Amanda

Boring. Jealousy and bed hopping doesn't suddenly become interesting just because Alexander the Great is in the story.

I'm struggling to decide who the intended audience for this prose version of The Odyssey is supposed to be. It's not really accessible enough for young readers, and I can see nothing designed to draw in adult readers. There's nothing wrong with the writing, but I just don't see anything to recommend it over any good translation.

I do have to give praise to Joanna Lisowiec's magnificent woodblock-style illustrations. I would happily buy a picture book version of The Odyssey if she illustrated it.

Received via NetGalley.

A collection of fantasy stories selected from late nineteenth and early twentieth century fairy tale collections.

There's nothing wrong with this collection, but since most of the stories are from two regions—Britain and Ireland—a lot of the stories have a similar feel to them.

I do like the illustrations—and wish there were more—and appreciate that the stories were lightly edited to modernize spelling and to remove archaisms. I was also happy to see the list of sources provided links to digitized editions of the collections from which the stories were taken.

Received via NetGalley.

A disgraced author hires a skeezy academic to help her reboot an obscure series of fantasy novels; the academic and his surly teenage kid get sucked into a fantasy realm while on a research trip.

Where to start? The story lacks originality; the writing is mediocre; the art, while good, seems more appropriate to a middle grade fantasy title; and the characters are so insufferable that I kept hoping monsters would eat them—slowly.

My time would have been far more pleasurably spent revisiting The Magicians.

Received via NetGalley.

This one starts well, with a really cool battle between creatures without fixed shape, but then turns into a bog-standard story of a pocket of civilization in a post-apocalyptic world.

The writing isn't bad and the art is good, but I'm not seeing anything novel or special here that makes me want to seek out volume two.

Received via NetGalley.

A novel-length retelling of Marie de France's lay, "Bisclavret."

I really want to like this one more than I do, but I can't escape the fact that reading it often felt like a chore. The characterization is not strong, it's repetitive, and it's about twice as long as it should be for the story it's telling. Also, the sections from the king's POV are in second person, which made me feel emotionally disconnected.

What's most frustrating about this book is that I can see flashes of what it could have been: the underlying tale is good, and several of the characters have sparks of life that showed what they could have been.

Received via NetGalley.

What is this? A romance where the relationship is built on trust and mutual respect? I feel like I've discovered a unicorn!

Sunstone isn't my usual genre, but I found the characters' awkward nerdiness endearing and wound up invested in their relationship.

I do think the writing is a bit wordy and the quality of the art is occasionally uneven, but on the whole I really liked this unconventional romance and wouldn't mind reading the next volume.

Received via NetGalley.

Two clerics are sent to assassinate a princess at an ecumenical conference. Things don't go quite the way they were supposed to.

If you like unreliable narrators, cynicism, long games, histories of invented worlds, and morally dubious characters, then this book is for you. I love all of those things and am looking forward to reading book two.

Received via NetGalley.

There's been a lot of ink dedicated to analyzing the themes and symbols of Twin Peaks, but Scott Meslow's book takes a more nuts and bolts look at the cult favorite show, discussing its conception, filming, the audience reaction, and more.

There is a wealth of information about Twin Peaks in this book, and it's all presented in a clear, well-laid out manner. Meslow, while clearly a fan, is not blind to the show's flaws and his analysis is thoughtful and well supported.

I was highly impressed by A Place Both Wonderful and Strange, and suspect even casual fans of the show will enjoy this look behind the curtains.

Received via NetGalley.

George's life is at a low ebb: he's lost his job, his boyfriend moved out, and he can't even get his name sorted out on his utilities bills. When two of the dogs he's walking to earn some semblance of a wage run off, he hits rock bottom...and finds that he's fallen over seven hundred years back in time.

Getting stuck in the fourteenth century may be the best thing that could have happened to George.

Let's get one thing clear: George is not a pleasant character. He's whiny, shallow, and bad at taking responsibility. However, being stripped of all the distractions of twenty-first century life forces him to take a long, hard look at himself; he doesn't much like what he sees, either.

Yes, the book has time travel and a dragon—and a pretty cool dragon, too—but this is very much a story of George's journey towards becoming a better person, and I am in favor of books where characters experience actual personal growth. George doesn't suddenly become a sterling example of humanity, but the changes his internal and external struggles force him to undergo make him ready for a better path forward.

Side note: I like the cover, but it really isn't representative of the type of story being told.

Received via NetGalley.

A woman whose parents died tragically twenty years ago receives a mysterious offer to experience the deaths of people from across time.

This is not a redemption story or a cautionary tale. This is the story of a stupid, shallow, and entitled person who, unwilling to change herself, spends obscene amounts of money so she can get a rush from parasitizing the past.

I am annoyed with myself for not dumping this book after fifty pages.

Received via NetGalley.

Generation ships, culling people, and societies built on deception are hardly new topics for science fiction, but Peter F. Hamilton uses these ideas to craft an extremely well told story. It was a true pleasure to read a book written with consideration for how the setting would have been created, and to see the characters gain knowledge and actually consider the implications of what they learn.

I'm looking forward to seeing what happens in book two.

Received via NetGalley.

This a look at the impact of social diseases on society. Weisser discusses how rampant venereal diseases affected not only medical practices and societal attitudes towards disease, but also how even laws and fashion were shaped by them.

This is a bit more academic than popular non-fiction, but those willing to put a little effort into reading will gain a great deal of knowledge—and will most like come to the sad conclusion that while diseases change, people do not.

Received via NetGalley.

Two teens go on a quest to find a legendary necklace they hope will save their homeland.

This was an entertaining Greek myth-inspired adventure story. It's fast-paced and the lead characters are fun. I'll be reading volume two.

Received via NetGalley.

Well, this one is a delight!

In this picture book for young children, Cornelia Funke provides text for Ruby Warnecke's gorgeous, vivid illustrations of legendary creatures. I was so pleased that the "Around the World" part of the subtitle is accurate: rather than just rehash the some Greek mythological creatures with a token Asian or American one thrown in, this book includes animals from every continent and gives a bit of information about their legends.

My one complaint is that the text was sometimes a bit twee for me, but I'm sure the target audience will love it.

Received via NetGalley.

Don't be fooled by the short page count: this volume has a very generous selection of writings. Readers are treated to a number of poems by Whitman and Robinson, and robust excerpts from the other writers.

I do wish there had been short introductions to each author, but that's a very minor quibble that in no way impacted my enjoyment.

Received via NetGalley.

Casino Royale is a strange choice for a graphic novel adaptation since much of the action takes place at tables and the tension is over the turn of a card. It's a story that requires imagination and skill to adapt effectively; sadly, this book shows neither.

This is less a graphic novel than it is an illustrated abridgment of novel. There's no effort to use the art to help tell the story; instead, large chunks of Fleming's prose are superimposed over bland drawings. It feels amateurish.

Skip this book and read the original instead—it's short and can be read in about the same amount of time it would take to watch the movie.

Received via NetGalley.

I'm normally against infodumps, but I honestly believe Feersum Endjinn could have benefited from one or two.

I was able to follow the multiple POV sections with little difficulty, but felt completely adrift trying to form any sort of sense about the larger world and purpose of the book. I got there in the end, but the journey was exhausting.

Oh, and one quarter of the book is written phonetically. People who are willing to read aloud or who are adept at deciphering the meaning of the average social media post will have the most luck with those sections.

Received via NetGalley.

This is a very different book than what the publisher's description promises. It is the pathetic ramblings of a woman who sticks like superglue to her banal existence. It is a litany of miseries trying to pass itself off as insight into the human condition.

Received via NetGalley.

George's life is at a low ebb: he's lost his job, his boyfriend moved out, and he can't even get his name sorted out on his utilities bills. When two of the dogs he's walking to earn some semblance of a wage run off, he hits rock bottom...and finds that he's fallen over seven hundred years back in time.

Getting stuck in the fourteenth may be the best thing that could have happened to George.

Let's get one thing clear: George is not a pleasant character. He's whiny, shallow, and bad at taking responsibility. However, being stripped of all the distractions of twenty-first century life forces him to take a long, hard look at himself; he doesn't much like what he sees, either.

Yes, the book has time travel and a dragon—and a pretty cool dragon, too—but this is very much a story of George's journey towards becoming a better person, and I am in favor of books where characters experience actual personal growth. George doesn't suddenly become a sterling example of humanity, but the changes his internal and external struggles force him to undergo make him ready for a better path forward.

Side note: I like the cover, but it really isn't representative of the type of story being told.

Received via NetGalley.

The art is pretty good and the story is a decent addendum to the Battlestar Galactica reboot, but Six's journey seems...simplistic.

Received via NetGalley.

It's 1963 and there's been a murder in the middle of the ice bridge that connects US and Soviet territory; the FBI and KGB both investigate, with the specter of the Cold War haunting the search for the killer.

First, the opening text sets the perfect tone: there's a chilling irony in not being sure if it's speaking of the US, the Soviet Union, or both. The art does a magnificent job of maintaining the feeling, with its grey impressionistic look.

Where the book fumbles is in the actual story. It works well for three issues, but then in the fourth and final part everything is neatly tied up. The ending feels completely unearned.

Received via NetGalley.