The nitty-gritty: A magical tale steeped in Chinese folklore and history, with memorable characters, exciting action, humor and one very special eyeball spirit named Mr. Yanqiu. “This wood came from a peach tree that grew at Mount Longhu,” I said, “in the shadow of the Hanging Coffins. My husband cut the wood himself. He was […]
The nitty-gritty: An atmospheric middle grade story, perfect for the Halloween season, but whose deeper meaning somehow escaped this non-middle grade reader. When I saw the cover of this book as one of St. Martin’s Griffin’s offerings for review, I immediately requested a copy. I mean, just look at it! A creepy staircase with a […]
The nitty-gritty: Full of the same surreal and desolate atmosphere that I loved in The Mad Scientist’s Daughter, Clarke brings us an irresistible story full of dangerous and desperate characters, in one of the most unique settings I’ve seen in some time. The doors screeched open and Eliana stepped out onto the abandoned platform. She […]
The nitty-gritty: An Alice in Wonderland re-telling that didn’t quite hit the mark, but a wonderful look at the effect of Victorian society on a handful of memorable characters. So Mama waggled her fingers in the air, Go, go, and settled her crown of hair, the color of browning roses, upon the bolster of the […]
The nitty-gritty: A clever story of alternate history that answers the question, “What led Mary Shelley to write Frankenstein?” Mary was kneeling on the other side of Oliver’s body, her face still spattered with cemetery dirt. We were a sight, the pair of us, Mary with her muddy dress and wild hair, me with the […]
The nitty-gritty: A mind-blowing presentation of an exciting space adventure, and one of the most unique books I’ve ever read! I was lucky enough to land one of the nifty hardcover ARCs of Illuminae, and that made all the difference in my reading experience. This is definitely a book you’ll want to read in physical […]
Bat Out of Hell was one of those books that ended up in a much different place than it started, at least for me. The story gets off to a strong start as we witness a horrific outbreak of an Ebola-like virus in Indonesia, a virus that kills 100% of people who contract it only hours […]
The nitty-gritty: A sprawling adventure story filled with airships, magic crystals, military maneuvers and talking cats. Yes, I said talking cats! Despite the fact that it took me two weeks to read The Aeronaut’s Windlass, I had so much fun. This was my first Jim Butcher book, and I can see why he’s so popular. […]
The nitty-gritty: A poignant and magical tale of feuding families and forbidden love, perfectly written. Embers clung to the edges, dense as a band of stars. The fabric burned and thinned. It glowed translucent, and then crumbled to ash. The thin wood of the porcelain vines released the scent of their blue berries, and the […]
The nitty-gritty: And we’re off! The story starts to take shape, we get to know the characters better. You can read my review of Badge, Book, and Candle (Bookburners #1) here. The walls of the room were hair and plaster. No. Splinters and sinew. No. The policeman didn’t know what the walls were. And, within […]