Beth Tabler
I was provided an ARC by Tor.com in exchange for my open and honest review.
It is a terrible and wondrous thing to be so stunned by a story you lose your ability to use words. This story literally stunned me into silence. The only response I could muster for the first day was, “That was fucked.”
I'll tell you why. I am from Las Vegas, Nevada. Born and bred. On October 1st of 2017, my hometown was visited by the worst act of mass gun violence in US history. I watched the news in horror as people ran for cover. I searched the videos streaming on youtube with tears streaming down my face looking for people I knew. I looking for my family. Thankfully none of my family and friends were involved in the shooting, but only just. I know lots of people who work in the hotels. On December 11th of 2012, the Clackamas Town Center mall was riddled with holes as a single gunman went in and shot shoppers. At the time of the shooting, I lived 800 feet from the entrance of the mall. My husband was home during the shooting, although he didn't hear anything and oddly enough I was in Las Vegas at the time. But, I was having lunch in the food court, exactly where the gunman shot people, 1-week prior. I was not directly involved in that shooting, but for a month I saw the masses of flowers and teddy bears laid out on the Clackamas sign. People died 800 feet from my home.
I am an American, and my life has been touched by gun violence if only by proximity to it and that is the point when it comes to this story. Gun violence by proximity. Most of the story is about people watching gun violence take place elsewhere. It is over there, in that mall with people you don't know. Viewers eyes are glued to the screen, and they wonder what is going to happen. They armchair quarterback what the victims would do or not do. It is chilling and so very real. John McDean's job in this story is to ask, “how do we get more people watching?” “How do we manage this and cause these scenarios to happen?” We create Fear. America is a nation of Fear. Let's feed that! He produces scenarios where Americans worst fears are played out for the masses in an engorged “Bread and Circuses” scenario. It is a vicious cycle that feeds on itself like an ouroboros and Bennett created the perfect story around that idea.
Mcdean is disgusting, he is immoral, and not too far from how the media handles these things right now. I have never been disgusted by a character as much as I was with him. In 10 years, maybe 20 who knows perhaps we will have a Running Man by Stephen King or a Vigilance by Robert Jackson Bennett television show on our hands. Or, maybe books like this will help us wise up and see what we are doing to ourselves. I don't know, but I can hope. Read this. Read it if you are American, read it if you are not. Just read it. It is worthy of your time and money.
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This is a strange and lovely book. If I I judged this book entirely on illustration and panel flowing from one scene to the next, easy 5 stars. The graphics are very well done and effective. However, the stories feel almost like they are choppy. Some of the stories, specifically the ones with the worms was really good, while the others were just ok. I'd give it a chance just so you can look at the images and embrace the crazy style.
This book follows the story of two main characters, Prince Sebastian as he comes to terms with who he is and what he enjoys doing and Francis the brilliant seamstress. Sebastian enjoys dressing up in beautiful woman's clothing. Francis is a talented dressmaker and Sebastian's best friend that creates works of art for him to wear. Together they explore friendship and navigate what it means to love someone unconditionally.
I fervently wish that books like this existed when I was a preteen/teenager. I think that if I have had access to literature of this quality and subject content, maybe the world would have not seemed so strange and foreign when I left my protective bubble as a child and became an adult. Not only is this book well written and beautifully executed, but it is also an important subject because people are people, no matter how small... how they want to dress, or how they see themselves.
This book primarily deals with being different and how people will love you an except you given half the chance. The prince is a crossdresser, he likes big and beautiful dresses, specifically those of a seamstress that he has befriended. Together they form a partnership based on friendship and eventually love. This story is the perfect blend of sweetness, authenticity, joy, sadness and ultimately love overlayed with Jen Wang's gorgeous illustrations.
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In an ordinary town, on a very normal garden path, Katherine Victoria Lundy came to an incredible tree with an impossibly carved door. Through it, she strolled down a hallway whose walls are carved from a single piece of wood that seemed to have no beginning nor end, and came upon signs in neatly done cross stitch declaring rules for this realm, this place that could not be:
Rule One – Ask for nothing.
Rule Two – Names have power.
Rule Three – Always give fair value.
Rule Four – Obey the curfew.
Katherine Victoria Lundy was six years old. This is her story and how she came to the Goblin Market.
In 1964 six-year-old Katherine, never Kat, Kitty, or Kathy, always Katherine, realized that her life was going to eventually end someday. Before that fateful day, her life would be full of planned moments all taking part in a sequence she could already see: School, husband, work as a librarian, eventually children, then death. She neither dreaded nor welcomed the impending onslaught of events, it just was. Even her family was remarkable in its lack of remarkability. Her father is a plain and ordinary school principal. Her mother was round with the impending birth of her younger sister, and her brother was not interested in his much younger sibling. Everything just...was.
“She was ordinary.
She was remarkable.
Of such commonplace
contradictions are weapons made.”
In an absent dream – Seanan McGuire
Katherine is in many ways a typical 8-year old, but her personality shines in many unique ways. Like many kids, she does not understand the vagaries and behavior in her peers – yet she surpasses other children (and probably adults) in her ability to understand the broader picture. It is as if Katherine has a gaping hole in her sense of self and how it is to be a socialized person. Katherine is calm, collected and assured of herself, but she knows that the social aspect of being a kid is something she lacks. So she yearns for that connection. Time passes in the story as it does in life, both very slowly in the minute to minute and all at once like a gale force wind.
Katherine is now 8 years old.
The story progresses, and Katherine becomes more of herself if that is even possible. She is more secure in the knowledge of who she is and what she likes. This is mostly books, something I can identify with. What I enjoy about Seanan Macguires ability to write can be summed up in this chapter, “When is a Door Not a Door.” Children have personality and souls. They are people in all respects except for age, and authors tend to write about children as if they are not people, but characterizations of what we, as a reader think a child should be. Seanan does not. Katherine is a fully developed, albeit young character.
Katherine is presented a door in a twisted Oak tree with the words, “Be Sure” carved across it. And for reasons that even Katherine does not fully understand, she passes through it into the Goblin Market. Here she is assailed with exotic sounds, adventures, and creatures out of imagination and myth rather than reality. As a reader, I can almost picture this scene like when we meet the worm from Labyrinth, “don't go that way...” We also meet a character that becomes a friend, her first therefore best friend, Moon. Katherine, who is now Lundy because true names have power, learns from Moon and The Archivist, another important character, the ins, and outs of the Goblin Market.
The Goblin market is both a setting for the story and even in its own way, a character. The Market is entirely based on perceived fairness. If any deal is struck, words spoke, or actions are taken within the confines of the Market, the Market weighs it against its own standard of fairness. If one fails to make a fair deal, or what is called “fair value,” the market takes action against the perpetrator in the form of debt. Debt, rather than being its typical elusive and abstract concept, actually makes a physical change on the wearer. If the wearer of the debt continues to act against fair value, they will eventually physically transmogrify into a bird. This is the crux of the story. What is fair value?
“She was Katherine, she was the teacher's pet, and when she grew up,
she was going to be a librarian because she couldn't imagine knowing there was a job
that was all about books and not wanting to do it.”
In an absent dream – Seanan McGuire
Does Lundy want to come back? Does she want to stay? How does she give fair value to her family both blood (the human world), and adopted (the Goblin Market.) How does she live in two worlds, and give fair value to herself? Because the Goblin Market is always watching and taking account? I am not going to give it away, and even with the ending of the story and what will be a beginning for Lundy, it is oddly unsatisfying. This isn't a book that wraps morals in a tight and tiny little package to be opened at a later date. Even if I wanted a sweet and happy ending for Lundy, that isn't in the character of the Market and in the bigger picture, The Wayward series. Fairy tales and fairylands are unique and magical and very seldom kind or gentle.
Each of the Wayward Books touches on essential lessons. Seanan creates a character and place around a crucial social concept. This is no different. The resounding lessons I took from reading this book were two-fold. Firstly, a chosen family is as strong and vital as a blood family. Secondly, Fair value is up to the user and is becoming increasingly scarce in our world of apathy. What is fair for one, is not fair for another. Context and experience flavor the users perspective. This story is a small allegory for that concept.
In an Absent Dream can function just as easily as a standalone novel as it does as the fourth in the Wayward series and it is a masterpiece folks. An utterly magical story and I highly recommend reading it.
Thank you to Tor.com for providing me with an ARC of this in exchange for my honest review.
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Two kids share a summer of moments at a lake house in Awago Beach. A yearly pastime that the family shares together. With each passing day, the pair discovers more adventures and become more aware of the fuming adult conflicts around them.
This book is a collection of smooth and quiet moments. For me when reading, not all moments have to jump off the page at you. Life isn't like that, and neither should writing about life be. It is highs and lows, of which the author has written about so well. Also, Tamaki has walked a very delicate line, she has created a book that can easily be viewed from both sides of childhood divider. Kids and teenagers can read this book and relate to the moments that Windy and Rose experience throughout a Summer: Scary movies, talking about boys, walking home at night through the scary dark, and swimming in the lake. All these moments are quintessential parts of a summer childhood experience. However, simmering in the background are very adult-like issues such as pregnancy, inability to conceive, marriage dynamics, peer dynamics, anxiety, and depression. These issues touch Windy and Rose, and they react to them with a burgeoning adult understanding. Adults can read this story and read about these adult moments from a different lens and think back to what it would have been like to be at the age on the cusp of becoming an adult. It is very well written.
Graphically this book is beautiful. The characters are rendered with care and finesse, each panel delivering just enough information to show us a scene without falling into the trap of telling the reader everything.
This is a worthy award winner and should definitely be checked out. Wholeheartedly recommend.
Thank you to Netgalley and Ruby & Topaz Publishing for providing me with a copy of this in exchange for my open and honest review.
Sadly after a few false starts on this book, I have found that it wasn't for me. This story has all the excellent markings of a solid book. Hadley does a great job laying the scene and creating the setting. Where I think this story ran into problems was with the characters and specifically the dialog. I found it stunted and unrealistic. Stunted in delivery and unrealistic in style. Harper, the main character, comes across as a generally normal tom-boy type teen girl. She plays soccer and fights with her mom. To confuse the situation, she is also half alien. Harper also lives within a world plagued by something called Maasai Mara Sleeping Syndrome. You go to sleep and don't wake up. As I said, Hadley has done a great job setting the scene here. It sounds like it could be a fascinating story. It plods along with Harper having unrealistic interactions and illogical emotions. She isn't a likable protagonist, someone I care about and want to get behind. She just existed in the story. She was flat. And, that made me fall flatly out of the story.
Jeff Cox
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me an eARC in exchange for my honest review.
This guide is a fantastic resource for the new gardener, or a more practiced gardener looking to gain some tricks up their sleeve. I am a master gardener. I have had a flourishing garden for many years and I learned reading this resource how much I did not know. This book is easy to understand, and the knowledge is easily adaptable and scalable. I think this year I will become a better gardener using the methods discussed and I look forward to having the fattest tomatoes on the block. Check it out; it is well worth it.
Thank you to Diversion books, and Netgalley for providing me an eARC in exchange for my honest review.
This story is a strange and brutal tale crafted by newcomer Kevin A. Muñoz. Often dark to the point of being physically unnerving and bulging with well-crafted battles between the main character, Police Chief Sam Edison of the Little Five, and hollow-heads, unkillable cannibals no longer capable of higher thought. All within the context of a small struggling community fighting to make a home again after an apocalypse of illness and destruction ten years prior.
The story revolves around our main protagonist, Police Chief Sam Edison. A once upon a time coast guard captain has fallen into the role of the Police chief and leader of a small community called Little Five. Sam struggles daily with memories of the past and the death of Sam's wife and daughter. Edison continually attempts to atone for deaths that were no one's fault and spends much of the novel recriminating herself. This causes a compulsive need to protect the innocent, much to the detriment of those around him. Two strangers arrive at the fence of Little Five, hoping for assistance. One of the strangers happened to be a young, pregnant, and abused young lady. They are promptly murdered within days of arriving. They were killed to protect a secret. To make matters worse, the beloved stepdaughter of the mayor is kidnaped. Sam feels compelled to right this wrong, find Phoebe, and bring justice upon those who hurt young women.
At this point, the primary basis of the story has been laid, and the pace of the novel picks up. We are treated to battle after well-crafted battle between Hollow-Heads, gunmen, and town traitors on Sam's quest to rescue Phoebe. The reader has a choice at this point, either cheer for Sam or scratch their heads at Sam's misguided stubborn refusal to abandon this quest. It is the weight of one innocent's death versus the death of many. That in itself adds to the horror and pacing of the story. I know that I often wondered at Sam's motivations and the motives of supporting characters that assisted Sam in his endeavors. This usually broke the suspended disbelief of the story for me.
Another quibble I have in an otherwise excellent piece of writing is the use of two plagues. One a strange catch-all cannibal creating disease that has affected the population at large. The other is vague allusions to oil going bad about the same time as the cannibal creating illness. The fuel going bad sets up plot points further into the story, but I found it unnecessary and even distracting. If facing an apocalyptic scenario, oil would go bad and become scarce as a matter of course. No people means no oil refineries. Bio-diesel would become a tradeable and necessary resource for a community to thrive.
One thing that Muñoz does exceptionally well is creating a believable apocalyptic world, aside from my minor quibbles about oil. He makes a setting in which the town, Little Five, is surviving and in some ways flourishing, but never for a moment is it forgotten how close to the edge of destruction they are. It is believable in many of the ways that most apocalyptic scenario stories are not.
The ending is a bit messy and less satisfying than I would like, but I will leave that to you readers to find out for yourself. All in all, this is a reasonably enjoyable read, a bit confusing at times and head-scratching, but still gratifying. If you are a fan of “The Walking Dead” and “A Walk Amongst the Tombstones” by Lawrence Block, I think you will enjoy this.
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Where have I been? Apparently under a rock because there is a bit of a Nnedi-naisance going on. Her work, whether short story, novella or full-length novel are everywhere and very well respected in the science fiction/fantasy community.
This story is pretty straightforward. A fish out of water tale. However, what is not straightforward is the depth of character that Okorafor created in such a short novella.
Binti is a 16-year-old girl from the isolated Himba region on Earth. She applies and is accepted into the prestigious intergalactic university Oomza Uni, and is the first person of Himba descent to ever be admitted let alone attend the prestigious school. Right away, we as a reader know that Binti is stepping way out of her comfort zone. Both culturally, physically and emotionally. Her people are very traditional and are not one to reach out to change. This in itself is a huge internal conflict for Binti that is artfully addressed throughout the story. While in transit, Binti's ship is attacked and hijacked by the warlike Medusae people. A jellyfish-like species that has been at war with the Khoush aka other earthlings. The entirety of the ship's inhabitants save for Binti, and the pilot is murdered with little regard. To escape Binti retreats to her personal living quarters after which she attempts to wait out the trip to make it to Oomza Uni alive.
In the process of trying to survive, Binti makes some startingly discoveries. First, the piece of technology that she brought from earth, called an edan, enables Binti to communicate with the Medusae. Something that had previously not been accomplished. Secondly, the red clay like substance that Binti uses from her homeland called otijza has healing properties to the Medusae. Binti tentatively coordinates a truce between the occupants of Oomza Uni and the Medusae averting a war and subsequently, makes Binti loved by the Medusae tribe and both esteemed and feared by other Oomsa Uni students. She then begins her mathematical studies at the university. That is the end of this particular novella, but not the story. Okarafor has gone on to write two additional novellas that flesh out Binti's character even further.
First, let's address some of the high points of the story and writing style. Nnedi Okorafor is an authentic writer. In that, I mean she feels entirely at home within the prose of her words, and it reads comfortably. There are no forced situations or scenarios, every scene flows smoothly and transitions from one scene to the next. This is a rare trait in a writer, especially at a short story or novella length when much has to happen in a short period. Okorafor is an author that shows instead of tells. The technology that she has created naturally doesn't exist, and its use in the story is a huge and essential plot point. Instead of just saying that the edan that she brought from her does this and that, Okanfur shows us. She shows us the machine, to the point in which we as readers can almost feel it in our hand. Lastly, I feel like I know Binti. Okorafor has described Binti so vibrantly that I feel like I could hold her braids in my hand, smell the red clay she coats her body with, and the electrical currents she can harmonize. Oddly enough, it has little to do with how tall Binti is or other physical features and entirely on the content of Binti's character, quality of writing, and a feel for her as a person.
At the end of this novella, we learn that knowledge comes with a significant cost, a cost that Binti has to pay. The ending is both bittersweet, a punch in the proverbial gut, and an opportunity for her to become more. Well worth the read. Not only is this a feather in the cap of Afro-futurism, but of science fiction at large. This is a damn good story.
This is a quiet and contemplative book. Full of soft and colorful graphic that impart an air of wonderment from page to page. It follows the imagining of a child sitting at their drawing desk looking out their window at the world beyond them. Traveling from window to window is a long winding river. The child begins to imagine themselves aboard a small ship traveling the currents of the river place to place, all while they remain safe in the bosom of their home. The river journey is long and wild. It goes through cities, farms, factories, hills, and valleys. It travels over waterfalls and down into the neverending darkness of the ocean at night. Once the adventure is done, the child comes back to himself and is sitting back at their drawing table in the dark, the river always there snaking from window to the other having had a fantastic adventure indeed.
Although this is a picture book, the beauty of it is that all of us, adult and children alike, have sat at a desk longly gazing out the window and wondering what journey is before them. The same can be true of planes, or oceans. Adventures abound even though we are stuck inside looking out the window. We can all relate to this brave heart in a child.
This is a subtle and beautiful book worthy of your child's attention or sitting on a shelf being admired by all. I highly recommend checking it out.
Lin-Manuel Miranda managed to write a book that walks the fine line between the overly sentimental and the inspirational. Reading this book, I feel nothing but inspiration and a feeling of contentment. Each of these little bits of bite-sized pieces of awesome are just perfect to ingest and take with you for the day or through the night while you rest. They are lovely, sweet, and wonderful and have an air of goodness about them. I recommend this for when you need a non-schmaltzy pick-me-up. For example, I will leave you with one of my favs -
“Gmorning.
YOU ARE SO LOVED AND WE LIKE
HAVING YOU AROUND.
ties one end of this sentence to your heart, the other end to everyone who loves you, even the ones you haven't heard from for awhile
checks knots
THERE. STAY PUT, YOU.
Gnight.
YOU ARE SO LOVED AND WE LIKE
HAVING YOU AROUND.
ties one end of this sentence to your heart, theother end to everyone who loves you in this life,even if clouds obscure your view
checks knots
THERE. STAY PUT, YOU.
TUG IF YOU NEED ANYTHING.”
Also, if you can't read the book, NO WORRIES! Lin-Manuel writes a new one every day on his twitter feed. Just subscribe.
Never mistake a children's book for something simple. It takes a lot of skill and finesse to make something both easily understandable and profoundly beautiful. Bickford-Smith's books are both. This book is no exception. The pictures are delicate and beautiful. But they jump right off the page at you as if you are a fox leaping through the forest. The writing is superb and the story brought a tear to my eye. It is truly a beautiful read.
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Swine hill is a place that will hurt your body, wrack your soul at the altar of human selfishness, and destroy you. Imagine living in this place. Imagine working at the store or a packing plant here. Imagine having to share part of your soul with the undead. Hick's characters do, and for a short time, we readers also do. Hick's has invented a story that is so rife with pain, imagination, and horrors that if you could take the spawn of Dr. Moreau and The Haunting of Hill House you would have something close to this. Haunt is unsettling in ways that made me uncomfortable deep down in my bones.
Hicks explores the premise of a haunted family in a haunted town. It centers around the protagonists Jane and Henry. Brother and sister trapped with the souls of unsettled ghosts inside them. In Jane's case, it is the soul of a woman who thrives on conflict and secrets. The spirit silently whispers to jane the horrible thoughts and intentions of those around her. Henry has the ghost of a mad inventor inside him seeking to create incredible and awful machines whose purpose is sometimes unknown. The pair is also influenced by their mother and father, both haunted. Her mother is haunted by a person so craving affection that her body physically radiates heat. Enough to burn and scar. Jane is the heart of the family. Silently she pounds away at life and looks after her family as best as she can within the circumstances.
The crux of the story rests around Henry and how his mad ghost creates things. This time Henry invents pig people. Upright human-like animals that are built to self-slaughter and could eventually render the town and by extension humans obsolete. Henry creates many, but individually we meet Hog Boss and his kind son Dennis. Both are good-natured and thoughtful people set at deliberate juxtaposition to the rest of the “human” inhabitants of the town. Enter the fearful townsfolk, frightened of the unknown, in both the pig people and the loss of their livelihood. What happens next can only be described as an explosive clash between the old ways and the new all within the context of Jane attempting to save people.
The setting in the story is unrestrainedly unworldly. The writing drips darkness and moisture from every page and sometimes, I could swear my kindle was fogging up from the cold. Hicks absolutely has created a world where you should be very afraid that ghosts will settle in your bones.
The underlying theme of this story is relationships: sister to brother, mother to son, lover to lover. In this, it is the immense power of links that can drive a person to the unthinkable or the extraordinary. What would I do for the person I love? What would I do to the person I hate? Person to person a spiderweb of narrative and relationships is created. This web holds the town together and eventually culminating in it blasting apart.
Behind the relationship web and narrative, Hicks also remarks on social problems. Racism, sexism, classicism and the dehumanization of immigrants in the United States are allegorically reflected upon. This adds another critical dimension to the story. It is more profound than ghosts or pigs. It is so much more.
It is poignantly cruel that these characters, so afflicted, must also contend with the worst problems we see in our own world. Hicks will unflinchingly show you the horrific visage of ghosts and nightmares pulled from the headlines of our own world, leaving you to wonder whether one lot is truly fundamentally worse than the other. And yet, perhaps it is true that they who would grow must first be made to suffer. Certainly, the growth we see in these characters is the result of a purposefully built set of trials and woes; it is not an easy journey for us to follow but it rewards us as only a master-crafted tale can.
Things get harsh and really painful for the characters in this story. I know I have alluded to it vaguely, but I don't want to give away the cleverness of the story. It is scary, mystical, and bittersweet. It absolutely deserves all of the forthcoming awards that are going to be thrown at it. If you are a fan of the horror/bizarro genre, look no further than this book, but even more so if you are a fan of the written word and the power it can wield, this is a worthy read.
Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for a free copy of this ebook in exchange for an unbiased review.
This was fun albeit slightly flat graphic novel read. Sarah Vaughn has written a story about the kingdom of Harbeny, and Lady “Poppy” Pyppenia and her sleepless knight. Sleepless knight as a play on words. He is a knight who protects Poppy and does not sleep, ergo, sleepless knight. This is a “who done it” style story. Assasins threaten Poppy's life and it is her knights responsibilty to keep her safe. Much intrigue happens over the course of the story and ends rather abruptly.
There are quite a few positives about this book:
Lovely art work. I enjoy Del Luca's style. The artwork is stylized without becoming unreadable.
Sweet and believable budding romance between the main characters.
Well done high fantasy
A diverse cast of characters
I did have some difficulties with the pacing. though. It feels too choppy and in that choppiness I lost the plot a few times and wasn't able to connect with the characters like I would like to. I found myself asking, “Why should I care about this?” Because of that I will probably not continue the series.
I have been to New Orleans, once. And even in my limited understanding of New Orleans, I can imagine how difficult it would be to get down on paper. Not only does P. Djèlí Clark get it on paper, but he also evokes the “spirit of the place.” He understands what makes New Orleans hum. Clark understands the smells, and he gets the people. He gets what it feels like to walk the cobblestone streets and hear the music of Mardi Gras. Any reader can read this story and smell beignets, moss, and hear the deep thrumming of drums in their bones. It is no small feat.
The Black Gods Drums is an immersive tale, a steamboat-esque alternative history. An Eloquently written, and researched, story set in confederate era New Orleans post Civil War Stalemate. Clark took legends and folklore from Haiti, the Caribbean, and Africa and paired them with the history of the Haitian Slave Rebellion of 1794. In reality, the rebellion helped create only Haiti, a state free from slavery, and ruled by non-whites and former captives. Yet, in this story, the rebellion helped free Haiti as well as most of the Caribbean and created a state known as The Free Isles. Thus a great stalemate was born between the Free Isles and the slave owning south. A stalemate based upon a mysterious weapon, previously used once against the French fleet. A weapon that is so powerful that to use it again, it would destroy everything.
Against the backdrop of history, both real and imagined lay New Orleans and our protagonist Creeper. Creeper is a 13-year-old street kid gifted or cursed by the goddess Oya. She makes her living stealing and doing what is necessary survive. Even though Creeper is a thief, there a strong moral current that flows through her. Given different circumstances, you know that Creeper wouldn't steal. There is no great thrill to stealing save for prolonging her life a day at a time. Oya, the Yoruba goddess of winds, lightning, and violent storms, death, and rebirth. She was brought to New Orleans in the hearts of slaves. Part of Oya has settled inside of Creeper, sending her visions and protecting her on occasion.
Creeper wants to escape her circumstance. After a chance meeting with a Cajun smuggler and overhearing some useful and important information, Creeper has a chance to leave. What follows is an exciting array of characters. Specifically in the form of Captain Ann-Marie of the airship Midnight Robber. The Captain has secrets of her own and that could involve Creeper. The story has exciting plot elements and a gorgeous retelling of history from that era.
If you like stories that involve nuns, smuggling, mysticism, and saving the world. All set against New Orleans, this is the story for you. It is gorgeously and atmospherically written and I cannot wait to read whatever else Clark writes.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
The Author, Joe Ollinger's timing is just right. The science fiction genre is saturated with dystopian novels that ask questions of the reader, “What if there were no water? Or Food? Or Sunlight?” None I have seen until now have asked the question, “What if there is no calcium?” It is a perfect question to ask. In the reader's mind, calcium is the most benign of things, and it surrounds us. Ollinger creates a vibrant world built around the procurement of calcium tinged with mystery, adventure, and a kick-ass female protagonist.
The world Ollinger creates resembles a world that, to me, is a cross of a wild west town and a city from the TV show Firefly. Named Brink, it is all hot and bright with a thin patina of red dust the encapsulates everything. It is full of inhospitable people scrabbling out a living in the dirty, dusty land, and always in need of calcium and water. Ollinger describes it as “...a last chance gas station on one of Earth's old, long highways - a staging area, a waypoint to more promising, more hospitable worlds...” Also present is the very visible Oligarchy of the rich described as having more elegant clothes, healthier bodies and a distinct lack of hypocalcemia bruising often found in the poor. The dichotomy of the poor versus the wealthy is fascinating here. Something as simple as drinking a glass of milk is considered the highest of high falutin living.
This book is in the classic “who done it” style. We have our heroine, Taryn. A rough and tumble collections agent described as muscular and robust that wears body armor. Her job is to seek out leaks of unauthorized calcium currency and return it to the government. In this world, calcium is cleverly written as tradeable currency. Doing her job, she is always surrounded by the unlawful, the dying and the dregs of society. This brings up shattering moments from her past that often play a part in her decision making in the present. She also has a wealth of empathy, tho to function in her position as a collections agent, and by extension survive in this society, she has to suppress it. She reminds me very much of Marvel's Jessica Jones. She has a similar attitude and position minus the superpowers.
The story progresses with Taryn becoming enemy #1 of the state as she hunts for who is stealing the calcium supply. It is exciting and turbulent all within the context of an investigator type mystery. Along the way, we meet various side characters including a sidekick/romance interest of a sort in the form of a wealthy calcium auditor, Brady. He is a described as “looks more like a business executive than a bureaucrat.” The absolute only complaint I have in this story is I found Brady to be a tad unbelievable. His motivations as a character and dialog were muddy. This threw me out of the story at points. I just could not suspend belief when it came to Brady's and Taryn's interactions. However, this book could easily have a sequel. If so, as a reader I would love to know more about Brady's backstory and have him fleshed out as a more substantial character.
There are beautifully created images throughout the story that keep the pages turning as the reader seeks out the “who did it.” All of this climaxes into a rather explosive denouement. This, in turn, finalizes into an open ending that is rife with a possibility for sequels.
The author asks us, “What if there is no calcium?” As a reader, I can say “I know that one. It looks like this...”
Humans can be many things. Saviors. Sinners. Hunters. Hunted. Monsters, or the divine. We are given ample opportunity to show our true colors during our lifetimes. Often our true colors are somewhere in the grey area as no one is any one thing. We are a collection of moments. Most writers often overlook the many faces of human nature. But great writers give a plurality to their characters. It may not be easy to understand who is good and evil without thinking about it, but isn't that real life? Mira Grant aka Seanan Mcguire is one of those great writers that celebrate the pluralism of morality in her characters, and this novella is an excellent example of this.
Dr. Izzy Gauley, the protagonist, is as morally gray as any character could be. She is distraught and caught in the guilt of her previous choices, and she must continually make ethically ambiguous decisions to further what she believes is the truly right thing. Those choices may or may not bring the entire proverbial glass house on top of herself. Much of the plot hinges on whether her choices in this story are wicked and self-serving or genuinely in the best interest of all are up to the reader. She is a good character. But, this is not surprising as Mira Grant tends to write real people.
Plot-wise, Grant has written a novella that is terrifying to a parent. What happens when herd immunity fails? The whole premise is based on a parent's worst nightmare, losing their children. Even worse is that it is through the parents own actions that global calamity happens. Although the delivery of the message regarding immunizations and the importance thereof is a bit ham-fisted at times, her point comes across. Vaccinations are essential and the backbone of a healthy society. What I liked about the plot is that it developed from, “How important immunizations are,” to a discussion on bodily autonomy. Do we sacrifice bodily freedom for the sake of a healthy society? This argument is a very real and prescient argument that could play out in the courts in the next upcoming years.
I hope to see this turn into a full-fledged series. There is enough meat on the bones of this novella to expand the characters and plot into a great story very much in the vein of the “Newsflesh” series.
I am so glad the Mira Grant is such a prolific author. I enjoy her work often and repeatedly. She is one of the few authors that seem to be just as good on a reread as it was initially. I can't tell you how many times I have read Newsflesh and October Daye. If you have an opportunity to check out this novella, I dearly hope you do.
Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for providing me with a copy of this in exchange for my honest review.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this in exchange for my honest review.
This poetry book reads like a love letter to the wild and scary parts of humans that are still connected with the land. The beating, thumping, heart pounding part of us that wants to scurry through the underbrush or fly through the trees. Human beings have become disconnected from that animal parts of ourselves. Mike Bond, among many things, is a tireless environmentalist and for one beautiful hour, as your pour yourself over the pages, you can let the wild drums out and feel a connection.
It isn't a perfect book, the poetry was flat at points and the preface was a little jarring. I understand that Bond has earned his political and environmental stripes but I don't need that in the forefront of my mind while trying to absorb poetry. Also, I know some readers are going to point out that there are Native American Iconography in a few of these poems. Bond, to my understanding, is not native and some people would point out that this is cultural appropriation. I am not sure. The poems come off to me as an homage to a Native culture, a culture that treats the environment with reference, rather than a way to score some poem points. That is a subjective point for the reader an maybe something to be sensitive to.
I think that this is a worthy attempt at writing down a human feeling that almost seems unwritable. That throbbing connection to the land that humans seem to be getting further away from. Read it, see how you feel. I know it sparked a slow and steady boom — boom inside me, if only for a moment.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this in exchange for my honest review.
I had a difficult time finishing this novel. It is good, and well written. However, the beginning moved too slow for me to become emotionally invested in it. The last half of the novel more than made up for the beginning sluggishness. Mack wrote some very exciting scenes and the magic system that he created is great. It is different than most urban fantasy/fantasy out there. I recommend this book as it is well written and fun. It is a great dip in history and fantasy. Just know that the beginning is a little slow and sluggish, but it will pay off in spades by the end.
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Are you too fat?
Too thin?
Too ugly?
Too slutty?
Too queer?
Are you non-compliant?
If you are, I have the place just for you! A place ordained by God and man. Your sins “are such that you are beyond correction or castigation.” This place, the Auxiliary Compliance Outpost, also known as BITCH PLANET, will excise you from this world... “lest your sickness spread.”
BITCH PLANET is the name of a genius satirical series written by Kelly Sue Deconnick. A wild and almost cinematic romp through a technicolor 1970's grindhouse dreamland all tightly packaged inside of a speculative science fiction world not so far outside of our own. Look deeper, there is so much more than meets the eye behind the lurid cover.
“I can't see you, But I feel you...judging me.”
Penelope Rolle – Bitch Planet
The story opens on a line of naked, ethnically diverse women walking in a line surrounded by faceless guards swinging billy clubs. There is a corseted holographic nun in the center of the room conversationally welcoming the newest non-compliers. “Welcome to the Auxiliary Compliance Outpost, intake facility two. Uniforms and supplies are issued at stalls to your left and right, divided by identification number.” We meet our heroine and main protagonist Kamau Kogo, a former athlete who within the first 8 pages of the book attempts and fails to save a fellow inmate from the guards, subsequently being framed for the murder herself. The way in which the AI speaks to Kamau is insidious:
“Marian Collins was 42 years old, Kam. She had a life you took from her.”
“She had a son, Kam.”
“Why did you kill her?”
The readers all know that Kam did not commit the murder, but instead, it was the prison guards. Kam screams, “You lie!” Of the bat, we know that Kam is a strong character. Instead, the prison blackmails Kam into creating an athletic team for a gladiatorial game called either Duemilla or Megaton.
Depending on whom you talk to. It is a no holds barred free for all with fluid rules. The girl's team, a hodgepodge of different offenders, comes together to basically be humiliated. All of this has a Deathrace feel. Populist bread and circuses entertainment for the masses. Under it all, we have political machinations, hints of intrigue, and the possibility of prison break.
This is the first volume of a ten-volume set, and the author lays out the protagonists and the plot beautifully setting us up for adventures to come. Plus, this Vol. has one of the most magnificent panels I have ever read involving one of the main characters Penny Rolle. I literally cheered. Kamau Kogo is an interesting character as well. She seems like a truly authentic person, one who excepts nothing from this broken circus-like system. To be affected by the system, aside from physically be housed in prison, is in a way, passively excepting it. She does none of that. The system is broken, and she knows it, as does Penny.
Non-compliance can be seen as an allegory for today's woman. Gay, straight, queer, trans, fat, thin, ugly or beautiful. We are all something that is non-compliant and the media and society at large hums quietly along telling us in a thousand ways how this is true. I empathize quite a bit with Penne Rolle. I am heavy and six feet tall. I tower over most other women, and I cannot tell you how many people have told me how much better my life would be if I lost the weight. I am non-compliant.
“Let the games begin.”
The artwork is that of a crazy 70's grindhouse film decked out in intense colors. “Intensity in Ten Cities” kind of colors. It works well in the story and is a nod to the great work of Taki Soma (Illustrator), Valentine De Landro (Artist), and Robert Wilson IV (Artist). This is a book of extremes, and the art is entirely apart of that.
My recommendation, buy the damn book. Buy artwork from this book, hell, get a tattoo of the bitch planet logo. Whatever we can do to support the awesome that is Kelly Sue DeConnick. I am a big fan, and I hope you will be too once you give it a whirl.
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This book is not my standard fare for reviewing. I found myself at the library getting my usual weekly haul of books and saw this laid out on a table. It had a gorgeous, “Recommended by the Librarian” sticker on it. Usually, I enjoy children's literature and try to read great ones to my daughter, but I steer clear of reviewing because it is not my wheelhouse. This book, however, is not just for kids because the message is this beautiful and can be enjoyed by all.
The story is told in the form of a fable. And, all encounters throughout the day are beautiful and should be enjoyed. It is a lesson I often forget when I find myself running a million miles an hour. It is a lesson that many of us need to remind ourselves on a daily basis and I am very grateful that this book has given me a beautiful reminder.
It is graphically stunning. The pictures seem practically backlit, and the cover has a gold foil to it that adds a level of elegance not often seen in picture books. My recommendation is to find one of these and display it on a shelf. When you are feeling lost in this fast-moving world, open it up and be reminded of the beauty of a single moment.
There is always one thing that you can depend on in life and reading. You can depend on the sun rising and you can depend on Anne Bishop writing a beautiful book. Every single time I have ever read a book of hers whether it is of the jewels line or the Others series they have never They are not always perfect. But in the end, I have loved them and loved what few imperfections they ended up having. The writing ends up flowing like prose. The world-building is so well done that you can almost see the rain falling on the blades of grass in the courtyard in The Others. You can feel the goosebumps travel your skin from hearing the Arwood. Not many authors can do that. It takes a steady hand and the ability to push and pull details, to add just enough here, and pull just enough there to get things just right and she is a master at it. And once again he did not disappoint. Wild Country was a high and delicious delight.
It was a delight that I so desperately needed. I have been fighting illness last month. It was able to take me from my misery and pull me into the world I have become so fond of and again immerse me in a fast-paced story with new characters that almost seem comfortable to me.
Speaking of characters. Something that Anne Bishop does, that I know of no other author that is doing is to not humanize or anthropomorphize werewolves, vampires, or any other lupine type creature. They are not human and will never be human. They are others and will always be. It adds a dividing line through the novel that I respect and admire. They can be friends as much as their species can come to understand each other, they can be lovers, as much as their species can allow. But they can not me mates, fall in love, or anything else. That can not be. It is a refreshing take on a somewhat tired out genre. Also, Anne shows how dangerous humans are. We are just dangerous in other ways. in much more dangerous and devious ways. Less respectable ways. It is in good balance with the rest of the novel.
The pacing was fantastic. Each section moved the story moved with each section have a specific purpose to the plot that added a noteworthy element to the plot. Not a word was wasted.
If you like stories that have werewolves, vampires, and creatures of others but are not stupid. No sparkle here folks. Just fantastic and interesting writing, about a town on the frontier trying to get started dealing with brigands and horse thievery, vagrants, and the like. This is the story for you.
I can not give this high enough praise another fabulous story out of Anne Bishop!!!
