The number of urban fantasy series I still get excited about becomes smaller every year. I’ve been disappointed by authors and characters more times t...more The number of urban fantasy series I still get excited about becomes smaller every year. I’ve been disappointed by authors and characters more times than I can count, and I even flat-out refuse to speak of a series that went in an unwanted direction.( I’d totally tell you which series it is, but you know, I’m refusing to speak about it.;) I am very emotional where urban fantasy is involved and I can hold a grudge like nobody’s business. But sometimes (rarely) an author surprises me in a very different way, and that’s exactly what Cassie Alexander has done.
The Edie Spence series is right back on track and I’m happier than a bird with a french fry. My relationship with Edie Spence wasn’t always smooth and painless. She is a very lonely character, a night shift nurse with a brother addicted to heroin and very few friends. In the first book, Nightshifted, she was so easy to identify with, and while I’m sure she would never want my pity, there were times when I just couldn’t help it. The second book, Moonshifted, brought with it a different Edie, one who took loneliness to a whole new level. She was in a very bad place back then, but I didn’t appreciate how she handled it. Instead of fighting for herself, she allowed every supernatural creature in town to walk right over her and it didn’t take long for it to become very tedious.
In Shapeshifted, Edie is different yet again. Depressed, yes. Possibly lonelier than ever. But she is also determined to do something about it, to find a way to help herself and those she loves, and that’s something I can work with. I adored this new Edie, and I loved seeing her out of her element. Her job in Y4 was fun, but working with human patients while at the same time struggling with supernatural issues was even better.
Shapeshifted shows significant improvement in the romance department as well. This is the second romantic involvement for Edie since the beginning of the series, and while the romances Cassie writes are never straightforward or simple (or even sweet, for that matter), I loved that this one had time to developed, that it was born out of mutual trust and friendly affection. I’m trying to avoid mentioning the name of this love interest, but it is someone I was rooting for from the start. I think he’s the only one who really sees Edie, and he’ll probably be great for her self-esteem.
So yes, I am a huge fan of this series once again, and I hope the next book will be as exciting as this one. Can I please have it now?
It’s no secret that I love urban fantasy more than any other genre out there, and I love it even more when urban fantasy flirts with horror just a lit...moreIt’s no secret that I love urban fantasy more than any other genre out there, and I love it even more when urban fantasy flirts with horror just a little bit. I discovered the Edie Spence series entirely by accident, really enjoyed Nightshifted, the first book, and now I’m happy to report that the second book didn’t diminish my love for it in the least.
I think what people like most about Edie is that she’s just a regular woman, very non-heroic and plain. She works her night shifts at the hospital, gets conned over and over by her addict brother and pushed around by the supernatural community. She has no lasting relationship, no real friends, and her bond with her family is tenuous at best. One can’t help but feel compassion for Edie and her sad, quiet life, but there are times when she seems just a bit too passive. I like reading about regular people in unusual circumstances, and I don’t necessarily want them to be fearless or heroic, but resourceful would be nice. Edie is often just a pushover, for her brother, her co-workers, the mysterious Shadows and the entire supernatural community, especially the vampires. She gets involved in their business in very odd ways, they get her to do their dirty work with just two words of flattery and then keep her in the dark and fail to protect her from things they brought to her doorstep.
I pulled on my scrubs and all the silver that I currently owned. Between my belt, bracelet, and badge – which might warn me a second or two before any attack –I’d give myself even odds on surviving for five seconds once I was outside my door. Five whole seconds, although not necessarily painless ones.
In Nightshifted, Edie took it upon herself to save a vampire child, and now that vampire child, Anna, asks her to be some kind of Ambassador, involves her in things Edie doesn’t even begin to understand, and then just disappears without protecting her in any way. There were times when I wanted to yell at Edie to grow a spine, but there would be no point. She is who she is.
"You can't just leave anyone. It's one of your biggest virtues, and one of your worst flaws.
Edie is constantly surrounded by grotesque creatures she relentlessly takes care of, even when it’s not her job to do so. As I said in my opening paragraph, I love it when urban fantasy flirts with horror, and Cassie Alexander balances the fine line between the two wonderfully. Sure, some of the descriptions might turn your stomach (they did mine, and I’m not exactly a delicate flower), but this is what sets the series apart and I really like it.
At this point, I’d hate for Edie to find a steady relationship and then get her act together and become less pathetic (harsh words, Maja, harsh!). I don’t want a man to fix her life, that would be even more pathetic. I want her to find her own footing, start taking care of herself and then maybe get into a serious relationship, preferably with Asher. I like Asher for her, and I have a feeling he wouldn’t just abandon her like Ty (although he did give me reason to think otherwise). He’s charming and attractive and, you know, definitely NOT a zombie. I’ll keep my fingers crossed.
What I really wanted, but didn’t get from Moonshifted was a stronger story. The first half was essentially plotless, or at the very least directionless. So many things were happening at once, and at the same time, nothing was happening at all. I still couldn’t clearly outline the plot for you, nor do I wish to try. For the first 80%, Moonshifted suffered from the worst case of Second Book Syndrome I’ve ever seen, but at least it ended with a bang. Hopefully, the next book, Shapeshifted, will be a bit more exciting in that regard.
Is there anything a mother wouldn’t do to save her son? Even if they are mostly estranged and angry at each other? Would she willingly walk into a pla...moreIs there anything a mother wouldn’t do to save her son? Even if they are mostly estranged and angry at each other? Would she willingly walk into a place where the air is poisonous and hundreds of zombies roam about?
Of course she would. I would, too.
That’s the choice Briar is forced to make, and it really isn’t a choice at all. Sixteen years ago, Seattle was destroyed by one of her late husband’s inventions, and she became an outcast, a poor, single mother with no one to rely on. From that point on, Briar and her son were lucky when they could cross the street without someone spitting on them for something neither of them played any part in. Briar’s son Zeke is only sixteen and he’s desperate to clear his father’s name, not knowing that his father really is guilty of turning Seattle into a poisonous prison. And there is no doubt in Briar’s mind, her late husband poisoned the air, flattened the city and created rotters, the zombies. But every boy wants his father to be perfect, so Zeke runs away from home to go to Seattle and prove his father’s innocence.
As much as I enjoyed the (too few) steampunk elements in Boneshaker, what I found most intriguing was the complexity of Briar’s relationship with her teenage son Zeke. I normally dislike situations that stem from lack of communication between characters, but in Boneshaker, their reasons for not sharing secrets with each other were so painful and real that I couldn’t blame Cherie Priest for deciding to write it exactly like that. It is what made these characters truly alive, as if they didn’t exist until they were around each other or thinking about each other. Despite the alternate history setting and all those fantastic inventions, despite the zombies and everything else that was exciting, Briar and Zeke were what really kept me on the edge of my seat. When it comes to character bulding, Cherie Priest is the best psychologist I’ve come across since Ann Aguirre, which is saying something, my friends.
But it appears that everything good comes at a price, and excellent characterization was very pricey indeed. In terms of steampunk, Boneshaker leaves a lot to be desired. I realize I’m very nitpicky when it comes to this sub-genre, but if authors won’t use the endless possibilities it provides, I see no point in writing it at all. The steampunk bits did not blow me away like they did in Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences, and I expected more from Priest language-wise, to be honest. Still, keep in mind that Boneshaker won the 2010 Locus Award for Science-Fiction, so this is probably just me being unreasonable and difficult. I get like that sometimes, just ask my siblings. :)
Although Boneshaker didn’t leave me completely satisfied, I am intrigued and eager to read the next book in this series.
And so my steampunk marathon continues. Surprisingly enough, I liked this companion novella more than I liked the book itself. But both are pretty awe...moreAnd so my steampunk marathon continues. Surprisingly enough, I liked this companion novella more than I liked the book itself. But both are pretty awesome. (less)
I’m sure you’ve heard this before, but Alice in Zombieland has very little to do with Lewis Carroll’s classic. In fact, aside from the title itself an...moreI’m sure you’ve heard this before, but Alice in Zombieland has very little to do with Lewis Carroll’s classic. In fact, aside from the title itself and the white rabbit-shaped cloud that warns our Ali of danger, there’s nothing connecting the two. As someone who stays as far away from retellings as possible, I was overjoyed when I discovered this, but if you go into this expecting a new version of that story, you might find yourself disappointed.
Alice in Zombieland is, above all, a fun little book suitable for younger audience. While there are plenty of hot scenes and sexual references in there to contradict what I just wrote, the overall story lacks enough substance and depth to satisfy a more mature reader. This is mostly due to formulaic narrative and stock characters. That’s not to say, however, that this book is not worth reading – it is, as it has several things going for it, but it’s not nearly as original or exciting as I’d hoped.
The story is all too familiar: Ali’s entire family dies in a car accident caused by her schizophrenic father who was trying to save them from invisible monsters. After the tragedy, Ali goes to live with her grandparents, where she soon discovers that her father wasn’t nearly as crazy as he sounded. Monsters start popping up everywhere, but with them comes a group of young people led by the scorching hot Cole Holland, all of them trained to kill the zombies and defend humanity.
Although I liked Cole well enough, he didn’t even come close to provoking the reaction Showalter was going for. All the ingredients were there: the initial rudeness, the mystery surrounding him, the incredibly attractive looks, overprotectiveness, strength and impressive fighting skills, but I just never felt truly enthralled by him, not for a split second. It’s probably because, as a love interest, he seemed just a bit too plastic. Take this quote for example:
I knew he was strong, determined, protective, and that he cared about his friends more than he cared about himself. He obeyed no rules but his own. In the Wild West days, he would have been an outlaw.
It’s true, Cole is all those things, which makes him exactly like hundreds of other characters that showed up recently. I’ve seen authors work with this mold and still manage to create something unique, be it through the sense of humor or something else entirely. But Showalter just didn’t succeed in making Cole memorable at all.
Where she failed with him, she succeeded with Alice… at least up to a point. Alice is also a stock character, but unlike with Cole, Gena Showalter managed to breathe some true spirit into her, which is why she’s the only thing I’m sure I’ll remember about this book.
Oddly enough, Showalter’s take on zombies was the most original thing about Alice in Zombieland, and my favorite part, to be honest. Existing only in the spirit realm, they cannot be seen or touched by just anyone, but that doesn’t mean they can’t do real harm. In order to fight them, Cole and the gang have to separate their spirits from their bodies, and it’s the first thing Ali had to learn as well. While I’m usually a blood-and-gore kinda gal, I found it all very interesting, although a bit confusing at times.
All in all, Alice in Zombieland is a fun, but rather unmemorable book that, I fear, was written merely to satisfy the market, and not in a creative outburst of any sort. A lot of adult authors are deciding to write YA these days because, let’s be honest, that’s where the money is, but some manage better than others, and Gena Showalter falls somewhere around the middle.
Do I think this book is worth reading? Definitely, if you’re looking for a compelling, fun read you’re likely to forget in a short while. There are times when a reader needs exactly that.
Almost two years ago, when I picked up a book called The Reapers Are the Angels (mostly because I liked the title), I never dreamed reading it would b...moreAlmost two years ago, when I picked up a book called The Reapers Are the Angels (mostly because I liked the title), I never dreamed reading it would be such a life-changing, earth-shattering experience. Not only did Alden Bell (pseudonym for Joshua Gaylord, author of Hummingbirds) take everything I thought I knew about genre fiction and turn it upside down, but his main characters, Temple and Moses (and what an odd pair they are) became permanent residents in my thoughts and in my heart.
Exit Kingdom is not a sequel, but a companion novel – a prequel in some ways – loosely connected through two characters: Moses and his paternal half-brother Abraham. The story begins after the events of The Reapers: Moses and Maury are sitting around a bonfire with some survivors and Moses is answering questions about their travels. When asked whether he believes in God, Moses offers to tell a story about his early adventures – one that explains why he knows with absolute certainty that God truly exists.
Like The Reapers, Exit Kingdom is very much a road novel, still influenced by Cormac McCarthy and William Faulkner among others, but the philosophy hidden within is somewhat different. Temple was a ray of hope in an otherwise hopeless world, and Moses’ perspective seems rather bleak in comparison. Many factors caused this huge difference between them, but the most important one, the one that Bell himself keeps pointing out in the few interviews that can be found, is that Temple was born in a world infested with slugs, while Moses still remembers what life was like before.
Bell’s writing is unusual and breathtaking: he skillfully uses language to create the right atmosphere and to bring his readers closer to a world where education had to take the back seat to survival. It’s interesting that a language can deteriorate so badly and still be so beautiful. Add to that Moses’ unusual way of speaking – for even the most mundane sentences become noteworthy coming from his mouth – and you’ll get a prose piece that is distinctive and impossible to forget.
My brother and I, Moses says, we’re hard to offend, friar. You likely couldn’t stumble by accident upon the offence to us – you’d have to give it your full effort and strategy. So don’t fret yourself on that account. We’re happy to get whatever you feel like offerin. And we’re happy to offer services in exchange.
Exit Kingdom is a story about God, or the absence of God, but it is not a religious story. God, like beauty, is very much in the eye of the beholder. Where one sees chaos, another sees harmony. Where one sees apocalypse, another sees rebirth. I think the last sentence (it’s not a spoiler, not at all relevant to our story), will tell you more about this book than I have in this entire review:
Every time I get my hands on a new Demon Squad book, it feels a lot like Christmas. Admittedly, it’s a dirty Christmas, full of drunken groping and inappropriate comments, but it’s Christmas nevertheless. It is not often that urban fantasy is written and delivered with such boldness and abandon – Tim Marquitz does not only overstep the lines of good taste, he completely ignores them and then he laughs in your shocked face. And I love it.
Where is God now? I guess we’ve all asked ourselves that question at some point in our lives, some of us every day even, but when Frank asks, he actually hopes to get an answer. God has been missing, or rather, he left us to fend for ourselves, and to make matters more interesting, Lucifer has done the same. Two armies with no one strong enough to lead them are a sure recipe for disaster, but with a few more hostile universes in the mix, the Earth has very little hope of survival.
Enter Frank Trigg, Lucifer’s reckless nephew. After a long period of silence, his uncle sent him a message warning him about God’s old creations, all bigger and more powerful than us. Trigg is supposed to gather his allies and come up with strategies to defend Earth. But what makes him so special? Why should he carry this weight on his shoulders? To answer that, he’ll have to take a long, hard look into his past and maybe even kill an angel or two in the process.
This time around, Frank gave a whole new meaning to the word underdog. Nobody wanted him around for too long and there were far too many people (I use the term loosely here) trying to kill him. When you add to that a few shocking revelations about his family’s history, it’s no wonder I had the urge to hug him and comfort him just a teeny tiny bit (although he’d probably grab my butt or something, dirty bastard that he is, and then I’d have to shoot him with his own gun… not that he ever gets to keep it for long anyway).
The beginning of Echoes of the Past was a little bit rough for me. I was just getting comfortable in the Demon Squad universe, and suddenly there were more universes to consider, more powers, more creatures, more everything. It was all too much too fast and it took me a while to adjust, but the second half more than made up for it. In it, Marquitz showed that he’s not afraid to add layers to his main character. The emotional depth he showed, the seriousness with which he approached certain subjects while keeping Frank true to himself stunned me. It made me forget about the first half. It even made me less grumpy about the cliffhanger. I’ll always put character development first and that part was done perfectly.
It’s too early to start thinking about book 5, but I can’t help it, not after that cliffhanger, and I’m excited and terrified in equal amounts. I don’t know what’s coming next for poor Frank, but I’m sure it won’t be pretty.
After reading this for the second time, I had to resist the urge to write Ann Aguirre a lengthy fan letter with a bunch of exclamation points (view sp...moreAfter reading this for the second time, I had to resist the urge to write Ann Aguirre a lengthy fan letter with a bunch of exclamation points (view spoiler)[and possibly even a heart or two (hide spoiler)]. I never get tired of her worlds or her characters, nor can I stop admiring the ease with which she pulls me into one of her stories.
Corine Solomon is a handler. She has the gift (or rather the curse) of psychometry: she can see things by touching a charged object. Unfortunately, no matter how many people she helped by using her ability, handling brought her powerful enemies as well so she’s been forced to live in Mexico under a different name for the past eighteen months. To make matters more complicated, she’s also been hiding from her ex-boyfriend and manager Chance, whom she abandoned in the middle of the night after a job gone wrong. Corine is convinced that Chance never loved her the way she needed him to, so when he shows up in her small shop in Mexico and asks her to help him find his missing mother, her first instinct is to run and hide before she gets heartbroken once again. However, Chance’s mother was always kind to her and Corine simply doesn’t have it in her to turn her back on either one of them when they really need her. Instead she chooses to return to the US with Chance, where she is forced to face demons, powerful necromancers, zombies and the scariest thing of all, her ex’s vulnerability.
Corine is not an easy character to love, that’s for sure. She can be petty, vindictive and completely blind to what’s right in front of her. She often made choices that made me want to strangle her with my bare hands. But she’s also smart, unflinchingly loyal and brave, even when she’s at her most vulnerable. Ann Aguirre never writes simple, easily likable characters. Those of you who are familiar with her Sirantha Jax series will remember some of Jax’s actions and know exactly what I’m talking about. But the best thing about that is that it leaves a lot of room for character growth and, even though it takes her a while, she always brings her characters to the point where I admire them completely, possibly even more because I know how they started out. Knowing what I know now, after reading four Corine Solomon books, I can see exactly what she was aiming for at the beginning and what risks she took to make her characters seem more human.
The first time I was reading this (exactly a year ago, thank you, GoodReads) I didn’t know what to make of Chance. He was saying and doing all the right things and I believed him, I did, but there was just something missing, there was an emotional distance present even when he was proclaiming his love for Corine. I guess I understood and liked him better this time around, and I was able to read his actions (or lack thereof) much better. Needless to say, there was a lot of sighing and swooning involved. And then there’s Kel Ferguson (yep, Ferguson, like my Kindle :D). I won’t even try to explain that complicated story, but suffice it to say that he’s one of the most intriguing characters ever and that I haven’t been able to stop thinking about him this past year.
I can’t emphasize enough how much I love this series and everything else Aguirre writes. Oh, and did I mention the zombies? :D
Ever since her father passed away, Eleanor Fitt’s life hasn’t been the same. Her brother Elijah is away in college, the money is seriously lacking, an...moreEver since her father passed away, Eleanor Fitt’s life hasn’t been the same. Her brother Elijah is away in college, the money is seriously lacking, and her mother is obsessed with regaining their place in society. When her brother fails to arrive home for the second time and a walking corpse brings his vague note instead, Eleanor becomes convinced that Elijah is a victim of some necromancer and starts moving heaven and earth to find him. With no one else to turn to, she goes to the Shadow Hunters, a pretty odd group of people who travel from town to town, fighting the spirits and the undead.
Something Strange and Deadly is a lovely, well-written and fast-paced adventure, but the worldbuidling leaves a lot to be desired. There is no background, there is no context, you get thrown into a sink-or-swim situation and you must either take it in stride or give up entirely. Two different types of dead are walking: the slow ones and the fast, hungry ones; there are evil and powerful spirits about; the Shadow Hunters, employed by the city, have a way of fighting the undead; Eleanor is in the middle of it all right from the start, and yet, we are given no explanation whatsoever. Why is it normal, almost accepted, for the slow corpses to walk, but not the fast ones? Why are séances the most popular entertainment of high society? Who raises both types of the dead?
The pacing was so fast, it reminded me of a rollercoaster ride at times. I never really got a chance to catch my breath. This worked doubly to Dennard’s advantage: for one, the story was so easy to get into, and besides, even when I knew I should be irritated by one of Miss Fitt’s especially rash conclusions, I just didn’t have time to think about it too hard. To give credit where credit is due, though, Dennard did surprise me a couple of times and that doesn’t happen often these days. Her story had quite a few unexpected twists and turns and was rather original in some ways.
Oddly enough, romance was my favorite part, and I’m usually not a romance-is-my-favorite-part kind of girl. It was entertaining and subtle, not relevant to the story and certainly not in the spotlight. I liked Daniel a lot, he brought so much humor into every scene and his constant teasing of Eleanor, even in most dire of situations, made me laugh out loud several times. Her bristling and reluctant respect were also quite amusing. He was grinning wide. The rascal was teasing me! And before I could summon a worthy retort, he whistled brightly and sauntered ahead of me. Blazes, he was cocky. And entirely too dashing for his own good – or for my own good, rather. I think the word rascal describes Daniel pretty well.
Do I think this book has something new to offer, despite the faulty worldbuilding? Yes! Will I be reading the sequel? Yes, yes, yes. Susan Dennard knows how to keep her readers interested without resorting to a vicious cliffhanger that would make them feel cheated. I just wish she would write a bit faster.
Never judge a book by its cover. Based on the cover alone, you’d think Nightshifted is a light, borderline fluffy urban fantasy about one chirpy nurse and her supernatural patients. You’d be wrong. Nightshifted is dark, twisted and often extremely gory, and the strongest emotion I got from it was an overwhelming feeling of loneliness.
Is there a person lonelier than a single, nightshift nurse? After reading Nightshifted, I sincerely doubt it. You try working all night, coming home to an empty apartment, sleeping until 3 pm, eating junk food because you can’t afford much else and worrying about your addict brother. Rinse and repeat. That’s the life of Edie Spence.
On her days off, she goes out dancing and usually ends up back in her apartment with a nameless one night stand whom she kicks out before either of them even catches their breath. Things were a bit better back when Edie was working in a private clinic. Sure, she still had a brother addicted to heroin and not a single friend to talk to, but at least she could afford more stuff. But then some powerful strangers approached her and offered to fix her brother if she agreed to work at the secret Y4 ward in the County hospital – a place where supernatural creatures come to seek medical attention. The fact that Edie now works with vampires, dragons, zombies and shapeshifters doesn’t much help her day-to-day life, or her budget, for that matter. It just puts her in all kinds of dangerous situations.
I loved that Cassie Alexander put so much thought into her supernatural groups. Her vampires are exactly as they should be: cold, well-connected, organized, detached and extremely political. Weres and shapeshifters are not nearly the same: weres change to animals, while shapeshifters turn into another human being they touched at some point, through the DNA they collect. There are zombies, weredragons, vampire daytimers and the ominous Shadows that employed Edie. And of course, there’s my personal favorite, the German-speaking ghost that resides in an old CD player.
When I first read that Edie’s love interest is a zombie, I was more than a little worried. I love zombies as much as the next girl, but not everyone is Isaac Marion, you know? I was afraid that Cassie Alexander bit off more than she could chew and it turns out I was right, in part. I liked Ti, he seemed genuinely nice and caring, but he came with his own set of issues, and besides, he wasn’t exactly in the best shape physically, so the whole thing became downright disgusting towards the end. Not exactly a swoon-worthy romance, but then again, it wasn't meant to be.
All in all, Cassie Alexander skillfully avoided clichés and wrote a book that is fresh, although sometimes hard to digest.
Make sure to stop by The Nocturnal Library next week for an interview with Cassie and a giveaway of Nightshifted.
An advanced copy of this book was kindly provided by the publisher, St. Martin's Press, for review purposes.(less)
4.5 stars A few weeks ago, Patty Briggs and her husband Mike joined a chat room to discuss both Frost Burned and Patty’s previous books. The idea was t...more4.5 stars A few weeks ago, Patty Briggs and her husband Mike joined a chat room to discuss both Frost Burned and Patty’s previous books. The idea was to discuss each Mercy Thompson book separately, but that’s not how it went in the end. I was able to join them just once because the timing didn’t work for me, but the half hour I spent talking to Patty and her fans further convinced me that she is both a great author and a very pleasant person. When I shared with her my opinion that Fair Game, her third Charles and Anna book, is the best one she’s ever written, she assured me that Frost Burned is even better. At the time, I took that statement with a healthy dose of skepticism, but now that I’ve finally read it, I both agree and disagree with Patty.
Frost Burned is neither better nor worse than Fair Game – both are as good as urban fantasy can get. From the first Mercy Thompson book (so far there are ten books in this universe), Patty has been getting better and better. In pacing, characterization and plot development, she has reached perfection. Big words, you say? Well, yeah, but so is this series.
After all that fear of her mate bond and of losing herself to the pack, it was nice to see Mercy so comfortable in her role as mate of the Alpha of the Columbia Basin Pack. She and Adam have such a beautiful, healthy relationship. In River Marked, Mercy was feeling more comfortable as part of the pack, but she was still adjusting and she still had her doubts. In Frost Burned, she is truly the Alpha’s mate – she thinks as one, acts as one, and protects as one.
I was going to have to come up with a rank for myself besides Alpha’s mate. In the pack, I was just Mercy – but if ten more people called me the Alpha’s mate, I was going to hit someone. It sounded like a chess move.
The addition of Adam’s point of view was so very unexpected that I had to take a moment to think about it and decide whether I liked it or not. I certainly understand the need: Adam and Mercy spent most of this book apart and their mate bond can only be used so much. Besides, I feel that I now understand Adam just a bit better, and Patty did an excellent job writing from a male perspective. And yet, something bothered me about it, and it took me a while to figure it out. It wasn’t the change in perspective, it was the switch from first-person view to third person view. I wish she’d done both Mercy and Adam in first person. I think that would have worked much better.
Although he was mostly absent from the second half of this book, one Mr. Kyle Brooks stole the first half all to himself. Yes, that’s right – an ordinary human (though admittedly a lawyer) won me over by being a bigger hero than all those other heroes Briggs has created. Kyle has always been the brightest star in Mercy’s universe, but I felt that hi finally got due respect in Frost Burned.
All of the secondary characters appeared, at least for a little while, with the exception of Samuel and Bran. I didn’t miss Samuel all that much (I never did warm up to him), but I missed Bran greatly. He was a constant comforting presence both in Mercy’s mind and mine, but I missed his subtle sense of humor and everything else that makes him who he is.
Those of you who are still unfamiliar with my favorite coyote and her wolves should consider giving this series a chance. And I doubt I need to say anything to those of you who’ve read this series before except: We waited two years for Frost Burned to be released and now it’s finally out. Yaaaay!
This summer has been full sequels that outshined their predecessors. Dearly, Beloved is one of them. Not only is it funnier, better thought-out and be...moreThis summer has been full sequels that outshined their predecessors. Dearly, Beloved is one of them. Not only is it funnier, better thought-out and better written than Dearly, Departed, it also affected me more strongly. The plot is well-planned and well-executed and it finally gave this series a much needed direction it lacked in the first book.
Strangely enough, I originally gave Dearly, Beloved three starts, but, upon further consideration, I decided it deserved more. Lia Habel has enormous talent for worldbuilding, and she is quite good at creating vivid imagery and leaving a strong impression on her readers. The secondary and even tertiary characters she introduced aren’t lacking in detail or in color – from the zombie girl who grows flowers in her rotting body to our dear, headless doctor Samedi, they are all both interesting and entirely unforgettable. As for the main characters, they all changed significantly, some for the better, and some (like Pamma) not. Once again, Habel doesn’t shy away from gory details. Some of the descriptions in Dearly, Beloved are utterly disgusting (and infinitely thrilling, of course). It is through blood and rotten body parts that she breathed life into her world and made it stand apart.
The only thing I can’t seem to get used to is the number of perspectives. There are even more this time: Nora and Bram of course, Pamela, but also Michael, Vespertine, Coalhouse and a newly introduced character, Laura (the zombie flower girl). All of them undoubtedly contributed something significant and as hard as I try, I honestly can’t come up with another way to tell the same story, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t feel disjointed at times.
Romance, however, is what really brought me to my knees. I expected it to be lovely after Dearly, Departed, but I didn’t expect such sweetness and maturity. Nora and Bram face everything together, they understand each other perfectly. Nothing can keep these two apart, they love each other as openly and honestly as they can, aware that time is quickly running out for Bram. And yet, even with time in mind, they (mostly) uphold the rules of propriety, they are both bold and respectful at the same time and this balance they constantly maintain is quite beautiful.
I wasn’t the biggest fan of Dearly, Departed, but everything changed with this book. I can’t wait to read more.
2.5 stars With one hundred pages and three POVs less, plus some small changes in worlbuilding, Dearly, Departed could have been an excellent novel. As...more2.5 stars With one hundred pages and three POVs less, plus some small changes in worlbuilding, Dearly, Departed could have been an excellent novel. As it is, parts of it are amazing, while other parts left me extremely frustrated, disappointed and angry.
If only Lia Habel decided against introducing five (view spoiler)[that’s right, FIVE (hide spoiler)] different POVs, one precious star in my rating would have been saved. At least two of those five contributed nothing but annoyance to the narrative. I’m sure there were far better ways of telling the same story, especially the parts concerning the villain’s actions. The two chapters told from Wolfe’s perspective felt completely out of place and they gave me the impression that the author took an easy way out. As for Pamela’s POV, it could have made a decent new installment or a spin off at some point. Having her thrown in the middle of Nora and Bram’s story made me strongly dislike her, not that she was all that likeable to begin with. If nothing else, she made a pretty good contrast to Nora’s character. While Pamela is whiny and dull, Nora is fierce and resourceful. Contrary to the world that was built for her, Nora is not a girl who will just hide behind anyone’s back. Despite her privileged upbringing and the fact that being a delicate lady is all that’s expected of her, when zombies come, she picks up the gun and starts shooting. It’s no wonder Bram fell in love with her. I fell in love with her!
My biggest problem, however, was not with all the POVs, it was with the society of New Victoria. While I found the idea of going back to (some) old values intriguing, I simply cannot believe that such a large group of women would willingly regress two hundred years from now. Passages like: St. Cyprian’s was meant to create ladies who floated when they walked, played a little piano, and were otherwise charming and unobtrusive. To that end, it was a sheltered environment. Television was forbidden and access to the Aethernet was strictly filtered. and Women were forbidden from joining the army, of course… and “It is through marriage that we can both improve our positions. I want to get out of this hole in the ground. I want to take my place within the best set again. Why do you not understand this?” made me want to cry in frustration. Regardless of the circumstances, I find it very unlikely that women would allow themselves to be treated as furniture again, especially at the end of the 22nd century.
That said, there were many good parts as well. I simply adore Nora, Bram and their undead friends. I fell in love with so many of the secondary characters and I’ll read the next installment mostly because of them. I just hope some minor changes will be made.
I should probably mention that the last part made me cry a little. Hmm. Maybe I'm just getting sappy in my old age.
We were completely different. Danny was tall, sweet, graceful despite legs that went on forever. I was little, moody, uncoordinated. We didn...more4.5 stars
We were completely different. Danny was tall, sweet, graceful despite legs that went on forever. I was little, moody, uncoordinated. We didn't like the same music or the same movies. He put onions and mushrooms on his pizza and never wore socks and could sleep through a pipe bomb. I survived on bananas and yogurt and always wore hats and got carsick unless I chewed gum with my headphones on. It didn't matter. I loved him.
As soon as she entered puberty, strange things started happening around Wren: flying objects and exploding light bulbs became a regular occurrence. This wasn't completely unexpected: all the women in Wren's family can do the same, but for some reason, Wren's mother refuses to talk about it or teach her how to control it. So when Wren’s boyfriend Danny dies in a car accident, Wren decides to use her power and bring him back to her. Unfortunately, Danny that rises from the grave isn’t the same easygoing Danny they buried two weeks earlier. The new Danny, angry and confused, is not nearly as harmless as Wren thought he would be. Just keeping him hidden and compliant might prove to be too big a challenge for one seventeen-year-old girl.
I enjoyed the new take on zombies. Garvey wrote: My zombie, such as he is, isn’t George Romero’s, as you probably figured out. He’s closer to the kind of zombie you might create with Haitian vodou magic, a corpse reanimated and then controlled by a sorcerer. While zombies we’re used to reading about are usually scary in a grotesque way, Danny was creepy and deeply disturbing. Every time Wren kissed him or placed her head on his silent chest, I felt the coldness of his body on my own skin and I shuddered involuntarily. He really made my skin crawl. It was easy enough to forget that he was once a warm and loving boy and that none of it was his fault.
I never even realized how thoroughly I’d connected with Wren until I caught myself siding with her even when she was obviously wrong. I don’t think I even noticed the other (living) characters, not in their own merit at least. They meant to me what they meant to Wren, and if she suddenly changed her mind about one of them, I changed my mind together with her.
The funny thing is that Wren isn’t a character I’d normally like, but that’s where Garvey’s strength lies. Create a selfless, heroic character and everyone will be crazy about him/her under any circumstances, but write a girl who is self-indulgent and careless and make me care about her - and you'll have accomplished something not many authors can.
I think that’s what every emotional reader seeks – a character he/she can connect with entirely. But Cold Kiss is also thought-provoking and original, and Amy Garvey’s marvelous writing skills add more magic to this powerful, compelling and haunting story. I will not only read whatever she decides to write next, I’ll probably preorder it as well.
Favorite quote: Love like that is what they make movies about. It's the thing you're supposed to want, the answer to every question, the song that you're supposed to sing. But love like that can be too big, too. It can be something you shouldn't be trusted to hold when you're the kind of person who drops the eggs and breaks the remote control. Love doesn’t break easily, I found. But people do. (less)
This will seem like an odd thing to say, but the Newsflesh world is my world. I would love to live there with George, Shaun, Buffy and the rest of the...moreThis will seem like an odd thing to say, but the Newsflesh world is my world. I would love to live there with George, Shaun, Buffy and the rest of the characters. Yes, yes, I’m well aware of the zombies, but I honestly don’t care. Given the choice, that’s where I’d want to be.
The point of my little confession is that I welcome every word Mira Grant decides to write. This is not a novella per se because it doesn't have a single storyline, it’s nothing like Apocalypse Scenario #683: The Box. Instead we get to go back to the year 2014. and see how everything started. Nobody can accuse Mira Grant of being superficial. She created a world that is as detailed and as palpable as the one I’m living in, if not more. Everything is thought out. Everything makes perfect sense. Everything is properly explained.
We finally meet Amanda Amberlee, cured of leukemia and getting ready for her prom. No matter how many times Georgia and Shaun mentioned Amanda in their blog entries, it was still nice to find out a little more about her and what she was like when she was alive. We also get to meet Dr. Kellis, the idiots who stole the untested cure for cold and the journalist who wrote the famous article about it. Step by step we find out about the first outbreak and all the events that led to it.
Countdown consists only of facts, Grant didn’t attempt to provoke emotions of any kind or create connections between her readers and the characters. Of course, in doing so, she succeeded in depicting the very nature of the Kellis-Amberlee virus.
I’m sure I don’t need to convince fans of the trilogy to read Countdown.
Mira Grant will NEVER get 4 stars from me. Seanan McGuire is something else entirely. (less)
I’m at a loss on how to rate this book. It’s really in a league of its own. I was tempted to give five stars, but I just couldn’t do that out of respe...moreI’m at a loss on how to rate this book. It’s really in a league of its own. I was tempted to give five stars, but I just couldn’t do that out of respect for Feed, The Reapers Are the Angels, Raw Blue and other books that blew me away and changed me forever. But in all (un)seriousness: this book is five star material and it’s absolutely hilarious!
You know those comedies that don’t make the least bit of sense? The ones you watch fully aware that they are stupid, and yet you can’t help laughing your ass off? That’s sort of how this is. The story has more holes than Swiss cheese, so if you’re looking for a serious YA zombie novel, you definitely won’t find it here. In fact, this book should come with a warning on the front cover: Abandon logic all ye who enter here! But the characters were adorable and they made me laugh out loud on almost every page. That alone made it worth reading.
Kate Grable is a science geek and the student trainer. She tends to minor injuries and hands out Gatorade to the players. Her job would be a lot easier if she wasn’t taking care of the worst football team in existence. She also has to watch her crush, Aaron, get beaten every single time he plays. They hit Aaron really hard; I heard the whoosh! his lungs made when all the air was forced out. I wanted to beat the heck out of the JV guys for that, except I wouldn’t know what to do in a fist fight without a manual.
Kate soon discovers that the desperate Coach has been giving illegal shots to some of his players and that those same players are turning into zombies. She has to use all her knowledge and available weapons to prevent her brother, Aaron and her friends from becoming zombies as well.
The next time you need a few hours of pure fun, read this book! I promise you won’t be sorry. (less)
I hate having to review this book. I've spent the last 24 hours thinking about it, trying to figure out a way to point out the good and the bad, inste...moreI hate having to review this book. I've spent the last 24 hours thinking about it, trying to figure out a way to point out the good and the bad, instead of just listing all the things that annoyed me. Here’s my conclusion: the only remotely fair thing to do is to write two separate reviews: one of the first and one of the second half of the book.
First half: ***** (five stars) The first half of Ashes was one of the best things I’ve read recently, and that’s saying a lot! It was amazingly well written, fast paced, with interesting, layered characters and a compelling plot. Alex is a 17-year-old girl with a brain tumor. She’s lost her parents a few years back and is now living with her aunt, but she spends most of her time in the hospital. At the beginning of Ashes, she is out of the hospital and has just decided not to do any more treatments, seeing as they are not helping her in any way. Instead, she chooses to go hiking in the wilderness. There she meets an old man and his granddaughter Ellie and shares a meal with them. Shortly after that, an EMP wipes out every electronic device and kills the old man in the process. That leaves Alex with the 8-year-old girl to take care of and some new abilities she doesn’t fully understand. After only a short walk, the girls stumble upon two teenagers who are eating another human. It becomes pretty obvious that the EMP affected human brains as well as the electronic devices. But why then did Alex and Ellie remain unchanged?! Ok, so we have a great plot, interesting characters, a subtle love story AND zombies eating intestants and gouging out people’s eyes. It’s no wonder we were all so thrilled. But then the second half came…
Second half: ** (two stars) I can pinpoint the exact moment where it all went wrong. From the end of one chapter to the beginning of the next, everything changed. Ashes went from being amazing to being utterly unimaginative and even boring at times. I had to force myself to finish it. It picked up the pace again on the last 50 pages or so, but only to make the most horrible, cliffhanger ending possible.
Here are some of my problems with the book: - Alex is 17, but she is far too skilled and mature for that to be believable, even more so because she's been very sick for a very long time. People who spend years in the hospital usually don’t know that much about surviving in the wilderness. She could have been book smart, sure, but building fires?!? I don't think so. She kept saying that her father taught her, but he was dead by the time she entered her teen years. - I had the same problem with her knowledge of medicine. Apparently her mother was a doctor and they used to spend their time together stitching up chickens. Honestly, I don’t know a single teen or pre-teen that interested in his/her parent’s work. - I hate cliffhanger endings, and this was the mother of them all! I don’t understand why authors feel the need to do that! A cliffhanger ending will make me less likely to read the next book, not more! And this particular author likes cliffhangers so much, she even ended a few chapters with them. When you end a chapter with a cliffhanger and start the next one with the words Three days later, you can count on losing a few readers.
Maybe Ilsa J. Bick is a pseudonym for two people, much like Ilona Andrews, only these two people don’t get along as well?!? I will still read the next book when it comes out, but I can’t say I’m too happy about it.
Michelle R., Wendy Darling and Bonnie have made this experience much better than it would have been without them. Thanks, girls! (less)
This will be a short review and it will mostly be about my (imaginary) relationship with Alan Alda and my creepy stalker habits. I apologize in advanc...moreThis will be a short review and it will mostly be about my (imaginary) relationship with Alan Alda and my creepy stalker habits. I apologize in advance.
I've always wanted to marry Alan Alda. Not because I find him particularly attractive, but because I enjoy hearing him speak. The way I see it, if I was married to him, I’d be allowed to wake him up at all hours and make him read to me in that sweet, nasal voice and with that subtle but charming accent. Ok, so maybe my view of love and marriage isn’t the healthiest one around, but a girl can dream, right? Since I obviously won't be marrying him any time soon, buying this audiobook was the next best thing. That happens to me sometimes. I fall in love with people’s voices and/or accents and I lose all sense of shame. Once I’d even followed some Romanian tourists around all afternoon just to hear them speak. (view spoiler)[What?!? I said I have no shame! (hide spoiler)] So imagine my surprise and delight when I recognized Alan Alda as one of the narrators of World War Z. Max Brook himself was also a cast member. It’s no wonder I was thrilled with this audiobook!
World War Z is basically a collection of stories told by the survivors. The main character, also named Max Brooks, recorded their testimonies and shared them with the world. Every single story (and there are maybe 15) is very interesting, some more emotional than others. Here’s another confession: every bone in my body is completely apolitical and there’s plenty of politics in World War Z. I didn’t care about that part too much, but I’m sure some of you will appreciate it more. Personally, I preferred the stories about survival that had nothing to do with politics, like the story of a female US army pilot (who may or may not be hearing voices) trying to survive in the swamps of South Louisiana.
I recommend this (audio)book to every one of my zombie loving friends, as well as those of you who aren't yet convinced. Maybe Max Brooks will be the one to change your mind. (less)
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