Enchantment Emporium by Tanya Huff
Jan. 24th, 2010 03:05 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
avreliaI really like Tanya Huff's books that I read, but I haven't read many of them. A strange thing. Several months wait from the library over, and I went through it in three days with great pleasure
Then I read reviews on Amazon, noting yet again, that when I like a book I agree with 4-5 star reviews, and when I don't like I agree with 1-2 ones. And it is absolutely impossible to use Amazon for recommendations, but okay to figure out what I liked and disliked in a book - if I was left with only a vague feeling instead of sharp analysis of my own.
Anyways. I loved this book, and what I liked the most was the same I liked in all Huff's books I read: cool and likable characters, snappy dialogue, vivid imagery and sharp details. Details make me relate to the world Huff's characters live in and feel quite at home - whether it was mentions of some Canadian realities, brands or problems, or pop culture ones (like Joss Whedon and World of Warcraft).
So, what is about? A young woman that inherits a junk shop in Calgary from her grandmother, her gigantic magical family, her insanely powerful aunties that rule the family and would be ruling the world if they were not too nice for it 9so they just make the world to accommodate to their wishes), her cousins, her lovers (mostly the same cousins), her love, her growing up, dragon princes, fate of the world in one Canadian city, and everything else in between. The scene with hunting evil monkey paw through the shop reminds me powerfully of some mummy hand scene, and it is also a bonus in my opinion.
There is a system of magic that we don't get a full picture or detailed explanations, just glimpses - the females' roles and powers are divided by their maiden/mother/crone status, men are literally AND figuratively horny, and there is sex. It sounds cheesy and may turn someone away, but in the story it made perfect sense to me.
The story is finished, but I hope Tanya Huff will return to this family and the rest of the characters. There are a lot of fun cousins to write about. And then, of course, there are dragon princes - gorgeous, powerful, bored, clueless... I'd love to see more of them, too.
Then I read reviews on Amazon, noting yet again, that when I like a book I agree with 4-5 star reviews, and when I don't like I agree with 1-2 ones. And it is absolutely impossible to use Amazon for recommendations, but okay to figure out what I liked and disliked in a book - if I was left with only a vague feeling instead of sharp analysis of my own.
Anyways. I loved this book, and what I liked the most was the same I liked in all Huff's books I read: cool and likable characters, snappy dialogue, vivid imagery and sharp details. Details make me relate to the world Huff's characters live in and feel quite at home - whether it was mentions of some Canadian realities, brands or problems, or pop culture ones (like Joss Whedon and World of Warcraft).
So, what is about? A young woman that inherits a junk shop in Calgary from her grandmother, her gigantic magical family, her insanely powerful aunties that rule the family and would be ruling the world if they were not too nice for it 9so they just make the world to accommodate to their wishes), her cousins, her lovers (mostly the same cousins), her love, her growing up, dragon princes, fate of the world in one Canadian city, and everything else in between. The scene with hunting evil monkey paw through the shop reminds me powerfully of some mummy hand scene, and it is also a bonus in my opinion.
There is a system of magic that we don't get a full picture or detailed explanations, just glimpses - the females' roles and powers are divided by their maiden/mother/crone status, men are literally AND figuratively horny, and there is sex. It sounds cheesy and may turn someone away, but in the story it made perfect sense to me.
The story is finished, but I hope Tanya Huff will return to this family and the rest of the characters. There are a lot of fun cousins to write about. And then, of course, there are dragon princes - gorgeous, powerful, bored, clueless... I'd love to see more of them, too.
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