Realm of the Sapphired Dragon

I have heard nothing but good things about this novel so I was really looking forward to reading this book and I have to say, it definitely delivered.

The Goddess test is not so much based on the the Greek myth of Hades and Persephone but more a continuation of the story. Persephone is gone and Hades (now called Henry) is looking for a new queen to rule the underworld with him and he has less than 20 years left to find her otherwise he will fade away forever.

Kate is the girl he has chosen to be his wife and Queen but she needs to pass seven tests to to be allowed to take on the role and is not even really sure she wants the job. However her mother is dying and this will allow her to spend more time with her before she too is gone forever.

This is a unique take on the whole mythology angle and I believe the idea is pulled off extremely well. The story does not retell the stypry of Hades and Persephone but rather uses the myth as a launch pad for a interesting and compelling read that you won't want to put down. In fact when about to finish it last night, I wanted to hold on to it for one more day to use for my Teaser Tuesday but at the same time didn't want to put off for one more second reaching the conclusion and finding out how it ended.

The story flows at a good pace and there is enough going on to keep your interest the whole way through pulling you too a conclusion that is both surprising and exciting . The two main characters Henry and Kate are both characters with some substance to them and also have their flaws. Kate is extremely selfless and has spent the past couple of years caring for her sick mother but in the process has forgotten how to live and Henry has given up and is ready to finish his last days and fade away. I have never been a huge fan of the love at first sight type story and so I loved that the friendship grew slowly and we got to see it growing throughout the story.

The peripheral characters are also not so peripheral and bring as much colour to the story as the main characters. I particularly enjoyed the characters of Ava and James. These characters ( Ava and James amongst them) and their interactions with Kate and Henry helped round out what was already a wonderful story.

I greatly enjoyed reading this book and thoroughly believe it deserves every glowing review it has received so far and have no hesitation whatsoever in giving this book 5 stars.

review to come

This novel's mystery had me hooked from the first page. Actually I think I was hooked from the moment I read the back of the book and the acknowledgements at the beginning and the story did not disappoint. In fact I was so hooked that I finished this story in less than a day and after reading some during my lunch break, seriously thought about not going back to work and finishing the story there and then instead. 

Read the rest of my review at : http://sapphireddragon.blogspot.com/2011/06/review-thyla-by-kate-gordon.html

There is a lot of promise offered that goes undelivered in this Alex Rider meets uk tv show Demons novel. Good premise and smartish story but not delivered well.
For my full review see http://sapphireddragon.blogspot.com/2011/06/review-department-19-by-will-hill.html

Crossposted from http://sapphireddragon.blogspot.com/2011/06/review-gathering-by-kelley-armstrong.html

I loved this book. I literally devoured it from start to finish in just a couple of sittings (well one sitting broken up only by having to work and get just a little sleep). Its set in the same world as most of Kelley Armstrong's books and having read both the women of the Otherworld series and Darkest Powers series, entering May's world, a little medical research town in a larger world where names like St Cloud and Dr Davidoff (among others) have some significance from previous novels, was like visiting one of those favourite vacation spots that you like to go to once in a while, forget about the where you normally live and catch up on what been happening since youlast visited and discover some new places there to explore.

In The Gathering, the first novel of the Darkness Rising series, we meet Maya, a regular teenager living in a small town, adopted but happy with her lot and not overly curious about where she came from. From the beginning I connected with Maya. She is strong and comfortable in who she is and her place in the world. She is still getting over the drowning of her best friend but this hasn't stopped her from continuing to tackle the world arond her and get on with life.

Now any veteran of Armstrong's books will have a fair idea of at least part of what Maya's birthmark means but Armstrong, who is using this book also a a set up for a new trilogy (series?) creates a story that leaves even the veterans with more questions than answers. While part fo the mystery might be solved in this book, that also gives the reader more questions than answers and the ending leavves the reader gasping for more.

I most definitely recommend this book to both the avid Kelley Armstrong fan and those who are newer to her books as while there are titbits there for the veterans, they are not necessary to know to still enjoy the story being told and as always its an awesome story.

I have no hesitation giving this book 5 stars.

First up I have a small confession to make.  I haven't actually read the first three books in the The League series.  This was actually my first foray into the Sherrilyn Kenyon's writing. While I do think this may have put me at a small disadvantage as obviously I didn't recognise characters from the previous novels that both featured in and were alluded to, I was still able to enjoy the story that was being told in this book without this. 

To start with, Kenyon's main characters of Caillen Dagen and Desideria are extremely well written and likable and Kenyon gives you time to get to know them even while pushing the story along.    They are by no means perfect but this doesn't matter as you still find yourself invested in what happens to them and the journey this takes them and the reader on.

I also enjoyed the chemistry between them.  While occasionally the dialogue between them seemed a little contrived and forced, on the whole you believed them as a couple which is essential with any good romance. 

However this is not just a story about a romance.  There is action a plenty from the first scene onwards as Caillen and Desideria unravel murder plots and escape hostile aliens trying to kill them.  As reader, I felt like I was close to the edge of my seat the whole time wondering just what would happen next as they seemed to escape from one extreme situation to the next. 

I didn't predict the ending which is always a good thing and Kenyon throws in enough twists and turns that you are never sure if you have the whole answer until the end.  The only trouble I did have was that towards the end things got a little confusing and it wasn't always clear who was speaking or being spoken about and it took me a couple of reads of the last few chapters to try to get my head around exactly what had happened

Overall though I give this story a 3 1/2 stars and thoroughly recommend this to all Sherrilyn Kenyon fans. To those who are new to this author, I would recommend you start with the first three books in the series as I think if I had started with these first, I would have been able to give this book a four star rating.

Sapphired Dragon xx

cross posted from my blog: http://sapphiredragon.blogspot.com

I was really excited to read this book. The whole re-adaption and inspiration of the Hades/Persephone story seemed incredibly intriguing and I couldn't wait to see what Cabot would do with it.

To be honest, I was a little disappointed. Don't get me wrong, there is a story there and I did enjoy it but I felt the way it was told drew it out out a little too much and then the flashbacks confused the issue more than it clarified.

I found myself a little frustrated at the way each chapter was drawn out and would allude to what was to happen further on in such a way that it drew from the suspense rather than added to it. I also found myself a little fristrated with main character, Pierce, who seemed to vacillate between total cluelessness and knowing almost too much and found the revelations toward the end came just a little too easily.

That being said, there was a definitely story there and I still found myself wanting to read to the end to see where it was going.

This is the first book in a trilogy so it was clear Cabot was trying to set up the trilogy as well as tell a first instalment story. Despite the above, I did actually really quite enjoy the story and will continue to read the next instalment as I am still intrigued as to where it will go however the above did distract me a little from the story bring my rating of this book from from four to three stars.

Definitely worth reading especially if you are not easily distracted by writing styles.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book despite a slightly slowish start and found myself myself drawn in and getting to the last page surprisingly quickly. A great second book to the series and I look forward to the concluding novel Traitor Queen

For a more thorough review see: http://sapphireddragon.blogspot.com/2011/05/review-rogue-by-trudi-canavan.html

This was the book that got me into reading orson scott card I think read it in one sitting . Awesome book and great starts to one of my most favourite series' ever