Category: Authors Page 118 of 123

Short Version: A good, good story told in a fun–often funny–way.

Long Version: In the Author’s Note, while Scalzi is describing the long, strange journey this novel took to get to this particular edition, he calls it the “book that won’t quit.” It took me maybe 50 pages to see why. This is one froody book.

The tone is great, the style is spot on, good satire/commentary on Hollywood’s place in the world, everything about the alien race–their language, appearance, spaceship, ways to interact with humans/other creatures…just wonderfully imaginative.

In case you haven’t read the blurb–an up and coming Hollywood agent is hired by a (by human standards) ugly, nauseatingly smelly alien race to help their “image” so they can make first contact with humanity. Why an agent, why not a President or something? ‘Cuz the aliens know where real power and influence are centered. So, our hero has to balance his Hollywood weirdo clients, the aliens and a nosy journalist who won’t leave him alone; while he comes up with a way to sell this species to humanity.

Funny, funny stuff on many levels and in different ways. But the book has a lot of heart, too. Just a pleasure to read.

Dusted Off: Steel by Carrie Vaughn

By HCNewton

On April 12, 2011

In Carrie Vaughn, Fantasy, Fiction, YA/MG/Children's Books

Steel by Carrie Vaughn

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Let me start by saying I’m a big, big fan of Carrie Vaughn. Read every book–and can’t imagine stopping. I’ve recommended this book to my sons and am going to loan this to my niece. But, (and you knew one was coming given that opening) man, this could’ve been–should’ve been–a much better book.

Jill, a championship level fencer and potential Olympian, suffers a tough loss, sending her into a losing battle with self-doubt. Soon after, her parents drag her along on a family vacation in the Bahamas (poor girl, right?). Walking along the beach, she stumbles on to a piece of a broken sword–an old, broken sword. First time she’s held anything but a blunt, sport blade. Enchanted with the notion, she tucks it away.

Turns out, not only is her imagination bespelled, she is–before she knows it, Jill finds herself on an actual pirate ship a couple of hundred years in the past. After she figures out what happened to her, she finds herself part of the crew, growing close to a handful of them (a hunky age-appropriate pirate in particular) and learning about the sword’s magic.

While she tries to find a way home, she learns a little about herself and a little about life. (wow, that sounds like a cheesy after school special…which not exactly inaccurate, but Vaughn pulls it off).

Vaughn touches upon some pretty dark stuff here, enough to make it authentic (or authentic-ish, anyway)–but makes sure that it stays a pretty tame PG-13.

And that’s the crux of my problem with the book–she pulls her punches, just about all of them. She did it with Voices of Dragons, too–less so, here, though. Yes, it’s a YA book, and yes, I think she’s right to do it. I just think she shouldn’t pull back as much. Everything here–from character, plot, setting, narrative, action–it’s all perfectly fine, it’s all age appropriate, but she certainly could’ve fleshed it all out more without going over the line.

Still, it’s a good, swashbuckling read.

Dusted Off: Legacy by Jeanne C. Stein

By HCNewton

On March 11, 2011

In Authors, Fiction, Jeanne C. Stein, P-U, Urban Fantasy

Legacy by Jeanne C. Stein

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I was almost disappointed by this one, on second thought, maybe I was disappointed by this installment in the Anna Strong series.

Stein introduces us to her version of werewolves (different, a la Meyer, than the shapechangers we’ve already met). Her take on the species isn’t my favorite, but I dig what she’s doing with them and the backstory for vamps/werewolves/demons she worked up.

I wasn’t crazy about how Anna “solved” the real world job (which she really didn’t do), but I thought she handled the supernatural “case” okay. On the whole, though, this book showed Anna at her most clueless, which may be what Stein intended–as long as she’s denying one side of her nature, she can’t be what she needs to be, etc.–but I doubt it.

For a page or so I thought we were done with the Max subplot after book #3, but no. I thought we were done with the Gloria thing, but no. I thought the David stuff had turned a page and onto something new there, but no. And so on.

Basically, this book served to shuffle the characters around a bit to (potentially, hopefully) do something with next time around.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m back for (at least) #5 and #6. Just hoping I don’t regret it.

Dusted Off: Dead Waters by Anton Strout

By HCNewton

On March 1, 2011

In Anton Strout, Fiction, Urban Fantasy

Dead Waters by Anton Strout

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Dead Waters displays the growth of Anton Strout as a novelist as much as it shows Simon Canderous’ growth as a person. This fourth installment in the Simon Canderous series is (like each installment before) better than its predecessors — which works out great for me, because I’ve enjoyed all four of them.

The best part of this series (next to the characters) is the way Strout mixes magic into the real world. The adversary in this go ’round brings the challenge in the best mix of magic, myth and technology I can remember. Worth the read just for this.

The humor sprinkled (sometimes heavily) throughout the tale isn’t forced, like I think it was earlier in the series. It flows from the characters and the situations naturally.

Simon’s partner, Connor, still doesn’t get as much screen time as he should, but the partnership does seem stronger this go around — and Connor’s character feels more like a person. Maybe its because Connor’s family situation is a bit more settled, or maybe it’s just the nature of the case. Doesn’t matter, it’s a lot of fun.

Speaking of fun, Jane, Simon’s girlfriend really gets to strut her stuff magically here, frankly, I’d love to read a solo adventure or two featuring her. More pressing for our hero, however, is the fact that she’s putting pressure on him to deepen their relationship — which causes Simon to go through a good amount of maturing (or at least to consider it).

The ending of Dead Waters is one I should’ve seen coming, it was telegraphed like crazy. BUT, I’d spent most of the book convinced Strout was telegraphing something else, so what do I know? Frankly, I’m not crazy about the major character development that happened at the end, I’m afraid it will lead to this series losing some of what sets it apart from the rest of the genre and become a little more like typical Urban Fantasies. But I figure Strout’s gonna pull this off right and show me I’m worrying for nothing.

I should add here, that almost immediately after finishing this, I sent a tweet Strout’s way bemoaning the ending, and in only a few minutes got a reply that made me laugh. Gotta love an author who’ll take a moment for a fan and this Internet thingy that makes that interaction possible.

Dusted Off: Blood Drive by Jeanne C. Stein

By HCNewton

On February 15, 2011

In Authors, Fiction, Jeanne C. Stein, P-U, Urban Fantasy

Blood Drive by Jeanne C. Stein

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is not the follow-up to The Becoming Anna Strong Chronicles 1 that I expected, it’s a lot better. Something struck me odd about the way Stein included the detail about our heroine’s dead brother in the first book, and I should’ve realized she was planting a seed.

The seed, no pun intended, is what just may be her brother’s heretofore unknown daughter. Her brother’s girlfriend at the time of his death appears, asking for Anna’s help tracking down her runaway daughter, claiming it’s Anna’s niece. Before Anna can start looking, the girl’s best friend turns up murdered in a grisly fashion with hints of the supernatural. While looking for the girl and trying to find the murderer, Anna deepens her understanding and awareness of the supernatural world that she’s now a part of, and is reminded that perhaps the greatest monsters are merely human.

Great pacing, taught writing, good action–and even though I knew the identity of the bad guy at least one hundred pages before Anna did, I was on the edge of my seat.

The big issue that Urban Fantasy writers have to deal with his how to treat vampires (at least those authors that deal with vampires). Some leave them as horrid monsters, most find some way of toning down the whole vicious, blood-drinking, killer aspect. Stein doesn’t do that, yet. If Anna ends up toning down the animalistic nature of her protagonist, it will be as a result of a lot of trial and error, and stubborn choices she makes. While I hope Anna never becomes someone that I want Ms. Summers and the Scooby gang to track down, I hope she doesn’t turn off that aspect of her nature like a light switch.

I’m more than a little bothered by the dynamics between Anna and her boyfriend, and Anna and her partner, if Stein doesn’t resolve or change them soon, it’s really going to drag the series down. But I’m inclined to give her the benefit of the doubt.

I don’t know why I keep comparing this series to the Rachel Morgan books as I read them, but I do. And, Anna Strong comes out looking better and better each time I do. I’m really looking forward to seeing where she takes this.

Dusted Off: The Becoming by Jeanne C. Stein

By HCNewton

On January 21, 2011

In Authors, Fiction, Jeanne C. Stein, P-U, Urban Fantasy

The Becoming by Jeanne C. Stein

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

(3.5 actually, but goodreads won’t let me do that) This was just what the doctor ordered, over the last couple of months, I’d tried out a handful of new (to me) urban fantasy series, and had to force myself to finish them. Not this one. A fun ride from start to finish.

It’s the kind of start to a series that reminded me of Kitty and the Midnight Hour — and judging by the fact that of Carrie Vaughn books are now on my shelves at home, that’s a good thing. It’s very much a start to a series, a good ol’ origin story. Butt-kickin’, independent woman (with family issues), is out with her partner doing their bounty hunter thing, and unbeknownst to them, try to take a vampire into custody. Hilarity, er, blood-swapping ensues, and you’ve got yourself a butt-kickin’, independent vampire (with family issues).

Sure, our hero, Anna, has a heckuva learning curve in front of her–which Stein uses well to introduce the reader to her vampire rules, society, hunters, history, and whatnot. A good healthy mix of tradition and nouveau vamp lore.

It is a setup novel, so it’s hard to predict what form the future installments will take, once Anna’s more settled into her fangs, things will be different. But it’s a good start, with a likable cast, and a couple of good threads to follow in future books. Sign me up for more.

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Dusted Off: The Sentry by Robert Crais

By HCNewton

On January 18, 2011

In Authors, Elvis Cole/Joe Pike, Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, Robert Crais

The Sentry by Robert Crais

Series: Elvis Cole, #12/Joe Pike, #3
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

So the third Joe Pike novel starts off with him gassing up his Jeep and noticing that across the street that a couple of gang-bangers are up to no good at a sandwich shop. Pike decides to intervene, roughs up the ruffians little (well, by Pike’s standards). The shop owner isn’t grateful, but his niece sure is.

Pike senses an instant connection with her, the kind of connection that he hasn’t felt in a long, long time. Where some guys will do something to show off for a gal, try to impress them, Pike decides to get the gang to back off what what seems to be a straightforward protection racket. And it seems to work, very easily.

Which of course, is where things go very, very badly for all involved. The woman and her uncle go missing, so Pike sets off to find her, rescue her from whatever she needs rescuing from and brings Elvis along for the ride. A twisty, nothing is as it seems (at least twice), ride.

More than maybe any other Pike/Elvis or Elvis/Pike novel, this one is about the friendship between these two men. Yeah, there’s the action, the mystery, the bullets (MINOR SPOILER: far, far fewer than we’ve come accustomed to Pike using), and so on. But at the core, this is about the bond tying Pike and Elvis together.

Told in Crais’ (sadly) now-typical shifting perspectives, the action, once it starts, doesn’t relent. I flew through this book without realizing it. The only thing that kept me from finishing it in one setting was forcing myself to put it down so I could get a few winks before work. The best of the Pike books so far, better than a couple of Elvis books, too.

Perfect book for immersing yourself into to get out of a crappy day.

Waiting for the next book from Crais, if only he could write faster…

View all my reviews

Dusted Off: Wolfsbane by Patricia Briggs

By HCNewton

On January 14, 2011

In Fantasy, Fiction, Patricia Briggs

Wolfsbane (Sianim, #4) by Patricia Briggs

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A fun, solid read with characters you end up caring a lot about without even noticing, just a touch of action, a splash of romance, and at least one character who switches between species. In other words, it’s a Patricia Briggs novel.

Like its predecessor Masques, this was written pretty early in her career, and it shows. It’s still a heckuva story, and I’d jump right into a third adventure of Wolfe and Aralorn.

View all my reviews

Dusted Off: I Know You’re Dead and All, But . . .

By HCNewton

On December 8, 2010

In Authors, Currently Reading, Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

Dear Stieg Larsson,

Until you become a much, much better writer than you are, you really need to get to the hook earlier than page 245 of 640. Dude, that’s 40% of your book.

Just sayin’,

Dusted Off: Side Jobs by Jim Butcher

By HCNewton

On November 3, 2010

In Fiction, Harry Dresden, Jim Butcher, Urban Fantasy

I’m not big on the short story form. Outside the Nero Wolfe short story collections, I could count on one hand the number of short stories I’ve read in the past 5-10 years. Lately, there’s been a decent number of my favorite Urban Fantasy writers contributing to short story collections–usually on a theme, and usually using characters I really want to read about. But being short fiction, and being surrounded by stories about characters I don’t care about/don’t know/don’t have time to get to know even if I wanted to, I don’t get around to getting my hands on them.

From what I can tell, that’s resulted in me missing some interesting stuff–even the start of a series I’m invested in (maybe more than one, come to think of it, but I’m not going to double check now).

Which is a whole lotta rambling set up to saying why I was very happy to hear that Jim Butcher was going to release a collection of previously published and new Harry Dresden stories. And even happier to get my hands on it last week.

Being short works of fiction, basically every story was this–some sort of problem, Harry investigating rather quickly and then moving right on to the fireworks, usually dazzlingly so. Wham, blam-o, thank you, sir. Each of them also tended to focus on at least one member of the supporting cast in a way we don’t get enough of in the novels. I really appreciated getting to spend a little time with each of these people in this setting.

It was, admittedly, a mixed-bag. The first story, “Restoration of Faith,” was the first Dresden story, and it’s clearly that. There’s a lot to our favorite wizard PI that is recognizable here, and a lot that get’s tossed before Storm Front. A fun read, but I’m glad Butcher tweaked things the way he did.

The rest were better executed–mostly because Butcher’s grown a lot as a writer since then, all were good reads, some better than others.

A couple of other stand-outs for me were the lighter, “Day Off” about Harry’s fruitless quest for a quiet, relaxing day; “The Warrior” in which we get to see post-Small Favor Michael in action–even if it was a tad preachy, Butcher pulled it off, and I was so, so glad to see Michael like this; and “Love Hurts,” which is the kind of story we’ve seen/read countless times about what happens when two will-they/won’t-they friends fall under a spell/temporary delusion/whatever and fall madly, temporarily in love–it’s been done a lot, frequently poorly, but not here.

“Love Hurts” was also a perfect set-up to the novelette Aftermath, which starts up hours after the jaw-dropping/rage-inducing last page of Changes and was, for me, worth the purchase price. If I’d remembered that this was going to be at the end of this collection, I’d have finished the thing in one setting, rather than over a period of days. Great, great story, both for the plot/characters itself, and for what Butcher shows us about how these characters will act without the man in the duster around. Loved it.

Now, this hasn’t convinced me to get these other collections I mentioned earlier–but I just now have hope that some of my other favorite authors will get in gear and publish collections like this one.