A Book Review: Still Life with Crows by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child

Who is the greatest fictional detective in literature? Sherlock Holmes? Robert Langdon? Hercule Poirot? Auguste Dupin? 

After I finished Still Life with Crows, I believe Aloysius XL Pendergast, who is a special agent of the FBI, should join the rank as a formidable detective in literature.

Let me put it this way: Imagine, a serial killer is running loose in your neighborhood. Who you gonna call? I tell you, Agent Pendergast is the man for the job.

Who is Agent Pendergast? He is a fictional character, created by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child, who are two novelists writing in collaboration. Pendergast made a debut in Relic, a techno-thriller novel published in 1995. Since then, Agent Pendergast's adventures have spanned over 15 books up to date. Still Life with Crows is standing as the fourth installment in this thrilling series of novels. Reading Still Life with Crows makes your heart pound against your chest, as if you are hanging on for your dear life on a roller coaster ride.

Synopsis:

In America's heartland rests a small Kansas town called Medicine Creek. Nothing changes in this town; its surrounding cornfields seem boundless, and along the town's main street squats a two-block stretch of dusty and old businesses.

Although Medicine Creek is dwindling, but its residents are leading a peaceful life. Amidst a summer's blazing heat, Medicine Creek's serenity shattered, abruptly, when a series of ghastly murders and mutilated bodies were discovered in the town's seminal cornfields.

These harrowing murders drew Agent Pendergast's attention to Medicine Creek. He arrived at the town, aiming at catching the killer like a hunting wolf sniffing for its prey. But soon Pendergast discovered the one behind these murders is no ordinary serial killer. This time, Pendergast stares into the eyes of evil, an evil lurking under the shadows from Medicine Creek's haunted past.

My thoughts on this book:

Macabre, is my choice of word for describing Still Life with Crows. In this fast-paced thriller novel, Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child spun a riveting yarn. Its story morbidly fascinates a reader with bizarre murders, and it will send a chill down your spine. Taut with nerve-wracking suspense, this book's convoluted plot turns and twists as its storytelling blasts a reader in the face with unexpected surprises. This book kept me turning the pages from its beginning until its very end, and I loved every page it.

Characters, Still Life with Crows boasts a cast of vividly colored characters. Agent Pendergast, charismatic and intelligent, rocks the story's centre stage with a performance worthy of Sherlock Holmes. This man's deductive power is simply off the chart! Yet, the adventure in Still Life with Crows does not light its stage with a one man show. Supporting characters, notably a Goth teenage girl named Corrie Swanson, shined brightly along side Pendergast's staging. The author(s) blended Corrie's side story smoothly into the main plot like a pair of matching gears.

Without a terrifying, dangerous villain a thriller novel cannot come to life. This book takes its readers on a perilous journey, a journey staring into the face of an utterly terrifying villain. I will not spoil the story in this review, but I think it suffices to say the villain in this book is an individual so strange, so menacing, yet so fascinating that most fictional villains pale by comparison.

A good thriller novel can make a reader's heart pound frantically even if you are resting in the comfort of a couch. Still Life with Crows kept me at the edge of my seat. The cornfields! In this book, scenes of abominable horror transpired in the cornfields, and those scenes are among the most frightful events I have ever encountered in a novel. When I was turning the pages in this book, its atmospheric settings engulfed me in torrents of suspense, horror and mystery. I could not put this book down! I burned with the need to know the story's end and I finished this 560 page book in 2 sittings. A word of advice, I recommend reading this book during a weekend instead of on a night after work, lest you stay up the whole night racing through the book and then struggling at work the next day because you are sapped of energy.

My review for Still Life with Crows comes with high praises. But you might ask:

“Is there any negative aspect about this book?”

I answer this question with a big “NO”. In all honesty, I could not recognize any item to be criticized in this book. I loved Still Life With Crows from the first page until the very last one. I had a blast of a time reading it. This book, and its predecessor (The Cabinet of Curiosities, check it out if you haven't read it yet) nestled themselves at the very top of my list for favorite thrillers novels. I highly recommend Still Life with Crows to lovers of the thriller genre, especially if detective and horror stories appeal to you.

P.S. I will be away on a holiday in the upcoming 2 weeks. During this time, I will not be able to read books or writing reviews. But fear not, my gentle readers, Daniel's Corner Unlimited shall return in the month of April. So until the next time, happy reading!

A Book Review: The Republic of Thieves by Scott Lynch (The Gentlemen Bastards Sequence #3)

“Now I have to wait for the next book.”

The problem of being captivated by an unfinished series of fantasy novels, is that you have to wait for the next book. In the fantasy genre, authors usually plan on writing long series, lengths varying from 7 to 10 books, and the wait for the next book often stretches to several years.

It is almost like dining on a beautiful, 7 course meal but knowing the dishes will only arrive at your table, sequentially, once in every few hours. That, is how I felt when I turned to the last page in The Republic of Thieves, the 3^rd entry in Scott Lynch's highly acclaimed fantasy series, The Gentlemen Bastards Sequence.

Starting with The Lies of Locke Lamora, I stepped into the adventures of The Gentlemen Bastards three weeks ago. Every page of story in The Lies of Locke Lamora charmed me, and the novel joined my list of favorite books. When the time came for reading its sequel, Red Seas Under Red Skies, the book did not disappoint despite having some pacing issues. Next up, I eagerly opened The Republic of Thieves. This book is the 3^rd installment in the series, and I enjoyed this novel so much that I dreaded the inevitability of reaching its final page, knowing that agonizing months await me before the next book can finally greet my reading world.

However, before I return to waiting for the next book, I would like to share my thoughts on The Republic of Thieves. Hopefully my review will convince you to start reading this series too, so you can join me in the agonizing wait for the next book and sharing my pain. Just kidding!

Let me begin with a synopsis for the novel.

Synopsis:

Locke lies on a sickbed, slowly dying while a lethal poison tears through his body.

Unfortunately, no physiker or alchemist possess the skills to purge the poison from Locke's frame. His dearest friend and fellow Gentlmen Bastards, Jean Tannen, looks on at Locke, in grief and in anger at the poisonous sickness stalking his friend's life.

At the moment when the poison was about to extinguish the last breath of life in Locke, an enemy from their past, a Bondsmage, materialized in front of Locke's bed, offering a bargain in exchange for ridding the venom from his body.

What is the catch? This Bondsmage promised to expel the poison from Locke's body, provided that Locke and Jean agree to take on an assignment in the city of Karthain. This assignment, should Locke and Jean agree to contract it, requires them to act as experts to help winning an election for a political faction supported by Bondsmage. The difficulty is, there are two political factions in Karthain, and their opponent's political campaign is led by Sabetha Belacoros, a woman who not only dominates Locke's love life, but she is also an ex-member of Gentlemen Bastards with wits and cunning rivaling Locke's own.

Locke and Jean have no option but to take on the assignment in exchange for the cure. So begins a spectacular match consisting of intrigues and stratagem, intertwined with old romances and personal history, a history tracing its root to a theatrical known as The Republic of Thieves.

My thoughts on this book:

I find Scott Lynch's writings admirable because he is not afraid to try new things. He began The Gentlemen Bastards Sequence with a revenge story, then he expanded the series with a sequel about pirates sailing on a nautical adventure. Lynch continues to reinvigorate this series in the 3^rd installment by telling a story about romances and political heists. That is right, The Republic of Thieves is both a political heist story as well as a tale of romance, where readers finally meet Locke's love interest, Sabetha Belacoros, who was mentioned multiple times in the previous two novels but never made an actual appearance until now.

Sebatha made an impressive entrance onto the stage of The Gentlemen Bastards Sequence. She entered the story as an antagonist to Locke and Jean's operation in this book. Audacious and clever, Sabetha mirrors Locke both in personality as well as abilities and skills. She proves herself a worthy opponent, trading blows of intrigues and stratagem against Locke and Jean. Their rivalry creates an electrifying story about a political heist, where most actions do not reside in physical combats, but instead the actions take places in the form of Locke and Sabetha outsmarting each other to win the election for the political faction they each represent. Furthermore, the story of Locke and Sabetha's rivalry is abundant with humorous touches. When I was reading this book, there were many occasions when lighthearted humors brought smiles on my face. In my opinion, the theme of political heist aligned with The Genlemen Bastards Sequence perfectly, especially because this is a fantasy series of a grimdark persuasion.

Aside from the political heist story, this book also explores Locke and Sabetha's romantic relationship, one that takes place in the present as well as how their romance originated in the past. These two, parallel stories not only gave depth to Locke's character, but they also provided readers with insight into the background of the overall story. In other words, The Republic of Thieves contains two narratives. It is a book flashing between the past and the present. One narration takes place in the present election in Karthaine. The second narration unveils the curtain of history behind Locke and Sabetha's romantic relationship.

One might expect this type of storytelling, flashing between the present and the past, may confuse readers with time jumps. However, Lynch's storytelling works exceedingly well here. Starting from the first book in this series, Scott Lynch has been employing this storytelling device to all novels in The Gentlemen Bastards Sequence, where each chapter consists of two parts: The first part focuses on the events at the present, and the second part details a story that took place in the past. This narrating format gave Lynch an edge as a storyteller to jump straight into the story, painting vivid, detailed portraits for his world and characters, yet smartly evading a slow buildup at the beginning of his book(s). It is also worth mentioning that surprisingly, Lynch's unusual storytelling format provided smooth transitions in between chapters without ever raising a sense of disruption.

The Republic of Thieves is an excellent novel. However, I still opine the first book in this series, The Lies of Locke Lamora, is the best novel in The Gentlemen Bastards Sequence (so far). Having said this, I prefer The Republic of Thieves to its predecessor, Red Seas Under Red Skies. In The Republic of Thieves, I found the political heist story intriguing, it matches the overall theme of this series like a swimming fish in the water. On the other hand, the tale of romance between Locke and Sabetha fleshed out the key characters in this series, giving them depths. I had a great time reading this book and I cannot wait to read the next book. As I said earlier, now begins the agonizing wait for the 4^th book in this series. The next installment is titled “ The Thorn of Emberlain”.

P.S. I have attached a link to a book trailer for The Republic of Thieves, it is made by the publisher Gollancz.

A Book Review: Red Seas Under Red Skies by Scott Lynch (The Gentlemen Bastards Sequence #2)

So you have read a fantasy novel about mighty warriors, kings, queens, dragons and big wars. But have you read a fantasy novel about thieves and heists? If not, then I recommend to you a wonderful book titled The Lies of Locke Lamora. It is the first book to a series of novels written by Scott Lynch, a series known as The Gentlemen Bastards Sequence.

I read The Lies of Locke Lamora last week and I enjoyed every page of it. This week I read its sequel, titled: Red Seas Under Red Skies. As the book's title suggests, this story has something to do with the sea. In fact, Red Seas Under Red Skies differs considerably from its predecessor. Instead of rehashing the elements that gave success to The Lies of Locke Lamora, in this sequel, Scott Lynch explores a new avenue for his story. I admire Lynch's audacity for trying to write something new in a sequel. Firstly, let me provide a synopsis before I begin to share my thoughts about Red Seas Under Red Skies.

Synopsis:

In the exotic city of Tal Verrar sits the towering Sinspire, a luxurious gambling house buzzing with high class entertainments. In a decadent venue such as Sinspire you can find people burdened with wealth. Their burdens, however, are about to be relieved by Locke Lamora and Jean Tennan, con man extraordinaire, who stepped into Sinspire with an elaborate plan to reach their hands into its teeming vault of treasury.

Locke and Jean's plan came very close to fruition, but the duo's secret was discovered and subsequently came into the hands of a high power in Tal Verrar, who blackmailed Locke and Jean into taking a dangerous job. Before long, the Gentlemen Bastards find themselves on board a pirate ship, sailing on red seas under red skies.

My thoughts about this book:

Set in the crowding city of Camoor, The Lies of Locke Lamora began The Gentlemen Bastards Sequence with a revenge story. In the series' second installment, Red Seas Under Red Skies, Scott Lynch takes his readers away from the urban setting, embarking on a sprawling pirate adventure scouting the exotic towns and ocean ports among Sea of Brass.

That is right! Red Seas Under Red Skies is a fantasy pirate adventure. While this book still centres itself around a series of heists, featuring our beloved Locke and Jean pulling off games after games of cons, but the theme of a pirate adventure, one that rarely appears in fantasy novels, is utilized in this book to craft a unique and ripping yarn. In this book, Locke and Jean's journey on Sea of Brass gave readers a taste for the vastness of this fictional world.

In other words, Red Seas Under Red Skies sets its ambition high. Not only does it continue the excellent story that began in The Lies of Locke Lamora, but this sequel also attempts to expand the universe of which these characters dwell, in the process setting up the premises for future installments to this series.

Did this book succeed at what it attempted to do? How does its quality measure up against its predecessor?

I admire Red Seas under Red Skies for its scope and ambition. In this book, Scott Lynch tells an engaging story that is both excellent in its writing as well as its characterizations. The setting in Red Seas under Red Skies reminds me of Pirates of the Caribbeans movies. The worldbuilding in this book is detailed but not cumbersome. Locke and Jean's adventures on a pirate ship came vividly to life under Lynch's beautiful writings, while portrayals for sea towns and ports were depicted with vibrant descriptions that immerse its readers deeply into the exciting world of The Gentlemen Bastards.

Red Seas Under Red Skies excelled at its writings, characterizations, and worldbuilding. Despite these qualities, this book is not flawless. Personally, I prefer The Lies of Locke Lamora than this book. An uneven pacing of the story prevents this sequel from being as great as its predecessor. Red Seas Under Red Skies started off with exciting narratives in the first 150 pages. This book's first act let its readers re-live the excitements that flow in the veins of its predecessor. However, when the book reached its second act, the story's pace slumped, and the chapters moved slowly for the next 200 odd pages. When I was reading this book, boredom was setting in as the story reached its halfway mark. Fortunately, the story picked up its pace after the halfway mark, rapidly gaining momentum in the last 250 pages until the book concluded in a spectacular manner. In my opinion, the plummeting pace in the middle of the story stands as the greatest flaw in Red Seas under Red Skies, while an excellent start and a stunning conclusion pushed this book above the standard as one of the better novels in the fantasy genre.

The Gentlemen Bastards Sequence is an excellent series. Scott Lynch's fictional world, one that resembles the late renaissance, is a beautiful and lively place, inhibited by memorable characters who will live on in your mind even after you close the books. This series began with a stunning debut novel called The Lies of Locke Lamora, and the story continued in its sequel, Red Sea Under Red Skies. While this sequel may not be as great as its predecessor due its uneven pace, but it is nevertheless, still a fine tale with an intriguing start and a spectacular conclusion. I highly recommend this series to fans of the grimdark fantasy genre, especially to those who are fond of novels written by authors such as Robin Hobb and Patrick Rothfuss.

P.S. I wish to compliment the cover for this book. It is as gorgeous as the cover for The Lies of Locke Lamora. 

A Book Review: The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch (The Gentlemen Bastards Sequence #1)

Take a look at the image sitting at left hand side of the screen. The image is the cover art for a book called The Lies of Locke Lamora. Don't you think it looks gorgeous?

The conventional wisdom says: Do not judge a book by its cover.

That is true. But some books tell stunning stories, stories that deserve to be covered in gorgeous artworks. This is the certainly the case for an enchanting story known as The Lies of Locke Lamora, and only a handsome book cover can do this novel justice.

I think it suffices to say, this novel is sitting high up on my ever-growing list of favorite books. But what is The Lies of Locke Lamora? Let me provide a short description: Try to imagine Catch Me if you Can (the movie) + grimdark fantasy, set in a fictional world resembling the late renaissance.

Does this interest you? If so, feel free to continue reading my non-spoiler review.

Synopsis:

Built on the ruins of a forgotten race, Camorr is an island city teeming with a rife populace and grand architectures. On the surface, the city is exuberant with trades. The street corners and its shadowed recesses, however, belong to the underworld crime bosses.

In Camorr, an orphan is usually destined to live a short and harsh life. Locke Lamora is an orphan, who, with his quick wit and talents for thieving, made a narrow escape from death and slavery at an young age to be apprenticed under Father Chains, a master thief.

Father Chains passed down the arts of thievery to a selected group of orphans, collectively known as The Gentlemen Bastards. Under his tutelage, Locke grew up and became a con man extraordinaire, leading The Gentlemen Bastards and pulling off case after case of ingenious cons. In Camorr, not a treasure vault, and not a wealthy noble, is immune from Locke's bite.

Under Locke's brilliant leadership, he knitted The Gentlemen Bastards into a close family, the wealth they “acquired” from unsuspecting nobles grew into a king's ransom. Meanwhile, to the eyes of Camorr's most dangerous crime boss, Locke and his brothers successfully passed themselves off as nothing more than petty thieves. The Gentlemen Bastards were having a great time, until an ambitious and dangerous individual, hiding in the shadows and cloaked all in gray, began pulling strings of devious plan, shaking Camorr' foundation.

My thoughts on this book:

We have seen the fantasy genre tell stories of great battles, national conflicts, political intrigues, dragons, wizards, and mighty heroes. But there aren't many fantasy stories about heists. In this regard, The Lies of Locke Lamora, the debut work for author Scott Lynch, stands out as a unique gem because it is a story about a heist and revenge. This story, flavored with occasional humor, also possesses a clever plot, and it is layered upon excellent worldbuilding and vivid characterization.

When it comes to the worldbuilding, Scott Lynch colored his fictional world, one that resembles the renaissance Venice, with rich and picturesque details. I like this fictional world, it is vast in scope and fascinating with its liveliness; from the buzzing city streets in Camorr, its renaissance inspired architectures, its fascinating culture, to the cloak-and-dagger atmosphere surrounding the city's criminal underworld, the world of Locke Lamora came springing to life under Scott Lynch's superb worldbuilding. This is a fictional world that will deeply capture a reader's imagination, worthy of multiple revisits.

The Lies of Locke Lamora features a multitude of characters. Locke and his best friend, Jean Tennan, play the roles of protagonists. Both Locke and Jean are likable and memorable characters, and Scott Lynch portrayed both of them with masterful skills.

Locke, cunning but fiercely loyal, possesses little martial prowess. This characteristic made Locke stand out from the galore of fantasy heroes who are usually great warriors. In a physical combat, Locke cannot fight to save his own life. However, Locke's virtue lies in his formidable power as a con man and a mummer. In sum, this book probably has more than 50 pages worth of sequences where Locke tried to con his way out of perilous situations and dangerous ordeals. Those breathtaking sequences, cleverly conceived and brilliantly written, are among of the most entertaining “action” scenes I have ever encountered in a book. I lost count of the times when I breathed sighs of relief when Locke successfully conned his way out of dangers.

On the other hand, Jean Tennan, Locke's fellow Gentlemen Bastards, is depicted as a loyal friend whose personality and skill sets complement Locke's own. Jean, who is more serene than Locke, is a skilled thief as well as a formidable fighter. He is the “tank” in their finely established organization. Jean has a heart-warming friendship with Locke, and he plays a pivotal role in this book.

Aside from Locke and Jean, the story also features support characters. All support characters are memorable and noteworthy. However, the support characters who stood out the most, are the other members in the Gentleman Bastards, namely the twin, Calo Sanza and Galdo Sanza, as well as a 12 year old boy called Bug. When I was reading this book, I found myself growing very fond of these characters as the pages moved. The antagonist in this book, whose identity I will not reveal in this review, is portrayed brilliantly as a cunning and dangerous individual. Let me just say, as the Gentlemen Bastards clashed course against their antagonist, it produced a intriguing tale bursting with surprises and twists that will keep you at the edge of your seat, furiously turning the pages until the story reaches the final page.

I wish to make a note about the style of narration found in this book. Scott Lynch employed an interesting method of storytelling. That is, every single chapter consists of two major parts. One part follows the plot that is taking place at the present time, where the second part describes the “flashbacks”, taking readers to the past and revealing how Locke and his fellow Gentlemen Bastards grew up. One might expect, such a storytelling method may cause confusions, or losing the sense for urgency in the transitions between chapters. But in The Lies of Locke Lamora, this method of storytelling worked exceedingly well. By telling a story this way, Scott Lynch not only mounted suspense and urgency for the main story, but he also provided background information without having to use a slow build up at the beginning of the book. In other words, Scott Lynch's story is fast-paced, but it is also rich with details. I admire the storytelling in this book, I think Scott Lynch told this story in a very clever and effective way.

The Lies of Locke Lamora received overwhelmingly positive reviews. Many readers and critics consider this book as one of the finest fantasy novels of the 21^th century. I heartily agree with all these positive assessments. This book marks the beginning of The Gentlemen Bastards Sequence, a series running at the length of 7 books. Having said this, The Lies of Locke Lamora can be read as a stand-alone novel because there is no loose plot left untied at its ending. The sequels, as I understood, embark readers on completely new episodes in Locke and Jean's adventures. This means, if you try this book and do not find it to your liking, then you won't feel obliged to reading the sequel. However, if you read this book, and like me, you become spellbound by the charms of this series, then you would have discovered a treasure grove. In other words, this is a win-win situation with little to loose. So if you haven't read The Lies of Locke Lamora, then what are you waiting for? It is time to dive in and experience the magic of Scott Lynch's brilliant novel. I especially recommend this book to fans of Robbin Hobbs and Patrick Rothfuss.

Until the next time, happy reading! I am off to read the sequel, titled Red Seas under Red Skies.

P.S. I have attached a link (below) to a stunning fan-made trailer for this book. I believe this trailer captured the vibe for The Lies of Locke Lamora accurately and beautifully. Enjoy!

A Book Review: The Bands of Mourning by Brandon Sanderson (Mistborn #6)

In The Bands of Mourning, best-selling author Brandon Sanderson returns to the world of Mistborn with my favorite book in the series so far. Succeeding Shadows of Shelf, The Bands of Mourning is the second book in a trilogy featuring the adventures of Wax and Wayne, whose charms would surely spellbound Mistborn veterans as well as newcomers to this series.

Synopsis:

Long ago, Lord Ruler forged the Bands of Mourning, a legendary artifact that could grant its wearer spectacular powers.

As centuries passed, the Bands of Mourning was forgotten, its existence fading into fables and legends. Until the day when a kandra researcher brought to the great city of Elendel strange images. These images, showing depictions of an unknown language, appeared to speak of the mythical Bands itself.

As these images saw the light of day, Kandra council recruited Wax and Wayne on the mission to rediscover the Bands. The mission took them to the southern city of New Seran, where Wax would uncover a conspiracy plotted by his uncle Edwarn and a mysterious organization called The Set.

My thoughts about this book:

After reading my synopsis you must be thinking, so the story revolves around a group of heroes traveling from one city to another, racing against an evil nemesis on a quest to discover a powerful artifact. The Bands of Mourning sounds like a typical fantasy story, right?

Not quite.

While the premise for The Bands of Mourning may appear cliched on the surface, but there are several reasons why this book departs from the fantasy conventions. In my no-spoiler review, I shall endeavor to explain why The Bands of Mourning is among the most interesting fantasy novels in existence.

First of all, The Bands of Mourning is a genre-blending novel. In the space of 400 pages, this fast-paced book brings together the best of two genres, fantasy and detective fiction, into its storytelling. In other words, imagine this novel as Sherlock Holmes with superhuman powers. At the centre of the story lies a mystery, it drives the plot forward and along the way, our heroes encounter crimes of murder and robbery. Solving these crimes gradually brought the heroes to the truth.

This books' intrigues do not end at its good story. The worldbuilding in this book deserves mentioning. Up to date, Sanderson has written 6 Misborn novels. The original Mistborn trilogy took place 300 years before the story of Wax and Wayne. This means, The Bands of Mourning, as well as its predecessor Shadows of Self, belong to the 2^nd trilogy (Wax and Wayne trilogy) in the Mistborn universe. In Wax and Wayne trilogy, Sanderson did something revolutionary, something that is rarely seen in fantasy literature; he incorporated technological advancements into his fictional world. The world of Wax and Wayne resembles the late 19^th century, it is a world where magic and technology co-exist, a place and time when people have just discovered electricity, invented light bulbs, motor cars, firearms, and telegram. Meanwhile, magic also exists in the fabric of ordinary people's lives. To finish it off, Sanderson put a master stroke to his fictional world with a touch of spaghetti Western.

So there you have it, The Bands of Mourning (and its predecessor Shadows of Self) is a detective fiction story set in a fantasy world, a place resembling the late 19^th century Industrial revolution, where budding technology meets deeply rooted magic, and the story is decked out in a distinctive tone of spaghetti Western. Seriously, if you are a fan of fantasy fictions, how can you say no to this intriguing series?

The Bands of Mourning stands as the second book in Wax and Wayne trilogy. Sadly, we will have to wait for 2018 to read the concluding novel for this trilogy. Have no fear, however, for The Bands of Mourning does not end in a cliffhanger. This book has enough materials and a satisfying end, it can almost be treated as a stand-alone novel.

As the second book in the trilogy, I like The Bands of Mourning better than its predecessor, Shadows of Self. In this book, from the characters' dialogues to back stories, Sanderson explored the characters in great details. In comparison to Shadows of Self, Sanderson flashed out his characters with deeper developments in this book. This does mean The Bands of Mourning moves at a slower pace than its predecessor, but the slightly slower pace does not bother me at all, because I like the character development in this book. Shadows of Self introduced to me new characters such as Wax, Wayne, Steris, Melaan and Marasi. But I didn't really get to know them. In The Bands of Mourning, Sanderson's developed these characters in great depth, adding qualities and vividness to their portrayals. When I was reading this book, I felt as if I knew these characters. I grew fond of them and cared for them. When this book ended, I wanted to find out what fates await for them in the next installment. I think this is a sign of a successful novel.

Until now, I was never a huge fan of Mistborn series. I mean, I liked the original Mistborn trilogy, but I didn't love it. The 2^nd Mistborn trilogy kicked off with Shadows of Self, while it deepened my fondness for the Mistborn universe with its unique worldbuilding and a genre-blending story, but I still didn't love the series. Then The Bands of Mourning came along and kindled my love for this series. What can I say? The Bands of Mourning is a really good book. If you are interested in reading Mistborn series, I recommend starting from the original trilogy, with a book titled The Final Empire.

Until the next time, happy reading!

A Book Review: Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

Me Before You is a romance novel written by British novelist Jojo Moyes. This novel currently enjoys a very positive response from readers and critics alike (a quick glimpse at Goodreads shows the ladies make up the primary readership for this book). Despite romance novels not being my fort, I still read this book upon the recommendation from Goodreads. I read this book because I think life offers some of its best surprises when we try out new things.

Admittedly, I dived headlong into this book without knowing what to expect from it.

Me Before You turned out to be a pleasant surprise. Despite this book's pink and “chick-lit”cover art, this novel is not what I expected it to be. I borrowed this book from my local library and I read it, from cover to cover, in 24 hours. I finished this book quickly because I could not put it down, and its story moved me deeply. After I finished this book, I decided to write a review for it.

Ten thousands of insightful reviews for this book, mostly written by ladies with brilliant minds, fill the corners of the internet. I do not think we should limit our exposure to a piece of literature based on our gender, but I am probably one of the very few male readers who is writing a review for this book, and I hope after you have read my review, you will find something that may interest you.

Synopsis:

In a small English country town, Louis Clark and Will Traynor are about to find out, what is it like to meet someone who will change you for all time.

Louis is 26 years old. She has a comfortable job at The Butter Bun Tea shop, and she has a boyfriend who she has been going out with for 7 years. Louis' life is surrounded by familiarities, and she feels comfortable about her life. But Louis' world is about to change dramatically. It began when Louis was made redundant at her work.

Louis' job search led her to apply for the position as a carer at the Traynor family. Her new job is taking care of Will Traynor, a character whose life is shrouded in mystery.

Will Traynor is 35 years old. Two years ago, a motorbike accident made him a quadriplegic, binding him to a wheelchair and stripped him of everything he had. Will's world is pitch black, and he has no desire to live.

When Louis and Will's worlds intertwine, their lives experienced a burst of color and neither of them will ever be the same again.

My thoughts about this book:

Me Before You is very well written. Jojo Moyes impressed me because she was able to spin a multifaceted, complex story but still made it very easy to read and follow. The story in this book is both captivating and fast-paced (I finished it in 24 hours). The characters are vividly portrayed and they feel real. When I was reading this book, I found these characters likable and relatable, and I could feel their hopes, joys and grief.

Many reviewers wrote that Me Before You made them cry, while I agree that the story is very moving, but this book is not bleak or depressing. Instead, I would describe Me Before You as bitter-sweet. When I was reading this book, I smiled at the story's witty, light-hearted moments. But I also felt the full emotional impact, as words on the pages revealed heart-wrenching moments in front of my eyes. I think Me Before You tells a story that will stay with you, and I miss the characters from this book. This is why I am adding this book to my list of favored stand alone novels.

Me Before You is not your typical romance novel. Yes, the book revolves around a love story, but it also encompasses a lot more than just a love story. For examples, the premise of this book is based on the controversial topic of euthanasia.

When it comes to euthanasia debate, I am still sitting on the fence. I have listened to a few academic debates about this topic (such as last year's debate pitting Peter Singer against Archbishop Fisher), but I still haven't made up my mind about which view to support.

Euthanasia, is ultimately a discussion about the human experience and relationship. I always found great irony that for a topic that really should be about the human experience/relationship, most of its arguments are constructed by asserting alleged data about the objective reality; such as quoting from numbers, stats, or religious dogma.

Me Before You, however, made me think about euthanasia from a new direction. In this book, Jojo Moyes did not advocate or promote one view over the other. Instead, she presented arguments both for and against euthanasia, and she does this by inviting her readers to explore this question from the character's viewpoints. Jojo Moyes explored euthanasia, a discussion about human experience/relationship, via a human story. This is a very good way at exploring the euthanasia debate.

When I finished reading this book, I remain sitting on the fence about euthanasia debate, but I did walk away with a new insight, that I should not judge pepole hastily because I will never know what it is like to be that person facing the exact circumstances. This also means there is no quick and easy answer to euthanasia debate, because the totality of human experience and relationship is so complex and dynamic that it would not do justice to squash all of it into a binary system of right or wrong, good or evil.

However, the main theme for Me Before You is not the euthanasia debate. From my interpretation, this story is communicating a meaningful message, about overcoming fears and be aspired to live a purposeful life despite having a past. I believe this is a message a lot of people can resonate with and find it useful.

Me Before You tells a moving story that will stay with you. This book made me smile, grieve, and hope. It made me rethink and care about many things, things that I have not considered carefully in the past. I recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a good book to read.

P.S. Unlike most readers, this book didn't make me cry. But I confess the ending REALLY moved me, and when I finished the book my eyes were moist with tears.

A Book Review: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

When we think of light, most of us are probably thinking about the “visible light”, a type of electromagnetic radiation detectable by our eyes. However, the visible light is only a small portion in the range of light/electromagnetic spectrum. From radio waves to gamma waves, the majority of electromagnetic radiations in our universe are traveling at wavelengths our eyes cannot detect.

Therefore, most of the light in the universe are invisible to our eyes!

With this scientific fact in hand, American author Anthony Doerr wrote All the Light We Cannot See, a historical fiction novel set in World War II. This novel won the 2015 Pulitzer Price for Fiction. The book's title is a metaphorical suggestion that there are still countless stories buried in World War II. Stories of ordinary children, for examples, are also a kind of light that we cannot see.

In this book, the “light that we cannot see” come from the stories of two young people, stories of a french girl and a German boy.

The French girl's name was Marie-Laure. She lived in Paris with her father, who was a skillful locksmith working at the Museum of Natural History. Blindness stripped Marie-Lurie of her eyesight when she reached six years of age. When Marie-Laure was 12, Nazi Germany invaded France and took over Paris. The father-daughter duo fled from Paris to a city by the sea, a city called Saint-Malo. In this walled city lived Maurie-Laure's great uncle. In their baggage, Marie-Larue and her father carried a priceless but dangerous jewel.

The German boy's name was Werner, who, with his younger sister, grew up in an orphanage. Werner and his sister became spellbound by a radio they discovered. Werner, inspired by the marvels he felt for the radio, self-taught and learned extraordinary technical knowledge, ultimately winning him a place in Hitler Youth. From there, a path opened in front of Werner and brought his life to intertwine with Marie-Laure's own.

I like All the Light We Cannot See. This novel moved me deeply, because its struck me with a beautiful story and its powerful imagery. I have always wondered what it was like to live in a time period as turbulent as World War II. This book's superb worldbuilding took me into this era with dynamic descriptions for smell, sight, hearing and touch. Every sentence in this novel is wonderfully written, and I thought there is a lyrical quality to Anthony Doerr's prose.

This book is wonderfully written, but it is also very easy to read. Anthony Doerr made excellent use of short chapter. Every chapter in this book counts between two to five pages at the maximum. This format increases the pace of the book by reducing the downtime in the story. Furthermore, Anthony Doerr closed every chapter brilliantly. I was really impressed by how well the author ended every chapter.

I do, however, have a small complaint about the writings in this book. That is, I thought the author over-described certain scenes and sometimes he went into too much detail. In other words, I would describe some places in this book as “adjective galore”. Having said this, I am pretty sure my complaint is a matter of personal taste. What doesn't work for me often works for someone else. I believe there are many readers out there who appreciate detailed descriptions in the writings of a book.

Good characterization often accompanies a good story. All the Light We Cannot See has a very strong characterization. Although the book features two major characters, Marie-Laure and Werner, but through their eyes, the story also took readers to explore the lives of other people surrounding Marie-Laure and Werner, for those people too, are ordinary individuals whose stories were buried under the big event of World War II, the light we cannot see, but finally meeting the readers as Marie-Laure and Werner's stories are being told.

My favorite aspect of this book is that every character feels realistic and natural. In All the Light We Cannot See, no character bears qualities of caricatures such as a hero or a villain. The author carefully depicted each character and exploring the circumstances they were in, and the choices they made, as real humans living in a hard time. The characters in this book showed depth because as readers, we understand how these stories could have been our own, if we had been placed under the same circumstances as them.

At this point, I need to mention that All the Light We Cannot See uses an unusual style of exposition to narrate its story, one that may take time for some readers to become familiar with. This book follows the stories of Marie-Laure and Werner, two individuals who only shared commonalities because their lives were impacted by the same major events. Their stories, however, do not unfold chronologically in this book. In fact, the narratives tend to jump back and forth on the time line. For example, one section of the book may took place in 1944, but the next section would suddenly flash back to 1941. Having said this, when I was reading this book, I did not loose track of the story because it is easy to follow. But I think would-be readers should be aware of it.

The merit for All the Light We Cannot See does not end at the good writings and its memorable characters. Personally, I think the true merit for this book is how its metaphorical meaning calls me to reflect on the way I interact with my surrounding. Perhaps I spent too much of my time focusing on only a small portion of what is out there; people and things that I may have caught glimpses of but have not seen.

All the Light We cannot See is a very good novel. I highly recommend this book.