Stormchaser is the second book of the Edge series and it is a vast improvement over book one — Beyond the Deepwoods. The book picks up a few years after Twig’s adventures in Beyond the Deepwoods. He is now sailing aboard the skyship of his recently-discovered sky-pirate father and has exchanged the monster-horrors of the Deepwoods with the more human horrors of city-life, pollution, and corruption (though monsters still make the occasional appearance).
June 12th, 2007. Bill Capossere´s rating: 4 | Paul Stewart | Children | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien
The Two Towers is the second third of J.R.R. Tolkien‘s epic Lord of the Rings trilogy, and begins right where the previous book left off: the Fellowship has been sundered, with the death of Boromir, the escape of Frodo and Sam, the capture of Merry and Pippen, and the chase that ensues on the part of Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli. Like the other two installments in the series, The Two Towers is split into two books,
June 11th, 2007. Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 5 | J.R.R. Tolkien | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
After the colossal disappointment of the last book in the Sweep series Full Circle, I was both relieved and wary that another conclusion had been written. Night’s Child is set several years after the events of Full Circle with Morgan and Hunter as twenty-something year olds. Proposing marriage, Hunter plans to settle down and run New Charter (the new alternative to the Council) from home. He has only one last journey to make,
June 11th, 2007. Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 3 | Cate Tiernan | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Tess is a reasonably distant and lonely child, who takes long walks out into the forest and park lands each day, returning home each evening to somewhat bemused parents. They don’t believe anything is seriously wrong with their child despite the fact she has no friends — they just think she’s a loner that loves the outdoors. But it just so happens that Tess is very different from other teenagers, and harbors a secret that she keeps from every other person on the planet. She has had the ability from a very early age to change into any animal she desires,
June 11th, 2007. Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 4 | Kate Thompson | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Killing Dance by Laurell K. Hamilton
I enjoyed ANITA BLAKE, VAMPIRE HUNTER up to this point, but Laurell K. Hamilton really blows it on this one. Anita has turned into a hypocrite and any claim she had to integrity was shredded within the first 3 chapters of the next book. Hamilton has destroyed her main character — Anita is turning into a nasty tramp. We are talking about a complete reversal of the sharp-edged but relatively moral person she started out as. What a shame.
I should admit that The Killing Dance must have been well conceived and written because it really affected me — I was utterly devastated.
June 10th, 2007. John Hulet´s rating: 1 | Laurell K. Hamilton | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
The Good, The Bad, and the Undead by Kim Harrison
This is the second book in the series by Kim Harrison about Rachel Morgan, ex-IS runner, white witch, and now paranormal investigator. Dead Witch Walking, while being nothing spectacular, was a solid enough read which introduced the relationship between humans and Inderlanders and the characters which inhabit the Hollows. The Good, the Bad and the Undead ramps up the action, suspense, excitement, eroticism, and terror — it is a whirlwind of a story that doesn’t let you breathe until the last page has been turned.
June 10th, 2007. John Hulet and Robert Thompson´s rating: 5 | Kim Harrison | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Children of Green Knowe by Lucy M. Boston
Reading this book was a strange experience for me, as even though I had never read it before in my life, it evoked a strange sense of familiarity that only the very best books, movies and music are able to achieve. Usually these are reserved for the ones that are experienced in childhood and carried through into adulthood, but every now and then one arrives that touch one on so deep a level that one feels they’ve always known them. The Children of Green Knowe is one such book.
June 10th, 2007. Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 5 | Lucy M. Boston | Children | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Dr. Illuminatus by Martin Booth
Doctor Illuminatus is the first of what promises to be three books, and it deserves two and a half stars, putting it exactly midpoint between good and just fair. Though it has an interesting premise and is full of fascinating facts and ideas, it often falls short on several accounts.
Pip and Tim are two twins that have just moved into an old, mysterious house called Rawne Barton: your standard beginning for a fantasy story of this nature. Before long, the siblings have uncovered a strange boy hidden in the walls of the house named Sebastian who claims to be the son of a medieval alchemist.
June 10th, 2007. Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 2.5 | Martin Booth | Children | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder
Overall, I am impressed with Maria Snyder‘s first novel, Poison Study. It was well written and the main characters are likeable, complex, and engaging. The characters of the “supporting staff” are also well done. The dialogue is realistic and the writing style is pleasant and unpretentious. The pace is quick, there is political intrigue, spying, treachery, fighting, forgiveness, personal growth, and romance (although the single love scene was confusing and a bit corny).
However, the plot was somewhat predictable and there were few surprises.
June 9th, 2007. Kat Hooper, John Hulet, Tadiana Jones and Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 3.5 | Maria V. Snyder | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Mystic and Rider by Sharon Shinn
Like a mystified and riderless horse, Sharon Shinn’s fantasy novel Mystic & Rider gallops to the point of fatigue and frustration. This conclusion is especially unfortunate in light of the excellent opening chapter. But buyer beware: the tension and excitement rarely increase from that point, and the last of the 440 pages brings us little closer to some kind of resolution or revelation than the first. Rather, the entire novel is simply a prologue for the rest of the series.
The novel’s plot is perfectly plain.
June 9th, 2007. Rob Rhodes´s rating: 2.5 | Sharon Shinn | SFF Reviews | no comments |
I picked my copy up last week and I can't wait to finish my current book and get started! I…
Gentlemen, I concur! (Forgive me for jumping into your convo)
The cover is amazing. I love how the graphic novel (and the review!) hewed close to the theme of "good…
I've thought about picking that one up. The artwork looks perfect.
I like the way you think, Bill. I found the second one particularly objectionable; the one with Khan. It was…