Tag: fantasy

Stargazer by Patrick Carman

stargazer

the Land of Elyon series: book four

genre: children’s. fantasy. christianlit.

The Review

What a surprise! Stargazer is a great end to the Land of Elyon series. I absolutely fell in love with the Dark Hills Divide and was then extremely disappointed in the books that followed. However, Stargazer is so good it almost makes up for the previous three.

Characters:

Alexa is so much more mature in this final book. She is directly responsible for almost every outcome in this story (which was one of my main issues with the previous books) and really comes into her own. We see her do a lot of things in Stargazer that she would never have done in the earlier books. I have a few more comments on this in the spoilers section below.

The other characters are just as well-rounded. The other characters are just as well-rounded. Yipes, Matilda, Marcus, and the ever present cast of animal characters are interesting, unique, and adorable (Grump was one of my favorites even though he barely spoke at all).

Set-Up:

The year between Into the Mist and Stargazer must have been spent doing an extensive amount of writing exercises or something, because Carman’s writing is just that much better! The wording is more mature, more filling, and more entertaining. Stargazer doesn’t feel so much as a children’s book, as a young adult adventure.

However, the ending wasn’t quite as good as the rest of Stargazer. I felt like Carman sort of lost his groove and almost reverted back to the writing of the previous books. I won’t spoil too much, but the final climax felt corny and kind of like a cop-out. It’s also super quick and some long-distance journeys take little to no time at all.

That being said, Stargazer is definitely a great read. Was it worth reading Through the Valley of Thorns , the Tenth City , and Into the Mist ? I’m not so sure, you tell me.

Spoilers below: highlight text block to view

Alexa finding her “home” in the air was something I found to be really satisfying and might have been the best part of the book/series as a whole. It felt right with Thomas and Roland Warvold being masters of the land and sea (respectively) it was fun to see Alexa become the master of the sky.

approx read time: 4 days flat. Loved this one!

Rating: 4 out of 5 Screems™

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Previous book in the series: Into the Mist

Ownership: this series has been donated to my local library!

Links: Author. Goodreads.

Inkspell by Cornelia Funke

inkspell

the Inkworld series: book two

genre: children’s. fantasy.

The Review

Okay, I have a lot of mixed feelings about this book so hold on to your hat here. This is such a classic series that I had a really hard time choosing a rating. In the beginning, I was all about this, but it just kind of went downhill for me.

Characters:

In comparison to the first book, Inkheart, I felt like Inkspell really let me down in the area of characters. Which was honestly a surprise to me. I really enjoyed all the characters in Inkheart, yet, for some reason, the same characters felt flat and uninteresting in the sequel. It seemed like Funke writes in limited third person with Meggie as the main character (at least that’s how Inkheart was). But in this book, Funke hopped around all over the place and I had a hard time keeping up with whose head I was supposed to be in. And, if Meggie is still supposed to be the main character, she didn’t have a lot of chapters.

One area where Funke succeeds is the covering the unlikeable, but natural emotions of her characters. Meggie and Farid acknowledge their unfounded jealousies. Fenoglio is a whole mess in and of itself (he’s the main villain of this story in my opinion, I hate him). And even Roxanne, in the end, can lash out when she’s in pain. However, the problem is that the positive aspects of her characters can get lost because of her emphasis on the negative. This really made it hard for me to attach to and root for the characters.

Set-Up:

This is the main problem with this book. It is way too long. And I don’t mean page length — I have no issue reading a long book. But man this book felt like it took FOREVER. There were a lot of parts in here that weren’t really important and they took up pages and pages of this story. I understand wanting to flesh out your characters and fill in gaps to give your story substance, but there were so many parts that dragged on for no reason. I loved Elinor in the first book, but her chapters, specifically, were completely unnecessary. She and Darius had no influence on the story at all. If Funke wanted to still have her in the story, she could have stuck with just one chapter and been done with it.

The middle chunk of this book is really where I got stuck. It felt as though nothing was happening and the story was just bouncing around between characters. Chapters that were 3 – 10 pages in length and just adding a ridiculous amount of background or scenic descriptions.

Additional notes: This isn’t a bad book. The Inkworld series is rich and creative, but I find it hard to think of this as a kid’s book. In comparison to Inkheart it feels like it’s on a whole different level. It’s violent, it’s wordy, and it’s long. If anything this is a young adult fantasy story about a 13/14 year old and her experiences in a cruel fantasy realm.

Spoilers below: highlight text block to view

My biggest complaint is that my favorite character dies in the end. Honestly, Dustfinger was the only reason I kept struggling to get through this. Why did this have to happen haha.

approx read time: 23 days (I told you this took me forever. yeesh.

Rating: 3 out of 5 Screems™

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Previous in the series: Inkheart

Ownership: I was going to keep this series, but I’m pretty sure it will be donated now 😂

Links: Author. Goodreads.

Into the Mist by Patrick Carman

into the mist

the Land of Elyon series: prequel

genre: children’s. fantasy. christianlit.

The Review

Technically, this is prequel, but the story is being told to Alexa Daley in between the space of the Tenth City and Stargazer. To me, this is more like the fourth book of the series with really large flashback scenes. It’s set up as a story-within-a-story and takes you to an entirely different kind of tale. Overall, it’s not a bad addition to the Land of Elyon series, but I’m hoping Stargazer really brings it home with a solid ending.

Characters:

The characters for this part of the series are pretty good. Roland and Thomas are both interesting. The brotherly dynamic is a nice touch and makes for relatable interactions throughout the story. Thorn, to me, was the best part of the story. As with the previous three books, I seem to really like the animal characters the best. I just really want a big cat for a friend, okay?

Set-Up:

However, as with the previous two books of this series, I still have problems with the plot. The adventure itself is fun and entertaining, but … I feel bad saying it almost seemed unnecessary. Since I’ve already read the following book, it’s easy to see that Carman wrote this afterwards (or in tandem) so that he could explain what was going to be present in Stargazer. Which is totally fine, but some of it seemed very over the top.

By biggest issue was the idea of these boys experiencing so much responsibility and hardship. I understand the need for characters to “go their own path” and learn on their own, but a lot of things (like literal child abuse) was unnecessary to the story as a whole. There are some other fantasy aspects of the story that are a little ridiculous, but this is targeted from young readers so I can’t really criticize too much here.

Spoilers below: highlight text block to view

There was one other bit of plot in Into the Mist that I found difficult to take. The whole business with the Lost Children was over the top. I loved the idea that Armon was saving them from the reign of Grindall and taking them to safety. But was it really necessary to take them all on a 12 day voyage into the Lonely Sea and then dump them on an uninhabited island? Why couldn’t they have set them up somewhere near the Wakefield House even? Considering how small the Land of Elyon actually is, maybe they would be found easily, but I just don’t think sending 10 year olds out to an abandoned island seems like “saving them.”

approx read time: less than a week

Rating: 3 out of 5 Screems™

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Next book in the series: Stargazer

Previous book in the series: The Tenth City

Ownership: this series as been donated

Links: Author. Goodreads.

The Tenth City by Patrick Carman

tenth city

the Land of Elyon series: book three

genre: children’s. fantasy. christianlit.

The Review

To be honest I was disappointed with this addition to the Land of Elyon series. I thought the Dark Hills Divide was absolutely fantastic so I continued the series. I was a little let down with Through the Valley of Thorns but I was still ready to keep reading. However, the Tenth City was not what I wanted out of this series.

Characters:

I know a lot of people complained about Alexa not doing a lot in Through the Valley of Thorns which was something I didn’t really agree with, but in the third book, this is really apparent. I liked how Carman went about this in the first book. Not making Alexa so brave that she was an unbelievable or unrealistic character, but as the books go on it seems as though Alexa is only following instructions. There are a lot of moments were Alexa could shine and do her own thing to save Elyon, but she’s only given instructions and then follows them to the letter. It completely diminishes her character and seems like she’s only there as a narrator of the story instead of an active participant.

Set-Up:

As far as plot goes, there are a lot of “twists” that felt cliche that didn’t really add to the actual story. There’s nothing wrong with predictable plot twists, but these were unnecessary. This was supposed to be like the climax of the trilogy, but it was just uninteresting. I really didn’t want to give this book a bad review, but it was just so disappointing in comparison to how great the Dark Hills Divide was. With all of this said, I’m still going to finish the series as I remember enjoying Stargazer and the one about Thomas and Roland when I read them as a child.

approx read time: around three days

Rating: 2 out of 5 Screems™

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Next in the series: Into the Mist

Previous in the series: Beyond the Valley of Thorns

Ownership: I used to own this, but have since donated it to my local library

Author. Goodreads.

Inkheart (2008) movie adaptation

inkheart

based on Inkheart by Cornelia Funke

The Review

So, this review will be very different than what I’ve done previously on this page. Obviously, this is not a book review. This is a review of the movie adaptation of Cornelia Funke’s book, Inkheart. If you’re looking for the book review, please follow the link at the end of this post. This review will follow a different structure than the book reviews. Similar to the graphic novel adaptations, this review will discuss the portrayal of the characters and scenery, the faithfulness to the original work, and the quality of the film in general.

If you have not read the book, this review will contain spoilers!
Portrayal:

Helen Mirren and Paul Bettany are pretty much the best things that happened in this movie. I thought Elinor was a little dull in the book, but Helen Mirren portrays her amazingly. Elinor is crazy in this movie and I love it.

Dustfinger was always my favorite character and Paul Bettany really brings out that duality of his character in this movie. Plus…

dustfinger

Now, don’t get me wrong. I acknowledge that they made Dustfinger’s ugly, disformed face and completed dismissed that…but I’m okay with it haha. The problem, for me, with Dustfinger in this adaptation was not in Bettany’s portrayal, but in how the movie changes his decisions around. In the book, I could really sympathize with Dustfinger’s character and understand (although not approve) of his choices. In the movie, his actions are much more harmful to those around him. He clearly has the opportunity to better the situations that they’re in and chooses not to. Most of these parts are unique to the movie as well.

Meggie’s actress is pretty good. She wasn’t really memorable to me which…she’s supposed to be the main character so I don’t know what that really says about her. Although, it would be hard to shine amongst a cast like this.

Brendan Fraser, on the other hand, certainly looks like Mo but his acting was spotty and flat. I was so disappointed with him. He doesn’t really read aloud too well, which is kind of the whole point of the book/movie?

I was really excited to see Andy Serkis as Capricorn but it just wasn’t what I wanted. He was a fine enough villain, just not Capricorn. In the book, I thought Capricorn had this horribly intimidating presence, but Serkis didn’t portray him that way.

We shouldn’t talk about Basta and the Magpie. They’re atrocious.

I liked the idea of Jim Broadbent being Fenoglio but he wore on me as the movie went on.

Faithfulness:

The general story is faithful. It’s obvious what book this is based off of. However, because of the adjustments they made to “pick-up” the pot, the story feels weak. This is especially true once they escape Capricorn’s village. All the characters just end up bouncing around and filling in parts of the plot like weird, unfitting puzzle pieces that don’t really match up.

My biggest issue with this adaptation is how reckless they were with Mo and Meggie reading things out of the books. The book spends pages and pages emphasizing how harmful it was to the characters to be read out of their stories, yet this movie attempts to up its actions sequences by ripping things out of their stories without a second thought. What is the Wizard of Oz going to do without Toto or the tornado? This was the most egregious “error” in my opinion because it completely went against the lesson the book was trying to teach.

Resa’s whole character is very odd in this adaptation. The movie makes it seem like her and Dustfinger have known each other for years, but somehow Resa only asks him about her family during the events of the movie. It’s very confusing and doesn’t fit right.

The ending was woefully different. I understand that they wanted to emphasize Meggie’s part in the ending, considering she’s supposed to be the main character, but I thought it made the story collapse in on itself. Meggie was the main character in the book and I liked that she wasn’t responsible for everything in the end. Meggie literally fixes everything in the end by writing a few words on her arm??? It felt corny and made the “rules” of the Inkheart world feel fake. However, Helen Mirren riding in on a unicorn was the best part of the movie.

elinor

Quality:

A lot of this movie felt hokey to me. I get that this is a children’s movie, but its got a PG rating. They could have made the Black Coats and Capricorn m much better. This really had potential. The CGI is good, the acting is decent. I just — how could they make something so bad with a cast like this?

Rating: 4 out 10 wish I was actually ded™ instead of watching this

ded

book review: Inkheart

IMDB

Inkheart by Cornelia Funke

Inkheart

the Inkworld series: book one

genre: children’s. fantasy.

The Review

I haven’t come upon a book like this in quite a bit. I’d been meaning to reread this for awhile because I wanted to get it out of my bookcase. But, I have a feeling that after reading the rest of the books again, these will be staying.

Characters:

Honestly, where I think this book shines the most is with its characters. I liked Meggie and Mo both. I fell in love with Dustfinger immediately. Elinor is hilarious and it’s so fun to see that reluctant, “normal” character in stories like this. She doesn’t want to be there at all and is constantly questioning the sanity of everyone around her. The main characters all have their own personalities and motivations.
The only characters I didn’t attach to were the villains. Capricorn is intimidating, but Funke could have taken his character further. However, this is done for a reason that I appreciate. Inkheart goes out of its way to reduce the amount of violence within its pages. The villains, although ruthless, shy away from it.

Set-Up:

I read Inkheart when I was very young and think that’s the reason I didn’t really care for it. I was reading a lot of fast-paced, action-packed books like the Harry Potter and Charlie Bone series. Inkheart is more densely packed with descriptions and explanations. It’s a calmer book. A more realistic type of fantasy story when it comes to the action and the conflicts. There are certainly plenty of high-danger interactions, but this story is more subtle than most in this genre. That’s what really makes Inkheart so precious. Inkheart is one of those classics that never ages. It’s a staple for any child (or adult!) who loves the fantasy genre.

Additional notes: I think I’ll be doing a review of the film adaptation eventually. So keep your eyes out for that!

approx read time: 10 days

Rating: 5 out of 5 Screems™

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Next in the series: Inkspell

Movie adaptation review: Inkheart (2008)

Ownership: I own this. I was going to donate it, but I have a feeling I’ll be keeping it once I finish the series.

Links: Author. Goodreads.

Black Clover (Vol. 1) by Yūki Tabata

Black Clover

Black Clover: chapters 1 – 4

genre: manga. shōnen. fantasy.

The Review

I picked this manga up at the library the other day because I was absolutely in love with the anime. I was a little disappointed in reading the first volume of the manga and not really getting the same feeling as the anime, but that’s what I get for watching the anime first. That being said I still plan on reading the rest of the series.

Characters:

In comparison to the anime, I think the characters are undeveloped in this first volume. That’s one of the main reasons I didn’t care for this volume. Asta and Yuno just feel like basic shōnen MCs. Which, of course, nothing wrong with that. But you’ve got to have a little more to keep your audience interested. It’s very easy to see the comparison a lot of people make between Black Clover and Naruto. Asta/Naruto. Yuno/Sasuke. Even Noelle gives off some Sakura vibes in the beginning. But, honestly, this doesn’t really bother me. Naruto is a great series. Why mess with something that isn’t broken?

Set-Up:

Black Clover has a lot going for itself. The art (both in the manga and anime) is usually quite nice.

Black Clover page

I think the reason I didn’t feel the connection with the manga was because the action scenes were so hard to follow. I thought the paneling and sound effects were kind of confusing and specific actions/movements weren’t emphasized enough so that I think if I hadn’t watched the show beforehand, I would have been really confused. Even some of the regular dialogue scenes can be really busy and overcrowded.

Black Clover page

Anime: Even though I wasn’t impressed with the first manga volume, the anime is phenomenal and I would highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys action-packed anime. I’ve seen the entirety of Season 1 (episodes 1 – 51)

approx read time: 1 to 2 hours

Rating: 2 out of 5 Screems™

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Ownership: I borrowed this from my local library

Author Goodreads

The Last Unicorn (GN) by Peter S. Beagle

The Last Unicorn

genre: fantasy. graphic novel.

The Review

So, when I do reviews on graphic novels interpretations, I like to rate them while keeping the reference material in mind. In other words, this will not be a review of Beagle’s original novel from 1968, but will look at how Peter B. Gillis adapted this work into a graphic novel and how Renae de Liz and Ray Dillon illustrated the work.

faithfulness to the original:

This is an absolutely gorgeous interpretation of the Last Unicorn. I certainly recommend this to anyone has either seen or read the Last Unicorn. One of my favorite things about the graphic novel is that it seems to be sort of a mix between the 1982 film adaptation and the novel. Although the art is not exactly the same as the film, it brought back a lot of the same memories of watching this movie as a child. Also, the graphic novel doesn’t just include dialogue, but narration and descriptions right from the original book. These parts turned out to be some of my favorites! They add a little extra to the illustrations that you wouldn’t get just by watching the movie version.

adaptation:

The only thing I didn’t like about this graphic novel interpretation (why it’s getting the rating it is), is that it was hard to keep track of how things were progressing. It jumped around a lot. On one page you’d be in a nice conversation between characters and you’d turn the page and they were in a completely different place with no transition. It seemed the connection between scenes and time gaps was hard to grasp or maybe I was just missing it. There were a lot of scenes that I wished were just a little bit longer and that I think were cut short. Even simple things that I think were skipped over or not highlighted enough to really make the story as amazing as it actually is.

art:

I don’t even know what to say here. The art in the graphic novel is just astounding and really captures the magic of Peter S. Beagle’s novel. The story panels are just as beautiful as the chapter covers.

last unicorn

last unicorn

approx read time: 1 day (you could do it in one sitting if you’re trying)

Rating: 3 out of 5 Screems™

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ownership: I borrowed this from my local library

Gillis. de Liz. Dillon. Goodreads

Beyond the Valley of Thorns by Patrick Carman

Beyond the Valley of Thorns

the Land of Elyon series: book two

genres: children’s. fantasy. christianlit

The Review

This is a great sequel to the Dark Hills Divide. It also immediately took my criticisms for the ending of the first book and solved them within the first few chapters. I’m not gonna lie though, this is kind of where I find some issues. Although the story, adventure, and characters are all phenomenal, the thinly veiled creationist backplot was just laid on a little thick. With Abaddon (Elyon’s favorite) being a fallen Seraph (read: angel) and wishing to bring about the fall of mankind through sin…I don’t know. It didn’t make the book bad, it just made it a little less enjoyable for me. However, despite this, it’s still a great read. I look forward to reading the rest of the series and continuing with Alexa’s journey!

Characters:

Most of the characters are carried over from the first book and get even more development in the sequel. I still think Alexa is a really amazing female lead. She’s brave and independent, but not so much that it’s unrealistic for a 12 year old. Also, Odessa is the best and anyone who thinks otherwise can fight me. I mean, have you seen her on that cover?

Set-up:

The story brings Alexa and her group of friends outside of the walls and into the world. This really expands the story to new levels. The evil is much more present and looming. It’s definitely a lot moodier than the first book, but it’s still a good story for any young fantasy fan. (Or adult. I enjoyed it. I’m 24. Come at me.)

Additional notes: the ChristianLit aspects are a little stronger in the sequel, but still do not distract from the overall story.

Approx read time: 2 days

Rating: 3 out of 5 Screems™

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Next book in the series: The Tenth City

Previous book in the series: The Dark Hills Divide

Ownership: I used to own this, but have since donated it to my local library

Author Goodreads