The Other Kind of (Relation)Ship

. . . Because Valentine's Day is in two days. And so you'd think that I, as a dedicated fangirl, would be talking about my favorite ships. Except, I already did that. And so I intended to not do any Valentine's posts at all, with the exception of the Beautiful People meme, until Lalaithiel made the genius suggestion that I post about my favorite platonic relationships instead. And so I'm doing just that since, after all, Valentine's Day isn't just about romantic love; it's about love between family and friends as well. And, honestly, I love a good friendship in a story (whether I'm reading it or writing it) even more than a romance. So, today, I'm celebrating the other type of relationship- that between friends- with five of my favorite book friendships.

Friday 5s: Friendships

1. Billy Bannister and Walter Foley (Dragons in Our Midst and sequel series). Best friends and brothers-in-arms, these two couldn't be closer if they were related by blood. (Actually, they're probably closer than some siblings I could think of . . .) They've been through the literal Hell together (and separately, but yeah), fought side-by-side against everything from dragons to demons to semi-ordinary humans, and put their lives on the line for each other (and others) plenty of times. And in the midst of all that, they support, encourage, and pray for- not to mention tease!- one another, no matter what they're facing.
2. Kaladin and Shallan (The Stormlight Archive). I know, for some people this is a romantic ship . . . but honestly, I like them better as friends. They're too like each other in certain ways to work as a couple, but as friends and comrades? Once they (and by they I mostly mean Kaladin) put aside their prejudices, they can relate to each other in ways that many of the other characters can't. I know their friendship hasn't had a whole lot of time to develop, but I look forward to seeing where it goes . . . as long as it doesn't turn into the other kind of ship.
3. Michael and Fisk (Knight and Rogue series). If you ever needed proof that "opposites attract" is true for friends as well as couples, Sir Michael Sevenson and his "squire" Fisk are where the search stops. The two could hardly be more different- Michael is an idealistic, straight-arrow, noble (in both senses of the word) true-blue would-be-knight; Fisk, a streetwise, not-quite-honest (though good at heart), slightly cynical, and definitely sarcastic former thief- yet their friendship is evident. Michael would (and sometimes does) do anything to help Fisk; Fisk, despite himself, is as loyal to Michael and does his best to keep him out of too much trouble. They have arguments on more than one occasion, but they usually come to an agreement in the end . . . but right now, I still need to get my hands on Scholar's Plot, and so thinking about them makes me a bit sad. Just saying. 
4. Halt and Will (Ranger's Apprentice). Ok, this is more mentor-and-student or even (at times) close to father-and-son than just friendship. But I'm including it anyway because, well, how can I not? It's one of my favorite parts of the series: the way Will goes from fearing Halt to respecting him, desiring his approval, and, yes, looking at him as a sort of surrogate father in certain respects; the fact that Halt will sacrifice quite literally everything for Will. The way Halt guides Will, even after Will's technically on his own, but also gives him the space to learn and grow on his own when necessary. It's wonderful, that's all I'm saying.
5. Eragon and Saphira (The Inheritance Cycle). I'd be remiss if I didn't include at least one Rider-dragon pair on here; they're so much fun to both read and write. The relationship between Eragon and Saphira was one of the best parts of The Inheritance Cycle: the closeness, Saphira's wild protectiveness of Eragon- and yet the way she draws him out into adventure, out of his comfort zone- Eragon's care for Saphira, the way they tease each other . . . And the fact that Saphira can legitimately call Eragon "little one" even though she's technically way younger than him. That may or may not amuse me more than it should, but it also makes me go "awwwww."

I will admit: making this list was really, really hard. A few of the friendships that didn't quite make the top five: Frodo and Sam, Wax and Wayne, the Princes Charming, Ham and Breeze, and Abigail and Jackaby. What about you? What are some of you favorite story-friendships? Please tell me in the comments!
Thanks for reading!
-Sarah

Random Fridays: Books I Wanted to Throw Against a Wall

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Hullo, everyone! I'm sure everyone's read at least one of those books, the sort that make even the gentlest soul want to hurl them against the nearest wall. Maybe the main character annoys you, a plot twist nearly drove you mad, or your favorite character died, or maybe your motivation is something else completely different. It might not be a bad book- it might even be one of your favorites- but the desire is still there. This week's Random Friday is about the books that do it for me.

1. Eragon and Eldest by Christopher Paolini.

 I mostly blame Eragon (the character) for this. He annoyed me for a very long time. I don't remember specific reasons (I haven't read the books in a while), but I do recall thinking that he made a lot of idiotic decisions . . . particularly concerning Arya in book two. I mean, yes, I shipped them, but I still thought that Eragon could've gone about things a little better. Thankfully, he shaped up a bit in time for Brisingr.

2. The Star Wars novelizations

Episodes II and Episode III were the worst . . . Anakin is in my top five favorite Star Wars characters because he has some pretty good lines (particularly in Episode III) and because you can't help feeling sorry for him in some ways, but I also want to smack him across the face and talk some sense into him. The original trilogy was somewhat better, but Luke still bugged me. And then there's Episode V, in which everyone bugs me. And there's Yoda, who I kind of don't like. Call me weird, but I don't.

3. The Elite by Kiera Cass

 If your romantic relationship is forbidden on pain of death, end said romantic relationship. Do not continue it in secret, especially not when you're staying in the royal castle, and especially especially not when you're a much better match for the other guy in the love triangle. It will end in trouble and heartbreak and all sorts of messiness.

Now for some books which contained entirely too much angst (but are otherwise pretty awesome):

4. Insurgent by Veronica Roth

5. The Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson

Vin. Elend. Seriously. You fell in love with each other because of who you are. Stop freaking out about it.

6. To Darkness Fled (and the first half of From Darkness Won) by Jill Williamson.

Achen, stop complaining about being king and having to get married to someone who's not Gren or Tara. Done? Thank you. Vrell, stop being in denial. You and Achen are made for each other and you know it. Your stubbornness is not amusing.

7. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

 Everyone knows how I feel about Mockingjay by now, probably. I won't repeat it. (If you actually don't know and you want to, ask me and I'll tell you in the comments.) 

Not all these books are bad- in fact, I really like most of them. But that doesn't stop me from getting aggravated- usually because of characters and their bad decisions. Or their angst. (Maybe this post should've been about characters I'd like to talk some sense into instead.) 

What about you? What books give you an urge to introduce them to the nearest wall? Please tell me in the comments!

Tschau!

-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)

Want to join in the Random Fridays fun? Feel free to make a post of your own on the week's topic! Please just be sure to use the Random Fridays banner, link back to Awkwordly Emma, and post the link to your post on the Awkwordly Emma blog so other participants can check out your post. For a list of future Random Friday topics, click here. 

Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite Secondary Characters

Hey everyone! This is a new blog feature that I discovered through the blog of my friend Emma. It's called Top Ten Tuesdays. Each week, there's a different book-related theme, and participating bloggers make a top ten list for that theme. I think it sounds really fun, so I hope you all enjoy reading it! This week's theme is favorite secondary characters. As a note, some of these may border on main characters, but I'm defining secondary character as anyone who's not either the main protagonist (or one of the main protagonists, in the case that there's more than one) or the main antagonist. Also, if a character is a secondary character in one book but becomes a main character in a later book, he's still a main character. Thus why Bard Eanrin and Walter Foley, among others, aren't on this list.

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1. Angela from The Inheritance Cycle. She's probably my favorite character in the entire series, as well as one of the only ones I never yell at. She's mysterious, and yet she's bright, funny, and generally cheerful. Besides, I'm pretty sure it's impossible to dislike a character with lines like this: "I suppose I won't see you for a while, so farewell, best of luck, avoid roasted cabbage, don't eat earwax, and look on the bright side of life!"
2. Captain Valithor from The Door Within Trilogy. TDW is full of very memorable characters, but Captain Valithor undoubtedly tops them all. He's everything a hero and a hero's mentor should be, and the end of The Door Within (the first book in the trilogy) . . . Well, I won't give away any spoilers, but I'll just say that some of his actions make it pretty clear why he's on this list.
3. Cruedwyn Creed from the Legends of Karac Tor series. He's absolutely hilarious. His tall tales, his sword and his attachment to it, his entire personality- I can't give enough. Also, tall tales aside, he has seriously awesome skills.
4. Faramir from The Lord of the Rings. It's kind of difficult to determine who's a major character and who's a secondary character in LOTR, so in the end, I decided to call the Fellowship the main characters and go from there. The main reason I like him is how noble he is. He's willing to risk everything to defend his people and see Sauron defeated, and though he's faced with what must've been a nearly impossible choice, he makes the right decision. 
5. Puddleglum from The Silver Chair. He's a large part of why The Silver Chair is in my top three favorite Narnia books. I love how he's continually predicting that they, their mission, and pretty much everything is doomed, yet he goes on this quest willingly and puts up with Jill and Eustace even after they get more or less insufferable. He sticks by them through the good and bad of their mission, and I don't think it's much of a stretch to say that he's truly a hero by the end of the book.
6. Wizard Fenworth from The DragonKeeper Chronicles and The Chiril Chronicles. He says the oddest things, and hilarity is sure to ensue whenever he's around, but he's still wise and isn't afraid to stand for what's right, even against incredible odds.
7. Daryl from Echoes from the Edge. While I'm a bookworm, not a movie geek, Daryl is a girl after my own heart. And a movie geek who also happens to be something of a genius? Even better. 
8. Mr. Charlie from The Berinfell Prophecies. If you've read the series, I don't think I have to explain. If you haven't read the series, just know that he's awesome and epic and you really should read the series so you can find out why.
9. Peet the Sock Man from The Wingfeather Saga. He's funny, but at the same time, he's a bit sad. And I never saw the twists coming later in his story.
10. King Ealden from The Dark Sea Annals. I wasn't crazy about him in the first book, but I liked how his character developed in the second. Also, he was willing to admit that he was wrong. That takes a lot.

I hope you enjoyed this! Thanks for stopping by!

-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)

Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)

Inheritance Review

Author: Christopher Paolini

Characters: Very good! I don’t have any real complaints character-wise; all were interesting and colorful. I especially liked seeing more of Angela the herbalist, who will never cease to intrigue me.

5/5

Location: Very good, though not perfect. I will comment that there’s a lot of description, sometimes too much description. Other than that, I once more have no real complaints.

4/5

Plot: Very good! Paolini did an excellent job of tying up all the loose ends from the first three books in this book. The book had plenty of plot twists, far more than I ever expected. I will comment that it moves a bit slowly once or twice, but other than that, it was quite good.

4/5

Other: This book, which has been long-awaited by fans of The Inheritance Cycle all over the world, is a fitting end to the series, but is very, very, very long. It’s so long that it makes one of the Lord of the Rings books look short. Once you start it, you’ll be hard-put to put it down, so I’d advise reading it over a weekend.

Overall Rating: 4/5