"Magic Breaks (Kate Daniels #7)" by Ilona Andrews

This review features a book that is the seventh in the Kate Daniels series, and has inevitable spoilers for those who have not read the first six books of the series. My review of the first book can be found here.

As a now-frequent reader of urban fantasy, I've become acclimated to expecting less of certain authors and more of others. I expected a lot from Ilona Andrews's seventh Kate Daniels book, not only because I spent an unorthodox amount on the ebook price, but also because Magic Rises had been the best of the bunch. With great surprise, at the end of Magic Breaks, I felt it was even better than Magic Rises- a feat which boggled my poor brain. This book is borderline perfection, in part because I hadn't expected the plot to progress so far.

The Plot: (As Seen on Goodreads)
'No matter how much the paranormal politics of Atlanta change, one thing always remains the same: if there’s trouble, Kate Daniels will be in the middle of it…
'As the mate of the Beast Lord, Curran, former mercenary Kate Daniels has more responsibilities than it seems possible to juggle. Not only is she still struggling to keep her investigative business afloat, she must now deal with the affairs of the pack, including preparing her people for attack from Roland, a cruel ancient being with god-like powers. Since Kate’s connection to Roland has come out into the open, no one is safe—especially those closest to Kate.
'As Roland’s long shadow looms ever nearer, Kate is called to attend the Conclave, a gathering of the leaders from the various supernatural factions in Atlanta. When one of the Masters of the Dead is found murdered there, apparently at the hands of a shapeshifter, Kate is given only twenty-four hours to hunt down the killer. And this time, if she fails, she’ll find herself embroiled in a war which could destroy everything she holds dear…'

What is most amazing about this book is the sheer amount of action stuffed into 348 pages. Some books I've read have had less than ten percent of the plot progress and still felt 'action-packed'. Magic Breaks has all the action, but it doesn't feel rushed- it feels more urgent than anything else. The Kate Daniels series has been escalating for quite some time, but with these last few books, the sense of urgency and tension springs from the page.

The characters, as always, are incredible. It isn't often in a series that you could talk about any one of the characters, even minor ones, and not bore me, but with the Kate Daniels series, it's very true. In each character's background there are decisions and allegiances which make them who they are, and none of them are painted black or white. There are a million shades of grey in this book, which well exceeds the 50 that are so popular right now.

Magic Breaks is one mega-action-quadrupled book. It is so action dense, I have to make up words and phrases to describe it- it is no wonder I was able to finish off this series in the last month of 2014 because it's paced so frenetically. I could expound on the virtues of this book indefinitely, but then we'd have dastardly spoilers and you'd be asleep at the monitor. But, believe me when I say this series is well worth reading- especially if you like high octane reads that keep you up at night.

In other words, read it.

Rating: 5 of 5 Stars for a surprisingly extraordinary seventh book in the series!

Content: Ages 18+ for the usual Kate Daniels warning assortment, with added daddy drama.

Page Count: 348 pages

Book to Film Comparison: "Stardust" by Neil Gaiman

First off, I have to admit I had no idea the movie Stardust was based on a book when I picked it up. There is nothing on the cover of the DVD that indicates this was, in fact, based on a book, unless you get your magnifying glass out and look carefully in the small script on the bottom of the back cover, where it mentions, "Based on the novel written by Neil Gaiman".

Stardust the book reminds me of the original fairy tales: dark and grim in some aspects, sugary sweet in others. Stardust the movie personifies the Disney adaptations of the fairy tales: glossed over on context, but a lot of fun.

The Basic Plot (Book and Film):
Tristran/Tristan sets out to find a fallen star to give to his lady love, Victoria. Little does he know, others are pursuing the very same star he is searching for, for a variety of reasons.

Where the Film Plot Differs:
Tristran in the book has a stepmother and sister, and his name is Tristran, not Tristan. Quite a few of the book characters are sacrificed to make for a quicker plot, including Tristran's traveling companion the little strange man. The airship captain, known as Johannes Alberic in the book, was flamboya-tized to make the excellent character of Captain Shakespeare, played by Robert De Niro. Their time on the airship was also lengthened to give the movie a bit more suspense.  Tristan in the movie has one week to bring back the star, while it felt like Tristran in the book took quite some time wandering through the land beyond the Wall. Tristan gets a makeover in the movie, but only gets a change of clothes that bring out the change in his appearance in the book.

The rest of the differences happen so late in the movie I won't cover them here, but I will say the endings and the tones of the book and the film vary greatly.

Aesthetics:
A lot of the things I noticed were changed to save on CGI and the cost of a good makeup/costume person. For example, Tristran's mother in the book had purple-y eyes and black cat ears, signifying she had some Faerie blood. In the movie, I couldn't really tell if she had purple eyes, but I could see she didn't have cat ears. Tristan's odd looking travel companion was also scrapped to shorten the film, but I have a feeling they would've needed a good makeup artist to

One dramatic change from the book they didn't skimp on was making the dead princes look like they appeared when they died- I don't remember reading them described as anything other than gray, shadowy figures, but maybe I skimmed over that part. The movie also has one of the princes bleeding blue blood, instead of red blood as the book had it (I'm being purposefully ambiguous so as to not spoil people). When I first watched the movie, I was confused by this- had he been poisoned? Was the knife wielded toxic? It was only when I watched it the second time that I realized blue blood = royal. Duh.

Casting:
One question every book fan has on their minds is: Will the actors and actresses actually do justice to the characters? In this case, I have to say yes, the actors and actresses did a wonderful job of bringing the characters to life, even adding to some of them. Even though Michelle Pfeiffer, who plays Lamia (the witch after the star) is blonde instead of dark-haired, as the book would have her, she makes a fantastic witch. Tristan (played by Charlie Cox) was exactly how I pictured him to be when reading the book, as well as Yvaine, played by Claire Danes. Robert De Niro made a very convincing closeted airship captain, so much so I missed the expanded character of "Captain Shakespeare" while reading the book.

Which Should I Experience First?: Book

Which is Better?: Both of them are excellent, for different reasons. Stardust the movie is more fun, and possibly more cheesy. Although Stardust the book has its Hallmark moments of cheddar, it is laced with a much darker tone because of certain aspects I cannot reveal without spoiling. 

Will I Like the Book If I've Watched the Movie?: Based on my experience, I'd say yes, although one of my Goodreads friends enjoyed the movie more (because of the great acting). If you like fairy tales, you really can't go wrong by reading it.

Will I Like the Movie If I've Read the Book?: I think so, as long as you aren't distressed by the lack of certain characters and scenes, the cutback on violence, and small increase in sensuality. The ending for the movie is different, which might make some people happier with it.

Film Length: 127 minutes, roughly 2 hours
Book Length: 248 pages, maybe 4-5 hours of reading time.

Film Rating/Content: PG-13 for fantasy violence and risque humor
Book Content: I rated it Ages 16+ due to an increase in violence and gore, and a glossed over sex scene.

Have you seen the movie or read the book, or better yet, done both? What did you think about the book and the movie?

"Stardust" by Neil Gaiman

[I read Stardust after watching its movie version, so there will be references and comparisons throughout this review].

A funny thing has happened since I began book blogging: I develop a distinct opinion of the book I'm reading around the 60% mark, as well as guess my star rating and exactly what I need to say about it. Ninety percent of the time, this works brilliantly, because endings are so often predictable and only wrap up a book, they don't necessarily add to it. This book is one of those ten percent I get wrong, even when I had watched the movie prior and had that experience to guide me. Stardust the book and Stardust the movie are very similar, but have slightly different endings.

I was in the mood for something fairy-tale-esque when I picked this book up, cravings that were partially satiated by reading this. One thing I kind of expected was that this book would be a lot of fun, which it was, but it also had darker elements sometimes seen in fairy tales as well. There were quite a few characters that had been scrapped (or given small parts, or combined with other characters) when the book was converted to be a movie, but one I kinda sorta missed seeing was more of the one known as "Captain Shakespeare". In the book, there is a similar character to him (who is as bland as milk toast, a more traditional pipe-smoking sailor), but nothing truly LIKE him. Those who have seen the movie will know what I'm barking up a tree at, and it was disappointing to me there was no immensely flamboyant dual-life father figure in the book to inspire the one portrayed in the film.

The Plot: (As Seen on Goodreads)
'Hopelessly crossed in love, a boy of half-fairy parentage leaves his mundane Victorian-English village on a quest for a fallen star in the magical realm. The star proves to be an attractive woman with a hot temper, who plunges with our hero into adventures featuring witches, the lion and the unicorn, plotting elf-lords, ships that sail the sky, magical transformations, curses whose effects rebound, binding conditions with hidden loopholes and all the rest.'

The boy known as Tristran (Tristan in the movie) basically comes of age through this adventure story, but somehow he didn't quite grow on me. I have read another of Mr. Gaiman's more urban books (American Gods) and had a similar experience with the main character of that novel. Even though I felt his male characters lacked a certain something (with the exception of the conniving Septimus), I really enjoyed his portrayal of Yvaine and another heroine. Yvaine is more headstrong than she was in the movie, more outspoken, and more willing to make her own way. She doesn't exactly need Tristran, but his many skills occasionally come in handy, especially when he's in the right place at the right time.

Some of Mr. Gaiman's writing I think I would better enjoy as an audiobook. As a somewhat heavy-handed internal editor, I notice patterns in writing that I would not notice when listening to something. 'And' seems to be a frequent favorite word of his, omitting comma-ed lists to say: rainbows and unicorns and all manner of sea critters (that's my own writing, by the way, just to provide an example). This I wouldn't fixate on if I'd been listening to some fantastic narrator (Mr. Gaiman himself, perhaps?) tell me an adventure tale with magical elements.

There were many beautiful quotes within this book, but most of them would spoil the ending, which I don't like to do. Consequently, I'll be using one from halfway through the book which spoils no plotlines.

"You are young, and in love," said Primus. "Every young man in the world in your position is the most miserable man who ever lived."

     ~Stardust by Neil Gaiman, page 152 ebook edition.

Would I have liked the book better if I hadn't watched the movie first? Probably. Watching the movie makes you know when the plot twists will happen (some of the time). At 60%, my guess was I'd rate this three stars, partially because of my experience with the movie. But by then the writing style had grown on me, despite the gratuitous 'and's, and I was fully immersed in the story, not suspecting the ending would be any different from its film version. The ending, as I mentioned before, truly changed my opinion of this book for me, because of its unconventional-ness and its lack of fanfare.

Stardust is an adventurous fairy tale of a book that ends on a high note. Although it is very similar to its subsequent movie, it surprised me how well I could enjoy it even though I had visions (and expectations) of Captain Shakespeare dancing through my head. I won't soon forget my adventures journeying with Tristran Thorn and Yvaine the star, and recommend this book to anyone who likes a good fairy tale with a heavy dose of adventure.

Rating: 4 of 5 Stars for a newly minted fairy tale with the right amount of Grimm.

Content: Ages 16+ for a glossed over sex scene, occasional swearing, and witches with long knives who know how to use them (violence and a little gore).

Page Count: 248 pages

I'm planning on doing a book vs. film comparison for Stardust later this week, as it is one of the more interesting book to film adaptations: both the book and the movie are pretty excellent, in my opinion, but they're different in tone.