Book Review: The False Princess by Eilis O'Neal

At First Sight: Brought up as the princess and heir to the Thorvaldor throne, Nalia's life is shattered when, soon after her 16th birthday, she's told that she's a false princess, her real name Sinda. The real Nalia was hidden away soon after her birth due to a dark prophecy surrounding her possible death. Since it's time for the Real Nalia's return, Sinda finds herself vanished to a small, rural village, to live with her only surviving relative.

But once there, and still reeling for her sudden change in circumstances, Sinda discovers that her birth mother had some magical power, and that so does she. Her magic is dangerous though, it has been suppressed for too long. So she returns to the city, looking to find a way to control her powers, to make amends with her best friend Kiernan... and she stumbles into a secret surrounding her and Nalia, a secret that might change the course of history.

Second Glance: I don't know what it was about Sinda, but I connected with her immediately. I think I had already cried twice by the third chapter alone. She was a terrific narrator and Eilis O'Neal crafted such a world, and wrote it in such a way that I felt like I was right there with Sinda and Kiernan and everyone else.  The False Princess is a wild ride, it's action and adventure for girls -and I mean that in the best possible way:  there are lots of things happening, there is a dash or romance and magic and even a quest. 

I can't say enough good things about it. It's a complex story, because the secret itself, the one Sinda stumbles upon, is complex and very well plotted. Books like The False Princess prove that girl hobbits not only also went to Mount Doom but - and to quote Lorelei Gilmore - they went in high heels, as in, it proves that girls can also go on epic quests and save kingdoms.

My only hang up is that the chapters are a bit long, but that's because personally I prefer shorter chapters.

Bottom Line: This book has a strong heroine, a sweet story about friendship and love, many hard choices, and says something wonderful with being okay with who you are. I wouldn't miss it for the world.

Favorite Quote*: "Please let me stop. I just want to be me - I just want to be useful and ... content. I want to stop wondering if I'll ever feel whole and just be whole. I want to have a purpose, one that I can look at without feeling like I'm less than I was." - Sinda

 * There was another quote a liked more but it was a bit spoilery ^-^

Book Review: My One and Only by Kristan Higgins

At First Sight: On the verge of her 34th birthday, divorce attorney Harper James is determined to marry her boyfriend of two years, Dennis, a hunky, good humored firefighter. They love each other and get along great, so Harper thinks it will be easy enough to get him to accept. But, just as the awkward silence was stretching between them, Harper's younger sister Willa called her to inform her that she was getting married! for the third time! in two weeks! to Harper's ex-husband's brother!

12 years ago, Harper and Nick got married, madly in love but - to Harper's mind - too young to really make a success of it. Their marriage was short and burst into flames well before their first anniversary. And now they not only have to see each other again, but also find themselves driving across the country together, with just way too many emotions too close to the surface.

Second Glance: For me, Kristan Higgins is a hit/miss author, some of her books I've liked, and some I have really disliked. My One and Only was a bit different from Higgins' previous books. She usually writes about these well intentioned, if a bit naive and too optimistic for their own good heroines, girls who generally don't see that all they ever wanted was right in front of their face all along. Harper James is the complete opposite, she's cynic and way too grounded. She has abandonment issues because her mom walked out on her when she was 13 and, in many ways, that doomed her relationship with Nick from the start.

For Nick, Harper has always been the one and only, and he was the driving force behind their relationship and convinced Harper to marry him straight out of college, but then, he didn't know how to handle it - I'm sorry he didn't! - and that didn't help things at all.

For the most part, I understood both of them, they both had issues and they both let their marriage bomb, yes they loved each other but it wasn't enough back then. Harper always made sense to her own psyche and I appreciated that, but Nick... just when I was liking him the most I realized something: he's a whiner - in a very subtle way but yeah. It takes him a lot to accept this mistakes and yet, at the same time, he's making the same mistakes again.

The first 200 pages were awesome and I kept racing through them, trying to figure out what had happened between Nick and Harper 12 years ago and how it related with what was happening as they drove across the country. Then the book hit a bit of a snag for me. 

Bottom Line: I started by loving this book and ended by linking it only. We just weren't that good of a fit. Kristan Higgins does know how to write a funny, engaging story and this is just that. A good enough read though maybe just not in my 'favorites' pile.

Favorite Quote: "Because this woman was my real mother. For twenty years now, she had loved me despite myself, and that was real mothers did. That was what unconditional love meant."

1/2

Anime Addiction: Card Captor Sakura

Sakura Kinomoto is a normal girl, she's in the fourth grade, she is good at sports but not so good at math and music; and she's generally regarded as a popular and outgoing girl. She has a good life with her father and her older brother Touya (who likes to call her monster but who really is very protective of her), and though she thinks a lot about her Mom - who died when she was 4 - she's a happy girl. 

One afternoon when she's home alone, Sakura comes across a strange book in her father's library. The book is called The Clow, and it's full of cards, which she inadvertently spreads all over her city. In the process, Sakura also awakens the guardian of the cards - Kero, who quickly informs her that she's now a Card Captor, her mission: to gather all the cards before something terrible happens in the world. 

Soon, Sakura is running all over town to gather all the cards with Kero and her best friend Tomoyo by her side. Later, she's also joined by Shaoran Li, a serious boy who goes from being her rival to being her friend.

Sakura Card Captor is a lovely anime series that spans over three seasons, something close to 70 episodes, and it's just wonderful! From the start, Sakura has to balance being a normal girl - hanging out with her other friends Rika, Chiharu and Naoko; nursing her crush on her brother's best friend Yukito - with being a Card Captor whose magic keeps on getting stronger.

There is action, lots of costume changes - courtesy of Tomoyo - and laughs, what else can you ask for?

Alex's Personal Favorite

Story of My Life # 5 - Of Girls and Goddesses

If you have been reading this blog lately, you'll probably know that I love Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams' series The Goddess Girls - the series is about famous goddesses Artemis, Athena, Aphrodite and Persephone as tweens attending the Mount Olympus Academy - and lately, I started to think of why I love them so much. 

I guess its because, for me, middle school was so incredibly traumatizing. I was in a school I hated, my so called 'friends' often made me the butt of their jokes, and I felt so alone most of the time. And, I think I love Persephone's book the most because I often felt like a phony trying to fit in with my friends.

Thankfully, both Persephone and I outgrew out of our phoniness, and where her friends proved to be true, mine not always did, but eventually I did make good friends, friends I still keep to to this day. (Actually, in some ways, my best friend reminds me of Artemis)

And I just love seeing friendship portrayed in the way it should be, specially among young girls: something that makes you stronger, and makes your feel accepted for who you are, and with fabulous people who are completely different to you but love you anyway. These girls also have conflicts and problems, but they solve them by talking to each other, by not letting misunderstanding stand and by loving each other.

I wish more books told that story, because mine eventually became something like that - sure, I was in Prep school by then but it was worth the wait to have friends like that.

Book Review: Demonglass by Rachel Hawkins

At First Sight: Sophie Mercer had a very eventful first year at Hecate Hall, events that conspired to make her want to get rid of her powers for good. Too bad her dad doesn't sees it that way. So now she's spending the summer with her father in England, getting acquainted with the rest of The Council - which she's supposed to rule someday, provided she doesn't give up her powers - and just learning more about prodigium and demons.

Luckily, she gets to take her best friend -and Vampire - Jenna with her, and Cal, the grounds keeper/healer that works at Hex Hall. Once at Council HQ, Sophie tries to bond with her absentee father and to come to terms with what her powers mean. 

Sophie also learns that there are many secrets no one is telling her, especially as the centuries old war between the Council, the Eye and the Brannicks comes to head.

Second Glance: Demonglass is the second installment of the Hex Hall series and trust me those sentences above were very hard to write because I don't want to spoil anything!!! 

Demonglass was great: it was fast paced, it answer questions, it opened more questions and did all the awesome things "book 2" is supposed to do. I love Sophie and her friends. I really grew to love Cal - as in Cal be my Valentine!!! -  who was always very aloof during the first book. And I also loved seeing Archer back - again, nothing much I can say about that, but it was awesome!!

I really like Sophie herself, she's a great narrator and I love that she's so proactive once she decides to figure out things on her own. And you can see how she's growing into her own, which I always love to see. I'm really excited for Demonglass and for Book 3, I honestly can't wait.

Bottom Line: Demonglass is definitely the type of book that leaves you wanting MORE, so read at your own peril. In any case, I wouldn't miss this book.

Favorite Quote: (WARNING, MILD SPOILER) "Did you want to watch me sleep or something? Because if that's the case, this engagement is SO broken" - Won't say who said it, again, (MILD SPOILER)
2/3

Thanks to International Book Tours for sending me this book.