Devil Bones - Kathy Reichs

Yes! Another Kathy Reichs novel in a few months, to say the least. This work goes by the name of Devil Bones and is one of the two Kathy Reichs novels that I borrowed from our national library.

They had more of her stuff too, but the library only allows 3 books at a time and I'm only given a three-week time limit.

Not to mention exams are just around the corner.

... You can say... I "held back".

:P

That aside, this is the eleventh book in the Temperance Brennan series so I'm kind of "behind" with the up-close-and-personal stuff? But I enjoyed it anyway.

Summarized, this story is about a fresh case and an unsolved one from some time ago. Slidell, one of Tempe's temporary partners, reckons it might have something to do with certain "practices". Some are even talking about Satan worship and magic.

I learnt loads about religion in this one. Voodoo, Wiccan, Christianity, the whole lot. Don't really recommend this for the staunch Christian followers, though. Unless you're open-minded and don't mind these kind of fiction-based stories regarding religion.

Honestly speaking, there are things I like about Kathy Reichs' works and things I don't like about 'em. For starters, I don't like her works because she gets really emotional sometimes. Like, for children who died really young and stuff like that. I mean, yeah, sure, it's sad, but I sometimes think that Tempe's overreacting.

Not to say it's a bad thing to worry and feel sad about young children dying, but... I don't know, maybe I'm just retarded that way. 

In her defense, Tempe had a brother who died when he was really young so I'm thinking that's where the empathy comes in?

Still, just an opinion.

On the other hand, there's quite a distinct difference between her Virals' novels and her Tempe novels. For one, she doesn't use curse words and make her characters swear mid-discovery in her Virals novels. She draws a line between that; like teenagers don't use it as often as adults would (in a certain context. I'm not talking about real life because it's the other way around most of the time). 

Just an opinion, like I mentioned.

Either way, I can say I liked this book. Quite twisty. 

This book can be found in any of your local bookstores. I borrowed this from the national library but I'm sure MPH, Kinokuniya, Borders, Times and Popular would have this book. 

I have yet another to finish and review so this is where I'll leave this :) CIAO!!

P/S: Please click on my Nuffnang ads :) Thanks!!

Seizure - Kathy Reichs

Ahh... And so I've finished the second book in the Virals series. Quite unfortunately, Kathy Reichs only wrote two books regarding the Virals and their adventures. Sad, I know.

Anyhow, Seizure depicts the tale of Tory Brennan and her usual clique. As Virals, they have decided to practice controlling their powers in secret, especially since now that there's no one to reverse the effects of the 'new and improved' parvovirus. Hiram Stolowitski still places first in being the fastest to flare, Tory takes second, Shelton struggles more but no one's slower in flaring save for Ben Blue. The only way anyone's gonna make him flare is if they piss him off.

Bleghh~

However, as if having to deal with their newfound abilities is not enough, things get worse when Tory's father, Kit, comes home from work one day only to tell her that LIRI will no longer be funded under the Charleston University. This means Kit will be left with no job and Tory can no longer stay in Bolton Preparatory Academy as well as stay on Morris Island.

I'm sure you know where this is going.

Undoubtedly, they go through various troubles. What with the Tripod skank and Tory's frustration with Jason, things weren't going to be all smooth sailing. Tory seemed to be running into trouble after trouble after trouble. Just when they thought they've be able to find something significant, it turns up empty. Many times have they contemplated on giving up. It was Tory's inborn stubbornness that kept her - and eventually, them - going.

Not to mention her understanding of her new ability within her abilities.

-.-

Well then, I'm sure you can find the rest out by yourself. I bought this for RM55.50. They should be available in all the staple bookstores: MPH, Borders, Kinokuniya and Times.

That's it then :) CIAO!!

P/S: Please click on my Nuffnang ads :) Thanks!!

Virals - Kathy Reichs

Oh-my-God. This is a book you most certainly should not skip out on. Well, this might only be from my point of view, but if you are interested in forensics, a little mystery and a dash of humour, you might want to check this out.

Written by the author who inspired the hit TV series, BONES, in Virals, Kathy Reichs tells the story of young Victoria 'Tory' Brennan. After losing her mother to a drunken driver, Tory was sent to Morris Island where she learnt of the existence of her father, Christopher 'Kit' Howard, a research scientist/veterinarian at an institute on Loggerhead Island, LIRI (I can't for the life of me remember the full name).

Kit was unaware he had a daughter, though, so it was pretty much awkward for the both of them. Nonetheless, Tory settled down reasonably fast. Since then, she'd been attending the Bolton Preparatory Academy (a school for the rich and elite) and made a few other friends. There's Hiram 'Hi' Stolowitski, Shelton Devers and Ben Blue.

The thing is, though, Tory, Hi, Shelton and Ben aren't wealthy people from wealthy families. The only reason Bolton Prep accepted them is because at least ONE member in their respectful families has a job in LIRI. Therefore, the facility funds their studies in Bolton Prep. Quite unfortunately, since they're not rich by name, they get picked on by the people in school.

Technically, they're all they've got. Each other.

And so it is together that they get into trouble. It began with just curiosity. Tory, being naturally curious about everything, found rusted dog tags buried somewhere in Loggerhead Island and was determined to find out what was written on them. So, with her friends, Tory broken into an abandoned research facility in hopes of being able to use their gear to get rid of the rust and decipher the words.

However, after they managed to do just that, Ben hears something upstairs. Once again beaten by curiosity, Tory and her friends went to investigate.

They certainly did NOT expect to find what they found.

Things start to go haywire from there. They not only broke in to the facility that night, but they also broke something OUT. As if that's not bad enough, they run headfirst into more trouble: gunmen - after THEIR lives.

Did not help when they uncovered a dead girl's skeleton either.

Tory is certain everything is connected, but how? And is the Head of the facility in on the secret?

This is pretty much the gist of the story. It gets much more interesting after this, though. I personally think it's awesome. The book has a sequel, thank God for me. Haha. It's called Seizure (I know, right??) I'll be sure to review that once I'm done with it.

Virals is available in various bookstores such as Times, Borders, MPH and Popular. This 454-page paperback costs a whooping RM32.90 but I assure you, it's worth a read. Plus, if you're a member in any of those bookstores (like I am) then you'll get a discount :)

P/S: Please click on my Nuffnang ads :) Thanks.

Me And Mr Darcy - Alexandra Potter

Okie dokie. I'm on a book-review spree at the current moment. Especially since I've come in possession with three whole books to call my own. Despite having thought that I was duped into buying "A Kiss At Midnight" -.-

Bleghh~

Anyways, this book was written by Alexandra Potter (also the authoress of "Who's That Girl?", and "Be Careful What You Wish For" amongst other works).

As some of our many young literature-loving readers definitely know (and believe, I think), Mr Darcy is almost every Pride & Prejudice fan's dream companion. He's good-looking, wealthy, a man of impeccable behaviour, and as gentlemanly as a man can possibly be.

So of course, what excuse could Emily Albright possibly conjure in order to miss out on a chance to go on a Jane Austen book tour? Albeit it was out of pure luck that she should've seen it in an ad in the local newspaper (trying to think of a reason to NOT follow her best friend Stella to spend her holiday partying in Cancun), she did not doubt she would enjoy the tour.

How could she? It was, after all, a Jane Austen book tour. She absolutely loved Jane Austen as well as her characters (proven by her love for Mr Darcy, whom she professed was her first love).

But it all kind of turns (and flops) upside down when she meets Spike Hargreaves, a The Daily Times reporter who was supposed to interview all the participants of the tour about why Mr Darcy was voted the kind of person ladies most want to go out with.

I know, right?

Their paths crossed, and everything in his character (from his hot French girlfriend, Emmanuelle, to his outrageous behaviour the whole duration of the tour) assured Emily Albright that he was the most disagreeable man she'd ever known in her entire life.

I'm sure you can see where this is going :P

All in all, I guess I can say I pretty much enjoyed reading this. The idea in which this story is based on was very well-planned indeed and though the story's flow might not have been that smooth (only in my opinion) and at times, can be quite confusing, generally I think it was an enjoyable read :)

And it's through this story that you really find that although Mr Darcy is every literature-loving woman's dreamy, fantasy and ideal man, unless you are a woman in that era, such a relationship would never, in a million years, work out.

Well, then :) This is about all I dare say for now. Should you any inclination of reading this book, I shan't despair you by stopping you in any way at all. Haha.

CIAO!!

P/S: Please click on my Nuffnang ads :) Thanks!!

A Kiss At Midnight - Eloisa James

This is one of the books I bought when I was out with Dellie on the 13th. It's called "A Kiss At Midnight" and was written by Eloisa James.

This Regency tale tells the story of young (do you consider a 23-year-old young?) Katherine "Kate" Daltry. As this story takes after Cinderella, you can imagine her parents are indeed dead. She has no other living relatives except for her stepmother, Mariana - whom her father married not long after her mother's death - and stepsister, Victoria.

Needless to say, Kate was treated no more than a girl that did housework. Her mother's dowry became Mariana's - and therefore, Victoria's - and the new missus drove almost everybody out of the estate. So "herself" (as they address her) became the authority of the household.

That was enough to drive Kate absolutely bananas, don't you agree? Didn't help at all when Mariana decided on her own that Kate was to masquerade as her stepsister, Victoria (since she had a swelling lip) to have dinner with her betrothed, Sir Algernon "Algie" Bennet (also known as Lord Dimsdale) and his royal family.

Of course, at first, Kate refused with all her might. They had a verbal argument until finally, Kate relented. Only because she actually cared for Victoria, though, since she was nothing like Mariana.

At the ball, Kate meets Algie's family, which also includes his uncle, the prince. Instantly, she decides he's anything but charming. And, since Kate Daltry was certainly no romantic (she didn't believe in happily ever afters either), she also takes it upon herself to not mind his presence at all.

Naturally, it didn't work. Gabriel, the prince, was possessive and he wanted Kate. Not a very good idea, since he's already promised to another princess. A Russian princess, to be exact, with a humongous dowry, which he needed (and agreed to marry her for) because the castle came with high maintenance.

Copied off the back cover of James' book, a clash of wits and wills ensues.

In the end, Kate and Gabriel eventually fall in love, but I shan't ruin the "surprise". I'll leave that for you to find out.

Personally, I did NOT know that when I found this book in the romance section, it would actually be one of those full-fledged romance stories with vivid descriptions of...

Bleghh~ I can't even type it -.-

Otherwise, with one eye closed and another just enjoying the verbal insults and exchanges, this is really a nice book. Concept of Cinderella is there, obviously, though Eloisa James has done her fair share in adding a few of her own ideas as well as omitting the original's ideas where she sees fit.

I like her godmother as well :P Nothing magical, particularly, but fun all the same :)

You can find this book in all bookstores, I think -.- I found this in the Women's Fiction section in MPH, though. Borders probably has it in the Young Adult's Fiction section. Times and Kinokuniya has it in the Romance section.

I've never seen the book in the second front-cover image I posted above, though -.- Only the blue one with the glass slipper.

Well, then, that's about it :) CIAO!!

P/S: Please click on my Nuffnang ads :) Thanks!!