I really liked this book but in the end I felt there was something missing that didn't quite let it make the jump from a good read to truly memorable.I really liked this book but in the end I felt there was something missing that didn't quite let it make the jump from a good read to truly memorable. I appreciated the mix of retro veneer combined with futuristic technology and modern approach to gender, but in many ways it makes our debonair and extremely rich protagonist way less likeable than she would be in an actual retro setting - especially when Tesla keeps pulling the I'm-rich-and-have-an-expensive-lawyer card over and over and over. Yes, she has good reason to do so, but after a while it seems less than a scalpel and more of a sledgehammer.
I also feel like there weren't quite enough hints as to who the assassin truly was, especially given the constant misdirection and red herrings, which is good in an action thriller but less so in a cosy mystery. The mastermind ended up being a little too omnicompetent for my taste, especially when compared to the lack of depth or confusing characterization of some of the other characters, whose many tangled storylines don't quite get the denouement they deserve. (view spoiler)[I'm confused in particular by Annie, who acted like she liked Tesla throughout the book, then towards the end takes a deep dig at her reputation after her big accident, and then only a few pages later goes "but you seemed so nice". Make up your mind, lady. (hide spoiler)] Also, as someone who is not a natural dog lover, I fail to believe that literally everyone would instantly fall in love with a small dog. Sorry. ...more
3.5 stars rounded up The idea behind this book is swell, but the execution could have been better in parts. There were a bit too many points of view an3.5 stars rounded up The idea behind this book is swell, but the execution could have been better in parts. There were a bit too many points of view and flashbacks to Earth towards the middle, and the large amount of characters made it so that we didn't have quite enough time to focus on everyone's motivations and relative sense of urgency. Still, if a sequel pops up, I'm interested in seeing where the series goes....more
Splendide le illustrazioni come nel precedente volume, ma ho trovato la narrazione un po' troppo altalenante per i pesanti temi trattati: a volte alcuSplendide le illustrazioni come nel precedente volume, ma ho trovato la narrazione un po' troppo altalenante per i pesanti temi trattati: a volte alcune cose importanti sono solo accennate, mentre in altre alcuni personaggi fanno monologhi lunghi pagine intere per ribadire concetti semplici.
Poi (problema mio, lo so) sono un po' a bolla con i mondi fantastici che riflettono i problemi interiori del protagonista e sembrano non avere identità al di fuori di essi, tanto che (come nel mondo di Oz filmico, piuttosto che nel libro) potrebbero addirittura non esistere se non come un sogno o una fantasia. Se voglio andare in un mondo magico voglio che sia reale, non una metafora! E lo volevo da bambino come lo voglio ora. ...more
The hardcover version of this book has a duck embossed on the cover in apparently silver foil, but if you look close enough at it, you'll notice that The hardcover version of this book has a duck embossed on the cover in apparently silver foil, but if you look close enough at it, you'll notice that the silver is actually an oil-slick rainbow, like a patch of petrol on the tarmac. It's a good metaphor for the oil sands themselves, a place that is presented as a hotbed for opportunity and lucrative jobs, with extraction methods that are ostensibly "better for the environment", while scratching just beneath the surface shows a world of isolation and mental health issues, of sexism and misogyny, alienation and accidents, and of course, the true environmental disaster that is hitting the local population, especially the native communities, and the fauna. People are changed by such a life, not always for the better, and especially in the time when the story is set, before the smartphone and 4G-everywhere era*, support for several of the issues touched upon in this book was vague to non-existent. Kate Beaton deftly presents her experience in the sands in all its facets, the good and the bad, the great and the horrible, and the grey, crushing monotony in-between. 5 stars but only because Goodreads won't let me leave 6.
* There's a point at the very beginning where a character says "Are you done with the computer? I need the phone" and damn if that isn't a very specific mood in time....more
This seems to be a book written for the Venn diagram of Final Fantasy XIV fans who are also the parents of small children. It's cute, but it's also awThis seems to be a book written for the Venn diagram of Final Fantasy XIV fans who are also the parents of small children. It's cute, but it's also awfully short, and I'm not sure how many random parents care about partying Namazu enough to pay the cover price....more
I had a hard time warming up to Sebin, the main character, which probably lowered my overall enjoyment of this book. Aside from that, it's basically aI had a hard time warming up to Sebin, the main character, which probably lowered my overall enjoyment of this book. Aside from that, it's basically a classic "base under siege" story with some family undertones....more
Have you ever thought "I like The fall of the House of Usher, but I wished it had also made me utterly terrified of fungi and at least moderately scepHave you ever thought "I like The fall of the House of Usher, but I wished it had also made me utterly terrified of fungi and at least moderately sceptical about small mountain lakes"? In that case, this book is for you. ...more
I wanted to like this more than I did, because it has an excellent premise, but I found the first half extremely slow and hard to get through, mostly I wanted to like this more than I did, because it has an excellent premise, but I found the first half extremely slow and hard to get through, mostly because half of it is told through flashbacks, and the mystery that those flashbacks are supposed to unveil is kind of obvious to anyone who has read more than a couple of fsf books. In fact, and through no particular fault of the author, I felt a lot of genre fatigue while reading this story. And just like in my last review, I'm really tired of stories about other worlds where we're mostly told about all those other wonderful places, but we never really get to see them for ourselves or through the main character's eyes. The pace thankfully picks up in the second half, and the end is satisfying enough, but I think a lot of the same themes were explored better in other books that didn't get the same amounts of accolade....more
I liked it, but wanted to like it more than I did. The problem with starting a story ten years later is that all the characters already in the story kI liked it, but wanted to like it more than I did. The problem with starting a story ten years later is that all the characters already in the story know a lot more than we do, and that's why we soon get a new point of view character, June, who is facing the story as we do - knowing only a little, gathering scraps, trying to place it all together. But then the pov keeps shifting to the other roaders, speaking directly from their mind, and even in their mind they're cryptic for no good reason except that the author needs to draw out a reveal that... didn't really need drawing out? And then there's an incredibly telegraphed triple crossing, which is fine, but a sudden yet inevitable betrayal should come from an unexpected person or at an unexpected moment, and this was neither. And then there's my greatest pet peeve in a story about parallel universes: we're told that we pass through hundreds of them, but we only see two of them in any relative detail, and they all suck. And of course they're all some shard of America. I know that it's basically the whole point of the story, but still, the nice (or at least interesting) places to visit always seem to exist only after the world END....more
4.5 stars, rounded up. An excellent story by Cat Valente about feelings and belonging and reconciliation and also quite literally travelling through th4.5 stars, rounded up. An excellent story by Cat Valente about feelings and belonging and reconciliation and also quite literally travelling through the land of the dead to marry the ghost of the monster your mother shot. It takes a bit to really start, and there's places where I felt like I'd skipped a paragraph or two because of pacing or leaps in logic, but nothing that distracts too much from the overall vibe of the book. And I really want a bathrobe like Bonk's that can safely hold not one but two china tea sets for my travels. ...more
4 stars to "Stealer of Souls", but the other three stories were a bit weak. Nice to see Oneir name-checked though.4 stars to "Stealer of Souls", but the other three stories were a bit weak. Nice to see Oneir name-checked though....more
Damn this is a good book. As one of the blurbs say, and in true Kingfisher style, this is a fairy tale that is both charming and macabre, often at theDamn this is a good book. As one of the blurbs say, and in true Kingfisher style, this is a fairy tale that is both charming and macabre, often at the same time - or in other words, you may go "aww" and "damn that is fucked up" in the same chapter, if not in the same paragraph. As usual every character is memorable even if they appear only for a few pages, from the dust-wife, to the bone dog, to the demon chicken, to the delightful denizens of the goblin market. Some of them are quirky and delightful, and some will haunt the back of your mind for days. If I were to make a comparison (which, like all comparisons, falls short and is a little unfair to everyone, but eh) it's a bit of Diana Wynne Jones and a bit of Gaiman's Neverwhere and Stardust all cooked up into some hearty Vernon stock... and damn if it doesn't make for some delicious (if slightly messed-up) soup. ...more
**spoiler alert** 3.5 stars rounded down, because... I guess my expectations were too high, and the framing didn't really work for me. An "is this sto**spoiler alert** 3.5 stars rounded down, because... I guess my expectations were too high, and the framing didn't really work for me. An "is this story true or not" scenario works best when you're not sure if the narrator is being honest, and while Miriam may be lying about a lot of details, those of us who have listened to season 1 of Within the Wires know for sure that the Institute exists. We know for sure that there's carpentry done in there. We didn't know exactly how we got to that point, a history which the book shows in some detail and even larger brush strokes, but we never doubted its reality, which made all of the footnotes calling Miriam a paranoid liar feel more frustrating than anything else. Throughout the whole story, there is really no reason to doubt Miriam's word, because the alternative put up by the footnotes- that the fascist society is 100% truthful and above reproach - is nowhere near as compelling. Yes, the final note seems to imply that the 'alternative press' that published the memoir is really subversive and not pro-society, and so the footnotes are just plausible deniability, but again, we are not members of the Society and we don't need to be convinced that there's something afoot, so it all seems like unnecessary artifice. Perhaps this framing works best for someone who is not familiar with the podcast series, but I see other new readers have been equally frustrated by it, so I don't know really who it was for.
(One note: another reader said he didn't like the book because it gave the impression that mental health facilities were evil. First of all, the book is set in a fascist, dystopian society, so it's not exactly reflective of good medical practices. Second of all, until a few decades ago, mental institutes *were* prisons, if not worse. Given the decades in which the story is set in, mental patients being locked up against their will and being subjected to degrading experiments was pretty much par for the course. There's a relative on my father's side who died alone in a mental hospital because the only one who was allowed to visit them was their spouse, who didn't give a shit, and actully had probably had him committed on false charges so she could inherit. Mental health care has improved by leaps and bounds in the last 30-40 years, but the stereotypes about old psychiatric facilities exist for a reason.)...more
Better than the previous one but to me they're still missing something compared to the old books. Again, maybe it's just that I'm getting old and am nBetter than the previous one but to me they're still missing something compared to the old books. Again, maybe it's just that I'm getting old and am no longer the target audience, but it's frustrating that we're still playing the "who's not talking about their issues this time" game on the 8th book in a series. I also don't really like Naiginn as a recurring villain - he's so overpowered compared to everyone else that the only reason he loses is because he keeps making bad choices when it comes to Torak. ...more
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