Currently Reading

Hey, guys!

The last few days I have been alternating between reading Their Eyes Were Watching God, Food:A Love Story, and Darkest Before Dawn.  To tell you the truth, I'm not really enjoying any of them.

Their Eyes Were Watching God is a book that I'm reading in English class.  Its kind of interesting, but it only has so much potential, being titled what it is. (I don't think that don't-judge-a-book-based-on-its-cover counts for titles...)  It's about black Americans and especially black women during the Harlem Renaissance. While slightly boring, it isn't terrible; however, I find myself getting irrationally angry while reading it.  I suppose that means that the book is fulfilling its purpose, but it is not fun for me.

Next, I've been trying to read Food:A Love Story since October.  Whenever I pick it up to read, I immediately regret the decision.  I love Jim Gaffigan (the author)'s stand-up, but I don't think that he has the gift of writing, sadly.  However, my problem is less the writing style and more the lack of direction the book seems to be going on.  I figured, when deciding to read it, that it would be funny or a memoir or something like that.  It's more of a research paper on food.  I'm hoping that it will get better soon. (Full Review to come, eventually.)

Lastly, I've been slowly making my way through Darkest Before Dawn.  It's the sequel to Knightfall, which I reviewed earlier.  I'm finding it a bit slow and boring.  Most of the problem is that I don't care about the characters.  The main character from the last book, the only character that I do not actively hate, is barely in a single scene in this sequel.  He never narrates, and he's just become an ensemble member of the cast.  I'm more than half-way done, so maybe it will reach its climax soon.  (Full Review to come.)

I'll keep you guys posted, and will try to write at least a little post on all the books I read this year.
And, as always, Happy Reading to all of you out there!

Knightfall (The Chronicles of Benjamin Knight #1) by R. Jackson-Lawrence (Good)

*Note: This book was given to me by the author in exchange for an honest review*

I enjoyed reading Knightfall. It was a good book that was, without a doubt, exciting.  I was on the edge of my seat for a good portion of it.  I never knew what would happen next!

The Cover:

The Cover:
The cover shows Ben standing on the edge of a mountain with the ruins of a city behind him.

Official Description:
At the age of fifteen, genius Benjamin Knight had developed a technology that would change the world. But when the project is sabotaged, Ben wakes to find himself in a mysterious and unfamiliar land where an uneasy peace hangs in the balance.
Saved from near death by a band of traders, he joins them on their journey north as he struggles to understand the world he's in and how it happened. However, Ben soon realizes that everyone has their secrets and that no one is safe, especial when one man has the power to realize his ambitions.
Ben wants answers, but with war looming, he may not survive long enough to find them in the series that breaks the barrier between science fiction and fantasy!

My Review:
I really enjoyed reading Knightfall though it was very strange.  It was very exciting all the way through and also surprisingly complex.  My main issue with it was that it was a tad too gory, and I didn't think that some of the gore was necessary to continue the story, which it sometimes is.
I really was impressed by the characters that the author chose to fully develop.  They were motivated by their own emotions and experiences and differed greatly from each other.  Each character could have easily be identified by their actions without the need for labels since they were so unique. However, there were a few characters that were not picked to be developed, and their character suffered as a result.  It would have been impossible to emphasis all of these characters and still continue with the story, so I do not begrudge it too much.  However, I think that a fewer number of characters might have benefitted the story.
That said, the plot line was very exciting.  It moved from one event to another seamlessly and I was constantly caught off guard by how far Jackson-Lawrence was willing to go.  I consistently feared for the characters, and it was always justified!  No one was safe.  The reader's understanding of the universe Ben finds himself in would often suddenly change, usually accompanied by a few twists or turns.  I couldn't help but be on the edge of my seat.
My only real issues with Knightfall were the excessive gore and how exactly Ben crossed into this different world.  Having finished the book, I still didn't really have a good idea.  Maybe it will be covered in one of the two sequels, but I doubt it.  I think we are supposed to just chalk it up to a lab accident, but that doesn't really make any sense to me. (I know that last point is too picky, but it bothered me.)
All in all, I enjoyed reading Knightfall and would recommend it for someone looking for something to read.  It was definitely good enough for me to read the sequels, the first of which is Darkest Before Dawn.

Phrase:
The magical electricity