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Denise wrote: "RampantViolent unicorns.
Need I say more, really??
From Goodreads:
Astrid Llewelyn has always scoffed at her eccentric mother's stories about killer unicorns. But when on..."
It's gonna be hard to find this book in Australia, I don't buy books online and when I do the shipping time is horrible. If Kino AND Borders don't have it, I'll give up.
Fun note of interest: Felicia Day picked up a copy of Rampant at DragonCon this weekend, therefore we are reading the same book as her. ;)
Christine wrote: "Fun note of interest: Felicia Day picked up a copy of Rampant at DragonCon this weekend, therefore we are reading the same book as her. ;)"But... but in Australia... there IS NO Dragoncon! I cannot find this book in any of my local bookshops! I have TRIED! *sobs* Now I will never know the joys of violent unicorns!
Sadly, I have a feeling it hasn't been released in Australia yet. I'd be willing to pick up a copy at the bookstore here and ship it to you, if you wanted.
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Denise wrote: "Henry the Unicorn is excited about this book. I don't think he has realized that it slanders his good name.Henry the Unicorn looks like he's trying to hump the book. O:-)
I mean, what I meant to say was... He's like our little Bonegrinder, aw.
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I haven't had a chance to start the book yet (worst book club leader ever!) but since it's YA it should be an easy read and i'm hoping to get it done by this weekend.
anyone else reading this? i'd really love some discussion on this as the lovely Christine and I are plotting to have a nice chat with the author herself!
It's quite an easy and engaging read once you actually get a chance to start it - I finished it in only a couple of days.I'm afraid to start talking about it until more people are reading, because I don't want to be a spoiler!
I finished it a few days ago. Very good! It dealt with some pretty serious topics (for teens anyway) in a very unusual manner. Incidentally, it also really made me want to visit Rome! I'm gonna have to read it again sometime soon, some of the ending kind of lost me. Do we know if any sequels are planned?
Yes, there is a sequel planned.I really liked the way that the book approached some of the more serious topics - it wasn't something I would feel uncomfortable giving to my 16 year old cousin (I'm actually going to get it for her for Christmas).
The ending seemed to go by almost too quickly though, in my opinion, after all of the buildup, and I'm still left with a couple of questions.
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I was really surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. Marketing this book as YA belies the fact that this book handles some serious thematic elements that I honestly did not expect it to touch on. Burgeoning sexualities, a dense and convincing mythology, violent battles, dealing with not-so-black-and-white ethics... If it had been a longer, even more involved book, this could have easily made its ranks amongst other established adult fantasy literature. It actually reminded me of the later Harry Potter books insofar as the complexity of plot and the unflinching violence inflicted on these young warriors.
I found Astrid as a heroine convincing and well-developed. We see her grow and really live up to her destiny. She starts of as kind of a smart-ass and I was afraid I was not going to like her but by the end I was pretty attached to her. The other hunters were equally compelling and one of my few complaints is that I actually wanted to see more of them too (besides Phil and Cory, who were both really well-developed as well).
I was really drawn in by the mythology that Peterfreund weaves around unicorns. I had a hard time imagining at first how someone could possibly describe unicorns as violent man-eating beasts... and yet that's exactly what the author does. I am also a visual person and really wanted some more descriptions, and maybe even a few illustrations of the unicorns. In the end I just thought of the karaddan as a giant ox, the kirin as regular horses, and the little pet they had (I forget what its type is called... zhin?) as little goats.
I wasn't convinced at first that a story about rampant, bloodthirsty unicorns would work very well but I was happily proven wrong. I really enjoyed this book.
Any other feedback? I'd love to hear your take on this! I'm drafting up some interview questions I'd like to shoot to the author as well. Can you guys help me think up a few?
Denise wrote: "So I started the book this morning... and finished it today. Eep. I was going to get some laundry done, do a few spreadsheets for work, and maybe bake some cookies... but I guess those can wait. :)..."I visualized the types of unicorns in pretty much the same way you did, although my visualization of the kirin was more along the lines of large cow-horses. I don't really know why. (And the little one was a "zhi" - close!)
http://www.killerunicorns.org/I wanted to share this link, which houses a PSA for Gordian Pharmaceuticals and a sell for the Order of the Lioness. Nothing particularly fancy, but a nice little addition to the book universe.
I agree with Denise, I'd love to see some drawings or something. I also would like to see more of the other hunters. They were each such interesting, well-rounded characters, it almost seems a shame to give them so little time.
Kristi wrote: "I agree with Denise, I'd love to see some drawings or something. I also would like to see more of the other hunters. They were each such interesting, well-rounded characters, it almost seems a sham..."I felt like some of the characters got lost in the mix, and would have loved to get to see more of them.
Now, did I miss something, or did we ever find out what happened with the boyfriend back in the states who survived the unicorn attack? I kind of thought that maybe once Gordian heard about him, they tracked him down and that's what really happened, not that he ran away... but that's kind of a dead-end in the book isn't it? I don't know why that bothered me so much, but it did.
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http://www.prometheantheatre.org/inde...
Promethean Theater Ensemble in Chicago (whyyyy don't I live there??) is putting on a stage adaptation of Peter S. Beagle's "The Last Unicorn." The show will run from Oct 16 (next week, people!) till Nov 14. For all the Chicago FBs, please check it out, it looks pretty fantastic!
To support the show, you can even "Adopt a Unicorn!" :) http://www.prometheantheatre.org/adop...
PS: I LOVELOVELOVED this movie as a child, and the book is just as magical.
That is so cool! I wish I lived in Chicago too! Also one of my favorite books & movies.As for questions, I really want to know how she came up with all the different unicorn species. Also if she plans on developing the other characters more.
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I'm gonna have to inject a little testosterone into this thread (not like that! Get your mind out of the gutter!) by saying that I just picked up Rampant today while buying Fox In Socks for a baby shower, along with Let The Right One In...which was NOT for the baby shower. The move, and starting A Game Of Thrones, has caused me to lapse in my RRC membership, so I'll try to catch up this month and add to this thread!EDIT - And I should really check the final poll results before I go buying a book. Oh well. I'll just be ahead for next month!
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Violent unicorns.
Need I say more, really??
From Goodreads:
Astrid Llewelyn has always scoffed at her eccentric mother's stories about killer unicorns. But when one of the monsters attacks her boyfriend in the woods — thereby ruining any chance of him taking her to prom — Astrid learns that unicorns are real and dangerous, and she has a family legacy to uphold. Her mother packs her off to Rome to train as a unicorn hunter at the ancient cloisters the hunters have used for centuries.