Whoa. Sorry about the huge break in there. Life went into a crazy overdrive in so many ways. So I'm spending my evening off (finally!) answering the rest of the questions, before move on to the work I brought home.
7. What was your favorite “scene” in the book?
There were a few that I really liked. Of course! I liked any time Geric and Isi where in the meadow together. But I also really liked the face down scene between Isi and Selia in the castle--because I just knew that somehow Selia was going to be caught.
8. What was your least favorite “scene?”
Hmmm.... I guess near the beginning when Isi's mother was so unfeeling. A whole lot of the beginning was not happy for me. But if I hadn't experienced it, I wouldn't have been as happy with how things ended up. (Oh my--another parallel to life.)
9. What was your favorite part of the book?
It's a toss-up between Isi's coming into her own, and the varying and growing relationship between Isi and Geric.
10. What was you least favorite part?
Either Conrad's whininess or just how awful Isi's mother was.
11. What are your thoughts on Hale’s writing style?
I LOVE it! I love her fantasy/fractured fairy tale works. They are so fun and the worlds she creates are so real. Not the biggest fan of her adult works. Of course, I've only read one and had such a horrible distaste for it that I didn't want to bother with the other.
12. Have you read any of Hale’s other works? What are your impressions in comparison?
I've now read the entire Bayern series, the award-winning Princess Academy, Book of a Thousand Days, both graphic novels, and the aforementioned adult novel. (Can it be only a year ago that I had only read Princess, Thousand, and the adult novel?!) Princess Academy was cute and sweet. But I don't remember being mesmerized as I was with some of the Bayern books, and especially by Book of a Thousand Days. The graphic novels are very entertaining. And the adult novel was disappointing partly because I thought she had much more potential in her writing and didn't put the obvious skills from her children's/YA works into the adult work.
