On The Edge by Ilona Andrews Promo Party!

I read this a few days ago and I  love it so much I  am actually going to re-read it, something I rarely do.

And what's even cooler is that they are doing a contest with a chance to win a Sony e-Reader and other cool stuff! (Stuff!)

Elfland and Demon's Lexicon

Two more wonderful reads, lumped together because I read them one after the other, but coincidentally they do share an underlying theme.

Elfland by Freda Warrington is a nice thick urban fantasy about faerie-like demi-mortal beings, Aetherials, some of whom live in our world as humans, although they really belong somewhere else (the Spiral). There is a Gatekeeper between worlds, and at the start of the book he tells the Aetherial community on earth that he's keeping the gate shut for their own good. So a generation of Aetherials grows up without connecting to their heritage. The story focuses on the Gatekeepers kids and the next door Aetherial kids, specially siblings Rose & Lucas. It's written as a family drama and a romance, and what I like best is that the Aetherial characters are written as deeply human. I specially recommend it for romantic readers.


The Demon's Lexicon by Sarah Rees Brennan is a fast-paced adventure. Magicians get their power by sacrificing people to demons, and brothers Nick & Alan are on the run from magicians who are trying to get back a magical amulet from their insane ex-magician mother. The story is told from Nick's pov, and he cares only about Alan, because Alan is the one who raised him and looked after him. The trouble is Alan cares about everyone, including a brother and sister who come to them for help, and it's all up to Nick to save Alan from his chivalrous impulses. I really loved this book, because even though Nick is moody and angry and literally murderous, I feel such empathy for him. A very dark story written with lots of humor and wit.

Kate Elliott's Crossroads (Spirit Gate, Shadow Gate, Traitor's Gate)

I have fallen behind on logging all my reads, but I do try to keep up using goodreads. But I at least want to blog about really Wonderful Reads, and here is one from last week.

Traitor's Gate is the third book in the Crossroads series by Kate Elliott, one of my favorite authors, and it wraps up the first part of the saga. The first two books are Spirit Gate and Shadow Gate.

Hm, maybe I should show you what I wrote about each book after I read it:


Spirit Gate (August 2007)

What a big fat book! I love the old Asian feel of the worldbuilding. I admire how the book ends -- a big conflict resolved but so many questions left unanswered. The only downside is the wait 'til the next book

Shadow Gate (June 2008)
I've been meaning to post about Shadow Gate, which is book two in Kate Elliott's Crossroads series. This is a big fat book, rich is calories and flavor.

Consider the ingredients:

- Worldbuilding. Being Filipino, the asian and pacific islander influences in the cultures of the Qin & The Hundred are such a kick to me. The level of detail is wonderful; the feeling that this world really exists we're only seeing bits of it.

- Characters. Let me see if I can explain what I really like about the characters. They are all full of the prejudices of beliefs of their culture and upbringing, and they all consider their own worldviews to be perfectly valid. And that's how they are.

- Mastery. I don't know what else to call the storytelling. The choices she makes in the way she tells the story are just very good. Take for example, Cornflower's story. I usually dislike flashbacks, but I appreciated the choice here, since it allows some emotional distance from what would otherwise have been too painful.

Grand and bewilderingly big, like the construction of a Gothic cathedral -- that's what I think this series is like.

Traitors Gate (September 2009)
I've been busy and thus wary of starting this for fear I'd get sucked in and neglect all else. I was right! I started it yesterday and stayed up all night finishing it! Aui!

Another thing I was worried about was that I would have to refer to Books 1 & 2 to remember what was going on, but as soon as I read page one I was back in the flow. The characters do an initial info dump as they are reintroduced in a way that flows right with the story. Really well done.

In fact, I was a bit more than half-way through the book when I caught myself thinking that this whole trilogy is really a masterpiece of the epic fantasy form.

As to the ending, no WONDER the blurb on the front called it "surprising"*. One of those shocking things that nonetheless had a lot of warning. One might even call them red flags. I too, have perfect hindsight.
The most bittersweet wrap up ever.

I'm full of questions, of course (which the author graciously answered, and I will paraphrase her answers below to make them slightly less spoilery)

... spoilers ahoy ...
Is this the end of Mai & Anji's story as central characters? What about Shai, & Zubaidit? (Answer: Mai will be in the next book)
When did Kate Elliott know what was going to happen to Mai & Anji -- right at the start or did it surprise her too? Did it break her heart? I'm guessing it was planned; really an amazing way of driving home the point of the history Jothinin was retelling -- we didn't see until it was too late. (Answer: Very much planned)
What's the plan for the next books -- when & where will they be set? (Answer: "Crossroads 4 is supposed to take place 15 years later (snip big spoilers). It's not particularly epic. The follow up trilogy is meant to take place almost 60 years after the end of Traitors' Gate and is hugely epic."

*oops, actually, it says "extraordinary", but I somehow remembered it as "surprising". It's both, imo.


In conclusion, Kate Elliott writes three Big, Fat, DELICIOUS books that I heartily recommend to anyone with an appetite for a really wonderful read.
Go forth and DEVOUR them.

currently reading

Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh
- This is for an online book discussion. I am finding it slow going.

Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
- Saw the BBC movie and was inordinately amused (read LMAO).

The High City by Cecelia Holland
- a new-to-me author; picked it up on impulse at the lib's new books shelf

Jackson & Perkins rose companions by Stephen Scanniello
- someone at the GW Rose forum rec'd this

Deer-resistant landscaping by Neil Soderstrom
- also grabbed of the new books shelf, so far very practical and engaging

just read

Silent on the Moor by Deanna Raybourn
- This was good, but not as good as the first two books. I think Julia and Brisbane behave strangely; Brisbane turns into some kind of Heathcliff/Rochester hybrid and Julia is distrubringly doormat-like.

The Murder Stone by Charles Todd
- a stand-alone, not part of the Inspector Rutledge series. Not as good either. There is a supposed to be horrific twist at the end that is so out of character that it made me laugh, literally.

A Cold Treachery by Charles Todd
- In which which Inspector Rutledge appears to find a love interest.

White Witch, Black Curse by Kim Harrison
- I am completely hooked on this series. I hope Harrison publishes the next book soon!