Author: Nicky

Review – Fated

Posted April 18, 2016 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments

Cover of Fated by Benedict JackaFated, Benedict Jacka

Looking for a less sexist, more British Harry Dresden? Or a less police officer-y Peter Grant? Tahdah, basically. Except with the interesting note that the protagonist of Fated is a seer: at any given moment, he can sort through all the possible futures and figure out what he needs to do to select the future he wants. I was wondering how well that could be pulled off in narration, but actually, Jacka handles it pretty well, and it never gets confusing or tedious.

Oh, and if you’re wondering why Jim Butcher’s Harry Dresden leapt to mind, it’s because there’s a sly reference to him in an early chapter; just enough to make you smile, if you’re aware of the context, or ignore if not.

In a way, I guess it’s fairly standard urban fantasy: a dark past, good and bad wizards opposing each other (and sometimes being morally a few shades of grey), a magical object to obtain, etc. Some things seemed very obvious to me, for example when a particular character’s behaviour changed, it seemed obvious why. I mean, I think you’re meant to get that something is off, but I think I got there a bit faster than the narrative really intended.

There are some cool powers and characters that could get very interesting with more development. Personally, I’d like to see more of Arachne. Which is odd, because normally things with too many legs freak me out…

Some of the supporting characters, like Helikaon, just seemed… superfluous. They added little except a broader view of the magical world, and didn’t really do much emotionally. But maybe there’ll be more about that in future books, which I think I will pick up — if only from the library, which seems to have the lot (so far).

Rating: 3/5

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Review – Forest of Memory

Posted April 17, 2016 by Nicky in Reviews / 4 Comments

Cover of Forest of Memory by Mary Robinette KowalForest of Memory, Mary Robinette Kowal

For a short novella, I actually got surprisingly invested in this — and didn’t really realise until the end, where I was rooting for… something more. A rescue, a redemption, something. The sting in the tail of the story, while most of it was obvious to me, works well and adds to the meaning of everything that comes before it, which is exactly how stories should be written — especially short ones.

The setting of the story, while not revolutionary — the whole idea of society being connected, of storing your memories practically in the cloud, of never being out of touch — is done well, too; not too obtrusive, and yet it permeates the story.

The conceit of the typewriter and the typos, etc, just drove me a bit mad, though. Nope, cannot be doing with typos, even on purpose, apparently. But that’s a personal peeve, probably driven by my editing work, and didn’t get in the way of the story itself.

In the end, I just wanted a little more. I wanted the why, and we got some of it, but I wanted the motives of people we didn’t even meet in the story. So of course it was limited by the narration, but. But. Gimme!

Rating: 4/5

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Review – Voyage of the Basilisk

Posted April 16, 2016 by Nicky in Reviews / 7 Comments

Cover of Voyage of the Basilisk by Marie BrennanVoyage of the Basilisk, Marie Brennan

I think, the first time I read this, I may have observed that it’s beginning to push the bounds of credulity that Isabella (and dragons) should get tangled up in so much politics. I can’t say I actually noticed that, this time — it seems natural, when you just read the books straight through like this, because Isabella is willing to go anywhere and do just about anything for dragons. And of course, that means she’s in the least appropriate places for someone of her background (at least as far as her peers are concerned), and so of course she stumbles into things.

Besides, it’s Isabella. You’d be disappointed if you didn’t see her blundering into a plot or intrigue.

The story of Isabella’s time on the Basilisk is a lot of fun; the first half of the book is lighter, since it’s more travelogue-ish, until the point where the Basilisk is nearly wrecked and they have to go ashore. That opens up the world of the villagers they have to interact with, and involves a rather neat plot with a sort of third gender concept — on this island, those who are “dragon-spirited” have different social rules, and Isabella has to “marry” an island woman to calm down their fears about what she might do. Heal’li, the woman who helps her and guides her, is a pretty awesome character, and honestly I could do with a ton more of her. (And some note on whether “she” is indeed her preferred pronoun, or if, like Isabella, she’s bowed to necessity and allowed herself to be treated as female when she does in fact identify as male. I suspect not, given the way she embraces femininity, but it’s awkward to tell from Isabella’s point of view.)

And of course, Basilisk introduces new characters like Aekinitos (the “mad” captain, whose similarities to Isabella could have been used to good effect, though he was mostly in the background), Suhail the archaeologist, and even a rather more grown-up Jake (who immediately decides to become a ship’s boy, of course). I do feel the lack of Natalie, in this book; Abby isn’t much of a replacement, since she’s mostly there to keep an eye on Jake, both for Isabella’s sake and the sake of the plot.

I could probably go on for hours about all the things I love about this series — the societies, the natural history, the more general science, Tom Wilker, the enthusiasms of Suhail and Isabella — their sheer joy in what they do — the different dragons, the theories… the way that Isabella’s academic career unfolds: with some success, but by stages, as she makes a way for herself in a path barred for most women, and brings other women with her.

Don’t take my word for it, if you haven’t tried these books yet. There’s only one more to come after Labyrinth of Drakes (the fourth book), so it’s not going to be an epic series — and in fact, it reads all too quickly. I want more Isabella!

Rating: 5/5

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Unstacking the Shelves

Posted April 16, 2016 by Nicky in General / 6 Comments

This is a very quickly put together post, as I am on a tiny laptop in the middle of moving house! It hasn’t been a terrible week for reading, even though I had an assignment due as well, and I (gasp) haven’t bought any books!

Books read this week:

Cover of Century Rain by Alastair Reynolds Cover of SPQR by Mary Beard Cover of Death at the Bar, by Ngaio Marsh Cover of The Skeleton Cupboard by Tanya Byron

Reviews this week:
Wolves, by Simon Ings. Not a fan of this one, at all. Sometimes I couldn’t even tell what the individual sentences were supposed to mean. 1/5 stars
Wolfsbane Winter, by Jane Fletcher. This is fairly typical fantasy, except that it features a lesbian romance… and it’s maybe not exactly fantasy. 3/5 stars
A Civil Contract, by Georgette Heyer. This isn’t the most typical of Heyer’s romances, but I really liked it — it’s more about the process of negotiation and habituation that comes when two people live together and have to make their lives together. 4/5 stars
Tropic of Serpents, by Marie Brennan. A favourite series reread, so no surprises that I liked this a lot. 5/5 stars
Dreadful Skin, by Cherie Priest. Intriguing ideas — a nun hunting a werewolf — but sometimes shaky execution. 3/5 stars
The Stress of Her Regard, by Tim Powers. I’ve tried to read this a few times now, and finally I did finish it. But I’m still not a great fan. It might help if I were more of a fan of the Romantic poets… 2/5 stars
Flashback Friday: The Hundred and Ninety-nine Steps, by Michel Faber. The most powerful thing about this book — something I remember years after reading it — is the feeling of anxiety. Ughh. 2/5 stars

Other posts:
Top Ten TuesdayThis week I recommended stories with romance for those who might be reluctant to read romance as a genre.

How’s everyone doing? Anything exciting going on? Any books you just can’t wait to read?

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Review – The Hundred and Ninety-Nine Steps

Posted April 15, 2016 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

Cover of the The 199 Steps by Michael FaberThe Hundred and Ninety-Nine Steps, Michel Faber

Originally reviewed 6th January, 2011

More of a novella than a novel, I think. I never really found myself engaging with it: most of it was just too perfunctory for me. The relationship between the main characters never really goes anywhere; the digging that is supposed to be absorbing her certainly doesn’t absorb me; her emotions regarding her accident barely seem to manifest; the charged emotions between the main characters fail to move me; her obsession with the man’s dog just seems a little odd…

There were two things I found well-described. One was her anxiety about her health, her determination through most of the book to stick it out without going to the hospital. I’ve felt that way, and Michel Faber made me feel it again. And the other — and less so — was the description of her painstaking efforts to separate the pages of the manuscript.

Ultimately, though, it took up an hour of my time and didn’t give me much back beside an echo of my anxious stomach-aches! That’s probably part of the reason I didn’t engage with the story. For something I got for £1 in the sale on the Kindle store, I wouldn’t say it was a waste, but it didn’t exactly glitter for me.

Rating: 2/5

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Review – The Stress of Her Regard

Posted April 14, 2016 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

Cover of The Stress of Her Regard by Tim PowersThe Stress of Her Regard, Tim Powers

I’ve always heard amazing things about Tim Powers’ work, but I’ve tried The Stress of Her Regard before, and didn’t really get on with it. I didn’t do much better this time, although I persisted and read the whole thing. I feel like if I knew the life stories of Byron, Shelley, Polidori and Keats, I’d understand exactly what was going on better. It spends so much time on those characters, who from my point of view act erratically and often unpleasantly. (Dead child marionette. I won’t say more, just. Yeah.)

For the most part, it feels more horror than fantasy, albeit a very literary sort; that creeping disquiet, at times replaced by utter grotesqueness, and yet sometimes also laced with pity. It’s essentially about addiction, in a way, which makes it frustrating — the characters are always backsliding, always feeling that once more won’t hurt. Of course, it does.

Most of the characters are pretty unpleasant, too. There’s not much to just like about them — and the female characters are mostly hysterical, ineffectual, or killed.

I’d chalk it up to just not “getting it”, but actually, I don’t see what people like about it at all. I’m glad I’ve read it; now it’s out of the way!

Rating: 2/5

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Review – Dreadful Skin

Posted April 13, 2016 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments

Cover of Dreadful Skin by Cherie PriestDreadful Skin, Cherie Priest

I’ve been meaning to get round to Dreadful Skin for ages. I mean, the idea of a gun-toting nun chasing an actually scary werewolf across America has got to be fun, right? Particularly given that I enjoyed Those Who Went Remain There Stillwhich had a similar horror feel. This isn’t creepy, more grotesque, but not gratuitous either. It’s more Dracula in tone than slasher film, I mean. I didn’t realise it was actually three shorter stories collected together, telling the story via three episodes in the nun’s life.

There’s not really enough space — or likeable enough characters — to get emotionally hooked to this. Even with the first person narrators, they switched so frequently and sounded similar-ish, so I didn’t get hold of them. But I loved the Spring-Heeled Jack link, the setting, the way the werewolf acts and the way Priest uses the werewolf lore here. The middle story feels like a bit of an anti-climax; it does reveal a couple of things, but it doesn’t involve the main antagonist, and mostly just sets up the last story.

Interesting construction, etc, but I think I would’ve liked a more cohesive novel more.

Rating: 3/5

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Review – Tropic of Serpents

Posted April 12, 2016 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments

Cover of Tropic of Serpents by Marie BrennanTropic of Serpents, Marie Brennan

I “had” to reread this in preparation for the new book, but it was (of course) absolutely no hardship. I got into it right away, this time; before, it’d been a while since I read the first book, and I had to adjust a bit and remind myself of who everyone was. This time, it was all fresh enough to plunge right in, and it doesn’t disappoint. Brennan handles Isabella so well: we get to see all aspects of her life, like her relationship with her son (realistically painful, given the death of his father before he was born), her feelings about the religious/social stuff she has to bow to, her relationship with her family, and her attempts to make headway in the world of scholarship.

I was surprised when Marie Brennan mentioned that Tom Wilker was an incidental character who she didn’t expect to spend so much time with. For me, the books would be very different without Tom sharing Isabella’s dangers and trials. I have to confess that at one point I rather hoped he would be Lord Trent, though actually I do enjoy the intellectual friendship between them, and their support of each other without ever (well, almost ever) letting the fact that she’s a woman and he’s a man get in the way. People seem to find male-female friendship hard enough to grasp in today’s world, let alone a pseudo-Victorian one.

Also, yay for casual representation: Natalie Oscott does not, of course, have the words for it, but she’s asexual (not sex-averse, just it doesn’t drive her).

If you don’t love Isabella, I don’t know what to do with you. She’s resourceful, clever, but flawed as well, and her “deranged practicality” is exactly that, and if you weren’t reading her memoirs you’d be sure that she’d get herself killed that way. (Unless, of course, they do, and someone is reconstructing her memoirs from her notebooks, using her voice… It seems unlikely, but I’m suspicious-minded.)

One thing I would love to know: does Marie Brennan see Tom Wilker’s Niddey origins as having a direct analogue in our world? I’ve been picturing him as Welsh since, on one occasion when it said his accent was pronounced, he used a rather Welsh phrasing.

Rating: 5/5

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Top Ten Tuesday

Posted April 12, 2016 by Nicky in General / 2 Comments

This week’s theme is “Ten Books Every X Should Read”… and I’m having a hard time picking what “X” is. I’m going to go a little off-script for me and talk about romances, I think! Unfortunately, I have just a few authors I tend to come back to, rather than reading a lot of romance, so you might want to take it with a pinch of salt… Oh, and I am using the modern version of romance, not the fantasy-romance of medieval times! So I guess “X” is “people reluctant to read pure romance”, since some of these books nudged me into trying it.

Cover of Camelot's Shadow by Sarah Zettel Cover of A Dangerous Thing by Josh Lanyon Cover of Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan Cover of The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern Cover of Attachments by Rainbow Rowell

  1. Camelot’s Shadow, Sarah Zettel. This is an interesting take on the Arthurian world, and features Gawain being decidedly-not-perfect but not being the murderous asshole from Malory or even Mary Stewart’s The Wicked Day. This is proooobably one of the books that really got me interested in Gawain, and especially his relationship with Dame Ragnelle.
  2. A Dangerous Thing, Josh Lanyon. Technically, this is the second book of the series, and I think you should read the first book in order. I just think the second book is objectively better. This will not be your thing if you don’t like gay relationships, though, and I’m told that’s a thing that one is supposed to make clear about romance? So yes, gay romance!
  3. Boy Meets Boy, David Levithan. Super cute and 90% positive. More YA-ish, and also gay.
  4. The Night Circus, Erin Morgenstern. Also fantasy. If it doesn’t stir your heart, it’s probably made of stone. Your heart, not the book.
  5. Attachments, Rainbow Rowell. This completely won me over so I was willing to try everything of Rowell’s. Sweetly nostalgic, and not too bad about the “communicate, damn it!” issue.
  6. The Talisman Ring, Georgette Heyer. Lots and lots of fun, and features two couples to root for.
  7. Gaudy Night, Dorothy L. Sayers. Okay, the romance between Peter and Harriet is more of a slow burn thing and probably needs the build-up, but any book with the line “if I should once give way to [him], I would go up like straw” has to count.
  8. The Second Mango, Shira Glassman. Want sweet and silly in a lesbian fantasy love story? Tahdah!
  9. The Ivy Tree, Mary Stewart. I was torn over which of Stewart’s novels to include here, but this is the one that’s probably stuck with me the most. Heavy on the mystery, too!
  10. Season of Storms, Susanna Kearsley. The side characters in this are actually pretty much the amazing thing that gets it onto this list. They feel real too, and feature a gay couple basically having raised a daughter (but It’s Complicated). The main romance is straight, though.

Cover of The Talisman Ring by Georgette Heyer Cover of Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers Cover of The Second Mango by Shira Glassman Cover of The Ivy Tree by Mary Stewart Cover of Season of Storms by Susanna Kearsley

I am a little irritated by the fact that I could only find one lesbian romance I wanted to include, but Sarah Diemer/Elora Bishop has some good ones, too!

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Review – A Civil Contract

Posted April 11, 2016 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

Cover of A Civil Contract by Georgette HeyerA Civil Contract, Georgette Heyer

A Civil Contract is quite unlike Heyer’s other novels, because the romance is understated and, indeed, there isn’t much romance at all, at least not in the same sense. It’s a much more practical novel, dealing with the realities of life: more or less arranged marriages, marriages of convenience, unsuitable matches… The most entertaining thing about it is the clash between the aristocratic main character and his father-in-law, Mr Chawleigh. In fact, Mr Chawleigh quite steals the show on a number of occasions.

Jenny is one of Heyer’s better-realised heroines in one sense: she is practical, not very subtle, and devoted from the start to making her new husband comfortable and happy. Of course, that’s a stereotype too, and one which readers may well find less engaging than the sharp back-and-forth of Heyer’s Sophy (for one example). Still, Jenny clearly knows her own mind and does not regret things, although she does have human feelings — wishful thinking, some jealousy, etc, etc. I find her interesting because she’s so untypical of Heyer — a cosy little homemaker! And one with whom we sympathise, even though I did feel that Julia’s flaws were somewhat overdone, in a sort of ‘well, if Julia’s too nice then Jenny isn’t going to come into her own at all’ sort of way.

Really, A Civil Contract is about marriage, not about courting (like The Convenient Marriage, which has some similarities, though not in the characters); it’s about a quieter sort of love, not a grand passion. It’s about making the best of things, and about having a partner who you can rely on. Adam finally realises that that’s what he has in Jenny, and that’s lovely: the way his snobbishness initially gets in the way is annoying, but he learns.

As someone in a nearly eleven-year relationship (not to mention someone who feels no sexual attraction at all), this is in many ways more true of my experience, and it’s nice to see it in a romance novel (of sorts; I think this is less clearly romance than some of Heyer’s others, but if we divide her work into historicals, romances and mysteries… this seems to fit most into the romance section, being too recent in date for the historicals and clearly not a mystery). It might be fun to have a passionate doomed love for someone, but what matters is whether you can work together, work things out together, communicate. Jenny and Adam do model that, as each learns to discuss things with the other and share their lives.

In other ways, A Civil Contract is interesting because of the background of the French Revolution, the perspective of Adam as a former soldier, and the class mixing which happens as a result of the marriage. There are some very entertaining characters, including some very determined and headstrong women who are very different to Jenny, but still positive. (Lady Nassington is one; Lady Oversley is another, in a way; and of course, Lydia.)

All in all, this isn’t one of the more adventurous stories, like The Talisman Ring, and neither is the romance one with tension or too much worry about how it’s going to work out. It is, for the most part, fairly comfortable — though I wonder if perhaps it would have been less so in more class-conscious times. (Says the daughter of a working class man and a upper-middle-class woman, whose families cordially, and sometimes not so cordially, hated each other!)

Rating: 4/5

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