One imperfect letter, one missing page

16. Fathom by Cherie Priest
I picked up this book because I really enjoyed Priest's Eden Moore series. That also meant I hadn't read anything about it -- including reviews or the inside cover summary. So, it was much to my surprise when I realized this book wasn't the horror story/ghost story that I had expected. Instead, it was something rather different and quite awesome. Priest tells us one story from multiple points of view. While in other books this might be tedious, it was not for Fathom. Instead, we learn to love the different characters, even when they do things we don't understand/agree with. I think this was what made the story so good. Instead of just focusing on a third person omniscient narrator or a single, first person point of view, we got variations on both of those. What Priest created was a stunning story set in a world not unlike our own, while at the same time, altogether different. She draws on unknown (including, though not necessarily central to the plot, ghosts) as main characters who are in a battle to save the human race. Priest does not shy away from heartache, violence and death, and that is one of the things that makes this book so good.

17. Wanted by Mark Millar
I found this to be an unrealistic and easy, if dark and violence, graphic novel. That's not to say I didn't like it -- because I did. I just happened to have the luxury of seeing the movie version first. Luckily for everyone involved, the movie version is unlike the graphic novel in all but name and characters (and even then it's not quite that similar). The plots are sort of vaguely similar at the beginning and parts of the ending, but otherwise, the graphic novel takes a much darker twist. Which is good, because if this had been the movie? I would have hated it. That being said, I quite liked the book. It's a dark tale, following the life of our anti-hero (or hero, depending on how you want to look at it), Wesley Gibson. The story is high on violence, the art is beautiful (if occasionally kind of gross) and while the writing isn't as eloquent as, say, something Neil Gaiman wrote, it doesn't matter. It was a highly enjoyable graphic novel, but not for people who are expecting it to be exactly like the movie.

18. Angel by Cliff McNish
I don't know what I was expecting when I picked up this book, but I definitely didn't except it to be as, well, bad. The writing wasn't all that bad and I finished the book out of curiosity, and in hopes that it would improve -- it just didn't. Angel played far too much on clichés -- those associated with high school, depressed kids, and angels. There was no real resolution, the story was mostly about running away (and later toward) angels and other people. I found the storyline with Freya's brother to be the more interesting one, but even the events of his life got tedious. In the end, McNish ties everything up in a neat package with a bow on top -- and I don't approve. I think that with a better ending, perhaps this would have been a better book.

18 / 100 words. 18% done!

135. Not Flesh Nor Feathers by Cherie Priest
This is the second novel of Priest's that I've read. It's not the second in her series, but it's the only other one I could get from the library. The book is excellent, it's both scary without getting out of control and interestingly descriptive without driving me crazy (I like action, what can I say?). I haven't read a lot of zombie books (a few graphic novels), but this is a great one. Her reasoning behind the zombies is different, but sound and it works perfectly, both in the context of this book as a lone read and in the series as a whole. Her writing style fits the characters perfectly and her setting fits the novel just as smartly. Throughly enjoyable read, and I'll be heading the bookstore soon to pick up her other books.

136. Skin Deep by E.M. Crane
I wasn't sure what to expect when I started this book. The cover is beautiful, but gives nothing away. The back cover reads only "Do you know what's underneath if you scratch the surface?" Which also gives nothing away, though it does hint at the depth of the novel. Even once you read the inside flap, you don't really know if this is some sort of fantasy story or just straight fiction. In a way it is fantasy, but not in such a way that the book should be shelved anyplace other than regular fiction. It's a story that any girl (or boy) who wasn't ever that popular in high school can related to. In loose terms, it's about love, loss and growing up. But Crane's book is so much more than that. It's an extraordinary view into a world that is like our own, but not quite. Our heroine, Andrea, is in the process of discovering who she is and in doing so, she uncovers more than she bargains for. She might not find herself by the end of the novel, but what she does find is much, much better.

136 / 150 new reads. 91% read!

32. Return to Barrow (30 Days of Night, Book 3) by Steve Niles
Another graphic novel in the 30 Days of Night series. Better than the first one and on par with the second. The story gets better, but I think I might stop after this one. I believe Niles no longer writes/illustrates and I'm not sure I'm willing to read the other issues. That being said, they do get a little bit more wicked and I like that. I also watched the movie, which is basically the graphic novel on screen and it's not great, but much scarier than the comic itself.

33. Something Rotten by Alan M. Gratz
A surprisingly engaging reworking of Shakespeare's Hamlet. I'm fond of updated adaptations of Shakespearean works and I was pleased with this one. It's a YA book, set up as a mystery. It obviously borrows heavily from the story of Hamlet, including the name of the town (Denmark, Tennessee) and some of the main characters (best friend is named Horatio). Which the book seems slightly clichéd at times, it's really quite fun.

34. Four and Twenty Blackbirds by Cherie Priest
Thanks to my sister, I've been reading Cherie Priest's blog on a regular basis and so I was curious about her work. The book is billed as horror, but that would be far too limiting. I found this book to be quite good, the characters engaging and her writing style fantastic. This isn't a book for the faint of heart, but by no means is it horror. Priest does a great job of combining suspense and mystery to create a book I practically devoured.

34 / 80 new reads. 43% read!