FF: As Worlds Evolve

This week I continued several series, which made me think some about the form.

Kel Does Her Supermodel Thing

For those of you just discovering this feature, the Friday Fragments lists what I’ve read over the past week.  Most of the time I don’t include details of either short fiction (unless part of a book-length collection) or magazine articles.

The Fragments are not meant to be a recommendation list.  If you’re interested in a not-at-all-inclusive recommendation list, you can look on my website under Neat Stuff.

Once again, this is not a book review column.  It’s just a list with, maybe, a bit of description or a few opinions tossed in.

Recently Completed:

Seeds of Rebellion (Beyonders 2) by Brandon Mull.  Suffers from “middle book of a trilogy” syndrome.  Additionally, inclusion of a larger number of adult characters mean that our teen protagonists begin to seem like “extras.”  Given the number of times both Rachel and Jason muse if they’ve fulfilled the role for which they were summoned to this fantasy world, I wonder if the author was subconsciously wondering the same thing.

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle.  Audiobook.  Enjoyed all over again.

Kitty’s Big Trouble by Carrie Vaughn.  Audiobook.  Despite the title, much less dramatic than the last couple in the series.  Chinese material expanded the “universe.”  The inclusion of film as inspiration/source material appropriate for this series, which (like much of the “paranormal urban fantasy” sub-genre) seems more based out of movies than folklore.

In Progress:

The Prestige by Christopher Priest.  Audiobook.  Just started.

War of the Planet Burners by Dennis Herrick.  A forthcoming small press novel.

Also:

Quite a bit of scattered short material.