Archive for 'saga'



REVIEW: The Winter Rose by Jennifer Donnelly

Dear Ms. Donnelly,

171015.jpgWhen I opened the package containing the arc of your latest book “The Winter Rose” I gulped. Reason one: it’s got a very nice cover. Reason two: it’s a hella lot of book. 700+ pages of trade paperback sized book to be exact. It’s the type of book that requires a big time commitment from a reader. Not only because of the length but also because of the plot and intensity of the read. Readers who have longed for a return to the sprawling sagas of days past will rejoice, I think. That is if they really want to read this type book again. As I read it, I unfortunately found that that type of reader is not who I am anymore.

After a trip over to the Big Internet Bookstore to check out reviews of the prequel to this novel, “The Tea Rose,” I found that a lot of readers must want to read this genre again or for the first time. Reviews ran heavily towards five and four stars. However it was the three and under ones I chose to read and I found that they eerily mirrored my …

REVIEW: Rivals for the Crown by Kathleen Givens

Dear Ms. Givens,

Book CoverYour book shows that a nice cover can sell books. I was wandering in Waldenbooks, looking to use a coupon I had and randomly picked up “Rivals for the Crown.” It wasn’t until after I got home and started reading it that I realized this is a sequel to “On a Highland Shore.” I think you did a great job of catching up new readers on what happened in that book (and there’s a lot of history of some of these characters to get caught up on).

You’ve chosen one of the most tumultuous eras in Scottish history as the backdrop — a time when the fate of the nation is at stake. And then added your fictitious twists to that. This book is packed with characters and packed with action as well. Thank God for list of characters, map and geneology chart which you provide — there’re a lot of characters, both those featured in last book and those featured in this one plus historical personages, to keep up with and I would have been lost at times without the guides.

1290: Turmoil erupts when the seven-year-old queen …