Illumine, by Alivia Anders Goal 3/60

And the book that brings me to a whopping 5% of my goal is Illumine, the debut offering by a talented, young new author, Alivia Anders.

Illumine tells the story of Essallie Hanley. Essallie was a typical teenage girl living in New York City; she went shopping with her friends, had a boyfriend, liked to party... but something was nagging at her this time. She didn't really want to go to this party at her boyfriend's place. She was getting tired of showing up only to find him drunk. Reluctantly she shows up at the party anyway, lured in part by her friend Cassie Knight's promise that Essallie's boyfriend, Chase, had a "wicked good" surprise for her.

Essallie had no way of knowing that the surprise would be all wicked, and no good.

Betrayed by her boyfriend Chase and her 'friend' Cassie, Essallie learns that she might not be so normal after all. Unfortunately this realization comes as her boyfriend is murdered right in front of her and devoured by the very demon that he intended to give Essallie to.

Now, months later, Essallie has to deal with the emotional trauma of what happened at the party. And as she learns that the demons aren't just in her head she has to race against the clock to figure out just what she really is-- and what that all means.

The story was fast paced and had plenty of twists to keep my interest. Demons and the supernatural usually make for good reading in my opinion anyway, and I liked the take on nephilim. There are some books, like the Hunger Games, that left me content to read the first in the series and not worry about the next part, but I will definately be looking to read the next in this series.

There were some threads that seemed undeveloped, but that may be resolved in other installments. I would have been more fulfilled with a little more story on some things. Cassie being revealed as a necromancer without any justification or development, the subtle but completely unexpected and well, out-of-nowhere romance between Essallie and Kayden.

The lack of deveopment of these threads does not, however, diminish from the story itself. And I found the story enjoyable, and worthy of my time.

Proven Guilty, The Dresden Files. Goal 2/60

Book Eight of the Dresden Files, Dead Beat continues the series without slowing down. On the contrary, as the novel progresses new developments and relevations about what has gone before promise a strong, vibrant story yet to come.

While I have tackled series of multiple books like this in the past I have often found that they begin to slow and give less and less satisfaction as the story progresses. I got no further than book 8 of the Sword of Truth series despite enjoying it.

Proven Guilty did not slow me down. I am anxious to get to the next book to see how the story proceedes.

Lots of strings from previous books were developed. Harry's relationship with Murphy, Thomas, Michael, Molly and even the likes of Charity and Morgan all shift to a certain degree. And there continue to be promises of something developing between Harry and Karrin Murphey.

The book starts with the execution of a warlock-- someone that employees black magic and breaks the laws of magic-- by the White Council. The only sentence for breaking any of the laws is death. Harry is forced to witness the bloody execution despite his oppostition to it. The whole ordeal is simply too close to his past for him to accept it as correct.

Things quickly become complicated for Harry when Molly, eldest daughter of Michael and Charity Carpenter, comes to him looking for help. The story takes on many unexpected twists and sees Harry up against powerful forces of the Fae again.

An excellent read, keeping pace with an amazing series.

Dead Beat, by Jim Butcher. Finished books goal: 1/60

Jim Butcher's Dresden Files series has long appealed to me. A wizard living in Chicago making his -meager- living taaking cases and working with the police. Book seven of the series, Dead Beat, kept my interest at least as well as the six before it. The story was interesting and fast paced, plot twists surprising and not disappointing.

In this instalment we learn that a certain blampire (yes, blampire) is in a position to seriously damage the career and life of Harry Dresden's friend, the chief of Special Investigations, Karrin Murphey. Harry is blackmailed into helping the undead sorcerous and told to retrieve a book written by a powerful necromancer.

As it would turn out Harry is not the only one seeking the book. His quest to find it pits him against forces much more powerful than he has encountered in the past.

Many important threads from previous books are developed and explored, and memorable characters from previous novels make appearences. Harry gets into troubles that only someone like him could manage, but he is simply too stubborn to die. And polka, polka will never die.

2012

This new year instead of making resolutions I decided to simply set goals. I am not going to resolve to do things differently or to make significant changes in my life, I am going to write a list of things I need to accomplish this year and go at it.

One of my goals is to finish over 60 books this year. That breaks down to five books a month. This is a very achievable goal. So the best way to keep track of this is right here on this blog. And just after midnight I completed my first novel of the new year, Dead Beat by Jim Butcher. The book was excellent, as his entire series has been, and it is a great way to start the year.

So here's to reading a lot in the new year! I am on my way!

Hunter's Run

Hunter's Run, written by Gardner Dozois, George R. R. Martin, and Daniel Abraham is a hardcore science fiction novel. I enjoy science fiction to an extent, Ender's Game is still one of my favorite novels, but this was an extreme alien immersion. And I actually enjoyed it.
The language in the novel was strong, but perfect for the character of Ramon, the rough, dregs of society that he was.
I give the book 4 of 5 stars.

The Hunger Game, by Suzanne Collins

After reading all the great reviews about this novel I was disappointed that the author was a poor writer. How you tell the story is almost as important as the story itself.
If it wasn't for the fast pace and the interesting plot, I would have cast this book aside. I shouldn't be too surprised, I mean, bad writers keep making good money and getting published. "The Gargoyle" was horrid, I didn't make it past chapter one, and it got great reviews. "Twilight." Enough said.
I gave The Hunger Games 2 and a half stars, for the plot alone. By the end of the novel I was ready to kill Katness myself if she survived the Hunger Games.

On China, by Henry Kissinger

It would be an understatement to say that this was an amazing work written by the premier statesman involved in the development of Chinese and American diplomacy. "On China" is a personal account of Kissinger's many visits to China and his dealings with several generations of Chinese leaders.

Anyone seeking a clearer understanding of China and why things are the way they are needs to read this book. I will say that there are a few things I was disappointed with, he barely mentioned Sun Yat-sen and the impact he had on transitioning China from a dynastic Imperial system. The work is so focused on the diplomatic side of things he ignores any real depth concerning who the Gang of Four were and Zhou Enlai's relationship with Mao Zedong (Mao did not attend Zhou's funeral even, and Kissinger fails even to mention that there was a split).

I was always a huge admirer of Deng Xiaoping, I remember when he died. Deng Xiaoping was the leader of China when I was born, and an amazing man. Reading these behind the scenes snapshots of Deng Xiaoping altered my perception permanently, I now admire him even more, and finally understand the why's behind some of his less-than-praiseworthy moments.

I highly recommend this book, especially to any of my students representing China this year. Five out of Five stars, despite my few criticisms.