If you had asked me if I would like a story inspired by A Tale of Two Cities but involving fairies, changelings, and long-running revenge plots, I don't know that I would have said yes. But honestly this was so, so good.
Revenge, love, unlooked-for friendship, hate, forgiveness, and the way that all of those emotions intertwine, lock together, and preempt one another and the choices people make in response make for wonderful …Read More
If you had asked me if I would like a story inspired by A Tale of Two Cities but involving fairies, changelings, and long-running revenge plots, I don't know that I would have said yes. But honestly this was so, so good.
Revenge, love, unlooked-for friendship, hate, forgiveness, and the way that all of those emotions intertwine, lock together, and preempt one another and the choices people make in response make for wonderful …Read More
The twists were pretty predictable. Ended on the stereotypical "the leads have fallen in love, gotten together, and defeated what they thought was the big bad, only to be betrayed by someone they thought was an ally and forcibly separated oh no!"
Worldbuilding didn't make a ton of sense (the old "each biome only exists in one place!!!", but for some reason the fisher people live... in... the mountains...???) and the editing w …Read More
The twists were pretty predictable. Ended on the stereotypical "the leads have fallen in love, gotten together, and defeated what they thought was the big bad, only to be betrayed by someone they thought was an ally and forcibly separated oh no!"
Worldbuilding didn't make a ton of sense (the old "each biome only exists in one place!!!", but for some reason the fisher people live... in... the mountains...???) and the editing w …Read More
If you're a fan of Star Trek and you haven't read this book, you really should. The novel is a fun romp through the seedy underbelly of sci-fi television series -- similar in tone and concept to Galaxy Quest, so if you liked that you'll definitely like this. :)
Scalzi's experience as a consultant on a sci-fi television show (Stargate: Universe) clearly comes into play, and it's also clear he's been following other recent meta …Read More
If you're a fan of Star Trek and you haven't read this book, you really should. The novel is a fun romp through the seedy underbelly of sci-fi television series -- similar in tone and concept to Galaxy Quest, so if you liked that you'll definitely like this. :)
Scalzi's experience as a consultant on a sci-fi television show (Stargate: Universe) clearly comes into play, and it's also clear he's been following other recent meta …Read More
Despite the three stars, I thought it was a fun read (and very funny in parts). My main issue with the story was that Alex and Poppy felt very Millennial to me (not surprising, as they reference that several times themselves). For readers in that age cohort it's probably not a downside, but as a crochety old Gen Xer I just didn't find them as interesting as I have other novel characters, even of the same generation. I did lo …Read More
Despite the three stars, I thought it was a fun read (and very funny in parts). My main issue with the story was that Alex and Poppy felt very Millennial to me (not surprising, as they reference that several times themselves). For readers in that age cohort it's probably not a downside, but as a crochety old Gen Xer I just didn't find them as interesting as I have other novel characters, even of the same generation. I did lo …Read More
A swordswoman and her nemesis take part in a necromantic trial in a haunted ruined city in space to become God’s bodyguards. Fantastically weird and funny. This and A Memory Called Empire are probably my two favorites of all the books I've read this year.
A swordswoman and her nemesis take part in a necromantic trial in a haunted ruined city in space to become God’s bodyguards. Fantastically weird and funny. This and A Memory Called Empire are probably my two favorites of all the books I've read this year.
Madcap, funny, chaotic, and ultimately very sweet.
Madcap, funny, chaotic, and ultimately very sweet.
I wanted this to be the brilliant start of a great new fantasy trilogy. It started out so well: an inventive setting, a mysterious and fascinating problem, a morally complex protagonist who doesn't fall into the megagrimdark "gritty" stereotype so popular in adult fantasy right now...
Unfortunately, the story falls apart in the end; the cause of the problem is too pat, the solution too simple. This feels like a plot planned t …Read More
I wanted this to be the brilliant start of a great new fantasy trilogy. It started out so well: an inventive setting, a mysterious and fascinating problem, a morally complex protagonist who doesn't fall into the megagrimdark "gritty" stereotype so popular in adult fantasy right now...
Unfortunately, the story falls apart in the end; the cause of the problem is too pat, the solution too simple. This feels like a plot planned t …Read More
I wasn't necessarily expecting much out of this book, but I ended up very much enjoying it. This is a much more historical take on fantasy-style knights (obviously heavily informed by the author's own experiences with martial arts and reenactment) and it shows. The magic in the book is original, interesting, and well-considered.
The plot can be somewhat challenging to follow at first, as the author switches between a number o …Read More
I wasn't necessarily expecting much out of this book, but I ended up very much enjoying it. This is a much more historical take on fantasy-style knights (obviously heavily informed by the author's own experiences with martial arts and reenactment) and it shows. The magic in the book is original, interesting, and well-considered.
The plot can be somewhat challenging to follow at first, as the author switches between a number o …Read More
Short, but there was a lot in it that I really related to. The questions that drive Dex (and that they finally put into words in the last chapter) are ones that are very familiar to me especially over the last few years. I don't know that I found the answers very satisfying, but I'm not sure Chambers' intent was to answer them in any case (at least not fully in this entry). A very cheerful, fluffy, short read and a very vivi …Read More
Short, but there was a lot in it that I really related to. The questions that drive Dex (and that they finally put into words in the last chapter) are ones that are very familiar to me especially over the last few years. I don't know that I found the answers very satisfying, but I'm not sure Chambers' intent was to answer them in any case (at least not fully in this entry). A very cheerful, fluffy, short read and a very vivi …Read More
This reminded me a lot of Redshirts, actually. Worth reading if you're a D&D buff or have some nostalgia for it. It isn't fantastic as a standalone fantasy novel, but it made me laugh, avoided some of the worse typical fantasy tropes (there aren't any awkward sex scenes, so hurrah for that), and I enjoyed reading it.
This reminded me a lot of Redshirts, actually. Worth reading if you're a D&D buff or have some nostalgia for it. It isn't fantastic as a standalone fantasy novel, but it made me laugh, avoided some of the worse typical fantasy tropes (there aren't any awkward sex scenes, so hurrah for that), and I enjoyed reading it.
(Review for entire series)
I don't normally like fantasy books where the author feels the need to invent names for things we have perfectly good words for, and I also don't normally care for grittier/grimdarkier fantasy, but I really liked these. The writing was smart, the worldbuilding was interesting (with one caveat below), and I thought it was a solid "fantasy world pirate" series. I particularly liked the various fall-an …Read More
(Review for entire series)
I don't normally like fantasy books where the author feels the need to invent names for things we have perfectly good words for, and I also don't normally care for grittier/grimdarkier fantasy, but I really liked these. The writing was smart, the worldbuilding was interesting (with one caveat below), and I thought it was a solid "fantasy world pirate" series. I particularly liked the various fall-an …Read More
Entertaining, especially if you miss the glory days of your own imagined adventuring career. The phrase "getting the band back together" occurs perhaps too often (I think the "adventuring bands are really just the rock stars of fantasy worlds" conceit overall would seem cleverer if the author didn't beat you over the head with it quite so much) but if you're looking for some easy PNP RPG-based escapism, worth the read.
Entertaining, especially if you miss the glory days of your own imagined adventuring career. The phrase "getting the band back together" occurs perhaps too often (I think the "adventuring bands are really just the rock stars of fantasy worlds" conceit overall would seem cleverer if the author didn't beat you over the head with it quite so much) but if you're looking for some easy PNP RPG-based escapism, worth the read.
