Summer has begun and it’s time (a bit past!) to say farewell to the Once Upon a Time challenge. I’ve been very laid-back and rather unfocused this year, but I did get in a number of fantasy reads…though I reviewed less than I read!
Some may yet be reviewed, and in the meantime here’s a round-up, in the order I read them.
1) The War of Words by Amy Neftzger
2) The Last Enchantment by Mary Stewart – A dense but beautiful Arthurian retelling from Merlin’s point of view, book three in the series. Particularly lovely with regard to Merlin and Arthur’s relationship.
3) Flora and Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo – A fun romp about a superhero squirrel, surprisingly silly for a Newbery!
4) The Storyteller by Aaron Starmer
5) Revisionary by Jim C. Hines
6) The Conjurers by David Waid
7) The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto by Mitch Albom
8) Varjak Paw by S. F. Said – I didn’t love this, but it did have a cat protagonist, so there’s that going for it…
9) The Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor – For a “true history of Wonderland” it was a bit disappointing. Not bad, just…not awesome the way I hoped. There was an uneasy balance between absurd trappings and a very grim narrative.
10) Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu
11) The Wicked Day by Mary Stewart – Final book in her Arthurian series, moving the point of view to Mordred. Engaging, but then a bit of a weak ending.
12) Scarlett Undercover by Jennifer Latham – A very cool mix of murder mystery, Islamic beliefs and magic, all centered around a teenage girl determined to be a private eye.
13) Sunborn Rising: Beneath the Fall by Aaron Saffronoff – A book I received for review, so that review will be coming!
14) Bridge of Time by Lewis Buzbee – Time travel involving Mark Twain and a serious look at racism in early San Francisco, in a YA book. A nicely done one.
15 & 16) The Squire’s Tale and The Squire, His Knight and His Lady by Gerald Morris – Rereads, they’re wonderful juvenile Arthurian tales centered around Gawain and his (original character) squire, Terence. Utterly unlike Mary Stewart, wholly delightful!
I also watched a version of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the 1996 production. It was highly surreal, the fairies were rather sinister, and I mostly enjoyed the presence of a very young Mosely (from Downton Abbey, you know) as Demetrius!
And so we have my adventures in fairyland for the spring season. What will summer bring? 🙂
I read the Stewart Arthurian books and did enjoy them, but also felt like the fourth book was weak. Although that could possibly be because I’ve also read Morris’s books, so having Gawain be a rather dreadful person in Stewart’s version made me quite sad! I *love* The Squire Tale series SO much!
That’s a lot of books! I’m a fan of Arthurian stuff but for some reason I haven’t read Mary Stewart’s series. Time traveling Mark Twain also sounds great.
16 books is brilliant 🙂 I read 9 books, which makes this my best year so far, and I also haven’t got round to reviewing them all yet! You’re reading has also reminded me, I really must read Mary Stewart’s Arthurian series.
You still did really well! I was a bit abysmal this time – I read a number of books that probably fit the event but I didn’t cross post as many reviews – I simply hadn’t thought about my book choices as much as I normally do.
Lynn 😀