Conservative Book Talk

Cosmo Hill, an boy abandoned and found on the hill he is named after. Quite the boy, in this futuristic world, Cosmo is subject whatever the boys home people do to him, simply because he is a no-sponsor. (a.k.a no friends/relatives to pay for his upkeep) To feed all these no-sponsor orphans, the orphanage allows various companies to perform chemical tests on the boys. Of course because of all this chemical stuff flowing through them, and the processed foods they get, the longest life anyone has is fifteen. Cosmo is fourteen and dreams of escape.

His chance comes when he is out with other orphans listening to music and their car crashes. Redwood, a very bad guy, tries to wrap Cosmo and his friend, Ziiplock, in the rib-breaking material for Ziplock’s smart comments. They escape, but in the process Ziplock dies and Cosmo gets very hurt.

A threesome group of Supernaturalists, teens hunting Parasites, invisible blue creatures who are believed to suck the life out of hurting people, find Cosmo. Cosmo learns that he too can see these Parasites, because of his near death experience, and so with his three new friends, embarks on a mission to kill the blue buggers before they kill them.

Negative: Not much, one of the bad guys is really mean, but he gets his just desserts. People get wrapped in stuff that breaks ribs and an orphanage mistreats all its occupants.

Overall: A good book, not quite the genius Artemis Fowl, (a series by Eion Colfer) but I enjoyed it. Unfortunately my one of favorite character died, but be assured it wasn’t the main character. If you’re looking for enjoyable mental junk food, with plenty of plot twists, this is it.

Tags: Artemis Fowl, Eion Colfer, fiction, Hannasus, youth

Unraveling the Mystery section, part 1

Ever been to one of those bookstores with shelves all the way to the ceiling? The used ones, with so many kinds of books and so many authors, it makes your head spin? Well, I was in one last week, and got overwhelmed. So I grabbed five books off a shelf at random, and decided to unravel the mystery section. Good books will get the author on the seek list, bad ones on the skip list, and any other reveiwer’s are welcome to add to the series.

In the good news section, this book is all about good food. Most of the jokes involve food, and all the recipes mentioned are given in the back (very fun idea). The main character/female detective is a caterer, so amid investigating her ex-husband’s murder, she’s baking up all these food things that inspire you to try your own hand in the kitchen. The plot involves a lot of fun twists and turns, but mostly the main detective goes from food event to food event with inspiring ideas and collecting clues with her cop husband and gossip-queen girlfriend.

In the bad news department, Davidson has a very appalling sense of place and timing. Several scenes take place in all-too-detailed backgrounds, like a gross-out kitchen or sleazy “men’s club,” all peopled by completely unacceptably described shlubs. While a lot of food comments and quips take some sting out of it, the fact is, a good five pages need to be ripped out of this copy before its acceptable reading. I skimmed a lot of the detecting parts because of these locational problems, about 100 pages worth.

Overall, Davidson goes on my skip-list. Anyone disagree? In the mystery world, are nasty locations fair play, and if so, are there limits on how they should be handled? Or should the author be able to describe what happened, without setting the book in places where offensive material is a given?

Tags: Diane Mott Davidson, fiction, Mystery, Sincerelyornot

The Shining Sword is an analogy of the armor of G-d. The author uses fictional characters and a season in their lives to show how she believes the armor of G-d is portrayed in the Bible. (I consider it accurate)

Lanus is our main character and he is very lazy. His favorite activities include wrestling and sleeping in the grass. He works only when he absolutely has to, and looks to the villagers for free meals here and there. He does not sound like much of a hero does it. No, and that disturbed me at first, that the author chose such a character for her hero, but it soon became clear that Lanus’s character was soon to get a wake-up call.

As Lanus is leisurely lying in the grass on a hill, he sees a familiar figure approaching, who turns out to be a friend that disappeared a year ago. Robin, the friend, tells Lanus of his life as a solider of the King, and that he came to invite him to visit the King’s home beyond the little valley where Lanus lives, and to become a soldier of the King.

Lanus agrees to visit, and is impressed with the work and lifestyle Robin and his comrades live in, yet the work part is still a bit bothersome to him. So instead of staying he goes back to the village. Yet instead of staying, you guessed it, he decides to return and become a soldier of the King, and face the enemy (the devil). From there we watch Lanus grow, fall and get back up again and learn proper use of the armor of the King. (G-d)

I must admit I considered this book a bit of a bore for the first 10 or 15 pages, the way the author began things was a little tedious and not very catching. However, I persevered because a friend lent it to me and I told him I would read it. After those first few pages, it began to pick up speed. It never reached 90 miles per hour, but it did end up keeping my interest and finishing out as a book worth reading. (198 pages at most)

If you end up reading this book, let me know what you think about the way the author portrays the armor of G-d. I liked it and thought it a good reminder.

Tags: Charles G. Coleman, Hannasus, Religious, The Shining Sword