Review: STORMWALKER SERIES

Stormwalker Series by Allyson James
Books 1 & 2

My Thoughts:

I really, really like the covers of these books and I also like this author's "voice". But Book 1 started off really slow. The kick-ass heroine runs around in her harley being chased by the law for chapters on end... WTF!! However, it did get better about a quarter towards the end. But then I think that was because I've inadvertently read a spoiler from Book 2's synopsis. I therefore discerned that there is a dragon in it somewhere! Interest perked up again!

Towards the end, Allyson's story telling magic kicked in again and I would say that it was worth trudging through the first three quarters of the book. And of course it's a happily-ever-after (HEA) and I like the way Allyson James delivered it!

Book 2, like Book 1 is also a slow starter, but knowing Allyson James I persevered. It picked up quicker than Book 1 did and it was a great ride from there until the end. Allyson James' "author's voice" is very compelling even though she does have moments of dullness. The world building started in Book 1 is enhanced in my opinion in Book 2. It's like wine, it gets better with age. Or it could be that this series has grown on me. Allyson James's books tends to do that to me. A quality which I attribute to her marvellous story telling abilities!

Final verdict: Book 1 was good, Book 2 is even better!

Empirical Evaluation:
Story telling quality = 4
Character development = 3.5
Story itself = 3
Ending = 4.5
World building = 4
Cover art = 5
Pace = 3.5

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 cherries

Stormwalker by Allyson James
Book 1 of the Stormwalker series.

Genre: adult urban fantasy

About Stormwalker:

Half-Navajo Janet Begay possesses extraordinary power which is tied to the storms that waft across the desert. The only person who can control her when she's caught in the storm's evocative power is Mick, a dark-haired, blue-eyed biker Janet can't seem to touch with her powers. He can wield fire and not get burned, and Janet's never sure where he goes when they're not together.

Together they investigate mysterious disappearances, which Janet fears are tied to her mother's people, the mythical gods from below the earth. They are helped along the way by Coyote and Crow, but these shapeshifting gods have their own agendas.

Book One of the Stormwalker series.

Source: Info in the About Stormwalker was taken from the author's website at http://www.allysonjames.com/stormwalker.html on 13/02/2011.

Firewalker by Allyson James
Book 2 of the Stormwalker series.

Genre: adult urban fantasy romance

About Firewalker:

Janet Begay's Crossroads Hotel has attracted the supernatural ever since it opened. But a new, dark power is rising, this time inside Janet herself. Her boyfriend Mick, a sexy dragon shapeshifter the Navajo call a Firewalker, know what terrifying magic is threatening to overwhelm Janet and her Stormwalker powers. He watches over her, ready to fight for her, to do anything to keep her safe.

But then a mysterious corpse is found near the Crossroads Hotel-and Janet becomes the main suspect. Now Janet and Mick must uncover what really happened, and their investigation leads to the most perilous decision of their lives...

Source: Info in the About Firewalker was taken from GoodReads at http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7830969-firewalker on 13/02/2011.

Review: THE DRAGON WHISPERER

The Dragon Whisperer by Lucinda Hare
Book 1 of the Dragons Dome series

Genre: children's fantasy

Book Description:

The Dragon Whisperer
Can you tell a Sabretooth from an Imperial Black?  Do you know how many stomachs a battledragon has, or what they need to eat in order to toast hobgoblins with dragonfire?  No?  Well then, read on...because there are some who do...

The Seven Sea Kingdoms are under attack from overwhelming hobgoblin swarms, and only the Stealth Dragon Services, (the SDS) commanded by the Earl Rufus DeWinter, keep their ancient foe at bay.

On Dragon Isle, fabled fortress of the SDS, the Earl’s daughter Quenelda tends to injured battledragons and dreams of flying them alongside her beloved father. Young ladies traditionally belong at Court, but Quenelda – in her boy’s clothes and with her special bond with dragons – is a very unusual young lady.

Root, a gnome boy orphaned by the war, wants nothing to do with dragons, especially temperamental bad-tempered battledragons that can decapitate, disembowel, or frazzle you in the blink of an eye.  But when he becomes Quenelda’s new esquire they form an unlikely friendship under the watchful eye of Tangnost Bearhugger, the Earl’s Dragonmaster.

Together with their dragons Two Gulps & You’re Gone and gentle Chasing the Stars they must face the treachery that stirs at the heart of the ruling Sorcerers Guild. For the hobgoblin tribes have united, and the dark magic of Maelstrom is rising. Does this spell defeat for the legendary SDS?

A story of friendships set against epic battles, whispered legends and a girl who can talk to dragons combine in this breathtaking debut fantasy.

Source: Info in the Book Description was taken from the book's website at http://www.dragonsdome.co.uk/synopsis.html on 11/10/10.

FTC Declaration: This book was borrowed from the library.

Review:
I had a bit of a problem with the dragons in this book. Obviously they are sentient enough to have speech capacity. And have intellegence enough to have organized society. Not to mention that they also have a magic of their own. And they are penned, collared and breed like horses and dogs? It seems to me like saying that it is okey to pen, collar and breed humans. Smacks too much like slavery to me. I am not comfortable with that. Some society and some people may think that slavery is okey. But I am not one of those. And I don't like it at all. That is the main reason why this book is not a 5 out of 5 with me.... As I was reading the book, I could not help being uncomfortable with that fact in this fantasy world that Lucinda Hare has created. Or am I just being too analytical here? However, if a reader ignore that little issue, the story telling quality is quite compelling. The world building is wonderful! As you might have surmised, I like dragons, and here dragons are dished out in all their forms! Big dragons. Small dragons. Playful ones. Fierce battledragons. You name it. It therefore feed my addiction. As such it garnered a high rating with me :) If you like dragons like me, then this book would be of high interest to you! :D

Emperically translated, I would rate this book as:
World building = 5
Story telling quality = 4.5
Character development = 4
Story itself = 4
Ending = 3.5
Pace = 4
Plot = 3.5

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 cherries

Review: HATCHING MAGIC

Hatching Magic by Ann Downer

Genre: middlegrade, urban fantasy,

About Hatching Magic:

Poor Theodora Oglethorpe! Her biologist father has gone off to explore the jungles of Laos without her, her two best friends are away on vacation, and a long hot lonely Boston summer is all she has to look forward to.

Poor Gideon! Wycca, his pet wyvern, has disappeared through a magic hole in time in search of a place to lay her egg. Kobold, Gideon's rival wizard, wants nothing more than to capture Wycca and turn her against her master. In a desperate attempt to rescue Wycca from Kobold's evil clutches, Gideon follows her through the magic hole... and finds himself transported from his castle in thirteenth-century England to the terrifyingly modern world of Boston, Massachusetts, in the year 2002.

Little does Gideon know that what he needs most in order to find his wyvern is stuck to the bottom of Theodora's shoe. And little does Theodora know that Gideon is the reason why her summer vacation has begun to seem a whole lot more interesting...

Source: Info in the About Hatching Magic was taken from the book's cover sleeve.

FTC Declaration: This book was purchased with my personal money.

Verdict: A quick and fun read.

Review:
This is a fun and quick read. It is not masterpiece but is enjoyable none the less. However this book uses known mythological elements such as the occult, tarot cards, quija board, etc. I came across a review who was strongly against these issues because of her faith, as I understand it. Therefore, if your belief system are against such things then I guess this is not a good book for you as the use of such things/ideas in the book might cause you distress. However, if you are like me, who thinks that the occult, tarot cards, quija board and the like are so much like Harry Potter's magic wand, and therefore for fun use only and should not be taken seriously, then this book is for you.

I bought this book because it got "magic" and "dragon" in it. I was kinda disappointed with the dragon as it was not as big a character as I would have liked. It was so much like a cat or a dog. So much like a loveable pet. Although I like that too, but for a main character, I want more than a loveable pet. The world building is fantastic! The author made me experience the musty world of a medieval castle and then the sticky sweet smell of chocolate confectionery like when you go into a candy store... I liked that! The "suspension of disbelief" therefore ranks high up there with a score of 4.5 out of 5. I would rate this book further as:

World building = 4.5
Story telling quality = 3.5
Character development = 3.5
Story itself = 3
Ending = 4

Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 5 cherries