The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander

A Brief Summary: Taran has always wanted to be a hero but he's going to learn that being a hero is a lot harder than it looks. Along with a rag tag bunch of  misfits he searches for Hen Wen an oracular pig, and travels to Castle Darthyl to warn the king that his enemies are massing and he is on the brink of war.

My Review:
I received this entire series from my wonderful boyfriend for my birthday. He's learned that books are a surefire way to my heart. What an amazing guy :D

Anyway onto the book! I was interested in this series initially because of the movie The Black Cauldron which was loosely adapted  from this series.

From searching for a oracular pig, leading a band of misfits, to making, sometimes costly, mistakes you see Taran grow-up. He starts as kind of an idiot with no common sense, to a leader.

I can't wait to read the rest of the series and see how he develops further.

The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons by Akira Himiekawa

Based on the game made for the Gameboy Color you follow a young incarnation of Link as he does his best to rescue the Oracle of Seasons. Our young hero is not alone however he has his friends Ricky, Piyoko and the witch Mable by his side to help him defeat Onox, the general of darkness.

This was one of those books that I never really planned on reading, I just kind of picked up and decided why not. Of course it helps that my boyfriend is a Zelda fanatic and had it, but I'm definitely glad that I picked it up.

One of my favorite things about the manga is that instead of being the everyman Link has a personality. Something that most games shy away from unless they're a JRPG, for a good reason everyone can relate to an everyman character too much of a personality and you limit your audience.

My favorite character would have to be Piyoko, the adorable little chick. He's sweet and knowledgeable, and helps Link realize his potential.

I really enjoyed this book and I will have to kidnap the other books in the series from James.

Stardust by Neil Gaiman

In England there is a small town called Wall, that was named for the wall that bordered it to the east. This wall is carefully guarded every day of the year except for one day and night every nine years when the Faerie Market takes place. Tristan Thorn however goes across in pursuit of a star, not just any star the most recently fallen star. To find the star and bring it back to win the hand of Victoria Forester. However he's not the only one looking for the star.

Loved, loved, loved this book. I had watched the movie and fallen in love with it. And this book, although quite different from the movie, was just as good.

It's a dark fairy tale, twisted with a bit of gore. Showing you that not all fairy tales are filled with happiness and light. That they can be dark and everything still can turn out alright.

Jack Frost by JinHo Ko

This is the plot synopsis from Goodreads "Any high schooler on a nerve-wracking first day at a new school is apt to lose his or her head a little, but in Noh-A's case, she literally does! When she wakes up in one piece with a little help from a mysterious doctor, Noh-A quickly realizes that nothing is as it seems at Amityville High, where paranormal creatures battle for supremacy. Caught in the crossfire, Noh-A may have to rely on the unlikely (and possibly unreliable) aid of the most sinister student at Amityville...the deadly Jack Frost"



This book was very odd, I'm really not sure what to think of. It isn't my typical genre of manga, it's shonen and I typically prefer to read shojo. Nonetheless it wasn't bad per-say it just wasn't my cup of tea.


The art was incredible, the story blurb was promising, but still it fell short for me. Maybe it was that there was too much action and not enough story. Or that the characters seemed way too unreal. Who knows it's an okay book not one I'd recommend but not one that I truly regret reading.

Mardock Scrambler by Tow Ubukata

Rune Balot wanted to die until she was taken off the street and her life was given meaning by Shell. It was just an ordinary day when he turned on her and tried to murder her. She was saved, but not entirely her skin was no longer skin, and she no longer had a voice of her own. Now she has a choice held end the man who killed her or end herself.

My boyfriend had gotten this manga for me from Minicon. Since it looked like something I would really enjoy and I did. I loved every character in the manga and I can't wait to see how they develop over the series. Also I really enjoyed the abilities of the different characters and I hope they add more characters with powers soon.

Looking For Alaska by John Green

Miles never really had any friends, he was a good kid averaged good grades but life was boring he craved a great perhaps. Something that would define and change his life so he decides to go to boarding school. Cold Water Creek boarding school to be exact and his life defiantly takes a twist though not exactly how he expects it to. He meets Alaska Young and everything goes right and wrong at the exact same time.

I've been a fan of John Green for awhile now even though I've only recently read any of his books. I originally found him through YouTube. Specially Crash Course and educational channel he does with his brother Hank. He also does Mental Floss. Both are super awesome if you like learning stuff and you should. Anyway on to the book!

I decided to read this book mostly because James suggested it and as he's never had me read a bad book. So I read it and such a good book with so many feels. He made me empathize with both Miles and Alaska having been in both of their shoes at different points in my life and instead of a cliche ending he continued past the tragedy with how the survivors struggled on after. It's just a really good book and deserves every ounce of praise it's been given.

And in the words of John and Hank Green: Don't Forget To Be Awesome.

Another Fine Myth... by Robert Asprin

Skeeve was just your average pickpocket until he becomes apprenticed to a magician and if that wasn't change enough his master gets murdered and becomes apprenticed to a demon. No before you freak out in this series demon means dimension traveler, they don't look like humans as we know them but can hide it well. This demons name is Aahz and this is just the beginning of the tale.

I truly enjoyed this story fanciful and full of adventure short but sweet. Definitely worth the read and I'll have to read more of the series.

Ender's Shadow by Orson Scott Card

This book has been recommended by both my boyfriend and most of my male friends have suggested I read since I finished Ender's Game. Ender's Shadow is a parallel novel to Enders Game not a sequel. Meaning although it's in the same universe and has some of the same characters it does follow Ender's game it happens at the same time, and instead of following Ender it follows Bean. 

Bean grew up very differently then Ender, he grew up on the streets where starvation was a daily fear. He was unusually small and bright for his age, before being admitted to battle school he changes the way the streets are run, bullies taking care of the little kids where before they would pick on them. He also changes things up in the battle school where he refuses to play the fantasy(mind) game that all of the other kids love, and analyzing the teachers as much as they attempt to analyze him.

I personally enjoyed Ender's Shadow more because I like the character Bean more, his mind set is very different yet very similar to my own. How he processes information, how deliberate all of his actions are. It also shows all of the cracks in Ender's armor how very close he was to breaking and why some of the things that happened in Ender's Game did. 

For everyone who enjoyed Ender's Game this is a great story for those of you who haven't it's still great and as they are parallels you don't need to read one to understand the other.

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

Children are meant to have fun and play games, but when the game is a war simulation and pits children against each other to the point it creates hostility then it's Ender's Game.

This is yet another boyfriend recommendation, both because he adores it, it happens to be one of his favorite books and because the movie just came out and he wants to go to it. So far I can't question his taste in books since both of the recommendations from him I've truly enjoyed, though never would have picked up on my own.

This book follows Ender Wiggins and his journey from a semi normal life to becoming a commander in an army by the age of  11 . He is a third, the third child in his family, in a time when population is strictly limited and the only reason he was allowed to be born was because his brother and sister showed the aptitude to be in the army but didn't have the right temperament to become part of the army but Ender did. Even after being taken to the battle school he never fit in mostly due to the interfering of the higher ups. He was separate he was creative, he was there to end the game.

In this book I had to constantly remind myself that Ender is just a kid. He doesn't speak, or act like a kid but he is thrust into a world that he barely understands but he's expected to save. I enjoyed this book, it reminded me that kids are a lot more capable of things than we anticipate, who knows one might actually be what saves us some day.

Scott Pilgrim series

Since my boyfriend was the one who inspired me to start this blog I've decided to review one of his favorite series of all time Scott Pilgrim by Bryan Lee O'Malley. They are a series of graphic novel and there is also a movie adaptation with distinct differences from the books. Unlike most movie versions these differences were planned and the author and director worked together making the decisions such as who would have certain plot points and differences in characters.

Now on to the review!

So far I've only read up to the fourth book but so far I've highly enjoyed the series. The series revolves around Scott Pilgrim a 23 year old who is a member of a band, recently dated a high schooler and now has to defeat his new girlfriend's (Ramona Flowers) 7 evil exes. This series has good character development, playful story elements, and great artwork.

Starting in book one you see Scott a kid in an adults body start to grow up very slowly but that's what keeps the story interesting. In every book you are introduced to new and quirky characters who help you learn more about Scott and Ramona and their respective histories.

The books also have video game elements, such as certain things Scott does earns him experience and he gains levels. I personally enjoyed this touch as I love video games.

The artwork is also fun and fitting to the story line and characters.

All in all I think it's a good series and I'm glad that despite my initial reservations I took the time to read. Now I'm looking forward to reading the last two books.


Update 11-13

I've finished the last two books and they are definitely the best in the series. I won't give anything away so you should just read them.