Tag Archives: Easy Reading

The Secret Science of Magic by Melissa Keil

Book Review, , ,
Overview
Image result for the secret science of magic book cover

Title: The Secret Science of Magic
Author: Melissa Keil
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Contemporary, Contemporary romance, Easy reading
Dates read: 27th June 2019
Pace: Medium
Format: Novel
Publisher: Hardie Grant Egmont
Year: 2017
5th sentence, 74th page: Joseph gives me what I think is a sympathetic smile.

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Synopsis

Sophia

She’s smart, like genius-calculator-brain smart. But there are some things no amount of genius can prepare you for, and the messiness of real life is one of them. When everything she knows is falling apart, how can she crack the puzzle of what to do with her life?

Joshua

He spends his time honing magic tricks and planning how to win Sophia’s heart. But when your best trick is making schoolwork disappear, how do you possibly romance a genius?

Thoughts

Holy crap. I have been in a bit of a reading slump lately (relying mostly on short stories, rather than novels to keep me slightly interested). And then I picked up this book. Which was quite possibly a mistake, because now I have a brand new author to obsess over. It is the first book in a long time that I struggled to put down. And read cover to cover. It’s also the first book in months that I stayed up way past my bedtime to read a book because I JUST COULDN’T PUT IT DOWN.

Although I often become emotionally invested in the characters that I meet in the pages of a book, I don’t often literally shed a tear. Let alone lie in bed with tears streaming down my face. There was just this one moment in this book that almost felt like a punch to the solar plexus, and it made me weep. This was surrounded by moments of smiling and laughter, so overall the mood of this book was incredibly cheerful, even though I had a moment of tears.

Everyone thinks that they’re a bit of a misfit in high school, which is why I can see how this story would speak to the masses. I’m sure even the popular kids kind of feel a bit uncomfortable, especially at the very ending of high school when they’re about to spread their wings. I assume, I had friends, but I was more like Sophia than any other high school character I’ve ever read about. It was also amazing to have a dynamic like Joshua in the story. In school he is quiet and reserved, but he has a fun filled, happy and thriving social life out of school that reminds you we can all find the place where we fit best… it just took me a few years out of high school to realise that personally.

I may not be quite genius-level smart, but I do understand all of the pressures that Sophia experiences throughout this book. There seems to be this idea that because you are smart, you should know what you want to do with your future. Have everything planned out and a goal in mind. For me, that has never been the case. I’ve never really had a future plan or goals. I just have a huge sense of curiosity and a drive to learn more, although sometimes I want to know more about how to interact a little better with others.

 <- Life in Outer Space ReviewThe Incredible Adventures of Cinnamon Girl Review ->
Image source: Melissa Keil

Percy Jackson: The Ultimate Guide by Rick Riordan

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
Image result for percy jackson the ultimate guide book cover

Title: Percy Jackson: The Ultimate Guide
Author: Rick Riordan
Series: Percy Jackson & the Olympians Companion
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Easy reading, Greek mythology, Urban fantasy
Dates read: 5th – 14th June 2019
Pace: Slow
Format: Collection
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Year: 2010
5th sentence, 74th page: The symbol of Hades is a helmet which helped him to stay invisible.

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Synopsis

It’s the handbook no half-blood should be without: a fully illustrated, in-depth guide to gods, monsters, and all things Percy. This novelty companion to the best-selling series comes complete with trading cards, full-color diagrams, and maps, all packaged in a handy, “manual-size” POB with a crisp, magnetic flap enclosure.

Thoughts

This is a quick, easy read. A great little companion to the rest of the Percy Jackson series, but not one that I’m likely to want to pick up again and again. It was just a cute little overview of Greek mythology. And since I’ve read many other books on the Greek pathos, this was a little too PG for my tastes.

The pictures and fun little cards at the beginning of the book helped to completely immerse yourself in the world that Riordan wanted to take me to. I used to love books that acted as a how-to guides, ones that helped you think the storyline was real. That it was completely plausible and possible that these gods, beasts and creatures walk among us every day.

Although I really enjoyed reading this book, there really isn’t much to say about it. It’s one of those experiences that makes you smile, but you won’t remember forever. Which is good, because in years to come, I can pick this up again and enjoy the experience all over again.

 <- The Demigods of Olympus ReviewThe Lightning Thief Review ->
Image source: Amazon

Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo

Book Review, ,
Overview
Image result for because of winn dixie book cover

Title: Because of Winn-Dixie
Author: Kate DiCamillo
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Easy reading, Family
Dates read: 23rd – 27th May 2019
Pace: Slow
Format: Novel
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Year: 2000
5th sentence, 74th page: “I don’t know,” I told him.

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Synopsis

When ten-year-old Opal Buloni moves to Naomi, Florida, with her father, she doesn’t know what to expect – least of all, that she’ll adopt Winn-Dixie, a dog she names after the supermarket where they meet. Before long, Opal and her father realize – with a little help from Winn-Dixie – that while they’ve both tasted a bit of melancholy in their lives, they still have a whole lot to be thankful for.

Thoughts

This was such a fun, easy and sweet novel. It would have been amazingly easy to just read it cover to cover in one small afternoon, with a big smile on my face (the only reason this didn’t happen is because I haven’t sat still for an entire afternoon in a little while). India Opal, Winn-Dixie and the Preacher are a great little family that so obviously needs help. Actually, the whole rag tag bunch of characters that make up this story need a bit of a helping hand. And I love that this comes in the form of a slightly unorthodox and scraggly dog.

The underlying current of India Opal’s sadness at the loss of her mother is a little heartbreaking and it winds its way throughout the storyline so seamlessly. her own yearning to find a sense of belonging is further backed by the melancholy that seems to haunt every character in this story. Each and every person Winn-Dixie and India Opal come across are lonely and feeling some kind of loss. Yet, it surprisingly didn’t make a sad story at all. I was expecting a little bit of tragedy and an ending that would bring tears to my eyes. I even had a box of tissues next to me when I was getting close to the end…. There’s been very few stories I’ve read that feature a dog that doesn’t end in some kind of tragedy. But this didn’t. that feel good, wholesome vibe continued right the way through. And it was completely amazing.

This might not be the kind of story that I’m going to pick up once a year for a nice, fun revisit. But it is the kind of story that I will pick up again years down the track. When I need a reminder that not every tale is tragic and that there is always hope in the world. That it doesn’t matter how down life gets you, there is always something positive just around the corner…

<- More easy reading reviewsMore family reviews ->
Image source: Wikipedia

Low School by Rhys Bowen

Book Review, , ,
Overview
Image result for an apple for the creature book cover

Title: Low School
Author: Rhys Bowen
In: An Apple for the Creature (Charlaine Harris & Toni L. P. Kelner)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Demons, Easy reading
Dates read: 24th May 2019
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Ace Books
Year: 2012
5th sentence, 74th page: I shall have to report this to Ms. Fer.

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Synopsis

Miss Weinstein finds herself in a situation she just can’t get out of. Her worst nightmare. Repeating school when she cant make it to a test, is dressed in the worst clothes imaginable and is… well, fat. But things are about to get a whole lot worse…

Thoughts

I thought at the beginning of this story that it was nothing more than a nightmare. After all, we’ve all had that dream where we can’t make it to an exam, that everyone has turned on us and we just don’t quite fit in. Alright, I’ve never dreamed that I’m wearing some weirdly disgusting clothing… but I can imagine how that would fit into the whole school-nightmare theme that is obviously going on here.

This short story doesn’t just play on our fears that seem to come from high school… it also highlights the idea that your decisions affect you. Every decision effects your potential future. The dumb things that you do that are questionable… well, they can certainly come back to haunt you. And throw you into a reality that you didn’t want to face… every day until the end of eternity.

I wasn’t popular in high school. I also wasn’t unpopular. But I never really wanted to be the homecoming queen and centre of attention… it just seemed so boring. So I honestly can’t imagine signing away my soul for the right to be the popular girl. Even if it was just in joke. This is the only thing about this story that just doesn’t compute for me. Why would someone want to be popular? Do anything to be in the centre of the crowd? As the story unfolded and Miss Weinstein’s attitude became clearer and clearer, it was more and more difficult to feel any kind of connection to her. More and more difficult to feel like she was really worth saving at all…

 <- Sympathy for the Bones ReviewCallie Meet Happy Review ->
Image source: Goodreads

Coraline by Neil Gaiman

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
Image result for coraline neil gaiman book cover

Title: Coraline
Author: Neil Gaiman
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Book to Film, Dark fantasy, Easy reading, Horror
Dates read: 16th – 22nd May 2019
Pace: Medium
Format: Novel
Publisher: Harper Perennial
Year: 2002
5th sentence, 74th page: “The one who says she’s you other mother,” said the cat.

Synopsis

In Coraline’s family’s new flat there’s a locked door. On the other side is a brick wall – until Coraline unlocks the door… and finds a passage to another flat in another house just like her own.

Only different.

The food is better there. Books have pictures that writhe and crawl and shimmer. And there’s another mother and father there who want Coraline to be their little girl. They want to change her and keep her with them….Forever.

Coraline is an extraordinary fairy tale / nightmare from the uniquely skewed imagination of #1 New York Times bestselling author Neil Gaiman.

Thoughts

I picked up this book because I absolutely adored the movie. Just seeing the title makes me want to watch the movie again and again and again. Which meant that I was seriously hoping that the book would be just as good. I was a little wrong. For starters, the book is so much creepier and horrifying than the movie. For another thing. It was just better.

I really expected an easy, fun slightly twisted read when I opened this book. After all, it is described as a children’s twisted fairy tale. And it’s a tiny novel! I was wrong. So very, very wrong. I finished this about 10 o’clock at night… and then just lay there, imagining a creepy hand crawling across the bed towards me in my sleep… I’m really not sure that I would have read this when I was a child. And even if I did… I’m not sure that it would have been a great idea. There are certain downfalls to having such a vivid imagination…

As children, we all have moments when we feel that our family just doesn’t care about us. That we belong somewhere else. And that it could just be so much better if we just had someone who understood us more. Or at least, I felt that way frequently throughout my childhood. I like that Coraline plays on this and gives us a reality in which everything is far more fantastic, fun and just plain exciting than the real world. But at a cost, and it’s one that Coraline just doesn’t want to pay. After all, she realises that real life just isn’t too bad after all…

 <- Angels & VisitationsFragile Things ->

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Hotel Valhalla: Guide to the Norse Worlds by Rick Riordan

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
Image result for hotel valhalla book cover

Title: Hotel Valhalla: Guide to the Norse Worlds
Author: Rick Riordan
Series: Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard Companion
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Easy reading, Norse mythology, Urban fantasy
Dates read: 17th – 18th May 2019
Pace: Slow
Format: Collection
Publisher: Puffin
Year: 2016
5th sentence, 74th page: Having his hand eaten by Fenris Wolf while the other gods bound the beast with the rope Gleipnir

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Synopsis

Dear Magnus Chase,
Welcome to Hotel Valhalla!
We hope you enjoy your eternal stay with us in the afterlife.

This is a guide to the gods, mythical beings and fantastic creatures of the nine Norse worlds – now your fellow guests.

There are stats, interviews, stories and anecdotes to help you avoid those awkward first introductions and make sure you never confuse a dwarf and an elf ever again.

Your story is just beginning, Magnus Chase. We hope you find this guide an entertaining companion on your adventures.

Thoughts

Hotel Valhalla is a great way to fill in the gaps that the storylines of the Magnus Chase novels just can’t fill. After all, they’re stories which follow a specific storyline. This hotel guide on the other hand isn’t a story, but a way to constantly give a background that you really don’t know you need until you read this collection.

Written with the typical Riordan humour, Hotel Valhalla really brings some of the more distant characters of Norse mythology to life in a very satirical and dry way. It helps to pull you further and further into the storyline of the Magnus Chase world and, because of this, the moment I finished the last page I was sorely tempted to get out of my couch next and grab Magnus Chase and the Ship of the Dead. I didn’t because I had two dogs happily asleep on my lap, but believe me, it was a fight of temptation.

My main complaint about this book is that it wasn’t longer. I would have loved a lot more insight into the characters which make up this aspect of Riordan’s world. But it still worked beautifully…

<- The Ship of the Dead9 From the Nine Worlds ->

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The Hammer of Thor by Rick Riordan

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
Image result for magnus chase and the hammer of thor book cover

Title: The Hammer of Thor
Author: Rick Riordan
Series: Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard #2
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Easy reading, Norse mythology, Urban fantasy
Dates read: 12th April – 16th May 2019
Pace: Slow
Format: Novel
Publisher: Puffin
Year: 2016
5th sentence, 74th page: The nightly numbers ranged from zero to twelve.

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Synopsis

My name is Magnus Chase. Two months ago I died fighting a fire giant and woke up in Hotel Valhalla as one of Odin’s warriors. Time of a rest? I wish.

When I meet Otis, an informant with a lead on Thor’s missing hammer, all I get is the name ‘Provincetown’ before a wolf-masked assassin takes him out and warns me to stay away.

Someone really doesn’t want me to find the hammer, and even if I could it’s rumoured to be underground, guarded by powerful magic.

But the giant armies are on the move, preparing to invade. If I don’t find it, they’ll ravage the Nine Worlds, starting with the streets of Boston.

There’s just one person who could help. Someone who demands a very high price: the gods’ worst enemy, Loki.

Thoughts

It took me forever to pick this up after finishing Magnus Chase and the Sword of Summer. And now that I’ve finished this… I’m really not sure why. Or why it took me so long to get through the first half of this book. This tale has everything that I loved in the Percy Jackson books, but with Vikings. Which, as much as I love Greek mythology, there is something about Vikings and the Norse mythos that is… better.

For the first part of this book, I kept on thinking of Thor like he is in the Marvel movies… gorgeous, powerful and just plain “good”. The Thor in this story is nothing like that. Actually, he’s kind of a bumbling moron. And he farts a lot. And you know, he’s the reason that the whole mess in this story even happens. Because he’s a moron. Which adds a great level of humour throughout the whole novel. One that makes me grateful for Riordan’s writings. And makes me think that I need to keep adding some of his books (the few I don’t have) to my bookshelves.

There are hints from the very beginning of this tale that it isn’t all about Thor’s hammer. But, since I was so caught up in the action and what was happening to Magnus and his friends, I didn’t really pick up on them. It was only in hindsight that I managed to understand all the little clues that Riordan was sliding out for my slow little brain to grasp. Which is kind of great in a book that is aimed at a younger cohort. It makes me excited to reread this book at some point in the future. Read and reread and reread over the years to come, being able to find other “duh” moments throughout this story.

I was so impressed with Riordan’s use of a Muslim lead character in Magnus Chase and the Sword of Summer. I was even more head over heels in love, completely impressed, making this man my idol when I realised that he has a trans-person as a secondary lead in this story. Talk about helping to raise a generation on acceptance and love. Alex is feisty and fun, if not a little angry and damaged at times. Also a little too obsessed with taking off people’s heads with a wire… but I digress. Having two people from minorities that are being ostracised today means that I can’t wait until they feature even more strongly in the next Magnus Chase story! Now where did I put that book…??

<- The Sword of SummerThe Ship of the Dead ->

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The Last Battle by C.S. Lewis

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
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Title: The Last Battle
Author: C.S. Lewis
Series: Chronicles of Narnia #7
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Classics, Easy reading, Fantasy
Dates read: 28th March – 19th April 2019
Pace: Slow
Format: Novel
Publisher: Grafton
Year: 1956
5th sentence, 74th page: I’m on your side, Sire: and on Aslan’s.

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Synopsis

“To my side, all true Narnians! Would you wait till your new masters have killed you all, one by one?”

It is Narnia’s darkest hour. A false Aslan is commanding all Narnians to work for the cruel Calormenes and striking terror into every heart. King Tirian’s only hope is to call Eustace and Jill back to Narnia, in an attempt to find the true Aslan and restore peace to the land. But a might battle lies ahead.

The Last Battle is the dramatic conclusion to the seven magical Chronicles of Narnia.

Thoughts

As an ending to a series this book works incredibly well. It helps to tie everything up in a beautiful knot and pretty little bow. As a standalone story, it’s not as compellingly engaging as the other books in the Chronicles of Narnia series. Which is probably why it took me a little longer to read than most of the other stories in this series…

The Last Battle is exactly what it sounds – the last battle to be fought in Narnia. The end of days, if you will. It made it kind of sad to finish, it meant the closing of a world and an era. There are no ways in which to return to Narnia now. Which is more than a little heartbreaking. After all, as a kid I always checked every wardrobe I came across to get to that special world I had dreamt so much about.

Lucy is still my favourite character in all of the Chronicles of Narnia tales. There is something about her sweetness, her faith and her ability to love everyone that makes you kind of want to give her a great, big cuddle. Don’t get me wrong, I would never want to be her friend, she’s a little too nice… but as a character in a novel, she is just brilliant. So it was incredibly nice to find her returning to the series, albeit for a short while. Jill and Eustace just aren’t as relatable and loveable… maybe because I only met them as an adult, but I met Lucy when I was a young girl.

 <- The Silver Chair ReviewThe Magician’s Nephew Review ->
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Friday Night at St. Cecilia’s by Ellen Klages

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
Image result for coyote road book cover

Title: Friday Night at St. Cecilia’s
Author: Ellen Klages
In: The Coyote Road (Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Contemporary, Easy reading, Tricksters
Dates read: 1st April 2019
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Firebird Fantasy
Year: 2007
5th sentence, 74th page: She looked at the light switch across the room, but didn’t bother turning it on.

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Synopsis

Friday night at St. Cecilia’s means a night of board games and companionship for Rachel and Addie. But, when Queen Mabe decides to up the stakes, traditional board games become far more complex, and a whole lot more dangerous.

Thoughts

Game nights were kind of a big thing in my family when I was younger. Actually, they’re still kind of a big thing, although I’m not around as much to play now. They were always a great way to spend time together in a fun way. And, since we’re all more than a little competitive, a very fun, not to mention loud way to spend the night. So, a short story that features board games that I grew up playing and a trickster… it’s the kind of story that I was always going to love.

I was kind of expecting Rachel to learn some kind of lesson throughout this story. After all, she starts out as a very rebellious young woman in a catholic boarding school. Who is in detention. This is exactly the kind of not-on-the-right-path character that tends to need a bit of adjustment. But, it doesn’t really happen. Rather, her rebellion just leads her on a very fun and interesting adventure. And it is one that is full of nostalgia and humour. An easy read that made me think of all the times with my family. And all of the board games in my cupboard.

 <- A Tale for the Short Days ReviewThe Fortune-Teller Review ->
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The Little Dog Ohori by Anatoly Belilovsky

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
Image result for the mammoth book of dieselpunk book cover

Title: The Little Dog Ohori
Author: Anatoly Belilovsky
In: The Mammoth Book of Dieselpunk (Sean Wallace)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Dieselpunk, Easy reading, Family
Dates read: 29th March 2019
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Robinson
Year: 2015
5th sentence, 74th page: The woman’s hand tightens, just enough to see the tiny twitch.

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Synopsis

She’s losing her life’s blood on the plains of war. But, the baying of the Little Dog Ohori might just take her back to the ones she loves and a happily ever after after all.

Thoughts

It took me a little while to grasp the concept of what was going on in this short story. The storyline jumped around a little and it was kind of hard to realise which time frame you were in from the outset… but, once I got my head around that little aspect, I fell in love with this story. It still had the war aspect of Dieselpunk filling its pages, but it mostly had this sweet idea of family and kinship.

The mix of folklore, contemporary and fateful story lines throughout this short tale intertwine and weave amongst themselves in an incredibly artful manner. The mix of the different stories throughout may have been confusing at the beginning, but they quickly become intriguing and impossible to look away from. Meaning that at the end of all of this you are completely hooked and in love with not only Ohori, but the soldiers who populate the tale.

<- Don QuixoteVast Wings Across Felonious Skies ->

Image source: Running Press