There have been several reviews of Maledicte that make comparisons to Jacqueline Carey. Some say Maledicte is a cheap imitation, and others that Maledicte is far too good to be compared with Carey’s work. I’m not enough of a literary critic to tell you who is the better writer, Jacqueline Carey or Lane Robins, but I will say that I’m not surprised the comparisons are cropping up. I’m a big fan of Carey and I’m always looking for beautiful,
November 5th, 2007. Kelly Lasiter, Kat Hooper and Robert Thompson | Lane Robins | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
The Nameless Day by Sara Douglass
The Nameless Day is a difficult book to review as there was so much I didn’t like about it. To begin with, the main character is extremely unlikeable, which isn’t an automatic mark against a book, but when the character stays so consistently unlikeable for such a long time, it does get a bit wearying. We see some slight glimpses of a better man here and there more towards the end, but following Thomas Neville through several hundred pages can seem a bit of a chore.
November 2nd, 2007. Bill Capossere and Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 3 | Sara Douglass | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Let me start by saying that I like Yasmine Galenorn‘s writing quite a lot. I love her pagan/metaphysical books — she’s one of the few authors out there who seems to have a genuine passion for the subject matter—and I’ve also enjoyed the one installment of Chintz ‘n’ China that I’ve read.
That said, I didn’t really enjoy Witchling, the first novel of her Sisters of the Moon series, though I feel kind of bad saying so about something she’s obviously worked hard on and feels strongly about.
October 25th, 2007. Kelly Lasiter and John Hulet´s rating: 2 | Yasmine Galenorn | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Druid’s Sword by Sara Douglass
I’ve been following this series for years, reading each new book avidly as the storyline and the relationships became deeper, richer, more complicated. I couldn’t wait to see what sort of denouement Sara Douglass had in store for The Troy Game.
I was particularly interested in what would become of Cornelia/Caela/Noah and her troubled bond with Brutus. I would have been satisfied with either of two possible endings:
(a) A redeemed Brutus asks Cornelia for forgiveness, and she forgives him.
(b) Brutus asks Cornelia for forgiveness,
October 2nd, 2007. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 1 | Sara Douglass | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
Kushiel’s Scion by Jacqueline Carey
Return to Terre d’Ange with Kushiel’s Scion, sequel to the Kushiel’s Legacy trilogy. This book follows Phèdre’s adopted son, Imriel, son of the treacherous Melisande and third in line for the D’Angeline throne. Carey does an excellent job of developing Imriel into a complicated, troubled young man without in any way betraying the character he was in Kushiel’s Avatar: haunted but with the proverbial heart of gold.
Imriel is coming of age here,
October 1st, 2007. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 5 | Jacqueline Carey | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Workaholic interior designer Pamela is on a business trip to Las Vegas. Reeling from an abusive marriage, she’s hoping her heart isn’t entirely dead yet. She accidentally weaves her desire for romance into a spell binding the goddess Artemis to her aid, and Artemis sends her brother Apollo to woo Pamela.
Apollo and Pamela fall in love, of course. I didn’t think their relationship was developed as well as Lina and Hades’ relationship in Goddess of Spring. It seemed more like Apollo and Pamela fell into bed a couple of times and then declared themselves soul mates.
September 26th, 2007. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 2.5 | P.C. Cast | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Leopard in Exile by Andre Norton & Rosemary Edghill
Is it a bad sign that I just finished Leopard in Exile the night before last, and now I’m hard-pressed to remember much of the plot?
This book’s predecessor, Shadow of Albion, was fun in a light sort of way, with the promise of sequels that would delve deeper into the faery magic at which it hints. I should have gotten my first clue about Leopard in Exile when I looked at the cover art.
September 16th, 2007. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 2 | Andre Norton, Rosemary Edghill | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
I like folklore, and I like novels based on folklore, and I was prepared to like C.J. Cherryh‘s Rusalka, especially after seeing it reviewed elsewhere. It did hold my attention long enough that I was able to finish it, but in the end I had to admit that I didn’t like it.
First gripe: the endless and tedious scenes of Pyetr, Sasha, and Uulamets wandering around in the woods acting like jerks to one another. Pages upon pages of one of the characters musing about what morons the other two are.
September 14th, 2007. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 2 | C.J. Cherryh | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Darkwitch Rising by Sara Douglass
The setting is Restoration London. Cornelia, Brutus, Coel, Genvissa, Asterion, and assorted friends and enemies are walking the earth yet again, as is a mysterious new character who has the potential to throw a wrench in all of their best-laid plans.
This is Cornelia’s story more than anyone else’s, as she matures further. Noah, as she is called in this life, is a far cry from the bratty Cornelia of Hades’ Daughter, and even the staunchly loyal Caela of Gods’
September 2nd, 2007. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 3.5 | Sara Douglass | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier
In Daughter of the Forest, Juliet Marillier deftly sets the fairy tale “The Six Swans” in dark-ages Ireland; think of the general time period of The Mists of Avalon, when Christian and Pagan, Gael and Briton and Saxon, were fighting and feuding and even sometimes getting along. The tale fits in amazingly well in the setting; the famous fairy tale echoes the Irish legend of Fionnuala and the children of Lir, which predated it.
August 29th, 2007. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 5 | Juliet Marillier | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Thanks for the kind words, Marion! Coming as they are from a professional writer, they are much appreciated!
Wonderful review, Sandy.
The "body count" bothered me a bit less because being dead seemed more like an inconvenience than anything else... unlike…
Detailed, thoughtful review, Bill. I'm going to read it for two reasons. First, Karen Russell wrote it, and second, it…
this sounds like a fun one