Another one. Yep. Underground may be her best yet, although her "monster" was rather hard to accept at first. Throughout the reading of the book, the line, "Alligators in the sewers," spoken in the little girl's voice from E.T. kept going through my head, and it was darn distracting.
Other than that, though, the main character, Harper Blaine, is extremely well-developed and enjoyable to read. She is strong, yet sympathetic. Her needs and wants are clearly demonstrated, along with her determination to do the right thing despite what it may cost her personally. It was also nice to see the new love interest developing. Oops, that was a touch of spoiler, I guess.
All in all, a good read.
Showing posts with label authors books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label authors books. Show all posts
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Friday, October 3, 2008
Book Review of the Day - Kat Richardson
Greywalker by Kat Richardson was recommended to me by her agent, Joshua Bilmes. And no, I'm not trying to impress him by reading all his clients' works. I was already a fan of Elizabeth Moon and Tanya Huff before I queried him about my current novel.
So, Richardson. I very much enjoyed the book, especially the first half. I enjoyed the eerie feeling I got while reading it, and the constant sense that what seemed to be living characters were actually dead ones and vice versa. I think I would have liked it more without the vampires, though. I'm just really tired of vampire stories. It's not that the vampires were bad, mind you. They made for interesting characters. I'm just ready for something new, and a full-blown ghost story was what I was really after. Since Richardson gave me that as well, I did go on and buy her second book in the series, Poltergeist, which I have only just started reading.
So, for vampire fans, this is a good choice. For ghost story fans, this is a good choice. For people who like strong female characters, this is a good choice.
So, Richardson. I very much enjoyed the book, especially the first half. I enjoyed the eerie feeling I got while reading it, and the constant sense that what seemed to be living characters were actually dead ones and vice versa. I think I would have liked it more without the vampires, though. I'm just really tired of vampire stories. It's not that the vampires were bad, mind you. They made for interesting characters. I'm just ready for something new, and a full-blown ghost story was what I was really after. Since Richardson gave me that as well, I did go on and buy her second book in the series, Poltergeist, which I have only just started reading.
So, for vampire fans, this is a good choice. For ghost story fans, this is a good choice. For people who like strong female characters, this is a good choice.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Book Review of the Day - Justina Robson
Today's book review features Keeping It Real by Justina Robson.
I bought this book out of desperation for something to read, since none of my favorite authors have anything new out. (Elizabeth Moon's next book comes out next month.) I also liked the cover art which featured a kick-butt woman in black leather sporting lots of weaponry.
The back cover copy was a little off-putting. The binding identified the novel as science fiction, but from the description, it seemed to be a combination of both sci fi and fantasy--elves, demons, high tech, AI's. This one was difficult to categorize.
And I think that was my problem with it. I'm really not into fantasy for the most part. I'm not familiar enough with the genre to appreciate or understand its standards, quirks or even all of its vocabulary. Therefore, while this book was clearly popular enough to spawn several sequels, I just couldn't get into it and don't think I'm qualified to adequately judge its worth.
I liked the two main characters for the first half of the novel. The woman is bad a** while still maintaining a fragile side that attracts the reader's sympathy. The "rock star elf" is attractive and intriguing with his demon tendencies. But as soon as they travel to the "elf homeland" I find myself lost. The magical elements and multiple levels of relationships are difficult to follow for someone not thoroughly versed in the fantasy genre.
It was definitely a worthwhile experiment to step outside my science fiction comfort zone. I'm about to do it again with Kat Richardson's Greywalker (labeled as fantasy but really more paranormal). But I've decided that cross genre science fiction/fantasy isn't my thing.
I bought this book out of desperation for something to read, since none of my favorite authors have anything new out. (Elizabeth Moon's next book comes out next month.) I also liked the cover art which featured a kick-butt woman in black leather sporting lots of weaponry.
The back cover copy was a little off-putting. The binding identified the novel as science fiction, but from the description, it seemed to be a combination of both sci fi and fantasy--elves, demons, high tech, AI's. This one was difficult to categorize.
And I think that was my problem with it. I'm really not into fantasy for the most part. I'm not familiar enough with the genre to appreciate or understand its standards, quirks or even all of its vocabulary. Therefore, while this book was clearly popular enough to spawn several sequels, I just couldn't get into it and don't think I'm qualified to adequately judge its worth.
I liked the two main characters for the first half of the novel. The woman is bad a** while still maintaining a fragile side that attracts the reader's sympathy. The "rock star elf" is attractive and intriguing with his demon tendencies. But as soon as they travel to the "elf homeland" I find myself lost. The magical elements and multiple levels of relationships are difficult to follow for someone not thoroughly versed in the fantasy genre.
It was definitely a worthwhile experiment to step outside my science fiction comfort zone. I'm about to do it again with Kat Richardson's Greywalker (labeled as fantasy but really more paranormal). But I've decided that cross genre science fiction/fantasy isn't my thing.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Book Review of the Day - S. L. Viehl
Just finished Omega Games by S. L. Viehl, another Florida author. This is the latest installment in the Star Doc series.
Viehl gets an unusual review from me. Don't get me wrong. I have enjoyed all her books, including several outside the series. I love the main character, Cherijo Veil, although I wasn't thrilled with the direction her character took after suffering a head wound and losing her memory. In Omega Games, the character is slowly regaining her original personality and is a very interesting combination of the two women--Cherijo before her accident, and Jarn afterward.
But that's not what makes the series unusual for me. It's the uncanny ability Viehl has to make me feel, really feel, the emotions of the main character as she endures trial after trial. When I began the series, years ago, I was immediately taken in by the effect of Cherijo's emotions on my own psyche. When she stressed, I stressed. When she found love, I felt that love. And when she was betrayed . . . well, I don't want to give away spoilers, but I suddenly found myself angry for no apparent reason after finishing that particular book. I wanted to break things, irrationally. It took several days for me to trace the source of my unidentifiable anger to the ending of her book. No other book has EVER caused me to feel such a strong connection to the emotions of a character.
Omega Games is an action-packed thriller. It also reiterates the strong bond between the two main characters, Cherijo and Duncan, and, as with the previous novels, I can feel their affection for one another, particularly his for her. I look forward to reading the next book in the series.
Viehl gets an unusual review from me. Don't get me wrong. I have enjoyed all her books, including several outside the series. I love the main character, Cherijo Veil, although I wasn't thrilled with the direction her character took after suffering a head wound and losing her memory. In Omega Games, the character is slowly regaining her original personality and is a very interesting combination of the two women--Cherijo before her accident, and Jarn afterward.
But that's not what makes the series unusual for me. It's the uncanny ability Viehl has to make me feel, really feel, the emotions of the main character as she endures trial after trial. When I began the series, years ago, I was immediately taken in by the effect of Cherijo's emotions on my own psyche. When she stressed, I stressed. When she found love, I felt that love. And when she was betrayed . . . well, I don't want to give away spoilers, but I suddenly found myself angry for no apparent reason after finishing that particular book. I wanted to break things, irrationally. It took several days for me to trace the source of my unidentifiable anger to the ending of her book. No other book has EVER caused me to feel such a strong connection to the emotions of a character.
Omega Games is an action-packed thriller. It also reiterates the strong bond between the two main characters, Cherijo and Duncan, and, as with the previous novels, I can feel their affection for one another, particularly his for her. I look forward to reading the next book in the series.
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Book Review of the Day - Ann Aguirre
Just finished Ann Aguirre's Grimspace. It is a thoroughly enjoyable read with complex and likable characters. March is a guy you want to get to know. Jax is a well-written kick-butt female character. The supporting cast is equally endearing. The sequel comes out soon and I am looking forward to reading it.
I wrote to Ms. Aguirre to compliment her work and she responded almost immediately. I respect any author who does that. It tells me that the author understands that fans are what make or break them. I hope if/when I am published that I remember to make time to answer emails on a daily basis.
Ms. Aguirre will be attending WorldCon. She has agreed to sign my copy of Grimspace for me and I am eager to discuss characterization with her.
On an authorial note, I just finished the synopsis for Agency Files-Assassin's Nightmare. Boiling down over 400 pages into seven took quite an effort, but I think I've finally got something that not only gives the highlights of the story but also conveys the "voice" of the novel and its main character, Vick Corren. The plan is to send off my first official agent query on Saturday the fifth.
I wrote to Ms. Aguirre to compliment her work and she responded almost immediately. I respect any author who does that. It tells me that the author understands that fans are what make or break them. I hope if/when I am published that I remember to make time to answer emails on a daily basis.
Ms. Aguirre will be attending WorldCon. She has agreed to sign my copy of Grimspace for me and I am eager to discuss characterization with her.
On an authorial note, I just finished the synopsis for Agency Files-Assassin's Nightmare. Boiling down over 400 pages into seven took quite an effort, but I think I've finally got something that not only gives the highlights of the story but also conveys the "voice" of the novel and its main character, Vick Corren. The plan is to send off my first official agent query on Saturday the fifth.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
