It's Monday. What Are You Reading?

It's Monday! What Are You Reading is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey.

Last week I finished up The Clockwork Scarab by Colleen Gleason. My review is here.

Review: The Clockwork Scarab

The Clockwork Scarab by Colleen Gleason is the story of Mina Holmes and Evaline Stoker in a steampunk version of Victorian London. Holmes is the niece of Sherlock Holmes, and is very logical and precise, with a gift for observation and deduction. Stoker on the other hand is a woman of action, and the sister of Bram Stoker. She is also a vampire hunter, with superhuman strength and speed. They’re about as different as two women can be- and that makes them a good team. They don’t initially like each other though –they’re both used to doing things their own way, so when they are asked to help solve the murder of several society girls they have to learn to work together.

The girls are asked to discreetly find answers to the murders on behalf of the crown, due to their unique talents. The only clue is an Egyptian scarab found at each murder scene. Another girl has gone missing and they have to find her before she, too, turns up dead. Along the way they run afoul of an Egyptian cult, which turns out to be a nasty piece of work. There is a lot going on in this story, with time travel elements and of course various romantic entanglements. 

Steampunk is a mixed bag for me. I want to like it, but I’m finding that I prefer it best when it’s firmly in the background. I really like the atmospherics here- the fog shrouded streets, the Victorian setting, the Egyptian cult seducing women with its dangerous secrets. Fantastic premise! But the steampunk elements- all the little gadgets with goofy names (like Ocular Magnifyer)- took me out of the story every time. I would have really liked this a lot more without the steampunk. 

As for the story itself, the perspective shifts between Holmes and Stoker. I liked Stoker better in this story but there’s not a lot of characterization here. Stoker does have an aversion to blood, which can be a problem for a vampire hunter! I thought this was a nice touch. I’m not really sure why there’s a vampire hunter in this story though. There are no vampires to combat- I kept waiting for one to turn up, to see Stoker face off against her sworn enemy, but it never happened. The pace of the story moves well for the most part- after the initial set-up we have two or three set piece moments punctuated by interludes and some reflection. There's a great scene in the middle where they infiltrate a cult meeting and its very atmospheric and moody. The last 100 pages move pretty fast and are easily the best part of the book.

The Clockwork Scarab is the first in a series, but even so I was a little irritated at the lack of resolution. I understand more is coming, but after 350 pages I would have liked at least see some plot threads resolved. This was a fun little romp for the most part, but I won’t be chomping at the bit to grab the next one given the lack of resolution here. Solid but not spectacular.   

Giveaway Winner Fangirl

Congratulations to Aranza Ramirez, you have won a copy of Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell! I have sent an email to notify you and look forward to sending out your book! Please note per giveaway rules you have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. Thanks so much to everyone who entered the giveaway and also to those who commented, re- tweeted and followed. Happy Friday!

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Sunday Post / It's Monday. What Are You Reading?

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer.
It's Monday! What Are You Reading is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey.

HAPPENING NOW

GIVEAWAY for a copy of Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell- enter to win here (US residents only). Good luck!

This has been an interesting week. Been very busy with two concerts for my daughter- orchestra and band. She did great and we are very proud of her. Lots of other stuff going on too so I didn't get much reading time in this week. No reviews from me, but I'm happy to report my oldest daughter has posted a guest review- you can find that here. She reviewed Twice Upon A Time: Rapunzel by Wendy Mass and I think she did great. She did all the writing, I just made a few suggestion and edited lightly- let us know what you think in the comments.

Congratulations to Melodi LadyRuger Mance for winning a SIGNED copy of Letters from Skye by Jessica Brockmole. Hope you enjoy the book Melodi!



AROUND THE BLOGOSPHERE

Some good stuff from io9 this week. Check out the following discussions:

Why is JJ Abrams replacing the writer of Star Wars Episode VII? This could be good or it could be bad. I'm not sure about JJ Abrams being involved in this movie but Lawrence Kasdan- thats more comforting. He was involved with The Empire Strikes Back so maybe he knows what he's doing. Really though- I have a very bad feeling about this.

Divergent movie- a visit to the set, with pics and lots of details of filming. If you're into this movie, check it out!

Who remembers Tom Swift? The comments are where it's at here.

Hunger Games: Catching Fire movie details.

The greatest chase in scifi/ fantasy? Loads of choices here, and hilarious comments.

And elsewhere...

Exploding pumpkins. Maybe don't try this at home kiddies.

So how was your week?

Guest Post Review: Twice Upon A Time: Rapunzel

Today I've got a guest post review by M, the daughter of Book Haven. M is 11 years old and is an avid reader, as is her sister. They both plow through books like nobody's business! They have also become very interested in this blogging thing, so when they breezily suggested they have their own blogs we decided to start with a guest post or two. So here is M's take on the book she just finished- we hope you enjoy the review! 

Twice Upon A Time: Rapunzel by Wendy Mass was a very good book. The main characters are Rapunzel, Prince Benjamin, Prince Elkin, and Andrew the page. The book was written in two perspectives- Rapunzel's and Benjamin's. Rapunzel was whisked away by a witch on her twelfth birthday. She was taken to a tower in the woods, where she had only the bare necessities. She learned things she never knew about herself and her family at the same time. She was afraid, too, because she could hear heavy breathing at night, and it was not hers! 

Prince Benjamin lived with his mum, father and sister Annabelle who was 3 years old. Benjamin was easy to relate to, I learned a lot about his life in the book. His cousin, Prince Elkin, was staying with them, and he always seemed to get the boys in trouble. Benjamin became friends with Andrew, who wished to become a knight. Andrew has heard many amazing stories, and he gets Benjamin and Elkin involved in a very interesting and dangerous rumor about a cave, a treasure and a troll!

Prince Elkin loved to make mischief. He made Benjamin go to a party with him- the only problem was they were not supposed to be there! While at the party, the two princes learned unbelievable news about Annabelle! Even though he was very annoying, Prince Elkin was helpful when Prince Benjamin was trying to rescue Rapunzel. 

Rapunzel was very well laid out, and it was easy to imagine what she was going through. There were some very funny parts in this book. The characters were well written and often quite humorous. Kids 9-14 would probably enjoy this book very much!

From Goodreads: 
  

The girl's stuck in a tower. The boy's stuck in a castle. There are two sides to every story....
Rapunzel is having the ultimate bad day. She's been stolen by a witch, may have a ghost for a roommate, and doesn't even have a decent brush for her hair.
Prince Benjamin's got it pretty tough, too. His father wants him to be more kingly, his mother wants him to never leave her sight, and his cousin wants to get him into as much trouble as possible (possibly with a troll).
Both Rapunzel and Prince Benjamin are trapped--in very different ways. Once their paths cross, well, that's when things get really strange.
Journey back to the days when fairy tales were true with this fun and fresh spin on a timeless tale!

Giveaway: Fangirl

I have a brand new copy of Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell for giveaway (US residents only). The book has been getting a lot of good reviews, and I enjoyed it also. My review is here. Enter below for a chance to win and good luck!

From Goodreads:

From the author of the New York Times bestseller Eleanor & Park.

A coming-of-age tale of fan fiction, family and first love.

Cath is a Simon Snow fan.

Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan . . .

But for Cath, being a fan is her life — and she’s really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it’s what got them through their mother leaving.

Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow forums, writing Simon Snow fan fiction, dressing up like the characters for every movie premiere.

Cath’s sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath can’t let go. She doesn’t want to.

Now that they’re going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn’t want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She’s got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words . . . And she can’t stop worrying about her dad, who’s loving and fragile and has never really been alone.

For Cath, the question is: Can she do this?

Can she make it without Wren holding her hand? Is she ready to start living her own life? Writing her own stories?

And does she even want to move on if it means leaving Simon Snow behind? 


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Sunday Post / It's Monday. What Are You Reading?

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer.
It's Monday! What Are You Reading is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey.

HAPPENING NOW 

Interview/ Giveaway with Jessica Brockmole. Jessica was kind enough to stop by and talk about her novel Letters from Skye. There's also a giveaway for a signed copy of Letters from Skye- check it out!