Inkheart by Cornelia Funke - Review

Inkheart by Cornelia Funke- my all-time favourite book! And here is why:

The Covers for the whole series are amazing. I was the first thing to attract me to it. It captures the feel of the books without giving anything away.

The Quotes at the beginning of each chapter pertain to the plot. I enjoyed studying the quotes and trying to guess what would happen next.

The Plot was brilliant: Mo, Maggie's father can read characters out of books! He accidentally reads a particularly evil one out and reads his own wife in! He spends years trying to get her back. Maggie discovers she has her father's gift and they both find themselves on an adventure that usually only happens in books.

What reader hasn't fantasized about meeting their favourite fictional characters?

The Descriptions, next to the plot, were my favourite part of the books. Cornelia Funke has a wonderful gift for description, some times I would re-read parts just because I loved the way she made words come alive.

The Characters were 3D, you really fall in love with their quirks and even though Dustfinger, the fire-dancer, can frustrate the reader, the story would not be the same without him.

I Disliked the swearing. Mild swearwords though they were, I was shocked to find them in a children's book.
The plot was wonderful but the story's pacing was not very good. In the first book Mo, Maggie and Dustfinger get captured and escape too many times. The book felt dis-jointed at some parts.

The Verdict: well, as I mentioned at the beginning of this post, Inkheart is my favourite book. So, I absolutely love the series!

"Incarnate" by Jodi Meadows - Review

Where have I been?
I'm not entirely sure. See, I've been working and editing... and... well that's all I can remember O_O Oh! Yes! I've also been reading!


I started a fantasy book that I decided 3/4's of the way through - sucked. So, while I was looking for a birthday present for my husband at Chapters the other day (where else would I look?), I glanced around for a book to read. To my dismay, all I saw were.... fairy, vampire and werewolf books. *Sigh* I think my generation doesn't have good taste in books. Not that I have anything against paranormal books, but the obsession that goes along with them doesn't sit well with me.
Then! I remembered... "What was that book...? That one I read about on the author's blog...?... Ah-ha!"


And that, my friends, is how I bought "Incarnate" by Jodi Meadows.

 Synopsis:
Ana is the first "newsoul" to be born in Range. For thousands of years people have lived, died, and been born again while keeping the memories from their previous lives. Ana, however, replaced someone. She was never supposed to be born. Her mother hates her and many are afraid there will be more like her that will replace old souls.
At 18 she travels to Heart, the city where most of the population of Range lives. Along the way she is rescued from drowning by Sam, a music composer. His body is around the same ages as hers but he has lived and died hundreds of times.
He watches out for her and takes her to Heart with him. There, Ana searches for the reason for her existence.
The counsel, however, isn't as eager as Sam is to receive her and she is subjected to their rules. They claim it is for her safety and benefit. But she asks too many questions about things others think she shouldn't. She finds herself in danger of being killed. Ana and Sam form a strong attachment through music which quickly becomes much more.



What I liked:
It was unique. I'd never read a fantasy book about reincarnation before. The book kept me engaged all the way through.
I liked that Ana accepted help from Sam. Most female characters tend to try to be too tough and it's hard for me to relate to them when I am frustrated with them every time they get into a conversation with their romantic interest. Ana, however, had a nice balance of independence while still relying on others. Her character development was well paced.
The imagery in the book was also quite good. Imagery is something that I have always found hard to write but Jodi Meadows had enough description to give me a vivid picture in my head without overwhelming with details.
The book is well written.


What I Didn't Like:
I appreciated the idea that a soul isn't defined by it's gender but I wasn't a fan of the idea that people's souls were reincarnated into both male and female bodies, depending on the life-time.
Sam and Ana make some suggestive comments to each other near in the latter half of the book. In my opinion, books for teens have far too much of that these days. “Intimate” scenes are uncalled for, especially in books for teen girls (I ought to know, I'm still one myself). I prefer to read and suggest a book to friends without being uncomfortable about parts in it. I returned "The Graceling" by Kristin Cashore to Chapters for that very reason and ranted to my friends about how annoyed I was.


Verdict:
Over-all, I liked “Incarnate” and look forward to the sequel!