Stacking the Shelves - October 18, 2014

Books Stacked on My Shelves

Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books I added to my shelves this week. They may it be physical or virtual. I include books I buy in a physical store or online, books I borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!  Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga at Tynga's Reviews.  Follow the link to see what others have on their 

shelves.

For Review:

The Here and Now by Ann Brashares

The Viscount’s Christmas Temptation by Erica Ridley

Death Defying by Nina Croft

From the Library: 

Festive in Death by J.D.Robb

Complete Guide to Natural Home Remedies by Joe and Terry Graedon

Hellhole Inferno by Brian Herbert and Kevin J.Anderson

Purchased:

Reckoning by S.J. Harper

Daring by Elliott James

Darling Beast by Elizabeth Hoyt

Charming (Pax Arcana #1) by Elliott James

Urban Fantasy 

What Goodreads Says:

"John Charming isn't your average Prince...
He comes from a line of Charmings — an illustrious family of dragon slayers, witch-finders and killers dating back to before the fall of Rome. Trained by a modern day version of the Knights Templar, monster hunters who have updated their methods from chainmail and crossbows to kevlar and shotguns, he was one of the best. That is — until he became the abomination the Knights were sworn to hunt.
That was a lifetime ago. Now, he tends bar under an assumed name in rural Virginia and leads a peaceful, quiet life. One that shouldn't change just because a vampire and a blonde walked into his bar... Right?"

Let me start by saying that I loved Charming.  From there let me break down why I loved it.

Worldbuilding:  Charming had some of the most intense worldbuilding I have seen in any book.  Almost every scene and every character had to be explained and it had to be done in a book written in the first person.  This is a set up something I really hate – a lot of time in a characters head with no action just long winded explanations.  That did not happen here.  John Charming the main character did have to do all of the explanations for the world but it was so skillfully done that the story never faltered.  Something needed to be explained and the explanation appeared in the context of the story.  In an interview at the end of the story James stated that he cut put pages and pages about the world and he hated to do it.  He left in just the right amount to keep the story moving and for me to understand the world and the characters.  Very, Very well done.

Characters:  We start with John Charming, one of those Charming who have helped save the world numerous times.  He has problems and they help drive the story.  Sig is the main female characters and is a species that we think are imaginary.  Along with the intense worldbuilding there is some really intense character building in the story.  Much of it is necessary to explain the history of both the two main characters and several of the side characters.  Again everything arrived when needed and did not slow the story down.

Plot:  It is a standard plot.  Evil in the person of the vampires, good from the two main characters and some of the side characters.  A few surprises from some of the characters who are not as good or as evil as expected.  The characters and the worldbuilding take this from just the same old plot to something special.  Some things were settled but this is book one so look for loose ends that will be the focus in book two.

Writing:  This is the first published novel by Elliott James.  He has published numerous short stories in the past.  He is very good.   It takes very good writing skills to have the level of worldbuilding and character development you find in Charming.  The story moved smoothly and the tension built as the story progressed.

I highly recommend Charming.  It was fun, full of tension and had a high quirky content.  All in all a book I had trouble putting down.

Orbit published Charming by Elliott James in 2013. 

I received an ARC of Charming from Netgalley.

Teaser Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Hunter and the turtle.  Who is teasing who?

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:"

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My teaser today is from a book I received from Netgalley; Charming (Pax Arcana #1) by Elliott James.  If the title makes you think of a fairy tale think again.  This tease sets the tone for the book.  Charming is Urban Fantasy written in the first person and John Charming is the main character.  I loved the book.  If you want to know more look for my review of Charming on September 26.

"But make no mistake:  the reason there are so many stories about "Prince" Charming is that there was never one man - the Charming were an entire family line standing between humanity and all others generation  after generation, and in the old days it wa common to give any monster killer in a story royal status.  That is a heavy burden, but I carried my name proudly for as long as I was able."