Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson

Chains

by Laurie Halse Anderson

                     'If an entire nation can seek its freedom, why not a girl? '
After Isabel's mother dies, she and her little sister Ruth expect to be free of any ties to slavery. However, without the paperwork, the two sisters are sold to a malicious New York couple -the Locktons.
Mrs Lockton tries her hardest to diminish Isabel's feisty spirit, but even after a particularly inexplicable act of cruelty, Isabel is determined to fight for her right to freedom.When the Revolutionary War breaks out and an unexpected friendship blossoms, can Isabel break the chains that are holding her and find a better life? 

7/10         

When I first started reading this book - a few years ago now- I found it very dull and boring. Every few pages I would think Why do I care? Or How is this interesting? For some reason I didn't see it as a story but an essay or boring material used in a history lesson. However, when I came back to the book again it suddenly occurred to me -this is about real people, at a real time and place yes, but it's also just a fiction book and probably holds a fantastic tale within. In the end, it's just a normal story, told like any other fiction book -only this one is based on real events. I dived in to the historical world Laurie Halse Anderson had created and loved it!                                  
And why did I love it? Because, not only is the plot line fascinating, but this book is also written very well. LHA really gets in to the Isabel's character but, as it is written in third person, also builds the world around her beautifully -I could imagine my self as Isabel experiencing and feeling exactly what she was. The speech was old fashioned (a common use of 'ma'am' and 'twas') with a different style for each character, and many of the slaves used simple language (eg. when Isabel was hit by her mistress, Curzon -a slave from a nearby rebel household says '..and I'm sorry for your broken head')
As to be expected, there was little bit of romance! Between Isabel and Curzon there is a very subtle hint of something more than friendship -but it doesn't distract the reader from the main plot -to be honest, it's barely there. They're relationship is slightly odd; one moment they're two slaves fighting for freedom, the next everything is about what they mean to each other. However the romance is a lot more of a suggestion than a real thing and Isabel's top priority is getting Ruth and herself to safety.
I found it quite hard to identify with Isabel, as I have no sister or younger sibling and cannot quite understand her total loyalty towards Ruth. She was also quite 'prudish' -as to be expected of a black slave girl in the 1800's, but knowing this didn't make it less frustrating when I realised she and Curzon wouldn't be getting together anytime soon.
So, to sum it up, I enjoyed he story, the characters, the action and mostly the relationships -whether or not I could  relate to them- but I felt the age range for this books is set too low, as I had to mature a while before I could read it. Also, as this book is not romance -or at least didn't have enough of it!- so I had to deduct another point. And, lastly, there was a slight fault in speech! There are many uses of abbreviations such as 'shouldn't' or 'don't' which would have never have been used in the 1870's. This is how I came to rate Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson a 7/10.

Just for fun, a phrase I absolutely loved from this book -said by Curzon- was:
 'A hundred times as sorry as the hills'
I just thought this was incredibly sweet and completely portrayed Cursons soft side.



First Post and Review! Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare

Hello everyone! Or those of you who have somehow found my little blog... (anyone out there?)
For my very first post I will be reviewing The Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare, a great book by one of my very favourite authors. I know, I know -not the most sensible choice as it is the second book in the prequel series The Infernal Devices. But, I have very kindly given you a link so you can go check out the official website in case you have had the misfortune to of never heard of this fantastic series. I also recommend The Mortal Instruments -the series Infernal Devices is a prequel of, which I have again kindly given you the link for. Anyway, enough of that! Back to Business.

The Clockwork Prince (Infernal devises #2)
by Cassandra Clare     

                                   Tessa Grey, recently moved from America to Victorian London, has been thrown in to the world of Shadow hunters and Warlocks;Demons and Angels. Currently residing at the London Institute for shadow hunters she tries to ignore Wills dark moods as she finds herself falling for Jem -Will's Parabatai. Still confused over what exactly she is, Tessa tries her best to help her Shadow hunter friends , even when a mole is among them.Will continues to visit Magnus, resuming his quest to finally fill his empty heart...

9/10

Wow. What can I say about this book? This phenomenon that completely stole my heart for two whole days as I ploughed through the pages, completely absorbed in Tessa's strange, magical world. I applaud Cassandra Clare once again for creating such a complex world with fascinating characters and a twisting plot line. What really amazes me every time is her, almost made up language. A few words here and there will be used, there meanings adjusted slightly to give the Shadow hunters their own slang -often witty, such as 'Mundane' (a nickname for humans meaning boring)- and it worked so much better in Clockwork Prince as CC also added in  some great historical colloquialisms. Also, set in England CC used some typical phrases, ('Oh bother' and 'Bastards, all of them') which made me smile a little.

Another thing I love about this specific book is the style in which it's written, third person in past tense. Somehow this just made it seem even more old fashioned, and I always love reading about characters in third person and switching viewpoints as I often find first person is done too casually. There was something nicely formal about the book yet, because the Institute (the Shadow hunters home) was so different to the outside world -and generally the whole Shadow hunter community was far more modern in respects to women's rights and 'polite interaction' between characters, etc- CC managed include an effectively modern attitude, something which helped me relate to the characters a lot easier.

But, of course, what a loved most about this book was the romance! Clockwork Prince has a beautiful sub-plot which lets the reader bond with the story so much better! Tessa is, in reality, a confused teenager stuck between worlds, feelings and who she really is -an exaggerated cliche done so much better than a typical teen trash novel (not that I don't like those!). The romance folds nicely between the action, mystery and fantasy and still manages to take on a major roll in the main story line. My exact cup of tea!

Unfortunately, I could only give this book a 9/10 as I hated what CC did to Tessa and Will! It has nothing to do with her writing or the books validity, but I just got so pissed of at a specific event that it felt wrong to give this book 10. Also the ending was obviously supposed to be a big dramatic cliffhanger (Like CC usually does and I usually love) but I just wasn't that interested -I don't have that much interest in familial problems (If you haven't read the book then read it and you'll see what I mean!) unless it creates a significant impact on the characters other relationships -which I didn't see it do. However, many of my friends found it fantastic and are completely hooked on what could happen next...so the latter argument is debatable. But 9/10 is still pretty damn good!

And, just for your interest, I have posted the Clockwork Prince official trailer so you can have a little look.

Hope you enjoyed this post! And I have many more to come so stay tuned!

Phoebepeggy x