Higgs, Liz Curtis: Grace in Thine Eyes

ISBN: 1578562597

From the Publisher:

Davina McKie is a bonny lass of seventeen, mute since childhood and fiercely guarded by her belligerent twin brothers, Will and Sandy. When the lads are forced to depart the glen, Jamie McKie escorts Davina to the Isle of Arran, where her lively cousins, Catherine and Abigail, make her welcome at the manse.

One moonless eve Davina blithely entertains the gentry of Arran with her grandfather’s fiddle, unaware of the dramatic turn her life is about to take.

A story of passion and revenge, of lost innocence and shattered dreams, Grace in Thine Eyes explores the sorrow of unspeakable shame and the gift of immeasurable grace.

From the Author's Website:

Critics are impressed by the emotional intensity and depth of research found in her historical novels, based on biblical stories and reset in 18th- and 19th-century Scotland. Readers of her three recent bestsellers eagerly await Grace in Thine Eyes (March 21, 2006), a stand-alone novel introducing the next generation of the McKie family, even as it parallels the tragic, yet compelling account of Dinah from Genesis 34.

Pitied by some commentators as a victim, chastised by others as a disobedient daughter, the biblical Dinah is a woman whose story is cloaked in mystery. Was it defiant curiosity that made her stray from home, seeking out the “daughters of the land,” or was it simply youthful innocence? When her brothers exacted their revenge, was Dinah greatly relieved or deeply grieved? Did she live in shameful seclusion or was she restored to society? Does her story end in disgrace…or grace?

Not one of those questions is answered in the biblical account, in part because neither Dinah’s voice nor her viewpoint appears in the narrative. Grace In Thine Eyes explores those unanswered questions from Dinah’s story, yet without tampering with Scripture, moving this dramatic tale to the Scottish Lowlands of 1808.

To be completely honest I hated this book. It ended in a way that I found most displeasing. It was extremely well written, with beautiful prose, wonderful and real characters, a fantastic rendition of Scotland, and a beautiful and haunting tale. The reason that I hated it was because it didn't go the way I want. I know, very selfish. I was so disapointed that the protagonist didn't get her hearts desire, and that it didn't end with a beautiful wedding (I guess that's not really a spoiler, if you know the story of Dinah). I didn't know that it was based on the Genesis account, and was expecting something very different. *sigh*

Like I said, it is a beautiful book, and as far as Christian Literature, it was well done. There's no preaching involved, the story was tight, and didn't depend on the "religion" of the book. The writing was not sub-par to any romance novel I have read. The characters were real and tangible, you hurt with their hurts, you laughed with their joy. I quite enjoyed the story, even if I didn't like what happened.

Anyway, I can't really tell you any more, without giving any away. I would recommend this book to anyone and everyone. Due to the rape, I would recommend it for people 12 and up (the scene is there, but it is not graphic or scarey, IMO), but regardless of your religious persuasion, this is a well strung tale of a family and how they handled crisis.

NOTE: I kind of forgot that not everyone will know who Dinah was. She was a woman in the Bible who ended up getting raped, and then her attacker fell in love with her. We don't know how she felt about him, but he went with his father to Jacob (Dinah's father) to ask for her hand in marriage. If you are interested in reading the original story, please follow this link to read the account online.

Anthony, Piers: On a Pale Horse

On and Pale Horse by Piers Anthony
ISBN: 0345305183

From the publisher:

The Man Who Murdered Death.

Shooting Death was a mistake, as Zane soon
discovered. For the man who killed the Incarnation of Death was immediately forced to assume the vacant position! Thereafter, he must speed over the world, riding his pale horse, and ending the lives of others.

Zane was forced to accept his unwelcome task, despite the rules that seemed woefully unfair. But then he found himself
being drawn into an evil plot of Satan. Already the Prince of Evil was forging a trap in which Zane must act to destroy Luna, the woman he loved.

He could see only one possible way to defeat the Father of Lies. It was unthinkable --- but he had no other solution!

On a Pale Horse is the first book that I have ever picked up by Piers Anthony, and frankly, a little hard to find! Even though Mr. Anthony is such a prolific author, the themes, characters and world of his Incarnations of Immortality do not lose texture and depth.

The book starts out with the the protagonist, Zane, rummaging around a gem shop, eventually trading his "love" for a wealthstone, meant to help him make his rent. Through a series of unfortunate circumstances, Zane finds himself face to face with Death, and decided to shoot Death instead of himself. This is where the book picks up, as Zane meets Fate, and assumes the office of Death, going around collecting the souls that hang in the balance of good and evil.

I loved the characters in this book. They were fantastic - fully alive and complicated. Their interactions were genuine and true to life. The world of OaPH is basically our world (from my opinion), but with magic included, as well as physical manifestations of Time, War, Fate, Death, Nature, as well as God and Satan. It all makes for very interesting interactions.

I looked into Mr. Anthony a slight bit, and can't believe how many books he has creditted to his name. I'll be the first to admit that he is no spring chicken, but he has got to have been churning them out about as quickly as, well, Terry Pratchett. His Xanth series is the only other series to even approach the Discworld series (Xanth has 31 books and counting, Pratchett must be up there somewhere, as well)! I like how simply his books are written. No big complicated sentences and paragraphs. No overly symbolic gestures. It's nice and simple, and easy to pick up. I don't feel overly daunted when I read it, but it's not complete fluff either.

This book would be appropriate for people from the age of about 13. There is mention of sex, and some sexual inuuendo, and the most graphic thing was that a lithe young woman walked into a room naked. Then she left. Not a lot of violence, but (obviously) a strong theme of death and dying. This book is NOT for people who have strong views on God and Satan and their relationship. If you are not willing to suspend belief to include religion, this book is not for you.

I can't wait to get my hands on the rest of this series. I fully enjoyed the first book and I am looking forward to finishing the tale, for surely it is not done here.

Caine, Rachel: Chill Factor

ISBN: 0451460103

From the publisher:

Living, dead, or Djinn, Joanne Baldwin just can't stay out of trouble. Now she's on a time-sensitive mission to Vegas to retrieve the world's most important Djinn from the world's most dangerous teenager ... all alone. That's bad enough, but having to deal with a past that's determined to bury her, and suffering from serious wardrobe shortages ... well, that's over the line.

One thing's for certain: she's gambling everything this time.

Chill Factor is the third book in Rachel Caine's Weather Warden series. I was first introduced to Ill Wind (the first book) in the Kelley Armstrong Book Club. I read it and was amused and picked up the second, Heat Stroke fairly recently. As I am a completist, and felt that I need to finish the series, I picked up both Chill Factor and Windfall a week ago.

As a whole, the series is amusing, but not gritty. It is a series quick couple of hours kind of reads. This series is an excellent beach book series. Ill Wind is where it all begins, with Joanne running from the Wardens. Ms. Caine uses a lot of flash backs to tell the story. I don't mind this device, so it doesn't bother me, but those who hate flashbacks: be warned! Heatstroke carries the story forward, introducing new characters and plots, as does Chill Factor. Even though they are a series about the same person doing a lot of the same stuff (ie. saving the world), I don't find any of the books repatative thus far. She does go on about her shoes and car a bit much, but hey, I probably go on about the things that I love a bit much as well.

As I said, Joanne is obsessed with designer shoes and fast cars. You will see a lot of names dropped in this series, and this book especially. It amuses me, as a fellow shoe-lover, and makes me want to look some of the lesser known designers up. I have seen a few more styles of shoe then I'm used to, but I did like this pair:

Anyway, I would say that this series is mediochre. Amusing, but not full of substance. Ms. Caine can really write and drive a plot, and her character development definitely happens without a ton of angst. I guess that it just didn't grab and hold on to me like other books have.

I would rate this book as Mature, as it has some cursing, plus sex scenes and implied sex.

Williams, Tad: War of the Flowers

ISBN: 075640181X

From the Publisher:

Returning to the fantasy genre that made him a coast-to-coast best-selling phenomenon, Tad Williams has written a new stand-alone contemporary novel set in Northern California—and also in the strange parallel world that coexists in the farthest reaches of the imagination.

Theo Vilmos is a thirty-year-old lead singer in a not terribly successful rock band. Once, he had enormous, almost magical, charisma both onstage and off—but now, life has taken its toll on Theo. Hitting an all-time low, he seeks refuge in a isolated cabin in the woods—and reads an odd memoir written by a dead relative who believed he had visited the magical world of Faerie. And before Theo can disregard the account as the writings of a madman, he, too, is drawn to a place beyond his wildest dreams...a place filled with be, and has always been, his destiny.

The War of the Flowers came as a recommendation from Hanna. We were out shopping for used books, and I came across a pristine copy of this book for $5 and bought it.

Due to the fact that I never really read the back of the book or anything, I had the idea that it was a modern faerie tale, but I didn't expect what I got. War of the Flowers is a fantastic modern tale of Faerie. The difference being that it isn't a modern fairy tale... it's not about Snow White, or anything like that. It actually takes the protagonist into Faerie and shows what happens to him there.

I must congradulate Mr. Williams for his excellent imagination and story-telling. I found this book to be creative, and out-of-the-box. I have never read a book like this before. Most tales of Faerie include medieval times with some modern conveniences, if any. I loved that Mr. Williams made everything modern, even though some of it had different names, or even the old fashioned named (ie. Coach instead of car).

I found his character development to be strong, and well planned out. I appreciated the different races, and found that quite interesting and imaginative as well. I like the fact that different races in Faerie had different job (Ferishers were cleaners/grunts, Doonies drove cars, Ogres were body guards etc.). All of the characters, main and secondary, had something interesting to say, and a story to tell, no matter their position. I enjoyed the different stories and backgrounds and cultural differences.

The most interesting/thought provoking parts of the book were the different themes. One can see a parallel to the 9/11 attacks (the author addresses this in the forward), and a general parallel to our world (in Faerie). The interesting thing to me was their desire for plastic surgery. The upper class Faeries all had their wings removed, to look more... humanoid, I guess. Most of the lower class Faeries didn't have them chopped off, whether it was a money or a social thing, I do not know. I just found it interesting that even in a fictional culture, there is a general desire to be someone/something that you are not. I also loved the interracial relationships, and problems they posed (you will have to read it to understand this part! Tee hee hee!).

All in all, War of the Flowers is a fantastic book full of growth, humour, strife, and war. There is a strong romance theme that runs throughout as well. I would recommend this book with a rating of Mature, for readers who like to escape every day life without departing too far.