In THE BALLAD OF SONGBIRDS AND SNAKES, the tenth Hunger Games are about to begin, more than a half-century before KFour Slithering Stars!
My Tease…
In THE BALLAD OF SONGBIRDS AND SNAKES, the tenth Hunger Games are about to begin, more than a half-century before Katniss Everdeen would make her debut as a fierce tribute and become the thorn in the side of Panem’s President Snow.
At the age of 18, the presidency is far from Coriolanus Snow’s thoughts. A senior in the Capitol’s prestigious Academy, all the young Snow wants is to graduate and attend a university. Trouble is, the war left him orphaned and poor, living with his grandmother and cousin in his parents’ aging penthouse. The depth of his poverty is a secret, of course, and he is quite adept at making acquaintances believe the Snow name still means something.
The Gamemaker is adding a new twist to the then unpretentious Games: twenty-four of the Capitol’s brightest Academy students will be paired with a district tribute. The student mentor of the winning tribute will be awarded a scholarship to attend a university. Coriolanus has every intention of winning that prize.
When the Gamemaker assigns him to tribute Lucy Gray of District 12, however, he thinks his dream is stone-cold dead. That is, until his tribute sings like a songbird and everybody listens. Including his heart.
Like the Districts and the Capitol, songbirds and snakes are very aware of each other, always moving and counter moving to keep a safe distance. And if they should happen to collide in a whirlwind of emotion, only trust could make the unexpected bond work.
Will Coriolanus Snow push aside his predatory ways to help save his songbird? Or will his Capitol inspired venom be too difficult to suppress?
Thoughts…
I’m going to confess that I knew rating this book was going to be challenging from the get-go. First, the Hunger Games is one of my favorite YA trilogies. Second, and most importantly, Katniss Everdeen ranks as my ALL-TIME favorite heroine…like EVER. (Thank you, Susanne Collins!)
That’s a high bar for this book to be compared with. At four stars, I’m admitting the prequel didn’t reach the bar, mainly for two reasons:
First, I prefer reading books where I’m rooting for the protagonist. Although I found Coriolanus’s backstory very interesting, I wasn’t rooting for him. Maybe if I didn’t already know that he had decided to (view spoiler)[embrace his slithering snake-ness, (hide spoiler)] I might have held on to hope.
Frankly, I felt emotionally detached from all the characters except one: Sejanus, a supporting character who risked everything for his beliefs.
Second, while many books suffer from sagging middles, this book did not! Readers are in the throws of the Hunger Games, wondering if Lucy Gray is going to survive. However, that left a sloooow-paced third act. It picked up a tad at the end but still left me in need of an energy drink.
I did enjoy the many insertions of symbolism. For example, Coriolanus detested the mockingjay, a bird symbolic of “District survival” despite the best efforts of the Capitol. On the other hand, he admired the jabberjay, a bioengineered “weapon” symbolizing the Capitol’s ingenuity to exert control over District rebels. Both birds sang, though for very different reasons. Coriolanus struggled, though not very earnestly, in classifying which kind of songbird Lucy Gray and Sejanus were.
Overall…
I appreciated learning the backstory of the Hunger Games from a different perspective; however, it’s difficult to fully connect with a story without having characters who deeply bind you to it. Of course, Susanne Collins is a fabulous storyteller and writer! And I give her kudos for challenging herself to add to an already brilliant trilogy! I’m very glad I read THE BALLAD OF SONGBIRDS AND SNAKES.
If only I didn’t wish this book had been about Katniss’s early childhood instead of Snow’s teens!...more
If you’d like a YA mystery with characters like Sherlock Holmes (Audrey Rose Wadsworth) and John Watson (Thomas Cresswell who is Audrey Rose’s sidekicIf you’d like a YA mystery with characters like Sherlock Holmes (Audrey Rose Wadsworth) and John Watson (Thomas Cresswell who is Audrey Rose’s sidekick and love interest) who are attending the Hogwarts-like Academy of Forensic Medicine and Science—located at Bran Castle in the wintry countryside of Transylvania, Romania, then HUNTING PRINCE DRACULA is a must-read!
I gave this book five Roman numeral “stars” (read the book and you’ll know why I used Roman numerals)!
PLOT: A group of students is attending the prestigious and infamous academy (since it’s housed in the castle once occupied by Vlad Dracula) to compete for two coveted slots in the upcoming school year. The stakes (pun intended!!) are already high, especially for Audrey Rose—the first female to be invited to compete for a slot. But then people start dying, drained of blood, as if Dracula has somehow risen to reclaim his castle.
The questions Audrey Rose and Thomas keep asking are: Who is doing the killing and why?
The question readers keep asking: Will Audrey Rose and Thomas survive their curiosity?
By the way, I did not read STALKING JACK THE RIPPER and I had no trouble catching on to the new challenges facing Audrey Rose and Thomas.
CHARACTERS: I enjoyed the banter and connection between Audrey Rose and Thomas, as I really love when romance is weaved into a story. It just adds that extra tension. The cast of supporting characters is also well fleshed out. Excellent!
WRITING: Not only does the author create endearing characters whom you root for during their nail-biting trials, she also paints a wonderful picture! Here is an example:
“Liza would be enchanted by the way the snow dusted the rooftops, a sprinkling of sugar electrified by the rays of the sun.”
I also loved the author’s ability to create atmosphere and tension, spiced with wittiness.
Three small criticisms:
1). Sometimes the author can paint conflicting images (albeit wonderful). For example, during one adventure outside of the castle, Audrey Rose mentions her teeth clattering in the falling snow and sleet. And the dark. The very next paragraph, she describes the moonlight casting shadows through the trees like talons. This would only work if Audrey Rose described the moonlight suddenly breaking through, which she didn’t. And there was no time lapse between the two descriptions, other than walking to the edge of where the forest starts.
2). Sometimes tidbits of information are embedded which don’t move the story forward. For example: “I recalled the way Father would have our cook pack a hamper full of treats, then play hide and seek with us in the maze at Thornbriar." Maybe the author was trying to set up Audrey Rose’s ability to handle a maze-like challenge, but I already knew she had the skills. When there are too many tidbits like this, I can forget key details because the tidbits interrupt the action. Sometimes I was like…Wait, they had a lantern? Or…Did she mention there was a parchment in the tree? So when did the book get in her pocket?
3). I’m always a little disappointed when an author writes something unbelievable and then tries to explain it in simple terms, in hopes you give them a pass. Case in point: The year is 1888. They had an ooooold book, written in ink. In peril, Audrey Rose and Thomas get flushed from a full water chamber and voila, the book survives so they can still read its clues. No soggy pages or running ink. The explanation? “I flipped through it, marveling at how the pages had survived the waters. Whoever had created it must have planned for it to withstand these dangers.” Oh, the lit lantern survived the flushing, too.
Why five stars then? So much worked REALLY well in the story that I put less emphasis on these little hiccups. So yeah, I gave them a pass!
TENSION: I LOVED the tension created in the climax underneath the castle. It was like Raiders of the Lost Ark, only in Dracula’s castle! AWESOME!
“Depending on where you began the story,” the final installment of THE RAVEN CYCLE was both thrilling and slightly disappointing.
Let’s start with thri“Depending on where you began the story,” the final installment of THE RAVEN CYCLE was both thrilling and slightly disappointing.
Let’s start with thrilling.
I’m giving THE RAVEN KING five stars. Admittedly, the fact that I adored the series so much and would highly recommend it to all my friends, no doubt influenced my rating of this final book.
In the fourth installment, curious buyers of magical artifacts are converging on the town of Henrietta to inspect a highly valued find—except only the seller knows the item is a demon: a demon that was one of the “sleepers” found in a cave while the Aglionby gang searched for Glendower on the ley line (in book #3). The demon, of course, was the only sleeper that was not to be woken. And now everything that was dreamt into reality is being un-made, including the beloved magical forest called Cabeswater. Will the gang be able to stop the unmaking of everything they love?
On the thrilling side, I think Maggie Stiefvater is a masterful writer who created fantastic characters with wonderful voices! I loved them and their individual stories. And I feel sad that their adventures have ended. Quite frankly, I’ll miss them. And I’ll also miss the clever humor that Stiefvater weaved throughout each book.
Before I move on to the slightly disappointing side of book #4, I want to say this about the first three:
The plot formula for each was unbelievably addicting. Three questions kept me hooked: would Gansey and the gang find Glendower; would Gansey kiss Blue and die; and if so, would Glendower grant a favor to save Gansey from death? Perfectly thrilling formula. Of course, each book offered a new challenge, a new ripple to complicate the journey. And these complications deepened my longing for a resolution.
Now to the slightly disappointing.
Heading into the last book, I wondered…what if the gang finds Glendower, only the Welsh king can’t be revived? Which means there’s no favor for Gansey. Will Gansey really die?
These questions were answered, of course. But my frustration emerged in book #4 when characters and/or complications seemed fabricated, inserted, and contrived to move the story forward in one specific way. Outside of that one purpose, the new addition was rather meaningless.
Two examples:
Need: Blue needs to talk with trees. Boom: Out of the blue (sorry!), Blue’s father Artemus reveals he’s a “tir e e’lintes” (a magical soul who lives in and talks with trees), making Blue a half-tree soul. After the revelation, Artemus is no longer needed. Boom: He crawls into a tree for the rest of the story.
Need: Something has to keep up with a flock of flying ravens during a search for Glendower. Boom: Enter “Robo Bee.” (Ronan’s father just happened to give the magical robotic bee to Henry’s mother when he was alive. She gave it to Henry, the newest member of the Aglionby gang.) Outside of being interesting and somewhat helpful regarding Gansey’s fear of bees, what other purpose did Robo Bee have to the plot?
I don’t mean to sound too critical; I just felt a little disappointed by the last book.
But in full reflection, when considering the entire series: I cried, I laughed, I feared, I rejoiced, I marveled.
THE RAVEN CYCLE and all its installments were overall, a fabulous FABULOUS 5-star read!
QUESTION: Does anyone know the significance of the stag/buck on the cover? Did I miss something?...more
The mysterious disappearance of Blue Sargent’s mother is where THE DREAM THIEVES ends and BLUE LILY, LILY BLUE (the third installment to THE RAVEN BOYThe mysterious disappearance of Blue Sargent’s mother is where THE DREAM THIEVES ends and BLUE LILY, LILY BLUE (the third installment to THE RAVEN BOYS) begins.
Five-stars did not seem high-enough for the best book in the paranormal YA series thus far!
PLOT: Maura Sargent has left behind a two-sentence note regarding her disappearance: "Glendower is underground. So am I." Maura is looking for her ex-boyfriend Artemus (Blue’s father), while Gansey (Blue’s forbidden lover who will die if they ever kiss) has spent seven years searching for Glendower (the Welsh king who has been put to rest on the ley line where energy converges, giving rise to magical powers).
Which means the Aglionby crew of friends has two interwoven quests now. Because if they find Maura, they’ll find Glendower, and vice versa.
Blue’s psychic aunts give the crew a warning before they head underground to search in various caves on the ley line. There are three sleepers, they say. “One to be woken, one to stay asleep.” And one in between. Is Glendower a sleeper? And how will the crew know who should not be disturbed? How do Maura and Artemus fit in?
The plot was perfectly paced and had me completely hooked.
CHARACTERS: Every character, it seems, finally learns who they really are and what gifts they possess. I won’t spoil your reading pleasure by spilling the beans on what Blue, Gansey, Ronan, Adam, and Noah find out about themselves. But I will say: I adored each character’s journey of discovery!
WRITING: AWESOME! Here is a sample:
“A noise came just outside the door: tck-tck-tck-tck. The garage door hurtled open. It sounded like a freight train as it roared along its tracks on the ceiling. In the grim evening, in the deep-blue-black rain of it, a pale monster reared. It was needle claws and savage beaks, ragged wings and greasy scales.”
One criticism: Though happening much less than in THE DREAM THIEVES, occasionally I had difficulty deciphering whose voice was narrating.
TENSION: Please! Maggie Stiefvater rocks it out of the park on tension! And I found myself scared sometimes, nibbling on my nails! Let’s just say that grave hunting in cursed caves gets the adrenaline going!
LOVE: Blue and Gansey are getting closer and closer. The author has so effectively gotten the reader to be as conflicted as the characters. I wanted them to kiss at the same time I was yelling for them NOT to kiss! Can’t wait to learn what happens in the final installment!
TWISTS/SURPRISES: I think you’ll enjoy learning what the title of the book means, as well as why Blue was given her name. And this book includes a death of someone close, which I wasn’t expecting.
HUMOR: The clever humor adds creamy, delicious icing to this fabulous read. There’s just a tone to it that is always irresistible. Here’s a lead-up to a sample. Gansey’s full-name is Richard Gansey III, lovingly called Dick by his parents. Ronan, who curses the most out of the crew, says this below, while Gansey is driving:
“Your exit, dick!” Ronan snapped. Or Dick. It could have been either, really.
BLUE LILY, LILY BLUE delivered more than five stars. I’m happily moving onto THE RAVEN KING....more
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