Month: November 2010

Who Knew a Frog Could Be That Adorable?

On By cherylmahoneyIn Fantasy, Reviews, Young AdultLeave a comment

I plan to cover good and bad books on this blog, but for a first post, I thought I’d start with a favorite.  Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier is a wonderful fairy tale retold–two fairy tales, in fact, artfully combining “The Twelve Dancing Princesses” and “The Frog Prince.”

I love retellings of classic fairy tales.  The original classics tend to have…certain issues, like helpless heroines and not entirely coherent plot lines.  But they usually have some spark that fascinates us–which I imagine is why they became classics to begin with.  For “The Twelve Dancing Princesses,” perhaps it’s the idea that you can escape your ordinary life every full moon to go dancing in a magic land (though the magic land is more or less threatening in different versions).  For “The Frog Prince,” transformation stories, changing what is into something that’s better, have an eternal appeal.

So when you can take that essential spark and reshape a new story around it, one with a vivid and intricate plot, and with an appealing and capable heroine, then you’ve got something really good.

Wildwood Dancing is about Jena and her four sisters.  They live in rural Transylvania, at Piscul Dracului, and for nine years they have been slipping away in the night to dance at the fairy court every full moon.  Jena’s closest companion is Gogu, who’s quite sweet and charming, as well as being an enchanted frog.  Jena and her sisters encounter conflict in both the human and magical world, from mysterious strangers appearing in the Fairy Court, and from an overbearing cousin who seeks to take over Piscul Dracului.

With vivid characters and exciting turns in the plot, this book stays engaging throughout.  And, on the whole, it’s at least as sweet and charming as Gogu.  I can’t say the biggest “twist” of the book surprised me, but that may be me–I’m usually good at guessing twists that I think are supposed to be unexpected.  That’s not always a bad thing though–sometimes when a twist does surprise me, I end up feeling rather like a victim of “bait and switch.”  This book, on the other hand, feels as though everything came out perfectly, gloriously right.  I read the conclusion to the romance twice–and again just now.  It’s that cute.  🙂

Author’s website: http://www.julietmarillier.com/

And by the way, that’s my copy of Wildwood Dancing up in the banner–towards the right.

Once Upon a Time…

On By cherylmahoneyIn Ruminations2 Comments

And so it begins.  Welcome to the first post of “Tales of the Marvelous.”  This blog is–or will be–based around a passion for books, writing, and discussions about both.  So if you’re looking for suggestions for good books, or just like talking about them, you’re in the right place!

On Mondays and Wednesdays, I plan to post reviews of marvelous (and not so marvelous) tales I’ve read.  Young adult fantasy is a major focus, but not an exclusive one.  I’ll try to point you–or a YA reader you know–to some good books, and warn you about some not so good ones.  If you’ve read a book I’m writing about, I hope you’ll tell me what you think too–and feel free to give me suggestions on books to review.

On Fridays, I’ll share my own tales, which I hope you’ll find marvelous!  Even if you don’t, feedback (constructive, please!) is always welcome.

In between, I’ll share anything else that seems of interest, be it favorite quotes or ruminations on life.

You might wonder why I choose to focus mainly on juvenile and young adult.  For one thing, I’d like to note that I do read books for “grown-ups” too.  And I’m selective in my J and YA reading–some really are juvenile in every sense of the word.  I try to find the ones that have cross-age appeal, and the best do.  The best J and YA books are really not that different in most ways from grown-up books–except they’re cleaner, and they’re more likely to have happy endings.  Because I’m a clean humor, happy ending kind of girl, I like that.

I’m also an aspiring novelist, writing YA, so in a way it’s like research too…

So that you’ll have some idea what kind of books I’ll be recommending…I like books with strong heroines, with humor, and with at least a little romance.  I have a weakness for cocky heroes who can pull off impossible stunts.  I like a little mystery and suspense, but I don’t like anything too horrifying.  I don’t like what I call “troubled teen” books, with a few exceptions; I’m sure they have their purpose, but I’m not a fan.  I like books that tell a good story and also have a point, without letting either one get in the way of the other.  I like stories about chasing dreams.  I like that in J and YA books, you can have pirates and dragons and noble virtues, and that things tend to work out in the end.

Thanks for joining me, here at the beginning of the blog.  Whatever brought you here, welcome.  Stay a while, and I’ll try to find you a tale…