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Geeks and the Holy Grail (Camelot Code #2), by Mari Mancusi, for Timeslip Tuesday

The first book in the Camelot Code series, The Once and Future Geek , mixed time travel between the medieval world of King Arthur and our own, and it is a very entertaining book.  The second book in the series, Geeks and Holy Grail (Hyperion, October 2019), is also entertaining (though not quite as funny; King Arthur as a modern day high school student is hard to beat....). When Morgana, sworn enemy of King Arthur, attacks the druids of Avalon, Nimue, the youngest of them, takes the Holy Grail and runs with it.  King Arthur is dying, and only the Grail can save him.  Desperate to keep it from falling into Morgana's hands, she stumbles into Merlin's Crystal Cave.  But instead of Merlin there to help her (he's on vacation in Los Vegas, in our time), there's only his very inexperienced apprentice, Emrys.  His attempt to hide the grail works, in a sense--as a small, flatulent dragon, it sure doesn't look much like a grail.  But it isn't much use to Arthur as a...

The Secret

A Long Long Sleep


By Anna Sheehan

In this book, the main and well-to-do character Rosealinda Fitzroy goes into a suspended animation for sixty years. After being woken, the book follows her journey of living in the radically transformed future and its perils, discovering things that shaped her past and present. Unfortunately, the discovering part only happens at the end of the book. I mostly read about Rose dimly stuttering through a difficult curriculum at school and other situations. Some parts made me think that she may have been a ditz. On the other hand, it was equaled by signs of intelligence like her proficiency in art and a relationship with a special character, so I don't really know what to think of her.

Her actions seems shallow and poorly based, which reflected on a story arc that seems a little flimsy and without real cause; it could have been greatly changed with just a few tiny (and seemingly completely unthought of) actions... but there wouldn't be much of a story left if it went the way I would like it, would there? However, there were other interesting things that helped the story along a bit. But not much. It was boring to read on and on with no changes in Rose's situation or emotional status; she and the story arc just drifted along chapter after chapter. It was interesting in the very beginning yet dragged soon afterwards. Thankfully, it picked up towards the end and tied everything together into a solid finish and overall a good story. I just wish this solidness existed throughout the entire book.

So, this book had its ups and downs. It's story overall has complexity and is something to think about once you know the whole of it, yet the process of getting to that point isn't as fascinating as it should be. Save this one for a rainy day to kill some time. It was like a vegetable soup, under salted. Its tomatoes and onions are tasty, however they are few and far between with its watery broth. It's filling, but not hearty. Rated as a 3.

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