Month: March 2020

Review for East

East by Edith Pattou

Genre – Fantasy, YA, Fairy-tale Retelling

Rating – PG – for peril

Synopsis –

This is the story of Rose, a wild and free child whose name originates from a superstitious lie her mother believes. One night a polar bear shows up offering to heal Rose’s sick sister if Rose comes with him. Rose agrees and gets swept up in figuring out who the polar bear really is and the mystery surrounding the hidden castle. She embarks on an epic journey to save those who she loves.

My Thoughts –

I would say the first half the story has many elements from Beauty and the Beast. An enchantment holding a person prisoner, a girl who is trapped inside an underground castle, and mysterious servants. Yet, the last half the book turned into a quest involving traveling through various lands to save the lost prince.

The author tells the tale through different voices. We hear from Rose, her Father, her brother Neddy, Troll Queen, and the White Bear. It actually helped convey bits and pieces from the past. Most of the chapters are really short which made want to read more in one sitting. Anyway, back to the voices they all help us understand Rose and why the White Bear do what they do. I loved the sections from Neddy’s perspective. It took me a while to appreciate Rose.

Now lets discuss the plot. The first few chapters were slower, as we were introduced to everybody. Things start to pick up as Rose enters the castle. I found that section as one of the strongest. *Spoiler Alert * After the prince is taken to the troll’s hidden kingdom, the plot takes a drastic turn. I enjoyed Rose’s travels and the people she met along the way.

The book is divided into four sections titled North, South, East, and West. There is a person who plays a role in each of the sections.

East – Rose’s father

South – White Bear

West – Estelle and Sofi

North – Malmo

OK, I want to mention that the trolls seem to have some magic or power that enables them enchant the prince. Its not really mentioned how, but the author does mention that the Troll Queen has powers. Also a character is mentioned to be a shaman although she does nothing magical. Mostly teaching Rose practical survival skills. Lastly, Neddy tells Rose Norse legends of Thor and Odin.

Language – Pretty clean here, only one use of d- word

Violence – Again, not much violence. There is a polar bear attack on a main character. An evil character makes another character vanish into thin air. A character becomes trapped under ice and snow. I’ll also mention here that the trolls give all the humans a drug/drink that stupefies them and dulls their memory.

Innuendo – Only one thing here. During Rose’s stay at the underground castle, she sleeps in a huge bed. Midway through the night, someone comes in and sleeps on the opposite side of the bed. (nothing sexual about it) Rose has no idea who it is. She is not allowed to touch and see who it is. Eventually she figures it out. I didn’t really care for it and I think the author could have done something different, but it is in there.

It is super subtle, but Rose does fall for the prince.

Conclusion –

This book is based upon the fairy tale “East of the Sun and West of the Moon.” Once it got going I enjoyed the story and had a hard time putting it down. Rose’s character grew on me in the later half of the book. Didn’t really care for the prince, but most of the time he was either a polar Bear or drugged so much he couldn’t remember his name. Anyway it was different and had some good parts to it.

Review of The Tale of Hawthorn House

The Tale of Hawthorn House by Susan Wittig Albert

Genre – Mystery, Historical fiction, Adult

Series – 4th in The Cottage Tales of Beatrix Potter

Rating – PG – for mild language and drama

Synopsis –

During a summer festival, baby Flora suddenly appears on Miss Potter’s doorstep. The villagers begin a search for the Flora’s parents, but to no avail. Meanwhile, Jemima Puddle-duck tries her hand at motherhood. Will Miss Potter be able to get down to the bottom of the mystery?

My thoughts –

Compared to the first three books, this one felt a little repetitive. There was a lot of recapping what had happened in previous books. From the start of the book, you have a pretty good idea where its headed. Not really any surprises.

Now, its not all bad. There is still some magic to the quaint village of Sawrey. I enjoyed the bit about the town’s meddling in personal affairs and chuckled at how the inhabitants had decided on who Miss Potter would marry.

Now I did struggle with the whole Thorn Folk. In The Tale of Holly How, the fairies felt real and not pushed on you. While here, I feel forced to believe that these Thorn Folk exist. Maybe it was the way the author used them, but I did not care for it.

To me the whole animal side-plot works for me. I enjoy hearing the animals talk among themselves about the big folk. I enjoy hearing about their adventures. Although Jemima could be annoying at times. I struggled to believe that she would run off with a fox. It connects the stories Beatrix Potter wrote to this series.

Violence – None

Innuendo – At the beginning, it is insinuated that a character had a baby out of wedlock, but that turns out not to be the case.

Language – A few mild curse words, maybe 4 at the most.

Conclusion –

I appreciate having a series of books that are clean and aren’t filled with a bunch of superfluous content. Although, this addition to the series wasn’t up to par as the previous books were, it still had that small town charm. I’m hoping the rest of the series will improve.

Review for Goodbye, Mr. Chips

Goodbye, Mr. Chips by James Hilton

Genre – Historical fiction

Rating – G

Synopsis –

Mr. Chips loves teaching at the Brooksfield school for boys. He taught for over 40 years and saw the up and downs of the first World War as well as endured several different headmasters. Now in his old age, he recalls key moments in his life.

My thoughts –

This was such a small book, yet filled with love and memories of a time past. I truly wished there were more stories from Mr. Chips teaching days. The end almost brought tears to my eyes.

I loved how the author introduced Kathie to us. She played a big role in changing Chips discipline practices with the boys. They had such a brief courtship before they were married.

The plot jumps around between older Chips and moments in his past. At first, it took some getting used to, but get to know Chips better. I think my favorite part was near the end where it shows what Mr. Chips did during the war years.

Language – None

Violence – Mentions how several of the young men die during the war and how Chips would read aloud names of those who had past.

Innuendo – None

Conclusion –

I fell in love with this book after the first two chapters. It has that feel of a well-written story set in the British countryside. Grab a cup of tea, your favorite blanket, and sit down with this book. It won’t take more then an afternoon to read 😉 Also, it would make a nice read-aloud.