King Richard a pedophile?

In Pamela Kaufman's Shield of Three Lions, Alix, a young daughter of English baron, is sent on a daunting task to reclaim her right to her father's land after he is killed by a usurper. His last instructions to his 11 year old daughter is to disguise herself as a boy and go to King Henry for help. Alix become Alex or Alexander and hooks up with Enoch, a Scottish man who takes the wee one along and agrees to help. With many twists and turns, the death of King Henry by his son who becomes King Richard - Alex finds himself/herself on the crusades working as a page for the King. The King falls in love the boy and more twist and turns. Alex believes that Enoch wants to take his/her land but needs his help to survive the military camp.

I didn't like the pedophilia story line - I got bored with Alex's paranoia about Enoch and the ending once again disappointed. I can't recommended this book - bummer!

Don't Read this Book!

Finishing the Series....Feist's Fantasy

I could go on and on about how much fun it was to read Raymond E. Feist series of books on Medkemia but I truly believe six more reviews on these books would get very old. My adventure with his books began by accident when I purchased The King's Buccaneer, this book had no dust jacket so I assumed it was about medieval England - what a great mistake! Then I spent months tracking down the other books to read.

One thing I found as I traveled through this adventure was that the characters never got boring. I was sad as they aged and made way for new characters but I never got bored with the fight for good over evil. I couldn't help but think that these books were written for young boys - who cares, I loved them!

The Prince of the Blood, Shadow of a Dark Queen, Rise of Merchant Prince, Rage of a Demon King and Shards of a Broken Crown - are worth every minute!

Read these Books!

Move Over Pug - Jimmy the Hand is Here!

Raymond E. Feist takes us back to Midkemi with his Riftwar Legacy Saga only with our favorite characters a little older and many new character such as Jimmy the Hand who becomes a favorite of mine. Once again evil wages war against good and everyone must step up to the plate. Dark elves, trolls and serpent people race to gain dominance. Prince Arutha must plot and plan to counter the evil.

The ride in this saga is just as fun as the first Riftwar Saga. If you wish to plunge into this story it starts with Kondor the Betrayal, then moves to Kondor the Assassins, and finishes with Kondor Tears of the Gods.Beware once you begin the series, you really have to read all three to feel as though the story is done.

It is worth the time and I recommend these highly especially if you've read the Riftwar Saga. Where else can you get royalty, gangsters, elves, magicians, dark elves, trolls, and more other worldly creatures?

Pug is so Cool!

I love novels based in fantasy. Raymond E. Fiest is great in this genre. The problem with fantasy is that rarely do you get away with only one book. In Fiest's Riftwar Saga you have to read three (or four) books to reach the end.

The series begins with Magician. I read the author's perferred edition which included rewrites of his previously published the Magician's Apprentice and the Magician's Master. The story is based in Midkemia and Kilwan - not of this world as you can see.

There we are intorduced to rich characters such as Pug, Thomas, Kulgan, Arutha and many more. As with any great fantasy there is royalty, wars, magic darves, elves, aliens from Kelwan and their strange animals, demons, dragons, and more.

Should you be a Tolkien purest there are points in theis book that might anger you. I see influences in several areas but I didn't mind.

Once you begin the ride with Magician - you must continue with Silverthorne and Darkness at Sethanan. These books are a blast to read with superhuman strength, magic and good that fights to prevail over evil.

Read these books!

There's No Bad Books - WRONG!

Okay, I didn't care for The Secret Life of Laszlo Count Dracula by Roderick Anscombe - not one bit. First, it's written in the journal form and I have already discussed how much I dislike this style of writing. Second, not one vampire in the whole book! (okay, had I read the book jacket I would have known this but at the Friends of the Library book sales who reads the jackets?). Three, the book is about the secret musings of a man who murders women.

This is not a murder mystery since you are privy to the inner thoughts of the murder the suspense is non-existent. Also, non-existent is the ending - stupid, stupid ending.

DON'T READ THIS BOOK!

A Saga of China and Her Differences

(no picture available) I truly enjoyed Robert S. Elegant's Dynasty. This novel/tome travels through the prickly situations of China from the early 1900s through the moderizations of the world in to the 1970s. The blending of cultures with European and Chinese spouses. The attitudes of the followers of Mao and those of his opponents. This book is definitely worth the time if you are interested in China from its time of the Empress to its turn to Communism. I learned a great deal about political, social and cultural issues that I didn't even know to ask about.

Fabulous! Read the book.

What an Eye Opener

(no picture available) Robert Elegant's Mandarin is a sweeping saga of two families, one Chinese and the other Jewish. Set in the mid-nineteenth century all around China but mainly in Shanghai. The Emperor's reign is in jeopardy with the Taiping rebellion.

I learned much about both cultures that before was unknown to me. For example, a Jewish mother has Jewish children but a Jewish man who marries a non-Jewish woman does not have Jewish children. When Saul's daughter marries an English man not of the Jewish religion, his wife told him to let it go that the children would be Jewish.

Also, that charged with a crime of doing something against the Chinese idea of filial piety is an executable offense. So when Aisek Lee's mother commits suicide leaving a note that they are broke and going to starve, even though they were very wealthy, Aisek Lee was charged for not taking better care of his mother.

These are only two of minor but very interesting things that I found interesting. Both the Chinese and Jewish cultures are very different from my own, which peaks my interest. If you want to learn about history as well as these culture this book is very interesting and engaging.

Read the book!

Vengeance a Dish Best Served Cold

Imagine being 19 or 20 on your wedding day, and the police come and whisk you off to jail where you sit for 20 years. You find an opportunity to escape and do....then you discover a large treasure to set you financially for the rest of your life. What do you do?

Edmund Dantes in Alexandre Dumas' Monte Cristo goes on a wild adventure to discover why he was accused of this crime and avenge the wrong done to him. He hunts out his finace` to find her married with a son. Edmund is a fabulous hero/anti-hero depends on how you view his actions. There is a moral dilemma here - is revenge okay? Does Edmund have a right to go after those who wronged him?

This book has a vast array of characters that fill the pages and I recommend it highly.

Read the book!

The Avenue Opened a New World for Me

(no pic available, sorry) Okay this will finish my reviews on R.F. Delderfield until I find other books he has written. The Avenue was the same as his other books - wonderful and easily read. However, this book showed me and I mean showed me a small glimpse of what it would be like to live your life while some maniac (Hitler) is sending bombs into your neighborhood. Being of the generation that I am, where Wars are discussed on the political issues in schools - I had no idea that once it became dark that people had to black out their windows with heavy fabric, run to a shelter the minute sirens went off or learn how to bake differently because of the shortages. This book gave me a new perspective of what the Brits went through during the second world war.

I am flat amazed how Delderfield can create so many characters all fully formed where you read to the point of exhaustion because he moves from one part of the story line to another so fluidly. This story encompasses the lives of six to eight different families all on the same street - each one different, unique and special.

Read the book!