Monday 6 February 2012

Latest reading - Draykon

I have just finished reading this book, written by my friend Charlotte who has moved to the Netherlands.  It is the first of a series of fantasy novels and she is already working on number three in the series, as well as a new series and writing as part of an author group.  She is e-publishing the books and this is one of the reasons I felt I should get a kindle (as well as all the free classic books available, of course.)  Although this is not a genre that I have much experience of, I found it to be a pacy, well written and engrossing story.  There are two heroines, both of whom I really liked and their stories are told in parallel, following one, then the other.  Charlotte has followed in the great tradition of classic writers by moving between the stories and leaving the characters so that the reader is desperate to know what happens next.  She has created an amazing other-world with various regions and layers to it, peopled by various groups, which she describes with clarity and conjures up the sense of actually being there.  I am just going to have to read the next books in the series to find out what happens next.  (I have also read a preview of the first book in the new series and that is really interesting too.)  Thank you Charlotte, for encouraging me to move tentatively and painlessly into a different genre of reading!
The image above is from Charlotte's blog site: http://www.charlotteenglish.com/2012/02/03/why-im-tired-of-advice/  which is well worth a visit if you are the least bit interested in writing or reading.

4 comments:

  1. It actually sounds (Ok, reads) like sth. I'd like. I like the genre; actually, at the moment I'm finishing Robin Hobb's second book of her Rain Wild Chronicles.
    I'll mark it to check it out later. Thanks for recommending this!

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  2. Dear Aledys
    You're very welcome for the recommendation and I wasn't just saying it because Charlotte is a friend of mine! She is a very talented writer and I have just downloaded the first of her other series too so I'll let you know what that is like. It is fantasy/murder/mystery so sounds intriguing.
    Best wishes
    Ellie

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  3. Ellie,

    I spent some time researching ereaders, and I finally choose the Sony. It can take all file formats, whereas the Kindle, you can only use Mobi format. I like the Touchscreen and it is easy to download all kinds of free books through Google.

    Anyway, I don't think the ereader will ever replace books, but I have been able to read many classics, without buying them.

    Cheers and hope you are staying nice and warm.

    Julie

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  4. Hello Julie
    The only reason I chose the kindle was the price! I agree, the e-reader will never replace books but it is the only way to read some books which are only published as e-books. It definitely can't beat the physicality of a book, holding it, turning the pages and 'escaping' into it.
    We're managing to stay warm despite the wintry temperatures - nothing like the ones you have to cope with - and I am looking forward to the snow melting as quickly as possible! We just don't seem to be so organised for the winter as you are and our whole country seems surprised when we do get snow.
    Best wishes
    Ellie

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