Amy C. Shaw

Bookish Wedding Inspiration: Leviathan Trilogy

January 27, 2015 • 10 Comments

There are minor spoilers for the Leviathan trilogy below.

Once upon a time, I thought it might be fun to try creating themed wedding ideas based off of books, and how the main character’s wedding might look with our modern sensibilities, and thus, Bookish Wedding Inspiration was born! This time I wanted to create a wedding for Deryn and Alek. After TWO WHOLE BOOKS of Alek thinking Deryn is a boy named Dylan, in the third book he finally learns who she is, and finds himself falling for her the way she has already fallen for him. This series was my first (and only, so far) foray into alternate history/steampunk and it created a very interesting picture of a different WWI, and I would recommend it if that sounds the least bit interesting to you!

When researching possibilities for this post, I considered the time period, the alternate world/steampunk element, and of course the characters themselves. Hope you enjoy what I created!

Bridal Look

The Dress (Sort Of)

Source

Deryn’s not big on dresses, and while I considered some dress options, ultimately, I thought this was the most fitting: a white, military style coat that can also function as a dress, over riding pants. If you check out the source link, you’ll see just how many military-style, wedding-appropriate options there were from the 2006 fall Dolce and Gabanna line! I thought quite a few of the outfits could work for Deryn on her wedding day, but ultimately, I thought this was the best choice.

Bridal Accessories

Hairpiece/Steampunk necklace

This headpiece evokes the 1920s (I assume this is close to the time Deryn and Alek would marry) and simple elegance. It would also look great on the short hair that Deryn no doubt would be sporting. I love the idea of accessories that evoke the travels Deryn and Alek have embarked on together.

The Bouquet

Source for second bouquet

At first I wanted a simple bouquet, and was inspired by a picture of a wedding on Downton Abbey to go with a few calla lilies. But then I thought, in Deryn and Alek’s world they may have some exotic plant life that we don’t have, plus, it does seem like Deryn would want more personality in her bouquet, if she was even interested in a bouquet. So basically we have the classic choice that probably reflects Alek more than Deryn, and then the more exciting choice that reflects Deryn. Let me know which you prefer!

The Groom

Outfit/Compass cufflinks

Alek of course would need to be dressed in a nice, classic sort of style, and I also wanted it to be along the same vein of Deryn’s outfit. I guess I decided they’re getting married in the winter, since they both have coats! And while I suppose Alek wouldn’t need cufflinks if he was wearing a coat, I like these compass ones nonetheless.

The Location/The Portraits

So when I pictured the sort of place where Deryn and Alek might marry, I pictured a sort of city hall kind of place, a small wedding with just their close friends. I found some great pictures from a couple different weddings at the San Francisco City Hall (built in the 1920’s, I might add) and felt they perfectly fit the bill.

Source

The Sweets

Source

For some reason, this particularl tower of treats seemed like a fitting way to celebrate Alek and Deryn’s marriage!

What would you expect to see at Deryn and Alek’s wedding?

Review: Mistborn

January 22, 2015 • 20 Comments

How to sum up Mistborn…

The end.

Wait, did you want more than that? You want to know my thoughts on the plots, the characters, the world, be convinced that you should read this? Fine. I’ll oblige.

Here’s what you need to know up front: This is 600+ pages of fantasy goodness. This is not for everyone, but if that doesn’t intimidate you, or at least you’re open to the idea, then this book probably is for you. One of my first inclinations of the book after I had started reading was that the story is a bit of a slow burn. Let me emphasize: it’s not a slow, drawn-out beginning with massive info dump and waiting for the story to begin. But the story takes its time to develop. The characters take time to develop. That’s part of what makes this story so worthwhile, because in the end it will impact you in ways a lesser developed story just could not have done. It’s all completely worth it and it’s never boring, even when things are moving slower. I never felt that Sanderson was just feeding me unnecessary filler.

The book focuses mainly on Kelsier and Vin, both born as skaa (slaves, essentially), both gifted, but otherwise pretty different. Vin is a 16 year old girl; Kelsier is a 30-something year old man. Kelsier has spent much of his adult life leading people; Vin just tries to scrape by unnoticed and unharmed. Kelsier has developed his abilities; Vin is only vaguely aware of hers. But when the two meet, Kelsier recruits Vin and takes her under his wing, and though she believes he intends to use her for whatever purpose he has and then dispose her, she slowly learns to trust him and his friends as they work and train together.

After a while, we also get introduced to my favorite character ELEND! It seems I have a thing for young noblemen who are a little defiant (Prince Kai in The Lunar Chronicles, Kiggs in Seraphina, Nikkolai in the Grisha trilogy…), but seriously, he brings books to balls and reads them there! What is not to love about that? And his interactions with Vin are gold. In fact, my only complaint for this book is that I think the development between Elend and Vin ended up being a little rushed (which feels crazy to say about this book); they seem to go from flirtatious banter to relationship suddenly. Not that it was too soon, but there is no explanation that I recall about them talking outside the balls, so I don’t when they established things because suddenly it was like bam, they’re a couple. I just wanted more of those interactions, dang it. But hopefully there will be more in the next two books.

This book is hard to explain because it is a fantasy with an intricate world and magic system, and the plot has a little bit of everything going for it: action, adventure, drama, comedy, romance… But seriously, it was all good. It’s character-driven but the plot is great too. And while the ending for this book was satisfying and does not leave you on a cliff-edge, I am certainly anticipating more. (But Nikki did warn me that I will need to read books two and three back-to-back, so that has been noted!)

By the way, just as a warning, not everything in the ending is happy. But the ending is still good and worth it, I promise. There are feels of all kinds in this book.

So basically, if any of this sounds appealing to you at all, you should read it. I think you’ll love it. I know I’m glad I gave it a shot. And I’m happy to give my first read of 2015 5 stars!

If you’re a Mistborn fan, feel free to gush in the comments!

Content advisory: Mild language, moderate violence

The Top 10 Secondary Characters Who Need Their Own Story

January 20, 2015 • 24 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday topic is a meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Today’s topic is a freebie!

When this idea popped into my mind, I was worried I had already done a topic like this one once, but the closest I found was My Top 10 Most Memorable Secondary Characters, which I wrote in 2013 and was a list comprised primarily of secondary characters from The Hunger Games. Since then I have read a lot of great books with interesting characters and feel I could create a more varied list, PLUS, make the focus be about the story they could tell. This week’s list is in no particular order.

1. Carswell Thorne from The Lunar Chronicles

Source for Thorne art here

Marissa Meyer gifted us all with a short story about Thorne (that I still have not read!), but seriously, all Thorne fans know only a novel would suffice our desire for more Thorne.

2. Sturmhond from The Grisha Trilogy

Sturmhond is basically the same person as Thorne, and again, we all want more. I would love to know what happens to him after the Grisha trilogy, but I would also love to know more about his life before!

3. Kiggs from Seraphina

I love Kiggs, and I would like to know how he grew up and what made him the way he is.

4. Elend from Mistborn

OK, so I’ve only read book one, and I imagine there’s more of him in the next two books, but I would love to know the details of his royal upbringing, his antics growing up, and what got him started reading those forbidden books.

5. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley from The Harry Potter Series

Again, I haven’t finished all these books either, but I just love Mr. and Mrs. Weasley and I’d love to know their backstory. Did they meet and fall in love at Hogwarts? How did Mr. Weasley end up at the Ministry of Magic? Did they always want a large family?

6. Finnick from The Hunger Games Trilogy

Of course, this list would not be complete without someone from The Hunger Games, and like many fans, I’d love details on Finnick’s backstory!

7. Gemma from The Young Elites

Image on left found on Marie Lu’s The Young Elites Pinterest board

I find the whole thing about Gemma being from an aristocratic family and a malfetto, but not condemned like Enzo, really interesting within the world of The Young Elites, and I want more of her story!

8. Harriet from Emma

I know this ship has sailed, at least for Jane Austen’s perspective, but I would love to know more about Harriet’s life after she married Robert Martin. I was a little surprised when, while watching Emma Approved, I became way more excited about Emma and B-Mart hooking up at the end than Emma and Knightley! It was just really cute! (Those paper cranes!) But when I read Emma, I also found myself really endeared to Harriet there. More please!

9. Caleb from The Divergent Trilogy

I have some unanswered questions about Caleb, and I honestly found him so much more interesting and complex than Tris or Four. I need more!

10. Marguerite St. Just in The Scarlet Pimpernel

I know there are more of these books so there might be more about Marguerite, but I found her really interesting when I read The Scarlet Pimpernel, and my favorite chapter in the book is when she’s at home discovering who her husband actually is.

I was surprised to see this list was mostly guys! But I guess that’s because most of these books focus on a female character. In YA it’s a little more rare to get the guy’s POV, but sometimes I wish I could read their story too!

Which secondary characters would you like to see get their own story?

Star Trek TNG Season 2: My Top 5 Fave Episodes

January 17, 2015 • 15 Comments

As my husband and I are going through our second full watch of Star Trek as a couple, I thought it would be fun to report on the highlights along the way. So I decided to copy the same format as Charlene at Bookish Whimsy, who is going through her first-ever run of Star Trek and sharing her favorite episodes for each season. To compare, see her top 3 favorite episodes of season two of The Next Generation.

Season two is DEFINITELY better than season one! Thankfully, it was a little easier to come up with a top 5 this time, and I even conjured up a few honorable mentions: The Royale, A Matter of Honor, and Q Who? (because as annoying as Q is in that episode, it is important). Here are my top 5…

5. The Dauphin

So the weird-demented-looking-bear-creatures are a little strange, but this episode just made me smile because I actually enjoyed watching Wesley be all smitten over a girl. I also love everyone’s reactions to Wesley’s crush and their attempts at doling out relationship advice. I think Guinan ended up saying it best at the end of the episode!

4. The Icarus Factor

I almost didn’t choose this one because I really don’t care for the main storyline about Riker and his dad and how much they hate each other and want to be macho and blahblahblah. But O’Brien has some fabulous one-liners that made the episode (“No kidding, I know her too, but we don’t do that.”), plus John Tesh is a Klingon and pokes Worf with a pain-stick! Oh yes, and Worf yells in Data’s face: “Be gone!” Basically, I love every part of this episode that is secondary to the main plot.

3. Elementary, Dear Data

I don’t love the ending of this one because I think it shows poor judgment on Picard’s part, but I enjoy Data exploring his inner-Sherlock!

2. Manhunt

I almost didn’t choose this one either because, ugh, Lwaxana Troi, but then I thought about it and I realized I actually really enjoyed this one! Piccard is just perfect in his reaction to Lwaxana and that dinner scene just really made the whole episode. I also love how Lwaxana casually saves the day.

1. The Measure of a Man

This is certainly the most thought-provoking episode of the season, and it is episodes like this that make science fiction and Star Trek so great. Can a machine be more than property, and be seen as equal to human? Good food for thought and great character development as well.

Also in season two: O’Brien has arrived, and I just love him! Colm Meaney could be seen around the Enterprise on season one, but he was just a nameless guy on the ship. But now he’s got a name and coming into his own as the secondary character Chief O’Brien, who will later become a main character on Deep Space Nine!

Also, Wesley isn’t annoying in this season! He definitely matured between seasons, but he hasn’t reached that irksome stage that he comes into later when he really thinks he knows everything.

And lastly, we have Dr. Pulaski. She actually only annoyed me in some episodes, mostly in earlier ones when she bullied Data. But she wasn’t bad in all of them, as I remembered her being, but I’m still ready for Dr. Crusher to return.

What are your favorite episodes of The Next Generation Season Two?

My Top Ten 2014 Movies

January 15, 2015 • 6 Comments

I saw 13 movies that were released in 2014, and there are still a few I really want to see that might have made this list had I already seen them, but I was ready to write this post before 2014 seemed too far gone.

10. Divergent

This was a pretty decent adaptation of a book that I enjoyed. It does not stand out greatly for me, but only garnered a few small complaints from me, the biggest being the lack of character development for Caleb.

#9 on My Most Anticipated Movies of 2014 list

9. The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

The last film of the Hobbit trilogy just confirmed our suspicions that one book really did not need to be stretched thin into three movies. There was a LOT of action in this film, some of which was really interesting, but did it warrant a whole entire movie unto itself? Not really. The-Hobbit-Five-Armies #6 on My Most Anticipated Movies of 2014 list

*Tie* 8. Non-Stop

This was a Redbox rental that ended up really surprising me. It was almost literally non-stop with action and intensity that had me hooked all the way through.

Did not make My Most Anticipated Movies of 2014 list

*Tie* 8. Guardians of the Galaxy

I had low expectations for this movie, despite the fact that it was Marvel, because honestly, the trailer seemed to be aimed towards 10 year old boys. I was surprised that I grew to care about this group of misfits-turned-unlikely-heroes and that my favorite characters ended up being a tree and a raccoon. Also, the space shots were very epic. Not a new favorite, but worth a watch.

Did not make My Most Anticipated Movies of 2014 list

I rated Non-Stop higher than Guardians of the Galaxy, but the latter has the rewatchable factor going for it, which is why I decided to declare it a tie between the two.

6. How To Train Your Dragon 2

I actually haven’t completely forgiven this movie for getting so dang dark. I mean, it’s supposed to be a kid’s movie! I did LOVE seeing Hiccup and Astrid more grown up and being back in their world, but yeah, I just feel it got way too dramatic. Dang sequels.

#3 on My Most Anticipated Movies of 2014 list

5. Edge of Tomorrow

This was another Redbox rental that surprised me. I was worried this one might get a little too repetitive like I felt Vantage Point did, but instead I was engaged the whole time and came to care about their characters. I don’t know how much I want to rewatch it, but I did really enjoy it.

Did not make My Most Anticipated Movies of 2014 list

4. X-Men: Days of Future Past

This storyline is slightly convoluted, but I forgive it because I love seeing the old and new meet. Days of Future Past and First Class have really been head and shoulders above the previous three X-Men movies.

#7 on My Most Anticipated Movies of 2014 list

The Three-Way Tie For #1 (Seriously, Don’t Make Me Choose)

Most Rewatchable: Captain America: The Winter Solider

Watching Agents of SHIELD up to the point of The Winter Soldier, watching this movie, and then watching Agents of SHIELD since then has been a really cool experience. Never before have I known of a movie to build up to something that would happen in a movie, and then for the repressions to immediately continue the next week on the TV show. That, my friends, is taking great advantage of various storytelling avenues.

But The Winter Soldier also stands well apart from the show as a part of the Marvel cinematic universe, and I have no doubt what we saw there will lead to Avengers: Age of Ultron. Since I rewatch the Marvel movies pretty frequently, there’s no doubt I will watch this one again many more times, and as of now, it’s definitely one of my favorites of the franchise.

#2 on My Most Anticipated Movies of 2014 list

Most Profound: Interstellar

This is one of those movies that makes you think about life on levels that you just don’t normally go to. That’s why I love Christopher Nolan’s films in general, and he really took it to a whole new level with Interstellar. I have some small complaints about how much the story flirted way too much with the fine line between interesting sci-fi and a little-too-far-out-there sci-fi, but all-in-all, this movie was an experience. The visuals were beautiful, the acting was incredible, and oh how it gave me feels.

(Also, as a follow-up on my comments on my Most Anticipated Movies of 2014 post about this movie, I did really like Topher Grace in this movie, but I did also discover after that post but before watching this movie that I didn’t dislike Topher so much when I watched That 70’s Show, for whatever reason.)

#5 on My Most Anticipated Movies of 2014 list

Best Mix of Rewatchable & Profoundness: Mockingjay Part One

While I wouldn’t consider Mockingjay quite as rewatchable as The Winter Solider or nearly as profound as Interstellar, it does have a good mix of these factors. It’s not as action-packed as the previous Hunger Games installments; it feels much more quiet as it explores the depths of Katniss’s PTSD in a way that I honestly didn’t connect with quite as deeply in the book. I have mad respect for Francis Lawrence taking what I feel is the weakest book of the trilogy and turning the material into a really poignant film, and I believe he will do the same again for Part Two.

#1 on My Most Anticipated Movies of 2014 list

What were you favorite movie releases of 2014?

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