Friday, February 27, 2015

Provenance (Rogue Angel #11)


Provenance - Alex Archer This review is written with a GPL 3.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at Bookstooge.booklikes.blogspot.wordpress.leafmarks.com by express permission of this reviewer.
Title: Provenance
Series: Rogue Angel
Author: Alex Archer
Rating: 3 of 5 Stars
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Pages: 348



Synopsis:
Annja finds herself embroiled in some world wide broo-haha over a mysterious and allegedly super powerful artifact.
A super secret sect of Christians [oh my, are there ANY OTHER KINDS OF CHRISTIANS IN LITERATURE THESE DAYS?],  a group of kindly and devout Muslims and then some Indonesian Pirates all want this artifact.
And NOBODY knows exactly what it is, or what it does or anything concrete at all in fact.

My Thoughts:
This book was patently ridiculous. Plain and simple. The only thing redeeming this was the onslaught of unrelenting action, from a cruise ship to ninjas in an apartment to an island gun fight to a naval battle. It was guts, guns and glory.

At the end, Annja, the remaining Knights and Muslims [who are now all bff's as they realize that they all want the same thing *insert super de-duper eyeroll*] look into the coffin and see something SO AMAZING that the author can't tell us what it is. It is just all that.

This book pretty much set off so many bullshit alarms that I was drinking pepto-bismal by the gallon when I was done. If all the books had this amount of action however, it would really improve the series. Just lose the philosophy and let the urban fantasy explain itself.

Thursday, February 26, 2015

Dakota Run (Endworld #5)


Dakota Run - David   Robbins This review is written with a GPL 3.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at Bookstooge.booklikes.blogspot.wordpress.leafmarks.com by express permission of this reviewer

Title: Dakota Run
Series: Endworld
Author: David Robbins
Rating: 2.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: 212



Synopsis:
Geronimo is out and alone and runs across a feuding army of cavalry.
Blade and Hickock are dealing with a threat from the Doktor.
And everyone gets married at the end and is happy. Thank goodness.

My Thoughts:
This was not as eye rollingly bad as the previous books. Thank goodness for a nest of giant ants.

And things are shaping up for new allies and a much larger conflict.

Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Obsidian Ridge (The Citadels #2) (Forgotten Realms)


Obsidian Ridge - Jess Lebow This review is written with a GPL 3.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at Bookstooge.booklikes.blogspot.wordpress.leafmarks.com by express permission of this reviewer

Title: Obsidian Ridge
Series: The Citadels, Forgotten Realms
Author: Jess LeBow
Rating: 2.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: 339



Synopsis:
A King is trying to keep his realm together while merchants are pushing a new drug. The king's enforcer, The Claw, happens to be in love with the Princess.
Drugs, Enforcer, King and Merchants, all mixed together.
Throw in a rogue Magician who wants the Princess as his next bride, a magician powerful enough to use a flying castle, and you have a Forgotten Realms adventure.

My Thoughts:
I actually enjoyed this novel more than the first Citadels novel, but I had to rate it less because it was just so "pedestrian".  I'm tired of giving "ordinary" a higher rating just because there is so much utter and abysmal trash out there. I am tired of the fact that there IS so much trash out there.

The magician was a complete idiot and for someone who has supposedly lived as long as he has, well, he certainly didn't spend the time improving his mind. He was a 2 bit villain with a 5bit castle.

Sadly, this is the quality that people think of AND expect when they hear the words "Forgotten Realms".  The Citadels are just in the title unfortunately. It would be nice if they actually played a bigger part of the story.

Monday, February 23, 2015

Banner of the Stars: The Shape of Bonds (Seikai Trilogy #2) (Manga Monday)


Banner of the Stars - Hiroyuki Morioka,Aya Yoshinaga This review is written with a GPL 3.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at Bookstooge.booklikes.blogspot.wordpress.leafmarks.com by express permission of this reviewer

Title: Banner of the Stars: The Shape of Bonds
Series: Seikai Trilogy
Author & Artist: Hiroyuki Morioka, Toshihiro Ono
Rating: 4 of 5 Stars
Genre: Manga
Pages: 200


Synopsis:
3 years after Crest of the Stars, Lafiel has command of her first ship and Jinto is the Abh equivalent of First Mate. The United Mankind is still kicking so the War Machines of both nations gear up and things start to heat up.
It is testing time for Lafiel and Jinto, to see if the years of training have paid off.

My Thoughts:
I enjoyed this volume a little bit more than the previous book, but I suspect that is because it was shorter and didn't have as much ground to cover as the first volume.

I think there was more Abh talk/terms than in the previous one, but since they were referring to military ranks, ships, missiles, etc, it really didn't matter to me because something is either a person, a ship, a missile or a laser to me.

I wouldn't recommend this except to die hard fans because so much that makes Banner of the Stars an exceptionable anime is cut out here to make things fit. I don't regret buying this,not at all and I did enjoy it, but it is more for Completeness's sake than anything else.

From a librarian standpoint, it was interesting to discover that there are two 'potential' covers. This one you see and then another with Admiral Spoor naked on the cover. I suspect though that the cover of Spoor was something put out by Tokyopop before the actual release and it never made it to paper. One little stone in the avalanche that brought them down.

And just for completist's sake, here's the alternate cover, that I can't find verification of on paper, only digitally. You can see why Tokyopop might not have released this, as this series was aimed at teens [and their parents who did the actual buying]. This picture IS the front page of the volume I have, but in black and white. And that folks, is what is called gratuitous fan-service.



Friday, February 20, 2015

Hunting the Three (The Barrier War #1)


Hunting the Three - Brian J. Moses This review is written with a GPL 3.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at Bookstooge.booklikes.blogspot.wordpress.leafmarks.com by express permission of this reviewer

Title: Hunting the Three
Series: The Barrier War
Author: Brian J. Moses
Rating: 4.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: 467



Synopsis:
In a world where Hell has literally touched Earth a millennium ago, Knights of the Prismatic Order end their service by riding through the Barrier and fighting whatever Hell holds. Not one has ever come back.
Now one Knight has returned. Only he can't remember exactly what happened. He and his nephew Danner head off to the Central Authority of the Prismatic Order, Danner to join and Birch to see if someone else can figure out what happened.
Problem is, not only Birch returned from Hell.

My Thoughts:
First, I had super low expectations for this book. An unknown Indie author [and if you've been following me, you know the baggage I carry about those 'indies'] with a book that is almost 500 pages long, it didn't add up to expectations for a super read.

Second, I absolutely loved this! I was wicked, pleasantly surprised. It started out a bit rough, as I wasn't sure of the theology, ie, fantasy or sometime in our future and hence something to take seriously.  But once it was established it was fantasy, I really liked this. The world was pretty fleshed out and satisfied me. The characters were ok and reminded me of a well done Forgotten Realms book.

Third, the length wasn't an issue at all. To be honest, it didn't feel like a 400+ page book at all. A good editor could have cut some of the scenes and pared down some stuff, but it never dragged for me.

Finally, this definitely borders on the Y/A, in that things are easily dealt with and not gone into in either graphic or great detail. An example of this is the rape scene. It happens, is described, but in such a way that I wouldn't feel a qualm about letting a young teen read it. I really like that. For those who glory in books of degradation like the Broken Empire books by Lawrence, this is probably not for you. And if you're in the mood for intricate characters, you'll have to satisfy yourself with the game that Moses has created. In fact the addendums in the back about the rules of the game remind me of when I created a Lego game in my teens. Fleshed out and fully realized.

Definitely have moved the next 2 in the trilogy on top of my TBR pile.

Wednesday, February 18, 2015

Brother Odd (Odd Thomas #3)


Brother Odd - Dean Koontz This review is written with a GPL 3.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at Bookstooge.booklikes.blogspot.wordpress.leafmarks.tumblr.com by express permission of this reviewer

Title: Brother Odd
Series: Odd Thomas
Author: Dean Koontz
Rating: 3 of 5 Stars
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Pages: 330



Synopsis:
Odd is at a monastery, trying to clear his head after the events in the last 2 books. This monastery is also a home to severely hurt children and when bodachs begin showing up, Odd knows something bad is in the offing.
At the same time, a run in with a creature that is apparently Death AND in our physical world makes Odd question everything he knows about this world and the next.

My Thoughts:
This was a bit of an odd duck [no pun intended] as a book. Quantum mechanics mix with the paranormal and make for a very "what is going on" kind of experience.

Odd is still pretty tormented by Stormy's death and just can't get over it. That really sets the tone for the book and everything isn't as light hearted as the previous two. Odd's commentary is as quirky and quick as ever, but it isn't the same.

The bone monsters were pretty cool monsters, even if what they actually were and their motives weren't explained right up until the end.

My only quibble is on a theological note. Odd is at a Monastery with some very devout and very smart people and yet no one debates with him about his little pet theology about the afterlife. Or the fact that he can talk to dead people. It just struck me as odd [there's that word again!] that this wasn't brought up, because it would be a MAJOR point of contention with any serious Christian. Of course, I also realize this is a book and Koontz can do as he pleases, but still...

Overall, I enjoyed this even while wondering where it was going to go almost the entire time. Definitely going to keep reading the series.

Monday, February 16, 2015

Crest of the Stars (Seikai Trilogy #1) (Manga Monday)


Crest of the Stars - Hiroyuki Morioka,Aya Yoshinaga This review is written with a GPL 3.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at Bookstooge.booklikes.blogspot.wordpress.leafmarks.com by express permission of this reviewer

Title: Crest of the Stars
Series: Seikai Trilogy
Author & Artist: Hiroyuki Morioka, Aya Yoshinaga, Toshihiro Ono
Rating: 4 of 5 Stars
Genre: Manga
Pages: 260



Synopsis:
Jinto's father, former Governer, surrenders to the Abh and becomes royalty. Jinto is schooled in the life of the Abh and then sent on to their capital for further schooling. He is taken under wing by young Lafiel, who is in direct line to ascend to the Throne of the Abh.
War breaks out between the Abh and the rest of humanity and this causes Jinto and Lafiel to have several adventures.

My Thoughts:
Having read this back in '07, I wanted to finish the trilogy, as I was never able to get my hands on the next 2 books.
One thing that is slightly confusing is that there is a trilogy of Light novels also called the Seikai trilogy. And it is the same characters.

Not having watched the anime recently, like I had previously, I was able to judge this better on its own instead of propping it up with the anime [which I just love and think is the best thing ever]. It actually stands up really well. The plot is abbreviated and the subtleties are really gone, but I already noted that in my previous review. In some ways, the shortness benefits the manga. If it was too much longer, it couldn't have really fit into one volume. And that is the thing, this is simply ONE story, about Jinto making it to the Capital and making friends with Lafiel.

It is a good backup to the anime and I am glad I own these.

Saturday, February 14, 2015

Mort (Discworld #4) (Buddy Read)


Mort - Terry Pratchett This review is written with a GPL 3.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at Bookstooge.booklikes.blogspot.wordpress.leafmarks.com by express permission of this reviewer

Title: Mort
Series: Discworld
Author: Terry Pratchett
Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: 293


Synopsis:
Death takes on an apprentice, a kind and gentle soul who doesn't quite have all of his marbles grasped as firmly as most would like. Mort is his name and this is his story about messing about with Time, Death, Causality and other such Capital Letter Words.

My Thoughts:
Read this as a Group Buddy Read with several others over in the Buddy Read Discussions Group.

I read this back in 2007 and enjoyed it then. Reading it now I was able to realize that Pratchett at this time was writing Ideas and simply letting them hang on his characters. This is not a character driven book, and to be honest, I don't think it is a character driven series [at least up until the Vimes era, which is when I stopped really liking the series].

This was about Pratchett writing about Death in a humorous way so that even if we completely disagreed with him about the concept, it was all just a good fantasy romp, no harm,no foul. That being said, I don't come to these books to Learn. I come to read and be entertained and Pratchett does a top notch job of doing just that.

I bumped this up half a star this time around. Not sure if that is because I wasn't using half-stars back in '07 or because I hadn't yet been plunged into the cesspool of self-published writers and hence actually had higher standards back then. Sadly, I really do suspect the second option.

Thursday, February 12, 2015

The Lighter Side (Short Story Collection)


The Lighter Side - Eric Flint,Keith Laumer This review is written with a GPL 3.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at Bookstooge.booklikes.blogspot.wordpress.leafmarks.com by express permission of this reviewer

 Title: The Lighter Side
 Series: N/A
 Author: Keith Laumer
 Rating: 2.5 of 5 Stars
 Genre: SFF
 Pages: 433


Synopsis:
A series of novellas and short stories that are slightly humorous and still as pessimistic in outlook as Laumer can be.
Amusing is probably a better word than humorous.

My Thoughts:
I really, really like Galactic Odyssey and The Compleat Bolo by Laumer and I keep trying to his other stuff. And I keep disliking it.

He's pessimistic, but not just in a funny way, but in a hopeless way that leaves me feeling very depressed. I think I won't be trying any more by him. I'll stick to the 2 books I know I like and re-read them every several years.

Thankfully this was free from the Baen Library so at least it wasn't money I wasted, just my time.

Tuesday, February 10, 2015

The Black Bouquet (The Rogues #2) (Forgotten Realms)


The Black Bouquet - Richard Lee Byers This review is written with a GPL 3.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at Bookstooge.booklikes.blogspot.wordpress.leafmarks.com by express permission of this reviewer


Title: The Black Bouquet
Series: The Rogues, Forgotten Realms
Author: Richard Byers
Rating: 3 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: 288


Synopsis:
A rogue thief makes a steal of a lifetime, only it costs him his entire team. A ranger comes after him to retrieve the item, as well as a Criminal Boss who is being manipulated by a magician from the shadows.

My Thoughts:
Mr Thief steals a book that turns out to be a perfume book that has immense value. So that is the premise for this book. Pretty ridiculous.
But the overall story is quite enjoyable with lots of fighting, etc. Chases through the city, under the city, over the city. Good stuff.

The Ranger lady was a pretty wishy-washy character. The book could have done just as well without her if the thief had had half a brain. And if "romance" wasn't shoe-horned into the story.

A typical, enjoyable Forgotten Realms book.

Sunday, February 08, 2015

The Timekeeper Conspiracy (Time Wars #2)


The Timekeeper Conspiracy - Simon Hawke This review is written with a GPL 3.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at Bookstooge.booklikes.blogspot.wordpress.leafmarks.com by express permission of this reviewer.

Title: The Timekeeper Conspiracy
Series: Time Wars
Author: Simon Hawke
Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: 225



Synopsis:
The main character from the previous book gets bored with being a civilian and joins back up with the military. He's put on a special mission along with the surviving member of the previous mission. They have to stop a terrorist group from creating a time-split, since nobody knows WHAT will actually happen if such an event were to occur.
Only this time they are under the command of the Intelligence Branch [ie, the Timekeepers] and those guys have their own little game going on.
The novel/history for this book is the Three Musketeers.

My Thoughts:
I enjoyed this more than the previous book. Most likely it was because I am accustomed to the author using a novel as a Historical Fact. That didn't sit well in the first book, but now that I know that is the Way Things Are, I can adjust.
Plus, I liked The Three Musketeers a lot more than Ivanhoe.

I thought that the whole cat-n-mouse game between the Intelligence Agent and the main Terrorist was really good. The twists and turns weren't that obvious to me and so I was kept in pleasant suspense right to the end.

Part of the fun for me with these books is that I have read the original novels, so seeing Hawke weaving his own story inbetween the original is great fun. I know how the original ends but figuring out how Hawke's part of the story will get there as well is engaging.

Don't get me wrong, these books are NOT literary classics and will never be such. But they are a fun afternoon's read and after this book, I'm a little more excited about the rest of the series than I was after book 1. And the covers are pretty cool too...

Friday, February 06, 2015

Arizona Ambush (The Executioner #31)


Arizona Ambush - Don Pendleton This review is written with a GPL 3.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at Bookstooge.booklikes.blogspot.wordpress.leafmarks.com by express permission of this reviewer

Title: Arizona Ambush
Series: The Executioner
Author: Don Pendleton
Rating: 3 of 5 Stars
Genre: Thriller
Pages: 124



Synopsis:
Mack is tracking down the Mafia lords as they raise their heads and he's cutting them off. Only this time, he gets a hold of a Potential Presidential Contender who's caught between the Cosa Nostra and the Kosher Nostra. And said PPC is dirty as sin but no Mafia member.

My Thoughts:
Once again Bolan must deal with someone who is entangled with the Mafia while not being of the Mafia. It is starting to play havoc with his goals and rules he has set for himself.

This book reminded me a lot more of the Punisher than of Mack Bolan. In this Mack takes out who he has to, after giving those not of the Mafia a warning. If they ignore it, he takes them out.

The focus is shifting from Bolan killing the Mafia to realizing there are other threats out there. He's still only killing them, but he's not so blinkered to the realities of a flawed world.

Tuesday, February 03, 2015

Pippi in the South Seas (Pippi Longstocking #3)


Pippi in the South Seas - Gerry Bothmer,Louis Glanzman,Astrid Lindgren This review is written with a GPL 3.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at Bookstooge.booklikes.blogspot.wordpress.leafmarks.tumblr.com by express permission of this reviewer.

Title: Pippi In the South Seas
Series: Pippi Longstocking
Author: Astrid Lindgren
Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Children
Pages: 80


Synopsis:
Pippi takes her friends to the Island where her father is king and they all have a grand time. They come home, celebrate a late Christmas and vow to never grow up. Thus ends the series.

My Thoughts:
I accidentally read book 3 before book 2 due to a snafu on my kindle. But it is really no biggie.

I enjoyed this more than the first book and found in it the humor I had remembered and was expecting from book 1. These are fun books that appeal to a child's imagination and allows them to see a world where THEY are in control.

I'm not one to beat the Sexist drum, quite the contrary in fact. But if I had to choose between a Pippi and some of the modern young women paraded as paradigms of the Modern Woman, I'd choose, recommend and champion Pippi every time.

Monday, February 02, 2015

The Unholy Cause (Supernatural #4)


The Unholy Cause - Joe Schreiber This review is written with a GPL 3.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at Bookstooge.booklikes.blogspot.wordpress.leafmarks.com by express permission of this reviewer

Title: The Unholy Cause
Series: Supernatural
Author: Joe Schreiber
Rating: 3 of 5 Stars
Genre: Media Tie-in
Pages: 231



Synopsis:
Sam and Dean head down South and get involved with a demon that is trying to use Judas Iscariot's Noose for some nefarious plan that will further the Big Plan of Lucifer making Sam his vessel.
Castiel is searching out Judas himself to find out the Truth about God [because talking to the guy who betrayed the Son  of God is SUCH a good idea].

My Thoughts:
When it comes to Supernatural, I really have to turn off my Theology'ometer because it is so mixed up and silly. It isn't serious enough for me to take the time to pick out all the stupid bits.
But there are times when something makes it buzz so loudly that I just have to.

Overall, the book was just a typical Supernatural episode. Sam and Dean ride into town, fight demons and then take off. Castiel is all powerful and still whining about searching for God. And there is a LOT of action. Would have been a good episode.

So, this bugged me in the show, as well as this book. Cas's 'search' for God. They are angels, His messengers and are, according to the Bible, right in God's Presence. Kripke, the creator of the show, sidesteps all this by making God an absent god. It just pisses me off. And Cas keeps asking the badguys about God for goodness sake.
It was just one of those things that I really can't overlook, unlike much in the show :-)