I have an online book club: http://missprintbookclub.wordpress.com/
This month we’re reading one of my favorites: The Selection by Kiera Cass.
Questions are coming but for now I have a little “pre-discussion” about the book’s caste system to get the ball rolling.
It’s going to be a fun discussion. Please consider joining.
Before Milan, Mia Della Torre was the unexceptional sister compared to her smarter, prettier younger sister Gina. Before Milan Mia was the kind of girl who would check for monsters under her bed and make sure all of the doors and windows were locked each night.
Now, even if Mia is afraid she knows what to do. She knows who in a house is dead and who is something else. After Milan, she might still be scared but she also knows.
Mia’s grandfather left Milan, and his family, behind years ago when he settled in New York. Mia knows nothing of her distant relatives or their strange livelihood until she is possessed by a demon and saved by a cousin and great uncle she has never met. Even freed from the demon, Mia still may not be safe. Not when it can come back.
Suddenly Mia’s normal, unexceptional life is over. She is whisked away to Milan to live with the demon catching relatives her grandfather hated–the only people who might be able to keep Mia alive.
In a strange city Mia is cooped up indoors as she learns the strange language and stranger history surrounding Milan and her family. Demons, it seems, can be anywhere and her family always has to be ready. But with the threat of another possession looming, Mia isn’t sure if she wants to face her fate or hide from it.
Mia came to Milan for protection from the demon who wants her and to learn more about the family she never knew. Along the way, surrounded by aunts and uncles and cousins, Mia will also find confidence, a new language and even a new place to call home in The Demon Catchers of Milan (2012) by Kat Beyer.
The Demon Catchers of Milan is Beyer’s first book. It is also the first in a projected trilogy.
Filled with interesting tidbits about Milanese culture and phrases of Italian, The Demon Catchers of Milan is part travelogue, part fantasy. After an action packed opening (complete with a possession and an exorcism!), Beyer slows things down as Mia comes to Milan and begins to acclimate to her new surroundings.
There is not a lot of action in the middle of the story, something that might turn off readers expecting non-stop excitement. There are thrilling moments and the threat of Mia’s demon returning is a constant throughout the story, but the bulk of the plot focuses more on Mia connecting with her family and making sense of her place both in Milan and among the demon catching Della Torres.
Beyer’s focus on family is refreshing. Mia is surrounded by people who love and value her. It’s nice to see that kind of affection and unconditional love in a novel. It was equally pleasing to find a fantasy where the plot stays firmly focused on the heroine (and her family) instead of a messy love triangle or a star-crossed love plot.
Perhaps it’s because my mother’s side of the family is Italian but I absolutely loved Mia and the rest of the Della Torres. The Demon Catchers of Milan is short (288 pages hardcover) but Beyer manages to fill those pages with countless well-realized and vivid characters to create a real ensemble cast.
Although the pacing, particularly near the end, became frantic The Demon Catchers of Milan remains a solidly enjoyable read for anyone who enjoys fantasies with a strong heroine coming into her own. Best of all, this story is contained. There are hints of things to come in future installments but The Demon Catchers of Milan works very nicely on its own without leaving readers hanging until the trilogy is complete.
Possible Pairings: City of Bones by Cassandra Clare, Guardian of the Dead by Karen Healey, Once a Witch by Carolyn MacCullough, The Demon Trapper’s Daughter by Jana Oliver, Unspoken by Sarah Rees Brennan, The Archived by Victoria Schwab, The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater, The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud
*This book was acquired for review from the publisher at BEA 2012*
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Sound good? Find it on Amazon: The Demon Catchers of Milan (Demon Catchers of Milan – Trilogy)
What if every alien invasion scenario in every movie and book was wrong? What if there is no rallying point? What if the People in Charge never figure it out?
What if you’re left alone with no one to trust?
No one expected the aliens to win–even with their advanced technology, even with the 1st wave bringing darkness. After the 2nd wave, when only the luck survived, people started to know the score. After the 3rd wave the only ones left are the unlucky ones.
After the 4th wave there’s only one thing left to do: Trust no one.
And now the 5th wave might be starting and humanity is so royally screwed this whole invasion is starting to feel like a terrible joke.
Cassie might be the only human left alive. She is definitely the only person she can trust.
But Cassie has a promise to keep and a long way to go before she can lay down and let the aliens win. Cassie might be alone, she might be all that’s left of humanity. But if that’s true, it also means Cassie has to face what’s coming because she is the battlefield in humanity’s last war in The 5th Wave (2013) by Rick Yancey.
The 5th Wave is the first book in Yancey’s 5th Wave trilogy. There is definitely still tons more to tell but The 5th Wave is still a nicely contained story with a perfect balance of suspense and closure (even if I absolutely had to stay up until 4am to finish reading it).
Yancey takes a familiar scenario from science fiction and turns it completely upside down: not only are the aliens smarter, they’re winning. Not only are they winning, they’re probably going to keep winning.
And yet in a world essentially without hope we get characters made of steel with an inherent resilience and courage.
It’s hard to talk about more here without ruining the surprises of Yancey’s expert plotting and masterful writing. Truly, The 5th Wave is a masterpiece with brilliant plotting as everything readers think they know is thrown into question again and again as the story continues. Yancey expertly uses multiple viewpoints to tell an intricate story with carefully time reveals and more than a few twists.
Possible Pairings: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, Magisterium by Jeff Hirsch, False Memory by Dan Krokos, Legend by Marie Lu, A Confusion of Princes by Garth Nix, Divergent by Veronica Roth, Pod by Stephen Wallenfels, Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
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Sound good? Find it on Amazon: The 5th Wave
Baedecker Love Song
London is burning
Venice is sinking
New York is dirty
Oslo is cold
We booked all the wrong tours
We missed our connections
We bought the wrong gifts
from all the wrong shops
We saw all the wrong places
with all the wrong people
We made all the wrong choices
I’d make them again
given the chance to make them again
with you
—
(This poem is an original work by me. Copyrighted. Please don’t steal it.)
This is a haiku I wrote about my Palm Centro–a long sad story represented by a haiku and long since forgotten now that I have Polly the iPhone.
Too Smartphone: A Haiku
My sleek blue pod of
alien technology—
apt for girls like me.
—
(This poem is an original work by me. Copyrighted. Please don’t steal it.)
Today seemed as good a day as any to revisit my experiments with Sally Hansen Nail Polish Strips.
This time around I had a really fun plaid design from my mom. I applied them the week before Easter and they lasted a good three weeks. I was more careful with application this time so there was no peeling at the cuticles. Some nails had air bubbles but the overall effect was not diminished. Also, because it was such a light base color I was able to retouch small chips with a coat of clear nail polish.
Here are some pictures I took for posterity:
You can also read a poem I wrote about these nail decals because . . . why not?
I almost forgot to post today because I was busy buying flowers so my yard can look as nice as this:
