Oh, where to start? I just couldn't buy into the premise no matter how much I really tried. When you have a book that essentially a two-hander, you ne...moreOh, where to start? I just couldn't buy into the premise no matter how much I really tried. When you have a book that essentially a two-hander, you need to like both characters - Lucy just irritated me too much for that to happen. Which is too bad because the book parodies and games are charming.
Lucy is the head children's librarian at a small public library in Missouri, reporting to an alcoholic director, living over a small theatre, and no real direction in life. One of the children that comes into her space is Ian, a voracious reader. Unfortunately, Ian's family is some flavor of evangelical and his mother comes down to the children's area demanding that he not be allowed to borrow books that didn't have "the breath of God" in them (the paranormal, for example, including classics like Tuck Everlasting). Ian rebels by hiding the books he's borrowing, and Lucy abets by checking them out under her own name.
Lucy and her friends Sophie and Rocky suspect that Ian is gay, and when Lucy learns that Ian is being sent to a sexual rehabilitation camp, she's eager to do something to help him escape what she now feels is a horrible, abusive home. One day her chance arrives: Ian's run away, much like Claudia and Jamie do, only he's hidden in the library instead of the Met. For reasons that elude Lucy (and the reader) she decides to "take him home", a trip that ends up in Vermont, near the Candaian border. She also lies about her whereabouts, who Ian is, and where she's going/what she's doing.
There's much here to delight ("If You Give a Librarian a Closet", for example), but Lucy's motivations bothered me, as did her demeanor. I'm not going to get into the argument over her even being a librarian (she doesn't have her MLS, nor is she in library school) or her feeling that the First Amendment trumps all (even the Second Amendment). It was more her certitude that she was saving Ian - who clearly wanted an adventure but seemed to not see that he needed "saving", per se - and her clumsy handling of how to save him, in addition to her eagerness to believe in the power of story to the extent that (I think) she buys into the "kidnapping" because it's just another story. I'm sure I'll be alone in this, which is fine.
This was such a great book for the slightly geeky boy who is into RPGs (and possibly a fan of "The Big Bang Theory"). Perry's experience playing Creat...moreThis was such a great book for the slightly geeky boy who is into RPGs (and possibly a fan of "The Big Bang Theory"). Perry's experience playing Creatures & Caverns by himself makes him a sadder character than the usual hero, but his actions in the World of the Other Normals will make them cheer.
It's his incredible geekiness and lack of social skills that makes him endearing. The scene at the dance? Priceless, and one that will resonate with just the boys who should read this book. Ditto his rant about being a Late Bloomer (and the Discovery of the Hair). He's so out of place in our world that you know that something will have to change. The changes he undergoes are obviously not normal (how many readers will end up in another version of the universe?) so aren't really inspirational except that they may give those gamers hope for the future.
My biggest complaint was that the C&C game wasn't well-explained, and the Other Normals' world didn't seem to match the game. Had that happened, it would have tipped the book into a 5-star.
The author has a real point to make here: global warming is bad, logging is bad, they're killing the monarch butterfly population and Attention Must B...moreThe author has a real point to make here: global warming is bad, logging is bad, they're killing the monarch butterfly population and Attention Must Be Paid. That message is interwoven with the story of Dellarobia Turnbow, a poor farmer's wife who used to have dreams of college and something better.
Dellarobia married Cub at 17, pregnant with his child. She miscarried, and rather than leave Cub and continue with her plans for college she stays, eventually having Preston and Cordelia. One day, thinking she was so fed up that she was ready to have an affair with a much younger man, she walks up the hill from their farm and - it's a miracle. The valley at the top of the hill is alive with "flame". This sight turns her around, convinced that she should keep on the path she's already on.
We learn that this "field of flame" is really an aberration: millions(?) of monarch butterflies, who usually winter in Mexico, have descended on this valley in Tennessee. Soon it's national news, and then Dr. Ovid Byron moves in to an RV parked near their barn. Ovid (and his graduate students, post-docs and volunteers) study monarchs, occasionally pontificating on the horrors of global warming and the loss of the monarch. It's at those moments that the book lost me.
Dellarobia's journey was interesting, the monarchs a little less so. When characters start to serve as mouthpieces or deliver great scads of polemic, I tend to tune out. That's not to say that there isn't something to worry about, that I'm a denier of climate change, just that it felt as though Ovid could have been edited down a little more. The scene with him and the tv reporter? Totally unnecessary.
The ending also felt off: when did Dellarobia and Cub come to the decisions they did? What about her new insights into Hester and Bear? It was rushed, and had less Big Message been packed in perhaps we could have had a better ending.
Usually I get annoyed when there's a plot twist that I can see coming a mile away (example? SPOILER ALERT: Darth Vader is Luke's father. oh, and Leia'...moreUsually I get annoyed when there's a plot twist that I can see coming a mile away (example? SPOILER ALERT: Darth Vader is Luke's father. oh, and Leia's his sister). For some reason, even though I figured out what the plot twist was in this book, it didn't bother me.
There are three daughters here: Ruth Plank, fifth daughter of Edwin and Connie; Dana Dickinson, daughter of Val and George; and a new strawberry hybrid (I'm not kidding). Ruth and Dana are "birthday sisters", born nine months after a massive hurricane hits their rural NH town. Ruth's family, the Planks, have owned their farm since the 1700s, and while Ruth doesn't really fit in, she adores her father and helps out around the farm to be with him. Dana's family is one of those unsettled families, moving ever few years; the only constants are the George will have yet another failed get-rich-quick scheme and that the Planks and the Dickinsons will see each other for two brief visits every year.
Their lives intertwine more than just these visits, as Ruth has a massive crush on Ray (Dana's older brother), while Dana eventually becomes a farmer and successfully patents Edwin's strawberry. To reveal more would give away the plot twist.
This isn't an action-packed book, but the raveling and unraveling of their lives is well worth the read.
I really liked Nightshade and had high hopes for the next book but, well... sigh. One of the problems I identified in the first book remains, that of...moreI really liked Nightshade and had high hopes for the next book but, well... sigh. One of the problems I identified in the first book remains, that of the ending. It's not a cliff-hanger, it's more like you're being thrown off the cliff: the ending is too abrupt. The narrative thread is snipped in what feels like an arbitrary fashion.
And then there's the prose. It's lilac, not quite purple. On one randomly chosen page, we have eyes widening ... gazing as though seeing the other character for the first time... lips thinly smiling... a challenging stare... voices bubbling with outrage... and finally, eyes bulging. Every conversation, every action is overwrought - at some point, it calls attention to the writing, detracting from the plot. The action tends to lurch, with few moments for people to catch their breath or adequately plot or plan the next move. When Calla cuts her hair, it could have served as time for the girls to regroup but that respite lasts all of a few pages and then - We're Off Again!! The first book's discussion of the history and legacy of the Seekers and Guardians and so forth is gone, and it's missed.
Once more, I'm struck by the padding. This doesn't feel like a trilogy, with one more book coming to wrap up the threads (and checking the author's website I see there's one final book and then a companion novel). It feels like it should be just two books, with tighter editing and fewer guilt-bitten guts.
I suppose it's a good sign that this sequel to Fallen didn't get a worse rating, but it didn't get a better one, either. The problem is that I really...moreI suppose it's a good sign that this sequel to Fallen didn't get a worse rating, but it didn't get a better one, either. The problem is that I really suspect that this would be one really great story if it were in *one* book not three. But publishers are now demanding trilogies, which means weaker individual books and tons of padding.
Luce is as clueless here as she was in the first book, and her eternal boyfriend Daniel is playing the I'm an Enigma card for all he's worth. The alliance between him and Cam, the reasons for her staying put at Shoreline, their past(s) together are all things he won't share with her. So, naturally, Luce is a little perturbed and cranky, and doesn't follow directions well. The addition of Shelby and Miles to the mix is a good one, but the constant padding of the plot means that they're less well-developed than they could (or should) be.
The battle at the end of the book is also a little odd because nothing is ever fully explained. Who are the Outcasts? What do they want? Etc.. All questions that weren't answered here, and given the questions left hanging (and unanswered) at the end of Fallen, they're unlikely to be answered in the next/final book.
A book that includes this passage in the first few pages is a winner: "At 1513:55, Rainey Teague is right there. At 1513:56, the kid is gone".
Sadly, t...moreA book that includes this passage in the first few pages is a winner: "At 1513:55, Rainey Teague is right there. At 1513:56, the kid is gone".
Sadly, that opening and the tension surrounding the disappearance of Rainey disappear in the next few chapters. There are five main strands here: Rainey's reappearance and subsequent catatonic state, the bank robbery in Gracie followed by the killing of four policemen and two reporters, the mischievous malice of Tony Brock, several disappearances of older members of the town's founding families, and a mysterious Frisbee sought by the Chinese. Ultimately the strands intertwine, with the resolution to each story somehow tied into the weirdness/evil at Crater Sink. There are several moments of "wait - that's not what I thought would happen" (always a good thing) but also several moments of "just get on with it, I've read this before".
Niceville is trying to be a Southern Gothic version of Stephen King's Maine but gets bogged down in florid, overly adjectived description. Had that been toned down, this story of a city with an evil undercurrent (179 unexplained disappearances since 1928, an anomaly given the size of the population) would have been far creepier.
I'm sure I'll be in the minority here, as everyone is looking for the next dystopian trilogy but, well, I didn't like this. The premise started out in...moreI'm sure I'll be in the minority here, as everyone is looking for the next dystopian trilogy but, well, I didn't like this. The premise started out interesting: Juliette is in solitary, in part because people think she's dangerous (when she touches people, she electrocutes them and accidentally killed a toddler three years previously). Then one day Adam is brought to be her roommate, and she teaches him about the food and showers and so forth. Adam, it turns out, is the boy she fell in love with back in third grade. They're brought to a military compound, where it turns out that Adam was actually spying on her for Warner, the power-happy commander of this sector. Warner wants to use Juliette's power for evil, but Adam knows that Juliette is pure good. Hijinks ensue, and we end up in the rebel encampment. To be continued...
Ok, we've read that before, right? Then there's the bird - birds don't fly in this world, but she's dreamed of a white and gold bird that does fly, and just happens to be tattooed onto Adam's chest. Hmmm. It's not just the overly familiar elements that made me cranky, it was the writing. Poor Juliette is either choking, paralyzed with fear, quaking, trembling, breathless, shocked, desperate or just plain petrified. Much of the writing is overly adjectived and as a result, the action and the characters suffer.
I was feeling unsure about this series, because I loved Wicked Lovely but felt "meh"-ish about Ink Exchange. Fragile Eternity is a return to the forme...moreI was feeling unsure about this series, because I loved Wicked Lovely but felt "meh"-ish about Ink Exchange. Fragile Eternity is a return to the former, but without the wonder (probably because I know that world now).
Seth's journey to be closer to Ash, despite the presence of Keenen and the approach of Summer, is at the heart of this book; the choice he makes is not unexpected, but the ending did take me by surprise. And I have to say I never liked Keenen, so his little "oops" that cost him Donia and Ash made me happy. Just wish Niall was a larger part of this one, but perhaps in Book Four?
A friend asked if you had to read these in order; my advice is if you haven't read Wicked Lovely, you can't read Fragile Eternity. But in terms of continuity, you won't have missed that much if you skip Ink Exchange(less)
So, you're not completely comfortable with the whole vampire/werewolf/zombie craze, but you want to write (or read) a book about supernatural forces?...moreSo, you're not completely comfortable with the whole vampire/werewolf/zombie craze, but you want to write (or read) a book about supernatural forces? Angels fit the bill. So, books like Halo and Unearthly get written. Correctly: trilogies starting with books like Halo and Unearthly get written.
That's not necessarily a good thing. More and more trilogies are being written, with thinly stretched plots that, with serious editing and tightening, could make one decent book. But as a trilogy? Not so much. Particularly not when there's nothing really new or special about the plot, as is the case here.
Clara is part-angel (one quarter, through her half-blood mother). Angels are here on earth for a purpose, and she's learning what hers is... something to do with saving a boy (named Christian) from a fire in Wyoming. Problem is, she's also falling in love with Tucker (her new friend Wendy's twin) and learning all she can about angels from Angela (her other new friend) and trying to fly. And then there's Mom, 100+ and still going strong, except that something about Wyoming doesn't quite agree with her. And let's not forget Jeffrey, her younger (also angelic) brother who isn't quite trying to fit in.
Sigh. Relatively predictable if you're read any of these trilogies. Equally predictable is what will happen in Books Two and Three. But if angel books, even predictable ones, are your thing, this is the series for you.
The blurbage suggested that this was going to be like We Need to Talk About Kevin or Nineteen Minutes: how does a family cope when a child has done th...moreThe blurbage suggested that this was going to be like We Need to Talk About Kevin or Nineteen Minutes: how does a family cope when a child has done the unthinkable? And to some extent the plot does live up to that premise. Dr. Paul Allen's life is turned upside down when his son Daniel kills Senator Seagram, the leading Democratic presidential candidate. Of course Paul wants to believe that there's no way that Daniel could have done this - there must be a conspiracy, or his son was brainwashed, or there were others involved that his son's covering for. Right?
So part of the book is about Paul's search for "the truth", tracking down leads and compiling boxes and boxes of "evidence". Because he's a rheumatologist he's used to assessing symptoms and creating a diagnosis/care plan based on that evidence - this leads to passages where he talks about former patients and their symptoms (think House, right down to the sarcoidosis mention).
Then there's the part of the book that is told from Daniel's point of view. He'd dropped out of Vassar and rather aimlessly traveled across country, staying a few weeks here and a few months there, ultimately ending up in Los Angeles, at UCLA, with a gun shooting at the Senator. His reasons, such as they are, do come to light but the clearer picture is that there is no real reason (cue Boomtown Rats).
The reason for the two stars is that there's a lot of coverage of other famous killings. Chapters, albeit small ones, on Sirhan Sirhan and Charles Whitman and John Hinkley which dragged down the plot and didn't add to our understanding of the Why in this case.
It's rare when I agree with blurbage/jacket copy like "...nothing short of extraordinary" but here, it's so deserved.
Corinna's life has been completel...moreIt's rare when I agree with blurbage/jacket copy like "...nothing short of extraordinary" but here, it's so deserved.
Corinna's life has been completely upended by the death of her mother in the summer between her seventh and eighth grade years. If Only is her journal of her life during 8th grade, marking the various firsts of life without her mother, as well as first in life generally. There's such deep sadness mixed with normal teen girl stuff (like her "orange crush") and her feelings of loneliness and distance from her friends are part of a pitch-perfect book. There were no moments when I felt that there was something age inappropriate or false about Corinna's voice.
While written for middle grade girls, this is a wonderful read for anyone who has lost, or knows someone who has lost, a parent when young.
Pardon the pun, but this book was stillborn: the horror factor was lukewarm, the gratuitous swearing and sex (I'm sure some readers may think that the...morePardon the pun, but this book was stillborn: the horror factor was lukewarm, the gratuitous swearing and sex (I'm sure some readers may think that they weren't gratuitous but they really do feel that way, like they were added for effect rather than organically coming from the book), and the prose were just not doing it for me. I got flashes of The Others (the Nicole Kidman movie, not the Tyrone book), Amityville Horror, Stephen King, Mickey Spillane and Horror Writing for Dummies. Not even halfway through and I gave up. (less)
Despite the blurbage (and references to) Rebecca, this wasn't quite like that - although there are definite Gothic overtones!
There's something so very...moreDespite the blurbage (and references to) Rebecca, this wasn't quite like that - although there are definite Gothic overtones!
There's something so very evocative and creepy about North Yorkshire. I mean, Dracula is set there. Ditto Wuthering Heights. So definite points for setting. Adam's mother lived there until she ran away (to have him), and after her death from cancer he moves in with his grandparents for a summer. After university, he meets Grace and they marry... Millie follows less than a year later. When Adam's grandparents die and leave him their cottage, he suggests they move into it to take a break from their London life. Shortly after, Adam takes Millie out for a walk. All Grace knows is that Maggie somehow is returned to the cottage, and that Adam has disappeared. A year later, Grace and Millie return to go through the cottage, take care of the contents, and then rent it out until the legalities are settled.
The village is tiny - nearly deserted - but there's an old schoolhouse in which Meredith and her daughter Claire live. Claire is fine, but Meredith's perfectly polite demeanor clearly masks something very different. Ben, the handyman/contractor Grace hires to help renovate the cottage, is also hiding something. The winter's approach, often snowing so hard that drivers can't see the road, along with the grandfather clock that stops and restarts at 3am and the stories in Ghosts of the Moors all combine to drive Grace slightly mad.
The sense of menace is real and the setting plays a large part in that. The mysteries of what happened to Adam, what Ben is hiding and why Meredith is less than honestly welcoming are all eventually resolved. To be honest, I was hoping for a more Wicker Man/Harvest Home theme and Grace's frequent "tears streaming down her face" led to the four-star review. Make it 4.5 (if only we had that option!)
This book looks at marriage: how we make mistakes that can haunt us later, how people change, and how long people will wait before moving on.
Etsell an...moreThis book looks at marriage: how we make mistakes that can haunt us later, how people change, and how long people will wait before moving on.
Etsell and Danica met in their teens, married when Dani was 19 and seemingly the happiest couple around. There have been several ups and downs, like when Dani bought the building that would house her beauty salon and more recently when Ell decided to go to Alaska to fly a bush pilot route to help out a friend. It's on this trip that Ell goes missing, bringing Dani's world to sudden halt.
The problems the couple experience are not unexpected in a relationship that starts at such a young age; what surprised me was how quickly Dani moved on. Her grief, frustration, shock and numbness seemed to wear off relatively quickly (less than a year) which made me question how deep the relationship was. I also didn't understand why the author chose to alternate first person and third person chapters - it didn't add to the story.
When is a sequel not a sequel? When it's a book like Fire, set in the same world as Graceling, but with none of the previous book's characters or plot...moreWhen is a sequel not a sequel? When it's a book like Fire, set in the same world as Graceling, but with none of the previous book's characters or plot. I'd call it the second in a series, rather than a sequel.
Anyway, this opens with a brief prologue that introduces us to a character and the new-ish world we're going to explore, then the book proper starts. The first character, Leek, doesn't reappear for quite some time - over halfway through, in fact - which niggled at me more than I can say. As a matter of fact, it niggled at me so much I gave this a 4 instead of a 5!
That's not to say I didn't very much enjoy this trip to Cashore's imagination, or that meeting Lady Fire, Archer, Brigan, Hannah, and all the others wasn't fun. It was. So was reading those great tried-and-true themes of finding yourself, not letting your parents define who you are/will be, everyone is part monster/part human, everyone will find someone to love (and be loved by), etc..
Part of me feels sorry for those that will have to wait until September to read it; part of me envies them the enjoyment they will experience.(less)
Part of me really wanted to give this a four-star review, but as much as I liked Day and June, the plot just seemed like such a mash-up of Divergent a...morePart of me really wanted to give this a four-star review, but as much as I liked Day and June, the plot just seemed like such a mash-up of Divergent and Incarceron that I just couldn't. That said, I can see this being a huge hit with readers come November (when it's published).
This time we're in a dystopian/post-some type of apocalypse Los Angeles. Day is a rebel of sorts - not allied to the Patriots, just causing trouble all on his own. He's paired up with Tess, another loser/outcast, trying not to get caught and to keep watch on his family (who think he's dead). When they get infected with the recent plague, he desperately tries to get the cure vaccine to help them. June, on the other hand, is a pampered member of the elite, the only perfect score on the Trial. When her brother dies she's immediately graduated from her college training and made a part of the cadre hunting her brother's killer. Of course June and Day cross paths, and of course they have an effect on each other... to say more would be a huge spoiler. However, the usual tropes of this genre are there: government misleading the population about their history and what's "out there", manipulation of testing and lives, and star-crossed lovers.
This was one of those "oh I wish there were a 4.5 rating" books!
When I started, I thought it would be Rebecca or Jane Eyre-esque: genteel widowed gove...moreThis was one of those "oh I wish there were a 4.5 rating" books!
When I started, I thought it would be Rebecca or Jane Eyre-esque: genteel widowed governess in a remote manor home with a recent widower and his two sons. But shortly into it I realized there was a serious dose of Jonathan Strange here.
We open with the murder of Nanny Prum. A witness swears there's a black man to blame, but the village constable thinks it was the work of a savage beast. One of the daily activities Nanny and the boys, James and Paul, did was to visit their recently dead mother's grave (they weren't dealing well with the death and somehow talking to her was going to help). Charlotte (aka Mrs. Markham) takes the boys there, too, but one day on their way back they wander into a fog and come out at a mysterious house, Darkling.
Clearly this isn't a normal house, because time passes differently here and Lilly, the boy's mother, is there to great them. Charlotte's a little perplexed and worried about this (who wouldn't be?) but the house itself and their host, Mr. Whately, combine to calm her nerves a little while the boys visit their mother. Of course they return, and Charlotte starts to explore the house: there's the library with books that can lead to other worlds, paintings that do the same, a collection of "deaths" and little wax men/candles to help guide her. What Charlotte would really like to do, however, is take the boys home permanently and continue her late night chats with HenryMr. Darrow, her employer. Darkling is in The Ending, a world of weird, gruesome creatures and one with some sort of civil war brewing. Trying to get the boys home, she loses them to The Ending and returns to Everton to tell Mr. Darrow that his dead wife and living children are in another world? dimension? universe? As any good father would, he agrees to go help her fight for them and they return to The Ending... and too much more would be spoilers.
So, on to the quibbles. The era in which the book is set isn't stated, but it's clearly a previous century. At one point, the author describes Charlotte's composure as "Victorian" which felt just a little too meta - if this wasn't the Victorian Age, it was pretty damn close. The game that Charlotte and Mr. Whately play is confusing: we see her moves (because she tells us what she's doing) but his are unclear. Since he didn't kidnap the boys, that wasn't a move but somehow it seemed as though it might have been. Finally, the politics of The Ending were a mess. Was the strife about death? the humans entering? something more?
However, both the world of Everton and The Ending (nicely balanced names, right?) were well-realized and at times I actually wanted to visit Darkling. Maybe.
Those who read The Chosen will find some similarities here: there's a scholar prodigy, gematria, questioning of long-held beliefs, and the transition...moreThose who read The Chosen will find some similarities here: there's a scholar prodigy, gematria, questioning of long-held beliefs, and the transition of a Hasidic group from Eastern Europe to America. However, here the author a better knowledge and understanding about Hassidism and Judaism than I suspect most people will have. For example, Hasids originally opposed the formation of the State of Israel and were anti-Zionism. That's not so say there isn't some explanation (eg, complete immersion three times in the mikvah cleanses your soul, or Jewish beliefs in what happens after death) but I'm not sure it's enough.
The conflict with the beliefs that sends Atara away from her family is shown, but in a weird way: we see her reading "forbidden books", questioning Midrash and commentart, hearing that she might have an arranged marriage and leaving home - but there's nothing about her for the next nearly 100 pages and 47 years! How Mila and Atara's family deal with her absence is only revealed in the last 30 pages. It's also within those last 30 pages that all the major plot twist gets resolved, but in such a way that readers might be confused as to the religious issues.
Those in the NYC area, with the Satmar populations of Williamsburg, Kirias Joel and Monsey nearby will find this an interesting look into that closed world. The dynastic issues are not covered, as this book focuses mostly on the world of the women.
I just couldn't finish this: what I'd hoped would be about this family's incredible loss has turned into being more about this father's anger (and eid...moreI just couldn't finish this: what I'd hoped would be about this family's incredible loss has turned into being more about this father's anger (and eidetic memory for anything and everything about his son). This isn't to diminish the pain of losing one's son, or the life he led (and might have led had he lived) but, well, the son didn't come through as the hero of this as much as the father does. Here's an example: there's about four pages of a conversation, remembered verbatim, the author has with the doctor who did Damon's Fonton surgery, which is equal to the number of pages spent describing Damon's bar mitzvah. And another: the discussion of where the heart transplant should take place is more detailed than Damon's directing the school play.
When I was a pre-teen/early teen, I read books like Sunshine and Death Be Not Proud and The Bird's Christmas Carol and The Other Side of the Mountain (and watched all the tv movies), as did many of my friends. So that's the level of pathos I expected in Immortal Bird, just as I expected that the book (or the part of it I got through) to be filled with Damon's life. And while Damon seems to have been a very nice, talented teenage boy he wasn't that different from other equally nice, talented teenage boys I've known - heart problems excepted, of course.
There's an episode of Criminal Minds where a teen asks Reid if he (the teen) could be a psychopath, and there's Wells' I Am Not a Serial Killer - both...moreThere's an episode of Criminal Minds where a teen asks Reid if he (the teen) could be a psychopath, and there's Wells' I Am Not a Serial Killer - both seem to have informed this book. That's not a bad thing, by the way. The difference here is that Jazz (Jasper) is the son of the worst serial killer in history, Billy Dent, and has been "trained" (aka brainwashed) by his father in how to be an even better killer than Billy ever was. That's quite an ambition for a father to have for a son, isn't it?
Problem is, while Jazz emphatically doesn't want to follow in Dad's footsteps his training has been so engrained that he thinks like a serial killer. And then a woman is killed in Lobo's Nod, and Jazz knows that this is the work of a serial killer even if the police don't believe him. Spoilers aren't needed because you can see where this is heading.
What saves this is the way in which Jazz fights his training and tries to be just another normal kid: having a girlfriend, acting in the school play, etc.. His best friend is a hemophiliac, which leads to some interesting moments. And that girlfriend, Connie, is one of those sassy, not putting up with anything girls.
Unlike Wells' hero John, Jazz looks to be headed for BAU (or CSI) territory. It'll be interesting to see if this becomes a series, and how that'll turn out.
This may surprise my faithful review followers, but this book should have been the sequel, not the first (or only). Why? Read on...
Fifty years ago the...moreThis may surprise my faithful review followers, but this book should have been the sequel, not the first (or only). Why? Read on...
Fifty years ago there were the God Wars (over what is not quite clear) and when the dust settled, all the gods were dead (or reformed, or something) with the exception of Alt Coulumb, still ruled by Kos Everburning (a fire god). Kos' lover, Seril (a moon goddess... I think) was remade into Justice and her Guardians (aka gargoyles) banished. Instead, Justice has Blacksuits, people who are kind of like the Borg in that they have a hive mind and are virtually invincible, but their connection to Justice is more of an incredible high. The world works via a series of power contracts between the former gods and various Powers That Now Be (including some Deathless Kings, but they're not quite explained). All this is sort of organized by Craftsmen and Craftswomen, who work some sort of magic. It's a little confusing.
We open with Tara, who has been kicked out of the Hidden Schools following an insurrection against one of her professors (she burns down his lab - only 2/3 of the way through the book do we learn why she did this). After an unfortunate episode with some guardian zombies (don't ask), she's whisked off to work on the case of Kos Everburning's death, which is tied to the death of Judge Cabot. Her boss, Elayne Kevarin, and the obligatory faithful Acolyte, Abelard, along with a Blacksuit/vampire bite addict named Cat and a vampire pirate, Raz, complete the group trying to figure out who (or what) killed Kos.
Confused? Yeah, me too. Had this world been introduced with Tara, her life in the Hidden Schools and what led up to her being expelled - slowly explaining Craft, how the gods worked, etc. - and then followed up with this "mystery" it would have been far better.
As with A Discovery of Witches, this book is overlong and studded with references to famous people and events. There were many times I found myself th...moreAs with A Discovery of Witches, this book is overlong and studded with references to famous people and events. There were many times I found myself thinking "that paragraph could go... so could that sentence" - if the third book is the same, the series will be over 1500 pages long.
At times it might have made more sense (and tightened the writing) to not have so many famous names involved. For example, the scenes with Queen Elizabeth (the first, not the current Queen) required much set-up, yet it seemed their only purpose was to continue to impress on us how important Matthew's life had been in the 1590s. It also started to get on my nerves how many times the author mentioned "the house was filled with daemons, vampires and witches" (or something similar).
Having griped about that, I wasn't annoyed enough to stop reading - with less filler, the story of Matthew, Diana, their families and the search for Ashmole 782 would have been even better.(less)
A DNF - while the plot was interesting, the writing was getting to me and I gave up after the "banana bread loaf-sized muffin top" jiggling in the "sk...moreA DNF - while the plot was interesting, the writing was getting to me and I gave up after the "banana bread loaf-sized muffin top" jiggling in the "skinny jeans [that] only work if you're actually skinny". The author needs to cut back the adjectives and extraneous descriptive phrases by about 2/3 and beef up the rest of the plot.
Which, as I said, did look interesting: a British exchange student, Olivia, is violently murdered at a Hallowe'en party. The hostess, Bree, is rich, self-involved and overly indulged; and the homestay hostess, Beth, and Olivia had an argument before the party. Or possibly this death had something to do with the death (in a previous book) of Katelyn.
Thanks to the writing style, I'll never know. Perhaps those less bothered by it will enjoy this.
I should just never read the blurbage on books, because this was supposed to be a "sidesplitting romp" and, well, after 100-ish pages, I was waiting f...moreI should just never read the blurbage on books, because this was supposed to be a "sidesplitting romp" and, well, after 100-ish pages, I was waiting for even a mild chuckle.
Obviously I didn't read far enough to find out why two apparently unrelated groups were going after Dan (or possibly it's only about his soon-to-vest stock options that will make him a millionaire - single million, by the way, not serious IT venture money). Nor did I really care why, or whether or not he and his wife would make their relationship work. The couples counselor? Godawful and if that was the author's idea of satire it simply doesn't work.
The original book got 4 stars from me, but this sequel only gets 2. First of all, why am I getting an ARC to a James Patterson sequel? Perhaps it's no...moreThe original book got 4 stars from me, but this sequel only gets 2. First of all, why am I getting an ARC to a James Patterson sequel? Perhaps it's not selling as well as his other series? This book is really Witch & Wizard all over again: there's not that much changed in the way of plot, characterization or, well, anything (unlike, say, the Hunger Games trilogy, which does have some set pieces but you do see character growth and a story arc). It's definitely out of the Patterson factory and suffers from the formula.
Massie's research into the life of Catherine II is extensive (for example, he used three different translations of her Memoirs) and wide-ranging and t...moreMassie's research into the life of Catherine II is extensive (for example, he used three different translations of her Memoirs) and wide-ranging and the writing style is engaging enough to almost make one forget this is a nearly 600 page book (it's the weight that gives it away).
While I knew something about her life, there was much I hadn't and was fascinated to learn. I knew she was a German princess, but not that it was of some small, unimportant state. I knew she and her mother didn't get along, but not the extent of the difficulties. Etc. Intertwined with her story is that of those around her, so we meet people like Empress Elizabeth and Voltaire and Potemkin fully-fleshed out rather than as sketches.
Several rumors are debunked here, like the one about the Potemkin Village (Massie states that those that talked about them weren't on her trip down the Dnieper, and those that were on the trip never mentioned anything amiss - even those representatives of foreign governments who would certainly have done so had there been fakery). Nothing about horses, however, except that she didn't like to ride sidesaddle.
I really wanted this to be a solid 5, but... I just couldn't do it. The missing star is due to four factors: one, there were phrases that were used again and again to describe people (eg, virtually every time an Orlov is mentioned, we hear again that she owes her throne to them); two, there's an entirely unnecessary chapter devoted to the intricacies of the French Revolution (which is interesting in itself, but goes into detail not needed for a book about Catherine); three, there were pieces that I felt were missing, as when she is persuaded that Lutheranism and Russian Orthodoxy are "virtually the same", yet many readers may not understand the depth of the differences between the two; and four, while mentioning many times that Gregory Orlov was "the father of her son, Bobrinskoy" we never actually learn what happened to his child.
Having read his Nicholas and Alexandra, I now think I'll try to find Peter the Great!(less)
This is one of those book that is gathering a lot of love and I felt rather "meh" about. Why? In part it's the slightly florrid writing ("Stan's gestu...moreThis is one of those book that is gathering a lot of love and I felt rather "meh" about. Why? In part it's the slightly florrid writing ("Stan's gesturing hand passed over the woman - the life wrung out in bruises beneath her eyes, soaking and blooming and drying the dirt, as he waved his palm over her breasts and the curve of her hip and her delicate, motionless face."). Whew! It felt like very other sentence was like that, which is a little tiring.
The other problem I had was with Becca. She's supposed to have Big Plans, wanting desperately to get away from the town and its gossips and lack of, well, anything. The finding of the body and how that affects her is supposed to be freighted with meaning, but I didn't really get that. Even her relationship with James felt muted. The parallels between Becca and Amelia Anne are (per the jacket copy) strong, but again, I read them as muted. Was I supposed to worry that Becca, too, would end up dead? Or that she was trapped in this small, backwards town? It wasn't clear.
The mystery of who the dead girl is, who killed her and who knew what could have been far sharper, particularly if the writing had been toned down. Becca's emotions (hinted at, but often ignored for pages) could also have been more prominent.
Sometimes I really want the "half-star" option - this deserves a 4.5. Why? Because when a book makes you want to learn more about the source material,...moreSometimes I really want the "half-star" option - this deserves a 4.5. Why? Because when a book makes you want to learn more about the source material, that's a good book.
Set at Harrow in the modern day, Andrew is a fish-out-of-water American sent for a "gap year" (aka "an opportunity to clean up your record") by his father. While trying to figure out the social hierarchy and Harrovian slang, he witnesses what he thinks is a murder - except the doctors say it's natural causes and the murderer simply disappears. What follows is the story of a haunting of both Harrow and Andrew by the ghost of Byron's (he of "mad, bad and dangerous to know" fame, except in this instance it's "deadly to know") former lover. I wanted to learn more about Byron, and Harrow (why did I think it was further away from London?). The author's sense of American class distinctions and the way in which language plays into class is spot on.
Like last year's Revolution, The White Devil is one of those time-travel mysteries, with ghost sightings, an alcoholic "beak", TB and a 20+-sided essay all culminating in what some may think of as an unsatisfactory ending. The epilogue was unnecessary, which is one of the reasons for the 4.5 rating.
I was tempted to give this a 3, but the fact that I know the town in which this book takes place quite well (it's Woodstock NY) and the author serious...moreI was tempted to give this a 3, but the fact that I know the town in which this book takes place quite well (it's Woodstock NY) and the author seriously changed some of the places (Olive, which does/did exist, is on the other side of the Ashokan Reservoir, not part of Woodstock), which really bothered me. Arbitrary? Definitely. But that's what all ratings are.
As for the story, Ruby's power over the town and the people in it seemed extreme. At first I thought that this was how Chloe saw her older sister: able to get what she wanted (like the lipstick that no one else was allowed to wear) and do what she wanted (for example, always being late to work). Then I started to wonder, but I think my first impression was correct. Chloe's hurt over the way Ruby turns to London in Chloe's absence, for example, or the way that others manage to talk about Ruby when she's not there point to it all being Chloe's vision. And as they get older, Chloe becomes more of her own person - with secrets (like Owen) and the ability to question Ruby's decisions.
There's supposed to be a creep factor here, with What Really Happened to London as the central element. Chloe's cell phone is, I suppose, the second Big Clue (although it's really not clear what happened with the phone). And, of course, the ending is open to interpretation. However, it wasn't really creepy in the way that I think the author wanted it to be, it was just sad.
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