A Bad Beginning, a Better End

In my last post I was all excited that I had somehow found time to start reading more again.  I thought I would start making better progress toward meeting my reading goal (which I already reduced by ten books from last year), but then I ended up starting and abandoning three books in a row!  So much for picking up the pace, huh?  But then, I was lucky enough to read three great books in a row (okay, so they were the three parts of a trilogy, so I guess that's kind of cheating), so it all ended on a good note.  Here's the lowdown:

The first book I abandoned was Dreaming Darkly, by Caitlin Kittredge.  It was about a girl whose family is cursed, and she has dreams in which she does violent things (like kill people), which then seem to have really happened (like, a person she killed in her dream turns up  missing in real life).  It's a concept I haven't really come across before, so I was interested to read it, but unfortunately it didn't keep me interested.  This is mostly because it wasn't very well written - the dialogue wasn't great, the characters were both not very likable and also pretty stereotypical, the plot development left much to be desired, and the backstory was just plain dumb.  Honestly, I just didn't have the patience for it.  Don't let the cover fool you - this book isn't worth reading.

The second book I abandoned was We Set the Dark on Fire, by Tehlor Kay Mejia.  I actually got quite a ways into this one before I finally decided I was NOT going to finish it.  What could have been an inspirational story of a poor girl overcoming the odds against her through her strength of character, turned into a propaganda piece denouncing rich male privilege and promoting open borders.  On top of that, the writing was not all that good, either.  If you want to read a story with a strong female lead overcoming the odds, there are plenty of better choices out there.

The third book I abandoned was StepSister by Jennifer Donnelly.  To tell you the truth, I found it quite surprising that the book was as bad as it was, because I've read three of Donnelly's other books and liked them all.  This was a retelling of the Cinderella story, but with one of the ugly stepsisters as the main character.  Yes, this has been done before, but I figured there are a whole bunch of ways a writer could approach it so, why not?  It started off pretty good, and quickly went downhill.  The weird juxtaposition of historical details that didn't quite match up into a logical timeline really bothered me, as did the main character herself.  I hated the way the author used her thoughts to constantly explain where she was taking the story, instead of letting the readers figure it out on their own.  I mean, she made everything so obvious, that there was no pleasure in interpreting subtle clues and being able to say Ah, I see where she's going with this.  The worst part about it is that she started the book with a fantastic twist, in which Fate and Chance (as in one of the three Fates of ancient mythology and a fantastic character who was somewhat similar to the Harbinger from Ann Aguirre's Mortal Danger trilogy) were fighting over the girl's destiny.  That part of the story was so original and interesting that I actually just set the book aside and thought, well, maybe I'll come back to it.  Obviously, I eventually decided it wasn't worth it.  If you want to read a version of the Cinderella story that is centered on the stepsister, I recommend picking up Tracy Barrett's The Stepsister's Tale instead.

A Brief History of Montmaray, by Michelle Cooper, had been on my To-Read list for years (literally - years), and for some reason I never checked it out of the library.  I think this is because, every time I got ready to grab more books, I was like, what is that supposed to be about again?  And then I was reminded that it is supposed to be the writings in a diary.  And then I'd be like, I am really not in the mood for that.  For some reason I finally broke down and brought it home, and then it sat on my bookshelf until it was the very last book left to read (not even an emergency standby was left in case I didn't like it!), so I read it.  By the end of the first chapter I was hooked.  I loved everything about it.  It is a historical fiction piece that is set in the 1930's.  It tells the story of some siblings and their cousin who are royalty of the (very tiny) island kingdom of Montmaray.  Pretty much they are all that is left of their country's citizens, and since the king himself has lost his mind, they are pretty much left to fend for themselves.  The castle is falling apart around them, and then the Germans arrive . . .  Loved the concept, loved the characters, and although it is supposed to be the writings in a journal, the girl tells what happened in narrative form, so you completely forget about that and think you are reading a regular novel.  If you like historical fiction, you should definitely read this one.  (Reading Level: 6.5 / Upper Grades)

After reading the first book in the series I had to make a special run to the library to pick up the second book, The FitzOsbornes in Exile.  This is partly because I saved the first book until the very last and didn't have anything else to read, but also because I just had to continue reading the story.  I even made my husband and son swing by the library with me after going out to eat for lunch, and left them in the car while I ran in and grabbed the book off the shelf.  (I actually had a couple of unread books that I own on my other bookshelf, but I really wanted to read this one!)  This book continues the saga of the teenage royals as they are forced to flee Montmaray and live with their aunt in England during the years leading up to WWII.  It is just as good as the first book, even though it is heavier on the historical fiction and lighter on the action and whimsy that I found particularly appealing.  (Reading Level: 6.6 / Upper Grades)

I think the third book in this trilogy, The FitzOsbornes at War, was a bit better than the second one.  It had a little more action, and a lot more tension, and of course, knowing it was going to be the end of the story, that whole how is it all going to pan out anticipation.  Well, it all panned out very nicely, except for one character, which frankly, I wasn't very happy about.  He was the underdog from the beginning of the first book, always getting the short end of the stick, and I absolutely hated the resolution that the author chose for him.  It just seemed so unfair.  And let me tell you, there is nothing more frustrating than reading a good trilogy and having the author mess things up in the very last chapter.  It was still a really good book, though, so don't let my little complaint keep you from checking the trilogy out.  (Reading Level: 6.7 / Upper Grades)