Blood Red Road by Moira Young

Published: June 2011

Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry

Pages: 459

Copy Provided by: e-book from the library

Summary: Goodreads

Summary:

Saba has spent her whole life in Silverlake, a dried-up wasteland ravaged by constant sandstorms. The Wrecker civilization has long been destroyed, leaving only landfills for Saba and her family to scavenge from. That's fine by her, as long as her beloved twin brother Lugh is around. But when a monster sandstorm arrives, along with four cloaked horsemen, Saba's world is shattered. Lugh is captured, and Saba embarks on an epic quest to get him back.

Suddenly thrown into the lawless, ugly reality of the world outside of desolate Silverlake, Saba is lost without Lugh to guide her. So perhaps the most surprising thing of all is what Saba learns about herself: she's a fierce fighter, an unbeatable survivor, and a cunning opponent. And she has the power to take down a corrupt society from the inside. Teamed up with a handsome daredevil named Jack and a gang of girl revolutionaries called the Free Hawks, Saba stages a showdown that will change the course of her own civilization.

Blood Red Road has a searing pace, a poetically minimal writing style, violent action, and an epic love story. Moira Young is one of the most promising and startling new voices in teen fiction.

Review:

I was drawn to this title when it was suggested by a co-worker.  I have to say that as a cover love it or leave it kinda gal, I would have originally put it back on the shelf.  She did give me fair warning though - It takes awhile to get used to the language and tone of the narrator.  Huh?  What was that supposed to mean?  It did not take long for me to comprehend.  Ms. Young wrote this story in first person in the voice of Saba.  At about page 10 I thought to myself "How the heck am I going to get through all of the grammar and spelling errors? Did Moira Young turn off her spell-check??".  However, my friend said it was a great book so I stuck it out.  I was surprised at how Saba's "voice" and lack of correct grammar began to lend itself to the mood and depth of the story.

Blood Red Road is a cross between Dune, Robin Hood and Gladiator.  My initial impression was that it would be more Science Fiction but it was a little bit of everything rolled into one.  The story revolves around the central character, Saba, whom I did not initially like.  She treated her sister so poorly and seemed to only have her heart set on her brother.  It was sad to see but at least she was honest about it.  She seemed very simple but self-centered, had morals but had to re-evaluate them throughout her journey.  The author subtly had her learn lessons,  change her attitude and see the value of all different types of people, not just her brother.  She grew to be trustful, gain friends and even allow herself to depend on others.

Overall, Blood Red Road was an excellent start to a series that I will continue reading in the future.  There was TONS of adventure and action which kept the things moving quickly.... good thing too because I wanted to yell into my e-reader at the main character for the majority of my read.   Two thumbs up for Blood Red Road.  Just be ready to "read" in a different voice!

Mortal Instruments Cast update

Ok, so for those of you who don't already know, I'm a huge fan of the Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare.  Guess who has just been cast as Valentine??

Jonathan Rhys Meyers.  Sigh. 

Let's recap, shall we?

Lena Headley as Jocelyn Fray

Lily Collins as Clary Fray

Kevin Zegers as Alec Lightwood

Jamie Campbell Bower as Jace Wayland

Robert Sheehan as Simon Lewis

Kevin Durand as Emil Pangborn

Jared Harris as Hodge Starkweather

Jemima West as Isabelle Lightwood

Godfrey Gao as Magnus Bane

Aiden Turner as Luke Garroway

Robert Maillet as Samuel Blackwell

Can't wait for 2013!

Follow Friday

Feature and Follow is a blog hop that was started by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read. Each week a different question is posted by our hosts and we will answer! This is a great opportunity for bloggers to network and interact. This weeks question is:

What would you do over if you had to start your blog from scratch?

Hmm...this is a toughie.  Curlypow and I actually had a long "meeting" about this before we even started the blog.  We talked about the policies we wanted to install and concepts we had floating around in our heads.  We did a great outline and were on the same page about a lot of ideas and how to operate our blog.  I think that if I had to start my blog from scratch again, I might have asked a few more people to help with reviews.  Ironically, I am a slow reader...at least compared to my friends.  Curlypow has more reviews that I do but I do a lot of the techie stuff.  By having more reviewers, it would cut down on the pressure to have a post every single day.  Still, I'm pretty happy with the way things have turned out.  We have been blogging for over 2 years now and even though we don't have massive numbers of followers, its the quality of our audience that matters most to us.  :)

- Christinabean

Welcome to the Paperback Princesses! Make yourself at home, take a look around our blog and let us know what you think in the comments section. We would love to hear what you have to say about our posts. We often try to comment on your comments as well so feel free to start a conversation! Since there are two of us running the show, we always have a variety of titles and event postings. Be sure to check out our own personal meme page. Check out Fantastic Fairytales, Let's Hear it for the Boys, In Case you Missed it and a

Eve of Destruction (Dark Eden #2) by Patrick Carman - Guest Post

Published: April 2012

Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books

Pages: 277

Copy: Library

Summary: Goodreads

Will Besting and the other teens whose phobias were "cured" at Fort Eden have been summoned back by Mrs. Goring. Her dying wish is to see them together one last time. Or is it?

Ensnared in a dangerous, ever-deepening mystery, Will must lead his friends through a perilous underground trap masterminded by two devious souls at war with each other. It's a game of cat and mouse, and not everyone will be alive when it's over. Can Will outwit both Rainsford and Goring, ending their reign of fear forever?

Patrick Carman's "Dark Eden: Eve of Destruction" offers a harrowing journey into the depths of fear, love, revenge, and--ultimately—redemption.

My jury is still out on this book, so it’s a tough one to write a review for. I finished the book – which I seldom will do if I don’t like it. But, it was just so...unbelievable! I know that characters often make decisions that leave you screaming “Why? WHY!?” loudly at the book.

But before I get there, let’s talk about Carman’s use of multimedia this time around. It was actually pretty neat. The first few chapters of the book have footnotes scattered throughout that instruct you to visit www.willbesting.com and enter various passwords. Each password opens up a new video clip, of stuff Will saved on his recorder back in Dark Eden #1. They were well done, and I think added a great element to the book (yay transliteracy!), although given their content I think I would have loved them twice as much if they had been available in book one. I was also disappointed when the footnotes ended after a few chapters, and there were no more clips. But still, a great integration!

On to the book itself – Will has gathered up the gang that was cured back in Dark Eden and returned at the bequest of Mrs. Goring. Why? I don’t know. Yes, they were each left with supposedly debilitating ailments from their cures. But they are things that millions of people in the world already live with each and every day – and that there are medicines and devices designed to assist with. So instead, you head back to a place where you traded a paralyzing fear for a debilitating ailment...thinking what? And where were the parents here? Why would you allow your child to return? Why wouldn’t you have done something after the first bout?

Unfortunately, the book was also a little predictable. I figured Amy out quickly, and that of course lead to outing Avery. Yet, I still finished the book. And rather quickly too – I tend to drag through novels I don’t enjoy but am determined to finish...often I’ll even start another book. So what was it about this that made me stick with it, and not even all that grumpily?

I don’t know. All I know is that I wouldn’t call this Mr. Carman’s best – but I must have still enjoyed it, and if you’re considering reading it, don’t let my own ambiguous feelings towards it deter you.

Yet again, Special K has jumped into the breach - thank you.

Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine,  that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating or books that are in our TBR pile.  This week’s “can’t-wait-to-read” selection is

Rise of the Elgen is Book #2 of the Michael Vey series.  We at The Paperback Princesses are cheergirls for the types of books suitable for guys who don't like reading.  You can check out Curlypow's review here.  Let's face it, some guys struggle to continue reading after elementary school.  They are interested in different genres than us gals.  If you're struggling for some suggestions, check out one of our memes - Let's Hear it for the Boys.  Type it in the search box to the right side of the page!  

Olympic Readathon update

A week or so ago Christinaban held up the red flag and challenged me to enter in the Random House of Canada's Olympic Readathon.  Of course I couldn't resist and I signed up for 2000 pages - the same as her.  Now I have to say here that I expected to beat her hands down, and I am somewhat shamefaced when I announce that she is BEATING me.  Not by much though.  Christinabean has read 1169 pages and I have managed 1040.  Who would'a thunk it !  In my own defence I have spent the last 3 days embroidering and not reading, but I suspect I'm just being a sore loser.  Well done Christinabean.  I'll catch up to you yet :)

156 people have signed up to read 317174 pages.  Total entered as read so far - 121982. 9 days left of the Olympics.  Are we going to make it?

In Case You Missed It - The Floating Islands by Rachel Neumeier

Published: Feb 2011

Publisher: Random House

Pages: 400

Copy: Library

Summary: Goodreads

When Trei loses his family in a tragic disaster, he must search out distant relatives in a new land. The Floating Islands are unlike anything Trei has ever seen: stunning, majestic, and graced with kajurai, men who soar the skies with wings.

Trei is instantly sky-mad, and desperate to be a kajurai himself. The only one who fully understands his passion is Araene, his newfound cousin. Prickly, sarcastic, and gifted, Araene has a secret of her own . . . a dream a girl cannot attain.

Trei and Araene quickly become conspirators as they pursue their individual paths. But neither suspects that their lives will be deeply entwined, and that the fate of the Floating Islands will lie in their hands.

The Floating Islands is an interesting coming of age fantasy tale that explores the idea of acceptance and choice.  Who are you? Where do you belong?  Is Trei an Islander/Karujai, or is he Tolounnese? Is Araene going to meekly accept life a a woman on the islands, or fight for the right to be a mage in a mans world?

The character development was very strong and the younger characters show tantalizing glimpses of who they will become.  Equally, the older characters show some weaknesses and reveal that everyone can make mistakes.  There are also two very distinct societies with Tolounn being more scientifically advanced and the Islands relying more on magic.

The Floating Islands was a wonderful story full of new worlds and unusual concepts that haven't been seen before.  Expect mysterious dragons, flying men, hidden, moving buildings, wild steam contraptions that can neutralise magic, and much more.  Add a sense of excitement and wonder and a tension that never really leaves and it all adds up to a great read.