Posted September 8, 2023 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments
The Imposition of Unnecessary Obstacles, Malka Older
Recieved to review via Netgalley
It’s pure chance that I’d so recently read The Mimicking of Known Successes, but it definitely made me eager to read this follow-up. The setup continues rather Holmesian, but set on a planet full of dangers, not quite hospitable to humans, on which humanity has nonetheless made a home in a series of settlements joined by rails. Mossa is an investigator, looking into a disappearance — and Pleiti is her girlfriend.
The previous story’s shadow lingers here, with Pleiti definitely upset by her experiences, her worldview shaken, and with people around her a little wary and doubtful given her involvement in what happened. Mossa remains… well, Mossa, but her care for Pleiti shows in so many ways. I really enjoy their relationship: Pleiti has to guess a little at whether Mossa’s gestures are significant, is maybe over-reading significance into some things (and underestimating others); their relationship isn’t quite stable yet, but nonetheless, their careful attitude to it and to each other, carefully building things up, is enjoyable.
The mystery itself is less gripping to me: I enjoy it as a vehicle for understanding the world better, for seeing Mossa and Pleiti together, but any mystery would do, for that. The solution was actually a little obvious, when it came, but it was the getting there that mattered.
I enjoyed this a lot, and eagerly look forward to more novellas centring these two.
Rating: 4/5
Tags: book reviews, books, Malka Older, mystery, SF/F
Posted September 5, 2023 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments
The Wheel Spins, Ethel Lina White
Reading Ethel Lina White’s short stories, they seemed very sensational. From what Edwards writes in his introductions, the “woman in danger” story like this seemed to be her forté, but the short stories didn’t quite work for me, so I wasn’t sure whether this would be enjoyable. I was pleasantly surprised: I did find it a bit challenging in a way to read a book where a woman’s reality gets so constantly questioned, but it’s not that the situation was uninteresting in any way.
In the end, it’s a pretty simple trick (which I won’t ruin by discussing it at length), and we have all the clues for a long time. What matters is the suspense, and Iris’ understanding of the situation — and her fear and discomfort as it proves impossible to convince other people of what she knows to be true.
All of that feels especially poignant set against the asides, with Miss Froy’s family awaiting her safe return. The detail there is loving and tender, and that little family feels very real despite appearing only in a couple of chapters.
The main sour note for me is that a certain character reaps his rewards despite working against Iris and treating her as a helpless, hysterical woman. Get a better man, Iris!
Rating: 4/5
Tags: book reviews, books, British Library Crime Classics, crime, Ethel Lina White, mystery
Posted August 28, 2023 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments
The Measure of Malice, ed. Martin Edwards
As ever, this collection from the British Library Crime Classic series is, to me, more than the sum of its parts. The Measure of Malice collects stories that in some way lean more into the science of detection: nothing here is terribly complex (and some of it is bunk, like the idea that the human retina will hold an image of the last thing that person saw), but it’s all beginning to explore the idea that figuring out a criminal isn’t just a cerebral exercise, but one which involves practical, physical evidence that may not always be readily apparent.
I didn’t love all the stories for themselves, but I enjoyed the assembled selection and what it adds to my knowledge of the genre in that period. The obligatory Arthur Conan Doyle story is here, of course, but also a slightly more unexpected Dorothy L. Sayers story (though one I already knew from Wimsey collections).
Rating: 4/5
Tags: book reviews, books, British Library Crime Classics, crime, mystery
Posted August 15, 2023 by Nicky in Reviews / 1 Comment
The Long Arm of the Law, ed. Martin Edwards
Okay, okay, all cops are bastards, but in crime fiction they don’t have to be. Of course these stories are mostly in the idealised mode where police just want to help and a lone girl can pop into the police station for protection — the world I thought I was growing up in, in fact.
It’s not a stand-out for me in terms of the stories or the quality thereof, but I was pretty entertained by Christianna Brand’s story with the Great Detective, and with Inspector Cockrill butting in and dismantling the whole story.
As ever, an interesting survey of the genre on this particular topic. And it includes a short story from E.C.R. Lorac, a rarity (though that one didn’t especially stand out to me).
Rating: 3/5
Tags: book reviews, books, British Library Crime Classics, crime, mystery
Posted August 13, 2023 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments
The Story of Classic Crime in 100 Books, Martin Edwards
This book can be a little difficult to read for any kind of extended period, because it’s basically a list of books, with each themed chapter prefaced by more books that aren’t part of the 100 list but are giving context to the list of 100. There’s a lot going on.
That said, it’s a really valuable resource if you’re interested in classic crime: some of the books are republished in the British Library Crime Classics series (edited by the author of this book), but many are not, and some are still easily available — making this a lovely way to pad out your wishlist.
So, not a super readable book, but a valuable one to have. Edwards tries not to totally spoil the stories, by the way, but if you don’t like having clues for mystery novels, this is best skipped.
Rating: 4/5
Tags: book reviews, books, crime, Martin Edwards, mystery, non-fiction
Posted July 29, 2023 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments
Hexhunter, Jordan L. Hawk
Hexhunter breaks the mould of this series a little bit, which was a relief: the couple didn’t have a mid-book miscommunication-and-break-up, which was a feature of each of the others. Not that Isaac and Bill’s story is entirely smooth-sailing: there’s a whole jealousy subplot (sigh) and, of course, Isaac’s trauma and self-hatred. If you might have triggers around that and about a victim blaming themself for what happened to them, be careful with this one (though Bill is entirely supportive of Isaac).
The relationship between them is sweet, though in the relatively short space of the book you don’t have time to entirely feel the weight of the pining Bill’s been doing for quite some time. Isaac’s road to some kind of recovery is pretty satisfying, given we’ve been seeing his pain since book one.
This book doesn’t draw the series to a close, either, despite the fact there’s been nothing new since that one — the overarching plot that ran through the four main stories isn’t solved, though each couple has had a happy-ever-after. So that’s worth noting, too.
Not my favourite of the series, I think, but enjoyable as ever!
Rating: 4/5
Tags: book reviews, books, Jordan L. Hawk, mystery, romance, SF/F
Posted July 25, 2023 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments
Hexslayer, Jordan L. Hawk
I wasn’t sure how to feel about a book where Nick was one of the romantic leads, since he’s stubborn as a (yes, yes) horse, and it felt like it was going to be a pretty big barrier to a romance. I feel like it was shockingly easy, actually, and while it made sense… I don’t know, I could’ve used a little more time for it to develop, or something.
Which is not to say I didn’t have fun with this book, and with the development of Jamie’s character as he begins to understand he’s been privileged and blinkered — and with Nick’s slow acceptance that some people can be depended on.
I didn’t love the scene where Nick decided to let Jamie ride him in his horse form, despite his initial refusal to ever countenance it, I must admit. It felt like Nick saw that as servitude, as degrading, and then decided… what? He’d be okay with that because the case was more important? Jamie was more important? His motives weren’t entirely clear to me there, and I didn’t feel comfortable with it being fairly glossed over, and then repeatedly happening again. There’s a whole intersection there with Jamie’s disability and Nick being accommodating of that, but still, not wholly comfortable.
Overall, not a favourite of the series, but I’m definitely curious what it’s all building up to — does the fourth book finish things up?
Rating: 4/5
Tags: book reviews, books, Jordan L. Hawk, mystery, romance, SF/F
Posted July 21, 2023 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments
A Christmas Hex, Jordan L. Hawk
It’s probably the wrong time of year to read A Christmas Hex, but I was curious about this one and decided to go ahead anyway. Unlike the other Hexworld books, this one doesn’t concern the police and their familiars, but a private detective, Gus. Roland realises that Gus is his witch and quickly becomes fascinated, but he’s terrified to admit that his animal form is that of a wolf, since people normally fear wolves.
It’s a fun set-up, but the relationship between the two feels more than a little rushed by the amount of space available in such a short narrative, and I didn’t get the usual sense of two people figuring out how to match up their experiences and come to some kind of accord. It all feels like it’s a bit too easy, but not in the sort of way where it makes total sense — like there’s some important scenes of negotiation or reaction or something skipped.
It was a fun short read, but definitely not a favourite.
Rating: 3/5
Tags: book reviews, books, Jordan L. Hawk, mystery, romance, SF/F
Posted July 16, 2023 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments
Capital Crimes, ed. Martin Edwards
This is an interesting bunch of stories, loosely connected by location, but somehow mostly hitting the same notes — I guess people felt a certain kind of way about London, and that comes through in this collection with a serious sense of unease about the way you can meet just about anyone in London.
The inclusion of Berkeley’s original short story on which he based The Poisoned Chocolates Case was an interesting one; the details seemed very much the same, and I can’t really remember how the novel turns out differently and which characters exactly get suspected there. It makes me a little tempted to reread it!
The truncation of the story set on the Underground feels a little odd — I guess it was long/rambling, but still, it feels like a key bit gets missed out here, the whole solution of the thing.
Overall, an interesting collection as usual.
Rating: 4/5
Tags: book reviews, books, British Library Crime Classics, crime, mystery
Posted July 11, 2023 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments
Spectr: Volume 1, Jordan L. Hawk
Reaper of Souls closes the first volume of the Spectr series, so now that I’ve finished it, it seems like an appropriate moment to take a look around and try to review the series so far. Volume one is on a strict timeline: Caleb has been possessed by a drakul, Gray. If Gray can be exorcised before 40 days are up, Caleb can go back to his life. If he can’t, well… there’s normally no hope for a human host/victim after that point. John is an agent with Spectr, and he’s meant to be pretty darn good, but he can’t get Gray out.
As a result, and due to Gray’s unique circumstances (he hunts other paranormal entities, not humans; his possession of Caleb is an accident), John ends up babysitting Caleb while he tries to figure out how to exorcise him — and then Caleb ends up helping him with cases using Gray’s strength and supernatural senses, and then Caleb and John start falling in love.
I enjoyed the ambivalence surrounding Gray — the fact that he seems to care about not harming Caleb, not causing too much trouble, and especially his curiosity about John. John’s confused feelings about both of them add another dimension as well, one that becomes increasingly important toward the end of the volume.
I’m looking forward to reading the second volume and learning how everything shakes out.
Rating: 3/5
Tags: book reviews, books, Jordan L. Hawk, mystery, romance, SF/F