The Book Club - BOOK REVIEWS

[Åš†å®æ£ Škÿw@£kér]

Title: Ella Enchanted
Author: Gail Carson Levine
Genre: Fantasy
Short Description: A young girl (Ella) from birth is cursed by the gift Of Obedience. She tries to get rid of the curse.....
Rating: 9/10
Opinion: The story has a diguised Cinderella mood tucked into it. Very cute! A good book.

Title: The Two Princesses of Bamarre
Author: Gail Carson Levine
Genre: Fantasy
Short Description: two girls, quite the oposite, find themselves in a battle they never expected. One is fighting the Gray Death, and the other is fighting....well......dragons!
Rating: 9/10
Opinion: Good book. Even guys might find this one good!!!

Title: The City of Ember
Author: Jeanne DuPrau
Genre: Fantasy
Short Description: Lina and Doon are assigned jobs that they do not like/want, so they trade! When the city of Ember starts running out of power, Lina and Doon know they must find a new country to live in before the power goes out for good!
Rating: 8/10
Opinion: Intriging book! Intresting characters.

P.S. I am SO sorry I am posting so much! There are SO many good books I have read. And every time I make a post, I remember another I liked. I really am sorry! Ill stop.

[varda_vala]

Title:Macbeth
Author:William Sheakspeare
Genre:a tragedy
Short Description. It is the shortest of Sheakspear's plays.It tells the story of a great general who was promised his hearts desire...but was he prepared to pay the price?.
Rating: 8/10
Opinion:The characters are very believable and the plot is interesting.It is better to see in theatre though. My favorite play by Sheakspeare.

[Samwise Gamgee]

Title: A Child Called 'It'
Author: Dave Pelzer
Genre: Real Life
Short Description: As a child Dave Plezer was brutally beaten and starved by his emotionally unstable, alcoholic mother, a mother who played tortuous, unpredictable games that left one of her sons nearly dead. She no longer considered him a son, but a slave; no longer a boy, but an 'it'. His bed was an old army cot in the basement, his clothes were torn and smelly, and when he was allowed the luxury of food it was scraps from the dogs' bowl. The outside world knew nothing of the nightmare played out behind closed doors.
Dave dreamed of finding a family to love him and call him their son. It took years of struggle, deprivation and despair to find his dream and make something of himself in the world. A Child Called 'It' covers the early years of his life and is an affecting and inspirationaly memoir of one child's determenation to survive.
Rating: 10/10
Verdict: *Sob*   This is such a sad story, especially because it is completely true... I sobbed all the way through, I just couldn't believe a mother could do something like she did to her son... A must-read... Have tissues ready!

[Pippy]

Title: Stormrider
Author:  David Gemmell
Genre: Sci-fi,action
Short Description:  Eight hundred years after Connavar and Bane defeated the Stone (see SWORD IN THE STONE) freeing the Rigante, the clan needs a hero to end their current oppression. That champion appears to be Kaelin Ring, better known as Ravenheart, who becomes the leader of the still proud but slaved Rigante clan. He leads the demand for freedom from the Varlish and their Lord Moidart. Ravenheart takes his revolution to the north where Moidart's son Gaise Macon, the Stormrider, awaits the confrontation. As the war comes closer, the Knights of the Sacrifice obtain a skull said to contain the evil of the Orb. If true, an evil artifact owned by unconscionable individuals who slaughter innocents for fun will spin the war-wracked lands into deeper dismay and chaos. Then there is the anticipated impact of preadolescent Feargol who as the Ghost Walker might prove to be the ultimate savior or destroyer of all.
Rating: 10/10
Opinion: Well GAISE! all I can say really 

[Liselle]

Members List and book reviews

Lissie - Maid of Honour
            The Belgariad
            REMEMBER ME
            An Offer from a Gentleman
            The Star of the Sea

Ellie - A child called it
         The Silence of the Lambs

Goldberry - Dead Famous
                   Gerald's Game

Pippy - Taggarung
            Martin the Worrior
            The Golden Wreck
            The Legend Of Deathwalker
            Stormrider

Chantal - Max Havelaar of de Koffieveilingen der Nederlandse Handelsmaatschappij

Legolasfan - Junk
                     Lucas
                     Martyn Pig
                     Coming back

Mirage- Mary, Bloody Mary

Kimmie - Noughts and Crosses

Bev123 - Involved

ZZ - Across the Nightingale Floor
        Of Mice and Men

Samwise Gamgee - Ender's Game
                               Journey To The River Sea
                               Portrait Of A Killer; Jack The Ripper Case Closed
                               Maggot Pie
                               The Sterkarm Handshake
                               Bored of the Rings
                               Beyond the Hanging Wall
                               Be yourself
                               Amnesia
                               Voyage on the Great Titanic
                               A child called "it"
                               

EmnHan - Stravaganza City of Masks

Niko - Interview with the Vampire

Cuthien - Eragon:  Inheritance
               A Midsummer Night's Faerie Tale
               Holes
               Abarat

Islime - The Age of Misrule trilogy - World's End, Darkest Hour, Always forever

Note - Guards,Guards

tig - A Tale of Two Cities

Thawyn - Elizabeth, The Struggle For The Throne
               Castle in the Air.
               The Queen's Gambit
               Court Duel
               Crown Duel
               The Chronicles of Chrestomanci
               So You Want To Be A Wizard
               Lord Of The Flies
               Mother Teresa

LOTR Freak - Lola Rose
                     The secret of platform 13


Bobble_Hat - Sabriel
                      Lirael
                      Abhorsen

Andonewhitetree -  Northern Lights
                               Crime and Punishment
                               The Subtle Knife

Eostre Took -  Tithe

Eleanor - Troy

Nienor - Scorpia
              Knife Edge

FlareyGirl - Sabriel
                  The Darkweaver Legacy (The Forging of the Sword, Trail of the Huntress, First Sword, Chosen One)

Rosie_Brandybuck - The girl with a pearl earring
                                The girl in the red coat

ViggoAngel - Body of Evidence

Alaithlos - Witch Child

Josher the Hobbit - Drowned Ammet

Gwinoic alaithus - The Mallorean Series.

Doodle - Harry Potter & Prisnor Of Azkaban

Alora - Lord of the Flies
           To Kill a Mocking bird 

Sakura - Poison

Astaraél Gamgee - Eragon
                              Series of Unfortunate Events
                              Ella Enchanted
                              The Two Princesses of Bamarre
                              The City of Ember

Varda_vala - Macbeth

[Pippy]

Title: Winter Warriors
Author:  David Gemmell
Genre: Sci-fi,action,Fantasy
Short Description: Five very different men are brought together by circumstances in order to save a child that demons want to sacrifice in order to gain flesh in human world. The men have to travel through forests and mountains, defeating 10 monsters. 
Rating: 10/10
Opinion: Well I really liked it although I thought Gemmell could of improved a bit on Degorian's character bythe end he said very little and I would of much liked to see him and the queen get together   

[x~x..cheese+beef..x~x]

Title: The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night Timt
Author: Mark Hadden (I think!)
Genre: I'm not really sure....reality
Short Description: it's about a young boy who has a behaviour disorder (e.g. he doesn't like yello or brown and won't touch anything that colour, he hits people if they touch him, he's scared of new environments etc), a dog gets killed in the night and he tried to find out who it is and encovers other secrets along the way
Rating: 7/10
Opinion: it was a very gripping book and it was easy to read and pretty hard to put down...but it was written so 'matter-of-factly' and there was no sarcasm or humour in the book really, and sometimes i didn't really care for the style because sometimes it was just merely stating what happened.....but i did enjoy the book 

[In AmericEar]

Name:Harry Potter and the Order of Pheonix
Author: JK Rowling
Genre: Fantasy I guess
Short Description: Harry Potter is in his 5th year of Hogwarts and has to battle against Voldemort... again
RAting: 8/10
Opinion: Brilliant up until the end where I think JK got writers block

[Follower of Sadness]

Title: The Oracle Betrayed.
Author:Catherine Fisher
Genre:Fantasy
Desciption:A girl named mirany has to stop one of the nine in taking over their country.  She has to prove this by not having people thinking she's betraying them instead.  This is punishable by death, so her, Seth, Alexos (the right person for the throne), and a fat man named Oblek have to save their entire country from destuction.  Their in a bad drought, and the gods holding back the rain because of the plot against him by one of his faithful helpers.
(I can't descibe things very well .  I might of made it sound dumb, but it really spectacular)
Rating:10/10

[Follower of Sadness]

Title: The Snow Walker
Author: Catherine Fisher
Genre: Fantasy
Desciption: A girl named Jessa and a boy named Thorkil are sent to a place by an evil witch Gudrun.  There sent to live with her son, who she fears because of a deep secret.  She is trying to find a way to rule their city instead of a Jarl.  She's also trying to kill Jessa and Thorkil.
Rating: 8/10

(it was pretty good but i didn't feel the need to read it alot like i do for books i like)

[Gollum]

Title: A Shadow On The Glass                                 (First book in The View From The Mirror)
Author: Ian Irvine
Genre: Fantasy Adventure Epic
Description: A young lady named Karan has a special talent and is forced to steal an ancient relic called the Mirror of Aachan, around which, the story is based. Her and a chronicler of the histories team up as they are hunted across a warring world by a number of enemies, being chased for the mirror which contains an incredible power and secret which could bring an end to the world.
Rating: 9/10
Opinion: Right from the start, I was encaptured within the story. It has a complicated storyline, and needs the reader to have the ability to remember many different stroylines at the same time, and all of the characters whose lives intertwine at some stage. This didn't bother me in the slightest though, and just added to it's appeal. At the end comes a dramatic outcome, of which the next book, The Tower On The Rift takes over from. So, if you plan on reading this book, the following 3 are a must read also.




Title: The Tower On The Rift                                    (Second book in The View From The Mirror)
Author: Ian Irvine
Genre: Fantasy Adventure Epic
Description: War still rages across the world, and the Mirror Of Aachan is still being chased after, but being carried by someone else (I'd better not say who). Karan is being searched out for her special talents, and there are some plans to face Rulke (an evil being from one of the three worlds).
Rating: 8.5/10
Opinion: Well, what can I say. Firstly, as it should, it carries on where the first book left off after a little recap, and then gets into the full flow of the storyline. This bit is great. The only bit that let it down slightly was the end. I know this is a HUGE part of the book, but I was prepared to accept the fact that it wouldn't have a proper outcome because it's only the second book out of four. What it did do well though was to build up an air of mystery surrounding some of the characters, one in particular. It hints to some power they had long ago, but now dare not go back to that life even though soon, it may come down to it for the survival of life.

[::Paper-Clip::]

Title: The Girl who Loved Tom Gordon
Author: Stephen King
Genre: Thriller/Horror
Description:  Trisha McFarland only veered off the main trail to get away from her bickering teenage brother and recently divorced mother. There's no chance of getting lost, right?
Except, in her panic to get back on the path, Trish takes a wrong turning and ends up in the tangled undergrowth of a forest far away from no-where. Deeper into the woods she goes, not just the midges and mosquitoes driving her half insane.
 It's the hunger. For solace, she turns on her Walkman, listening to broadcasts of the Red Sox game, featuring the performances of her hero; Tom Gordon.
And when the reception begins to fade...Trisha imagines Tom is with her....
As darkness begins to fall, she gives up all hope of being found. Alive. And as she struggles for survival and a way out, she comes to the unpleasant realisation that she is not alone. There's something else in the woods- watching her every move.
Waiting. . .

Rating: 10/10
Opinion: I have read so many Stephen King novels, and some have been better than others, but The Girl who loved Tom Gordon takes the biscuit! It's more of a literary read than some of his other novels, more gripping in it's mind games and the mentalities of poor Trisha McFarland.
It's one of those books that while it does not begin in the very centre of action, it nevertheless grabs you by the throat and hauls you in from page one.
King writes Trisha's perspective very well indeed, a nine year old girl lost in the woods is not the easiest of characters to assemble.
The eerie night scenes make you pyschically shudder and goosebumps come up on your arms, putting you in Trish's place.
The climax is utterly brilliant, something you never would have predicted or even considered.
I recommend this to any Stephen King fan, or indeed, any fan of literature

[Gollum]

Title: Shadows Fall
Author: Simon R. Green
Genre: Fantasy
Description: Shadows Fall does not appear on any map, but it does exist if you want it to be badly enough. It's the kind of place where anything can happen. Involving many stories including a murder mystery, a war between men and elves, and characters that come back from the dead, and even a walking scarecrow with the head of a pumpkin.
Rating: 8/10
Opinion: This book is VERY odd. So much happens, and the story and characters are crazy, but this made me want to explore it even more. If you're someone who enjoys an outlandish tale involving different races and creatures, then this is definately a must read, even though some parts can be a little slow at times. But then again, most books do have at least one of these such writers block moments.

[Gollum]

Title: The Beach
Author: Alex Garland
Genre: Travel Adventure/Fiction
Description: At a hotel in Bangkok, a fellow traveller slits his wrists leaving behind a map to "The Beach", Eden, found in a secret lagoon hidden from the sea, hidden from the outside world.
Rating: 10/10
Opinion: This is the first book that I read by Alex Garland, but after reading this, I will definately look into his other works. At the start I wasn't sure of what to expect, although the idea of searching for paradise soon became really intrigueing and I found it difficult to put the book down. It follows the struggles of living secluded from the world, where the same moral principles sometimes need to be twisted. It's a marvellous piece of writing.

[Vevian]

Title: Can we be good without God?

Author: Paul Chamberlain

Genre: Ethics and philosophy

Short Description: This is a story about five people of different viewpoints (Atheism, Christianity, moral relativism, evolution, and secular humanism) and their discussions about if foundational moral principles exist and if so where do they come from.   

Rating: 10/10

Opinion:  This was a really meaty book and took me awhile to read because of its really deep discussions even though it is a relatively short book.  It is really different from the other book reviews here and really different from the majority of books I read (sci-fi and fantasy).  But I love deep thinking and this is a book that I highly recommend but only for those who like to be challenged in their reading material.

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