The Last Apprentice: Curse of the Bane

The Last Apprentice-Curse of the Bane  By: Joseph Delaney

This is a book that I have been picking at for a few years now. I guess i just needed to be in the right mood for it or I have been craving holding a book in my hands again. Whatever the case may be, I picked it back up this weekend and couldn't put it down. It was a really interesting story that inspired a lot of wondrous emotions. Joseph Delaney does a good job helping you to not only relate to the characters but also to feel a connection to them.

Thomas Ward is the 7th son of a 7th son and 6 months into his apprenticeship with the county spook ( a dark fighter) Due to an illness the spook couldn't attend to the capturing of a dark creature known as a ripper. Tom must take of it on his own, he succeeds but to the loss of a priest who just happens to be the Spooks brother. The loss makes the spook realize that he needed to journey back to his home town of Priest town not just to pay last respects to his brother, but also to confront an old and horrible evil that he fears that if it grows stronger it will be hard to conquer. It is up to Tom and the Spook to confront the evil that lives in the catacombs below the church. The bane.

The Children of Hurin

The Children of Hurin BY: J.R.R Tolkien

This is a book that I picked up and started to read a long time ago when I was commuting on the train. After I stopped taking the train, this book fell by the wayside and I decided it was time to pick it back up and try again. When I saw this I thought I would really enjoy it because everything I had read so far of Tolkien's work I have loved.

This is the story that begun long before the One Ring was forged. A dark lord by the name of Morgoth was terrorizing Middle Earth and only one man dared stand up to him. Hurin dreamt of a time when the race of men could live in peace without fear of evil and darkness. He set out to war with elves and dwarfs to try and make this happen. He was captured by Morgoth and set upon a high rocky chair to watch as Morgoth cursed his family over and over. Hurin's son Turin and his daughter Nienor faced a number of hardships and evils. But no matter what darkness and evil that came upon them; they continued to fight for peace and light. Helping to shape the fortunes of their lives as well as the history of Middle Earth.

I will admit this isn't the cheeriest of books. However life isn't always cheery and happy stories. Bad things happen to good people for no apparent reason, And while I know reading books is an escape of the day to day. There was something about the stories of this brother and sister that was almost comforting. Even though bad things happen; we can still face our "demons" and even though the battle is fierce we can still triumph in the end. If you are looking for adventure, fantasy and love. This is the book for you. If you are looking for everything to be sunshine and rainbows in the end and everything just turns out wonderful, this is NOT the book for you.