Tag: 4 Stars Page 62 of 83

The Old World by Roy M. Griffis

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On May 12, 2016

In Fiction, General Fiction/Literature

The Old World The Old World

by Roy M. Griffis
Series: By the Hands of Men, Book One

Kindle Edition, 262 pg.
CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2013

Read: April 29 – 30, 2016


I was blindsided by this one — I knew what to expect plot-wise, don’t get me wrong — what I didn’t know what how little time it’d take for me to care. I got invested in this story and the characters far faster than I normally would.

Charlotte Braninov was sent to a boarding school in England to keep her safe during the tumult leading up to the October Revolution, not one to hide away, she volunteered to become a nurse tending to the English wounded in France during the Great War. Her American friend (who we could’ve spent a little more time with), Kathleen, is in a similar position. Toiling away at a hospital near the front lines — there’s a great focus on the nurses here, not just the doctors and surgeons (as one usually gets), those who tend to the wounded and dying all the time. I really appreciated that.

Charlotte has a brief encounter with a charming and wounded British officer that leaves a mark on her psyche. Not surprisingly (because this is a novel, and people like that don’t just vanish), Lt. Robert Fitzgerald is stationed at the hospital Charlotte serves. Events conspire to get them to spend time together, a friendship blooms — and maybe something else will as well.

Through Robert, we get a glimpse or two of life in the trenches while Charlotte is our entry to medical care. Between the two, you get a decent idea what things were like in France (or at least Griffis lets you think you do). The research is there, but you get the idea Griffis wouldn’t let historical data get in the way of his story (which is the way it ought to be in historical fiction). He also doesn’t overwhelm you with details the way so many slip up and do in early works — just enough to provide atmosphere and add an air of authenticity.

Tragedy, hardship, horrors of war intrude and complicate life. Honestly, peacetime isn’t a picnic for anyone, either — especially for someone from Russia. The plot takes a couple of twists and turns, setting things up nicely for a sequel that you really need after the last couple of paragraphs.

This isn’t just a love story, nor is it really that much of a war story — it’s both and a lot more. You’ll chuckle, you’ll “awww,” you’ll get ticked off, you’ll be moved. Pretty much, if you name it, Griffis characters will make you feel it.

I’m not going to tell you that Griffis is a master of style, a wizard with subtle characterization, or a weaver of intricate plots, or anything like that. What he is, however, is a compelling story-teller. You like Charlotte, Kathleen, Orlando, Robert, Matron, and the rest almost effortlessly and want to see them happy, healthy, etc. You care about the events surrounding them and the outcomes for the characters. I really liked this one and am trying to find a hole in my schedule to throw the sequel into, you should do the same.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this from the author — sorry for imposing on your patience, Roy — in exchange for an honest review.

Slow Burn by Ace Atkins

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On May 11, 2016

In Ace Atkins, Authors, Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, Robert B. Parker, Spenser

Slow BurnRobert B. Parker’s Slow Burn

by Ace Atkins
Series: Spenser, #44

Hardcover, 304 pg.
G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 2016

Read: May 5, 2016

On the Greenway, a carousel turned to calliope music. The two men approached me. They tried to act like they were shopping, but they were as unobtrusive as a couple of linebackers at a Céline Dion concert.

Say what you will about the relative merits of Atkins’ two current series, but you won’t get lines like that from Quinn Colson (maybe from Lille Virgil). (That’s not really the best line of the book — it’s just the one that requires the least setup)

We’re introduced to a new world here — the Boston Fire Department, and the Arson investigators in particular (but not exclusively). It’s a little harder for Spenser to work his magic here, at least at first, being very much a duck out of water. But, he keeps at it, and eventually things start falling into place — even if he makes one serious (and perhaps life-threatening) mistake early on. There’s a series of suspected arsons, but the proof is minimal, and it doesn’t push the investigators in the right direction — or any direction, really. The usual motives (fascination with fire, insurance money) don’t seem to be involved here.

I should add that the motive for the crimes is interesting, if misguided. I’d almost like to see a bit more of it explored by the good guys, but that’s not what this book is about.

Spenser and his allies do their thing, the way they always do (but fueled by a different donut source). The same ol’ charm, wise cracks, and fists eventually do their job. I think this one is a notch above Atkins’ last — a couple of notches below Atkins or Parker at their best, but better than Parker’s average. The fact that I have to work this hard to decide where exactly in the 40+ this one lies says something — it’s on the good end, I should stress — but it’s hard to distinguish this from the master himself, Robert B. Parker.

There’s some good fodder for long-time fans here — Marty Quirk has a new job, Frank Belson has a new boss (one not particularly taken with Spenser). Not only do we get a callback to Mattie Sullivan, but we get a couple from the more distant parts of Spenser’s past — A Catskill Eagle and Promised Land, one of my least favorites and one of Parker’s best. Atkins’ ability to use for the current narrative, comment on, and tap into fanboy nostalgia all at the same time is really something to watch.

Atkins is again feeling confident enough in his role here to make significant moves in Spenser’s life — not to mention Pearl’s and Sixkill’s. I’m not sure I’m crazy about the latter two, but I’m trusting Atkins. I’m pretty sure he has a plan regarding our favorite disgraced athlete that’ll pay off. Can’t help but wonder what Parker had in store for him, though.

Speaking of plans and things in store — it’s pretty clear that Atkins has a plan for Jackie DeMarco, too. I hope it takes a few books to pull it off, but I fear it won’t.

I’m very glad to hear that we’ve got at least two more of these coming, Atkins is really helping me stay in touch with an old, old friend. I smiled, I chuckled, I even laughed a couple of times, and I reminisced a little, while wondering just how Spenser was going to save the day. All in all, a good way to spend a couple of hours. Now I’ve just got to count down the months until #45.

—–

4 Stars

Dead is Best by Jo Perry

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On May 5, 2016

In Charlie & Rose Investigate, Dogs, Fiction, Jo Perry, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

Dead is BestDead is Best

by Jo Perry
Series: Charlie & Rose Investigate, #2

Kindle Edition, 296 pg.
Fahrenheit Press, 2016

Read: May 2, 2016

You’d think that having given up the ghost I’d be beyond the grasp of my ex-stepdaughter, the parasite.

Sure, Charlie’s less-than-charitable assessment, doesn’t make it sound like death has mellowed him at all — or that we really want to spend a novel looking into the trials and tribulations of his ex-stepdaughter, Cali. (a quick aside: I loved Charlie’s rant about the pretentious names given to Cali and her peers, “Truth, Canyon, Druid, Turquoise, Vanilla and Road. Don’t tell me those are names–– they’re brands. “) But last time we learned that 1. Charlie has actually mellowed a bit, we just need more time to see it; 2. He’s generally right about his family; and it won’t take long before the reader will actually care about Cali. As difficult as she’ll make it.

Textbooks will tell you that Cali is a “troubled teen.” Which is a pretty vague, and a likely outdated, term. She’s a drinker, a drug user, defiant daughter (although once you meet her mother and current stepfather, you kind of get that) in trouble with the law. But it doesn’t take long once Charlie and Rose start to follow her for her to end up in more trouble than she — or anyone — deserves.

Once again, there’s very little that Charlie and Rose can do other than watch what’s happening and put two and two together in the almost vain hope that Charlie can do something about it. Rest assured, they do, and it doesn’t involve another near death experience (I was a little afraid they’d just be hanging around Surgical Centers waiting for the next opportunity to talk to another ghost). It’s hard to believe that a mystery series where no one knows that the main characters did anything works. But this does.

What can I say about Rose? She’s at once one of the most realistic dog characters I can remember reading lately (she doesn’t talk, narrate, have a point of view chapter, or communicate telepathically), and yet, as a ghost, is the hardest to believe. She’s such a good influence on Charlie, I’m glad whatever or Whoever brought them together after their deaths.

Charlie said something in the last book about death not being about learning anything or insight or growth, that he stays the same. I don’t believe it, he’s not the same guy. But it’s probably a good sign that he doesn’t realize it.

Something I should’ve mentioned when I talked about the previous novel, these chapter epigraphs are great. They represent a truly impressive collection of quotations about death, some funny, some thoughtful, just about all of them keepers. The book is worth the effort just to read these (but you should really focus on the rest of the book).

Perry’s freakishly short chapters make you think Robert Parker was prone to be long-winded and rambling, but they work. You could probably make the case that they’re a commentary on the transient nature of human life or something (if you wanted to, and I don’t). They keep things moving, really keep anything from dragging, and help you get how Charlie and Rose can jump from place to place with ease.

Funny, poignant, all-around good story-telling. Plus there’s a dog. You really can’t ask for more than that. It’s easy to see why people as diverse as Cat Warren and Eric Idle commend these books. I strongly recommend this one (and the predecessor).

—–

4 Stars

Indexing (Audiobook) by Seanan McGuire, Mary Robinette Kowal

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On May 4, 2016

In Authors, Fiction, Indexing, K-O, Seanan McGuire, Urban Fantasy

Indexing AudiobookIndexing

by Seanan McGuire, Mary Robinette Kowal
(Narrator)
Series: Indexing, #1

Unabridged Audiobook, 13 hours
BrillianceAudio, 2015
It could easily be argued that I’ve said enough (if not too much) about Indexing. So I’m not going to talk about the story, the writing, and so on, beyond this: not listening to this episodically like I read it, highlights strengths and weaknesses. For example, it’s minor, but the way she has to re-introduce the cast in every episode gets pretty tiring when you hear them all minutes apart — but you don’t really notice at all when you read them every 2 weeks.

The book as a whole is developed better and more fully than I realized initially — the whole thing is a lot more connected than I realized. I’d been intending to kick back and read the whole thing sometime to see how it held together, and I’m glad I got the chance to with the audiobook. It’s really a much stronger whole than I realized.

The main thing I want to talk about is Mary Robinette Kowal (that’s three audiobooks in a row from her, I have to take a break before I just assume that every audiobook is by her). She was fantastic. Her Sloane wasn’t anything like the Sloane in my head, but far superior. The rest of the team was spot on — but the best was Henry. The little inflections of her voice when Henry was closest to her Story, when she was at her most Snow White-ness, added so much to McGuire’s words. I really couldn’t believe how much more I got out of it through her interpretation of the character. Just outstanding.

If you haven’t read the stories or book yet, I do recommend them — but if you get the chance, go with the audio instead. A recommendation I never thought I’d say about any book and audiobook.

—–

4 Stars

Madam Tulip by David Ahern

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On May 3, 2016

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

While in the shower this morning, it hit me that I left out something like a paragraph and a half of this — and I had to make the choice: fix this before it posted, or get to work and fix it later. Because my wife tends to appreciate things like paychecks, a roof over our heads and food for the kids, I chose the latter. If you read this already, try it again.

This one just launched this past weekend — get it while it’s hot and fresh so he can do more!
—

Madam TulipMadam Tulip

by David Ahern
Series: Madam Tulip, #1

Kindle Edition, 309 pg.
Malin Press, 2016

Read: April 27 – 28, 2016

‘Hi,’ said Marlene, pausing for the briefest moment before striding up the steps and through the entrance, trailing the rest behind. Derry might have been justifiably offended at the offhand greeting but recognised the signs of a woman bursting for a pee. That a supermodel needed to pee was a gratifying thought, even endearing, though Derry recognised it was odd to like somebody just because they had a bladder. . .

Derry sighed. Her father was about to lose two hundred euro on a race, and although he wouldn’t dream of blaming her, she felt responsible. And now she was condemned to spend the afternoon in the company of a supermodel. Next to Marlene, Derry felt like a hobbit—a hobbit overweight and round even by the famously relaxed standards of hobbits. She looked down at her shoes (charity shop) then at Marlene’s (Jimmy Choos) and her soul shrank a little inside her.

Derry’s an out-of-work actor — “fully qualified for unemployment in three different dialects” — trying to make a go of it in her father’s hometown of Dublin, and is on her last legs. Her mother is on the verge forcing her to return to the States and get a real job. And by “force,” I mean, “stop paying her bills so she has no choice.” But Derry’s got a little something extra working for her, she’s the only daughter of a seventh son of a seventh son — and therefore, has a bit of a gift. She uses it to read Tarot and other cards for her friends as a laugh, and that’s really about it. But suddenly, she really needs money, and the mother of invention just had another kid.

With the help of her friend, Bella, and a couple of costume and makeup artists at a local theater, they create an alter ego for Derry, Madam Tulip — celebrity fortune-teller. Her first gig is at a charity event that Marlene sets her up with — Marlene is blown away by Derry’s gift, and desperately needs a friend. The event is the perfecting launching pad for her new role, it’s attended by actors, musicians, models, has-beens, wanna-bes, people with too much money, etc. For example, there’s Mojo.

Mojo was an outlandishly gorgeous rapper from London, winner of numerous industry awards. He was also the star of TV ads for masculine cosmetics and a revolutionary vacuum cleaner also created especially for men, so presumably designed to withstand long periods of storage under the stairs.

(yeah, it was an awkward transition, but I got to use that quotation)

Not to get into details, but the event goes well — Tulip sees many people, some of whom take her card; Derry and Marlene get closer; money is raised for . . . something, I don’t know. Well, sure, nothing’s perfect — Derry runs into an old flame, Bella runs into trouble and someone died. If Derry’s sight is right, that’s just the beginning of the trouble. Before long, Derry and at least two of her friends are in danger on several fronts. Oh, yeah, and her mother is coming to town.

Ahren’s put a lot of thought into these characters, it’s clear — they’re well-drawn, well-utilized, and prime for return in a sequel. Beyond Derry and Marlene, we have the aforementioned Bella — an outspoken fellow struggling-actress, the ex-boyfriend (will let you learn about him on your own) and Bruce. Bruce is an actor, and so much more — starting with ex-SEAL, which means he can be used for the dangerous stuff. Thankfully, he’s more human than most characters in this position, he’s not a gay version of Joe Pike or Ranger from the Stephanie Plum novels (nor is he Spike from the Sunny Randall series). He’s a guy who’s done some things, seen some things, and is working to move on into his new life. We also have Derry’s folks — her mother (just as charming as you’d expect from the ultimatum) and her artist father. Derry’s father, Jacko, is the stand-out character for me — he reminded me of Moxie Mooney’s father from Fletch’s Moxie (been years since I’ve read that, so maybe he shouldn’t have). Jacko’s full of life, an inveterate gambler, a painter with an ego to match his talent, womanizer, not-as-devoted-as-he-thinks father — and, of course, the seventh son of a seventh son. I can easily see him becoming a drag on the series (see Grandma Mazur in the Plum novels), but as long as Ahren uses him right, he’s probably going to be my favorite.

Here’s the best part of the book for me, it’s also the part that keeps this in the “Mystery” category and not “Urban Fantasy,” Derry’s gift really has very little to do with the outcome of things. She knows there’s trouble afoot (murder tends to indicate that), she has friends in peril, and she does something about it (calling the police is out, for pretty good reasons). It’s Derry’s wits and some help from her friends that allows her to help bring justice to the situation. Naturally, most of the help on the friend side comes from the ex-SEAL, because when you’re in danger, and you have an ex-SEAL friend, that’s who you look to. Derry risks life and limb to help out her friends without any supernatural, extrasensory, etc. assistance.

This isn’t a comedy, but it’s comedic. Ahern writes with a light, but confident, touch. It’s well-paced, and it kept me very engaged. The mystery is fairly simple, but this doesn’t set out to to be a head-scratcher. It’s a silly adventure — and a well-executed one at that. Think Psych where Shawn actually has abilities, and doesn’t need James Roday’s affable charm to keep him from being the most annoying character in television history. Ahern’s clearly and carefully set the stage for several more books with these characters, and I’m eager to see what he does next.

Disclaimer: I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest review, and I thank him for bringing it to my attention.

—–

4 Stars

There Will Always Be a Max by Michael R. Underwood

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On April 28, 2016

In Fiction, Genrenauts, Michael R. Underwood, P-U, Science Fiction

There Will Always Be a MaxThere Will Always Be a Max

by Michael R. Underwood
Series: Genrenauts, Episode 2.1

Kindle Edition, 26 pg.
Tor.com, 2016

Read: April 23, 2016


It’s not often that I do prep work before reading something — especially a 26 page story. But I wanted to fully appreciate this, so in the weeks leading up to the release (and one week after — hence the late review), I watched the Mad Max films — I’m not sure why, but they never appealed to me back in the 80s, and while I was curious about Fury Road, I hadn’t gotten around to it yet. While I’m very underwhelmed by the first two, the third was okay, and I really liked the latest. So finally, I felt ready to read this story.

So, so glad that I watched the movies first — I’d have been okay without it, but there were nuances, etc. that you pick up with the right background.

So we’re in a post-apocalyptic area, very much out of the Mad Max movies. Angstrom King is the only Genrenaut involved here — for reasons well explained — but Roman overshadows everything. I really appreciated this approach. I’ve been curious about the hints that Underwood dropped in The Absconded Ambassador about Roman and am glad we got more here — tho’ I’m still looking forward to getting the whole story eventually. It was good to see King doing more than commanding a mission, it was good for the character to get in the thick of things.

Underwood’s treatment of “The Max” idea/character is well done. The story, while brief, is full and exciting. Not much more to ask from 26 pages, really.

—–

4 Stars

The Absconded Ambassador (Audiobook) by Michael R. Underwood, Mary Robinette Kowal

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On April 28, 2016

In Authors, Fiction, Genrenauts, Michael R. Underwood, Science Fiction

The Absconded AmbassadorThe Absconded Ambassador

by Michael R. Underwood, Mary Robinette Kowal
(Narrator)
Series: Genrenauts, Episode 2

Unabridged Audiobook, 3 hours and 25 minutes
Macmillan Audio, 2016
Read: April 8, 2016
I really don’t have much more to say about the audiobook that I didn’t say about the original, but I wanted to get something up — so if this seems largely familiar, it is. But not entirely …

Working as a Genrenaut was like being a member of a theater troupe run by a burnt-out hippie who melded Devising with MBA management: the ideas were outlandish and random, but the execution was 100% corporate.

The second episode in Michael R. Underwood’s Genrenauts delivers on the promise of Episode 1, and demonstrates that his special alchemy of Leverage + The Librarians + Quantum Leap + Thursday Next (just my current guess at his secret recipe) has legs — and will hopefully go a long time.

Leah has had about a week to get used to this new reality since her adventure in Western World — a week filled with meetings, reading assignments and trying to wrap her head around things. In the meanwhile, everyone at Genrenauts HQ is trying to prepare for the next breach (in the midst of a spike of 15% over the norm, for your corporate types), probably in Romance World. Which obviously means it’ll be pretty much anywhere else, like say Science Fiction World.

The station of Ahura-3, in the space opera region, to be specific. I’m sure the similarity between the name of the station and a certain Communications Officer is a huge coincidence. Ahura-3 is everything you want in a space station — it’s a melting pot of very-alien-looking/acting aliens, it’s a culture to itself, with strategic location, and very delicate intergalactic politics.

Leah’s excitement about being in “honest-to-goodness, Sally Ride is my homegirl zero-g” space was infectious (especially in this format). But even more fun was the amount of SF references Underwood fit into half of chapter 1 — truly astounding, and didn’t feel forced or overcrowded. He deserves a tip of the cap right there. But the fun’s not limited to the references and allusions — it’s in the alien cultural practices (and appearances), the various factions (human and otherwise), businesses, and just watching the whole Science Fiction World thing at work.

Mary Robinette Kowal did another bang-up job. I’m still not crazy about her voice for King, but I listened to this one using my earbuds instead of my car speakers and she’s much easier to hear with that voice that way, so it doesn’t bother me as much. I liked her alien characters a lot. Shirin and Leah are great (I think I like the audiobook take on Shirin better than the one in my head when reading, actually)

Good way to spend a little time — very entertaining all around.

—–

4 Stars

Off to See the Wizard by Clay Johnson

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On April 26, 2016

In Book Tour, Fiction


Here we are at the end of our day-long Book Tour stop for Off to See the Wizard (see Parts One, Two, and Three). Hope you enjoyed it.
—

Off to See the WizardOff to See the Wizard

by Clay Johnson

Kindle Edition, 373 pg.

Ravenswood Publishing, 2016
Read: April 18 – 22, 2016

From the beginning? Are you certain? The beginning is pretty dull, you know. All of the violence comes later. The beginning is just sex and blood and guts, and— yes, right, I see it now; fair point.

Let’s see… it began with that dwarf. At least, I think he was a dwarf. He may have been a child. I don’t honestly pay much attention to the jesters they hire. Mostly, they are little more than jingling bells in the background. I know he was very short. Wait! He had a beard. One of those awful, disgusting sort that grow scraggly and in patches. Looked like he’d glued stringy chunks of carpet to his cheeks; do you know the sort?

Yes, had to have been a dwarf.

A tale of an attempted apocalypse, a quest to thwart it, love (or something like it) in bloom, love (or something like it) in trouble, and the aftermath of it all. It may not sound like fodder for comedy, but in Clay Johnson’s hands, it is.

A royal feast ends abruptly, and in a disturbing way (although the way it’s narrated, its pretty humorous). And then soon, horrible things (mostly involving blood in places and amounts no one wants) start happening all over. Naturally, citizens, royalty and everyone in between demands answers — so they turn to a wizard to tell them what’s going on and how to stop it. The wizard has no clue (this will be a recurring theme), but sets off on a quest to find out. He takes his girlfriend, a swordsman, and a redshirt (the wizard has a strong sense of self-preservation). He soon regrets all of these choices — his girlfriend spends most of the time upset with him, the redshirt is a mopey kid who writes horrible poems (and is never used as cannon fodder), the swordsman deserts them. Thankfully, a better swordsman, and a drunken elf queen in training join up after that. Really, very little goes well on the quest.

Meanwhile, the Demon Lord who started the whole thing, really didn’t mean to — he was actually trying to do something else, and it went horribly wrong (I’ll leave it to you to learn what) — and he spends most of the book trying to ameliorate the situation and get his original purpose back on track. Very little goes well for him, either.

In the end, things are a giant mess, so a Royal Inquisitor is sent out to investigate it afterwards, and the book is a edited together compilation of transcripts of his interviews with witnesses, the quest party, the villains of the piece, and others. The mutually contradictory takes on the events given by the various interviewees are hilarious — each person has a strong voice, you pretty much get to the point where you skip the text identifying who’s speaking, you can tell who it is just from their language. It doesn’t take long for the reader to suss out how to take the competing versions and get to a pretty good idea of what really happened.

I don’t remember the details, and am short on time, so I can’t look for them. But somewhere, C. S. Lewis talks about why it’s appropriate (well, at least not totally inappropriate) to laugh at bawdy jokes if they’re cleverly told, involve some creative word play, and so on — not at the vulgarity of them. Given that cover by the noted apologist, I can freely admit that I laughed plenty at this. Johnson’s characters, their dialogue, and his creative use of words and imagery are wielded so well, that you just could help but laugh (even a few times when I knew Lewis wouldn’t approve of it). This is what Franco, McBride and the rest were going for in the movie Your Highness a couple of years ago — a funny fantasy. The Princess Bride for those who appreciate rated-R comedies.

For example, there’s a moment that got me laughing out loud — a lot — where someone inadvertently invents/coins one of the seven words you can’t couldn’t say on TV. The effect that word has on the most hardened criminals in the kingdoms was fantastic — it’s a moment that’ll stick with me for awhile.

From time to time the narrative started to drag a little bit, and I’d start to wonder if anything was actually going to happen. But within a page, I’d chuckle at something again and forget about the slow plot.

In the end, it was a little too off-color for me, but Johnson pulled it off in such a way that I was able to put that aside and enjoy his story and his story-telling. Really, Off to See the Wizard is the funniest thing I’ve read this year — and I can’t imagine much topping it.

Disclaimer: I received this book from the nice folks at Ravenswood Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

—–

4 Stars

Chaos Choreography by Seanan McGuire

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On April 14, 2016

In InCryptid, K-O, Seanan McGuire, Urban Fantasy

Chaos ChoreographyChaos Choreography

by Seanan McGuire
Series: InCryptid, #5

Mass Market Paperback, 345 pg.
DAW, 2016

Read: March 24 – 25, 2016

Hey, wow, who’d have thunk it — a positive review of a Seanan McGuire novel from The Irresponsible Reader?!? Next thing, I’ll be telling you that the sky is blue, water is wet and J. J. Abrams likes lens flares. But what do you want from me? Seanan McGuire is a great author who consistently puts out fun reads. The only reason that she hasn’t taken over the world yet is that she doesn’t want to.

Oh, spoiler alert: I’m probably going to be giving very positive reviews to two other McGuire works in the next week or two.

So what can I say about this one? It’s probably the most enjoyable, most entertaining, most emotionally resonant, best all-around entry in the InCryptid series to date.

Verity and Dominic are living with her parents, which is going about as well as you could expect, and trying to get used to life outside of NYC when Verity gets a call from the reality show she came thiiiiiis close to winning before we met her in Discount Armageddon (well, her cover identity got a call, technically). They’re doing a best-of season, and need her to round out the cast.

Next thing they know, they’re working up a new cover for Dominic and heading for L. A. Where we meet Verity’s long-lost besties, a would-be frenemy (if anyone took her seriously), and a few cryptids.

We get the return of the lady Dragons — both the group we met in Discount as well as L.A.’s very own, plus a few others. The cryptid cultures of L. A. (and the West in general) developed in very interesting ways. Sadly, one of the things that seems to be pretty popular are snake cults — there’s one that seems to be pretty serious about things and are using human sacrifices to power a spell.

Which means that Verity has to do a little more than just dance, she has to find the cultists before it’s too late. She calls upon friends new and old, Dominic, even the Aeslin mice and a Price that we’ve heard of, just never met. Leading to a final confrontation that’s one for the ages — and nothing will be the same again for the Prices family. I’m not so sure that it’ll be the same again for anyone.

I’d happily read about any and all of the new cryptids we meed here again, and most of the humans, too (not the evil ones, just for the record). McGuire’s assembled a great bunch of characters for this one.

I love the fact that not only do we get to see the Aeslin mice developing new religious celebrations, but we see them in action — putting their tiny little lives on the line to save the day. I also like to see Verity coming to grips with the choices she’s been making the last few years, what that means for her, and what place dancing and the rest have in her life.

Major kudos to McGuire for getting me to give a rip — not much of one, but still — about dance competitions. I don’t get dance — I mean dancing, I get. I’m no good at it, but I get. But watching dance — any form – I just don’t see the appeal. But for a few pages here and there I was almost interested in Verity’s other career. That’s a pretty major accomplishment.

Now I’ve just got to settle in and wait a year for lil’ sister Antimony’s first novel. Is it 2017 yet?

—–

4 Stars

The Red Storm by Grant Bywaters

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On April 8, 2016

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

The Red StormThe Red Storm

by Grant Bywaters

Hardcover, 277 pg.
Minotaur Books, 2015

Read: March 24, 2016


So you’ve got a barely scraping by, more literate than he appears, PI in the 1930’s. He’s good with a gun, better with his fists, his mouth gets him into trouble. He has a friend with the police, and many more on the streets (well, at least people who owe him favors and vice versa). It’s not NY or LA, but so far, this is pretty straight-forward — even having his office in New Orleans doesn’t make him stand out too much. Doesn’t mean it’s bad — just that this is a variation on a theme.

What if I told you that he’s black?

Well, now here we have something new. This is a pretty big variation. Thankfully, this isn’t just a gimmick, either.

Once an up and coming boxer in NYC, William Fletcher realized that the color of his skin was going to keep him out of Title contention and falls into a life of crime, acting as the muscle for a minor-league gangster, Storm. He’s not all that crazy about the life, but he goes along for a while. Storm gets desperate, does some really stupid things and has to get out of town. Sometime in the next decade, Fletcher moves down to New Orleans, gets himself a PI license and sets up shop.

Storm comes to town, looking up his old “friend” and asks him to look for his long-lost daughter, Zelda. Without taking money from a fugitive, or even agreeing to work for him, Fletcher tracks down the girl (now a lounge singer), but will only tell Storm where if she agrees. While she’s thinking about it, things get interesting.

People start trying to kill her, for starters, and she hires Fletcher to be a body-guard. While the city begins to erupt in a gang war, somehow Zelda and Fletcher are in the middle of it — neither understands why, but Fletcher is going to find out.

The characters are so rich, so flawed, so human. Fletcher’s having to be creative to get access to people and places while being black in Louisiana in the 30’s is compelling to watch. He’s a realist about the disadvantages his color imposes on him. He’s not happy about them, but he’s not off to change hearts and minds, he just deals with the reality he finds himself in. Zelda’s deeply flawed, but trying to overcome her flaws (mostly). The criminals are great characters, too — classic mobsters in the ’30’s mold.

This is at once a historical mystery and a hard-boiled P.I. novel, a combination I hadn’t realized I wanted. But man, I had a blast with this. Along those lines, I there were a couple of vocabulary choices that seemed anachronistic, but they weren’t so obnoxious that they took me out of the moment or made me want to go look up to see if they were fitting for the time.

I feel like I should have more to say, but I really don’t. At this point, it’s just gushing — Red Storm is taut and well-paced, with a good mystery at the core and a P. I. as knight errant — protecting the damsel and righting wrongs. Fletcher is the real deal, so is Bywaters. I hope to see a lot more of both of them, soon.

Disclaimer: I was provided a copy of this by the author in exchange for my review, which didn’t influence my take. The fact that he seemed willing to banter with me and caught a reference I made in an early email didn’t either — probably.

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4 Stars

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