The Lollipop Shoes by Joanne Harris

review by Maryom

The sequel to Chocolat finds Vianne Rocher in hiding - well almost. With her two daughters, Annie and Rosette, she's seeking anonymity in the crowded streets of Paris, trying to live a dull, drab, unnoticeable as possible life - all a far cry from the days of the chocolaterie in Lansquenet. Until, that is, the day the wind blows Zozie de l'Alba into their lives. Zozie with her lollipop shoes and brightly coloured clothes is everything Vianne used to be - but is she really the good friend she purports to be, or are her motives more sinister?

The Lollipop Shoes is another lovely magical tale from Joanne Harris and although carrying on from Chocolat it isn't merely more of the same. The setting has changed - and so has Vianne. Older, wiser and with another child to look after, she's now happy to settle for a comfortable, 'normal' life with steady dependable Thierry. Zozie's arrival stirs up many hopes and dreams which have been hiding beneath the dull façade. The Lollipop Shoes is darker than its predecessor. Zozie is a wonderful two-faced villain, insinuating herself into the family and all too tempting and plausible despite her evil intentions

Chocolat was a novel that I absolutely adored and a very hard act to follow. I wasn't quite sure how much I'd enjoy this sequel - but I did, immensely! I'm now looking forward to a further 'Vianne Rocher' story - Peaches For Monsieur le Curé ( you can read more about this on Joanne Harris' website)

Maryom's review - 5 stars
Publisher - Random House
Genre - adult fiction

Runemarks by Joanne Harris

End of the World - Again!
review by Maryom

Maddy Smith has always known that she is different to the other folk in her village - the rune mark that she was born with makes her so and gives her powers to deal with the magical world whose existence is denied by her neighbours. But just how different, she doesn't realise till the day Old One-Eye asks her to open the way under Red Horse Hill and go in search of the Whisperer, a relic of the Old Gods. Here she discovers adventures beyond her imaginings, journeying through the World Below to Hel on the borders of chaos.

I stumbled across Runemarks accidentally on the Serendipity Reviews blog - until then I'd associated Joanne Harris with adult fiction in warmer French settings (Chocolat being my favourite) so found the idea of a teenage fantasy novel very intriguing. I asked my library to order it and settled back to wait. Imagine my surprise and delight then when I was lucky enough to win a competition on the same blog offering not just Runemarks but also a signed copy of the sequel, Runelight!

Runemarks is a marvellous, magical adventure story, of double and triple cross, with so many twists and turns that at times it's hard to remember who is on whose side! Maddy is an engaging, feisty heroine, able to pluck up the courage to do what needs to be done - no matter how frightful or gruesome. But I must say my favourite character was Loki - charming and witty, cunning and devious, he always has an answer for everything, trying to shift the blame on to others and away from himself - a sort of Old Norse spin doctor! They're backed up by a sweeping cast of Gods, goblins, shape-shifters, parsons and pot-bellied pigs, and the sinister members of The Order who would like the world to be a duller, more ordered place without magic and with themselves in charge!

A word of caution to anyone who's a little claustrophobic, as I am - it contains the most frightening and realistic fictional tunnels since Alan Garner's The Weirdstone of Brisingamen. Harris captures the cramped (terrifying) underground feel so well that, in the early parts of the story as Maddy ventures through the tunnels of the World Below, I found myself having to break off and come up for air!

A book for anyone who enjoyed the Sabriel series by Garth Nix, although lighter and funnier.

Maryom's review - 4.5 stars
Publisher - Random House Children's Books
Genre - Teenage Fantasy Adventure


Buy Runemarks from Amazon