heddas_bookgems's Reviews (490)

“Did you know […] that when you take away a person’s fear of pain, you take away their fear of death? You make them, in their own eyes, immortal. Which of course they’re not, but what’s the saying? We are all immortal until proven otherwise?”

Victor and Eli not only are roommates at Lockland University they are best friends. They are ambitious, arrogant but also very talented. When Eli decides to prove that EO’s (people with extraordinary abilities) exist, things go south. Ten years later Eli is, from being Victors best friend, now his foe. Victor is in search for revenge while Eli wants nothing more than to eradicate every other extraordinary alive. But who will win this battle?

Vicious has been a book that I wanted to read for a very long time. And this didn’t disappoint one bit. On the one hand it was dark, eerie and mysterious, but at the same time it enclosed me with, calm and warm prose. There is something about the writing style from Schwab that just comforts. Next to that these characters were so real; they were complex with destructive tendencies. There was a blur between what was good and what was bad. It was a sort of exploration on what it means to be a hero or a villain, but not in a way that has been done and done. Because who was the real villain, Victor or Eli as both characters strived for their opponents doom.
In this non-linary thrilling story you form a real connection with the characters with all the time a sense of foreboding. I would highly recommend this to anyone who finds character development more important than action.

“'Above and ahead of them the Aurora was blazing, with more brilliance and grandeur than she had ever seen. It was all around, or nearly, and they were nearly part of it.”

Lyra Belacqua and her daemon Pantalaimon live untroubled in Oxford at Jordan College. But suddenly Lyra finds herself in the midst of an adventure when children, including her best friend Roger, are disappearing, her uncle is being threatened, she is getting a job as an assistent and gets an mysterious device.

Many years ago I watched the movie, Golden Compass starring Nicole Kidman and wasn’t really blown away by it. This year I discovered the show on HBO and stopped after loving the first episode to give this, magnificent illustrated, book a go.
This book completely swept me off my feet. It started of fast paced and action packed. It didn’t really told much about the worldbuilding or the way daemons work, but it was an interesting world with loads of characteristic personality’s like travelers, scholars, witches and lovely, but frightening, animals.
This story was a perfect example of the good versus the bad and had a lot of resemblance to The Chronicles of Narnia.
Pullman told in a interview that it was meant to be its counterpart. As Narnia resemblance the religious texts this was to supposed to be an exploration of institutionalised religion.
Because of these themes it did make me uncertain what to think of the story. I don’t mind to discuss these topics, but I wasn’t expecting it in what was supposed to be a MG or YA.
Nonetheless it was a very small part and I did enjoy reading this book with all its magic. I can’t wait to see how the story develops further after such a major cliffhanger.

“Save us, O Gods,’ the troubadour laughed. ‘He, Poppet, has no voice or ear, and can only rhyme “rear” with “beer”. This is Geralt of Rivia, a member of the guild of witchers.”

Sword of Destiny is the second novella in The Witcher Series and contains just as The Last Wish a collection of short stories.

Beginning of this year I read my first Witcher book, The Last Wish. Although I already knew quite something about the world, reading the books was new to me. And, surprise, I liked it a lot. Because of this, I was really looking forward to continuing this series.

While I liked this book a lot, I do need to address a topic, that I briefly discussed in my previous review, a bit further. The Witcher is clearly written by a man as it represents quite a classic example of the male gaze. Every woman in this book is rather objectified. To a point that I realized the behavior of the females characters irritated me.

Withstanding this, The Witcher is a wonderful epic fantasy. Figure this, a book with strong problematic representation still survives, must mean it’s quite good. And it is. The characters are funny, especially my favorite character the bard Dandelion and my treasure, a small innocent and quite the brat, Ciri. The stories are witty, political, romantic and adventurous and thankfully chronological, instead of Last Wish. And the monsters and creatures are so diverse that it keeps you on the edge of your seat.
So it’s no surprise that this book is rather popular. As, well, who doesn’t like this world or a cat eyed, husky voiced man with a heart of gold and swords.

“For a moment Eddard Stark was filled with a terrible sense of foreboding. This was his place, here in the north. He looked at the stone figures all around them, breathed deep in the chill silence of the crypt. He could feel the eyes of the dead. They were the eyes of the dead. They were all listening, he knew. And winter was coming.”

In the land of the Seven Kingdoms a long time forgotten event lead to seasonal unbalance. Summers can last a lifetime. But now winter is coming.

Game of Thrones is become a brand, a paragon of epic fantasy and an example for many writers, it is known. When the show aired in 2011, more than ten years ago, I never even heard of it before. I know, shame, shame. But in my defense, at that time I had been struggling with a massive longtime reading slump. After seeing the show I dived right into reading again. Yet it ended up being a disaster. I started reading Song of Ice and Fire book two, translated in Dutch and I couldn’t make any sense of it. So the reading slump continued. Now, finally, years later, I’ve read the first book. And I thought: WHY?? WHY DIDN’T I READ THIS SOONER?! Because, well, major surprise, I have enjoyed every 674 pages of it. I already loved these characters, but now I really got to know their inner thoughts. I adored the families, the gruesomeness, the romance, the political intrigue’s, the mythic, the historical and the many prophecies. I can make this review longer than necessary, but the only thing I will say is: read it. This book is a must read for any major epic fantasy lovers and I wished I had convinced myself for reading this way sooner. An absolute new favorite.

''I always bother when someone tries to set themselves up against the Witch of the Waste,” said the lady. “I’ve heard of you, Miss Hatter, and I don’t care for your competition or your attitude. I came to put a stop to you. There.” She spread out her hand in a flinging motion towards Sophie’s face.'

Sophie Hatter is young but already feels stuck in her own life when she inherits the Hat Store after her fathers passing. But without knowing how, Sophie meddles with the affairs from the Witch of the Waste. Suddenly Sophie isn’t the young girl anymore, but old and stiff. She sees but one solution and she seeks out the help from Howl the wizard from the moving castle.

Ghibli made this wonderful book into a movie in 2004. And so it was years ago that I fell in love with this story. But I hadn’t heard that it was a book, until quite recently. And as adaptations goes, it’s a wonderful one, but the book is even so much better!
I was fully submerged in this whimsical fantasy young adult. Sophie and her sisters, Howl, Micheal, Calcifer and even the hardly speaking dog really felt so tangible, quirky, imperfect but so sweet and love able.
Not for one moment was I bored, I even forgot to take notes as I was transported into this perfect world with tiny spiders crawling in a nook, an abundance of fragrant flowers and damp and wet grass. I highly recommend this to anyone for a story you really can loose yourself into.

''We are plain quiet folk and have no use for adventures. Nasty disturbing uncomfortable things! Make you late for dinner! I can’t think what anybody sees in them.“

When Bilbo Baggins, a Hobbit from Bag End, is getting ready for tea time he has surprise visitors. Not one, but multiple dwarves, entering his home and plundering his pantry room of food and asking him on an adventure. But hobbits hate adventures, right?

The first time I read the Hobbit, almost twenty years ago, I completely fell in love with this wonderful world Tolkien created. I always wanted to reread the book again and waited for the perfect time to do just that. Well, I thought that Rings of Power was the perfect cause to do so.
This time I read the book with the beautiful drawings by Allan Lee that really contributed to the overall experience. I even listened to the audiobook quite a bit too which blew me away. If you ever doubted to read this book, please give this audiobook, narrated by Andy Serkis (Gollem), a try. The way Serkis told the story was without a doubt the best audiobook performance I ever listened to.
Funny enough this book was quite different than I remembered it. I forgot most of it and as a consequence of that it felt almost like reading a new book. In such a way I could fall in love again with these, sometimes grumpy, hobbits and dwarves. Being it a reread I did however loved finding all these different references and prophecies for the rest of the Lord of the Rings saga.
On the whole I really adored reading this whimsical story again. I took me on an adventure together with Bilbo and his companions filled with goblins, dwarves, elves, wizards eagles and a dragon. And let’s be honest, who doesn’t love an anti hero outsmarting dangerous foes.

“All grown-ups were once children... but only few of them remember it.”

When a pilot crash-lands in the desert he runs into a little boy. The boy is full of wonder and questions which reminds the pilot of his own childhood. But some questions are too difficult to answer, as a child and even as an adult.

There is that one moment in life when you realize you have lost your childhood innocence. All day wondering how things work and not having a care in the world. This book by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, who was born in France, explores just that. It’s told to be a mere children’s book, but I think this one transcends that level by miles as it’s multilayered, philosophical and intensely saddening. I couldn’t help but see the similarities of the life of the author and his protagonist, as they both share a same destiny, which made it even more sorrowful.
But besides it being sad it also had a wonderful message. It brushed on topics like keeping in touch with your inner child, living curiously and with an open mind and that everything is just how you perceive the world.
A wonderful read with even more wondrous drawings to admire, but be warned, although it’s a children’s book, it deals with some heavy themes.

'The smell that rose from the mug was rich and warm and nutty… and perfect.She brought it to her nose, closed her eyes, and inhaled deeply.
“Gods. Yes, that’s it.” Relief and elation surged through Viv in equal measure.”

Viv, the orc barbarian, has had it. She adventures for more than twenty-two years and she has had it with blood and gore. She’s trading in her strength and violence for something new: a coffee shop.

If you are in search for the perfect high fantasy read with a snug and cozy feel and warm, nutty tastes and smells? Look no further because you’ve found it. Legends and Lattes has everything of the above and more. It’s fantasy, but instead of harsh and powerful characters you find, cute, weird and wholesome characters. It’s a so called feel-good-fantasy with some thrills on the side. It’s a story about new starts and that it’s never too late for starting over. It’s about finding your true self and growing a business and being open to new possibilities. But most of all it’s about finding friends and family and with loads of coffee and cinnamon rolls. A must read for fall as this is for sure the most wholesome fantasy you’ll ever read.

“Once, in perhaps a thousand years, there may come a man capable of making such a great change in the world. A powerful king, perhaps, or a philosopher, shaping the thoughts of thousands. But you and I, Fool? We are pawns. Ciphers.”

Fitz is still recovering from the attack he endured. He’s a poisoned shadow of his former self. Self pity and anguish makes him decide not to return to Buckkeep. But when Fitz in seizure accidentally skills he decides otherwise as he becomes aware of the health of his King and the political turmoil that’s present at Buckkeep.

As much as I liked the Assassins Apprentice, the second book in the Farseer Trilogy, was a lot harder to get through. Luckily enough this was a buddy read with @booksandrollercoasters , so we pulled each other through the struggle of 600+ pages. Slow fantasy is my jam, but this book was so heavy on character development that it lacked on plot while I desperately wanted to know more about what was happening with the Red Ships.
Nevertheless, I still enjoyed this book. The writing style of Hobb felt yet again like a warm bath on a cold winters day. The characters were so well fleshed out that they felt almost like I reunited with my family. So when I was rejoined in company with Burrich, the Fool and the strong female characters like Kettricken, Molly and especially Patience (bless her heart) I was thrilled. I even jumped for joy when Fitz developed a strong connection to the cub, Nighteyes - we are brothers we are pack. Surprisingly this book was quite heavy on romance. Although it did seem a bit much and many seem to hate that specific storyline I quite liked it.

All in all I enjoyed this book and rated it 3,5 stars.