Ari-chan

“Give, and it shall be given to you. For whatever measure you deal out to others, it will be dealt to you in return.” Luke 6:38

Well, Miss Picoult, I hope you will waste the next few hours of your life. And by this, I do not dare instill the idea that Keeping Fate is a complete and utter waste of time, just that time would somehow prefer a more pleasant way of being spent.

1. Storyline: 6/10

I really do think that the story has been stretched out on way too many directions, and this for the simple wish of making it seem far more complex and complicated than it is. Fail. Maybe less pages, but more consistent and about what we really care would have been better,
Next, let’s see what the author has tried to do. So, some of us have read a few of really good detective stories, and others have at least heard of them. The evolution of the story. the “omg… so that’s how it was”. This is what Picoult also tries in her wondrous book. Fail again. What she actually does, is, in my opinion, murky the water. She just adds some stuff there in the idea that confusion will spread, although, let’s face it, we know the idea is so stupid it couldn’t be possible. Not even in fiction.

2. Characters: 5/10

Again, who was the main character in this book? Faith. Wrong answer. It was Mariah (in my humble opinion), and all the stress she is under and all the other ’stuff’ (in a politically correct language) that happens to her surroundings. And she is not a very good character at that. I find her, inconsistent at the very least. I myself could not identify myself with her; as far as the other characters go, they are all fairly weak ones, none of which could make me love him/her. Well, except for Faith. Maybe she isn’t that of a great character, but I do think she had potential. Not to revolutionize the genre, but to make the book much more pleasant. But apparently the author doesn’t think so, and thus doesn’t work so much on her.
Whilst threading through a blog, I found a very neat idea. “The Idiot Plot Device”. As the author describes it, and I myself agree very much, it’s the thing lazy/ untalented authors use to make their plots. It’s when characters chose extremely infidel choices (infidel to their personality) for the sole purpose of making the plot go further. There have been at least a few around here, and they merely make me think “what the hell is happening here?”. Like when Mariah takes her daughter to Kansas after Colin threatens her with a custody trial; Mariah never risks. But it was vital, wasn’t it? How else (unless with a complicated maneuver that requires skill) would she have fallen in love with Ian and another bunch of stuff.

3. Lasting appeal: 5

I do not like the ending. And i re-read it like 3 times, because I couldn’t believe that it wasn’t at least better. I think an ending has one of two purposes: make you want to read the continuation of the story, or gives you a sort of feeling of, accomplishment. Of “I’m glad I read this book”, or sympathy, or something that lasts even after the last page has been turned. No such thing here.
I also disliked another thing about the edition I read. At the end are “Book Club Discussion Questions” where the author, or the editor, or I really don’t care, offer these very idiotic questions book clubs should discuss. Just because your book has I don’t know how many copies sold, doesn’t not make you a smart person, Miss Picoult, nonetheless a smarter person than those that read them. I do think that writing talent does not necessarily mean you are necessarily very intelligent. You are good at writing books. Off course, please notice the premise (you = talent) is fairly wrong.

Perhaps other books are good, by this author, but personally I won’t try and find out by myself.

Final Score: 5/10

So, I said to myself, why not write reviews for the books that I read?  And then also write about the manga’s that I read. I can polish my english (yes, language is a weapon, so you polish it. Unless it’s a mace, and you just… i don’t know… dust it?) during the process of writing geniality filled stuff.

No, it is not the first book I read, it’s just the first one i’ll review. Red = number of book, blue = title of book, green = author (although I’m sure you could have figured this on your own. Unless you’re a troll. No offense intended)

Book # 1 - “Sourcery” - Terry Prachett

Oh, how I always tell others that being yourself is really the only thing one can do at a level of somewhat perfection (well, that and running away. Really, I have seen people that have created the Godly Level at that…) but yet again, I never managed to put it in a magi-war surrounding, with stuff flying all around and things warping into other things. Maybe that would have been more convincing.

So, getting back were we should be (or better said, as Pratchett would put it, we are already were we should be. It’s the rest of the world that isn’t here). This is the third(if you’ve read the books in order, cause’ else it could be first or fourth, or second, in any order…) book where we once again meet the pragmatical wizard (well, at least that what his hat says) Rincewind, who does a very good job at Staying Alive. And, once again, he must save the world. Because, if the world would die out, then he would do so too. And he really wouldn’t like that.

He really manages to make the story interesting (as a main character should, except if you’re a few certain author(s) and believe that you’re character simply oozes geniality just because you make it a sparkly vampire or other such nonsense), and while he tumbles (and stumbles) in love with Conina, the female protagonist of Sourcery, he is followed by the loyal Luggage (which, in my opinion, is one of the most brilliant characters of belles-lettres and reality alike) and remains the same old witty wanna-be-wizard that we all know (or are about to drastically find out).

The main “evil-dooer” of this book is the Sorcerer, that is controlled by his father-staff (which, as you could intelligently catch on, is his father’s soul in the staff that all wizards should possess). He doesn’t talk that much, being much more the “warp the world more, talk less” type of guy. Well, he does talk, but his lines aren’t all that interesting, so I won’t lodge them into the dark parts of my brain (and I do have many of those). See, I already forgot them.

Now, much more cannot be said without ruining the future delight any more. A book with wanna bees and queen bees (the peachy Conina being the aforementioned queen), gods (although they play a very small part), and the short but extremely expensive appearances of Death. A definitely must read.

“Conina said, ‘All right. I’ve always wondered what a harem looked like.’”