Kara Dennison's Blog, page 16

MERCH REVIEW: Evangelion x CASETiFY Smartphone Cases

 

DISCLAIMER: Samples were provided in exchange for an honest review.

CASETiFY is basically my dream-come-true smartphone case company: good pop culture designs and actual phone protection. I want my phone to be just as nerdy and not nearly as easily damaged by falls as I am, and these cases are perfect for that.

I fell in love with them when they launched their Sailor Moon line, and now they're back with another anime crossover. Hideaki Anno may be off making new movie versions of all his favorite franchises, but we still remember Evangelion. And this go 'round, CASETiFY has dropped a massive series of techie collectibles for all your Third Impact needs.

The collection kicks off today, but the lads and I got an early look at what's on offer:

All done up in top secret NERV packaging, this duo of phone cases already brings the vibe before I've even opened them up. Now, let's see which two I've got:

These two are just my style. While there are plenty of designs with character art front and center, I'm a sucker for these more straightforward looks. The Angel case is extra slick, with just a wee bit of text—Our future depends on defeating the Angels.—at the bottom.

The other is just perfect: EVA-01 colors and design, a little NERV logo... basically, a solid design. I'm a big believer in character merch that blends into your everyday, so fellow fans know what's up and those not in the know just think it looks cool. The SEELE designs (seen in the press image at the top) are another good choice if you're of a similar mindset.

These cases are, as usual, sturdy and lightweight. I've never gone back to bulkier protective cases since getting my first CASETiFY case. It's nice to know my phone is protected without feeling like I'm carrying around an entire brick.

That's just the tip of the iceberg, though. This merch drop includes a whole line of stuff to NERV out your daily carry: earbud holders, wireless chargers, laptop sleeves and cases, magsafe wallets, power banks, and more.

Thanks as always to CASETiFY for letting me try out their awesome new anime goods and share them with you!

Shop the Evangelion x CASETiFY Co-Lab now!

BOOK REVIEW: The Immeasurable Depth of You

 

Navigating mental health and self-care in the Internet age is a difficult, devastating thing. On the one hand, you want to reach out—heck, you're taught to reach out. On the other, reaching out could mean opening yourself to a style of help you don't necessarily want to receive... even if it might be what you need.

The Immeasurable Depth of You may have facets of young adult romance, but the focus is squarely on mental health: the good, the bad, the ugly, and (regrettably) the occasionally nonexistent.

Brynn is our heroine: a Tumblr denizen who escapes into a world of fandoms, creativity, and Internet friends when the going gets tough. But when the going gets a little too tough, and her best friend alerts her mother to some troubling thoughts, Brynn finds herself escaping to a world of houseboats, alligators, and no technology. Her well-meaning mother has sent her away to spend the summer with her dad in Florida. No cell phone (except for an old dumb phone to call home), no Internet, none of her usual escapes.

For Brynn, the only thing more terrifying than living off the grid is... well, literally everything else. Her mind creates a variety of Floridian horrors for her to navigate. But even her catastrophizing couldn't have predicted Skylar.

At first, Skylar seems like a slightly less mean Mean Girl, come to give Brynn a hard time and look absolutely gorgeous doing it. But early on, the truth becomes clear: Skylar is dead. Her passing was a tragedy that shook the whole town. And Brynn's father was the one who found her body.

Now, Brynn's summer has a trajectory. Face her fears to find out who killed Skylar. Because, for whatever reason, Skyler can't—or won't—tell.

Getting mental health issues "right" in fiction can be difficult. It's already a difficult topic to depict empathetically, even if the author themselves has experience. Depicting so many facets of it is a huge ask. But Mora nails it all: the terror, the guilt, the feeling that no one can possibly understand you, the feeling that you're a burden on those same people, the shame, the shame at feeling shame... it's a never-ending cycle, and one that The Immeasurable Depth of You approaches with a mix of protective wit and raw openness.

The story itself unfolds intriguingly. Skylar's reveal as a bayou ghost is early on, but that's not the last surprise waiting for readers. Natural and supernatural reveals are waiting around every corner. The resolution is both heartwarming and heartbreaking. Most important, it's the best sort of ending for this book.

The Immeasurable Depth of You will be a difficult read if you have dealt with these situations in your own life—either internally or by supporting a friend. But it's worth the difficult read. Most of all, it demonstrates that being misinformed is not the same as lacking empathy, and coping with these situations will always be a work in progress. It's a must-read for anyone trying to understand and help a young adult in their life.

The Immeasurable Depth of You is available now from Peachtree Teen.

TEA REVIEW: Chapters

 

Three things you'll know about me within a few minutes of meeting me: I love to write, I love to read, and I love tea. Anything that combines all of those things makes me extremely happy.
I found Chapters Tea completely by chance through an Instagram post (once in a while social media has me figured out). Everything about the company appealed to me: a small business owned by a fellow writer, tea with thought and care put into small-batch blends, gorgeous custom artwork, and a bookish theme. Naturally I had to try them.
I started with three blends from them that already suit my usual tastes, to see how it compares to other brands. And I am irrevocably hooked.
Poet's Study  (seen above) is my favorite of the trio I received, but I'm also a fiend for Earl Grey: the stronger, the better. If you're also a fan, you'll know what I mean when I say the bergamot hits just right. The packaging leans into a dark academia vibe, and the blend itself is inspired by the works of Edgar Allan Poe.
I've had a lot of Earl Grey in my time, and this is by far my favorite. It's strong, but in all the right ways. The cornflowers both look lovely in the blend and add a light contrast to the tea's strength. It's my new go-to Earl Grey.

English breakfast is very much a hit-or-miss tea. I've tried plenty of versions where it just comes out to Neutral Tea Flavor. When done right, it reminds me of early mornings at Heathrow after an overnight flight, recalibrating to a new time zone and a new rhythm as I prepare for a few weeks in one of my favorite cities in the world.

Second Breakfast is an English breakfast with a Hobbit-y bent: added marigolds for color and flavor. I never expected to describe English breakfast as "smooth," but this one has all the strength and boldness you'd expect while still being comforting. This is one I can see myself serving to coffee-drinking friends who aren't quite sure about tea yet: it's the most approachable of the trio.

Picnic at Pemberley is the one green tea currently on offer, inspired by the country estate of Pride and Prejudice. Blending a good green tea variant can be tricky, but this is a winner. The rose and jasmine petals stand out beautifully against the green of the tea leaves, and it tastes even better than it looks. (I might be slightly biased, as I'm a fiend of anything with rose in it.)

This one is lighter on the caffeine than the other two, and is perfect for anyone who wants something a bit more floral that still has a kick to it.

What sticks out to me most is the thought that goes into the branding and packaging. The art on each package is beautiful, for one thing. For another, these flavors feel so true to their inspiration. And those are just the ones I tried! 

There are eight in total at the moment, several of which I've still yet to try. Some, like the Little Women-inspired mint and floral At the Waterfront blend, harken back to more favorite books and authors. Others, like the hibiscus and raspberry lemonade Beach Reads or the self-explanatory Chai Café Vanilla, evoke that book lover's life independent of a specific title.

All of them, though, are dedicated to wellness. In addition to the good herbal inclusions, 5% of proceeds go to Active Minds, the nation’s premier nonprofit organization supporting mental health awareness and education for young adults.

I can't recommend Chapters highly enough: not just because it's a small business, not just because it's tea that hits me right in my aesthetic, but because it's actually extremely good.  If you'd like to try some for yourself, the Summer Bookish Bundle is currently on sale: four teas (the three reviewed above and Beach Reads), plus a stainless steel feather teaspoon and 30 drawstring tea bags to make steeping easier.

On the fence about picking up your first back of Chapters tea? How about a discount code? Use code Kara15 at checkout to get 15% off your order!

BOOK REVIEW: Dead Man's Hand

 

I've been a fan of The Dresden Files ever since I heard author Jim Butcher talk about his issues playing as his own copyrighted character in City of Heroes. I'm also a fan of the offspring of great authors striking out into their own writing careers: still bearing the DNA of their parents, but with an evolved twist and very personal voice. So picking up Dead Man's Hand, the debut novel of James J. Butcher and the first installment in The Unorthodox Chronicles, was a no-brainer.

This inaugural book is both delightfully familiar and tantalizingly unfamiliar for fans of magical sleuth Harry Dresden. We are once again in a world of magical realism: but the rules and repercussions of this world's magic vary greatly. Rather than an interlocking set of inspirations across many realms of fiction, the world inhabited by the Unorthodox shares a space with a sort of universal, ancient darkness: the mood of Grimm fairy tales and eldritch nightmares. If you happen to be a witch, you'll spend your life staring into this other plane—the Elsewhere—unless you avail yourself of some kind of mask or eye covering to create a separation.

The plane these magic users tread, and the magic they wield, understandably make them frightening to normal humans... so much so that Grimshaw Griswald Grimsby, who aspired to be one of Boston's government-sanctioned witches (known as Auditors), is stuck working a dead-end job as a mascot and oddjobsman for a grungy children's party place.

That all changes when Les Mayflower, the grizzled Huntsman, comes calling. The good news is, this unlikely friendship will lead Grimsby down a path of adventure and self-discovery. The bad news is, it's because his former partner has been found dead... and in a very Ace Attorney twist, "Kill Grimsby" was found written next to her corpse. But Mayflower has reason to believe that Grimsby may have been framed, and he's only interested in revenge if it's exacted on the actual killer.

What follows is an exhilarating adventure through Boston and the Elsewhere as this unlikely duo battles horrifying familiars, uncovers more about the victim's checkered past, and tests each other's mettle and empathy. There's also some frankly brilliant on-the-fly worldbuilding—never easy in a first volume, when the author has to juggle character introductions, setting introductions, and an engaging plot. But Butcher does it here, spinning out Grimsby's Boston in story beats that make the info dumps work with the story rather than against it.

Dead Man's Hand sparks with the same style of humor as the works of the elder Butcher. The simultaneous sharp sarcasm and endearing awkwardness of Harry Dresden is divided across Grimsby and Mayflower, who make for a magnificent odd couple. But in the younger Butcher's works, there's an even vaster underpinning of darkness. Rather than feeling like haunted things lurk around every corner as in The Dresden Files, The Unorthodox Chronicles presents a world where we walk casually through darkness every day, and only a select few can see how truly frightening that is.

Grimsby's personal journey (which is only just beginning) is a powerful one, too. His troubled past and his feelings on it are tied to his personal connection with magic—a stunning metaphor for those who want it, or an exciting read for those who are just here for the action.

Any dedicated author improves with every book. If this is where James J. Butcher is starting, he's going to be unstoppable.

Dead Man's Hand is now available from Penguin Random House.

BOOK TOUR: The Thief, the Harlot and the Healer

 

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For fans of Francine Rivers, Kate Mosse, Tessa Aftshar and Jenifer Jennings…comes this riveting tale of the life and death struggle of a woman facing calamity in AD 33.

In a time of miracles and demons a woman like Rachel has no right to life. She is enslaved in a brothel, with no prospect of love and freedom, until a young girl is abducted and placed in her care. Rachel’s escape with the child, determined to return her to her family, commences a gripping page turning account of a chase across Galilee to Capernaum.

Along the journey Rachel meets the followers of the strange Healer. One man in particular, Thomas, seeks to help her. But Rachel, so damaged by the past, faces an even greater battle to rescue the young woman inside herself who for so long has been denied love and care.

Who can rescue Rachel? And will it be too late?

- - -

There's a lot of Bible fanfiction out there. Some of it has become classic literature; some is just a mess. So on approaching The Thief, the Harlot and the Healer, I was cautious. There are all sorts of ways a Biblical narrative, especially a New Testament one, can go wrong. Go too far in the direction of either hard criticism or apologia can ignore important historical and cultural context.

In fairness, M.E. Clements's book is written so a broad modern audience can understand and engage with it. That said, it examines the last days of Jesus as grounded in the world in which he lived: one in which people were looking for a very specific kind of Messiah, and may well have been disappointed by the kind they got. Or, in the case of protagonist Rachel, they may not have wanted a Messiah at all—in fact, the very idea of what he was offering might come across as insulting.

Rachel is an unwilling member of a brothel. Many year ago her daughter, Anna, was stolen from her by the thief Boataz. As the book opens, this same thief brings a new child to the same brothel: Mina, the teenage  daughter of a well-off family. Rachel is desperate to save Mina from the life she's been forced into and, with the help of the madam and some alleged allies, the woman and the girl make their escape. However, Mina's absence has been noted, and her family seems keen to pin the blame for her disappearance on Rachel.

This is only part of the story, thought. The "Healer" of the title is, of course, Jesus—or "Yeshua," as he would have been called at the time. There's no Renaissance reimagining here. Yeshua is a simple man with worn hands and a kind personality. The fact that he has no plans to violently overthrow the Romans and create an earthly kingdom bothers many people. 

But what bothers Rachel is what he's really here to do. As a woman who has been hurt and taken advantage of by men all her life, the idea that she's broken and should go to a strange man to be healed is insulting, to say the least. It's an insightful angle, and one that takes into account how even the most well-meaning witnessing can come across to a person who's been through hell on earth.

The Thief, the Harlot and the Healer is a compelling read, even divorced from its deeper spirituality. With an intriguing story that weaves in and out of history and scripture, it's a page-turner that will keep you enthralled until the final page.

This blog post is part of a book tour sponsored by The Book Network.

Coming to Otaku USA's October 2023 Issue!

 

Each issue of Otaku USA is written pretty far in advance, so I never remember 'til my copy comes in the mail what I have in a given issue. Sometimes I have to be reminded by one of the editors that we (and occasionally I specifically) have already covered a show. Alternately, that could be my own horrible memory at work.

But never mind, the October 2023 issue is being mailed out and will be on newsstands soon, and I'm in it. I've just got one contribution this time, but it's one I'm pretty happy about: a feature on Bibliophile Princess.

I slept on this show when it first dropped for some reason, and I wish I hadn't because it's right up my street. I go into detail in the feature, of course. But the short version is, it's an absolutely adorable story about a cute bookworm and the prince who loves her. I especially like the focus on trust in relationships and the regular sidebars about the power fashion and style have over actual life-improving technological advances. This probably sounds ludicrous applied to a fluffy romance series, but trust me, that's a theme.

That's the entirety of my contribution to this issue, but I have much more coming to future issues. In the meantime, you can always check me out on the OUSA website, where I post features every other day on whatever strikes my fancy in the world of anime at any given time.

What I Learn by Reviewing Other People's Books

 

I miss being the book reviewer for Sci-Fi Magazine. It's been almost a year since the publication unceremoniously shut down, and while there are lots of things about that that make me sad, losing that position is one of them. Not just because of the position (though saying "I write the book review column for Sci-Fi Magazine" did impress people and that was fun). But because I had a platform to introduce people to more than just big-name genre titles by well-known authors. I went out of my way to share lesser-known works that absolutely deserved eyeballs, and I was happy for a chance to do that on a broad scale.

But I also got a lot out of it. And while I was initially going to give up writing book reviews now that I had only my blog to share them on, I didn't want to lose that learning experience. If anything, with the extended creative block I've been enduring, I need that more than ever. And while the results aren't showing yet, the learning experiences are stacking up.

If you are a writer or want to be a writer, I recommend learning to write reviews. Even if you don't share them. Because the more you engage with other people's writing on a critical level, the more your own writing will improve.

A long time ago, I was told that if a certain behavior in someone really annoys you to an illogical extreme, there are good odds that you dislike that same behavior in yourself and are recognizing it subconsciously. While I don't believe this is an absolutely infallible rule, it does hold some merit. And I absolutely take it into account when something bugs me about a book I'm reading.
In fairness, sometimes a book just has errors. I've read a good number of books with little to no proofreading, stilted dialogue, characters' motivations spelled out for the reader as though the author thinks we're incapable of critical thought... those things stick out. That's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about more subtle, common, even forgivable errors. It drives me mad when an ending is rushed, when an intriguing piece of story isn't given ample time to stretch, when there's plenty of occasion for the author to motivate a character in a certain direction but relies on narrative causality anyway... and when I go back and read my own work, I notice that those are my own most common shortcomings.
Whenever I see something in a book that bugs me that much, and it's not structural or academic, I make a note of it. Then I go and look through my own past work to see if I can spot the same issue in my own writing. And yeah. I can. Quite a bit. And while it's fair to mention those things in my review of the book I've read, it's also a high sign for me to push myself to improve there.

The review process is also a never-ending crash course in learning the difference between what's bad vs. what's not to my tastes (and, inversely, what's good vs. what is to my tastes). This was something I had to learn quickly in my book review position. 
One of the first books I reviewed was the exact kind of story I'm personally weary of—both thematically and in terms of overexposure of a trope—but my weariness of it does not influence the quality of the story. The question is never "Did Kara like this book," unless someone specifically asks me for my personal opinion. The question is, "Would someone who's trying to decide whether to pick this book up like it?" And someone who would be intrigued by the cover, the title, and the dust jacket blurb would definitely have liked it. Because they would specifically be seeking out the tropes I was tired of. There were some things to critique about the book in terms of pacing and realizing its own goals (which I'll get to in a bit), but my own personal feelings didn't apply.
Similarly, me liking a piece of media isn't the same as it being objectively good. I enjoy some real trash once in a while and I have no problem admitting it. We all have things we excuse because it's our vibe. And sometimes I read a book that's so my jam that I personally can ignore its structural shortcomings. But that doesn't mean they aren't there, and that doesn't mean that every reader is willing to be that much of an apologist for things they enjoy.

I briefly mentioned the issue of whether or not a book achieves the goals it sets out for itself, and that's another thing I've had to bear in mind. What is a story's goal, and does it get there? As with separating my taste from the objective quality of a book, I also have to separate a story's goal from what I'd like the story's goal to be.
For example, I read a book (which will go unnamed as I reviewed it for a specific publication and didn't review it that highly) which put all its eggs in one basket to the point of seemingly establishing a very clear theme. Then, with its final chapter, it seemed to lean into another that worked directly counter to what it had been building to the whole time—and not in a subversive way. Then there was an author's note carefully explaining that yes, the first theme was the intent... but if you need an author's note to explain the entire point of your book to the reader, something is up.
Occasionally, a book's goalposts are pretty bad, and that does need to be accounted for, too. I'm pretty sure I once read and reviewed someone's breakup book (again, will not be giving title or author). The author's goals were clearly to establish that humans will always be bad, women are all the same, and he'd be happier living alone in the forest with a loaded gun. He absolutely pitched straight through his own goalposts with confidence and not a shred of irony. This was one of the rare situations where meeting the book on its own terms just didn't feel right. And you will encounter that sometimes, and it's fair to call that out when you do. That requires the critical thinking to know when a book doesn't see eye-to-eye with you and when the author is just a mess.
With all that said, this has made me think much more about my own goals with every story... even if a story is meant to be a tie-in or a fun one-off or not particularly deep. What do I want to leave the reader with? How do I want them to feel as they go about their day? If I have characters who think and act counter to my own values (which is gonna happen all the time if there's ever going to be conflict and stakes), am I still managing to get my own feelings out there? I look back at stories like The Tale of Sir Hedwyn which, while fun to write and an interesting character piece, betrayed a level of hopelessness that I don't really vibe with. Everything else I've written for the City of the Saved line so far is a direct answer to that first story: attempting to inject hope back into the setting. The horrors persist, but so do we.
Again, this never has to be particularly deep thought, but it's fair to ask where you're leading the reader and what you're leaving them with. Hope? Fear? Curiosity? What will their day be like after they put down your book? The more I ask that, the more I find myself wanting to codify an answer for even the smallest writing projects.
At the end of all this, I want to remind people that rating and reviewing books—on Amazon, GoodReads, and so on—is one of the best ways to help an author. Especially an indie author. And reviewing books is one of the best ways to help you learn to engage with your own writing and the writing of others. It's certainly doing it for me... hopefully to a point that there will be movement soon on projects.

BOOK REVIEW: The Reunion

Blended families are nothing new. Neither is family drama... or family trauma. Distance and careful wording can keep most issues at bay. But what happens when a fractured family is brought together for the first time in years, with the specific intent of building bridges? In the case of the Mayweathers, the answer appears to be murder.

The Reunion brings together eleven members of this growing extended family: the children and grandchildren of a wealthy man, himself not present for the occasion. We see this Cancún getaway through the eyes of four teens: the Acker-Mayweather twins, Mason and Addison; their cousin Natalia; and Theo, whose father Austin is engaged to Mason and Addison's mother Elizabeth. That's the occasion: an engagement part. And the hope is that this time will help Theo and Austin blend more with the Mayweather family.

But things are already awry. Mason, Addison, and Natalia were all players in an "Incident" three years prior, and this is their first time in one place since then. Natalia, in between check-ins with her long-distance boyfriend Seth, just wants to smooth things over. But Addison is paranoid, guarding a cigar box of secrets that could rock the Mayweather boat even more than the Incident. And Mason and Theo are on shaky ground themselves—Mason distrusts Theo's father, but Theo also knows one of Mason's dark secrets... and may be uncovering another.

And then, amidst the narrative, we discover that one of the family members ends up dead on the night of the engagement party. Oddly cheery hotel PR, police transcripts, and newspaper clippings slide in between the chapters, slowly spinning out loose details of what's to come. By the end of the story, we know all the details... but we share that secret with a very small number of characters.

The format of The Reunion is a unique, and surprisingly effective, one. Two strains of suspense are spun out side-by-side. Through the narrative, we get peeks at the many skeletons in the Mayweathers' various closets: the Incident, the teens' many secrets and the web they weave, and the multiple deceptions perpetrated across three generations. In the interspersed material, a murder mystery unfolds... first with an unnamed victim, then with an identity, leaving us to continue to read the soon-to-be-dead co-narrator's experiences and knowing that their narrative could be snuffed out at any moment.

Besides being an effective thriller, it's also a heartbreakingly accurate look at generational trauma. The Mayweather family tree and its many branches is initially depicted as a big, quirky group of troublemakers who are lovable once you get to know them. But, as is the case with many families who self-describe in such a way, stripping away the layers reveals dark secrets.

The ending is sad, but masterfully handled: a quiet and all too real coda to the events of the story... one that plays out far too often in real families all around the world.

As a fairly new reader of YA fiction, I've noticed that the bulk of the review copies I get trade narrators from chapter to chapter. This can be highly effective, especially when it comes to stories like this. However, they're at their most effective when each narrative voice is distinct in more than just feelings and observations. If there is a flaw in The Reunion—which is by and large a fantastic book—it's that there is minimal variance in character voice. It's not a deal-breaking flaw, as the changing viewpoint is largely a tool to progress the story. However, it would have been nice to see the characters' voices evolved a little further.

That aside, The Reunion is a true summer page-turned for young adult and adult readers alike. As one mystery is solved, another surfaces. In the end, it's less the story of a crime and more the story of a damaged family spackling over the many cracks in their foundation, leaving them for the next generation (and the next, and the next) to handle.

The Reunion goes on sale August 29.

BOOK REVIEW: Pride and Prejudice and Pittsburgh

 

There was a time when throwing back to Jane Austen was all the rage... both in terms of niche genre lit and fantasy escapism. Fiction ran the gamut from Lost in Austen to Pride and Prejudice and Zombies with varying results. But in Rachael Lippincott's latest outing, sci-fi and romance have an equal footing.

Pride and Prejudice and Pittsburgh focuses on Audrey, a hopeful teen artist at a crossroads in her life. She's just been through a breakup that's left her questioning her path forward to art school. Working at her family's store in her hometown is secure, but still not exactly what she's looking for. Then Mr. Montgomery, a cranky but loyal shop regular, throws a quarter at her and she wakes up in Regency England.

It's equal parts Life on Mars and Somewhere in Time, though Audrey at least gets to keep use of her cell phone for a bit. She's first discovered by Lucy Sinclair, a young lady who's having a pretty bad time of her own. Her widower father is gunning for her to earn an engagement to one Mr. Caldwell, an eligible bachelor who will give her (and thus her father) a comfortable life. But Lucy doesn't feel that "spark" with Mr. Caldwell, and is dreading an end to her life of freedom.

Fortunately for her, she has Audrey to distract her. The two work out that Audrey's magic quarter is counting down her days in 1812. Based on some cryptic words from Mr. Montgomery, the two figure out that she needs to have some sort of experience before the number on Audrey's quarter reaches zero. Probably finding love. Luckily, Radcliffe and the surrounding estates are absolutely crawling with eligible bachelors. But between fancy balls, late-night dance parties, and (of course) unexpected dips in nearby lakes with handsome men in gauzy shirts, Lucy and Audrey find themselves falling for each other.

Pride and Prejudice and Pittsburgh is aware of its source material in just the right way: versed enough in it both to hat-tip it and subvert it. All the earmarks of an Austen work are there—both the straightforward references and the thematic elements. Rather than seeking to overthrow the source material, though, it creates a romance that works surprisingly well within it. So often, we see older fiction reapproached through a modern lens in a way that thoroughly shreds the original, marking it as misguided and problematic with the new take being the superior, enlightened one. Here, though, classic and modern work in harmony. Instead of damning Regency literature for having no space for Audrey and Lucy's romance, it both acknowledges a place for it and demonstrates how suited to the genre their burgeoning love actually is.

If there is a shortcoming with the book, it's the last-minute nature of Mr. Montgomery's whole deal being explained. While it's entertaining—and in the end really just a means to an end—I would love to have seen this addressed a tiny bit more. There's so much in those little moments that adds another compelling layer to Audrey's story, including how she found herself in this particular time with this particular person. But a lot of it is lost in the rush to the climactic finale. That's such a small gripe compared to the larger positives of the book, though.

Funny, sweet, compelling, and head-over-heels in love with the books that came before it, Pride and Prejudice and Pittsburgh is a sweet read for anyone who's ever been at a crossroads in life or in love.

Pride and Prejudice and Pittsburgh goes on sale August 29.

BOOK REVIEW: Watch Dogs Legion: Cold Reboot

 

Watch Dogs: Legion takes players into a dystopian London, dropping them into the shoes of hackers from the organization known as DedSec. The masked hackers have a twofold goal: clear their name of the terrorist attacks for which they've been accused, and free the public from the Big Brother-ish influence of Albion.
If you're not aware of any of this as you begin Cold Reboot, that's fine—Robbie MacNiven skillfully spins out the game's lore as you read on. Besides which, this book steps outside London, taking the fight to Germany and its own tangled web of hacktivist groups. At the center of this web is Freya Bauer, a DedSec hacker attempting to leave the job behind and settle into her role as single mom to a newly-minted college student.
But, of course, it's never that easy. DedSec comes knocking with an offer she can't refuse: head to Berlin for one last job, after which she'll be allowed to hang up her mask for good. Her ex-husband, fellow DedSec member Will, has been made the same offer. But as the two partner up for a farewell gig, Freya's past catches up to her. The same killer who took out her father years ago has set his sights on the rest of the Bauers. And it will take groups inside and outside DedSec, in both Berlin and London, to keep Freya and her loved ones safe.
Cold Reboot spreads itself thin in terms of action and characters, but maintains its integrity even so. For an outsider to the games like myself, it was an easy, engaging read. The history of the various hacker groups, Albion, and Zero Day were sufficiently explained, as were the equipment and aesthetics of the setting. Impressively, no characters feel especially overlooked. Freya and Will get their fair dues, as do the villainous Kaiser and Teuton... an important task as the story races to its action-packed finale.
The highlight of the book, though, is the team of Helen Dashwood and Harriet Park. The brilliant pensioner hacktivist and her college-age, cat-ear-wearing protégé were an enchanting addition to the story. It seems these two are DLC characters in the game itself—meaning fans of the games will get to see the pair working in tandem. It's a match made in heaven, and their presence does a lot for the book's B-plot.
Even if you're not into the Watch Dogs games, Cold Reboot is an exciting, intriguing read. It was a delight to see the character of Freya—who seemed positioned to be a stereotypical Hollywood Strong Female—handled well. New readers don't have to fear getting lost in the jumble of game references, but I also get the sense that game fans will get a lot out of it. As ever, Aconyte shows itself to be a master of approachable tie-in books: approachable for everyone, and perhaps even a gateway for potential fans.
Watch Dogs Legion: Cold Reboot goes on sale June 20.