Happy Halloween

To celebrate the day, I've compiled a list of some of my 10 favourite supernatural fictional people - most of whom are also creatures that go bump in the night, and that would love to be out and about on Halloween!

1. Selene from the Underworld movies. Topping off the list is one incredible lady which, sadly, will not be returning to the next movies. Still, she was one badass vampire, and took no crap from anyone; I wouldn't want to be on her bad side, that's for sure! She's definitely more likely to kill first, and ask questions later.

2. Second on the list of awesome Halloween-ish creatures, is one dhampir that holds a very dear place in my heart. This Russian God, as he's known throughout his world, goes by the name of Dimitri Belikov, and to quote Rose, 'alive or undead... [he] was a badass'. Couldn't have said it better myself, Rose! Dimitri gets to be on here, even though a dhampir isn't technically so terrifying, because he spent a book and a half as an undead, evil vampire whose sole mission was to enslave all of humanity, with Rose by his side as his Queen of Darkness. Deliciously horrible. I even sometimes miss what me and my friends call Strigmitri, his soulless vampire side!

3. How to follow up from Dimka, right? Well, this is another incredible lady who, even though most people will say they hate her - because she's a psychotic maniac, and you're supposed to hate those people! - the entire fandom actually loves to hate, and I know it. It is, of course, the terrifying Bellatrix Lestrange. In all fairness, much as I love what her character represents, and I absolutely adore the way Helena Bonham-Carter portrays her, I'd be more scared if I bumped into her in a deserted alley than if I did with Voldemort. Dis bitch be crazy...

4. Next is another vampire - they seem quite popular these days haha! - and one that I have loved for all the wrong reasons for way too many years. I fell in love with the bad Salvatore in the books, and of course Ian Somerhalder playing Damon did nothing to diminish my love (on the contrary, in fact). Still, despite his tortured soul and deep-down good heart, you don't want to run across him on a night he's had a fight with Elena...

5. Moving away from the vampires now, let's talk witches again. She's a classic because she was Merlin's nemesis. Beautifully portrayed by Katie McGrath in BBC's Merlin, Morgana Pendragon started out like a lovely, sweet and innocent girl in a court where magic was seen as treason (I still can't look at Giles in Buffy without hearing the echoes of 'SORCERY!' in my head. Uther really needed a chill pill. Or twenty). But she found her magic, turned bad, and by the end of the series, was almost as powerful as Merlin himself. And yes, she does look lovely in a crown.

6. Another good girl-gone-bad situation with magic and a crown involved, comes in the form of the stunning Lana Parrilla, playing the Evil Queen (yes, the one from Snow White), in today's world known as Regina Mills, the tyrannical mayor of the little town of Storybrooke, Maine. Another case of really unfortunate parenting, Regina sets loose a curse that ends all happy endings and brings all fairy tale characters to the human world. She's another lady you don't want to catch on a bad day; and never, ever accept an apple from her, not even if she slips it into your trick or treat bowls! NO APPLES!


7. Moving on to the traditional Halloween costume, we find Helena Ravenclaw, more commonly known as The Grey Lady. The ghost of Ravenclaw House, she's a tad short-tempred, as Harry found out the hard way in Deathly Hallows, but hers is another sad story - and one worthy of Halloween: she was the daughter of Rowena Ravenclaw, but stole her mother's
magical diadem, hoping it would make her smarter. On her deathbed, Rowena sent for her daughter. The man who went searching for Helena, was a Baron (aka The Bloody Baron, the ghost of Slytherin House. Must make for awkward meals!) who harboured amorous feelings towards Helena. Enraged, he killed her when she refused to return with him to her mother, then proceeded to kill himself in despair at what he had done. Hence the blood all over him... That's a tale and a half!

8. Next is one devilishly clever and dangerous imp. We all know him - he's even been in Shrek, for crying out loud! He is, of course, Rumplestilstkin. I'm looking at that name and hoping I spelt it right. It's easier to say than to spell, honestly. But this little guy (or not so little, depending on which version we're talking about!) is not to be trifled with. If you don't avoid any of the others in this list, maybe consider keeping away from him - he'll have you signing away your firstborn before you even know what's going on.

9. Our favourite DADA teacher makes this list because of his... ah... extracurricular activities. By which I mean, of course, he makes a habit of turning into a giant stinking wolf every month. Luckily, Lupin is one of the few people on this list that are on the good side. Still, don't stick around to chat if he's in his wolf form - he won't recognise you, and neither will anyone else once he's done with you!

10. This one actually didn't make it into the movies, but he's my favourite ghost ever, and I think cutting him out was a complete travesty. Especially since they actually did film some scenes with him - the image is one of the few actual footage pictures we have of Peeves the Poltergeist, from Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. From water bombs on terrified first-years, to chasing Umbridge out of the castle to the sound of hooves, Peeves, in my opinion, truly embodies the spirit of Halloween of having some spooky fun.



Now I'm going to curl on up on my bed and watch The Corpse Bride, followed by The Nightmare Before Christmas (both because it's about Halloween, but also because it's also about Christmas, so what's not to love?), to get into the mood for some Christmassy fun!

Illusions of Fate

Title: Illusions of Fate
Author: Kiersten White
Genre: YA
Rating: 5/5
Cover: 10/10

I don't know about Downtown Abbey, cause I don't watch it (yes, yes, I know...) but in my humble opinion, this was way better than The Mortal Instruments, so take the Cassandra Clare part with a pinch of salt.

I loved Jessamin. She is so headstrong, and determined to go after her dreams, it was really nice to read. She is thrust into this world of magic, helter-skelter, and yet she manages to maintain a level of cool confidence - both in herself and in others - that was just awesome to read.
As for Finn, well. He was infuriatingly cute, and the scenes between those two were, without a doubt, some of the best scenes. Their banter was off the scale, and seeing the high-and-mighty magician thrown by an 'island rat' was loads of fun.

Beware of the twist at the end, though. There are two, one of which was pretty obvious, but the other one threw me for a loop entirely.
I look forward to the possible short story from one of my favourite characters, Eleanor. I felt like there was a whole lot of story potential there, and hope to see something about her in the near future :)

Gameboard of the Gods

Title: Gameboard of the Gods (Age of X #1)
Author: Richelle Mead
Genre: adult
Rating: 5/5
Cover: 8/10 (not sure what/how it links to the story, but the swirls are pretty)


I know I shouldn't; I mean, you'd think that after ten adult books and nine young adult books, I'd be used to it. An yet, this woman's ability to captivate me with her stories never ceases to amaze me. And honestly? I'm hoping it never, ever does. Because, boy do I love the crazy rides her increasingly crazy main girls take me on.

To those of you familiar with Richelle's other works, the only way I can describe Mae (and I won't even try to spell her surname. I'm still trying to tackle Danila's. One crazy name at a time, please) is like, quite literally, a grown up version of Rose if Dimitri had stayed Strigoi, and Rose hadn't broken up with Adrian. Now, that was never a future that appealed to me, because in Rose's case, Dimitri was in the picture, and really, there's just no question when it comes to those two. But with Mae, I was happily surprised.  The similarities between Jason and Adrian can be quite astonishing for those who know what to look for, but at the same time, they're intrinsically different. Still, it was quite a shock to find myself yelling in my mind for them to just get it on already. Of all the books to make me reconsider my feelings on indulging, vice-imbibing, asshole-inclined, superior-minded, arrogant pricks, this was not the one I expected. But it did. And god help me, I fell head over heels in love with Jason. The jury's still out for Adrian, though.
Even more interestingly, is Tessa. The best way I can describe her, if we're still going with the Richelle Mead book examples, is as a bizarre cross between Sydney and a pinch of Rose. And yet something else too, because she's endearing - and while I love both leading ladies mentioned above, neither can be called endearing.
So what's the book about, and what makes it so amazing, you may ask? Join those three characters above, add in some crazy magic/god action, sexual tension thick enough to give even Georgina and Seth a run for their money, politics that are actually, bizarrely, quite intriguing, a dystopian-like country, and top it off with the trademark Mead snark and fabulous dialogue, and you have your answer. And if that doesn't sell you on reading this, then you should just read it because it's a Richelle Mead book, and I've come to learn that that basically means it'll blow your mind.
One thing that was, at first, a bit of the shock, is the third person narration that I wasn't used to with Mead's stories. However, once the book gets going (around page 2, as usual), it only ever stood out again whenever I had to stop reading, and then got back to it. Otherwise, in the flow of the narrative, the story lends itself quite well to third person, and it actually helps to keep the tension up, and kept me curious about the backgrounds of Mae and Jason, making me want to read on even more.
Also, to any budding YA readers out there who want to read more RM stuff, but are weary of the adult content, this is a pretty safe place to start. Leave Dark Swan and especially leave the Georgina Kincaid books alone until you can deal with explicit scenes; Gameboard of the Gods is really quite tame considering the usual amount of debauchery I've come to associate with adult books, although I suspect that might change in the next book. No swearing either, so safe enough.
Otherwise, definitely worth a read to any lovers of Richelle Mead, and/or good supernatural books. With a hint of dystopia to boot ;)

The Indigo Spell

Title: The Indigo Spell (Bloodlines #3)
Author: Richelle Mead
Genre: YA
Rating: 4.5/5
Cover: 6/10


It gets old when I keep on yammering about how I'm surprised with Adrian in the Bloodlines books. But, well, I am. The Ivashkov we get to meet in these books is miles away from the womanising, drunk bum that we met in Vampire Academy; a bum who had no qualms on hitting on a taken girl. No, this Ivashkov is pretty much perfect. He's sincere, romantic, sweet, thoughtful and just all around a great guy. But you know, the best traits of the old Adrian are also still there: his sass and sarcasm.
I do like Sydney. I do. Really. But... she's not Rose. Again, I feel like I'm hitting on the same spots in any and every review of this spin-off. However, I do want to say that Angeline surprised me. I never expected that from her. Then again, I didn't expect it from Trey either. But I just feel very sad, because Eddie and Angeline were like Romitri 2.0, so I had pretty big expectations for them. Still, I guess it sort of makes sense, though it bothers me that Eddie just bounced right back from Angeline to Jill. Eager much?
As for Romitri themselves (come on, it's a VA-world book, we gotta talk about them!), my only happiness is that Richelle has promised that Rose will be showing up much more in the next 3 books, because their scene here was waaay to short. I was all hyped up for the wedding, ready for loads of Romitri goodness, and have to make-do with that? Very sad indeed. Also, why no Christian? He's the one Ozera I like, and I miss his snark.
As for the whole witch thing... I like it. I still don't trust Trey's reasons for dating Angeline, but I get it that Richelle wanted to steer the plot a little further from vampires because of Sydney being human. The big bad witch didn't really scare me, though, despite her killing all those girls. Not sure why, but the Strigoi put the fear of god in me. Witches? Not so much (except maybe Voldemort. But that's beside the point). I did like Syd's choice at the end, though. I love seeing her break free and start making her own decisions. The ending, though? Honestly, book #1 had a more riveting ending (I'm a Dimitri girl, as I'm sure you all know by now) than that, which is bad, cause I was mentally prepared for a classic Richelle Mead book 3 ending. Now I'm told it's going to happen in book 4. So, here I go preparing myself again...

The False Princess

Title: The False Princess
Author: Eilis O'Neal
Genre: YA
Rating: 5/5
Cover: 7/10 I'm a little confused as to what the necklace is all about...


Sinda Azaway has spent the first sixteen years of her life believing she is the princess of Thorvaldor. When her entire life turns out to have been a ploy to keep the real princess safe from a threat that a prophecy about the princess, which said that she would die before the age of 16, Sinda is sent to live with an aunt she never knew she had.
Things don't go so well for Sinda after that. Without her best friend, Kiernan, son of the Earl of Rithia, Sinda feels empty and at a loss. Expected to help her aunt in household chores she hasn't a clue how to do, everything becomes even more complex when Sinda's magic, hidden because of the spell cast on her to make her look like princess Nalia, has finally bloomed, and she has no idea what to do with it, or worse, how to stop it from bursting out of her and burning things at random.
After she returns to the city to seek help with her magic, Sinda unravels a ploy deep within the heart of Thorvaldor, meant to dethrone the rightful princess. With time running out, and an uncertain hold on her magic at the best of times, Sinda will have to decide if getting to the end of the ploy is worth the price she'll have to pay.

Now, I need to say something here. This is one of those books. You know the kind. Fabulous plot, incredible characters (if a little transparent at times) and awesome pacing - even the down time is just right; not too long that you get bored, and not too short that it feels rushed. There were a few spelling mistakes that jumped out to me, but aside from that, The False Princess is, by all accounts, a wonderful read.
And it is. But... it's not one of those books that sticks with you after you finished, and that you keep thinking about, wondering about the characters, etc, which means it could have been even better. The ending seemed somewhat abrupt, and left a few strings still hanging. I felt certain there'd be a continuation, but I can't find anything that points to one, so I'll just assume it ends here. In that case, read it if you're looking for a good magical YA, with great humour, sweet romance and lots of intrigue.

Touch of Power

Title: Touch of Power (Healer #1)
Author: Maria V. Snyder
Genre: YA
Rating: 5/5
Cover: 10/10

Avry of Kazan lives in a world where some people have magic. There are eleven different kinds of mages in the 15 Realms, and she is a Healer. When she was fifteen, her powers manifested and she was sent off to be an apprentice to another Healer. While away from her family, there was an outbreak of a plague; a plague that no Healer could cure without dying themselves.
Shunned by the population, and accused of having started the plague, the Healers were hunted throughout the Realms, and hefty bounties were offered to anyone who handed over a Healer. After three years on the run, Avry makes a mistake and is discovered and sentenced to death.
Having accepted her fate, she is surprised when a group of travellers breaks her out of prison, and asks her to heal a friend of theirs of the plague. As she travels with this band of misfits, Avry re-discovers the power of friendship, love and loyalty. But will she heal their friend?

Touch of Power was, to put it quite bluntly, awesome. There really is no other word for it. And the amazing thing is you can't really pinpoint what makes the book so good, because everything is just so well-written, well-paced and the world is so well-built, there's just no way of saying 'oh this was good, but that wasn't so much'. And writing a review for a book like this is extremely hard. But I'll try.
There is not a moment of sleepiness in Touch of Power, and from page one, Avry draws you in with her witty thoughts, dry humour and jaded perspective of the world. She is hunted, and she is tired of it. But once she has five men helping her survive, and they all know what she is so she doesn't have to hide her real self anymore, she really comes into herself again, and you get to see an entirely different woman - albeit still hilarious, fascinating and compelling - from the Avry you met at the beginning of the book.
And the secondary characters are equally interesting. There is no lack of depth in this book's characters, which of course makes the entire experience a roller-coaster ride of crazy emotions flying all over the place as you alternatively grieve, cry, laugh, hurt, scare, love, hate and become stubborn with them.

A fascinating read; can't wait for the next one! Touch of Power has a winner ending, that will leave you aching for more.

News

Exciting news for Born Wicked fans! The second book in the magical series by Jessica Spotswood now has a title and a release date! All we're missing is a cover, and if it's anything like the one for Born Wicked, we're in for a lovely treat!
Look out for Star Cursed on the 7th of February 2013!

Book Review: Spell Bound

Title: Spell Bound (Hex Hall #3)
Author: Rachel Hawkins
Genre: YA
Rating: 5/5
Cover: 10/10

Once, I heard a comment about a particular piece of writing that called it "smooth and wonderful, like molten chocolate", which struck me as odd, when related to writing, no matter how good.
I've now come to understand what that person meant, because that was exactly what came to mind while reading Spell Bound.
Rachel Hawkins created a world that is easy to get lost in, aided by a chracter that is so lovable, that it is virtually impossible to not want to know what will happen next to her and her friends.
In this third and last book of the Hex Hall trilogy, we follow Sophie, Jenna, Archer (don't even get me started on Archer... lol), Cal and some new characters, as they fight to regain control over their world, before what's left of the Council decides it's a good idea to raise demons to keep everyone safe, and the road to safety is filled with good intentions, but then, so is the road to hell...
Sophie, as per usual, managed to pull out a good amount of giggles from me. Archer was... well, Archer. Tall, dark and handsome, and totally swoon-worthy, so nothing new there ;)
Of the new characters, I particularly loved Izzy. The girl's got some spunk, and much more personality than her sister. It's just sad she only showed up in this book; I'd have liked to know more about her
All in all, 5 for originality, for the humor and for the plot, although I sometimes felt some bigger depth of a few secondary characters might have made it even better.

Book Review: The Night Circus

Title: The Night Circus
Author: Erin Morgenstern
Genre: YA
Rating: 3.5/5
Cover: 9/10

A while back, before The Night Circus was even published, I read an article saying how it was being sold to readers as 'the new Harry Potter' because of its' magic. Now, I know everyone and their sister wants some way to tie in their book with Potter, but the description of the book was enough to intrigue me, and so, after some time, I finally caved in and bought it.

I can't help but feel I was lied to.
The book takes ages to get anywhere interesting, and I felt it dragging horridly. On top of that, the way the story was presented often left me confused and trying to figure out where, exactly, I was in time, as it starts in one place, in a certain year, jumps many years ahead to another place, and then comes back to the first year, but in another continent... I found I had to keep going back to check where and when the previous chapter had taken place, which disrupted the reading.
Once the plotline picked up, however, it was easier to forgive the confusion, and easier to get lost in Marco and Celia's world of intrigue, questions, magic, lies and betrayals. It's because of the second half that this book got 3.5, instead of 2 stars as I would probably have otherwise given it.
An interesting read, if you can get beyond the beginning.