carlos Ruiz Zafón.

OTHER NOTES AND CONTENT WARNINGS: I have to admit, of the four English language books by Zafón, this is my least favorite. 

I don't mean that to sound harsh.  This is his fourth English-language title, but it was originally published in Spain in 1994 as his second book.  As such, it seems to suffer from "sophomore slump".  While the characters are interesting, the mystery was easily solved and all the clues were pretty obvious.

Still, it was well-written and is a decent time-waster.  But compared to his later works, it suffers greatly in comparison.

As for content, there is a bit of violence and peril.  Not for young children.

The Neon Graveyard (Sign of the Zodiac, Book 6)

TITLE: The Neon Graveyard (Sign of the Zodiac, Book 6)

AUTHOR: Vicki Pettersson

REVIEWED BY: Princess LadyBug

BRIEF SUMMARY: Joanna Archer is now just another mortal even though she'd been born from an impossible union of Shadow and Light. Being stripped of her powers should have taken her out of the game for good, but both sides were still hunting her. She'd once been a soldier for the Light & the Kairos, the prophesied savior of whichever side she would finally choose. But now she was carrying the unborn child of another former soldier of Light who was being held captive by demon goddess. A goddess with a serious grudge against Joanna.

Ready to risk everything to free her lover from the desolate realm where the price of admission is the last piece of her soul, Joanna joins a rogue group of agents. To free the father of her child and survive long enough to live happily ever after, she'll have to take on not only the demon goddess with homicidal tendencies, but also her former troop leader and her evil father. All of whom are hell bent on her destruction.

WHY I PICKED IT UP: Several reasons. I'm a completist. I read the first five books so there was no way I'd miss this one. Also, the characters feel like old friends and I wanted to find out if they live happily ever after.

WHY I FINISHED IT: Just like the first five books, I was sucked into the story almost before I'd finished the first page.

WHO I’D GIVE IT TO: Anyone who would enjoy a book that puts a unique twist on the usual superhero story. Keep in mind that it is book 6 of a series, so while it is a good, action-packed book you might find yourself a bit lost. Do yourself a favor and start with book 1 - The Scent of Shadows. And if anyone would like me to review other books in the series, leave a comment & let me know.

OTHER NOTES AND CONTENT WARNINGS: There is some violence, language, and sexual situations.

I've got a BONE to pick...

How do you begin to describe Bone?

It's a graphic novel, true. But it's not your typical superhero or "comic" novel. There is comedy, and there are heroes, but there is so much more. "Epic" doesn't even begin to describe it. Think Lord of the Rings meets Star Wars and The Marx Brothers and you might be close. But still...

Bone was originally published over 13 years. The library's copy is the "One Volume Edition", collecting all 55 issues into one volume. It's big, it's heavy, and I wouldn't read it any other way.

Jeff Smith's story centers around three cousins: Phoney Bone (the greedy, conceited one), Smiley Bone (the fun-loving, goofy one), and Fone Bone (our hero), who become lost in The Valley after they are run out of Boneville following one of Phoney's disastrous schemes. While trying to find each other (and the way home), they meet up with a wide cast of characters including the mysterious Thorn, her enigmatic grandmother, and a smoke ring-blowing red dragon who may or may not be a figment of Fone Bone's imagination.

As they make their way through The Valley, they encounter other humans and bizarre creatures who are threatened by the Lord of the Locusts, a dark and menacing figure from the past. Fone Bone is soon drawn into the events around him and finds himself on a hero's journey to help save the world.

Do the cousins find each other again? Can they avoid the Rat-creatures and help save The Valley from an ancient evil? What will happen to Thorn and her grandmother? And what about that red dragon?

Although its size (1300 pages! -- but believe me, they go fast) and some content might frighten the younger kids, Bone is certainly suitable for anyone that could handle, say Star Wars III: Revenge of the Sith, the Harry Potter movies or The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

I cannot recommend this book highly enough. Even if you don't care for "comic books", I encourage you to give it a try. If you like fantasy (Tolkien, Harry Potter, the Narnia series, etc.), then you are definitely in for a treat.

(If you like this book, there is also a prequel called Rose, but I recommend you read Bone first, lest a very important plot point be spoiled for you.)

A tangled web of "Mist"-ery...

The Prince of Mist was actually Carlos Ruiz Zafón's first book, originally published in Spain in 1993. Now, seventeen years later, it is finally available in an English translation by Lucia Graves, and it was well worth the wait. I've loved all of his adult fiction books, and this book has the same haunting quality that they did, possibly due to the fact that Graves translated those as well. Or perhaps it's just because Carlos is such a good writer.

Now, don't let the fact that was originally published in another language put you off. So were the Inkheart books. The Prince of Mist is a wonderful, riveting tale that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last page.

In 1943, with Spain in the midst of World War II, watchmaker Maximilian Carver moves his family from the capital to a seaside village where he has recently bought a home. From the minute they arrive, strange and otherwordly things begin occurring. Soon, the Carvers -- especially 13-year-old Max and his 15-year-old sister Alicia -- find themselves caught up in a dangerous battle with the Prince of Mist, a supernatural entity who has been bargaining for souls for decades, and who just might be the Devil himself.

As the story unfolds, Max and Alicia must uncover the secret of the former inhabitants of their home, the truth about their new friend Roland and his grandfather, and find out just what happened to the Orpheus, a ship that sank in the harbor during a terrible storm a quarter-century ago -- and how it all ties together and ultimately leads back to the mysterious Prince.

Part mystery, part romance, part fantasy, and part gothic horror tale, I cannot recommend The Prince of Mist highly enough. Ruiz Zafón is a masterful storyteller, putting you right into the action, and creating characters that you will come to love and care about. Although the book contains mild language and mature themes, it is certainly suitable for anyone age 12 and up.


NOTE: This is book one in the "Mist" trilogy.  Book two, The Midnight Palace, was just released on May 31, 2011.  A review is forthcoming as soon as I finish it.