Game of Thrones Book 1 by George RR Martin

Summary (by Goodreads)

Long ago, in a time forgotten, a preternatural event threw the seasons out of balance. In a land where summers can last decades and winters a lifetime, trouble is brewing. The cold is returning, and in the frozen wastes to the north of Winterfell, sinister and supernatural forces are massing beyond the kingdom’s protective Wall. At the center of the conflict lie the Starks of Winterfell, a family as harsh and unyielding as the land they were born to. Sweeping from a land of brutal cold to a distant summertime kingdom of epicurean plenty, here is a tale of lords and ladies, soldiers and sorcerers, assassins and bastards, who come together in a time of grim omens.

Here an enigmatic band of warriors bear swords of no human metal; a tribe of fierce wildlings carry men off into madness; a cruel young dragon prince barters his sister to win back his throne; and a determined woman undertakes the most treacherous of journeys. Amid plots and counterplots, tragedy and betrayal, victory and terror, the fate of the Starks, their allies, and their enemies hangs perilously in the balance, as each endeavors to win that deadliest of conflicts: the game of thrones.

Review:

I chose to "re-read" this title to prepare for the the Game of Thrones final season.  I have all of the books however I find it difficult to read them and keep track of all of the characters. By listening to it on audio, I find that I can identify better with the different voices and I have time to look up the characters I can't remember online.  I have found that The Game of Thrones wiki is incredibly helpful in helping me remember characters and understanding how they fit into the entire series.  This series is so well-crafted.  I LOVE it!!  I will not go into the story in detail but we certainly get a close look into the Starks and the Lannisters in book #1.  There is lots of underhandedness as families compete for control of the throne and exert their power.

This week it was announced that the cast gave a 15 minute long standing ovation after that final season was read.  It sounds like it will be going down in history as a truly prolific series.  For those of you unfortunately souls who have not yet seen the show or read the books, you really should invest the time.  The world building and character development of this series is honestly out of this world.  Think Tolkien level.  George R.R. Martin is coming out with two more books to wrap up the Game of Throne collection - The Winds of Winter and a Dream of Spring.  Even after the last Game of Thrones episode airs, we can still call for celebration because there is said to be another 3-4 spinoffs from this series.  Yay!!!

Listen-Up - City of a Thousand Dolls by Miriam Forster

 

Published: February 5th, 2013

Publisher: Books on Tape

Copy: e audio through library and Overdrive.

Summary: Goodreads

An exotic treat set in an entirely original, fantastical world brimming with deadly mystery, forbidden romance, and heart-stopping adventure.

Nisha was abandoned at the gates of the City of a Thousand Dolls when she was just a child. Now sixteen, she lives on the grounds of the isolated estate, where orphan girls apprentice as musicians, healers, courtesans, and, if the rumors are true, assassins. Nisha makes her way as Matron’s assistant, her closest companions the mysterious cats that trail her shadow. Only when she begins a forbidden flirtation with the city’s handsome young courier does she let herself imagine a life outside the walls. Until one by one, girls around her start to die.

Before she becomes the next victim, Nisha decides to uncover the secrets that surround the girls’ deaths. But by getting involved, Nisha jeopardizes not only her own future in the City of a Thousand Dolls—but her own life.

I'm finding listening to books a little bit of a challenge right now.  I changed locations at work, and while I used to have about 40 minutes a day in the car to listen to books, now I have about a 6 minute walk - maybe 8 if I get stuck at the cross-walk, and that's both ways included.  See my problem?  I've tried listening at home, but there is so much else going on with other people in the house that it's just not the same experience. It took so long to finish that I have to admit that I don't remember many  of the details and names, so this is really just a mini-review.

That said, I enjoyed City of a Thousand Dolls. Narrated by Sharon McManus, the story is about an orphan, Nisha, who is tasked by her mentor to help solve three murders.  There is the added complication that Nisha has no idea of her own background and is trying to find out about herself at the same time.  In the course of her investigations, Nisha manages to alienate her only real friend.  I was upset at her for this, but ultimately I understood why she did what she did.  As for the love interest - whose name I admit to having forgotten - I never liked him, and was furious at his actions and glad he got his come-uppance.

This was an interesting story, with a definite oriental slant to it and the addition of  shadow cats added an extra dimension that I loved.  There are shape shifters involved and some interesting caste dynamics. While I did work out some of the murder aspects of the story, the cats took me by surprise and that arc of the story made me smile. I will admit that my fractured listening definitely affected my enjoyment, but overall I enjoyed the story.  If you're a fan of historical fantasy mystery, then give it a try.

The lesson here - don't pick up an audio book if you can only listen for 3-4 minutes at a time.

Listen Up - The Painted Girls by Cathy Marie Buchanan

 

 

Published: January 2013

Publisher: Blackstone Audio

Cassandra Campbell (Narrator), Julia Whelan (Narrator), Danny Campbell (Narrator)

A gripping novel set in Belle Époque Paris and inspired by the real-life model for Degas’s Little Dancer Aged Fourteen and a notorious criminal trial of the era.

Paris. 1878. Following their father’s sudden death, the van Goethem sisters find their lives upended. Without his wages, and with the small amount their laundress mother earns disappearing into the absinthe bottle, eviction from their lodgings seems imminent. With few options for work, Marie is dispatched to the Paris Opéra, where for a scant seventy francs a month, she will be trained to enter the famous ballet. Her older sister, Antoinette, finds work—and the love of a dangerous
young man—as an extra in a stage adaptation of Émile Zola’s naturalist masterpiece L’Assommoir.

Marie throws herself into dance and is soon modelling in the studio of Edgar Degas, where her
image will forever be immortalized as Little Dancer Aged Fourteen. Antoinette, meanwhile, descends lower and lower in society, and must make the choice between a life of honest labor and the more profitable avenues open to a young woman of the Parisian demimonde—that is, unless her love affair derails her completely.

Set at a moment of profound artistic, cultural, and societal change, The Painted Girls is a tale of two remarkable sisters rendered uniquely vulnerable to the darker impulses of “civilized society.

For the month of October my book club decided to read The Painted Girls by Cathy Marie Buchanan.  This was definitely not a book that I would have voluntarily have taken off the shelf - which is one of the big reasons I like book club - so I decided that since I've been so busy, I would try listening to it instead.  What a surprise I got.  This is an amazing book, that was incredibly well narrated.  Cassandra Campbell and Julia Whelan became Marie and Antoinette in my mind.  Their voices were different enough that there was never any doubt which sister was narrating and I became completely immersed in the story. It was completely fascinating to be 'inside' Antoinette's head as she falls for Emile, and to observe her from Marie's standpoint. 

Ms. Buchanan took two true but unconnected facts from history and has melded them into a moving and mesmerising story that will capture your heart.  Each character comes alive as they are read and I found it almost impossible not to become emotionally involved in the lives of the characters.  Compared to nowadays, there were some strange ideas running around in 1880's Paris and there is some real food for thought in the pages of this book.  The main characters are both in their teens - Marie 13 and Antoinette 17 - when the story starts  and I am sure that this would make a perfect novel for an ISU study.  There is just so much going in inside people's heads.  Perfect for discussion and essays.  We had some great discussions at book club. 

If you want to read something a little different and step out of your box, try The Painted Girls and let me know what you think.  Also if you read and enjoyed 'The Girl With The Pearl Earring I think you'll enjoy this one too.

Listen Up - Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Published: October 2010

Publisher: Hachette Audio

Audio copy from: Library and Overdrive

Narrated by: Kevin T Collins

Summary: Goodreads

Ethan Wate used to think of Gatlin, the small Southern town he had always called home, as a place where nothing ever changed. Then he met mysterious newcomer Lena Duchannes, who revealed a secret world that had been hidden in plain sight all along. A Gatlin that harbored ancient secrets beneath its moss-covered oaks and cracked sidewalks. A Gatlin where a curse has marked Lena's family of powerful Supernaturals for generations. A Gatlin where impossible, magical, life-altering events happen.


Sometimes life-ending.

Together they can face anything Gatlin throws at them, but after suffering a tragic loss, Lena starts to pull away, keeping secrets that test their relationship. And now that Ethan's eyes have been opened to the darker side of Gatlin, there's no going back. Haunted by strange visions only he can see, Ethan is pulled deeper into his town's tangled history and finds himself caught up in the dangerous network of underground passageways endlessly crisscrossing the South, where nothing is as it seems.



I read Beautiful Creatures last year and loved it so much I decided to listen to it afterwards. You can read my review of the audio version of Beautiful Creatures HERE. I loved it, in fact it was just about my favourite book of 2010. So when Beautiful Darkness came out - and you're going to laugh at me here - I didn't want to read it in case it wasn't as good as the first one! Yep, I know, stupid. Anyway, with Christmas and everything else going on, I finally got around to listening to Beautiful Darkness last week - and of course, I loved it just as much as the first one, if not more.

Kevin T Collins returns as the narrator for the audio version and it was so nice to have that continuity. I just love the dark atmosphere on the audio. The wind whistling, doors banging, music playing. Speaking of which, Michelle McGonigle is back with her eerily haunting rendition of 'Sixteen Moons' or in this case 'Seventeen Moons'.

The story of Ethan and Lena continues in ways I wasn't suspecting, with things getting even darker this time around. Ethan has become my ideal of the perfect boyfriend. He is so supportive and protective of Lena it almost made my heart break. I don't want to give away the story, just in case there is anyone out there who hasn't read this one yet, but things are not all hunky dory in Gatlin. Even stranger things are happening than last time, and new people are coming to town. Lena is deeply depressed over the death of her Uncle and Ethan is trying to help her, to no avail.

There were some wonderful twists to the story and I loved them all. Some I expected, and some coming out of left field. Link's character is really fleshed out in this book and his madcap humour was responsible for some light relief (actually he reminds me of my son a bit, so I have a serious soft spot for him).

I am now waiting with seriously bated breath for the next volume of the series, due out in the Fall of this year, and you can be sure I won't take so long to read it this time around. If you are interested in reading Christinabean's review, you can find it HERE. She loved it too! There is also a 4th volume coming in the Fall of 2012. Way to keep up the suspense, girls!

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Audio edition published: June 2009
Publisher: Full Cast Audio
Copy provided by: Library and Overdrive
Summary: Goodreads

Graceling takes readers inside the world of Katsa, a warrior-girl in her late teens with one blue eye and one green eye. This gives her haunting beauty, but also marks her as a Graceling. Gracelings are beings with special talents—swimming, storytelling, dancing. Katsa's Grace is considered more useful: her ability to fight (and kill, if she wanted to) is unequaled in the seven kingdoms. Forced to act as a henchman for a manipulative king, Katsa channels her guilt by forming a secret council of like-minded citizens who carry out secret missions to promote justice over cruelty and abuses of power.

Combining elements of fantasy and romance, Cashore skillfully portrays the confusion, discovery, and angst that smart, strong-willed girls experience as they creep toward adulthood. Katsa wrestles with questions of freedom, truth, and knowing when to rely on a friend for help. This is no small task for an angry girl who had eschewed friendships (with the exception of one cousin that she trusts) for her more ready skills of self-reliance, hunting, and fighting. Katsa also comes to know the real power of her Grace and the nature of Graces in general: they are not always what they appear to be.

Graceling is the first book in a series, and Kristin Cashore’s first work of fiction. It sets up a vivid world with engaging characters that readers will certainly look forward to following beyond the last chapter of this book. (Ages 14 and up)


Ok, here I go again, waxing lyrical about audio books. This was no exception. I have to admit I had already read Graceling in early 2009 and I absolutely loved it. So I was wondering what to listen to the other week and I noticed 'Graceling' was available on Overdrive. I know some of you will wonder why I bother listening to something I have already read, but it is a completely different experience listening to it.

Anyway, this version of the story was first class. The story was narrated by David Baker, but the voices of all the different characters are read by different people. What fun! None of the voices seemed wrong to me and this was a bonus.

The story itself is one that I enjoyed very much. Katsa is justifiably angry after the way she has been taken advantage of for years and she has a hard time relating to and trusting people. Prince Po was incredibly patient with her and while occasionally I wanted to slap them both, for being so self sacrificing, their relationship worked well for me. There is lots of careening about the countryside, rescues, fights and hardships, but the whole story worked for me. There is some sexual content, so if you are a younger teen - maybe not - but it is handled very nicely and is not crude in any way. I suggest 14 and up. (which I now notice is what the publisher recommends, duh! Honestly I didn't see it.)

All in all, another great book to listen to, so if I have convinced any of you to try audio books, here's another one to add to your list.

Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Released: December 2009

Publisher: Little Brown

Audio copy provided by: Library and Overdrive

Summary: Goodreads

Lena Duchannes is unlike anyone the small Southern town of Gatlin has ever seen, and she’s struggling to conceal her power and a curse that has haunted her family for generations. But even within the overgrown gardens, murky swamps, and crumbling graveyards of the forgotten South, a secret cannot stay hidden forever. Ethan Wate, who has been counting the months until he can escape from Gatlin, is haunted by dreams of a beautiful girl he has never met. When Lena moves into the town’s oldest and most infamous plantation, Ethan is inexplicably drawn to her and determined to uncover the connection between them. In a town with no surprises, one secret could change everything.

I know Christinabean has already posted a review of 'Beautiful Darkness' but I just had to let you know what an enjoyable experience it was listening to Beautiful Creatures'. With all the amazing books that have been released in the last year it is really difficult to pick a favourite, but for me, it has to be 'Beautiful Creatures'. There was just something about it that drew me in from the very first page and wouldn't let me go.

When we got an arc of Beautiful Darkness, Christinabean and I had almost came to blows over who would read it first. I finally gave in, on the condition that I got to keep it afterward - seemed like a good deal to me, right! Anyway, I decided that if I wasn't going to be able to read it before the publication date, I would reread the first one, just as a refresher. I got lucky and it was available on Overdrive and I downloaded it onto my Ipod. What a fantastic week or so I have had listening to this story.

I don't know how many of you listen to audio books, but if you do, you will be well aware that all is not equal in the land of audio. Most audio books are good, but some just stand out from the crowd - whether it's the narrator, the story itself or the extras, I'm not sure, but some are definitely better to listen to than others. Beautiful Creatures on audio was downright astounding.

The story is narrated by Kevin T Collins and he just made the book come alive for me. His southern accent for Ethan was enough to make your knees weak. Everyone was there in the flesh, so to speak - Lena, Ethan, Link, Amma, Uncle Macon, everyone - and I felt as if I could almost reach out and touch them. The bonuses on this recording were the fantastic sound effects. Remember how Lena can affect the weather? Well the sounds of rain, thunder, wind etc were right in there. Fires crackled, glass shattered, doors creaked and slammed - WOW. I think I can say quite truthfully that, for me, this was the best audio book I've listened to yet.

If you've been toying with the idea of trying audio books and you enjoyed Beautiful Creatures, try it out on audio. It was sooooooo good.

Too many books ...... not enough time

One of the reasons that Christinabean and I get along so well together is our love of books, particularly YA fantasy, but our tastes are similar in many other reading areas as well. We also share a love of knitting. I helped teach Christinabean how to knit a short while ago and now she is hooked. But there is one huge problem. Have you ever tried knitting and reading at the same time? OK, I have to admit that if I'm reading a large hardcover book and my knitting is just plain stockinette, I can actually do both at the same time ( talk about multi-tasking!). Unfortunately, most of what I'm knitting these days is a little more complex and requires my concentration, and I do understand that it takes years of knitting practice before you can knit without looking (I refuse to admit just how many years that is in my case).

So here is my dilemma - do I read, or do I knit? (I also embroider, which causes similar problems.) Simple solution - listen to books instead of reading them. Now, I have heard some people say that listening to a book just isn't the same, and I do agree up to a point. When you read a book, your mind provides the voices in your head and your imagination really comes into play. When you are listening to a book, you are hearing an actors' voice interpreting the story, which completely changes the experience for the reader/listener. But if my choice is listening or not reading at all, you can be sure I will listen.

One of the interesting things I find is that I am actually inclined to listen to books that I might not necessarily pick up and read on paper. This has opened up a whole new spectrum of books for me and I am thoroughly enjoying it. You might have noticed that I listened to Living Dead Girl, before reviewing, and I probably wouldn't have read that one. I would have missed out on an amazing experience if I hadn't.

The real beauty of listening to books is that I get to enjoy my 2 hobbies, which would otherwise be mutually exclusive. I listen to books on my computer, on my cd player, I even download audiobooks from overdrive (through my library) and listen to them on my Ipod, and I get to listen to books in my car - although that can be a bit disjointed since I only have a 10 min drive to work. I'm not sure if Christinabean listens to books, but she has a toddler at home, so her time is much more occupied than mine.

Anyway, there is a point or two to this post. I would love to hear from anyone out there who listens to books as well as reading them, and do you do other things while you are listening?

The other reason is to let you know that since I have solved my read-or-knit problem I'm going to review a few knitting/embroidery books. There are hundreds of really great ones out there that knitters like Christinabean and I don't know about, so keep your eyes peeled for the occasional post.