The Name of the Game Was Murder

I didn’t mind this one, but it did start to drag a bit. The MC was visiting her aunt and uncle and she had to solve the mystery of her uncle’s murder. There were a series of clues right the way through but it just got annoying that she didn’t know what any of it meant until right near the end.

It seemed very – old fashioned – is the best way I can describe it. The author Joan Lowery Nixon no doubt wrote a novel for what was appropriate at the time (1993). But I found myself wondering if kids today would connect with the novel now as some of the references and even the language would have them wondering what she was talking about. Given this I was confused as to what the MC’s actual age was. It was never mentioned but it did say that she had finished Year Nine – at least that is what I took it to mean. I then assumed she was about 15 or 16 but to me she seemed a lot younger given her mannerisms and speech.

I enjoyed it none the less, but it has me rethinking anything that might very well ‘date’ my story.

Invitation Only

Aw c’mon, what did you honestly expect? That I’d let that last little bite of temptation just sit there? Hardly! Polished that baby off this evening.

Ok, I won’t go into any great depth because I think we’ve established the idea of Kate Brian’s writing and her incredibly awful but extremely addictive series about Reed and her gang of evil dorm queens. I’ll seek out the next one, but I’m happy to leave well alone for the moment. There’s writing to be done!

Private

I’m literally swallowing these babies whole. I started Private by Kate Brian last night and finished it this afternoon. The plot isn’t anything extravagant. In fact it’s not even riveting – girl moves from poor public school to rich private school and how she adapts – far from it, but I’m sucked in nonetheless. A few grammatical errors – quite a few – but I figured that was publisher error rather than author.

This is the first in the series and I have to say it’s interesting to read knowing what’s going to happen. For me it didn’t ruin it but enabled me to connect a few dots and perhaps get more from it than just the typical teenage onslaught. I liked learning about the characters – actually finding out what they’re meant to look like, and seeing where they came from, already knowing where they’re headed.

Sure, it’s still drivel but I’m enjoying it. And more importantly, it’s helping me a great deal with my current project. No doubt my next entry will be the second book’s review as I’ve already pulled it out and stuck the bookmark at the first chapter.

Down the Rabbit Hole

Down the Rabbit Hole by Peter Abrahams is the second book by a male author I’ve read who, having chosen a female lead, decided to make her sporty, have no interest in the things most thriteen year old girls are interested in and blow off moments in a thriteen year old girl’s life that may not be considered monumental to a fifty something year old male but are key milestones to a young teenage girl.

I was quite confused by Peter Abrahams’ choices of ‘now’ (this book was published 2006 but will date extremely quickly given these choices). By that I mean television programs, actors etc. I would also query his ideas of what a teenage girl actually knows. She’s in Year Eight. She’d know that Jupiter has moons. She would know that curiosity was what killed the cat. And making her do terribly in maths (and why is all maths in YA fiction algebra??) is not an original concept either. That’s something I’ve always been angry about. Why are young female MCs always doing badly in maths?

My other bugbear was the lying. The MC was lying left right and centre; to her parents to her friends and to the police. As much as it may seem relevant to a story I have to say that I really abhor plots that insist on making characters lie – especially to people who should be considered trustworthy. To me this book gave the idea that lying is ok because it’ll all be for the best in the end. Kids need to know that lying to people who love and care for them and can ultimately help them is not something they should ever consider doing.

The story itself was a tad predictable and to be honest it read like a debut novel rather than one from an award winning author.

Confessions

I started and finished Confessions on the train ride home. It’s the next in the series after Untouchable, but it’s the one I really wanted as the mystery was actually solved in this one. More teenage angst – which shoes go with which dress – but who am I to judge when I’m the one gobbling these things up?

I enjoy Kate Brian’s writing. I feel she has the essence of a teenager down pat, but then perhaps Francine Pascal did as well.

I’ll be searching out more of these babies as they are certainly giving the teenager in me some much needed attention. I found her site – which looks more like a CoverGirl advertisement – and it did alleviate any fears that Reed and the gang were done and dusted.

Untouchable

Sigh! Another new favourite author for my inner teenager. Where were all these angst ridden teenagers when I was one? Back then my choices were Sweet Valley High or Mills and Boon. Not exactly high level entertainment, but they filled an otherwise selfindulgent void.

Untouchable by Kate Brian is probably today’s Sweet Valley High by Francine Pascal. It’s set in a very posh (American) school – Easton – with an out of place MC and a character list to rival 90210. Everyone’s beautiful, intelligent and egotistical. I loved it! Untouchable is actually the third in the series. I asked for mystery and that’s what I got, so I figure the first two are just the usual teenage issues of being the new kid on the block. Clues dropped in this one gave some hint as to what the previous installments have so I may yet give them a go.

I really enjoyed this and finished it over the weekend having started it on my train ride. Hardly gripping reading but I lapped it up for all its clichedness. Unless you’re a privileged teenage girl, or aspire to be like I sometimes think I am, then leave this one well alone. Otherwise, go for it!

Whodunnit?

After a totally relaxing and funfilled weekend I found myself all too quickly back on the train being hurtled head long towards home. I got a tremendous amount of reading done thanks to the four hour long journey both to and from Lakes Entrance but I’ll start with the first book I finished.

Whodunnit? was a book I immediately snaffled up as I was led to believe it was by Philip Pullman. Of course, it was not completely ambiguous, Philip Pullman did have some hand in the book’s creation, even if he didn’t actually write it. It is a collection of detective short stories, hand picked by Pullman as his favourites, of interest or just for their quirkiness. I got my first taste of Sherlock Holmes, read one of the more interesting Agatha Christie’s and enjoyed some of literature’s earlier crime solvers.

Some of the writing was very old, but since each author was writing as their time dictated it did the job of transporting me to nineteenth century London or to a seedy town in nineteenfifties America. Pullman even tossed in a true story and a couple of puzzles based on true crime.

If I had to pick a favourite it would probably be Cross of Lorraine by Isaac Asimov. It was beautifully written and although not a true detective story it did have me riveted and even nodding sagely as the final outcome was revealed and the result was blatantly obvious.

I enjoyed this one. It was a good one to have read to give an idea of detective stories and their construction.

Flyte

Book 2 of the Septimus Heap series by Angie Sage. I don’t think it’s as good as the first, but it is a continuation of the previous story. The characters still seemed a bit hollow and there were times where they spouted chunks of dialogue that I thought could have been weeded out as they served no purpose to the overall story – except to add some padding.

The whole self pitying antagonist is here in all its splendour. I did dislike him, which I suppose was the purpose, but I was more irritated than despising. It does leave a huge open end for the next in the series. I don’t know how many of these are planned, but it will be interesting to see what turn the next one takes.

I feel this one dragged near the end. It seemed the pinnacle came and went and we were still carrying on tying up all the other loose ends. Even so I am glad I read it. I’ll probably think twice about the next one, but then again, if I see it I’ve no doubt I’ll pick it up.

Victory of Eagles: A Temeraire Novel

Naomi Novik has a real liking of putting twists at the end of her novels. Although it was back at war with Napoleon I was glad that there was action rather than the constant waiting for something to happen.

I enjoyed this one, although I found some of the wording to go around in circles a little. I like the old fashioned use of the language, but it had me in knots at times as I reread to work out what she was saying. I’m actually glad of the twist as it means more books – obviously, but it will also mean a whole cache of new adventures. I would have worried that the storyline continued along the same vein.

I joined the Temeraire newsletter so I’m looking forward to receiving my first issue. I have really enjoyed this series and will eagerly anticipate the next installment.

Temeraire: The Ivory Empire

After the disappointment of the previous I was very relieved to have the action and suspense that I usually enjoy with these books. This installment is number four of Naomi Novik’s Temeraire series and I was captivated from the start. It was a completely different adventure, although it did see more travel, on a different continent. I also kept reading when I thought surely it should have finished, and started to worry that it hadn’t. She has the ability to waffle on which I find quite distracting and sometimes a little dull.

I adore the character of Laurence, far more so than Temeraire, which I found surprising given my own devotion to dragons. He’s certainly the voice of reason which comes with the territory of age and experience, but on occasion he does something quite rash and brazen, but in his own way always comes out the hero.

The significant twist at the end has me concerned, but I hardly think Ms Novik is giving up on Laurence and Temeraire just yet. I did enjoy this one a great deal.