Time for some mini-reviews! What are mini-reviews, you ask? As the title suggests, these are short reviews, consisting of one paragraph tops, about a book. It’s a way to catch up on the books I’ve read a while ago, but never got around to reviewing.
The Lynching of Louie Sam
Title: The Lynching of Louie Sam
Author: Elizabeth Stewart
Genre: Young Adult, Mystery, Historical Fiction
Rating: 3 stars
Purchase: Amazon
Fifteen-year-old George Gillies lives in the Washington Territory in the late 1800s, where white settlers have an uneasy relationship with the indigenous people living there. When a local man is found murdered, suspicion falls on Louie Sam, a young member of the Stó:lō tribe. George and his best friend, Pete, follow a lynch mob north into Canada, where the terrified boy is seized and hung.
Racked with doubts, George begins to ask questions. Was Louie Sam really a murderer? As George uncovers the truth, tensions in the town rise, and he must face his own part in the tragedy.
Inspired by a true story.
Review: The book is based upon a true story, which makes it more intriguing, and sad too. While I found Louie Sam an interesting character, and I enjoyed getting to know his world and customs, I wasn’t to impressed with the writing. Could’ve been better. The ending was dissapointing and provided little closure.
Scent of Magic
Title: Scent of Magic
Author: Maria V. Snyder
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Rating: 5 stars
Purchase: Amazon
Hunted, Killed—Survived?
As the last Healer in the Fifteen Realms, Avry of Kazan is in a unique position: in the minds of her friends and foes alike, she no longer exists. Despite her need to prevent the megalomanical King Tohon from winning control of the Realms, Avry is also determined to find her sister and repair their estrangement. And she must do it alone, as Kerrick, her partner and sole confident, returns to Alga to summon his country into battle.
Though she should be in hiding, Avry will do whatever she can to support Tohon’s opponents. Including infiltrating a holy army, evading magic sniffers, teaching forest skills to soldiers and figuring out how to stop Tohon’s most horrible creations yet; an army of the walking dead—human and animal alike and nearly impossible to defeat.
War is coming and Avry is alone. Unless she figures out how to do the impossible … again.
Review: Another one that I didn’t figure was a sequel until I started reading. This book is an excellent read though. I loved Avry, I quickly picked up on the worldbuilding, which is quite extensive and impressive, and all characters seem well-motivated and three-dimensional. Excellent writing too. No wonder this was a bestseller.
Cold Remains
Title: Cold Remains
Author: Sally Spedding
Genre: Mystery, Suspense, Horror
Rating: 3 stars
Purchase: Amazon
When Jason Robbins arrives at the eerie Heron House in deepest Carmarthenshire for a writing course, he soon meets its two weird servants who seem to exercise a sinister power over their scheming employer, Monty Flynn. Another newcomer is Helen Jenkins, a cook, to whom Jason is instantly attracted. Together they discover what dangers really lurk behind those ivy-clad walls; how the terrible post-war past bleeds into the present when the tormented soul of the young woman haunting them will stop at nothing to have her story told. But is the ghost’s version of events to be trusted? And at what cost to Jason and Helen when they attempt to find out the truth?
Review: This book was different, in a way that was sometimes good, sometimes not so good. I found it a bit wordy, the descriptions too lenghty to keep up the suspense at times. I loved how a ghost did some of the storytelling though, and it definitely had original elements. It’s a mix of mystery, suspense, horror, thriller, set in a beautiful, atmospheric landscape.
[…] Mini-Review: The Lynching of Louie Sam, Scent of Magic, Cold Remains […]