Waiting on Wednesday 08/26/15
Posted on August 26, 2015 17 Comments
“Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine that lets us feature upcoming releases that we can’t wait to get our hands on!
Mogsy’s Pick:
Never Never by Brianna R. Shrum: September 22, 2015 (Spencer Hill Press)
While I’m pretty ambivalent about the original tale of Peter Pan and Neverland, I admit to a real weakness for its retellings. And one seen through the eyes of Captain Hook is something that I just cannot say no to. I’ve already heard some great things about this YA novel coming out this fall from Spencer Hill, and last week their wonderful publicity team sent me an invite to read the eARC on NetGalley. Looking forward to this one!
“James Hook is a child who only wants to grow up.
When he meets Peter Pan, a boy who loves to pretend and is intent on never becoming a man, James decides he could try being a child—at least briefly. James joins Peter Pan on a holiday to Neverland, a place of adventure created by children’s dreams, but Neverland is not for the faint of heart. Soon James finds himself longing for home, determined that he is destined to be a man. But Peter refuses to take him back, leaving James trapped in a world just beyond the one he loves. A world where children are to never grow up.
But grow up he does.
And thus begins the epic adventure of a Lost Boy and a Pirate.
This story isn’t about Peter Pan; it’s about the boy whose life he stole. It’s about a man in a world that hates men. It’s about the feared Captain James Hook and his passionate quest to kill the Pan, an impossible feat in a magical land where everyone loves Peter Pan.
Except one.”
Book Review: Alice by Christina Henry
Posted on August 25, 2015 25 Comments
A review copy was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Genre: Fantasy, Horror
Series: Book 1/Stand Alone
Publisher: Ace (8/4/15)
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Mogsy’s Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
It recently occurred to me that over the years I’ve consumed a fair number of movies, games, comics, television shows etc. featuring retellings or re-imaginings of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland – but never a novel. Huh. Suffice to say I was pretty shocked by this realization; after all, there are quite a few high-profile titles out there.
Christina Henry’s Alice therefore had the distinction of being my first “Alice retelling novel”, and I’m actually quite happy about that. Of the many different versions of Lewis Carroll’s classic that I have experienced, my favorite ones were typically those considered “dark” or “twisted” – and to be honest, those are the types I’m mostly interested in. There’s just something about the original tale that lends itself to the creepy or macabre treatment.
In any case, dark was what I wanted and dark was what I got. Henry’s retelling is definitely not for the faint of heart, and readers should also beware that themes of sexual violence and abuse feature heavily in this novel. This is Alice’s Adventures told through a horror lens, as vicious and sharp as a butcher’s knife wielded unflinchingly in your face, and all the whimsy and magical light-heartedness is warped here into a horrible nightmare of savagery and pain. If you enjoy close adaptations or would prefer to see the fanciful nature of the original story preserved, this book is not for you. But if, on the other hand, you know what you’ll be getting into and would like to see a refreshing new take on creative retellings, then this one could very well be right up your alley.
Alice begins with an introduction to our eponymous protagonist, a young woman who has spent the last ten years in a hospital ward for the insane along with the city’s other undesirables. She can’t remember the events that precipitated her imprisonment, and only knows what she’s been told – that as a girl she went missing, and then was later found again beaten and broken, one cheek slashed open and blood running down between her legs, gibbering nonsensically about “the Rabbit”. Now Alice finds herself mostly forgotten by the world, and her only friend is another prisoner called Hatcher, a multiple murderer who talks to her through a mouse hole in the wall connecting their cells.
One night, a fire breaks out in the hospital allowing Alice and Hatcher to escape, but the two of them are far from free. A shadowy monster known as the Jabberwocky is on the hunt, and it has their scent. The only way to be rid of the beast is to slay him with a magical blade, forcing Alice and Hatcher to seek it out in the heart of Old City where they will face monsters of a different sort – for this is where the magician crime lords rule, feeding off the fear and misery of the populace. Within their ranks are the men known as Cheshire, Caterpillar, the Walrus…and to Alice’s dismay, her old enemy the Rabbit.
As I was saying, if you like your Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland retellings dark and twisted, you’ve come to the right place. Christina Henry doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to filling her world with brutal violence and death. Her protagonists are troubled and broken people, haunted by traumatic pasts and memories. It’s not a happy book. And yet, beneath all the horror and disturbing themes, I’m impressed by the author’s sheer imagination and creativity. I like how she’s taken the familiar elements from the original story and reworked them into her version, making Alice one of the most unique retellings I’ve ever read.
Still, as much as I enjoyed this novel, I couldn’t help but feel like it was missing something vital. In spite of its relatively short length, Alice took me an inordinate amount of time to finish due to the numerous occasions where I got distracted or drifted off while reading. I liked the book a lot, but it just didn’t grip me the way it ought to have, even though the characters had purpose and the plot maintained a steady momentum. I wanted to stay connected but at times it was a struggle, almost like the darkness in the story was a massive black hole that sucked all life from its surroundings. To be clear though, it wasn’t the brutal nature of the story that affected me, but rather the hollowing effect it had on the characters. Both Alice and Hatcher felt distant to me, and whether or not this is by design, it had an impact on my experience.
Nevertheless, I’m still a fan. Alice is unconventional and rather fascinating in its uniqueness. This book is certainly not for everyone, but I can see it scoring a hit with readers who enjoy strange and dark retellings. Themes like sexual abuse and psychological trauma makes this one a disturbing read, but I feel they are handled with a complexity that’s not just there for shock value and cheap thrills. While Alice features a self-contained story, the end does leaves things somewhat open for a future installment. If that’s the case, I definitely wouldn’t mind reading more!
Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books That Would Be On Your Syllabus If You Taught X 101
Posted on August 25, 2015 21 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 Books That Would Be On Your Syllabus If You Taught X 101
Comic books are often regarded as entertainment for a younger audience in Western culture and older comic book readers are treated like nostalgia nerds unable to let go of that last bit of their childhood. However, comics have evolved to tell complex stories through the years using art and words. If I were teaching a course, I’d introduce people to comics that I feel best showcase the literary brilliance that the medium is capable of producing. For many of these I will just be quoting myself, so I’ll just warn you now.
For many years Alex Moore has been writing graphic novels which spin complex tales that tend to focus on darker themes dealing with the human condition. While I certainly could pick any number of Moore’s book, I will stick with the first book I read by him (and still a favorite to this day). Many people might be more familiar with the movie adaptation of this comic that starred Natalie Portman and Hugo Weaver in the eponymous role of V.
A frightening and powerful tale of the loss of freedom and identity in a chillingly believable totalitarian world, V for Vendetta stands as one of the highest achievements of the comics medium and a defining work for creators Alan Moore and David Lloyd.
Set in an imagined future England that has given itself over to fascism, this groundbreaking story captures both the suffocating nature of life in an authoritarian police state and the redemptive power of the human spirit which rebels against it. Crafted with sterling clarity and intelligence, V for Vendetta brings an unequaled depth of characterization and verisimilitude to its unflinching account of oppression and resistance.
Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel
Alison Bechdel might be best known for her comic strip Dykes to Watch Out For and the Bechdel Test, which is a sort of litmus test for media, that asks if there are at least two women in the media that talk to each other about something else other than a man. Fun Home is a graphic memoir that depicts Bechdel’s complicated relationship with her overbearing father. This book explores her sexuality, gender roles, and various issues she dealt with growing up as a queer child.
I didn’t think I’d put too many superhero type comics on this list, but while going through my essentials, books like these popped. This is a Superman comic. Despite that, this book tells a more complicated story than a simple superhero tale. Superman has retreated to solitude after a hero named Magog is acquitted of killing Joker—who went on a killing spree in Metropolis, a bender that resulted in Lois’ death. When humanity expresses that Magog is where superheroism should go, Superman leaves them to that, seeming to lose quite a bit of faith in people. This book explores a moral dilemma, pondering many sides of the old question, “Is it morally justifiable to do y, if it’ll prevent x?”
Julio’s Day by Gilbert Hernández
This is a slice of life comic that opens up with the birth wails of Julio and ends with his death rattle 100 years later in the same house and in the same bed. Even though there are many iconic things that happen from 1900 to 2000, the comic kept the impact of such events insular, choosing to focus on the small scale impact of these events and how they did or didn’t affect Julio’s family. Things like the stock market crash happened and the family acknowledges it, but what does it mean to a family that’s already poor? What does it mean to a family already used to just getting by? This book also focuses on the people in their communities and how they impacted Julio and his family’s life, as well.
This story was filled with dark family secrets, loneliness, betrayal, mental health issues, racism, turning sexual tides, and many other things. While that seems so much for one graphic novel, the pains and joys in this story are told with such simplicity, often times without words or with only dialogue that says so much without the characters ever going into full details such as Julio’s sister telling him, “I don’t feel so sad when somebody dies, Julio, because they fly away to explore the stars and planets. When it’s our turn we join them in exploring the universe.” The art, the pacing, everything was just right for this story.
Daytripper by Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá
I think I’ll let the description speak for this one:
What are the most important days of your life?
Meet Brás de Oliva Domingos. The miracle child of a world-famous Brazilian writer, Brás spends his days penning other people’s obituaries and his nights dreaming of becoming a successful author himself—writing the end of other people’s stories, while his own has barely begun.
But on the day that life begins, would he even notice? Does it start at 21 when he meets the girl of his dreams? Or at 11, when he has his first kiss? Is it later in his life when his first son is born? Or earlier when he might have found his voice as a writer?
Each day in Brás’s life is like a page from a book. Each one reveals the people and things who have made him who he is: his mother and father, his child and his best friend, his first love and the love of his life. And like all great stories, each day has a twist he’ll never see coming…
In Daytripper, the Eisner Award-winning twin brothers Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá What are the most important days of your life?
Meet Brás de Oliva Domingos. The miracle child of a world-famous Brazilian writer, Brás spends his days penning other people’s obituaries and his nights dreaming of becoming a successful author himself—writing the end of other people’s stories, while his own has barely begun.
But on the day that life begins, would he even notice? Does it start at 21 when he meets the girl of his dreams? Or at 11, when he has his first kiss? Is it later in his life when his first son is born? Or earlier when he might have found his voice as a writer?
Each day in Brás’s life is like a page from a book. Each one reveals the people and things who have made him who he is: his mother and father, his child and his best friend, his first love and the love of his life. And like all great stories, each day has a twist he’ll never see coming…
In Daytripper, the Eisner Award-winning twin brothers Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá tell a magical, mysterious and moving story about life itself—a hauntingly lyrical journey that uses the quiet moments to ask the big questions. tell a magical, mysterious and moving story about life itself—a hauntingly lyrical journey that uses the quiet moments to ask the big questions.
Yet another comic that has been turned into two movies. Sin City is dark, unforgiving, and gritty. On the surface it’s a crime comic, but if you dig much deeper you’ll find these books explore many themes typical of day to day human life and exaggerates them to the nth degree. These books feature various stories, following various characters that all interlock together.
X-Men: Magneto Testament by Greg Pak
Today, the whole world knows him as Magneto, the most radical champion of mutant rights that mankind has ever seen. But in 1935, he was just another schoolboy – who happened to be Jewish in Nazi Germany. The definitive origin story of one of Marvel’s greatest icons begins with a silver chain and a crush on a girl – and quickly turns into a harrowing struggle for survival against the inexorable machinery of Hitler’s Final Solution From X-Men: Phoenix – Endsong writer Greg Pak and award-winning artist Carmine Di Giandomenico. Collects X-Men: Magneto Testament #1-5.
Y: The Last Man by Brian K. Vaughan
You knew it was coming. I knew it was coming. However, this is an excellent series for readers looking for something less superhero-y. I might be biased, but this would be a great comic to introduce people to because this series will always be relevant:
Y: THE LAST MAN, winner of three Eisner Awards and one of the most critically acclaimed, best-selling comic books series of the last decade, is that rare example of a page-turner that is at once humorous, socially relevant and endlessly surprising.
Written by Brian K. Vaughan (LOST, PRIDE OF BAGHDAD, EX MACHINA) and with art by Pia Guerra, this is the saga of Yorick Brown—the only human survivor of a planet-wide plague that instantly kills every mammal possessing a Y chromosome. Accompanied by a mysterious government agent, a brilliant young geneticist and his pet monkey, Ampersand, Yorick travels the world in search of his lost love and the answer to why he’s the last man on earth.
Truth: Red, White, and Black by Robert Morales
Another superhero pick, but one that brings about a social awareness:
In 1940, Joe Simon and Jack Kirby created Captain America, a frail patriot who was transformed by a “super-soldier serum” into a physically perfect specimen to champion freedom, an American alternative to the Nazi uebermensch. Now, writer Morales pursues this idea and also draws inspiration from U.S. government experiments in the 1930s that left unwitting African-Americans infected with syphilis, leading to many deaths.
Beginning his story in 1940, Morales incisively depicts the racism his various African-American characters confront both in civilian life and in the military. These black soldiers are compelled to act as test subjects for the super-soldier serum; some die, while others become deformed. Ultimately only one survives, Isaiah Bradley. Substituting for Captain America on a mission, Bradley discovers Jewish concentration camp inmates subjected to experiments.
Ranging from heroic figures to pointed caricatures, artist Baker makes his varied styles gel. Drawing on copious research, Morales dramatizes how racism corrupted American history, yet verges close to asserting moral equivalency between America and Nazi Germany. Roosevelt was ultimately in charge of the super-soldier program: would he have approved these human experiments? Besides, how can one talk about “truth” regarding a fictional creation? Simon and Kirby devised a fable about an American everyman tapping his inner strength to combat genocidal fascism; Kirby helped pioneer positive depictions of blacks in comics. By adding Morales’s backstory to Captain America’s origin, Marvel has turned the character into a white superman who owes his powers to the deaths and exploitation of African-Americans.
I love my theology debates, so what better comic to get all existential and theological with than Ennis’ Preacher?
One of the most celebrated comics titles of the late 1990s, PREACHER is a modern American epic of life, death, love and redemption also packed with sex, booze, blood and bullets – not to mention angels, demons, God, vampires and deviants of all stripes.
At first glance, the Reverend Jesse Custer doesn’t look like anyone special-just another small-town minister slowly losing his flock and his faith. But he’s about to come face-to-face with proof that God does indeed exist. Merging with a bizarre spiritual force called Genesis, Jesse now possesses the power of “the Word,” an ability to make people do whatever he utters. He begins a violent and riotous journey across the country in search of answers from the elusive deity.
Audiobook Review: Flex by Ferrett Steinmetz
Posted on August 24, 2015 19 Comments
A review copy was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Series: Book 1 of ‘Mancer
Publisher: Audible Studios (08/06/15)
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Mogsy’s Rating (Overall): 4.5 of 5 stars
Narrator: Peter Brooke | Length: 11 hrs and 43 mins
Okay, I loved Flex. And not least because there was some of this:
And this:
And this:
And this:
Oh and also throw in a bit of this to boot:
But wait, maybe I should back up a bit. You want to know what the story is actually about. Well, welcome to the world of Flex, where it’s actually possible to love a thing so much, the power of your obsession can kick the laws of physics in the ass so hard that reality literally comes undone. This is what gives rise to the many different kinds of magic users. You get illustromancers. Deathmetalmancers. Collectomancers! Or even videogamemancers. In the case of Flex protagonist Paul Tsabo, he loves his job as a number-cruncher at his insurance company SO MUCH that he’s turned paperwork into more than just an art. He’s become a bureaucromancer, and this means he can work magic on anything in the world, as long as what he needs is logged somewhere on paper.
Thing is, if you’re not a ‘mancer, you can still use magic. Distilled magic can come in the form of crystallized Flex, a powerful drug brewed by ‘mancers. But working ‘mancy and using Flex can cause one hell of a blowback. Maybe with the power of Flex you can twist reality to match your vision – but only for a time. After the effects wear off, the backlash called Flux will hit. Because if there’s one thing the universe hates more than anything, it’s being bent to a magic user’s will. It will fight back with a vengeance, and you can bet the universe always wins.
So there’s a good reason why the general public doesn’t trust ‘mancers; the effects of their magic defy normality and prediction, and chaos typically follows where they go. For this reason, Paul has gone to great lengths to hide his bureaucromancy. But now there’s a dangerous ‘mancer known as Anathema out there, brewing some very powerful Flex. It’s causing a lot of accidents, a lot of deaths. One night, Paul and his daughter Aliyah become Anathema’s victims when a Flex user in his apartment causes a gas main to blow up. Paul’s ‘mancy saves his daughter’s life, but the little girl still ends up badly burned. To come up with the money for Aliyah’s reconstructive surgery, Paul must find a way to use his bureaucromancy without causing the Flux that will make things worse. And to do that, he must find a mentor.
Enter Valentine. The gamemancer. My heroine.
First I have to tell you that I’m a sucker for any book or story that has to do with video games. When I discovered what Valentine’s power meant, I had myself a squee moment. Flex is one of those books that worked perfectly for me, because it hit that special sweet spot balancing a complex magic system with all-out fun. The world of ‘mancy is full of potential and the possibility of pretty much any kind of ‘mancer you can think of, but all of it still works within the confines of rules that make sense.
Flex is also a book that’s full of heart. After all, so much of ‘mancy and becoming a ‘mancer has its roots in emotion. It’s about love and obsession, both the healthy and unhealthy kind. It’s the idea that you can want or believe in something so hard that the sheer force of that power will make it happen. For that reason, ‘mancers aren’t always happy people. Some are lonely. Some are angry. Some are lost and afraid. When push comes to shove, their obsessions and resulting ‘mancy are literally their ways to escape from the real world. And when it comes to Valentine, video games as escapism is something I can sympathize with and understand. More often than not though, the magic just makes ‘mancers feel even more alone and marginalized.
And also, who can blame Paul, the father who only wants the best for his daughter, even if it means seeking out a killer to help him give Aliyah the chance for a normal life? Flex is a thrilling journey through the dark underbelly of the drug trade, but it’s also about friendship and devotion and finding acceptance. It’s also a story about the desperate hunt for an evil villain, but one that will also allow you to geek out big time.
And geek out I did. I also laughed. And screamed. No doubt about it, Flex is the most fun I’ve had with a book in a long time. I was so glad when the audiobook finally released, because I had been wanting to read it forever, in part due to the amazing things I’ve heard from other reviewers. Now I understand what everyone was raving about. I’m a bit in love with this book. Can’t wait for the next one! Highly recommended.
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Audiobook Review: Baptism of Fire by Andrzej Sapkowski
Posted on August 23, 2015 20 Comments
A review copy was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Baptism of Fire by Andrzej Sapkowski
Genre: Fantasy
Series: Book 3 of The Witcher
Publisher: Hachette Audio (8/4/15)
Author Information: Website
Mogsy’s Rating (Overall): 4.5 of 5 stars
Narrator: Peter Kenny | Length: 11 hrs 59 min
Over the last two months, I’ve been working my way through all the available Witcher Saga novels in audiobook format. The series is surprisingly addictive, so much so that it feels like I was just listening to the first book Blood of Elves yesterday. And now that I’ve come to the end of book three, I find myself a bit lost and drifting. After all, the print version of the next book (The Swallow’s Tower) hasn’t even been translated in English yet, with the release date planned for 2016. So yep, unless I learn Polish in the next year (highly unlikely!), it’s going to be a looooong wait.
The fact that Baptism of Fire was perhaps my favorite book in the series so far isn’t helping my patience either. At first, I wasn’t sure that I liked where the story was going. This installment feels different from the others, shifting to a more traditional quest narrative while downplaying the political intrigue. We start the book off with an introduction to a new character, an expert archer and hunter named Milva. She meets Geralt in the forest, finding him badly injured from the events of the Thanedd coup. However, the Witcher only has his mind on recovering so that he can continue on to Nilfgaard to find Ciri, the young princess-turned-sorceress whom unbeknownst to everyone has settled into a life with a gang of rebels.
Despite his misgivings, Geralt gives in to Milva’s request to tag along. They are accompanied by Dandelion, the poet. And on their way, they also meet a dwarf named Zoltan. Further along their journey, they join up with a Nilggaardian named Cahir. Eventually, the party even gets a vampire named Regis. Far from the monster the group expected him to be, Regis actually proves quite invaluable thanks to his medical knowledge and skills.
I know what you’re thinking. Geralt and his fellow adventurers sound like they stepped straight out of a role-playing game. You even have your different races and classes. Not that I don’t enjoy this particular classic trope, but for a series that has thus far been all about the complexity and plot depth, I was surprised because this seemed like a step back. And indeed, I felt that the story in Baptism of Fire was much simpler when compared to the other books, and not a lot happened at the beginning while Sapkowski worked to introduce all the new faces and names. I also noticed a lot less of characters like Ciri, Yennefer, and Triss Merigold, given that most of the attention was on Geralt and his group. Don’t get me wrong; I always want more Geralt, but I can’t deny I was expecting more Ciri, especially in light of her prominent role in The Time of Contempt.
Around the halfway through the book though, something happened. Maybe the story finds its stride at this point, or maybe I finally got to appreciate the personalities of all the different characters, but I started really enjoying myself. Our adventurers make their way east, eventually running afoul of trouble caused by the ongoing war. Battling enemies and working together towards a singular goal – that’s my favorite part of these kinds of stories, after all. The dynamics between everyone in the group started to get a lot more interesting too, with Regis emerging as one of my favorites. Dandelion was a riot as always, and I got such a kick out of his conversations with the old vampire. Near the end, there was also a very good example of how far the characters have come as a group, when everyone got together to discuss what to do about a situation that would affect one of their members. A ragtag bunch of strangers become a family of sorts, which is what I love to see.
Something else to keep in mind: the original Baptism of Fire was published in 1996. And for a story that’s almost twenty years old, I think it has aged exceedingly well. Classic quest narrative or not, it still feels fresh, probably a testament to Sapkowski’s storytelling as well as the skills of the translator.
And don’t dismiss the audiobook and what it brings to the table. I maintain this is the best format to experience The Witcher Saga. Peter Kenny once again proves what a versatile narrator he is, delivering a superb performance as always. In fact, I feel this is probably his best work on this series so far. Kenny really knocked it out of the park, bringing the whole gang to life in this one, giving each group member a unique voice. He was absolutely fantastic.
So now I settle in for the wait. Heck, it may be even longer for the audio version. But it doesn’t matter; something tells me it will be worth it.
Story: 
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Stacking the Shelves
Posted on August 22, 2015 28 Comments
I’m sneaking in an impromptu Stacking the Shelves this week because there some very cool new arrivals to talk about. Actually, I’ve not been requesting books that much for the past few weeks in order to catch up a bit with my TBR, but there are always plenty of surprises in the mailbox. Plus there were also a few books that slipped through the cracks and got left off my last book haul post, so we have to remedy that! My deepest gratitude to the publishers and authors who send their books my way, and I’d like to feature them here today:
RECEIVED FOR REVIEW
Doctor Who: Royal Blood by Una McCormack, Big Bang Generation by Gary Russell, Deep Time by Trevor Baxendale – Paperbacks, with thanks to Broadway Books. Confession: I don’t watch the show, and I realize I may be the only one left on the planet who doesn’t. When this set of three books showed up in the mail one day, I even needed my friend’s son to tell me which Doctor this was (Answer: it’s the current one). Still, I’m very interested in checking these out. They look like they’re intended for a Young Adult audience plus they’re relatively short, which means they should be pretty quick reads. I’ve always wondered what the fuss was all about, and I find books are perfect for dipping your toes in (never underestimate the power of a media tie-in novel!) The release of these books will coincide with the premiere of the new season this September, so whether you’re a die-hard Whovian or a total newcomer like myself, be sure to keep an eye out for them on shelves this fall.
The Secrets of Blood and Bone by Rebecca Alexander – Paperback, with thanks to Broadway Books. Another unsolicited title sent by Broadway this week, but it must be serendipity because this one is actually a sequel to a book I read last year! It gets an automatic bump up my TBR.
Sorcerer to the Crown by Zen Cho – Hardcover, with thanks to Ace Books for sending a finished copy. It’s gorgeous! Looking forward to starting this one soon.
Supersymmetry by David Walton – Paperback, with thanks to Pyr. The arrival of this finished copy reminds me how badly I want to read the first book. Now I can it and the sequel back to back!
I also want to give a shout out to Tor.com and their incredible publicity team for sending along e-galleys of their fall line-up. Last week I only featured The Builders by Daniel Polansky, but there are plenty more titles that look interesting to me including The Last Witness by K. J. Parker, Binti by Nnedi Okorafor, Envy of Angels by Matt Wallace (this one especially sounds like so much fun — it was described to me as “Christopher Moore meets Gordon Ramsey!”), Sorcerer of the Wildeeps by Kai Ashante Wilson, Witches of Lychford by Paul Cornell, and earlier this week I was also sent an e-galley Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire which will come out later than the others, in April 2016. These novellas will be perfect for checking out authors I’ve never read before (but have always been curious about!) Huge thanks to the awesome folks at Tor.com!
GIFTED
Last fall I was offered the wonderful opportunity to be a beta reader for Daughter of Dusk by Livia Blackburne. As thanks, the author gifted all of us our very own hardcover copy of the finished book, signed and even annotated with notes in the page margins in the book where our suggestions/feedback helped shaped the final version. I was floored by the time and care Livia put in to give us a special keepsake to remember the experience by, and it’s seriously the best bookish gift I have ever received. Thank you so much, Livia.
PURCHASED
There were also some book purchases I made earlier in the summer that I forgot to mention. I really shouldn’t be buying more books but Bookoutlet is evil and they keep enticing me with their emails offering me coupons as well as news about their steep discounts. I ended up mostly grabbing backlist titles I’m very interested in, like Prince of Shadows by Rachel Caine which I’m curious about now because I ADORED her new book Ink and Bone (it became one of those must-check-out-everything-else-this-author-has-written situations, you understand). I also got Of Bone and Thunder by Chris Evans, The Time Roads by Beth Bernobich, Hild by Nicola Griffith (some Historical Fiction love) and Dragon Age: Last Flight by Liane Merciel. I think I got all five books for just a little more than $15.
My co-blogger Tiara is also the most horrible enabler, I swear! After her post last month about books available through Kindle Unlimited, I went looking to put together my own list. I’m subscribed to the service too, after all, and I realized there are a lot of free books and audiobook deals I could be getting in on. That was how Darkness Brutal by Rachel A. Marks and The Harvest by Chuck Wendig ended up in my Audible shopping cart. And while I was at it, there was a sweet Whispersync deal on The Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas, so oops, it went into the cart as well.
***
Have you heard of or read any of the books featured in this week? What looked good or caught your eye? Any new discoveries? Let me know! Nothing makes me happier than sharing my love for books and I hope you found something interesting for a future read. We’ll be resuming our regular Bookshelf Roundup schedule next week. Until next time! 🙂
~Mogsy/Steff~
Book Review: The End of All Things by John Scalzi
Posted on August 21, 2015 15 Comments
A review copy was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
The End of All Things by John Scalzi
Genre: Science Fiction
Series: Book 6 of Old Man’s War
Publisher: Tor (8/11/15)
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars
I won’t lie, Old Man’s War is probably one of my favorite books of all time. I’ve always been more of a Fantasy reader, and around the time that book came out, my Science Fiction reading was pretty much limited to Star Wars novels and the occasional Star Trek title thrown in. However, Scalzi’s sense of humor along with the rollicking space action and adventure in these books really helped me along, showing me that there’s a lot more to the genre than just hard science and media tie-ins. I’ve followed the Old Man’s War series ever since, and all the books have brought me no small amount of entertainment.
So it was with great excitement when I heard that a sixth novel will be coming out in 2015, a direct sequel to The Human Division. And like The Human Division, the plan was for The End of All Things to again be serialized, except the proportions will be changed. Instead of getting sixteen episodes, this time we’ll only get four, but each part will also be longer, so they’ll be more like novelettes.
If The Human Division taught me anything, is that I don’t mind the serialized format. There’s a certain kind of pleasure to be had, watching a bunch of self-contained little parts come together to form one complete, coherent whole. And if anything, the smaller number of episodes as well as their greater length improved the overall flow of the story in The End of All Things. It was a good book, and a worthy addition to the series. The only real downside is that this would make a poor jumping-on point for new readers. So if you’re fresh to the Old Man’s War universe, you probably wouldn’t want to start here; there’s a lot of history you’ll be missing, and not least because this book deals with a lot of the consequences of events from the last few installments. I recommend starting from the beginning, because you’ll definitely want to know all the details – and because it’s amazing.
Below you’ll get my thoughts on each episode as well as a more detailed analysis.
THE LIFE OF THE MIND
This is the story of how our main protagonist and narrator Rafe Daquin became a brain in a box.
Yep. The Life of the Mind embodies everything I love about the Old Man’s War series. Missing ships. Kidnapped pilots. A mysterious organization conspiring and gathering strength in the shadows. Daquin finds himself entangled in this mess, but even when he is captured by aliens and forced to do their bidding, his first instinct is to fight back and find a way out of his predicament. The fact that he doesn’t have a body anymore and is just a mass of brain tissue hooked up to a ship computer is just a setback. Just another problem to be solved.
The protagonist’s personality and attitude made this one a winner. In the face of overwhelming odds, his optimism was infectious, even if it was sometimes driven by the desire to stick it to the alien Rraey. You know within the first few pages that he makes it out okay, but the conclusion to this section was still oh so satisfying. A really great intro episode to this novel that sets the tone and starts thing off with a bang.
THIS HOLLOW UNION
We switch focus in this one, following Hafte Sorvalh, the Chief Advisor to the head of the Conclave, General Tarsem Gau. She’s probably the second most powerful being in the universe, but as she reminds us, being second isn’t always all that it’s cracked up to be.
I admit to feeling slightly disappointed when I realized this would be a more political story. But after some major twists, I changed my mind. This might not be my favorite episode, but it’s undoubtedly the most important; something huge happens that will throw the entire Conclave into disarray and the ripples will be felt across the galaxy.
CAN LONG ENDURE
Can Long Endure was probably my least favorite episode, but it also showed a very different point of view. In this story, the focus shifts yet again, this time on a group of Colonial Defense Force soldiers who are now busy scrambling from planet to planet, stomping out the sparks of rebellion before they can catch fire and spread. But the will of a huge administrative entity like the Colonial Union is one thing. What about the lives of its soldiers with their boots on the ground, carrying out orders from on high?
This episode lacked the scope of the previous two, perhaps, but it was also the most “human”. It’s a very intimate look into the mind of a CDF officer Heather Lee, just another grunt doing her duty for the good of the CU. But she’s her own person too, and the costs of her government’s decisions are beginning to open her eyes to some ugly truths. And it’s time for Heather to make her own choices.
TO STAND OR FALL
This final episode brings the story to a conclusion. There’s a marked difference in tone from the beginning of the novel, in stark contrast to Rafe Daquin’s snarky attitude and spirited narration. Instead, a certain gravitas surrounds the story, which is fitting I suppose.
In this story, we see the return of several familiar faces here, including a couple beloved personalities. We are also presented the resolution to the problem posed by the shadowy organization calling itself Equilibrium. Given all the build-up, this finale should have been epic and glorious. Unfortunately, we didn’t quite get that. That’s not to say it wasn’t a good ending, because it was. I just couldn’t help feeling it should have been more.
This final episode was not what I expected, but it did its job nonetheless. To Stand or Fall was a punchy and cleverly executed conclusion to The End of All Things, as well as a pretty solid offering as the latest piece of the story to the Old Man’s War saga thus far.
More on The BiblioSanctum:
Review of The Human Division (Book 5)
Book Review and GIVEAWAY: Forbidden by Cathy Clamp
Posted on August 20, 2015 7 Comments
*** Be sure to check out the end of this review for details on our US giveaway of FORBIDDEN by Cathy Clamp ***
A review copy was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Series: Book 1 of Luna Lake
Publisher: Tor (8/18/15)
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Mogsy’s Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
As someone who was totally new to Cathy Clamp’s work, I was very excited about the opportunity to read Forbidden, book one in a new series set in the Sazi universe. A “reboot” of sorts, the novel takes place ten years after the events at the end of The Tales of the Sazi, featuring a new story and new characters – a fresh start, essentially, and a perfect jumping-on point for a newcomer like me.
Indeed, there’s not much you need to know before starting this series, and any required knowledge is helpfully provided by the author. For example, I found it interesting that the two protagonists of Forbidden actually first appeared in the original series as relatively minor characters. According to Clamp’s afterword, the heroine Clarissa Evans (who goes by Claire Sanchez here) was in Moon’s Fury as one of the young victims of a child abductor. All grown up now and an agent of the Wolven, Claire is being sent to investigate a string of missing children cases in the remote town of Luna Lake.
For obvious reasons, the mission hits a bit close to home, and Claire finds herself struggling to deal with unpleasant memories on top of trying to figure out the complex hierarchy of her new pack. The community at Luna Lake is unlike anything she’s had to deal with before, on account of it being a former refugee camp for displaced Sazi and lost orphans. Shapeshifters of all sorts live together here, including owls, falcons, bears, cougars, and of course wolves like Claire herself. On her first day, she meets another wolf named Alek, a Sazi orphan who grew up in Luna Lake after being adopted into a family of owls. Sparks fly between them immediately – both the good and bad sort – but whatever attraction or differences they have between them, solving the mystery must come first…before it’s too late for the missing kids.
Right away, I was captivated by the magic of this world. There are all sorts of Sazi, like those who can turn into wolves, big cats, birds of prey, snakes, etc. There were also the little things that charmed me, like the fact they can talk in their animals forms, or use food smells (most often desserts, I find. Or maybe I just notice them more because of my sweet tooth) to identify the emotional states of other Sazi.
I was also amazed by the social dynamics of Luna Lake. You don’t have to be familiar with the Sazi series to understand that it’s a very special community. The bird shifters aren’t big fans of the cats, the cats don’t much like the wolves, and the wolves can’t stand the smell of the birds, but at Luna Lake all the groups manage to live in relative harmony because that’s the only way to ensure survival. For Alek and other Sazi like him who were adopted by the Williams, the town is literally one big family. Even though he is a wolf, Alek is a big brother to owls, eagles, bobcats, other wolves and more, and there’s this sense of solidarity and togetherness about Luna Lake that gave me all the warm and fuzzy feels. Yet, there’s also a cost to that peace. Over the years the pack has developed a way to identify their “omegas”, and these low ranked individuals are treated poorly and forced to do all the dirty jobs in town. It made me feel really unsettled and angry towards Luna Lake’s leaders and those townsfolk who turn a blind eye to this blatantly unfair and broken system.
Be aware too that while Forbidden is described as an Urban Fantasy mystery, in some ways it actually reads more like a paranormal romance. Claire and Alek’s relationship is often the focus of the story, and the mystery elements of the plot are in truth not that substantial. To really get into the story, you would need to buy into the chemistry between Claire and Alek, and that was perhaps my problem; I didn’t feel like I got a chance to know either of them very well before they were thrust together, and right on the heels of them falling in lust came the obligatory plot contrivances to introduce conflict between them. I also found Alek too self-absorbed for my tastes and Claire too much of a “special snowflake”, which all made it harder for me to care about their developing relationship. That said, I’m not a big reader of PNR so there may be a lot genre norms and nuances that I’m not accustomed to, so feel free to take my opinion on the romance with a grain of salt!
The world of the Sazi does have the benefit of being fully fleshed out and realized though, from all the groundwork that has been established by the original series. Just this little taste of it has gotten me hooked, and I find myself wanting more. Certainly if you have a love for stories about shapeshifters, you need to check this one out for the many different kinds of creatures alone. Recommended for urban fantasy/paranormal romance readers and fans of strange and beautiful magic.
***
FORBIDDEN GIVEAWAY
Interested in the book? Now here’s your chance to win it. The publisher has very generously offered The BiblioSanctum an opportunity to host a giveaway for one print copy of Forbidden. With apologies to international readers, this giveaway is US only. To enter, all you have to do is send an email to bibliosanctum@gmail.com with your Name and valid Mailing Address using the subject line “FORBIDDEN” by 11:59pm Eastern time on Sunday, August 30, 2015.
Only one entry per household, please. Entrants must be 18 or older. The winner will be randomly selected when the giveaway ends and then be notified by email. All information will only be used for the purposes of contacting the winner and sending them their prize. Once the giveaway ends all entry emails will be deleted.
So what are you waiting for? Enter to win! Good luck!
Tough Traveling: Major Discoveries
Posted on August 20, 2015 6 Comments
The Thursday feature “Tough Traveling” is the brainchild of Nathan of Review Barn, who has come up with the excellent idea of making a new list each week based on the most common tropes in fantasy, as seen in (and inspired by) The Tough Guide to Fantasyland by Diana Wynn Jones. Nathan has invited anyone who is interested to come play along, so be sure to check out the first link for more information.
This week’s tour topic is: Major Discoveries
While often the people of Fantasyland seem stuck in a time warp occasionally a major discovery can shock the land into changes. Be they new lands, new peoples or new technologies fantasyland thrives on having something to jump start the next age.
Wendy’s Picks
Kushiel’s Dart by Jacqueline Carey
Her parents cast her away. People viewed the mote in her eye as an imperfection and her penchant for a pain an aberration. But Anafiel no Delauney recognized Phedre for what she truly was: god-touched. And so it was that Phedre, the only known anguisette, was set upon her destiny.
Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence
Death, fire, and the truth about the history of the Broken Kingdoms. Jorg Ancrath discovers it all on his journey from prince to emperor in Mark Lawrence’s series.
Dragon Age: The Last Flight by Liane Merciel
By the time players get to Thedas, they learn that, sadly, the griffons have long since died out. Here we learn why. But we also learn that maybe they aren’t as extinct as we thought. Told you so, Wynne.
Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater
Blue and the Raven Boys have been searching for the secrets of Cabeswater for three books now, but when they finally find it, it’s not exactly what they expected it…
Comic Stack 08/19/15 – King #1 by Joshua Hale Fialkov (writer), Bernard Chang (Illustrator)
Posted on August 19, 2015 6 Comments
Genre: Dystopia, Science Fiction
Publisher: Jet City Comics (August 19, 2015)
Author Information: Website
Tiara’s Rating: 3 of 5 stars
Full Disclosure: A review copy of this book was provided to me via Netgalley. I would like to thank the publisher for providing me this opportunity. All opinions expressed from here forward are my own.
King is the last human on earth. At least, we think he is during the course of this book. Humanity had been living on an apocalyptic earth for the last 300 or so years they’d existed until all humans eventually died with the exception of King. Now, King survives in a terrifying landscape along side various mutated creatures that now roam the earth. These creatures are both intelligent and barbaric, seeming almost human in their day to day endeavors, even if daily life is tinged with weirdness. Despite being the only human left, King has a job working for a reclamation agency which has him scouring the land in search of something called the “Seed of Life,” which will purportedly make life better for everyone on earth.
I try to take it easy on first issues that I read because it’s hard to say where a story might (or might not go) in the future. This is one of those books that could turn out amazing or it could fall off the cliff and tumble over into the deep end. I want to get this out of the way first. The art was amazing. I can’t say that I’ve ever read anything that Bernard Chang illustrated, but this book was an excellent mash-up of the beautiful and the ugly. It’s very vivid with most of the colors, but these colors are used to paint this decaying, exotic earth that King belongs to.
This was an interesting start to King’s story, if nothing else, and the ending of this issue piqued my interest with the introduction of a new character. This may be a little too weird for some people depending on tastes. We learn a little about what happened to humanity and meet the various oddities that King faces in his day to day life. Some part of this story is written with so much finesse and some parts of this story feel like Fialkov is trying a bit too hard, especially with some of the slang, which felt too much like “cool kid” talk. (However, I tried to be forgiving because King’s world is upside down.)
I did expect a little more diversity in character behavior being as there are no humans aside from King, and we’re treated to anecdotes about how intelligent these creatures are but they’re still very, very violent. Most of these creatures just felt human and a little on the trope-y side, such as the hybrid duck creature in a motorcycle gang who confronts King and makes derogatory remarks about him only being one species. However, this series has potential. I can see it in the book. I’m interested enough to keep cautiously going with this series, and honestly, it’s still better than 90% of the mainstream comics I’ve been reading lately. Fingers crossed that this turns into something special.
Despite what I’ve been told, there are no cheetah ladies trying to mate with King in this particular issue, but there are tentacles and that makes it all worthwhile. Tentacles always factor into my final rating.
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