Doug Lewars's Blog

Eamon

Eamon by Martha Carr

My rating: 1 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

DNF at about the 33% mark. The book started out well. Our heroine got stabbed and almost died. Regrettably, her grandfather used dark magic go save her life. Then he had the decency to fall into a pool of water and drown. End of book, right? No. Despite being stone, cold dead, she is brought back to life ... presumably since the author didn't think she could make it to the end without her main character despite having a second plot involving a prison rescue on the go.

When I select books to read, I usually go to Goodreads and check the keywords. Things might have gone better had the author added YA to the list. Yes, the language was decidedly crude, but these days it seems children learn this vocabulary before even learning to read, so I don't consider the two utterly incompatible. My main problem with this book was the characters. None of them showed even the tiniest modicum of common sense. In the opening scene, the protagonist finds herself being held at gunpoint in a robbery. Using magic, the thwarts the would-be thief and dumps him in a rather deep hole of sorts, telling him he can stay there until the police arrive. Evidently the hole isn't quite deep enough because he jumps out and stabs her, but what bothered me was her choosing to turn her back on someone who had tried to kill her and who was still very much alive and not obviously injured to any serious degree. This sort of stupidity continues. Then, having received a stab would so serious it almost killed her, she goes back to work in three days. Now if the stab wound hadn't been intentional but, say, part of a medical operation, she'd have been told to life nothing and stay away from any activity which is even close to strenuous. Still, up she gets and back she goes. This is not someone to whom i can relate. I do not recommend this book.



View all my reviews

The Well of Ascension

The Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

This was a pretty good book. There was plenty of intrigue and some exciting battles. Because this is the second of a three-volume work, and I hadn't read the first, it took a while to get acclimatized to the characters and the various factions, but I managed and it was good thereafter. However, I am not inclined to go back and read the first or continue on to the third. I enjoyed it but didn't find it without flaws. Specifically, Vin, like so many modern characters, can't seem to make up her mind, and blames herself whenever things go wrong whatever their cause. It's becoming tedious to encounter this in book after book. Fortunately, there's sufficient action to overcome this flaw or at least make it to the end of the book without DNFing it.



View all my reviews

The Glass Coffin Society

The Glass Coffin Society by Shiromi Arserio

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

If I like a book, I normally give it 5 stars. Likewise, if I dislike it, I give it 1 star. The only time I use 3 stars is if a book is really bland, or, in this case, if there are some things I loved and some I hated.
The good news is the author is a competent wordsmith. In addition, she keeps the plot moving nicely. The bad news is this author, like many others, seems to feel it necessary to have her protagonist constantly second-guess herself. Toss in a bit of angst, and a lot of guilt and you pretty much have the central character. Frankly I sick of it. Ms. Arserio is far from alone in this trait. There seems to be a trend among modern authors, and particularly female one - although some males are just as bad - to try to make parts of their books as maudlin as possible. I'm not sure why this is but I'm having increasing difficulty finding authors who tell a good story without writing goo all over the page. If you like that sort of stuff, this author writes well, but as for me, I think I'll look elsewhere for my reading material.



View all my reviews

The Signal and The Noise

The Signal and the Noise: Why So Many Predictions Fail—But Some Don't by Nate Silver

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

'Prediction is difficult' is the message of this book. Whether it's gambling or politics, determining the future isn't easy. Part of the problem is the data you have to work with. Is it relevant - signal - or irrelevant - noise. As the internet expands, and data is measured in petabytes - or beyond - determining its relevancy is becoming increasingly difficult. Unfortunately the author fails to provide any concrete advice for solving the problem but at least he delineates it nicely. The thing to rememeber is correlation does not imply causation although it MIGHT or it MAY signify some overlooked factor related to both. The author also suggests outliers are noise as opposed to signal and this is true in most instances; however, they should not be disregarded. There is always a reason for an outlier. It may, and frequently is, a mistake in measurement. But sometimes it indicates some unknown factor of considerable importance. As a former colleague once remarked to me, 'pay attention to the outliers. That's where the research papers live.'



View all my reviews

On the Edge

On the Edge: The Art of Risking Everything by Nate Silver

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

I enjoyed this book and when I enjoy a book, I give it a 5. If I don't like it, it gets a 1 and it it's meh, or if I loved some and hated other parts, I give it a 3. I hardly ever use 2 or 4. That said, this book is not perfect. I noted a number of complaints from those giving it a 1. The first was it dealt too much with poker and sports betting. If you don't like these things I don't think this book is for you. The second was the audio version wasn't clear. I didn't experience that. For me the speaker did a fine job; however, perhaps if I lived somewhere in the south where people speak slower, I might have encountered difficulty. The third was the author was all over the map. There is some truth to this, and the book might have been organized better but the lack of focus didn't bother me. There is a section in the middle where the author discusses philosophy and what he terms 'effective altruism' I found tedious, but it wasn't sufficiently annoying to bother me much. I was simply glad when he got past it. One other criticism was the author was a name dropper. This is quite true but once more it didn't bother me. If he hopes to garner points with someone - or himself - by dropping names he's welcome to do so. Despite these faults I enjoyed the book but I don't think I'll take up gambling.



View all my reviews

Second Variety and Other Stories

Second Variety and Other Stories by Philip K. Dick

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

These stories were written in the early 1950s but they've stood the test of time well. In the first on we have sentient robots trying to wipe out the human race. The author had never heard of the term 'AI' but you get the idea. There is also one of the best satires I've read of a certain genre of fiction. Altogether this book contains some great tales and is well worth reading.



View all my reviews

Crosshairs

Crosshairs by James Patterson

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

If you like a well-paced interesting detective book although not a Whodunit, I think this is good one. On the other hand, if you want perfect realism, the author plays a little fast and loose with a few police procedures, but this is a work of fiction, not a policing manual. The ending is a little maudlin but most of the rest of the book is good.



View all my reviews

The Devil and the Dark Water

The Devil and the Dark Water by Stuart Turton

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

This was a great book. Part mystery and part horror story the author takes care to leave the reader guessing as to whether any strange incident is either natural or supernatural. In addition, there is a fine cast of characters who might be up to any amount of mischief. Unlike most mysteries of the whodunit variety, the first identifiable murder doesn't appear until well into the book and it takes quite a bit longer to reveal a body. I quite enjoyed this one and I highly recommend it to those who like mysteries.



View all my reviews

The Women of Artemis

The Women of Artemis by Hannah M. Lynn

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

I quite enjoyed this book. True, the author seems to lean towards a radical feminist perspective; however, she doesn't preach and as a result, this is a good adventure fantasy story. It starts with a number of women oppressed in a highly patriarchal society rising up and killing their abusive husbands. It then goes on as they evolve into a militaristic all female society. Along the way there is lots of adventure. There are a couple of sex scenes, but you can quickly skip over those to get back to the story. The pacing is pretty good, a little slow in some places as the protagonist decides to wallow in guilt for a bit but mostly it's a fine story.

I have to admit, that was quite a pregnancy at the end. Perhaps a bit of wishful thinking on the author's part.



View all my reviews

Mistress of Magic

Mistress of Magic by Marion Zimmer Bradley

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

This is a retelling of the Arthurian legend from a female perspective. I found it quite enjoyable. It held my interest from beginning to end. I suggest, however, readers should familiarize themselves with the mythos before starting this book as Marion Bradley plays fast and loose with the legend changing a few things here and others there. She also starts it well before T. H. White's, The Once and Future King, and probably even before Mallory although I haven't read the latter. In terms of the original story, this book ends not long after Arthur's coronation and the severing of ties between north and south.

I read some of the 1's to understand people's objections. Some didn't like the anti-Christian, or, more specifically, the anti-priest theme running through the book. Others found the characters unlikeable although I found them perfectly acceptable. Some people disliked Marion Zimmer Bradley at a personal level and by extension, disliked her book. Admittedly she was not the nicest of persons having, apparently, assisted or participated with her husband in the sexual abuse of children. Therefore, if you can't distinguish between the artist and the creation, I suggest you move on. For those who like a good plot-centered book, this is pretty good.



View all my reviews