Tithe November 24, 2007

Black, Holly (2002). Tithe: A Modern Faerie Tale. NY : Simon and Schuster. 331 pages.

Kaye redefines weird – she doesn’t go to school, she doesn’t quite look like everyone else, and – oh yeah – she gets visits from faeries that no one else can see. Or at least she did, before she moved to Philly with her mom. But when an unexpected attack sends both Kaye and her mother back to the Jersey shore, she gets pulled into the world of faerie – a world, it turns out, that she belongs to more than she’d ever guessed.

Usually I can steamroll right through books, but I had to put this one down more than a few times, for various reasons – none of them were bad reasons – they were just… well, here they are:

1. omg, yaoi fanboy, what?!

Corny. One of the more important side characters, Corny (short for Cornelius), is ethically challenged, a genius, and gay. He’s also an avid reader of shonen ai manga (translation: homoerotic japanese comic books, generally written by and for women). Well, he calls it shonen ai, but as Kaye helpfully describes some of the scenes in said manga, I’m actually guessing it’s yaoi, which is basically the same thing, plus more porn.

Let me be clear: I did not need to put the book down because I have a problem with people who are queer, intelligent, or fans of pornography.  Rather, I had a problem with the way the book used these aspects of his character to portray him as a person who has no regard for the lives of other people, or would be receptive to getting raped and brutalized.  It’s a valid and consistent character portrait, but it’s also an extremely offensive way to portray a specific group of people, in that it implies that one’s taste in porn could predispose a person to want to be raped.  Or that being smart means you want to gun down your classmates.

I’m relatively sure that the author didn’t intend her character to be offensive, but in my case, I was a little taken aback.

2. tortured hero? srsly, pls…

Roiben. Roiben is a faerie knight of the Seely Court (the relatively good and nice group of faeries), who is traded to the Unseely Court by his queen. In the Unseely Court, he is forced to carry out his new queen’s horrible orders, and is thus traumatized into becoming a brooding, dark anti-hero. And Kaye falls for him like I fall for chocolate donuts. I’m not saying I don’t sympathize – back in the day, I myself liked a platinum blond tortured hero or two. And Roibin is far from the worst incarnation of this little archetype, but… really…

3. Jersey shore, land of hidden magic?! XD

This time, I put the book down because I had to pause and savor my smug glee that yes, someone else sees the dirty, glittery, and wildly natural Jersey shore the same way I do. And, for once, the faeries (angels, demons, winged monkeys, etc…) don’t live in Central Park, NY, but a place I actually know and care about – and let me tell you, it is the perfect setting for this book. It sets the mood, reflects Kaye’s character, and foreshadows the nature of the faerie courts. Just – wow, I had so much love for the setting.

Alright. Now, putting all that aside, I really did enjoy this book. This is one of the better things to come from the faery/fairy stories that are becoming popular recently, and there was a lot of sensitivity and depth in all the characters. And after all, I may have put the book down more than once, but I always, always picked it up again.

Booktalk Hook: Did you ever think that you just couldn’t possibly be related to these people who are pretending to be your parents?

If you like this book: You’ll probably want to read the sequels, Valiant and Ironside. Or you might want to try testing out the shallow end of the pool of manga that this book is referencing, both in the text, and thematically – titles like Seimaden, Angel Sanctuary, or Alichino.

Prom Dates from Hell November 19, 2007

Clement-Moore, Rosemary (2007). Prom Dates from Hell. NY : Delacorte Press. 308 pages.

High-school senior Maggie Quinn isn’t a big fan of the prom. She’s also not a big fan of the Jocks and Jessicas, the clique that rules her school. But when someone puts a curse on the Jocks and Jessicas – not to mention possibly Maggie herself – she has no choice but to try and stop it, even if it means buying a dress, snagging a hot date, and going to the big dance.

Maggie’s witty narration made a fairly decent follow-up to my little Wodehouse binge (see previous entry), which in and of itself was a pretty big hurdle to leap. Happily, the wittiness added to the book and Maggie’s character, rather than detracting – while Maggie wasn’t the most dynamic character ever to grace the pages of a YA novel, she was definitely appealing as an intelligent and subtly vulnerable heroine.

Despite the fact that Maggie claims idolize Nancy Drew, the book itself is an unabashed Buffy tribute, featuring not only a sarcastic heroine with super powers, but also a smart Willow-esque friend, and a suspiciously helpful (and hot) older guy who is, probably, the secret love child of Angel and Giles. Happily, there is still room for an original story with some surprises. I especially liked the nature of the curse and some of the forms it took, from hilarious to near tragic.

The book went by fairly quickly despite its reasonably substantial length – like most horror books, it was really fast-paced. However, unlike other horror books, Prom really isn’t very scary (trust me, I’m a giant wuss, so I’d know) and is really more of a mystery than a thriller, despite the supernatural elements.

If you read this book, keep an eye out for the sequel, Hell Week, that’s coming out in 2008.

Booktalk Hook: What would it take to get you to the place you’d least like to go?

If you like this book: Clearly you should just watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Oh, you’ve done that already? Of course you have. Well, why not check out Bleach, the popular supernatural/horror manga series? Like Prom, it’s low on gore and scariness, and high on suspense and humor.

The Unseen: It Begins November 17, 2007

Cusick, Richie Tankersley (2005). It Begins, the Unseen series. NY : Speak. 296 pages.

After finding a dying girl in a graveyard, Lucy has been plagued by psychic powers she doesn’t understand. Then there’s the problem of finding out whoever murdered the girl – or who kissed Lucy behind the fair tents?

As it turns out, this author wrote what I think must be the first Buffy novel waaaaay back in 1992, before the TV series. However, for someone who has been writing trashy horror novels for over 15 years, Cusick hasn’t really added much to her writing arsenal. Not that this book doesn’t please – it’s thrilling, suspenseful, and sexy. On the other hand, Lucy is an irritating wet blanket who spends the entire book practically regurgitating Evanescence lyrics and indulging in some truly emo whining about How Sad Her Life Is. Once I got started, I couldn’t put the book down, but once I finished? I really didn’t want anything more to do with Lucy.

Also, who goes out onto the terrace in their see-through pink nightie in the rain because they think that maybe they saw a murderer outside? WHO DOES THAT?!! People who deserve to get stalked for three more books, that’s who. Too bad I won’t be reading them…

Booktalk Hook: If books were food, this book would be a Mars bar, deliciously goopy interior, and absolutely no nutritional value. Yum.

If you like this book: Check out fanfiction.net, and read some Buffy or Yami no Matsuei fanfic.

Hikaru no Go October 16, 2007

Hotta, Yumi & Obata, Takeshi. (2004-) Hikaru no Go (Andy Nakatani, Trans.). San Francisco: Viz Media.

Twelve year old Hikaru was just minding his own business, looking around his grandfather’s attic for stuff to pawn (ok, maybe not minding his own business) when he stumbled on a go board haunted by the thousand year old ghost of go enthusiast, Fujiwara no Sai. Only now that Sai’s met Hikaru, he has no intention of staying in the attic – he wants to play more go - and drags Hikaru with him, into a world of competitive and passionate people, where he makes friends, rivals, and enemies.

If you asked me if I’d like this series before I read it (and people did) the answer would have been “hell no.” It’s about go, which as far as I was (and still am) concerned is like chess, but with little round stones. So, the series had to be really boring, right? Wrong. This series is excellent – the art is wonderful, the story telling is compelling, and the overall experience is addictive. The story follows Hikaru from 12 to 18, from Sai’s reluctant proxy, to an enthusiastic professional player, using his own strengths and abilities.  Once I started, I couldn’t stop reading (and I was lucky, because I had the entire series, but American readers should be aware that only half of the series has been published as of now.) The manga doesn’t take a microscopic, obsessive view of the game itself, but uses it as a tangible object around which the characters act out obsession, competition, rivalry, pride, revenge, and triumph like any great story. The result is that you may not learn a hell of a lot about go, but you definitely enjoy the ride.

For me, the most compelling part of the story is (antihero?) Akira Touya. Akira is the rising young progidy of the go world, with his title-winning father and his heaps of natural talent and careful training. And all of that crashes around his head when he tries to make (his first!) friend in Hikaru and ends up totally smushed at go by Sai. Of course, he doesn’t know it’s Sai, prompting Hikaru from the shadows, all he knows is that he’s suddenly got a rival his age – a rival that’s strangely reluctant to face him. And he doesn’t handle it well – but he handles it interestingly. (Stalking, among other things, is involved.)

Booktalk Hook: Did you ever think it would be kind of cool to be haunted by a ghost? Poor Hikaru probably hadn’t thought anything like that at all – but when it happened to him, it wasn’t cool, because all the ghost wanted to do was make him play a really boring old game. But – was it really that boring?

If you like this: Check out the movies Onmyouji and Onmyouji II, for more Heian era ghosts. Although these ghosts aren’t friendly, harmless, go enthusiasts – they’re dangerous. And only Abe no Seimei’s powers and Hiromasa’s – uh – flute, are standing between them and total destruction. Or if you want the younger, friendlier version, try Shonen Onmyouji instead.

City of Bones September 25, 2007

Clare, Cassandra (2007). City of Bones, the Mortal Instruments series. NY: Margaret K. McElderry Books. 485 pages.

Clary Fray is your average teenager – if you don’t count her fabulously beautiful, mysterious, genius artist mom. Unfortunately her fabulously beautiful, mysterious, genius artist mom DOES count, and when she goes missing, Clary’s search for her ends up drawing her into a world of demons, angels, hot boys, and mortal peril.

Reading this book was sort of like eating cheesecake, I liked it for the first two bites and then everything after that was too much and gave me a stomach ache. I usually dig these supernatural romances, with all the angst and drama – but this book had about three love triangles too many. Well, there were only three total, but I’m not particularly fond of love triangles, so that was a major turn-off.

For those who are familiar with Cassandra Clare’s earlier net-published works, there are no surprises here. Draco Jace, shadowhunter and bad boy, is sexy and morally conflicted. Ron Xander Simon is a wonderfully witty and under-appreciated side character. And Clary – Clary is a Mary Sue. Cassandra Clare, while she can create interesting and compelling characters, has a very hard time here realistically depicting the details of her protagonist’s life, from her artistic talents (overly and obnoxiously romanticized) to her curly hair (never frizzy!) As a curly haired artist, there were points during the novel that I was actually offended by the level of, how shall I put it? Artistic license.

Booktalk Hook: If you’ve ever wanted Buffy the Vampire Slayer to have babies with His Dark Materials, you’re in luck: you can find the best of both fictional worlds in Cassandra Clare’s dark and sexy Mortal Instruments series.

And if you liked the book: You might want to try Winter Sonata, which has a lot of the same angsty, romantic flavor.

And remember kids, double check your family tree before you go after the hot new boy on the block.