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The Dark Talent (Alcatraz #5) Brandon Sanderson. 2016. 304 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: So there I was, standing in my chambers on the day before the world ended, facing my greatest adversary to date. The royal wardrobe coordinator.

Premise/plot: The Dark Talent is the fifth book in the Alcatraz series by Brandon Sanderson. Alcatraz Smedry, the self-confessed coward, is the hero of this one. Alcatraz and his team (including his grandfather, Leavenworth, and his Uncle Kaz, not to mention his MOTHER,) are heading to the Hushlands, to the Highbrary (aka Library of Congress) for a final stand. Readers will finally come full circle: So there I was, tied to an altar made from outdated encyclopedias, about to get sacrificed to the dark powers by a cult of evil Librarians. But what makes for an amusing first sentence in the first book makes for a devastating scene in the fifth and final book.

My thoughts: I'm really torn with this one. I do not want to spoil the book in any way. But it's like pushing through the last chapters of Gone With the Wind after Bonnie's death. You don't want to leave it unfinished. You don't want to be a coward and have to put the book in the freezer. But you almost dread turning the pages because you know what's coming. Because, let's face it, you've either read the book a dozen times or seen the movie a dozen times. You know that FOG is coming closer and closer and closer. The question is not will Rhett leave Scarlett, but, will you--the reader--pull it together enough to be there with Scarlett when the end comes.

Last books in series carry a lot of weight. For better or worse. They can set in stone your thoughts about the series as a whole, about characters, even authors. (I have to admit that I lost my faith in Stephenie Meyer as a writer after reading Breaking Dawn.) I wouldn't go so far as to say I think less of the series after reading this book. That would be too melodramatic of a response. But I can easily say that this one is not my favorite of the five. There is a sadness in this one--almost cover to cover--that humor can't displace.

© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Weighed in the Balance. Anne Perry. 1996. 373 pages. [Source: Library]

Out of all the William Monk mysteries that I've read so far, Weighed in the Balance was the one that has proved the hardest going. In other words, I found it dragging from almost start to finish. I'm not sure if it was my mood, or, if possibly it was the case, or perhaps even a bit of both.

Sir Oliver Rathbone has accepted a new case, for better or worse, and it's a matter of slander. He's defending a woman, a foreigner, Countess Zorah Rostova on a slander change. She has accused someone (Princess Gisela) of murder, and, won't back down even though there isn't a bit of evidence against the woman. Not that anyone looks until Rathbone hires William Monk to investigate. But still.
The case is frustrating and loathsome to him. Even after the trial starts, he is clueless as to what to say in her defense. He can't possibly win this case. It's a matter of how big a fool he wants to appear. Should he try to build a case that it is murder, or was murder, but that his client was mistaken in WHO did the crime? Or should he try to hush up the murder-aspect of it? Does he himself believe there was a crime committed? Can he work up a believable motive?

One character I appreciated more than the others in this one: Hester Latterly. I didn't have to yell at her even once while reading this one. I did, I must mention, have to yell at William Monk more than once. Rathbone, well, he always does the honorable thing, and rarely needs yelling at.

Hester has nursing duties in this book. She's tending a young man after an injury, and, he'll likely never walk again. She brings a young woman into his life, a woman first introduced in A Sudden Fearful Death. I do enjoy how the series works. It's a whole world the author has created, and, characters are always reappearing as they carry on their lives. It's nice to see. And it's not something you often see in a mystery series.


© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew'd. (Flavia de Luce #8) 2016. 320 pages. [Source: Review copy]

First sentence: The winter rain slashes at my face like icy razor blades, but I don't care. I dig my chin deep into the collar of my mackintosh, put my head down, and push on against the buffeting of the furious wind.

Premise/plot: Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew'd is the EIGHTH novel in the Flavia de Luce mystery series by Alan Bradley. If you're not hooked to the series by now, chances are my review won't persuade you to pick this one up. Do you have to read the books in order? Yes and no. I'd say that it's always best to read the first book first. But perhaps after that if you've missed one or two then it would still be okay to pick up this newest one and treat yourself.

So, what is it about? Flavia de Luce is home from Canada--it's almost Christmas--and things are not the same at home. Her father is sick and in the hospital. Which means almost everyone is acting differently. And every day there is the question: will the hospital allow visitors today?!?! For too many days in a row the answer has been NO. One thing that is the same? There is a mystery to be solved. While doing an errand for Cynthia, I believe, she comes across a dead body--Mr. Sambridge, a local woodcarver.

My thoughts: The mystery in this one is very interesting in my opinion. While I've enjoyed the past few books in the series okay, I think this one is my favorite by far. It is COMPELLING and EMOTIONAL. And oh the ending....it revealed how much I do CARE about the characters and it made me want to yell at the author.

There are times when even family can be of no use: when talking to your own blood fails to have meaning.

As anybody with two older sisters can tell you, a closed door is like a red rag to a bull. It cannot go unchallenged.

Playing the clown is not an easy task. Clowns, I have come to believe, are placed upon the earth solely to fill the needs of others, while running perilously close to "Empty" themselves.

You can learn from a glance at anyone's library, not what they are, but what they wish to be.

Giving someone the benefit of the doubt is not so simple as it sounds. What it means, in fact, is being charitable--which, as the vicar is fond of pointing out, is the most difficult of the graces to master. Faith and hope are a piece of cake but charity is a Pandora's box: the monster in the cistern which, when the lid is opened, comes swarming out to seize you by the throat.

The world can be an interesting place to a girl who keeps her ears open.

Authors are known to have fiendishly clever minds, and the authors of children's books are more fiendishly clever than most.

Some sleeps are washed with gold, and some with silver. Mine was molten lead. 

© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

The Borrowers. Mary Norton. Illustrated by Beth and Joe Krush. 1952/2006. HMH. 192 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: It was Mrs. May who first told me about them.

Premise/plot: Ever wondered why there's never a safety pin when you need one? Readers meet a family of Borrowers who live under the kitchen floor in an older house. Pod is the 'borrower' of the family. He knows the routines of the 'human beans' and can go out and about without being seen, most of the time. He doesn't mind being seen by the matriarch of the family at night. (She thinks she's hallucinating because she's had a couple too many drinks.) His wife, Homily, is quite satisfied to stay safely in her house behind dozens of locked gates and such. (She gives him plenty of instruction on what to borrow, however.) The couple's daughter is Arrietty, and, she is the book's heroine by my reckoning. She meets a boy that has come to stay--recuperate--for a couple of months. They become very, very good friends. She reads to him. He brings her and her parents STUFF for their home. (He 'borrows' freely from the house, most notably from a doll house that everyone seems to have forgotten about.)

Readers learn about the dangers of being a Borrower and 'the good old days' when the house was FULL of families. Arrietty fears that her family is the last living in the house.

My thoughts: This one is super fun. It is also quite suspenseful at the end!!!! I definitely recommend this one!

© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

The Stars Never Rise. Rachel Vincent. 2015. 368 pages. [Source: Review copy]

First sentence: There's never a good time of day to cross town with a bag full of stolen goods, but of all the possibilities, five a.m. was the hour best suited to that particular sin.

Premise/plot: Nina Kane, the heroine, is contemplating pledging herself to the Church--the Unified Church when the novel opens. But a few things get in her way of making that commitment. First, her fifteen year old sister, Mellie, rebels and flees a school required assembly, second, comes the big reveal that Mellie is PREGNANT. Since pregnancy requires a license and the full permission of the church beforehand, that's a BIG one. Third, the WAY their mom reacts to the news that she's going to be a grandma turns Nina's world upside down and then some.

Things you should know:
It's a dystopian novel (YA, of course) with a very urban setting for the most part.
There is NOT a love triangle, but, there is a romantic twist.
You should forget everything--and I do mean EVERYTHING--you know about "the church." This futuristic UNIFIED CHURCH should not in any way be connected to the actual Christian church of this or any age.
The book is all ACTION, ACTION, DRAMA.
What is predictable, in a way, is that the heroine comes into her own and gains an ability--an advantage--for surviving in the crazy world she lives in.
The world-building is great for the most part. There is some info-dumping squeezed into the novel early on. Nina is quizzing kindergartners on some fairly basic material....material that the author definitely wants readers to know.

My thoughts: If you look at the bare facts of the premise, there would be no reason in the world for me to like it--or love it even. It's PARANORMAL. There are demons and exorcists. And even zombies, though they are not called such. The church instead of standing for good, is a downright evil institution. And yet, I could not put this one down. I read it in one day. I read both books in the series over about a thirty hour period.

© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Daisy the Kitten. (Dr. KittyCat #3) Jane Clarke. 2016. Scholastic. 96 pages. [Source: Review copy]

First sentence: Peanut the mouse wheeled a dentist's chair into the middle of Dr. KittyCat's clinic. "There's a lot to do in Shiny Smiles day," he squeaked, as he pulled a folding screen around the chair. "And don't forget it's the Thistletown Festival, too. Don't forget we're judging the Cupcake bake-off at three o'clock."

Premise/plot: I love the early chapter book series Dr. KittyCat. This is the third book in the series. In this one, Dr. KittyCat with some help from Peanut does two things: a) hold a Shiny Smiles dental clinic b) visits the Thistletown cupcake bake-off. The first chapter focuses on the dental check-ups. Some patients are anxious, others not so much. The remaining chapters focus on the cupcake contest. First, DAISY, one of the bakers, is in need of medical attention. Her paws and her tongue hurt and she has no idea why. Peanut and Dr. KittyCat piece together the clues and have a diagnosis. Then it's time for the two to taste all those cupcakes and declare a winner....

My thoughts: I LOVE Dr. KittyCat. I do. If I could box up these books and send them back in time to myself when I was six or seven I'd be ecstatically HAPPY. I could easily see myself as reading them a couple hundred times. I love them now, but, don't feel the need to reread them every day!

Like the other books in the series, it's CUTE and ADORABLE and FUN. It blends photographs and illustrations. The books provide some very basic medical information.


© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews