Review – Magic Strikes

Posted August 2, 2019 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

Cover of Magic Strikes by Ilona AndrewsMagic Strikes, Ilona Andrews

In the third book in this series, Kate finds that Derek’s got himself into some kind of trouble, and it seemed to be tangled up with Saiman’s involvement with an underground arena that pits people against one another in gladiatorial bouts, with real blood, guts and death. It’s pretty obvious where that’s going to lead, and yes, there are some epic team-ups in the arena. There’s also progress on Kate’s non-courtship with Curran, and we get to see several characters old and new kicking butt in lovely ways.

(There’s also finger-gnawing anxiety for one particular character, and no shortage of high stakes, but that’s what you get with Ilona Andrews!)

As always, I find myself pondering the classification of these books as paranormal romance. I’m wary of saying a thing isn’t paranormal romance just because I like it… but I think that genre label is sometimes used to dismiss a book that (if written by a man) would be urban fantasy, and I’m also wary of that. The thing is, I really don’t see these books as being all that much about the romance, especially not the first two or three. The real driver of these books is Kate’s given purpose in life — to kill her biological father — and the way she struggles with it, sometimes willing to follow it, sometimes throwing caution to the wind. It’s a slow process of her letting people in, and that doesn’t mean Curran, primarily: it means having a best friend, it means having an adopted kid, it means trusting and protecting Derek…

I mean, there is romance there: there’s a lot of sexual tension between Kate and Curran, and their stupid banter is the reason these books crease me up with laughter. (A particular kind of laughter which my wife can pinpoint to meaning “ah, Nikki’s reading that series”, embarrassingly.) But I’d more readily categorise something as romance when the plot is all about driving the characters together and the end payoff is the relationship. The drive in romance is typically toward Happy Ever After — to the point where people get very upset if something is billed as romance and doesn’t have a Happy Ever After — but I think the real drive here is about Kate facing her demons, and the romance is just one part of that.

On the other hand, I am also totally ready for Kate and Curran to hurry up and get together already, so that’s probably a vote that it is romance — I don’t have opinions this strong about Peter Grant and Beverley Brook, after all. And there are things about the relationship that are pretty tropey: His Furry Majesty can be kind of creepy at times, in a way that can be very wish-fulfillment-y for some people. (Never mind that Kate usually flings that back in his face and things are rarely less than equal between them.)

The point is, there’s a lot going on in these books, and though romance and sex are a part of it, there’s also a very long game being played concerning Kate and her biological father, and that story is also pretty riveting. This book takes a step further in that direction… but just a step.

Rating: 4/5

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An August TBR

Posted August 1, 2019 by Nicky in General / 2 Comments

Greetings! It’s August somehow: the month of my birth, and the month of Worldcon! Give me a shout if you’re attending Worldcon and would like to meet up! I’m shy, but if we have books in common it’ll always work out.

Last month was not the greatest, though I did finish 15 of the 20 books (and 20 books overall), which isn’t bad at all considering the mess that was the last week of it. (If you didn’t hear, one of our bunnies is really sick.) The theme for this month is tackling my “on-deck” books; books that are either half-finished, due back at the library, due for review before the publication date, or just stacked on top of my desk for no apparent reason. I’ll also include the next book in a couple of series, to keep me on track with those. Let’s see how many this is… I’ll set a cap of 20!

Cover of Magic Bleeds by Ilona Andrews Cover of The Warrior Queen by Joanna Arman Cover of Within the Sanctuary of Wings by Marie Brennan

  • Facism: A Warning, by Madeleine Albright. I think this was recced by someone on Litsy? Anyway, it’s due back at the library and I’ve renewed it a bunch of times already, so here goes!
  • Magic Bleeds, by Ilona Andrews. To keep chugging along with my reread/catchup! This will be a delight.
  • The Warrior Queen, by Joanna Arman. I’m partway through this book about Aethelflaed. It’s not that great, but I’d like to see if it improves now that (halfway through) we’ve actually got onto the part of history where Aethelflaed was doing things instead of just existing.
  • Her Royal Spyness, by Rhys Bowen. I don’t want to know how long I’ve had this out of the library, but I finally dipped into it last week. Just need to finish up!
  • Within the Sanctuary of Wings, by Marie Brennan. Finishing the reread!
  • Turning Darkness into Light, by Marie Brennan. Hopefully before it actually comes out, since I have an ARC! I can’t wait.
  • The 12:30 from Croyden, by Freeman Wills Crofts. I was supposed to buddy read this, uh, months ago. Oops.

Cover of Die Laughing by Carola Dunn Cover of How Long Till Black Future Month by N.K. Jemisin

  • Die Laughing, by Carola Dunn. Should be an easy read, and it keeps me ticking along through the series!
  • The Blue Salt Road, by Joanne Harris. This one’s short, and due back at the library.
  • How Long Till Black Future Month? by N.K. Jemisin. I picked this up in May, and then other stuff happened. Time to read more!
  • The Fated Sky, by Mary Robinette Kowal. I meant to read this in July. My wife’s started reading The Calculating Stars now, so I’d like to get reading!
  • Den of Wolves, by Juliet Marillier. Also one I meant to read in July. Looking forward to seeing what happens.
  • One Salt Sea, by Seanan McGuire. Next in the series!

Cover of Den of Wolves by Juliet Marillier Cover of One Salt Sea by Seanan McGuire

  • The Subversive Stitch, by Rozsika Parker. I’ve had this out of the library for way too long, and it’s actually from the stacks, so I really should pick it up soon. Though I’m wondering if it’s worth buying the more recent edition, in case anything changed…
  • Sooner or Later Everything Falls into the Sea, by Sarah Pinsker. I was in a book club with Sarah Pi; it’s high time I read this. I’ve already read a couple of them, actually.
  • Gene Machine, by Venki Ramakrishnan. I started this and then got distracted, but it’s due back at the library on the 5th. Whoops.
  • The Gendered Brain, by Gina Rippon. Started this last month, but ran out of brain due to The Rabbit Situation.
  • The Aztecs, by Richard Townsend. I may have had this out of the library since… Christmas?
  • The Piltdown Forgery, by Joseph Weiner. I think the ‘who’ of this case is quite obvious, but it’s still fascinating. And the book is, wait for it, due back at the library.
  • Heartstone, by Elle Katharine White. I started this ages ago and then stopped for… I don’t know what reason. Time to finish it!

Cover of The Gendered Brain by Gina Rippon Cover of Heartstone by Elle Katharine White

So that’s the lot! Let’s see how I do this month…

What’re you reading this month? Or are you winging it?

Don’t forget to let me know if you’re going to Worldcon!

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Review – Tower of Thorns

Posted August 1, 2019 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments

Cover of Tower of Thorns by Juliet MarillierTower of Thorns, Juliet Marillier

After the events of Dreamer’s Pool, Blackthorn and Grim are both rather well-settled in Dalriada, respected by their community and particularly by Lady Flidais and Oran. Blackthorn is more or less resigned to staying put and awaiting the end of the term set on her by Conmael, and Grim… well, he’s happy, taking care of Blackthorn, doing odd jobs for local people. Still, when a woman called Lady Geiléis arrives pleading with Oran for help, it’s no surprise that Blackthorn is caught up in it. Where Blackthorn goes, Grim follows — even if one of Blackthorn’s long lost friends has also shown up on the scene, disrupting the dynamic between them.

I love the way this book is put together: the mystery, the slow revelation of the backstory through the story about Lily and Ash, and the way it also brings to light things about Grim and his past. There’s so much that goes on in this book in terms of development, even while there’s a kind of ‘monster of the week’ to provide the excuse. The backstory is heartbreaking, of course, and even though I saw the ending of it coming a mile off, it’s still powerful. Look away now until “spoilers endeth here” if you want to remain spoiler-free!

The betrayals were also fairly expected, but it still works — it’s so amazingly sad that Blackthorn found someone from her old life again, opened up to him, and was even beginning to hope that it might mean she could act against Mathuin… and was betrayed. Especially the way her love for her dead family is used against her by someone who knows very well how to use it. I found the reappearance of that character suspicious, and didn’t particularly like him, but I did find myself hoping it wouldn’t happen. Alas.

Blackthorn and Grim work beautifully together as a partnership, and I’m a little sad that it’s clearly trending towards a more conventional romance in the end. I was really hoping that they would remain as they are: non-sexual and non-romantic, but nonetheless deeply necessary to one another. Their bond read that way to me from the start, and I find it more interesting than a conventional romance. I’m hoping Marillier can stick the landing and make me happy about it, but I’m not convinced yet by a long shot. As ever, though, the relationship between Blackthorn and Grim is what holds the book together and makes everything work. It’d be interesting without them, but it wouldn’t be so full of feeling — for all that these are characters who don’t talk much about their feelings.

Still — and the spoilers endeth here — it’s an engrossing story, and I found myself tearing through it. Marillier evokes this half-fairytale Ireland well, and though I didn’t find myself surprised by the plot, it definitely gave me feelings!

Rating: 4/5

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WWW Wednesday

Posted July 31, 2019 by Nicky in General / 2 Comments

The three ‘W’s are what are you reading now, what have you recently finished reading, and what are you going to read next, and you can find this week’s post at the host’s blog here if you want to check out other posts.

Cover of Too Like The LightningWhat are you currently reading?

I’m most of the way through Too Like the Lightning, by Ada Palmer, and it’s still not really working for me. It’s one of those where I feel like the payoff is constantly just one more revelation out of reach, and now I’m really close to the end, so I will be finishing it, but… I find myself thinking that this book was not for me, probably.

I have got a couple of other books on the go, including the rather lighter Her Royal Spyness, which promises to be one of those fluffy mysteries I can nom in a day or two.

Cover of Perihelion Summer by Greg EganWhat have you recently finished reading? 

I think the last thing I finished was Greg Egan’s Perihelion Summer, which didn’t impress me very much. I found it flat and lacking in characters who I could possibly care about.

I’ve way slowed down my reading speed the last week, with all the stress, so there’s not much else since my last WWW check-in!

Cover of Within the Sanctuary of Wings by Marie BrennanWhat will you be reading next?

Working on the Lady Trent books and then the new book which I got as an ARC! Other that that, who knows? It’s a big world full of all the tastiest books, but I’m not sure what I’ll be in the mood for, so I’m not over-committing!

What are you currently reading?

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Review – Forces of Nature

Posted July 30, 2019 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments

Cover of Forces of Nature by Brian CoxForces of Nature, Brian Cox, Andrew Cohen

This book mostly poses a smaller question — how are snowflakes formed, how is a rainbow produced — and explains it by delving as deep into physics as possible. I imagine it was very effective as a TV series: at least twice, Cox describes how the series demonstrated a particular principle. It might even be that that would actually finally get some of these concepts through my head, though in book form I’m afraid I still struggle with relativity.

However, Cox does write extremely clearly, and I have to admit that one or two concepts finally slammed home in my head with a clunk after reading this. It’s enjoyable even when I don’t quite follow, and always readable. The section on the origin of life was obviously solidly in my wheelhouse, and Cox rattles through it all in a very pacy way. I can’t help but feel he’s happier once he gets back to physics, though.

Rating: 4/5

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Review – Necessity

Posted July 29, 2019 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

Cover of Necessity by Jo WaltonNecessity, Jo Walton

It took me far too long to get round to reading this, but I’m glad I did so after just now having reread the first and second book. I think it would’ve been rather odd to jump back in without preparation: by this point, there are so many names and things to remember, not to mention following which city believes what and who is related to whom exactly. It’s definitely not a good book to start with, but I never do think that about series — I find it so weird when people jump in at the middle! I could have done with a family tree by this point, even having read the other books so recently; that might have helped me keep everything straight!

In any case, Necessity takes place on the new planet Plato, just after Pytheas — Apollo incarnate — has finally died, leaving behind a whole tribe of descendants. One of his descendants is a point of view character, but we also get Apollo himself, Crocus (the Worker who first became sentient!) and a Silver-ranked member of the city, Jason, who is rather in love with one of Apollo’s grandchildren. Oh, and the planet has just been conquered by the first other humans to venture out that far from Earth the conventional way.

Most of the story is taken up with chasing Athene through time, and it turns out that she did have another reason for setting up the Republic. There’s also a new god — an alien god — and the inclusion of alien characters, the Saeli. In other words, there’s magic, tech, philosophy, romance, aliens, spaceships, prophecies, gods, and more or less everything else you can think of, in a nice big melting pot.

I’ll admit that this trilogy hasn’t been my favourite of Jo’s works; I did love The Just City, but The Philosopher Kings didn’t work as well for me. I’m still not entirely sure what I think of this book, though I think it finishes out exploring some of themes of the whole trilogy beautifully. And I read it in a day, almost without pausing; Jo’s prose is always so clear and leads you on effortlessly from page to chapter to oops I finished the whole book in a day. So though it’s not my favourite, I have to say I admire it — I wasn’t sure how things could pull together, and not go sprawling off into infinity, but this does pull it off. It’s a satisfying end, and there’s so much more I could talk about!

Rating: 4/5

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Review – Storm of Locusts

Posted July 28, 2019 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments

Cover of Storm of Locusts by Rebecca RoanhorseStorm of Locusts, Rebecca Roanhorse

After the events of Trail of Lightning, Kai’s back, but he hasn’t been to see Maggie. Maggie hasn’t entirely been idle, helping out the Thirsty Boys, and it’s when she’s with them helping out that she finds herself saddled with a new charge… and almost immediately afterwards, with the news that Kai’s been kidnapped. The two incidents turn out to be linked, of course, and it’s off on another journey to figure out what’s going on, maybe save Kai, and kick some ass along the way.

My feelings about this book are much the same as the first: I really appreciate the setting, and the fact that the background mythology is somewhat out of the ordinary. It’s certainly a quick read, and short of feeling that sometimes the plot requires Maggie to be hit with an idiot stick, I enjoy it. It doesn’t stand out for me from the urban fantasy crowd, though; in the sense of the tone and style and overall plot arc, it feels fairly typical. Maggie and Kate Daniels are not a world apart by any means.

I’m not uninterested in future books in this world, but I’m not dying to get my hands on them right now, either. (I mean, good, because there are no other published books in the series, but you know what I mean.) I enjoy them, but it doesn’t feel as fresh as I’d like. It doesn’t have to — I’m not saying Roanhorse has to come up with something amazingly new and fresh in terms of plot, just because she’s using something off the beaten path for the setting; it’s perfectly fun as it is! But for me, I’d have liked to go a bit further afield.

Rating: 3/5

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Weekly Roundup

Posted July 27, 2019 by Nicky in General / 4 Comments

Greetings, folks. As discussed in my Wednesday post this week, things are rough around here. Breakfast Bun is doing a little better in some ways, but he’s not out of the woods yet. So wish us luck, and consider this a rare reminder that I do have a Ko-Fi for this blog (see sidebar) and donations are always helpful. Also, hey, it’s nearly my birthday, too.

(And just thinking good thoughts for us and for Breakfast would be very welcome, of course!)

Books received this week:

I feel like it’s been too long since I read the second book in Aliette de Bodard’s series… maybe I need to look for a summary online. The other book is my Illumicrate subscription book for this month.

Books read this week:

Cover of Late Eclipses by Seanan McGuire Cover of In The Labyrinth of Drakes by Marie Brennan Cover of Perihelion Summer by Greg Egan

Reviews posted this week:

–The Dinosaurs Revisited, by Michael J. Benton. A great overview of what we know about dinosaurs, and how we know it; as up to date as possible! 4/5 stars
–The Calculating Stars, by Mary Robinette Kowal. A heck of a fun read; I tore right through it. 5/5 stars
–The True Queen, by Zen Cho. Not as fun as the previous book, but definitely some enjoyable elements. 3/5 stars
–Spinning Silver, by Naomi Novik. Interesting and fairly solid, but a little slow; leans a little too much on a kind of twist that Novik already used for Uprooted. 3/5 stars
–Voyage of the Basilisk, by Marie Brennan. Ever so much fun, as ever! 4/5 stars

Other posts:

–WWW Wednesday. The usual weekly post, with the note about Breakfast.

Hope everyone’s weeks were better than mine…

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Review – The Voyage of the Basilisk

Posted July 26, 2019 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments

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

In this installment of the Memoirs of Lady Trent, Isabella and Tom are heading on a voyage around the world in search of dragons, in hopes of shaking up the way dragons are categorised and understanding how the species relate to each other. This gives us a whole bunch of new characters, including a somewhat older Jacob (the son) who is now actively a part of Isabella’s life, and Suhail, an archaeologist.

The first time I read this, apparently, I actually wanted Isabella to end up marrying Tom Wilker. Admittedly, now I know what happens in the later books, but this time I found myself focusing on the platonic relationship between them — I adore the way they depend on each other, and the way they’re inextricably part of one another’s lives through everything they’ve been through together and everything they believe. There’s no way Tom isn’t necessary to Isabella, and vice versa, and it’s lovely.

It’s also fascinating to continue seeing the scientific process played out in fiction: Isabella makes mistakes based on theorising ahead of having all the data and must correct herself, and it’s a) so typical that it affects her career because she’s a woman and has to be twice as good, and b) so lovely to see in fiction someone having to change their mind, instead of being a genius right off the bat. Because science needs that, science needs people who can recognise when they are wrong and correct themselves, because the aim is not personal aggrandisement but knowledge. And there, that’s another of the reasons why Isabella is just the best.

It’s also enjoyable to see more pieces falling into place, and having Suhail’s skill as an archaeologist beginning to add things to the picture. I had no idea where it was going, the first time, and yet now it’s obvious. It’s just so well put together!

Rating: 4/5

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Review – Spinning Silver

Posted July 25, 2019 by Nicky in Reviews / 4 Comments

Cover of Spinning Silver by Naomi NovikSpinning Silver, Naomi Novik

I did love Uprooted, and there was something so solidly satisfying about it, so I was eager to give Spinning Silver a try when I could. I was a bit surprised, halfway through, why I was seeing a couple of reviews saying that it was a bit too like Uprooted, but having finished it I can totally see the point. There’s something in the shape of the story, and in the type of the reveal, that makes it very like Uprooted. That’s not to say it’s not satisfying, but unfortunately it’s one of the weaker aspects of Uprooted to me that is duplicated here in Spinning Silver…

In any case, the story: Miryem’s father is a moneylender, but a fairly useless one. She takes over from him, improving the prosperity of her family to no end, until the point where she boldly boasts that she can turn silver into gold. Naturally, the wrong people hear that and the Staryk king comes to demand she prove herself. The reward for success is ultimately to marry him and leave for his kingdom — a fate Miryem’s not so sure she wants for herself. Alongside Miryem, there are other protagonists: Wanda, a poor girl from the same village; Irina, a girl who might just (through her father’s machinations) become a princess… and a number of other POV characters, for some reason.

Mostly, it was just dragged out too much, with too many voices for the narration — who all sounded a little too alike. They’re not demarcated well on the page either, which doesn’t help. You can be reading for half a page before you realise there’s no way it can be Wanda talking.

There are definitely things to like about this, and the plot itself — and the cleverness of the fairytale retellings (because there’s more than one going on) — is definitely a draw. But it got a little bit too long, a little bit tedious, a little too bogged down in detail. And, like I said, there was something about the shape of the story which was very like Uprooted.

I enjoyed it well enough, but it certainly won’t get my Hugo vote.

Rating: 3/5

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