by Henry H. Neff
This is the second book in the fantasy young adult series. I already reviewed the first one. I have to say that the issues I had with the first seem to be magnified in this one. In brief, the plot follows directly on from the first book. The forces of darkness are chasing our hero and his friends. The school setting is nearly completely absent and we jump into a second world fantasy for a short while.
It is strange to say this, but this book seemed rushed even though it is over 600 pages. Even allowing for the large type and fewer words per page of an young adult book, this is still a lot of room to work with. The problem here to me seems to be that the main character doesn’t have much time to react to the plot points.
For instance, for the first book and most of this one, a big deal is made that his mother is missing, not dead. There is, of course, a reveal. What seems like a key plot point that should drive the rest of the book and, perhaps, the series is dealt with quickly and we are on to something else. The characters have no time to react to the situations. I am not expecting that he would develop a drinking problem or PTSD, but some reaction would be nice. I have the third book here and will read it, but instead of being excited, I am a little apprehensive.
Mildly recommended.
doing some short reading for Christmas. A computer expert is sent in to organize Mcdonald Hall the students rebel in typical fashion. Pretty dated with the technology used so I'm not sure how well this would read to a younger reader today but I enjoyed it.
time for some more nostalgia. This is part of the young adult humor series Bruno and Boots. The boys want to fund a pool which leads to crazier and more bizarre schemes. Amusing I'll have to remember this for my nephew.
this is book 4th in the Earthsea series. Characters from the earlier books older now come together to try to live out the last years of their lives peacefully. It doesn't last when an enemy from the past returns. The story although well written lacks a certain something there isn't the same narrative drive that was in the first three books. Which isn't necessarily saying much. Real world concerns seem to come to the four much more in this book than the others. There's a section on child abuse for instance which seems out of place. I was surprised to discover that this received the Nebula in 1991.
third in the Earthsea Cycle. Magic is leaking out of the land Ged with a young companion Arren [a prince from a distant land] is sent to discover why. Of the three so far I consider this to be the weakest. There are several episodes along the way but it doesn't seem to mesh into a whole. Le Guin who isn't terribly subtle at the best of times really beats you over the head with the theme. Death is not to be feared. The ongoing momentum of the series means that I'm probably being nicer to this than it deserves. My patience is starting to run thin. My understanding is that the next book is in the same universe but with a different main character we shall see.
young adult fantasy first in a trilogy. Jack our hero discovers that he has been marked at birth to be the hero [a gladiator who will fight to the death at the behest of wizards]. This is a good example of a summer read a book that is fast paced and enjoyable as long as you don't actually think about the plot or characters. The world building is occasionally laughable. Wizards want to stay secret but they sure do destroy a lot of property. Characters are cardboard and unsympathetic. I found myself humming it's a small world after all at several times. There are coincidences and characters that just happen to be involved. There is action we certainly don't get bogged down in characters thoughts and feelings. This is fluff and I'm actually going to pick up the sequel, well used not new.
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