Ricky Pine's Blog, page 16

Review: Dragon Rider

Dragon Rider by Taran Matharu
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I know a guy or two who loves some litRPG type material. I'm going to need to make sure this book is on their TBR piles, and everyone else's, because if you're not reading Taran Matharu as faithfully as I do, are you even a fantasy fan?

Here, Matharu shifts gears from the YA sphere where he spent the last decade or so into a decidedly more adult realm. Sure, protagonist Jai is still in his teens, but this book definit...

Review: Interior Chinatown

Interior Chinatown by Charles Yu
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This mind-bending satire of race in Hollywood from an Asian-American perspective has been on my radar for a while, in part because of a lot of different updates about planned movie and/or streaming adaptations. As I remember it, stars like Jimmy O. Yang, Simu Liu, and Chloe Bennet have been attached to the project at different times, and I'd really love to see how the adaptation pulls it off. It helps that much of...

Review: The Will of the Many

The Will of the Many by James Islington
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Up to now, I haven't read any of James Islington's books before, but I think that'll have to change now that I've finished this one. I believe it was recommended in the Red Rising subreddit, in part because of its similar Romanesque styling and propulsive story arcs. But Vis Telimus, our protagonist here, is nowhere close to a copycat of Darrow. In fact, in some ways, he's Darrow's opposite, but also they ...

Review: A Labyrinth of Scions and Sorcery

A Labyrinth of Scions and Sorcery by Curtis Craddock
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Craddock returns to his gaslamp steampunk fantasy world with a new novel full of intrigue - and at least one cheeky little reference to one of the biggest name authors who helped bolster this book with his blurb, Brandon Sanderson, getting tuckerized into "Lord Brandon Mistwaithe." While the book does a pretty good job continuing the story from where its predecessor left off, with Jean-Claude a...

Review: Huge

Huge by Brent Butt
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Who would've guessed that the deadpan Canadian comedian behind Corner Gas had such a deadly good thriller in him? Well, it's the sort of book that you can almost read in Brent Butt's own distinctive voice, until it starts mutating into a uniquely demented take on the slasher genre, with a serial killer who only wants to make the world laugh with him instead of at him. If only he was actually funny, because it's not so funny any...

Review: The Watchers

The Watchers by A.M. Shine
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This one is getting a 2.5 rounded generously up to 3 in large part because of the promise of the upcoming film adaptation this summer, written and directed by Ishana Night Shyamalan, daughter of M. Night. But also because of the creepy af incorporation of Irish faerie mythology - these Fair Folk have teeth in all the ways. Unfortunately, this book suffers from a preponderance of characters I can't bring myself to care f...

Review: Base Notes

Base Notes by Lara Elena Donnelly
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I can see why this, the only novel Lara Elena Donnelly's come out with since her well-crafted Art Deco war story that wasn't a war story, the Amberlough Dossier, is so much lower rated here. It could've been a much better story, and it's certainly darkly fascinating for its depiction of a depraved perfume maker in New York. After all, if you really think about it, you can't make an omelet without breaking a few e...

Review: Aftermarket Afterlife

Aftermarket Afterlife by Seanan McGuire
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

As much as I've been a fan of Seanan McGuire for many years, and of this series in particular, I'm sorry to say that McGuire has been slowly losing me with this series, and it's never been more apparent than with this latest novel. The unlucky thirteenth in the series, it shifts gears to yet another POV protagonist, the sixth one so far by my count. Props to McGuire for seeking to keep things fresh with ano...

Review: An Alchemy of Masques and Mirrors

An Alchemy of Masques and Mirrors by Curtis Craddock
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Somewhere in the ether between Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn and Jim Butcher's Cinder Spires lies this unique spin on gaslamp airship steampunk fantasy, heavily inspired by days gone by in France and Spain in particular. It's a world that uses religion as an excuse to punch down on the other - as Isabelle, one of our protagonists, finds out the hard way, being a woman with a disability, and no m...

Review: The Weavers of Alamaxa

The Weavers of Alamaxa by Hadeer Elsbai
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Hadeer Elsbai picks right up where The Daughters of Izdihar left off with that weapons-grade cliffhanger, starting off first with Giorgina on the run underground in the city of Alamaxa while Nehal is stuck in a prison cell at the behest of the sinister Zirani queen, Ralisa, who will stop at nothing to eliminate weavers from the world. Just as the previous book drew a lot of Avatar parallels to Avatar Kyoshi...