Goddess Girls: Athena the Brain (Book 1) by Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams

Rating 4 out 5 (for under 10 girls)
Rating 3 out 5 (for everyone else)
Reading Age: 8-10
Paperback: 176 pages
Publisher: Aladdin; Original edition (April 6, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 141698271X
ISBN-13: 978-1416982715

"Athena thought she was a regular human girl until she receives a letter from her father, Zeus the king of the gods (and principal of Mount Olympus Academy). Zeus requests that Athena come attend MOA and, hoping her eccentricities will fit in better with the other god boys and goddess girls than they do with mortals, she happily accepts. While at school, Athena quickly makes friends--and enemies--with the other god boys and goddess girls and learns how to adjust to life as a goddess."

This story is set in ancient Greece when the gods were children in school. This story follows Athena as she starts her life at the god school and adjusts to this world. I loved the characters, they were fun and  captured their essences really well.

The book is really well researched and the Greek mythology is woven into the stories and personalities. For instance Athena is brainy, Aphrodite is beautiful and obsessed with boys, and Pandora is obsessed with gossip. Their school personalities reflect their adult persona's. The story of Helen of Troy is also woven into this book in a fun and quirky way.

The story is a quick, and an easy light read (for an avid reader). I knocked it over in about an hour while sitting on the plane flying off to my Christmas holidays. It really is just a cute story that is fun and light.

My only quibble was the ending. It just seemed to stop with a few things left unresolved. I sat there flicking the last pages thinking “is that it?” But as this is a series of books (with each book following a different goddess) perhaps the stories flow into each other?

Young girls (roughly 8-10) will probably love this series and relate to it best. It is also a great introduction to the Greek Gods and Goddesses. If I get my hands on other books in the series I will definitely give it a read.

Hounded (The Iron Druid Chronicles Book 1) by Kevin Hearne

Rating 4 out of 5
Format: Kindle Edition
File Size: 440 KB
Page Numbers Source ISBN: 0345522478
Publisher: Voyager (June 1, 2011)
Sold by: HarperCollins Publishers
Language: English
ASIN: B0050ZPAPA

Atticus O’Sullivan has been running for two thousand years and he’s a bit tired of it. After he stole a magical sword from the Tuatha Dé Danann (those who became the Sidhe or the Fae) in a first century battle, some of them were furious and gave chase, and some were secretly amused that a Druid had the cheek to defy them. As the centuries passed and Atticus remained an annoyingly long-lived fugitive, those who were furious only grew more so, while others began to aid him in secret.


Now he’s living in Tempe, Arizona, the very last of the Druids, far from where the Fae can easily find him. It’s a place where many paranormals have decided to hide from the troubles of the Old World—from an Icelandic vampire holding a grudge against Thor to a coven of Polish witches who ran from the German Blitzkrieg.


Unfortunately, the very angry Celtic god who wants that sword has tracked him down, and Atticus will need all his power, plus the help of a seductive goddess of death, a sexy bartender possessed by a Hindu witch, and some good, old-fashioned luck of the Irish to kick some arse and deliver himself from evil. 

Sounds good right? well it was good! It was fun from the beginning to end. That is the easiest way to sum the book up.  It was full of humour, action, mythology, bad guy smack downs, and witty one liners. All the things I love in urban fantasy series.

This book came on my radar by reading reviews on From My Bookshelf and Ticket To Anywhere (these two are bad for adding to my Mt TBR). I was intrigued as it has been described as being the next Harry Dresden series (I hate comparing but wont go there), plus it was about druids and celtic mythology an area in the urban fantasy area not really tapped into previously.

Up front the book is not really anything like Harry Dresden other then it had a guy as the main character, he was witty and sarcastic, oh and he did magic. So the comparison really is only at the surface level and was probably a gimmick by a marketing guru to get people to buy the book. By comparing the book they undersell this book/series.

The celtic mythology was really good and the research showed through. I actually learned quite a bit as I had to look some creatures mentioned up on the net. The characters felt believable and fit their "image". I quite liked Morrigan even though in other books she is painted as quite the villain, in this book she walks a fine line between being a baddy and a goody. The book also touches on other mythologies from around the world. There are also vampires, werewolves, and fairies to round out the mythological roll call. But you will no find vampires who sparkle and do creepy stalking type stuff, no the vampires and werewolves are much edgier and realistic.

The pace of the story is quite fast and energetic, you don't get much "down time" between scenes. It moves a long quickly, but not so fast that the story suffers.  If you are a fan of anime or comics you can definitely see the influences they have had on Hearne, there is even a reference or two to anime (the author gets big points for that alone).

I loved the character of Oberon and the little old Irish lady who is Atticus’ neighbor. Both added a great comical element to the book and I look forward to learning more about them in later books. The werewolves and the vampire (whose names elude me currently) were fascinating and I hope to learn more about them over the course of the series.

This should definitely be on your radar if you love urban fantasy. I will be getting stuck into the rest of series in the new year.

Extras
Head over to Kevin Hearnes web page to read the first six chapters of Hounded.

Side Jobs: Stories from the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher

Rating 4 out of 5
Format: Kindle Edition
File Size: 685 KB
Print Length: 432 pages
Page Numbers Source ISBN: 184149920X
Publisher: Hachette Digital (April 14, 2011)
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services
Language: English
ASIN: B004SBMJQ0

 Side Jobs is a collection of short stories written by Jim Butcher over the life of the Harry Dresden Series. At the start of each story there is a short blurb from Butcher who talks about how the story came about, influences, and where the story sits in the Dresden world. There are some stories that were previously printed in anthologies which included a novella from Thomas’ point of view. But there were also some previously unpublished stories, including one set after the events in Changes.

Each story adds to the Harry Dresden world, insights into the main characters, and into his relationships with some of the characters. The majority also do not give away anything about what has happened in the series, however there are three stories that do. Though it isn’t necessary it would be a good idea to read this collection of stories either singularly (at the appropriate moments in the Dreseden series, each story tells the reader where in the series the stories fell) OR all of them at the end of Changes. The final story takes place after Changes and it will definitely ruin the book if you have not read it.

Most of the stories are just good fun. There is not a lot of depth or substance. But there are some with real depth, that gives real insights into the main support characters in Dresdens life. The Warrior is Michael centric; Backup is all about Thomas; Something Borrowed focuses on Billy and Georgia; and the story called Aftermath set after Changes features Karrin and Billy. These stories you really do want to read in order of the series. I actually like the Michael story the best.

The story order is as follows:
Vignette.......................Between Death Masks (5) and Blood Rites (6)
Something Borrowed.......Between Dead Beat (7) and Proven Guilty (8)
It's My Birthday, Too.....Between White Knight (9) and Small Favor (10) Heorot..........................Between White Knight (9) and Small Favor (10)
Day Off.........................Between Small Favor (10) and Turn Coat (11) Backup..........................Between Small Favor (10) and Turn Coat (11)
The Warrior...................Between Small Favor (10) and Turn Coat (11)
Last Call.....................Between Small Favor (10) and Turn Coat (11)
Love Hurts....................Between Small Favor (10) and Turn Coat (11)
Aftermath.....................After Changes

I don't really want to say anything more as I will probably give some of the story lines away. If you are a fan of the series then this collection of short stories is a must. I really did enjoy them all.

The Magician by Michael Scott (Book 2)

Rating 4 out of 5

After fleeing Ojai Nicholas, Sophie, Josh and Scatty find themselves in Paris desperately seeking allies to shelter with. Meanwhile Dee is hot on their trail desperately trying to get the last two pages of the Book of Abraham and to gain control over the twins. This is the second book in the series.

This is another good installment in the series. Sophie is being trained in the power of fire and Josh is being trained in sword combat by Scatty. The reader is introduced to new characters Comte de Saint-Germaine and his wife Joan of Arc along with a new baddy Machiavelli.

There is nothing suprising story wise but thats ok it is a fun book to read and I enjoyed it. The action is well paced and constant so the reader doesnt get to bogged down in the mythology of the book. We meet some new mythological beings including the Valkyries.

Scatty doesnt seem to have as big a role in this book which is a shame because I really like her character. Josh's character annoyed me but it seemed like he was being set up to be the "bad" twin while Sophie is being set up to be the "good" twin. I did really enjoy Machiavelli's character who was a more refined bad guy to John Dee's no prisioners approach. The scene where Machiavelli had to drive a car was hilarious.

A promising series I will definately be following with two more books having been released.

The Alchemyst: Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel by Michael Scott (Book 1)

Rating 4.5 out of 5

Sophie and Josh are twins. They are currently living in San Francisco with their Aunt while their parents are away on an archaeological dig. When they land jobs in the same street; Josh in a book shop and Sophie in a tea shop the twins think that life is good. Their world is turned upside down when they get caught up in an ancient battle between an ancient race called the Elders. They soon learn the lovely elderly couple who ran the book store Nic and Perri are in fact Nicholas and Perennelle Flammel. Now Josh and Sophie are on the run for their lives as the sinister John Dee pursues them looking for Nicholas and the infamous book.

I was loaned this book by a work colleague who highly recommended it. To be honest I did not know anything about this book and put off reading it for awhile. Then I picked it up and decided to give it a go. I don’t know why I was so reluctant to read it I just was which is strange.

Well straight away I was drawn in. What an exciting book. There was lots of action and adventure that made the story tick along. There were no real slow spots. The author was able to balance the need for explanations, character development and fast paced action.

The mythological aspect of this book is really fascinating. I believe all the characters bar Sophie and Josh are mythological beings from history. There were Celtic gods (The Morrigan), and Egyptian gods (Bast). Then there were the characters who were based on actual historical people who might be borderline mythical themselves such as the alchemists Nicholas Flammel, his wife Perenelle and Dr John Dee. From what I could see on the net the author captured all these characters backgrounds accurately. Scatty was my favorite character she knew how to kick ass (which she should being th founder of several martial arts) and was pretty cluey on the kids and what they were thinking.

Sophie and Josh were an interesting mix. Sophie being calmer and more level headed, and Josh being short tempered and suffering foot in mouth disease. They behave more like brother and sister not twins (which they also admit to in the book themselves). The kids are not orphaned which seems to be a popular way of getting parents out of the picture in Young Adult novels these days. However the parents are effectively out as they are away on an archaeological dig leaving the kids basically alone.

The author did a wonderful job bringing the world the book is set in alive. While part is set in the “human” world some is also set in the “magical” world. When he described the World Tree I felt like I was standing right at its base with the characters. Also the story is told from a few different point of views both male and female. The author did a great job with this as well with neither gender falling into a stereotype.

The main thing I really enjoyed which I have already mentioned was the mythological aspect and it is clear the author did his homework. Any kids reading this book will inadvertently get a bit of an education about deities and historical figures.

I would not be suprised if the rights for this book (and series there is supposed to be six books all up) have not already been purchsed to be turned into a movie. To be honest if this was done correctly it would make an awesome movie. Oh wait just did a quick search on the net and it is being turned into a movie and is in production currently!

My only problem with this book is it is clearly part of a series, you will have to read the books in order, and I would recomend having books 2 and 3 (I believe that is all the author has currently released) on hand to continue reading.

I highly recomend this book to anyone who loves YA.

Other stuff

A chapter sample can be found at the authors website.

Other Reviews

Check out TexasRed's review here.