Prince Jal is a total jerk. He is completely unlikable. He sleeps around with women treating them like objects, he has a sever gambling addiction, and he is a total coward.

Except. . .

Even as a total jerk I couldn't help but become infatuated by him. You know that person that has no distinguishing characteristics, yet you still remain friends. There is just something about them that gives you hope.

As I continued on with the story I grew to like Jal more and more. There are parts that make you that maybe he is worth all your adoration. Then you left face palming yourself wondering why you bother.

Except. . .

Prince of Fools is more than Jal. It is different perspective on the Broken Empire. It is an epic fantasy novel. It is exceptionally written, and an enjoyable read.

I mean, if too much growth happened in the first book then what would be the point of the last two? Although, I have a feeling that Lawrence will once again not bow to expectations. I am already left wondering how the trilogy will end.

The tale of Ebeneezer Scrooge is enshrined in our holiday traditions. You cannot turn on the television without seeing a remake of this classic tale. It is performed in playhouses across the world. It is even captured in our vocabulary of the season. . . "Don't be such a Scrooge."

Yet. . If you have not read the original tale written by Charles Dickens then you are missing out.

The tale is a novella. It is rather short and I finished it this time around in just two hours. However, even after reading it for every holiday season since Jr. High I still enjoy the way that brilliantness of the words and the mastery of the world building. Dickens is one of my favorite writers, and this work is no exception.

I remember the first time I was introduced to A Christmas Carol. It was in Jr. High where one of my teachers wrote "Any idiot who goes around with 'Merry Christmas' on his lips, should be boiled with his own pudding, and buried with a stake of holly through his heart!" That teacher was a bit of a Scrooge himself, but as an adult I would be in his place also. While the quote was meant as an anti holiday statement, it started my love for Charles Dickens.

If you have not read A Christmas Carol - the actual novella by Charles Dickens - then I strongly urge you to do so!

Legend is the first book in the Legend trilogy. It is a dystopian novel set in a time when the United States was split in two by the effects of climate change. Like most societies the rich try and stay in power and the poor suffer. When you push people down they try to rise up. However, Legend is the story about two people. Day was born poor and failed his trial - a test to determine where you fit into society. The rare children who fail are ultimately used for experiments and killed. Except that Day escaped. He lives as a ghost, helping his family from afar and hurting the Republic as much as possible. The second story belongs to June. June is a prodigy, the only person to score perfectly on her test. At fifteen she has been fastracked through college and is set to soon receive a prestigious assignment in the military. She was born into the privileged class, although her life is not without challenge. Her parents both died when she was young and she was raised by her older brother. When Day is accused of killing June’s brother she is sent to track him down.

The book is full of strong characters. Day and June are both unique and relatable. Although, even the side characters have there own complexity. The world building is also captivating. It is scary how easy you could see society gravitating to a similar structure. Overal the story really gripped me. I could not put the book down. Although, all the death was depressing and the YA love was a bit too much. Although, thankfully, it was not the focus of the story.

Virtual reality was discovered by a young teenager ten years ago. The discovery happened at a critical period in the developer's, Hideo Tanaka, life. However, it was also a saving grace for Emika Chen, a ten year old orphan, who uses it as motivation to learn how to code.

Now every aspect of the world has been changed. Warcross, the default game included with the virtual reality software, is a global phenomenon. Every year a major tournament is held. Except this time Emika glitches herself into the opening ceremonies. What follows is an amazing ride of action and interactions. Some predictable and others that take you by surprise.

Warcross was the first book that I read by Marie Lu. She is now fast becoming a favorite author, although Warcross is still my favorite book. I love that it takes on the impact of the internet in our life, the reach of corporations through that use, and the choices we as consumers can make. It also is a total gamer geek paradise.

The characters are amazing. They are very diverse, from different genders, nationalities, abilities, sexualities, and even socio economic backgrounds. All of them come with rich backgrounds and are so vivid that I feel like I know each one.

This is a new all time favorite book. I cannot wait to read it again.

The Memory Keeper's is Natalie Ngan's second novel. It is a YA Science Fiction novel set in London. London has been split in half. One half is full of prosperous aristocrats. The other half is the slums, full of people trying to survive poverty. Seven is a thief - he steals memories. He makes copies and then surfs the memories in his spare time. It is a way to live another life without ever leaving your own.

The premise of the novel is extremely interesting. There is a clandestine organization doing experiments for personal gain. There is a Romeo and Juliet love story of two people from opposite sides of the tracks. It has the making of a great story.

Unfortunately, it falls short. The story is not very flushed out. At times it just becomes downright weird. When the truth is reveled it felt very anti-climatic. I guess the impact of the situation was not explained enough for me to get why it would matter. The story itself wasn't very connected. It had the making of a great novel, but I felt that it felt polish.

I have enjoyed Lauren Graham's past works and was anticipating the release of her third. Since I had it on my TBR since before much information was released, I did not realize that this was not a full length book until I was already half way finished with it. I listened to it on Audiobook and at first thought the length left was for a chapter. I double checked and realized it was for the entire book.

Ultimately, there are good words of wisdom contained in the volume. The basic theme is that you are enough, and there are no small parts. It is a great message, I just feel that there was room for more to be said. Specifically, I felt that there was more for Graham to have said on the subject.

I also enjoyed that once again Graham did the narration herself. However, I felt that it would have been better released as an essay or part of a collection rather than a stand alone book.

I have read the second book in the Harry Potter series many times. Ironically enough I have never written a review. It is difficult to write a review for a book that you know so well, specifically when you know the story intimately in both print and video form. However, I reread with the purpose of reviewing the story.

Ultimately, I found the second book to be enjoyable. It is still amazing writing and amazing characters. The world of Hogwarts is alive and draws you in. There is adventure that keeps you on the edge of your toes, even when you know exactly what is going to happen.

However, I found that I was not as enthralled with the second book as the first. When I finished the first book I was left with a "wow that book was amazing" feeling. When I finished The Chamber of Secrets it was more like, "yeah that was good." I did feel like there was too much retelling. The first third of the book was a recapture of the first book. At the time Harry Potter was not the social phenomenon that it is now. Even so, it probably did not need so much recap.

Ready Player One
by Ernest Cline

Review: ***** (5 stars)
Book Length: 386 pages
Genre: Science Fiction

Most new Science Fiction hasn't made it into the long list of sci-fi greats. I mean there are a lot of really great science fiction authors, and science fiction readers are very passionate about them. You can even see that in this book. The main character -Wade- names his spaceship Vonnegut after one of the greats. Seeing a book that was published in 2016 on all of the great lists (well those published or modified after it's release) took me by surprise. I, of course, had to read it. I am extremely glad that I did.

Ready Player One was a nice engaging read. The book was fun, it captured my attention and pulled me in. It pulled me in so much I decided that reading was a lot more important than sleep. I finished close to one this morning. Since I wake up at five you can see my addiction to finishing this novel.

This novel is a cult classic celebrating cult classics. It is dedicated to all things 80s specifically arcade games. Can you remember your first video game? I can, it was a brand new Nintendo console where I played Mario Brothers and shot birds on Duck Hunt. Soon after I also got a Genesis (like an Atari) and played some of the classics.

Those games are nothing like the video games that we have now. I mean compare them to Pokemon Go or World of Warcraft. Yet, they will forever live in the hearts of gamers everywhere. If you can relate to what I am saying then go right now and get this book. You will absolutely love it!

If not then you may still love it. The writing is good, the plot flows well, and the characters are engaging. It is fascinating and extremely relevant to think about the world where we have developed a virtual reality. This book adds to that nitch in a fun and new way.

The Book Recluse Review

Bound is a short story in the Book of the Ancestor series. It falls between the second and third book. Bound gives us a snapshot into the world that many of us have come to love. I adore Lawrence as a short story writer. He brings a character to life in such a short time period, and allows a connection in a way that is usually absent from short stories.

This story is no exception. Ara is brought in to a mission that, as the daughter of an aristocrat, only she can do. However, Nora is hesitant to let her friend take the risk alone. Regol is brought in to help support Ara. This creates a unique type of love triangle that I actually enjoyed reading about. It brought about complexity to their relationships and was not the traditional cliche troupe.

Overall, I really enjoyed the read. It is worth the read, but most likely will not impact the main story line.