Why does anyone read books?

Okay, so the title isn't completely accurate.  But still, what gets people to read a book in the first place?  Is it because of requirements for school?  Is it because you like the cover or the title?  Or maybe it's an author you've read before that has gone on your "read whatever he/she writes" list.  Whatever it is, there's always a reason for reading a book.  Even little children at the age of six-seven have a reason they read a book.  If it's not a requirement by a parent or teacher, then it's because it had a cool cover.  There is always a reason.  But what are those reasons?

I can only speak for myself, so that's all I'm going to do.  So the question I ask myself today is, why do I read the books that I read.  I'm a picky reader, I don't just read everything that I see.  So, here are the reasons I read the books that I read.

• Name.  The name of a book is the first thing that I see on a shelf at a bookstore or a library.  I don't see the cover first, but the name.  It has to be something that's not cheesy, yet something that's not altogether boring either.  It has to be interesting.
• Cover.  You got me to reach out and grab the book, if only to scan the cover and the synopsis and move on.  Both the cover design and the synopsis are equally important as the synopsis is the second thing I look at.  Both have to be well-designed and entrancing.

If I'm not at a bookstore or a library and am looking on the internet (I have never used a printed catalog to look for books) then there are other things that I look for.  I still look at the cover and the name, but at that point other factors apply, which are listed below.

• Recommendations.  Word of mouth.  There are a few people that I know can be honest with me if I ask them.  I know I can rely on them to give me their honest opinion on whether or not a book is worth the money.  If they've read the book, I ask them before going onto the next reason.
• Reviews.  I almost always look at the reviews.  And honestly, I focus on the negative reviews.  Since I can't read very many books I can't afford to focus on the positive.  I have to focus on the negatives of some books to decide.
• Of course, if I know a writer to be good and I like his style, then I'll read any books that he comes out with.  Some people take this to the extreme, becoming fanatics of that particular author.
• Genre.  It's not what makes my decision because genres can be very large and sometimes I don't like-or even, quite frankly, despise some parts of a genre-particular parts of a genre.  Even still, I try to look through the newest books in genres I like every once in a while just to see what's new.
• Believe it or not, the publisher.  I know some publishers to produce quality books while some publishers don't.  For instance, I know Thomas Nelson Publishers to produce quality books and I trust that they have a good editing team and cover designer.

So... What do you think about when deciding to read a book?

Coming up...
Review, Interview[with Bryan Davis], and giveaway of Starlighter
Review of Immanuel's Veins-Ted Dekker and an awesome giveaway
Review of The Skin Map by Stephen Lawhead

The Bones of Makaidos-Bryan Davis

If you haven’t read the Dragons in our Midst series then you can still read the Oracles of Fire series.  They draw off of each other.  However, if I had a choice, I would read Dragons in our Midst before reading this.  Either way I think you’ll deeply enjoy the series as in drawing off each other they delve into the world of the unknown.

Description:

As The Bones of Makaidos begins, a wall of fire protects the inexperienced villagers of Second Eden from a planned invasion of dragons and Nephilim, but how long will the flames last/  Billy, Walter, Ashley, Elam, and the faithful dragons help the people prepare, but they are woefully outnumbered and will have to go back to Earth and recruit the humans who have the ability to revert to their former dragon states.  In search of aid, Billy escorts Acacia, an Oracle of Fire, through a dangerous volcano portal.

     Sapphira, Acacia's Oracle sister, stays in the underworld with Bonnie and Shiloh, waiting for the signal to emerge and join the battle.  With Hades and Earth locked in a catastrophic merging of their two realms, Arramos, evil incarnate, plans to use Bonnie to add Second Eden to the convergence, thereby drawing his forces to Heaven's Gate, where he hopes to gain access to divine authority.

     Arramos has two secret weapons: Sir Devin, the greatest of all dragon slayers, lies in wait  to destroy all dragons and their offspring, including Billy and Bonnie; and Mardon, a brilliant scientist, knows the secret to the Oracles' indestructibility, and he has devised a way to steal it from Acacia, thereby draining her strength.  Meanwhile, Semiramis, Mardon's mother, comes to Second Eden and provides BIlly with a wealt of information about Arramos's plans, and with every subsequent challenge, her words are proven true.  but can she be trusted?

     With mysteries abounding and an ultimate battle looming, every decision could mean the difference between survival and catastrophe, and only a prophesied sacrificed can stop the onslaught of evil.  But who will be the sacrificial lamb?

Plot:
The climax of the eight book series and sequel series.  I don't know what to say about the plot actually.  It was fast-paced as usual.  Exciting and original.  But those are just adjectives.  It certainly was a great way to end the series, though.  After reading it I simply can't put my reactions to word.
there is only one thing I remember having trouble with in this book.  At the half-way point in the book you really have to force yourself through.  It is just really dry.  The first two chapters in the second book are like this.  I would explain more of why it's dry and describe it in more depth, but that would spoil some of the plot, and wouldn't want that now would we?

Characters:
I learned more about the characters and understood them on a deeper level than in any of Mr. Davis's past novels.  When I heard one character went missing in battle my heart pounded.  When I found out one character was mortally wounded I put the book down and literally blanked out for a moment or two.  I had no choice but to care.
Go ahead and hate me for it, but strangely enough, with my fascination of swords and war and fantasy in general, I'm a sap for romance novels mind you, but novels with romance.  When proportioned right and well done I think they make a great addition to a novel.  This book has great balance.  Just the right amount for me.  I love the finale in this book, but I will keep my mouth shut about it.

Writing:
As I said in the Plot section, there was a period that was lacking the usual engaging writing.  I had trouble getting through those two chapters, but afterward the story takes a jumpstart that is even more exciting than before.
Other then this I had no problems with the book writing wise.  Not anything that stuck out at me, anyways.

Conclusion:
To say I am reluctant to give a book five stars (or Pens) would be an understatement.  So when deciding what to give this book it was clear to me.  This book was one of the most emotionally and spiritually gripping and powerful books I've read.
My rating: 5 Pens

Genre: Young Adult Christian Fantasy
Intended age group:  12-15 (but can easily extend in either direction)
Third in four part series
Where to buy:  Amazon, ChristianBook, or authors website (signed if requested).
You can get in contact with the author by going to his website where you can go to the very active forum, check out fan art or go to his blog.

Clive Staples Award-Go VOTE!

For those of you who haven't heard, the Clive Staples Award is coming around!  Named in honor of the great Christian Fantasy author, C.S. Lewis, the Clive Staples Award is reader chosen.  You have to have read at least TWO of the books on the list to vote.
I will go ahead and say which I voted for...

1. Curse of the Spider King
2. The Bones of Makaidos
3. By Darkness Hid

According to what I've heard from the readers of the last book, that would have easily made the top of my list-but sadly, I have yet to read the book so I didn't feel I could rank it as the top book.  Likewise, I had yet to finish The Bones of Makaidos.  This is not to say that Curse of the Spider King didn't deserve my vote, just that I'm not sure if it would be the same had I begun and finished reading both of the other books.

I encourage everyone to go and read it and help out your favorite book on the list.  Truthfully, I am very excited to see who wins the award.  Last year it was Donita K. Paul's, Dragonlight but I am anxious to see who will win this time.



The deadline for voting is the end of August so there is still a little over a week to VOTE!

Last of the Nephilim-Bryan Davis

If you haven’t read the Dragons in our Midst series then you can still read the Oracles of Fire series.  They draw off of each other.  However, if I had a choice, I would read Dragons in our Midst before reading this.  Either way I think you’ll deeply enjoy the series as in drawing off each other they delve into the world of the unknown.

Description:
Last of the Nephilim, the third installment in the acclaimed Oracles of Fire series, picks up the exciting Dragons in Our Midst story where Eye of the Oracle and Enoch's Ghost ends.  A single lie is spoken, allowing the Nephilim, a race of giants from ancient times, to invade Second Eden, a peaceful civilization in an alternate dimension.  While Earth and Hades are locked in a catastrophic merging of their two realms, the prophet Enoch works to gather an army of humans and dragons from each world to go to war against the Nephilim.  Included in that force are a small girl with prophetic power; Billy Bannister, the heir of Arthur and hero of the Dragons in Our Midst series; and Bonnie SIlver, his fellow warrior.

The two Oracles of Fire, Sapphira and Acacia, are called upon to protect the forces of good, including Bonnie, who is being purued once again by the most powerful of all dragon slayers, Sir Devin, the dragons' bane.

With giants battling dragons, and a rogue dragon taking the side of the forces of evil, a catclysmic battle erupts, endangering every life in the land of Second Eden.  Another of Nephilim, the most powerful of all, rises from the dead to join the battle.  But whose side will he be on?

Abraham, the leader of Second Eden, has a choice, either execute a grieving widow, the woman responsible for the entry of the evil giants, or face the greatest of sacrifices by which he can only delay the inevitable, the ultimate war that could lead the evil forces to the gates of Heaven itself.

Plot:
As usual with Bryan Davis' novels, the plot was fast-paced.
It keeps you on your toes even though you may be sitting down.  If anything, Mr. Davis knows how to write an intense plot.
On the flip side, for some it may not be the best.  With all the books I've yet read in The Oracles of Fire there have been at least two sub plots.  Sometimes more.  I'm still deciding whether I like how it's done or not.  The thing is, it is sometimes hard to discern the actual plotline.  To focus on tis book's plot instead of the series, it isn't until the end that we get a solid plot.  The only reason I say a 'solid plot' is because at the end, most of the characters come together.  And that, to an extent, is short-lived.
Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the plot very much, but I think it could have been improved if one plotline just stood out a little more then the rest.

Characters:
While I've always loved Bryan Davis' plots and almost everything else about his books, there are a few books where his characters are lacking.  This was, sadly, one of those books.
I couldn't attach myself to one character was the biggest issue.  Like I said in the plot section, there isn't one plotline that stands out above the rest.  Likewise, there isn't one character that stands out above the rest.  I might say Walter was the main character but even that is debatable.  Without one main character to connect with I subconsciously chose another character to be my personal protagonist.
Since there wasn't any more focus on that character then any other I didn't feel deeply for that character like I might in another book where I am attached to a protagonist.
Other then that issue, the characters were well created and developed.  The characters were very numerous.  Some twenty characters that took an ongoing part in the book.  For twenty characters though, I would say the author handled them very well.  Characters from both Dragons in Our Midst and characters introduced in the past two novels come together to form a great cast.

Writing:
Mr. Davis has the writing nailed.  He's a great example for anyone learning to write.  Other then problems already stated, there was no major writing flaws.  Nothing that stood out enough for me to write down or take a mental note.

Conclusion:
Bryan Davis writes a fascinating tale of love, war, and fighting for survival while keeping the focus on God.  This is a book to keep you up at night checking the page count left, not that you want it to end, but so that you can get to the end.
My rating: 4 Pens

Genre: Young Adult Christian Fantasy
Intended age group:  12-15 (but can easily extend in either direction)
Third in four part series
Where to buy:  Amazon, ChristianBook, or authors website (signed if requested).
You can get in contact with the author by going to his website where you can go to the very active forum, check out fan art or go to his blog.

Venom and Song Replacement Winner

You may have noticed in the last post when I said that I will choose another winner if a winner doesn't respond within 48 hours.  Sadly, one winner (I will not say whom) did not respond with an address.  So, that being so, I picked a new winner.  The winner is...

*drumroll*

Jake!  Congrats Jake!  Please email me within 48 hours with your address to send the book.

(Also, winners, you may have noticed that you have not received your prize yet.  I am sending them all out at the same time.  Since I did not have one of the addresses, I have not sent them out yet.  I expect to have them shipped within the week)

Enoch's Ghost-Bryan Davis

If you haven’t read the Dragons in our Midst series then you can still read the Oracles of Fire series.  They draw off of each other.  However, if I had a choice, I would read Dragons in our Midst before reading this.  Either way I think you’ll deeply enjoy the series as in drawing off each other they delve into the world of the unknown.

Description:

Enoch’s Ghost, the second book in the Oracles of Fire series, picks up the exciting Dragons in our Midst story where Tears of a Dragon and Eye of the Oracle series ended.

Walter, Ashley, and Karen ride the dragon Thigocia in search of her son, Gabriel, and her long-lost mate, Makaidos. When Walter and Ashley find an army of giants hibernating in the depths of the earth, they meet a mysterious girl named Sapphira Adi who claims to be thousands of years old. Sapphira reveals a sinister plot, conceived centuries ago by Morgan Le Faye and the devil himself.

The giants awaken and ascend to the Earth, ready to carry out a scheme that threatens the entire cosmos, and only dragons can defeat them. Since two dragons remain on the earth, and one of them is reluctant to fight, doom seems certain. Still, there is hope. In another world, a former dragon awakens to a new existence and learns that a prophesied deliverance requires the death of a willing lamb, and a handicapped little girl who wants to die to end everyone’s suffering, including her own, steps forward as the only candidate for the sacrifice.

The greatest of dangers, building to a climax in three different worlds, meets the power of love and sacrifice in Enoch’s Ghost.

Plot:

The plot was more engaging and intense than any other book I’ve yet read by Mr. Davis.  So much that I had to take a break midway through.  My mind was spinning, and I had to rest before jumping in again.  That was just me.  I still don’t think there is such a thing as too much suspense or intensity in a novel.  The author simply does not let up-and there is nothing wrong with that.

For the sake of not giving out spoilers I’ll simply say that the plot was interesting.

Characters:

Enoch’s Ghost has a vast cast of characters.  A cast that consists of characters ranging from Dragons in our Midst, Eye of the Oracle and new characters that we’ve never met.

It’s a very difficult task to make a reader love and feel attached to that many characters (more then fifteen to be precise).  If I knew beforehand that there were this many characters I would have doubts.  I was happily surprised the author pulled it off.

Writing:

As usual, Bryan Davis’ craft is great.  If there is anything wrong with the writing in this book it would be that it is too fast-paced.  As I said before, the author does not let up.  For some this can be a little much.  Some people need a novel to be balanced with fast and slow scenes.  Other then this little ‘glitch’ the novel was very well written.

Conclusion:

My diagnosis?  Great book.  One of the few books I’ve read in a matter of a few days.  A day and a half to be precise.  I’m not a fast reader so to have a book read in less then two days says something about a book.

I definitely recommend reading this book.

My rating: 4 Pens

Genre: Young Adult Christian Fantasy
Intended age group:  12-15 (but can easily extend in either direction)
First in four part series (More reviews forthcoming)
Where to buy:  Amazon, ChristianBook, or authors website (signed if requested).
You can get in contact with the author by going to his website where you can go to the very active forum, check out fan art or go to his blog.

Blogger Design-Day Two

Today we'll focus on comments.  In particular, IntenseDebate comments.  I've already received several compliments on the system.
It's rather simple, at least my part of the tutorial is.  In order to exchange your blogger type comments with IntenseDebate's comment system, just go to their site, log in.  Go to 'sites' and add a site.  Then from there you'll do a few simple things such as downloading/uploading your HTML template.  Roughly, it should take fifteen minutes.  The system they use takes care of most of it for you which is very nice.  You will have to register to join the site, but it's free to join.
Drop me a comment on what you think of the comments!

Blogger Design-Day One

I originally read this tutorial from The Neverending Shelf.
Today I want to focus on what was one of my favorite things to change.  The Favicon.  It may not seem very important but it adds a little bit of individuality and uniqueness to your blog.
1}The first thing you need to do is to find an image you would like to use.  The image should be sized at 16 x 16 to 32 x 32 in order to fit properly (however I just took mine from it's full size and it worked fine, so I'm not completely sure if that's necessary).  The image needs to be saved as a jpg, png, or a gif file.
Once you have the image upload it into an online photo account such as PhotoBucket.  If the image is exactly how you need it and you found the image online, you can simply right click the photo and then go to 'View Image' and it will take you to your link.  Here's the link I used for my image:  http://www.realarmorofgod.com/store/cart.php?m=popup&id=2289
2}Make sure you have the link for the image copied to your clipboard before you go to the next step.
3}Now, go into your blogger account.  Go to 'Layout' or 'Design' and then click 'Edit HTML'.
4}Press CTRL+F and then search the head tag '</head>'
Directly above this tag paste the following code:


<link href='image URL' rel='shortcut icon'/>

In the middle of the above code where it says 'image URL' delete and in it's place put your image URL.  Press 'Preview' and see if it is how you would like it to look.  If it is, press save and 'Wazzam!' you've got yourself a custom Favicon.

Eye of the Oracle-Bryan Davis

If you haven’t read the Dragons in our Midst series then you can still read the Oracles of Fire series.  They draw off of each other.  However, if I had a choice, I would read Dragons in our Midst before reading this.  Either way I think you’ll deeply enjoy the series as in drawing off each other they delve into the world of the unknown.

A Word of Caution:

The author of this book writes fiction mixed with Biblical events.  While I cannot find anything that would compromise a young believer’s faith, I would still suggest being careful.  In another sense, it encourages the reader to read their Bible to verify certain things.

Description:

What ancient mysteries lurk behind the amazing stories in the Dragons in our Midst series?  Eye of the Oracle takes the reader back in time to the days when dragons abounded.  From the era just before Noah’s ark, through the battles between dragons and mankind in the times of King Arthur, and to the haunting presence of dragons in our day, this stunning prequel reveals the mysteries that led to the bestselling fantasy adventure that began with Raising Dragons.

How did dragons survive the flood?  Who helped preserve an ancient evil force that led to the dragons’ demise in the days of King Arthur?  What heroic sacrifices kept that evil from exterminating the dragon race forever?  If you enjoyed the heart-stopping action and spiritual depth of the first four books in this series, you won’t want to miss the astonishing story that began it all.  Eye of the Oracle will captivate young and old alike, and it will challenge every reader to search deep within for answers to the mysteries in their own hearts.
(Taken from back cover).

Plot:

Bryan Davis handles the plot exceptionally well in this novel.  It’s a little more history then the average plot.  This is, of course hard to not do when the timeline spans some five thousand years.

Even with the ‘history’ factor of the novel, the author still manages to draw you in and keep you there until the end.  While Mr. Davis may have done very well at keeping the reader, he also established many sub-plots.  The main plot itself was almost the collection of sub-plots and I think it depends on the reader whether it is a good thing or a bad thing.  I somewhat enjoyed it.

The amount of detail put into this book is superb.  It revealed many of the mysteries of Dragons in our Midst while creating some of its own.

Characters:

With some fifteen to twenty main characters in the books cast, I had no trouble distinguishing any.  Even two characters who were supposed to be completely identical, I could recognize because of their slightly differing characteristics and behavior.

I can only imagine how tedious the task must have been creating so many characters over the book’s timeline.  It being four/five thousand years long many characters were born and many died.  Yet with all the characters, they all have unique personalities.  I fell in love with each and every character even though it becomes clear who the protagonist is in the story.

Writing (Quality):

Mr. Davis knows his craft.  I can honestly say I saw no writing issues in this novel.  To hook a reader for, in a sense, four thousand years you have to have a lot of things-loveable and realistic characters, exciting plotline-but you really have to be able to bring it all together with good writing.  And Bryan Davis does just that.

Conclusion:

Whether you’re a long-time Dragons in Our Midst fan or you’ve never read anything by the author before, you will love this book.  Eye of the Oracle is a great book with Christian values and is a welcome addition to my shelf.
My Rating: 4.5 Pens

Genre: Young Adult Christian Fantasy
Intended age group:  12-15 (but can easily extend in either direction)
First in four part series (More reviews forthcoming)
Where to buy:  Amazon, ChristianBook, or authors website (signed if requested).
You can get in contact with the author by going to his website where you can go to the very active forum, check out fan art or go to his blog.

Venom and Song Winners

Yes, it's true.  The giveaway has ended.  Many of those of you who entered may have noticed that your entries are gone.  True and not true.  I have all comments on my blog emailed to me so I have every entry even though it doesn't appear so.  Actually, I kind of like the new comment system, it definitely has it's uses.
Anyway, getting to the winners!
*Drumroll*

• Melissa Rose!
• Goldarrow!
• Tahl!.

I will need you all to email me within 48 hours to claim your prize else I will give the book away to someone else.
Also, tomorrow morning I will be posting the first part in my review of The Oracles of Fire by Bryan Davis.  Each week I will be posting a review of the books in the order they're written.  And to end the reviews I am going to be posting a review and giveaway of Starlighter.  Be on the look out for both of those.

Blogger Design and the Simplicity of It

Many of you will remember a while back when I changed my entire blog design from the classic template to the current one using a little thing called 'Template Designer'.  I also added other pages on the blog at that point.  Just recently I've been working some more on my design.  You've probably noticed that it looks pretty much the same.
The reason for this being that I worked on the minor things.  For instance, you'll notice that the comment system is different.  I now use a system called 'Intense Debate' for the comments.  The reason for this?  It is much better.  You can reply to actual comments as well as things like giving replies a thumbs up or thumbs down.  I really like it.
Also, you may have noticed that the favicon (the little thing on your search bar by the address of the site) has changed from the ordinary orange Blogger B to an image of my choosing.
I've also done lots of other little changes.  While I haven't changed much and am no HTML master, I have learned a few things.  Next week I will be going over a few of these things throughout the week-so you won't to miss that.  It's really not difficult.  The hardest part is finding the right tutorials to help you make the changes.