I adore Gail Carriger’s FINISHING SCHOOL series, but I’m not a big fan of her related series (THE PARASOL PROTECTORATE and THE CUSTARD PROTOCOL). They’re just too silly for me, with their focus on fashion and frivolity. I can see why others like them, though. They are unique, creative, and well written with some great characters. They’re just not my thing.
However, I did want to read the final CUSTARD PROTOCOL book,
August 30th, 2019. Kat Hooper´s rating: 3 | Gail Carriger | Audio | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
The Porcelain Dove by Delia Sherman
Years ago, I got into “fantasies of manners” at about the same time as I was going through a big Revolutionary France phase. When I heard about Delia Sherman’s The Porcelain Dove (1993) — a fantasy set in that time period, and which won the Mythopoeic Award for 1994 — it sounded like the perfect book for me. I could never find it in the used bookstores, though. (I did, before I successfully committed the title to memory,
August 30th, 2019. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 3 | Delia Sherman | Mythopoeic Award, Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 7 comments |
Anna Kashina’s 2019 second-world fantasy novel Shadowblade is pleasant entertainment: a mix of swordplay, political double-crossing, lost heirs and imposters all sweetened with a dollop of romance. It’s not my usual thing, but it was the right book for a drowsy, hot late-summer day with a big, sweating glass of iced tea close by.
Dal Gassan is present for the betrayal and slaughter of the Queen of Challmar and her entire court, ambushed by the Emperor Shabaddin just as she is signing a peace treaty with him.
August 29th, 2019. Marion Deeds´s rating: 3 | Anna Kashina | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
Lance of Truth by Katherine Roberts
Lance of Truth (2012) is the second book in Katherine Roberts‘s four-part story about the daughter of King Arthur Pendragon, and her quest to find the Four Lights (Sword of Light, Lance of Truth, Crown of Dreams and Holy Grail) that might restore her father to life and bring peace to Britain.
Princess Rhianna has lived her whole life on the enchanted isle of Avalon, but after learning of her parentage upon the death of King Arthur,
August 29th, 2019. Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 3.5 | Katherine Roberts | Children | SFF Reviews | no comments |
After the Hugos:
There are, as always, a few controversies in the wake of this year’s WorldCon. One is about a possible WorldCon being held in China. Chengdu has a bid for the 2023 WorldCon, along with Nice, France. Cheryl Morgan discusses some pros and cons about Chengdu and Nice. (There is apparently a large group of fans who have a fixation with it being in the USA, which I don’t get, since the Con’s name is WorldCon. On the other hand, we call a national sporting event the World Series, so maybe it is consistent.)
Nicholas Whyte,
August 28th, 2019. Marion Deeds | World Wide Wednesday | 2 comments |
The Archived by Victoria Schwab
Mackenzie (Mac) Bishop, a high-school student, has just moved to a new town with her mom and dad. They’re living in an apartment in a renovated old hotel. Her mom is excited about restoring and reopening a once-popular coffee shop in the hotel, but Mac knows that her mom is really just trying to stay focused and busy after the recent death of Mac’s younger brother.
What Mackenzie’s parents don’t know is that Mac is a Keeper, a job she inherited from her now-deceased grandfather.
August 28th, 2019. Kat Hooper´s rating: 3 | Victoria (V.E.) Schwab | Audio, Young Adult | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater
Here it is, The Raven King (2016), the fourth and final book in Maggie Stiefvater‘s THE RAVEN CYCLE, which began with The Raven Boys and continued with The Dream Thieves and Blue Lily, Lily Blue. And … it’s hard to know what to say. I’ve had mixed feelings throughout all four of the books, liking certain ideas and characters, but often getting a little fed up with the prose and dialogue,
August 28th, 2019. Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 3 | Maggie Stiefvater | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow
The Ten Thousand Doors of January (2019), by Alix E. Harrow, is one of the most beautiful books you will read in 2019. It may be one of the most beautiful books you’ll read in your lifetime. When I say it’s beautiful, I don’t simply mean the prose and the imagery, although those both are gorgeous. I mean that this is a beautiful story. The journey of January Scaller, set against the USA’s Long Gilded Age,
August 27th, 2019. Marion Deeds, Tadiana Jones and Kat Hooper´s rating: 5 | Alix E. Harrow | Audio, Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 5 comments |
Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater
I’ll admit that the last book in this four-part series, The Dream Thieves, was difficult for me to get through — it wasn’t that I disliked the characters or the storyline, but the pacing was glacially slow and Maggie Stiefvater‘s prose is definitely an acquired taste. However, Blue Lily, Lily Blue (2014) was an improvement; I could tell because after each reading session I was surprised by just how many chapters I’d churned through.
August 27th, 2019. Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 3 | Maggie Stiefvater | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | no comments |
I love fantasies set at colleges, so when I heard about Linda Haldeman’s Esbae: A Winter’s Tale (1981), I had to track it down and read it. The titular Esbae is a spirit who is found wanting by some greater power, and cast down to earth. It attaches itself to an awkward college student, Sophie, and is caught up in a magical battle between good and evil.
The three main human characters are all to be found in Dr.
August 26th, 2019. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 2.5 | Linda Haldeman | Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
If the state of the arts puzzles you, and you wonder why so many novels are "retellings" and formulaic rework,…
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.