Inkheart by Cornelia Funke
Published by Scholastic US in 2005

4/5

One cruel night, Meggie's father reads aloud from a book called INKHEART-- and an evil ruler escapes the boundaries of fiction and lands in their living room. Suddenly, Meggie is smack in the middle of the kind of adventure she has only read about in books. Meggie must learn to harness the magic that has conjured this nightmare. For only she can change the course of the story that has changed her life forever. This is INKHEART--a timeless tale about books, about imagination, about life. Dare to read it aloud.
A book about books, what better literature to ask for! When you read a book, you get to know the characters and you get to interact with them, and some people go as far as having characters that they want to meet. Well, in this book, that is a distinct possibility! I wish I had not waited so long to read this book, because it was really good and I cannot wait to read the sequel (and see the movie).

When I first started this book, I was worried because it was not working well for me and I was scared that I was so excited and the book was going to disappoint me. Once I got going in it, though, I got engaged and was soon quite enjoying the experience. When books are your thing, it is fun to read books where books are a central theme. You read quotes and try and figure out what book they are from, you visit with other favourite characters from other books, it is even more fun than reading normally is.

Meggie is a cute and brave kid. Her mother left when she was very small, and it has been just her and her father ever since. She has learned how to raise herself, and you watch her and her father interact and you cannot help wondering which one the parent is. She takes care of her father quite well. Then, one night her father's past returns to haunt him, and suddenly the relatively simple life that Meggie has enjoyed with her father and their books is turned upside down.

This was a very enjoyable read, but hard to talk about without giving too much away. I liked figuring things out as I went along, so I do not want to destroy that for others. I will just say that for those that love books, this is the book for you!



Kailana's Review

I had seen the four-in-one book that this was in for quite some time, but had never bought it. The other day, though, after a bad day, I decided I was going to buy myself a book. And, I decided, why not slurge and get 4 books for the price of one. So, I did.

From Amazon:

For some, coming to grips with a challenge means passing another milestone along the road to maturity. For others, it's a matter of life and death. For Findabhair (pronounced "finn-ah-veer") and Gwen, the joint heroines of 0. R. Melling's The Hunter's Moon, however, the challenges come from all directions. Fantasy-loving Findabhair dares to sleep on sacred Irish ground and is stolen by the King of the Fairies. Gwen, her more practical Canadian cousin, sets out to rescue her with the help of a leprechaun in a battered Triumph and a businessman with red hair and freckles. What makes this story sing is the ease with which Melling alternates between fantasy and reality, making her readers, like her characters, "Comfortable with both." Add generous helpings of suspense, romance, humour, and atmosphere you could cut with a knife, and the result is a thoroughly enjoyable yam by an author with impressive command of her material, writing within the tradition of Irish folklore and legend


This is a modern fairy tale. The two girls live in what could very easily be this year, but they have always dreamed of something more. One summer they decide that they are going to trek across Ireland, where Findabhair lives, and track down the portal to the faery world. The two girls set out to find something that they are not sure exists, and along the way find adventures of their own. On a night that they decide to sleep in sacred Irish ground, Findabhair is taken from her cousin, Gwen. Now, for Gwen, it is not about finding the doorway to the faery realm, it is about finding her cousin.

Most of the story is told about Gwen. It is she that sees the things that make up the story. Finn appears from time to time, but it is Gwen that has the most to do in this novel. She makes friends along the way, and the story plays with common ideas that have been represented about the magic folk. Both of the cousins are readable, and not the common damsels in distress that stories normally portray. There is a nice blending of females and males in this book that makes it readable. It could be something that attracts both sexes to it.

When you look at it, it is not a very long piece of work, but a lot happens in a very short time. There is never really a dull moment, as the fairy king is often playing tricks on Gwen, and you never know when it is going to happen next. Once again, I must point out to all the fantasy by-standers, that there is even romance in this book, although I don't think it is necessary, it might attract you to reading this!

I enjoyed this book. Hopefully I will read the next one soon, but I am not so great at reading trilogies and things one right after the other.

4/5





Mailyn's Review

I also enjoyed this book a lot but found that, towards the end, the story tended to stall a bit and stray from the constant fast pace it had up to then. From the very begining I liked the main character of Gwen and her cousin. Like Kailana, I enjoyed that these weren't two TSTL heroines that waited around to be rescued. I especially liked Gwen for this and for her courage to go after her cousin, even when it was clear that she did not want to be rescued.

I can't get into it so as not to give away the ending but I found the last banquet turn a bit into a fantasy movie cliche. Nonetheless the figthing after that was handled pretty well and the ending, although again a bit of a cliche, will leave most people happy.

All in all a nice little read, fast paced and a great heroine make this a 4 out of 5 for me as well.

I can't wait to get into the follow up, The Summer King.





Dance Chica's Review

I originally bought this based on Kailana's recommendation and I'm glad I did. Melling is a great storyteller! I was completely caught up in the world of Faerie. Her descriptions were sweeping and flowing; infused with myth and legend. Sometimes they were a bit much, but overall I enjoyed them. She created a great cast of characters. One of the best parts for me was the heroine. Gwen was a great heroine that grows so much as a character. When we first meet her, she’s the sensible one who follows after her energetic cousin, but as the story progresses, she learns to do things on her own. This leads to her discovering her own strengths and independence. She was resourceful too, and while she did make mistakes, she learned from them. I really liked her fiery personality. There’s romance in this too which I found compelling and the overall story was imaginative. If you like faerie tales with a bit of magic, romance and suspense, you’ll probably like this. Also, if you liked Holly Black’s Tithe, I think you’ll find this enjoyable. Melling’s world is a bit more detailed than Black’s and the language a bit more flowery, but it's still compelling, and I found Melling’s characters more likeable than Black's. There’s a sequel to this out titled, The Summer King. I’m really looking forward to more adventures in Faerie. 4.5 out 5.

War for the Oaks by Emma Bull: 4.5/5
first published in 2001

War for the Oaks is a classic of the urban fantasy genre and for good reason: it's one of the best ever written. From Amazon:

Emma Bull's debut novel, War for the Oaks, placed her in the top tier of urban fantasists and established a new subgenre. Unlike most of the rock & rollin' fantasies that have ripped off Ms. Bull's concept, War for the Oaks is well worth reading. Intelligent and skillfully written, with sharply drawn, sympathetic characters, War for the Oaks is about love and loyalty, life and death, and creativity and sacrifice.

Eddi McCandry has just left her boyfriend and their band when she finds herself running through the Minneapolis night, pursued by a sinister man and a huge, terrifying dog. The two creatures are one and the same: a phouka, a faerie being who has chosen Eddi to be a mortal pawn in the age-old war between the Seelie and Unseelie Courts. Eddi isn't interested--but she doesn't have a choice. Now she struggles to build a new life and new band when she might not even survive till the first rehearsal.

The way Mrs. Bull portrays Minneapolis seems all too real even if the place is crawling with Fey. Her writing is solid and at her best when the phouka is trying Eddi's nerves. In fact, the interaction between the characters of Eddi and here friends, fey and mortal, are what ultimately sell the book for me. Sure, the Fey here act just as I like them, cruel and self-serving, but I found myself more immersed in the novel when the two main characters were simply talking rather than when the actual war was taking place. Thankfully there is little figthing and most of the novel is spend with Eddi trying to get used to the idea that she is now caught in the middle of the Fae wars, with her trying to put a band together and having to deal with the ever present, always infuriating phouka. Their banter is witty and I found myself laughing out loud more times than I could count.

On the downside the end does seem kind of soap-opera like and, IMO, doesn't go well with the rest of the novel but everything else fits so well it hardly matters. I guess I was expecting a bit more omph from an actual war and the final "duel" felt a tad too cheesy. Nonetheless I highly recommend this book and I daresay it's a good way for romance lovers to break into the fantasy genre.

If you, like myself, are not an 80's fan don't think that will stop you from loving this book. I simply skipped or skimmed pop culture references [mostly songs] and dressed the characters in my head rather than go by what the book described. If you haven't read it yet I suggest you march down to your local library or your closet Barnes & Nobles and get your hands on this classic now. You won't regret it.

A solid 4.5 out of 5!

Hey everybody!


So today, is THE day! My first interview with an author :D and not any author, but one of my favorite, Kelley Armstrong! If you've come to this blog in the past few weeks and read my entries, then you must know about the interview - yeah, I can be really annoying LOL :) But it was such an interesting experience, plus Ms. Kelley Armstrong is a great person and I really enjoyed her answers!

In case you need some introduction, Ms. Kelley Armstrong is a Canadian author who has written the Women of the Otherworld series. One of the best thing of this series is the new world Kelley has created and the originality she was able to incorporate. She used some clichés, shot down others and add a lot of herself and ideas. You can read a bit more in my Author of the Month post as well as her guest post on last Friday.

So onto the interview now!

TK: What is your favourite colour?
KA: Green.
TK: What is your favourite food?
KA: Cheesecake.

TK: Do you have any pets?
KA: Too many. Two dogs--a Siberian husky and a beagle. Three cats. We had two cats, and were perfectly happy not to have any more, but another one moved in this winter and we still aren't quite sure how it happened. He's a young cat who appears to have been a barn cat (we live in the country) and one cold night he found our house and wouldn't leave--meowing at whichever window I was near until I let him in. Barn cats don't usually like to come into a house, but he came right in, made himself at home and hasn't left.

TK: What is your favourite author/book?
KA: I don't really have a favourite book, but I guess one of my favourites would be Richard Adams's Watership Down

TK: What other fantasy/romance authors do you read?
KA: I hate naming names in my own genre(s), because I'll leave someone out! Let me go with my most favourite in those two genres. For fantasy, Guy Gavriel Kay. For romance...does Jane Austen count? Sure, let's go with Jane Austen.

TK: Any of them close friends?
KA: Never met GGK, though I've sat in on readings of his. And, sadly, never met Jane Austen.
TK: Do you find it hard to break into the international market as a Canadian author? Do you have to modify the language in the books to exclude colloquialisms from your native tongue?
KA: I didn't, but I chalk that up to having an amazing agent who sold me separately in the US, UK and Canada. That's more complicated than selling world rights to one publisher, but it really works well for me. My Canadian publisher is wonderful and promotes me here as a Canadian author, which helps. Having separate US/UK publishers means they can each tailor marketing strategies to suit their market.
I do have to be careful of colloquialisms. And it isn't easy, because I'm not always even sure which words are uniquely Canadian or regional--I just use them naturally. My US editor or copyeditor usually catches them, but not always. In Industrial Magic, an American character says "hydro" instead of "electricity" and it didn't take long for an American reader to email me and say "huh?"

TK: Do you feel like there is pressure to speak to the Canadian culture, or do you simply write what you feel?
KA: No, I don't feel any pressure at all--either to speak to the Canadian culture or to avoid speaking to it (so as to not alienate non-Canadian readers) That's one of the beauties of writing genre fiction. It doesn't have the same expectations that CanLit would.

Meardaba: Part of your series is set in Toronto, and is one of the few mainstream novels that actually develop in a Canadian city. Why then, did you move your characters to the woods of the US and not go to northern Ontario or the wilds of BC? Did you think it would give you a bigger reader audience if you based your books in the US?
KA: With the Otherworld series, my decision to base it in the US was entirely a matter of logistics. I wanted to make my supernatural world as realistic as possible. Given the difference in population densities between the US and Canada, it was more believable to me that this large community could exist, undetected, in the US.
Marg/TK: Are there any personality traits that you share with the main characters? Are your characters modeled after anyone?
KA: All my characters have a trait or two in common with me. That just makes them easier to write. With Elena, she's my age, from my geographic area, with my education level, etc, which made it easy for me to get into her head as my first narrator. Paige and I share a common interest in computers (I was a programmer) so I could easily write that part of her life and personality. Eve and I both have daughters around the same age, so that part of her character came naturally. But no character (primary or secondary) is actually modelled after myself or anyone I know. They're all a collection of traits from many sources.

Marg/TK: Which "paranormal" species is her favourite? Which of the paranormal creature is easiest to write? Why?
KA: I've always been partial to werewolves, and I've done them the most, so they're the easiest to write and my favourite.

TK: What is your favourite book in the series?
KA: The next one I can't help it--I'm currently editing book 8 and I really enjoyed writing it, so naturally that's foremost in my mind. But looking back at the series, it's kind of like picking my favourite child--I like them all for different reasons. If I had to choose, I'd say Stolen and Industrial Magic.

TK: Which cover is your favourite?
KA: Hmm. I like my UK covers. I really do. The UK for Haunted was great and I have that in my office, along with the Swedish cover for Bitten, which is probably my overall favourite. Of the North American covers, I liked Dime Store Magic and the one for No Humans Involved.

TK: You are currently contracted to write 10 books in the series. Any chance that it will be extended? Would you wish to write more? Do you have an ending in your mind yet?
KA: I don't have an ending in mind. As for whether the series will go beyond 10, that depends on readers and my publishers. I'm hoping it does!

TK: We know that the next narrators are scheduled to be Hope, Cassandra and Savannah. Who are you looking forward the most to write their story?
KA: Well, I wouldn't count on Savannah, I'm afraid. I had a better idea for book 9, which will bump Cassandra back to 10. That's what happens. I can plan on so-and-so narrating, but if a better idea comes up, I take it. Hope's story is done (that's book 8, which I'm doing final edits on now) I'm looking forward to starting the next one, but it's an entirely new character, so a name wouldn't help!

TK: Is there something you're not looking forward to write about, but will eventually have to write? (eg. Someone's death, character aging…)
KA: Hard to answer without giving away spoilers. I know of one death I have to do, and another one I'll probably do, and that will be tough because I really hate killing off characters. I even have a hard time killing villains if I enjoy writing them! But neither of these would come as a big shock, so I'm not worried about reader reactions. I just won't like doing it.

TK: If you were given the chance of going back and re-write a scene or a character, what would it be?
KA: I couldn't even begin to count the number of scenes I'd re-write! With characters, not so much. There are plenty of times when I think I missed an opportunity--had character x been different, I could have done y with them--but for me, characters are personalities, and I couldn't got back and change them to better suit a plot point. I'd have to write an entirely new character in their place.

TK: If you got offered the chance to make a movie or television series of your books, would you do it? Why or why not? And if you would, who would you like to see playing the lead roles?
KA: Before I was published, I told myself I'd never sell movie rights to a book. I'm a huge movie buff--enough to know that the book-to-movie transition rarely goes smoothly and that the author has little to no input into the final product. But then Bitten sold and I was almost immediately offered a movie contract for it, and I realized what a huge boost of publicity that would be, even to just be able to say "Hollywood wants to make my book into a movie," I needed all the help I could get with that first book, because I wanted to write more and that wouldn't happen if the first didn't sell well enough! So, very quickly, "never" became "where do I sign?" LOL. The movie never happened, but you wouldn't believe how much mileage and attention Bitten got from being "a book that might be turned into a movie starring Angelina Jolie."
So movies, I'd definitely consider. TV series? That's tougher because it would almost certainly mean having strangers write entirely new stories for my characters, taking them in directions I never intended, and I'm too protective of my work to be comfortable with that.
TK: Finally, you have a new series "Nadia Stafford" coming out this summer, which is more mainstream genre. How hard was the transition of style? Did you have any difficulty or all went smoothly?
KA: No real problems because there's a crime/mystery/thriller backbone to all my novels. For Exit Strategy, I just had to bump up that aspect and remove all the supernatural elements. The big question will be how it's received by others!

So I hope you enjoyed the interview as much as I did! If you want to know more about Ms. Kelley Armstrong, you can always go to her website (very good website, by the way). Kailana has already completed her challenge and posted review for Bitten and Stolen. She liked the series so much that she's reading the rest :D Ames is currently reading Dime Store Magic and I've finished No Humans Involved (released today!). All these reviews will be posted before May 15th :D

Now onto the interesting stuff: THE CONTEST! Yes, Kelley has generously offered a "2007 Prize Pack" to be drawn! This prize pack contains a signed copy of No Humans Involved, a Exit Strategy knapsack and the usual goodies such as bookmarks, etc. So what do you have to do to win this wonderful prize? You simply have to comment on this interview! You have till this Friday (May 4th) midnight! The winner name will be posted on Saturday! So good luck everyone and I hope you enjoyed this interview!

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Welcome to Twisted Kingdom - a review site for science fiction and fantasy books.

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Since I was a little girl I have been fascinated with books. Early photos show me with a book in hand, even if it was not exactly my reading level... My first word was a made-up word meaning 'book', actually. I suppose I had my priorities at an early age... Over the years my interest in books has become one of the defining features of who I am as a person. You can probably call me a bookworm. While I have other interests, reading will always be the one I talk about the most, even if I am not focusing on it as much as I used to.

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