Genres
Collection
Publication
Berkley (2003), Edition: 1, 389 pages
Description
Fantasy. Fiction. Horror. Literature. There are places in the world where darkness rules, where it's unwise to walk. Sunshine knew that. But there hadn't been any trouble out at the lake for years, and she needed a place to be alone for a while. Unfortunately, she wasn't alone. She never heard them coming. Of course you don't, when they're vampires. They took her clothes and sneakers. They dressed her in a long red gown. And they shackled her to the wall of an abandoned mansion-within easy reach of a figure stirring in the moonlight. She knows that he is a vampire. She knows that she's to be his dinner and that when he is finished with her, she will be dead. Yet, as dawn breaks, she finds that he has not attempted to harm her. And now it is he who needs her to help him survive the day.… (more)
Media reviews
1.5 out of 5 stars. Okay ... I LOVED the plot, the main characters, and the world that the author created!! All very good and just for that I would recommend it for all to read too! However, the reason I have given this book such a low score was because the narrator (Sunshine) rambled like there
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was no tomorrow! I could have screamed sometimes with how it went from the present situation she would be in, then the next minute she would be talking about things that really had nothing to do with what was going on at the time, and some didn't even make since with the plot. In truth I'm surprised I even finished the book, especially since I liked the book (for the most part) when I was reading it, but as soon as I put it down I had to convince myself to pick it back up again .... since I did want to find out how the book would turn out and end. Also, even though I liked the ending, there was too many loose strings so it felt a little incomplete. *shrug* But that may be just me.
Review By: From Me to You ... Video, Photography, & Book Reviews
Read more of this review and a TEASER here: https://frommetoyouvideophoto.blogspot.com/2010/07/what-was-i-thinking-sunshine-by-robin.html Show Less
The best vampire story ever. Hands down. The best.
User reviews
LibraryThing member seongeona
I was not at all interested in vampire novels, or urban fantasy novels, or paranormal-romantic novels, etc. I was taking a class on the topic of classic monsters (vampires, werewolves, etc) and had to read one of these types of novels. I checked out a bunch of them from the library and one by one
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was either bored or disgusted by page 3. I checked out more. Same thing. Repeat. And repeat again. I was so frustrated, and then I got this book in my hands. I was captivated immediately, from page 1. I liked the way the main female human character talked, I liked how she thought, I liked the way she spoke about her job and the customers and her co-workers. When things begin to happen with the vampires, there's such suspense! It was so easy to feel her fear and her shock. It was so easy to visualize everything. It was delightful to learn that some of the things she spoke of as matter-of-fact in the beginning weren't actually true. The main vampire himself was so compelling. I liked him so much! I can't put my finger on it, on why I was so attracted to him, but he is written beautifully and subtly. There is so much emotion there but he's always described as monotone and stony-faced. It's magical to realize that there is so much under the surface. He is afraid, worried, surprised, nervous, and unsettled just as the main female human character. While she expresses it in action and words, he expresses it ... in some sort of feeling that comes across not in action or words. I have never run into any character like him. I fell in love with this book. It nearly broke my heart several times. It was beautiful, utterly beautiful, and I never wanted it to end. When it did end, it was painful. There's so much more there to be written, but perhaps the ending is perfect - it wasn't a cop out, no unrealistic dramatic shift in storyline, no sap, no surprise ... it was just like the rest of the novel, subtle and beautiful with so much emotion packed into one tiny sentence, one tiny gesture. This is an extremely romantic book in all meanings of the word "romantic." It's written with class, yet it's not ponderous or bogged down with extraneous details. It's not cheapened with gratuitous sex or endless dwelling on lust. I can't praise this book enough. I can't recommend it enough. I shudder to think that it took me this long to discover such a jewel. What if I had never found it? I can't imagine, in hindsight, now living without it in my life. Yes, it was that good. Show Less
LibraryThing member susanbevans
If you hunt and peck around the Internet, you'll see Robin McKinley's Sunshine described as Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Anita Blake. This description irks me because I couldn't disagree more. It irritates me when someone says, "Oh, hey - you like books about vampires right? Well, you'll like
Rae (nickname Sunshine) Seddon is as outwardly normal as can be - she bakes cinnamon rolls for a living at her step-father's cafe, and doesn't have much of a life outside of her work. While out for some alone time by the lake one night, she is taken by a gang of vampires and chained to a wall in an abandoned house. Sunshine soon learns that she is to be a meal for a vampire who is also being held captive at the house. When she discovers that the vampire in question does not want to kill her, she decides to help him escape.
Constantine (Con or Connie for short) is being held against his will by a rival master vampire. He is surprised when the gang brings him Sunshine, oblivious to the fact that she is a powerful magic-holder, capable of great things. Sunshine comes into her power and is able to save them both, but in doing so, puts them both in even more danger. The rival vampire will not suffer their escape without consequences, and they must work together to defeat him.
The concept of Sunshine was great. McKinley created a world where vampires, demons, and part-bloods live alongside humans, and magic-handlers and wardskeepers help to create a safe society. The problem lies with our heroine - blah! I really didn't like her. First of all she is incredibly whiny. All of you people who didn't enjoy Twilight because you thought Bella was too whiny - DON'T READ SUNSHINE! "Oh, I'm not strong enough," "I don't think I can do this," "Poor me, I wish I didn't have this power." Give me a break.
The most interesting character in Sunshine is Constantine. Unfortunately, there's just not enough of him. Instead, we get to spend several boring pages inside Sunshine's head, getting to know how she came to invent different baked goods, and watching her get up a 4:30 a.m. to make her cinnamon rolls. Her never ending monologuing had me wishing that I could skip entire pages of the book. There was just too much superfluous detail that did absolutely nothing for the story.
McKinley also used ridiculous abbreviations that I could not understand for several pages. An example of this is "'fo" - what the hell is 'fo?! I feel that I am a reasonably intelligent adult, and it still took me several pages to realize that 'fo is short for information. Is is really that difficult to use the word information? I'd even settle for info, but 'fo? Has it really come to this? Are we really that lazy? And McKinley uses 'fo throughout the book, many times. How 'ting - oh sorry, I mean aggravating! Ugh.
The first hundred or so pages were really good, and the last hundred or so pages were really good, too - it's just the middle 200 that I could have done without. I can't really say that I recommend Sunshine to anyone. I'll probably give McKinley another shot, but next time you can be sure that I'll check her out at the library, rather than spend money on her and risk being disappointed.
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this too." Not necessarily so - I didn't really care for this one.Rae (nickname Sunshine) Seddon is as outwardly normal as can be - she bakes cinnamon rolls for a living at her step-father's cafe, and doesn't have much of a life outside of her work. While out for some alone time by the lake one night, she is taken by a gang of vampires and chained to a wall in an abandoned house. Sunshine soon learns that she is to be a meal for a vampire who is also being held captive at the house. When she discovers that the vampire in question does not want to kill her, she decides to help him escape.
Constantine (Con or Connie for short) is being held against his will by a rival master vampire. He is surprised when the gang brings him Sunshine, oblivious to the fact that she is a powerful magic-holder, capable of great things. Sunshine comes into her power and is able to save them both, but in doing so, puts them both in even more danger. The rival vampire will not suffer their escape without consequences, and they must work together to defeat him.
The concept of Sunshine was great. McKinley created a world where vampires, demons, and part-bloods live alongside humans, and magic-handlers and wardskeepers help to create a safe society. The problem lies with our heroine - blah! I really didn't like her. First of all she is incredibly whiny. All of you people who didn't enjoy Twilight because you thought Bella was too whiny - DON'T READ SUNSHINE! "Oh, I'm not strong enough," "I don't think I can do this," "Poor me, I wish I didn't have this power." Give me a break.
The most interesting character in Sunshine is Constantine. Unfortunately, there's just not enough of him. Instead, we get to spend several boring pages inside Sunshine's head, getting to know how she came to invent different baked goods, and watching her get up a 4:30 a.m. to make her cinnamon rolls. Her never ending monologuing had me wishing that I could skip entire pages of the book. There was just too much superfluous detail that did absolutely nothing for the story.
McKinley also used ridiculous abbreviations that I could not understand for several pages. An example of this is "'fo" - what the hell is 'fo?! I feel that I am a reasonably intelligent adult, and it still took me several pages to realize that 'fo is short for information. Is is really that difficult to use the word information? I'd even settle for info, but 'fo? Has it really come to this? Are we really that lazy? And McKinley uses 'fo throughout the book, many times. How 'ting - oh sorry, I mean aggravating! Ugh.
The first hundred or so pages were really good, and the last hundred or so pages were really good, too - it's just the middle 200 that I could have done without. I can't really say that I recommend Sunshine to anyone. I'll probably give McKinley another shot, but next time you can be sure that I'll check her out at the library, rather than spend money on her and risk being disappointed.
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LibraryThing member justchris
I stumbled over this last year while traveling. I have greatly enjoyed everything else by this author that I have read, though I have not made the effort to collect and read them all. This book is vastly different from her previous works, which are mostly light fantasy including reworking various
It was hard for me to believe that Sunshine was written by the same author. It's another gritty, urban, modern fantasy that is the mode these days. It's still essentially another young adult book, since the heroine is a high school graduate who works in the family restaurant/coffee shop as the head baker. I think she's still a teenager, or perhaps very early twenties. This one is told in the first person, unlike her earlier books that I recall. The heroine has an engaging narrative voice. And since I am something of a baker myself, I certainly can relate to our heroine and find her discourses on culinary creations and such things as leavening agents interesting.
The story has a very interesting premise in the Voodoo Wars--apparently an attempt by vampires to take over the world. As a result, a great many people and even cities died or disappeared or turned into something bad. A special branch of law enforcement was created, along with legislation making it illegal to be a vampire and requiring everyone with any nonhuman (therefore, by definition demon) characteristics or magic abilities to register in a national database. That's all background material, and many details and implications remain unexplained.
The heroine gets kidnapped by a band of vampires and lives to tell the tale, and moreover goes on to defeat the evil vampires with the help of a not quite so evil vampire who goes on the be her pointy-toothed friend by the end of the book. I understand the necessity of "he's not like other vampires" device--if he were like other vampires, the narrator would already be dead and there'd be no story--but it's still annoying. The closing scene is the two of them skipping off into the night to play before she has to start her 4 a.m. cinnamon roll shift. How very saccharine.
I was also annoyed by the pages and pages of internal exposition as the narrator agonizes over "I can't believe I'm not trying to kill this vampire, since he's a vampire," and "I can't believe I am still stuck in this nightmare involving vampires, and I'm sure to die," and "OMG I might be a ticking time bomb," and "I can't believe I did that, no one's ever done that." A certain amount of it is necessary and believable, but not going on for paragraphs and paragraphs on this page and that page, repeat.
But those are my only gripes. It's an interesting story, and interesting backstory, interesting characters, interesting magical system, generally good dialogue. I look forward to the sequel, clearly there's a lot more story to tell. Certainly this is a vibrant new direction for Robin McKinley.
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folktales, including Robin Hood (Outlaws of Sherwood), Beauty and the Beast (Beauty and Rose Daughter), Sleeping Beauty (Spindle's End), and the more obscure Deerskin that tackles incest. She also has young adult books with female protagonists set in her imaginary land of Daria: The Blue Sword and The Hero and the Crown, both favorites of mine. All of these have charm and some lyrical style, though not of the caliber of Patricia McKillip.It was hard for me to believe that Sunshine was written by the same author. It's another gritty, urban, modern fantasy that is the mode these days. It's still essentially another young adult book, since the heroine is a high school graduate who works in the family restaurant/coffee shop as the head baker. I think she's still a teenager, or perhaps very early twenties. This one is told in the first person, unlike her earlier books that I recall. The heroine has an engaging narrative voice. And since I am something of a baker myself, I certainly can relate to our heroine and find her discourses on culinary creations and such things as leavening agents interesting.
The story has a very interesting premise in the Voodoo Wars--apparently an attempt by vampires to take over the world. As a result, a great many people and even cities died or disappeared or turned into something bad. A special branch of law enforcement was created, along with legislation making it illegal to be a vampire and requiring everyone with any nonhuman (therefore, by definition demon) characteristics or magic abilities to register in a national database. That's all background material, and many details and implications remain unexplained.
The heroine gets kidnapped by a band of vampires and lives to tell the tale, and moreover goes on to defeat the evil vampires with the help of a not quite so evil vampire who goes on the be her pointy-toothed friend by the end of the book. I understand the necessity of "he's not like other vampires" device--if he were like other vampires, the narrator would already be dead and there'd be no story--but it's still annoying. The closing scene is the two of them skipping off into the night to play before she has to start her 4 a.m. cinnamon roll shift. How very saccharine.
I was also annoyed by the pages and pages of internal exposition as the narrator agonizes over "I can't believe I'm not trying to kill this vampire, since he's a vampire," and "I can't believe I am still stuck in this nightmare involving vampires, and I'm sure to die," and "OMG I might be a ticking time bomb," and "I can't believe I did that, no one's ever done that." A certain amount of it is necessary and believable, but not going on for paragraphs and paragraphs on this page and that page, repeat.
But those are my only gripes. It's an interesting story, and interesting backstory, interesting characters, interesting magical system, generally good dialogue. I look forward to the sequel, clearly there's a lot more story to tell. Certainly this is a vibrant new direction for Robin McKinley.
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LibraryThing member AdonisGuilfoyle
Blood and sand, this book took a long time to finish! I borrowed two vampire novels from the library, both recommended by the members of an online reading community, and raced through the first in two days, whereas Robin McKinley's supposedly innovative story took the best part of a week. I shall
The premise of Sunshine, as outlined in the blurb, is a lot like the cover art: simple but effective. Rae Seddon, AKA Sunshine, AKA Raven Blaize - the more names we find she has, the worse they get - works in a coffeehouse baking cinnamon rolls. That fact must be important, because the words 'cinnamon rolls' are repeated ad nauseum throughout the book: Rae bakes cinnamon rolls, and when she's not baking them, she's thinking about baking them, and how wonderful she is at baking them. Anyway, one day, trying to escape her extended coffeehouse family, Rae drives out to her grandmother's cabin by the lake. She hasn't seen her father's mother, or indeed her father, since the 'Voodoo Wars' ten years ago, which was some sort of epic battle between humans and the 'Others'. Any fantastical device, from sorcerers to demons to vampires, are classed as 'Other', and are discriminated against by humans on a scale not imagined since Hitler. There is even a special police force, the SOF, who hunt down 'Others', and if they are vampire others, kill them with full Stoker-esque lethal force. The extreme prejudice of Rae's 'alternate universe' is actually rather disturbing, and only serves to make Constantine the vampire into even more of a cipher. In Rae's words: 'If it wasn't for vampires the humans would probably repeal the laws that automatically prevented anyone with Other blood from enjoying full human rights'. So ironically, when Rae gets to her grandmother's cabin, she is immediately kidnapped and held hostage by an ancient, evil 'sucker' - is there any other kind? - called 'Bo' (Beauregard), who chains her up in an old house with another vampire called Constantine. Bo is teaching Constantine a lesson, because their masters hated each other, or some equally vague reason, and thinks that chaining him to a wall for days on end, in a room unprotected from daylight, with a human 'blood donor' to tempt him, is a particularly cruel and unusual punishment. But Bo didn't count on Rae, who is actually the daughter of a famous sorcerer, Onyx Blaize, and can transmute her penknife into a skeleton key to unlock her shackles, free the vampire, and use her power of sunlight to protect him from the daylight while they make their escape. That part of the story was clever and exciting, even though I wasn't expecting a fantasy novel, but the trouble is that when the action is over, the book is not - Rae and Con are free from Bo's prison, but there are still another 400 pages to go.
What fills the gap? Sunshine's incessant moping and mithering, punctuated with infantile dialogue - Rae is in her mid-twenties, but sounds like a sixteen year old, and her step-father Charlie and SOF chum Pat are no better for delivering full sentences in recognisable English - and clumsy alternate universe inserts from the author. Robin McKinley obviously wanted to combine all the legends of dark and urban fantasy in one novel, but couldn't think how to introduce her cast of wacky creatures into the actual plot. Instead, Sunshine will suddenly start talking about demons that turn blue or walk up walls, or 'ubis' (succubus and incubus), or wardskeepers, and the whole of her narrative is peppered with mystical slang words like 'carthaginian', and 'sheer' and 'skegging'. The whole world-building process, like the pacing of the story, is very disjointed and unconvincing. I couldn't even stretch to believing that Sunshine is this incredible baker of cinnamon rolls, because I was so tired of her continual rambling about herself. She's so tired, she can be a bitch, this isn't happening to her, she won't think about what happened, she can't be friends with a vampire!
I did like Constantine the friendly vampire, which was the whole point of the exercise for me. He is a very sympathetic yet still mysterious creature of the night, for all that McKinley reduces the character to a line drawing. In fact, I pitied him, trying to protect and befriend a very ungrateful and begrudging Sunshine, who still won't let go of her vampire phobia, even after saving Constantine's life and letting him return the favour! And he has such a formal way of speaking, compared to Sunshine's stunted Valley Girl vocabulary, like, um, whatever. Poor sucker.
Apart from the narrator, who unfortunately plagues the whole story with her half-baked theories and cinnamon rolls, Sunshine is an interesting twist on the vampire myth, mixing in witchcraft and sorcery for good measure. The theme of light versus darkness, or good versus evil, is a little obvious, but the balance of Sunshine's positive sorcery and Constantine's negative influence works well as a reimagining of the traditional vampire legend. Only recommended for those who are good at reading the wheat from the chaff, or who can endure nearly 500 pages of drivel to finish a decent story at half the length.
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tell you why. The premise of Sunshine, as outlined in the blurb, is a lot like the cover art: simple but effective. Rae Seddon, AKA Sunshine, AKA Raven Blaize - the more names we find she has, the worse they get - works in a coffeehouse baking cinnamon rolls. That fact must be important, because the words 'cinnamon rolls' are repeated ad nauseum throughout the book: Rae bakes cinnamon rolls, and when she's not baking them, she's thinking about baking them, and how wonderful she is at baking them. Anyway, one day, trying to escape her extended coffeehouse family, Rae drives out to her grandmother's cabin by the lake. She hasn't seen her father's mother, or indeed her father, since the 'Voodoo Wars' ten years ago, which was some sort of epic battle between humans and the 'Others'. Any fantastical device, from sorcerers to demons to vampires, are classed as 'Other', and are discriminated against by humans on a scale not imagined since Hitler. There is even a special police force, the SOF, who hunt down 'Others', and if they are vampire others, kill them with full Stoker-esque lethal force. The extreme prejudice of Rae's 'alternate universe' is actually rather disturbing, and only serves to make Constantine the vampire into even more of a cipher. In Rae's words: 'If it wasn't for vampires the humans would probably repeal the laws that automatically prevented anyone with Other blood from enjoying full human rights'. So ironically, when Rae gets to her grandmother's cabin, she is immediately kidnapped and held hostage by an ancient, evil 'sucker' - is there any other kind? - called 'Bo' (Beauregard), who chains her up in an old house with another vampire called Constantine. Bo is teaching Constantine a lesson, because their masters hated each other, or some equally vague reason, and thinks that chaining him to a wall for days on end, in a room unprotected from daylight, with a human 'blood donor' to tempt him, is a particularly cruel and unusual punishment. But Bo didn't count on Rae, who is actually the daughter of a famous sorcerer, Onyx Blaize, and can transmute her penknife into a skeleton key to unlock her shackles, free the vampire, and use her power of sunlight to protect him from the daylight while they make their escape. That part of the story was clever and exciting, even though I wasn't expecting a fantasy novel, but the trouble is that when the action is over, the book is not - Rae and Con are free from Bo's prison, but there are still another 400 pages to go.
What fills the gap? Sunshine's incessant moping and mithering, punctuated with infantile dialogue - Rae is in her mid-twenties, but sounds like a sixteen year old, and her step-father Charlie and SOF chum Pat are no better for delivering full sentences in recognisable English - and clumsy alternate universe inserts from the author. Robin McKinley obviously wanted to combine all the legends of dark and urban fantasy in one novel, but couldn't think how to introduce her cast of wacky creatures into the actual plot. Instead, Sunshine will suddenly start talking about demons that turn blue or walk up walls, or 'ubis' (succubus and incubus), or wardskeepers, and the whole of her narrative is peppered with mystical slang words like 'carthaginian', and 'sheer' and 'skegging'. The whole world-building process, like the pacing of the story, is very disjointed and unconvincing. I couldn't even stretch to believing that Sunshine is this incredible baker of cinnamon rolls, because I was so tired of her continual rambling about herself. She's so tired, she can be a bitch, this isn't happening to her, she won't think about what happened, she can't be friends with a vampire!
I did like Constantine the friendly vampire, which was the whole point of the exercise for me. He is a very sympathetic yet still mysterious creature of the night, for all that McKinley reduces the character to a line drawing. In fact, I pitied him, trying to protect and befriend a very ungrateful and begrudging Sunshine, who still won't let go of her vampire phobia, even after saving Constantine's life and letting him return the favour! And he has such a formal way of speaking, compared to Sunshine's stunted Valley Girl vocabulary, like, um, whatever. Poor sucker.
Apart from the narrator, who unfortunately plagues the whole story with her half-baked theories and cinnamon rolls, Sunshine is an interesting twist on the vampire myth, mixing in witchcraft and sorcery for good measure. The theme of light versus darkness, or good versus evil, is a little obvious, but the balance of Sunshine's positive sorcery and Constantine's negative influence works well as a reimagining of the traditional vampire legend. Only recommended for those who are good at reading the wheat from the chaff, or who can endure nearly 500 pages of drivel to finish a decent story at half the length.
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LibraryThing member shelleyraec
I think what struck me most is how skilfully Robin revealed Sunshines world. Initially things seem quite normal, then she is taken by vampires, then we learn of the magic, the Voodoo Wars, the other races - the world unfolds organically and draws you in. It has some original and unique ideas and
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combines more standard ideas in a new way.Sunshine is an unusual protaganist - not exactly a classic kick a** heroine but not too stupid to live either. I found her refreshingly normal even as she became increasingly less so. I did find there was a little too much repetetive thought from her - but she is complicated so we see that - its just has the side affect of making the novel complicated so that it doesn't flow as smoothly as it could.I don't usually like first person much because to get details that happen outside the protagonists view is often clumsily handled however as a novel "Sunshine" is as much about what is unknown as what is known. Too, Sunshine her self is drawn as largely holding herself seperate - her family, friends and even boyfriend are on the periphery of her life and so we need only the barest of details on how it affects her - rather than how they feel or what they know.Constantine was equally interesting because so much was unknown about him. I would have liked to have ultimately known what his "chosen way" was though I can hazard a guess or two but I am not sure I needed to. McKinley cleverly created a vampire that retains its "otherness" while being sympathetic. He is not beautiful, he is lethal, as proved in the battle, and he is largely an emotional void. Yet somehow Sunshine, and us as readers, are able to see some humanity that redeems him.Tighter editing would have improved the middle section of the book immeasurably - a little too much trivia that didn't move the story foward but overall a clever and interetsing book I really enjoyed. Show Less
LibraryThing member stephxsu
Rae Seddon, nicknamed Sunshine for her love of daylight, is just your average young woman, with maybe a slightly greater-than-normal interest in the Others: paranormal creatures such as vampires, Weres, and demons. She's a master baker (her cinnamon rolls are to die for) at her stepdad Charlie's
Once you're in the hands of vampires you're pretty much dead, which is why Sunshine is absolutely terrified of herself when she not only escapes, but manages to save Con from Bo's gang as well. Now she and Con are inexplicably and dangerously linked, and Sunshine is only beginning to realize her magic heritage and the extent of her powers--powers that are wanted by SOF, the "police force" that deals with the Others. Sunshine and Con must form the strangest alliance ever--between humans and vampires--in order to defeat Bo and save each other from sure destruction.
SUNSHINE is quite different from previous Robin McKinley's books I've read and loved. First of all, this IS an adult book, and so some of the themes and content may be uncomfortable for younger readers (although, knowing McKinley readers, most are pretty mature already). Sunshine is also an unusual narrator; I think of her as almost the Jessica Darling of the vampire genre, with her snarky, diary-like commentary, which I enjoyed most of the time except when it got dragged out a bit in the middle and you just wanted to get to what happens next, to the action!
I'm not sure how Twilight fans will respond to this one because vampires are not glorified in SUNSHINE, although Con is attractive in his looming, expressionless way. However, if you are looking for a paranormal book with an extremely strong female protagonist's voice, be sure to check this one out.
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coffeehouse, and has a good relationship with her boyfriend Mel. Sunshine's life was going on fine, until the night she decides to drive out to the lake to be alone with her thoughts for a bit, and finds herself smack dab in the middle of an epic ongoing fight between two vampires, Con and Bo.Once you're in the hands of vampires you're pretty much dead, which is why Sunshine is absolutely terrified of herself when she not only escapes, but manages to save Con from Bo's gang as well. Now she and Con are inexplicably and dangerously linked, and Sunshine is only beginning to realize her magic heritage and the extent of her powers--powers that are wanted by SOF, the "police force" that deals with the Others. Sunshine and Con must form the strangest alliance ever--between humans and vampires--in order to defeat Bo and save each other from sure destruction.
SUNSHINE is quite different from previous Robin McKinley's books I've read and loved. First of all, this IS an adult book, and so some of the themes and content may be uncomfortable for younger readers (although, knowing McKinley readers, most are pretty mature already). Sunshine is also an unusual narrator; I think of her as almost the Jessica Darling of the vampire genre, with her snarky, diary-like commentary, which I enjoyed most of the time except when it got dragged out a bit in the middle and you just wanted to get to what happens next, to the action!
I'm not sure how Twilight fans will respond to this one because vampires are not glorified in SUNSHINE, although Con is attractive in his looming, expressionless way. However, if you are looking for a paranormal book with an extremely strong female protagonist's voice, be sure to check this one out.
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LibraryThing member volupia
Very disjointed. Predictable ending.
LibraryThing member hagelrat
It's not a typical vampire novel, it's not a typical anything novel really, but it's well written, well thought out and enticing. Sunshine is cheif baker at a coffee house and the first chapter essentially gives us a feel for how her life normally is, as well as explaining how she came to be out on
A quick glance at the authors website suggests she usually leans to Dragons and fantasy, but I shall be having a good long look to see if there is anything more along this vein from McKinley.
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her own to get grabbed in the first place. Our heroine is not brave or brilliant or sassy, she's just a baker, who's genes are about to come to the fore under extreme circumstances. This is definately not paranormal romance, it's a horror, maybe with a foot in urban fantasy. It's not especially scary but it is dark and tense at times and I found myself wondering if anyone might make it out alive (not telling).A quick glance at the authors website suggests she usually leans to Dragons and fantasy, but I shall be having a good long look to see if there is anything more along this vein from McKinley.
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LibraryThing member elliepotten
I'd heard good things about this one - that it was dark and exciting and just a little bit spicy to boot. I've never read an out-in-the-open vampire fantasy novel before (as opposed to one where no one even knows they exist, like 'Twilight') so that was quite novel for me. And I liked it!
It took a
The basic plotline is that Sunshine, a bakery girl at her family's coffeehouse, drives out to her family's old lake house one night and is captured by a band of vampires. They dress her in a long red dress, drag her to one of the deserted lakeside mansions, and shackle her to the wall in the old ballroom as a tasty temptation for their other prisoner: a vampire enemy of their master. It will take an unlikely alliance and a whole lot of courage and unexpected strength to get themselves out alive and survive the vampires' wrath at their miraculous escape.
I did think maybe the chemistry between Sunshine and Con could have been a little, well, hotter; every time she starts to look sideways at him she seems to hastily remind herself - and therefore the reader - how repulsive vampires are, and it kills it stone dead! But other than that, I was completely absorbed and enjoyed it thoroughly. I'll be looking for more of McKinley's books in the future.
It took a
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chapter or two for me to start to settle into the world McKinley has created, a world riddled with vampires and demons and Weres, in the aftermath of a nasty war between humans and Others. But it was 'normal' enough not to push the fantasy too far, and McKinley's narrator, the Sunshine of the title, explains many of the little facets of magical life that the reader isn't familiar with. Soon enough I'd sunk right into the story and then I was away!The basic plotline is that Sunshine, a bakery girl at her family's coffeehouse, drives out to her family's old lake house one night and is captured by a band of vampires. They dress her in a long red dress, drag her to one of the deserted lakeside mansions, and shackle her to the wall in the old ballroom as a tasty temptation for their other prisoner: a vampire enemy of their master. It will take an unlikely alliance and a whole lot of courage and unexpected strength to get themselves out alive and survive the vampires' wrath at their miraculous escape.
I did think maybe the chemistry between Sunshine and Con could have been a little, well, hotter; every time she starts to look sideways at him she seems to hastily remind herself - and therefore the reader - how repulsive vampires are, and it kills it stone dead! But other than that, I was completely absorbed and enjoyed it thoroughly. I'll be looking for more of McKinley's books in the future.
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LibraryThing member jlparent
Picked this young adult urban fantasy up due to Neil Gaiman's blurb that it was "pretty much perfect". I have to disagree - strongly. This is an alternate world where Others( supernatural beings) exist and Sunshine meets them in a predictable manner (being kidnapped) and of course, finds out she
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herself is rather special. I disliked the stream-of-consciousness manner of narration because Sunshine leaps all over the place and the story is disrupted and disjointed. To me it seemed a cliche - maybe due to the target audience's age, I don't know. Show Less
LibraryThing member flemmily
Robin McKinley is a master at balancing detail with broad plot strokes, creating a world that is achingly familiar yet entirely foreign, like a marvelously complete and exciting dream. Sunshine is a character that readers will want to be; who wouldn’t want to be the creator of such marvelous
This is not to say the plot is weak. The plot is largely internal; it primarily deals with Sunshine’s struggle to define herself as her place in the world changes and the buried secrets of her heritage surface. There is a villain and there are characters who may be villains, and these details intertwine with McKinley’s unfolding description of the world. The climax, in which Sunshine and Con defeat Con’s vampire enemy, a bad vampire in a world where there is only one possibly good vampire, has more to do with Sunshine dealing with her own internal struggle than with any kung fu moves or general thrilling actions. McKinley’s strength is creating an interesting world and characters, rather than weaving a tight-knit story. The sum of Sunshine seems to leave the door open for a sequel, and readers used to paranormal series may be frustrated by the loose ends and possibilities that remain after the book is finished. However, other readers may enjoy that there is such fertile fodder for further imagining. Sunshine will occupy the mind long after it has been set down.
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things as the Caramel Cataclysm and Killer Zebras, have a kindly tattooed biker boyfriend, and draw strength from the sun? The world and the characters are the strength of this book.This is not to say the plot is weak. The plot is largely internal; it primarily deals with Sunshine’s struggle to define herself as her place in the world changes and the buried secrets of her heritage surface. There is a villain and there are characters who may be villains, and these details intertwine with McKinley’s unfolding description of the world. The climax, in which Sunshine and Con defeat Con’s vampire enemy, a bad vampire in a world where there is only one possibly good vampire, has more to do with Sunshine dealing with her own internal struggle than with any kung fu moves or general thrilling actions. McKinley’s strength is creating an interesting world and characters, rather than weaving a tight-knit story. The sum of Sunshine seems to leave the door open for a sequel, and readers used to paranormal series may be frustrated by the loose ends and possibilities that remain after the book is finished. However, other readers may enjoy that there is such fertile fodder for further imagining. Sunshine will occupy the mind long after it has been set down.
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LibraryThing member ladycato
Robin McKinley's foray into urban fantasy territory is well-written, but uneven.
I've had this book in my to-read pile for two years now, having heard good thing about it as a dark, non-sparkly vampire story. I read several of McKinley's books as a teenager and liked them well enough, but I read
I almost didn't make it past the first 20 pages.
The book starts slow. Achingly slow. There's no magic. It just feels like the ramblings of a very normal baker; mind you, baking is one of my prime hobbies, but it's not what I wanted to read about here. Then the fantasy element finally enters as the vampires nab her, and there's an Infodump from Hell. I strongly considered putting the book away, fearing the rest of the book would be that boring and uneven.
However, I decided to stick with it, and I'm glad I did. McKinley's world here is fascinating: humanity struggling to survive after Voodoo Wars killed many, leaving spots of blighted earth in the war's wake. There are no good vampires, which makes Rae's alliance with Constantine all the more dangerous. The powers she develops are particularly interesting. The cast of characters is wide and sometimes difficult to keep straight, but their personalities are a delight. I also love that it was not a vampire-human romance, as that holds no appeal for me (and that goes back way before Twilight ever existed).
I became more interested in the book after 50 pages, and absolutely hooked after the first 100. That said, it was still plagued by Rae's rambling monologues that completely kill the momentum at times. I like first person perspective and write it in quite often, but it feels overkill here; this type of first person POV is why some readers loathe it.
I can see why the book ranks highly as a modern classic in the genre, as it has many brilliant twists on old tropes of vampires and magic, but it's not one I will read again.
I've had this book in my to-read pile for two years now, having heard good thing about it as a dark, non-sparkly vampire story. I read several of McKinley's books as a teenager and liked them well enough, but I read
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Spindle's End earlier this year and was really disappointed. Therefore, I put off reading Sunshine even longer--and then I had to choose a new book the day before Halloween, and decided I couldn't get more Halloween than old-fashioned vampires.I almost didn't make it past the first 20 pages.
The book starts slow. Achingly slow. There's no magic. It just feels like the ramblings of a very normal baker; mind you, baking is one of my prime hobbies, but it's not what I wanted to read about here. Then the fantasy element finally enters as the vampires nab her, and there's an Infodump from Hell. I strongly considered putting the book away, fearing the rest of the book would be that boring and uneven.
However, I decided to stick with it, and I'm glad I did. McKinley's world here is fascinating: humanity struggling to survive after Voodoo Wars killed many, leaving spots of blighted earth in the war's wake. There are no good vampires, which makes Rae's alliance with Constantine all the more dangerous. The powers she develops are particularly interesting. The cast of characters is wide and sometimes difficult to keep straight, but their personalities are a delight. I also love that it was not a vampire-human romance, as that holds no appeal for me (and that goes back way before Twilight ever existed).
I became more interested in the book after 50 pages, and absolutely hooked after the first 100. That said, it was still plagued by Rae's rambling monologues that completely kill the momentum at times. I like first person perspective and write it in quite often, but it feels overkill here; this type of first person POV is why some readers loathe it.
I can see why the book ranks highly as a modern classic in the genre, as it has many brilliant twists on old tropes of vampires and magic, but it's not one I will read again.
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LibraryThing member quigui
Rae Seddon, commonly known as Sunshine, quite happy to make cinnamon rolls and have all her life around the bakery, decides to go to the lake which proves to be trouble. In her words, "it was a dumb thing to do, but not that dumb".
Because there are dark things about, and the darkest of the Others
Wait, don't run. I know I said vampires, and with a character named Sunshine and this description you are thinking "oh no, not another vampire urban fantasy". I also groan at the thought of yet another vampire book (even though I've read very few of those). Yep, this is urban fantasy. Yep, there are vampires. But this is what urban fantasy should be like.
Sunshine is told in a kind of different way - and it takes some getting used to. It is told in the first person by Sunshine, but more like she is thinking. Do you know when you are remembering something, and rehearsing how you are going to tell it to someone, and the thoughts seem to ramble and deviate and then get back on track? That's how this book is. And I loved it. It resonates with my thoughts and makes you actually pay attention to reading because a missed paragraph can make you stare at the page thinking "how the hell did we get here!?". This, together with the plot, means that it is a complex book, but in no way is it complicated.
As a character, Sunshine is great. She is flawed, she gets angry, she can do great things and actually be astonished that she can do them. She is human, and so believable that is like she is there. This is her story, and as such we get to see so much of her.
And then there are the vampires. I would say to forget all the romantic notions of vampires, but that wouldn't be quite right. There is a kind of gothic feel to it, and wooden stakes are still your best friend (as well as day-time and sunshine). But they are different than most vampires seen in fiction, there's an otherliness to them that suits them.
Another thing that I loved was the fact that until the very ending I was still learning about this world, which is so alike and so different from our own. The information comes in bits and pieces as Sunshine mentions them, the mental picture forms slowly and a bit haphazardly, but there is a sense that there are still parts of the town unknown to me, and that they exist with a life of their own, not just as backdrop.
Sunshine is a different book for sure, and is hard to talk about it without people jumping to clichés. This is vampire urban fantasy by the mere fact that it is set in a city and there are vampires. Everything else is new and fresh.
Also at Spoilers and Nuts
Because there are dark things about, and the darkest of the Others
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are vampires, and of course, Sunshine is kidnapped by them. And no-one escapes vampires.Wait, don't run. I know I said vampires, and with a character named Sunshine and this description you are thinking "oh no, not another vampire urban fantasy". I also groan at the thought of yet another vampire book (even though I've read very few of those). Yep, this is urban fantasy. Yep, there are vampires. But this is what urban fantasy should be like.
Sunshine is told in a kind of different way - and it takes some getting used to. It is told in the first person by Sunshine, but more like she is thinking. Do you know when you are remembering something, and rehearsing how you are going to tell it to someone, and the thoughts seem to ramble and deviate and then get back on track? That's how this book is. And I loved it. It resonates with my thoughts and makes you actually pay attention to reading because a missed paragraph can make you stare at the page thinking "how the hell did we get here!?". This, together with the plot, means that it is a complex book, but in no way is it complicated.
As a character, Sunshine is great. She is flawed, she gets angry, she can do great things and actually be astonished that she can do them. She is human, and so believable that is like she is there. This is her story, and as such we get to see so much of her.
And then there are the vampires. I would say to forget all the romantic notions of vampires, but that wouldn't be quite right. There is a kind of gothic feel to it, and wooden stakes are still your best friend (as well as day-time and sunshine). But they are different than most vampires seen in fiction, there's an otherliness to them that suits them.
Another thing that I loved was the fact that until the very ending I was still learning about this world, which is so alike and so different from our own. The information comes in bits and pieces as Sunshine mentions them, the mental picture forms slowly and a bit haphazardly, but there is a sense that there are still parts of the town unknown to me, and that they exist with a life of their own, not just as backdrop.
Sunshine is a different book for sure, and is hard to talk about it without people jumping to clichés. This is vampire urban fantasy by the mere fact that it is set in a city and there are vampires. Everything else is new and fresh.
Also at Spoilers and Nuts
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LibraryThing member malcontentdiary
One of my favorite fantasy books - beautiful combination of magic, vampires, and adventure, but somehow very human and poignant, too.
LibraryThing member silentq
Magic and vampires and demons, but with a gritty modern feel to them. The Wars twisted the worlds and left bad spots, and the vampires are stepping up their kills. Sunshine is abducted and managed to escape, the first human to do so. Sunshine is a very engaging heroine, reminiscent of Sookie
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Stackhouse in the Dead * books by Charlaine Harris but more sympathetic to me. She's a baker who's dad left her a troubling genetic legacy, not brave and heroic but trying to survive the attentions of the head vampire that she escaped from. McKinley does disturbing and scary and dark way too well, I left the last bit for the light of morning. Show Less
LibraryThing member SR510
The plot is good. The characters are wonderful. But the language is what really makes this book stand out. The characters speak a dialect that's entirely understandable and rings true, while also distinctively reflecting a postapocalyptic Earth with vampires and demons and magic and such. It's also
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a book in which it seems entirely natural for a dessert to be named "Sunshine's Eschatology." Show Less
LibraryThing member EditrixBeata
I read this book at the height of summer, when I was settling into a new apartment in a new area. I didn't have a couch at home, so I went to nearby coffee shops for "couch time" -- a highly appropriate locale for reading about a young woman who is the baker at the family coffee house.
I loved
McKinley is a writer, I think, who considers her language carefully. I didn't notice her ability until I read Rose Daughter a few months later and was struck by how different the syntax and vocabulary were. The distinction is subtle and broad at the same time.
I loved
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Sunshine (the character) as an earthy alternative to Buffy. (That's not to say I don't love Buffy, though!) McKinley is a writer, I think, who considers her language carefully. I didn't notice her ability until I read Rose Daughter a few months later and was struck by how different the syntax and vocabulary were. The distinction is subtle and broad at the same time.
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LibraryThing member Black_samvara
Not what I was expecting; McKinley making a foray into the supernatural romance genre with varied success. I'm not quite the right audience here as I find it hard to get behind a reluctant heroine who would far rather bake cinnamon rolls than battle the Forces of Evil. I wanted to like this more
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than I did but would still read more set in this world should it appear. Show Less
LibraryThing member Mumugrrl
I would have given this book 5 stars if the author had paced the book better. It was a little slow and the scenes dragged a lot when all we were getting was a list of what Sunshine was making that day in the bakery.
The author left a lot of questions hanging -What did Constantine mean when he said
The author left a lot of questions hanging -What did Constantine mean when he said
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he chose to live out his existence differently than Bo? Why did Constantine rebuff Sunshine in his lair? And are Sunshine and Constantine going to join forces to prevent the vampires from taking over? And who started the Voodoo wars and who won and who lost? If the author didn't intend to write a sequel then I am ultimately disatisfied with this book. As a part of a series, I would love it. Show Less
LibraryThing member viciousbits
Fabulously dark, intricate; not your sugary-sweet fantasy. A world not unlike our own, but with more of a dangerous edge and its own nuances that come up quite naturally throughout the narrative. Wonderful characters!
LibraryThing member PhoebeReading
This book was a mess.Granted, it was a beautiful, and often compelling mess. Robin McKinley's eponymous narrator Sunshine lives in a vividly crafted world where creatures of the night--demons, vampires, werewolves, and, apparently angels (though we don't meet any of those)--live right beside
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humans. Set not long after a war between these factions, McKinley creates a surprisingly believable universe where real magical talismans can be bought at rummage sales and where the cops that hang out at the local coffee shop can turn themselves blue.Several of the characters in Sunshine hint at the same level of care in their construction. Constantine, our heroine's vampire paramour is endearing, despite being dead ugly; he's got a wry sense of humor underscored with genuine tenderness. Sunshine's other romantic interest, biker-turned-chef Mel, is similarly sweet. And Sunshine herself is a believable, if sometimes both rambling and whiny, hero. When she finds herself chained up in a ballroom, intended as a snack for Con, we cheer for her; when her background is slowly revealed, we're given a more full and appreciative idea of her. And when her rambling stretches the barest of plots--toward the end of the novel, there's a good couple pages where she talks about being unable to sleep--we can at least say it's true to character.Unfortunately, the same can't be said for our villain, who is wholly disposable, or a sense of overall development, which is noticeably absent. McKinley builds her story in a strange way. Because we so fully inhabit Sunshine's extensive and occasionally tiresome ramblings, we're often not told information that she takes for granted. For example, I didn't realize that the entire universe was an urban fantasy setting until a good thirty pages in. That early revelation worked. Later, this style of plot development so litters the book that I repeatedly found myself leafing back twenty pages or more, sure I'd missed something.Similarly, there are many plot threads left hanging here. We don't ever even get to meet Sunshine's mother, who may or may not be part demon. We're told that her human boyfriend, Mel, might be a sorcerer, but that thread is quickly dropped. There are two explicit sex scenes toward the last third of the novel that are clearly meant to contrast Sunshine's relationship with Mel with her relationship with Constantine, but the potential conflict between the two men--and the issue of who Sunshine, ultimately, will choose--is left both largely unexplored and almost entirely unresolved. These problems with pacing, development, and resolution really mar an otherwise compelling story.But I'm hoping that what will stay with me is not these issues, but instead the novel's strengths: lovely descriptions of setting on both the micro- (the development of the seasons) and macro- (McKinley's world building) levels peppered with occasionally touching anecdotes. The story of how her power erupts as a child is particularly lovely and memorable. If only the novel had, as a whole, belied the same attention to detail. Show Less
LibraryThing member bl0ndi3
Absolutely AMAZINGLY written book, quite slow but the description makes it well worth the read. Very gripping at parts, but was very disappointed at the ending- I would have liked to know what happens next with Rae and Constantine and whether they got together... it really should have been turned
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into a series. Show Less
LibraryThing member EffingEden
Sunshine is an Urban Fantasy that focuses on Rae (AKA Sunshine), a pastry chef/baker for a family run café. Told from her point-of-view, we don’t learn her name until we’re well into the book, and only get a barest hint of her appearance much, much later on. The blurb is somewhat misleading,
Those familiar with McKinley’s work will know how to handle her style. Those who don’t – ah. It is gloriously different. Very meandering, very info-heavy, very internal. Sunshine (the character) has a brain and enjoys thinking about EVERYTHING. It was once my most favourite book.
It’s been a while since I had the will, the energy, to pick up a book and get through it. Since finishing The Magician’s Guild I have picked up quite a few different novels, but I kept getting bored and put them down, and lost the energy to read on. It might be because I have been getting more satisfaction from reading fanfic lately, or it could just be another sign of how lazy I truly am (I have been re-listening to the audio-recording of the Harry Potter series) that just moving my eyeballs became too much exercise to manage.
For whatever reason, it has been exactly a month between finishing novels. I have been experiencing a certain lacklustre to published and mass acclaimed books. I had attempted to read The Book Thief prior to Sunshine but I didn’t understand why a Death entity/narrator would be interested in the main character, as I found her excruciatingly dull. I had all sorts of hopes and expectations.
I also got rid of quite a lot of books earlier this month. My Wind Singer series, His Dark Materials, The Edge Chronicles in its glorious, hardback entirety, the last four or five never read. Several other books that had somehow squirmed out of being thrift’d as soon as I read the first page – gifts for the most part that had lived quiet, shameful lives on the bottom shelf, holiday picks that seemed to be okay in the over hot tourist traps yet turned out to have hidden (or not so hidden) clichés, and an odd smattering of literary flotsam that seems to collect in my home – enough books to carve a tree out of, yet not so many to make a dint in my collection.
I love books. I’m addicted to all forms of fiction. Yet… over the years, ever since I started to truly appreciate the power and freedom books could grant, I’ve been feeling an itch. A craving.
A need for something that is just not there.
Once, Sunshine relieved that itch. Oh, in the multitudes of sappy romantic quagmire that had become Urban Fantasy, it was just perfect. Almost. Close enough to it to make me not give up on the genre entirely.
I don’t remember when I first picked it up. My copy is very much dogeared, crumpled and water damaged, more so than nearly any other book in my collection. I’ve not even owned it for ten years.
An old favourite. I feel it no longer makes the cut of ‘most favourite’ after this re-reading. I still adore it and McKinley’s unique style, but damnit all so little actually happens. It’s not over 500 pages long but as a physically large book I feel it is more padding than plot.
Of course, as soon as write that I thinh, ‘Really, it’s not an action.’ It’s a slice-of-life, even thought it’s a slice taken at the very crux of Sunshine’s magical awakening (can you come-of-age at twenty-five? Traditionally ten years too late but it holds that same feel) but full to the brim of homely detail.
All that detail draws some deep, delicious characters you can just sink into. No one is two-dimensional, with the exception of Bo who is the bad-guy and is literally made of evil. Sunshine is, yes, as is typical of Urban Fantasy, high-powered and kickass, but without being arrogant or matter-of-fact about it. She not only yearns to be normal, she is normal, the book showing her struggle to keep her power from interfering with her existence. Unfortunately, after using it to act as a parasol for the vampire, Con, at the start of the novel, the Big Bad is really curious about her.
My favourite characters have got to be Con and Mel. Con is like an ugly Mr Darcy (seriously, he’s ugly as sin) and Mel is a stoic motorbiking sorcerer (okay, the last part is speculation). It is such a treat to read them, and Sunshine’s thoughts about them. I also loved the slow-building relationship between Con and Sunshine. From desperation and mutual disgust at the start, through almost grudging respect, to the utter freak out after the ten second thing between them, to the very, very sweet (non-sexual) relationship they have at the end. It’s done with such a hesitant grace it’s perfect.
And then, oh, the world-building. Just – yes. So very, very yes. A world where magic and science twine and warp, where humans and ‘demons’ live side-by-side and try to stave off the threat of vampires. Vampires who are not just humans with an unfortunate diet.
Aside from the lack of action (or, rather, the large gaps between the action), I’m always petulantly miserable about the lack of sex. Oh, she has it. She just doesn’t think for very long about it. And as the reader is trapped inside Sunshine’s brain for the entirety of the novel, it really isn’t very satisfactory.
I’m trying to think exactly why Sunshine is no longer in my favourites. I think I have simply bored of Urban Fantasy. The idea saddens me as was the genre that first showed me how to drown myself in words, first with Harry Potter, then with LJ Smith’s pre-Twilight Twilight, Vampire Diaries (not as bad but only by virtue that they were shorter) and on to the Anita Blake books that led me to Role-Play, Mnem, and, consequently, E.
Reading Sunshine feels like saying goodbye. I’ve passed being titillated by night-stalking fanged fiends, I’m beyond the thrills of prey-vs-predator. I don’t think there could be a better out-tro. It’s not a forever goodbye, more like a moving-far-away-and-will-see-you-on-special-occasions goodbye.
Of course, it could be just that I hate Halloween and will fully resubmerge myself once the local chavs take out their fake fangs.
Characters: 8/10
Setting: 8/10
Plot: 5/10
Dialogue: 7/10
Overall: 7.5/10
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the way it is written so very different to the style used, it seems to target the wrong crowd. Those familiar with McKinley’s work will know how to handle her style. Those who don’t – ah. It is gloriously different. Very meandering, very info-heavy, very internal. Sunshine (the character) has a brain and enjoys thinking about EVERYTHING. It was once my most favourite book.
It’s been a while since I had the will, the energy, to pick up a book and get through it. Since finishing The Magician’s Guild I have picked up quite a few different novels, but I kept getting bored and put them down, and lost the energy to read on. It might be because I have been getting more satisfaction from reading fanfic lately, or it could just be another sign of how lazy I truly am (I have been re-listening to the audio-recording of the Harry Potter series) that just moving my eyeballs became too much exercise to manage.
For whatever reason, it has been exactly a month between finishing novels. I have been experiencing a certain lacklustre to published and mass acclaimed books. I had attempted to read The Book Thief prior to Sunshine but I didn’t understand why a Death entity/narrator would be interested in the main character, as I found her excruciatingly dull. I had all sorts of hopes and expectations.
I also got rid of quite a lot of books earlier this month. My Wind Singer series, His Dark Materials, The Edge Chronicles in its glorious, hardback entirety, the last four or five never read. Several other books that had somehow squirmed out of being thrift’d as soon as I read the first page – gifts for the most part that had lived quiet, shameful lives on the bottom shelf, holiday picks that seemed to be okay in the over hot tourist traps yet turned out to have hidden (or not so hidden) clichés, and an odd smattering of literary flotsam that seems to collect in my home – enough books to carve a tree out of, yet not so many to make a dint in my collection.
I love books. I’m addicted to all forms of fiction. Yet… over the years, ever since I started to truly appreciate the power and freedom books could grant, I’ve been feeling an itch. A craving.
A need for something that is just not there.
Once, Sunshine relieved that itch. Oh, in the multitudes of sappy romantic quagmire that had become Urban Fantasy, it was just perfect. Almost. Close enough to it to make me not give up on the genre entirely.
I don’t remember when I first picked it up. My copy is very much dogeared, crumpled and water damaged, more so than nearly any other book in my collection. I’ve not even owned it for ten years.
An old favourite. I feel it no longer makes the cut of ‘most favourite’ after this re-reading. I still adore it and McKinley’s unique style, but damnit all so little actually happens. It’s not over 500 pages long but as a physically large book I feel it is more padding than plot.
Of course, as soon as write that I thinh, ‘Really, it’s not an action.’ It’s a slice-of-life, even thought it’s a slice taken at the very crux of Sunshine’s magical awakening (can you come-of-age at twenty-five? Traditionally ten years too late but it holds that same feel) but full to the brim of homely detail.
All that detail draws some deep, delicious characters you can just sink into. No one is two-dimensional, with the exception of Bo who is the bad-guy and is literally made of evil. Sunshine is, yes, as is typical of Urban Fantasy, high-powered and kickass, but without being arrogant or matter-of-fact about it. She not only yearns to be normal, she is normal, the book showing her struggle to keep her power from interfering with her existence. Unfortunately, after using it to act as a parasol for the vampire, Con, at the start of the novel, the Big Bad is really curious about her.
My favourite characters have got to be Con and Mel. Con is like an ugly Mr Darcy (seriously, he’s ugly as sin) and Mel is a stoic motorbiking sorcerer (okay, the last part is speculation). It is such a treat to read them, and Sunshine’s thoughts about them. I also loved the slow-building relationship between Con and Sunshine. From desperation and mutual disgust at the start, through almost grudging respect, to the utter freak out after the ten second thing between them, to the very, very sweet (non-sexual) relationship they have at the end. It’s done with such a hesitant grace it’s perfect.
And then, oh, the world-building. Just – yes. So very, very yes. A world where magic and science twine and warp, where humans and ‘demons’ live side-by-side and try to stave off the threat of vampires. Vampires who are not just humans with an unfortunate diet.
Aside from the lack of action (or, rather, the large gaps between the action), I’m always petulantly miserable about the lack of sex. Oh, she has it. She just doesn’t think for very long about it. And as the reader is trapped inside Sunshine’s brain for the entirety of the novel, it really isn’t very satisfactory.
I’m trying to think exactly why Sunshine is no longer in my favourites. I think I have simply bored of Urban Fantasy. The idea saddens me as was the genre that first showed me how to drown myself in words, first with Harry Potter, then with LJ Smith’s pre-Twilight Twilight, Vampire Diaries (not as bad but only by virtue that they were shorter) and on to the Anita Blake books that led me to Role-Play, Mnem, and, consequently, E.
Reading Sunshine feels like saying goodbye. I’ve passed being titillated by night-stalking fanged fiends, I’m beyond the thrills of prey-vs-predator. I don’t think there could be a better out-tro. It’s not a forever goodbye, more like a moving-far-away-and-will-see-you-on-special-occasions goodbye.
Of course, it could be just that I hate Halloween and will fully resubmerge myself once the local chavs take out their fake fangs.
Characters: 8/10
Setting: 8/10
Plot: 5/10
Dialogue: 7/10
Overall: 7.5/10
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LibraryThing member SnowLeopard
Sunshine leads an ordinary life, baking pastries in the wee early morning hours of her stepfather’s coffee shop. That is, until she is hypnotized by vampires, and chained to the wall of a dark, long deserted mansion with another vampire, Con. Yes, it does seem like she is a goner, but this one
Robin McKinley is a writer of fantasy. But Sunshine is not like any of her other books, all of which are written for young adult or juvenile readers- and I’ve read them all. Many times. With Sunshine, McKinley has taken a completely different route from her style of writing, to her types of characters (namely vampires), to the language- for both her human and mythical creatures. Some of the street slang in this book was over my head, but she has proven she has a talent to romanticize vampires, as Anne Rice does. I found myself reading late into the night with this one. I was riveted, and almost, I wanted to meet a vampire for myself, to see with their clarity…
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doesn’t actually want to suck her dry. He is rebelling against their captors, so Sunshine gets to live. And when she finds a way to escape, she returns his compassion and releases Con. This act is unprecedented by any other human (whoever heard of rescuing a vampire?); a bond is created, and an alliance is formed. Sunshine expects her death has only been delayed, but will she and Con be able to overcome the master Vampire Bo before he finds and destroys them?Robin McKinley is a writer of fantasy. But Sunshine is not like any of her other books, all of which are written for young adult or juvenile readers- and I’ve read them all. Many times. With Sunshine, McKinley has taken a completely different route from her style of writing, to her types of characters (namely vampires), to the language- for both her human and mythical creatures. Some of the street slang in this book was over my head, but she has proven she has a talent to romanticize vampires, as Anne Rice does. I found myself reading late into the night with this one. I was riveted, and almost, I wanted to meet a vampire for myself, to see with their clarity…
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LibraryThing member Squatch
I picked up Sunshine due to an interesting sounding premise and an intriguing first few pages. The "Pretty Much Perfect" cover testimonial from Neil Gaiman and a rather enthusiastic review from a bookshop employee also helped settle my mind. I just could not get into this book. I am by no means a
And the cinnamon rolls! Don't get me started! Okay, Sunshine is a baker. She loves to bake. A lot. When she's not bemoaning her current plight/vampire predicament, she's prattling on about baking. I really would like to know how many times the words "cinnamon rolls" appear in this book. Seriously, it had to have been in the triple digits. I may never crave a cinnamon roll again.
Another thing that irked me was the lack of information about Sunshine's vampire ally - Con (short for Constantine). In the second half of the book, Con makes his presence somewhat more known, but McKinley never really fleshes out the character. A character even more in need of some back story is the evil vampire antagonist, Bo. He is just mentioned in passing so much that we know he's a bad guy, but never why. And the "climatic" end battle is over so fast that you're left wondering "Is that it?"
I finally finished the book recently and rebounded by reading two other novels and starting a third on my pile over the course of the weekend. It felt good to enjoy a book again, but I still have a lot of reading to catch up on thanks to the multi-month reading roadblock that is Sunshine.
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fast reader, but it took me months to get through this book. 10-20 pages at a sitting were about all I could handle. For a book dealing with vampires, there is surprisingly little vampire content. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but instead, the reader is left with page after page of repetitious inner monologue from the main character - Sunshine. I don't know if McKinley was purposely trying to portray her main character as scatterbrained, but in a book with no chapter breaks and endless inner monologues, it grows rather tiring rather quickly. And the cinnamon rolls! Don't get me started! Okay, Sunshine is a baker. She loves to bake. A lot. When she's not bemoaning her current plight/vampire predicament, she's prattling on about baking. I really would like to know how many times the words "cinnamon rolls" appear in this book. Seriously, it had to have been in the triple digits. I may never crave a cinnamon roll again.
Another thing that irked me was the lack of information about Sunshine's vampire ally - Con (short for Constantine). In the second half of the book, Con makes his presence somewhat more known, but McKinley never really fleshes out the character. A character even more in need of some back story is the evil vampire antagonist, Bo. He is just mentioned in passing so much that we know he's a bad guy, but never why. And the "climatic" end battle is over so fast that you're left wondering "Is that it?"
I finally finished the book recently and rebounded by reading two other novels and starting a third on my pile over the course of the weekend. It felt good to enjoy a book again, but I still have a lot of reading to catch up on thanks to the multi-month reading roadblock that is Sunshine.
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Awards
Mythopoeic Awards (Finalist — Adult Literature — 2004)
Locus Recommended Reading (2003)
Best Fiction for Young Adults (Selection — 2005)
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
2003-09-01
Physical description
389 p.; 6.42 inches
ISBN
0425191788 / 9780425191781
Other editions
Sunshine by Robin McKinley (Ebook)
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Pages
389