Reading List 2012
Title Author Length Rating
Ensel und Krete ¹ Walter Moers 256 4.5 [short summary/excerpt] Urlaub mit den Eltern kann so langweilig sein. Die beiden Fhernhachen-Kinder Ensel und Krete erleben das am eigenen Leibe, als sie mit ihren Eltern den zamonischen Großen Wald bereisen. Dabei hatten sie gehofft, dort endlich einmal etwas zu erleben! Und so ziehen sie auf eigene Faust los, um das Abenteuer zu suchen, verlaufen sich jedoch nach kurzer Zeit. Damit nimmt ein rasantes Märchenabenteuer seinen Lauf, bei dem selbst den Gebrüdern Grimm bald die Puste ausgegangen wäre. Die beiden Zwergenkinder treffen auf zahlreiche gefährliche oder einfach nur sonderbare Geschöpfe: einen Laubwolf, Erdgnömchen, Geheimbären, Fledertratten, Schuhus, Einhörnchen, einen sprechenden Meteor und allerlei andere Seltsamkeiten. Natürlich finden sie auch ein Hexenhaus, und der fantasievolle Showdown hat mehr mit dem Blair Witch Project als mit unseren alten Hausmärchen gemeinsam. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Joanne K. Rowling 608 4.5 [short summary/excerpt] Harry has been burdened with a dark, dangerous and seemingly impossible task: that of locating and destroying Voldemort's remaining Horcruxes. Never has Harry felt so alone, or faced a future so full of shadows. But he must somehow find within himself the strength to complete the task he has been given. He must leave the warmth, safety and companionship of The Burrow and follow without fear or hesitation the inexorable path laid out for him. The Wheel of Time 1: The Eye of the World ¹ Robert Jordan 814 4.5 [short summary/excerpt] Life in Emond's Field has been pretty boring for Rand Al'Thor and his friends until a strange young woman arrives in their village. Moiraine is an Aes Sedai, a magician with the ability to wield the One Power, and she brings warnings of a terrible evil awakening in the world. That very night, the village is attacked by bloodthirsty Trollocs - a fearsome tribe of beast-men thought to be no more than myth. As Emond's Field burns, Moiraine and her warrior-guardian help Rand and his companions to escape. But it is only the beginning of their troubles. For Moiraine believes Rand Al'Thor is the Dragon Reborn, and that he is fated to unite the world against the rising darkness and lead the fight against a being so powerful and evil it is known simply as the Dark One. Revolution ¹ Jennifer Donnelly 496 3.5 [short summary/excerpt] Andi lives in present-day New York and is dealing with the aftermath of her brother's accidental death. Alexandrine lives in Paris and is desperately trying to save a young boy from the ravages of the French Revolution. Their paths collide as Andi unlocks a route into the past. Die Puppenspieler ¹ Tanja Kinkel 672 3.5 [short summary/excerpt] Im Jahre 1484 gibt der Papst das Signal zur Hexenverfolgung. Und mitten in Deutschland muss daraufhin ein Zwölfjähriger zusehen, wie seine Mutter auf dem Scheiterhaufen endet. Richard, Sohn eines schwäbischen Kaufmanns und einer schönen Sarazenin, werden die unmenschlichen Bilder für immer verfolgen. Bis ins Haus des reichen Jakob Fugger, der den Neffen seiner Frau aufnimmt und in seinem Hause erziehen lässt. Und später nach Florenz und Rom, wo er für Jakob Fugger arbeiten wird. Im Italien der Medici und Borgia, der Bußpredigten eines Savonarola und der grenzensprengenden Kunst eines Michelangelo wird Richard gegen das Erbe seines eigenen Blutes kämpfen. Und er muss sich endgültig entscheiden: zwischen Freundschaft und Liebe, zwischen dem Wunsch nach Rache und einem ungebundenen, vorurteilsfreien Leben. The Wheel of Time: New Spring (prequel) ¹ Robert Jordan 378 4.0 [short summary/excerpt] For three days battle has raged around the great city of Tar Valon. In the city, a Foretelling of the future is uttered. On the slopes of Dragonmount, the immense mountain that looms over the city, a child is born, an infant prophesied to change the world. That child must be found before he can be killed by the forces of the Shadow. And Moiraine Damodred, a young Accepted soon to be raised to Aes Sedai, and Lan Mandragoran, a young soldier fighting in the battle, are set on paths that will bind their lives together. But those paths are filled with complications and dangers, for Moiraine is of the Royal House of Cairhien, whose King has just died, and Lan is considered the uncrowned king of a nation long dead, and the plots of those seeking power threaten their lives. The Wheel of Time 2: The Great Hunt ¹ Robert Jordan 705 2.5 [short summary/excerpt] Chosen by fate to become the Dragon Reborn - savior and destroyer of his world - young Rand al'Thor attempts to outrun his destiny by joining in a mad search for the lost Horn of Valere. The Wheel of Time 3: The Dragon Reborn ¹ Robert Jordan 699 2.0 [short summary/excerpt] As the seals of the Dark One's prison continue to weaken, Rand al'Thor struggles to master the madness-tainted power that marks him as the Dragon Reborn. At the same time, his friends and companions become caught up in the roles laid out for them by the Web of Destiny. The Wheel of Time 4: The Shadow Rising ¹ Robert Jordan 1006 3.5 [short summary/excerpt] As the power of the Dark One grows stronger, Rand al'Thor and his friends face greater challenges in their war against the Shadow. From the halls of Tar Valon, where the Aes Sedai mystics discover agents of darkness in their own ranks, to the Aiel Waste, where a hidden city holds secrets forbidden to all but a few, Rand and his companions seek to fulfill the destiny laid out for them. The Wheel of Time 5: Fires of Heaven ¹ Robert Jordan 912 3.5 [short summary/excerpt] Rand al'Thor, the Dragon Reborn, leads his army of desert warriors toward a destined war against the forces of the Dark One. Elsewhere, while the Forsaken seed the land with their plots of corruption, a few stalwart individuals gather their strength for the coming battle. The Wheel of Time 13: Towers of Midnight ¹ R. Jordan/Brandon Sanderson 1248 4.0 [short summary/excerpt] The Last Battle has started. The seals on the Dark One’s prison are crumbling. The Pattern itself is unraveling, and the armies of the Shadow have begun to boil out of the Blight. The sun has begun to set upon the Third Age. Perrin Aybara is now hunted by specters from his past: Whitecloaks, a slayer of wolves, and the responsibilities of leadership. All the while, an unseen foe is slowly pulling a noose tight around his neck. To prevail, he must seek answers in Tel’aran’rhiod and find a way - at long last - to master the wolf within him or lose himself to it forever. Meanwhile, Matrim Cauthon prepares for the most difficult challenge of his life. The creatures beyond the stone gateways - the Aelfinn and the Eelfinn - have confused him, taunted him, and left him hanged, his memory stuffed with bits and pieces of other men’s lives. He had hoped that his last confrontation with them would be the end of it, but the Wheel weaves as the Wheel wills. The time is coming when he will again have to dance with the Snakes and the Foxes, playing a game that cannot be won. The Tower of Ghenjei awaits, and its secrets will reveal the fate of a friend long lost. A Song of Ice and Fire 5: A Dance with Dragons ¹ George R.R. Martin 1181 5.0 [short summary/excerpt] Tyrion Lannister, having killed his father, and wrongfully accused of killing his nephew, King Joffrey, has escaped from King's Landing with a price on his head. To the north lies the great Wall of ice and stone - a structure only as strong as those guarding it. Eddard Stark's bastard son Jon Snow has been elected 998th Lord Commander of the Night's Watch. But Jon has enemies both inside and beyond the Wall. And in the east Daenerys Targaryen struggles to hold a city build on dreams and dust. King Arthur's Daughter ¹ Vera Chapman 202 2.5 [short summary/excerpt] King Arthur's passing heralded the end of the Round Table and the beginning of a divided kingdom. Fair Ursulet, Arthur's daughter, was the lawful heir and Britain's hope, but her power-crazed half-brother Mordred would stop at nothing to gain the throne. Beset by treachery and demonic sorcery, she faced a long, cruel struggle to claim her royal destiny in the shadow of her father's rule. The Dragons of the Ordinary Farm ¹ Tad Williams 412 3.0 [short summary/excerpt] Tyler and Lucinda have to spend summer vacation with their ancient uncle Gideon, a farmer. They think they're in for six weeks of cows, sheep, horses, and pigs. But when they arrive in deserted Standard Valley, California, they discover that Ordinary Farm is, well, no ordinary farm. The bellowing in the barn comes not from a cow but from a dragon. The thundering herd in the valley? Unicorns. Uncle Gideon's sprawling farmhouse never looks the same twice. Plus, there's a flying monkey, a demon squirrel, and a barnload of unlikely farmhands with strange accents and even stranger powers. At first, the whole place seems like a crazy adventure. But when darker secrets begin to surface and Uncle Gideon and his fabulous creatures are threatened, Lucinda and Tyler have to pull together to take action. Will two ordinary kids be able to save the dragons, the farm - and themselves? Das Spiel der Könige ¹ Rebecca Gablé 1200 3.5 [short summary/excerpt] England 1455: Der Bruderkrieg zwischen Lancaster und York um den englischen Thron macht den achtzehnjährigen Julian unverhofft zum Earl of Waringham. Als mit Edward IV. der erste König des Hauses York die Krone erringt, brechen für Julian schwere Zeiten an. Obwohl er ahnt, dass Edward seinem Land ein guter König sein könnte, schließt er sich dem lancastrianischen Widerstand unter der entthronten Königin Marguerite an, denn sie hat ihre ganz eigenen Methoden, sich seiner Vasallentreue zu versichern. Und die Tatsache, dass seine Zwillingsschwester eine gesuchte Verbrecherin ist, macht Julian verwundbar... Leben im Eis ¹ Hauke Trinks 278 3.0 [short summary/excerpt] Könnte es sein, dass das Leben auf der Erde ursprünglich im Eis entstanden ist? Dieser Frage ist der Physiker Hauke Trinks mit seiner Ein-Mann-Expedition in den Norden Spitzbergens nachgegangen - ein einjähriges Abenteuer, das für die im Eis lebenden Mikroorganismen, die er untersuchte, möglicherweise schon vor vier Milliarden Jahren begonnen hat. Mehr als ein Jahr verbrachte der Wissenschaftler in der Nähe des Nordpols auf seinem Segelschiff Mesuf. Einzige Gesellschafter in dieser Zeit und Beschützer gegen die zudringlichen Eisbären waren die beiden Grönländer Hunde, Svarte und Bjosse. Children of the Night ¹ Dan Simmons 464 3.5 [short summary/excerpt] In a desolate orphanage in what remains of post-Communist Romania, a desperately ill infant is given the wrong blood transfusion - and flourishes when he's supposed to die. The discovery of his unique immune system may hold the key to the long-awaited cure for cancer and AIDS. For a dedicated American doctor, he promises the medical breakthrough of a lifetime, as well as a very special love she's never been able to find. But he also conceals a shockingly intimate link to a clan of vampires and their legendary leader - the fiend the world calls Vlad Dracula, who, for centuries, has triumphed over countless rival tyrants, including death itself... The Wheel of Time 6: Lord of Chaos ¹ Robert Jordan 1035 3.5 [short summary/excerpt] While the armies of Rand al'Thor, a farm boy cast by destiny into the world-changing role of the Dragon Reborn, continue their progress toward the Last Battle against the forces of the Dark One, other powers seek to exert control over the reluctant hero. The Saxon Stories 1: The Last Kingdom ¹ Bernard Cornwell 333 4.0 [short summary/excerpt] Uhtred is an English boy, born into the aristocracy of ninth-century Northumbria. Orphaned at ten, he is captured and adopted by a Dane and taught the Viking ways. Yet Uhtred's fate is indissolubly bound up with Alfred, King of Wessex, who rules over the only English kingdom to survive the Danish assault. The struggle between the English and the Danes and the strife between Christianity and paganism is the background to Uhtred's growing up. Marriage ties him to the Saxon but when his wife and child vanish in the chaos of the Danish invasion, he is driven to face the greatest of the Viking chieftains in a battle beside the sea. There, he discovers his true allegiance. The Saxon Stories 2: The Pale Horseman ¹ Bernard Cornwell 416 4.0 [short summary/excerpt] Uhtred is a Saxon, cheated of his inheritance, adrift in a world of fire and treachery. He has to make a choice: whether to fight for the Vikings who raised him, or for King Alfred who dislikes him. Alfred and Uhtred make unlikely allies. The king is a pious Christian, Uhtred a pagan and warrior. Yet the two forge an uneasy alliance that will lead them out of the marshes to the stark hilltop where the last remaining Saxon army will fight for the very existence of England. Dollanganger Series 5: Garden of Shadows (prequel) V.C. Andrews 384 3.5 [short summary/excerpt] When I was a little girl, my father bought me a priceless handcrafted dollhouse. It was a magical miniature world, with beautiful tiny porcelain dolls, furniture, even paintings and chandeliers and rugs all made to scale. But the house was enclosed in a glass case and I was never allowed to touch the family inside - indeed, I was not even permitted to touch the glass case, for fear of leaving smudges. Dainty things had always been a peril in my large hands, and the dollhouse was for me to admire but never to touch.
Long before terror flowered in the attic, thin, spinsterish Olivia came to Virginia as Malcolm Foxworth's bride. At last, with her tall handsome husband, she would find the joy she had waited for, longed for. But in the gloomy mansion filled with hidden rooms and festering desires, a stain of jealous obsession begins to spread... an evil that will threaten her children, two lovely boys and one very special, beautiful girl. For within one innocent child, a shocking secret lives... a secret that will taint the proud Foxworth name, and haunt all their lives forever. Dollanganger Series 2: Petals in the Wind V.C. Andrews 448 3.5 [short summary/excerpt] Free, at last! How young we were the day we escaped. How exuberantly alive we should have felt to be freed, at last, from such a grim, lonely and stifling place. How pitifully delighted we should have been to be riding on a bus that rumbled slowly southward. But if we felt joy, we didn't show it. We sat, all three, pale, silent, staring out the windows, very frightened by all we saw.
For Carrie, Chris and Cathy the attic was a dark horror that would not leave their minds. Of course mother had to pretend they didn't exist and grandmother was convinced they had the devil in them. But that wasn't their fault. Was it? Cathy knew what to do. She knew it was time to show her mother and grandmother that the pain and terror of the attic could not be forgotten... Show them. Show them - once and for all. The Mists of Avalon Marion Z. Bradley 912 5.0 [short summary/excerpt] Morgaine speaks...
In my time I have been called many things: sister, lover, priestess, wise-woman, queen. Now in truth I have come to be wise-woman, and a time may come when these things may need to be known. ...
And now, when the world has changed, and Arthur - my brother, my lover, king who was and king who shall be - lies dead in the Holy Isle of Avalon, the tale should be told as it was before the priests of the White Christ came to cover it all with their saints and legends. Labyrinth ¹ Kate Mosse 708 4.0 [short summary/excerpt] July 1209: in Carcassonne a seventeen-year-old girl is given a mysterious book by her father which he claims contains the secret of the true Grail. Although Alaïs cannot understand the strange words and symbols hidden within, she knows that her destiny lies in keeping the secret of the labyrinth safe...
July 2005: Alice Tanner discovers two skeletons in a forgotten cave in the French Pyrenees. Puzzled by the labyrinth symbol carved into the rock, she realises she's disturbed something that was meant to remain hidden. Somehow, a link to a horrific past - her past - has been revealed. Gentlemen Bastards 1: The Lies of Locke Lamora ¹ Scott Lynch 736 5.0 [short summary/excerpt] At the height of the long wet summer of the Seventy-seventh Year of Sendovani, the Thiefmaker of Camorr paid a sudden and unannounced visit to the Eyeless Priest at the Temple of Perelandro, desperately hoping to sell him the Lamora boy.
"Have I got a deal for you!" the Thiefmaker began, perhaps inauspiciously.
"Another deal like Calo and Galdo, maybe?" said the Eyeless Priest. "I've still got my hands full training those giggling idiots out of every bad habit they picked up from you and replacing them with the bad habits I need."
An orphan’s life is harsh - and often short - in the mysterious island city of Camorr. But young Locke Lamora dodges death and slavery, becoming a thief under the tutelage of a gifted con artist. As leader of the band of light-fingered brothers known as the Gentleman Bastards, Locke is soon infamous, fooling even the underworld's most feared ruler. But in the shadows lurks someone still more ambitious and deadly. Faced with a bloody coup that threatens to destroy everyone and everything that holds meaning in his mercenary life, Locke vows to beat the enemy at his own brutal game - or die trying...
¹ first-time read 5: Excellent 4: Very Good 3: Good 2: Lacking 1: Poor
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