Tuesday, November 16, 2010
GIVEAWAY: Win an ADVANCE READING COPY of Jonathan Maberry's "The King of Plagues"!
“Saturday 09:11 Hours: A blast rocks a London hospital and thousands are dead or injured… 10:09 Hours: Joe Ledger arrives on scene to investigate. The horror is unlike anything he has ever seen. Compelled by grief and rage, Joe rejoins the DMS and within hours is attacked by a hit-team of assassins and sent on a suicide mission into a viral hot zone during an Ebola outbreak. Soon Joe Ledger and the Department of Military Sciences begin tearing down the veils of deception to uncover a vast and powerful secret society using weaponized versions of the Ten Plagues of Egypt to destabilize world economies and profit from the resulting chaos. Millions will die unless Joe Ledger meets the this powerful new enemy on their own terms as he fights terror with terror...”
Jonathan Maberry’s The King of Plagues isn’t scheduled for publication until March 29, 2011, but thanks to St. Martin’s Griffin, FIFTY very lucky readers will get the opportunity to read an ADVANCE READING COPY of The King of Plagues now. To enter, just fill out the form HERE. Giveaway ends on November 30, 2010 by 12:00 p.m. ET.
Note: Open only to US residents
Jonathan Maberry’s The King of Plagues isn’t scheduled for publication until March 29, 2011, but thanks to St. Martin’s Griffin, FIFTY very lucky readers will get the opportunity to read an ADVANCE READING COPY of The King of Plagues now. To enter, just fill out the form HERE. Giveaway ends on November 30, 2010 by 12:00 p.m. ET.
Note: Open only to US residents
12:00 PM | 
Posted by
Robert |
Official M.R. Mathias Website
Order "The Royal Dragoneers" or HERE(Kindle) or HERE(Nook)
Read an Extended Excerpt from the novel HERE
Read FBC Review of The Sword and the Dragon
INTRODUCTION: Not long ago I discovered M.R. Mathias, the author of The Sword and the Dragon, book that stayed in my memory despite seemingly being the traditional fantasy I tend to avoid; though of course there is a twist in the tale, but the crucial fact is that the author' style just resonated with me.
When I heard about The Royal Dragoneers, a more YA oriented series debut from the author, I was curious since occasionally YA books by authors whose style I like a lot also appeal to me. Here is the blurb, though I would say that it only partly reflects the essence the novel.
"After struggling for more than two centuries to tame the inhospitable, dragon infested Islands where they washed up, the descendants of the survivors of a lost passenger ship are now striving to tame the Mainland they have found. But the Goblin King, an Ivory antlered demon called Gravelbone, has a different plan for the men who are invading his territory. He and his Nightshade are rallying the trolls to defend their lands. With the help of the dragons, goblins, and orcs they plan on rendering the wall the humans have built useless, so that they can drive man back to the islands from where they came. When stubborn King Blanchard finally accepts that the kingdom really is under attack it may be too late, and the only ones who can save the people on the Mainland have been locked away in the dungeon Join some brave young men and their mentor, a grizzled old King's Ranger, and a particularly clever young magic wielding woman, as they traverse the wild frontier, and sail to King's Island to warn the King of the warring trolls. Then hold on for your life as you tear through the pages, because the pure blooded dragons they have befriended have another plan all together."
FORMAT/CLASSIFICATION: The Royal Dragoneers stands at about 350 pages divided into five named parts and 39 chapters. The narration is third person and from several POV's. There is also a map of the Dragoneers' Lands which you can find online HERE.
Jenka De Swasso is a sixteen year old ranger's apprentice from the deep frontier lands who has an unexpected encounter with a dragon. Zahrellion (Zah) is a seemingly young looking and beautiful druida whose people tend to keep to themselves and study science and magic. Rikky is one of Jenka's friends who will have his own tale. Prince Richard, the popular dashing heir to the kingdom is seemingly the hero of a prophecy.
With a reasonable ending point, The Royal Dragoneers starts a YA-ish series of adventure, discovery and magic, written in the exuberant style of the author which is familiar from The Sword and the Dragon.
ANALYSIS: "Good" dragons, destined boys and girls, prophecies, princes, magicians (called druids) and witches with some of the funniest names in recent books like Linux and Mysterian, nasty demons, "bad" dragons, goblins, orcs, cackling villains and combat of the "my magic is bigger than your magic" type - all in a YA setting to boot; this seems another book I would run away as fast as I can from, but I actually enjoyed it a lot and read it in one sitting since it was very engrossing and I wanted to see what happens. I also reread it after to see the little things I have missed and get some clues where the action goes next. Why?
The major reason was the style of the author; hard to pinpoint the specifics but it just appeals to me and it makes me want to read his books. Luckily there is an extended excerpt (currently 36% of the novel) at the link above, so you can go and check it out for yourself. Narrative energy, earnest, likable main characters, a tone that is not ultra-dramatic or self important and a very well thought out world building are some of the conscious reasons that justify my statement above, but ultimately a lot depends if the book flows for you or not.
Regarding world building, little details that add up and show the carefulness mentioned are the number of generations from the shipwreck that populated the Dragoneers' Lands with humans, the rate of growth and expansion and its economic underpinnings, the historical memory or lack of such - 200 years is a long time too and much more plausible than the usual millennium or more that too often is thrown around in fantasies together with a steady state society.
Jenka may start as the typical destined boy, but he is modest and likable and he grows well into his role, while not becoming the know-it-all conquering hero that annoys me to no end in similar tales. The mysterious Zah remains, well mysterious, to the end of the book and I am curious to find out more about her and the druids and witches in general. Even the dragons have a twist or two, though you gotta read the book to find out about that.
Prince Richard and Rikky are less well developed and more "stock" to the end, but both bring their surprises too and the novel has the author's trademark twists on the traditional storyline and keeps one guessing where it will go. The action is fast and furious though from time to time it barely stops from descending into farce, when the "my magic is bigger than yours" becomes the sole reason for how the heroes escape this or that battle.
While The Royal Dragoneers (A) does not transcend its narrative space - YA exuberant adventure fantasy - it is a fun book that I heartily recommend if you want such and on par with anything from that space. The series has a lot of potential - there are geographical expansion hints, possibilities in the explorations of the world's magic, the whole dragons ecosystem that may offer surprises - and I am eager to see the next adventure M.R. Mathias will send our heroes on.
Order “Kill the Dead” HERE
Browse Inside HERE
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s Review of “Sandman Slim’
AUTHOR INFORMATION: Richard Kadrey is the author of over fifty short stories, a small number of non-fiction books, and five novels including Metrophage, Butcher Bird and Sandman Slim. He has written and spoken about art, culture and technology for Wired, The San Francisco Chronicle, Discovery Online, The Site, SXSW, and Wired for Sex on the G4 cable network. He is also a fetish photographer. Kill the Dead is his second Sandman Slim novel.
PLOT SUMMARY: James Stark, a.k.a. Sandman Slim, crawled out of Hell, took bloody revenge for his girlfriend's murder, and saved the world along the way. After that, what do you do for an encore? You take a lousy job tracking down monsters for money. It's a depressing gig, but it pays for your beer and cigarettes. But in L.A., things can always get worse.
Like when Lucifer comes to town to supervise his movie biography and drafts Stark as his bodyguard.
Sandman Slim has to swim with the human and inhuman sharks of L.A.'s underground power elite. That's before the murders start. And before he runs into the Czech porn star who isn't quite what she seems. Even before all those murdered people start coming back from the dead and join a zombie army that will change our world—and Stark's—forever...
FORMAT/INFO: Kill the Dead is 434 pages long without any chapter or part breaks. Narration is in the first-person present tense, exclusively via the protagonist, James Stark, a.k.a. Sandman Slim.
Kill the Dead can be read as a standalone story, but is the second Sandman Slim novel, while the open ending provides plenty of material for future sequels.
October 5, 2010 marks the North American Hardcover publication of Kill the Dead via EOS.
ANALYSIS: There was a time when I used to like reading urban fantasy novels, but thanks to publishers flooding the market with second/third-rate carbon copies and authors recycling the same ideas over and over, I’ve grown weary of the whole subgenre. Even so, every once in a while an urban fantasy title comes along that really catches my eye, like last year’s Sandman Slim by Richard Kadrey...
Combining the humor and accessibility of Jim Butcher’s Harry Dresden novels with the detective noir influences of the Nightside series by Simon R. Green, and the hard-boiled grittiness of Hellblazer, Charlie Huston’s Joe Pitt casebooks and Mike Carey’s Felix Castor novels, Sandman Slim was a fun and exciting introduction to James Stark—a nephilim (part human, part angel) who escaped after eleven years trapped in Hell to take revenge against Mason Faim, the person responsible for betraying Stark and murdering his girlfriend.
Along the way, the book also introduces Stark’s impressive collection of weapons (the shape-shifting na’at, Azazel’s knife, Mason’s lighter, Hellion magic, the Room of Thirteen Doors) and an interesting supporting cast that includes a talking head in former magician, Kasabian; Stark’s friend, the 200-year-old immortal alchemist, Vidocq; Allegra, an ex-video clerk who becomes Vidocq’s apprentice; Candy, a vampire-like Jade and possible romantic interest of Stark’s; Doc Kinski, a fallen angel who provides healing for the supernatural; Mr. Muninn, a “merchant to the stars and connoisseurs of esoterica”; and Carlos, the bartender of the Bamboo House of Dolls which caters to L.A.’s supernatural underworld; not to mention Lucifer, Aelita, and Marshal Wells of the Golden Vigil.
In addition to all of this, readers were also treated to a revenge-driven tale full of graphic violence, over-the-top action, creative magic, and surprising twists.
In the second Sandman Slim novel, Kill the Dead, readers can expect more of the same. More of the cocky, foul-mouthed Stark with his accompanying addictions for nicotine, booze, Aqua Regia, car theft, and smart-ass comments. More of Stark at his favorite hangouts (Max Overload, Donut Universe, the Bamboo House of Dolls, Vidoq’s apartment which was formerly where Stark and his girlfriend lived) with the same supporting cast—and a couple of new faces in Marshal Julie and Brigitte, a “Czech Gypsy porn-star zombie killer”.
More of Stark wielding his favorite weapons with violent and bloody results, while acquiring some new pieces for his arsenal including the Druj Ammun, access to the Daimonion Codex (Lucifer’s “mystical database”), and the manifestation of angelic powers. And more of Stark kicking ass, cracking jokes, and getting into trouble.
The story however, is a different matter altogether. Where Sandman Slim was all about revenge and started out with a bang that really never let up until the end of the book, Kill the End is a much slower and tedious affair—at least for the first two-thirds of the novel. During that time frame, readers are subjected to Stark talking a lot—to friends, strangers and readers alike—and such mundane matters as Sub Rosa politics and Stark combating money issues by working freelance for both the Golden Vigil and Lucifer, taking on menial jobs like hunting monsters, examining supernatural crime scenes, and working as Lucifer’s bodyguard.
Granted, there are moments of exciting, blood-spewing violence, impassioned sex, and entertaining verbal sparring sprinkled throughout these pages, but for the most part, I had to drag myself through this portion of the novel, all the while wondering if things were ever going to get better. Fortunately, the book does improve, significantly. Around the time the zombie plot to destroy Los Angeles is in full effect, the Sandman Slim I knew and loved from the first book, was back in all his cynical, ass-kicking glory. Add to that revelations about Stark’s father, one of his friends getting killed, another friend getting bitten by a zombie for which there is no cure, Stark’s angelic personality taking over his human side, some fascinating loose ends to be explored in future sequels, and plots to dethrone both God and Lucifer, and it was enough to make me forget about the novel’s laborious first two-thirds.
Writing-wise, Richard Kadrey puts together another solid performance in Kill the Dead highlighted by energetic pacing; stylish action sequences; cool slang words—Downtown (Hell), shroud eaters (vampires), Shut Eyes (psychics), High Plains Drifters (zombies); a creative twist on zombies that includes different types of zombies (Drifters, Lacunas, Savants) and the brutal method (ripping out their spines) in which to destroy them; and accessible, pop culture-soaked figures of speech:
“Know your enemy. His tactics, strengths, and weaknesses. When you do, ninety-nine percent of the time you’re going to make him squeak like a church mouse and run away like the Road Runner. Of course, if you get it wrong, you’re going to be a ten-foot banana and the guy you’re fighting will be King Kong with the munchies.”
Unfortunately, Richard Kadrey’s performance is not all good. Characterization for example, is practically non-existent, especially toward the supporting characters, which is apparent by my complete lack of care and concern when one of the characters is killed off and the lives of others are threatened. Then there’s Stark’s little identity crisis when his angel personality takes over, but his narrative voice remains largely the same. Also, Kadrey has a tendency to introduce interesting ideas like the Jackal’s Backbone or the Winter Garden, without really explaining their purpose or origins. On a personal note meanwhile, I grew tired of Stark’s incessant jokes and commentary, partly because it just doesn’t fit my view of how a cynical badass would act, making Stark seem more like an obnoxious teenager rather than a hardened killer, and partly because of the author’s overreliance on pop culture references and similes/metaphors that just weren’t very creative. Additionally, I felt Richard Kadrey dropped the ball a few times towards the end of the novel, taking the easy way out with convenient, Hollywood-esque resolutions instead of embracing the unconventional route.
CONCLUSION: Overall, Richard Kadrey’s Kill the Dead takes its sweet time getting to the good stuff, but when it does, the action is fast, furious and compelling, and will definitely satisfy fans of the first Sandman Slim novel while leaving readers already anticipating the next volume in the series. That said, if you like your urban fantasy dark and gritty, then there are much better options available than Sandman Slim, starting with Mike Carey’s superb Felix Castor novels and the awesome Joe Pitt series by Charlie Huston...
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Saturday, November 13, 2010
Some More Similar Narrative Space 2011 Books, Carol Berg, Leona Wisoker and Barbara Friend Ish
Following the previous post about two upcoming 2011 novels that live in the same narrative space (YA'ish fantasy) though at opposite ends (fun, exuberant, over the top vs dark, suspense, Gothic), here are are three more upcoming novels that live in their own same narrative space too (fantasy with magic and intrigue).
In January, the sequel to Carol Berg's The Spirit Lens (FBC Rv) comes from Roc. Four years after the events in the first Collegia Magica novel, Anne de Vernasse now 22 years old is summoned to the court from her family estate and The Soul Mirror is told in her voice. I am currently reading it and it is a very impressive novel so far which has the potential to become a top-top one of mine if it stays this way to the end. Here is the Amazon link for more, but it is spoilerish for The Spirit Lens so I won't include the blurb.Edit 11/22 Finished the novel and it is awesome and an A++; more thoughts on Goodreads but full of spoilers for the Spirit Lens since any discussion of this book will be that way; full rv in due time and for now just the link to avoid spoilers.
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In March, the sequel to the excellent debut Secrets of the Sands (FBC Rv) by Leona Wisoker comes from Mercury Retrograde Press. Again the blurb for Guardians of the Desert is spoilerish for the first installment, so I will include only the link to the publisher page for more details. This one is another high expectations novel of mine and the first several pages pick up with gusto from where Secrets of the Sands ended.*********************************************************
In February, a debut that has some similarities in style and content with Carol Berg's previous series the Lighthouse Duet, comes also from Mercury Retrograde Press.The Shadow of the Sun by Barbara Friend Ish is the first installment of her The Way of the Gods series. Here is the link to the publisher's page for more information and a sample chapter and the blurb:
"A Man Cannot Deny the Gods
Ten years ago, Ellion violated a sacred rule of magic and brought tragedy on his family. Forced to abandon his throne, exiled from the holy Aballo Order of wizards, and severed from his patron goddess, he swore never to work magic again. He retreated into music and a bard's footlose existence: living in other men's kingdoms, singing of other men's victories.
A Man Cannot Escape Destiny
But then the ard-righ, the king of kings, is murdered in an act of insurrection by a rogue wizard who follows the old gods. As the human nations teeter on the verge of chaos and civil war, Ellion tries to slip even farther away to the Tanaan realms, only to discover that they are threatened by the same enemy.
A Man Cannot Hide from the Shadow of the Sun
Now Ellion finds himself the protector of Letitia: a Tanaan princess, daughter of one of the greatest Tanaan heroines, and unwitting key to a great arcane mystery. Pursued by the rogue wizard's minions, enticed by gods he was taught to forswear, challenged by his former mentor, and tempted by the most enchanting woman he has ever encountered, Ellion must battle his faith, his vows, and the darkness his soul yearns to tap as he races to unravel the secret of the rogue's power: the Shadow of the Sun."
Edit 11/22
I finished the novel and The Shadow of the Sun is not quite what I am interested in - starts great but after a while it becomes "my magic is bigger than your magic" and I kind of lost interest though I turned the pages and fast read them to the end; very traditional fantasy and not bad if you like such, but not really what I appreciate; unlikely to be interested in the sequel.
I am an unabashed big fan of Alex Bell's novels (FBC Reviews of The Ninth Circle, Jasmyn, Lex Trent Versus the Gods) and despite being in territory that interests me less, I am really looking forward to the next Lex Trent adventure, whose cover has been recently released.
The title will be Lex Trent Fighting with Fire and I find the cover above very fitting for the spirit of the novels. Here is some Amazon.uk information which contains a little spoiler for the first Lex Trent book, so I will include only the link and not the blurb.
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In the same territory but on the darker side, the first English translation of Carlos Ruiz Zafon novel The Midnight Palace will be published by Hachette USA next year. I think that his two classic novels The Shadow of the Wind and The Angel's Game are already established in the canon of imaginative literature and I cannot recommend them highly enough.
I was a bit mixed on the first book from his loose YA trilogy, The Prince of Mist (FBC review CH, my take on Goodreads), but The Midnight Palace reads much better so far and I will finish the e-arc I got soon, though the review will come later in 2011.
Edit 11/22 I finished the book and it was a marked improvement on The Prince of the Mist.
A short take is here and a full review in due time:
After the mediocre Prince of the Mist (very, very YA), CR Zafon returns (in a manner of speaking since the book is from the early 90's predating his two masterpieces but the translation is only 2011) to what we expect from TSoW and TAG; now this book is still YA so we have simple action and relatively predictable plot with a twist and 16 year old heroes and heroines in typical world building that does not question the YA's roles as main leads - hence do not expect the layers and sophistication of the two adult novels - but the elements are there: narrative energy, inventiveness, great characters (even as sketches), surprises and the creepy descriptions that justly made the atmosphere of TSoW and TAG so awesome.
If you want an introduction to the author and see what the fuss is this book will do since it's short and fast. Highly recommended (again keeping in mind that is still YA so with all the limitations thereof)
To celebrate the recent release of Robert Jordan’s “Towers of Midnight” (Reviewed HERE)—which will be hitting the Nov 12 NYT Bestseller List at #1—Macmillan Audio is offering Wheel of Time fans the chance to win a FREE COPY of the “Towers of Midnight” Audiobook Edition, SIGNED by co-author Brandon Sanderson. The contest began this morning and will run through the weekend, ending MIDNIGHT on Sunday, November 14, 2010. Three winners will be picked at random and notified Monday morning.
TO ENTER: Simply visit Macmillan Audio’s fan page on Facebook at www.facebook.com/MacmillanAudio and post on their wall what you love most about The Wheel of Time...
Speaking of contests, Fantasy Literature is hosting their own giveaway for TWO COPIES of “Towers of Midnight”, SIGNED by Brandon Sanderson. For details on how to enter, click HERE.
TO ENTER: Simply visit Macmillan Audio’s fan page on Facebook at www.facebook.com/MacmillanAudio and post on their wall what you love most about The Wheel of Time...
Speaking of contests, Fantasy Literature is hosting their own giveaway for TWO COPIES of “Towers of Midnight”, SIGNED by Brandon Sanderson. For details on how to enter, click HERE.
Some More 2011 Books Read: Mark Newton, Joe Abercrombie, David Weber and co-authors, Alan Campbell (by Liviu Suciu)
I did one post earlier with the first two of my high expectation 2011 books, so I want to update with 4 more high expectations 2011 books that I've read. All will have full reviews here in due course, but for now just a reminder with a short comment and links to Goodreads impressions.
In order of reading:
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Summer 2011: Tor.UK
The Book of Transformations by Mark Newton
#3 out of 4 in the Legends of the Red Sun series; mostly new characters and back to Villjamur
FBC Reviews Nights Villjamur (#1, LS) and City of Ruin (#2, LS) , FBC Interview with the author (2009, several FBC contributors)
The Heroes by Joe Abercrombie
#5 in his First Law universe, standalone set ~4 years after Best Served Cold and ~8 years after the end of the First Law trilogy.
FBC Reviews of The Blade Itself (#1, RT), Before They Are Hanged (#2, RT), Best Served Cold (#4, LS), Interview with the Author (RT, 2007)
They say Black Dow’s killed more men than winter, and clawed his way to the throne of the North up a hill of skulls. The King of the Union, ever a jealous neighbour, is not about to stand smiling by while he claws his way any higher. The orders have been given and the armies are toiling through the northern mud. Thousands of men are converging on a forgotten ring of stones, on a worthless hill, in an unimportant valley, and they’ve brought a lot of sharpened metal with them. Bremer dan Gorst, disgraced master swordsman, has sworn to reclaim his stolen honour on the battlefield. Obsessed with redemption and addicted to violence, he’s far past caring how much blood gets spilled in the attempt. Even if it’s his own. Prince Calder isn’t interested in honour, and still less in getting himself killed. All he wants is power, and he’ll tell any lie, use any trick, and betray any friend to get it. Just as long as he doesn’t have to fight for it himself. Curnden Craw, the last honest man in the North, has gained nothing from a life of warfare but swollen knees and frayed nerves. He hardly even cares who wins any more, he just wants to do the right thing. But can he even tell what that is with the world burning down around him? Over three bloody days of battle, the fate of the North will be decided. But with both sides riddled by intrigues, follies, feuds and petty jealousies, it is unlikely to be the noblest hearts, or even the strongest arms that prevail… Three men. One battle. No Heroes
Short Comment: A battle is still a battle, but Mr. Abercrombie does it pretty much the best from all such fiction I've read, whether in sff or based on real battles. (Goodreads minireview)
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February 2011 Baen:
In Fire Forged by David Weber with Jane Lindskold and Timothy Zahn
#5 Honorverse anthology and #21 Honorverse book, 3 novellas and one essay on starship armor in the Honorverse, e-arc available to buy now, first novella free as sample
FBC Invitation to the Honorverse, FBC Reviews of At All Costs (AAC) (HH #13, LS), Storm from the Shadows/Mission of Honor (SftS, MoH) (HH #14, #16, LS), Safehold #2(BSRA), #3(BHD), #4(AMF) (LS), standalone Out of the Dark (RT), Interview with the author, (2009 LS)
"Honor Harrington is arguably the most popular character in modern science fiction, but there are many other stories in the Honorverse besides those in which she has the central role. This fifth volume in the popular Worlds of Honor series explores some of those stories with the help of such top writers as best-selling author Jane Lindskold, New York Times best-selling author Timothy Zahn, and more—including an all-new Honor Harrington adventure, set in her younger years, when a mob of space pirates made the mistake of tangling with Commander Harrington. That was a fatal mistake—for the pirates . . . "
Short Comment: I enjoyed this a lot especially for the first two stories, while the Honor story makes a great introduction to the series, though it does not bring much new for veteran readers.
(Goodreads minireview)
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April 2011, Tor.UK
Sea of Ghosts by Alan Campbell (series debut)
FBC reviews of previous author series The Deepgate Codex: Scar Night (#1, RT), Iron Angel (#2, RT), God of Clocks (#3, RT), the related novella Lye Street (RT)
Interviews with the Author (2008 RT, 2009 MW)
Short Comment: While I liked this one somewhat less than I expected based on its many goodies, that is due to a very personal "author's style is at some angle with my taste"; impressive world building. Definitely in for the sequel and very high potential.
(Goodreads Minireview)
In order of reading:
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Summer 2011: Tor.UK
The Book of Transformations by Mark Newton
#3 out of 4 in the Legends of the Red Sun series; mostly new characters and back to Villjamur
FBC Reviews Nights Villjamur (#1, LS) and City of Ruin (#2, LS) , FBC Interview with the author (2009, several FBC contributors)
A new and corrupt Emperor seeks to rebuild the ancient structures of Villjamur to give the people of the city hope in the face of great upheaval and an oppressing ice age. But when a stranger called Shalev arrives, empowering a militant underground movement, crime and terror becomes rampant.
The Inquisition is always one step behind, and military resources are spread thinly across the Empire. So Emperor Urtica calls upon cultists to help construct a group to eliminate those involved with the uprising, and calm the populace – the Villjamur Knights. But there’s more to Knights than just phenomenal skills and abilities – each have a secret that, if exposed, could destroy everything they represent.
Investigator Fulcrom of the Villjamur Inquisition is given the unenviable task of managing the Knights, but his own skills are tested when a mysterious priest, who has traveled from beyond the fringes of the Empire, seeks his help. The priest’s existence threatens the church, and his quest promises to unravel the fabric of the world. And in a distant corner of the Empire, the enigmatic cultist Dartun Súr steps back into this world, having witnessed horrors beyond his imagination. Broken, altered, he and the remnants of his order are heading back to Villjamur.
And all eyes turn to the Sanctuary City, for Villjamur’s ancient legends are about to be shattered…
Short Comment: Just awesome and continues the very high level of a series that is already in my top-top level; the best characters of the author so far, especially Lan and Fulcrom.
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February 2011 Orbit USA:The Heroes by Joe Abercrombie
#5 in his First Law universe, standalone set ~4 years after Best Served Cold and ~8 years after the end of the First Law trilogy.
FBC Reviews of The Blade Itself (#1, RT), Before They Are Hanged (#2, RT), Best Served Cold (#4, LS), Interview with the Author (RT, 2007)
They say Black Dow’s killed more men than winter, and clawed his way to the throne of the North up a hill of skulls. The King of the Union, ever a jealous neighbour, is not about to stand smiling by while he claws his way any higher. The orders have been given and the armies are toiling through the northern mud. Thousands of men are converging on a forgotten ring of stones, on a worthless hill, in an unimportant valley, and they’ve brought a lot of sharpened metal with them. Bremer dan Gorst, disgraced master swordsman, has sworn to reclaim his stolen honour on the battlefield. Obsessed with redemption and addicted to violence, he’s far past caring how much blood gets spilled in the attempt. Even if it’s his own. Prince Calder isn’t interested in honour, and still less in getting himself killed. All he wants is power, and he’ll tell any lie, use any trick, and betray any friend to get it. Just as long as he doesn’t have to fight for it himself. Curnden Craw, the last honest man in the North, has gained nothing from a life of warfare but swollen knees and frayed nerves. He hardly even cares who wins any more, he just wants to do the right thing. But can he even tell what that is with the world burning down around him? Over three bloody days of battle, the fate of the North will be decided. But with both sides riddled by intrigues, follies, feuds and petty jealousies, it is unlikely to be the noblest hearts, or even the strongest arms that prevail… Three men. One battle. No Heroes
Short Comment: A battle is still a battle, but Mr. Abercrombie does it pretty much the best from all such fiction I've read, whether in sff or based on real battles. (Goodreads minireview)
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February 2011 Baen:
In Fire Forged by David Weber with Jane Lindskold and Timothy Zahn
#5 Honorverse anthology and #21 Honorverse book, 3 novellas and one essay on starship armor in the Honorverse, e-arc available to buy now, first novella free as sample
FBC Invitation to the Honorverse, FBC Reviews of At All Costs (AAC) (HH #13, LS), Storm from the Shadows/Mission of Honor (SftS, MoH) (HH #14, #16, LS), Safehold #2(BSRA), #3(BHD), #4(AMF) (LS), standalone Out of the Dark (RT), Interview with the author, (2009 LS)
"Honor Harrington is arguably the most popular character in modern science fiction, but there are many other stories in the Honorverse besides those in which she has the central role. This fifth volume in the popular Worlds of Honor series explores some of those stories with the help of such top writers as best-selling author Jane Lindskold, New York Times best-selling author Timothy Zahn, and more—including an all-new Honor Harrington adventure, set in her younger years, when a mob of space pirates made the mistake of tangling with Commander Harrington. That was a fatal mistake—for the pirates . . . "
Short Comment: I enjoyed this a lot especially for the first two stories, while the Honor story makes a great introduction to the series, though it does not bring much new for veteran readers.
(Goodreads minireview)
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April 2011, Tor.UK
Sea of Ghosts by Alan Campbell (series debut)
FBC reviews of previous author series The Deepgate Codex: Scar Night (#1, RT), Iron Angel (#2, RT), God of Clocks (#3, RT), the related novella Lye Street (RT)
Interviews with the Author (2008 RT, 2009 MW)
When the last of the Gravediggers, an elite imperial infiltration unit, are disbanded and hunted down by the emperor they once served, munitions expert Colonel Thomas Granger takes refuge in the unlikeliest of places. He becomes a jailer in Ethugra – a prison city of poison-flooded streets and gaols in which a million enemies of the empire are held captive. But when Granger takes possession of two new prisoners, he realises that he can’t escape his past so readily.
Ianthe is a young girl with an extraordinary psychic talent. A gift that makes her unique in a world held to ransom by the powerful Haurstaf – the sisterhood of telepaths who are all that stand between the Empire and the threat of the Unmer, the powerful civilization of entropic sorcerers and dragon-mounted warriors. In this war-torn land, she promises to make Granger an extremely wealthy man, if he can only keep her safe from harm.
This is what Granger is best at. But when other factions learn about Ianthe's unique ability, even Granger's skills of warfare are tested to their limits. While, Ianthe struggles to control the powers that are growing in ways no-one thought were possible. Another threat is surfacing: out there, beyond the bitter seas, an old and familiar enemy is rising – one who, if not stopped, will drown the world and all of humanity with it . .
Short Comment: While I liked this one somewhat less than I expected based on its many goodies, that is due to a very personal "author's style is at some angle with my taste"; impressive world building. Definitely in for the sequel and very high potential.
(Goodreads Minireview)
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
"Fear: 13 stories of Suspense and Horror" Edited by R.L. Stine (Reviewed by Cindy Hannikman)
Order Fear: 13 Stories of Suspense and Horror from Amazon Here
Here is a detailed overview of all 13 stories contained in the anthology.
Welcome to the Club by R.L. Stine
This is a typical R.L. Stine story. A bit of suspense with a twist at the end. For long time readers of R.L. Stine the story will probably be a bit predictable but overall it really set the mood for the anthology and gives it a nice kickoff.
She's Different Tonight by Heather Graham
She's Different Tonight was by far not one of my favorite stories within this anthology. It is told from a werewolf POV and there's a bit of twist. I just couldn't get into the tone, story line and felt it was very rushed (for a short story).
Suckers by Suzanne Weyn
If I had to pick a favorite story in this anthology it would be Suckers. It's unique, fun and has a bit of a "scary" undertone to it. A famous family moves to a new planet looking for a new life but they find out that something odd has happened on this planet. What is odd about the planet is so unexpected and just a really fun story.
The Perfects by Jennifer Allison
What would happen if you moved next door to the perfects. That's what this is about. A babysitter volunteers to watch the next door neighbor's children but something just isn't right about the children. They watch surgery channels and eat raw meat. This was a pretty "creepy" story in terms of creepiness of the stories. I really thought it had a perfect ending and I could easily reread it.
Shadow Children by Heather Brewer
This is the first heart pounding, action filled story. It tells a tale of what happens after the lights go out in a little boys room. What is REALLY lurking in the shadows. It was chilling and left off with my all time favorite cliffhanger endings that are so famous in scary stories.
Poison Ring by Peg Kehret
This was the first suspense story in the anthology. Maybe I was just in the mood for creepy, horror stories but I wasn't feeling this story. It tells of an older lady who comes into an antique store and sells goods to the family. These goods lead to a whole lot of trouble and then the story ends.
Dragonfly Eyes by Alane Ferguson
Another one of my favorite stories in this book. A shoot comes into a classroom and picks 2 girls to hold as hostages. This story is told from the point of view of one of the girls that got shot. Only she's a ghost. It's one of those make you think stories and for teens (which is who this book is marketed too) serves as a compelling life lesson type story but it's done in the right way.
Jeepers Peepers by Ryan Brown
From the title I really thought this was going to be a run of the mill story with a same old same old style but Ryan Brown really impressed me with it. Another babysitter story, only this time the child she babysits has to be left in the dark and ends up causing a lot of trouble. It was a bit heart pounding and scary but it had the greatest unexpected twist at the end. I loved it!
Piney Power by F. Paul Wilson
A story about rough justice taken by fellow people who live on the outskirts of society. I don't have any feelings for this story one way or the other. It didn't wow me and it didn't make me dislike it. I sorta felt it was out of place in this anthology though.
Night Hunter by Meg Cabot
Meg Cabot is a huge name in YA lit. Sadly, this short story took a bit of a predictable twist. It had a bit of suspense but there was a girl pining away for a guy and it just didn't work in this story. Between that and the predictable twist it didn't reach my top list of stories in this anthology.
Tuition by Walter Sorrells
Another suspense/action story about a boy who breaks into safes. Only today is his birthday and he is trying to get out of the business so he can go to school. Nice slow pace story that had an interesting (but foreseeable) ending.
Tagger by James Rollins
James Rollins writing style is so completely different from every other writer in this anthology. He brings a bit of an action/suspense short story that really winds up the whole anthology. It was my first taste of his writing style and I enjoyed it a lot.
Ray Gun by Tim Maleeny
This short story took a twist to a sci-fiy type story. It was so far off what I normally read that I couldn't honestly review it. I got through it but I wouldn't have anything to compare it to to make the review fair.
OVERALL: Overall I found Fear an interesting anthology. There were definite hits for me with the stories that they included and there were massive misses. The misses usually included extremely predictable plot lines or just oddball stories that didn't seem to fit. Even though this is an anthology geared to the YA market I really feel as if the YA audience would have still guessed a lot of the plot elements in the stories.
Official Kate Morton Website
Order The Distant Hours HERE
INTRODUCTION: Last year more or less by chance, I opened the author's 2008 (UK/US) debut The House at Riverton originally published in Australia as The Shifting Fog (2006). I was hooked from the first page and the novel has become a big time favorite. Her somewhat similar second novel The Forgotten Garden made a bit less of an impression on me - I read it back to back with The House at Riverton and I should have left some time to pass in-between so maybe a reread is in order, but any new Kate Morton novel has become a big asap and of course I ordered "The Distant Hours" for its UK publication date last month, though I decided to have the review for its publication here in the US.
"Edie Burchill and her mother have never been close, but when a long lost letter arrives one Sunday afternoon with the return address of Millderhurst Castle, Kent, printed on its envelope, Edie begins to suspect that her mother’s emotional distance masks an old secret.
Evacuated from London as a thirteen year old girl, Edie’s mother is chosen by the mysterious Juniper Blythe, and taken to live at Millderhurst Castle with the Blythe family: Juniper, her twin sisters and their father, Raymond. In the grand and glorious Millderhurst Castle, a new world opens up for Edie’s mother. She discovers the joys of books and fantasy and writing, but also, ultimately, the dangers.
Fifty years later, as Edie chases the answers to her mother’s riddle, she, too, is drawn to Millderhurst Castle and the eccentric Sisters Blythe. Old ladies now, the three still live together, the twins nursing Juniper, whose abandonment by her fiancé in 1941 plunged her into madness.
Inside the decaying castle, Edie begins to unravel her mother’s past. But there are other secrets hidden in the stones of Millderhurst Castle, and Edie is about to learn more than she expected. The truth of what happened in the distant hours has been waiting a long time for someone to find it . . . "
FORMAT/CLASSIFICATION: "The Distant Hours" stands at about 575 pages divided into five named parts, a prologue from The True History of the Mud Man and an epilogue. The action alternates between Eddie's narration in 1992 and the events of 1941 narrated in third person from the three Bltyhe' sisters POV's, while the even more distant past of their father's fateful actions and decisions is slowly peeled apart too.
So as a ghostly shadow hovering over the novel, there is the celebrated writer Raymond Blythe whose dark children's book The True History of the Mud Man excerpted in the prologue, has appeared out of nowhere towards the end of the Great War in 1918 to propel him to fame and wealth after he seemingly had forsaken writing following the tragic 1910 fiery death of his first wife, the twins' mother.
"The Distant Hours" is modern literary Gothic and as close to sff as it gets without any element of the supernatural.
OVERVIEW/ANALYSIS: "The Distant Hours" starts innocuously when a fifty year old letter finally makes its way to Meredith Burchill and her daughter is intrigued and banters with her about the war years when the 13 year old working class Meredith, evacuated in 1939 from London to the countryside, is picked up by the imperious 17 year old Juniper Blythe to live with her and her 33 year old twin sisters at the Milderhurst Castle. What Eddie does not know at the time is how important those years have been for her mother...
Because in 1939, Meredith gets so well on with the eccentric and talented Juniper who has been groomed for a literary career by her now recluse and decrepit father, that she refuses to return to London and her parents until Spring 1941. Meredith also sort-of introduces Juniper to her handsome teacher Tom Carvill - her secret first crush - only for the two to fall in love and prepare to marry. Feeling herself abandoned by Juniper when the important missing letter does not arrive in London 1941, Meredith assumes Juniper married Tom and forgot all about her and she puts the past behind... Until now.
Eddie has her problems too - dumped by her well off longtime boyfriend who gave her as a parting gift a six month lease on their expensive London apartment, she now needs to move since she cannot afford it anymore, but as an editor at a cottage publisher she wants to stay close to her work, so she temporarily camps out in her boss and surrogate "old uncle" Herbert's living room, without of course telling a thing to her family... When a countryside job and a chance road sign with "Milderhurst 3 miles" on it happen, Eddie is intrigued but on arriving at the castle's gate she remembers stopping by as a child with her mother, so she realizes that the letter is way more important for her mother than she thought, so she decides to nose around a bit. And so it starts...
"The handle was black and smooth, shaped like a shin bone and cool beneath my palm. Indeed, a general coldness seemed to leach from the other side of the door; though how, I couldn’t tell.
My fingers tightened around the handle, I started to twist, then—
‘We don’t go in there.’
My stomach, I don’t mind saying, just about shot through the roof of my mouth.
I spun on my heel, scanned the gloomy space behind. I could see nothing, yet clearly I wasn’t alone. Someone, the owner of the voice, was in the corridor with me. Even if she hadn’t spoken I’d have known: I could feel another presence, something moving and hiding in the drawing shadows. The rustling was back now, too: louder, closer, definitely not in my head, definitely not mice."
"The Distant Hours" has four main strengths. It is a Kate Morton novel, so nothing is quite as it seems, secrets abound, twists and turns galore and there were one or two that truly surprised me since while I could dimly see where the book goes and have an inkling of its general thrust, the author still managed to smoothly drop a bomb or two...
The atmosphere is pitch perfect - a combination of suspense and waiting for the momentous with little domestic details, present day happenings and other mundane stuff. Alternating between "holding your breath" and relaxing, "The Distant Hours" keeps one turning page after page and while it has a clear and definite conclusion, I strongly regretted that it ended since I could happily have read another 575 pages.
"The Distant Hours" also has the fascinating characters one expects from Kate Morton. The likable, "girl next door" Eddie, her somewhat distant mother of unexpected secrets and of course the three Blythe sisters: strong Percy, delicate Saffy and very talented but highly strung Juniper come out fully alive in the pages of the novel and they are quite unforgettable. Though seen only in the background and through the eyes of others, Raymond Blythe is as important a character as any, though for the why and the how you have to read the book.
Where "The Distant Hours" shows a marked improvement over the first two Kate Morton novels is in the interpersonal-relationships between the characters which are very complex and tangled. With its back and forth in time-line and events, the novel's tapestry takes a while to assemble, but the page turning style of the author hides this so well, that when you start getting the "big picture", you wonder how she sneaked all the details that seemed so innocuous before...
"The Distant Hours" (A++) is a superb novel of literary suspense that delivered all I expected from it and more, fully justifying my very high expectations and huge excitement when I found out about it not that long ago.
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