Book Twenty-Five of my 2013 Goal

Bobby on a stick by Vasileios Kalampakas
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Bobby on a Stick by Vasileios Kalampakas starts off innocent enough but be prepared for a jam packed story of demons, shaman, ghosts/spirits, secret places, a gateway, crooks and a case of amnesia. Now throw some mystery and humor in there and you have the blend of this story.

The story opens up with Bobby driving down the road wondering what he was going to do. He has a job to pull off and his 'partner' went and blew himself up with an oxygen tank and blowtorch. He knew he would be killed if he didn't complete the job and as he was driving down the road he hit a rider and horse. The rider is a shaman and then things began to get really 'weird' from this moment on. I mean 'weird' in a good way though. I am a big fan of the supernatural plus mysteries so this fit right up my alley.

The characters were well developed and the story was ever moving. I must admit I did have some confusion while reading it but I am not sure why since I re-read the part I was having problems with and it flowed nicely and complete. I think it was because I had in my mind that the story was going to go one way and it didn't, it went another. That is another thing I can say about this story, don't think you know where it is going and what is going to happen next because chances are, it isn't going to go there. At least it didn't for me. There seemed to be surprises with every turn of the page.

I recommend this fast paced story to those who like supernatural, mystery, end-of-the-world, humor, and just plain 'a fun read'.

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Book Twenty - Four of my 2013 Goal

Rowan Blaize by Jonathan Kieran
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Rowan Blaize: Book One of the Enchanted Heritage Chronicles by Jonathan Kieran is enchanting indeed. This is the first book I read that is written in epic verse and I loved it. I like poetry but just so much of it and I was afraid at first that I wouldn't like this book because all I can picture is the hard time I had with Shakespeare in school. Because of this I passed by the book a few times but it did sound interesting since I do like the 'magical and mystical' so figured I would give it a try. Once I read the first page, I never put the book down until I was finished. It went from intriguing to captivating that quick.

It is a story with humans, warlocks, witches, faeries, dryads and many other mystical/folklore creatures as characters. These creatures are all struggling to survive in a world where humans are taking over. To be honest with you I couldn't help but think how sad it is in parts....mainly because it is true. No, I don't mean that there are all these mystical creatures living among the trees (Or are there?) but there are deer and other wildlife that live in the woods long before humans came and cut them all down. If they could talk, I bet their story would be much the same as what King Narzell told to Rowan Blaize..

"Where once these forests teemed with faery life and jubilation, we find ourselves the members of a worn and shrunken nation.
Some say we should be grateful for what woodland still remains, for those within the mortal world who've always taken pains
...to see that little forests, here and there, are well-preserved,
that tiny parks and trails for their amusement are reserved.
These 'habitats' of which they speak are stripped of inner-glory.
No longer lives the Magic Wood of ancient song and story!"

There is greed, lies and struggles as well as friendship, kindness and loyalty throughout the story. Speaking of what is throughout the story, much to my delight there are awesome illustrations that only add to the pleasure of this story. The poetry was not hard to understand as you can tell from the partial quote above. The flow and rhythm are excellent and the ending made me smile. I have nothing negative to say about this book at all. I am giving it five stars (because that is as high as they go) and I recommend it everyone.

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