The Palace Job Book Review

The Palace Job

Patrick Weekes

Rating (out of 5): 5

Genre: Fantasy

Release Date: 

Series: The Rouges of the Republic
Series Number: 1

Profanity: Mild

Violence:Mild

Sexual Content: 

Age Recommendation: 16 +

Author Information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patrick_Weekes





Summary:

Loch is seeking revenge.

It would help if she wasn’t in jail.

The plan: to steal a priceless elven manuscript that once belonged to her family, but now is in the hands of the most powerful man in the Republic. To do so Loch—former soldier, former prisoner, current fugitive—must assemble a crack team of magical misfits that includes a cynical illusionist, a shapeshifting unicorn, a repentant death priestess, a talking magical warhammer, and a lad with seemingly no skills to help her break into the floating fortress of Heaven’s Spire and the vault that holds her family’s treasure—all while eluding the unrelenting pursuit of Justicar Pyvic, whose only mission is to see the law upheld.
What could possibly go wrong?

The Palace Job is a funny, action-packed, high-fantasy heist caper in the tradition of Scott Lynch’s Gentleman Bastards series, from debut author Patrick Weekes.

Review:

The Palace Job caught my attention immediately with it's themes of magic and mischief and didn't let go until I turned the last page. It's the perfect blend of magical mayhem and hilarious action.

The story opens up with Loch in the process of trying to escape from the most impenetrable prisons ever, one that makes Alcatraz look like like a picnic. From there she moves on to collect a haphazard crew of misfits to help her break into an even more heavily guarded palace to steal...a book.

The Palace Job is filled with funny, exciting, and delightful heist activity driving readers deeper into the story as the mystery of what is really going on thickens. The pace really picks up at the end plowing ahead at breakneck speed as everything finally comes together in a stunning conclusion. What I found great about this book is that while there is a sequel it can be read by itself without worry of needing to read the next one for a conclusion. It also kept me laughing through the entire read, which is something I always enjoy.

Patrick Weekes did a wonderful job with each of the characters in this book. There were a lot to juggle and he bounced between points of view so often it should have been confusing but wasn't. Each character had their own distinct personality and carried themselves true through the entire story. I liked them all, but I particularly liked Justicar Pyvic and Kail. Pyvic for his dedication to duty and Kail for his laugh out loud personality.

Weekes has crafted a wonderfully extravagant world that left me pausing more than once to just enjoy it's fullness. It has everything from a wide range of different peoples to a corrupted government vying for the peoples attentions via puppet shows. And I'm  not being figurative, literal puppet shows are the source of news for the people. I can't forget to mention the wide variety of magical aspects that are spread through this book. One of the things I enjoyed best about the magical elements in this book was that they all tied in together, nothing felt thrown in without a reason.

Overall The Palace Job was a great read. It was fast paced and funny but definitely aimed towards an older audience. I'd recommend it to a slightly more mature audience. There isn't anything explicit in it but it does hint at and mention things that might not be suitable for younger audiences. If you like heists, magic, or a funny read then The Palace Job is for you.

Note: I received a copy of this e-book from Netgally for my fair and honest opinion which I have stated above.


~Dawn

The Silver Rings Book Review

The Silver Rings

Samuel Valentino

Rating (out of 5): 4.5

Genre: Children's Fantasy

Release Date: July 1, 2014

Series: None

Series Volume: N/A

Profanity: None

Violence: Very Mild

Sexual Content: None

Age Recommendation: 10+

Author Website: http://www.samuelvalentino.com/



Summary:

Alice and Celia are identical — as twins, and as the recipients of ghastly treatment from their horrid stepmother and stepsisters. To escape, they flee to their fairy godmother Mozzarella’s house. There, Mozzarella advises them to separate and make their way in the world, offering them the rather dubious assurances of troll skin disguises and silver, somewhat magical, rings.

Alice manages to find an abandoned cave of treasure, and settles in to blissful solitude. Celia, on the other hand, runs afoul of a bad-tempered witch, and is promptly turned into a frog. Informed by her magic ring of Celia’s peril, but not her whereabouts, Alice sets out to rescue her. Instead, she finds herself atop a glass mountain, avoiding the love-struck Prince Randall. With Alice’s quest at a standstill, and Celia still enchanted, will the sisters ever realize the high hopes that their godmother envisioned?

Review:

The Silver Rings caught my attention with it's fairy tale mash up plot and adorable cover, so naturally I was excited to start it. After reading the first few chapters of The Silver Rings I wanted to hate it. The whole thing seemed too over the top for me. I was expecting it to be a little ridiculous from the book's summary but what I was given was almost overwhelming. Thankfully I stuck it out to the end and was pleasantly surprised by the delightful story, hilarious characters, and silly hijinks of the plot. The writing style really grew on me, and I found myself looking forward to the next wild thing to happen.

This book tells the story of twin sisters who, despite their evil step mother's intentions, are bright and optimistic. Upon the most recent failure of one of their stepmother's many schemes to get rid of them they finally decide to leave home and seek their fortune's elsewhere. The story is every fairy tale you've heard and more with it's delightful mash up of characters and altered stories.

The Silver Rings is a hilarious story that teaches some surprising lessons along the way. Both children and adults will enjoy Alice and Celia's adventures. The author's refreshing views on love at first sight and perseverance remind us all that things don't always go the way we've been taught. This story is a wonderful introduction into fairy tales and adventure stories for girls and despite the situations that could come across as dark the stories atmosphere and the girls reactions to each situation keep it from getting too serious. 

I said earlier that I wanted to hate the book for it's almost overwhelming amount of zany situations, which at first did seem overwhelming. But the more I read the more I actually enjoyed it. It's just the sort of thing I use to read and write when I was younger and I think that kids would really enjoy it. Alice and Celia's awareness of the world around them adds just enough sanity that readers will stay grounded even when everything else is going haywire. 

The characters are well written and stay true to themselves through the plots progression. I found myself really growing to like each of the characters in the book from the over zelous Randall to the tale-telling fox, Rant. Each one had their own silly charms and added to the story. Rant was probably my favorite character because despite his outrageous stories he was a loyal friend who could make the best of any situation. 

Overall The Silver Rings was a delightfuly silly story with good lessons and fun illustrations. I'd recommend this to anyone wanting a good read and a laugh. I am very glad that I decided to finish this book. 

Note: I received an electronic copy of this book from Netgalley for my fair and honest opinion as I have stated above. 

~Dawn

 

Full Steam Ahead Book Review

Full Steam Ahead

Karen Witemeyer

Rating (out of 5): 5

Genre: Inspirational Historical Romance

Release Date: June 3, 2014

Series: N/A

Series Volume: N/A

Profanity: None

Violence: Mild

Sexual Content: None  

Age Recommendation: 13+

Author Website:http://www.karenwitemeyer.com/





Summary (found on Author's Website): Nicole Renard returns home to Galveston and finds her father deathly ill. Though she loves him, he's only ever focused on what she's not. Not male. Not married. Not able to run Renard Shipping.

Vowing to secure a suitable husband to give her father the heir he desires before it's too late, Nicole sets out with the Renard family's greatest treasure as her dowry: the highly coveted Lafitte Dagger. But when her father's rivals come after the dagger, she's forced to change her destination.

Darius Thornton has been a man obsessed since the fatal boiler explosion aboard the Louisiana that nearly took his life. He will do anything to stop such disasters. Even hire a female secretary. Sure he can ignore the distraction of her pretty face, he's not sure how to proceed when drawn to her clever mind.

Nicole is determined not to let her odd employer scare her off with his explosive experiments, yet when respect and mutual attraction grows between them, a new fear arises. How can she acquire an heir for her father when her heart belongs to an unsuitable candidate? And worse, when her father's rivals discover her hiding place, she will have to choose between that love and her family's legacy.

Review:

Karen Witemeyer does it again with Full Steam Ahead. This is her newest book and I've found it to be her best so far. The writing is quick and witty and the story is very well rounded out and put together.

Full Steam Ahead is an engaging story about the feisty Nicole Renard who in an effort to find an heir for her ailing father's shipping company sets off for New Orleans to find a husband. Events however send her off course to a little town in Texas where she must find a way to earn enough money to make her way to New Orleans. Fortunately she finds work for Darius Thornton a man obsessed with finding a way to make travel on steamships safer. He is an unconventional scientist who has little time for anything other than his experiments, let alone love, and  just may turn out to be the perfect man Nicole set out to find in the first place.

As always Karen Witemeyer is a very creative and cleaver author. Her writing flows well throughout the story and there were no major plot holes in the story. Full Steam Ahead wasn't as funny as some of her other books but it still had moments where I found myself giggling at a paragraph or conversation going on in the book.

Karen Witemeyer's books may be romance's but they are never dull. She always manages to add suspense and danger in her books and her latest is no exception. After reading the summary I was expecting the Jenkins brothers to show up more often than they did, but after meeting them I'm glad that expectation wasn't fulfilled. They are great villains who cause more than their fair share of trouble for both Nicole and Darius. I found myself on the edge of my seat often, eager to see how things would turn out.

From the main characters to the one's who only show up once or twice all of the people who show up in this book are very well written. Nicole and Darius were both very endearing with personalities that made me like them instantly. Their successes and flaws were well rounded and I never found just one thing about either of them overpowering. The minor characters were all very delightful as well. I would have liked to have seen a little more of Nicole's parents, because they seemed like they could have added quite a bit to the story, but I also understand why they were absent for most of the story.
One of my favorite things about Karen's books is the spiritual aspect of them. Her books always deal with issues or questions Christians face daily and she always does a great job writing about these things. Full Steam Ahead was no different. I found myself moved as I read about how Darius struggled with forgiving himself for the Louisiana steam boat accident and inspired when Nicole helped him to see through his struggle and rely on God's love, forgiveness, and grace. This book has come at a moment where I needed to read the words that Nicole told Darius almost as much as he did and I hope that they have a similar effect on others who read Full Steam Ahead.

There are however a few things that I didn't like while reading through the book. About halfway through the book the romance began to really build and heat up, which was good. What wasn't was the fact that Darius' personality seemed to change almost instantly. There are a few events that push this happening, but I felt that he lost a little too much of his personality in his sudden rush of emotion for Nicole. He was still Darius, there was just something missing. Another thing that is nagging at me is the fact that closer to the end a lot of effort is put into letting the reader know about a ring, this ring does show up, but it is immediately forgotten and never brought up again in the book. This isn't a major issue, but it would have been nice to have a final mention of it somewhere at the end.

Full Steam Ahead was an excellent read, one that I would read again. It's historical setting is lush and beautiful and well written. It will lift your spirits and hopefully inspire you to trust in God a little more. I give it 5 out of 5 stars and would most certainly recommend it to anyone looking for a good historical read, romance, inspirational book, or all of the above.

Note: I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley for my fair and honest review which I have stated above.

~Dawn