Tuesday, May 8, 2012

The Near Witch

I only had a few quick minutes to grab something when I was at the library yesterday. I grabbed the first book that had an interesting description. The Near Witch by Victoria Schwab was one of these books. I have to say, I was somewhat disappointed. The main character, Lexi, was interesting and the writing style was very lyrical and fun. But the story was very predictable and Lexi was almost the only interesting character. Her counter part, a boy named Cole, was the other interesting person. Honestly,  I was more interested in his life than hers. The book could have been much better if it didn't have one of my pet peeves of fiction. Romance sprung out of nowhere. I had no problem with the romance side of the story, except there was very little lead up to it. The characters barely knew each other and suddenly they are falling in love? The book was long enough that there could have been more realistic development of this side of the story. If this little romance had been left out and the two characters had ended the book as friends, maybe even friends with a hint of something more down the road, it would have been a better book.
On the upside, I really like the cover.

Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Friends And Foes review

This book is by Sarah M. Eden. It's one of those books you settle down with for a day, either cozy by the fire with a big cup of hot chocolate or out on the beach while you work on your tan. Unfortunately, I was doing neither while I read this book, but I still fully enjoyed it. The main character, Philip Jonquil, does a wonderful job of narrating the story. We get into his head and see things from his perspective, but at times we are still distant enough to see things he does not. Philip is a French spy hunter for the English and he has one more spy he needs to catch before he can be released from his duty. He is at a family reunion of sorts for Christmas and has some very interesting adventures.  His counter character, Sorrel, is also lots of fun. She holds her own while still having insecurities and fears. Both characters are complex and move the story forward themselves instead of being plopped into situations and reacting. It's not extremely complex and a little (ok, a lot) predicable, but I still thoroughly enjoyed the story.