A Madness of Angels by Kate Griffin
I think maybe I love Kate Griffin’s A Madness of Angels. It’s a mature love, too, not just a crush, because I can see the faults in the thing and I love it anyway. It’s a hard book to write about without spoiling the fun for everyone, so instead of discussing the plot I will focus on what I loved.
I love Griffin’s view of magic. Reviewers compare A Madness of Angels to Neil Gaiman’s Neverwhere,
March 23rd, 2011. Marion Deeds, Rebecca Fisher and Ruth Arnell´s rating: 3.5, 4 | Kate Griffin | SFF Reviews | 4 comments |
Samiha’s Song by Mary Victoria
This is the second book of Mary Victoria’s Chronicles of the Tree trilogy, following closely on the heels of Tymon’s Flight and preceding the final book Oracle’s Fire. As is always the case with middle installments, the story neither begins nor ends, though there is more scope for world-building, character development, and getting the disparate plot-threads in place for the final book.
The setting of the story is one of its most unique aspects,
February 16th, 2011. Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 4 | Mary Victoria | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Bards of Bone Plain by Patricia McKillip
In This Land, the Bards Have Forgotten Their Magic…
Patricia McKillip does it again! Unique among fantasy writers for her dreamy prose, her ability to meld complex characterization with original fairytale plots, and her ability to slip in a clever twist or two before the story’s end, McKillip returns to form after the slightly lackluster The Bell at Sealey Head (great build-up, terrible climax) with The Bards of Bone Plain.
January 26th, 2011. Rebecca Fisher and Kat Hooper´s rating: 4.5 | Patricia McKillip | Audio, Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
Behemoth is Scott Westerfeld’s follow-up to Leviathan, the first book in a new steampunk series set in an alternative Europe on the edge of WWI with the Austro-Hungarians and Germans (“Clankers”) using steam-driven machines and the British and their allies (“Darwinists”) using genetic engineering. Leviathan was one of my best reads of 2009, and Behemoth would have been on my list for 2010 had I gotten around to reading it by the time I compiled my list.
January 17th, 2011. Bill Capossere, Rebecca Fisher and Marion Deeds´s rating: 4, 4.5, 5 | Scott Westerfeld | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Peter and the Starcatchers by Ridley Pearson & Dave Barry
How did Peter Pan get to Neverland? Where did Tinkerbell come from? How did Hook lose his hand? And most importantly, how did Captain Hook and Peter Pan meet? This last question is the one Paige Pearson asked her father after hearing “Peter Pan,” which in turn led to Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson‘s collaborative effort Peter and the Starcatchers, written as a prequel to J.M. Barrie‘s classic work of children’s literature.
January 16th, 2011. Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 3 | Ridley Pearson | Children | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
The Kiss of Death by Marcus Sedgwick
Though generically named, The Kiss of Death is a fantastically original and exciting novel, full of blood, danger, thrills, mystery, and legions of the undead. It is sequel of sorts to My Swordhand Is Singing, in that it features Peter and his father’s sword from the previous book, though here the attention turns to two new protagonists. Perhaps it’s better described as a companion piece to its predecessor, as although it’s not necessary to have read My Swordhand is Singing,
January 13th, 2011. Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 5 | Marcus Sedgwick | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
Lost in the Labyrinth by Patrice Kindl
In recent years there has been a massive increase in the publication of re-told fairytales and myths, usually with the author twisting the known facts and meanings of the original source material into something more contemporary: villains become sympathetic characters, we see the proceedings through the eyes of a minority character such as a slave or a woman, or hidden agendas and meanings are revealed behind the bare bones of the story.
Famous examples of this have been Marion Zimmer Bradley’s The Mists of Avalon,
January 11th, 2011. Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 3 | Patrice Kindl | Children, Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Trail of Fate by Michael P. Spradlin
Trail of Fate, the second book in The Youngest Templar trilogy picks up right where the previous book, Keeper of the Grail, left off. Our hero and protagonist Tristan is swept overboard during a storm and washed up on the shores of southern France. In his possession is the Holy Grail, bequeathed to him by his master Sir Thomas, along with a solemn promise to deliver it safely to Rosslyn Chapel in Scotland.
January 5th, 2011. Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 3 | Michael P. Spradlin | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | no comments |
I had heard the buzz surrounding Kristin Cashore’s Graceling and my curiosity was piqued. Sitting down to read, I hoped that it hadn’t been over-hyped, but was pleasantly surprised to find myself reading a fast-paced, intriguing fantasy novel with a wonderfully real and sympathetic female protagonist — which is rarer than you might think.
The world in which Katsa lives has amidst its population people known as Gracelings: individuals with extraordinary, but rather arbitrary talents. Identified by their mismatched eyes,
January 2nd, 2011. Rebecca Fisher, Bill Capossere and Terry Weyna´s rating: 4.5, 5 | Kristin Cashore | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
The Forbidden Game by L.J. Smith
Well, I do have to thank the Twilight phenomena for one thing at least, and that’s that the collected trilogies of Lisa Jane Smith have been pulled out of the Simon and Schuster publishing vault, given brand spanking new covers, and re-released for both a new reading audience, and old-time fans who are ready to fill in the gaps on their bookshelves.
Out of all Smith’s body of work, it was The Forbidden Game that I was least familiar with.
December 31st, 2010. Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 5 | L.J. Smith | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Do it! One of the best things I've read in recent years.
This reminds me. I want to read Addie LaRue.
We’re in total agreement David!
I felt just the same. The prose and character work was excellent. The larger story was unsatisfying, especially compared to…
Hmmm. I think I'll pass.