Jessica Strider

Pros: interesting mystery, interesting mythology/world-building

Cons: climax involves antagonists explaining their plan

Audra Hawthorne works for the Shadow Watch, an organization that helps keep the living nightmares, or incubi, created by human ideators, in Nod, and away from regular humans. When the capture of an incubus assassin on Earth goes awry, in several ways, she and her partner are taken off the case. But Audra doesn't take orders well, and neither does her partner, the homicidal clown, and incubus, Mr. Jinx.

This is an urban fantasy novel with a pretty neat premise, that some people can be terrorized by their nightmares to the point of making them real. And then sometimes partnering with them. There's more to the world building than that, of course, and Nod, the incubus realm, has some pretty interesting goings on considering that the populace is stronger than humans, heals faster than humans and is significantly more insane then the human one. One thing I appreciated was that though there's a lot of violence, a good portion of the blood and guts is left to the reader's imagination, rather than graphically described (though, there are some creepy scenes).

I liked Audra and Jinx's interactions, and while more explanation of how she got over her fear of him once he became real would have been nice, I did like that their relationship was complicated. And as this is the start of a series, there's time for explanation later on.

Written in first person singular, there are periodic asides to the reader that make it feel like you're reading Audra's diary. There's a dry humour to these that I loved.

The mystery was suitably complex and involved several subplots that were all pretty much resolved by the end of the book.

The book felt cartoony at times, due to Jinx's hijinks and the high level of violence contained in certain scenes. This is most noticeable during the climax when the antagonists stop fighting in order to explain their plan to the protagonists. I can't help but think this information could have been parcelled out in a more organic way, but it did fit the tone of the book.

Ultimately it was a fun, quick read, though if you're scared of clowns this book won't help you get over that.

Pros: lots of action, realistic relationships

Cons: a few plot points were problematic, esoteric slant might put off some readers, gory descriptions, some name confusion

ICAP agent Matt Rowley is given a small team of fellow augmented agents and tasked with taking down the Jade drug king pin Dawkins. But a lot of smaller problems must be dealt with before getting to the big one, and Matt starts to realize that not everything he believes about his crew, the augmentations they're using, the drug, and ICAP itself is true.

This is a high octane action adventure story with lots of blood, guts and gore. The first half of the book focuses on the drugs and augmentations (including bonks - people whose augmentations have made them go insane), giving it a military SF feel. The second half of the book becomes more of a cat and mouse chase with an esoteric plot element eventually taking the fore. There's still a lot of action, but readers looking for a full on military style near future SF story might be thrown by the more religious and relationship elements that crop up.

I loved that the relationships in the book were portrayed so realistically. The ICAP crew had communications and personality clashes, while still working well as a team. Meanwhile Matt and his wife, with her complicated pregnancy and fear of another miscarriage, helped ground the second half of the book. Matt's motivations are solid and believable throughout the novel.

I did question a few of the plot points in the last quarter of the book, which I'll mention in the spoiler section below.

I'm not a fan of excessive gore, but the book's use of it wasn't gratuitous, and it did emphasize the difficulty in killing augmented people. The esoteric antagonist had some pretty cool powers, making it a worthy bad guy for the team.

Several characters were introduced together by first and last name. After that, they were sometimes called by first name, and sometimes by last - often by different people as part of the same conversation. I personally found this confusing and it took me a while to get all the names and people straight.

While not perfect, this is an entertaining read that will keep you guessing.





















Spoilers

I couldn't understand how Janet was still employed by ICAP - and in such a high security position - when Dawkins was her brother. Sure Dawkins split off 10 years prior to this novel, but someone at the company must have known their connection and would have removed her. The fact that the book never addresses this issue is a problem as I constantly wondered when ICAP would attack her house, especially once Dawkins was freed from prison.

The second plot point I had trouble with also occurred at the end of the book and comes in two parts. One, how and when did Blossom get the augments she used? And two, after reading that Matt felt sick after getting his own augments and that they took a day or two to surface, how did he inject himself during the final battle and have almost instantaneous use of his powers without any nausea or other negative side-effects? That directly contradicts what we're told only a few chapters earlier.

Pros: interesting plot, varied forms of magic, characters actually work day jobs, satisfying conclusion

Cons: characters feel like Mary Sues, middle of the book had several scenes that follow the same pattern, unnecessary repetition

Cassidy Kincaide is psychometric, able to see images of an item's past. She inherited the estate auction and antiques shop Trifles and Folly when her uncle, who had a similar power, died a few years back. Along with the store she also inherited her uncle's silent partner, Sorren, a vampire and member of the Alliance, an organization dedicated to keeping humans safe from dangerous magical artifacts.

When some of the safe items Cassidy sold start haunting a local BnB, she and her co-worker Teag start investigating.

The characters are really interesting, with Cassidy having contacts all over the city with connections that help with her business - both the antique store and when investigating potentially dangerous items. I really appreciated that Cassidy not only owned a store, but she and Teag actually work there. Lots of urban fantasy books mention that characters have jobs but somehow show them with lots of free time to investigate whatever the mystery is. These characters spend their days at work, sometimes it's slow and they can research and do other things, and sometimes it's busy and they can't. But I appreciated the veracity of their situation, that they need money to keep the store and pay rent and so have to do most of their investigative work after hours.

Having said that, they seem remarkably lucky with their investigative work, generally learning pretty quickly what they need to from all the sites and people they visit. Now, the book explains that as due in part to Cassidy's knowing and having a good relationship with many of the important people in town and the rest is chalked up to her and Teag's respective magics. Still, they have an uncanny knack of reaching the right conclusion pretty quickly, which, coupled with their martial arts knowledge and ability to get out of sticky situations starts to make them feel Mary Sue-ish.

Another thing I really liked about the book was the varied forms of magic employed. Cassidy can see objects' pasts, Teag can weave together pieces of information as well as spells, Sorren has the strength and agility of the undead. The book also introduces several other characters with their own powers, a Voodon practitioner, a Viking Seior, and a Gullah root worker. Magic takes its toll on the practitioners and isn't an infinite pool that be used continuously when facing bad guys.

There is some repetition in how information is portrayed that irked me but probably won't bother most readers. Something is introduced in one chapter and then expanded on in the next chapter in a way that repeats the previous information.

A more obvious issue is that several scenes in the middle of the book follow the same pattern of checking something out, getting attacked, and getting out of the situation. It happened too often in the same way that I started wondering why they didn't anticipate the attacks more readily.

There is a highly satisfying end battle and all the plot threads tie up neatly before the book is over. Despite its flaws it's a fun start to a new series.

Pros: fast paced, multiple plotlines, real consequences for decisions, lots of plot twists

Cons:

For Parents: kissing, drug use (with consequences), bullying, gun violence, rioting

Sam and James are back in London returning to school for the first time since the bus bombing that gave them their powers and killed several of their classmates. They're coerced into attending a party run by the Alchemist, who hands out a new drug called Super D and falls for Sam. Back at school the twins face bullying and their world is turned upside down when Lolly Rosewood comes calling.

This book has a bit of everything: drugs, guns, first love, grounding, bullying, and more. It stays age appropriate, though things get bloodier than I'd expected. Seeing the characters make difficult decisions and then deal with the consequences keeps things real.

Everything's fast paced and several plotlines interweave to create a complex story where it's hard to guess what's going to happen next.

Lolly's plot arc was very surprising, both in how she was treated by others and also in her personal growth by the end of the story.

This is the 4th book in the Class Heroes series, but not the last, as there are aspects of the story left open at the end of this novel.

Pros: lots of intrigue, complex story, satisfying series ending, great characters

Cons: climax felt rushed, Adam's motivations at the end were puzzling

Picking up a few months after the events of The Knife Sworn, things are not well in the capital of Cerana. With General Arigu missing Sarmin doesn't have the full confidence of his army; the High Priest of Herzu is pressuring him to make sacrifices to appease the Gods; Sarmin's brother is still missing; Mogyrk rebels are loose in the city, setting fires and killing guards; and the Storm, a vast emptiness that swallows all in its path, is almost at the city gates.

Sarmin is forced to make difficult choices to maintain his authority while dealing with numerous threats from both within and without his Empire. A surviver of a Mogyrk pattern attack is kidnapped by Austere Adam because he's able to read the symbols used in pattern magic. The mages find a crack growing on one of the Tower's walls. And the Yrkmir army marches on Nooria.

As the conclusion to the Tower and Knife trilogy this book has a lot to accomplish. There are so many things going on and numerous view points to see the action from. Mazarkis does a fantastic job of keeping a coherent narrative, focusing on the essentials while ensuring a feeling of the scale of the Empire and the wide ranging consequences of everyone's decisions. Each of the major players felt like a complete individual with their own motivations for their actions.

There's a huge amount of building up to the climax, and the climax as a consequence felt rushed. Indeed, I wondered at one point, if maybe there was a 4th book to the series, as it didn't seem possible to wrap everything up in time. But Mazarkis did manage to deal with all the major plot threads, and in a satisfying way.

Having said that, I found Austere Adam's motivations in the final few chapters of the book somewhat puzzling.

There were some minor things that irritated me about the book, the occasional unnecessary repetition, characters doing something odd in one scene, but on the whole I loved this series and highly recommend it.

Pros: good introductions to each section, lots of explanatory notes, variety of texts

Cons: only has a few pictures in instances when illustrations are present in the text

Ritual has long been a part of spiritual practices, Christian or otherwise. These texts, written in the Coptic language of Egypt (invented as a way of transliterating Egyptian heiroglyphs using Greek letters), shows how Christianity amalgamated older traditions of using words as protection against the evils of the world. The texts presented in this book mix Egyptian gods and Christian stories to create amulets, love spells, curses and more.

There's a fantastic mix of texts presented here, many for the first time in English. There are extensive end notes, though a casual reader will get enough information from the introductions to the individual texts - which are, in some cases, longer than the texts themselves.

It's interesting seeing the variety of names of power called upon for the different purposes: Mary, Christ, archangels, Biblical figures, ancient gods and more.

My only complaint with the book is that some of the manuscripts included diagrams. In a few cases the translator copied the picture, but in many more cases only a notation stating there was a diagram is included. Actual photographs of some of these manuscript pages would have been welcome to get a feel for how the text and diagrams worked together and to see the original images.

I would advise reading up on the ancient Egyptian religious practices or the Book of Coming Forth by Day (now known as the Book of the Dead) before reading this though, as you'll get a better idea of how much of the Coptic Christian tradition was borrowed from what came before it.

If you're interested in magic and ritual practices, and how they developed, this is an interesting book.

This is the second volume in Savannah Grace's rendition of what started as her family's year long trip around the world. The book jumps right into the action as the family reaches Russia by train. There's a bit of flashback information to get you up to speed, and readers who skipped the first book (dealing with China and Mongolia) will find chapter 5's discussion of where they've been interesting. After Russia they stop briefly in Khazahkstan and Kyrgyzstan, then cross back into China and trough it to Tibet and Nepal. The book ends with their trek to the top of Kala Patthar, 263 meters above the Mount Everest base camp

The book is full of fascinating cultural observations and travel details (mostly via her brother Ammon's guidebook lectures). It's interesting to read how different things are handled in different parts of the world. The long wait times and even longer bus rides show the challenges of this type of travel even as Savannah points out the benefits of seeing things as a native and meeting new people.

As the trip wears on tempers wear thin and the last third of the book involves a lot of family drama. It's interesting, though probably more detailed than I needed.

The descriptions remain vivid and really make you want to book your own trip to these places (well, some of these places). The book is quick paced and the writing smooth.

I beta read the manuscript and so didn't see the photos that accompany the text.

If you like travelogues and/or biographies, this one is worth the read.

Pros: lots of information, political components told like a story with digressions on economics, weather, etc.,

Cons: I personally found the weather talk - though essential to the subject of the book - dryly told and boringly technical

This is an examination of the effects of the end of the medieval warm period during the reign of King Edward II of England. The book gives some background into the population explosion and increased farming that took place during the 400 hundred years when Europe experienced warmer temperatures (including the Viking expansion into Greenland), before delving into the political trials England faced at the time. Much of the book is given over to the war between England and Scotland and how it affected politics (Scotland allied with France at times to force England to back off) and economics (Scotland raided the English border over and over again, forcing the king to raise armies, draining his coffers). Two chapters - of particular interest to me - detailed the effects of the wet, cold weather on crops and the diseases that accompanied the resulting famines, decimating herds across England and the Continent.

While I found some of the weather discourse too technical and therefore boring, the rest of the book was very readable and fascinating.

If you're interested in how politics and the weather can combine to created a famine, and what else famine brings with it, this is a great book. Similarly, if the politics of England and Scotland or the lives and times of Edward the first and, predominantly the second, interest you, then definitely give this book a go.

Pros: thorough, entertaining, educational, lots of illustrations

Cons: mentions religious reconstruction using archaeology but doesn't give much information about what's been discovered, drawings of some Viking artefacts rather than photographs

This is a great introduction to Norse mythology on the whole and an excellent one if you're interested in Thor in particular. There's a one page rundown of important characters and another with places. The source materials of the myths are briefly discussed, specifically the Poetic and Prose Edda, and during the retellings the author often pauses to explain cultural and situational material necessary for understanding what's going on.

The stories themselves are quite entertaining, though while Thor's exploits against the giants are referred to, there's little description of those battles.

There are a good number of newly commissioned and older artworks illustrating the stories. I would have liked to see some photographs of archaeological finds rather than drawings though.

The author mentions that the sources are light when it comes to how the Norse gods were worshiped but that archaeology has started shedding light on this issue, but doesn't mention any of the finds or what we've learned about their religious practices from them. The author does, however, mention information about religious practices that have survived in written form (eg. Tacitus).

The final chapter deals with how myths of Thor have been used in modern times, like how they were co-opted by the Nazi party when trying to create a sense of nationalism for Germany after World War I. It also goes into Thor's portrayal in comics and movies.

If you don't know much about Norse mythology or Thor, this is an excellent book to get you up to speed.

Pros: fun, quirky characters

Cons: more action than plot

Sophronia and her friends are enjoying school a year after their last adventure when Sidheag receives a distressing letter. She disappears and when Dimity and Sophronia attend Sophronia's brother's engagement ball, they rejoin her and stumble upon several plots.

This is the third book in the Finishing School series, and it is best read in order as plot points from the previous books, specifically several direct consequences from book two, are important to what's happening here.

As with the other books, the girls are all quirky and fun to read about. We see them apply their talents in different ways as they rise to the challenges they face. The book is a quick and enjoyable read.

Unlike in the earlier books where the girls come across something strange and decide to investigate it, actively looking for new clues, in this volume they're helping their friend and stumble across the mystery purely by chance. They find out more of what's going on in the wider political world and several of them have to make decisions that will greatly affect their futures.

Sophronia has several major decisions to make in this book regarding her future: whether she likes Felix Mersey, whose father is a pickleman (a political position Sophronia abhors) enough to form an attachment with him; what kind of future relationship she wants with Soap, whose social standing is far beneath hers but whose advice and friendship she greatly appreciates; and what patron she wants when she graduates, as Lord Akeldama's been sending her gifts in an attempt to sway her in his direction.

I personally found the action on the train less interesting than what happened before it. I love the school and the dynamic there, and was a bit sad that so much of the book took place off of it. Having said that, the train did show off the girls' prowess and contained some fun action sequences.

I'm really looking forward to book 4, Manners & Mutiny, which I believe will conclude the series.

Pros: fun, wide variety, readable translation, interesting characters, informative introduction

Cons: commentary could have been more in depth

This is a collection consists of 72 of the lost tales Franz Xaver von Schönwerth recorded in the Eastern Bavarian region of Oberpfalz in the late 1850s. Rediscovered recently and translated into English, this collection allows modern readers more insight into the Germanic oral culture of what we now call fairy tales.

There's a short forward by the historian who discovered the papers on how this volume came to be published. The translator of the collection, the chair of folklore and mythology at Harvard, does the introduction and commentary on each of the stories. The introduction explains where these stories fit with the other tales that have come down to us and points out that fairy tales morphed from stories told by and to adults into stories told more often by women (whether mothers or nannies) to children. Which is why there are so many princesses and female rags to riches stories, and so few such tales about boys. This book brings back several tales of ‘Cinderfellas' and other disenfranchised young men. The commentaries, coming at the very end of the collection, mention the similarities between these tales and others we're familiar with. There's only room for a little explanation, so some of the commentaries are merely synopses while others have a bit more depth to them.

While some of the tales have morals and happy endings, several don't have either, with some truly unscrupulous people getting away with horrible things and curses going unbroken. And since these were oral tales you can expect a lot of twists out of left field, where the stories turn on previously unmentioned characters and events.

The collection is separated into seven categories: Tales of Magic, Enchanted Animals, Otherworldly Creatures, Legends, Tall Tales and Anecdotes, and Tales About Nature. It's a decent attempt to separate the stories, but the reality is that most of the stories can fit into several categories and that some stories with similar elements end up in different sections. There are a few with overly Christian themes (including some tales with the devil as the antagonist), and some with more 'pagan' themes. There are a lot of dwarfs and witches/evil women, and a smaller number of elves, gnomes, mermaids and other fantastical creatures. And curses. Lots and lots of curses.

One story ended with a very modern idiom, which made me wonder what the original German said, but on the whole I thought the translation was great, immersive and entertaining.

The stories are only a few pages each and the collection as a whole is a quick and pleasant read. While most of these wouldn't be considered ‘children's stories', they're not overly bloody or ribaldrous. The collection is fantastic for the variety of tales told and for the ways they used the fairy tale tropes we've become familiar with.

Pros: quick summaries of notable stories, timeline of when stories were written, interesting text boxes with additional information, mentions alternate spellings/versions

Cons: as mentioned in the introduction there are too many knights and stories to cover them all

As with the other books in Osprey's Myths and Legends series, this is a great introduction if you're interested in Arthurian Legends. The author, Daniel Mersey, wrote a volume on King Arthur, and this volume on the knights is meant to accompany it in fleshing out the legends.

The book has entertaining synopses of several of the earliest legends about Arthur's knights, told by Chretien de Troyes and his contemporaries in the late 12th Century. There are several stories about Lancelot and Gawain, as well as Tristan and Isolde, Yvain, Erec, Balin and Beaumains.

If you don't know much about the knights, this is a fantastic introduction, with text boxes breaking up the stories that have added information regarding where different characters were popular, alternate spellings, which ones potentially came first, etc. The literary timeline's also great, showing when the different stories were written.

It's an attractive edition with reprints of several images that accompanied older editions of the stories as well as new illustrations by Alan Lathwell.

Of course, with such a slim volume a lot is going to be left out. The author mentions that in his introduction and includes a supplementary reading and watching list (including preferred translations for the texts) for those who want to learn more.

Pros: brilliant world-building, interesting characters, interesting politics, thought provoking

Cons:

For Parents: no swearing, minor suggestive content, a few kisses, some violence, nothing graphic

Seraphina has a secret to hide regarding her mother. Her distant father warns her to avoid calling attention to herself, but her love of music makes it hard for her, especially when she becomes the assistant to the court composer. It's a mere two weeks before the Treaty Eve festivities when the Ardmagar Comonot visits to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the peace pact between the Goredd nation and dragonkind. Not everyone is happy with the peace, especially since Prince Rufus recently died in a suspiciously draconic way. The Sons of St. Ogdo are stirring up the populace against the vile scurge even as members of the royal court make snide remarks behind the backs of the draconic embassy members. The depth of Seraphina's knowledge of dragons and her willingness to stand up for them in the face of prejudice, brings her to the attention of Prince Lucian Kiggs, Captain of the Queen's Guard, as more and more incidents occur. As the days count down both her secret and the peace pact are in danger.

This is a brilliant novel. The writing is top notch and the world-building excellent. It's a pseudo-European world, but one that remembers there are other nations with other peoples, many of whom travel and have political and economic ties to each other. The religion is obviously based on Catholicism, with a plethora of interesting saints (including St. Ogdo the dragon slayer). I loved that the politics around the peace weren't simple. The racism of humans to dragons and vice versa is covered (in multiple forms), as is the peace pact between the human nations that came about beforehand, which allowed the humans to present a united front to the dragons. I also liked that the book pointed out the uncertainty that people feel when forced to trust that their former enemy is trading in good faith.

The dragons are coldly logical, refusing to allow feelings to affect them. But when they take human form, they can have trouble dealing with the wash of emotions that come over them. Dragons that forget themselves face harsh punishments - the excision of those emotions and any memories that could revive them.

Seraphina is a wonderful character. She lies to protect herself, knowing that she's hurting herself by doing so. I loved that many of her lies are uncovered, forcing her to face the consequences of her actions and make difficult decisions based on them. Lucian's great, always asking questions and sometimes getting burned by the answers. Princess Glisselda was fun to read about, with her obvious intelligence and political savvy. It was refreshing to see a friendship develop between women that didn't involve any backbiting or gossip. I also loved Orma, who tries so hard to appear human but doesn't quite grasp all of the intricacies involved even as he often has to prove he has no emotional attachment to Seraphina.

The book has some great examples of how to stand up for yourself - and others - when facing bigotry. It isn't easy and Seraphina sometimes does the wrong thing, but it's great seeing examples of how to deal with bullying behaviour head on. It's equally good that it shows the potential backlash and consequences that standing up for something can elicit.

I personally found the jump between the prologue and the first chapter very confusing. The prologue shows Seraphina's birth, which made me think the book would progress through her life, but the first chapter jumps several years ahead, and you have to read a few chapters to understand how she got where she is now. Logically prologues tend to stand apart from the rest of the book so that was my failure of attention rather than a flaw in the text.

I loved this book. The characters felt so real and Seraphina's loneliness so heartbreaking that I cried several times while reading it. The mystery is a little on the slow side, but I found the world and happenings so fascinating that I didn't care. If you love fantasy, get this book.

The Ables by Jeremy Scott

Pros: highly unique pov, great cast of characters, dry sense of humour,

Cons: several small errors ruined immersion, some aspects of the story were hard to believe

For Parents: some swearing, some violence

The day before starting grade 7 at his new school in Freepoint city, Philip Sallinger's dad takes him aside for ‘the talk'. But it's not the sex talk Philip expected. He, his parents, and most of the people in their remote city, are superheroes, or as they call themselves, custodians. But Phillip's blindness creates an obstacle with regards to using his power, and he finds himself in the special education class with others who have physical and mental differences.

Along with his new friends, Phillip must overcome the prejudices of those around them, and help protect the city from a dangerous enemy.

The novel is told from Phillip's point of view and while much of the book includes visual clues to what's happening, there are a lot of auditory and other sensory descriptions as well. The book takes Phillip through a variety of challenging experiences and it's great watching him grow up, even if he does make a lot of mistakes.

The group of kids on the whole was excellently written.  They've each got a disability (two are blind, one's in a wheelchair, one has down syndrome, one has extreme asthma and one has ataxic cerebral palsy), but they've obviously learned to adapt and end up doing a large number of remarkable things throughout the book.  The author never forgets that certain things are more challenging for them, but also shows that those challenges are surmountable by determined individuals.

I really appreciated the book's dry sense of humour, especially Phillip and James's so called ‘blind humour'.

There were a number of problems with the novel, some of which are probably not things regular readers will notice or care about.

For example, we're told early on in a mini history lesson that a pre-Biblical group of superheroes, who faced off with a supervillain, called themselves “the Ables”. This made no sense to me. We're given the etymology for the use of the term ‘custodians', so it struck me as wrong that a late middle English word would be used to describe an ancient group (especially by themselves). Yes, you could argue that it's the modern translation of the word they would have used, but then why not use that word, or at least tell us that word? English didn't exist as a language when this group was alive, and it would have made the superhero world's history sound more authentic if an older word had been introduced with it, a la: “They called themselves ‘ipa', which is Aramaic for ‘having the means to accomplish a task'. We call them the Ables.”

Occasional imprecise use of language kicked me out of the narrative. By which I mean that something was implied in the text that's later explicitly refuted. There's a scene where something embarrassing happens and Phillip wakes up wondering what rumours would be circulating. The impression I got from the scene - from the language used - was that this was the next morning after the event happened, but a few pages later I learned that several weeks had passed. I was left wondering why he'd be worrying about rumours that he must have heard by now and were likely dying down by this point. Each time this happened I found myself rereading the earlier section to figure out if I'd read it properly and/or had missed something. On one occasion I realized that Phillip had assumed something that turned out to not be true, but on others the text really did contain a contradiction.

I also spotted a few minor continuity errors, but these didn't impact the story at all.

There were some aspects of the story that I didn't really believe. There's only been one death in a SuperSim over numerous years - despite the variety of powers on display and lack of training many of the kids apparently had - and that one death was caused by an inability to see? the SuperSim seems like the kind of activity that would, at the least, injure several people each year, regardless of how careful everyone tried to be. I was surprised that grade 7 students were allowed to participate at all, considering they were just gaining their powers and hadn't had much training yet. The kids in the book learn so much more about their powers outside of school than inside of it that I wondered what official superhero training they were receiving, beyond history lessons, that would even prepare them for the superhero life.

I thought that the fallout from Donnie's accident was overblown, considering his down syndrome had nothing to do with what happened, though this was pointed out by Phillip in the text.

Certain aspects of the plot were a little predictable, but on the whole the book went in directions I didn't expect, with the SuperSim and other actions.

Despite these issues, the writing for the most part was smooth and entertaining. There's a lot of variety in the action and the book is never boring. There are a few swear words used - in a realistic context - at the end of the book and minor violence a certain points in the book.

While I enjoyed the book, particularly the unique point of view and characters, the number of times I was jolted from the story due to small errors decreased my immersion. There's a lot to like here - especially protagonists not generally seen in fiction at all, let alone a superhero story, and I do recommend it. Just try not to read it, as I had to, with a critical bent.

Pros: plot centres on native american beliefs, realistic characters, interesting alien life forms, hard SF elements

Cons:

Descendants of the Hopitu-Shinumu Native Americans colonized Fifth World agreeing to terraform the planet for the Vilmir Foundation - what they call the Reed - in return for ownership of the world when it was fully habitable. But a rift has formed between those who live on the coast, trading with the Reed for technology and renouncing the backward ways of their forefathers, and those who live on the pueblos, the Traditionalists, keepers of the old ways and old religion. When three alien spaceships appear in orbit the coastal Tech Society believe this new technology could help them throw off the yoke of the Reed, assuming they can control it. Meanwhile, a traitor alerts the Reed to the presence of the ships, prompting them to send a group of colonial peacekeepers to secure the ships for themselves - or destroy them should they prove hostile.

Unknown to the colonist these are the alien ships that performed the original terraforming on the planet that made it possible for humans to eventually inhabit it, but the ships' very long lives have made their AIs unstable and they're unsure if allowing the invaders to inhabit this world is something their Makers would have approved. In an attempt to answer this question, one of the ships creates a clone to meet the inhabitants and see if they deserve life, of if the ships should wipe the planet clean.

The background for the plot is fairly complicated - and takes a few chapters to set up - after which the story itself is quite straightforward. I loved the world-building. The author's father worked on a Navajo reservation when Keyes was young, so he learned a lot of the stories and beliefs that are recounted in this novel. I found the stories of the Kuchina, the origin of the Hopi and the prophecy that sent their ancestors to this planet in search of a new home really interesting. I also loved how SandGreyGirl could both question and in some ways blindly believe the teachings of her youth. The complexity of the emotions examined by her and Tuchvala, concerning beliefs and how the world changes you, were believable. I also liked how inheritance passed through the female line, and how that changed gender dynamics. It was interesting to read how SandGreyGirl sometimes took female lovers because it reduced the chance that her partner was after her land and the pressures of marriage that relationships with men brought up.

I appreciated the variety of characters, some likeable and other less so. Everyone felt real, with understandable rationalizations for what they were doing, even the various antagonists. The only hesitation I had here was with how Sand and Tuchvala relate to each other at the end of the book.

You don't learn much about the Makers, the ones who built the ships, but what you do learn is quite interesting.

There are hard SF elements, though I don't know if all the physics were accurate. I appreciated that space travel took years and that time passed differently for those planet side.

I'd have loved a few historical notes in an afterward explaining what, if any, of the things Keyes attributes to the Hopi people were made up for the book (beyond the prophecy).

It was an interesting book that brought out some questions about the nature of belief and had a fair bit of action.

Pros: varied characters, interesting premise, plays on politics and racism

Cons: artwork wasn't to my liking, not much info given as to how vitros were created and why they're so different

This graphic novel collects the first four issues of the Pariah comic books. Each comic details the background of a vitro character (or in one case a set of characters), and how they react when vitros are accused of blowing up a lab, releasing a virus into the environment. Together, the issues form a complex picture of how vitros are treated, how they differ from ‘normal' humans and how they're trying to survive.

The premise, that kids created using a special in vitro technique meant to eliminate disease, which boosts their intelligence, is a very interesting one. I wish more information were given about how they were born/what makes them different, but the series focuses more on the current crisis than their origins.

There's a variety of protagonists, offering several points of view with regards to what's happening and how the vitros should deal with it, culminating in Franklin Hyde, whose radical plan is enacted to unexpected results.

While I enjoyed the story the artwork wasn't to my liking.  This is purely a matter of personal taste and as the art didn't detract from the story it wasn't a problem.  But, unlike other graphic novels, this isn't one I pick up because I liked the artwork.   

This graphic novel ends with the characters coming together in unexpected circumstances, and the kind of cliffhanger that makes you wish the artist could draw faster.

Pros: beautiful images, commentary on the images and the periods that produced them

Cons: repetition, very broad overview using a limited number of works, breaks 2000 years into 3 periods for discussion

[Note: The advanced reading copy of the book that I received for the purpose of this review did not include the colour plates. The authors give good descriptions of each photo and in most cases I was able to look the images up online.]

Picturing the Apocalypse breaks down the last book in the Bible, the book of Revelations, into its composite parts as a way of detailing how artists over the years have illustrated each part. The chapters consist of: The angelic guides and John's journey, the Lamb, the Four Horsemen, the Seven Seals, the Woman Clothed with the Sun, the Satanic Trinity (ie, the beasts and Antichrist), The Whore of Babylon, Armageddon, the Millennium and the Last Judgement, the New Jerusalem and, finally, how the 20th and 21st centuries have utilized the imagery.

The authors picked a few representative works that they then used to illustrate the entirety of the book of Revelations. This allows the reader to see both how different elements evolved over time as people from different periods adapted them, and also to see how the same sources in each period illustrated the work as a whole. There are, of course, some works included in each chapter that only refers to that element (works where the artist didn't illustrate the whole book but where seeing a few more examples helps show a wider range of influence). The downside to this is that you're only seeing a limited sampling of what's out there, but being comprehensive with so broad a topic would cause its own problems.

The illustrations and works they picked are of great beauty and show the different elements to great advantage. They also act as a jumping off point to doing more independent research.

Though the authors describe the images they're citing very well, be prepared to flip back and forth between the text and images a lot, both because you'll want to see what they're pointing out in their descriptions but also because they often reference the images at different points in the text (so, for example, an image inset in chapter 8 will be mentioned in chapters 1 and 10 as well).

There's a fair amount of repetition in the text and pointing the reader to the chapters where certain themes and concepts are addressed, giving the book the feel of something meant to be referenced by chapter (as by someone looking for images on a particular element) rather than something to be read from start to finish. The chapter on 20-21st C representations especially points the reader to numerous images already discussed.

The authors tried to show the book of Revelations in context for the different periods that they discussed, mentioning that the author of the book was writing it not long after the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans, when Christianity was being persecuted and when people were looking for a militaristic saviour/end of the world to come. Seeing how people of different ages turned the meaning of the vision to their own ends was fascinating.

Having said that, while I understand the necessity of mentioning the feminist critiques of the book, specifically that the depiction of women is stuck in the dichotomy of mother/bride/virtuous woman vs whore is important, I was a bit surprised at how... apologetic the authors were when presenting this 2000 year old text. Obviously the author and numerous illustrators weren't concerned with 21st century ideals, so why should the authors of this commentary work feel the need to do more than comment on how perceptions change? Along the same lines, I was surprised at the authors' attempt to reconcile the ‘good' God of the New Testament with the destruction inherent in the book of Revelation. While Christ taught love, it's clear that the God of the Old Testament had no problem with death and destruction (plagues of Egypt, ordering genocide of conquered nations, the flood). And this is the God that an early Christian, familiar with the Hebrew religious texts, would have been familiar with. Again, it seemed a bit strange that the authors were apologizing for a text and a view of the world that has since fundamentally changed. Simply mentioning that some modern people have trouble with the reconciliation of a vengeful God with the Christian message, and how it impacts the modern view of Revelations, would have sufficed.

While not perfect, this is an excellent primer for looking at the book of Revelation from a artistic standpoint. The authors have a deep understanding of the depictions of the various elements and make some interesting interpretations. And it reproduces some gorgeous images.

Pros: lots of action, variety of action, interesting world-building some tense & gritty scenes

Cons: black book information sometimes comes at convenient times, soldiers at the end of the book make some questionable decisions

Yuric Walshe is on an airship to visit the footprint his branch of Cerulean Holdings has in Ypsilanti Bloc as prelude to an urban renewal project. Decades ago a food borne plague wiped out large areas of the US. Most of the country recovered, but some areas slow to recover were walled off instead, and allowed to fester in a post-apocalyptic state. Mr. Walshe is looking at an illegal black book with data from one of his competitors and talking to his kids when the ship is attacked. Alice, his 20 year old daughter and protege, and Cody, his 11 year old son, make it to drop ships before its too late. When Alice comes to, she's alone in an extremely hostile environment. Through the black book she learns that the rival branch is not only responsible for the crash, they're using the event as an excuse to speed up the renewal, a process she's discovering is more violent and destructive than she believed.

The book focuses on Alice's journey through Ypsilanti Bloc with the two people who find her drop ship as she tries to leave, contact the outside world and/or find her brother. You really get a feel for her as a character, both her resilience and her surprising naivete. Despite the evidence in front of her and the constant testimony of those around her, Alice holds on to her beliefs about Ypsilanti Bloc and what the urban renewal project will do for the people in it. Only towards the end of the book does she accept that things aren't what she's always believed.

Basilio and Maya, the people who help Alice out, are very interesting characters. I didn't like Maya at first, as she fit the jealous angry woman stereotype, but the more you get to know her the more fleshed out her character becomes and the more understandable her actions - and reactions - are. I'm surprised at the lengths they end up going to to help Alice, but their relationship does develop as time goes by, making their actions realistic.

I was impressed at the variety of dangers Alice faced as she moved through the Bloc. It's an interesting post-apocalyptic setting within a modernized world. The Bloc itself has all the traditional dangers: cannibals, gangs, etc. and some of the scenes get pretty tense. There's a good balance between action and down town, keeping the novel fast paced and entertaining.

The world-building was well done, with a good set-up and chapter openings containing quotes from the outside world. This allows you to understand how the people from Alice's community feel about the Bloc, even as you see the Bloc itself first hand.

The black book was occasionally the source of much needed intelligence at the right time, which felt a bit contrived.

The ending was satisfying, though I felt that the soldiers were a little more inept than they should have been.

If you like post-apocalyptic fiction and a fast read, it's a great book.

Pros: fascinating interpretation, lots of endnotes and explanation

Cons: highly academic

The accusation that the Jews of the city of Norwich murdered the apprentice William in a mockery of the crucifixion, and the Life of St William that was later written, set the stage for similar accusations in the future, accusations that eventually saw Jews burned at the stake and expelled from the cities they called home.

This is a highly academic book that goes over a wide variety of background information (family trees, identities of various players - and their relations to others who may have had influence, the second crusade, the civil war between Stephen and Matilda, etc.). As Rose is using very limited sources with regards to the actual blood libel cases, there's a sometimes circuitous route from the background information to how it ties into the cases. It's quite a fascinating piece of deductive reasoning, putting minor clues together to form a cohesive and intelligent narrative, - even if it's admittedly based on numerous suppositions.

Rose is obviously aware of all of the scholarship that's been done on this topic and refutes a lot of theories. For example, there's the idea that all blood libel cases involved rioting and executions or expulsions, which may be the case for later centuries, but when the cases first appeared any negative consequences generally followed years later, and tended to have political and/or economic reasons behind them (from forcing the Jews to ransom themselves so their captor could pay bills to acquiring their land and assets). While a lot of Rose's conclusions are based on thin information, there's enough supporting evidence to show that - though they can't be proved conclusively -they are plausible.

Rose proves that the murdered children themselves (assuming there's even a body) are secondary to the economic and political concerns of those citing the accusation. Though nominated for sainthood the boys hardly ever appear in liturgical calendars, prayers, artwork, etc.

I found the earlier chapters very intense, and had to pay close attention in order to not get lost in the various strings being woven into the narrative. Later chapters (particularly the ones in part 2), were much more linear and easier to follow.

Some of the background information was fascinating in its own right, like the extreme financial cost of going on crusade, the raids done by both sides during the civil war and how knights forced churches and civilians to ransom themselves to pay the costs of war (and/or for booty).  It also brought out the financial problems some nobles and churches had, and how unpalatable some of the clients were from the point of view of the moneylenders (both Christian and Jewish).  

Though the book is highly academic, Rose gave enough background information to allow me - a relative newcomer to the case - to follow along easily. Not only that, the book revealed a lot about the state of research on these cases and how previous historians have interpreted the data. It's a fascinating history that examines numerous sides of the origins of the blood libel and how the story may have originally spread.

The Highest Frontier by Joan Slonczewski

Pros: interesting protagonist; fascinating world-building; thought provoking concepts

Cons: fair amount of repetition, especially at the beginning; several unexplained concepts and items, including one important to the plot

Jennifer Ramos Kennedy's culture source was her great-grandmother, President Rosa Schwartz. A few months after a family tragedy she's setting out for Frontera, a university on an orbiting space station. She chose it both because a family friend runs the school but also because it's free of many of the things plaguing Earth: mosquitos carrying disease, risk of flood and methane quakes, the expanding Death Belt, and the need for DIRG bodyguards. But university life isn't quite what she expected: her teachers are all a little crazy, her roommate is weird and has an unhealthy affiliation for ultraphytes, the alien plants that crave salt and spread from their landing site in Utah to be a scourge on the world, her slanball coach wants her well rested, a hard thing when she's volunteering for the understaffed EMS, and there's so much reading and work to do for classes.

Meanwhile, she's knee deep in helping the Unity party win the next Presidential election. Jenny doesn't understand how the Centrist Firmament belief is so strong when people live in space! But things on Earth have reached the point that if change doesn't come soon, it'll be too late for the planet. And yet the Centrists want to expand the solar array that's expanding the Death Belt, intending for people to leave earth in the coming Rapture, relocating to other space stations. Stations that couldn't possibly hold even a portion of the people on Earth.

And it turns out that Frontera isn't as free of Earthly disasters as she was led to believe.

There's very little exposition. You're thrown into the novel with limited explanations of what things are and how the world has changed from what we currently know. While it's an entirely character driven novel, something I'm not generally keen on, my interest never waned. There are plot points that pull the story into a thought provoking conclusion, but for the most part the book follows Jenny through her days, questioning the world and the politics that run it.

As a scion of a political family, Jenny knows politics, making her an excellent character to follow. Through her mother and conjoined twin aunts, she's connected to the upcoming Presidential election; she helps when one of her professor's runs for mayor; sees the struggle with personnel and supplies as she volunteers for EMS, and more. She also takes two politics courses, one on Teddy Roosevelt and the other on Aristotle and democracy, the lectures for which come up often in the text. The book's ending questions how politics is done, and if it's possible to fix a broken system.

The second point of view character, Dylan Chase, is President of the university, and through him we see the difficulties of managing his staff and securing sufficient financing. We also see him dealing with student problems: alcoholism, printer disease hacks, assault, and addiction.

The world-building is top notch: Spanish colloquialisms, tax playing at casinos, unique fashion trends, amyloid (sewage processed by hab shell microbes that's used to ‘print' everything from food to clothing to the shelters everyone lives in), the anthrax cables that transport ships between Frontera and Earth, Toynet, Kessler debris, I could go on. The sport of slanball is pretty cool too.

The supporting cast is wide and varied, though it focuses on Jenny's family, a few professors, close students (including the players of her slanball team) and some of Dylan's contacts (for his POV scenes). Jenny's experiences at the school are also varied, from class work to parties to helping build houses for colonists.

The first few chapters contain a fair amount of repetition, especially with regards to Jenny's family. Which makes it all the more strange that other concepts and terms are left unexplained. You figure out what DIRGs are pretty quick, but I don't remember the acronym being explained. Similarly, Jenny notices an object on one of her teacher's desks that affects the plot. She brings it up to another character, implying she knows the relevance of the object, but it's not until the end of the book that as a reader I figured out what the object was and what it meant.

If you like a lot of character development and world-building in your science fiction, this is a highly entertaining, and sometimes thought provoking, read.

Pros: great characters, interesting story

Cons: romantic elements, though minor, feel awkward at times

When Griffin Dane locates the planet he believes to be the ancient pleasure planet Artemis, his intention is to study it and return to his home world and bask in the glory of his historic discovery. So when his ship crashes, stranding him there, he's eager to find his way back to the stars.

He's rescued from the wreckage by the Huntress Adara and her demiurge puma companion Sand Shadow, with whom she's psychically linked. They guide Griffin first to their village and then to a major city with relics left by the Seegnur, the people who made the planet and altered the inhabitants to be the perfect servants. There they meet with the Old One Who Is Young, a man who has studied the technology of the Seegnur for decades.

But Griffin's arrival has awakened something. And things with the Old One aren't what they seem.

I loved Adara and Sand Shadow. It's great to see a self-confidant young woman who gives and accepts help as the situation requires. She knows her skills and when the location changes and her abilities are less in demand, finds something she can do to help that will use her skills. By the same token, it was great to see Griffin fumbling on this ‘primitive' world, accepting menial tasks as the only ones he's qualified to do, and not complaining about it. I really liked Terrell as well. It was interesting how the three protagonists strengths and weaknesses complemented each other, and how the characters worked together.

The story begins sort of quest like, but there's a series of overlapping mysteries when they get to Spirit Bay, which were quite interesting to read. It was also interesting learning more of the Seegnur and how they modified things (via the social rather than scientific changes. You don't learn the science behind the genetic modifications but you learn about the different social strata and some of the abilities of people who were adapted for specified jobs).

There were minor romantic elements in the book. The opening led me to believe that these would have a stronger impact on the story, so I was pretty happy to discover they didn't. There were some awkward conversations where the characters were honest about their feelings (or lack thereof), which I appreciated (the honesty, if not necessarily the awkwardness). Some of the elements seemed a tad heavy handed, like Adara noticing Griffin's eye colour in the middle of a life or death situation, which also struck me as being out of place. But on the whole I found the characters' openness refreshing and the elements indicate that a romance may form as the series goes on.

The world-building is understated, but interesting. Since the planet was specifically designed it still works on a feudal style system. As with the romance, there are underlying elements but they only pop up from time to time.

It was an interesting read.

Pros: comprehensive, lots of great sidebars with extra information, mentions numerous sources, lots of illustrations, recipes to try

Cons: text is dry

This is a well organized book on what people in the (predominantly later) Middle Ages ate. The author presents information from a number of sources, including cookbooks, archaeological finds, artwork, health guides, and manner guides. Chapters detail bread, vegetables, meat, fish, spices, milk/egg/cheese dishes, desserts (including fruits and berries), and drinks. She's careful to remind readers of foods that were unavailable at the time as well as mentioning where certain foods and spices originated (when they were obtained through trade - like the fact that peach trees originated in Persia). The author also points out differences in menu and preference between regions - due to what's able to be produced there, costs involved in importing goods, and other factors.

While I found the text somewhat dry, the information was interesting. The side bars, where a lot of the social information was relayed, were particularly interesting (with segments on food in fantasy literature, candles, ergotism, vegetarianism, etc.). I also found the segment on medieval drinks interesting (and I think it's cool that the book has recipes for making hippocras, claret and mead).

While I haven't tried any of the recipes - yet - some of the over 60 recipes sound very appealing while others... less so. It's very true that tastes have changed. Some ingredients will be harder to acquire than others, especially depending on your geographical location.

The book is beautifully illustrated with over 100 images from manuscripts, paintings and illustrations.

If you're interested in medieval food, this is a great reference guide, with a good variety of information and recipes to try your hand at.

Pros: fascinating story, engaging

Cons: ending feels abrupt

This memoir is split into two parts. The first details the surprisingly fascinating life of science fiction author Harry Harrison. The second part is a series of essays that were meant to be incorporated into the main text but the author, unfortunately, passed away before that could be completed. As the essays contain some overlapping information, it was decided to keep them separate from the main text. These essays provide more in depth information into aspects of Harrison's life that were otherwise skipped over or barely touched on in the book: his friendship with John Campbell, turning Make Room! Make Room! into the film Soylent Green, how he played with some of his writing ideas to make book series out of them, etc.

I haven't read many memoirs. Most people - frankly - don't live particularly interesting lives. Interesting, I mean to say, to people other than themselves. Harry Harrison, who was born in 1925 and passed away in 2012 just days after completing this book, lived a fascinating life. He served in World War II (in the US), he lived in Mexico, England, Italy, Denmark, and Ireland. He knew a lot of the early movers and shakers of the SF world, and participated (sometimes ran) conventions around the world.

The text is pretty engaging, keeping me reading long past the parts I thought I'd find interesting (his WWII service, living overseas after the war). He keeps the book upbeat, mentioning that things were bad at certain times but not dwelling on the details. While the story is told in a linear fashion, he does jump ahead at times. So, for example, the same paragraph that introduces the woman he married - and spent 50+ years with - also explains how and when she died.

The essays provide a lot of interesting side information, though the repetition of things from the text and the lack of narrative momentum given the rest of the text made the last few harder to get through. The ending feels a bit abrupt as a result. While the main text has a nice conclusion, the essays - not meant to stand alone - don't. Having a short conclusion by someone else would have fixed this. By pure accident I read the acknowledgements after the book (I must have skipped the page by mistake), and it actually forms a nice conclusion, with some remarks by Harrison's daughter.

While this isn't a book I would have picked up on my own (I was sent a copy for review a while back), I'm glad I gave it a chance. And having enjoyed Harrison's writing style, I may need to expand my reading of his works beyond Make Room! Make Room!.

Pros: quick read, variety of action, good pay off, complex plans

Cons: some unnecessary repetition

Tris and his friends have made it to Principality City and gained several powerful allies, but if Tris wants to claim the Margolan throne and right his half-brother's wrongs, he'll have to assemble an army and master his summoner abilities.

As with the first book, there's a good variety to the action: fight scenes, mage training, diplomacy, and a touch of romance. It keeps things feeling fresh and helps with the quick turning of pages.

The plan for taking back Margolan has an appropriate complexity that relies on more than just Tris and his training. I appreciated that the efforts of displaced farmers and deserting soldiers helped with the overthrow.

You learn more about the vayash moru (vampires), and how they operate and survive. I also liked the introduction of new blood magic formed ‘creatures', though wished they had been given more page time as they're quite terrifying.

There were some times when the author repeated herself in giving information but it wasn't as distracting as in the first book.

It's a great conclusion to Martin's duology, with a pay off that feels hard earned for the characters.

Pros: interesting plot, mostly fast paced, new aliens species

Cons: confusing opening, slow beginning

Memor technology allows humans to colonize several worlds. The Network Intelligence Office has been trying to catch Terl Plenko, leader of the Movement terrorist group. Plenko has been encouraging the colonies to leave the Union, using violent methods. The death of Plenko's mate during an NIO mission on the Ribon colony puts investigative partners Dave Crowell and Alan Brindos on Plenko's trail. His top henchmen (or maybe one of his alias's) have potentially been seen on the vacation planet of Temonus, and Dave sends Alan there. Split up, they each learn that there's a conspiracy going on, that they can't trust the NIO, and that Plenko is more than he seems.

The book is narrated in alternating chapters by Dave Crowell, in first person, and Alan Brindos, in third person. While it makes it clear when you're with the different protagonists, it took me several minutes of hunting through the text to figure out who the first narrator was (since he was “I” in the text) and properly understand what was going on. At the same time a lot of new terms are thrown at the reader, including a fair amount of tech terms, which didn't help. Once I knew who the narrators were, I reread the first few chapters again to make sure I didn't miss any clues with regards to the plot.

The first few chapters are quite slow as there's a lot of exposition going on. After that, the narrative structure of quickly passing back and forth between the protagonists creates tension and interest, and the rest of the book was a rush of trying to figure out the mystery.

The mystery was very interesting. There are a lot of great twists and turns. So much happened that I could not have guessed in advance, which kept me on my toes, wondering how this was all going to end.

I enjoyed reading about both Alan and Dave. They're proper noir PIs - thinking fast and cleverly inserting themselves where they need to be to get the information they want, though in the story they've contracted with the NIO and so have advanced resources. The supporting cast was varied and interesting, including several women and Helks (another alien race). I thought both Dorie and Jennifer were well written and intriguing.

While there weren't many alien races, the Helks and Memors were kind of interesting. You learn more about the Helks, who are giant like humanoids.

If you like noir science fiction, this book has a great mystery and is a relatively quick read.