Category: Reviews

Master parent category for all my reviews: books, movies, television shows, restaurants, products.

Searing Summer Reads: The Third Third

This Hubble Space Telescope image shows Sirius A, the brightest star in our nighttime sky, along with its faint, tiny stellar companion, Sirius B.

Sirius rising before or with the sun, so the ancients believed, caused the ‘dog days’ of summer.  The term ‘dog days’ only obliquely refers to our four-legged furry friends; and more directly points to the Dog Star (aka Sirius), the brightest star in the constellation Canis Major.  I cannot confirm or deny Sirius’ proximity to our sun, thanks to the record-breaking heat and humidity scorching the Heart of America and hazing the eastern horizon in the pre-dawn night.

Appropriately, Monday, the 1st of August, 2011, marks another Ozone Red Alert Day in the Kansas City metro area.  My new central air conditioning system barely cycles while the sun shines.

I received word from my hubby that the leather chaise lounger we purchased a week ago at Nebraska Furniture Mart arrived undamaged.  The delivery guys wrangled it upstairs to my new library, where I hope to spend many cool evenings reading the final third of my hot summer reads.  Almost immediately upon the heels of the phone call about the furniture delivery, my husband sent me a text message to let me know the roofers had finally arrive (again on the hottest day of the month so far) and stripped the old shingles off in less than an hour.  By the time I return home, I may have a new roof.  Ironically, a representative from our insurance company stopped by (before the roofers but after the furniture delivery guys had left) to take photos of the property.  Terry tried to explain to him that the roof was about to be redone (how prophetic his words became), followed immediately by the driveway (complete rip out and re-do on it as well).  I just hope the interior designer we scheduled an appointment with for this evening can envision and inspire our remodel despite the normal chaos.  And it will be after the sun sets tonight before I can relax and enjoy my new lounger in my new library with one of the following sizzling summer reads:

The SciFi and Fantasy Book Club at GoodReads started Red Mars for the August science fiction selection.   From the book blurb:  “Brilliantly imagined, breathtaking in scope and ingenuity, Red Mars is an epic scientific saga, chronicling the next step in human evolution and creating a world in its entirety. Red Mars shows us a future, with both glory and tarnish, that awes with complexity and inspires with vision.”

My most anticipated reads beckon from my favorite book club, the Beyond Reality group (also at GoodReads).   Our illustrious leader, Stefan, noted in his Welcome to August 2011 post our serendipitous C.J. Cherryh group reads for both science fiction and fantasy.  I started Foreigner this morning and plan to read The Fortress in the Eye of Time soon after.   I am most excited about reading all of the Honor Harrington novels (see my previous posts campaigning for David Weber’s series to overcome Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files).

My other two book clubs, Fantasy Book Club and FBC Series, continue to serve up excellent reads and discussions.  I jumped the gun on the August read for FBCS by finishing Mistress of the Empire on Saturday.  But I renewed the Black Prism, checked out earlier in July from the KC Public Library.  As soon as I finish The Snow Queen, I’ll start reading the latest from Brent Weeks.

Most of these books sport astounding cover art by two of my favorite cover artists:  Don Maitz and Michael Whelan.  My permanent collection of the Empire Trilogy and Magician (Apprentice and Master) includes the editions with cover art painted by Don.  Of those five covers, my favorite is probably this one:

My hardcover of The Snow Queen does not have a dust jacket with the famous Michael Whelan cover art, but I needed some MW eye candy:

Oh, and I almost forgot to mention cover artist David Mattingly, painter extradonaire of both the Honorverse and Darwath.   Of all the Honor covers, this is probably my favorite:

Of necessity, I kept my August summer reading to a bare minimum.  I will sacrifice about a week of reading time at the end of the month to drive to Atlanta and attend the 25th iteration of Dragon*Con.  And if I though it was hot in Kansas, I can’t wait to melt away in Hotlanta with fans and friends of fantasy.

Get Your Hot Summer Book Swaps Here

Due to the Ozone Red Alert Warning for today, I’m staying inside and at home today.  This leaves me no excuse but to tackle projects I’ve neglected for weeks if not months.  Overnight I received a BookMooch request to send a book to a Californian, so it got me thinking about my physical book inventory.   Once I found the book requested for BookMooch, I packaged it and addressed it sitting in my new library.  I grabbed a stack of books I’d set aside as abandoned and started adding them to my GoodReads swap site.  And now that I own a Nook Color, I want to see less physical books on my physical book shelves to make room for the more ephemeral ebooks on my virtual shelves.

Newly Released eBook Edition of SF Classic – The Forever War by Joe Haldeman

Ridan Publishing released late last week an ebook edition of Joe Haldeman’s classic award winning science fiction novel The Forever War.   A must read for any die-hard fan of science fiction, especially the military scifi subgenre.

My review, written two years ago during the Summer of 2009, follows:

The Forever WarThe Forever War by Joe Haldeman

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

3.5 stars

If I had been born in the 50s and also been born male, I’m positive I would have loved this story. All the pain, confusion and futility of Vietnam but strung out and extrapolated over three thousand years (or about three years relatively speaking). The last fourth of the book salvaged the first three parts.

I didn’t have any trouble grasping the science, the physics or the technology. Haldeman did an excellent job conveying them without making me take a course in quantum physics or string theory.

But again, similar to The Accidental Time Machine, character development suffers, even though we spend months bored in transit. I personally didn’t care for or agree with his predictions for societal changes on Earth and elsewhere that occurred while Mandella travelled at relativistic speeds. I did agree with the morale of his story, which is similar to Ender’s Game in philosophy.

I’ve now read most of the classic (and one neo-classic) military science fiction novels. My personal favorite seems to be Old Man’s War by John Scalzi, followed closely by Heinlein’s Starship Troopers. Haldeman’s Forever War follows and the distant finisher remains Armor by John Steakley.

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And the Winner Is . . .

Honor Harrington

The poll closed Saturday midnight and, despite close voting, Honor edged out Harry.  In mid-August, Beyond Reality will commence their third series group read.  Join us in the Honorverse next month!

Read Stefan’s introductory post for more information.

Honor v. Harry (Not the Harry Your Thinking Of)

-v-

The Beyond Reality group at GoodReads posted a run-off poll this week to decide our next series group read, pitting space opera legend Honor Harrington, created by David Weber, against urban fantasy gumshoe wizard Harry Dresden (no, he’s not a graduate of Hogwarts and doesn’t have a lightning bolt scar on his forehead), created by local Kansas Citian Jim Butcher.

The Honor Harrington series barely hangs onto a narrow lead by her fingernails over the Dresden Files in this last day of voting.  Both series offer a full year’s worth of reading with a dozen novels published in each (assuming we read one book a month).

So if you’ve been looking for an excuse to read either one of these series, come join the party!  Cast your vote before the stroke of midnight tomorrow.

Beyond Reality Series Selection Poll

SERIES DISCUSSION: This run-off poll decides which series will be the topic of our third Beyond Reality Series Discussion!

Book Review: The Summer Tree by Kay (4 Stars)

The Summer Tree by Guy Gavriel Kay

4 out of 5 stars

Read in June 2011

I took quite some time to warm-up to this earliest novel of Guy Gavriel Kay. I just couldn’t get excited about five Canadian college students agreeing (with the exception of one malcontent … but there’s always got to be one rebel) to be whisked or warped or rifted or transported (take your pick) to the world of Fionavar just to attend the king’s jubilee. Thrust into a seemingly medieval setting, complete with court politics, royal succession quandaries, manipulative magicians, kingdom-wide drought and blight and an approaching storm of vengeful evil, these young men and women adapt readily and a bit unbelievably. Even the initial loss of one in the crossing barely causes a blip of concern once the remaining four become embroiled in the avalanche of events bearing down on the kingdom.

Of all the characters, both from our world and Finovar, I respected Dave the most as well as Sharra (and I hope to learn more about her in the rest of the series). Paul seemed to excel at doing the right things for all the wrong reasons. Kimberly went native almost before leaving Earth, but Kevin remains an enigma to me. I barely glimpsed Jennifer’s tribulations and fear for her fate.

I saw the influence of Celtic mythology throughout Kay’s worldbuilding and drew parallels with other epic fantasies prevalent and popular in the late 70s and early 80s (Tolkien, Lewis and to a lesser extent Brooks).

I suspect I missed reading the Fionavar Tapestry in high school and early college because I had to rely on what I saw at the grocery store book/magazine aisle, since I didn’t have access to a library or a book store and GoodReads wasn’t even a gleam on the Internet’s nascent horizon. Had I read this series then, I am confident I would have added it to my permanent re-read collection. While The Summer Tree and the rest of the Fionavar Tapestry will remain on my shelves besides Kay’s other later great novels, I doubt I’ll be tempted to re-read it. Not with Tigana or the Lions of Al-Rassan enticing me to return and relive the wonder and the glory.

For further insights, please visit the discussion threads at the GoodReads Science Fiction and Fantasy Book Club held in June 2011.

The Beyond Reality group at GoodReads started reading the entire series, The Fionavar Tapestry in mid-January 2014.

Book Review: A Shot in the Dark by Stewart

A Shot in the Dark (Jesse James Dawson, #2)A Shot in the Dark by K.A. Stewart

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3.5 stars

A Shot in the Dark continues a few months after A Devil in the Details, with Jesse James Dawson mostly recovered from his last demon death-dance and tornado tango, but still suffering from nightmares of an earlier near-fatal demon fight. His annual Colorado camping trip with his buddies should provide ample opportunity for rejuvenation and recreation… What should have been a relaxing retreat quickly turns into a siege reminiscent of the Alamo . . .

A Shot in the Dark provides a good mystery, a few thrills, a new take on zombies, MacGyver-esque innovations in demon fighting and a peek into the true identity of Jesse’s favorite demon sidekick, Axel (hint: read To Reign in Hell by Steven Brust or Milton’s Paradise Lost). This is a strong sequel to last year’s A Devil in the Details and a great summer vacation read. Just don’t forget the holy water, mirrors and swords.

Read more at FantasyLiterature.com

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Product Review: BookGem Book/Nook Holder

BookGem (attached to my Nook Color)
BookGem (attached to my Nook Color)

Last week I purchased a BookGem book holder for the express purpose of enhancing my Nook Color reading experience.  While I could have purchased another protective cover designed to double as a stand, I opted for a multi-purpose product (as I usually do).  The BookGem works with hardcovers and trade paperbacks, including an option for easy page turns.  I haven’t tried it with the mass market paperback format yet, and probably won’t because the smaller size editions are lightweight and don’t typically cause me hand or arm strain while reading.

My Nook Color cradled by the BookGem
My Nook Color cradled by the BookGem

In addition to traditional books, the BookGem easily accommodates the Nook, Nook Color, iPad, Kindle or other similar sized ereaders and tablets.  I also liked the fact that the BookGem is made and sold in the United States, so I can feel good about supporting American inventiveness, innovation, ingenuity and industry.  The BookGem’s compact light-weight design allows me to keep it with me at all times, so wherever I am, my Nook Color and BookGem are sure to follow.

BookGem resting on my Nook Color
BookGem resting on my Nook Color

I plan to purchase more of these as gifts for the bibliophiles among my close friends and family.  The manufacturer offers nice discounts on quantity orders and shipping is free.  I felt the $14.95 price for a single unit was reasonable considering the versatility of this gem of a book accessory product.  I give the BookGem four out of five stars.

Summer Reads – Second Third

I met all my reading goals for the first month of summer.   I loaded up the first of the month with the authors I knew would delivery excellent stories, leaving the unknown frontier of my book club selections for the middle and end of June.   I devoted the last week of the month to reading the first in a relatively new fantasy series by Kevin J. Anderson that I’ve been surprised and engrossed in for days.   The third book in his Terra Incognita series releases in a couple of weeks, so I’m all fired up to read the second book as soon as possible.

For July, my GoodReads book clubs are hit and miss:

Over at Fantasy Book Club Series, we’re continuing in the Empire Triology with Servant of the Empire.  I’m looking forward to reading what Mara plots next for the Game of Counsel on Kelewan.

The Science Fiction & Fantasy Book Club selected The Snow Queen for our July scifi reading pleasure.  I’ve had this book on my shelves for years and finally have no excuse not to read it.

Neither selection at Beyond Reality for July appeals to me, but we are accepting nominations for our next series read and will probably have the poll up for voting by the time this blog post publishes.

The Fantasy Book Club decided to read the ever-popular Wizard of Earthsea in July.  Since I’ve read this classic by Le Guinn several times already, including recently when the Syfy channel aired a mini-series based on the trilogy, I’m going to skip another re-read this time around.

For Fantasy Literature, I need to read and review Sorcery Rising and listen to Dragongirl.

I’ll round out July by continuing in the Fionavar Tapestry with The Wandering Fire.  And, if I can acquire a copy of the second novel in Terra Incognita, I’ll continue exploring and searching for the lost continent of Terravitae in The Map of All Things.

Friday Morning Update:  I actually finished The Edge of the World a couple of days ago (but with the holiday weekend I won’t get a review written for a few days). As filler to round out the last couple of days of June, I started reading one of Barnes & Nobles ‘free Friday‘ Nook Books from a couple of weeks ago entitled Stupid History.  Aptly titled and I should whip through it in record time, leaving my intelligence intact (I hope).  The best surprise I got this morning, though, was the companion progressive rock CD released by Rosswell Six called Beyond the Horizaon.  I listened to the first four tracks on the drive in to work today and I felt transported back to the glory days of the 70s and rock bands I grew up with (and savored) like Kansas, Rush and Styx.  Click on the CD cover icon to listen to excerpts of the songs: