Audiobook Review: Revenant Winds by Mitchell Hogan
Posted on September 21, 2017 11 Comments
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
Revenant Winds by Mitchell Hogan
Mogsy’s Rating (Overall): 3.5 of 5 stars
Genre: Fantasy
Series: Book 1 of The Tainted Cabal
Publisher: Audible Studios (September 5, 2017)
Length: 17 hrs and 57 mins
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Narrator: Oliver Wyman
Revenant Winds is the first book a new series by Mitchell Hogan, and having been curious about the author’s work for a long time, I leapt at the chance to check it out. After hearing the accolades for his Sorcerer’s Ascendant Sequence, I had very high hopes for this novel and I was also drawn to the promise of an epic fantasy that dabbles in ancient demons and curses, unlikely heroes, and secret cabals.
Long ago in the world of this novel, demons roamed wild, menacing the populations that once eked out an existence in this harsh, cruel place. The lore contains tales of devastating cataclysms that scoured the land, leaving mysterious ruins full of treasures and secrets. Now much of the history is forgotten, and accounts of demonic creatures and ancient beings of the elder races have entered into myth. Sorcery is not completely understood, and those who possess magic are either said to be gifted by the gods or cursed by them. When an individual comes into his or her talent though, they are often bound into a covenant with one of the many religions, with the different groups all locked in a constant struggle against each other for dominance.
True to form, our story features many characters, but the three that receives the most attention are Aldric, a priest who possesses the magical power of healing; Niklaus, an expert swordsman and mercenary; and Kurio, a former noble daughter turned master thief. Their three disparate lives converge as Niklaus, enslaved to his goddess the Lady Sylva Kalisia, is on a mission to become a god himself so he can serve by her side forever. Meanwhile, Kurio has stumbled upon something she shouldn’t have during her latest heist job, landing her in a deadly situation that she can scarcely comprehend. And finally, a devout follower of his god who is nonetheless shunned by most of his church because of his sorcery, Aldric is given a special assignment that will bring them all together in a confrontation against an emergent evil long thought defeated.
I’ll admit, it took me a while to get into Revenant Winds, because to me the plot did not pick up until about halfway through when the quest-driven part of the story truly started. Later, I learned that apparently this is par for the course when it comes to Mitchell Hogan’s novels, in that they mostly tend to begin as slow-burners until the momentum kicks in and then builds rapidly. Had I know this, my experience might have been a little different, but some patience is definitely required for the first half in which was mostly taken up by character development and establishing a background for the main story. There’s more of this than you generally find, even in a genre known for lengthy page counts and long intros, though on the upside, readers get to start off on the right foot with a good handle on the world and our key players once the real adventure starts.
More good news is that the second half of the novel makes up for any pacing issues in the first half. Once the main conflict was revealed, things moved fast! It’s almost enough to make me forget about the rough start, as Aldric, Niklaus and Kurio are joined by others, filling in the rest of this fascinating cast. Sorcerous rivalries, daring escapes, and heart-pounding battles against monsters can all be found in this exciting section leading up to the stunning climax and conclusion. There’s also passion amidst the violence as characters form bonds loyalty and love as they travel together, though of course the threat of betrayal is ever present. When you realize that no one is truly safe, that’s when all the character development in the first half of the book makes sense—Hogan has drawn you deep into his tale so now that you are whole-heartedly invested in the people involved, and every single loss feels like a punch in the gut. Furthermore, when he starts writing the action, that’s when his prose really shines, painting the scene with dark designs and gritty detail.
Overall, despite the slow start, I grew to enjoy the epic journey that was Revenant Winds and I’m very happy with my first experience with Mitchell Hogan’s work. While the story took some time to get established, in the end the patience invested was worth it, and I’m looking forward to the continuation of the series.
Audiobook Comments: Fantasy fiction and audiobook fans will probably be familiar with Oliver Wyman, with the impressive number of audiobook narration credits he has under his belt. He rocked the reading of Revenant Winds, as I expected he would, and did a great job brining the story and the characters to life. He has a good voice for this genre, perfectly conveying the mood and atmosphere of an epic fantasy.
Waiting on Wednesday 09/20/17
Posted on September 20, 2017 23 Comments
“Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly meme that first originated at Breaking the Spine but has since linked up with “Can’t Wait Wednesday” at Wishful Endings now that the original creator is unable to host it anymore. Either way, this fun feature is a chance to showcase the upcoming releases that we can’t wait to get our hands on!
Mogsy’s Pick
Starless by Jacqueline Carey (June 12, 2018 by Tor Books)
I just about had a heart attack when the cover for this book was revealed last week. It’s flippin’ gorgeous! It’s no secret that I’m a big fan of Ms. Carey, and I can’t tell you how excited I am that she has new novel on the horizon, even if it’s not going to be released until next summer. I tell ya, it’s going to be torture counting the days until I can hold this stunning historical fantasy in my hands.
Jacqueline Carey is back with an amazing adventure not seen since her New York Times bestselling Kushiel’s Legacy series. Lush and sensual, Starless introduces us to an epic world where exiled gods live among us, and a hero whose journey will resonate long after the last page is turned.
Let your mind be like the eye of the hawk…Destined from birth to serve as protector of the princess Zariya, Khai is trained in the arts of killing and stealth by a warrior sect in the deep desert; yet there is one profound truth that has been withheld from him.
In the court of the Sun-Blessed, Khai must learn to navigate deadly intrigue and his own conflicted identity…but in the far reaches of the western seas, the dark god Miasmus is rising, intent on nothing less than wholesale destruction.
If Khai is to keep his soul’s twin Zariya alive, their only hope lies with an unlikely crew of prophecy-seekers on a journey that will take them farther beneath the starless skies than anyone can imagine.
Book Review: Best Day Ever by Kaira Rouda
Posted on September 19, 2017 16 Comments
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Genre: Thriller, Suspense
Series: Stand Alone
Publisher: Graydon House (September 19, 2017)
Length: 384 pages
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Best Day Ever is a novel of domestic suspense, so like many of its peers in the genre it’s going to be hard to review without giving away any key details, but I will ensure to keep this spoiler-free. The story is a look into the lives of a seemingly perfect couple: Paul Strom is a successful advertising account executive in his mid-thirties, and Mia is his beautiful younger wife who comes from a prominent and wealthy New York City family. Married for ten years, the two of them have two healthy and happy boys that they are raising in a big house in the best neighborhood in Columbus, Ohio—and recently, they’ve even purchased a cottage in the affluent and historic Lakeside district nestled along the shores of Lake Erie.
To anyone looking in from the outside, the Stroms have the best life, and they’re also about to have themselves the best day ever. To ease his wife’s stress, Paul has planned the perfect romantic weekend away at their lake cottage, just the two of them without the kids. Hitting the road bright and early, the two of them are determined to make the most of their weekend, but tensions start to rise almost immediately as they start discussing recent issues in their marriage. The perfect couple might not be so perfect after all, as dark secrets about their life begin to come to the surface.
Compared to my other reads in this genre, Best Day Ever does not have as strong of a “thriller-suspense” vibe to it, but the pacing was smooth and the book was a page-turner nonetheless. The story is told in the first person, from Paul’s point-of-view, and he is one of the finest examples of an unreliable narrator that I have ever read. You get a sense of “wrongness” about his character from the very first page, but it will take several more to finally be able to put a finger on what that might be. He’s a real piece of work, let’s just leave it at that, but lest you start to feel bad for Mia at this early point, it’s important to note too that she’s not the most sympathetic character either. From the start, she comes across as very standoffish and passive aggressive, not to mention high maintenance and uncompromising.
But again, this is the kind of novel where you can’t take anything at face value. Spending just a few hours with the Stroms on their drive to Lakeside is already enough to clue you in that there something is seriously rotten at the heart of this picture perfect marriage. But what could it be? Not surprisingly, finding out is much of the fun, as the author doles out clues in the most cryptic fashion—always in small doses, and always veiled beneath a layer of uncertainty, making the situation more and more provocative. By the time the drive is over, you might be feeling ready to throttle both Paul and Mia because they are just such infuriating people, but this is all part of Kaira Rouda’s plan to lure you into the couple’s web of intrigue and deception.
As such, the plot is admittedly a slow-burner, but this was acceptable to me, considering the immensity of such an undertaking. Like I said, there aren’t too many scenes in this book I would describe as all-out “thriller”, but there’s definitely an atmosphere of foreboding and distress that keeps the reader on edge. Once you reach the final chapters and everything is revealed, all will make sense and all the time invested will be worth it. There wasn’t a “twist” ending per se, not if you have been following along and have been paying attention, but it was a satisfying conclusion and I was happy with the way things turned out.
It just goes to show, what you see on the surface is never how things really are; people always misrepresent themselves to a certain degree when projecting an image of their identity to the world, even if it’s an innocent little modification of the truth. If nothing else, this novel is a stark reminder that you can find examples of this kind of truth-bending happening around us every day, from dating sites to job interviews. Though the degree of misrepresentation might not be as extreme as what we see in the book, nor do we often see them lead to such dramatic consequences, the story manages to get its point across loud and clear.
All told, Best Day Ever does a phenomenal job shining a light on the dark side of a seemingly happy, blessed, and perfect marriage, making you wonder what the couple could be hiding behind closed doors and how far someone might be willing to go to keep their secret lives buried. Paul Strom is a disturbing individual, but there’s also no denying he was a fascinating protagonist to follow. By telling this tale through the eyes of such an unreliable narrator, the author kept her novel so tantalizingly sinister and engrossing that I just couldn’t put it down. The name Kaira Rouda is now firmly on my radar, and I’ll definitely be on the lookout for her future projects.
Book Review: The Dinosaur Princess by Victor Milán
Posted on September 18, 2017 23 Comments
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
The Dinosaur Princess by Victor Milán
Mogsy’s Rating: 2.5 of 5 stars
Genre: Fantasy
Series: Book 3 of The Dinosaur Lords
Publisher: Tor (August 15, 2017)
Length: 448 pages
Author Information: Website | Twitter
In the first book, The Dinosaur Lords, Victor Milán took my imagination by storm with Paradise, a land populated by dinosaurs and the medieval knights that rode them. While things slowed down a little in its sequel The Dinosaur Knights, I still had faith enough to grab the next book, because surely a premise this cool deserved a second chance. Sadly though, instead of picking up again, the plot has continued to lose its steam in this third installment, and I think maybe it’s time to face the hard truth that the honeymoon period between me and this series might be over.
The Dinosaur Princess begins with a kidnapping. With the confusion of the war and all parties still reeling from the revelation of the Grey Angels, the royal family’s enemies have struck the palace and stolen away Montserrat, the adored little sister of Princess Melodía. Taking it upon himself to rescue the girl, Melodía’s lover and the hero of the realm Prince Jaume dels Flors has gathered a team to go after the kidnappers before they can reach the coast and disappear. Luckily for everyone, Montserrat isn’t as helpless as many think she is. Using her language skills to eavesdrop and spy on her captors, the young teen has left an invaluable trail of clues for the Jaume to follow, and the rescue would have succeeded too, if not for an unexpected twist.
As another faction enters the fray, those already embroiled in the war have no idea what to make of the mystical implications behind this development. Some remain skeptical of Jaume’s account of what happened and as a result, both his and Melodía’s standing are damaged in the eyes of the court. This setback is the last thing the princess needs as she attempts to counsel her hot-tempered father, while those with questionable allegiances whisper dangerous sentiments in his ear and others scream loudly for blood and revenge. Meanwhile, dinosaur master Rob Korrigan and his friend the famed captain Karyl Bogomirskiy have their hands full trying to keep the people of the countryside calm and stave off any dissent. Becoming elevated to noble positions should have helped, but to no one’s surprise, it doesn’t.
This series has been described as Game of Thrones meets Jurassic Park, and while I found this to be a brilliant pitch for the first book, the comparison has become less appropriate for the sequels. We seem to be in a holding pattern right now, with the political intrigue having lost much of its attraction, and the pacing of the overall story arc has slowed to a crawl. Most discouraging of all, there has also been a decrease in the dinosaur action. Considering this is the main selling point of the series, this last issue might have been the most detrimental to my enjoyment.
I also feel we’ve lost sight of the main goal, somewhat. Princess Montserrat’s kidnapping smacked strongly of being a diversion, and sure enough, it served as a precursor to another bigger reveal. When so many other conflicts still in the air though, I wasn’t sure throwing a new bombshell like that into the mix was the right decision. The Dinosaur Knights already had the feel of a “bridge” book, and I was looking forward to some steps towards resolution in this third installment, not more interruptions or distractions to weigh down the storyline. All the exposition required to set up this new plot development only served to slow the pacing down some more, and although the author might have tried to offset this by injecting more shock value into the battle scenes and descriptions of scantily clad female characters, that just put me off even more.
With most books that don’t work for me though, I can still usually find a silver lining, and in this case, I loved the focus on Montserrat. While Melodía may be the star of the series, in my eyes her little sis has already surpassed her in many ways. To be honest, I was actually quite unimpressed by the main characters, their roles remaining in a holding pattern like so much else in this book (e.g. Rob and Karyl), though Melodía did have her moments towards the end, making up for the impotent rage she exhibited for most of the novel. A couple more new faces also join the cast, most notably the mercurial Margrethe and the crafty Rosamaria. I admit to being very curious to see where Milán will take the story with this pair of powerful, clashing personalities at court, and if I pick up the next book, these two women will be a big part of the reason.
At this point, I can’t say I’m as excited about this series as I was before, but there’s still probably time for things to turn around, especially now that we’ve spent two books setting up the groundwork for the eventual showdown between the great houses of Paradise, the Grey Angels, and now the newly introduced faction. The slowness along with the lack of any meaningful development in the story made this book a struggle to get through, but if we get more dinosaur action and plot progress in the next one, I could be tempted to read on.
More on The BiblioSanctum:
Review of The Dinosaur Lords (Book 1)
Review of The Dinosaur Knights (Book 2)
YA Weekend Audio: Warcross by Marie Lu
Posted on September 17, 2017 18 Comments
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
Mogsy’s Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Genre: Science Fiction, Young Adult
Series: Book 1 of Warcross
Publisher: Listening Library (September 12, 2017)
Length: 11 hrs and 46 mins
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Narrator: Nancy Wu
Although it didn’t take me long to realize I probably wasn’t going to enjoy Warcross *as much* as most of the rave reviews, I still had a really good time with this one. The book’s greatest strength was definitely its fast-paced action and its ability to entertain for hours, which almost makes up for the story’s predictability and derivative premise.
Warcross stars Emika Chen, an eighteen-year-old hacker struggling to make ends meet. Despite doing everything she can to scrape together a living—including moonlighting as a bounty hunter and selling illicitly acquired gaming power ups on the black market—she’s still thousands of dollars in debt and in danger of being evicted because she’s months behind on her rental payment. Like many others, Emika’s only form of escape is her neural link that allows her to immerse herself in a virtual reality world where she can forget all about the troubles of real life—at least for a little while. These days, everyone is talking about Warcross, a competitive game which has taken the world by storm. Originally developed a decade ago by the then thirteen-year-old prodigy named Hideo Tanaka (who also created the technology to make the neural net possible), Warcross has exploded in popularity in the years since its launch, spawning professional teams and even an international competition that hundreds of millions tune in each year to watch.
So on the eve of the Warcross Championships games, Emika links in along with the rest of the world to watch the opening ceremonies, but inside her mind she is hatching up an insane plan. In her hours of studying the Warcross code, she has discovered a glitch which would enable her to swipe a power-up from right under the players’ noses, and the money she could get from selling a prize like that would be the end of all her financial troubles. However, something goes terribly wrong during her hack, and suddenly, Emika’s identity is revealed to the world. Strangely though, instead of being arrested immediately, Emika has become a celebrity overnight and even receives a call from the billionaire Hideo Tanaka himself, making her an offer she can’t refuse. It appears someone is trying to ruin his company by targeting this year’s Warcross Championships, and Hideo strongly suspects an inside job. Now he needs a spy with Emika’s talents to infiltrate the games and live among the players to find out who the culprit is.
I’ll admit, it took me a while to get into Warcross, mainly because it also took me a long time to warm up to the protagonist, and not least because I think gamers who use hacks and cheats are the scum of the earth. The entire basis of the plot pretty much hinged upon Emika making some catastrophically dumb decisions at the beginning, and I found it hard to believe that such an otherwise savvy young woman would behave so irrationally and impulsively after years of being able to maintain a low profile. I dislike ham-handed plot developments, especially those that go against a character’s nature and are done solely to push the story along.
Fortunately, things looked up after this introductory phase. To her credit, Marie Lu does know how to keep a reader entertained, though from past experience with her work, I’ve noticed how she seems unable to help herself when it comes to loading up her stories with YA tropes and clichés. Warcross comes complete with characters that play to conventions, from a down-on-her-luck but exceptionally talented protagonist who can somehow outsmart the world’s best programmers, to the angsty love interest who reads like a “YA book boyfriend” checklist (Fabulously wealthy? Piercing eyes? Swoony accent? Hideo’s got you covered!) There’s nothing at all groundbreaking about the world either, being your rather typical dystopian-flavored future with hints of Ready Player One. The story was also predictable and I saw the “twist” ending coming a mile away.
But like I said, I still had a good time. Despite its heavy reliance on genre tropes, the book’s high octane action and thrills help compensate for the story’s predictability and shortfalls in the innovation department. I’m also a sucker for books that have a gaming angle, and I was fascinated by the dynamic descriptions of the championship matches as well as the darker side of the Warcross world. The atmosphere is just so intense and hectic that it’s not hard to get sucked in and cheer for Emika’s team even when you know exactly how things are going to play out.
Bottom line, Warcross didn’t really blow me away, but I can recognize a fun book when I see one. Readers of YA fiction and fans of Marie Lu should be happy with it at least, and it’s also a perfectly fine escape if you’re looking for an exciting adventure.
Audiobook Comments: The Warcross audiobook is narrated by Nancy Wu, whose performance was decent enough, though I thought she sounded a little too mature to be an ideal Emika. She was also inconsistent with her voices, especially for Hideo (who didn’t really sound British like he was supposed to) and her accents would occasionally flip on and off. Other than those quibbles, however, it was a good listen and the inconsistencies didn’t affect my enjoyment overly much.
YA Weekend: Nyxia by Scott Reintgen
Posted on September 16, 2017 29 Comments
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
Mogsy’s Rating: 2 of 5 stars
Genre: Science Fiction, Young Adult
Series: Book 1 of The Nyxia Triad
Publisher: Crown Books for Young Readers (September 12, 2017)
Length: 384 pages
Author Information: Website | Twitter
I won’t belabor all the reasons why I didn’t enjoy Nyxia, especially since it’s a debut and a mostly adequate one at that, but I will touch upon the major points where this book fell short of my expectations. Admittedly, I am to blame for some of my own disappointment. I was led by the publisher description to believe this would be a book about space, containing all the adventure and excitement about arrival on a new planet. But instead, it turned out to be a more pedestrian tale about a competition, one that lasts the entire duration of the novel, so I didn’t even get the satisfaction of gaining answers to some of my pressing questions.
Anyway, here’s the gist of the story: Ten marginalized teens from all over the world are selected by a rich and powerful corporation called Babel Communications to travel to a newly discovered habitable planet called Eden. Their goal is to harvest and extract a volatile but valuable substance called Nyxia from deep within its mines. Why would a multi-bajillionaire company go with a bunch of kids for a highly sensitive, highly dangerous mission, when they could have easily opted for the more logical choice of a group of experienced, far better-trained and emotionally well-adjusted adults, you ask? Well, the explanation we get is that Eden is already populated, by a race of hostile aliens called the Adamites. Understandably, they’re ticked off about the humans trying to colonize their planet, but Babel has uncovered a weakness in their behavior: the Adamites appear to have a soft spot for children and won’t harm juveniles and youngsters. Babel’s hope is that by sending in a group of human teenagers, they’ll be able to slide under the aliens’ radars to get at their precious Nyxia.
Emmett Atwater is the name of our protagonist who has agreed to Babel’s contract, signing on as a potential recruit. Not only is he leaving Earth to make something more of his life, Emmett is also doing it for his sick mother. If he succeeds, the money he receives will be more than enough to pay for her treatments, as well as set himself and his family up for life. However, Emmett’s path to Eden is nowhere close to being a done deal. While Babel has chosen ten candidates, they only need two less than that for the actual mission. To determine who will continue on and who will go home, they’ve devised a series of challenges in which the contestants will try to earn the most points and beat each other out for the coveted eight spots.
And therein lies my main issue with the plot. There doesn’t appear to be a valid, persuasive reason for a competition, other than the prospect of capitalizing on the success of hit books like The Hunger Games or Red Rising. In what universe would it make sense for a lucrative company to throw untold amounts of money away just to watch a bunch of hormonal teenagers beat the crap out of each other, when those resources could be put to better use on a legitimate training regimen to give those kids—and by extension, their own company interests—the best chance of success on Eden? I even tried giving this novel the benefit of the doubt, thinking perhaps Babel would soon reveal a grand plan that would explain for all their questionable methods, but it was a long wait that led to no satisfying answers.
Still, I might have been more forgiving had it not been for the second half of the novel. The story gave me hope when Emmett and the others finally arrived at their destination, but instead of making it down to Eden so that I could get my fix of exploring a new planet, there came a surprising twist—and not one that made me happy either. By this point, I was already feeling the burnout from all the competitions, and I was looking forward to a nice change of pace. But instead, the story gave us even more competition-ing! Even worse, what follows is a romance with that had me gritting my teeth and fighting the urge not to hurl my e-reader across the room. In the end, I just settled for grumbling to myself about insta-love and other pesky clichés.
There were a few other quibbles I had about the world-building and characterization, but like I said, I won’t be dwelling on the little things. I think I’ve covered the main issues why this book wasn’t my cup of tea, and despite the cliffhanger way it ended I don’t think I’ll be reading the sequel, because I’m just not feeling the characters or the story enough to want to continue. Clearly though, I’m in the minority in my feelings for many others have had a positive experience with Nyxia, so hopefully if you’re looking forward to the book, you’ll have a better time with it than I did.
Friday Face-Off: Black & White
Posted on September 15, 2017 24 Comments
Welcome to The Friday Face-Off, a weekly meme created by Books by Proxy! Each Friday, we will pit cover against cover while also taking the opportunity to showcase gorgeous artwork and feature some of our favorite book covers. If you want to join the fun, simply choose a book each Friday that fits that week’s predetermined theme, post and compare two or more different covers available for that book, then name your favorite. A list of future weeks’ themes are available at Lynn’s Book Blog.
This week’s theme is:
“Checkmate”
~ a cover featuring a BLACK & WHITE DESIGN
Mogsy’s Pick:
The Rook by Daniel O’Malley
Interesting that today’s theme is accompanied by a chess-related quote, because appropriately, my pick for this week also has a chess-related title and cover(s). The book’s protagonist is Myfanwy Thomas, who begins this story with no memory of who she is, but thanks to a letter she finds clutched in her hand, she is able to piece together enough of her identity to work out what to do next. Thomas (the name she has taken to calling her pre-amnesic self) was something called a Rook, a high-ranking member of a clandestine government organization known as the Checquy—kind of like MI5 except they are charged with protecting the United Kingdom against all kinds of supernatural threats. Many of the Checquy’s agents are super-powered as well, including Myfanwy, who eventually discovers that she is endowed with a rare but potentially dangerous talent of her own. Soon, she learns that someone in the Checquy had betrayed her, and in order to find out who the traitor is, she must reintegrate herself in the organization and hope that no one would suspect her memory loss.
So that’s the story, now let’s take a look at the covers:
First row, from left to right: Little, Brown and Company (2012) – Head of Zeus (2012) – Back Bay Books (2012)
Portuguese (2016) – French (2014) – French (2015)
Czech (2012) – Chinese (2014) – Turkish (2015)
Winner:
For such an entertaining and eccentric novel, I was rather disappointed to find that most of its covers were pretty standard and unvarying. Most of the designs I found played on the same two themes of either the rook piece or the checkered motif. So after some waffling, I decided to go with Head of Zeus as my winner, followed closely by the 2015 French edition. In my eyes, those are the only two that come closest to capturing the tone of the story, but ultimately, I think the eye-catching splashes of red give the HoZ version the edge.
What do you think? Which one is your favorite?
Novella Review: The Twilight Pariah by Jeffrey Ford
Posted on September 14, 2017 20 Comments
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
The Twilight Pariah by Jeffrey Ford
Mogsy’s Rating: 3 of 5 stars
Genre: Horror, Paranormal
Series: Stand Alone
Publisher: Tor.com (September 12, 2017)
Length: 176 pages
Author Information: Website
An innocent summer project undertaken by a trio of college students quickly turns into a nightmare in The Twilight Pariah, a novella which drew me in with the promise of history and horror. But while the premise itself held plenty of potential, the end result did not pack quite the punch I expected, due to the slightly underwhelming execution of the story.
Maggie, Russell, and Henry are childhood friends who have all returned to their hometown for college vacation. Having recently switched her major to Archaeology, Maggie is suddenly struck with the inspiration to dig up the old outhouse pit behind the notorious Prewitt Mansion, a property that has been abandoned for decades. With a little bit of cajoling, the two others are recruited to help her out on this amateur excavation, and together the three of them head out into the night armed with a bunch of lanterns, shovels, and buckets.
While the first couple of their dig sessions proved uneventful, one night our protagonist Henry discovers something terrifying at the bottom of the pit: an infant’s skeleton, with bony horns on its skull and the evidence of a tail. Disturbed by the find, the three of them decide to keep the baby’s remains a secret, conducting their own research into who the child might be and the reasons behind its particular deformities. At around the same time, however, there have been a string of fatal attacks reported, with the victims’ bodies looking like they have been mutilated by a wild animal. None of the three friends believe this could be a coincidence; without realizing it, they may have awakened something evil that would stop at nothing to retrieve what it lost.
Have you ever read a book that has great ideas, but no soul? This was how I felt for the most part while reading The Twilight Pariah. The writing may have played a big part in it, since I found Jeffrey Ford’s style to be a little too restricting and stilted. As a result, very few scenes of terror came across as impactful as they could have been, with even the important bits like the climax imparting virtually no suspense or emotion. I don’t know if there were supposed to be any twists or surprises in the plot, because none of them really came off feeling that way at all.
Being a novella, the disadvantage of its shorter length could also be felt when it came to character development. Henry and his friends Maggie and Russell were all lightly sketched, with very rudimentary personalities. There was also too much telling and not showing, so subsequently their relationships to each other and their loved ones (Henry with his father, Russell with Luther, etc.) felt very flat. I wish the story would have spent more time developing those deeper connections, rather than squandering precious paragraphs describing the three friends sitting around the pool smoking pot and drinking themselves into a stupor.
And yet, for all my complaints, I didn’t entirely dislike the book. I think it accomplished what it set out to do, which is to provide a quick and simple tale of creepy entertainment. It could have been a lot more though, which is where most of my disappointment stems from. While the supernatural angle was fun and the eventual explanations for what happened at the Prewitt Mansion were interesting, the horror elements—which, as I said, were some of the key reasons I was originally drawn to this book—were rather muted and didn’t do it for me. All told, The Twilight Pariah was a perfectly good treat to indulge in for an afternoon of escape, but it didn’t make much of a lasting impression.
Waiting on Wednesday 09/13/17
Posted on September 13, 2017 11 Comments
“Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly meme that first originated at Breaking the Spine but has since linked up with “Can’t Wait Wednesday” at Wishful Endings now that the original creator is unable to host it anymore. Either way, this fun feature is a chance to showcase the upcoming releases that we can’t wait to get our hands on!
Mogsy’s Pick
From Unseen Fire by Cass Morris (April 3, 2018 by DAW Books)
From Unseen Fire is the first book of the Aven Cycle, a historical fantasy series set in an alternate Ancient Rome. It also features a strong female lead and is a debut novel to boot. I think I need this book in my life!
“The Dictator is dead; long live the Republic.
But whose Republic will it be? Senators, generals, and elemental mages vie for the power to shape the future of the city of Aven. One such mage, Latona of the Vitelliae, must rediscover her incredible powers of Fire and Spirit—which she suppressed for years at the Dictator’s court—in order to protect her family and the city she loves.
Her siblings—a widow who conceals a canny political mind in the guise of a frivolous socialite, a young prophetess torn from the sanctuary of her temple, and a military tribune leading a dangerous expedition in the province of Iberia—will be her allies as she builds a place for herself in this new world, against the objections of their father, her husband, and the strictures of Aventan society.
Their paths intersect with that of Sempronius Tarren, a rising politician who dreams of a vast and harmonious empire growing from the nexus of their beloved city. He believes the gods have thrown down a personal challenge, and equipped him with the skills to steer Aven towards this glorious future—but in order to realize his goals, he will have to break the Republic’s most sacred law. Although centuries-old custom dictates that no mage may hold the highest political offices, Sempronius, a Shadow mage who has kept his abilities a life-long secret, intends to do just that.
As rebellion brews in Iberia, Sempronius must outwit the ruthless leader of the opposing Senate faction to claim the political and military power he needs to achieve his—and Aven’s—destiny. As Latona unleashes her magical potential, she discovers that Sempronius’s extraordinary vision for their nation aligns with her desires to protect its people—but their burgeoning relationship may jeopardize the very future they seek to build in Aven.”
Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Favorite Books From the Year I Started Reviewing
Posted on September 12, 2017 28 Comments
Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish. They created the meme because they love lists. Who doesn’t love lists? They wanted to share these list with fellow book lovers and ask that we share in return to connect with our fellow book lovers. To learn more about participating in the challenge, stop by their page dedicated to it and dive in!
This week’s topic: Top Ten Favorite Books From the Year I Started Reviewing
Mogsy’s Picks
I’m always fascinated by how my tastes change over time, so with today’s theme being a Throwback Freebie, I thought it would be fun to take a look back at my favorite books in the first year I started reviewing. It’s important to note this is actually before this blog existed. I’ve always been a voracious reader, but it wasn’t until 2010 or 2011 that I started getting into the habit of taking notes while reading, which was also around the time I started my Goodreads account and became more active in that community. It began with random notes here and there, and soon these little snippets gradually evolved into longer paragraphs until it led to me writing these full-blown reviews. And because all this is still on GR, I was able to take a look back at the kind of books I was reading at this time and see which 2010-2011 releases had me raving with excitement. What I find interesting is how some of these are still among my favorites even now, while others have lost a bit of their appeal over time. I’ve read approximately 1150 more books since then, and it’s amazing to see how those years and experiences have altered my opinions.
Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
Year: 2011
What I thought then: “I … loved how Ernest Cline described the relationships between the characters in the book. A lot of us online gamers can probably relate to the experience of making long-lasting friendships over the internet, the excitement and nervousness of meeting your online friends for the first time in real life but ending up connecting like you’ve known each other for years even though you’ve never met face-to-face until that moment, etc. I think [Cline] nailed that part perfectly.”
What I think now: Yep, still love this book. I remember first hearing about Ready Player One in the early weeks of its release because it was making big waves among my friends in the MMO gaming community, so that was how I came to pick it up. Awesome to see how its popularity has exploded since publication, and with the movie coming out soon.
The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson
Year: 2010
What I thought then: “[Sanderson]’s a good storyteller, and his writing, while not too terribly elegant, is straightforward and undisguised without being too simplistic. I mean all that as a compliment; sometimes you just want to get to the meat of the story without poring over a page multiple times to contemplate all its artsy-ness or symbolic meanings. That stuff is for another time, another book. But when all I want to do is sit back and relax to enjoy an epic fantasy with a good story, The Way of Kings delivers.”
What I think now: Another book I still love to pieces. In fact, even now it sits at the top of my favorites-of-all-time list. The Way of Kings was only my second venture into Brandon Sanderson’s work after Mistborn, I had no idea then that he would become one of my favorite authors.
Lily of the Nile by Stephanie Dray
Year: 2011
What I thought then: “This was simply a beautiful novel. While not exactly a heart-thumping page turner, it nonetheless had me enraptured with its story and characters every step of the way. At the heart of it, Lily of the Nile is a coming-of-age story, and it’s a unique one at that. It’s labeled as historical fiction, but I was surprised to find a thread of fantasy laced through the novel in the form of old magic, which sets it apart from other books I’ve read in the past.”
What I think now: I have fond memories of this book, and every time I see that gorgeous cover it still gives me the feels. This is still one of the best stories I’ve ever read about Cleopatra Selene and Ancient Rome, and I wish I had more time to read historical fiction these days.
Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence
Year: 2011
What I thought then: “Themes in this book will be familiar to fans of fantasy. A boy on his journey to manhood. A lost prince fighting for his birthright. A tale of revenge. And so on. All wrapped up in this nice little package which probably won’t take you more than a few days to read. And yet, all these themes are laced with a twist. Prince of Thorns will probably be unlike any fantasy novel you’ve ever read. Like other reviewers have warned, this book is dark, and it is violent. You’ll likely be disgusted and repulsed by the main character, Jorg … The story, however, I found riveting. I love the style of the narration, and the author’s refreshing take on dark fantasy. If the book had been a little longer, I wonder if more of the world and the characters could have been explored.”
What I think now: This was Lawrence’s debut, and he certainly has become a force to be reckoned with ever since. I’ve read all his subsequent novels, and he’s just getting better and better.
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest by Stieg Larsson
Year: 2010
What I thought then: “If you read the second book, the third one is a must. It. Is. Good. Again, perhaps not as strong as the first novel, but definitely in my opinion better than the second while providing it with a satisfying conclusion which answers all the questions and ties everything up beautifully as well. For the ending of this book alone, I feel both are worth reading. What a shame it is that the late Stieg Larsson will no longer bring us more adventures of Blomkvist and Salander. After finishing this book, I was actually overcome with a little sadness.”
What I think now: I guess this book made less of an impression than I thought, because I don’t actually remember all that much from it now. In truth, I don’t have much desire to check out the continuation novels by David Lagercrantz either, despite my past comments about more Blomkvist and Salander adventures.
Under Heaven by Guy Gavriel Kay
Year: 2010
What I thought then: “A historical fantasy set in far-away Kitai, a land inspired by Tang Dynasty China. One of my favorite books of all time is The Lions of Al-Rassan by Kay, so this fact along with my interest in imperial Chinese history made this book a must-read … As always, I appreciate the immense detail Kay puts into his books, which makes the world of Kitai come to life. The characters are believable — not perfect but definitely “human”. Anyway, I don’t want to spoil too much of it, just know I highly recommend this.”
What I think now: I still have a lot of love for this book, but I thought River of Stars (its companion novel set in the same world) that came out a couple years later was even better. In that sense, Under Heaven has become overshadowed somewhat.
A Dog’s Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron
Year: 2010
What I thought then: “This was a total impulse buy that caught my eye as I was browsing through the bestsellers in the Kindle store. Told in the first-person point of view of a dog looking for his purpose, and has to be reborn several times to find it, one moment this book was making me laugh, and the next I was bawling my eyes out. It’s cute, funny, touching, and perfect if you’re looking for a casual and easy read. Dog lovers will enjoy it, and while I’m not big on the anthropomorphizing of animals, I still have to admit Cameron does a pretty good job of delving into a dog’s mind … You don’t have to own a dog to love A Dog’s Purpose, but for someone who does, it definitely makes you consider your role in your dog’s life and vice versa.”
What I think now: Not a lot has stayed with me from this book, but I do remember all the best scenes, especially those that made me cry tears of joy or sadness. Yes, it’s a fluffy read, but I still think it’s very cute.
11/22/63 by Stephen King
Year: 2011
What I thought then: “…I finished this 850 page monster in a little more than 4 days. Sure, the book had its ups and downs and there were some slow sections that really could have been cut out or filed down, but I plowed on through anyway. Perhaps the biggest surprise — and the biggest treat — for me was the love story in 11/22/63. You wouldn’t think romance was Stephen King’s forte, but wow, the depth of emotion and feeling he achieved here was very impressive. The last pages had me in tears. YES, A STEPHEN KING BOOK MADE ME CRY!”
What I think now: Probably one of my favorite Stephen King novels EVER, and I still rave about it to anyone who would listen. So good.
The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
Year: 2011
What I thought then: “Let me just say how much more I appreciated Kvothe as a character when he’s out in the world doing much more interesting things and not constantly worrying about making money. Here, I finally got a taste of the adventure I was looking for. And Kvothe, who was the arrogant, juvenile, slightly annoying character that I barely tolerated in [The Name of the Wind] finally began his change into the admirable protagonist I knew he would become. His actions and motivations became a lot more “real” to me in this book, making me like him more than I ever did in the previous one.”
What I think now: Sadly, the longer this series goes without news of the third novel, the more it’s fading from my mind and memory. I’d still be happy to read the next one, but I’m probably not as enthusiastic about it as I was back then.
Hounded by Kevin Hearne
Year: 2011
What I thought then: “I had a lot of fun reading this book. I would say it is better than the average debut novel, but it is not without its problems. At times, Atticus can be a bit too smug for my taste, and some of the dialogue and references feel forced. It’s almost like the author is overcompensating in trying to make the readers buy that the protagonist is 2,100 years old successfully disguising himself by sounding like a 21-year-old college frat boy … I’m interested in seeing how things will turn out though. Like I said, it was a fun read, and it’s always refreshing to read a new urban fantasy novel that doesn’t suck. I will definitely be picking up the second book as well as the third.”
What I think now: I ended up fulfilling the last part of that statement, finishing up books two and three, but after that I took a break. Kevin Hearne is another author who has come a long way since this debut, and his Iron Druid Chronicles has become much beloved among UF fans, but like I said, the humor in the series can be too much sometimes and I found that I could only take Atticus in small doses.
The BiblioSanctum 