Inkspell by Cornelia Funke

Synopsis:

Although a year has passed, not a day goes by without Meggie thinking of INKHEART, the book whose characters became real. But for Dustfinger, the fire-eater brought into being from words, the need to return to the tale has become desperate. When he finds a crooked storyteller with the ability to read him back, Dustfinger leaves behind his young apprentice Farid and plunges into the medieval world of his past. Distraught, Farid goes in search of Meggie, and before long, both are caught inside the book, too. But the story is threatening to evolve in ways neither of them could ever have imagined.

Review by Patrick:

Wow. This book was amazing. I had the pleasure of listening to it in audio book format performed by Brendan Fraser. I thought Inkheart was good, but it is rare to find a sequel that is better than the first in a series. I believe Cornelia Funke has accomplished this. At first I wasn't excited that the performer was changed, but Brendan Fraser did an excellent job. The sound of Orpheus' voice was wonderful.

The story was amazing, and so real. When the characters go to the "Inkworld" as it is affectionately called by all of the characters not belonging to the book itself, the sheer descriptions and feelings of the characters is astounding. I believe she did an excellent job describing what a medieval world would be like, and the disparity between the rich and the poor (and the middle class, who just owns a few more cloaks than the farmers). I love it when the little details become real in the mind.

It got a little mind bending when I was thinking about all of the levels of intricacy. At one point I realized I was reading about a reader who was reading the words of an author to change a story that they both were currently inside when their real world was full of other characters who were stuck outside that world. Then outside of that I thought about what Cornelia Funke had been thinking about when she wrote, and what she would think of finally me the reader, reading her book, in which another book was written, and subsequently being changed by the author of that book. Talk about another layer of Inception.

There were so may twists and turns in this book. Nothing went how I expected it to. All of it went better. Everything wrong that could have happened did. It was amazing to see the darkness being unfolded before your eyes, and you had no idea what horrors would be in the next chapter, but you knew that you had to keep reading to find out.

I am stoic by nature. My own wife has seen me cry maybe a handful of times that we have been together. I. Do. Not. Cry. When the story took a turn for the worse, I was actually with her in the living room with headphones on (I couldn't wait for the commute the next morning). I closed my eyes and put my face in my hands, and she knew instantly that something was wrong. *Spoiler* How could I be so attached to a character? I was ready for death, but when it came, it still hurt like a knife in the back. I can't believe she did that. *Spoiler* But then again, I hadn't seen anything that was coming up in this book.

And the ending wasn't so much of an ending, but rather a springboard for the last book. The board is set, chess pieces moved, and some have fallen, but the characters must play out the story of the words that is written. You learn that in this book. If it is written, then destiny and fate must play out to the end. But I don't know what to do with the fear, excitement, and hope that the last chapters gave. What will happen in the last book? I do not know, but I will find out soon.

There is only one rating I can give for this book. 5. It was phenomenal. Enough said.

Up Next:

I'm still reading Gideon the Cutpurse and plan on finishing Catch 22 soon. If any of my other reserves come in from the library, I'll be reading those too.

Perfect Scoundrels by Ally Carter

Synopsis:

Katarina Bishop and W.W. Hale the fifth were born to lead completely different lives: Kat comes from a long, proud line of loveable criminal masterminds, while Hale is the scion of one of the most seemingly perfect dynasties in the world. If their families have one thing in common, it's that they both know how to stay under the radar while getting-or stealing-whatever they want.

No matter the risk, the Bishops can always be counted on, but in Hale's family, all bets are off when money is on the line. When Hale unexpectedly inherits his grandmother's billion dollar corporation, he quickly learns that there's no place for Kat and their old heists in his new role. But Kat won't let him go that easily, especially after she gets tipped off that his grandmother's will might have been altered in an elaborate con to steal the company's fortune. So instead of being the heir-this time, Hale might be the mark.

Forced to keep a level head as she and her crew fight for one of their own, Kat comes up with an ambitious and far-reaching plan that only the Bishop family would dare attempt. To pull it off, Kat is prepared to do the impossible, but first, she has to decide if she's willing to save her boyfriend's company if it means losing the boy.

Review by Patrick:

So this book took a whole three days to read. Just like the two other books in this series, I couldn't put it down. 

Okay, so this book had not one heist, but a heist, a recon, an Anastasia, a Big Store, a dead con, and a final long con. I mean, Heist Society was really just one con, Uncommon Criminals had two, but this book was just filled with them. You had no idea what the next chapter was going to bring.

And then there was this relationship drama. Not my cuppa tea, but I can tell you my wife was all about that. I'm sure that it appeals to many folk out there, but I know I wouldn't act and react like Hale, so it was a little out of touch for me.

So here's what I didn't like about this book. *Spoilers* - There was no mention of Visily Romani in this book at all. He didn't play any part. It was just some old guy trying to get rich, and he happened to pick on the wrong family. The other thing I didn't like was we don't know what Hale's name is. I need to know! *Spoilers*

So I also came up with this idea for a sequel series. It's 15 years later and Hale and Kat are married, much to Hale's monther's chargrin, and in the hallway Hale is talking quietly to two young boys, maybe five or six. You quickly realize that while Kat is in the kitchen, Hale is trying to teach the twins to sneak past her, in hopes they can snatch a cookie out of the cookie jar. As the boys are silently entering the room, Kat scolds all three of them without even turning around. Give a thief with heightened senses the eyes in the back of the head that only a mother would have, and you have a deadly combination. And you know that twins run in the family. So Ally, if you want to take this idea and run with it, I would buy those books.

So in the end, I'm going to rate this a 4.5. It was almost a 5, but I wanted to have some resolutions, some questions answered that didn't get answered. I loved the book though. Definitely a recommended series for anyone who likes the tale of a good heist.

Up Next:

I'm finishing up the last chapters of The Silmarillion, and still reading Inkspell.