Keturah and Lord Death - Leavitt - 2006 - YA Lit Week 9

Title: Keturah and Lord Death

Author: Martine Leavitt

Year: 2006

Publisher: Front Street

Course Theme for the Week: Speculative Fiction: Science Fiction & Fantasy (03-30-2011)

Date Read: 03-28-2011

Overall: * * * * (4/5)

GoodReads Blurb: "I will tell you . . . a story of magic and love, of daring and death, and one to comfort your heart. It will be the truest story I have ever told. Now listen, and tell me if it is not so."

After following a hart into the woods bordering her town, Keturah is faced with Death. Lost and hungry after following a stately hart through the forest, Keturah encounters Lord Death, who is ready to take her. Like Scheherazade, Keturah spins a story that she leaves unfinished and extracts from Lord Death a promise that if she finds her true love in a day, she can go free. Thus begins Keturah's search for her one true love and the salvation of her beloved town. But Lord Death is falling in love with her, and as the villagers begin to sense her alliance with this horrifying figure, her life twists and turns on itself.

Martine Leavitt offers a spellbinding story, interweaving elements of classic fantasy and high romance. The romance is intense, the writing is startling, and the story is spellbinding--and it is as difficult to turn away from as the tales beautiful Keturah tells to the people of her village, Tide-by-Rood.

My Review: This book read very much like a fairy tale. The language was simple, and the characters were rather flat, but it felt like it was on purpose, as this was the style and type of story Leavitt wanted to use. It was a very easy read, and I think would be more appealing for middle-grade readers than high school level.

I liked the message that only when faced with death did Keturah really try to live her life and love her town and friends for who they were. I have to say, I was really rooting for Keturah and John the whole time, and was disappointed that my first instincts were correct about who Keturah would find to be her true love. I'm not sure what kind of message it sends that her true love was Lord Death. I also didn't really like the quick summaries of all of her friends' lives at the end, and I'm unsure of how the beginning worked into the ending. Was it Keturah telling the story? And if so, to whom?

I did like this story, I just had a few minor problems, but I think young adults ages 11-14 could really get a lot out of this story. It's a nice fantasy/fairy tale book, and the quality of writing is very high.

To Purchase: Amazon, B&N

Also by this author: Heck: Superhero (2006), The Dollmage (2002), and many others!

Currently Reading: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900) by L. Frank Baum

Books read in 2o11: 32 (of 100)

Beautiful Creatures - Garcia & Stohl - 2009 - YA Lit Week 9

Title: Beautiful Creatures (Caster Chronicles # 1)

Author: Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl

Year: 2009

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Course Theme for the Week: Speculative Fiction: Science Fiction & Fantasy (03-30-2011)

Date Read: 03-26-2011

Overall: * * * 1/2 (3.5/5)

GoodReads Blurb: Lena Duchannes is unlike anyone the small Southern town of Gatlin has ever seen, and she's struggling to conceal her power, and a curse that has haunted her family for generations. But even within the overgrown gardens, murky swamps and crumbling graveyards of the forgotten South, a secret cannot stay hidden forever.

Ethan Wate, who has been counting the months until he can escape from Gatlin, is haunted by dreams of a beautiful girl he has never met. When Lena moves into the town's oldest and most infamous plantation, Ethan is inexplicably drawn to her and determined to uncover the connection between them.

In a town with no surprises, one secret could change everything.

My Review: I read this book as one of my two Fantasy books for my YA Lit course. I really only chose it out of convenience, since a friend of mine owned it and I didn't feel like making the trek out to the library or a store to find some of the others on the list. I spent a nice Saturday home lounging on the couch and reading this book. I was surprised with how much I enjoyed the story.

I liked the writing of Garcia & Stohl, it felt very smooth and the language didn't feel like there were two authors. The plot was alright, I'm not a big fan of "supernatural" or "paranormal" things, because I find it really difficult to get past the fact that I don't believe in any of those things, but for the most part I was able to see beyond that in this story. Ethan and Lena made a nice pair, and I felt like I understood why Lena was such a roller coaster mess half the time, it felt very believable.

I did have a few problems with this, though. First, I don't really understand that sudden change when Ethan decided that Lena should be called "L" constantly... L isn't really an initial I think works as a nickname. At all. It just felt forced, and like whoever was typing up the novel got a little lazy. Second, Ethan didn't really make sense as a boy. I mean... he seemed very much like a girl. Maybe Garcia & Stohl just aren't very good at convincingly writing from the male perspective. I don't mean the writing was bad, it just felt like I was reading from a girl's perspective the whole time. Third, I felt like Lena's "caster" family members were very typical. I knew from the first family gathering that one of them would be secretively "dark" and that their relationships would play out as they did.

This book didn't make me want to run out and grab the second in the series, but I did enjoy my Saturday reading it. I have borrowed the second one to read when I have time, though I have been told I might not enjoy it as much as the first. We'll see!

To Purchase: Amazon, B&N

Also by these authors: Beautiful Darkness (Caster Chronicles # 2) (2010), Beautiful Chaos (Caster Chronicles # 3) (coming in 2011)

Emmy and the Incredible Shrinking Rat - Jonell - 2007

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