Saffy Alexandra (89 KP) rated Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets in Books
Jun 1, 2019
Now I will admit the book and the film absolutely terrified me when I was younger and still gives me a bit of creeps now, even though I do own a snake and love them to bits. Any who …
In this movie we meet new characters, one of which becomes very dear to everyone’s heart – aka Dobby! We meet the funny little House Elf who manages to wreck havoc in poor Harry’s life before he even gets to school with the whole dropping a pudding in the middle of the living room and then blocking 9 and 3 quarters to both Harry and Ron. Hence them then breaking the first law, do not expose Magic to Muggles. Then who could forget Gilderoy Lockhart? The incompetent but very good at memory spells Dark-Arts teacher. And then there is Moaning Myrtle, good old Myrtle.
Harry and Ron’s misadventures start right at the beginning of term, causing them to nearly be expelled. Thankfully not, other wise the book series would have been very short. More and more drama ensues to the Trio (Harry, Ron and Hermione) and the rest of the school as the book continues with Harry talking to snakes, Ginny acting strange, and then student’s being petrified including our brilliant Hermione. It’s then up to Harry and Ron to try and solve the mystery. You know, because all those suitably qualified teachers can’t do anything but a twelve year old can?
But what started off with causing everyone to avoid Harry within an inch of his life soon became the reason all the muggle-borns and half-blood’s stayed awake and not petrified. What would they ever do without Harr Potter?
A funny and dramatic second book in this series which grips you straight from the start with Rowling’s brilliant way to use mischief, sarcasm and wit in her writing.
A Favourite scene of mine that is in the books is:
“Fred and George, however, found all this very funny. They went out of
their way to march ahead of Harry down the corridors, shouting, "Make way for
the Heir of Slytherin, seriously evil wizard coming through ......
Percy was deeply disapproving of this behavior.
"It is not a laughing matter," he said coldly.
"Oh, get out of the way, Percy," said Fred. "Harry's in a hurry."
"Yeah, he's off to the Chamber of Secrets for a cup of tea with his fanged
servant," said George, chortling.
Ginny didn't find it amusing either.
"Oh, don't," she wailed every time Fred asked Harry loudly who he was
planning to attack next, or when George pretended to ward Harry off with a large
clove of garlic when they met.”
― J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
Naomi Forrest (42 KP) rated The Missing Barbegazi in Books
Jan 4, 2019
A Barbegazi, in case you are wondering as I did, is a type of Swiss mountain/snow elf with a long beard that can only live in freezing conditions and has a severe intolerance to iron. The story is told from the point of view of Tessa, a young skier and Gaiwon, a barbegazi who is hunting for his missing sister. No-one believes the barbegazi exist anymore except Tessa. The only other believer was her recently deceased opa (grandad) and a professor who wrote about them years before. The barbegazi, for their part, rescue humans who have been trapped and injured in avalanches, erasing their memories afterwards. They are extremely mistrusting of humans.
. Norup's passion for skiing, the Alps and magic are clear throughout the novel and I think this is what makes the story so captivating. I loved the development of Tessa from grieving for her grandfather and wanting everybody to believe he was right about the barbegazi to realising that fame and proving a point are less important than trust and friendship. She never wavers in her faith that the barbegazi still exist and is a headstrong and loveable character.
The highlight for me was definitely reading about the barbegazi themselves. I particularly love that despite being more than a hundred old, Gaiwon's parents still treat him like a child. I loved the argument between Gaiwon and his father as Gaiwon shouts "I cannot wait to get my own cave" and his father retorts: "You can build one right now. And take your sesquicentennial hormones with you." This highlights that Norup doesn't 'write down' to the target audience but includes wide ranging vocabulary, as well as her own inventions, such as 'potzblitz', an emphatic expression of the barbegazi.
There is peril throughout the book though this is very mild. Tessa learns that people are not always as trustworthy as they seem. I always love the text-book sections that punctuate the novel (see photo below), describing features and traits of the barbegazi. This is really effective with ambitious vocabulary for children and introduces them to another style of writing, combining fictive and non-fiction styles. The book is set between Boxing Day and New Year's Eve, that magical time when you don't know what day it really is and we are all enjoying the post-Christmas days where we live in our pyjamas, eat too much and don't really do much of anything except relax and catch up. It was simply the most perfect time to read this book and imagine I was in a gorgeous Alpine ski lodge, surrounded by magical folk who will keep me safe in the snow. This is a fantastic debut novel and I really can't wait to see what Norup offers up next. Thanks for making my Christmas even more magical, Helle!
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Night Reader Reviews (683 KP) rated The Dark Prince: The Beginning in Books
Jan 10, 2020
The first book in The Dark Prince series introduces readers to Prince Lexxendae Tal’ Dier, a half-dark elf and half demi-god. His mother is Xeron, a demi-goddess exiled to the mortal plane by the other gods due to her being cruel to humans. She ends up marrying the King of the dark elves and gives him three sons. Price Lexxendae is the eldest of the three princes but he wars with his other evil personality. With the help of Segromor, a necromancer, and a friend of his father, Lexxendae learns how to create a mental barrier to hold back his evil side.
Xeron frames Lexxendae for the murder of his father in an attempt to get Lexxendae out of her way in her quest for more power. Segromor saves Lexxendae and sets him on a great quest for a legendary weapon that can kill a god. While Lexxendae is on his journey and making some surprising new friends his brothers are reluctantly teaming up to fight a new evil that threatens the entire island. Xeron is slowly losing her mind and questioning her choices in turning away or destroying everyone who cared about her and tried to get close to her. Meanwhile, on the realm of the gods they are watching all this unfold on their human children and some are starting to talk of rebelling.
What I liked best was that while I thought the story would drop Lex’s mother in favor of Lex himself I was surprised to find it just branched off instead. Lex’s mother played an important role in the entire story. Also seeing what the Gods were thinking about regarding the events playing out on Earth was interesting. Even though the Gods sent Lex’s mother to Earth they still regularly watched her instead of just leaving the humans to our fate. What I did not like all that much was once Lex’s brothers go to war the book seriously begins to drag. Lex’s journey keeps its pace nicely yet the rest of the book seems to lose its speed. There were also numerous places where the tense of words was so wrong that it was extremely obvious, even to me.
The target readers for this book are teens and young adults who enjoy fantasy. Even though the story is about a Prince it is not a mushy love story in any way and it will interest most anyone. There is one minor sex scene that readers should be aware of. Overall I give this book a rating of 3 out of 4. This book contains all the elements of most fantasy stories. The plotline is strong while multiple branches are being told at the same time. The war slowing down the pace of the book and the errors that even I noticed is why I did not give the book a perfect score.
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