Rosette Thornbriar Review

Rosette Thornbriar by Rachel Roden

I'm participating in the Three Sleeping Beauties Blog Tour. Apparently, I start out all of my blog tour posts with that sentence. Oh, well, can't break the tradition now. I was given the chance to review this lovely book, and I present that review to you now.

Once upon a time, way out west...

Back when they were young'uns, Fleur Guardstone proposed to Rosette Thornbriar with a cigar band ring. However, not long after, she disappeared back into the forest and hadn't been heard from since. However, when Fleur hears reports of smoke coming from that woods, he's determined to find out if it is, indeed, his dear Rosette. If he can get past all of the briars.

This was a very cute little book. It is surprisingly short, and only took me a couple minutes to read. Sleeping Beauty has never been my favorite fairy tale, but I was able to enjoy this retelling very much. There is something about this author's writing style, something I can't put my finger on, that is very charming. Whatever it was, I liked it a lot. This author shows a lot of promise.

My review, like the book itself, is very short. Nevertheless, it is not too short to urge you to check out this book and the other two wonderful ones in this blog tour, and read them as soon as humanly possible.

About the Author

Rachel Roden is a natural story teller, capable of weaving the most hilarious of fairy tales. She fell in love with the Lone Ranger in her teens, but ended up with a basketball referee instead. Together, she and the Ref homeschool their four children in the Piney Woods of East Texas, as well as any other odd kid who ends up in their house. She might also be the sole human who still uses math after college.

You can connect with Rachel on her blog, twitter, and Pinterest.

You can order Rosette Thornbriar on Amazon or add it to your Goodreads!

Check out the rest of the blog tour here!

Don't forget to join the giveaway!

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Spider-Man: Homecoming Review

   Anyone that knows me can tell you that I'm a huge fan of Spider-Man. I loved the original movies and I loved Spidey's appearance in Captain America: Civil War. (I wasn't a fan of the Amazing Spider-Man movies, but that's neither here nor there.) So needless to say, I was super excited when Spider-Man: Homecoming was released. I managed to convince my dad to take me to go see it not long after it came out, but due to Camp NaNo and other stuff, I haven't gotten around to doing such things as writing reviews for a while. So, without further ado, here is my (rather fangirly) review of the latest Spider-Man movie.

   First of all, this movie starts out hilariously. I loved how the original Spider-Man theme was incorporated into the intro music. The rest of the music was beautiful as well. Michael Giacchinno, while he couldn't measure up to John Williams with his Rogue One soundtrack, still did an amazing job with this movie.

   The technical aspects of this movie were very well done. Filming, lighting, acting, CGI, even the costumes were spectacularly done. Something so subtle and easily overlooked as costume design can really complement a story's plot and characters well, and this time they did so. Just something as simple as Peter's clothing choices says volumes about his character. 

   I mean, this t-shirt screams nerd:

Via Pinterest

   Also, Peter's two different Spidey suits designed by Stark were beautiful. Just sayin'.
   The plot was amazing. It wasn't ridiculously predictable, way too complex, shallow and meaningless, or centered around a girl. It wasn't even in the vein of a typical superhero movie. It was very well-written. The plot points were all spot-on and powerful. The plot twist near the end was very unexpected, and the climax was masterful.

    The characters. Wow, the characters. They are some of the best parts of the movie. My favorite, naturally, was Peter Parker himself. He was a nerd, a dork, and a hero. And what's more, Marvel didn't feel the need to tell this to their audience. They just let it show. As a fellow super-dorky nerd, I really appreciated it. Peter was by no means perfect, but he had a good heart, and it showed. His character arc was amazing, and the center of the whole movie. His flaws were shown as clearly as his virtues, which takes bravery. He changed so beautifully. Alright, I'm done fangirling.
   The other characters were marvelous and deep. Tony has very obviously adopted Peter as his son, and is trying to do a better job fathering him than Howard Stark did with Tony. He states several times that he wants Peter to be a better person than he is. He makes some tough decisions and says some hard things to Peter that really help him overcome his flaws and struggles. Ned was a wonderful, loyal friend to Peter, and a great "guy in the chair." :) Peter's crush, Liz, was sweet, kind, and very understanding. And MJ was a star. She was hysterical, and I can't wait for more interaction between her and Peter in the future.
   The theme. Hardly separable from the character arc. It was so powerful and wonderful. Unfortunately, I'll have to see it more times before I'll be able to articulate further. Guess I'll just have to buy the DVD or something.
   All in all, this was a wonderful movie. I wouldn't recommend it to younger children, especially not without their parents viewing it first, mainly because of the language. You can read a good overview of the content concerns here. Despite all that, I would recommend it to teens and up, and for any Marvel fans or Spider-Man fans.
   Now, I just hope I get this movie for Christmas so I can rewatch it a ton.

Book Review: Give Me Liberty

Rating: PG

Recommended for: Ages 10 and up

For thirteen–year–old Nathaniel, an indentured servant in colonial Virginia, life is hard. Though things improve with the help of a kind master named Basil–who shares music, books, and philosophies on equality–around him the climate is heating up. It's 1775 and colonists are enraged by England's taxation. Patrick Henry's words "give me liberty, or give me death" become the sounding call and the American Revolution is about to errupt. Nathaniel and Basil must make a choice about joining the fight and face a larger conundrum about the true meaning of liberty.

L. M. Elliott crafts a stirring narrative for middle grade readers–conveying the hopes and dilemmas of this crucial era in American history.

 A few weeks ago, this book was returned to the book drop at the library where I work. It intrigued me, as I love American history and the cover gave off strong Johnny Tremain vibes. It's difficult to find a historical fiction book that doesn't distort history these days, so I skimmed the author's note, found little known but awesome history facts there (which indicated a perspective I agree with), and decided to try it.

Now the book. Unfortunately, I can't completely rave about how awesome it is because of a few literary flaws. First, I feel like it could have used another editing pass to refine the use of old fashioned language. That aspect was good, but not great. Especially considering the fact that she once referred to Nathaniel's unusually pale blue eyes as "weird-colored" even though according to Webster's 1828 dictionary, "weird" meant "skilled in witchcraft."

My primary complaint is that she shoved in too much historical and cultural information via exposition in the dialogue. Too many characters went on for paragraphs in an "as you know, Bob" manner. Now, as a lover of American history and particularly the American Revolution, I didn't really mind the history, but at the same time, it's a sign to me that she did a lot of research and wanted people to know everything she found out at the cost of the story. I kept comparing it to Johnny Tremain as I read, and Johnny Tremain is just a better written book.

But lest you think I hated this book, I actually really enjoyed it. Yes, there are literary flaws, and no, it doesn't measure up to Johnny Tremain (one of my three favorite historical fictions), but it still managed to be a pretty good book. Not spectacular, but pretty good and I don't regret the read. I liked Nathaniel and obviously I liked the historical period, and the details felt very authentic (minus the use of "weird"). It's very obvious the author spent a lot of time in colonial Williamsburg. Speaking of which, there were some moments of internal squealing at mentions of places in Williamsburg where I've been and lesser known historical figures I learned about on my trip there. (Which was 8 years ago this fall. Wow. I really need to go back.)

So would I recommend it? It depends. If you love the American Revolution, are looking for a book with an accurate perspective, and are willing to overlook some literary flaws, then absolutely. Because seriously, my only complaints are the literary ones already listed. The American Revolution is a fantastic period of history and I love it. And this book reminded me of that fact. Though now I have an urge to go reread Johnny Tremain. 

Originally posted on Goodreads.