Books

Book 444: The Sorceress (The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel #3) – Michael Scott

Again, there is no stopping in this series. This book is still within the same week as The Alchemyst and The Magician. We’ve gone across two continents and multiple eras, we’ve met gods and goddesses and historical figures long believed to be dead, and yet we’re still only just beginning to delve into the world Scott created. The whirlwind will continue through to book six.

In The Sorceress, Scott expands the folklore and mythology he is drawing on. He ties creatures from Greek and Rome to those of Egypt (hello Rick Riordan), but then brings in Irish, British and Mexican. In this book he introduces an ancient Sumerian character, Gilgamesh. And even later in the series he brings in Japanese, American and Native American immortals, monsters of legends and elders. He could easily have created dozens of books based on just the few individuals he introduces throughout the series.

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Books

Book 443: The Magician (The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel #2) – Michael Scott

Picking up immediately after the events of The Alchemyst, the second book in the series is just as action packed and full as the first!

The Magician again takes place over a period of days and this time moves us from San Francisco, California to Paris, France. The same cast of characters is here and this book introduces two of my favorites, Niccolò Machiavelli and Joan of Arc, and gives further insight into the strongest female character in the series, Perenelle Flamel.

As I re-read it, I was glad that some of my hesitancy about re-reading the series started to fade. I’m not sure if it’s because the story was becoming more and more intense, or that I was spending more time with some of my favorite characters, but I was glad my reservations at least took a bit of a back seat to the book. (It also could’ve been that I devoured this book.)

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Books

Book 442: The Alchemyst (The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel #1) – Michael Scott

I first read this in the first six months of this blog! Unfortunately, I didn’t actually respond to every book so I only have my thoughts to The Warlock (#5) from that original read (and later The Enchantress (#6) when it was released in 2012). I picked up hard copies of these books back in October 2012 when I left a job and they gave me a bookstore gift card.

The series has languished on my shelf for the last four years, partly because I’d read it before, but mostly because I wasn’t sure I wanted to read it again. When I bought it, I definitely did, but then every time I went to re-read it I remembered what happened in the last book and the revelations in the last two books and questioned if I wanted to re-read the series.

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Books

Book 419: Imaginary Friends (Word & Void #0.5) – Terry Brooks

I feel like reading this after having read the entire Word & Void trilogy is what people who read  Go Set A Watchmen after having loved and read To Kill A Mockingbird. (On a smaller scale, obviously.)

Brooks wrote this novel back in the early ’90s as part of a short story collection. It was re-released as a single e-book in honor of a friend who had cancer with all proceeds for the first 90 days of sale going to that friend for his medical bills.

I’m glad I read this novella/short story as it was a great little encapsulated tale which shows one of the magical characters, Pick, of Word & Void fame, at an earlier time than the actual trilogy. The story revolves around 12-year-old Jack McCall who is given a cancer diagnosis. And in essence it serves as an exterior battle/response to that diagnosis.

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Books

Book 418: Angel Fire East (Word & Void #3) – Terry Brooks

And just like that I’m done with my first foray into Terry Brooks’ World of Shannara. I’m not totally finished as I recently stumbled across a short story, Imaginary Friendswhich is technically Word & Void #0.5 so there’s one small story left! I’ll read it in less than an hour and that’ll be the next post later this week.

As far as conclusions go, this was a pretty good end to the story that spanned three books, fifteen years and roughly 9-12 actual days of action in the books. I didn’t pay attention to it in the first two books, but each of these books takes place in less than five days from start to finish. There are plenty of flashbacks and quite a few jumps ahead, but overwhelmingly the entire action of the story takes place in less than a week. Each of these books really are examples of the minuscule moments which can change the world for good (the Word) or for evil (the Void).

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