by Kay | Aug 19, 2010 | Reviews |
Grimspace by Ann Aguirre
Series: Sirantha Jax #1
Published by Ace/Roc
Pages: 320
Genres: Science Fiction
Source: Purchased myself
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Also in this series: Wanderlust, Doubleblind, KillboxAs the carrier of a rare gene, Sirantha Jax has the ability to jump ships through grimspace—a talent which makes her a highly prized navigator for the Corp. Then a crash landing kills everyone on board, leaving Jax in a jail cell with no memory of the crash. But her fun's not over. A group of rogue fighters frees her…for a price: her help in overthrowing the established order.
Thoughts: I loved Grimspace so damn much, which obviously made this review nearly damn impossible to write!
Let’s start with the lead character, Jax. Jax is seriously kick-ass, but God, is she far from perfect. We meet her at her lowest: she’s grieving, vaguely suicidal and – unknowingly – a bit spoiled. Jax is the corporate-gal who needed to lose everything to see what assholes her employers are. So while she goes through some pretty horrific trauma in Grimspace, it helps her “grow up”. She doesn’t doesn’t truly change, per say, it’s more like she grows into herself.
It is fabulous to read, because honestly, who doesn’t love some good old-fashioned character development in their fiction.
Grimspace is filled with non-stop twist and turns. Space battles, crazy alien planets and new enemies at every port – kicking ass and running like hell. I am in love with the verse. I’m also in love with Aguirre’s writing style. She managed to turn the whole tale around half a dozen times without making the book bi-polar. In retrospect, it was one of the most coherent novels I’ve read – although it seemed out of control (in a “Dude, that’s crazy awesome” sort of way) while I was reading it.
I also want to go on a fangirl rant about March, who was one of my all-time favourite male characters. Ann Aguirre writes what I consider the ideal “bad boy”. I use that term lightly, because what I actually mean is this:
Bastard. But I don’t mean it. […] I wouldn’t trade March for someone nice. Well, I don’t mean that like it sounds. March is a good man, just not a nice one. Does that even make sense?
Chapter 33 – Grimspace by Ann Aguirre
March is a good man but he can be cruel. In fact, he is constantly struggling to keep from letting his cruelty take him over. And that ever present instability? It is exactly what makes him exactly the kind of hero you love to learn to love. He isn’t easy and he isn’t kind, but he always has his heart in the right place. There’s a fine line between a honest and cruel, and Aguirre straddles it perfectly.
Grimspace is labelled “Sci-Fi Romance” by some, and while it has a seriously epic romance… I think I’d keep it off the romance shelf. Grimspace follows zero romance rules: it does not centre around a single relationship, has a heroine with more than one “tru wuv” and forgoes the whole dual-POV. And considering the strong, mystery-filled, dangerous world Ann Aguirre creates in Grimspace – I think it would be a shame to read it solely for a romance.
Bottom line? READ THIS BOOK. It has intergalactic global corporations and human trafficking, lesbian mechanics and scarred strippers, adorable bog aliens and unionised!bounty hunter aliens. It’s brilliant.
by Kay | Aug 5, 2010 | Reviews |
Ill Wind by Rachel Caine
Series: Weather Warden #1
Published by Allison & Busby
Pages: 337
Genres: Urban Fantasy
Source: Purchased myself
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Also in this series: Heat StrokeJoanne Baldwin is a Weather Warden. Usually, all it takes is a wave of her hand to tame the most violent weather. But now, she's trying to outrun another kind of storm: accusations of corruption and murder. So, she's resorting to the very human tactic of running for her life...
Her only hope is Lewis, the most powerful warden known. Unfortunately, he's stolen not one but three bottles of Djinn-making him the most wanted man on earth. Still, she's racing hard to find him-before the bad weather closes in fast.
Thoughts: I am a hardcore, unapologetic Rachel Caine fan. Her Morganville series? Pretty much the most addictive YA series ever written. In short, Rachel Caine = Awesome.
Ill Wind proved to me that Caine’s awesomeness does indeed translate over into adult fiction. It has plenty of action, fast cars, biblical storms and some brilliantly 3D characters. Although not as addictive as her Morganville series, I have high hopes for the rest of the Weather Warden books.
Jo is feisty as hell and has no less than three guys after her heart. She drives a mustang and can start a hurricane – she’s on the lam, but she ain’t no sheep.
One of the things I love about Rachel Caine is her ability to write smart characters who still make plenty of mistakes. Jo is smart – she has to be. Because, unlike other superpowers, being a weather warden is not just about having the talent – you have to learn how to use it. And what does that mean? Well, it means an awful lot of atmospheric physics! *swoons*
Despite Jo’s obvious book smarts, she is still fallible. She makes mistakes and misjudges people – she’s only human! Unlike a lot of authors, who have the token genius who never makes a mistake, Caine writes realistic smart people. Just because a character has an IQ of 150 doesn’t mean they have to be boringly predictable – Caine lets her smarties get into trouble.
And go to the beach.
Bottom line? Ill Wind has it all: action, mystery, romance and rain. Pick it up if you are looking for some UF without all the traditional baddies.
by Kay | Jul 13, 2010 | Reviews |
Old Magic by Marianne Curley
Published by Bloomsbury on 2012-09-13
Pages: 320
Genres: Paranormal YA, Young Adult
Source: Purchased myself
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Rating: Jarrod Thornton is mesmerizing, but Kate Warren doesn't know why.
The moment the new guy walks into the room, Kate senses something strange and intense about him. Something supernatural. Her instincts are proven correct a few minutes later when, bullied by his classmates, Jarrod unknowingly conjures up a freak thunderstorm inside their classroom.
Jarrod doesn't believe in the paranormal. When Kate tries to convince him that he has extraordinary powers that need to be harnessed, he only puts up with her "hocus pocus" notions because he finds her captivating. However, the dangerous, uncontrolled strengthening of his gift finally convinces Jarrod that he must take Kate's theories seriously. Together, they embark on a remarkable journey—one which will unravel the mystery that has haunted Jarrod's family for generations and pit the teens against immense forces in a battle to undo the past and reshape the future.
Spoiler Alert: This review has a few in it – but they are basically the facts that I wish someone had told me about before I started reading.
Thoughts: Old Magic is really damn hard to review. Because although it had a lot of elements in it that were enjoyable, it was ultimately a let down.
The main character Kate and Jarrod were relatively enjoyable, but not all that well developed. In fact, Jarrod’s main character trait was his extraordinary cowardice. Sure, that was entertaining and believable for about 100 pages – but after a while I wanted to slam his head into something hard. Because of his utter lack of spine, I found Kate’s attraction to him rather peculiar.
Despite that, I really enjoyed the first half of the novel. It is set in a sleepy town surrounded by woodlands. The atmosphere was rather dark and magical – reminding me of Need and Shiver in many parts. But then, half way through the book Kate and Jarrod time-travel back 1000 years.
Er, what? No! Take me back to that mysterious little town!
That was pretty much my only thought for the rest of the book. Curley introduces us to a dozen new characters, some rather over-the-top villains and some rather drawn-out plot. I don’t really have a problem with time-travelling in books – I just would rather it be the sole focus of the novel. Instead, I felt like I had been tossed into the poorly made sequel to the first half of the book. One where they had to recast the leads because the script was so bad…
Bottom line? Curley is a very believable writer. And while I was disappointed with Old Magic, I shall be picking up some of her other books in the near future.
by Kay | Jul 8, 2010 | Reviews |
Rogue by Rachel Vincent
Series: Shifters #2
Published by MIRA
Pages: 394
Genres: Urban Fantasy
Source: Purchased myself
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Also in this series: Stray, PrideOkay, so cats don't always land on their feet.
I know that better than most. Since rejoining the Pride, I ve made big decisions and even bigger mistakes: the kind paid for with innocent lives. As the first and only female enforcer, I have plenty to prove to my father, the Pride, and myself. And with murdered toms turning up in our territory, I m working harder than ever, though I always find the energy for a little after-hours recreation with Marc, my partner both on- and off-duty.
But not all of my mistakes are behind me. We re beginning to suspect that the dead are connected to a rash of missing human women and that they can all be laid at my feet--two or four, take your pick. And one horrible indiscretion may yet cost me more than I can bear...
Thoughts: It’s been over a year since I read the first of Rachel Vincent’s werecat series, but I remember the book as clear as day. The werecats series is probably one of the most inventive UF verses out there – packed with catty violence and some rather terrifying villains. But that’s not why I remember it with such detail – mostly, I just remember hating the hell out of the main character Faythe.
Well, character-wise, Rogue is certainly a huge improvement. Faythe thinks out her actions a bit more than she used to. And although she still manages to grate on my nerves, her gradual transition from a five-year-old into a mature adult is realistic and in character. So, YAY! At this rate, I might actually like her by book five.
But on the other hand, Rogue was a let-down from Stray. One of the reasons I decided to stick with this series was because of the amazing action. Stray is packed with bloody, terrifying scenes described with more finesse than anything I’ve ever read. Rogue, however, was a series of conversations. Sure, important character-driven conversations – but still. Even though a lot was revealed, not all that much happened.
Bottom line? A solid sequel to Stray. If you are looking for kick-ass UF, Vincent’s werecat series has it in spades. But don’t expect to actually like anyone.
by Kay | Jul 2, 2010 | Reviews |
Seven Sorcerers by Caro King
Series: Seven Sorcerers #1
Published by Simon and Schuster on 2012-05-01
Pages: 352
Genres: Middle Grade
Source: Purchased myself
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Rating: The Bogeyman is all too real in this fantasy Publishers Weekly calls “energetic and absorbing.”Nin Redstone wakes up to discover that her brother has vanished—and she’s the only one who remembers him. But when Bogeyman Skerridge comes for her, too, Nin realizes the true danger her brother, Toby, is in. To save him, she and her new friend Jonas must travel to a mysterious and magical land called the Drift. Located just next to our world, the Drift is being slowly destroyed by a terrible plague. The Seven Sorcerers who ruled there might have been able to prevent the devastation, but even they have succumbed. In a race to rescue Toby and get home before the plague makes it impossible, can Nin and Jonas avoid the tombfolk, mud men, and various creatures who want to stop them? And what is the secret of the Seven Sorcerers?
Thoughts: I loved this book. Truly, madly, deeply – I really loved this book.
Seven Sorcerers is that first real Middle-Grade novel I have read since, well, I was in middle grade. And I am so glad I got such an amazing reintroduction to the MG section of the bookstore! Seven Sorcerers is filled with rollicking adventure, humorous villains, entertaining sidekicks and some epic I’m-doing-this-out-of-love sacrifice. It kept me entertained for hours – and I was genuinely sad when it ended.
Seven Sorcerers takes a new spin on the magical and mystical. There are bogeymen and vampires, and all sorts of other nasties. Our little heroine, Nim, is spunky and full of character – even as her entire life is stolen from her, she still plucks up the courage to try to do something about it. OK, maybe she’s not your average 12-year-old, but with King? I totally bought it.
When I think about Seven Sorcerers, the only comparison I can come up with is Harry Potter. Now, I am a big HP fan – so a book has to be pretty brilliant for me to compare it to JK Rowling’s works! But both King and Rowling write first-and-foremost about a universe, and then the characters inside it. And like Rowling, I get the feeling that King knows every last inch of her verse.
I can’t wait to get started on the sequel Shadow Spell! Also, I wanted to give a shout-out to the artist for the novel. There are some gorgeous illustrations at the start of the book that really set the tone of the novel. Beautiful work!
Bottom line? This Middle Grade book is one for all ages. If you are looking for an adventurous novel you can’t put down, look no further!
