You'd all be forgiven for thinking I'd already left for Australia. But that's not till Wednesday! I was actually doing a tour of Southern Ontario. Getting a visit in with friends and family before heading off to the other side of the planet seemed like a good idea. But it meant spotty internet access, so I've got a whole lot of posting to be doing today.

First book I read was The Floating Island by Elizabeth Haydon. When I picked it up, I read the author bio. Which is hilarious and wonderful. She's a graduate of the University of Rigamarole. I have to say though, that I don't think the rest of the book lived up to it.

The story revolves around Ven, who's a Nain. They're a race that tends to live underground, and lives for several times longer than most humans. But one of Ven's ancestors was a bit of a rebel, and he moved above ground and started a ship building business. Ven and his family (a dozen brothers and one sister) run that business now, under the instruction of their father. Although he looks about 12, Ven is actually 50 and he's finally allowed to go out on his first ship inspection. Except it all goes terribly wrong. Attacked by fire pirates, Ven and the brand new ship are sunk and burned, leaving Ven floating on a piece of boat. This situation leads to some pretty incredible adventures for Ven, too many, in fact, to describe here.

Any kids into the fantasy adventure genre will enjoy this book, though I found there were some pretty serious flaws. Haydon does a fair amount of telling, as opposed to showing, which is irritating. I also found that I had figured out a lot of the mysteries long before Ven and his friends did.

That being said, I know I'll be picking up The Thief Queen's Daughter when it comes out.

The Floating Island by Elizabeth Haydon
ISBN 0765308673
368 pages