Title: Witch Work Author: Neil Gaiman In: Under My Hat (Jonathan Strahan) & Trigger Warning (Neil Gaiman) Rating Out of 5: 3 (On the fence about this one) My Bookshelves:Easy reading, Fantasy, Witches Pace: Slow Format: Poem Publisher: Hot Key Books Year: 2012 5th sentence, 74th page: She sold calm seas to the mariners’ wives; Tied winds with silk cords so the storms could be tied there.
This short poem is about an elderly witch who lives in a room filled with clocks. She would sell storms, sorrows, and calmed the sea. The narrator explains that he bought three sorrows. The first he gave to his enemy’s child, the second was made into a broth by his wife, and the third remains unused. Regardless of this, the witch’s life is in a box which makes her quite sorrowful. We are not told what makes the witch sad, but she always returns to her house full of clocks.
This was an unexpectedly layered poem in the middle of the Under My Hat anthology. And one that I enjoyed immensely. I actually read this three times, each time with a new meaning and nuance. And, like all good poetry, I think that the more chances I get to read this, the more hidden meanings I will find about what a witch’s work entails.
Dina DeMille doesn’t run your typical Bed and Breakfast. Her inn defies laws of physics, her fluffy dog is secretly a monster, and the only paying guest is a former Galactic tyrant with a price on her head. But the inn needs guests to thrive, and guests have been scarce, so when an Arbitrator shows up at Dina’s door and asks her to host a peace summit between three warring species, she jumps on the chance.
Unfortunately, for Dina, keeping the peace between Space Vampires, the Hope-Crushing Horde, and the devious Merchants of Baha-char is much easier said than done. On top of keeping her guests from murdering each other, she must find a chef, remodel the inn…and risk everything, even her life, to save the man she might fall in love with. But then it’s all in the day’s work for an Innkeeper…
Dina again seems to find herself in hot water in Sweep in Peace. From protecting her neighbours (in Clean Sweep) to brokering peace between three warring factions, she seems to have a habit of biting off a little more than she can chew. Which is probably why this was such a good story. After all, if Dina didn’t continuously find herself in hot water, then there wouldn’t be a story worth reading…
In Clean Sweep, there was the tantalising beginning of a new love story – Sean the werewolf and Arland the vampire both showed a lot of interest in Dina. But, they still both let and the beginning of Sweep in Peace finds Dina alone and waiting for that hint of romance that she caught sight of. Which makes it a little convenient when George (the arbiter) appears and offers her a deal. Help him host a peace talk, and the inn would get guests and Dina would receive money. Making this deal brings Arland to her door, but it almost costs Dina her life and the inn’s reputation. Unable to dwell on her romantic interests and confusions, Dina is nonetheless able to find romance and a little fire throughout her battle to stop her guests from killing each other.
I love the idea that Earth is a neutral zone in the universe – the place where aliens stop of along their journeys, are able to negotiate treaties and, in the case of Dina’s permanent guest, avoid death and persecution. Although Dina isn’t quite neutral (she is still a pursuer of justice, regardless of her supposed neutrality), she still attempts to keep everyone safe and cared for. Although she can see the toll that has been taken on each of the three warring factions, Dina doesn’t take sides and her past relationships don’t unduly influence her either. She might not be neutral, but she certainly isn’t biased, and this complete fairness is something I don’t often find in my favourite characters. A very refreshing change to the usual female leads in my shelves.
On the outside, Dina Demille is the epitome of normal. She runs a quaint Victorian Bed and Breakfast in a small Texas town, owns a Shih Tzu named Beast, and is a perfect neighbor, whose biggest problem should be what to serve her guests for breakfast. But Dina is…different: Her broom is a deadly weapon; her Inn is magic and thinks for itself. Meant to be a lodging for otherworldly visitors, the only permanent guest is a retired Galactic aristocrat who can’t leave the grounds because she’s responsible for the deaths of millions and someone might shoot her on sight. Under the circumstances, “normal” is a bit of a stretch for Dina.
And now, something with wicked claws and deepwater teeth has begun to hunt at night….Feeling responsible for her neighbors, Dina decides to get involved. Before long, she has to juggle dealing with the annoyingly attractive, ex-military, new neighbor, Sean Evans—an alpha-strain werewolf—and the equally arresting cosmic vampire soldier, Arland, while trying to keep her inn and its guests safe. But the enemy she’s facing is unlike anything she’s ever encountered before. It’s smart, vicious, and lethal, and putting herself between this creature and her neighbors might just cost her everything.
This was an incredibly unique book to read. Primarily because it’s a novel that was originally an online series. Instead of the draft being written and edited, parts of the story were released on a regular basis and there was no editing. Andrews talks about what a different challenge this was at the beginning of the novel, but it also made for a very different experience. Instead of having logical pauses at the end of each chapter, every page or two had a point at which you could stop reading. Which would be good if it wasn’t so amazing that I couldn’t put it down anyway. Having said that, it didn’t feel as stilted and stop-start as I was expecting, the narrative still flowed beautifully and Andrews was able to create another fascinating world that you couldn’t help but fall in love with.
Not only is the writing style of Clean Sweep different to the other Andrews books that I’ve read, but the heroine is too. Where the other lead females tend to be a little kick ass and able to completely own the men around them (physically or magically), Dina’s emphasis is on the inn and homeliness. She is powerful in her own right, but she is more concerned with running her inn and caring for her he guests (or guest as is mostly the case). I also loved the idea of an inn that is sentient and able to move around according to the needs of the innkeeper and her visitors. Something that comes in handy a few times throughout the story.
I also loved Andrews’ play on the vampire-werewolf love triangle. It’s such a typical thing in paranormal fantasy these days, but the fact that Andrews turned them into alien species and created a sci-fi aspect to the story made the love triangle all the more interesting. It will be interesting to see how this unfolds further in Sweep in Peace.
Title: The Shifting Sands Author: Emily Rodda Series: Deltora Quest #4, World of Deltora #4 Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!) My Bookshelves:Australian authors, Easy reading, Medieval fantasy Pace: Fast Format: Novel Publisher: Scholastic Press Year: 2000 5th sentence, 74th page: The passage from the cellar was long, low and dark and smelled sickeningly of cider.
When the seven gems of the magic Belt of Deltora were stolen, the evil Shadow Lord invaded the kingdom and enslaved its people. Determined to rid their land of the tyrant, Lief, Barda, and Jasmine are on a dangerous quest to find the lost gems, which are hidden in fearsome places throughout the kingdom.The time has come to seek the fourth gem, kept jealously by an unknown guardian in a barren wasteland. Separation, confusion, and strange, terrible enemies await the three heroes in the harsh landscape of the Shifting Sands.
Step four in the Deltora Quest series is a little less thrilling than the first three (for me), but it is still a great journey. Lief, Barda and Jasmine again run into the mysterious rebellion leader, Doom, they are forced to battle in a gladiator-style contest, and, as always, they finally triumph over a completely unknown foe. Yet, it just doesn’t quite have the fast pace of the first three books, and not as many riddles throughout the story. And, after all, the reason I’ve always loved this series is the little riddles that are peppered throughout.
Having said all that, I did really like the foe that Lief comes up against in The Shifting Sands, it was completely unexpected. It doesn’t matter what Rodda writes, there is always an unforeseen surprise at the end of the story, and a message of inner strength in the character’s makeup. Or at least, that’s how I feel about the ending of The Shifting Sands.
Yet, my favourite thing about The Shifting Sands isn’t Lief’s triumph, or Doom’s mysterious appearance, it is how Jasmine goes in the competition. Her temper and her morals are seriously tested, and it’s not entirely clear as to whether she passed the tests or not.
Today my dog turns two. Which is why this post is a little delayed. And instead of writing a nostalgic reflection on how quickly time has gone, I thought that I would do a bit of a photo diary. So here is my little miss Beagle, or devil dog over the past few years.
The first few days with Lexi – she was cheeky even then.
Bonding with Mum’s dogs was a little tiring in the beginning. Now it’s a little tiring for them!
No matter where we go, she always finds something to chew on…
Title: The Witch in the Wood Author: Delia Sherman In: Under My Hat (Jack Dann & Jonathan Strahan) Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!) My Bookshelves:Easy reading, Fantasy, Witches Pace: Fast Format: Short story Publisher: Hot Key Books Year: 2012 5th sentence, 74th page: I crashed through the undergrowth that separated us and dug my knife into the moss, cutting out a handful to pack into the hole my arrow had made.
Mildryth is a young witch who, until three years ago, lived in the woods with her mother. Ever since her mother’s death, she’s been alone, never coming into contact with another human being. She possesses great magical powers which her mother taught her how to use but only when necessary. While out hunting one day, she wounds a deer with her arrow, but before she can kill it, the deer turns into a man. She eventually discovers he is named Erdwyn, and that he is running from his destiny in the north country, a place Mildryth’s mother had warned her away from. As she nurses Erdwyn back to health, the pair fall in love, but when his wounds fester, she must risk everything to travel to the north country to find the only cure. While there, Mildryth learns amazing things about herself, but upon her return, she is pursued by the powerful wizard who rules that land and who will not allow her to live happily and peacefully with her true love.
I really like The Witch in the Wood. It was quite a cute and unorthodox little love story. I mean it starts with the first person voice recounting the day that she met the love of her life. Which is about the only predictable aspect of this short story.
Firstly, the history of the witch is completely vague and difficult to understand. She’s completely on her own and sure of her own powers. But it isn’t until the stag enters her life that she really has to test her knowledge and experience. After all, he might bring love into her life, but he also brings danger and threats.
Ultimately, the witch in the woods is a reminder that it is important to care for others and your family. That sticking up for yourself is a power all in its own right.
Meet Skulduggery Pleasant. Sure, he may lose his head now and again (in fact, he won his current skull in a poker match), but he is much more than he appears to be—which is good, considering that he is, basically, a skeleton. Skulduggery may be long dead, but he is also a mage who dodged the grave so that he could save the world from an ancient evil. But to defeat it, he’ll need the help of a new partner: a not so innocent twelve-year-old girl named Stephanie. That’s right, they’re the heroes.
Stephanie and Skulduggery are quickly caught up in a battle to stop evil forces from acquiring her recently deceased uncle’s most prized possession—the Sceptre of the Ancients. The Ancients were the good guys, an extinct race of uber-magicians from the early days of the earth, and the scepter is their most dangerous weapon, one capable of killing anyone and destroying anything. Back in the day, they used it to banish the bad guys, the evil Faceless Ones. Unfortunately, in the way of bad guys everywhere, the Faceless Ones are staging a comeback and no one besides our two heroes believes in the Faceless Ones, or even that the Sceptre is real.
So Stephanie and Skulduggery set off to find the Sceptre, fend off the minions of the bad guys, beat down vampires and the undead, prove the existence of the Ancients and the Faceless Ones, all while trading snappy, snippy banter worthy of the best screwball comedies.
I haven’t read this book for years. Actually, it’s been in a box in a cupboard for a few years (the joys of moving around). So, the first thing that I did when I unpacked my many, many, many books, was crack open this story again. There is something fun and entertaining about this story that always leaves a smile on my face. Plus, there is an attitudinal, sassy thirteen-year-old girl who completely takes centre stage.
Following the death of Stephanie’s favourite uncle, and her subsequent inheritance, she is thrust into a world of magic and mayhem. Which, as any anarchic teen would, she completely adores and eventually decides to join. The fact that everything always seems to go wrong and her mentor is actually a living (but not quite breathing) skeleton just adds to the joy and absurdity of this story. Which is probably why, as a thirteen-year-old girl myself, I insanely enjoyed this series. A completely off-kilter mentor, a world just beneath our own where you can be something more, and a teenager who is making all of her own decisions.
Sometimes revisiting an old and well loved series just leads to heartache and a sense of loss – there’s nothing like finding out that it isn’t quite what you remember it to be. However, for me, rereading Skulduggery Pleasant was a really fun and memorable journey… now I just have to buy the next books in the series (I only had the one!)
Title: Which Witch Author: Patricia A. McKillip In: Under My Hat (Jack Dann & Jonathan Strahan) Rating Out of 5: 04.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect) My Bookshelves:Easy reading, Fantasy, Witches Pace: Fast Format: Short story Publisher: Hot Key Books Year: 2012 5th sentence, 74th page: That thing at the bar had one hand on Quin’s shoulder and he wasn’t smiling anymore.
Hazel is a witch who is part of a popular band made up of herself and her friends who are witches. She has a familiar, a crow named Cawley. The pair only recently found one another, and are still having trouble speaking each other’s language. Cawley knows an evil creature is following Hazel, putting her and her bandmates in danger, but he can’t seem to make her understand. As Hazel and her friends go on stage to play, the creature comes after them, which leads Hazel to learn something new about herself and one of her friends.
This was a really quick, fun and cute short story. Which means that this is going to be a quick and (hopefully) fun review.
The idea of witches and their familiars is nothing new. But, witches in a rock band, with their slightly unorthodox familiars hanging off of them definitely is. The ability to use music as a power was also a great angle that I didn’t expect. It’s a nice echo of the power that music has over people – literally. A song can change a life, sweep you away in its wings. But McKillip takes it another step.
Although I love the symbolism of music in this story, it’s the bonding between witch Hazel and her familiar Cawley that I found the most engaging. Not only is it sweet, but it’s a reminder that all good relationships take time.
Elias Lönnrot is a young scholar with an unquenchable thirst for knowledge. He loves reading the Latin poetry of Virgil or the Greek classics like The Iliad and The Odyssey. However, he doesn’t give much thought to his own Finnish culture. In fact, he rather scorns it. His school friends try to sway his opinion by telling him about stories of their ancestors who sang spells that could change the world. Elias thinks this is nonsense until he meets an old peddler on the road one day who changes his mind in a dramatic way.
Pride cometh before the fall.
Or something like that. This great short story focuses on the ways in which our pride and ignorance can lead to some dire consequences. Yet, there is a nice, happy ending to this story. Although the main character’s pride almost leads to his death, it is his ability to let go of his pride and embrace his peoples’ history that ultimately saves him and creates a healthy life.
Although this is a story about a witch, it is also a tale about embracing your culture and history. I found it especially relevant in today’s society of globalisation. It is so easy to jump on the bandwagon of “progress” than it is to hold onto your cultural morals and norms.
Title: The Gypsy Crown Author: Kate Forsyth Series: The Chain of Charms #1 Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect) My Bookshelves:Australian authors, Easy reading, History Pace: Fast Format: Novel Publisher: Macmillan Year: 2007 5th sentence, 74th page: Alida, swift as she was, could not run all day.
Emilia Finch and her cousin Luka are gypsies. For them, that means they live a strongly traditional life, rich with story, music, dance, and magic, governed by the laws of the clan and the ways of the road. To the repressive Puritanical government of 17th century England, however, the gypsies are thieving, fortune-telling vagrants who are most likely allies of the devil.
While the Finches have managed to steer clear of trouble, it finds them when they decide to raise dowry money for one of their daughters, by performing in Kingston square one ill-fated market day. A series of terrible events lands the family in jail, charged with murder. Only Emilia and Luka manage to escape, promising to bring back help and free them.
The only problem is — how? Emilia believes in the legend of the charms: it is said that the luck of the Rom has turned sour ever since a long-ago gypsy matriarch broke her chain of charms, giving one charm to each of her five children. Since then, the gypsies have been persecuted and the families have dispersed. If they can gather the charms from the families, Emilia thinks, the strong magic of the Rom will somehow bring her family freedom. Luka, on the other hand, is more practical he wants to enlist the help of the other clans to help the Finches escape.
Emilia and Luka must race through the countryside, navigating a hornets’ nest of Rom-hating Puritans, Royalist spies, and traitors, if they are to complete their quest before the magistrate delivers a death sentence.
There’s something fun and special about a well-written story that is based in history. I’ve never been one to actually study history (mainly because I found it boring in high school), so reading a book that is so beautifully crafted around a historical moment is thoroughly enjoyable. Plus, it’s a great way to learn about English history, alongside the tolerance of others. Forsyth drives home the importance of accepting those who are different to us, even if we don’t quite understand them.
I love the focus on the Rom (gypsies) – it’s a culture that is quite fascinating in all of the movies and books that I’ve read (a bit romanticised, but still…). And it is the epitome of those who are ostracised by the greater public. The law and the church begin this epic journey by imprisoning Emilia and Luka’s family for effectively being Rom and sending the two teenagers on a whirlwind adventure to save their family. Although, there is also the feeling of ‘coming-of-age’ to the tale. Say goodbye to childhood and hello to responsibility.
This is a great, fun, easy reading about two young children starting the adventure that will (hopefully) save their family and teach them to be adults in their changing world. It is placed at the turning point in English history and I love the factual threads which run through this story. Plus, the animal companions that accompany Emilia and Luka on their journey is just adorable (albeit a little hard for them to disguise).
Title: The Shifting Sands
Title: Skulduggery Pleasant
Earth and Skye 