More Good Books
I turned in two more annoying projects this week and successfully negotiated a higher mark on the evil InMagic project of DOOM! It's amazing that I got the projects done at all, because I was much more interested in reading novels. I devoted the majority of Sunday and Tuesday reading, so I have another pair of recommendations.
The first is Phoenix and Ashes by Mercedes Lackey. It's part of the Elemental Mages series and based on that old fairy tale standard, Cinderella. I happen to like fairy tale retellings, but for the skeptics, there's plenty that's unique about Phoenix and Ashes. Instead of the traditional fantasy kingdom, the setting is England during World War I. Eleanor, the heroine, is forced into servitude and literally imprisoned by her stepmother, an Elemental Master of Earth. The "prince" is Reggie Fenyx, the local lord and an Elemental Master of Air, who returns from the front shell-shocked and blocked off from all magic.
The main focus of the book is on Eleanor and the development of her skills as a Fire Master. As she learns to control her element, Eleanor is able to stretch the bounds of her imprisonment. In the middle of the book, I even forgot the Cinderella element, because the characters were interesting enough to hold my interest on their own.
My second recommendation is New Moon by Stephenie Meyer, the same book I've been impatiently waiting for. The sequel to Twilight didn't disappoint. Edward, Bella's vampire boyfriend, thinks that he can protect her from danger by leaving town. After a few awful months, Bella, danger magnet extraordinaire, decides to cope by being as reckless as possible and starts landing herself in the ER on a weekly basis. There's the normal high school drama, but with a vengeful vampire, a pack of young werewolves, and a frantic trip to Italy. New Moon is over 500 pages long, but I tore through it in one day. It's just a fun read.
The first is Phoenix and Ashes by Mercedes Lackey. It's part of the Elemental Mages series and based on that old fairy tale standard, Cinderella. I happen to like fairy tale retellings, but for the skeptics, there's plenty that's unique about Phoenix and Ashes. Instead of the traditional fantasy kingdom, the setting is England during World War I. Eleanor, the heroine, is forced into servitude and literally imprisoned by her stepmother, an Elemental Master of Earth. The "prince" is Reggie Fenyx, the local lord and an Elemental Master of Air, who returns from the front shell-shocked and blocked off from all magic.
The main focus of the book is on Eleanor and the development of her skills as a Fire Master. As she learns to control her element, Eleanor is able to stretch the bounds of her imprisonment. In the middle of the book, I even forgot the Cinderella element, because the characters were interesting enough to hold my interest on their own.
My second recommendation is New Moon by Stephenie Meyer, the same book I've been impatiently waiting for. The sequel to Twilight didn't disappoint. Edward, Bella's vampire boyfriend, thinks that he can protect her from danger by leaving town. After a few awful months, Bella, danger magnet extraordinaire, decides to cope by being as reckless as possible and starts landing herself in the ER on a weekly basis. There's the normal high school drama, but with a vengeful vampire, a pack of young werewolves, and a frantic trip to Italy. New Moon is over 500 pages long, but I tore through it in one day. It's just a fun read.