Tag: 4 Stars Page 20 of 83

The Part About the Dragon Was (Mostly) True by Sean Gibson: A Hilarious Fantasy Filled with Adventure and Shenanigans. Definitely Shenanigans.

DETAILS:
Publisher: The Parliament House
Publication Date: December 10, 2020
Format: Kindle Edition
Length: 358 pg.
Read Date: March 10-12, 2022

I am, if not the most well-known bard in Erithea (yet), arguably the most talented, and unarguably the cleverest. I also wouldn’t quibble if you suggested that I’m the most beautiful, but that’s just because I’m very agreeable (and beautiful)…

Decades ago, I was sworn to secrecy regarding the true story of the great and terrible “Dragonia,” but recent developments have released me from that promise, and so I can finally tell the tale.

What’s The Part About the Dragon Was (Mostly) True About?

This is that true story about Dragonia, told alongside the “official” account so the reader can see how the details were adjusted and tweaked to create the story everyone knows.

The town (or village, depending on who you ask) of Skendrick is being terrorized by a dragon—crops are being ruined, trade is disrupted, and the town is about to fall apart. Desperate, they put out a call for adventurers to come and kill the dragon. But they get no takers—so they go to Plan B. The villagers (or townspeople) pool their meager resources to hire a bard. This bard is to compose a song to make the attempt to kill the dragon sound appealing enough—and its treasure (which may or may not actually exist) enticing enough—to get a band of adventurers to come.

This is where Heloise comes in. She takes the gig and soon gets a new and yet unaccomplished band of adventurers to take up the call to action. I don’t want to get into describing the group, you want to meet them in the book.

They encounter difficulties from without and within; nasty, malodorous geography; orcs and other creatures; and, well, the dragon.

Heloise the Bard

“You’re not half as funny as you think you are, as I suspect you have a very high opinion of yourself.”

“My opinion of myself is in direct proportion to my amazingness,” I said sweetly.

The half-elf, Heloise the Bard is our narrator—as you can tell from the quotations above, she has a fairly high opinion of herself and her abilities. She’s also rather impressed with her hair and certain other physical attributes. Probably her greatest skill is self-promotion.

She decides to accompany the adventurers, to chronicle their journey and the outcome of their clash with the dragon. Her wit and quick thinking prove valuable to their effort and her particular set of skills make all the difference.

She is a hoot. It’d be easy for Heloise to be an annoying, over-the-top character, but somehow Gibson keeps her as an entertaining, over-the-top character. I’ve been trying to come up with a character to compare her to, and I’m failing. Maybe she’s the Fantasy version of Evanovich’s Lula, except Heloise has the skills that Lula thinks she has. Maybe she’s the equivalent of High Fidelity‘s Barry. Somewhere in the Venn Diagram featuring Fantasy, Lula, and Barry, I guess.

She appears in a couple of other books by Gibson, and I’m eager to spend some more time with her.

The Humor

The section could easily be merged with the previous one because the humor displayed in the book is primarily Heloise’s. The jokes are pretty much non-stop—even in the middle of fight scenes, or when death is nigh. The danger is still present, and the combat (and so on) is as deadly as it would be in another book—it’s just surrounded by laughs.

It didn’t take me long before I’d highlighted too many lines to quote—not that it stopped me from going on. My notes on this one are ridiculous. I kept chuckling throughout the reading. I probably would’ve finished the book in 2/3 the time, if reacting to the jokes didn’t make me stop reading for a moment.

If you’ve read The Tales of Pell, you’ve got a good idea for the pace of the jokes—and tone of the book, too.

There’s slapstick, there’s scatological humor, a great Meatloaf (the singer) line, some fantastic bursts of alliteration for the sake of a laugh, some general silliness, clever dialogue, and…honestly, I’m having a hard time thinking of a kind of humor that’s not in there. There’s a running gag (that I’ve alluded to) throughout about whether Skendrick is a town or a village—I can’t tell you how often it’s brought up. And the joke works every time—I should’ve gotten sick of it, and I never did. I don’t know how Gibson pulled that off, but that alone is the mark of a fantastic humor writer.

In addition to The Tales of Pell, if you’ve enjoyed Christopher Healy, Dave Barry, K.R.R. Lockhaven, Peter David, Scott Meyer, Joe Zieja, Jim C. Hines’ Jig the Goblin series, or John Scalzi—you’re going to dig the humor here. And if you dig the humor, you’re going to really enjoy the book. It’s that simple.

So, what did I think about The Part About the Dragon Was (Mostly) True?

You know by this point that one of my main goals in telling this story is to show that the adventuring life isn’t all it’s thought to be. It’s mostly boring, frustrating, dangerous (though not excitingly dangerous), smelly (dear gods, so smelly), and not particularly lucrative. Occasionally, however, it’s exactly how the songs make it sound, and in those moments, it’s easy to see why people—even smart, capable people like Nadi—would devote their lives to doing something so irrational. Let the record show that entering a dragon’s lair for the first time is one of those moments, and it’s fair to say that each member of our intrepid band experienced more than a frisson of excitement as we crept across that threshold.

I think it’s pretty clear that I had a blast with this book, but I should probably make that explicit. I had a blast reading this book.

I think I should not that this is not a book to read if you’re in a “find out what happened and get to the end of the story” frame of mind. This is a “enjoy the trip, not the destination”/”stop and smell the roses” kind of book. The destination/what happens is fully satisfying, but the getting-there is so much better.

In addition to the jokes and the dragon, there is a running commentary on what “the adventuring life” is like outside of the glamorous or exciting bits. A lot of fantasy novels will show bits of it, but not enough of them do—and most don’t do it this way. For example, The Part About the Dragon Was (Mostly) True contains more description of various odors than every 99% of the fantasy novels I’ve read by a significant factor. If this were a scratch and sniff book…well, I can’t imagine anyone would stock it—you just don’t want that in your warehouse/store. Sure, it’s silly talking about realism in a book featuring orcs, halflings, elves, etc.—but this factor does ground the book and give it a seriousness (for lack of a better term) that makes this more than a collection of jokes.

This is the funniest book I’ve read in 2022, and I can’t imagine it’ll face much competition. It’s got it all, go get your hands on it.

4 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

One for All by Lillie Lainoff: An Entertaining YA Dumas-inspired Adventure

By HCNewton

On March 9, 2022

In Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, YA/MG/Children's Books

One for All

by Lillie Lainoff

DETAILS:
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)
Publication Date: March 8, 2022
Format: eARC
Length: 336 pgs.
Read Date: March 5-6, 2022

The Publisher’s Description

I keep stumbling over coming up with my own synopsis, it’s either too long, too spoiler-filled (although I wonder if I’d have said as much as this does), or too brief to be worth it. So, here’s what the publisher has to say:

Tania de Batz is most herself with a sword in her hand. Everyone thinks her near-constant dizziness makes her weak, nothing but “a sick girl.” But Tania wants to be strong, independent, a fencer like her father—a former Musketeer and her greatest champion. Then Papa is brutally, mysteriously murdered. His dying wish? For Tania to attend finishing school. But L’Académie des Mariées, Tania realizes, is no finishing school. It’s a secret training ground for new Musketeers: women who are socialites on the surface, but strap daggers under their skirts, seduce men into giving up dangerous secrets, and protect France from downfall. And they don’t shy away from a sword fight.

With her newfound sisters at her side, Tania feels that she has a purpose, that she belongs. But then she meets Étienne, her target in uncovering a potential assassination plot. He’s kind, charming—and might have information about what really happened to her father. Torn between duty and dizzying emotion, Tania will have to decide where her loyalties lie…or risk losing everything she’s ever wanted.

POTS

The main characters of this novel are Tania and her fellow musketeers, the head of L’Académie des Mariées, the bad guys, and Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome. The description talks says, “Everyone thinks her near-constant dizziness makes her weak, nothing but ‘a sick girl.'” Which introduces that character.

Obviously, no one has actually diagnosed Tania with POTS, and most of the characters don’t know the extent of the Syndrome’s impact on her (not just because she hides it as much as possible). But that’s what she has—I know that not just because the symptoms are recognizable to those who can, nor because it’s in all the marketing materials I’ve seen—but because there’s a great note at the back describing the author’s own experience with it (and, as I understand it, the same applies to the audiobook narrator).

It’s depicted, discussed, and addressed in period-appropriate ways, which is great. This is a really good way to raise awareness and understanding of POTS. I, for one, needed that—and I’m pretty sure I’m not alone in that.

I’d never heard of POTS until a few months ago—or if I had, it didn’t take root in my consciousness—but a family member was diagnosed with it. I’ve read websites, heard them discuss it, and so on, so I had a decent understanding. But after reading this novel, I think I have a richer understanding. Lainoff helped me walk a mile in the shoes of someone with the Syndrome in a way I hadn’t been able to before. The book is going to have a special place for me because of that.

I want to stress that I’d have enjoyed it anyway and would’ve appreciated “the look behind the curtain” of POTS without the personal connection, and I’m certainly not recommending it only because of the depiction of POTS. But it was a personal highlight.

YA-ness

Every so often when I’m reading a YA/MG book, I feel like a grumpy old man. The things that make a book fitting for the target audience jump out at me, they usually don’t make me like a book less (maybe they help me cut the book some slack). So what I’m saying here—just because I mention something, it doesn’t mean I’m critiquing/criticizing/complaining about it, it’s just something that jumped out at me.

Also, I know some readers of this blog have a YA allergy (or at least sensitivity), and I want to provide them with enough information to make an informed choice.

One for All is a very much YA book. If you bear in mind that it is one, the excesses/lack of subtlety/predictability of the book can be understood/expected.

Would I have preferred a little more nuance? A little more complexity? Sure. But Lainoff’s plot and characters were good enough to make up for it.

I also think it’s the YA-ness of the book that makes the transplanting of progressive 21st Century attitudes, expectations, and behaviors on the part of some of the characters in this 17th Century setting work. Were this written with older readers in mind, there’d be more internal conflict (amongst Tania’s group, and likely within some of the individuals) against bucking the cultural norms to the degree that they do.

Tous Pour Un

Big themes that one might expect to be addressed in a book like this would be romance, maybe family, likely even found family. And that’s not really what happens here. (well sort of found family, but it feels different to me, your results may vary)

Instead, it’s about camaraderie. It’s about a team. A group working together in a very Star Treky “the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few…Or the one” kind of way. The four Mousquetaires have different political, social, and personal agendas—which are respected, understood, and shared to varying degrees—that they put aside for the needs of each other.

Time and time again, they tell each other “we won’t let you fall.” Mistakes will be made, errors will occur—hugely stupid choices will be made—but these four rally together to form a bond that is truly all for one and one for all.

I love seeing things like this—and I don’t see it often enough. And when I do see it, it’s largely an unstated thing. Sometimes it will be discussed with an outsider, but rarely within the group. And I get that, and there’s a certain beauty and nobility about not having to say it. At the same time, there’s a beauty in saying it. It’s great having examples of people reassuring each other, “I’ve got your back, I’m on your six, and I will help when needed” is a wonderful thing. How many of us need to hear that ourselves? So seeing it in a group of characters? I absolutely loved it and it’s likely my favorite thing about this book.

Use of French

Lainoff will frequently drop in a word, phrase, or sentence in French in the middle of dialogue or the narration. It’s almost always immediately translated or given enough context clues that a translation is unnecessary (generally she still provides one even when it’s unnecessary).

It was a nice way to brush up on my high-school French, for sure, but I really can’t tell you why it was used 97% of the time. And even that 3% I could guess about, I’m not certain that it was necessary or useful.

It was a nice bit of seasoning—little dashes of spice to add flavor—but nothing the recipe needed.*

* See the section head above for an accidental example of what I’m saying.

So, what did I think about One for All?

I really had fun with this book. I think I liked it in a “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts” kind of way. I do think if I focused on story X or Y; character W or Z; or theme A, B, or C; I might end up quibbling with the book. But the experience as a whole really worked for me and gave me almost everything I wanted in this book. (a little more humor or panache would’ve been nice—but now that the four have established themselves, that’s possible in a sequel)

It’s a familiar premise, well-executed—with just enough distinctiveness about it to make this stand out. Good characters acting in largely relatable and believable ways. Solid action that’s well used (although I’d like the volume turned up just a little bit on those scenes). It’s very much an origin story kind of thing and does a good job of introducing and creating a world as well as populating it.

If there’s a sequel, I will read it. If this is a stand-alone, I’m satisfied with it. Which is a great spot to be in, and not one I find myself in a lot lately. Particularly when you bear in mind the target audience, this is an enjoyable and satisfying read that I’m pleased to recommend.

Disclaimer: I received this eARC from Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group via NetGalley in exchange for this post—thanks to both for this. Although I’m sorry that this posted the day after publication, I tried, really.

4 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

Man Down by Mark Pepper: The Wrong Man in the Wrong Place at the Wrong Time

By HCNewton

On February 24, 2022

In Book Tour, Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

Man Down

by Mark Pepper

DETAILS:
Series: Matt Spiller, #1
Publisher: Red Dog Press
Publication Date: February 22, 2022
Format: eARC
Length: 428 pages
Read Date: February 21-22, 2022

The Proper Mindset

Do you like movies (or shows) like Fargo,* where regular, everyday folks find themselves in the middle of some sort of large criminal activity? Things go quickly out of control and before they know it, this regular guy is kidnapping people, covering up killings, disposing of bodies, planning heists, and whatnot. If that’s your kind of thing, buckle up, because you’re in for a ride.

*I had a handful of other titles I was going to invoke, but as soon as I started the sentence, they vanished.

If Fargo ain’t your thing, if Elmore Leonard or Eoin Colfer’s Crime Novels don’t work for you, well, you might want to skip Man Down, unless you’re looking for someone to change your mind about this type of thing.

What’s Man Down About?

Matt Spiller is our Everyman—he’s a taxi driver, he’s a devoted dad, he’s separated from his wife, and his life is about to be turned upside down. And then shaken up, bounced around, chewed up, and spit out.

One Christmas Eve night, after dropping off a fare, he sees a couple of men who look like they’re about to attack her. Without thinking about it, Matt steps in and prevents that—they won’t be harming anyone for a while. This isn’t something he typically does, but the woman he rescued doesn’t know that. Which leads to an interesting business proposition…

Meanwhile, his 16-year-old daughter doesn’t make it home for Christmas—she’s off with her new (older) boyfriend. When she eventually gets home, Matt and his wife are told that she’d been prevented from leaving or calling them. Also, a police officer warns Matt about the boyfriend—his criminal C.V. is truly impressive if you’re the sort who’s impressed by that sort of thing. Matt and his wife are going to have to do something drastic to keep this creep away from their girl. But maybe they go too far…

That’s a thumbnail of the first 12% of the book. There’s no way to summarize the next 88%, even if I was the kind of guy who’d do that. Where those two storylines take Matt and his family can only be read to be believed.

Helen

It’d be easy to give all of your attention to Matt and his antics while reading/talking about this book, but that’d be a mistake. The women in his life really deserve a lot of attention.

His daughter Sophie, a Minions addict, is one of the cutest kids you’ll encounter in print this year. Sammy, the girl with lousy taste in men, is strong, determined, and would probably have found a way out of her trouble on her own, thank you very much. Emma, the fateful fare…okay, I don’t know how to describe her—but man, she’s intriguing (and then some).

But Helen, Matt’s wife (at least for now), is something else. She’s had it up to here with his Depression, his dead-end job, and any number of other failings he has. She still loves him, but she has to do what she can for herself and their daughters. This spills over to how she approaches a boss who’s been harassing her constantly, Sammy’s boyfriend, the repercussions of what happens after Christmas, and everything else to do with Matt. Helen’s the kind of character you’d like to meet in real life, just to hang out and get to know a little bit.

That Reveal

There’s a reveal that’s so big that I want to spend a few paragraphs talking about it. I won’t, don’t worry, but I want to. When you get to it, you’ll know exactly what I mean.

If you’re anything like me, you’ll cackle a bit. Then you’ll have to flip through the pages to check a few things to see how Pepper played you. Then you’ll chuckle some more and dive back in to see how this new understanding of everything plays out—and you’ll be eager to do so, because this book that had been a compelling read has become something new, something richer, something more twisted and fun. What you won’t know is that there’s another reveal or two coming, and that you shouldn’t get comfortable.

So, what did I think about Man Down?

This was a bonkers read—that’s a compliment, in case that wasn’t clear. On the one hand, it’s impossible to predict how Pepper is going to start at Point A and end up anywhere near Point Z, but he does, and when you look back at it, the logic is clear and sound.

I can’t tell you how many times he pulled the rug out from under me (he does the same to Matt almost as often)—sometimes eliciting a laugh, sometimes shock and dismay, sometimes I was so dumbfounded as not to know how to react. But there’s a lot more going on than just unpredictability—Matt keeps coming across as a poor guy just trying to do the best he can—and failing with horrible results. But you never stop pulling for him.

The humor is dark, the action is frequent and dynamic, with characters that you want to get to know better and see more of. I’m not sure what else to say at this point without giving away everything, so let’s just go with if you’re in the mood for a Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride of a thriller, get your mitts on this one pronto.

4 Stars

My thanks to Red Dog Press for the invitation to participate in this reveal and the materials (including the novel) they provided. The opinions expressed are mine and honest.

PUB DAY REPOST: The Blood Tide by Neil Lancaster: A Gripping Sequel, Stronger than its Predecessor

By HCNewton

On February 23, 2022

In Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

The Blood Tide

by Neil Lancaster

DETAILS:
Series: DS Max Craigie Scottish Crime Thrillers, #2
Publisher: HQ
Publication Date: February 23, 2022
Format: eARC
Length: 384 pgs.
Read Date: February 7-9, 2022

Dead Man’s Grave Spoilers Ahead

It’s impossible to talk about this sequel to Dead Man’s Grave without spoiling it. If you haven’t read that yet, go read my post about it and skip this post. (but thanks for the blog view, I always appreciate the visit)

What’s The Blood Tide About?

It’s been a few months (if we’re told specifically, I missed it) since Dead Man’s Grave, but not too long. Tam Hardie’s in prison for his crimes, his wife and kids are out of the country, and his syndicate is in trouble from without and within. The Policing Standards Reassurance Team, now established, is still trying to find Hardie’s remaining contact(s) in the police. On the personal side, Max Craigie’s wife has moved back in with him, and things are going well.

Basically, things are in a good place. This means it’s time for things to happen—a fisherman goes missing on a routine fishing trip (well, a routine something anyway), not long after that, an intelligence officer with the National Crime Agency commits suicide—and the only witness’s notes go missing, too. And then there’s another (apparent) suicide. There’s almost no reason for anyone to see a link between them—but once Max Craigie is shown the link, he’s able to convince the rest of his team and soon will get more proof.

This is where things get really dicey—and the Team is immersed in a case involving drugs, murder, corrupt officials—and at least one criminal in their own midst.

Characters

In the previous book, we got a pretty good handle on DS Max Craigie and DC Janie Calder. In this book, we get to know their boss, DI Ross Fraser better as he’s able to take a greater leadership role (since it’s not an off-the-books investigation anymore) and as we see him deal with problems in his home life.

We also get introduced to a new member of their team, and get to know her fairly well. I liked the fact that we didn’t come into this book with a greatly expanded team, and only added someone after this book’s action had started—it helps the readers to connect with everyone, and it’s also a nice touch of realism, if the team expands too quickly, it’d be more difficult to keep it to those who can be trusted.

Policing the Police

Max and his team operate far differently from the other fictional Scottish detective looking into Police Corruption that I’m familiar with—Malcolm Fox. There’s no way that Fox in his role with Complaints and Conduct would pursue a case this way (although by the end of his time with them, that had started to change, and he might be more open to it).

The Policing Standards Reassurance Team is a band of mavericks, or at least operate as a collective maverick—going back to their inception. They seem more effective running that way—although I do wonder about realism (for those who care about such things—and it’s more exciting to read about than a bunch of people being careful about paperwork.

So often reading what Max and Janie are going through, I wondered how they trust anyone in the Police service. It almost seems like luck when they have an operation go well without someone having leaked something to their target. Does that take a toll on people? I wonder if Lancaster will deal with that in the future.

So, what did I think about The Blood Tide?

It is really hard to talk about this in any kind of detail—the twists and reveals start early on and I fear I may have said a bit too much already.

I will say as someone who’s been reading Lancaster from the beginning, that it’s great to see his growth as an author—the writing, the characterization, the details in The Blood Tide is leagues beyond what his debut displayed. And I enjoyed his debut, and would’ve kept reading him if he kept producing books like it. It’s just so much easier to do when they’re as good as this one.

Along the same lines, there’s growth to this series—as ought to be expected. Dead Man’s Grave was about establishing this world, these characters, and their mission. Now we get to see them in action, we’re ready to see them at work, in danger, and taking on bigger challenges.

Do I recommend The Blood Tide? You bet—a good author getting better at his craft, a handful of strong characters, and a plot that’ll keep you guessing as it ratchets up the tension. Grab both of the DS Max Craigie thrillers and you’ll be in for a good time. The third book is due this autumn, which is too far away for my tastes.

4 Stars

Disclaimer: I received this eARC from HQ via NetGalley in exchange for this post—thanks to both for this.

Light Years from Home by Mike Chen: A Tale of Three Siblings

By HCNewton

On February 22, 2022

In Fiction, Mike Chen, Science Fiction

Light Years from Home

by Mike Chen

DETAILS:
Publisher: Mira Books
Publication Date: January 24, 2022
Format: Hardcover
Length: 345 pgs.
Read Date: February 11-18, 2022

For Jakob, it meant days where time had no meaning, one lifechanging revelation after another. Were there aliens? Yes, there were so many aliens, a number so overwhelming that even now he still didn’t know the name of every species working under the Seven Bells flag. Were there bad aliens? Yes, and it turned out that Dad’s sci-fi shows got some of those traits right—plus mechs from the few years when he indulged in anime—along with holographic displays, faster-than-light speed, smart communication tech that quickly adapted to English, and other things.

It was all of that mashed into one overwhelming reality, something that made him question if he hadn’t taken the best/worst drugs of all time.

Fifteen Years Ago

Evie, her older twins, Kass, and Jakob are on a camping trip with their father. When Jakob and his father step away for a private word (Jakob’s thinking of dropping out, and their father is giving him a talk).

Then everything changes. Jakob and their father disappear. Three days later, their father reappears, disoriented and confused. But there’s no sign of Jakob—he’s eventually declared dead, and the family is shattered.

Evie

Evie’s following their father’s theory, Jakob was taken by aliens. She’s moved away from the family and joined up with others convinced that aliens have visited the planet. They research reportings, scientific phenomena, and do a webcast.

When her group notices phenomena in the area near where Jakob disappeared that matches the same strange readings from that night, Evie can’t contain her excitement, so she scrapes together enough money to fly across the country so she can look into it first-hand.

Kass

Kass had the opposite reaction, her brother’s always been a ne’er-do-well, he has no commitment, no follow-through—always getting by on his charm. She assumes that Jakob found some people to hang out with, leach off of, and was off having a great time while the family fell to pieces.

She stayed home, finished her degree, and is now taking care of their mother in the earliest stages of dementia while working as a therapist, helping others do for their families what she couldn’t do for her own.

She’s not thrilled about her sister’s impending arrival—Kass can’t believe Evie’s wasted her potential with this nonsense and has abandoned her family to do so. She wants nothing to do with it, or the inevitable request for financial assistance that comes with any visit with Evie.

Jakob

Jakob actually was taken by aliens—his father was accidentally taken up in the same transporter stream. He’s serving in an intergalactic war—he’s hiding briefly on earth until he can get some vital information to his side.

Or at least, that’s what he tells his sister when he returns. Kass has other ideas. She keeps using words like delusions and psychosis.

A Family Affair

The book hops around, being told from the perspective of each sibling—we get to know them, what they’ve been up to for the last fifteen years, and how they relate to each other. Whatever outlandish story Jakob is telling, what evidence and theories that Evie has about him, and whatever their mother is going through, the focus is the family—particularly on the siblings. The hurt they’ve caused the others, the neglect they’ve shown towards one another, the utter lack of trust that exists between any of them.

But they can’t fight the pull toward each other—to help each other, even as they’re proclaiming their disgust and disappointment.

Chen’s known for writing family drama, and to date, none of his families have had as much drama as these three.

Yes, there’s the FBI running around, accusations of fraud (and possible terrorism), and some pretty intense action—laced with SF goodness (as you expect from Chen). But the story is at it’s core, a story about these three siblings trying to find some healing. Or at least a definitive way to say goodbye.

So, what did I think about Light Years from Home?

I thought it was a great way to tell this story, I thought the characters were interesting and the situation was very compelling—bringing in their mother’s deteriorating condition was a wonderful addition (in terms of storytelling, I’m not saying I find dementia entertaining).

Yet, I had the hardest time getting involved with the story or characters. I thought it was a great read, but I just didn’t care. Or I didn’t think I did. But I found myself on the edge of my seat at the right moments and getting misty at the end. Without my noticing, Chen had wormed his characters into my heart—including the one, I’d easily have said the book didn’t need.

I’ll note that I just talked to a friend, who had an entirely different reaction to the beginning of the book (hasn’t finished it yet, but I can’t imagine he’ll disagree with what I said about the ending). This suggests, as I imagined, this is a Me-problem, not a Chen-issue.

I think this book worms its way into the SF/Speculative Fiction genre differently than Chen’s previous works. And maybe that was my hitch—maybe. I think it’s great that his works are so stand-alone, that there’s not even a Mike Chen-template like so many other stand-alone authors fall into.

With Mike Chen, you never know what you’re going to get beyond: interesting and fresh premise and emotionally satisfying ending. Light Years from Home lives up to that and has me eagerly awaiting his 2023 release to see where he’s going next.

4 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

The Goodbye Coast by Joe Ide: A Phillip Marlowe for Today (a follow-up to last week’s post)

By HCNewton

On February 21, 2022

In Fiction, Joe Ide, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

The Goodbye Coast

by Joe Ide

DETAILS:
Publisher: Mulholland Books
Publication Date: February 1, 2022 
Format: Hardcover
Length: 301 pg.
Read Date: February 12-15, 2022

“Reassembling the past, reconstructing relationships, trying to link someone’s words with the facts at hand or facts yet to be discovered. You overlay a hundred different constructs over the exact same information and you’ll come up with a hundred different theories. Everyone sees, interprets and understands things differently. Everyone has their own aspirations, anxieties and fears. It’s what they call human nature.” Basilio paused to search his molars with his tongue. “Don’t get me wrong, kid. I’m not saying it’ll all be mundane. There are things inside people so vicious and depraved you’d think their breath would smell like roadkill. They’re out there, Marlowe. Every vile infection, mutant species, every simmering brew of psychopathic evil are waiting for you right outside the door.” Basilio unwrapped a toothpick and continued the search. “Sure you’re still game?”

That was ten years ago and yes, Marlowe was still game.

This is a follow-up to my post last week, where I blogged about what I thought of the first third of the book for a Book Tour. I will be re-using some of what I said then, for the record.

My Faulty Assumption

When I heard that Joe Ide was going to do a Philip Marlowe novel, I assumed it was going to be in the same vein as his South Central Sherlock Holmes novel, IQ-this time with a Marlowe-esque figure in a contemporary L.A.

Nope. This time out, Ide isn’t messing around with something inspired by one of the greats. He’s it’s a full bore re-imagining. We’ve got Philip Marlowe in his tenth year of being a P.I. in a 2020-is L.A. The question is, will this work?

What’s The Goodbye Coast About?

An aging star of Rom-Coms hires Marlowe to find her stepdaughter, a 16-year-old runaway, Cody. Cody’s father, Terry, was a director who had one mega-success and a series of flops. He appears to have fallen in with a group of Russian and Albanian gangsters as a way to secure funding for one last attempt at saving his career. Sadly, he was murdered in front of their home. That was six weeks ago. A month later, Cody runs away, stealing the housekeeper’s car to do so.

It’s been two weeks, and no sign of her has been found. Kendra James hires Marlowe, not to look into the murder, but to track down Cody. Something doesn’t sit right about this with Marlowe, but James is paying a ridiculous amount of money, so he takes the case. Marlowe definitely doesn’t like James, the way she treats her staff, or spends her money. But that doesn’t mean he can’t some of that money.

Naturally, Marlowe ends up looking into the murder, and the questions surrounding it, the victim, and Marlowe’s client start to add up.

While in the middle of this investigation, Marlowe is approached by a British woman looking for her son—her ex-husband has abducted the boy and flown home to L.A. as the lastest step in their bitter divorce. She’s spent pretty much everything she has to get to L.A., and after a series of rejections from Private Investigators who expect to be paid for their efforts, she’s been referred to Marlowe.

Emmett Marlowe

Marlowe’s father, Emmett, is a 17-year-veteran of the LAPD. Currently on leave, following the death of his wife from cancer and the drinking (both excessive and habitual) he turned to after that.

The relationship between father and son is strained, and the closest they get is when they work together—Emmett is essentially Marlowe’s partner in some of his cases, unofficially using LAPD resources in the service of the case.

The emotional core of this novel is the relationship between Emmett and Marlowe. There are a lot of ups and downs just in these three hundred pages, and it’s clear that this is nothing new—all of this has happened before, and it will all happen again. I’m not sure what they have could be love—it really doesn’t seem to be affection—but they’re family.

Phillip Marlowe, Really?

I’m really not sure about this part. How Phillip Marlowe-y is this guy? Do we need Marlowe in the 21st Century? I wondered about that as soon as I finally understood what Ide was doing in this book a few weeks ago, and I still have questions about that.

One thing that I stumbled over is Ide’s use of the third person. Chandler’s Marlowe is notably a first-person narrator—and his narration served as the template for so many P.I.s that followed. Ide is about to work in some touches that make me think of Chandler’s narration but it’s not the same and takes some getting used to.

There are plenty of similarities between the two author’s take on the character, a similar attitude, aptitude, mannerisms, and likes. On the other hand, Ide’s Marlowe’s backstory and the involvement of his father are significant divergences. That’s his prerogative, and there’s nothing inherently wrong with that—but at a certain point, if enough tweaks are made, is it Phillip Marlowe?

I cannot stress enough—I would have absolutely no qualms about this character if he had any other name under the sun. But tagging him with Philip Marlowe means something, right? I’m not prepared to say that Ide gave us a version of Chandler’s character for the Twenty-First Century. For me, I think I have to think of Ide’s Marlowe as some guy who by some crazy, random happenstance shares his name with a P.I. from the same city in the 30s and 40s.

So, what did I think about The Goodbye Coast?

A PI didn’t have to produce evidence that held up in court. A PI speculated, deduced and conjectured until a theory formed that felt right to an experienced investigator. Marlowe could never replicate [redacted]’s thinking or [their] individual moves. The best he could do was ask himself, How would you do it, Marlowe?

It took me no time at all to get hooked by this—and hooked solidly. If it weren’t for prior obligations (like, say, work), I’d have eagerly stayed up all night reading.

Everything about the Cody/Terry/Kendra case is murky—the more time that Marlowe and his father spend on it, the worse it gets. Every time they or the reader think they’ve gotten to the bottom of what happened, and to the depth of the depravity involved, within a few pages they’re proven wrong. By the end, you see that Ide has fully embraced the noir ethos of Chandler’s detective and runs with it.

I’m not sure I liked much about the father taking the child story, the resolution was satisfying enough, though. But what I appreciated about it was the way it brought the child’s mother, Ren, into the novel. She played a significant role in the Cody story in several ways. Also, the best bit of dialogue in the novel comes from the first conversation that Mom and Marlowe had. I’m a sucker for banter, and Ide nailed this one. If there is a sequel to this, I’d love for Ide to come up with some excuse to bring Ren into it.

Speaking of the dialogue, as a whole it’s crisp, snappy, and witty. The characters leap off the page, and it didn’t take me long to get invested in the whole thing. This version of L.A. shares a lot with Chandlers, too—the collision of an abundance of wealth and a dearth of ethics/morality helps to create a dynamite setting for a P.I. novel. Between the narrative voice, dialogue, and frequent Chandler-esque similies, this is the most entertaining writing from Ide yet–I’m talking the technical bits, not the character or plot (nothing against them, I’m trying to distinguish things here).

I got the impression this is intended as a stand-alone, but I could be wrong. If there’s a sequel, I’m there in a heartbeat. I can see this Marlowe rivaling Isaiah Quintabe in my eyes. P.I. fans—go get your hands on this.

4 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

The Imputation of Adam’s Sin by John Murray: There’s a Good Deal of Theologizing in a Small Number of Pages Here.

By HCNewton

On February 20, 2022

In Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

The Imputation of Adam’s Sin

by John Murray

DETAILS:
Publisher: P&R Books
Publication Date: August 31, 1977
Format: Paperback
Length: 95 pg.
Read Date: February 13, 2022

What’s The Imputation of Adam’s Sin About?

In four short chapters, John Murray examines the doctrine of the Imputation of Adam’s Sin—sketching out a few competing visions of the doctrine as well as laying out the particulars of it—the sin involved, the union between Adam and his posterity in it (from two different viewpoints), as well as the nature of the Imputaion itself.

He does this by examinings and exegeting Romans 5:12-19. More than 90 pages on those verses might seem overkill, but I can’t help but think that Murray was not getting as detailed as he wanted. It’s rather impressive to see him work all the areas I mentioned into this exegesis and interpretation.

So, what did I think about The Imputation of Adam’s Sin?

This was footnoted a couple of times in a book I read recently (probably Why Did Jesus Have to Live a Perfect Life? by Brandon D. Crowe), and I realized that despite seeing I don’t know how many references to it over the years, I’ve never gotten around to reading it. So, now I’ve fixed it. And I’m glad that I did. I learned a good deal more than I expected, and assume I’ll be coming back more than once to chew on this book.

This book is typical Murray—crisp, clear, concise, and convincing. Sure, there’s the drawback that his prose is dry and empty of all personality. The book doesn’t need them (and I’d think it strange to read Murray with it). I wouldn’t have minded a greater scope—like if there’d been another couple of passages to get this treatment other than Romans 5:12-19.

This is a great introduction to the idea of Imputation of Adam’s Sin and I strongly recommend it.

4 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

All At Sea by Chris McDonald: Adam and Colin on a Cruise with an Inevitable Bother

By HCNewton

On February 18, 2022

In Chris McDonald, Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

All At Sea

by Chris McDonald

DETAILS:
Series: The Stonebridge Mysteries, #6
Publisher: Red Dog Press
Publication Date: February 17, 2022
Format: eBook
Length: 96 pages
Read Date: February 17, 2022

Why Would They Say This?

It’s been 6 months since Christmas and Adam and Colin haven’t had the opportunity to show up the police since then. They even think about their crime-solving in the past tense.

Still, when circumstances put the two of them on a cruise to Italy before Adam’s wedding, his fiancé makes him promise to stay out of trouble. Adam says it’s his goal on a couple of occasions. It’s said so often that I could hear Toby Ziegler shouting:

Toby: You want to tempt the wrath of whatever from high atop the thing?
Sam: No.
Toby: Then go outside, turn around three times, and spit. What the hell is the matter with you?

Of course, Adam and Colin don’t have a fictional White House Communications Chief yelling at them and trouble finds them.

The Trouble

On their first night onboard, the duo attends a dinner for first-class passengers where they meet some of their fellow travelers, including an art dealer; a B-List film star (maybe a C-lister); an eccentric elderly woman traveling with a classic painting; and a young man in his early 20s who may not be as well-off as he seems.

Late that night, Colin finds the woman after she’d been attacked in her room and her painting had been stolen. Colin’s always been the more considerate of the pair, but given his profession, he seems more driven to help this victim. He promises they’ll find the painting and he spends the rest of the cruise concerned about her well-being.

Adam’s a little torn between looking for the thief and keeping his promise to Helena and staying out of trouble—naturally, curiosity (and the realization that they really have nothing better to do with their time on the ship) wins out and Adam gets in way over his head with the search for the painting. The fairly dynamic duo’s hunt takes them all over the luxury ship as well as to the streets of Barcelona and Lisbon, new territory for them, but in the end, their tenacity and cleverness help them as always.*

* Their habit of accusing almost every suspect until something sticks doesn’t hurt either.

A Theft? That’s What They’re Investigating?

Easy now, don’t worry. There is a murder, it just shows up far later in the book than we’re used to.

I was actually enjoying the lack of a corpse and was hoping we’d get all the way through a novella without one. If only for the sheer novelty. But once the body was discovered, I enjoyed what it meant for the plot—and it just felt strange to read a Stonebridge Mystery where everyone was alive.

So, what did I think about All At Sea?

I was excited to get the email yesterday morning with the link to my pre-order, so I could dive into this (no pun intended, but hey, I’ll take it). Any day spent with Adam and Colin is a good one in my book and this entry in The Stonebridge Mysteries did not disappoint.

At 96 pages, there’s not a lot to be said about All At Sea, beyond recommending it. This novella contained a couple of my favorite sentences by McDonald, some great characters in the suspect pool, and the most dangerous moment this series has had yet.

Would this work as a jumping-on point? Yeah, it’d work. I think you’re better served by starting from #1, especially as these are so short that it wouldn’t take much effort to catch up. But if you’re not up for that, you’ll get into the groove just fine from here. I’ll warn you—once you start with these, you won’t stop. Adam and Colin are addictive.

4 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

My thanks to Red Dog Press for the invitation to participate in this reveal and the materials they provided.

The Blood Tide by Neil Lancaster: A Gripping Sequel, Stronger than its Predecessor

By HCNewton

On February 16, 2022

In Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

The Blood Tide

by Neil Lancaster

DETAILS:
Series: DS Max Craigie Scottish Crime Thrillers, #2
Publisher: HQ
Publication Date: February 23, 2022
Format: eARC
Length: 384 pgs.
Read Date: February 7-9, 2022

Dead Man’s Grave Spoilers Ahead

What’s The Blood Tide About?

This is where things get really dicey—and the Team is immersed in a case involving drugs, murder, corrupt officials—and at least one criminal in their own midst.

Characters

Policing the Police

So, what did I think about The Blood Tide?

It is really hard to talk about this in any kind of detail—the twists and reveals start early on and I fear I may have said a bit too much already.

4 Stars

Disclaimer: I received this eARC from HQ via NetGalley in exchange for this post—thanks to both for this.

Reposting Just ‘Cuz: Dead Man’s Grave by Neil Lancaster: The Debut of Your New Favorite Police Procedural Series

By HCNewton

On February 11, 2022

In Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

Last night, I fought the Tech, and the Tech won (if you imagine the Bobby Fuller Four singing that, it comes across better). So, instead of a post about The Blood Tide‘s ARC, I’m going to repost what I said about the first book in the series…Hopefully by next week, I can convince my laptop to submit to me, so I can .

Dead Man’s Grave

by Neil Lancaster
Series: DS Max Craigie Scottish Crime Thrillers, #1

Kindle Edition, 400 pg.
HQ Digital, 2021

Read: July 17-19, 2021

What’s Dead Man’s Grave About?

Tam “Peeler” Hardie has been the head of one of Scotland’s most powerful, most violent (you don’t want to know how he got that nickname*), crime families for decades. He’s looking at the end of his life and has an overwhelming desire to look into his family’s roots. This quest takes Hardie to an old, small graveyard near a small Scottish town. Thanks to a feud that goes back generations, he won’t leave that graveyard alive.

* Okay, you probably do in some twisted way—but I’m not going to go into it. Go buy the book.

It doesn’t take long before Hardie’s sons suspect something’s wrong—at the very least their father is missing (maybe kidnapped?). Now, if you’re the Scottish Police, the last thing you want is the Hardies to take it upon themselves to go looking for their father—they’re much more likely to start a war with some other criminal organizations than they are to find him. So DS Max Craigie and DC Janie Calder are assigned to the search, which will hopefully placate the sons for a little while.

Some good detecting by Craigie—and some better instincts—lead to the discovery of Hardie’s body—and some good fortune leads to a quick arrest. It’s soon after that when Craigie starts to notice something’s amiss with the investigation—it’s clear that the Hardies know more than they should, investigative lines are shut down by superiors, and Craigie’s aid is taken as interference, In fact, he’s put on leave when he won’t stop.

There’s something rotten afoot, and now the question is: can Craigie (with or without the aid of Calder, a new detective that he barely knows) find out what kind of corruption is meddling with this investigation and put a stop to it without risking their careers or lives?

DS Max Craigie and DC Janie Calder

In a very real sense, we’ve seen both of these characters before. He’s the cynical experienced detective who still has a sense of right and wrong; he’s not afraid to defy orders and go his own way to make sure the right people are arrested; his career has taken a toll on his health and family, but he’s driven by a sense of mission that he can’t shake. She’s a little odd and not that popular with the rest of the detectives—but she’s smart, she’s eager, she’s tech-savvy—and you don’t want to face off against her in a physical confrontation. But somehow Lancaster takes these very familiar types and makes them feel fresh—like he’s one of the first to try this combination of partners with these characteristics. Don’t ask me how he did that, but he did.

Even if it didn’t feel fresh—there’s a reason we’ve seen these characters paired in this way before: it works really well. Storytellers gravitate to them, readers respond well to them. Lancaster is a great example of someone who takes these characters and uses them right.

I really liked these characters, and can’t wait to see how Lancaster develops them. I predict it won’t be long before most readers of the series think of Calder as their favorite character. (and very likely has started already)

So, what did I think about Dead Man’s Grave?

It took me no time at all to be hooked by this novel–it starts off strong and improves from there. It was tense, well-plotted, and (mostly) well-paced. Add in Max and Janie and Dead Man’s Grave becomes a real winner—one of the better Crime Novels I’ve read this year.

One little complaint—the book wraps up too quickly, it was just a bit too difficult to believe that they met their objectives that speedily. But, by that time, you’re so into the story and characters that you’re willing to go with Lancaster. And the conclusion was so satisfying that the only reason I remember this gripe is that I wrote it down.

I strongly recommend this one to you—it’s the kind of book that makes me want to go and lower the stars on Lancaster’s earlier books because this is so much better than what he’d done before—there’s a depth, complexity, and richness to plot, character, and style that wasn’t there in the Tom Novak books (don’t get me wrong—I enjoyed each of them). If he’s stepped up his game this much in so short a time, Lancaster’s going to have a long and very satisfying career.

4 Stars