Saturday 28 September 2013

The Five People You Meet in Heaven



Book Title: The Five People You Meet in Heaven
Author: Mitch Albom
Date Started: September 24th 2013
Date Completed: September 28th 2013
Genres: Fantasy
Rating: Four stars
Review:

If I was to have gone into a bookshop and see this book, I wouldn't have picked it up. It's not the sort of thing I usually read, but I'm very glad it was given to me as a gift for my birthday. This book really surprised me and I really enjoyed reading it.


Eddie works at the pier he grew up going to. After decades of trying to get away from the place, he's forced to move back and work in maintenance with all the new rides. And then one day one of the rides breaks, and during an attempt to rescue the stranded customers, Eddie dies saving a little girl from a falling cart. But when Eddie opens his eyes again, he still exists. He then meets five people, some of which he knows, some not; but all of them had changed his life dramatically: and now they are here to explain how and why.

The reason The Five People You Meet in Heaven didn't get five stars was mainly because of the writing. It was nice to read the book, because it was quite simple writing and that, along with the fact it is a short book, let me go through this novel reasonably fast. However, nothing really stood out to me in the writing. It was good enough, but there was nothing special about it. I found it hard to picture the setting and people because of the description and it wasn't until I started to know more about the character and his story that I started to feel a little for him (rather than the words moving me from earlier on in the story.)

Having said that, the story compensated for the simple writing. I've never come across this sort of concept before, where you meet people that explain a person's life when they die. It fascinated me, and I think was carried out very well during the book, too. I'm not religious, and I don't believe in any afterlife, but actually I found myself quite liking the idea that there are people that have changed us, and through that, everyone's story eventually merges into one.
The way it was set out was very well done as well. I liked the different parts, and the disorientation, confusion and denial Eddie faced in each one since it was quite believable. The way we were introduced to Eddie gave us very little information by the time he died, which then allowed us to gain facts about his life as we went through the books. It was almost like we were understanding Eddie's life along with him, as each element was explained. I don't know if that was deliberate or not, but I think it worked incredibly well and I really felt for Eddie at the end.
I have to admit, Eddie's last person really touched me. It wasn't the sort of situation that you might cry in, but if it had been, I think I might have shed a few tears.

There's only really one person I can talk about, since the only other people featured much are Eddie's five, and to describe them would ruin it for people that want to go and read this book.
Eddie. At first, we don't really know what to think about Eddie; we know very little about him but he's seems alright: just the 'typical' grumpy senior citizen. Then he dies and we're not quite sure what's going on. But then we learn more and more about him, and we start to understand. What I really like about Eddie was the fact that he was a normal person; he dealt with some bad stuff, and a lot of bad things happened to him. But none of it was unbelievable - it might be unimaginable to think about going through the things he did, but it was realistic enough for me to believe that those things might have happened to him. I think the character also was a good person who made mistakes and had to make decisions in bad times.

The pace wasn't fast, because of the genre, and way the story was intended to progress. But it wasn't slow. There was always something happening, and most of the time relevant information was being given to the reader.

I really liked The Five People You Meet in Heaven, and I think a lot of people would enjoy it, whether it's your typical genre or not. It's a mix between feel-good and actually quite sad, but I think it balances out well. If you like contemporary, you'll love it, but even if you don't; it's very interesting and quite touching to read anyway.
(Thank you Mia, for giving me this book for my birthday x)

Image Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/d5/
MitchAlbom_TheFivePeopleYouMeetInHeaven.jpg

Tuesday 24 September 2013

The Coldest Girl in Coldtown



Book Title: The Coldest Girl in Coldtown
Author: Holly Black
Date Started: September 19th 2013
Date Completed: September 24th 2013
Genres: Fantasy, Dystopian, Romance, Thriller, Horror
Rating: Four stars
Review:

I've been waiting for this book for so, so long. I heard about it ages ago, but when I found out it was being released in September around the beginning of last year I immediately started researching and finding out all I could about Black's latest book. And now, finally, after months of anticipation, I finally got to read it. And I was not disappointed.


The Coldest Girl in Coldtown in set in a future world, where vampires have spread like an infection. All over the world Coldtowns - secured cities where vampires are held - have been set up to protect the major population. But as the glamorisation of vampires through the internet and other media rises, people are starting to go into Coldtowns of their own free will, even though they're not allowed out again, and there are still vampires on the loose all over the world. Tana's mother turned years ago, leaving her family devastated, and when Tana is bitten and possibly infected, it takes a lot for her to leave home. But an ex-boyfriend and runaway vampire she managed to save from a bunch of murderous vampires decide to head into the fortress, she decides to go with them, unaware she's about to enter a place that will both change her life forever, and make her name in this torn-apart world.

I love Black's writing. Always have, always will. The first time I experienced it was in The Spiderwick Chronicles (which I think was my first ever fantasy series - I was a late reader) and I loved it then. At the moment, I religiously follow her updates on the Curse Workers series, and have read all of her Modern Tales of Faerie, and quite a few of her short stories.
The thing I love about Holly Black's writing is the seemingly simplistic nature that actually holds a lot of emotion and action and meaning that a lot of writers struggle with in very complex sentences and structures. The dialogue is always believable and she's very good and creating characters that are consistent and could easily be real. Her action is lovely to read, and her description is great (if a little lacking in numbers).
The one thing I wish wasn't quite so involved with the brand names included all the time. I like to imagine things for myself, rather than being given a name and then having to picture it just like that (e.g. a fizzy drink being described as coke, or videos sites being set as YouTube). I don't know why I don't like it so much; maybe it's just closer to reality that I'd like, but I just don't get on with it very well. It's not a terribly bad thing to do, I just prefer it not to be there.

Black is very good at creating new stories that haven't really been used before, which always makes me even more eager to read her writing.
The biggest thing that really stood out to me was the genre mix: this story is set in a dystopian world, but one brought about by vampires. Maybe I just haven't read it yet, but I've never experienced those two genres being thrown together to create a whole new sort of plot. I really liked it and it's very unique. The way they were portrayed was also really good: there was that beautiful, eerie feeling around the vampires - still with that gritty edge Black is known for - and also the harsher reality of the dystopian world.
The plot itself was actually pretty basic, but with so many little things thrown along the way it worked really well. I loved the alternations between Tana and Gavirel's past, along with Tana and Pearl's present. It was made out to show that Tana was not the only important character, despite her protagonist's role.
There were a lot of links I made in my head between the popularisation of 'vampirism' and issues we see and deal with in our current society. I really like it when these sorts of things are included, not only because it shows that there are people out there who are aware of what's going on and care about it, but also because I know a much larger group of people are going to be understanding it better when explained through a unconscious platform such as reading a story.
The ending was my favourite part. (Unfortunately, The Coldest Girl in Coldtown didn't get five stars from me, but it was very close. If the whole book had been as awesome as the ending, it would definitely have got five stars.) The most obvious part of it was that Tana was clearly the hero. I was a little worried slightly earlier on that Gavriel was going to end up saving the day, and another female character would end up being talented - but not quite talented enough. But Tana was definitely the hero of this story, and she continued on afterwards. But the best part of it for me was the fact that the ending wasn't happy: far from it. But there was still that great feeling for ending a story and understanding its over and being okay with that. Plus I've always loved sad endings more than happy ones.

It took a while for me to like these characters. I liked Tana and Gavriel from the beginning, although I did doubt my early judgements later on, but they were really good. The rest took me a lot longer to get used to.
Tana was a really good protagonist. Blacks' leads are always great, because they really aren't 'normal' or goody-goody at all. She's known for her grit, this woman. Tana was a rebel, and an actual one. And she ended up saving the day and caring more about herself and her family than boys. Always a winner with me.
I loved Gavriel from the start. I liked the way he wasn't really sane, and that was made very clear, and not glamourised.  He was trouble, and he probably did make Tana's life harder than it needed to be, and got her into a lot of bad situations, but that's what makes a story. His backstory was great and I do think (eventually) that he and Tana had good chemistry.
Aidan annoyed me at first. I think that was supposed to happen, but it annoyed me more when Tana started helping him and seemed to be fine with him. Then I felt sorry for him when he started to get really ill, because I do think he actually was a good person: just a bit of an idiot. His ending was a little too happy for me, but there you go.
Lucien was a great villain and Elisabet was threatening. It's rare that I find a fictional character threatening, but both of these characters were that. Their backstories were fairly predictable, but I liked the way their behaviour was slightly out of the expected.
Jameson and Valentina was good, but I wanted more of them. I connected with their characters more than most of the other minor characters, but they were in very little of the book, although did have a fairly large part in the story.
Pearl was okay, but I kept getting confused by how old she was supposed to be: sometimes she was brave and mature, and at other times incredibly childish and irritating.
Midnight and Winter were good characters. Although they were very key in the story, I was a bit surprised by how they came into the story quite a ways in, became extremely important, and then completely disappeared another halfway through. It was just a little strange, but it worked well with the story nevertheless. I really loved Winter; he's the kind of protective brother character I always get on well with. Midnight annoyed me quite a lot because she really was stupid and too stubborn for her own good. But in a way I also kind of pitied her - and I also got so angry with her because I wanted her to do well and be okay. And stupidity just generally annoys me.

The story literally starts from the first page. We end up being given a situation we don't quite understand right away, which raises all kinds of questions and grabs the reader, making them want to read on. Then, in alternating chapters, we get to learn about Tana's history, and we start to understand little details and parts of the character's personality as we go through. In this way, it was almost like a mystery, since we were getting little snippets throughout the entire book, that in the end all drew together to make sense. The great thing about this was that the pace was consistent: even without action or drama all the time, the reader's mind was always working in order to link all the little things together and make a perfect story.

I loved The Coldest Girl in Coldtown. I knew I would, and I was not disappointed. The thing I especially love is the fact that is a teen vampire romance - but it's still so good. I know I am very critical when it comes to Young Adult romance, even more when it involves vampires, because, from experience, I know that a lot of people get away with writing similar stories and making money because it's what teens 'like' - meaning the quality falls and keeps plummeting. But authors like Holly Black regain a little bit of my faith and encourage me to keep looking for good Young Adult authors; they really are out there.
I would recommend this book to anyone who loves a bit of paranormal fantasy; romance; dystopian. There's some good action in there, and the characters are generally easily accessible to many people.

Image Source: http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1367312471l/12813630.jpg

Monday 23 September 2013

Shift



Book Title: Shift
Author: Kathy Reichs
Series: Tory Brennan #2.5
Date Started: September 23rd 2013
Date Completed: September 23rd 2013
Genres: Mystery, Adventure, Sci-Fi, Comedy
Rating: Four stars
Review:

I really liked this novella. It was a nice quick read to remind me of Tory and her friends before the new book comes out early next year. I have to admit, the recapping of the previous adventures for people that hadn't read the actual series did get a bit boring after the first few pages, but when that died down I was able to really get into the story and enjoy the novella.


Shift takes place between Seizure and Code. Tory's great aunt Temperance Brennan (the famous anthropologist and protagonist of Reichs' bestselling series) is visiting her hometown after a break-in at the LIRI research facility where her father works. Determined to impress her idol, Tory and the rest of the Virals get on the job of solving the mystery before the adults.

Kathy Reichs writing, I know, is very good in her adult books. However, I think the transition into Young Adult fiction is a little too exaggerated. It's absolutely fine to read, and works perfectly well for its purpose - I just wish it was a little more sophisticated, since some of the language used is very technical (due to the author having forensic science experience herself).
Having said that, Reichs does know how to create suspense for not-particularly threatening situations, which is helpful in younger fiction, since it's harder for events to become truly serious whilst still being appropriate for the audience.
What I really liked about this novella was the fact we get told the story from all of the Virals' points-of-view at various points. I particularly like Ben's: I could definitely pull his personality away from the words.

The story was okay. It wasn't great, but it's hard to write a great story in such a short space of time - especially when you go into as much detail as Reichs; and have to spend a good twenty-or-so pages explaining previous events the characters have gone through.
What stopped this story from really going downhill was Tempe's inclusion. I loved seeing her function, since I have yet to read Reichs' main protagonists' adventures. I really like her attitude and charisma. She added that little incentive for the Virals to figure out the mystery as fast as they could.

I don't usually get along with typical modern-day characters because I find them kind of boring. I like fantasy and adventure and sci-fi. But I love all the characters here, despite the fact they're just normal people in the normal world. (Ignoring the fact that the protagonists here are Virals...)
Tory is a great protagonist. I love seeing a genuinely clever female lead be pretty much completely independent and without needs for looks or anything else other than her brain, and the occasional bit of support from her friends. You rarely get characters like that these days, so she's definitely a breath of fresh air. (I also love the way that the books kind of mock the mocking of liking science etc.)
Ben is great. I want to give him a hug half the time - not that he'd let me. He's like the typical male interest in Young Adult fiction, only he's insecure not about some deep, dark past or anything, but literally about normal things like liking a girl - and not in the pouting, annoying way either.
Hi is great. I've always really liked him. He's the kind of guy I'd really like to just be friends with - a complete idiot, but actually really lovely, and useful. He's probably the most sarcastic, and I think he's the one Tory's the closest to (friend-wise). Not sure why, but that's just the kind of feeling I get.
Shelton has never really stuck out that much for me, which is a shame. I got to know him more in this, since he narrated a couple of the chapters, and I really liked that. I just feel like he doesn't really stick out from the rest of them. (e.g. Hi's the computer-wizz, Tory's the pack leader, Ben's the muscle.) Having said that, I do still completely love Shelton.
Tempe was great. I'm really looking forward to reading the books that feature her as the main character now. It's also great because we've heard so much about her, and she's been included in little phone conversations before, but we've never actually met her in the Tory Brennan series. But she lived up to the expectations Tory gave the reader.

The pace was quite fast, since a whole mystery had to be solved in around 80 pages, so you weren't really given time to get bored. Despite the fact quite a lot of it was predictable, the little details and the fact we're thrown right in from the start lets the reader get into the story a lot easier.

I really liked Shift. It was less detailed than the series, but that's to be expected in a novella. But all the Tory Brennan books are really enjoyable, and quite informative most of the time. If you're not sure about the series, this could be a good taste, although I think the main books are better.

Image Source: http://kathyreichs.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/ShiftUK1.jpg

I've Been Busy!

I realise I haven't written a review in ages. Sorry about that.
Firstly, it was because I've been reading a very beautiful book - but it's hard reading!
And then I've had to go back to school and there's been birthdays and I've actually had very little time to read at all - let alone write reviews! Having said that, I should be getting back on track as soon as possible.
Thank you for still reading my reviews, I really do appreciate and I look forward to supplying you with even more soon!

Thanks x

Thursday 5 September 2013

City of Masks



Book Title: City of Masks
Author: Mary Hoffman
Series: Stravaganza #1
Date Started: September 4th 2013
Date Completed: September 5th 2013
Genres: Fantasy, Adventure
Rating: Three stars
Review:

I picked this book up rather randomly. It's been on my shelf for years, and I felt like I should try something a little bit different. You can't really call this book a Young Adult story - I don't know whether it's supposed to be or not - but even so, I'm not quite sure if it's a particularly good children's book anyway.


City of Masks is about fifteen-year-old Lucien. After years suffering with cancer, Lucien wants something other than laying in bed, utterly exhausted. But when his father brings him a marbled notebook one day, and he wakes up in a strange, glittering city. He's dragged out of sight by a mysterious girl and soon he's enjoying Bellezza. But his presence in the city is not unknown, and people are coming for him.

The writing is part of the reason I think this is a children's book rather than a teenage novel (I should really check that). It was very easy, and to be honest bored me a little - I ended up skim reading the whole thing, and I was still able to understand the story due to the bare simplicity of writing style. For a children's book, it was good. Not great, but I can't judge it too harshly since I'm not exactly the target audience.
Having said that, I did love the descriptions of Bellezza. It's more than implied that this city is supposed to be a version of Venice, and the atmosphere really did remind me of the Italian City. It was really nice to feel like I was back there, and I think that was probably the best element of the whole book.
I don't know how accurate the description of Lucien's cancer was, but it didn't seem particularly real to me - from a reader's perspective. I think this was a big issue because I wasn't too bothered about what happened to him - I just couldn't connect.

I think my synopsis is slightly inaccurate as, to be blunt, the story isn't that exciting. I knew it wasn't going to be particularly complex, but there weren't really any parts where I was really into the book. It was very clear what was going to happen, and even for harmless villains, there was never really any threat towards the characters. It all seemed a bit rushed to me.
Having said that, it did remind me of the kind of books I read when I was younger. It's not the highest quality of story and writing, but it was still a nice adventure, and actually quite touching towards the end.
The one great part about the story is that certain parts were tied off that most people wouldn't want to lose. There is no going back with what Hoffman decided to do, and that does take a fair amount of confidence to do - especially in a series, where it could limit future events.

There were a lot of characters for such a simplistic book, which I think needlessly complicated the story since none of them really meant anything to me as I still don't remember any of their names.
I liked Lucian. He was a nice protagonist, but he didn't really do anything for the whole story.
I engaged with Arianna's part in the story because she seemed reasonably realistic. She did have affection for her family (especially her brothers, which is something I always get along with) and she really did have passion for the city. She was also the only character to take risks and actually have courage in the whole story. Young readers love courage and that sort of thing, so I expected more.
Rodolfo is definitely the hero, since he was the one to always work everything out for Lucien and actually do stuff to help their situation. He was my favourite character because he seemed to have genuine affection for both Lucien and Arianna.
The Duchessa annoyed me. Even after she turned out to be nicer, she still annoyed me. She seems like a brat who still acts like a child well into her life. Not much else to say about her.

The pace was okay, but it never really changed at all. As a children's book, it needs to be slower to explain everything to its audience, but there weren't any clear climaxes, and even when we did get to the important parts of the story, it isn't really any different from the rest of the book.

I think it's a really nice adventure for younger readers that I feel I would have enjoyed a few years ago (about the time I bought it). I don't think I'll be reading the rest of the series, but I did enjoy this little journey back into my favourite childhood places and stories.

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Wednesday 4 September 2013

Last Stand of Dead Men



Book Title: Last Stand of Dead Men
Author: Derek Landy
Series: Skulduggery Pleasant #8
Date Started: August 31st 2013
Date Completed: September 4th 2013
Genres: Fantasy, Action, Comedy, Thriller, Romance, Horror, Mystery
Rating: Five stars
Review:

I don't think I've ever been as completely speechless as I was when I first finished this book (and several times during). I still haven't quite come to terms with the twists, and I have no idea where the hell the story is going to go from here. But I know one thing: that was possibly the most awesome thing I have ever read to date. I had high expectations, but the final product didn't even come close - as in it overshot those expectations by...a lot.

Note - there will be a spoiler section in this review because I need to vent these feels.

Last Stand of Dead Men is the beginning of the war. But not a war between good and evil; between mortals and mages; between the good guys and the bad. This is a war between Sanctuaries. Fellow mages turning on each other. The sparks have been there the whole time, but now they've been lit and everyone is getting dragged into it. At the same time, Valkyrie and Skulduggery are desperately trying to find a way to stop Darquesse from rising and destroying the world. But time is running out and even Valkyrie's reflection knows her original copy isn't strong enough to hold back for long.

I've always loved Derek's writing. He's amazing at combining so many different genres and aspects into it. Last Stand of Dead Men did take me longer to read than the other books, because it's not only longer, but the writing is more detailed and sophisticated. I've always said that, as the stories have gone on, Landy has really developed along with them. For example, the earlier books are simpler both in plot and style of writing, but this style has adapted as the target audience (of which I am proud to be a part of) has grown up, as well as the author.
The action is flawlessly told, and amazingly exciting to visualise. I love the description, even though it's reasonably simple - but it's just right to fit into the passages and get the desired affect on the reader. The dialogue is great and everything ties in really well together.
There's a very comedic flare to the narration (on top of the hilarious dialogue running through even the serious moments) that engages the reader very well. You get to know the characters really well form whoever's story a certain chapter follows. Since the story is told in the third person, we don't get direct quotes from the character's mind, but we still get their kind of attitude and perspective though the way Landy does present it.

Where to start with the story? So, so much happened. So, so many twists. I can't even begin to describe how well though-out this book was.
I have to say, I did have a bit of trouble at the start with remembering all the characters and everything that had happened in the previous book. The first couple of chapters didn't make much sense to me, and I ended up skim-reading them again once I had reminded myself of the events of Kingdom of the Wicked. After that, however, everything fell into place and became truly awesome.
I love how much the story developed. The book isn't short, I know. But still, within 600 pages, an astonishing amount occurred. And every part of it had me utterly transfixed. When I got about halfway through, I couldn't put the book down. I lost a lot of valuable sleep over this. But it was worth it.
The twists were legendary. I didn't see them coming until they happened. And then I was literally just staring at the page. Like I said before, I have never been so utterly speechless and clueless before. The brilliant thing was also that it wasn't so completely ridiculous that it couldn't be true. Sometimes twists like the ones in this novel are just too far fetched and they just don't work. But I didn't question the revelations. There also weren't just one or two twists; they were appearing throughout the whole book. You didn't have time to process what happened until something else came up. I was shocked by a most of it - which was great because it meant I was feeling something. I very nearly cried - very nearly.
But some of the events in this book must have been thought of AGES ago. I'm talking second-or-third-book ages ago. I wouldn't have been able to keep quiet about those things for that long! Especially since they're so huge and...huge!
The ending. You couldn't leave it on a bigger cliffhanger. I'm used to the Skulduggery books ending on cliffhangers, but this was just mean. (Somewhere in Ireland, Derek Landy is sitting, grinning at his own evilness.)

One of the things I found really hard to deal with - more at the start, I admit - was the sheer amount of characters. I often mistook some of the smaller people with each other, which confused things a little. However, after the first third, I managed to get to grips with everyone.
I could go on for hours about each character, because there must be literally hundreds, but these are, in my opinion, the best and most important.
Oh Valkyrie. You are such an amazing character. So realistic; conflicted, guilty, selfish, making mistakes all the time. That's what makes her so brilliant; she is in no way a hero. Yet at the same time, she strives for what's important. She saves peoples lives and she wants to do what's right. But she makes mistakes, and good intentions fail her, like they do to so many of us (just, in our cases, not on the saving the world scale).
Skulduggery remains to be a truly amazing mystery. I love the fact, even eight books in, we still don't know him that well. And he's still shrouded in secrets. This is emphasised by the fact that we're never given a chapter following Skulduggery's story. We have one for pretty much everyone else, but Skulduggery is always portrayed through someone else's series of events. It's a great technique, and I'm not sure I ever want to learn everything about Skulduggery. I always love mysterious characters; they're interesting because we don't know everything about them.
If you were to ask me who my favourite character was from this series, I would cheat and say all the Dead Men. Because I think I might have actually fallen in love with them. (Yes. Plural.) The Dead Men alive and participating in this book are: Erkskine Ravel, Ghastly Bespoke, Dexter Vex, Saracen Rue and Anton Shudder. I could write whole essays on each of them, but I'll try and keep it quick. They each have their own certain flare, but all share their love of sarcasm, dark humour, quick wits and disturbing tempers. We've known Ghastly since the first book, and Ravel has been around for a while now. But I really loved seeing Vex, Rue and Shudder more in this book. We've met them before, but they became primary characters in this instalment of the series. It's great to see the legends Skulduggery's been telling Valkyrie for ages in real life - and even more hilarious to hear their own stories.
I was so glad Fletcher came back. Oh I love that boy. He's a complete idiot, and infernally irritating, but he's so good. I felt so sorry for him for what happened, and I don't think he did deserve it. But of course, I was glad it happened, because it was great in the storyline. He's very real to me, because you can see when his emotions are affecting him - and that's quite a lot of the time.
You gotta love Tanith and Billy Ray. They're great. They weren't in the book as much as I'd expect, but then again they did just have a 'novella' (I can't even type that with a serious face) all to themselves. But I think they're a great pair and they always add both humour and drama to the story.
I was very entertained to find Ashione Flare in the story. It was strange, because I was just thinking about the girl she's based on, and if she would ever be involved in the story since she's such good friends with the author. And then the next chapter I read featured her alias. It was strange to say the least. Apart from the fact I know the origin for the character, I really loved Ashione anyway. She's feisty and her inclusion was great.
Where is the Kenny story going? I'm so scared he's going to bring everything tumbling down (or more than it already has, anyway). He's great, and I like the way we get to see a mortal's impression of the magical world. It brings everything into perspective.

The pace was great. I found it a little slow to begin with, but that's because I was reminding myself of what had happened and the beginnings of the war had to be set up before it started. After that, however, it was fast and I couldn't put the book down.

[Spoiler Section - do NOT read if you have not read the book yet, and plan to.]
Darquesse! I have so many questions that need answering. What's going to happen there? Are they going to get Valkyrie back? Is Stephanie going to turn into Valkyrie, and then kill Darquesse? Will Skulduggery turn into Vile to help? What's going to happen? The build up to this part of the plot was so good - especially that chapter where Darquesse has taken over, and Valkyrie getting subdued and basically wiped out. Darquesse genuinely scares me, which is a first. And I think she's just as formidable and dangerous as she's been said to be throughout the last couple of books.
Stephanie. What a stroke of genius. I suspected Valkyrie's reflection was going to have a big part in her downfall, and everything that happens building up to the climax of the last book, but I didn't expect this! I admit, I was uncomfortable with Stephanie almost replacing Valkyrie, once she turned bad. Stephanie almost acts like a microcosm for the war between Sanctuaries: she's tired of being brushed aside and wants to be the important one. And if you think about it, while Valkyrie may be better when it comes to the magical side of things, Stephanie is actually superior when it comes to the mind. She remembers everything; every lessons Skulduggery or anyone else taught her; she remembers little details; she understands things to a different perspective than Valkyrie, but still in a sophisticated way. And Stephanie loves her and Valkyrie's family just as much as her original. So why shouldn't she have a life too? I love the way we're made to question this by Landy. It's awesome, and made me feel guilty about the uneasy feeling I got when Stephanie joined the gang.
I'm not going to say much about the deaths but, as much as it may hurt me, they were so vital to the story. I didn't see the coming, which made it hurt all the more. I actually just stared after Ghastly and Shudder were murdered. I didn't even know it had happened at first. Derek writes like that; so casually. It gives a strange affect of where you're detached, like it's not real. This is amazing because it's what I expect actually witnessing something like that would be.
[End of Spoiler Section.]

I recommend Last Stand of Dead Men to everyone. You MUST read the other books first, but do take into account that the story and writing develops and improves as the story goes on. The first book isn't as sophisticated as this novel - not that there's anything wrong with that - but I don't want people to be put off the books because they think the first instalment is too 'simple'.
But you should definitely go and read the series. It's one of the few stories that makes me laugh out loud, makes me nearly cry, and leaves me speechless. The action is wonderfully done, the characters are practically real and the depth and complexity of the story as it grows is indescribable. Go read. Now. If you're still reading this, then you haven't read it yet. Go.

And finally I leave you with this piece of advice: it's a very bad idea not to take the title seriously.

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