Daniel leaves Luce just as Edward leaves Bella, but at least Daniel comes back many times throughout the book.

Publisher: Doubleday (Random House)
Pages: 452
Type: Fiction
Age: Young Adult
ISBN: 978-0-385-61809-0
First Published: 28th September 2010
Date Reviewed: 23rd January 2011
Rating: 2.5/5

Even if I absolutely hate a book, I’m always willing to give the author a second chance. This was Kate’s chance to prove herself, however I was constantly considering abandoning Torment because for the most part it remained just as bad as Fallen.

Daniel takes Luce to the other side of America where she enrols at a school that’s at the opposite end of the spectrum to Sword & Cross. Told to stay there for her protection, Luce makes friends with Nephilim and attends lessons taught by fallen angels. Meanwhile Daniel and Cam work to stop the new common enemy from kidnapping her. But Luce is unlikely to stay put all the time, especially as she wants to learn more about her past lives.

The biggest problem with Fallen, to my mind, was that there was no reasoning to the love story. Luce just trusted Daniel when he harped on about her past lives – she never questioned it – which is why it’s good that Kate finally has her thinking about those lives in Torment. However a lot more could have been done. Luce delves into the past but she still doesn’t contemplate why she loves Daniel, it’s still the case that she’s been told she does and so that’s why she does. And there is a more general reason for this:

The relationship between them is severely underdeveloped. If Luce and Daniel had just a quick fling it would be ok to not know about them, but considering theirs is supposed to be a relationship spanning thousands of years, one requires more information than simply what they feel about each other’s physical appearance. Luce is as dull as a milk bottle. She does appear to have an interest, swimming, but it’s rarely addressed and thus causes you to wonder if she really enjoys it. Kate does ultimately addresses this, albeit accidentally:

“I don’t want you to be anyone other than who you are.”
“Which is who, Daniel? Because if you know the answer to that, feel free to clue me in.”

Following on from this, one must ask why there is such a big deal made over this particular relationship when Luce is going to a school full of children who are the product of human/angel couplings – why aren’t those parents being blasted too? Kate says somewhere in the middle of the book that it’s because Daniel is the angel whose future choice between good or evil is the one that will tip the scales and is therefore the most important, but again she provides no reasons. She says Daniel was an important angel, but unless she is going to purposefully yank the well-known archangels from their seats to create an ever more fictional story then he is of no significance.

It takes until the end of the book for Luce to finally start enjoying herself because otherwise, every time she thinks she might be, she reminds herself that Daniel isn’t there. The end of this book suggests that Luce might actually grow some balls in the next, which would be a very belated relief.

The vast majority of this book is terrible and it’s apparent that little to no research has been conducted. It reads like a cheesy fan-fiction, as an outline for a story rather than the story itself, and Kate appears to have no idea about grammar and word usage.

So here is where I explain why I’ve not given the book a zero. It takes until past the halfway mark for the story to start improving, but I’m pleasantly surprised to say that although it’s not Austen, a change in scenery makes up for a lot. Kate shows that she does have a bit of an imagination. At length she wrenches herself away from her Stephenie Meyer backbone and includes some interesting action. She shows what she can be if she creates her own mould.

I’m struggling with the notion that scholarship pupils pay their way by waiting on the other pupils at breakfast, and that a publishing house will, in this day and age, allow an author to keep a highly offensive paragraph calling a stumbling person a spaz and describing why they are so, but at least there is an improvement to the series.

Will I read the third book? I can’t say. I’m reluctant, because I don’t think Kate will carry the story as well as the opportunity has presented it. Would I recommend a person to read Fallen because Torment gets better? No. But if, like me, you invested your time in Fallen, you may feel better about it if you continue onto Torment.

Kate has proved that she has the ability to be better than she was and that her series might be going somewhere. Hopefully she will include in that a lesson in computing so that next time Luce sends an email, she doesn’t send it twice.

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The lovers are married in a ceremony lasting minutes and then flee from the king. It’s the stuff fairytales are made of.

Publisher: Sphere (Little Brown)
Pages: 673
Type: Fiction
Age: Adult
ISBN: 978-0-7515-3939-4
First Published: 2000
Date Reviewed: 21st March 2011
Rating: 4.5/5

The Fitzwarin family seat was at Whittington until it was taken from them. For years Fulke’s father strove to regain it but when he died it was still in the hands of another and thus Fulke and his brothers took over the fight. Yet Whittington doesn’t remain the only thing in the young man’s mind and once he meets Maude, who he’d first come across when she was a headstrong girl of twelve, his loyalty will be split.

Something that may interest you to know, and to give you a general sense of the book, is that the man this book is based on, Fulke Fitzwarin III, is one of the possibilities for the inspiration of the legend of Robin Hood.

For the longest time I lingered on the fence between wanting to review this novel to let you know how good it is, and not wanting to review it because the idea of reviewing Chadwick’s work seems to me blasphemous. It is just so difficult to explain how amazing her creations are, and indeed the first book I read of hers, Shadows And Strongholds, has still not seen a review from me since two autumns ago when I read it.

The success of the book, above anything else, above the themes, even above the story, is the way that Chadwick makes the history accessible. The style of writing doesn’t so much invite you as envelope you without warning into the world in the book, Chadwick’s style is very much show rather than tell and the details she goes into about the domestic life mean that imaging everything is delightfully simple. Unlike many books where you can be hard pressed to create a whole picture of the scene in your mind, Chadwick’s work fills you in on everything; you hear about the different weapons, the way clothes were made, the cultural traditions such as the bedding ceremony. And as you can no doubt tell from the way I have written it, this paragraph applies just as much to her other books as it does to Lords Of The White Castle.

Because there is not much factual information to go on, and what information there is about the Fitzwarin’s cannot always be trusted, it was inevitable that Chadwick would adopt a more fictional outlook than authors who write of later periods. As someone who thrives on historical fiction that is more or less factual I have to say that it really doesn’t matter here, and dates are included which makes it easier if you later wish to research the factual elements.

The book takes a while to come into it’s own but the lead up to the romance is far from boring, the reader is provided with all the necessary background details and then some, and the characters are strong and well developed. When the romance does enter fully the narrative speeds along because of everything else that is going on. It’s thrilling. Perhaps the best aspects are the times the characters know they are assuming a stereotype and exploit it magnificently.

Fulke smiled at the apprehension in Ivo’s voice. Put his brother in the midst of a melee or ask him to charge across open ground at opposing cavalry and he would not balk. But give him the massive greenery of the Welsh mountain forests and the possibility of wild Welshmen lurking in ambush and he became as anxious as a nun in a brothel.

Humour places a substantial role, although you wouldn’t call the book a comedy. There are some great lines in the story and the metaphors tend to enlist the time period.

“You may seduce me as much as I like,” she declared with a wrinkle of her nose, “but not until we are wed.”

The sex scenes in the book often take place “behind the curtain” so to speak, but when they don’t they are hot and sensual. This doesn’t mean it is erotic fiction, and the words used are not crass, but Chadwick goes further than many romances.

The characters are strong, and Maude, the leading lady, strives to be on a par with her husband – apart from societal constraints, they are equals. There is a brilliant scene where Maude pulls out her crossbow and, after seeing her husband’s hesitation, reminds him that she is better than most men. If you’re looking for a kick-arse chick, you’ll find one here. Fulke is just as good, his dialogue is often priceless and his manner admirable, at least usually. And to bring in the Robin Hood reference I spoke of at the start, Chadwick’s story does include things that relate well to the legend. The rest of the characters are no less developed and the Fitzwarin household and their allies are a joy to read about.

Unsurprisingly Lords Of The White Castle deals with social issues, including the differences in gender. Chadwick generally lets the laws of the period hold sway but often points to times when men were happy to have their women be knowledgeable in politics. The two elements balance well and from her 20th century position she illustrates how some people were ahead of their time. Poignant is the retort made by a man to his father-in-law that if a woman can marry and run her household then she should be able to own land. It strikes as similar to many of the debates we have today regarding the placement of age restrictions, such being able to drive and be married before having the right to vote.

The only problem I had with the book was its length. It carries on for a long while after the threads are tied and although you can understand why it does, because Chadwick is wanting to present you with her version of the relationships, after the afore mentioned threads are tied there is nothing particularly interesting to keep reading for.

Lords Of The White Castle brings a piece of history that is often forgotten to life and fills in the gaps with fiction that is interesting, fun, and believable. If you are at all interested in swords and shields or if you have ever wanted to travel back in time and live in the medieval period then this book for you. And if you’re anything like me then the idea of bread and cheese becomes an incredibly viable option for dinner when hunger strikes and you have to put the book down.

Marketplaces, kings, tournaments, traditional cooking methods, and knights in shining armour coming to rescue their lovers. It’s all here.

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History is always changing because we are always finding out about new aspects of it.

Publisher: Atria Books (Simon & Schuster)
Pages: 357
Type: Fiction
Age: Adult
ISBN: 978-1-4165-9059-0
First Published: 17th February 2011
Date Reviewed: 31st March 2011
Rating: 5/5

It’s 1947 and American Evie has come to India with her husband and son while her husband documents the fall of British rule. Martin has changed since the Second World War and though Evie hoped the move to India would re-ignite their marriage it seems unlikely to happen. In heartache she turns to cleaning in order to gain control where it was lost and it’s here that she discovers a loose brick in their hundred-year-old house. Hidden inside the gap is a bunch of letters dated 1850’s – suddenly Evie has a purpose of her own.

Although I’ve read a lot of books recently that I enjoyed perhaps even more than The Sandalwood Tree, on no occasion have I been able to read without checking every now and then on my progress – until this book. I finished it without really noticing. The book is full to bursting with delightful contents.

Admittedly it probably helps that I’m interested in India and its many cultures and can speak a bit of Hindi (the book contains a smattering of the language) but I’d hope that the immense richness of detail is undeniable to anyone. Newmark may to a certain point exoticise the country, this makes sense considering the time periods she writes of, but it’s the overall research and the way she describes the places that make the book what it is. The colours of the cover match the story perfectly.

The Sandalwood Tree flips back and forth between 1947 – the time of Partition – and the 1850s, when relations between the British and Indians were understandably bad. It details the events that happened during those times (although the book ends before Partition happens so it’s the lead-up that is examined) but the emphasis is on the lives of the characters and the particular social issues relevant to them. Evie, as an American, finds herself more open-minded than the Brits in her circle and so you get to see a few different points of view. Her own story becomes very much effected by the letters she reads, leading her to find India more homely and enabling her to really consider the impact her husband’s years in service have had on their marriage. Her son, Billy, is a joy in himself, being rather bold and knowledgeable and, being five years old in 1940s India, his own development as a character is particularly interesting.

The letters Evie finds become a second plot in their own right. Even though it is Evie who reads the letters and finds out about the women in them, so much time is given to the letters themselves that it’s easy to forget that. This sort of story has been done before, but because of Newmark’s writing style and the connection she makes between the women and Evie, it is fascinating. I should probably say that Evie’s story is told in the first-person, the 1850’s via the letters and a diary. The various social issues covered due to the two characters love interests make the book very compelling.

I would observe and understand India without India actually touching me.

One of the most interesting elements of the book is the way the domestic squeezes its way into the social, and vice versa.

A second conflict of cultures happens as the back-story to Martin’s plight in the form of the Germans and anyone against them. Consider the following:

He said it bothered him that German sounded so much like the Yiddish of his grandparents; then he shook his head as if he was trying to understand something.

Newmark’s point is poignant, that there was no real difference between Jews and Germans other than religions. Martin’s experiences, when put against the issues surrounding partition add another layer of thought to the book, show in both cases how society can change so quickly when a line is drawn in the middle.

The only thing I took issue with was the phrase “buttoning the curtains down” within the letters written in the 1850’s by British people. I have come to recognise the phrase “button down” through reading American literature, but it’s not something we say in Britain and thus is out of place in an old English letter. But I feel I have demonstrated my feelings overall: this book is pretty near perfect.

The Sandalwood Tree brings many different generations, cultures, religions, nationalities, domestic situations and opinions to its relatively modest 357 pages, and deals with all effectively. Whether the research is spot-on I can only say as much as I know personally, but it definitely comes across as a triumph all round.

The answer to would I recommend this book is a resounding “yes”.

I received this book for review from the author thanks to Pump Up Your Book.

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None yet

This time it may hit closer to home.

Publisher: Headline
Pages: 355
Type: Fiction
Age: Young Adult
ISBN: 978-0-7553-7896-8
First Published: 15th February 2011
Date Reviewed: 23rd February 2011
Rating: 4/5

Violet knew that ringing 911 when she felt the echo of a body in the shipyard was a risk she had to take. When Sara Priest, an ex-FBI agent contacts her, she realises that it was a mistake to have let the police know something that nobody should. Now she must decide whether to take Sara up on her offer, and to reveal her ability. But there is something else on Violet’s mind. What’s the deal with this new guy, Mike, and his sister?

Desires Of The Dead is the worthy follow-up to last year’s, The Body Finder. In it, Derting packs all the same winning qualities that made the first a success, and takes it up a notch on many levels.

The most obvious difference is the inclusion of the FBI. Whereas Violet’s association with her local police is because of her uncle, Sara Priest enters as a third party, a separate entity. Where The Body Finder was literally about working at ground level, Desires Of The Dead deals more with professional interaction and suggests that in future the series will focus more on things that well befit the crime genre.

The book explores the concept of the family and it’s variations – Violet’s family, a metaphorical family, and this time also the family of the person killed. Family is the basic backbone of the book and whereas before the emphasis was on a person’s mental state, this time it is about how you protect those you love.

Violet has to be one of the best YA heroines of recent years. Continually strong and always equal to her boyfriend, it’s a pleasure to read about her. Jay is also wonderful, and I think it’s fair to say that Derting has a way with characters, which makes them very real.

Jay sat down across from Chelsea and took both of her hands in his. The oversized lunchroom was buzzing with activity, and he practically had to yell to be heard.
“Chelsea, for the love of everything good and holy, please… please stop ruining my friend.”

The romance in the book is never idealistic, and when Violet thinks about Jay she never goes overboard. She thinks about him a lot, but there aren’t paragraphs and paragraphs of it. It’s just so natural. And although Jay is fiercely protective of Violet he gives her space when she needs it.

Before, Derting wrote scenes from the enemy’s point of view, and she does this again in Desires Of The Dead. It’s an interesting device. The reader isn’t so much excited to find out who the person is as they are excited to find out how the conclusion is reached. Because you are already acquainted with the enemy, even if you’re not sure who the enemy actually is, you can enjoy the journey to discovery more because there’s no desire that the author hurry up and tell you. Although the need for speed can be exciting, you often miss interesting details in your rush to finish, and so this isn’t an issue here.

The new elements introduced in this book suggest that next time the difference is going to be quite something, and it appears that from standing on the fence between paranormal and totally realistic (because Violet’s ability is actually rather believable in our world where psychic abilities are acknowledged), Derting is going to jump over and explore the fantastical side. Personally I have little doubt that she won’t keep it just as real as before.

Derting and Violet both know that things cannot stay the same, Derting for the progress of a story, and Violet for the help her ability can bring. The awareness of these things together ensures the development of everything and makes the reader receptive of a third book.

Desires Of The Dead speaks up where others stay silent and proves that a realistic paranormal is possible. The dead have staked a claim on Violet but there’s no reason why you shouldn’t too.

I received this book for review from Headline publishers.

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There’s a reason they didn’t keep this poem.

This poem tells you to fight.

Publisher: Razorbill (Penguin)
Pages: 364
Type: Fiction
Age: Young Adult
ISBN: 978-0-141-33305-2
First Published: 30th November 2010
Date Reviewed: 2nd January 2011
Rating: 5/5

It’s not every day I begin a review with a quote; in fact this is a first for me. But I can find no other way to introduce this novel.

Like all other members of her society, at 17 years of age Cassia goes to the city hall to find out who the Officials have paired her with for life. She finds herself matched to her best friend Xander and all her hopes in The Society are fulfilled, thinking those at the top really do know best. But a mistake in the information she is given about Xander leads to another person being matched to her. The Society don’t make mistakes, but is it possible they may have this time? And just how perfect is Cassia’s life, really?

Even with the summary on the back – which is nice and vague – you can’t really guess what the content will be like. What I find so brilliant about the world Condie has created is that it’s unlikely two readers will see it the same way (incidentally, as The Society like probabilities they would probably like this… and there goes another probability). In fact I’m sure I saw it as more visually stunning as Condie planned, but for me that was what worked in my head. Condie’s descriptions – as in the way she uses words – didn’t register at the time of reading but on looking back I realised just how skilled she is.

And yet there is nothing lustrous at all in the world Condie has created, if we are to speak literally. The world is the horrifying product of domination, a world in which a select group of individuals rule almost every aspect of every life – one that could possibly evolve in our own future if we aren’t careful. Condie has made technology very advanced but she hasn’t resorted to all of the usual futuristic elements – there are the odd heralds of our world today and history in the way that humans still run the show. In truth it’s partly this that makes it scary, the implementation of things we tend to agree with, such as recycling, as everything is so planned out. There are no chances, no random occurrences. To me Condie’s creation comes across much like The Sims, the game in which the player controls virtual life. The visuals in that are very cute, colourful, and represent perfection, which is what The Society of Matched are determined to exploit.

Of course with a book of this nature you cannot assume that the characters will be strong, nor can you really expect it, but Condie may surprise you here. Cassia takes a while to start realising how corrupt her world is and thus to a reader she can come across as annoying. It definitely makes you sit back and think because while you can plead her to take chances and run away, you have to remember that to her nothing is unusual. The way in which Cassia comes into her own while still believing certain things may seem difficult to understand, but it’s logical. Although Condie shows how weak The Society really is, she also shows how difficult it can be for a group of people to stand up for themselves when they know that to stay silent will result in an easy life. In this way her book is as much a commentary on our present time than a fly-on-the-wall look at a dystopian world.

I’m rather reluctant to talk about the other characters because a lot of my own enjoyment came from discovering their personalities and desires. I will simply say that both male leads are heroes and that there is little to make you prefer one to the other.

You may be wondering, as I did, how much similarity there is between Matched and the other young adult novels that have been released of late. The answer: a love triangle, and the general idea of a dystopian world. To be honest I’m not sure if I liked the fact that it is the love aspect of life is what’s focused on, I’d have preferred to have seen Cassia struggle for something a little more general, like complete freedom, but love triangles are what sells at the moment, it seems to be the key between a hit and a flop.

Towards the beginning I may have said that you don’t notice how good Condie’s descriptions of locations are while reading, but that’s not the same for the other elements of storytelling. Some lines jump from the page, such as the one I have quoted already. In that particular case it is as much the cause of the structure as the words.

Condie has exceeded my expectations. I could never have imagined such a story, such vivid description, would fill the pages.

Break the rules. Follow Cassia. Trust in Condie. Read this book.

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