It has honestly been way too long. I never meant to disappear for all of November, but that's exactly what happened, isn't it? Now I have so much I want to talk about! I went to a weapon's seminar thing that a friend of mine put on for our writer's group... he's what one might call an "expert" hobby-ist when it comes to medieval weapons. We worked on sword maneuvers and had mock sparing matches so that all of the fantasy writers in our group could get a taste of what their characters had to endure. Then we were able to pick a "weapon" (made with pvc pipe, Styrofoam, and duck-tape) from his stash of practice pieces, and he taught us all about our choice. My choice was the Glaive, which is similar to a spear crossed with an axe. It's a pole arm and can be used much like a quarter staff, or like a spear... and I've discovered that I like the feel of that weapon in my own hands even better than the grip of a sword. Don't get me wrong! Swords are awesome, and it was so cool to finally be able to wield one (even if it was fake), but the Glaive just feels right somehow. When I square up, it's like I already know what to do, and my moves feel smoother -- less jerky and hesitant than I am with a sword. :)
I've also been making a lot of neat jewelry lately. I took pictures yesterday, and as soon as I can figure out how to work my sister's camera to get the pictures from her SD card to my computer, I'll post them on the P&P. I plan to start offering the pieces that I'm making for sale, in case anyone is interested. Just in time for the Christmas season too... *wink, wink* I'm excited about it because I keep having people stop to ask me where I got my pendant or my earrings, and it's fun to tell people that I made them myself. ^_^ So, if you like what you see when I start posting pictures, let me know. I'll offer prices with the pictures. And perhaps it will make you feel better to know that with every piece of jewelry you buy, you help keep a poor College Student in a car over the holidays. lol! :D
But more on all that later. Right now I have a review to write. ^_^
Corus the Champion: Synopsis
in the north with a fierce new army bent on destruction. As the twins, Gabe and Garret, discover their own special powers, a thin thread of hope emerges: long ago, a fabled king was rescued from death on our world and hidden on Karac Tor. Who is he?
Each brother has their part to play. Hadyn must travel north to warn the land rulers, which leaves Ewan with a bitter choice. Will he sacrifice what is most precious to discover whether Corus lives? Even more important, if Corus is alive, can he wake the Sleeping King of legend... before it's too late?
My thoughts:
So far, I'm really enjoying this book. I say "so far" because I haven't quite finished yet. In fact, I'm not quite at the middle of it yet either, which is rather unusual for me, if I do say so myself. Usually I finish a book within maybe a week... perhaps two... of when I receive it, but this semester has been so crazy, I just haven't had much extra time in between classes, studying, working on commissions, and trying to find another job.
Anyway...
I've been looking into this series since I first heard of the first book, "The book of Names". The cover intrigued me to no end, and once I found out what it was about... boys traveling to another, parallel world... and learned about the connection these books include between pure fantasy and the stories of King Arthur, I knew that I would be reading them someday.
Unfortunately for me, "Corus the Champion" is the second book in the series... not the first. So of course, seeing as I haven't read the first book yet, I'm having a little trouble picking up on the back story. Not to say that this book isn't good on it's own. In fact, far from it! I could tell from the very first chapter that I would like reading this one. D. Barkley Briggs has quite the way with words. I love how he weaves in details and descriptions without being over flowery. When I read the words, I truly am transported into Mr. Brigg's world. And somehow, it feels very real to me... even with all of the elements of fantasy.
Somehow the writing... or perhaps it is the type of world... reminds me of Jeffery Overstreet's Auralia series. It's hard to explain why this is, because I find their styles to be quite different. And yet... I can't help but feel as if the two worlds were almost connected. Strange, I know... and probably very off course, as these are two separate authors we are talking about. But still.
What do I think of the characters? Well... at this moment I think I'm slightly in "reader's love" with the strange and mysterious Prince of Vineland. And I'm rather intrigued by Ewan's ability with music. The margins in my copy of the book are currently being filled with notes about the things that I like, or a particular use of style that is intriguing, or the writer's twist on a phrase... or a description. I don't usually mark up my books like this, but like I mentioned before, I keep finding myself inspired while I'm reading this.
On that note, I really, REALLY, wish I had read the first book first. I think the stories might stand well on their own, but I still feel like I'm missing something. I would like to know how the Barlows got to the Hidden Land, and learn more about this "Nemesia" that's mentioned in the book's blurb. Perhaps that's only my thoughts, though.
So far, I give this book a 5 out of 5 stars. When I actually get to the end of it, I would like to do an annalysis of the story as a whole. As of this moment though, I am thoroughly enjoying just taking my time with it. I keep having to stop, you see, and write a few notes down for SOTD. ;D
If you would like to know more about the book, though, you are more than welcomed to check out the other posts about it. A list of CSFF participants is posted below. Happy reading! :)
Gillian Adams
Noah Arsenault
Beckie Burnham
Morgan L. Busse
CSFF Blog Tour
Carol Bruce Collett
Theresa Dunlap
April Erwin
Victor Gentile
Nikole Hahn
Ryan Heart
Bruce Hennigan
Christopher Hopper
Jason Joyner
Julie
Carol Keen
Krystine Kercher
Marzabeth
Shannon McDermott
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Eve Nielsen
Sarah Sawyer
Kathleen Smith
Donna Swanson
Rachel Starr Thomson
Steve Trower
Fred Warren
Phyllis Wheeler
Nichole White
Rachel Wyant
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