The Friday 56 (46) The Perilous Sea by Sherry Thomas

The Friday 56 is a weekly meme hosted by Freda's Voice where every Friday you pick a book and turn to page 56 or 56%, and select a sentence or a few, as long as it's not a spoiler. For the full rules, visit the the page HERE

Synopsis from Goodreads...

After spending the summer away from each other, Titus and Iolanthe (still disguised as Archer Fairfax) are eager to return to Eton College to resume their training to fight the Bane. Although no longer bound to Titus by a blood oath, Iolanthe is more committed than ever to fulfilling her destiny—especially with the agents of Atlantis quickly closing in.

Soon after arriving at school, though, Titus makes a shocking discovery, one that makes him question everything he previously believed about their mission. Faced with this devastating realization, Iolanthe is forced to come to terms with her new role, while Titus must choose between following his mother's prophecies—and forging a divergent path to an unknowable future...
"Wintervale was on his feet. "I am all for it."
"And everyone else?" Sutherland gestured at the rest of the room.
"They too, of course," Wintervale answered for them."--The Perilous Sea by Sherry Thomas


Which do you prefer: a gift card or a book as as gift?

Review: The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick

Title: The Invention of Hugo Cabret
Author: Brian Selznick
Source/Format: Won, Hardcover
More Details: Middle Grade, Historical Fiction
Publisher/Publication Date: Scholastic, April 1, 2007

Goodreads     Amazon     Barnes & Noble     Book Depository

Synopsis from Goodreads...

An orphan and a thief, Hugo lives in the walls of a busy train station. He desperately believes a broken automation will make his dreams come true. But when his world collides with an eccentric girl and a bitter old man, Hugo's undercover life, and his most precious secret, are put in jeopardy...

The Invention of Hugo Cabret is the kind of book I want to share with my entire family. It was just really lovely, and I have no idea why I never read it before, though I’m happy I finally did.

The story belongs mainly to Hugo, an orphan after the death of his father and his uncle soon after. He secretly takes care of the clocks in the station, stealing food just to keep from going hungry. There were other characters too—Isabelle, Etienne, Georges, Jeanne—who were tied into Hugo’s story and affected his life in different ways. The story paired with Selznick style was the perfect combination. The way it was told was just fantastic—partly through pictures that depicted scenes throughout the novel.

From start to finish The Invention of Hugo Cabret was wonderful. I have two more of Brian Selznick’s books on my shelf, and I definitely plan to read them soon.

Musing Mondays (41) What I'm Reading

Musing Mondays is a weekly meme hosted by Jenn at A Daily Rhythm, that asks you to muse about something book related each week.

My Musings for the Week...

I have an ARC to finish, but that review won’t be going up for a while. So, for my musing’s this fine Monday morning, I’m going to share about the book I will read this week: The Perilous Sea by Sherry Thomas. After the ending of book one, The Burning Sky, I'm excited to continue on with this trilogy.

About the book (Synopsis from goodreads)… 

After spending the summer away from each other, Titus and Iolanthe (still disguised as Archer Fairfax) are eager to return to Eton College to resume their training to fight the Bane. Although no longer bound to Titus by a blood oath, Iolanthe is more committed than ever to fulfilling her destiny—especially with the agents of Atlantis quickly closing in.

Soon after arriving at school, though, Titus makes a shocking discovery, one that makes him question everything he previously believed about their mission. Faced with this devastating realization, Iolanthe is forced to come to terms with her new role, while Titus must choose between following his mother's prophecies—and forging a divergent path to an unknowable future...

What are you reading this week?

The Friday 56 (45) The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick

The Friday 56 is a weekly meme hosted by Freda's Voice where every Friday you pick a book and turn to page 56 or 56%, and select a sentence or a few, as long as it's not a spoiler. For the full rules, visit the the page HERE

My 56 this week comes from The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick. The quote below is from page 51 instead since page 56 is an illustration.

Synopsis from Goodreads...

An orphan and a thief, Hugo lives in the walls of a busy train station. He desperately believes a broken automation will make his dreams come true. But when his world collides with an eccentric girl and a bitter old man, Hugo's undercover life, and his most precious secret, are put in jeopardy...

"Reluctantly, one by one, Hugo pulled out dozens of objects: screws and nails and bits of metal, gears and crumpled playing cards, tiny pieces of clockworks, cogs, and wheels."--The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick 


What are you reading this week?

Review: The Burning Sky by Sherry Thomas

Title: The Burning Sky
Author: Sherry Thomas
Source/Format: Won, Hardcover 
More Details: Young Adult, Fantasy
Publisher/Publication Date: Balzer + Bray, September 17, 2013

Goodreads     Amazon     Barnes & Noble     Book Depository

Synopsis from Goodreads...

It all began with a ruined elixir and a bolt of lightning...

Iolanthe Seabourne is the greatest elemental mage of her generation—or so she's been told. The one prophesied for years to be the savior of The Realm. It is her duty and destiny to face and defeat the Bane, the most powerful tyrant and mage the world has ever known. This would be a suicide task for anyone, let alone a reluctant sixteen-year-old girl with no training.

Guided by his mother's visions and committed to avenging his family, Prince Titus has sworn to protect Iolanthe even as he prepares her for their battle with the Bane. But he makes the terrifying mistake of falling in love with the girl who should have been only a means to an end. Now, with the servants of the tyrant closing in, Titus must choose between his mission—and her life...

“It all began with a ruined elixir and a bolt of lightning…”

That quote above pretty much sums up what happened to the main character of this novel. A ruined elixir accompanied by a bolt of lightning from there Iolanthe Seaborne was in trouble, lots of it.

This is one trilogy I’ve been meaning to start and I’m glad that I finally got around to it. That is to say I enjoyed The Burning Sky. There were a lot of aspects I liked, including the setting and all of the details typically associated with fantasy—magic, interesting creatures, etc.—thus, this was my kind of novel.

Iolanthe was a pretty interesting character with some faults. Despite repeated warnings she ended up doing stuff that landed her in some pretty hot water. The antagonists of the book had a lot of influence and resources so obviously this presented a roadblock to Iolanthe—who was basically without many connections. Titus, I liked him—yes he was a prince, but his backstory was of interest to me, and I hope to learn more about his mother in the next book. It would be an understatement to say that his mother had a minimal role because despite being deceased, the lingering clues to her life left a big shadow across the entire story—so much so that she might as well have been there anyway.

The book was easy to get into and the plot was pretty good. The Burning Sky relies heavily on the chosen one trope, but I didn’t mind it too much because I was more interested in how the story was going to unfold. After all, Iolanthe was pretending to be a boy while the antagonists were practically on her heels. I don’t have any comments about the pacing of the plot because this was a pretty solid novel. There were enough details to keep me interested—plenty of small things that happened around the central focus of the story.

I still have some questions—about the antagonists, Titus’ mother, and even some regarding Iolanthe herself—so I look forward to reading The Perilous Sea, which I plan on doing very soon.