I'm on the naughty list...
...because I haven't kept up with my reviews! School and my social life/organizations just became so frenetic this semester, and I didn't get to do a lot of reading for pleasure. HOWEVER, I'm not entirely naughty--I did accomplish some reading [minus the drudgingly boring drivel I had to read for Post Colonial Literature]. I may not have developed a love for Fanon or Foucault,
--but I have had an affair with Maria V. Snyder!
*disclaimer* any affair a reader 'has with an author' is obviously one of the mind. Or, you know, ridiculous fangirling.
This affair has been one of adventure, spirit, and in the case of Touch of Power, RIDICULOUSLY ROMANTIC. I have to start and say that I wanted to do a nice review of the second book Snyder's Study series, Magic Study, but then THIS happened:
I had to select this one due to the art on the left side. 25% of me giggled at these blatant display of cheese, while 70% of me truly wondered if that's how badass Avry looked when healing. It's got all the colors of a Sailor Moon costume-change montage!
Anyway, why you should read Touch of Power:
Because I did not. At least, not at first. I downloaded the sample of this months ago when I was in my Read All the Dystopia! faze, and somehow I went through the sample, loved it, and then didn't purchase it.
Months later, I look at the reviews of Snyder's popular book Poison Study. I read it, and of course, I love it. I went through the second book, and loved it almost as much. And then I found myself thinking "hm, wasn't there another book by her that I really liked the sound of?"
IDIOT<---me b="b">, because I could have enjoyed this book a long time ago!!!!!!!!
But why should you read it? What makes it so great? I'm not big into summarizing, especially when they do such a fantastic job already over at GR, but I'm very into lists. Touch of Power is amazing for several reasons, but there's one little plot line that just makes this book for me, so I'll list a few great things about this book and then tell you what sets it apart from other books in this genre. Actually, lets say the YA genre as a whole, not just fantasy [major points have just been given by me].
So, the pros:
- if you like fantasy in the YA genre, which I probably always will, then this is a forerunner for winners in this genre. It's not too fantasy-heavy, but there is world building [which I always love] and a magician concept.
- THIS PLAGUE. I mean seriously, leave it to Snyder to create an entirely new plague. The bubonic plague has nothing on this plague. This plague takes your preconceived notion of a plague being any type of needed and central aspect to a book and punches it into the ground! Plague: 1 [well, technically the victims are countless, lol] Assumptions: 0
- The Death Lily/Peace Lily thing. It's confusing at times, and a bit odd to picture the main character getting eaten by a giant flower, only to communicate with it and then be spat back out [this happens several times], but the mystery behind these flowers is addicting. I wanted to learn more about them, and Snyder delivers. And then leads me to a cliffhanger...but I digress, because my FAVORITE PART OF THE BOOK was...
*The romance*
*swoon* Is it cheesy? Actually, not really. Kerrick and Avry spend most of the book not really liking each other. Then throw Cray Cray Tohon into the mix and his seduction powers, and you've got an acute love triangle. I'm convinced that this unholy trinity--the acute love triangle--is the only one that will work in novels these days. Basically, Kerrick was betrayed by love. Kerrick can't get over it. Kerrick falls for Avry but doesn't allude to it to the reader or Avry herself. Then Kerrick's enemy from school, cray cray Tohon, starts using his powers to tempt Avry into sexy time. Avry has no idea that Kerrick loves her, and she hasn't really given it any thought herself.
Honestly, the ONLY person who thinks about the two of them is the reader. It's like, okay, can you have a typical YA misunderstanding where you kiss and then don't speak for days? I love this approach! It gives an entirely new meaning to star-crossed lovers, in that two people who shouldn't belong together don't even realize that they should belong together. At least, not until Cray Cray Tohon shows up.
Except he's hot and crazy deluded and there's a shallow part of me that wanted Avry to give in to him and be tossed onto the bed because his kisses drive her to insanity, and if he keeps on teasing her like this, Avry will have no control over her already bad bout of swooning. I'm sorry, but the fire and temper in this heated I-hate-you-and-you-WANT-me fight is just so...swoon.
So. Much. Swooning.
Cray Cray Tohon is only doing this, though, to get back at Kerrick. I love these plots!! It's like Pride and Prejudice and the Swan Princess gave birth to an Acute Love Triangle named Kerrick-Avry-Cray Cray Tohon.
I could ramble on and on, but it would make this book seem like a romance, and it's not. Yes, romance is essential to the YA pn/dystopia/fantasy genre, but this book is full of a lot of interesting mystery and adventure. The only good part about having such a delayed start in reading this is that since I finished it last night, I don't have to wait a year for the next book. It's preordered and will be released next week! Proof that this start to a series is definitely worth reading!
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