The Legend of Eli Monpress (Books 1-3) by Rachel Aaron

Well!

I have finally finished reading the epic (I'm going to use that word a lot in this review) 3-book collection The Legend of Eli Monpress (and there's still two more books to go!  I'm currently reading the next one, No. 4 -- The Spirit War).

And may I just say...

Well done, Rachel Aaron.  *slow clap*  Well done.

The first book, The Spirit Thief, is a great heist story.  It's full of epic sword fights, kick-butt characters, witty repartee, etc.  The ending is a big finish, a grand finale, and you think, "Oh, wow, that was really cool!" and then you go on to the next book, unaware of the depth of epic-ness that is to come.

Then you start in on The Spirit Rebellion.  Really cool, thriller-type story with sneaking around, some character background, and a tyrant that *really* needs to be overthrown.  Epic fight at the end that raises the stakes even more.  We begin to see twists and turns in characters' stories, and the tangled relationships they're involved in.

And then you read The Spirit Eater and start to understand just what exactly is going on.  It's waaaaaay bigger than you've imagined and things are getting pretty serious for our beloved trio.  This one has more...darkness involved.  An inkling of the danger our characters are in (pretty deep) starts trickling into your brain and you start worrying that one of them (any of them!) might just keel over and die.  It's a mystery -- shadowy, with more threatening villains, and the answer to a question we never thought to ask.  It's almost a throwaway conversation -- but it *isn't* and that's where Rachel's brilliance appears (like it has everywhere through the books) -- we've built up to this point and have barely noticed.  And then WHAM!  There it is.  And then the stakes are raised EVEN HIGHER.  FOR EVERYONE.

I kept reading each book and thinking, "HOW IS RACHEL GOING TO TOP THIS?!?!?!"  And you know what?  She topped each ending.  Every. Single. Time.

I don't even know what could happen in books four and five.

Let's just say I scrambled to find a copy I could beg, borrow or steal so that I could finish the series stat.

I'm serious -- I literally begged friends for a copy of book four, The Spirit War, so that I could keep going.

What I love about Rachel Aaron is that she knows how to keep an epic story light while at the same time explore the depths of a fantasy world (and to some extent, the characters' backstories).  She also handles multiple main characters extremely well -- I feel like I know the trio.  I could travel with this group.  I also know the person chasing them, and I can't help but sympathize.  They are a slippery bunch to catch (and hold onto).

Her books feel big, expansive -- the universe she's created feels real.  I can picture the countryside the trio travels through, I know what they look like, I can see the castles and buildings they thieve from, and I can feel the food they eat in my hands.  I can see their world so clearly.

While the series isn't YA or middle-grade, it hits a nice medium -- it isn't 'adult' in theme.  It's a really epic fantasy with elements of several genres mixed in (and is low on the romance scale, which of course you know delights me).  It's a saga, a story whose scope is far greater than what you first see.

I think this series would be perfect reading for a long summer or winter.  I'm already sad that it's more than halfway over.  While I'm trying to rush through and see what happens, I'm also lingering because I know once I read the last book, I have to say goodbye to Eli, Josef and Nico (and Miranda and Gin).

And that's just gonna be a sad, sad day.

Write Wednesday: Donald Maass, Jim Butcher & Me

Welcome back to Write Wednesday!

Today I'm going to be talking about the "Breakout Novel" (some great advice from Donald Maass), the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher, and my own current WIP (my NaNoWRiMo novel), specifically focusing on SUBPLOT(s).

The subplot(s) in a novel should either support or parallel the main plotline, says Donald Maass.  Although subplots are not entirely necessary, if you have one or more that complicate, bear upon, mirror or reverse the main plot, this adds value to the overall story.

Oftentimes, a romantic subplot is included in a story (when it's not romance.  If you're writing romance, it better be the main plotline!) to complicate things.  Books like the Prydain Chronicles by Lloyd Alexander and A Series of Unfortunate Events contain romantic subplots. 

A Series of Unfortunate Events has one of my most favorite romantic moments (in book 10, I believe -- The Slippery Slope) that adds a layer of emotion to the story.  In one moment it turns from a sibling adventure/survival story to a growing up story and complicates things that way.

Another common subplot is for a secondary character to have their own story arc (think Professor Severus Snape or Neville Longbottom in the Harry Potter series), heroic, antiheroic or villainous as the case may be.

Great examples of both of these types of subplots are The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher.  I've read the first three books (can't wait to dive into four and five!) and am always amazed at the quality of writing.  The effort put into the books to carry storylines through the series (instead of standalone plotlines) with a myriad of characters astounds me. 

The romantic subplot carries through the first three books, becoming stronger as the story continues (And I've heard a little spoiler that it comes back in a later book -- poor Dresden).  The character involved in the romantic entanglement complicates things because of her job and her personality (both of which intertwine nicely).  This combination serves to heighten the stakes and add a touch of romance in Dresden's world.

Side characters are introduced as well and although I haven't spotted huge character arcs for them (yet), Jim Butcher doesn't really leave anything to chance and always seems to bring a semi-forgotten idea, character or item to the forefront just when it is needed.

It's encouraging to read these books and realize that I am in fact growing as a writer -- I intentionally wove in a romantic subplot (combining a friend/love interest of the MC) and I have discovered a rather violent, social commentary subplot in a seemingly throwaway character.  I'm not saying I'm handling it well (I'm still stumbling around my first draft) but to see how my writing has changed over the last few years (partially due to all the fantastic books I get to read) is, well, encouraging.

If you're writing (or taking part in NaNoWriMo as a super fun Fall activity), what are your thoughts on subplots?  If you're not writing, are there certain stories' subplots you love?  (How about in TV shows?)

And don't forget, you can enter Rachel Aaron's awesome giveaway of the last Eli Monpress book, Spirit's End, HERE.

Come back tomorrow for a post WITH PICTURES! :D

First Line Friday No. 11

"In the prison under the castle Allaze, in the dark, moldy cells where the greatest criminals in Mellinor spent the remainder of their lives counting rocks to stave off madness, Eli Monpress was trying to wake up a door.

It was a heavy oak door with an iron frame, created centuries ago by an overzealous carpenter to have, perhaps, more corners than it should.  The edges were carefully fitted to lie flush against the stained, stone walls, and the heavy boards were nailed together so tightly that not even the flickering torch light could wedge between them.  In all, the effect was so overdone, the construction so inhumanly strong, that the whole black affair had transcended simple confinement and become a monument to the absolute hopelessness of the prisoner's situation.  Eli decided to focus on the wood; the iron would have taken forever.

He ran his hands over it, long fingers gently tapping in a way living trees find desperately annoying, but dead wood finds soothing, like a scratch behind the ears.  At last, the boards gave a little shudder and said, in a dusty, splintery voice, "What do you want?""

--From The Legend of Eli Monpress (the Omnibus edition) by Rachel Aaron

 I've been devouring every word Rachel's written on writing (from her blog, Pretentious Title, and her new book, 2k to 10k) for the past few weeks in prep for NaNoWriMo -- and other various writing projects.

Rachel takes a light-hearted, yet very practical approach to writing and it shows in her fantasy fiction.  If you like thieves, magic, snark/wit, intrigue, thrills, and swordfights, PLEASE read her books!  They're "adult" fiction (as in they feature adult characters) but something I love about them is that she doesn't rely on gore, sex or cursing to make them so.

You know you're in for a thrill reading this first page, right?  It hooks you, especially that first and last line.

Reasons I love it:

1.  Mellinor.  Such a great name.

2.  "Greatest criminals...spent the remainder of their lives counting rocks to stave off madness..."  O.o  Who are they?  What did they steal?

3.  WAKE UP A DOOR???  I must read further!

4.  The door description is awesome -- "...the effect was so overdone...that the whole black affair transcended simple confinment and became a monument to the absolute hopelessness of the prisoner's situation."  HOW is Eli going to get out of THIS?

5.  A dusty, splintery voice.  I can hear it.  And why is Eli waking it and talking to it???


It's such a fun series -- I've read almost 3/5 and I'm going be asking for the last two for Christmas.  :D

(The new covers are awesome)

I won the Omnibus in a contest Rachel held and I've been meaning to review it on here (I wanted to put up some pictures) so maybe in the next few weeks (pre-NaNo) I'll finally do it.

Happy Weekend, everybody!

Now go read something.

Write Wednesday: Rachel Aaron's awesome new book!

Welcome back to Write Wednesday!

I picked up 2k to 10k by Rachel Aaron for 99 cents (!!!) last week and have been reminded just how much I love her writing (she's the author of the Eli Monpress novels).

I'm 3/4 of the way through and already I'm anxious to jump the gun and go ahead and get started on my NaNoWriMo novel, if only to try out Rachel's completely sane methods for getting a completely insane word count.

Most of what I read yesterday was about plot and characters.  Rachel seems to be a visual person, so what she has to say about writing resonates with me strongly.  Once she has a plotted outline, she spends time picturing everything like it's a movie.  If something is boring, slow, or useless, out it goes.  Then, every day before she starts writing, she scribbles down the details of each scene.  This way you're avoiding wasting time (by not having to make things up, think through a scene, figure out the structure, etc.) and can spend more (productive) time making sure your first draft is stronger.

Characters are a little harder to pin down but here again, Rachel has spent a lot of time up front with them to ensure that she is acquainted enough to write them.  I'm hoping that by spending time from here on out until November with them I'll be able to tell when I'm headed off in the wrong direction.

I completed the 30 Days of Worldbuilding booklet and am now going to be mostly concerned with plotting and characters -- so Rachel's book arrived right on time!  I'm going to do some short writing exercises (bonus material) with the characters, make up a playlist (or two -- maybe one for "character songs" and one for the soundtrack), and spend some time plotting, which is a weak point for me.

I've got a pretty strong opening, a somewhat foggy ending and no clue what's supposed to happen in the middle apart from snatches of funny/scary things I'd love to write.  Rachel's got some great advice for that too -- she figures out the ending first, then the beginning, and if she gets stuck in between, she asks, "What happens after that?" to get from one place to the next.  Using that question to step from plot point to plot point makes the storyline more logical (yay) and much stronger the first time around.

So, if you're interested in writing at all (even if you simply want to take a stab at NaNoWriMo this year -- which you should), check out Rachel Aaron's straightforward, fun, and illuminating read and get to work!

See you on Friday for First Lines!