Steel, Carrie Vaughn

Title: Steel
Author: Carrie Vaughn
Publisher: Harper Teen
Publishing Date: 2011
Length: 287 Pages
Summary: (from book) Sixteen-year old Jill has fought in dozens of fencing tournaments, but has never held a sharpened blade.When she finds a corroded sword piece on a Caribbean beach, she is instantly intrigued and pockets it as her own personal treasure. 
The broken tip holds secrets, though, and it transports Jill through time to the deck of a pirate ship. Stranded in the past and surrounded by strangers, she is forced to sign on as crew. But a pirate's life is bloody and brief , and as Jill learns about the dark magic that brought her there, she forms a desperate scheme to get home-one that risks everything in a duel to the death with a villainous pirate captain.

My Thoughts:  Wow. This book had so much potential  and just tanked. You never get to see inside the heroine's head and the entire book is just one chain after another of everything falling into place. The descriptions were terrible. "They studied each other, eyes only inches apart, so it wasn't as if they could really see each other."  And the romance had no build up whatsoever. She's just stuck with this guy, never hints that she likes him, and then all of a sudden, starts kissing him. I would have liked the book better if there hadn't been any romance at all. It felt thrown in there just for the heck of it.
And the sword, again so much potential. But nothing much happens to it as a story piece until you find out fifty pages from the end that ohmygoodness it's a magical sword made from blood.
What the heck.
So she gets it into her head to fight the bad guy and that will send her home. There's not a clear logical explanation of how exactly she got to that point, but she does it anyway. That fails, she magically decided to try something else and that's what sends her home.
This book as a whole felt very....shallow. Definitely not the adventure I was looking forward to from the cover.

Things To Be Cautious Of:  Swearing. Several uses of some bible swearing, violence: sword fighting, bleeding, nothing descriptive believe me, and mentioning of rough pirate activity of a inappropriate nature.

The Time Thief, Linda Buckley-Archer

Title: The Time Thief (Book 2 in the Gideon Trilogy)
Author: Linda Buckley-Archer
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Publishing Date: 2007
Length: 488 Pages
Summary: (From book) Peter Schock has been left behind in 1763. Kate Dyer is beginning to suffer some disturbing side effects from time traveling. And the Tar Man, who was terrifying even in the eighteenth century, is loose and wreaking havoc in twenty-first century London with twenty-first century technology at his disposal! Can Kate find a way to bring Peter back and stop the Tar Man for good?






My Thoughts: This series is so creative! And certainly thought provoking. I'm feeling really sick right now, so I don't have much of a review, but the sequel definitely gets a thumbs up.

Things To Be Cautious Of:Minor Violence, character death, mild swearing.

What I Learned: Time travel might not be such a good idea.

The Time Travelers, Linda Buckley-Archer

Title: The Time Travelers, (Book one in the Gideon Trilogy)
Author: Linda Buckley-Archer
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Publishing Date: 2006
Length: 400 pages
Summary: (From Book)  1763, Gideon Seymour, thief and gentleman, hides from the villainous Tar Man. Suddenly the sky peels away like fabric and from the gaping hole fall two curious looking children.
Peter Schock and Kate Dyer have fallen straight from the twenty-first century, thanks to an experiment with an antigravity machine.
Before Gideon and the children have a chance to gather their wits, the Tar Man takes off with the machine-and Peter and Kate's only chance of getting home.
Soon Gideon, Peter and Kate are swept up into a journey through eighteenth-century London and form a bond that, they hope, will stand strong in the face of unfathomable treachery.

My Thoughts: What a cute book! I've already picked up the sequel to read as well. I thought the ending was creative and I can't wait to see how it plays out.
I am very much in love with Gideon, but I do feel a lot of sympathy towards Tom and Sidney as well. I'm hoping Tom gets a bigger part in the series. And the Tar Man! Talk about tragic back stories. I thought I was harsh in my writing, but his story is positively heart wrenching. I'm very curious to see how his character develops.
Book challenge almost completed!

Things To Be Cautious Of: The word dang used infrequently, and I found, quite humorously ('Dang your eyes!') Throughout. The Lord's name taken in vain.

What I Learned: Friends are important. People can change.

Love Beyond Time, Nancy Campbell Allen

Title: Love Beyond Time
Author: Nancy Campbell Allen
Publisher: Covenant Communications
Publishing Date: 1999
Length: 196 pages
Summary: (from book) Amber Saxton is a bright young LDS doctor on the cutting edge of twenty-first century medicine. But when she has a head on collision with a swinging door, life as she knows it is suddenly reduced to a heart full of searing memories when she awakens in another time and place. How can she practice modern medicine on a Civil War battlefield-and how can she get out of this mess? She longs for her comfortable apartment and her dear little Pirmary class, but she's trapped in a world that is not her own. And it's anything but friendly.
Meanwhile, Tyler Tyler Montgomery, an overworked accountant, is spending the night at his computer, preparing for an audit, when two of his worst nightmares walk through his office door. The last thing he remembers is the blow from the butt of their sawed off shotgun-until he comes to in a tiny room adjacent to a nineteenth century Army hospital. I've died and I'm not in heaven, he thinks.
Amber and Tyler have just begun the adventure of their lives, fraught with danger, intrigue and unbelievable discoveries at every turn. Thrown together in a world apart, they must somehow find their way back to the present. But first, they need to find each other and learn what matters most in life. Can they meet the test- or will it cost them their lives  before they can unravel the mystery of generations past?

My Thoughts: Mm....what to say about this one. It was given to me by a friend who loved it, but I'm not sure this is my cuppa tea.  The title is bona fide cheesy, and I don't think I would call this much of  a time travel fic.  I didn't like the pacing of the novel at all and just read through it for it to get it over with.  I quickly grew tired of Tyler's 'heated blood' when it came to his attraction to Amber, but since this is an LDS novel, it never really goes anywhere except for more kissing than I like, which is surprising since the author claims her objective is to write enjoyable romance without guilt.
I feel horrible for never really liking LDS fiction. It just always has to be so perfect and everybody has to join the church at the end. If I read Christian lit, I much prefer to read from other sects rather than my own, not for the religious perspective, but just for the content.
The one thing I did like about this book is that both Amber and Tyler met some of their ancestors while living in 1862. It was a happy touch for the genealogist in me.
What I Learned:   I need to stop bashing LDS fics.
 

A Tale of Time City, Diana Wynne Jones

Title: A Tale of Time City
Author: Diana Wynne Jones
Publisher: Fire bird Books
Publishing Date: 1987
Summary: (From Book)    London, 1939, Vivian Smith thinks she is being evacuated to the countryside because of the war. But she is being kidnapped-out of her own time. Her kidnappers are Jonathan and Sam, two boys her own age from a place called Time City. Built eons ago on a patch of space outside time, Time City was designed especially to oversee history. But now history is going critical, and Johnathan and Same are convinced that Time City's impending doom can only be averted by a Twenty Century girl named Vivian Smith. Too bad they have the wrong girl...


My Thoughts:  The cover on this book is so pretty. I love it. The plot was interesting, I've been a fan of accidental kidnapping plot lines ever since first encountering them, but after that...the book sort of lost me. There is so much to process and understand and the mythology and rules of Time City are complex and overwhelming. I can't say I really liked this book. It was an interesting read, but I found myself finishing it merely for the sake of completing it and the last twenty pages had me at a total loss as to what was going on.
I've never heard of the author, apparently she was a very popular fantasy writer, but as for me, it's just not my cup of tea.
Things To Be Cautious Of:  Three very mild swear words.
What I learned:  I don't want to write like this...

Review: A Wrinkle In Time, Madeleine L'Engle

Title: A Wrinkle In Time
Author: Madeleine L'Engle
Publisher: Square Fish
Publishing Date:  1962
Length: 203 pages
Summary: Fifty years ago, Madeleine L’Engle introduced the world to A Wrinkle in Time and the wonderful and unforgettable characters Meg and Charles Wallace Murry, and their friend Calvin O’Keefe. When the children learn that Mr. Murry has been captured by the Dark Thing, they time travel to Camazotz, where they must face the leader IT in the ultimate battle between good and evil—a journey that threatens their lives and our universe
My Thoughts: Thought provoking, and much deeper than it appears on the surface. I thought it reminiscent to C.S. Lewis's space trilogy and Narnian Chronicles. I wish this book was still as popular as it was when it was first published. I enjoyed reading about the author's life and now feel like we are fast friends. The symbolism was catching and made one pause and I can tell this is going to be one I'll have to read over again to fully understand. The Christian morals were refreshing and it reminded me that I am here on earth to fight a great and ongoing battle against the Adversary and that the light and love of Christ is truly the only way to overcome anything.

Review: Hourglass, Myra McEntire

Title: Hourglass
Author: Myra McEntire
Publisher: Egmont USA
Publishing Date: June 14, 2011
Length: 390 pages
Summary: (From website) One hour to rewrite the past . . . 

 For seventeen-year-old Emerson Cole, life is about seeing what isn't there; swooning Southern Belles; soldiers long forgotten; a haunting jazz trio that vanishes in an instant. Plagued by phantoms since her parents’ death, she just wants the apparitions to stop so she can be normal. She's tried everything, but the visions keep coming back. 

So when her well-meaning brother brings in a consultant from a secretive organization called the Hourglass, Emerson's willing to try one last cure. But meeting Michael Weaver may not only change her future, it may change her past. 

Who is this dark, mysterious, sympathetic guy, barely older than Emerson herself, who seems to believe every crazy word she says? Why does an electric charge seem to run through the room whenever he's around? And why is he so insistent that he needs her help to prevent a death that never should have happened? 

My Thoughts: First off, the cover is gorgeous. I was drawn to it immediately. I first saw this book when it came out, but didn't read it because it was filed under the paranormal genre. I stumbled across the book again on a book blog website and found out that it is a time slip book. Now, I confess, I have a soft spot for time travel books and love reading them. I figured that they were calling the time travel 'paranormal'  so I went and bought it yesterday and read it in an afternoon. 

Emerson, the female protagonist, is character with a very deep past and very independent. I admired her as a character and found her interesting.  She has a weird condition where she sees images. People think she's hallucinating, and it feels slightly paranormal as the images are people and mistaken for ghosts. I didn't like that part at all. But it turns out to be a pretty cool key to the whole time travel thing. 

Michael, the heart throb of the book, has a lot of history that I'm fascinated by and would love to learn more about. The plot line for the book was amazing, and the author (who looks just like Carrie Underwood) executed it beautifully. But there is always downside. I wish there was never a downside.

I try not to read a lot of YA; especially recently written, popular YA because of the content and I did research this book on a content review site to make sure it was clean before purchasing. I could handle the few swear words, nothing more than what you hear on TV, but the one main reason I hate YA fiction is because of the gag worthy, over the top, borderline uncomfortable, unrealistic romance. I mean, seriously.

Of course the first boy she meets is the one she falls in love with. Of course he totally loves her and has abs like Taylor Lautner. Because, heaven forbid he's built like a gawky, normal teenage guy. I have nothing wrong with romance, in fact, I am a sucker for well written love stories. But when two characters are defined as a couple not even half way though the book and kissing before the climax, I feel a lot of character development is lost.  Are all YA's this way?  And the emotion written into the scenes is way too intense. There are somethings I will never be old enough or want to read.  Granted, it wasn't too much detail, but it was like ignoring the elephant in the room. 

Michale's friend is an openly dirty person and has several remarks and scenes with Emerson that I found to be unnecessary and taking away from the beauty of the plot line. The sneak peek for the sequel in the back  of the book opens with a scene and this character and starts off dirty. Such writing has really made me lose all interest in ever reading the sequel to the book; which is a shame, considering how interesting the plotline.

Things To Be Cautious Of:  And this is the part where I wonder if the content review sight for literature is just blind or incredibly tolerant. Swearing. (several 'dang,' a few 'heck' one B_ and an unfinished Sh-)   Romance content: Feelings of physical tension between the two main characters, two kissing scenes, but without much detail. One of the characters has a shady life and hints suggestively at things to the female character. 

Review: Torrent By Lisa T. Bergren

Title: Torrent
Author: Lisa T. Bergren
Publisher: David Cook
Publishing Date:  June 1, 2011
Length: 388 pages
Series: River of Time #3
Summary: (From back of book)  Gabriella and Evangelia Betarrini are just two normal American teenagers. Normal-except for the fact that they time travel to fourteenth-century Italy, where they've lived in castles, become swept up in historic battles, and fallen in love with handsome knights willing to do anything to keep them alive.
They've returned with their mother to the present to save their father before his tragic death, and now the family travels back to the place that holds the girls' hearts; medieval Italy. Both remaining there means facing great risk as the battle for territory wages on and the Black Plague looms. Will the Betarrinis truly be willing to risk it all? Or in facing death head-on, will they discover life as it was always meant to be?




My Thoughts:  This series was such a wild ride. I enjoyed reading these, but it did have it's down sides. But we'll do the good first.  I loved Gabi's strong willed character and Luca's constant teasing; the characters really came to life in these books and that is something I loved.  The plot was twisting, and kept me guessing, even though some parts were pretty obvious on how it would all turn out. I've never read a book with fighting scenes and must say I found the action in these to be realistic and moving. It didn't feel forced or flat which can be difficult in describing movement. 
The message of the books was a positive one. It taught me to rethink my life and live in the moment and enjoy life because you never know what will happen next. It also made me think about God's hand in my life and to look for His influence in everything.
Now for the negative. I first heard about these books under a clean read site and must say that these books were the most violent, and at times racy pieces of fiction I've ever read. It was disappointing that they would be filed under 'clean fiction' and still have parts in it that were hardly appropriate. There were several acts of violence I found to be unsettling and in the final book, Torrent, towards the end, the villain begins harming innocent people in a very disturbing manner. Maybe I'm just sensitive to things like that. But had these scenes been in a movie, the rating would surely be PG-13 at it's lowest.
The sexual tension in the books was also a little questionable. Gabi is a seventeen year old girl and she falls for Marcello who is just a few years older than her. That's fine by me. They kiss in the first book, more passionately in the second and by the third book, were practically making out.  Spoilers here, mouse over to keep reading: Marcello and her end up getting married, and they justified her being underage by saying she had matured enough and was really ready for such a commitment. There is a scene of kissing where both talk about desire and Gabi hints at not waiting until the wedding to go off and do you know what. They keep it clean, but only after pulling away with much reluctance. The wedding ceremony was cute, and I think it should have been left there. But instead, the story continues to them in the bedroom with Marcello unbuttoning Gabi's dress and says something along, 'growing closer in the hours that followed' so you clearly get the idea of what they were doing. The scene cuts there, but picks up in the morning with him jumping back in without his shirt on and you learn that Gabi is topless. 
I'm sorry, but this girl is seventeen! Do I want to be reading about this in a piece of young adult fiction? Absolutely  not.  I find it offensive and just plain wrong. To tell you the truth, I felt guilty after reading it. No wonder the youth today have such a low sense of purity, it's inescapable! It's everywhere in the media. Magazines, TV, movies, books; even Christian,  proclaimed, 'clean fiction' books. 
I just find that really ironic.
One of the characters I really liked was Lord Greco. He was a character you could never be sure which side he was on and I wish I knew more about him. I understand the author is writing a novella about him; the cover is gorgeous, by the way, but it's only being published as an E-book so I probably won't get to it. 
All in all, I would give these books three out of five. The plot was interesting, the characters compelling, but the several innuendo remarks and violence really turned me off.

Review: Cascade By Lisa T. Bergren

Title: Cascade
Author: Lisa T. Bergren
Publisher: David Cook
Publishing Date: June 6, 2011
Length: 399 pages
Series: River of Time #2
Summary: (From back of book) Gabi knows she's left her heart in the fourteenth century, and she persuades Lia to help her to return, even though they know doing so will risk their very lives. When they arrive, months have passed, and all of Siena longs to celebrate the heroines who turned the tide in the battle against Florence-while their enemies will go to great lengths to see them dead. 
Even in the midst of the battles, Gabi's heart is increasingly drawn to Marcello, just as Lia's is to Luca. In medieval Italy, the sisters discover things inside themselves that they couldn't seem to find in the present-connection with their mom, courage within, and the understanding that a life well lived often means encountering sacrifice. But in a world long past, many things still keep Gabi from giving Marcello her heart forever...and one thing in particular calls all three of Betarrinis home.
My Thoughts:  The book picks up right after the end of the last one, and it can be a little hard to jump back into considering the gaps in publishing dates. But I have the entire trilogy, so I just put book one down and reached for book two. (Thank you, mom, for the books) Still, picking up one right after another is not something I particularly like in a series because I think it's hard on the reader to find the pace.
I'm still more drawn to the smaller role character, Luca, than Marcello, but I think it's because I am horribly biased given the fact that Marcello has curly hair and that isn't something I'm particularly attracted to in a guy. Let's just say that this is my own opinion and has nothing to do with the writing. The writing is wonderful. But for the record: Go, Luca.
The action in the sequel picked up a lot and intense fighting scenes were the norm; I felt like that there was more action than story plot. None of it was incredibly graphic, but I'm still not a fan of reading about just what Gabriella can do with a dagger.
I am very interested in the smaller plot running through the books about Gabriella coming to recognize and grow closer to God. I enjoy Christian themes and this one has been done in a way that isn't overbearing or cheesy like some Christian literature can be.
Things To Be Cautious Of:
Violence. There were quite a few skirmishes and Gabriella passes a sentence on one of her enemies that's a little cold hearted. I could give details, but it's crucial to the plot and there were so many fighting scenes running throughout the book that it would take awhile. If you're interested in knowing exactly what to avoid for sensitive readers, just leave a request in the comments and I will be happy to send them to you.
Romance: Ok, ok. I get the whole YA fiction, heartthrob, he's so hot, thing. I mean, c'mon, these guys are Italian and I am loving them. The kissing isn't incredibly passionate; but I could probably do without some of it. It's all clean, and cute and flirty, so don't worry about it being dirty. I just must be jealous of not having an Italian boyfriend for the hand holding thing to be bothering me so much.
Random Little Things: The fourteenth century saw women a little differently than now and Gabriella and Lia wield swords and occasionally men's dress which gives the men in the stories to leer and make the occasional suggestive comment. None of it goes anywhere, nor is it the definition of inappropriate, but I still felt like it was borderline awkward.

Review: Waterfall By Lisa T. Bergren

Title: Waterfall
Author: Lisa T. Bergren
Publisher: David Cook
Publishing Date: February 1, 2011
Length: 369 pages
Series: River of Time #1
Summary: (From back of book) Most American teenagers want a vacation in Italy, but the Betarrini sisters have spent every summer of their lives among the romantic hills with archaeologist parents. Stuck among the rubble of medieval castles in a rural Tuscany on yet another, hot dusty archaeological site, Gabi and Lia are bored out of their minds...until Gabi places her hand atop a hand print in an ancient tomb and finds herself in fourteenth-century Italy. And worse yet, in the middle of a fierce battle between knights of two opposing forces. Suddenly Gabi's summer in Italy is much, much more interesting. 




My Thoughts:  I have a love for all forms of time travel and this book didn't disappoint. It took me a few chapters to become interested, and then after that, I couldn't put it down. Gabi is a strong willed, courageous narrator/character and I enjoyed reading a YA where the heroine wasn't a 'stand by and do nothing' type. I know that half the appeal of this book is supposed to be the hot Italian guys that wield swords and are the perfect, chivalric boyfriend personified, but I got a little tired of the head over heels romance. I much preferred the teasing, flirtatious relationship of the main character with Luca, a smaller main male role, rather than Marcello, the intended heartthrob of the series.
All and all I found it a very enjoyable book and I am looking forward to reading the rest of the series. There was sword fighting action, plausible plot and enough romantic interest to keep me cheering and reading on late into the night.
Things To Be Cautious Of:
There is violence. Including mention of torture, a small scene of interrogation tactics using pain influence, Gabi kills three men in self defense and some men are killed by an archer.
Romance: There is some kissing between the main characters. Nothing extremely passionate or inappropriate, but more awkward than Junior High age would probably want to read.
Other: Gabi is captured by the enemy who attempt to take advantage of her. Nothing happens, but I still found the scene unsettling.