Dhampir

Written By: Barb & J.C. Hendee

Copyright: 2003

Publisher:  Penguin

Pages 375

This will be my second book in the Once Upon A Time challenge and my first for Quest The First.

Quest The First : Read at least 5 books that fit somewhere within the Once Upon a Time criteria. They might all be fantasy, or folklore, or fairy tales, or mythology…or your five books might be a combination from the four genres.

And My Quest Begins....Magiere had been raised by her aunt. She had heard the stories of her father. The whispers among the villagers named him as unnatural. Her mother died giving birth to her, and her father moved on, not wanting to be burdened with an illegitimate child.
Ostracized and taunted by the villagers, the only kindness she knew was from her aunt. On her 16th birthday she was given a falchion and two mysterious necklaces, left to her by her father.
This is where her story truly begins.

Magiere abandons the place of her birth, and the memories that went with it. Living her life on the road, she soon meets  Leesil, a pick-pocket...or should I say, catches him, and his traveling companion, a wolf like dog named Chap. As they journey together, they conceive a plan that gives them a reputation for being vampire hunters. After "saving" yet another village Chap senses something stalking them and Magiere finds herself doing battle with a creature unlike anything she's ever encountered. As the battle goes on she finds herself ....changing. Not understanding what's  happening to her, she feels a hatred that she's never known. Magiere knows only one thing she must kill this creature at any cost.

The way I see it: It's interesting, I started out with one impression of the characters in this book, (not just Magiere and Leesil) and ended up with a completely different one. The authors introduced attributes of their personalities and pieces of their past in careful layers, which changed my opinion of the characters ever so slowly. For all that, I still found it to be a fast read, do in part, to the fact that I couldn't put it down at times...lol The biggest mystery of all of course, is Magiere who knows neither who, nor what she really is.

The bad, the bad, and the ugly: The only thing that bothered me a little bit about this book was the fate of two of the main vampire characters. I like to feel that characters deserve what they get, one way or another....greys are not my thing. I still wasn't sure of that at the end of this book...but then again, neither was Magiere.

Love it or Leave it: Looooved it :D I very much enjoyed the evolution of the characters. Especially Leesil, It took a while before I really "got him" if you know what I mean, and he was quite a funny fellow as well. I'll absolutely be purchasing the next book in the series.

On to my next book in Quest The First.

Bookcases

Well, the time has finally come...I have more books and games then home...actually that time has been in existence for many years BUT...I've finally done something about it. And my solution is...Da da da daaaaa..Bookcases :D. Yes..I've built them, much to the extreme pleasure of my husband. And here they are

It took me about two weeks total as I had to do them custom, (they're almost 9 feet) but but I'm really pleased with the results. As I told my husband...they're exactly as I'd envisioned them.

Once I got them done, I realized that building them was indeed the easy part. It seemed that EVERY room in my house, and in every nook and cranny, there was some sort of literature, video or game. It took forever to find everything and I'm pretty sure I've missed some...lol Most of the books went on the double shelves and I decided to store the majority of the baby books as my youngest is now 11, but some of them were too dear to me to part with in storage, so they stayed :D

Anyway, things are much neater now, and It worked out so well, I've decided to do some built in in this room as well...Quite the adventure

The Cloud Roads

Written by Martha Wells

Copyright: 2011

Publisher: Night Shade Books

Cover art: Matthew Stewart

Pages: 278

This is my first book in the Once Upon A Time Challenge. And also my very first review.

My Journey begins, and the rules are:

By signing up for The Journey you are agreeing to read at least one book within one of the four categories during March 21st to June 20th period. The categories are fantasy, folklore, fairy tales, or mythology.

Moon had always lived in fear of people finding out what he truly was, although he himself wasn't really sure. What he did know was that he was a shape shifter. His Groundling form enabled him to blend in with most societies, at least for a time. His shifted form however, very much resembled the Fell. A race of beings that all others lived in fear of.

Alone from the time he was very young, Moon struggles to conceal his secret and has given up on finding others of his own kind. Then, expelled from yet another settlement and left to die, he's taken by a creature that he believes to be a new type of Fell, and Moon just knows he'll be it's next meal.

The way I see it: Moons story is one of an outsider, always being different and wanting desperately to belong...even if he would never admit it. As a human being, the emotional trials Moon goes through are easily relatable. Lies, deception, fear of the unknown, abandonment...The author gives us a view of Moons very personal thoughts and shows us how he relates...or doesn't relate, to the world around him. Humor is used to lighten some of the darker aspects of Moons adventure which. To me makes his story even more enjoyable.

The bad, the bad, and the ugly: Having to find something I didn't like about this book isn't an easy task. But if I had to...and I do, I'd say that there were quite a few characters that at times were hard to keep track of.

Love it or Leave it: Definitely love it. It's one of those books that at times you just can't put down. It's what I would consider an easy read but has a lot of meat to it. The story is humorous, exciting, relatable and edge of your seat at times. I enjoyed it tremendously...big kudos from this reader.

Thus ends my first Journey. I believe I shall continue on with Quest The First :D

Five Places I'd Like to Visit..

I decided to do this one because I read it over at Here There and Everywhere 2nd Edition,
and thoroughly enjoyed it :D As a matter of fact, one of the places I've always wanted to visit is on the list. So, here's a big shout out thank you to Pat :D

Number 1: The Redwood Forest in California. To see the sequoias would be a dream come true. Being in any forest has always made me feel peaceful and serene. The smell of the trees and the soil, the way the rays of light come through in certain places almost like a spotlight on a stage except so much more beautiful and shuttle. I can only imagine the enormity of those trees, and how small I would feel in comparison.

Number 2: France. Ok, I LOVE bread, wine and cheese. What more is there to say

Number 3: The New York City Ballet. I've never been to a ballet and I would love to get all dressed up and see the Nutcracker in Lincoln Center.

Number 4: Westminster Dog Show. Also in New York. I'm a huge fan and avid watcher. I've been telling myself every year that I would see it as soon as I could make the time...one day

Number 5: Italy. Art and Architecture. I am a sucker for old world architecture and a lover of the arts.