Thorn arrived in my mailbox for the Kid for her birthday from my friend who lives in Alaska. Her wife went to college with Intisar Khanani, and so they sent her a signed copy and a note that maybe I should read it first. And since I was in a slump, and she had a book report due on something else, I snagged it, not expecting a whole lot, which just goes to show you about expectations, because this book blew me away. Thorn is […]
And this is why I don’t like reading books by a ‘friend of a friend’
A friend recently recommended this to me saying that it’s basically Harry Dresden set in Baltimore and I should give it a go if I liked Harry Dresden. As I was in the middle of Ghost Story at the time and the book was only five bucks, I figured there were probably worse books I could read. Honestly, I wish I’d passed on the book. I really wish I’d passed because the author is a friend of the person who recommended it to me, and I feel […]
Flames…FLAMES…on the side of my face…
I don’t think I can handle a coherent review on this one. Sputtering outrage, yes. Actual reasonable thoughts? No. See that picture over there? All those little pieces of paper are where I flagged sexist stuff. There are only two women in the book, basically, so that gap at the beginning is when neither of them had shown up yet, and that gap in the middle was because I just got too tired of outrage. This is your brain on fantasy/sci fi from the 1960s. Sigh. […]
I’m not crying on the subway; you’re crying on the subway.
I want a dragon. I want a dragon. I want a dragon. No, but seriously, I want a dragon. His Majesty’s Dragon is a really unique and exciting first book in a series with which I’ll definitely continue. I walked into it with no background, other than a friend’s recommendation, and it actually took me by surprise, with quite a bit of delight. So, some background here: Will Laurence is a seasoned captain for the British Navy during the Napoleanic Wars. His crew captures a […]
It’s like you don’t even take the apocalypse seriously.
I am a big fan of Richard Kadrey’s Sandman Slim series. It is a crazy, operatic, dark, violent wild ride that regularly goes off the rails, spins out of control and then sticks the landing. If you like urban fantasy, noir-ish mystery and aren’t offended by god’s name being taken in vain, you should read it. I was giddy with excitement when I read that Kadrey has released a new book and that it’s the first book in a new series. The Everything Box is […]
Returning to a series I had abandoned
I abandoned The Dresden Files after Changes, not because I thought the story got bad or Butcher pissed me off with a story line, I just stopped reading. I thought the story had come to a conclusion I was happy with, and so just didn’t read any further. Perhaps if I’d had Ghost Story immediately after finishing Changes I would have continued, but I didn’t and when Ghost Story was finally released I was happy with the conclusion I’d drawn across the series. However Ingres77 and […]