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Powell's Staff:
Five Book Friday: In Memoriam
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Every year, the booksellers at Powell’s submit their Top Fives: their five favorite books that were released in 2023. It’s a list that, when put together, shows just how varied and interesting the book tastes of Powell’s booksellers are. I highly recommend digging into the recommendations — we would never lead you astray — but today...
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Brontez Purnell:
Powell’s Q&A: Brontez Purnell, author of ‘Ten Bridges I’ve Burnt’
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Rachael P.:
Starter Pack: Where to Begin with Ursula K. Le Guin
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Customer Comments
Stephanie @ Inspiring Insomnia has commented on (3) products
Complicit
by
Kuehn, Stephanie
Stephanie @ Inspiring Insomnia
, June 24, 2014
Complicit is Stephanie Kuehn’s excellent follow-up to her excellent debut, Charm & Strange. Both novels feature some similar characteristics: a male POV exhibiting some psychological issues, past physical and/or emotional trauma, a big twist, a gut-punch of an ending, and Kuehn’s beautiful writing style. This time, though, I was not surprised by the twist. I thought it was telegraphed quite clearly at several points, and because I’d read Charm & Strange, I was already on the lookout. But figuring out the twist in no way hindered my enjoyment of the book, because it is about so much more than just trying to shock the reader. It also in no way prepared me for the shocking ending. Jamie has a rags to riches story that is nothing to be envied. He and his sister were adopted by a wealthy, caring couple, but not before they suffered through witnessing the shooting murder of their mother. When they were very young, Jamie was the odd, misbehaving child, and his sister, Cate, was the adorable angel. When they become teenagers, the roles switch: Cate is a convicted arsonist, and Jamie is the golden child. Complicit takes us back in time to unravel how Jamie and Cate became the people they are today. Jamie’s world is upended when Cate is released from her jail term and begins to contact him. Her communications are mysterious, ominous, and vaguely threatening. We don’t know what Cate ‘s goals are any more than Jamie does. Is she just trying to torment Jamie, or does she want to cause him physical harm? Even if you figure some things out early on, you’re still going to be affected by the full reveal. When I compare this ending to that in Charm & Strange, I’d say that Charm & Strange is the more heart-breaking one. Complicit, on the other hand, is eerie and more than a little frightening. I WANTED to read more to help me wrap my head around what had just happened, but I cannot argue that Kuehn did not leave her story in exactly the right place. Note: I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
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The Girl With All The Gifts: Hungry Plague 1
by
M R Carey
Stephanie @ Inspiring Insomnia
, June 17, 2014
The Girl with All the Gifts might be my favorite book of 2014 (so far). It’s certainly in my top 5. Before I discuss the book, I have to discuss the synopsis. I feel like I’ve been complaining about synopses a lot recently, usually because they don’t reflect the tone of the book. This is probably the most egregious example. The synopsis is written as though a very young child with a very limited vocabulary is speaking. You would rightfully assume that the book would be written in this same manner, but you would be wrong. WHY do marketers do this? Are they intentionally trying to turn off readers? I heard about this book from somewhere other than Goodreads, and I’m sure I would never had chosen to read it if he synopsis was all I had to go on. The main character is a 10 year old girl named Melanie, and I could understand the desire to write the synopsis in a young voice IF the MC had that same voice in a first person narrative. But that is not the case here. Melanie is a very intelligent girl, and the narrative is written with an intelligent tone in the third person and doesn’t reflect her voice at all. Sorry to go on and on about this, but I don’t want the odd choice for the synopsis to discourage anyone from reading the book. Because ALL of you should want to read The Girl with All the Gifts, and I’m going to do my best to tell you why. I’m going to keep it vague, because you need to discover the secrets of the book for yourself. The story is set in a post-apocalyptic society in the U.K. Melanie and other children attend school classes, which seems normal enough on the surface, but it soon become apparent that something is not quite right, both with the children and with this school. We get hints of the nature of these differences early on, but it takes some time to learn what caused the apocalypse and how Melanie’s world reached this point. Melanie has what could be called a childhood crush on her favorite teacher, Miss Justineau. Miss Justineau sees something in Melanie that stands out from the other children, and she can’t help responding to Melanie’s adoration, even though she tries to keep an emotional distance. Miss Justineau differs greatly from the other adults in Melanie’s life who treat her with apathy, at best, and shocking cruelty, at worst. It’s not hard to see why Melanie feels such affection for her teacher. The scenes between Melanie and Miss Justineau are heat-breaking. Melanie craves physical and emotional affection, just like every child deserves. But Miss Justineau can only do so much without risking her life and Melanie’s. The Girl with All the Gifts starts out so strongly, and I thought that there was no way the story could maintain this pace. I was wrong, because the latter part of the book was even better. Melanie makes a decision at the end that has enormous implications. It affected me so much that it took a little while before I could even pick up another book. But was it the right decision? I think so, but that doesn’t mean that I was emotionally prepared for it. Public service announcement: The Girl with All the Gifts is published by Orbit, a division of Hachette, the publisher that Amazon is battling. If you choose to buy this book (and you should!). think twice about buying from Amazon. Aside from the obvious reasons, Amazon is selling this at list price. B&N, Powells, and possibly your local indie, too, are selling it for significantly less. Note: I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
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(2 of 2 readers found this comment helpful)
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Immortal Crown An Age of X Book 2
by
Richelle Mead
Stephanie @ Inspiring Insomnia
, June 14, 2014
4.5 stars The Gameboard of the Gods was my least favorite of Richelle Mead’s books. I’ll admit that I didn’t always understand what was going on in Gameboard, and I didn’t understand the heavy emphasis on physical appearance. I haven’t read any of her other adult books yet, but I loved all of the Vampire Academy and Bloodlines books. But still, I have such faith in her work that even though the first book in this series didn’t really click with me, I still wanted to check out the sequel. SCORE! It was great, and all is right and proper in the world again. And now that the world and the characters of the Age of X series have been established, we can sit back and enjoy the continuation of the story. Several themes from Gameboard continue here. First and foremost, we have the relationship between Justin, the investigator of religious extremism, and the Praetorian, Mae, who is essentially his kick-ass bodyguard. They had their moment of intimacy in Gameboard, but they are now back to keeping their emotional distance from each other, walls fully in the up position. Of course, there is the continuing religious mistrust, and as the various gods make their presence more and more conspicuous, we wonder: Can they be trusted? What is their endgame? Most of The Immortal Crown plot involves a supposedly friendly, diplomatic visit by Mae, Justin, and several other government officials and Praetorians to Arcadia, the RUNA’s southern neighbor. But both sides have their own separate (and possibly very dangerous) agendas. The people of the RUNA view Arcadia like a pesky, troublesome little bother. There are skirmishes, there is the need to keep the little guys appeased, but there is never any question in the eyes of the people of the RUNA that THEY are the big dogs, and THEY are running this joint. That made me even more shocked to see what life in Arcadia is really like. Think of some of the awful cults we have had here in America where women are valued only for their ability to breed, where men may have a dozen wives, where women are constantly covered head to toe, and where it’s acceptable and encouraged to rape young girls. This is Arcadia. As despicable as they are, they still must be dealt with. And even while both sides are devising various plots and schemes, Mae has one of her own. She learned (in a VERY interesting way) that her niece was kidnapped and being held in Arcadia. I loved Mae’s resourcefulness and cleverness in these scenes. I especially loved seeing her kick ass all over Arcadia. She wiggles out of some very close calls in ways that are both jaw-droppingly fantastic, but also believable. Because, you know, it’s Mae. I’m feeling all sorts of enthused again just writing this review. If you didn’t really care for Gameboard, or if you’re only familiar with Mead’s YA books, I encourage you to give the Age of X a shot. While it’s written in a style very different from The Vampire Academy and Bloodlines, it’s got all of the elements that make those books so fun to read. The ending of The Immortal Crown pretty much knocked my socks off, and it sets Mae and Justin up for some major changes in the third book. On a totally superficial note, I much preferred the design of the Gameboard cover. It had a very distinctive look, and I loved the icy look of the blue and white. This one is just so generic. Note: I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
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