Alameda's Awakening --by Tara Pegasus

Fiction / Literary 

198 pages

5 Stars

Disclaimer: I've known Tara Pegasus for a few years, and have read all the iterations of Alameda's Awakening. And that should tell you something – I don't very often read the same book as many times as I read this one, and not once was it anything but a pleasure! Each time I read it, it was better than the time before. It is a pleasure to know the author, and a pleasure to recommend this book to you.

The characters in this book are fully developed, and the story is believable. Alameda and her brother are born into a hyper-religious family. Her father is the small-town protestant minister, and her mother runs both the church and the house. Alameda knows she needs to escape, but doesn't understand why, and she and her best friend decide to join the convent when they graduate from school, where she will be not only allowed, but encouraged, to play her beloved violin.

Life, and in this case death, happens and Alameda's life is turned upside down and inside out by a virulent epidemic that hits the town hard, affecting everyone in one way or another. Alameda's mind is tormented by the cognitive dissonance brought about by her upbringing and life as it actually is.

Her mother's machinations at controlling her life, her desires to live her life as she chooses, and the small town doctor who befriend her combine to make this a one-sit read. This story is well written and very well told. The characters are believable.

Buy this book. Read this book. Review this book. (That's how you tell an author you appreciate the time and the hard work of writing the book!)

The Constellation of Extinct Stars and other Poems –by Scot Siegel

Poetry

80 pages

5 Stars

This is a small book, with a huge impact. Siegel writes poems of 1920s Oregon, which take you to that time, and place. He writes of more modern times. He writes of moths, that may be butterflies, that drink from extinct stars. His poetry singss of a lone wolf who travelled across Oregon to California in search of a mate. He tells of getting a window seat on the wrong side of the plane.

Some poems are sad, some are nostalgic, all are beautiful. Scot Siegel is a master at the craft of writing poems.

When Raven Dances –by Polly Bigelow

Fiction / Coming of Age

310 pages / 2228 KB

4 Stars

When Marisol is a young girl, her father is killed at Anzio in WWII. Marisol's mother decides to take her young daughter, and move from the light and warmth, and security, of their home in New Mexico to the almost frontier of Seward, Alaska.

This book is a delightful telling of Marisol's adventures as she leaves her Navajo friends, her Irish and Mexican families, and goes north to the land of the midnight sun – and the midday darkness of winter. Told as a faux memoir, we are transported by train and by ship to Seward. We make new friends, partake of childhood high jinx, and learn new stories of Coyote and Raven, the Tricksters.

All but the last chapter of this book takes place in the 1940s, and it's a delightful read of history seen through a young girl's eyes. This is a book to be savored, read slowly. It is not filled with adrenaline, but with soft beauty. I think Raven would approve of this book.

Way Walkers: Broken City (The Tazu Saga Book 2) –by J. Leigh

Fiction / Fantasy

352 pages / 944 KB

5 Stars

Loved this book! This is a continuation of Jathen's coming of age, and we get some real development in his character. He, and we, discover more about him. Whereas the first book gave him, and us, some pretty serious losses, this book offers more hope, and less loss. I admit to a bit of trepidation to reading Book 3 when it becomes available – I don't want more loss like we had in Book 1, and managed to skip in Book 2.

The author has developed a marvelous universe. It has the same depth and diversity found in Tolkien's books, but these books are NOT a re-telling of Tolkien's stories!  

Jathen matures somewhat in this book. He begins to think, and act, more like the ruler he is destined to become, should he choose that Path.  My biggest complaint about this book is I finished it, and Book 3 is not yet available!

Way Walkers: Tangled Paths (The Tazu Saga Book 1) –by J. Leigh

Fiction / Fantasy

479 pages / 2358 KB

4 Stars

This book is the intro into a very complex and fascinating universe. Why only 4 stars you ask? Because it was just too long. Now, in all honesty, a lot of what I considered not necessary to plot movement, may very well have been set up for the next books, in which case, once they are written and read, I may come back and change my rating.

Do not let the 4 stars dissuade you from buying and reading this book. It is well written, the characters are well developed, and the universe is fantastic.

The protagonist, Jathen, is a "moot" – his parents are dragons, and when he hatched from his egg, he was not only human, but unable to shift to his dragon form. This is not necessarily a good thing, as he is the heir apparent to the Tazu – dragon shifters. How can he possibly rule over dragons when he isn't one. Not only can he not shift, he seems to have no Talent at all.

Jathen goes on a journey of discovery to find out who and what he is, and to decide if he even wants to rule. He comes of age in this series, or at least we hope he does. There are times when I'm not sure he's learning a great deal, which makes him, really, more human. Things don't come easy for him, and he's not always the brightest candle in the lantern.

I look forward to reading and accompanying Jathen as he discovers who, and what, he truly is.

Dragon Rose (Tales of the Latter Kingdoms Book 2) –Christine Pope

Fiction / Fantasy

276 pages / 4266 KB

5 Stars

This is, in my opinion, a 5 Star piece of calorie-free brain candy—and that's good. That's what I want from my fiction. It is an interesting re-telling of Beauty and the Beast, and an enjoyable story. I actually liked it better than the original. What I found shocking, almost to disbelief, is this book is actually classified as (picture me shuddering!) Romance! I do not read romance. I do not like romance, even if it does have dragons. And yet, I absitively posolutely loved this book. Oh, sigh.

Rhianne, the heroine of our story, is an artist who has been found out. Art is considered a trade, and not allowed for women. Her father is a potter who is going blind, and she has been painting his orders. In order to save her family from the poor house, she volunteers to marry the Dragon of Black's Keep. The families of the brides are always given gold.

She is surprised that her husband is not a beast, but a man, though she never really sees him as he always wears a deep hood over his face, and remains in shadow. However, he seems kind, and generous, and most importantly, he not only allows her to continue with her art, but buys her whatever supplies she wants, and encourages her to paint.

Against her will, Rhianne discovers she is falling in love with her beastly husband. Alas, her love for him is not strong enough to break the curse that has been visited upon him, and Black's Keep all these centuries. Time is running out. Soon, Rhianne will join the other brides in the cemetery behind the Keep. Unless, unless....

I look forward to reading more stories in this universe. Even if they are (shudder) Romance. ;-)