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Book Review By Debbie
Sunshine by Robin McKinley

Sunshine just needed some time alone. She knew that she should stay at her family's movie night and snuggle with her boyfriend, but she knew that she couldn't play nice for that long. So she headed out to the lake to sit and think. Sunshine hadn't gone to the lake in a long while, but she used to go out there with her grandmother when she was little. Everyone knew that the lake wasn't safe, that dark things and bad spots were out there, but there hadn't been any reports of someone getting attacked in a while so Sunshine felt safe. Until the vampires came. She never even heard them coming, but then, you never do.

Sure that she would never last the night, Sunshine was stunned to discover that the vampires were giving her to another vampire as a kind of meal. This vampire was imprisoned and so he couldn't hunt for himself. But what was it about the imprisoned vampire that made the other pack fear him so? After Sunshine got over her fear of being chained in a room with a vampire, she discovered that his name was Constantine and there was something different about him. When Sunshine realizes that Constantine cannot go another night without feeding off of her, she determines to rescue both Con and herself from the vampire pack. Surprisingly enough, Sunshine succeeds, and ends up in ever more trouble than she was in when she was chained to the wall...

This was a difficult book for me to get into. I didn't really identify with the heroine and found that I didn't really like her very much or understand her choices. It is also written in a kind of stream of consciousness style that can be disorienting. I did enjoy Sunshine's descriptions of her life and her job as the best cinnamon roll baker in the area, but the world that she lived in is still kind of hazy to me. I don't really understand it and cannot really describe how the rules have changed in their world versus our world. This sense of mystery isn't all bad, after all, Patricia McKillip does it beautifully, but it made the story difficult to understand. There really isn't an end, either and I hope for a sequel, but am pretty sure that we won't get one as McKinley rarely revisits the same world, The Hero & the Crown & The Blue Sword notwithstanding. Sunshine reminded me a lot of Spindle's End, but in a different setting, actually. There is a lot of normal life that goes on in between the big events and you never really get the chance to warm up to the characters. Is it worth reading? I would say yes. But I am not saying that it is worth buying, per se. I think anything that Robin McKinley writes is worth reading, but this is not one of my treasures.


Plot & Themes
Tone of book - suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION? - fantasy story on current Earth
Magical Beings/Mental/Magical/Powers Yes
magical powers:
Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
Descript. of chases or violence - 10 %
planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 30 %
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 40 %
Descript. of society, phenomena (tech), places - 20 %

Main Character
Identity: - Female
Profession/status:
If magical mental powers: - can cast many different spells

Main Adversary
Identity: - magical being
Age: - long-lived adults
Profession/status:
Has magical powers? Yes
Magical/mental powers of main antagonist: - mind reading - mind control - super strength - is very quick
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - an average amount
How sensitive is this character?
Sense of humor - Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters

Setting
Earth setting: - near future (later in 21st century)
Takes place on Earth? Yes

Writing Style
Accounts of torture and death? - moderately detailed references to deaths
scientific jargon? (SF only) - none/very little science jargon needed
Sex in book? Yes
What kind of sex: - vague references only - descript of kissing
How much dialogue? - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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