Post number fifty-five is for James Thurber's The 13 Clocks. This is the second book I've read by this author (the first was The Wonderful O), and it, like the previous book, is rather nonsensical in a way. In fact, I don't really have that much to say about it, but shall use a spoiler space just in case.
S
P
O
I
L
E
R
S
This story is about a wicked Duke, who's kidnapped a princess, Saralinda, and keeps her locked up in his castle (Coffin Castle, heh). The Duke is always cold, and Saralinda is always warm. Suitors from everywhere flock to try to win her hand, but the Duke wants to marry her for himself, so always gives them impossible tasks. They either don't return, or do and get killed by the Duke. Enter Prince Zorn, who's disguised himself as a wandering Minstrel, but is in fact from a very wealthy kingdom. He wants to win Saralinda's hand, so the Duke sends him to find 1000 jewels in thirty days and thirty hours. (There aren't any jewels on this island, however, which is what makes it impossible.) On top of the jewels, Zorn must get all 13 clocks in the castle working again. (The Duke feels like he's "killed time" as the clocks have stopped working.)
This book has many funny turns of phrase, and sometimes rhymes. There are also a wide variety of odd characters, some of which say peculiar things that are oftentimes funny. In the end, the Duke gets his comeuppance and Zorn and Saralinda get their happily-ever-after. Yay. <3
Anyway, if you're looking for a fun, easy-to-read book that's interesting in its own right, give this one a try.
Post number fifty-four is for the fifth 39 Clues book, The Black Circle. This book picks up pretty much directly after the previous one. Dan and Amy are given a clue and a deadline - 36 hours - so leave Nellie behind in Egypt and set out for Russia.
Mild spoilers beyond this point!
S
P
O
I
L
E
R
S
All the known Lucians (meaning Irina and the Kabras) don't want Dan and Amy anywhere near Russia, and pretty much make it difficult for them. However, they're receiving help from someone (someone who turns out to also be a Lucian, but seems to be on Dan and Amy's side), including a Visa Gold card with a $30,000+ spending limit and a list of clues. Dan and Amy end up teaming up with the Holts to search all the different locations in Russia. The Holts take the two Siberian outposts and Dan and Amy take Yekaterinburg, St. Petersburg and Moscow. Through an exchange of information, and travels to various different places, and at least one attempt on their lives, Dan and Amy do find the clue, and also some more information about the dreaded Madrigals, who the mysterious man in black may be a member of. The book ends with the siblings awaiting Nellie's arrival.
I seriously love this series and am waiting impatiently for the next installment. I can't wait to see where the hunt for the clues will lead them next, and am glad Nellie (and Saladin) will once again be with them. Dan and Amy on their own are kind of scary!
Post number fifty-three is for a compilation of short stories entitled Vacations from Hell. It features stories by Libba Bray, Cassandra Clare, Claudia Gray, Maureen Johnson and Sarah Mlynowski. I have only read books by two of these authors myself, and both of them were the stories I enjoyed the most.
Brief, not-really spoilers follow.
S
P
O
I
L
E
R
S
The first story in the book was by Sarah Mlynowski and featured a twist at the end that I didn't see coming, so that's always satisfying.
The second story, by Claudia Gray, was perhaps the most light-hearted of them all, and was overall okay. Not fabulous but not really bad, either. Just ... okay.
The third story was by Maureen Johnson and was just creepy. I didn't care for the ending at all, but it did fit in with the plot, so I guess I can't complain.
The fourth story was my favorite, and it was by Cassandra Clare. I liked this one because the ending was satisfying, the plot was interesting, and the heroine had to figure things out (with help from others) and carry out what was necessary to be done. Two thumbs up!
The final story was by Libba Bray, and it was borderline creepy, too, and also had a twist that I didn't see coming. It was pretty dark, though, especially as it neared the end, so just be forewarned.
Of all the stories, Maureen Johnson's was the darkest. They were all well-written, for the most part, and enjoyable in their own right. I'm glad I read the book, but also glad I borrowed it from the local library, as it's not something I'd ever really be inclined to read again.
Post number fifty-two is for Esther Friesner's Sphinx's Princess, which is a fictional account of the life of Nefertiti. This books is semi-based on fact, but mostly made up, as hardly anything (aside from the names of Nefertiti's father, stepmother and sister) is known about her life before she became Akhenaten's Great Royal Wife. Likewise, there's nothing known about her death, either, so her life is basically one great big mystery, aside from the time she spent as Pharaoh's wife. Nonetheless, Friesner managed to make Nefertiti into an interesting person, full of joy, humor and intelligence. I enjoyed this book a lot.
Spoilers follow.
S
P
O
I
L
E
R
S
This book picks up with Nefertiti as a small child. She's been raised by a nurse, Mery (who later becomes her stepmother), and her father, Ay. Ay is the brother of Pharaoh Amenhotep's Great Royal Wife Tiye, and after a long period of time, Tiye requests that Ay, Mery, Nefertiti and Mutnodjmet (Nefertiti's sister) come visit her, and she forces Ay to send Nefertiti to Thebes, where she'll marry Thutmose, Tiye's eldest son, and the next Pharaoh. Nefertiti's father doesn't want to do this, but Tiye threatens him until he relents. Nefertiti goes into the courtship with the idea that she might fall in love with Thutmose, but this is not to be. Nefertiti is only allowed to bring her slave girl, whom she calls Berett, which means "harp" in Egyptian. (Berett is a harp player who has since gone mute after the death of her sister, who was punished for blasphemy because she pulled Nefertiti out of the river when she fell, even though the priests declared that Nefertiti's death was the Gods' will. My recap makes this sound confusing, but it really isn't. Sorry about that.)
Thutmose is really rather evil, although we don't find this out until nearly the end of the book. He has an older sister, Sitamun, and a younger brother Amenophis, both of whom become friends with Nefertiti. This turns out to be a good thing, because, after Pharaoh falls ill and he and Tiye head to Dendera, Thutmose becomes acting regent, and condemns Nefertiti to death for supposedly killing his cat. He plays her, though, making her think he's on her side, when in reality he's jealous because she likes Amenophis more than she likes him. (The truth is that if Thutmose had been more like the way he was when he was pretending to court Nefertiti, she most likely *would* have liked him more than Amenophis.) Anyway, Sitamun and Henenu (a friend of Nefertiti's father, and a scribe to the Pharaoh Amenhotep) work out a way to get Nefertiti away from Thebes, and her, Berett (who's real name is Nava), and Amenophis set out in a small reed boat on the way to Dendara to clear Nefertiti of all charges.
I am interested to see how Friesner ends Nefertiti's story. In reality, Nefertiti was the wife of Akhenaten, which is the Egyptian name for Amenophis. Also, the physical descriptions of Amenophis match those of Akhenaten, so it seems pretty clear that she's going to end up married to him. I don't know what's going to become of Thutmose (in reality Thutmose was a sculptor, and is the creator of the famous bust of Nefertiti), or if Tiye (who in the story blames Nefertiti for a great many things, due to the fact that she's been given three years to marry Thutmose) will see that the charges against Nefertiti are false, or if she'll side with her eldest son. Also, Amenhotep's poor health is a concern; hopefully Nefertiti will reach him at Dendera before anything bad happens to him. I imagine that much of the next book will be about Nefertiti's, Nava's and Amenophis' journey to Dendera, although I could obviously be wrong. Nonetheless I eagerly await the installment. :)
