Garment of Shadows by Laurie R. King- Sherlock Holmes arrives in Fez looking for his wife, only to find her missing from among the movie folk she was traveling with. In his inquiries to find out what might have happened to her, he finds out that she took off in the middle of the night with a boy and a strange man. Meanwhile, a woman wakes up in a strange room, missing her entire memory and with a wound on her scalp. When a group of soldiers shows up at the door of the house where she woke up, she escapes into the souk and attempts to survive on her own. But when Russell and Holmes are together once again, they discover that Russell was not alone, but with Mahmoud Hazr. Now, she, Holmes and Ali must discover what happened to Ali's brother and how Russell ended up injured and why. And it may all have to do with a current rebellion happening in the Northern part of Morocco among the Rif tribes and their leaders Mohammed And-el Razir and his brother, M'hammed And- el Razir. But what has that to do with Russell, and why does someone not want a meeting between Abd-el Razir and Holmes' distant cousin, Marshall Lyautey, to take place? With the aid of a boy unable to speak, Holmes and his wife must discover what is going on, and put a stop to the plans of those who would stop the rebels. I enjoyed this book, especially the early part where Mary Russell tries to figure out who she is amidst a foreign city while on the run from soldiers who seemingly want to arrest her, though she doesn't know the reason. Although we the readers know who she is, it was very well written, and I liked learning more about the Rif rebellion and the tensions in Morocco before World War II. A good mystery and an interesting read. Recommended.
The Perils of Sherlock Holmes by Loren D. Estlemen- This book collects a number of short stories by Loren Estlemen, along with two essays about Holmes- one on the subject of Watson, and the other on the question of whether Holmes could also be the Shadow, if Royal Jelly had restored his youth. In "The Adventure of the Arabian Knight", Holmes and Watson meet Richard Francis Burton, the famous British Explorer. "The Adventure of the Three Ghosts" has Holmes helping Sir Chislehurst explain a vision of three Ghosts which he met in his own home, ones of Christmas Past, Present and Future. "The Riddle of the Golden Monkeys" has Holmes and Watson helping Sax Rohmer to discover a puzzle set to him by a Chinese Crime Lord in London, which he must solve or lose his own life. "Dr. and Mrs. Watson at Home: a Comedy in one Unnatural Act" explores the Home Life of the Watsons and what it must really have been like. "The Adventure of the Coughing Dentist"takes Holmes and Watson to the American Wild West and has them save Doc Holliday for the Crime of shooting a card cheat, which he is adamant he did not commit, at the Behest of Wyatt Earp. "The Adventure of the Greatest Gift" has Holmes summoned to a party to prevent a crime. But can he? "The Devil and Sherlock Holmes" has Holmes called into a Mental Asylum to meet a patient who claims he is the Prince of Lies, and who invites Holmes to bargain with Watson's soul. And finally, "The Serpent's Egg" is the first chapter in a planned shared novel by several Baker Street Irregulars which never came off, in which an archaeologist approaches Holmes with apparent evidence of magic existing. However, this first chapter is the only one that was completed, and the story is thus only a beginning and has no middle or end. I really enjoyed these stories by Loren D. Estleman. I personally think my favorite is the one with Doc Holliday, as Estleman goes through showing how most people's knowledge of the Wild West is highly inaccurate, as back then, most people spoke better and more correct English than we do today. It's an amazing look into the past, and a very good adventure story as well. Highly recommended, though I wish he had included his first story, which he mentions, one where Holmes meets Count Dracula, as well.
Protector by C. J. Cherryh- Bren Cameron is still dealing with the aftereffects of the attempted coup against Tabini and Geigi in the East. But Tabini's son Cajeiri is looking forward to his birthday, in which he will pass from the age of infelicitous eight to fortunate nine. And for his birthday, he wants to invite the frienda he made on the Spaceship, and who now live on the space station above the planet. His father, Tabini, agrees to send the messages, but Cajeiri's friends have to agree to come. And Tabini's longtime conservative foe, Tatisegi, has agreed to host Cajeiri, his grandmother, the Dowager Ilisidi, and Cajeiri's friends, along with Bren, and everyone's bodyguards, at his estate in the West. But when Cajeiri's friends Ireme, Artur and Gene arrive from the space station, they are accompanied by Jase, the man who Bren trained to be a negotiator between the ship-folk and the atevi. Along with him are *his* guards, two ship soldiers in powered armor, and Lord Tatisegi enlarges his invitation to Jase and his guards as well. But this relaxing trip turns out to be anything but when Cajeiri's maternal grandfather dies after being banished from the Bujavid for his previous coup attempt against Tabini, without any evidence of a filing by or with the assassin's guild, and an attempt against Tatisegi by his own neighbors, the Kadagidi. But the presence of the Human guards may make the coup by the Kadagidi into a case of biting off more than they can chew. But can Bren and his guards keep Cajeiri and his guests safe to return to the Bujavid for Cajeiri's fortunate ninth birthday, or will another rebellion keep things tumbling down amongst the atevi? and will the ship humans ever successfully join with the Mospheirans, or will their plans to build a new space station ever come to fruition? I enjoyed this book, but it almost didn't seem long enough. In a way, Bren never seems to be able to have a peaceful period in this life. Yes, he's adapted well, but it's a rough thing. And the book didn't seem long enough because by the time the book ends, they are merely returning to the Bujavid and the party for Cajeiri hasn't yet happened, so the book feels strangely unfinished, and like it should have been longer. Still, an excellent, engaging, well-told story. Recommended.
Batman: Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader by Neil Gaiman and Andy Kubert- Batman is dead. Or is he? As his friends and foes gather to mourn or celebrate the passing of an icon, Batman's baffled spirit watches from the place between life and death, wondering why he is witnessing this funeral. What can he learn from the lessons of life and death? and to what end will he go? The book ends with three smaller stories. "Batman: Black and White shows Batrman and Joker as actors in a television series, and "Pavane" shows what happens to a government flunky sent to try and recruit Poison Ivy into the Suicide Squad. and "Original Sins: When is a Door" shows the fate of a Journalist who comes to Gotham to uncover the true backstories behind Batman's foes. But when he tries to get to interview the Joker, can it end well? I enjoyed the main story to this book very much, especially the ending, which alludes to the changing nature of Batman over the years and his continuing evolution to match the tastes of his audience. Of the other stories, my favorite was "Original Sins: When is a Door", which was excellent and the ending was creepy and rather disturbing. Highly Recommended.
Luck of the Draw by Piers Anthony- Bryce is an eighty year old grandfather in poor health. His wife is dead and he's looking forward to death himself in a few years. But when he smells the scent of a dead rat wafting from his garage, he knows he has to clean it out, before he forgets or is sidelined by other things. But in the course of cleaning out the garage, he is joined by an unfamiliar dog who seems friendly, and discovers the smell emanates from a glowing golden box he could swear he has never seen before. Inside are a bottle of liquid, a piece of food and a small notepad, each labeled with a set of characters that make no sense. When he puts his mind to it, he solves the substitution cypher and gets "Drink Me", "Eat Me" and "Invoke Me". He also finds his old recumbent trike, and in trying to ride it, gets drawn into Xanth, along with the dog, who can now speak some words and whose name is Rachel. He discovers that he is now inhabiting a young, fit body quite unlike his former self. Bryce finds himself in Castle Caprice, where he is befriended by Picka Bone and his wife, Princess Eve, along with Anna, a maid who helps Bryce and Rachel acclimate to Xanth. He also meets Piper and discovers his secret. But everyone determines that if Bryce really wants to go home, he must to speak to the Magician Humphrey. Bryce is in Xanth to compete in a competition between several Demons, including Xanth and Earth, to choose a husband for Princess Harmony. But Bryce doesn't want to marry a spoiled and bratty Princess so much younger than he is/was. Can Humphrey convince him to change his mind? And Princess Harmony also doesn't want to be married at all. Demons have a way of getting their way, though. Can Bryce afford to lose the competition against Piper, Demon Pose, Arsenal, and the other competitors for Harmony's hand? And will he ever get home? I know I have said several times that I am done with this series because of all the young person/older person sex and marriage, but I had hopes that this one wouldn't feature that aspect. And hopefully, I won't ruin the story for you when I say this story is much more sane in that respect, and I ended up enjoying the ending as much as the story itself. So if you are hoping for a return to the older aspect of the stories, this book is an enormous step in the right direction. Recommended.
Raisins and Almonds: A Phryne Fisher Mystery by Kerry Greenwood- When a murder happens in a bookshop owned by Miss Lee, a bookish woman who has never been trouble in her life, her landlord, Benjamin Abraham, the father of Phryne's dancing partner Simon Abraham, asks Phryne to investigate. The man who died was a Jewish Scholar studying under a Rabbi who taught mysticism, but the police believe that Miss Lee killed him out of thwarted love. However, there is another thread that the murdered student, Yossi Lieberman, was working on a recipe for synthetic rubber, which he wished to patent so that it could be sold to raise money for a revolution against the Bolshevics in Russia, or a Homeland for the Jews who have none of their own. But could the Russians who expelled the Jews be infiltrating them to steal the scientific discover for their own? Or is there some other reason that Yossi had to die? And if there is an infiltrator, how will Phryne uncover the traitor? As she gets closer to Simon, she has to deal with Simon's mother, and make her way among a community that is very different than Phryne has ever experienced before. I enjoyed this book, which dealt with the Jewish community in Australia. I mean, I know that everywhere has Jews there, but I was surprised to find out that there was a fairly sizable community of them in the 1920's. This book had some especially humorous moments in it, like how Phryne ferrets out a non-Jew among a group of Rabbinic students, and I enjoyed every bit of the book, which features Phryne's usual helpers of Bert and Cec, Dot and her two daughters. Recommended.
The Willful Princess and the Piebald Prince by Robin Hobb- This book is a prequel to Robin Hobb's King's Fool series. It talks about one of the Ancestors of Fitzchivalry Farseer. In this case, the Willful Princess is Princess Caution Farseer. Normally rulers of the family are tied to the elements, but the Princess was barely allowed to touch the various elements, and so grew up willful and in her way, foolish. Raised mostly by the serving girl who was the child of her wetnurse, and who relates the story, she grew up wanting for nothing and enjoyed riding and hunting. But when she went to the fair. she saw a beautiful piebald horse, and the young man who cared for it, whose skin was similarly marked, named Lostler. She immediately bought the horse and it became her favorite. And Lostler, the groom, accompanied her each time she rode, as did her maid. But soon, Princess Caution and Lostler would slip away, and the maid discovered that they were lovers. She tried to prevent them from meeting, and failed, and soon Caution was pregnant. The maid, on the advice of her mother, got pregnant as well, by a new minstrel to court, but intimated to Caution that Lostler was also her lover. This caused Caution to reject Lostler, and eventually, both he and the horse died, as they were linked by the Wit. And Caution's son, like his father, was born with dark patches on his pale skin. He grew up with the maid's son, Redbird, who became a skilled musician, like his own father. The Baby, Charger, was never called by his name, but everyone called him "The Piebald Prince" for his coloring. He grew tall and strong and just, but his uncle expected his own son, canny Farseer, to become King. It was only when Canny and Charger came to love the same woman, that the tale of woe truly came to a head. Stories are told by the victors, so will this true story be told? Or must it be hidden away for the future to judge? This, like many of Robin Hobb's stories is not a story with a happy ending. You wish so well for Charger, but Hobb's characters, even when heroic, can make bad choices just like the rest of us, and the ending is sad, but bittersweet, because like Shakespeare's tragedies, the tragedies occur because of the hero's own bad choices. Highly recommended.
Fables: Fairest- Wide Awake by Bill Willingham, Phil Jimenez, Andy Lanning, Matthew Sturges, Shawn McManus- Sleeping Beauty was left behind in the Homelands, and Ali Baba is investigating the remains of the Adversary's Kingdom when he discovers two beautiful sleeping women in a chest, aided by a Djinni in a bottle. One is extremely pale, with white hair, and the other a redhead. The Djinni tells him one of the women is Sleeping Beauty and can only be woken by True Love's kiss. He first kisses the pale woman and then the redhead. At first neither awakens, and then both do, waking up the Goblins all around them. It turns out the redhead is Sleeping Beauty, and the pale woman is the Snow Queen. As Ali Baba and Sleeping Beauty try to escape, the Snow Queen freezes the Goblins into statues, and eventually, she captures them both. The Djinni tells her the story about Sleeping Beauty and Ali Baba, which she cannot help but want him to continue. But when an evil Fairy from Sleeping Beauty's story show up, drawn by the Djinni's repeated use of her name, can the Snow Queen defeat her? And who is Ali Baba's true love? Sleeping Beauty or the Snow Queen? And could he possibly love an evil woman who helped the Adversary? The backup story has Beast chasing Lamia, an evil Fable with a surprising story. Can he keep her safe from a human detective while he chases her down on his own? Why is he interested in keeping her safe, anyway? I loved both stories, as they each had an amazing and completely unexpected ending. The story of what had really happened to the Snow Queen to make her evil, because as we saw in Jack of Fables that she was really an innocent before he corrupted her and got her pregnant, was quite amazing, and how she turned back to good was extremely well done. Het epic battle with Hadeon was amazing as well. And the Beast story would have made me swallow my gum if I was chewing any. Amazing and Highly recommended.
Secret Avengers: Eyes of the Dragon by Ed Brubaker, Mike Deodato and Will Conrad- When Shang-Chi is attacked by strange martial artists in his home, he has an inkling of why. His father, Fu Manchu, real name Zheng Zu, needs Sheng-Chi's spirit to truly rise again. But can he capture his son, even with the assistance of the Hai-Dai, a group of paid assassins? And who is the force of mercenaries behind Fu Manchu and why do they want him alive? The man in charge is well known to Captain America, a man named John Steele. But he fought on the side of Steve and the Allies during the war before disappearing. Steve and his allies, Shang- Chi, Beast and Valkyrie, must take down the mercs and Zheng Zu, and then probe the mind of John Steele to discover who is behind the return, and why John is fighting on their side... I never expected this tale, but I enjoyed seeing Cap working with Valkyrie and Shang Chi, who is a character who we almost never see after the Heroes for Hire series back in the 70's. and the whole Fu Manchu thing was also quite unexpected. There is a lot of good character stuff in here, for Cap and the others as well. Recommended.
Hardly a Husband by Rebecca Hagan Lee- The Free Fellows League is a group of men who have vowed to put off Matrimony as long as possible. Jarrod Shepardson is the one who came up with the idea, mainly because his parents were always out of love and out of charity with one another, and he wished to avoid matrimony entirely to avoid ending up with the same situation, and other boys who felt the same joined him in his pledge. He turned thirty a few years back, but still wants to put off marriage. So when his old friend Satah Eckersley approaches him, he is shocked to hear that the death of her father means he has been replaced in his position by a fellow whose family thinks that everything that Sarah owns belongs to them, including her beloved pet. But when her arrogant aristocratic neighbor and Lord proposes to marry her, she runs as far and fast as she can. She feels her only choice is to either find a husband, or become a Courtesan. Jarrod is her choice for a husband, but when he turns her down, she makes him an even more shocking proposal: take her virginity and teach her what she knows to be a successful courtesan, which Jarrod hates, but he is powerfully attracted to her. As he desperately tries to save her from a fate she insists she wants, he quickly finds himself losing his heart, just as his mentor, the Earl Mayhew, finds endless enchantment in Lady Dunbridge, Sarah's aunt. But can the two older people conspire to get Jarrod and Sarah married, or will it take their own wedding, and a baring of the souls, before Jarod and Sarah together forever? This is part of a series, "The Free Fellows League" which uses male characters who are utterly opposed to marriage as the heroes. And in a time when marriages were even more important than today, especially noble sons expected to carry on the family line, that's saying something. In this case, it's always the woman who is anxious for marriage, and the man who is resisting, which provides a nice turnabout. It's an interesting book, and at least amusing and enjoyable reading. Recommended.
Scandalous Women: The Lives and Loves of History's Most Notorious Women by Elizabeth Kerry Mahon- What makes a woman "Scandalous"? She is someone who lives her life her own way, in flagrant denial of Society's Rules. This book breaks the women down into seven Chapters- Warrior Queens, Wayward Wives, Scintillating Seductresses, Crusading Ladies, Wild Women of the West, Amorous Artists and Amazing Adventuresses. Each one received scorn or approbation from the rest of society for their choices in life. Included are "Unsinkable" Molly Brown, Frieda Kahlo, Boudicca, Cakamity Jane, Violet Trefusis, Anne Boleyn, Carry Nation, and Joan of Arc. Each woman is given a mini-biography, detailing their youth, what made them famous and infamous, and what happened to them at the end of their life. The greatest shock was Calamity Jane, whose life story as we know it is all the lies of an attention-seeking and alcoholic prostitute who had an insatiable need for adventure. The book is written clearly and concisely, and is quite fascinating to read. Some of these women you may never have heard of, while others are justly well-known. Excellent and fascinating. Highly recommended.
Magic Below Stairs by Caroline Stevermer- I read this book which I first read in 2010 again: http://ladyrhian.blogspot.com/2010/11/magic-below-stairs-by-caroline.html
Dodger by Terry Pratchett- Dodger is a tosher, someone who goes into sewers looking for things people have lost, like money and jewelry, and he always looks forward to a good rain, which washes much of the stench out and washes more lost things into places where he can "find" it. But when he witnesses two men trying to abduct a girl in the middle of a blinding thunderstorm, Dodger, who is well aware that the girl is not a bit of trash, but rather, a treasure, jumps in to rescue her, beating both men who are hitting and abusing the girl and attracting the attention of two "nobs", Mr. Henry Mayhew and Mr. Charles Darwin, a jouranlist. Soon realizing that Dodger had been defending the girl, and take him along to see that she is alright. All the girl has on her is a pack of cards for the game "Happy Families, but it soon turns up that the girl is a missing German Princess who married into the family, but the King, her father-in-law, wishes her to disappear so that his son, the Prince, can marry another girl, this one noble, for her money. The girl, who Mayhew has taken to calling "Simplicity", is half-English and fled to London for sanctuary, but her Father-in-Law is willing to create and international incident to get her back, and only Dodger, with the help of his friend and Landlord Solomon Cohen and his very smelly dog, Onan, may be the only ones dedicated enough, and cunning enough, to keep Simplicity safe and ensure her pursuers fail in their attempts to catch her. But can Dodger be the kinf of man that Simplicity needs to keep her alive, and attract her attention? I loved this book, which is set in the early part of Queen Victoria's reign, and tells a sort of Dick Whittington tale about a lad from the gutter that makes good and becomes a hero. The characters here are top-notch, and I really enjoyed every bit of the story and how it ended. Highly recommended.
Sorceror's Son by Phyllis Eisenstein- When the sorceror Smada Rezhyk proposes marriage to the sorceress Delivev Ormoru, she turns him down, and this can only mean, to him, that she hates him and would seek his death. Since Smada's power is over metals and the making of rings to enslave Elementals, and her power is over thread and weaving, he fears for his life, smothered by his own garments. To deal with his fears, his oldest elemental, named Gildrum, proposes he weave a shirt from metal, and to keep Delivev's attention occupied elsewhere, to get her with child so she will be distracted. Rezhyk assumes that as soon as she discovers she is pregnant, that she will abort the child, especially if the father merely dsiappears- or to keep her powers strong. But when he gives Gildrum the body of a young knight and fills his body with his own seed, Gildrum goes off to seduce Delivev, and in the process, falls deeply in love with her. But he isn't free to be with her, as he is still the slave of Smada Rezhyk. Only Delivev doesn't abort the child born out of her love for the young Knight, even when he leaves, presumably to deliver a message for his lord and never returns. She names her son Cray and raises him with all the love she is capable of. But as he gets older, he lives for becoming a Knight like his father, and discovering what happened to the man. But when all his searches lead to nothing but grief, he finds that his father may only have been a thief, as the arms and armor he bore were stolen. But Cray is determined to know the truth of his father, and decides to become a Sorceror to find the truth. And not a sorceror of Thread like his mother, but an Elemental Sorceror so that he can discover the truth, which Elementals can seek and discover on their home plane. His seeking of a master alerts Smada to his existence, and now he assumes Delivev raised Cray to use as a tool against him. When Cray seeks a master to learn from Smada offers himself, trying to steer Cray wrong so that he can never summon an elemental. But Gildrum, who has been watching Cray ever since he was a child, comes forward to teach Cray what he really need to know. But can he learn what he needs to know before Rezhyk decides he is too much of a threat and kills him anyway? I remember reading this book back in 1979, when it first came out. I loved it then, but time has made it somewhat less than I remembered. Most of the story is still good, but... honestly. Smada Rezhyk is the more paranoid asshole that has ever existed. He goes from "Delivev Ormoru turned down my offer of marriage" to "She must hate me enough to seek my death" in less than a minute. It's going from 0 to crazy, and he does this a lot. I mean, he decides she had the child to use Cray against him just as quickly. But then again, other decisions he makes in the story reflect this same kind of thinking. It's just that he seems so stable otherwise... Still, a good story and recommended.
City of Dragons by Robin Hobb- The Rainwilders have reach Kelsingra with their Dragons and at least one of them, Rapskal, is exploring the city on his Dragon, Heeby, who has learned to fly. But the other Dragons still can't fly and need their Keepers to hunt for them. Thymara is also being pulled between Rapskal, who is in love with her, and Tats, who she likes as a friend. When he reveals that he has spent the night with Jerd, another Keeper who spreads her favors around freely, it hurts Thymara badly, pushing her into the arms of Rapskal, who has taught Thymara to seek out information about the city through the use of the memory stones left behind by the Elderlings who built the city. When Thymara forces her Dragon, Sintara, to hunt for herself, Sintara finally gains the strength to fly across the city and use the hot water pools that allow her to reshape her body to better fly. But Rapskal's night in bed with Thymara hurts Tats, too. Meanwhile, Captain Leftrin must return to Trehaug to get the money and goods promised by the Council to him and the Keepers to keep them alive through the rest of the winter and allow them to live in the city. Meanwhile, Reyn's wife Malta is ready to give birth. But when they go to Trehaug to see the new Impervious boats that are able to cross the Rain Wild River. Malta is kidnapped by a Chalcedean in the midst of giving birth, and her son is barely alive. Escaping and taking shelter on Captain Leftrin's liveship Tarman, the ship tells her that her son needs the help of a Dragon to survive. But where is Tintaglia, who changed both Reyn and Malta into the Elderlings they are? Meanwhile, Tintaglia has been poisoned by the weapon of a Chalcedian, whose ruling Duke wants Dragon mear and Dragon Blood to cure him of his age-born illnesses, and she makes for Trehaug to try and get cured. But the Duke of Chalced has agents, even there, and they harry her up the river towards Kelsingra. And in Bingtown, Hest Finbok, the husband of Alise, is told to seek her out by his family when the news of Kelsingra being rediscovered is bandied about in Bingtown. They have a claim on that through Alise, but if Hest allows her to sliup through his fingers, they lose that profit. But can Hest, who hates Alise anyway and has never loved her, convince her to come back to him? And can the threats of the Chalcedeans change his mind? Maybe it was not reading this series for a long time, but I liked the characters in this story much more than I did in the first two books. Even Thymara who came off as an awful "Witch starting with a B" quickly grew on me, especially after she comes into her own and realizes her beauty. The love triangle between Rapskal, Tats and her made me wonder who would win her heart, though I had a sneaking suspicion about who she would end up with in the end. The story kept my attention quite faithfully throughout, and it was nice to see the really bad characters get some comeuppance at least. But there is one more book to go, and this book firmly sets up the conflict and conflicts to come. Highly recommended.
Blood of Dragons by Robin Hobb- Tintaglia has finally made it to Kelsingra, and her treatment at the hands of the Chalcedeans has all the Dragons up in arms. When their Keepers try to decide what they should do about it, the Dragons reject them firmly- this is Dragon business, and Dragons will decide. Meanwhile, the Elderlings have rediscovered the well of silver that gives Dragons their long lives and magic, and are working to clear it to help their Dragons. When the well is finally reopened, the Dragons drink long and deep, becoming even more powerful. Meanwhile, the Elderlings and their dragons take captive some of the Chalcedeans who were trying to kill Tintaglia, and Hest makes it to the city, as the Chalcedeans had taken him captive and used him as a slave. But will he be able to convince Alise and Sedric to take him back into their lives? But when Tintaglia's mate Icefyre shows up in Kelsingra, he, too, has been poisoned by the Chacedeans, and wants revenge. Little does Tintaglia know that Seldin Vestrit, her singer, has been imprisoned by the Duke of Chalced and has had his blood consumed by the Duke. Meanwhile, the Duke's Daughter, Chassim, is trying to nurse him back to health so that her father can keep drinking his blood. Unknown to her father, or her putative would-be husband, she and Seldin have made a connection, and she doesn't wish to survive his death. But can she keep him alive when her father wants to devour him, and can the war party of Dragons arrive in time to save his life? Well, this was the last book in the series and a really satisfying read. Bad, evil people are punished in entirely appropriate ways, and the good one triumphs, and the last chapter really made me cheer and feel happy. Amazing book, wonderful series- the last two books are the best and most readable of all. Highly recommended. As a series, this starts out being a little hard to read, but the ending certainly redeems it as a whole.
Transmetropolitan #2: Lust for Life by Warren Ellis, Darick Robertson and Rodney Ramos- Spider Jerusalem is a journalist of the far future (23rd century), is an inveterate drug user and hates authority and people who annoy him. The first story deals with his intern, Channon, who is upset that her boyfriend Xiang is planning to become a computer program, or download his personality into a computer and go virtual as a cloud of fog. Channon is convinced he's planning to kill himself, and Spider tries to show her that what Xiang is doing isn't killing himself. But can he and his Foglet friend Tico Cortez convince her otherwise? "Another Cold Morning" shows the life and fate of a female journalist from the present day who has herself frozen to be revived in the future when she dies of Cancer. But will the future be too strange for her to withstand? "Wild in the Country" has Spider Exploring lifestyles so out there that they can only be contained in complete reservations apart from normal society. But is his new piece so out there that his own editor will abandon him? Finally, Spider is cut off from everything in "Freeze Me with Your Kiss". When Spider becomes a wanted man for non-payment of his Insurance, it seems everyone is out to get him. But who put him into this situation and why? And can Spider survive the many people out after him? I picked this up because I'd never read Spider Jerusalem before, and it was weird and neither exceptionally good nor exceptionally bad. My favorite story was "Another Cold Morning", and that one was just damned depressing. Neither recommended nor bad enough to warn you against. Just "meh."
Dreamspinner by Lynn Kurland- Runach of Ceangail had thought for the longest time that his siblings were dead, killed by their father, Torlach, when he opened the well of evil to unleash the power trapped there and take it for himself. But Torlach had finally started on a task too difficult even for him, and it killed him. His wife managed to save her children and re-close the well, but at the cost of her own life, and the children were scattered, each thinking the others dead. Now, Runach knows he is no longer alone, but his magic has been gone since the day his father drained him to help him open the well, and in the cataclysm, the well cap was closed on his hands, leaving them bent and broken and forever weak. With no other goal in life, he decides to become a mercenary or guardsman and live out the rest of his life in obscurity. Aisling is of Bruadair, a land of weavers. Apprenticed at seven to the weaver's guild, she has lived her life as a virtual prisoner, her parents continually selling her back to the guild. This last timr was supposed to be the last, as she has finally attained her majority. But when her parents return, she knows they are there to extend her time as a weaver, and she flees rather than spend more time in the guild. She is captured on the street by a merchant, who sends her halfway across the world to hire an assassin to free Bruadair from a cruel tyrant. If she doesn't return in three sevendays, she will die due to a curse placed on her. Neither can she spin wool, due to another curse from the weaver's guild. But when she encounters Runach, he realizes she can spin anything- from water, to air, to even magic. Who *is* Aisling, and why does she have these mysterious powers? And can he keep her safe from those who mean to kill her or him or both of them? WHat is going on in Bruadair, and can Runach become the man Aisling needs to set her and her people free? Okay, so this is a new Nine Kingdoms novel, and to be honest, I am already tired of having another supposedly thought dead sibling coming out of the woodwork for another trilogy of Romance novels. It's not a bad series by any means, but the background horse has long ago been beaten into a find red paste. Recommended, but please, can we have a hero and heroine from a completely unrelated background now?
The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter- Kate Winters and her mother have moved to Eden from New York City. Eden's mother is dying, and she wants to spend her last weeks or months in the town where she grew up, and as her primary caregiver, Kate has moved them to the town and will be attending her last two years of High School there. On her first day in the new school, she meets Ava, the School's head cheerleader, her boyfriend, Dylan, who takes a shine to Kate, and James, boy who seems to keep mostly to himself. Kate, althiough she thinks Dylan is cute and handsome, tells him she doesn't date- at all, and tries to turn away his interest in her. Ava invites her to a spirit-building bonfire in the woods for a few nights hence, and Kate reluctantly accepts. The next day, her mother relapses, forcing Kate to spend the night in the hospital with her, and though Kate doesn't really want to go, when her mother comes home, she tells Kate to liver her life, including going to the spirit event. But Ava, jealous at Dylan's being attracted to Kate, intends to leave Kate in the woods surrounded by the river- and Kate is deathlt afraid of water and can't swim. But when Ava hits her head on a rock, Kate musters up the courage to save her, only to find that Ava is truly dead. Then a dark boy named Henry appears and offers to save Ava's life if Kate will go through with the same bargain that Persephone made with Hades. Kate agrees, and Ava is somehow returned to life. Kate has until the next solstice to join with Henry and stay in his mansion through the fall and winter. But when she doesn't show up, he comes to her house, where she declines to go with him. The next day, Ava is dead, and Kate frantically returns to Henry to undo the harm she's caused. Henry reveals that he is the God of Death. and he can bring Ava back, but it's too late and she would always be tainted by being seen as "Unnatural". However, he can let Kate meet with her mother's spirit, which is in the process of dying, as that lies within his Realm, and Ava, now that she is dead, is also in James' domain, so Kate can see her everyday. But to survive in Henry's Realm, Kate will have to pass seven tests, and if she fails any of them, she will die, just as all the other girls to make the attempt did before her.
Liberty Vocational, Volume 1: Will Super Villains Be on the Final? by Naomi Novik and Yishan Li- Leah Taymore is a sixteen year old girl who wants to become a superhero. Her powers of matter control is extremely powerful, but she still has to learn to use them. The need for powerful superheroes has made Liberty Vocational offer her early entry, especially since the Superhero Calvin Washington lost his own powers and Heroes are needed. Leah's parents, small-town heroes themselves, are delighted. But when a series of misfortunes befalls her, all seeming to be her own fault, Leah isn't sure she is made for the big leagues, and is certain that she is soon to be kicked out for her missteps. Can a hot guy, her roommate, and a coming flood change Leah's mind as to whether she is suited to staying? And if it isn't Leah who is behind the series of misfotunes that are happening to her, who is, and why is he. she or they wanting to make her fail? I loved this book. The title was irresistable, and Leah's story pulled me in most powerfully and wouldn't let me go. It's a refreshing look at both Superheroes and college, and reminded me somewhat of a Superhero Harry Potter story. Highly recommended.
Kobato, Volumes 2-6 by CLAMP- Kobato is a friendly, naive young woman sent to Earth by God to collect the broken hearts of humans by healing them. To collect them, she must fill a jar with bits of broken hearts, and then she will have a heartfelt wish granted to her by God. But she's not alone- she has the foul-tempered stuffed Dog Ioryogi to help her out and hopefully help her learn about the world, and although she's clumsy, she's found a job helping out at the local bursery school. What could go wrong? But something is wrong, the head of the school, Sayaka Okiura, owes a lot of money to the Yakuza, and a Yakuza man, Kazuto, often appears to hell her to get out of the school so that he can sell it and tak the money for the repayment of the debt, which causes Miss Okiyura much grief, though she tries to put it off for the sake of her students, for whom she maintains a happy face. Also helping out Miss Okiura is KiyoKazu Fujimoto, a sarcastic young man who nonetheless finds himeslf warming to Kobato. But as the situation with the Yakusa grows worse, and Kobato finds herself falling in love with Kiyokazu, can she change her wish to end everything, and fulfill her pact with God so that everything ends as it should? Characters from WISH and Chobits also appear in this manga. I loved the story, which starts off very low-key and gets deeper and more interesting with each volume. It's not until the end when we get to find out who Kobato really is and why Ioryogi and some of the other chaeacters are helping Kobato, that we see the whole story, and this is another one where the ending made me cry, and in a good way. The ending is sentimental, slightly sad, and yet joyous as well. Readers can't help but be entranced, even though the story is fairly simple, the impact is not. Highly recommended.
Fair Game: An Alpha and Omega Novel by Patricia Briggs- Anna Latham is an Omega Wolf, out of the normal pack hierarchy and able to calm Alpha wolves merely by being near them. She is mated to Charles Cornick, the son of the Marrok, Bran, who is the Alpha over all the wolves of America. Charles has been acting as Bran's enforcer ever since werewolves came out of the closet and outed themselves to the world. Now, they share an uneasy peace with humans, and any infractions are dealt with harshly. Because the Alphas often find it hard to kill errant members of their own packs, Bran sends Charles in to take care of it. But Charles hates the work, and it is killing him. Bran wants to believe everyuthing is okay, and won't listen to what Anna is trying to tell him, until Charles returns from his latest trip and Bran can see the results for himself. and then he's shocked at the change in his son. So, to give him a break, Bran assigns Charles the job of Bodyguard to Anna as Anna meets with an FBI task force which is trying to catch a serial killer. The Killer, known as "The Big Game killer" has been killing people since the 70's and started out with people from Vietnam and southeast asia, then expamded his killing to others. However, his latest victims include Fae and Werewolves, which concerns everyone. Fae and Weres are not easy targets to kill, and yet, this presumably human, has been managing it. Now, another woman has been kidnapped, a half-fae daughter of a very important Fae, but the dsughter is mostly human and a dancer. Her father is desperate to find her before her killer kills her, but there are signs he isn't working alone. When they find and recover the girl, Charles has an idea who might be helping the killer, but when Anna is the Big Game Hunter's Next victim, can Charles and the other agents find her before she becomes another statistic? And can Anna, who Chatles rescued from ab abusive situation, keep herself alive and sane as the killers take every chance to break her down and "deal" with her? I liked this book. The real villain of the piece wasn't glaringly obvious, but the drawback was that his reveal comes a bit out of left field- you don't realize he's a vaillain until Charles pulls him seemingly out of thin air. Other than that, it was a thoroughloy enjoyable book. I liked the interaction between Anna and Chales, and Anna and the local FBI agent, alog with the story about the FBI Agent's past. The ending of the book was also a shock, even though I was also cheering at seeing one of the Bad guys finally brought to justice. I read this book literally in hours because of how it pulled me in. Highly recommended.
River Marked by Patricia Briggs- Mercy and Adam are planning their wedding when it all becomes too much for Mercy. Her mother is planning on releasing pigeons instead of doves, which Mercy shot down, because the pack is going to chase them. Now her mother wants to release Monarch Butterflies and Balloons, which is only slightly less objectionable. It's still too much for Mercy, so she and Adam elope, which is attended by everyone anyway, as they have all forseen Mercy's reaction. Adam, meanwhile, has put aside weeks to spend with her at a campsite which he provided security for when they were building it, and it isn't open yet, leaving it all to them. To get there, "Uncle Mike" a local fae, lends them a new RV, which makes Mercy more than a little suspicious. But Adam tells her that Unle Mike only asked her to look in on a clan of Otter-shifters while they are in the area, so Mercy eventually calms down, because doing favors for the Fae is almost always a BAD IDEA. But when she and Adam find an injured man on the river one night, it's clear he's been attacked by something, his foot is nearlychopped, or in this case, gnawed, off. But what might have done it? Investigation leads them to the local river monster/goddess, who was once defeated by Coyote and imprisoned at the bottom of the River. Now, it appears that something or someone has awakened her, and it's up to Mercedes to take care of her. But she is not alone, because other Coyote shifters are living in the area, and it appears that Coyote himself is taking an interest, along with his brothers, Thunderbird, Bear, Wolf, Raven and others. But when it comes down to a fight between the Native American totems and the River Goddess with Mercy as the killer, and the other Native American Gods as bait. But can she bring the River Goddess down for the count? I enjoyed this book, the interactions between Mercy and her new husband, Adam, and how she finally meets other shifters like herself. Initially, they seem kind of bigoted, asserting Mercy can't be a shifter because she is half-white. But once we find out more about Mercy, it's explained quite well. Once again, Mercy ends up quite banged up by the end of the book, in a wheelchair and her hands burned, but aside from her injuries, I found the book a wonderful, engaging read, and one that pulls you along quite effortlessly. Recommended.
Wednesday, June 05, 2013
Thursday, May 09, 2013
2008 All unposted
One Bite Stand by Nina Bangs- Daria is a Harpy, and is unable to find a job because of her reputation for snatching people off to Hades. And when she finally does land a job, it's as the manager of the Woo Woo Inn, not exactly her area of expertise. But to do her job, she has to step up to her A game, call on her inner bitch and stop the monster preying on the Inn's patrons, and with a cosmic troublemaker showing up to create Havoc. But the arrival of a sexy man named Declan MacKenzie, Daria finds herself less interested in climbing the ladder of success and more interested in climbing into Declan's arms... and his bed. So what if she'd rather bed him than steal his soul and drag it to Hell? Nights with Declan can make everything better. Or can they? And when Daria falls afoul of her responsibilities, can Declan step forward to make everything right for her? And does he even want to? I enjoy Nina Bangs' books, but they don't really blow my socks off. They aren't especially hot or have exceptionally interesting heroes or heroines. She is an enjoyable middle of the road author for me, but I don't expect to be blown away. And generally, I'm not. And so it was with this book. If you are looking for a nice romance, then sure, read it. Otherwise, eh. Neither recommended nor not recommended. I wasn't feeling this one.
Proven Guilty by Jim Butcher- Harry Dresden has long been a Wizard in the city of Chicago, and the City's only Wizard who advertises in the Yellow Pages. Now, the wizard Council is at war with the Red Vampire Court, and their ranks have thinned so much that Harry, although not entirely trusted by the Council, has been made a Warden, one of the magical defenders of the world. However, Harry's friend John, a former Knight wielding a sword made from one of the nails that pierced Christ at his Crucifixion, was badly injured in the line of duty and has had to retire. Now, one of his daughters, Molly, has somehow found her way into magic and gotten in trouble, and Harry must step in to extract her and keep her safe from the Council, who will sentence her for using magic illegally. But will Molly's presence by Harry's side endanger her because of the Black Magic he has been tasked to find. or will she find herself getting entangled in it herself? And Harry has never been the most subtle of magicians. Is he ready to be a Warden, and can he survive his new post long enough to do some good? More to the point, can he survive the chaos that is "Splattercon" without outing himself in a really big way, and will the evil Denarian inside him make his entire job worse? I loved this book, as the idea of an actual wizard at a convention made me giggle, especially *because* it's Harry Dresden. I loved the interaction between him and Molly. Yes, she's the daughter of his best friend, but he can't just be her favorite non-related "Uncle" anymore. He has to lay down a little rough love on her to get her to pay attention to him and what he's saying, and their interactions are priceless, as Harry's usual snark is on fine display here. Highly recommended.
Demonfire by Kate Douglas- I read it again later and reviewed it here: http://ladyrhian.blogspot.com/2010/08/demonfire-by-kate-douglas.html
Armed and Magical by Lisa Shearin- Raine Benares was formerly a seeker, a searcher of lost magic items. Until she somehow ended up with the Saghred in her, as well as all the souls it has consumed over the centuries. Although this gives Raine plenty of magic power, she's desperate to get rid of it and get her old life back, but it's not that easy (did you think it would be, honestly?). The Isle of Mid is the best place she can think of to solve her problem, but some of Mid's magic users only want Raine to use the power she now holds. And if she isn't separated from the Saghred in the correct way, Raine could die. Plus, she's still caught between two men: Mychael and Tam, her would-be lovers from the first book, and are still around, and the Saghred wants to add her soul to the many it's stolen already. But Spellsingers, one of the many types of mages at the Magical School where Raine is attempting to get her problem solved are disappearing, and since Raine is between a rock and a hard place as for as it comes to getting help for her problem, they ask her to look into the disappearances. Plus, a dangerous assassin is after her two friends here, and the elves and goblins are at war again, and Raine is caught in the middle during her investigation Can she find the truth without getting killed, and will her investigation lead her into even worse trouble than she has now? I liked this series. Raine is smart, tough, and snarky out the ying-yang, but she never seems really emotionally affected by being close to death. Some people could find the love triangle tiresome, and it is, in a way, but it's so well done, it's easy to overlook, and the world-building and characters are just fantastic. Highly recommended.
The Trouble with Demons by Lisa Shearin- The opening of a Hellgate leaves the Island of Mid Demon-infested, and it;'d never a good time to have to fight them, But the Demons want something: The key to the powers of the Saghred, which means there is one, and Raine, with her magical powers, can find it, if it exists. But with her recent link with Mychael in order to fight the power of the Saghred, her body is an almost literal battleground between the forces of light and darkness, and if Raine isn'r careful, she could become the magical equivalent of Hiroshima. Now, in addition to her troubles, both sides in the Elven-Goblin war seem to want her dead, and it will take all Raine has to keep herself ahead of insanity, demons and the Saghred itself to keep both her life and sanity. But is she up to the task? This book was more action packed than the last book, and it keeps a pretty fevered pace throughout, leaving me gasping for breath by the end. Quiet moments are few and far between, but the characters and world continue to enthrall me. Highly recommended.
Medieval Lives: Eight Charismatic Men and Women of the Middle Ages by Norman F. Cantor- This book examines the Middle Ages through the life of citizens who lived and experienced it, from the Advent of the Middle Ages in Greeks living in the Holy Land, the African Horizon with Augustine of Hippo, Northerners with Alcuin of York, Women with Hildegard of Bingen, and the Glory of it all with Eleanor of Aquitaine, and then takes it to the very end of the Middle Ages with the life of John, Duke of Bedford (although Eleanor of Aquitaine sort of planted the seeds of the Renaissance at her court in France, at least in my opinion). This talks about the Middle Ages in the terms of peoples lives, and specifically, the effects of those lives on the Middle Ages, and vice versa. I liked this book and how it used how and when people lived to illuminate what other lives could be like and were like, This made it interesting where the book could have been dull and too scholarly, but the story of real people made the pages just fly past for me. Recommended.
Sporting Chance by Elizabeth Moon- After having saved her former shipmates from being hunted to death, Heris Serrano and her employer return to the Capital, along with the Prince, who was one of the party who enthusiastically gathered to hunt "the most dangerous prey". They have been subtly blackmailed to return the Prince before his involvement can be known, but during the journey, Cecilia finds the Prince to be dull and rather stupid, which he has never been before, and suspects the Prince has been poisoned. When she mentions the possibility to the King, she is overheard, and people who have never liked her take steps to deal with her while she sends her yacht in to be redecorated, and Heris' former shipmates take off to get surplus military weapons and systems to beef up the yacht, But when Heris receives word that Cecilia has suffered a massive stroke and is now in a medical facility, unable to care for herself or even to understand anyone. The King blackmails her into taking the Prince for treatment for his poisoning... only the Prince is unable to be told apart from his two doubles that provide him with security, and none of them seem to know which is the "real" one, either. Heris takes them all to the Guerni Empire, to be examined by the Doctors there, then returns to Familias space to see Cecilia, who has been rescued from the facility where they were keeping her imprisoned by further drugging her and blinding her to keep her out of the way. Now, she is receiving treatments that will make her better. But there is a traitor on Heris' ship and she must uncover the traitor to find out who is behind the whole mess. But when Lady Cecelia undergoes a startling change, how will it change the relationship Heris and her crew enjoy with their employer? I love this series, which is full of strong female characters, both older ladies like Lady Cecelia and younger women like Heris Serrano, Brun Meagher and Esmay Suiza (who doesn't show up in this book, but gets a series of her own further down the line). This is military SF done right, and we get a sense of how military life changes you by how Heris runs her ship, both in commanding other ex-military personnel and civilian crew. I liked the characters, and I liked the universe here, with characters of all types and colors (Heris is black, and Esmay is brown, but it's easy to forget all of this when you are reading). Highly recommended.
Blood Lite by Charlaine Harris, Jim Butcher, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Kelly Armstrong, Sharyn McCrumb, and many others. This is a book about the Dead and the Undead and those that have to interact with them. "The Ungrateful Dead" by Kelly Armstrong tells the story of a necromancer who masquerades as a psychic who can contact the dead. But when one dead spirit discovers her secret, can she resist doing one last request for the dead? "Mr. Bear" by Joe Lansdale has an ordinary man encountering a very famous Bear on a plane. Can he survive a jaunt with him? "Hell in a Handbasket" by Lucien Soulban Has a very special child end up in Hell, turning the place upside down. What is this child, and what will be her fate? "The Eldritch Pastiche from Beyond the Shadow of Horror" confronts a writer with the truth about his work, and why he must not stop... "Elvis Presley and the Bloodsucker Blues" talks about the King of Rock and Roll's last day alive and how he became a vampire. "No Problem" by Don D'Amassa shows us the problems encountered by a descendant of Victor Frankenstein when he attempts to improve on his ancestor's work. "Old School" by Mark Onspaugh shows how bad public schooling can be deadly. "The Sound of Blunder by J.A. Konrath and F. Paul Wison tracks what happens to a couple of stupid mobsters who lose their boss a Kilo of Cocaine and then attempt to "fix" the situation with an antiquity of the elder gods... "An Evening with Al Gore" shows a Green Couple leaving the US with a bang- and take a bunch of polluters with them..."Dear Prudence" by Steven Saville deconstructs a relationship in a series of letters from a man to his wife. "A Good Psycho is Hard to Find" by Will Ludwigsen shows what happens to the survivors of a Psychopath attack, "High Kicks and Misdemeanors" by Janet Berliner Involves a man with a group training animals as Special Ops attack forces, and an uncle who just might be dead, but sure as hell has his opinions... "PR Problems" by Eric James Stone Shows a ghoul with PR Problems over a murderer. But when he gets the chance to take on the murderer and rescue his latest victim, will he give his own secret away? "Where Angels Fear to Tread" by Sherrilyn Kenyon has an accountant who wishes for a different life, but will he enjoy who he gets to be? "A Very Special Girl" by Mike Resnick, has a girl who creates havoc for a Mob Bookie when his zombie associate meets a girl of the same persuasion. "Love Seat Solitaire" by D. L. Snell pits three drinking buddies against a ghost, "I Know Who You Ate Last Summwe" by Nancy Holder shows the relationship between two Fine Young Cannibals. But can they trust each other to keep their secret? "Bitches of the Night" by Nancy Kilpatrick has a Vampire Lord and Master who finds himself in the worst of places. "The Bell from HELL" by Jeff Strand has a man convinced that the plastic bell he owns can summon Satan. But can it? "Dead Man Hand" by Sharyn McCrumb has a NASCAR team resort to raising the Dead to get a leg up on the competition, "Day Off" by Jim Butcher has Harry's Plans for a Day Off and a date with Anastasia Lucco combust spectacularly in a combination of a Lab Accident, a confrontation with a wannabe Black Magician and a pair of Werewolves infected with Supernatural mites. But as it all goes to Heck, can he keep his relationship alive? This was a pretty excellent collection of stories. I didn't like every one, but they were all entertaining and kept me reading, and "Day Off" was my clear favorite, especially for how it ended, and Lucco's reaction to the situation. Definitely recommended.
Deadly Desire by Keri Arthur- Half-vampire Riley Jensen has settled down with her vampire lover, Quinn, and into her job at the Directorate. But when she's assigned to two cases at once- One a series of killings by Zombies, the other to investigate a series of killings in the world of old, powerful vampires, something has got to give, especially with the coming of the full moon bringing her werwolf senses and desires to a boil. Riley had planned to sate her lusts at the usual clubs, and with Quinn, but there is a new player in town- another werewolf by the name oi Kye Murphy, and the way he appeals to Riley's inner wolf both makes her hot, and disturbs her. Because she's committed to Quinn, but she may have found her true mate in Kye, and both halves of her are fighting it out to see who wins- and combined with the mysteries she has to solve, that could end up with her dead very very quickly. But what will decide for Riley- her heart, or her instincts? And can she survive the fallout from finding the one thing she didn't think existed for her- her true vampire mate? This was an incredible book to read. I love Riley's world, and no matter how long its been since I read the novels before, I quickly get sucked back into Riley's head and problems. And this one is heart wrenching. Kye exists to be her perfect other half sexually and emotionally, but she doesn't know if she can trust him. since he's a mercenary. At the same time, Quinn loves her, and she loves him, and she can't give him up, either. No matter which way she goes, someone is going to be hurt, and Riley is going to hurt as we;;. A wonderful mix of dangerous mysteries, and heartbreaking choices she won't be able to put off for long. Highly recommended.
Magic's Design by Car Adams- Magic in our world has become scarce- the Tree of Life, which enables magic, has become dangerously weak and in danger of dying. To prevent this from happening, a man named Talos has crossed from his own magically powerful world to try to protect the tree with his powers over fire. Mira, a woman of our world, has vast healing powers that she is blocked from using by a lock on her memory, ostensibly done to protect her, but noe which causes her to have seizures and pain. It's only after meeting Tal that she begins to remember and reclaim her powers, which his own powers over fire can empower even more. But will their efforts be enough to protect and heal the tree and keep magic in our world? And can they find the love that will make them nearly unstoppable? I love C.T. Adams and Cathy Clamp's writing, but this book was more than a bit uneven, with the characters being stupid for story reasons, which I find incredibly irritating. Characters who act without logic or common sense annoy me, especially if the reader is left going, "Really? Come on!" And this had quite a bit of that at the beginning. However, I liked the romance aspects and some of the worldbuilding was nice, so this evened out at a solid "Meh." for me. I'm glad I read it, but it was a mix of the engaging and enraging rhat I'd rather not read again.
The Black Swan by Mercedes Lackey is a retelling of the story of "swan Lake", but from the point of view of Odile. the daughter of Rothbart, the magician who considered the death of his wife an incredible betrayal and who intends to take his revenge on all women. Odile fears her father, and with good reason, but when Odette, a Princess and the most feisty of his captured maidens become Swans, wrings from him a bargain that could free her and all the other women he has captured, Odile promises to herself that she will make her father keep his bargain, even if he doesn't want to, and she must use her own magical talents against her father to ensure that Odette and her lover, Siegfried, win the contest. But if and when her father dies, what will become of Odile, and her guilt over the way her father treated the Swan Maidens, and the way he forced her to treat them? There might be a happy ending to Odette's story, but will there be one for Odile and the rest of the maidens? I found this story a little troubling in the parts that occur after the canonical end of the ballet "Swan Lake", because Odile comes off as a bit too shy and retiring for someone who was so instrumental in bringing down her own father, The ending was lovely, but the parts leading up to it gave me a feeling of disquiet I found hard to shake off, and it wasn't all that satisfying. I think it was that Odile never breaks free of her role of staying in the background and trying to blend in with the furniture, so to speak. She does change, but in a strange way, it is forced on her by those who are her friends, and thus, it seemed ultimately unsatisfying to me. A Good book, but the ending left me uncomfortable. Recommended, still, because the book is very well written.
Angel Blood by Nalini Singh- Angels exist and look after the morals over which they rule, served by the vampires they can create. Sometimes, though, the mortals they change aren't suited to be vampires, and they go bad, running amok and killing indiscriminately. That is when the guild is brought in. Merely human, the guild has to be tougher and better than the vampires they hunt, otherwise, it would just lead to the death of the Hunter and even more mortals. But even in the Guild, Elena Deveraux is the best. So when an angel goes bad, she is assigned by the guild to hunt him down and deal with him- as she is the only one with the possibility of being as good or better than an angel. But as she hunts down Uram the Archangel, she has come to the attention of Raphael, the Archangel who rules New York, who Elena despises for his cruelty, And she is unable to keep her sarcasm and sass inside when he pursues her, which only sparks his interest even further, and Elena comes to despise herself for being unable to resist his interest or contain her own. But as the hunt nears its end, Rafael must make a choice. Can he survive Elena's anger and fear over what Rafael must do to save her life, and will it only make her despise him more, and can Elena live with the changes that will come with her new status, and the love of a millennia old Archangel? And can she somehow remain the woman she has always been? I loved Nalini Singh for her Psy-Changeling series, but this one is just as wonderful, and introduces us to a new world where Angels live among us-but these aren't your Christian Angels. They don't serve God and they are hard and cruel because they have to be. They are dangerous, powerful and completely inhuman- humans under them feat, respect and worship them. And they feel no need to conform to human mores- but they do demand respect, which is why Rafael is so intrigued by Elena being unable and unwilling to do the same.Archangels scare people into obedience and respect, and Rafael might scare her, but it won't stop her from sassing him. I loved reading this book and all the characters that will wind up in the ongoing series. Highly recommended.
The Accidental Sorcerer by K.E. Mills- Gerald Dunwoody was only a low, third-grade wizard until an explosion at a magical factory making magic wands for sale. Now, he's lost his job as an inspector and must take up a new job as the King of Ottosland's Court Wizard. But King Lional is lying to Gerald, and wants to use him as a scapegoat for some magical shenanigans he's planning, and Gerald seems to be too innocent to realize just what is going on around him. But he does have allies on his side in the form of his friend, Monk, another, more powerful wizard who has been tutoring him and Melisande, a witch who might just turn out to be his friend. He's also coming to realize that the accident at the factory may have made him more powerful than anyone realizes, but can he master his new powers, and wise up about his employer, before it all comes crashing down on him? And what will happen to the King when Gerald's normally pleasant attitude turns to rage when he discovers what Lional was planning to do to him? I liked this book, as we get to see Gerald, who has never had a very high opinion of himself or his magic change and grow over time. But along with his newly expanded level of powers comes a far greater degree of control than he is used to. But it was nice to see him shed his low self-confidence as the story progressed and see just how much he could do, and the unlikely friendship he develops with the witch Melisande is also wonderful, as Melisande is not one to suffer fools lightly, and she thinks Gerald a fool at first. I really enjoyed this story and this world. Recommended.
Cold Moon Rising by C.T. Adams and Cathy Clamp- Tony Giodone has come along way since his days as a low-level hit man for the Mob. Now that he's married to his former mark, Sue, he's had to step up and become a real pack leader, stronger than his former pack leader, and deal with the other Sazi, as Tony has a rare and unusual power: he can see into the past by tapping other people's, and even other Sazi's, memories. But now it seems that a group of Sazi want to wipe out the human race, something that puts Sue and her entire family at risk, and neither Tony nor the other Sazi can let the plan come to fruition. But Tony is going to have to team up with Ahmad, the leader of the Sazi Snakes, to defeat the plan, and Ahmad is going to have to deal with a very dangerous ex-girlfriend who he was forced to betray, and Tony, who had inadvertantly formed a psychic bond with Ahmad stronger than the one he shares with his mate, can't help but get drawn into Ahmad's thoughts and memories. But can the two of them handle the crisis? And can Ahmad Patch things up with Tuli? And more to the point, can both of them idssolve this strange bond that holds them together unwillingly? And can they keep the humans safe? This was a wonderful story that showed how long the Sazi live and it was also a pretty rip-roaring adventure with plenty of danger and menace. It was an exciting read that was deepend by the connection between Tony and Ahmad. It didn't cease entertaining my until the end of the book, and it's nice to see Tony and Sue continue togrow and change. Recommended.
Ed Greenwood Presents Waterdeep: City of the Dead by Rosemary Jones- Sophraea Carver's family has built and maintained the monuments in Waterdeep's City of the Dead for Generations.. She hates her family's job and wants nothing more than to have adventures, and possibly take up a job as a seamstress. But when an old grudge stirs up the dead and puts her family, and the entire city at risk for the walking Dead escaping the graveyard. To stop the threat and find out who is behind the conspiracy to loose the dead, Sophraea must team up with the mage Gustin Bone, who has come to Waterdeep to enjoy the sights. But his sights might be limited to those beneath the soil and in the ctypts full of the dead beneath the City of the Dead if they can't put an end to the plot. Can Sphraea and Gustin keep her family safe? This was a wonderful book by the same writer who wrote "Crypt of the Monaing Diamons", and it's full of the same wonderful characters and spot-on humor. It's a story that pulls you along as you read it, and it's incredibly hard to stop it and put it down, because you'll be itching to go back to it the moment you do. Excellent book, and highly recommended.
Supernatural Sleuths (anthology)- This book deals with supernatural mysteries. "Lonely Train A'Comin'" by William F. Nolan tells the tale of a Cowboy who sets out to stop a Devil Train that takes people away.to death. But can he overcome the train and its master? "Vandy, Vandy" by Manly Wade Wellman tells the story of a girl hounded by the suitor of an ancestress with the same name. But can the man who loves her save her from the beast? "The Ghost Patrol" by Ron Goulart has a man visiting his friend, who is being protected by Ghosts from those who have a thing against "Freeloaders'. But can the situation persist? "The Adventure of the Ball of Nostradamus by Mack Reynolds and August Derleth is a Solar Pons mystery (a pastiche of Sherlock Holmes) involving a certin crystal ball which once belonged to Nostrademus and which is said to have his powers... "The Gateway of the Monster" by William Hope Hodgson is a Carnacki tale, of a detective of the Supernatural, investigates a haunted "gray room", where a spirit attacks those who attempt to sleep there and rips off their clothes. Can he survive a night with the monster? "A Good Judge of Character" by Susan Dunlap is about the impulse to kill oneself that comes out of nowhere, and a very strange camera theft. "The Angel of the Lord" by Melville Davisson Post entails a theft and murder among cowboys. But can they discover who did the crime? "Falling Boy" by David Dean has an airplane pilot encountering a boy falling out of the sky. But who and what is this boy and how did he get to fall? "The Existential Man" by Lee Killough has a detective trying to discover the identity of a mummified corpse found washed up in the river, and deak with a seemingly uncaptureable criminal. Can the two mysteries be connected? "The Midnight El" by Robert Weinberg has a detective investigating the Midnight El to find a woman who disappeared. The Midnight El is the train of Death, and he must find a way to free her to return to the husband who loves her. But what Prince must be paid to do so? "The Cardula Detective Agency" by Jack Richie has a detective striving to discover who tried to kill the old man who was about to disinherit his whole, extremely odd, family.. But who was behind the deed? "The Chronology Protection Case".by Paul Levinson has a Physicist investigating the disappearance of another Physicist who worked in Quantim Mechanics. What caused the man to disappear? "Children of Ubasti" by Seabury Quinn has a detective solving the murder of a man mauled and drained of blood, supposedly in a car accident. But can the detective find the creature or thing that did the deed? Finally, "Death by Ecstasy" by Larry Niven has a detective who discovers that a relative of his died in mysterious circumstances in an apartment he rented, in a place he never would have gone. But how did he die and why? This was an interesting collection. Most of the stories were mysteries, but some were more akin to outright horror. My favorites in this volume were "Lonely Train A-Comin'", "The Midnight El", "The Existential Man" and "Death by Ecstasy". The rest were only okay by my reaction. Still, not a bad collection. Recommended.
The High King's Tomb by Kristin Britain- Karigan G'Ladheon has been a King's Rider for some time now. She is in love with King Zachary, the monarch who she serves, and he feels the same about her, but he is constrained by politics to marry Lady Estora of Coutre, Karigan's friend. When he reveals this to her, however, Karigan reacts with jealousy, treating her friend differently and almost breaking their friendship. Sent on errands by her superior, Captain Mapstone, who seeks to break the relationship between Zachary and Karigan for the sake of the kingdom. But "Grandmother", the leader of the Second Empire,is looking to restore the original Empire, and to do that, she must use the Blackveil Forest to break the D'yer Wall, and all attempts to control and pacify the forest have failed. To break the wall, though, "Grandmother" must read a magic book at the tomb of the Sacoridian High King, which is part of the wall, raised by magic. With part of the wall breached, the sttrength of the wall is quickly failing, and no one seems to be able to do anything about it. As part of her duties, accompanied by a Rider-in-Training, Karigan discovers that Estora has been kidnapped by agents of "Grandmother", and despite her jealousy of her old friend, she proposes a ruse to free Estora by changing clothes with her and takes her place, only to later escape with the help of Lord Xandis Amberhill while Estora has escaped to Sacor City on Karigan's horse. Since Karigan has discovered the plot, she also returns to Sacor City to try and stop it. Karigan joins the Weapons, the guards who protect the Tomb of the High King, and enters the Tomb along with them to try and stop the tome from being read. But can she stop it in time, and why does the tomb accept her presence so easily? What and who is Karigan exactly, and can she stop the second Empire from rollinh ovrt her home Kingdom of Sacoridia? I love this series, and have read each book. Karigan started out as a merchant, but has grown with each book in the series, and I love hearing about her adventures. This latest one was no exception, and the end of the book reveals quite a surprise about Karigan. Highly recommended, both the series and the book.
Witches Incorporated by K.E. Mills- Now recalled to the capital, Gerald Dunwoody is considered a Rogue Sorcerer for the events of the last book, but this is perfect for a secret government agency, who has hired Gerald to look into a company where things are going on... strange and weird things. They put him into the role of a very junior janitor, but needeless to say, things go south for Gerald when he uncovers a Saboteur working at the company to shut it down. But why? Meanwhile, Melissende, and her friend Reg, who used to be a Queen until she was turned into an immortal, talking bird, have gone into business with Monk's sister, Bibbie, have gone into business together, but aren't doing very well at keeping the business afloat, until Melissende wins in a magical cooking competition, which gets them a paying client. However, their case beings them into the same case that Gerald is working, only from a different angle. And, as Gerald considers them friends, he tries to keep them safe when things go south, and is forced into some really horrible choices, which he manages to get through in a heroic fashion, but not without suffering damage mental, physical and emotional in the process. The question is, can he bring the culprits to justice, or at least his superiors, while keeping those he loves safe?. This book was a bit of a letdown after the last book, because it focuses far more on Melissende, Reg and Bibbie, than Gerald, who I thought was the main character in the series. It's also a bit slow to take off, much like the first book was, and the humor here isn't going to appeal to everyone. Despite all those things, I enjoyed it immensely, and I would definitely recommend the book to other readers- just be aware that, even if you read it right after (or even soon after) reading the first book in the series, you may find it hard to get into at first. Recommended.
Don't Know Much About the Bible by Kenneth C. Davis-This book examines the Bible, showing where various interpretations of the Bible come from, specifically the documentary hypothesis and it also examines the various stories and myths in the Bible for the lessons that are commonly drawn from them, as well as connections readers may not have realized, and relates the Bible stories to Jewish history, the Babylonisn Exile and more. If you don't know a single thing about the Bible, this is a book you will want to read. If you know a little about the Bible, it becomes even more helpful. Kenneth C. Davis presents facts and interpretations in a clear and understandable way, and the book is easy and fun to read. Highly recommended.
Proven Guilty by Jim Butcher- Harry Dresden has long been a Wizard in the city of Chicago, and the City's only Wizard who advertises in the Yellow Pages. Now, the wizard Council is at war with the Red Vampire Court, and their ranks have thinned so much that Harry, although not entirely trusted by the Council, has been made a Warden, one of the magical defenders of the world. However, Harry's friend John, a former Knight wielding a sword made from one of the nails that pierced Christ at his Crucifixion, was badly injured in the line of duty and has had to retire. Now, one of his daughters, Molly, has somehow found her way into magic and gotten in trouble, and Harry must step in to extract her and keep her safe from the Council, who will sentence her for using magic illegally. But will Molly's presence by Harry's side endanger her because of the Black Magic he has been tasked to find. or will she find herself getting entangled in it herself? And Harry has never been the most subtle of magicians. Is he ready to be a Warden, and can he survive his new post long enough to do some good? More to the point, can he survive the chaos that is "Splattercon" without outing himself in a really big way, and will the evil Denarian inside him make his entire job worse? I loved this book, as the idea of an actual wizard at a convention made me giggle, especially *because* it's Harry Dresden. I loved the interaction between him and Molly. Yes, she's the daughter of his best friend, but he can't just be her favorite non-related "Uncle" anymore. He has to lay down a little rough love on her to get her to pay attention to him and what he's saying, and their interactions are priceless, as Harry's usual snark is on fine display here. Highly recommended.
Demonfire by Kate Douglas- I read it again later and reviewed it here: http://ladyrhian.blogspot.com/2010/08/demonfire-by-kate-douglas.html
Armed and Magical by Lisa Shearin- Raine Benares was formerly a seeker, a searcher of lost magic items. Until she somehow ended up with the Saghred in her, as well as all the souls it has consumed over the centuries. Although this gives Raine plenty of magic power, she's desperate to get rid of it and get her old life back, but it's not that easy (did you think it would be, honestly?). The Isle of Mid is the best place she can think of to solve her problem, but some of Mid's magic users only want Raine to use the power she now holds. And if she isn't separated from the Saghred in the correct way, Raine could die. Plus, she's still caught between two men: Mychael and Tam, her would-be lovers from the first book, and are still around, and the Saghred wants to add her soul to the many it's stolen already. But Spellsingers, one of the many types of mages at the Magical School where Raine is attempting to get her problem solved are disappearing, and since Raine is between a rock and a hard place as for as it comes to getting help for her problem, they ask her to look into the disappearances. Plus, a dangerous assassin is after her two friends here, and the elves and goblins are at war again, and Raine is caught in the middle during her investigation Can she find the truth without getting killed, and will her investigation lead her into even worse trouble than she has now? I liked this series. Raine is smart, tough, and snarky out the ying-yang, but she never seems really emotionally affected by being close to death. Some people could find the love triangle tiresome, and it is, in a way, but it's so well done, it's easy to overlook, and the world-building and characters are just fantastic. Highly recommended.
The Trouble with Demons by Lisa Shearin- The opening of a Hellgate leaves the Island of Mid Demon-infested, and it;'d never a good time to have to fight them, But the Demons want something: The key to the powers of the Saghred, which means there is one, and Raine, with her magical powers, can find it, if it exists. But with her recent link with Mychael in order to fight the power of the Saghred, her body is an almost literal battleground between the forces of light and darkness, and if Raine isn'r careful, she could become the magical equivalent of Hiroshima. Now, in addition to her troubles, both sides in the Elven-Goblin war seem to want her dead, and it will take all Raine has to keep herself ahead of insanity, demons and the Saghred itself to keep both her life and sanity. But is she up to the task? This book was more action packed than the last book, and it keeps a pretty fevered pace throughout, leaving me gasping for breath by the end. Quiet moments are few and far between, but the characters and world continue to enthrall me. Highly recommended.
Medieval Lives: Eight Charismatic Men and Women of the Middle Ages by Norman F. Cantor- This book examines the Middle Ages through the life of citizens who lived and experienced it, from the Advent of the Middle Ages in Greeks living in the Holy Land, the African Horizon with Augustine of Hippo, Northerners with Alcuin of York, Women with Hildegard of Bingen, and the Glory of it all with Eleanor of Aquitaine, and then takes it to the very end of the Middle Ages with the life of John, Duke of Bedford (although Eleanor of Aquitaine sort of planted the seeds of the Renaissance at her court in France, at least in my opinion). This talks about the Middle Ages in the terms of peoples lives, and specifically, the effects of those lives on the Middle Ages, and vice versa. I liked this book and how it used how and when people lived to illuminate what other lives could be like and were like, This made it interesting where the book could have been dull and too scholarly, but the story of real people made the pages just fly past for me. Recommended.
Sporting Chance by Elizabeth Moon- After having saved her former shipmates from being hunted to death, Heris Serrano and her employer return to the Capital, along with the Prince, who was one of the party who enthusiastically gathered to hunt "the most dangerous prey". They have been subtly blackmailed to return the Prince before his involvement can be known, but during the journey, Cecilia finds the Prince to be dull and rather stupid, which he has never been before, and suspects the Prince has been poisoned. When she mentions the possibility to the King, she is overheard, and people who have never liked her take steps to deal with her while she sends her yacht in to be redecorated, and Heris' former shipmates take off to get surplus military weapons and systems to beef up the yacht, But when Heris receives word that Cecilia has suffered a massive stroke and is now in a medical facility, unable to care for herself or even to understand anyone. The King blackmails her into taking the Prince for treatment for his poisoning... only the Prince is unable to be told apart from his two doubles that provide him with security, and none of them seem to know which is the "real" one, either. Heris takes them all to the Guerni Empire, to be examined by the Doctors there, then returns to Familias space to see Cecilia, who has been rescued from the facility where they were keeping her imprisoned by further drugging her and blinding her to keep her out of the way. Now, she is receiving treatments that will make her better. But there is a traitor on Heris' ship and she must uncover the traitor to find out who is behind the whole mess. But when Lady Cecelia undergoes a startling change, how will it change the relationship Heris and her crew enjoy with their employer? I love this series, which is full of strong female characters, both older ladies like Lady Cecelia and younger women like Heris Serrano, Brun Meagher and Esmay Suiza (who doesn't show up in this book, but gets a series of her own further down the line). This is military SF done right, and we get a sense of how military life changes you by how Heris runs her ship, both in commanding other ex-military personnel and civilian crew. I liked the characters, and I liked the universe here, with characters of all types and colors (Heris is black, and Esmay is brown, but it's easy to forget all of this when you are reading). Highly recommended.
Blood Lite by Charlaine Harris, Jim Butcher, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Kelly Armstrong, Sharyn McCrumb, and many others. This is a book about the Dead and the Undead and those that have to interact with them. "The Ungrateful Dead" by Kelly Armstrong tells the story of a necromancer who masquerades as a psychic who can contact the dead. But when one dead spirit discovers her secret, can she resist doing one last request for the dead? "Mr. Bear" by Joe Lansdale has an ordinary man encountering a very famous Bear on a plane. Can he survive a jaunt with him? "Hell in a Handbasket" by Lucien Soulban Has a very special child end up in Hell, turning the place upside down. What is this child, and what will be her fate? "The Eldritch Pastiche from Beyond the Shadow of Horror" confronts a writer with the truth about his work, and why he must not stop... "Elvis Presley and the Bloodsucker Blues" talks about the King of Rock and Roll's last day alive and how he became a vampire. "No Problem" by Don D'Amassa shows us the problems encountered by a descendant of Victor Frankenstein when he attempts to improve on his ancestor's work. "Old School" by Mark Onspaugh shows how bad public schooling can be deadly. "The Sound of Blunder by J.A. Konrath and F. Paul Wison tracks what happens to a couple of stupid mobsters who lose their boss a Kilo of Cocaine and then attempt to "fix" the situation with an antiquity of the elder gods... "An Evening with Al Gore" shows a Green Couple leaving the US with a bang- and take a bunch of polluters with them..."Dear Prudence" by Steven Saville deconstructs a relationship in a series of letters from a man to his wife. "A Good Psycho is Hard to Find" by Will Ludwigsen shows what happens to the survivors of a Psychopath attack, "High Kicks and Misdemeanors" by Janet Berliner Involves a man with a group training animals as Special Ops attack forces, and an uncle who just might be dead, but sure as hell has his opinions... "PR Problems" by Eric James Stone Shows a ghoul with PR Problems over a murderer. But when he gets the chance to take on the murderer and rescue his latest victim, will he give his own secret away? "Where Angels Fear to Tread" by Sherrilyn Kenyon has an accountant who wishes for a different life, but will he enjoy who he gets to be? "A Very Special Girl" by Mike Resnick, has a girl who creates havoc for a Mob Bookie when his zombie associate meets a girl of the same persuasion. "Love Seat Solitaire" by D. L. Snell pits three drinking buddies against a ghost, "I Know Who You Ate Last Summwe" by Nancy Holder shows the relationship between two Fine Young Cannibals. But can they trust each other to keep their secret? "Bitches of the Night" by Nancy Kilpatrick has a Vampire Lord and Master who finds himself in the worst of places. "The Bell from HELL" by Jeff Strand has a man convinced that the plastic bell he owns can summon Satan. But can it? "Dead Man Hand" by Sharyn McCrumb has a NASCAR team resort to raising the Dead to get a leg up on the competition, "Day Off" by Jim Butcher has Harry's Plans for a Day Off and a date with Anastasia Lucco combust spectacularly in a combination of a Lab Accident, a confrontation with a wannabe Black Magician and a pair of Werewolves infected with Supernatural mites. But as it all goes to Heck, can he keep his relationship alive? This was a pretty excellent collection of stories. I didn't like every one, but they were all entertaining and kept me reading, and "Day Off" was my clear favorite, especially for how it ended, and Lucco's reaction to the situation. Definitely recommended.
Deadly Desire by Keri Arthur- Half-vampire Riley Jensen has settled down with her vampire lover, Quinn, and into her job at the Directorate. But when she's assigned to two cases at once- One a series of killings by Zombies, the other to investigate a series of killings in the world of old, powerful vampires, something has got to give, especially with the coming of the full moon bringing her werwolf senses and desires to a boil. Riley had planned to sate her lusts at the usual clubs, and with Quinn, but there is a new player in town- another werewolf by the name oi Kye Murphy, and the way he appeals to Riley's inner wolf both makes her hot, and disturbs her. Because she's committed to Quinn, but she may have found her true mate in Kye, and both halves of her are fighting it out to see who wins- and combined with the mysteries she has to solve, that could end up with her dead very very quickly. But what will decide for Riley- her heart, or her instincts? And can she survive the fallout from finding the one thing she didn't think existed for her- her true vampire mate? This was an incredible book to read. I love Riley's world, and no matter how long its been since I read the novels before, I quickly get sucked back into Riley's head and problems. And this one is heart wrenching. Kye exists to be her perfect other half sexually and emotionally, but she doesn't know if she can trust him. since he's a mercenary. At the same time, Quinn loves her, and she loves him, and she can't give him up, either. No matter which way she goes, someone is going to be hurt, and Riley is going to hurt as we;;. A wonderful mix of dangerous mysteries, and heartbreaking choices she won't be able to put off for long. Highly recommended.
Magic's Design by Car Adams- Magic in our world has become scarce- the Tree of Life, which enables magic, has become dangerously weak and in danger of dying. To prevent this from happening, a man named Talos has crossed from his own magically powerful world to try to protect the tree with his powers over fire. Mira, a woman of our world, has vast healing powers that she is blocked from using by a lock on her memory, ostensibly done to protect her, but noe which causes her to have seizures and pain. It's only after meeting Tal that she begins to remember and reclaim her powers, which his own powers over fire can empower even more. But will their efforts be enough to protect and heal the tree and keep magic in our world? And can they find the love that will make them nearly unstoppable? I love C.T. Adams and Cathy Clamp's writing, but this book was more than a bit uneven, with the characters being stupid for story reasons, which I find incredibly irritating. Characters who act without logic or common sense annoy me, especially if the reader is left going, "Really? Come on!" And this had quite a bit of that at the beginning. However, I liked the romance aspects and some of the worldbuilding was nice, so this evened out at a solid "Meh." for me. I'm glad I read it, but it was a mix of the engaging and enraging rhat I'd rather not read again.
The Black Swan by Mercedes Lackey is a retelling of the story of "swan Lake", but from the point of view of Odile. the daughter of Rothbart, the magician who considered the death of his wife an incredible betrayal and who intends to take his revenge on all women. Odile fears her father, and with good reason, but when Odette, a Princess and the most feisty of his captured maidens become Swans, wrings from him a bargain that could free her and all the other women he has captured, Odile promises to herself that she will make her father keep his bargain, even if he doesn't want to, and she must use her own magical talents against her father to ensure that Odette and her lover, Siegfried, win the contest. But if and when her father dies, what will become of Odile, and her guilt over the way her father treated the Swan Maidens, and the way he forced her to treat them? There might be a happy ending to Odette's story, but will there be one for Odile and the rest of the maidens? I found this story a little troubling in the parts that occur after the canonical end of the ballet "Swan Lake", because Odile comes off as a bit too shy and retiring for someone who was so instrumental in bringing down her own father, The ending was lovely, but the parts leading up to it gave me a feeling of disquiet I found hard to shake off, and it wasn't all that satisfying. I think it was that Odile never breaks free of her role of staying in the background and trying to blend in with the furniture, so to speak. She does change, but in a strange way, it is forced on her by those who are her friends, and thus, it seemed ultimately unsatisfying to me. A Good book, but the ending left me uncomfortable. Recommended, still, because the book is very well written.
Angel Blood by Nalini Singh- Angels exist and look after the morals over which they rule, served by the vampires they can create. Sometimes, though, the mortals they change aren't suited to be vampires, and they go bad, running amok and killing indiscriminately. That is when the guild is brought in. Merely human, the guild has to be tougher and better than the vampires they hunt, otherwise, it would just lead to the death of the Hunter and even more mortals. But even in the Guild, Elena Deveraux is the best. So when an angel goes bad, she is assigned by the guild to hunt him down and deal with him- as she is the only one with the possibility of being as good or better than an angel. But as she hunts down Uram the Archangel, she has come to the attention of Raphael, the Archangel who rules New York, who Elena despises for his cruelty, And she is unable to keep her sarcasm and sass inside when he pursues her, which only sparks his interest even further, and Elena comes to despise herself for being unable to resist his interest or contain her own. But as the hunt nears its end, Rafael must make a choice. Can he survive Elena's anger and fear over what Rafael must do to save her life, and will it only make her despise him more, and can Elena live with the changes that will come with her new status, and the love of a millennia old Archangel? And can she somehow remain the woman she has always been? I loved Nalini Singh for her Psy-Changeling series, but this one is just as wonderful, and introduces us to a new world where Angels live among us-but these aren't your Christian Angels. They don't serve God and they are hard and cruel because they have to be. They are dangerous, powerful and completely inhuman- humans under them feat, respect and worship them. And they feel no need to conform to human mores- but they do demand respect, which is why Rafael is so intrigued by Elena being unable and unwilling to do the same.Archangels scare people into obedience and respect, and Rafael might scare her, but it won't stop her from sassing him. I loved reading this book and all the characters that will wind up in the ongoing series. Highly recommended.
The Accidental Sorcerer by K.E. Mills- Gerald Dunwoody was only a low, third-grade wizard until an explosion at a magical factory making magic wands for sale. Now, he's lost his job as an inspector and must take up a new job as the King of Ottosland's Court Wizard. But King Lional is lying to Gerald, and wants to use him as a scapegoat for some magical shenanigans he's planning, and Gerald seems to be too innocent to realize just what is going on around him. But he does have allies on his side in the form of his friend, Monk, another, more powerful wizard who has been tutoring him and Melisande, a witch who might just turn out to be his friend. He's also coming to realize that the accident at the factory may have made him more powerful than anyone realizes, but can he master his new powers, and wise up about his employer, before it all comes crashing down on him? And what will happen to the King when Gerald's normally pleasant attitude turns to rage when he discovers what Lional was planning to do to him? I liked this book, as we get to see Gerald, who has never had a very high opinion of himself or his magic change and grow over time. But along with his newly expanded level of powers comes a far greater degree of control than he is used to. But it was nice to see him shed his low self-confidence as the story progressed and see just how much he could do, and the unlikely friendship he develops with the witch Melisande is also wonderful, as Melisande is not one to suffer fools lightly, and she thinks Gerald a fool at first. I really enjoyed this story and this world. Recommended.
Cold Moon Rising by C.T. Adams and Cathy Clamp- Tony Giodone has come along way since his days as a low-level hit man for the Mob. Now that he's married to his former mark, Sue, he's had to step up and become a real pack leader, stronger than his former pack leader, and deal with the other Sazi, as Tony has a rare and unusual power: he can see into the past by tapping other people's, and even other Sazi's, memories. But now it seems that a group of Sazi want to wipe out the human race, something that puts Sue and her entire family at risk, and neither Tony nor the other Sazi can let the plan come to fruition. But Tony is going to have to team up with Ahmad, the leader of the Sazi Snakes, to defeat the plan, and Ahmad is going to have to deal with a very dangerous ex-girlfriend who he was forced to betray, and Tony, who had inadvertantly formed a psychic bond with Ahmad stronger than the one he shares with his mate, can't help but get drawn into Ahmad's thoughts and memories. But can the two of them handle the crisis? And can Ahmad Patch things up with Tuli? And more to the point, can both of them idssolve this strange bond that holds them together unwillingly? And can they keep the humans safe? This was a wonderful story that showed how long the Sazi live and it was also a pretty rip-roaring adventure with plenty of danger and menace. It was an exciting read that was deepend by the connection between Tony and Ahmad. It didn't cease entertaining my until the end of the book, and it's nice to see Tony and Sue continue togrow and change. Recommended.
Ed Greenwood Presents Waterdeep: City of the Dead by Rosemary Jones- Sophraea Carver's family has built and maintained the monuments in Waterdeep's City of the Dead for Generations.. She hates her family's job and wants nothing more than to have adventures, and possibly take up a job as a seamstress. But when an old grudge stirs up the dead and puts her family, and the entire city at risk for the walking Dead escaping the graveyard. To stop the threat and find out who is behind the conspiracy to loose the dead, Sophraea must team up with the mage Gustin Bone, who has come to Waterdeep to enjoy the sights. But his sights might be limited to those beneath the soil and in the ctypts full of the dead beneath the City of the Dead if they can't put an end to the plot. Can Sphraea and Gustin keep her family safe? This was a wonderful book by the same writer who wrote "Crypt of the Monaing Diamons", and it's full of the same wonderful characters and spot-on humor. It's a story that pulls you along as you read it, and it's incredibly hard to stop it and put it down, because you'll be itching to go back to it the moment you do. Excellent book, and highly recommended.
Supernatural Sleuths (anthology)- This book deals with supernatural mysteries. "Lonely Train A'Comin'" by William F. Nolan tells the tale of a Cowboy who sets out to stop a Devil Train that takes people away.to death. But can he overcome the train and its master? "Vandy, Vandy" by Manly Wade Wellman tells the story of a girl hounded by the suitor of an ancestress with the same name. But can the man who loves her save her from the beast? "The Ghost Patrol" by Ron Goulart has a man visiting his friend, who is being protected by Ghosts from those who have a thing against "Freeloaders'. But can the situation persist? "The Adventure of the Ball of Nostradamus by Mack Reynolds and August Derleth is a Solar Pons mystery (a pastiche of Sherlock Holmes) involving a certin crystal ball which once belonged to Nostrademus and which is said to have his powers... "The Gateway of the Monster" by William Hope Hodgson is a Carnacki tale, of a detective of the Supernatural, investigates a haunted "gray room", where a spirit attacks those who attempt to sleep there and rips off their clothes. Can he survive a night with the monster? "A Good Judge of Character" by Susan Dunlap is about the impulse to kill oneself that comes out of nowhere, and a very strange camera theft. "The Angel of the Lord" by Melville Davisson Post entails a theft and murder among cowboys. But can they discover who did the crime? "Falling Boy" by David Dean has an airplane pilot encountering a boy falling out of the sky. But who and what is this boy and how did he get to fall? "The Existential Man" by Lee Killough has a detective trying to discover the identity of a mummified corpse found washed up in the river, and deak with a seemingly uncaptureable criminal. Can the two mysteries be connected? "The Midnight El" by Robert Weinberg has a detective investigating the Midnight El to find a woman who disappeared. The Midnight El is the train of Death, and he must find a way to free her to return to the husband who loves her. But what Prince must be paid to do so? "The Cardula Detective Agency" by Jack Richie has a detective striving to discover who tried to kill the old man who was about to disinherit his whole, extremely odd, family.. But who was behind the deed? "The Chronology Protection Case".by Paul Levinson has a Physicist investigating the disappearance of another Physicist who worked in Quantim Mechanics. What caused the man to disappear? "Children of Ubasti" by Seabury Quinn has a detective solving the murder of a man mauled and drained of blood, supposedly in a car accident. But can the detective find the creature or thing that did the deed? Finally, "Death by Ecstasy" by Larry Niven has a detective who discovers that a relative of his died in mysterious circumstances in an apartment he rented, in a place he never would have gone. But how did he die and why? This was an interesting collection. Most of the stories were mysteries, but some were more akin to outright horror. My favorites in this volume were "Lonely Train A-Comin'", "The Midnight El", "The Existential Man" and "Death by Ecstasy". The rest were only okay by my reaction. Still, not a bad collection. Recommended.
The High King's Tomb by Kristin Britain- Karigan G'Ladheon has been a King's Rider for some time now. She is in love with King Zachary, the monarch who she serves, and he feels the same about her, but he is constrained by politics to marry Lady Estora of Coutre, Karigan's friend. When he reveals this to her, however, Karigan reacts with jealousy, treating her friend differently and almost breaking their friendship. Sent on errands by her superior, Captain Mapstone, who seeks to break the relationship between Zachary and Karigan for the sake of the kingdom. But "Grandmother", the leader of the Second Empire,is looking to restore the original Empire, and to do that, she must use the Blackveil Forest to break the D'yer Wall, and all attempts to control and pacify the forest have failed. To break the wall, though, "Grandmother" must read a magic book at the tomb of the Sacoridian High King, which is part of the wall, raised by magic. With part of the wall breached, the sttrength of the wall is quickly failing, and no one seems to be able to do anything about it. As part of her duties, accompanied by a Rider-in-Training, Karigan discovers that Estora has been kidnapped by agents of "Grandmother", and despite her jealousy of her old friend, she proposes a ruse to free Estora by changing clothes with her and takes her place, only to later escape with the help of Lord Xandis Amberhill while Estora has escaped to Sacor City on Karigan's horse. Since Karigan has discovered the plot, she also returns to Sacor City to try and stop it. Karigan joins the Weapons, the guards who protect the Tomb of the High King, and enters the Tomb along with them to try and stop the tome from being read. But can she stop it in time, and why does the tomb accept her presence so easily? What and who is Karigan exactly, and can she stop the second Empire from rollinh ovrt her home Kingdom of Sacoridia? I love this series, and have read each book. Karigan started out as a merchant, but has grown with each book in the series, and I love hearing about her adventures. This latest one was no exception, and the end of the book reveals quite a surprise about Karigan. Highly recommended, both the series and the book.
Witches Incorporated by K.E. Mills- Now recalled to the capital, Gerald Dunwoody is considered a Rogue Sorcerer for the events of the last book, but this is perfect for a secret government agency, who has hired Gerald to look into a company where things are going on... strange and weird things. They put him into the role of a very junior janitor, but needeless to say, things go south for Gerald when he uncovers a Saboteur working at the company to shut it down. But why? Meanwhile, Melissende, and her friend Reg, who used to be a Queen until she was turned into an immortal, talking bird, have gone into business with Monk's sister, Bibbie, have gone into business together, but aren't doing very well at keeping the business afloat, until Melissende wins in a magical cooking competition, which gets them a paying client. However, their case beings them into the same case that Gerald is working, only from a different angle. And, as Gerald considers them friends, he tries to keep them safe when things go south, and is forced into some really horrible choices, which he manages to get through in a heroic fashion, but not without suffering damage mental, physical and emotional in the process. The question is, can he bring the culprits to justice, or at least his superiors, while keeping those he loves safe?. This book was a bit of a letdown after the last book, because it focuses far more on Melissende, Reg and Bibbie, than Gerald, who I thought was the main character in the series. It's also a bit slow to take off, much like the first book was, and the humor here isn't going to appeal to everyone. Despite all those things, I enjoyed it immensely, and I would definitely recommend the book to other readers- just be aware that, even if you read it right after (or even soon after) reading the first book in the series, you may find it hard to get into at first. Recommended.
Don't Know Much About the Bible by Kenneth C. Davis-This book examines the Bible, showing where various interpretations of the Bible come from, specifically the documentary hypothesis and it also examines the various stories and myths in the Bible for the lessons that are commonly drawn from them, as well as connections readers may not have realized, and relates the Bible stories to Jewish history, the Babylonisn Exile and more. If you don't know a single thing about the Bible, this is a book you will want to read. If you know a little about the Bible, it becomes even more helpful. Kenneth C. Davis presents facts and interpretations in a clear and understandable way, and the book is easy and fun to read. Highly recommended.
Monday, April 01, 2013
2013, Part 2
Calculated in Death by J.D. Robb- When the body of Marta Dickenson is discovered at the base of the stairs in an apartment complex being rehabbed, it looks like it was a mugging- her coat, briefcase and pocketbook are gone. But, worryingly, her wristwatch and jewelry are untouched. And Eve discovers a sign that she was killed in one of the apartments. Marta wasn't just anyone, she was a noted accountant and the sister-in-law of a judge, and her sister-in-law knows Eve's reputation, and is glad she is on the case. It seems that Marta was killed because she was doing audits on several companies. But who wanted a loving and beloved accountant dead, and why? Eve quickly becomes aware that not only has someone killed Marta, but they also want to stop any investigation into her death. And Eve's first tangle with the actual killer makes her an even greater hero, when she prevents the death of a young child the killer literally throws at her. But her survival turns her into even more of a target, and now the killer is gunning for Eve and Peabody as well. As New York gears up for the Premiere of the Icove Agenda, Eve sets a trap for the killer- with herself as bait. I love the Eve Dallas books abd this one was no exception. It has everything you want in an Eve Dallas mystery- horrible villains, twisted motives, and friends and business associates who never see it coming. An excellent story that will more than keep your interest. Highly recommended.
The Song of the Nightingale by Alys Clare- In Hawkenlye, Little Helewise pines for the man she loves, Ninian, son of Josse. But Ninian, once under threat of death for killing a man, has abjured the Realm and fled to France, where he finds a home with the Cathars, a rogue religious sect, helping their young man learn to defend themselves. But the end of the Cathars is coming, as the church and the lords of the Languedoc come to destroy them. At home, Josse is summoned to the Abbey of Hawkenlye by the discovery of three bodies- men found dead in the woods, slain. He gives the Sherriff his opinion on the men but is distracted by conerns at home. Little Helewise has come to stay, but Josse's daughter, Meggie, is desperate to get away from the house and visit the Hut in the woods where her mother once lived. But the famine in the country has made this a great danger as families starve and men turn to banditry and worse. So when the former Abbess Heloise decides to set up a place for poor people to come for help and healing, Meggie is only too glad to go, along with Little Heloise, who has a secret of her own to hide: she's pregnant with Ninian's child. The deaths of the three men is presaged by a sign of a dark-skinned man, who, as it tirns out, is the Prime suspect in their Death. Meggie discovers signs he has taken shelter in the Hut in the woods, and becomes fascinated with him. It turns out that he is from France himself, the son od a Blacksmith, and his reasons for being in England is partly to retrieve the sword of his ancestor, stolen from him by the Wolfsheads. When he is forced to flee ahead of the Sherriff's men, who want him for the murders, Meggie goes with him, and Josse, Helewise and Little Helewise go with him, hoping to find not only Meggie, but Ninian as well. And Ninian, rejected by the Cathars to save his own life, is coming, bearing a great treasure from them to preserve from the forces of the Church. But can they find each other in time to bring Ninian home for the birth of his child? I like this series, a mystery set in the time of King John and showing England at one of its most difficult times, Under interdict and suffering starvation from the failure of the crops. But still, it's an intensely personal story for the characters involved, and red herrings and disappointment abound. Still, it's a lovely and compelling story that brings me back to the first book, Fortune Like the Moon. Recommended, if you like historical mysteries, but read the others first.
The Earl and the Fairy, Book 3 by Ayuka and Mizue Tani- Lydia Carville is a Fairy Doctor, and she is employed by Edgar, the successor to the Blue Earl, an ambassador between human and Fairy Culture. But Edgar is a troubled young man, once a slave to a horrible man who he seeks to overcome. He's interested in Lydia both for being a Fairy Doctor and because she is also a beautiful woman. But Lydia doesn't trust him because of all the lies he has told her. When a girl that the Earl has given a ride to disappears, and it is claimed that it is the work of a Fairy known as the "Fog Man", The Earl shows up at her father's house and takes her to the fair, looking for a fairy Egg. There is a man there, selling them, but Lydia also sees a boggart who causes the fake fairy stones to explode. The boggart loves to cause trouble, but he seems to be attatched to another young woman who is looking to snag the Earl. She, too, owns a Fiary Stone, a real one, but Lydia discovers that the Boggart, though attatched to the young woman, isn't working for her, but a mysterious master. Who is this master, and what does he want, and why does he seem to have it in for the Earl? And will Lydia be able to find the missing noblewoman and clear Edgar's name is the matter of her disappearance? and what is hidden in the tin can that has Lydia's Fairy friend Nico so obsessed? An interesting case for Lydia, although I suspect that she's not as immune to the Earl's blandishments as she pretends to be. The story of the Fairy stones is interesting, though not quite as interesting as real Fiary stones (stones with natural holes in them, or marked with crosses internally. Supposedly, if you looked through the hole, it would allow you to see fairies, but the cross stones were made for protection from Fairies. So maybe Ayuka didn't do her research very well, but it's an interesting story nonetheless. Recommended.
The Earl and the Fairy, Book 4 by Ayuka and Mizue Tanu- Lydia is trapped in a warehouse by Rosalie, the cousin of the Missing Doris Walpole who she has been looking for. But as she looks for a way out, she discovers that Doris is there as well, and the two girls are destined across the sea to be sold into slavery in New York. Meanwhile Edgar has found out about Lydia's disappearance and is searching for her, not knowing that she has been caught up in a slavery scheme run by the Prince, the same man who once imprisoned him. But who is behinf the whole scheme. Is it Rosalie, or someone else close to the two girls? And what do they have to do with the Fairy Egg that used to be Edgar's, and who or what is imprisoned in the Fairy Egg? And why does the Boggart want to kill Edgar? This is the last book in the manga series, which stunned me, because the story ends on such an abrupt note. But through Google, I found out that this series began as a light novel series, so if readers want to read more, they are going to have to read Japanese, as I honestly doubt the series will be translated into English any time soon. Well. it was nice while it lasted, but the ending is so abrupt that it feels like a door being slammed in your face. So, good story, but the ending is painful, and I can't recommend this series because of how truncated it is. Not recommended.
The Avengers: Avengers Assemble by Thonas Macri- This book came through my hands when I was checking books in at the Library and so I decided to check it out, thinking that it was the novelization of the movie. Sadly, it's not. Instead, it tells the stories of the Avengers from the movies released by Marvel (Captain America, Iron Man 1 and 2, The Incredible Hulk, and Thor, and then tells PART of the Avengers movie, up to the fight in the forest as they fly back from Germany. Hawkeye and Black Widow's stories aren't covered, and the story sort of abruptly ends after the fight between Thor, Iron Man and Captain America in the forest, implying that they will be fighting in battles to come. I wish I could have liked this book, but it reads more like a recap photo album, with the thinnest gloss on each character, and assumes the reader knows nothing about the characters and hasn't seen any of the movies. It has plenty of pictures of the heroes, Nick Fury, Maria Hill, Phil Coulson and Loki, but really disappoints anyone who wants to read more about the characters who haven't yet had movies, like Hawkeye and Black Widow, and even mischaracterizes several scenes in the movies. So on the whole, for kids who are ignorant of the characters, and haven't seen any of the movies. Not really recommended. But... good photos. Misses out on a lot of the humor in the films, too.
Club CSI: The Case of the Digital Deception by Ellie O'Ryan- The Club CSI members have been solving cases for a while now. So when Corey is approached by Whitney Martino, asking for his help with the case of who defaced her locker, he is glad to help, and brings in the rest of his friends at Club CSI. But when Whitney's best friend Alyssa hands Ben an e-mail sent by Whitney purporting to be bored of the Club and calling them all "losers", they have to figure out what is really going on. And then, later, Whitney comes to them for help once again. Someone used her "You Can Draw It" Account to buy $100 in upgrades, which were charged to her Parents' Charge Card. Can the Club CSI team figure out whodunnit and clear Whitney's name? I liked this story because it shows the perils of being famous at school- people are now more on their guard with the CSIs and it's likely to become more so in the future as they continue to solve mysteries. Also, this case involves digital forensics, which is a new and exciting area to explore. This was a great story with an exciting finish. Recommended.
Neferet's Curse by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast- Emily Wheiler is growing up in St. Louis at the time of the Pan-American Exhibition. But when her mother dies in childbirth,along with that of the son she was carrying, her life quietly disintegrates in bouts of weeping and lying in bed. She is finally pulled out of her funk by her father, who has never paid much attention to her before. Emily is thrilled to be treated as an adult and made the mistress of Wheiler House. But Emily is increasingly isolated from the outside world by her father, and the way he looks at her, especially after drinking, makes her feel scared and uncertain. As she takes steps to protect herself from her father's wrath and lust, she aliennates her former friends. When when she begins to cough, she has no idea of what could be in store for her, but as a glorious new future opens up for her, will she be held back by the chains of the past? This was a hard book to read, especially because the reader can figure out her father's true motives long before Emily does. But when the story comes to an end, you feel simultaneously vindicated, upset for Emily, and yet a bit disquieted by her cold-bloodedness.and ability to plan something like what she does. And it gives us a greater understanding of Neferet and how broken she is inside and what drives her.. Recommended, but it's a hard read.
Edge of Dawn by Lara Adrian- Twenty years ago, mankind learned about vampires when Dragos released thousands of rogues all around the world. The Order fought them for years and eventually destroyed them all, but relations between the humans and the vampires remain fragile and fraught with suspicion on both sides. Mira, once a breedmate child with clear silver eyes that hold visions for anyone looking into them, is now a warrior along with the rest, missing the man she was mated to, Kellan Archer, who was killed nine years ago in a horrific bombing. But unbeknownst to Mira, who now has an unreasoning hatred of human rebels, Kellan is still alive, running a human resistance gang under his new name: Bowman. And when Mira is sent to guard the man who Bowman's gang is interested in snatching, the two are finally reunited. Despite knowing that he must release Mira, Kellen finds himself unable to let her go, and Mira finds herself unable to resist Kellan's touch, which she has hungered for for so long.. But as the endgame to the conflict is the knowledge that someone has made and mastered UV light weapons, which Bowman is trying to get off the streets.. Mira knows the Breed would want this to, so why does Kellan resist coming in from the cold and repaiting his ties with the Breed? And if the scientist behind the UV Light technology isn't behind the weapons, who is, and what do they have against the Breed? Mira is afraid that the weapons will be used at the bteed/human summit, but can she and Kellan keep the people they love safe after the scientist is kidnapped out from under Kellan and his group and killed? And can Mira and Kellan overcome the vision that Kellan once saw in her eyes, promising only death and heartbreak for the two of them? I am not sure how to take this new volume. Yes, it's a continuation of a series that I loved, but at the same time, I though that the way they continued it was kind of awkward and the new villains are just ludicrous to me. Still, it wasn't bad and it may get better in the future. So, recommended nonetheless.
Grave Sight, story by Charlaine Harris, William Harris and Dennis Medri- Harper Connolly was hit by lightning when she was fifteen. Since then, she has been able to sense the spirits of the unburied and restless dead. Becuase she is searching for her sister, who disappeared long ago. Harper uses her gift to find the dead, hoping it will someday lead her to her sister. In the meantime, she takes money from people to find their dead, many of them thinking she is simply a leech or a charlatan- because she can not only find the dead, she can also share their last moments, but never see their killer. And now she has come to a small town to find the body of a missing girl. But no one seems to believe she can do what she says she can. Only when Harper offers up a real dead body, missing and not where it is supposed to be, do the residents of the town take her seriously. But her finding the missing girl's body brings up larger issues, and further murders keep bringin her back to the town to deal with the dsecrets she has uncovered. But someone in Sarne is ready to kill Harper to ensure that their secret is kept just that... a secret. But can Harper and her foster brother Tolliver find out who is really behind the killing? This was a wonderful re-imgining of the original book. I had forgotten how Goth Harper looked, and the cover on the front of the graphic novel makes her look downright scary and undead, so in some ways, I can see why some people are scared of her and call her a freak. Even if it's set up slightly differently from the actual novel, this retelling was compelling and more than interesting. Recommended.
Star Wars and History by Nancy R, Reagin and Janice Liedi- This book examines the background and structures of the Republic, the Empire and the Jedi Knights, as well as the characters in the story as a means of understanding them. The book doesn't cover just a few topics, but looks at many aspects of both Star Wars and History, such as Slavery in the Old Republic, Women as Monarchs and Freedom Fighters. The Real Origins of the Jedi Knights. This is a wonderful book, because it enables fans of both real history and Star Wars to find commonalities between History and find the real life examples that underlie the Story of Star Wars, and the real history that George Lucas drew on to create his wonderful vision. I found this book to be fascinating, if a little dry occasionally. Each section is by a different writer and all are fascinating, some more than others. If you love Star Wars, and history, this is definitely the book for you. Recommended.
The Last Threshold: The Neverwinter Saga, Book 4 by R.A. Salvatore- Drizzt's Pather Companion has been stolen from him and taken to the Threshold of Shadows. So when she is finally returned to him, he doesn't question how or why, but notices her exhaustion. Drizzt assumes she has been wearied by her struggle to return to him, but in truth, the warlord Dragon Quick uses her body to spy upon Drizzt. All is also not well between Drizzt and his new lover, the elf Dahlia Sin'Feinn. She is being tracked by her son, Effron Alegni, who she was forced to bear to a Demon.. But When Drizzt takes it into his head to help the former City of Port Llast rise again, using his new companions Afrafrenfere, Amber Gristle, Dahlia and Artemis Entreri, she feels him beginning to pull away from her as he remembers his last visit there. But when Dahlia is kidnapped by Effron, Drizzt acts quickly to rescue her. Effron is unsure of how to take Drizzt, and how someone good can stand to be around a women who would murder her own son, but he finds himself coming to trust the Drow, and tells him of Guenhwyvar's true location. Drizzt and his companions, including Effron, set off to rescue the panther, but are captured on the Plane of Shadowfell and imprisoned by Draygo Quick, while Dahlia, Artemis and Afafrenfere are turned to stone. Rescued after some time by Jarlaxle and his Bregan D;Aerthe mercenaries, and with Guenhwyvar returned to him, Drizzt decides to return to Icewind Dales and the Ten Towns, But when he hears of a magical forest that might lead him to his friends who have passed, Drizzt takes the chance to go find it, and what he finds might lead to his own death this time as well. But when Errtu the demon returns tot he Ten Towns to take revenge on Drizzt for his banishment from the Realms, will Drizzt and his friends be there to rescue them, or will they have to look to a different hero at last? I am of two minds about this book. In one way, the ending seems to suggest the end of the series as a whole, but the beginning, where Drizzt is speaking as someone recalling past events (even long past), it just doesn't make sense. And in a way, I wonder. Drizzt and Elminster seem to be the breakout stars of the Realms. The question is, are fans willing to let one of them pass and go?: And are their creators. I can see this book inciting a lot of hate from fans of the series, but should this be the end. I won't mind. He's had a long run, and this would be a good ending.
Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier- Gwyneth comes from a very strange family, and ever since her father died, her nurse mother and younger brother and sister live with their extended family in London, including with her cousin, Charlotte, who has been trained since she was young to inherit the family gift, that of time traveling. But while Chartlotte has been trained to speak all sorts of different languages, how to fence, and all about different periods in history, Gwyneth has focused on growing up as a normal teenager, interested in boys, movies and her best friend, Lesley. But when it's Gwyneth who inherits the yalent instead of Charlotte, the rest of the family is outraged, and Charlotte's mother, Glenda, is outraged, accusing Gwyneth of conspiring to steal Charlotte's position and legacy away. But Gwyneth's mother, who hid Gwyneth's birthday from the others, says she only wanted Gwyneth's life to be normal. But now Gwyneth finds herself having to go into the past, and deal with the fact that the inheritor of the Power before her, her cousin Lucy, stole thw device that lets the users travel through time from the Society, and now no one seems to trust Gwyneth, or her mother, either. Since only inheritors of the time travel gene can actually travel through time, Gwyneth has to do it with Charlotte's former presumed partner, Gideon de Villiers. But her mother's advice is not to trust any of the Scoiety, nor their leader, St. Germain, who Gwynet meets and fears, because of him trying to strangle her with the power of his mind alone. But there is also Gideon, who is handsome and who fills Gwyneth with feelings she has never quite had before for a boy. Whi can she trust? The Society or Gideon, or her mother or anyone? And what does the Prophecy mean, that Gwyneth's power is of the Raven, and who can she trust, thrust into a world she was never prepared for? Gwyneth has very little time to discover before she's in too deep to climb out.
Sapphire Blue by Kerstin Gier- Gwyneth has been time traveling for a few days now, but even though she is completely out of her depth when it comes to know what is going on with the people she meets in the past, she has begun to feel a tremendous attraction to her partner, formerly her cousin Charlotte's partner, Gideon de Villiers. As Gwen struggles with keeping up with her schoolwork, her friend, Lesley, and trying to meet her grandfather in the past, s well as talking to ghosts and Gargoyles, who claim to be Dead Demons. But as Gwen becomes more and more interested in Gideon, she finds herself trusting the leaders of the society, especially their true leader from the past: St. Germain. She also feels that her cousin, Lucy, who ran off with her own partner and stole the Chronometer. Plus, she gets drunk at a party in the past, and sings a song from Cats. But someone is telling Lucy and her friends where Gwen is going, and everybody seems to think that Gwen is to blame and this is a result of her becoming the Ruby. Was she hiding her true birthdate because she intended to bring down the Society from the beginning? And if it isn't Gwen and her mother, then who can possibly be behind it? And is Gideon really interested in Gwen as a boyfriend, or is he running a deeper game for his father, Lucy, or for St. Germain himself? And can Gwen even tell who is telling the truth, or will her injured feelings lead her astray? I loved this book, which was the sequel to Ruby Red. And there will be another sequel, Emerald Green. But after reading this book, I honestly have to wonder what the secret all this time traveling is going to uncover, and what it has to do with Gwen's ability to talk to the Dead and Gargoyles. Recommended.
Touch of Steel by Katie Cross- The Wardens of the Realm are the Steampunk version of MI-6 in England, and The Company is the American version of the CIA. Ex-Warden Lucas Grey was captured by the Company, and one of its operatives brainwashed him, making him forget his time with the Wardens and his wife. Luckily, he eventually remembered his former life, but now his ex-partner in the Company, Claire Brooks, has been captured by the Wardens after being shot and thrown off a roof by the head of the Company, Stanton Howard. Claire had more than a falling out with the Company after her brother Robert, also a member of the Company, was killed, and Claire believes her former employers are letting the man who killed him get away with the crime. Claire wants Howard, and the Doctor, who will be permanently changing Stanton's looks so that he can get away with literal murder. Claire's insistence on going after Stanton Howard herself, and the knowledge that comes from having been an agent for more than ten years, along with her willingness to share her knowledge with the Wardens, means that they reluctantly send her along with an agent of their own, Alistair Payne, to capture the two men at a House Party in the country. But a sudden change of plans means they must track their foes on the high seas, or under them, and throws these two would-be former foes even closer together. Claire is looking for revenge, and Alistair is smarting from being nearly suborned by a member of another intelligence service who came close to killing him. But neither can deny their attraction for each other. Can their connection survive the revelations to come, and Claire's eventual return to Warden custody and jail? This was a rather nice romance, and while it didn't really knock my socks off, it was nice reading when I wasn't feeling well at all. It's a nice middle of the road romance set in a Steampunk world.
Sealed with a Curse by Cecy Robinson- Celia Wird is one of four sisters whose mother was cursed by her family for being able to fit in better in America than they were. As a result, each sister has a special talent that sets her apart from normal people. Celia is able to shift shapes to any animal but is almost always a tigress. Emme has control over light and can summon enough sunlight to heal or turn younger vampires into dust, Taran can conjure flame, and Shayna can turn any sliver of wood into metal blades. Brought before the Vampire court for killing a young vampire who tried to feed on Emme, the trial is ended when the Vampires discover that the vampire in question was afflicted with Chronic Bloodlust, a condition that makes the vampire's hunger unable to be satisfied, and who must be killed for the good of everyone. However, this trial brings Celia to the attention of the lead vampire in the area, Mischa Alexander. The attention of a vampire is the last thing that Celia wants, but she doesn't get much of a choice in the matter. However, it also attracts the attention of the Supernatural world towards the sisters, and while most of the weres that she meets are kind of creepy, there is also one who Celia would like to know better, if his girlfriend didn't keep warning her off in no uncertain terms. Celia's sisters also find weres who they are interested in, but a rash of Chronic Bloodlust among the vampires demands that the vampires and weres and Celia and her sisters keep busy destroying vampires afflicted with Chronic Bloodust. But what or who is causing the outbreak? And will Celia be able to get together with Aric, or will his girlfriend come between them? I liked this book. Even though it was a romance, Celia is well able to take care of herself, but her inability to be with a man is known and poked fun at by her sisters. The back of the book makes it seem that Celia is torn between Mischa and Aric, but in the book, she is never attracted to Mischa. Instead, he is interested in her, but she wants nothing to do with him, so don't think this is a more adult version of Twilight with a vampire and werewolf. I also liked the powers of Celia and her sisters, which are refreshingly unique for Supernatural Romance. This was a great book with a good romance. Recommended.
Tuf Voyaging by George R. R. Martin- Haviland Tuf is a space trader who somehow gained the last remaining Ecological Engineering Corps Seed Ships, which was used to bring plague to the planet H'ro Brana, which once threatened Earth with war. The ship was used to send multiple plagues to the planet, and a group of scholars come to bring it back, but fall out among themselves, and end up killing each other or falling prey to the plagues they unleashed inside the ship as well as without, until the only ones left were Haviland Tuf and Rica Dawnstar, a mercenary, and she falls prey to a trap set up by another one of the groups, while Tuf uses the cloning devices on board to clone of his pet cats, who has been killed by being thrown out into the plagued air by another of his former companions. Then Tuf, who is a vegetarian who doesn't particularly like people, but loves cats, uses his ship to solve the problems of other planets, for a price, while using the powers of the ship and its cloned creatures to intervene in a way which he would the world to go. His first adventure takes him to the world of S'uthlam, where he convinces them to repair the ship, which is old and damaged, in exchange for trying to help them with their food problem- because of their religious beliefs, they believe that engendering children is sacred and nobody should prevent themselves from having offspring. Because of this, their planet is quickly running out of food. But because this comes from their religion, they aren't logical about it, and in the past, they were at war with all the Kingdoms around them because of their unrestrained expansionism. But after he helps them with their problems, the planetary government wishes to take his ship to use in expansionism and helping them feed their people. Only the leader of their space station helps Tuf flee because she disagrees with taking his ship. In other stories, Tuf helps a planet discover who is unleashing plagues of monsters from their oceans on the human settlers, returns to S'uthlam to repay part of what he owes to the people to find that they have used his ideas for how to generate more food to have even more babies and have once again screwed things up for themselves, interferes in a planet where beasts are bred to fight in the arena to end the games by destroying the houses and lands who take part in the games, and takes on a man who claims to be Moses and inflicts Biblical Plagues on an archology whose leaders he is convinced are sinners. But when Tuf is seen as the source of these plagues, can he undo the work of this religious leader who calls himself Moses, and teach the man a lesson as well? Finally Tuf returns to S'uthlam, whose leaders have still not learned from their last lesson, and who are ramping up to war once more to provide an outlet for their ever-growing population. But the solution which Tuf provides is literal manna from Heaven- can he end the hostilities and feed the people of S'uthlam for once and for all? These stories were published back in the 80's and are fix-up stories that attempt to solve problems. But while Tuf is touted as an honest man (or perhaps the only honest man in a universe populated by rogues, I think he sometimes goes a bit over the top in his solutions to problems. At the start of the stories he's just a not very successful trader, but by the end, he seems to be comfortable playing God, destroying a set of people because he doesn't like them using beasts in Gladatorial combat. Perhaps it is that his dialogue has a stilted and roundabout feeling, but I never really got behind Tuf as a hero of the novels. In the last story, especially, I found his proposed solution rather too harsh, in my opinion, rather than taking away the fertility of between 98-99% of the population, maybe scale it back a little, to 85 or 90%, and tell the other Kingdoms his solution instead of basically beating them over the head with his ship and its plague-bringing capability to make peace. It was a good solution, yes, but unnecessarily harsh, even with the intransigence of the people on the planet. Combined with the fact that he was also dampening their libidos, I think he could have had more leeway in the rather draconian solution he chose. A problematic book as far as the protagonist goes, but it does make you think, and so I do recommend this one.
Written in Red by Anne Bishop- Meg Corbyn is a woman on the run, and as a last chance, she enters the lands controlled by the Others in the community of Lakeside, looking for a shelter, only to see a job notice for a Liaison between the Humans and the Others. She applies for the job, thinking she needs food, shelter and money to continue to flee. Simon Wolfguard, the leader of the Lakeside Community of the Others, is being pushed by a young human who wants to have a relationship with him, to have the position of Liaison, but because that makes him uncomfortable in many ways, he accepts Meg for the job instead. Meg, though, doesn't strike him as a typical human. For one thing, all humans are Prey, and Meg doesn't smell like Prey. It makes him furious, because he knows in one way that Meg is lying to him about who she is, but he also knows that he can make a Liaison disappear even easier than a normal human, so if he hires Meg, that won't be a problem. But Meg isn't a normal human. She has knowledge of objects, but not how to do things, and as she slowly settles into her new job, she finds herself making friends among the Others, and intrigues them all with her "Not Prey" smell. When they discover that her former employer has had her charged with theft, though, she finally confesses that she is a blood oracle. A Human, yes, but considered not to be a person by the laws of humans. She is considered unable to care for herself, and is in the custody of her employers, who sell her ability to see visions when cut for a price to various interests. Meg's name is one she chose herself, because she was never given a name, just a designation. When the others decide to help her and keep her safe from the humans who would otherwise use her, her former owners and a spy named Asia, who is being paid to Spy on the others, try to cause a diversion to get her back. But the others, while they might look and even seem human, are not human, and they do not like humans. In their response to those who would steal Meg back from the life she has claimed for herself, will other, innocent humans, be caught in the crossfire? And can Meg keep Sam Wolfgard, a child of an Other woman assassinated by humans, safe from those who would kidnap him to gain a hold over the Others? And what will be the fallout to the human citizens of Lakeside from this conflict? I loved this book, and it is definitely going to be a series instead of a stand-alone novel, which is wonderful. Even though Meg needs to be taken care of, she undergoes a nice arc of growth. She starts out as so unable to do things that she is little better than a child, but she learns to cook, drive, and do the job she applied for while bringing Sam out of his shell. In one way, she is almost too good, and comes across as almost a Mary Sue- the one who is loved by everyone who matters, all the good people and disliked only by the bad people. This is best seen in the attitude of Asia, the bad/evil female character who is so self-centered that she is willing to poison, kidnap and even kill people to advance her career. When Asia first sees Meg after finding out that Meg has gotten the job of Liaison, she calls her a "Feeb", probably short for feebleminded or mentally handicapped. That's pretty nasty in and of itself, but it cements Asia as a bad person. On the other hand, Meg could have come off as a pretty weak character, but at least she doesn't serve as a romantic figure for the others, who think of humans as Prey and/or "Meat". They actually sell human meat in the butcher shop when humans have been killed on Other land and not been eaten or otherwise taken care of by the Others, so that was a refreshing change. I liked that the Others were not human, not emotional or misunderstood or looking for humans as mates. Meg becomes friendly with several of the Others, but I don't think you can quite characterize the relationships she makes as "friends" as the Others are interested in her because they want to know what she is. Several are protective of her after they learn who and what she is, but it's more because she reads as "Not Prey" than because she is a human or a woman who needs protecting. Only one of the Others feels that she is his friend, and that is an artisan named Jason Beargard, a shifter. In short, a brilliant story that makes me want to read more right away, and sad because I can't. Highly recommended for the characters and world building and story.
The Song of the Nightingale by Alys Clare- In Hawkenlye, Little Helewise pines for the man she loves, Ninian, son of Josse. But Ninian, once under threat of death for killing a man, has abjured the Realm and fled to France, where he finds a home with the Cathars, a rogue religious sect, helping their young man learn to defend themselves. But the end of the Cathars is coming, as the church and the lords of the Languedoc come to destroy them. At home, Josse is summoned to the Abbey of Hawkenlye by the discovery of three bodies- men found dead in the woods, slain. He gives the Sherriff his opinion on the men but is distracted by conerns at home. Little Helewise has come to stay, but Josse's daughter, Meggie, is desperate to get away from the house and visit the Hut in the woods where her mother once lived. But the famine in the country has made this a great danger as families starve and men turn to banditry and worse. So when the former Abbess Heloise decides to set up a place for poor people to come for help and healing, Meggie is only too glad to go, along with Little Heloise, who has a secret of her own to hide: she's pregnant with Ninian's child. The deaths of the three men is presaged by a sign of a dark-skinned man, who, as it tirns out, is the Prime suspect in their Death. Meggie discovers signs he has taken shelter in the Hut in the woods, and becomes fascinated with him. It turns out that he is from France himself, the son od a Blacksmith, and his reasons for being in England is partly to retrieve the sword of his ancestor, stolen from him by the Wolfsheads. When he is forced to flee ahead of the Sherriff's men, who want him for the murders, Meggie goes with him, and Josse, Helewise and Little Helewise go with him, hoping to find not only Meggie, but Ninian as well. And Ninian, rejected by the Cathars to save his own life, is coming, bearing a great treasure from them to preserve from the forces of the Church. But can they find each other in time to bring Ninian home for the birth of his child? I like this series, a mystery set in the time of King John and showing England at one of its most difficult times, Under interdict and suffering starvation from the failure of the crops. But still, it's an intensely personal story for the characters involved, and red herrings and disappointment abound. Still, it's a lovely and compelling story that brings me back to the first book, Fortune Like the Moon. Recommended, if you like historical mysteries, but read the others first.
The Earl and the Fairy, Book 3 by Ayuka and Mizue Tani- Lydia Carville is a Fairy Doctor, and she is employed by Edgar, the successor to the Blue Earl, an ambassador between human and Fairy Culture. But Edgar is a troubled young man, once a slave to a horrible man who he seeks to overcome. He's interested in Lydia both for being a Fairy Doctor and because she is also a beautiful woman. But Lydia doesn't trust him because of all the lies he has told her. When a girl that the Earl has given a ride to disappears, and it is claimed that it is the work of a Fairy known as the "Fog Man", The Earl shows up at her father's house and takes her to the fair, looking for a fairy Egg. There is a man there, selling them, but Lydia also sees a boggart who causes the fake fairy stones to explode. The boggart loves to cause trouble, but he seems to be attatched to another young woman who is looking to snag the Earl. She, too, owns a Fiary Stone, a real one, but Lydia discovers that the Boggart, though attatched to the young woman, isn't working for her, but a mysterious master. Who is this master, and what does he want, and why does he seem to have it in for the Earl? And will Lydia be able to find the missing noblewoman and clear Edgar's name is the matter of her disappearance? and what is hidden in the tin can that has Lydia's Fairy friend Nico so obsessed? An interesting case for Lydia, although I suspect that she's not as immune to the Earl's blandishments as she pretends to be. The story of the Fairy stones is interesting, though not quite as interesting as real Fiary stones (stones with natural holes in them, or marked with crosses internally. Supposedly, if you looked through the hole, it would allow you to see fairies, but the cross stones were made for protection from Fairies. So maybe Ayuka didn't do her research very well, but it's an interesting story nonetheless. Recommended.
The Earl and the Fairy, Book 4 by Ayuka and Mizue Tanu- Lydia is trapped in a warehouse by Rosalie, the cousin of the Missing Doris Walpole who she has been looking for. But as she looks for a way out, she discovers that Doris is there as well, and the two girls are destined across the sea to be sold into slavery in New York. Meanwhile Edgar has found out about Lydia's disappearance and is searching for her, not knowing that she has been caught up in a slavery scheme run by the Prince, the same man who once imprisoned him. But who is behinf the whole scheme. Is it Rosalie, or someone else close to the two girls? And what do they have to do with the Fairy Egg that used to be Edgar's, and who or what is imprisoned in the Fairy Egg? And why does the Boggart want to kill Edgar? This is the last book in the manga series, which stunned me, because the story ends on such an abrupt note. But through Google, I found out that this series began as a light novel series, so if readers want to read more, they are going to have to read Japanese, as I honestly doubt the series will be translated into English any time soon. Well. it was nice while it lasted, but the ending is so abrupt that it feels like a door being slammed in your face. So, good story, but the ending is painful, and I can't recommend this series because of how truncated it is. Not recommended.
The Avengers: Avengers Assemble by Thonas Macri- This book came through my hands when I was checking books in at the Library and so I decided to check it out, thinking that it was the novelization of the movie. Sadly, it's not. Instead, it tells the stories of the Avengers from the movies released by Marvel (Captain America, Iron Man 1 and 2, The Incredible Hulk, and Thor, and then tells PART of the Avengers movie, up to the fight in the forest as they fly back from Germany. Hawkeye and Black Widow's stories aren't covered, and the story sort of abruptly ends after the fight between Thor, Iron Man and Captain America in the forest, implying that they will be fighting in battles to come. I wish I could have liked this book, but it reads more like a recap photo album, with the thinnest gloss on each character, and assumes the reader knows nothing about the characters and hasn't seen any of the movies. It has plenty of pictures of the heroes, Nick Fury, Maria Hill, Phil Coulson and Loki, but really disappoints anyone who wants to read more about the characters who haven't yet had movies, like Hawkeye and Black Widow, and even mischaracterizes several scenes in the movies. So on the whole, for kids who are ignorant of the characters, and haven't seen any of the movies. Not really recommended. But... good photos. Misses out on a lot of the humor in the films, too.
Club CSI: The Case of the Digital Deception by Ellie O'Ryan- The Club CSI members have been solving cases for a while now. So when Corey is approached by Whitney Martino, asking for his help with the case of who defaced her locker, he is glad to help, and brings in the rest of his friends at Club CSI. But when Whitney's best friend Alyssa hands Ben an e-mail sent by Whitney purporting to be bored of the Club and calling them all "losers", they have to figure out what is really going on. And then, later, Whitney comes to them for help once again. Someone used her "You Can Draw It" Account to buy $100 in upgrades, which were charged to her Parents' Charge Card. Can the Club CSI team figure out whodunnit and clear Whitney's name? I liked this story because it shows the perils of being famous at school- people are now more on their guard with the CSIs and it's likely to become more so in the future as they continue to solve mysteries. Also, this case involves digital forensics, which is a new and exciting area to explore. This was a great story with an exciting finish. Recommended.
Neferet's Curse by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast- Emily Wheiler is growing up in St. Louis at the time of the Pan-American Exhibition. But when her mother dies in childbirth,along with that of the son she was carrying, her life quietly disintegrates in bouts of weeping and lying in bed. She is finally pulled out of her funk by her father, who has never paid much attention to her before. Emily is thrilled to be treated as an adult and made the mistress of Wheiler House. But Emily is increasingly isolated from the outside world by her father, and the way he looks at her, especially after drinking, makes her feel scared and uncertain. As she takes steps to protect herself from her father's wrath and lust, she aliennates her former friends. When when she begins to cough, she has no idea of what could be in store for her, but as a glorious new future opens up for her, will she be held back by the chains of the past? This was a hard book to read, especially because the reader can figure out her father's true motives long before Emily does. But when the story comes to an end, you feel simultaneously vindicated, upset for Emily, and yet a bit disquieted by her cold-bloodedness.and ability to plan something like what she does. And it gives us a greater understanding of Neferet and how broken she is inside and what drives her.. Recommended, but it's a hard read.
Edge of Dawn by Lara Adrian- Twenty years ago, mankind learned about vampires when Dragos released thousands of rogues all around the world. The Order fought them for years and eventually destroyed them all, but relations between the humans and the vampires remain fragile and fraught with suspicion on both sides. Mira, once a breedmate child with clear silver eyes that hold visions for anyone looking into them, is now a warrior along with the rest, missing the man she was mated to, Kellan Archer, who was killed nine years ago in a horrific bombing. But unbeknownst to Mira, who now has an unreasoning hatred of human rebels, Kellan is still alive, running a human resistance gang under his new name: Bowman. And when Mira is sent to guard the man who Bowman's gang is interested in snatching, the two are finally reunited. Despite knowing that he must release Mira, Kellen finds himself unable to let her go, and Mira finds herself unable to resist Kellan's touch, which she has hungered for for so long.. But as the endgame to the conflict is the knowledge that someone has made and mastered UV light weapons, which Bowman is trying to get off the streets.. Mira knows the Breed would want this to, so why does Kellan resist coming in from the cold and repaiting his ties with the Breed? And if the scientist behind the UV Light technology isn't behind the weapons, who is, and what do they have against the Breed? Mira is afraid that the weapons will be used at the bteed/human summit, but can she and Kellan keep the people they love safe after the scientist is kidnapped out from under Kellan and his group and killed? And can Mira and Kellan overcome the vision that Kellan once saw in her eyes, promising only death and heartbreak for the two of them? I am not sure how to take this new volume. Yes, it's a continuation of a series that I loved, but at the same time, I though that the way they continued it was kind of awkward and the new villains are just ludicrous to me. Still, it wasn't bad and it may get better in the future. So, recommended nonetheless.
Grave Sight, story by Charlaine Harris, William Harris and Dennis Medri- Harper Connolly was hit by lightning when she was fifteen. Since then, she has been able to sense the spirits of the unburied and restless dead. Becuase she is searching for her sister, who disappeared long ago. Harper uses her gift to find the dead, hoping it will someday lead her to her sister. In the meantime, she takes money from people to find their dead, many of them thinking she is simply a leech or a charlatan- because she can not only find the dead, she can also share their last moments, but never see their killer. And now she has come to a small town to find the body of a missing girl. But no one seems to believe she can do what she says she can. Only when Harper offers up a real dead body, missing and not where it is supposed to be, do the residents of the town take her seriously. But her finding the missing girl's body brings up larger issues, and further murders keep bringin her back to the town to deal with the dsecrets she has uncovered. But someone in Sarne is ready to kill Harper to ensure that their secret is kept just that... a secret. But can Harper and her foster brother Tolliver find out who is really behind the killing? This was a wonderful re-imgining of the original book. I had forgotten how Goth Harper looked, and the cover on the front of the graphic novel makes her look downright scary and undead, so in some ways, I can see why some people are scared of her and call her a freak. Even if it's set up slightly differently from the actual novel, this retelling was compelling and more than interesting. Recommended.
Star Wars and History by Nancy R, Reagin and Janice Liedi- This book examines the background and structures of the Republic, the Empire and the Jedi Knights, as well as the characters in the story as a means of understanding them. The book doesn't cover just a few topics, but looks at many aspects of both Star Wars and History, such as Slavery in the Old Republic, Women as Monarchs and Freedom Fighters. The Real Origins of the Jedi Knights. This is a wonderful book, because it enables fans of both real history and Star Wars to find commonalities between History and find the real life examples that underlie the Story of Star Wars, and the real history that George Lucas drew on to create his wonderful vision. I found this book to be fascinating, if a little dry occasionally. Each section is by a different writer and all are fascinating, some more than others. If you love Star Wars, and history, this is definitely the book for you. Recommended.
The Last Threshold: The Neverwinter Saga, Book 4 by R.A. Salvatore- Drizzt's Pather Companion has been stolen from him and taken to the Threshold of Shadows. So when she is finally returned to him, he doesn't question how or why, but notices her exhaustion. Drizzt assumes she has been wearied by her struggle to return to him, but in truth, the warlord Dragon Quick uses her body to spy upon Drizzt. All is also not well between Drizzt and his new lover, the elf Dahlia Sin'Feinn. She is being tracked by her son, Effron Alegni, who she was forced to bear to a Demon.. But When Drizzt takes it into his head to help the former City of Port Llast rise again, using his new companions Afrafrenfere, Amber Gristle, Dahlia and Artemis Entreri, she feels him beginning to pull away from her as he remembers his last visit there. But when Dahlia is kidnapped by Effron, Drizzt acts quickly to rescue her. Effron is unsure of how to take Drizzt, and how someone good can stand to be around a women who would murder her own son, but he finds himself coming to trust the Drow, and tells him of Guenhwyvar's true location. Drizzt and his companions, including Effron, set off to rescue the panther, but are captured on the Plane of Shadowfell and imprisoned by Draygo Quick, while Dahlia, Artemis and Afafrenfere are turned to stone. Rescued after some time by Jarlaxle and his Bregan D;Aerthe mercenaries, and with Guenhwyvar returned to him, Drizzt decides to return to Icewind Dales and the Ten Towns, But when he hears of a magical forest that might lead him to his friends who have passed, Drizzt takes the chance to go find it, and what he finds might lead to his own death this time as well. But when Errtu the demon returns tot he Ten Towns to take revenge on Drizzt for his banishment from the Realms, will Drizzt and his friends be there to rescue them, or will they have to look to a different hero at last? I am of two minds about this book. In one way, the ending seems to suggest the end of the series as a whole, but the beginning, where Drizzt is speaking as someone recalling past events (even long past), it just doesn't make sense. And in a way, I wonder. Drizzt and Elminster seem to be the breakout stars of the Realms. The question is, are fans willing to let one of them pass and go?: And are their creators. I can see this book inciting a lot of hate from fans of the series, but should this be the end. I won't mind. He's had a long run, and this would be a good ending.
Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier- Gwyneth comes from a very strange family, and ever since her father died, her nurse mother and younger brother and sister live with their extended family in London, including with her cousin, Charlotte, who has been trained since she was young to inherit the family gift, that of time traveling. But while Chartlotte has been trained to speak all sorts of different languages, how to fence, and all about different periods in history, Gwyneth has focused on growing up as a normal teenager, interested in boys, movies and her best friend, Lesley. But when it's Gwyneth who inherits the yalent instead of Charlotte, the rest of the family is outraged, and Charlotte's mother, Glenda, is outraged, accusing Gwyneth of conspiring to steal Charlotte's position and legacy away. But Gwyneth's mother, who hid Gwyneth's birthday from the others, says she only wanted Gwyneth's life to be normal. But now Gwyneth finds herself having to go into the past, and deal with the fact that the inheritor of the Power before her, her cousin Lucy, stole thw device that lets the users travel through time from the Society, and now no one seems to trust Gwyneth, or her mother, either. Since only inheritors of the time travel gene can actually travel through time, Gwyneth has to do it with Charlotte's former presumed partner, Gideon de Villiers. But her mother's advice is not to trust any of the Scoiety, nor their leader, St. Germain, who Gwynet meets and fears, because of him trying to strangle her with the power of his mind alone. But there is also Gideon, who is handsome and who fills Gwyneth with feelings she has never quite had before for a boy. Whi can she trust? The Society or Gideon, or her mother or anyone? And what does the Prophecy mean, that Gwyneth's power is of the Raven, and who can she trust, thrust into a world she was never prepared for? Gwyneth has very little time to discover before she's in too deep to climb out.
Sapphire Blue by Kerstin Gier- Gwyneth has been time traveling for a few days now, but even though she is completely out of her depth when it comes to know what is going on with the people she meets in the past, she has begun to feel a tremendous attraction to her partner, formerly her cousin Charlotte's partner, Gideon de Villiers. As Gwen struggles with keeping up with her schoolwork, her friend, Lesley, and trying to meet her grandfather in the past, s well as talking to ghosts and Gargoyles, who claim to be Dead Demons. But as Gwen becomes more and more interested in Gideon, she finds herself trusting the leaders of the society, especially their true leader from the past: St. Germain. She also feels that her cousin, Lucy, who ran off with her own partner and stole the Chronometer. Plus, she gets drunk at a party in the past, and sings a song from Cats. But someone is telling Lucy and her friends where Gwen is going, and everybody seems to think that Gwen is to blame and this is a result of her becoming the Ruby. Was she hiding her true birthdate because she intended to bring down the Society from the beginning? And if it isn't Gwen and her mother, then who can possibly be behind it? And is Gideon really interested in Gwen as a boyfriend, or is he running a deeper game for his father, Lucy, or for St. Germain himself? And can Gwen even tell who is telling the truth, or will her injured feelings lead her astray? I loved this book, which was the sequel to Ruby Red. And there will be another sequel, Emerald Green. But after reading this book, I honestly have to wonder what the secret all this time traveling is going to uncover, and what it has to do with Gwen's ability to talk to the Dead and Gargoyles. Recommended.
Touch of Steel by Katie Cross- The Wardens of the Realm are the Steampunk version of MI-6 in England, and The Company is the American version of the CIA. Ex-Warden Lucas Grey was captured by the Company, and one of its operatives brainwashed him, making him forget his time with the Wardens and his wife. Luckily, he eventually remembered his former life, but now his ex-partner in the Company, Claire Brooks, has been captured by the Wardens after being shot and thrown off a roof by the head of the Company, Stanton Howard. Claire had more than a falling out with the Company after her brother Robert, also a member of the Company, was killed, and Claire believes her former employers are letting the man who killed him get away with the crime. Claire wants Howard, and the Doctor, who will be permanently changing Stanton's looks so that he can get away with literal murder. Claire's insistence on going after Stanton Howard herself, and the knowledge that comes from having been an agent for more than ten years, along with her willingness to share her knowledge with the Wardens, means that they reluctantly send her along with an agent of their own, Alistair Payne, to capture the two men at a House Party in the country. But a sudden change of plans means they must track their foes on the high seas, or under them, and throws these two would-be former foes even closer together. Claire is looking for revenge, and Alistair is smarting from being nearly suborned by a member of another intelligence service who came close to killing him. But neither can deny their attraction for each other. Can their connection survive the revelations to come, and Claire's eventual return to Warden custody and jail? This was a rather nice romance, and while it didn't really knock my socks off, it was nice reading when I wasn't feeling well at all. It's a nice middle of the road romance set in a Steampunk world.
Sealed with a Curse by Cecy Robinson- Celia Wird is one of four sisters whose mother was cursed by her family for being able to fit in better in America than they were. As a result, each sister has a special talent that sets her apart from normal people. Celia is able to shift shapes to any animal but is almost always a tigress. Emme has control over light and can summon enough sunlight to heal or turn younger vampires into dust, Taran can conjure flame, and Shayna can turn any sliver of wood into metal blades. Brought before the Vampire court for killing a young vampire who tried to feed on Emme, the trial is ended when the Vampires discover that the vampire in question was afflicted with Chronic Bloodlust, a condition that makes the vampire's hunger unable to be satisfied, and who must be killed for the good of everyone. However, this trial brings Celia to the attention of the lead vampire in the area, Mischa Alexander. The attention of a vampire is the last thing that Celia wants, but she doesn't get much of a choice in the matter. However, it also attracts the attention of the Supernatural world towards the sisters, and while most of the weres that she meets are kind of creepy, there is also one who Celia would like to know better, if his girlfriend didn't keep warning her off in no uncertain terms. Celia's sisters also find weres who they are interested in, but a rash of Chronic Bloodlust among the vampires demands that the vampires and weres and Celia and her sisters keep busy destroying vampires afflicted with Chronic Bloodust. But what or who is causing the outbreak? And will Celia be able to get together with Aric, or will his girlfriend come between them? I liked this book. Even though it was a romance, Celia is well able to take care of herself, but her inability to be with a man is known and poked fun at by her sisters. The back of the book makes it seem that Celia is torn between Mischa and Aric, but in the book, she is never attracted to Mischa. Instead, he is interested in her, but she wants nothing to do with him, so don't think this is a more adult version of Twilight with a vampire and werewolf. I also liked the powers of Celia and her sisters, which are refreshingly unique for Supernatural Romance. This was a great book with a good romance. Recommended.
Tuf Voyaging by George R. R. Martin- Haviland Tuf is a space trader who somehow gained the last remaining Ecological Engineering Corps Seed Ships, which was used to bring plague to the planet H'ro Brana, which once threatened Earth with war. The ship was used to send multiple plagues to the planet, and a group of scholars come to bring it back, but fall out among themselves, and end up killing each other or falling prey to the plagues they unleashed inside the ship as well as without, until the only ones left were Haviland Tuf and Rica Dawnstar, a mercenary, and she falls prey to a trap set up by another one of the groups, while Tuf uses the cloning devices on board to clone of his pet cats, who has been killed by being thrown out into the plagued air by another of his former companions. Then Tuf, who is a vegetarian who doesn't particularly like people, but loves cats, uses his ship to solve the problems of other planets, for a price, while using the powers of the ship and its cloned creatures to intervene in a way which he would the world to go. His first adventure takes him to the world of S'uthlam, where he convinces them to repair the ship, which is old and damaged, in exchange for trying to help them with their food problem- because of their religious beliefs, they believe that engendering children is sacred and nobody should prevent themselves from having offspring. Because of this, their planet is quickly running out of food. But because this comes from their religion, they aren't logical about it, and in the past, they were at war with all the Kingdoms around them because of their unrestrained expansionism. But after he helps them with their problems, the planetary government wishes to take his ship to use in expansionism and helping them feed their people. Only the leader of their space station helps Tuf flee because she disagrees with taking his ship. In other stories, Tuf helps a planet discover who is unleashing plagues of monsters from their oceans on the human settlers, returns to S'uthlam to repay part of what he owes to the people to find that they have used his ideas for how to generate more food to have even more babies and have once again screwed things up for themselves, interferes in a planet where beasts are bred to fight in the arena to end the games by destroying the houses and lands who take part in the games, and takes on a man who claims to be Moses and inflicts Biblical Plagues on an archology whose leaders he is convinced are sinners. But when Tuf is seen as the source of these plagues, can he undo the work of this religious leader who calls himself Moses, and teach the man a lesson as well? Finally Tuf returns to S'uthlam, whose leaders have still not learned from their last lesson, and who are ramping up to war once more to provide an outlet for their ever-growing population. But the solution which Tuf provides is literal manna from Heaven- can he end the hostilities and feed the people of S'uthlam for once and for all? These stories were published back in the 80's and are fix-up stories that attempt to solve problems. But while Tuf is touted as an honest man (or perhaps the only honest man in a universe populated by rogues, I think he sometimes goes a bit over the top in his solutions to problems. At the start of the stories he's just a not very successful trader, but by the end, he seems to be comfortable playing God, destroying a set of people because he doesn't like them using beasts in Gladatorial combat. Perhaps it is that his dialogue has a stilted and roundabout feeling, but I never really got behind Tuf as a hero of the novels. In the last story, especially, I found his proposed solution rather too harsh, in my opinion, rather than taking away the fertility of between 98-99% of the population, maybe scale it back a little, to 85 or 90%, and tell the other Kingdoms his solution instead of basically beating them over the head with his ship and its plague-bringing capability to make peace. It was a good solution, yes, but unnecessarily harsh, even with the intransigence of the people on the planet. Combined with the fact that he was also dampening their libidos, I think he could have had more leeway in the rather draconian solution he chose. A problematic book as far as the protagonist goes, but it does make you think, and so I do recommend this one.
Written in Red by Anne Bishop- Meg Corbyn is a woman on the run, and as a last chance, she enters the lands controlled by the Others in the community of Lakeside, looking for a shelter, only to see a job notice for a Liaison between the Humans and the Others. She applies for the job, thinking she needs food, shelter and money to continue to flee. Simon Wolfguard, the leader of the Lakeside Community of the Others, is being pushed by a young human who wants to have a relationship with him, to have the position of Liaison, but because that makes him uncomfortable in many ways, he accepts Meg for the job instead. Meg, though, doesn't strike him as a typical human. For one thing, all humans are Prey, and Meg doesn't smell like Prey. It makes him furious, because he knows in one way that Meg is lying to him about who she is, but he also knows that he can make a Liaison disappear even easier than a normal human, so if he hires Meg, that won't be a problem. But Meg isn't a normal human. She has knowledge of objects, but not how to do things, and as she slowly settles into her new job, she finds herself making friends among the Others, and intrigues them all with her "Not Prey" smell. When they discover that her former employer has had her charged with theft, though, she finally confesses that she is a blood oracle. A Human, yes, but considered not to be a person by the laws of humans. She is considered unable to care for herself, and is in the custody of her employers, who sell her ability to see visions when cut for a price to various interests. Meg's name is one she chose herself, because she was never given a name, just a designation. When the others decide to help her and keep her safe from the humans who would otherwise use her, her former owners and a spy named Asia, who is being paid to Spy on the others, try to cause a diversion to get her back. But the others, while they might look and even seem human, are not human, and they do not like humans. In their response to those who would steal Meg back from the life she has claimed for herself, will other, innocent humans, be caught in the crossfire? And can Meg keep Sam Wolfgard, a child of an Other woman assassinated by humans, safe from those who would kidnap him to gain a hold over the Others? And what will be the fallout to the human citizens of Lakeside from this conflict? I loved this book, and it is definitely going to be a series instead of a stand-alone novel, which is wonderful. Even though Meg needs to be taken care of, she undergoes a nice arc of growth. She starts out as so unable to do things that she is little better than a child, but she learns to cook, drive, and do the job she applied for while bringing Sam out of his shell. In one way, she is almost too good, and comes across as almost a Mary Sue- the one who is loved by everyone who matters, all the good people and disliked only by the bad people. This is best seen in the attitude of Asia, the bad/evil female character who is so self-centered that she is willing to poison, kidnap and even kill people to advance her career. When Asia first sees Meg after finding out that Meg has gotten the job of Liaison, she calls her a "Feeb", probably short for feebleminded or mentally handicapped. That's pretty nasty in and of itself, but it cements Asia as a bad person. On the other hand, Meg could have come off as a pretty weak character, but at least she doesn't serve as a romantic figure for the others, who think of humans as Prey and/or "Meat". They actually sell human meat in the butcher shop when humans have been killed on Other land and not been eaten or otherwise taken care of by the Others, so that was a refreshing change. I liked that the Others were not human, not emotional or misunderstood or looking for humans as mates. Meg becomes friendly with several of the Others, but I don't think you can quite characterize the relationships she makes as "friends" as the Others are interested in her because they want to know what she is. Several are protective of her after they learn who and what she is, but it's more because she reads as "Not Prey" than because she is a human or a woman who needs protecting. Only one of the Others feels that she is his friend, and that is an artisan named Jason Beargard, a shifter. In short, a brilliant story that makes me want to read more right away, and sad because I can't. Highly recommended for the characters and world building and story.
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