Order [book in series=yearoffirstbook.book# (eg 2014.01), stand-alone or one-author collection=3333.pubyear, multi-author anthology=5555.pubyear, SFM/MM=5000, interview=1111]: 2008.03

A Star Shall Fall: For fans of historical fantasy

A Star Shall Fall by Marie Brennan

From the celestial heights the arbitrary acts of life seem patterned like a fairy-tale landscape, populated by charming and eccentric figures. The glittering observers require vital doses of joy and pain, sudden reversals of fortune, dire portents and untimely deaths. Life itself proceeds in its unpredictable infinite patterns — so unlike the measured dance of stars — until, for the satisfaction of their entertainment, the watchers choose a point at which to stop.

That’s a quote from Ellen Kushner’s Swordspoint,

August 26th, 2010. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 4 | Marie Brennan | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |

A Wild Light: A strange but wonderful dream

A Wild Light by Marjorie M. Liu

Reading the Hunter Kiss series is rather like having a strange but wonderful dream. You’re sometimes confused about exactly what is happening and why, but the vistas are breathtaking, the emotions are intense, and when you wake up, the only words that come to mind are “What a ride!”

In the hands of a lesser author, confusion can be a dealbreaker that leads to the book hitting the wall. But Marjorie M. Liu is not a lesser author. Her poetic prose and beautifully drawn character relationships keep you reading even when you — and Maxine — aren’t quite sure of what’s going on.

July 29th, 2010. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 4 | Marjorie M. Liu | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |

The Reckoning: Chloe Saunders is a great YA protagonist

The Reckoning by Kelley Armstrong

While Kelley Armstrong is best known for her Women of the Otherworld series, which I have read and mostly enjoyed, I personally prefer her YA-geared Darkest Powers series. The Darkest Powers novels, which begin with The Summoning and The Awakening, detail the stories of Chloe Sanders, a girl raised in a wealthy yet non-magical home who, upon hitting puberty, discovers that she can see ghosts.

A misinterpreted incident at school leads to a diagnosis of mental illness and soon lands her in a halfway house for disturbed teens with serious psychological problems,

Stealing Fire: I want the 800-page version

Stealing Fire by Jo Graham

Ever had a meal that was absolutely exquisite, but the portion was so small that your stomach was still rumbling afterward? My experience with Stealing Fire was much like that.

Jo Graham’s Numinous World series is best described as “historical fantasy” and revolves around a core group of characters who are reincarnated at various points in history. The protagonist of Stealing Fire, Lydias of Miletus, lived previously as Gull in Black Ships,

May 19th, 2010. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 4.5 | Jo Graham | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |

Demon Possessed: Everything comes together

Demon Possessed by Stacia Kane

The title Demon Possessed has a double meaning. On the surface, it seems to refer to the book’s murder-mystery plotline, which involves several characters who may or may not be possessed by demons. But it also refers to Megan, who must decide in this installment whether to become fully “possessed” by Greyson, the demon world, and the demonic side of her own nature.

The interpersonal-relationships plotline is the real gem in Demon Possessed. Stacia Kane does a great job of portraying Megan as a modern career woman thrust into a demon society that’s almost medieval in its treatment of women.

March 18th, 2010. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 4 | Stacia Kane | SFF Reviews | no comments |

Dead Matter: Plenty of laughs, not enough sweat

Dead Matter by Anton Strout

Dead Matter is the third book in the Simon Canderous series by Anton Strout. Overall, it was entertaining, worth reading, and just missed being exceptional. One unexpected strength of Dead Matter is the plot, including the mystery. Too often, in fantasy billed as comedic, the plot or mystery suffers. Not so here. Anton Strout is an excellent story crafter, and his talent shines throughout. The setting is also strong: imagine Ghostbusters meets Dilbert.

February 26th, 2010. Stephen B. Frank´s rating: 3.5 | Anton Strout | SFF Reviews | no comments |

Dawnbreaker: Perfectly fine book

Dawnbreaker by Jocelynn Drake

“And where does that leave us?” Jabari demanded.

To my surprise, a half smile tweaked one corner of her mouth as she looked from me to Jabari. “On hold.”

This bit of dialogue, taken from one of the final chapters of Dawnbreaker, sums up my experience with the Dark Days series a little too well.

There’s nothing wrong with Dawnbreaker. It’s a perfectly fine book.

February 3rd, 2010. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 3.5 | Jocelynn Drake | SFF Reviews | no comments |

Full Circle: Rewarding and bittersweet

Full Circle by Pamela Freeman

The third book in Pamela Freeman‘s Castings trilogy is called Full Circle for a reason, as this is the final installment that reunites the characters, wraps up all the plotlines, and resolves the crisis that has been (literally) haunting the sub-created world of the Eleven Domains. It is a satisfying finish, which takes Freeman’s unique premise, ties all loose ends together and manages to be both rewarding and bittersweet.

A thousand years ago, the war-lord Acton and his people invaded the south-lands and established the fiefdoms ruled by various warlords.

November 10th, 2009. Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 4.5 | Pamela Freeman | SFF Reviews | no comments |

Magic in the Shadows: Fresh and funny urban fantasy

Magic in the Shadows by Devon Monk

“All I had wanted was a frickin’ cup of coffee. Couldn’t a girl go downtown without having to deal with undead mutated murderers on the way?”

When that girl is Allie Beckstrom… no. As Magic in the Shadows begins, Allie is hoping for a nice, normal date with her boyfriend Zayvion. Unfortunately, her father’s ghost has taken up residence in her head, and then there’s that grisly crime scene she and Zayvion find on the way to the restaurant…

November 8th, 2009. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 4 | Devon Monk | SFF Reviews | no comments |

Me and my Shadow: Frenetic, funny, vastly entertaining!

Me and my Shadow by Katie MacAlister

Me and My Shadow is the third book in Katie MacAllister’s Silver Dragon series, which is set in the same world as her Guardian series. In fact, many Guardian characters (including Aisling and Drake) reappear in her Silver Dragon series. My personal favorite carryover character is Jim, the demonic Newfoundland. His inappropriate and ribald comments had me laughing aloud frequently.

The story itself is about May, a shadow-walking doppelganger who is the offspring of Cyrene,

October 30th, 2009. Stephen B. Frank´s rating: 4 | Katie MacAlister | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |

Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

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