Book Reviews, Part...whatever

I know this blog has been lacking in serious content lately but...well, rather than expose you all to something that is very confusing, I'll just wait until it makes a little more sense before explaining it all. Sorry.

Anyhew.

While in Canada, I finished one book, started and finished a second and then started a third, which I just finished yesterday.

Code to Zero by Ken Follett: Now, normally I'm not a big spy mystery fan, but some of my students get into this sort of thing, so I wanted to read one. I think I picked it up for $0.25 at a garage sale. It wasn't half bad. Set in the 50's during the Space Race and the Red Scare, a man name Luke wakes up to realize he has no memory of his life...at all. As he's piecing his life together, old friends gradually filter in...some for good and some for evil. Not what we would call intellectually stimulating, but a fun read.

A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray: Historical fiction meets fantasy meets young adult lit. I must say it is one of the better young adult lit books I've read. A young woman "witnesses" the murder of her mother in India and then travels to a finishing school in England where...things just get weird:

"Thou shalt not steal. I seem to recall that as being one of God's I'd rather you didn't lest I have to smite you into ash commandments."--Gemma, p. 76

"Didn't you have any sadistic nannies who told you these tales to keep you quiet and well behaved at night? Heavens, what's to become of the Empire if governesses have lost their touch for scaring the wits out of their girls?"--Miss Moore, p. 130

"What are they doing," Ann asks, turning quickly away.
"She's lying back and thinking of England!"
--Ann and Pippa, p. 150

"I know that. But what happens? Do they chant? Speak in tongues? Do the runes sing 'God Save the Queen' first?"
"Yes. In E Flat."
--Gemma and her mother, p. 286

"Pain is underrated as a tool of motivation."--Gemma, p. 297

The Priestess of Avalon by MZB--I suppose this was her attempt at mixing history with empowered feminist religion. I'm not sure how well it worked. I don't know much about Constantine (who ends up figuring rather prominently in the book) so I can't say for sure how whacked out this theory of his mother being a pagan Priestess is.

"Just like aman; he went on and died bravely and left the women to put his work together again afterward."--Helena, P. 174

"I had been around Christians long enough by now to know that far from fearing martyrdom, they welcomed it as an easy way to cancel out all sins and win the favor of their gloomy god."--Helena, p. 181

"Apparently those who served the god of the Jews had always had difficulty in getting along with its neighbors."--Helena, p. 185

"But I am Emperor, and must rule in an imperfect and sinful world--"
And you suspect you may hae some sinning yet to do...
--Constantine and Helena, p. 241, on why he is not baptized yet

"It did not good to point out that the Empire had flourished for more than two centuries while tolerating a wide variety of cults and creeds. The bishops who had come to the council were representing the people who had let themselves be slain rather than throw a pinch of incense ona pagan altar fire. I wondered sometimes if the had become so accustomed to persecuttion that now that they were the Emperor's favorites they were compellted to attack each other."--Helena, p. 243, on the Council of Nicea