Category Book Reviews
I love Flavia de Luce! Speaking from Among the Bones is the fifth book in the Buckshaw Chronicles. I’ve read and reviewed the first four books: Sweetness from the Bottom of the Pie (book 1) The Weed that Strings the… Continue Reading →
I jumped on the book-to-movie bandwagon again and picked up a copy of Ender’s Game last month. It originated as the short story published in August 1977, which Card expanded to a book and published in 1985, receiving both the… Continue Reading →
I finished Divergent several months ago, and Insurgent picks up right where it left off, so it took me a little while to get back in the groove. One choice can transform you—or it can destroy you. But every choice… Continue Reading →
Following up on her acclaimed novel, February, Lisa Moore penned Caught which was published earlier this year. It’s already garnered award attention on long- and short-lists. I saw in several places that Caught was being marketed as a crime thriller,… Continue Reading →
Local author Aislinn Hunter will soon be publishing a new novel, and her debut novel, Stay, has been adapted into a film (TIFF, 2013). Stay follows the story of a young Canadian woman living in Ireland with an older man…. Continue Reading →
I picked up a (hard)copy of Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan at one of my favourite local bookstores, Pulpfiction Books. I’ve been eying the book for a while—I even had a discussion with a staff member at Armchair… Continue Reading →
When I heard about The Maze Runner being adapted for the silver screen, I wanted to read the book. I didn’t realize I’d already heard about the book from a friend who was excited to read the prequel, The Kill… Continue Reading →
Horns by Joe Hill is already being adapted for the big screen, starring Daniel Radcliffe (the photo is worth seeing!). I am vain about keeping on top of reading trends—although it’s probably impossible—and I wanted to read this before the… Continue Reading →
The opening chapters had a fantastic set-up: the robot uprising has been defeated (barely), here is what happened. Then, back to the beginning to find out what happened and why. Each subsequent chapter built on the suspense and urgency of… Continue Reading →
I am doing my degree with a minor in Publishing, so I had the chance to read some publishing-related texts this past semester. Here are my (rough) thoughts and musings. On the Subject of Literary Criticism: Considering the topic of… Continue Reading →
I enjoyed The Painted Girls by Cathy Marie Buchanan so much that I’m kicking myself for not reading her first novel when it came out in 2009. The Day The Falls Stood Still was getting hype in 2010 from various… Continue Reading →
Victoria (BC, Canada) author Esi Edugyan was already getting all kinds of award nods for her second novel, Half-Blood Blues, when I finally picked it up. It locally won the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize at the BC Book Prizes, and… Continue Reading →
What really increased my experience while reading Malarky was getting to interview Anakana Schofield for an article I wrote for The Peak. A lot of the interview didn’t make it into the article, but having Anakana articulate her interests around… Continue Reading →
Many great authors got their start writing serialized fiction for the newspaper, notably Charles Dickens for The Pickwick Papers. The difficulty with serial fiction is that the author has to keep the attention of readers so they will return for… Continue Reading →
Divergent by Veronica Roth is the first book in a new dystopian series. You’re probably thinking that this concept has already been done to death, but Roth’s approach and premise is really entertaining. The second title, Insurgent, is already out… Continue Reading →
I’ve been meaning to read Bedtime Story since hearing the author, Robert J. Wiersema, at The Vancouver International Writers & Readers Festival in 2010 with Kathleen Winter and Emma Donoghue. Bedtime Story, tells two tales concurrently: the first of a… Continue Reading →
I finished Maidenhead in approximately three days, feeling the urge to pick up the book at every opportunity. Yet when I finished the novel, I was left feeling empty. Myra, naive and curious, is on a family vacation to the… Continue Reading →
After having read Maggie Stiefvater’s ‘Wolves of Mercy Falls’ trilogy Shiver, Linger, & Forever (click for book review), when my friend Andrew offered me an advanced reader copy of The Raven Boys, I was happy. I enjoyed her previous writing… Continue Reading →
“They’re not chatty. These zombies are not very loquacious. They don’t speak much. They hardly speak at all, because they don’t have any brains. One zombie is not a threat because they are just kind of shambling. But they always… Continue Reading →
I read Stella Leventoyannis Harvey’s first novel, Nicolai’s Daughters, as part of the FictionKNITstas project. Even before I picked up the book, I was concerned about what would happen if I didn’t enjoy it—having to work with the author on… Continue Reading →
I received an ARC of this book, published earlier this year, and just rediscovered it in my shelf. I was easily absorbed into the world of Anna and Coleen, who have managed to become private investigators within Edmonton’s secret supernatural… Continue Reading →
This was an assignment for a student-led magazine at my university that was published out of the department’s student union. Unfortunately, this issue (Spring 2012) never saw publication. When I inquired as to the publication date, I was continually told… Continue Reading →
Far to Go by Alison Pick absorbed me fully—smoothly pulling me further and further into its midst. I didn’t want to stop reading and I absorbed the book in less than a week (quite the feat as it was during… Continue Reading →
Monoceros by Suzette Mayr is an emotional novel of incredible relevance, especially to families, schools, and adults trying to navigate the waters of today’s youth. A seventeen-year-old boy, bullied and heartbroken, hangs himself. And although he felt terribly alone, his… Continue Reading →
A Feast for Crows is the fourth title in George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice & Fire series (aka The Game of Thrones). It seems too good to be true. After centuries of bitter strife and fatal treachery, the… Continue Reading →
