The nitty-gritty: Lovely writing and eerie ambiance couldn’t quite make up for a confusing plot and magic system. Book of Night was not at all what I expected (something I’ve heard from other reviewers as well) and that may have impacted my reading experience. When I think of Holly Black, my mind conjures up fairies […]
The nitty-gritty: Low-tech and futuristic space travel combine in surprising ways in this entertaining series opener. Last year I thoroughly enjoyed R.W.W. Greene’s Twenty-Five to Life, and so I jumped at the chance to read his latest book from Angry Robot. Mercury Rising is just as compelling but in a different way. Where Twenty-Five to […]
The nitty-gritty: Heartstopping action, hysterically funny dialog and unforgettable characters make A Sh*tload of Crazy Powers a fantastic entry into Jackson Ford’s addictive series. “You stupid little girl,” he says. “Look at me.” I do. He opens his mouth, but I get there first. “Enough with this little girl shit. I have a name. It’s […]
The nitty-gritty: A unique multiverse tale with high stakes and engaging characters, Prison of Sleep is a satisfying series wrap-up. Tim Pratt concludes his high energy sci-fi multiverse duology with Prison of Sleep, and just like Doors of Sleep, it was a ton of fun! This is a series that needs to be read in […]
The nitty-gritty: An unusual sci-fi mystery with quirky characters, Rosebud is both entertaining and mind-bending. I’ve read some weird books in my time, but Rosebud might be the very weirdest! And I say that with fondness, because I really did enjoy it. Paul Cornell takes ideas like how an individual’s history shapes them, mixes in […]
The nitty-gritty: A hilarious fairy tale, both dark and light, full T. Kingfisher’s trademark quirky and lovable characters. The bone dog came alive at dusk. It was not quite completed, but it was close. She was bent over the left front paw when the skull’s jaws yawned open and it stretched as if waking from […]
The nitty-gritty: Interesting worldbuilding clashes with an overstuffed plot and slow pacing, making The City of Dusk a mixed bag. It took me almost a month to finish The City of Dusk, and I almost called it quits several times, but I finally decided to finish it out of sheer determination. As you can see […]
The nitty-gritty: There’s plenty of food for thought in this short horror story that takes the idea of perception and turns it on its head. “It had already started. The world was tipping, its weight shifting, and no one had really noticed how precarious the ground beneath our feet had become. Every image, every video […]
The nitty-gritty: Emily St. John Mandel explores the tenuous boundaries between the past, present and future in Sea of Tranquility, a thoughtful and emotional journey through time. “We knew it was coming.” Once again, Emily St. John Mandel has written a thought-provoking, luminous story about the future, the past, and all the moments in between. […]
The nitty-gritty: Full of effortless humor, imaginative world-building, and complex characters, Stringers is a smart, bold sci-fi adventure—with pickles. “The Chime sounded, like, well, a chime. A really big chime. But still. If there truly was a sound evil enough to destroy the galaxy, wouldn’t it be something like pre-Black Album Metallica, or Justin Bieber? […]