Book update - VALPOT!!!!

And now for Valpot's reviews of books 21 - 25:

Book 21: Killers of the Dawn
Why? What can I say? I persevered with the attempt to discover why D. Shan is so popular in Japan - and the answer is... it's incomprehensible. I also thought that this was the last in the series but it's not - for other people. Definitely my final attempt to understand why these atrociously badly written books are published. The "hero" is as painful as ever, and there are also even more unpleasant elements - eg the use of torture by the "good" guys (vampires) which is justified by necessity, plus the police portrayed nastily (I didn't think this sent good vibes to young kids - the Japanese women probably are used to reading about it!) and killed by our heroes. I did laugh at "vampet" - evil humans who work for the vampaneze!
Rating: Darren Shan-tastic!

Book 22: Hollow people - Brian Keaney
For children/teens. An attempt to depict a controlled society as experienced by two teenagers, and their rescue by smart people who will lead our hero to the realisation of his destiny, saving all from the world where dreaming is forbidden... I have a fondness for stories about state control but Brian Keaney's does not live up to its potential, the writing/characters not sufficiently interesting to read either of the sequels. His depiction of the controlled society is unsubtle, and his heroes reaction too pat - hasn't the mastery that Garth Nix and William Nicholson have!
Rating: Half-way decent

Book 23: Those Terrible Middle Ages
I enjoyed this book by Regine Pernoud very much. However, it is quite conversational in tone (not the systematic analysis I had expected) and my own ignorance of the middle ages meant the conversation was one-sided!
Rating: I like it

Book 24: The Wind Singer by William Nicholson
This is an enjoyable read, in the main. The society - although strongly reminiscent of Garth Nix - is well depicted (BK should study how!); the evil legions are sinister and relentless. Some elements bored me (the desert fights) or confused me (the old people), so a bit of a mixed bag!
Rating: Curate's egg - good in spots

Book 25: Coraline by Neil Gaimen
Children's horror - very imaginative & well written, as you'd expect from this writer. Aimed at a slightly younger children's age group than I am used, so the plot was quite simple but excellently done.
Rating: I like it