Review: A Plague of Giants by Kevin Hearne
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Book Reviews
A Plague of Giants by Kevin Hearne
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This book represents a major change from the Iron Druid series, so I worked hard to set aside my expectations of Hearne based on loving those. A Plague of Giants is every bit as well-written as that series, maybe even better! Still, I didn’t come away truly caring about the characters. That could have something to do with the way the story is presented, but I can’t be sure about it.
The book just ends, very abruptly, with the notation, “Continued in volume two, A Blight of Blackwings.” That put me off somewhat. I like reading series, but with each volume I want a largely self-contained story, one with a beginning, middle, and ending. I understand leaving some plot threads unresolved, so as to build interest for the next book, but there’s just too much left unresolved here. Will I read Blight when it’s released? Maybe — but I’m unlikely to rush right out and buy it.
Tags: Fantasy
Review: Attack the Geek by Michael R. Underwood
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Book Reviews
Attack the Geek by Michael R. Underwood
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Excuse me, but SQUEE! More Ree Reyes! More Drake! More Eastwood and Grognard! Yes, more Geekomancy!
Michael Underwood is back with a delightful novella and if I have ANY complaints, it’s that this is a novella instead of a novel. That’s just because I am a greedy fangirl reader. The story itself is fully developed, and the novella is exactly the right format for it.
Attack the Geek definitely isn’t the place to start in the series, as it relies on previous knowledge of the characters and the universe, but if you’ve read the previous novels, you will NOT want to miss this installment when it is released on April 9.
Now I’m left hungry for Ree Reyes #3, though!
Tags: Fantasy, Michael R. Underwood, Ree Reyes
Review: Gunmetal Magic by Ilona Andrews
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Book Reviews, Reading
Gunmetal Magic by Ilona Andrews
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I’m fairly sure that I missed a Kate Daniels book, because I don’t recall some of the events referred to in this book. That annoys me, and I’ll have to go back and read whatever the last one was out of order now. It’ll be worth it, though, because Ilona Andrews’ writing is always fun. Gunmetal Magic is no exception.
This is the first novel to focus on Andrea Nash, Kate Daniels’ best friend. Exposed as a shapeshifter, she’s been kicked out of the Order. She had just chosen to obey orders from a superior officer instead of fighting with the Pack, which led to a breakup with her lover Raphael. Now she has to rebuild her life from a shattered ruin.
Andrea is a fascinating character, abused repeatedly in her terrible childhood and raised to be ashamed of and hide her shapeshifting nature. Her relationship with Raphael is informed by their bouda nature, but her human side isn’t left out by any means.
I particularly enjoy the part that Atlanta plays in Andrews’ books, but as a near-native Atlanta I’m bound to be biased in that respect.
This volume and the bonus novella “Magic Gifts” are definitely worthwhile reading for any fan of the Kate Daniels series.
Tags: Fantasy, Ilona Andrews, Kate Daniels, World of Kate Daniels
Book Review: Enthralled edited by Melissa Marr and Kelley Armstrong
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Book Reviews, Reading
Enthralled by Melissa Marr
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Journeys, literal or otherwise, are the theme of this young adult anthology. Appropriately enough, it was conceived as the result of a book tour.
“Giovanni’s Farewell” by Claudia Gray is a sweet, coming-of-age story of sorts. The twist is that it features a brother and sister, twins, rather than just one person. They visit Rome with a school group while dealing with major changes in their lives. There was too much background crammed into a short story, but it was interesting.
Carrie Ryan’s “Scenic Route” is a disturbing, post-apocalyptic story set in the world of The Forest of Hands and Teeth about two young sisters trying to survive in an isolated cabin. The older sister keeps the younger one occupied with the planning of a road trip that will never happen, always hoping against hope that the girl won’t realize what their reality is. How long can they stay isolated enough to survive? Bloody, frightening, and visceral.
“Red Run” by Kami Garcia is the story of a girl who has lost the only person she loves in the world, and the trip she takes to avenge his death. How do you hunt a ghost? Maybe it isn’t fair, coming right after Ryan’s story, but I didn’t truly feel the main character’s feelings.
Jackson Pearce’s “Things About Love” is a sweet story involving a jinn researching love. I felt like I’d come into the middle of something, so I checked and found that she’s written a novel, As You Wish, in the same setting. While this story technically stands on its own, it would probably be enriched by having read As You Wish.
“Niederwald” by Rachel Vincent is the first story I’ve read in her Soul Screamers series. Sabine, a macha (nightmare), takes a road trip with a human acquaintance and detours to Niederwald, Texas, home to the harpies. No, there’s no way that could go wrong. Of course you know from the moment they hit the parking lot that it will go wrong, but at least it’s an interesting sort of wrong.
Melissa Marr’s “Merely Mortal” feels as though it’s probably set in the same world as her Wicked Lovely series.
“Facing Facts” by Kelley Armstrong is set in her Darkest Powers universe. I read the first of those books, but obviously a lot has passed since then, and there were spoilers in this story. It really centers around Chloe and Tori, with a little Derek tossed in. Tori learns something she doesn’t want to know and reacts badly, running off on her own, which is dangerous. Chloe goes after her and they get into trouble. That seemed rather predictable to me, but at least the type of trouble wasn’t what I expected. Tori doesn’t seem to have changed since the first book, but Chloe is coming into control of her abilities.
Sarah Rees Brennan’s “Let’s Get this Undead Show on the Road” is about a boy band that features a vampire, Christian. He’s an unusual vampire, all alone without a nest or a sire. His journey seems to be about his identity as a vampire, although the band is on tour and has another sort of journey to make, as well.
“Bridge” by Jeri Smith-Ready is told from a ghost’s point of view, 233 days after death. It’s frustrating being a ghost, because most people can’t see or hear you. There are things you have to accomplish before moving on, though, that require communication with the living. Finding a “bridge” and working things out takes a lot of effort. This was a touching story, bittersweet and well-told.
Kimberly Derting’s “Skin Contact” nearly broke me. Rafe is looking for his girlfriend. He knows where he needs to go, and he’s guided by dreams. This story nearly broke me. It’s told sparingly, and something feels perfectly right about it, but it hurts. According to her author biography, Rafe was introduced in her novel Desires of the Dead.
“Leaving” by Ally Condie is a very literary story, about a girl left behind after her mother dies and her father leaves. She spends the story preparing to go after her father. It’s hard to describe much more than that, or to have much of an opinion. It was well-written and I think I’ll probably remember it for a long time.
Jessica Verday’s “At The Late Night, Double Feature, Picture Show” is a darkly funny story about a girl from a family of monster hunters. She’s usually the bait, but tonight she has decided to be the hunter — without backup. I’d like to read more from Verday.
“IV League” by Margaret Stohl just didn’t hit me right. It’s the story of a bunch of southern vampires on a college tour, which could have been funny but wasn’t written that way. The whole thing just didn’t sit well with me, perhaps because the main character seemed too unrealistically out of touch for someone who obviously had access to television and the internet.
Mary E. Pearson’s “Gargouille” is the most touching love story in the collection. Just read it.
“The Third Kind” by Jennifer Lynn Barnes is, on the surface, about a road trip to San Antonio. The real journey is much deeper, one of coming to understanding one’s calling.
Rachel Caine’s Morganville is the setting for her “Automatic.” I think I’ve read a Morganville novella, but my memory of it is dim. The Morganville Blood Bank introduces an automated withdrawal machine, essentially a soda can dispenser. Michael Glass is ordered to try it first, as a demonstration for the older, more traditional vampires, with unexpected results. His journey is one of self-knowledge. I didn’t really care much about him, his journey, his girlfriend, or anything else. The setting and characters do nothing for me, but your mileage may vary.
Altogether, the anthology was worth reading. There were some low spots, but that’s true of any collection. To be fair, I’m sure someone who is more enthusiastic about young adult fiction would also be more enthusiastic about the works here.
Tags: Fantasy, Kelley Armstrong, Melissa Marr, young adult
Review: Hunt the Moon by Karen Chance
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Book Reviews, Reading
Hunt the Moon by Karen Chance
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Chance must have thought readers were bored with the Cassandra/Mircea match, because much of this book is spent with Cassie falling for Pritkin without really being aware that she’s getting into dangerous territory.
Palmer isn’t one of my favorite characters. She isn’t an ass-kicker, but she’s probably somewhat more realistic than most paranormal heroines for that fact. She’s coming into her own by standing up to Mircea more in this volume, but she does it in childish ways. I find her annoying partially because I’d hate to try protecting her from herself, much less anyone else.
I don’t honestly understand why Mircea and Pritkin are attracted to her, either, but part of the romance formula is the heroine has to be irresistible to at least one, preferably more than one man. I do find Mircea and Pritkin interesting (they just have bad taste in women), so they and the plots hold my interest.
To be fair, Cassie seems to be growing up a little bit. Not entirely, but she’s growing a little. She does vehemently claim to care about whether or not other people get hurt trying to protect her.
This book also serves as backstory time for Mircea and Pritkin, as we learn a lot more about their pasts. Things drag a bit while they relate their stories, and in fact there seems to be little point in what we hear from Mircea (readers of the series already know a lot about his family and history).
Altogether, I wouldn’t have read it if I weren’t already so far into the series. I do wish Chance would switch focus to another character. (I’m aware of the Dorina Basarab series set in the same universe, and consider them to be better books in general). I suppose that’s unlikely, seeing as it’s the Cassandra Palmer series.
Tags: Cassandra Palmer, Fantasy, Karen Chance, paranormal romance
Review: Spellbound by Kelley Armstrong
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Book Reviews, Reading
Spell Bound by Kelley Armstrong
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Waking the Witch and Spell Bound should truly be read back to back. In fact, they should be read with 13 on hand, almost as a trilogy within the series.
At the end of Waking the Witch, Savannah silently thought that if it would reunite an orphan with her grandmother, Savannah would gladly give up her powers. Something heard her and took her up on that unintended deal, and she finds herself powerless for the first time in her life.
Savannah has always been so very powerful that she has counted on her spells more than most witches or sorcerors do, so she finds living without them to be very difficult — especially since a witch hunter and others are after her. There’s a Supernatural Liberation Movement that wants to use her as one of its figureheads, with or without her cooperation, in their quest to bring supernaturals out of the closet and into the spotlight. She has to do some serious soul-searching and growth in the process of avoiding enemies and getting creative about staying alive.
The plot moves extremely quickly, so much so that I couldn’t keep track of what day it was in the book. In fact, it moves right into the plot of 13. I’m having fits because I don’t have it on hand, and I just can’t wait for the library to get around to me on the hold list — I might have to break down and buy it instead.
Tags: Fantasy, Kelley Armstrong, Women of the Otherworld
Review: Shady Lady by Ann Aguirre
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Book Reviews, Reading
Shady Lady by Ann Aguirre
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I have to give a fairly high rating to a book that involves a woman who largely saves herself from multiple assassins (natural and supernatural) sent by the head of a drug cartel. There are sexy men in her life (three, in fact), but she’s definitely the heroine here, not a clinging vine. That’s a refreshing approach.
To be honest I don’t think this book should be shelved with paranormal romances at all. It deserves to be called urban fantasy, or something along those lines, because relationships are not the main focus of the plot.
Corine has changed a great deal from the beginning of the series, and we learn much more about her background in this volume, explaining some of her behavior. The exposition is never tiresome or without reason — it’s worked into the plot very nicely. I enjoy seeing character development, and getting more of the “why” helps the reader make sense of her decisions.
This volume feels like the end of the series, but it was a nice little trilogy and well worth reading.
Tags: Ann Aguirre, Corine Solomon, Fantasy, paranormal romance
Book Review: The Horns of Elfland edited by Ellen Kushner and Delia Sherman
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Book Reviews, Reading
The Horns of Elfland by Ellen Kushner
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
It took a while to track down this volume, as it has long been out of print. Interlibrary loan was, once again, my friend. But how odd to read an actual physical book again, when I’ve been reading ebooks almost exclusively lately! Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Delia Sherman, Ellen Kushner, Fantasy, John Brunner, Terri Windling, The Horns of Elfland
Review: Blood Oath by Christopher Farnsworth
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Book Reviews, Reading
Blood Oath by Christopher Farnsworth
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Blood Oath is an interesting and fairly refreshing variation on the vampire riff. Most of the current tales give us a suave, sexy predator who mesmerizes his or her prey, leaving humans pining for their presence. They might even fall in love with a human. Nathaniel Cade, however, refers to humans as food, saying, “Would you have sex with a cow?” That makes much more sense to me. It’s a good thing he isn’t interested, either, as the typical reaction people have to encountering him is utter panic, often involving the loss of bladder control. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Blood Oath, CHristopher Farnsworth, Fantasy, Jim Butcher, Robert Damon Schneck, Sam Chupp, Science Fiction, The Dresden Files, The President's Vampire, vampires
Book Review: Changes by Jim Butcher
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Reading
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I do not give out many 5‑star ratings, but for this book I couldn’t do anything else. That is despite the fact that Jim Butcher did something I honestly didn’t think he would do to his legions of loyal readers, something that I absolutely detest. Something that I will not tell you about, because I loathe spoilers. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Dresden Files, Fantasy, Jim Butcher