Book Review | The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black

January 15, 2015
Little, Brown and Company

Children can have a cruel, absolute sense of justice.

Children can kill a monster and feel quite proud of themselves.

A girl can look at her brother and believe they’re destined to be a knight and a bard who battle evil.

She can believe she’s found the thing she’s been made for.

After reading DOLL BONES recently, I've decided not to expect too much from another Holly Black book. THE DARKEST PART OF THE FOREST proved itself more than the usual expectations.  It turned out to be both intriguing and enjoyable.

Siblings Hazel and Ben grew up in Fairfold, a strange town known for its proximity with the Faery creatures. In the woods lies a beautiful prince in a glass coffin, any day could be a chance encounter with any creature unbeknownst, and at the heart of the forest rests a monster. But except for the occasional disappearance of tourists, both humans and fae coexist, more or less, in peace… until these last fifteen years.

As children, Hazel and Ben were self-sworn knights to protect their community from any dangerous fae creatures that prey on humans. While circumstances happened and Ben decided to move on from their childhood knighthood, Hazel remained to yearn for the hunt. And now that dangerous things are happening in Fairfold, Hazel decided to take up the mantle once again.

Children can have a cruel, absolute sense of justice…She can look at her brother and believe that together they’re knight and a bard who battle evil, who might someday find and fight even the monster at the heart of the forest.

THE DARKEST PART OF THE FOREST is beautifully written. The excitement escalates up to the last page. It was really hard to put down. The characters are distinct and binding. Ben and Hazel fit like a T and worth rooting for. Ben is quiet and passionate, while Hazel is impulsive and extremely loyal. In spite of their absentee parents and strange upbringing, they have unwavering sibling devotion, steadfast love for each other. Once again, I commend Ms. Black for establishing functional family relationships in her stories.

I recommend this intriguing page-turner. I’m sure you’ll love the characters, the suspense, and the well-played revelation near the end.

Book detail:

Title: The Darkest Part of the Forest

Author: Holly Black

Publication: January 15, 2015; Little, Brown, and Company

Genre: YA Fiction, Fantasy, Paranormal

Rating: ★★★★

*Thank you Little, Brown, and Company for sending a copy in exchange for an honest review.

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2015 Reading Challenge: March

Whenever the last week of February rolls in, I'm in panic mode. It means March will be marching in and there's plenty of marching to prepare for. (*Pun intended.) But books are my only savior during long hours of waiting and to calm my nerves. So this time, in spite of all the schedules, I am still going to list some books I really need to read this month. 

• The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy - TFG book of the month.
• The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black - This is an ARC which I failed to read last year, but I have to make up for that failure since this book was entrusted to me in good faith.
• The Paris Enigma by Pablo De Santis - This one is fermenting on the shelf for years now.

Before I go, these were the books I finished recently :

• Love Walked In by Marisa de Los Santos - 3/5 stars - TFG book for February.
• Kinder Than Solitude by Yiyun Li - 3/5 stars - Good prose but unsettling.
• Perdido Street Station by China Miéville - 5/5 stars - A buddy read with some book club friends. A terribly reeling book.
• The Oxford Murders by Guillermo Martínez - 4/5 stars - It's about murders. What's not to like?

Au revoir, mes chéris!

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Book Review | Kinder Than Solitude by Yiyun Li

The story moves back and forth, from the present and back to a melancholic past of 20 years. It began right after the Tiananmen Square Massacre of 1989, in Beijing. It would seem that no matter how much teeth and horns China shows to prohibit its people from remembering and discussing the said event, history cannot be erased. And perhaps, this is Yiyun Li’s simple way of remembering.

The book follows the lives of three young people from Beijing, who, after Shaoai’s poisoning and leaving her brain-damaged, drifted apart and grew estranged from each other over the years. Moran and Ruyu are both currently underachievers in America, while Boyang is a celebrated businessman in new Beijing. All three were leading a single life, having failed to keep relationships together.

Could he explain to Sizhuo that sometimes death was a mercy -that it was worse for the dead to go on living? In an ideal world, death should be the end of the story, but in this world, where they had to make do with muddles, death never ended anything neatly.

KINDER THAN SOLITUDE, despite its title, is not a happy read, nor an uplifting one. The premise is not just sad or heartbreaking, it is unsettling, in a manner of speaking. The core mystery was never resolved in a significant manner. It was not given enough heaviness if indeed it is the core of the story. Neither was the sexual violation before the poisoning.  It seems to me, they were conveniently wrapped up when all the while the book is full of psychological discourse.

Li is a masterful storyteller. I had no trouble turning each page. The prose is brilliant, no doubt, very quotable even. Hence, the 3 stars. But prose alone cannot save the entirety of a book. I’m afraid that I cannot agree with its philosophy. Being remorseless because it is 20 years too late, or believing that being repentant will serve no purpose in an already done deed is not merely emotionally cold, it is morally wrong. Choosing solitude because of previous tragedy, lack of self-confidence or self-preservation seems reasonable enough. However, settling with the knowledge that it is far kinder to be with someone who will tolerate your impertinence or inadequacy than being alone is definitely twisted in my vocabulary, especially, if that someone happens to be a murderer.

I've read A SHELTERED WOMAN, so I will not readily give up on Yiyun Li. Perhaps THE VAGRANTS will offer vindication.

Book details:

Title:  Kinder than Solitude

Author: Yiyun Li

Publication: Harper Collins UK/ HarperPress/4th Estate/

                       The Friday Project, March 27, 2014

Genre:  Literature & Fiction, Mystery

Rating: ★★★

* the same review appears in Goodreads.

Thank you, HarperCollins UK/HarperPress/4th Estate/The Friday Project, for lending me a copy in exchange for this honest review.

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KILLER INSTINCT by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Copy Cat

After their catastrophe with (agent turned serial killer) Locke last summer, the Naturals had a short reprieve. They had a chance to solve a kidnapping and rescue a young girl. But celebrations were cut short when Agent Sterling arrived to take the reins to keep them in line, which means no more active cases for the team. But a body was found in a university grounds, and the M.O. is very familiar to Dean. It would seem that his dad now has a copy cat on the loose.

“Maybe, to do what you and I do, we have to have a little bit of the monster in us.”

For me, to simply say that KILLER INSTINCT is a good read is an understatement. When I read the 1st installment, THE NATURALS, it had been my favorite YA Mystery for 2013. This series is getting better, and I have no problem highly recommending it.

Jennifer Lynn Barnes managed to keep every element together –the suspense, the careful fleshing of characters, and even that love triangle I was not very keen about last time. I truly admire her for keeping the reader at the edge of the seat and pulling up a huge twist at the end.

A job well is done. I will eagerly wait for the next installment.

Book details:
Title: Killer Instinct
Series: The Naturals #2
Author: Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Publication: Disney-Hyperion, November 4, 2014
Genre: YA, Mystery/Thriller/Crime
Rating: ★★★★★

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Wednesday Spotlight | The Perils of Pauline by Collette Yvonne

Valentine's Day is fast approaching. 
Here are some witty advice from 
Pauline Parril 
on how married gals 
can survive that annual occasion...

Surviving Valentine’s Day: Pauline Parril’s Advice for Married Women

by Pauline Daley-Parril

Valentine’s Day hashtags are proliferating on Twitter. That means one thing: #valentinesdayiscoming. For single women, the 14th of February is tough enough when it’s #nodate and #aloneagain. But for married women, Valentine’s Day is a #minefield #forgetaboutit #norosesforyousister #fml.

For women in general, Valentine’s Day is like trying on a new bikini: single girls hope to find something nice that handles the girls effectively but all too often end up with lingering regrets and maybe a yeast infection from the previous person who tried the bathing suit.

All that married women can hope for is that the top half can still work the old black magic while the bottom half still fits the base.

Meanwhile, the average man is completely oblivious to the whole #chocolates #romance and #finedining thing. That’s because he hasn't set foot in a shop since the day before Christmas when he did his annual shopping trip. Only women know that, just minutes after New Year’s Day is over, every store and mall in the country turns into a raging river of pink and red hearts with fur-trimmed bralettes on display in every window.

It’s not enough to avoid the flood of lacey crap at the mall. You better stay away from the drugstores too. Trouble is, you forgot to get your flu shot last fall, didn’t you? Now you need lozenges for the bug that is shredding up all the real estate in your throat. In you go, determined to make it past the heart-shaped candies and roses-made-of-chocolate aisle. You quickly skirt the section with the wide selection of ribbed condoms, cherry-flavored lubricants, and estrogen massage cream. But, suddenly, you’re confronted by the greeting card aisle. Love is in the air. And it’s sucking all the oxygen from the store.

You pause to look at all the pretty, pretty cards. Maybe it’s a good idea to inject a little romance into your plodding relationship and get your man a special valentine? You pick up a card with a pink satin bow. It says: “You are my forever best friend.” But, last time you checked, your husband wasn’t a Golden Retriever. The card with the velvet trim says, without the tiniest trace of irony: “Every moment I spend with you is a dream.” Every last card is festooned with curvy fonts, cupids, roses, arrows and hearts. As if you weren’t feeling sick enough with the flu before.

The sad fact is there are no realistic cards for wives to give to husbands. Clearly, companies need to offer cards with more truthful messages, such as: My darling, you deserve the best of me. (Sorry I called you a moron yesterday. The stupid of you got the better of me.)

Or: You can be my Valentine, but only if you stop being a prick.

For newer brides, the card could read: Be mine. (Unless you cheat on me. In that case, I will cut you.)

Or: Let’s get married all over again! (Without your drunk cousins this time.)

Together forever. (Unless you screw it up.)

Middle-aged marrieds have even more options: Loving you is my mission. It’s right up there with gaining control of the remote someday.

You are still hot to me. Mostly. (I’m still sleeping in my socks tonight because your feet are freaking blocks of ice.)

You make me smile. (To be honest, sometimes I smirk. Sometimes, it’s an evil grin. And sometimes I laugh hysterically. You say tomato …)

For older marrieds, the card could say: I can’t believe I’m still putting up with your shit. But, the wonder of wonders, I am!

Nothing can compare with you! Dude, you could win a snoring contest.

Together, we are stronger. Especially when we fart at the same time.

Never mind. Skip the card aisle. You have a bad head cold. It’s February for goodness’ sake. Your man doesn't want a card anyway. He’d prefer a roughly hand-drawn coupon for an anytime, anywhere b***job-on-demand.

Buy yourself some chocolate and don’t forget the cough syrup.

Get your copies of PERILS OF PAULINE from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, and Astor + Blue.

About the Author:

Collette Yvonne graduated from York University in Toronto with an Honor’s BA in Creative Writing. Her short stories, including From the Cottage Porch and Wild Words 2010, appear in several anthologies. She's written numerous articles in national Canadian publications, plus over 150 pieces for various Ontario newspapers. Her short story, Snapshots for Henry, was made into a short film, directed by Teresa Hannigan, and received a 2007 Genie nomination for Best Live Action Short Drama.

The Perils of Pauline is her first novel.




*Content sent by the author for this blog's publication. This is a free ad.

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The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce

A Different Map.

This is a very charming book. Rachel Joyce starts her novel with Harold Fry figuring out how best to reply to Ms. Queenie’s letter.  When finally he was done scratching a draft after another, he found himself walking past postbox after postbox, undecided whether sending a letter is enough to make amends with a long lost friend. It wasn't until Harold had a sincere conversation with a young store clerk did he decided what to do best.

“I am on my way,” he writes. “All you have to do is wait. Because I am going to save you, you see. I will keep walking and you must keep living.”

When we first met Harold, he is leading a monotonous retirement with his wife Maureen. They hardly talk and tried to stay out of each other’s way in the same house for many years. When Maureen received the call from Harold, enthusiastically informing her of his decision to walk from Kingsbridge to Berwick Upon Tweed, she was more than astonished; angry at first, but eventually perturb.

“In walking, he unleashed the past that he had spent twenty years seeking to avoid, and now it chattered and played through his head with a wild energy that was its own.”

There is a certain amount of foolishness to Harold’s pilgrimage -having no change of clothes, enough cash to go on with, no mobile phone for easy access, and not wearing the proper shoes for the journey.  But as Harold trudges along, we discover more about his past. Being mostly alone with his thoughts, Harold was forced to dwell back in his memories: by his parents’ abandonment, the origin of his wife’s disdain, and his forlorn relationship with his son David.  Parallel to his emotional journey, Maureen confronts the reality of their present life. How her disappointments overshadowed the love she always has for her husband. She battled with the dilemma between wanting Harold back and urging him to finish his cause, eventually.

“You got up, and you did something. And if trying to find a way when you don't even know you can get there isn't a small miracle; then I don't know what is.”

It is the foolishness and impracticality of Harold’s pilgrimage that is worthy of applause because it’s their glaring truth that made him cling all the more to hope and learn to make do with things and situations. He walked miles and months, sometimes even in circles; nevertheless, exceeding any expectations we have for a dejected 65-year old. The triumph or collapse of this said pilgrimage cannot and will not credit, nor undermine the change and potential Harold acquired through the journey.

“But maybe it's what the world needs. A little less sense, and a little more faith.”

The likelihood of Ms. Queenie’s survival truly connected with Harold’s completion of his walk was questioned once or twice in the story. But Ms. Joyce subtly emphasized that the miracle doesn't lie on Ms. Queenie’s survival, but on a life re-examined and love rekindled.

THE UNLIKELY PILGRIMAGE OF HAROLD FRY is an uplifting story. It is delightful with its foolishness and heartwarming in its sincerity.

Book details:

Title:  The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry

Author:  Rachel Joyce

Publication: Doubleday, 2012

Genre:  Contemporary Fiction

Rating:  ★★★★★

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2015 Reading Challenge: February

The love month is finally here. And let me guess, your reading list for this month follows the tale-as-old-a-time theme. No reason for anyone not to celebrate it, but, as for me, I choose to follow the new weird and the macabre, instead.

But before that, a recap of the January books is in order.

• Rest Area by Clay McLeod Chapman - 4/5 stars
• The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce - 5/5 stars
• The Walls Around Us by Nova Ren Suma - 3/5 stars
• Killer Instinct by Jennifer Lynn Barnes - 5/5 stars
• Shadow Study by Maria V. Snyder - 5/5 stars
• Navigating Early by Clare Vanderpool - 5/5 stars

This year started with some very good books. I do hope that the following months will be interesting and fruitful.

For February:

• Love Walked In by Marisa de Los Santos - TFG's book of the month.
• Perdido Street Station by China Miéville - A buddy read with some book club friends.
• Oxford Murders by Guillermo Martínez - I am really looking forward to reading this. It was translated by Sonia Soto, the same person who translated The Athenian Murders and The Club Dumas.

Happy Love Month, everyone!

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