Sarah Chorn's Blog, page 91
October 11, 2013
Books I’m Eyeing
Books I’m Eyeing is a weekly feature where I show you the books that have caught my eye, and the blogs that made me want to read them. The goal of this is to show you the websites that routinely have great content and top notch reviews and interviews. It is also my way to show the blogosphere that I might not be a regular commenter, but I do visit your websites, and appreciate what you add to the genre and the online community. Cheesy? Probably, but there it is.
—
How the World Became Quiet – Rachel Swirsky
Discovery blamed on: Far Beyond Reality
About the Book
After a powerful sorceress is murdered, she’s summoned over the centuries to witness devastating changes to the land where she was born. A woman who lives by scavenging corpses in the Japanese suicide forest is haunted by her dead lover. A man searches for the memory that will overwrite his childhood abuse. Helios is left at the altar. The world is made quiet by a series of apocalypses.
From the riveting emotion and politics of ‘The Lady Who Plucked Red Flowers beneath the Queen’s Window’ (Nebula winner) to the melancholy family saga of ‘Eros, Philia, Agape’ (Hugo and Theodore Sturgeon finalist), Rachel Swirsky’s critically acclaimed stories have quickly made her one of the field’s rising stars. Her work is, by turns, clever and engaging, unflinching and quietly devastating–often in the space of the same story.
How the World Became Quiet: Myths of the Past, Present, and Future collects the body of Swirsky’s short fiction to date for the first time. While these stories envision pasts, presents, and futures that never existed, they offer revealing examinations of humanity that readers will find undeniably true.
—
The Secrets of Life and Death – Rebecca Alexander
Discovery blamed on: Civilian Reader
About the Book
Krakow, 1585
Summoned by the King of Poland to help save his dying niece, Edward Kelley and his master, alchemist and scholar Dr John Dee, discover a dark secret at the heart of The Countess Bathory’s malady.
But perhaps the cure will prove more terrifying than the alternative…
England, 2013
Jackdaw Hammond lives in the shadows, a practitioner and purveyor of occult materials. But when she learns of a young woman found dead on a train, her body covered in arcane symbols, there’s no escaping the attention of police consultant Felix Guichard.
Together they must solve a mystery centuries in the making, or die trying.
—
Walls of Byzantium – James Heneage
Discovery blamed on: Fantasy Book Critic
About the Book
Book 1 in The Mistra Chronicles
Set in the last decade of the fourteenth century, WALLS OF BYZANTIUM, opens as the Ottoman Turk, Sultan Bayezid, prepares his final assault on the Byzantine Empire. Only the little Despotate of Mistra in the Greek Peleponnese stands between him and his ultimate prize – Constantinople.
Four young people are drawn into this turbulent world. Anna Laskaris is the feisty daughter of the most noble family in Mistra. She has been betrothed in a political alliance to Damian Mamonas, but loves another: Luke Margoris, a Varangian guardsman whose ancestors, centuries before, hid a secret which has the power to unite the Christian world in its hour of need. Damian’s twin sister, Zoe, who is as cunning as she is beautiful, denied the Mamonas inheritance which she feels is hers, also sets out to find the Varangian treasure with, or without, Luke.
As events unfold and the kings of Christendom are persuaded to send the biggest crusade yet to the rescue of Byzantium, Luke finds that his destiny draws him east, away from Anna, to face a threat even more terrifying than Bayezid: the Mongol Horde under the merciless leadership of the murderous Tamerlane.
From Constantinople and Chios to Venice and Samarcand, WALLS OF BYZANTIUM, is an epic novel which brings to dramatic life the battles in the final years of Byzantium in a story of love and honour in a time of colliding empires.
—
The Beautiful Thing that Awaits Us All – Laird Barron
Discovery blamed on: Email, and The Speculative Scotsman
(Note: I’m pretty sure I’ve already listed this in a previous week’s Books I’m Eyeing post, but whatever.)
About the Book
Over the course of two award-winning collections and a critically acclaimed novel, The Croning, Laird Barron has arisen as one of the strongest and most original literary voices in modern horror and the dark fantastic. Melding supernatural horror with hardboiled noir, espionage, and a scientific backbone, Barron’s stories have garnered critical acclaim and have been reprinted in numerous year’s best anthologies and nominated for multiple awards, including the Crawford, International Horror Guild, Shirley Jackson, Theodore Sturgeon, and World Fantasy awards.
Barron returns with his third collection, The Beautiful Thing That Awaits Us All. Collecting interlinking tales of sublime cosmic horror, including “Blackwood’s Baby”, “The Carrion Gods in Their Heaven”, and “The Men from Porlock”, The Beautiful Thing That Awaits Us All delivers enough spine-chilling horror to satisfy even the most jaded reader.
—
October 9, 2013
Happy Hour in Hell – Tad Williams
About the Book
I’ve been told to go to Hell more times than I can count. But this time I’m actually going.
My name’s Bobby Dollar, sometimes known as Doloriel, and of course, Hell isn’t a great place for someone like me – I’m an angel. They don’t like my kind down there, not even the slightly fallen variety. But they have my girlfriend, who happens to be a beautiful demon named Casimira, Countess of Cold Hands. Why does an angel have a demon girlfriend? Well, certainly not because it helps my career.
She’s being held hostage by one of the nastiest, most powerful demons in all of the netherworld – Eligor, Grand Duke of Hell. He already hates me, and he’d like nothing better than to get his hands on me and rip my immortal soul right out of my borrowed but oh-so-mortal body.
But wait, it gets better! Not only do I have to sneak into Hell, make my way across thousands of miles of terror and suffering to reach Pandemonium, capital of the fiery depths, but then I have to steal Caz right out from under Eligor’s burning eyes and smuggle her out again, past demon soldiers, hellhounds, and all the murderous creatures imprisoned there for eternity. And even if I somehow manage to escape Hell, I’m also being stalked by an undead psychopath named Smyler who’s been following me for weeks. Oh, and did I mention that he can’t be killed?
So if I somehow survive Hell, elude the Grand Duke and all his hideous minions and make it back to the real world, I’ll still be the most hunted soul in Creation. But at least I’ll have Caz. Gotta have something to look forward to, right?
So just pour me that damn drink, will you? I’ve got somewhere to go.
400 pages (hardcover)
Published in September, 2013
Published by DAW
Author’s webpage
This book was sent for me to review by the publisher.
—
Tad Williams.
What on earth can I say about the man, or his books, that hasn’t already been said? Happy Hour in Hell is the second novel in the Bobby Dollar series. While readers might enjoy and appreciate the book more if they read The Dirty Streets of Heaven first, this is one of those delicious books that can be understood and enjoyed on its own merit, too.
Dare I say it? I enjoyed Happy Hour in Hell even more than The Dirty Streets of Heaven. Is that even possible? Yes, it is. Happy Hour in Hell is darker, the world expands, Bobby Dollar is a deeper character (never losing his humorous or cynical edge), there’s strong emotional appeal, and Happy Hour in Hell benefits from this immensely.
Happy Hour in Hell starts on a rather dark, lonely note with Bobby Dollar crossing the bridge to enter Hell. This pretty much sets the tone for the whole novel. Happy Hour in Hell is darker than its predecessor, and explores the afterlife and death in a very Dante’s Inferno sort of way. Things are wacky, weird, and definitely doomed. Readers will be introduced to plenty of new characters and creatures, each of which has a bite and an edge.
The truth is, Happy Hour in Hell really feels like Tad has let his imagination go. He really visualizes hell, and all of the nuances of hell, and throws it at the reader, and Bobby has to navigate all of this. This creates a lot of plot twists and edge-of-the-seat moments for readers. However, where The Dirty Streets of Heaven read more like a romp-and-roll adventure novel, Happy Hour in Hell really calls more to Williams’ fantasy roots. There’s a journey, an almost impossible goal the protagonist is working toward, and plenty of twists, turns, and battles between the start and the last.
Like a good fantasy novel, Hell has its own form of dictatorship (which sort of perversely mirrors some of Earth’s own elements), and Dollar has pissed off one of the Grand Dukes, which ups the tension and the danger-element. Add the Hell location to the mix, and you’ll probably realize pretty soon that Williams’ vivid imagination mixed with such a dark scene is addictive, but probably different than you’d expect if you’ve read The Dirty Streets of Heaven. Hell is a real place, and the people and demons that inhabit it are just as evil as you’d expect, and twice as real as you anticipate with Williams’ skill.
In the midst of all the adventure, the serial killer mystery, the wondering how Bobby is going to get out of the mess he’s in, are more profound, subtle questions that Williams is asking the reader. Being a book with somewhat religious themes (Heaven, Hell, angels, demons, eternal punishments and rewards), deeper themes comes with the territory, though these deeper notes don’t hit the reader on the head. In fact, they are pretty easy to overlook if you aren’t looking for them.
There’s enough surface action and adventure going on to keep anyone entertained. If, however, you are like me and you enjoy looking for the deeper themes in your books, you’ll find that Happy Hour in Hell plays a lot with the eternal punishments and rewards, and in a pretty intimate, emotional way. On a more obvious level, Tad forces readers to wonder just how far you’d go for love, and that love is a real emotional draw that will pull readers into the novel, force them to sympathize with Bobby Dollar’s plight, and relate to him on an intimate, human level. This all works together real nicely to make sure you enjoy the plot for what it is, but Happy Hour in Hell probes something a bit deeper without readers really realizing it is happening.
One thing that really makes Happy Hour in Hell as wonderful as it is, how much fun Williams is obviously having writing it. There are little nuances, quirky similes and descriptions sprinkled throughout this novel that really highlights that fact. Despite the darkness, and the inventive twist that is hell and its denizens, the rip-roaring adventure, Williams is having a ton of fun and the prose, dialogue, and Bobby Dollar shines because of it.
Happy Hour in Hell, is shockingly wonderful, beautifully dark, gloriously imaginative, and fantastically inventive. If you haven’t read it yet, read it. Williams has outdone himself, and he obviously had a hell of a time doing it (notice what I did there?). Bobby Dollar is addictive, fun, deep, and gets better with each page that you’ll inevitably turn.
Bravo, Williams.
5/5 stars
Why Rejections Shouldn’t Bother You
For a while now I’ve been working on some short stories. Currently, due to a deal falling through for various reasons, I am actively looking for publication. This is a really interesting process for me because everything I’ve written that’s been published before (Don’t ask. If these short stories get published, they will be the first thing I’ve ever published under my own name.) has been published because someone read it and said, “Hey, I want to publish this in (insert something here).” This is my first time actually actively seeking publication.
Being a novice in this area, please understand that I have no idea what I’m really talking about, but after seeing a lot of people bemoan various points of the looking-for-publication process, I’ve decided to give you some of my insights.
I’m coming from an area of complete inexperience with navigating publication, but a lot of experience with navigating the ins and outs of rejections from art dealers, art shows, magazines, and so much else. You see, I’ve been throwing my photography at people for years, so I might not know much about rejections from a publication background, but I do know quite a bit from a photography background. I think the two arenas are very similar in the fact that they are both art mediums, and I think the rejections come for the same reason, despite the different forms.
The thing I’m realizing through reading blogs and looking through websites with people who are in the same boat I’m in, (and there are a lot of us), is so many take rejections so incredibly personally. It’s not a personal thing. I learned early on with my photography, you have to have a thick skin and absolute trust in the value of your own work. The problem with rejections is usually they aren’t personal (Unless they are, and usually if they are personal you won’t get a “form letter” rejection, you’ll get a rejection telling you all the reasons you suck at life. Those are always so much fun and incredibly rare.). People are rejected for a lot of reasons, and usually, in my experience, it doesn’t boil down to skill, it boils down to the fact that the shoe you are selling doesn’t fit on the art dealer/publisher/magazine’s foot at the moment. Wrong tone, wrong feel, wrong jive for whatever whoever is going for at that time. That’s not bad, mind you. It just is. There is so much art out there, that art dealers/publishers/magazines/whatever have every reason and right to be choosy.
It’s the same reason I’m choosy with the books I review on my blog. I get so many, that I have ever right and desire to be choosy about what I read and review. I don’t have all the time in the world, so I try to tailor my content to best please me and my readers. I know I overlook a great number of quality, fantastic books, but I have to in order to keep content flowing, and so do publishers/art dealers/whatevers.
The problem for the artist is seeing this rejection, and not taking it personally. Perhaps my photography and my years watching my dad deal with rejections has hardened my skin, but I seem to be one of those lucky ones who gets a rejection letter and thinks, “Yay! Now I’m freed up to bother someone else…” I move on fast and it has almost no impact on my psyche (Unless I get one of those fun ones that lists all the ways I suck at life. It’s impossible not to let those bother you. I’m glad they are rare, but it is unfortunate that not everyone handing out rejections is as polite as the majority who are.) Rejections excite me, because at least I’m trying. There’s something to be said for putting yourself out there.
Rejections aren’t thrilling to most people. I think I probably need psychological help for how little they impact me, but most people, especially new to the art world, find them incredibly difficult to deal with. Art, no matter what kind of art you deal with, is part of yourself, and its hard to learn how to take someone saying they aren’t interested in you lightly. It hurts. No matter how much we pretend it doesn’t, it always hurts a little bit. That small chip away at the ego, at what you’ve worked so hard with, can be pretty horrible if you let it be.
One person in charge of a photography show I got rejected from told me something that has stuck with me ever since. He said, “Sarah, you are incredibly talented and I love your work and your unique perspective. I’m not rejecting you for your lack of talent. I’m rejecting you because what you are presenting doesn’t fit the feel of the show this year.” I think that’s probably what most rejections are saying, and even if they aren’t, it is helpful to keep that in mind. Usually rejections aren’t about quality, but about the fit and feel with the (insert venue/publisher/show/whatever here) or the fact that they are swamped with talent and just don’t have time at the moment.
The other thing that I’ve learned with my time in the art world is that you have to have absolute trust in your own talent, ability, and the work you put out there. If you lack the belief that you can be, or are amazing, why are you doing it? I don’t just say that to be cliched or mean, but really. Why submit work that you don’t think is knock-your-socks-off fantastic? Why participate in any art medium, if you don’t trust your abilities, talents, and your desire to continually grow and develop in (insert art medium here)? That’s the key to art, and the quality I’ve seen in photographers, painters, authors, whoever, that submit their work and handle their rejections with aplomb. All artists will get rejected at sometime or another, but the ones with the true trust and love for their art medium won’t let a rejection define the quality of their work. For example, they’ll never say, “I must be a shitty painter because (insert venue here) doesn’t want my paintings.” Most authors take an emotional hit with a rejection, but I’ve seen something like this said more often than not, “Sucks that I was rejected. Oh well. I’ll try again.” Why? Not because their writing sucks, but because they know their writing is amazing, and the place that rejected them just wasn’t the right fit. No biggie.
Trust your talent.
If you lack even a little bit of confidence in your own skill, those rejections will hurt so much more. I experienced this earlier this year when I submitted a subpar photograph to an art show. I knew it was subpar, but I submitted it anyway for some stupid reason. I literally drove myself insane felt like the biggest moron when that rejection came in because I should have known better. Or something. Those were the thoughts that went through my mind. In contrast, when I submit work that I know is as good as I can possibly get it, I have absolutely no worry, no niggling thoughts, no paranoia, no coulda-shoulda-woulda’s that keep me up all night. It is what it is, and I know that no matter what the result is, at least I did as much as I could with what I gave (insert person/venue here), and I’m proud of that fact. That psychological relief is why I refuse to submit anything to anyone unless I know it is absolutely as good as I’m ever going to get it on my own.
That trust in your own ability to produce quality work makes all the difference in the world. As long as you know you can pump out some great stuff, who cares what anyone else things? You’ve already impressed your harshest critic: You.
I’ve seen way too many people write about their disappointment, or emotional upheavals with rejections. In fact, just yesterday I read a blog post where someone was officially closing the doors of their website and turning their attention away from art (which they had been doing for YEARS) because they couldn’t handle one more rejection (despite all of their successes). No one should have that power, and (insert art medium here) will truly miss this person and their amazing contributions to the field.
Art is a lot of fun, but once you cross the bridge from doing it for yourself, to trying to market your art, you’ll quickly realize that it is a dog-eat-dog world out there, and these rejections feel even more personal because we all pour so much of ourselves into our art. Everyone has to learn how to deal with them on their own, and we each do it differently. I deal with them by distancing myself from them. I realize my work is quality. Sorry (insert person here) doesn’t like it. Oh well. Move on. But it took a long time to get that far. Years, in fact, and photography was the art medium I have taken most of my lessons and emotional/ego bruising from, which is making my writing rejections easier to handle. The truth is, each photograph I take is a unique insight into how I view the world. It’s one of my favorite moments captured and frozen in time. Having that rejected SUCKS. My writing is my soul. Period. Having part of my soul rejected SUCKS. But I know I produce quality stuff, so I refuse to let those rejections define my work or my ability, and you shouldn’t either. Don’t fall into the trap the artist I just mentioned fell into. It’s not worth it. Love your art and take everyone else, and their opinions, lightly.
So, what does all this huggy-kissy crap boil down to? Damn the man and don’t let it get to you. As long as you’ve impressed yourself, who cares what anyone else thinks? Rejections usually aren’t personal, and you should congratulate yourself for trying, because so many people won’t have the courage to try. Trying is hard. It takes courage, and it takes practice to learn how to take a punch and not care, but if you love your art and your skill enough, you’ll get there faster than you think. Realize that your skill is not dependent on a third party confirming your ability. And, as a final thought, if you aren’t having fun with your art, why are you doing it? Don’t let those pesky little rejections suck the fun or meaning from what you pour your soul into. No one should have that power.
And hell, as long as I’m saying this, you can take everything I’ve said here and apply it to authors and their negative book reviews.
October 7, 2013
The Republic of Thieves – Scott Lynch
About the Book
Having pulled off the greatest heist of their career, Locke and his trusted partner in thievery, Jean, have escaped with a tidy fortune. But Locke’s body is paying the price. Poisoned by an enemy from his past, he is slowly dying. And no physiker or alchemist can help him. Yet just as the end is near, a mysterious Bondsmagi offers Locke an opportunity that will either save him – or finish him off once and for all.
Magi political elections are imminent, and the factions are in need of a pawn. If Locke agrees to play the role, sorcery will be used to purge the venom from his body – though the process will be so excruciating he may well wish for death. Locke is opposed, but two factors cause his will to crumble: Jean’s imploring – and the Bondsmagi’s mention of a woman from Locke’s past . . . Sabetha. The love of his life. His equal in skill and wit. And now his greatest rival.
Locke was smitten with Sabetha from his first glimpse of her as a young fellow-orphan and thief-in-training. But after a tumultuous courtship, Sabetha broke away. Now they will reunite in yet another clash of wills. For faced with his one and only match in both love and trickery, Locke must choose whether to fight Sabetha – or to woo her. It is a decision on which both their lives may depend.
800 pages (hardcover)
Published on October 8, 2013
Author’s webpage
This book was provided for me to review by the publisher.
—
The problem with Scott Lynch is that he’s somehow managed to write one of the most anticipated, exciting books of the year. How in the hell is someone supposed to adequately review it? Impossible, I say.
Well, not really impossible.
The Republic of Thieves follows the standard Lynch format. Between each chapter, there is an interlude where Lynch revisits portions of Locke’s past. These interludes are, as always, important for developing the character and giving him some background and a hell of a lot of depth. Lynch does a mercy for the reader and fills in a lot of gaps in Locke’s past with these interludes. Things make sense and click into place.
One of the differences you might notice off the bat is the presence of Sabetha. The Republic of Thieves really focuses on Locke’s relationship with Sabetha. Readers are taken through its development, the trials of it, the growing pains, the heartache and then the current form of it. Lynch, however, does this in proper Lynch style. He keeps it interesting and refreshing rather than overbearing. The dynamics of the relationship are nothing short of fascinating, and it’s very interesting to see how it all plays out in contrast to the larger plot.
Each of the books in this series so far is different in some way. The way The Republic of Thieves is different is how focused on relationships Lynch seems to be. There’s the relationship between Sabetha and Locke, and the relationship between Jean and Locke and even Locke’s relationship to himself. Lynch really explores all of these in different ways. Some of them are more interesting than others, but they all work together nicely as parts of the whole and Lynch has a rather raw way of dealing with all these developments and what they mean to each character and the plot. He can emotionally grip a reader, and that’s part of his draw. You don’t realize it has happened until it’s happened.
Lynch seems to really push his humor further in The Republic of Thieves than I remember in the previous books. As things get darker and more hopeless looking, Lynch seems to get more and more hilarious, with some laugh-out-loud moments that you’ll truly enjoy. His balance between darkness and levity really gives this book a balanced feel that it might otherwise lack. Coupled with that is Lynch’s evocative prose.
The Republic of Thieves takes place somewhere new, and Lynch really expands his world. He adds the cultural nuances that I so love, and plenty of political drama to keep anyone on their toes. Coupled with Lynch’s prose, the world really comes to life. Readers get a sense of foreign and new, with the nice, familiar, and exciting Jean and Locke that they have grown to love in the previous two books of the series.
Though I appreciated the appearance of Sabetha, I’m not exactly sure why she is so mysterious and captivating to Locke. I mean, I get it, but it also kind of baffles me. (Here’s where you say, “That’s fantastic, Sarah. What the hell are you talking about?”) While it is rather fascinating to see their attraction and their relations (both the past and “current” forms of it) while they are enemies, some aspects of it were a bit too convenient. Yes, Sabetha is a great character but I do wish there had been a little more logic behind Locke’s attraction and desire. Maybe I’m saying all of this because I suck at romance. I don’t know. Read the book and be the judge.
The Republic of Thieves marches on at a good clip. It is a rather light book, probably due to the balance between the more serious tones and Lynch’s humor. My one complaint is that it felt like a placeholder. It is a bridge between the previous books in the series and whatever comes next, and it felt like that. The Republic of Thieves is pretty long, and incredibly entertaining and enlightening, as it fills in a lot of gaps that Lynch left readers with in the previous two books. Things happen and they are interesting and even captivating, but the end of the book is full of foreshadowing and a veritable fork in the plot road that makes me frustrated for numerous reasons.
This is anticipated to be a seven book series, and The Republic of Thieves is book three. That means that fans of the series are in for a long wait before it is over. Not a big deal, but the first three books basically follow the same formula, despite their different tones. I worry that if Lynch doesn’t shake things up and fairly soon, the series will get old and wind down long before he reaches the end of it. That would truly disappoint me, because out of all the authors out there, Lynch is probably one of the most unique. He has an absolutely captivating style of writing, and has somehow managed to make the exhausted thieves-and-hooded-men fantasy trope new and exciting for a gigantic range of readers. I really hope that this series doesn’t fizzle out before it reaches the end, and I think the primary way the author can combat that is by doing something unexpected and leaving his formula behind fairly soon.
Final thoughts? The Republic of Thieves is a lot of fun. The relationships that Lynch explores adds a lot of depth and interesting dynamics that previous books in the series might have lacked to some extent or another. Sabetha and Locke’s relationship was fascinating in a frustrating sort of way. The world building was spot on, and the balance of humor and darker moments and themes was absolutely perfect.
The Republic of Thieves: Everything fans of The Gentleman Bastards are waiting for, and a lot that they won’t expect.
4/5 stars
Websites of Note
The interesting thing about Twitter is that I learn about so many websites I wouldn’t have otherwise known about. Today, before I post my review of The Republic of Thieves, I’m going to share a little love and point you in the direction of some blogs that don’t get the attention they deserve. There are a lot of us out there who fly below the radar, and all of the ones I’m listing today deserve to be firmly on your radar.
Please, check them out, put them on your feed, and enjoy.
—
This site is run by Ria Bridges, who is Canadian and says “aboot” instead of “about” (only one reason why I love her). She has also been recently conscripted to SF Signal. Though our reading tastes might be a little different, her reviews are always detailed, in depth, and never give anything away. I’ve read a lot of books because Ria has suggested them, or written great reviews about them. Occasionally she posts editorials as well, always heartfelt and worth reading.
—
Stefan is one of my favorite reviewers. Period. He writes for Tor.com and runs the Beyond Reality group on Goodreads. His site is a site I’ve been watching since he created it. His writing is wonderful, and our reading tastes are very similar. I use his reviews as inspiration for how I write my own.
—
Rob has also been recently conscripted by the SF Signal machine. He also writes over on SFFWorld, another fantastic website. Rob has a reading taste similar to my own, but is also one of my favorite. reviewers. ever. His reviews are long, deep, insightful, and rarely give any plot points away. If Rob loves it, I’m guaranteed to love it, too.
—
The Tattered Scroll is an interesting website that tends to post more ebook deals than reviews. When he does post reviews, they are always worth reading, but I always swing by this site to see what books are on sale, and where. Chances are, I wouldn’t find them on my own.
—
“Hey, Sarah, I thought you were keeping this to less-known websites. I’ve heard of all of these. You suck at life.”
Yeah, pretty much. Whatever. Walker of Worlds posts some of the best content ever. Ever. Read it. READ IT. Incredible reviews of books that should be noticed by everyone on a fairly regular, if spaced out, basis. If it is loved over on Walker of Worlds, you’ll probably love it, too. And you’ll love the review as much as the book because that’s how it works over there. The reviews are just as fantastic as the books (usually) end up being.
—
This is one of my absolute favorite up-and-coming sights. Matt’s reviews are amazing, but my favorite part of his site are the round-table discussions. He has done two that I am aware of so far, with multiple authors in each. He isn’t afraid to really go for the meat of any topic without beating around the bush. You’ll love the reviews. You’ll be blown away by all of his other content. Watch this one. Matt is really going somewhere fast.
And yes, I’m jealous. I wish I was that clever.
—
Stefan posts reviews, and he also posts editorials. He has some fantastic insights into the genre and really explores interesting topics in unique ways. His reviews are also great and he reads a wide variety of books. The best thing about Stefan? His enthusiasm is palpable in everything he writes. This guy really loves the genre. It’s impossible not to love it as much as he does when you browse through his site. He doesn’t fight for readers, or weigh into controversial crap just for ratings. No. Stefan is who he is and he does what he does and I love him about that. He stays true to his genre passion and it really makes me focus on my genre-roots, and appreciate what I love so much about the genre.
—
I kind of feel like a moron for not paying attention to this website sooner. Anya is the owner and editor of this site. She posts reviews, giveaways and various other things. Her reviews are unique, and I think a lot of people will love them because of their unique qualities. You see, instead of writing a long essay (like I do), Anya boils down each book into a list of Pros and Cons bullet points. You get a concise overview of each book in reading that will take you less than a million hours (like mine do). She posts on a regular basis and always has something fun going on along with her reviews.
—
This is another site I haven’t really noticed until last week. I’m not sure why, and I can’t figure out why other people don’t pay more attention to this one. Morris posts some fantastic content. It looks to be mostly editorials, but they are some of the best written, most thoughtful editorials out there. He often weighs in on topics that are big in the genre, or really explores something new and unique on his own. The posting is less frequent than the other sites I’ve listed, but when a post does go up, go read it. Very thoughtful, very well written stuff over here.
—
This site is run by two people, Nathan (US) and Pauline (UK). Between the two of them, they cover pretty much every subgenre under the umbrella of Speculative Fiction. Great reviews, very detailed, and the wide variety of books covered will ensure that this site appeals to almost everyone. This is one of those rare review sites run by two different people that haven’t succumbed to the “hive mind” that some group-ran review sites fall prey to. Two independent voices with two different reading and reviewing styles. For all of that, their reviews are still excellent, in depth, and fun.
–
This site is a lot of fun and it has been around a long time. Great reviews, lots of wonderful insights, a wide variety of books covered and regular posting. Check it out. You won’t be disappointed.
—
Abhinav Jain
Abhinav writes content for two sites, The Founding Fields (a group website) as well as Sons of Corax. Our reading tastes are different. For example, he loves comics and I really can’t stand them. However, he has a passion for the genre and posts some of the most insightful editorials that pack a punch on a regular basis. Abhinav has also been responsible for a lot of the various ways I explore the genre and the books I read. His absolute lack of fear regarding anything controversial is also something that is refreshing. Though we disagree on some points, I absolutely love Abhinav and his content, wherever he puts it. Pay attention to him. He’s a great one.
—
Under the radar? No. What I love about this site is how it is basically dedicated to UF, but ran by a man. How often do you see that? He loves urban fantasy, and his unique male perspective in a subgenre that seems like it is mostly female is refreshing (wow, Sarah, awesome sweeping generalization there…). Bastard (whatever the hell his real name is) truly loves urban fantasy, and has, despite my fighting, got me to read a lot of urban fantasy that I’ve loved, despite how hard I tried to hate it. He has also ot me to respect the subgenre more than I ever imagined I would. He posts great reviews (seriously, fantastic stuff), and wonderful interviews and regular author guest posts.
—
And then there are all of the other sites everyone has heard of, but I still visit all the time.
Little Red Reviewer
The Speculative Scotsman
A Dribble of Ink
Staffer’s Book Reviews
SF Signal
SFFWorld
Fantasy Book Critic
Nethspace
Civilian Reader
Are there some I missed? Yes, I guarantee it. So what websites should I be reading that I’m not reading?
October 4, 2013
Cover Art | Among the Thorns – Veronica Schanoes
It isn’t often that cover art makes me stop in my tracks and just stare for a few minutes.
This cover, however, did.
Tor.com just released this on Facebook. I’m nabbing it and putting it on my website because…
LOOK AT IT.
Full disclosure: This novella will be released on tor.com in April, 2014.
Author’s profile, bio, etc.
Artists: Balbusso Anna and Elena
What do you think?
Ancillary Justice – Ann Leckie
About the Book
On a remote, icy planet, the soldier known as Breq is drawing closer to completing her quest.
Breq is both more than she seems and less than she was. Years ago, she was the Justice of Toren–a colossal starship with an artificial intelligence linking thousands of corpse soldiers in the service of the Radch, the empire that conquered the galaxy.
An act of treachery has ripped it all away, leaving her with only one fragile human body. And only one purpose–to revenge herself on Anaander Mianaai, many-bodied, near-immortal Lord of the Radch.
416 pages (paperback)
Published on October 8, 2013
Published by Orbit
Author’s webpage
This book was provided for me to review by the publisher.
—
Few things are more challenging than figuring out how to write a review for a book that I really didn’t enjoy at all, or a book that I loved so much I can’t even put it into words. I rarely face those dilemmas, because it is rare that a book wows me this much, or disappoints me that much. However, today I am floating in that boat. I have no idea how to write this review and I have no idea how to accurately portray and present my feelings regarding it.
This entire review can be summed up with:
I LOVED THIS BOOK. LOOOOOOOOOOOOVED IT. LOVE. BLISSFUL RAPTUROUS LOVE. LOVE LOVE LOVE. I WANT TO MARRY THIS BOOK.
If that’s enough for you, you can stop now. What I’m going to attempt to do is tell you all the reasons Ancillary Justice was one of the best books I’ve read all year, tied with Love Minus Eighty for impressiveness.
Ancillary Justice is the kind of SciFi that I love. It’s technology, new and unique worlds, fantastic cultures, foreign concepts, and a gigantic mind trip with an added dose of deeper, thought provoking themes for good measure.. Case and point: the gender confusion that seems to infuse the book. The default pronoun is “she,” until Breq is absolutely certain of a person’s gender, which takes some time. This might seem confusing, as Breq continually refers to characters as “she” and then another character will come in and talk about the same “she” in “he” terms. Hell, it is even confusing to try to explain it. The fluid and often changing use of “he” and “she” was incredibly refreshing, and can lead to some unique perspectives on what is happening. It’s interesting to have our preconceived notions of the proper roles and abilities of a “he” and a “she” stripped and thrown away. Leckie uses these fluid gender terms to strip away preconceived notions and force the reader to evaluate the character based on their actions, rather than their gender.
Bravo, Leckie. Bravo.
One Esk (ie: Breq) is one of the most fascinating characters I’ve ever had the honor to read about. Breq is an ancillary, which basically means that she’s a sort of slave to the empire and has numerous live bodies with which she functions. Breq reads like a machine, in fact, she is a machine in some respects. She is rather divorced from the spectrum of emotions that we are familiar with, and can seem almost flat at times of intense emotion. She’s incredibly analytical and very powerful. However, her machine-like nature makes her a different character than you’d typically enjoy reading about. On the other hand, Breq can seem almost childlike in her habits, like her frequent giving candy to children, which she seems to take an obvious pleasure with doing, or her singing and her odd habits of making her various bodies harmonize in courtyards where they are standing watch. Breq, and her multiple bodies, allows Leckie to tell the story in first person, while giving the reader multiple viewpoints on any one situation, all nicely funneled into one thought stream.
Examples of Breq’s interesting perspective(s):
“Nineteen years, three months, and one week before I found Seivarden in the snow, I was a troop carrier orbiting the planet Shis’urna.” (Chapter 2)
And…
“I slept, also, and sat watch in the lower level of the house, in case anyone should need me, though that was rare in those days. I finished any of the day’s work still uncompleted, and watched over Lieutenant Awn, who lay sleeping.” (chapter 4)
This, however, does take some getting used to. Leckie takes time setting up the novel. Ancillary Justice does not start out with a bang. The fluid use of gender and the unique ancillary perspective(s) can get confusing. The chapters switch between “now” and “back then.” The time span covered is staggering. It does get confusing. It might require some re-reading of passages to get things straight, but Leckie is a deft storyteller. She gives her readers the time they need to get everything sorted and understand what happened, and what is happening. Once she reaches the point where she thinks she can really let go and readers will be able to keep up, she takes off like a bat out of hell. It’s a slow burn novel, but one of the rare slow burn novels that really needed that slow burn.
Breq’s unique situation (ancillary) gives her a one-of-a-kind insight about how to achieve what she is out to achieve (sorry, I’m trying to avoid spoilers, so vague terms is all you’ll get). Due to situations in the past, Breq is a flawed creation as she executes her mission. This is reflected in a lot of her inner dialogue where she will mention that at one point in time there were more of her, but now there is only one, and how this is a disadvantage regarding (insert situation here). It’s subtle but it’s there, and it gives this incredibly powerful character a distinct crack in her armor that seems to make everything she accomplish that much more difficult, and that much more profound, without really taking away any of her edge. Breq is hard to relate to, which is one of the things that I love about her, but her flaws make her sympathetic and her oh-so-human desire to accomplish what she wants to accomplish makes her seem less “other” and more like you and me.
Leckie is one of those authors who can make an entire planet and culture spring to vibrant life with a few well-crafted sentences. The worlds are foreign, the cultures are strange, the people are even stranger, the situations are complex and very political, but Leckie’s writing is up to the task.
“Ors sat half on waterlogged land, half in the marshy lake, the lakeward side built on slabs atop foundations sunk deep in the marsh mud. Green slime grew in the canals and joints between slabs, along the lower edges of building columns, on everything stationary the water reached, which varied with the season. The constant stink of hydrogen sulfide only cleared occasionally, when summer storms made the lakeward half of the city tremble and shudder and walkways were knee deep in water blow in from beyond the barrier islands.” (Chapter 2)
That’s the kind of description I love. Fluid, beautiful, woven together deftly, and so filled with imagery that the whole place springs to life and I can even smell the sulfur smell (aided by my proximity to the Great Salt Lake, which fills the valley with that exact delicious smell every time a storm blows in.). Luckily enough, Leckie isn’t one of those authors that just peppers her book with gorgeous imagery. No, it’s a consistent trait of her writing.
So now you’re saying, “Hey, Sarah, that’s fantastic, but you haven’t really said anything about the plot. You’ve just yammered on and on about traits of the book. That’s stupid.”
Well, my dear readers, it might be stupid, but the truth is, I try very hard not to give away anything about the books I review, and half of the joy of Ancillary Justice is puzzling it out yourself. The thrill lays in being absolutely confused, and learning everything as you go, while letting Leckie guide you through her complex, twisted, psychological, political, delicious far-flung future universe.
The plot is fantastic. The set up is expert. The world building is some of the best I’ve ever read. The prose blow me away. Breq is confusing, distant, hard to relate to, flawed, fractured, and deep. And I love her. Leckie’s ability to take assumptions, like the assumption of traits that go with “him” and “her” and light them on fire, is only part of the thrill. Ancillary Justice unabashedly plays with the qualities that make us “human” and “alive” in a captivating and creative way. Leckie is one of those authors that burned herself into me. Ancillary Justice is a novel that is a joy to explore. It’s one of those books that makes me almost glad that cancer killed my memory because now I just have to wait a few months and I’ll read it for the first time all over again.
(Excuse the attempt at humorous self-depreciation there. If I can’t have fun with my cancer treatment woes, who can?)
(Before people freak out: I’m cancer free as of March. The effects of treatment are permanent.)
Whatever else this review says, the truth is that Leckie isn’t writing fast enough for my taste, and if this book isn’t nominated for awards, no one is getting brownies from me.
1,212 / 5 stars
Books I’m Eyeing
Books I’m Eyeing is a weekly feature where I show you the books that have caught my eye, and the blogs that made me want to read them. The goal of this is to show you the websites that routinely have great content and top notch reviews and interviews. It is also my way to show the blogosphere that I might not be a regular commenter, but I do visit your websites, and appreciate what you add to the genre and the online community. Cheesy? Probably, but there it is.
—
The Red – Linda Nagata
Discovery blamed on: Far Beyond Reality
About the Book
“There Needs To Be A War Going On Somewhere”
Lieutenant James Shelley commands a high-tech squad of soldiers in a rural district within the African Sahel. They hunt insurgents each night on a harrowing patrol, guided by three simple goals: protect civilians, kill the enemy, and stay alive—because in a for-profit war manufactured by the defense industry there can be no cause worth dying for. To keep his soldiers safe, Shelley uses every high-tech asset available to him—but his best weapon is a flawless sense of imminent danger…as if God is with him, whispering warnings in his ear. (Hazard Notice: contains military grade profanity.)
—
Dream London – Tony Ballantyne
Discovery blamed on: Civilian Reader
About the Book
In Dream London the city changes a little every night and the people change a little every day. Captain Jim Wedderburn has looks, style and courage by the bucketful. He’s adored by women, respected by men and feared by his enemies. He’s the man to find out who has twisted London into this strange new world, and he knows it. But the towers are growing taller, the parks have hidden themselves away and the streets form themselves into strange new patterns. There are people sailing in from new lands down the river, new criminals emerging in the East End and a path spiralling down to another world. Everyone is changing, no one is who they seem to be, and Captain Jim Wedderburn is beginning to understand that he’s not the man he thought he was..
—
Irenicon – Aidan Harte
Discovery blamed on: Pornokitsch
About the Book
The river Irenicon was blasted through the middle of Rasenna in 1347 and now it is a permanent reminder to the feuding factions that nothing can stand in the way of the Concordian Empire. The artificial river, created overnight by Concordian engineers using the Wave, runs uphill. But the Wave is both weapon and mystery; not even the Concordians know how the river became conscious – and hostile. But times are changing. Concordian engineer Captain Giovanni is ordered to bridge the Irenicon – not to reunite the sundered city, but to aid Concord’s mighty armies, for the engineers have their sights set firmly on world domination and Rasenna is in their way. Sofia Scaglieri will soon be seventeen, when she will become Contessa of Rasenna, but her inheritance is tainted: she can see no way of stopping the ancient culture of vendetta which divides her city. What she can’t understand is why Giovanni is trying so hard to stop the feuding, or why he is prepared to risk his life, not just with her people, but also with the lethal water spirits – the buio – that infest the Irenicon. Times are changing. And only the young Contessa and the enemy engineer Giovanni understand they have to change too, if they are to survive the coming devastation – for Concord is about to unleash the Wave again.
—
The Emperor’s Soul – Brandon Sanderson
Discovery blamed on: Fantasy Book Critic
About the Book
A heretic thief is the empire’s only hope in this fascinating tale that inhabits the same world as the popular novel, Elantris.
Shai is a Forger, a foreigner who can flawlessly copy and re-create any item by rewriting its history with skillful magic. Condemned to death after trying to steal the emperor’s scepter, she is given one opportunity to save herself. Though her skill as a Forger is considered an abomination by her captors, Shai will attempt to create a new soul for the emperor, who is almost dead.
Probing deeply into his life, she discovers Emperor Ashravan’s truest nature—and the opportunity to exploit it. Her only possible ally is one who is truly loyal to the emperor, but councilor Gaotona must overcome his prejudices to understand that Shai’s forgery is as much artistry as it is deception.
Brimming with magic and political intrigue, this deftly woven fantasy delves into the essence of a living spirit.
—
The Wizard of Earthsea – Ursula K. LeGuin
Discovery blamed on: The Founding Fields
About the Book
Ged, the greatest sorcerer in all Earthsea, was called Sparrowhawk in his reckless youth.
Hungry for power and knowledge, Sparrowhawk tampered with long-held secrets and loosed a terrible shadow upon the world. This is the tale of his testing, how he mastered the mighty words of power, tamed an ancient dragon, and crossed death’s threshold to restore the balance.
—
Indigo Springs – A.M. Dellmonica
Discovery blamed on: Bibliotropic
About the Book
Indigo Springs is a sleepy town where things seem pretty normal . . . until Astrid’s father dies and she moves into his house. She discovers that for many years her father had been accessing the magic that flowed, literally, in a blue stream beneath the earth, leaking into his house. When she starts to use the liquid “vitagua” to enchant everyday items, the results seem innocent enough: a “‘chanted” watch becomes a charm that means you’re always in the right place at the right time; a “‘chanted” pendant enables the wearer to convince anyone of anything . . .
But as events in Indigo Springs unfold and the true potential of vitagua is revealed, Astrid and her friends unwittingly embark on a journey fraught with power, change, and a future too devastating to contemplate. Friends become enemies and enemies become friends as Astrid discovers secrets from her shrouded childhood that will lead her to a destiny stranger than she could have imagined
—
Who Fears Death – Nnedi Okorafor
Discovery blamed on: Bibliotropic
About the Book
In a far future, post-nuclear-holocaust Africa, genocide plagues one region. The aggressors, the Nuru, have decided to follow the Great Book and exterminate the Okeke. But when the only surviving member of a slain Okeke village is brutally raped, she manages to escape, wandering farther into the desert. She gives birth to a baby girl with hair and skin the color of sand and instinctively knows that her daughter is different. She names her daughter Onyesonwu, which means “Who Fears Death?” in an ancient African tongue.
Reared under the tutelage of a mysterious and traditional shaman, Onyesonwu discovers her magical destiny-to end the genocide of her people. The journey to fulfill her destiny will force her to grapple with nature, tradition, history, true love, the spiritual mysteries of her culture-and eventually death itself.
—
Seven Forges – James A. Moore
Discovery blamed on: A Fantastical Librarian
About the Book
Captain Merros Dulver is the first in many lifetimes to find a path beyond the great mountains known as the Seven Forges and encounter, at last, the half-forgotten race who live there. And it would appear that they were expecting him. As he returns home, bringing an entourage of strangers with him, he starts to wonder whether his discovery has been such a good thing. For the gods of this lost race are the gods of war, and their memories of that far-off cataclysm have not faded.
The people of Fellein have live with legends for many centuries. To their far north, the Blasted Lands, a legacy of an ancient time of cataclysm, are vast, desolate and impassable, but that doesn’t stop the occasional expedition into their fringes in search of any trace of the ancients who had once lived there… and oft-rumored riches.
—
October 3, 2013
“I must have you.” – The Language of Possession
– Rant Warning — Proceed with caution –
I generally stay away from talking about sexism. Every time I do, I tend to piss off half the planet, so I leave it to people who are far more articulate than I am. However, sometimes something happens that triggers my inner whatever, and I realize that the only way I can stop dwelling on it is by writing it out.
What is it that burned my craw today?
I was innocently reading a book earlier, when I ran across this line: “I must have you.” Of course this was said in a romantic context, a guy saying this to a girl. The girl simpers because oh-the-romance, and I felt my blood boil. This might seem fairly innocent to most people, but I read that line far too often for my comfort.
Every time someone says, “I must have you” I feel like checking the character (inevitably female) for her price tag.
The problem with lines like this is that they are so incredibly subtly degrading; they almost make me physically ill. People aren’t “things” to be had. You cannot “have” me, just like I cannot “have” you. It’s lines like that, peppered throughout the books I read, that make me wonder how badly we are kicking ourselves regarding this whole sexism issue, and most often without even realizing it.
I don’t think people maliciously say these things. I don’t think authors out there are cracking their knuckles and laughing evilly about how they can put phrases that piss of Sarah into their books. I think it just happens. It’s a natural flow of text. Isn’t that a rather sad commentary on our society today? When “I must have you” is a natural flow of dialogue, it says nothing good for any of us.
Yes, this is a short rant that is going roughly nowhere pretty fast, but I wanted to point out that phrase, and I wanted my darling readers to realize why it upsets me so much. We cannot “have” each other. I don’t belong to anyone, and neither do you. The fact that this phrase is almost always said to a woman (who then simpers because it is oh-so-flattering) is icing on the cake. Phrases like this say a lot about society, without saying much at all. The sad truth is most of the time I read this line it is women writing it. Why, my fellow females, please tell me why we shove ourselves, and our characters, in the role of possessions so willingly and so often without noticing it.
Please don’t misinterpret this to mean that I think this is a conscious effort on the part of authors, because it isn’t. I just find this turn of phrase absolutely baffling, and when I start thinking about “I must have you” my mind runs to all the other turns of phrase that amount to the same thing. I don’t think it is romantic, and I don’t think context matters. The truth is, we say these things, not only in books, but also in our daily lives. What does that say about our cultural identity and equality? We have come so far, and have ignored the simple phrases that undermine how far we’ve come. Perhaps the fact that we don’t even usually notice it just makes it more tragic.
So what is the point of this diatribe? I’m not sure. I set out to air my dirty laundry, and I’ve done it. Take whatever away from this that you will. If I’ve offended anyone, I apologize. That wasn’t my goal.
“I must have you.”
– Rant Warning — Proceed with caution –
I generally stay away from talking about sexism. Every time I do, I tend to piss off half the planet, so I leave it to people who are far more articulate than I am. However, sometimes something happens that triggers my inner whatever, and I realize that the only way I can stop dwelling on it is by writing it out.
What is it that burned my craw today?
I was innocently reading a book earlier, when I ran across this line: “I must have you.” Of course this was said in a romantic context, a guy saying this to a girl. The girl simpers because oh-the-romance, and I felt my blood boil. This might seem fairly innocent to most people, but I read that line far too often for my comfort.
Every time someone says, “I must have you” I feel like checking the character (inevitably female) for her price tag.
The problem with lines like this is that they are so incredibly subtly degrading; they almost make me physically ill. People aren’t “things” to be had. You cannot “have” me, just like I cannot “have” you. It’s lines like that, peppered throughout the books I read, that make me wonder how badly we are kicking ourselves regarding this whole sexism issue, and most often without even realizing it.
I don’t think people maliciously say these things. I don’t think authors out there are cracking their knuckles and laughing evilly about how they can put phrases that piss of Sarah into their books. I think it just happens. It’s a natural flow of text. Isn’t that a rather sad commentary on our society today? When “I must have you” is a natural flow of dialogue, it says nothing good for any of us.
Yes, this is a short rant that is going roughly nowhere pretty fast, but I wanted to point out that phrase, and I wanted my darling readers to realize why it upsets me so much. We cannot “have” each other. I don’t belong to anyone, and neither do you. The fact that this phrase is almost always said to a woman (who then simpers because it is oh-so-flattering) is icing on the cake. Phrases like this say a lot about society, without saying much at all. The sad truth is most of the time I read this line it is women writing it. Why, my fellow females, please tell me why we shove ourselves, and our characters, in the role of possessions so willingly and so often without noticing it.
Please don’t misinterpret this to mean that I think this is a conscious effort on the part of authors, because it isn’t. I just find this turn of phrase absolutely baffling, and when I start thinking about “I must have you” my mind runs to all the other turns of phrase that amount to the same thing. I don’t think it is romantic, and I don’t think context matters. The truth is, we say these things, not only in books, but also in our daily lives. What does that say about our cultural identity and equality? We have come so far, and have ignored the simple phrases that undermine how far we’ve come. Perhaps the fact that we don’t even usually notice it just makes it more tragic.
So what is the point of this diatribe? I’m not sure. I set out to air my dirty laundry, and I’ve done it. Take whatever away from this that you will. If I’ve offended anyone, I apologize. That wasn’t my goal.
