Sunday, March 10, 2013

Review: The Hound of the Baskervilles


The Hound of the Baskervilles
The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



A good story, but not much of Holmes at all. I think that the Holmes' stories should be read in order, as they do build on each other, even if in very small increments.

Get to see Watson on his own, and not liking it.



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Saturday, March 09, 2013

Review: Beyond The Veil


Beyond The Veil
Beyond The Veil by Janet E. Morris

My rating: 1 of 5 stars



It was obvious from the story that there was a bit of story missing. Turns out this was a second book.
It was not indicated in the title in any way.

But it wasn't even engaging. I enjoyed the first Thieves' World book of short stories, but this, this was just plain old boring D&D.



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Friday, March 08, 2013

Review: Star Wars: Scoundrels


Star Wars: Scoundrels
Star Wars: Scoundrels by Timothy Zahn

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



A good non-jedi romp with some good old friends. Sadly, Chewbacca doesn't get much action, but he IS there.

Several times it was mentioned how Han had had the reward from [b:Star Wars: A New Hope|599090|Star Wars Episode IV A New Hope (Star Wars, #4)|George Lucas|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1349016127s/599090.jpg|123227] stolen from him. Either I missed something in some other novel, or Zahn is setting up info for future novels.



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Thursday, March 07, 2013

Review: The Frog Princess


The Frog Princess
The Frog Princess by E.D. Baker

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



My wife read the whole series and compared them to [a:Patricia C. Wrede|36122|Patricia C. Wrede|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1215652809p2/36122.jpg] and her [b:The Enchanted Forest Chronicles|86238|The Enchanted Forest Chronicles (The Enchanted Forest Chronicles, #1-4)|Patricia C. Wrede|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1328875611s/86238.jpg|164046] series.

A young princess kisses an enchanted frog and turns into one herself. All about her adventures with Frog Boy as they try to turn back in Prince and Princess.



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Wednesday, March 06, 2013

Review: Times of Trouble


Times of Trouble
Times of Trouble by Russell Blackford

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



This series was convoluted and while it explored what time travel could mean, it seemed like there was more "puttering around" than kick-ass action.

Not as engaging as the T2 series by [a:S.M. Stirling|14002|S.M. Stirling|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1311578420p2/14002.jpg].

A good read, but it was NOT a "grab you by the throat and shake you until your teeth rattle" thriller.



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Tuesday, March 05, 2013

Review: The Land Leviathan: A New Scientific Romance


The Land Leviathan: A New Scientific Romance
The Land Leviathan: A New Scientific Romance by Michael Moorcock

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



Even though I don't think Bastable is considered an incarnation of the Eternal Warrior, his helplessness in the face of a force greater than himself that throws him through the multi-verse definitely places him at least as a companion.

Quite interesting to see a world where reverse-racism was about to be worldwide.



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Sunday, March 03, 2013

Review: The Pool of Fire


The Pool of Fire
The Pool of Fire by John Christopher

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



The weakest of the Tripod series.

A great read for a beginner scifi reader, but for an adult with some serious "epic'ness" under their belt, this shows its faults.

Give it to your young teen or preteen and let them enjoy.



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Saturday, March 02, 2013

Review: Hellstrom's Hive


Hellstrom's Hive
Hellstrom's Hive by Frank Herbert

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



If it wasn't for [b:Dune|234225|Dune (Dune Chronicles, #1)|Frank Herbert|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1349105964s/234225.jpg|3634639], I suspect nobody these days would be reading anything of Herbert's.

This was about some sort of weird "next step in human evolution", along the insect lines. Humans turning into insect like society, under the nose of regular humans.

Infatuation with sex, underground tight-knit society, and a long-term plan to supplant 'regular' humans.

Not a very endearing read.



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Friday, March 01, 2013

Review: The Red Knight


The Red Knight
The Red Knight by Miles Cameron

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



The first 20% was all 2Star.

The swearing, the eff word being dropped at least once a page, the unspoken assumption that you just raped nuns because they were available, the complete baseness of the mercenary troop, it really disgusted me.

I think it was supposed to. But I don't have to be dipped into a cesspool to know it stinks something terrible. So that was very disappointing.

Then a switch was flipped, and whammo, the swearing stopped, people started showing the tiniest bit of good character and the action kicked way up.

4star stuff for the rest of the book. It was a cool magic system, a really interesting world, and the characters' interactions were more than believable.

But if 10pounds of milk chocolate are coated in 1pound of crap, you're still screwed.

When the next book comes out, I'll at least start it and hope Cameron doesn't sink me into the mire.



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