A JET Reader (Year 2, Winter)

Winter: December 1st-February 28th

I seem to have read A LOT more in the winter than in the fall~ Blame it on winter break and allowing myself to be more of a slug I guess haha (and good friends being enablers) <3

READ:
Shadow of Night
Chronicles of Elantra: Cast in Ruin
The Book of Life
Hyperbole and a Half
Chronicles of Elantra: Cast in Peril
Insurgent
_________________(Autumn)__________________
Chronicles of Elantra: Cast in Sorrow
Albrecht Durer: A Biography
Allegiant
Clockwork Angel
Death Comes to Pemberley
The Alloy of Law
Clockwork Prince
Clockwork Princess
The Blood of Olympus
Poison Princess


READING:
Chronicles of Elantra: Cast in Flame
Ready Player One
Poison Study
The Third Kingdom


PLANNING TO READ:
Son of the Shadows
Shadow and Bone

(plus a lot of books I want to re-read ><;;; )


Cast in Sorrow (Chronicles of Elantra #9)
And so concludes the books in the series Katie had read before.
The author's storytelling never ceases to amaze me in that she's crafted contained episodes in each book, but has spread out characterization and plot development through out the series. There are conversations and scenes that you know are important, but then so many little things that add up to two characters' growing relationship (okay, so mostly that's just because every little smile or glance from/to Severn to/from Kaylin makes me grin). And with the return of the "Lost Children", who knows how things will be shaken up now with Nightshade and Teela as well.

Albrecht Durer: A Biography (Recommended and received by/from Lauren W.)
I was so surprised and delighted last February when I found out Lauren also had a strong interest in the Incunabula/Reformation/"Renaissance" era, and particularly in the artist Albrecht Durer. I'm not a huge fan of biographies in general, but it was great taking my time with this one and reading about all of the different "celebrities" he rubbed shoulders with (Martin Luther, Erasmus of Rotterdam, Leonardo da Vinci). I wish I could say I remember all of the facts from it, but alas, I took almost the entire year to read it and thus didn't commit very concrete associations to memory.

Allegiant (Divergent Trilogy #3)
I had a bit of renewed hope for this series after the ending of Insurgent, but that hope slowly faded as the final installment carried on. To preface, I should say that I think these books are rather smart in their portrayal of psychological warfare and what power there is in suggestion. However in terms of enjoyment I don't believe I will be reading this series again. The hopelessness of first the factions, then the city, and then the world is not something I'd like to meditate on any more than necessary.

Death Comes to Pemberley
Okay, okay. I know. "Me thinks she doth protest too much" and all that.
After years of self-righteous indignation over titles such as "Mr. Darcy Takes a Wife" and "The Shades of Pemberley" etc., and the pretentious declaration that I "refuse to read what amounts to glorified, published fanfiction" (despite having no qualms over un-published fanfiction...), I went as far as buying this on eBook (not loaned from the Jackson District Library). I actually had my eye on it for a few years (probably since it came out). But with wanting to be in Austen again (and wanting to watch the mini-series that just came out...) I caved. It was delightful and satisfying and true to the characters while being original enough to feel as if they had been growing and living their lives in the ten year interim after the close of Pride and Prejudice. A fun, short read that was an amusing diversion from the heaviness in Elantra and the Divergent world.

Clockwork Angel (Infernal Devices Trilogy #1) Recommended by many, gifted by Kari
It's been a while (junior year of high school...) since I last read the Mortal Instruments but I always remembered them as a funny and well-characterized trilogy (back when it was only a trilogy...). So I've also been curious about this trilogy set in the past (in Victorian London, no less). Even though it's probably bad to compare them, I definitely feel like I enjoyed this book better than the original trilogy. It was funny and snarky when I needed it to be and also filled with emotional tension and self-empowerment. Tessa's a bit of a wilting flower at first, but she's also earnest and blunt in the face of the crazy world she's been tossed into. I flew through it over winter break (thanks to Kari sending me a physical copy) but now I'm in a bind as to how to read the next two volumes (I'm almost resigned to just order them to myself here but it feels selfish). So, still working on that... (EDIT 1/18: Made and AmazonJP account for the sole purpose of getting the next two books~ I can do cash on delivery and they'll be here in a few days!) (EDIT 1/22: While all three books are now frustratingly different sizes, I've acquired the last too and they're in English, so I'll count the AmazonJP endeavor as a success ;3 )

The Alloy of Law ("Wax and Wayne" series #1) Recommended and loaned by Valerie
This was a fun and sparky change of pace! The concept was interesting: taking the elements from the first series (the Mistborn trilogy) and propelling it into the future to an industrializing-Wild-West-guns-blazing setting. The way allomancy has changed and melded with feruchemy was also interesting, yielding special "Twin-Born"s with aspects of both abilities. Wax and Wayne were a great buddy-cop duo and a welcome reprieve to the angst of YA (without being unnecessarily callous or crude). It appears the author had originally planned on a trilogy of trilogies: set in the past, present, and future of the same world (Sadriel) but this pre-modern story happened to come out (and may become it's own side trilogy). Mistborn was the "past" so I'm still waiting on the "modern" trilogy, and now the rest of this mini-series! (Considering this is the same author who helped finish writing the end of the Wheel of Time series because the original author died, I really hope he's able to finish all he's started ><; )

Clockwork Prince (Infernal Devices Trilogy #2)
Well... So maybe I'm bad at self-control, considering I started and finished this book before finishing three others I had already started (but I have a plan to minimize the book hangover I'd get from anyone of these by getting partway into all of them and then finishing them in succession).
Once again, I find myself more attracted to the side characters. I like Tessa, and I appreciate her voice in the story, but I wish she wouldn't play the field so much...(I was okay with a subtle, hinted at love triangle, but blatant ones bore me...) That aside, I loved hearing more from Sophie and meeting the elder Lightwood brother, Gideon. Magnus Bane's antics remain entertaining, as always. Henry and Charlotte (thankfully) finally reconciled themselves, and with Will's sister Cecily now on the scene I'm excited for the changing dynamic it with bring in the last book.

Clockwork Princess (Infernal Devices Trilogy #3)
With a bit of luck and a change of plans I found myself free for an entire evening to finish the last half of this all in one go (for better or worse). I enjoyed it as I had the first one--which is to say more than the second one. In a slight break from the norm, I didn't mind the love-triangle so much because the two guys in this case actually loved each other as their sworn brother, so there wasn't as much unnecessary drama. There were quite a few plot twists I hadn't seen coming (some more welcome than others) but in general I appreciated the humanity that was brought forth in their world of creatures. Overall I really enjoyed the series and the use of literature within it (and I still like Sophie and Gideon best~)

The Blood of Olympus (The Heroes of Olympus #5 (final))
Well, quite the impromptu post-Christmas-self-purchase, I was convinced by Courtney to "treat yo'self" while perusing JLPT study books at Kinokuniya in Sapporo. And now that I think about it, it was a great idea because it's the last in the series and I needed to have it physically in front of me (not listening distractedly to audio, and not flipping through it on eBook). Ironically, it's the first book of the series I've purchased (having borrowed all the others from the Library and a couple from Ariel).
I really don't want to let these characters go. This book isn't a small book, but I'm left wishing it was even longer so I could see everything from everyone's perspective. I'm so glad that Reyna and Nico were given perspective chapters in this book, because I dearly love their enduring strength in the face of all of the heartbreak and difficulty they encounter. I almost wish there was an entire companion series to this series that shared the in-between stories while they were on the Argo II and the lives of the campers back on Halfblood Hill. I was glad it left open a wide future for everyone so I can easily imagine their stories continuing on.

Poison Princess (The Arcana Chronicles #1) Recommended and gifted by Courtney
After everything that Courtney had hinted about this series I was excited to start it--and then was surprised with my own copy!
While a bit slow to start (the first hundred pages as a "slice'o'life" flashback to how things were before the Flash (this story's apocalypse)  were grueling... complete with shallow, football star boyfriend and high school hierarchy snobbery) the meat of the story was unique and entertaining. The Flash burned away all plant life and instantly evaporated all sources of water--as well as burning to ash anyone caught outside. In a world now dominated by savage militia, slavers, cannibals, plague, and Bagmen (zombie-like once-human creatures that mindlessly seek moisture--even if it's human blood) where the few girls and women left are hunted and forced into "marriages", Evie is struggling to find meaning in the strange visions and powers she has. And to her benefit or detriment, a Cajun named Jackson Deveaux has taken an interest in protecting her... (can't wait to see how this develops in the next book!)