Review: Forging the Darksword

Forging the Darksword by Margaret Weis

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



I certainly enjoyed this more than Weis's [b:The Lost King|317383|The Lost King (Star of the Guardians, #1)|Margaret Weis|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1333286274s/317383.jpg|29051]. I think she can do fantasy very well.
It was a little confusing as the story kept jumping from one character to another at the beginning, but it then settled down on one of the "priests".
The world is based on magic but there are people who are born without magic, and they are ritually killed after their birth to protect the gene pool. Barbaric.
There is a prophecy about a "dead" king who will completely change the world.

Overall, an enjoyable read but nothing spectacular. Good enough that I'll be reading the next book however.



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Review: The Time Paradox

The Time Paradox by Eoin Colfer

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



Not my least favorite of the AF series, but definitely one of the most "Bad Humans killing and polluting everything".
Interesting plot premise of time travel and the ironing out of supposed paradoxes.



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Review: The Wretched of Muirwood

The Wretched of Muirwood by Jeff Wheeler

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



I thoroughly, completely, absolutely enjoyed this read.

To be honest, it is a typical fantasy with a young heroine overcoming great odds, finding out about her past and the promise of a great future.

But it was a great story. I never rolled my eyes, groaned or thought any disparaging remarks. It was well edited, so I was never thrown out of the story by bad grammar or an awkward phrase.

Really looking forward to the rest of this trilogy.



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Review: Stardoc

Stardoc by S.L. Viehl

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



This was on a very quick path to 5Stars.

A young woman is fleeing her home and Earth, as her father, who is a brilliant and controlling surgeon, has her life all planned out for her.
She flees to a small colony to be part of the medical team. A colony made up of mostly non-Terrans, as humans are called. Did I mention that the controlling father is a leader in a Terrans Only group?

So the young daughter begins her work. Lots of adventures, some romance and then a very large catastrophe on an epidemic level. Which proceeds to an even larger personal crisis for our intrepid heroine.

The story ends with some seriously weird info being revealed. Really made me want to rush out and read the next book. But I didn't. For the following reasons.

1)There is one scene where she and her new lover consumate their love. It was explicit and did nothing to make the story better. It was for pure titillation and "sex sells". I was disappointed it had been added, but would have gone on to the next book, if it weren't for the next reason.

2) There is a graphic rape scene. This is what really turned me off from this book. The reasons for why it happened are explained. But the graphicness of it, the reactions of those involved, just made me feel dirty. I had to stop reading for several days before I could go back and finish the story.


So I will be reading the next book at some time in the future, but Viehl is on serious probation. There had better be NOTHING I don't like in the next book for me to continue the series past Book 2.



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Review: The Steel Tsar

The Steel Tsar by Michael Moorcock

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



The wrap of Bastable's story.

The weakest story of the 3. A prisoner of war, socialism, a nuke, blah, blah.



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Review: Gunslinger Girl Omnibus 3

Gunslinger Girl Omnibus 3 by Yu Aida

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



I miss Henrietta and the rest of the original crew. This is turning into a love story between cyborgs and humans.

I want cute killers.



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Review: Gunslinger Girl Omnibus 4

Gunslinger Girl Omnibus 4 by Yu Aida

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



This was good, sad, happy, fulfilling and chock full of pathos.

First we get to see Angelica, the first of the 1st gens, as she just wears out. We see her past and how she passes and what it means to Marco.
On a side note, I finally realized in this omnibus that the black pages indicate a sequence occurring in the past. Only 4 omnibus editions for me to catch on. Good thing I'm not a handler, eh?

Then we move on to Triela. After Henrietta, Triela is my next favorite 'Girl'. I just find shotguns and long hair so cool.
We see her struggles as she processes what Angelica's death means, to her personally and to the group of 1st gen's.
We also get to see her handler not being a total dick. Good for him to be treating her like a human.

Smaller notes:
1) We see a group of 2nd gens. Therefore we know Petra isn't the only one now.
2) An ultimatum is made by Padania, which indicates a major ramping up of the organization for a final push.
3) The gov't recognizes the Padania could be wiped out quickly and that the Welfare Agency would no longer be needed. Aida is setting up closure on all fronts. Which is good because that means there is a definite end.



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Review: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader: The Chronicles of Narnia

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader: The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



Each Narnia book gets better and better. In this case we are introduced to Eustace Scrubb, a thoroughly unpleasant cousin of Edmond and Lucy.

They all go to Narnia, have adventures with Caspian and then go back to England.

I find it amazing how simple and concise these stories are and yet just how engaging and wonderful at the same time. I would find myself thinking "Well, what if..., or How would this..." and I would have to pull myself back and remember that Lewis was writing this primarily for children.

And yet I was never bored, nor did I ever roll my eyes at a simplification. This was great writing. And it really shows.



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Review: Gunslinger Girl Omnibus 2

Gunslinger Girl Omnibus 2 by Yu Aida

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



The latter half of this omnibus deals with the next generation of cyborgs. This girl is a bit older [16] and has all the problems that go along with that.

One thing I did NOT like was the "adult'ation" of Triela in a couple of chapters. It was extremely disburbing, even though nothing disturbing happened.

The exploitation of the girls really came across in this set. The story is no longer confined to prepubescent girls who have crushes on their handlers.



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Review: Gunslinger Girl Omnibus 1

Gunslinger Girl Omnibus 1 by Yu Aida

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



I gave this my "Disturbing" tag, but the Manga-ka meant this series to BE disturbing.

Young, broken girls are rehabilitated as cyborg assassins for the Italian government. They are rebuilt, "conditioned" and then paired with an adult male handler and sent on a variety of missions.

This series focuses on the fact that they are still little girls with all the emotions and foibles that go along with that.

Some chapters were action packed, others were funny, others a slice of life. They all blended into one great tapestry of terrorism, counter-terrorism and emotions.



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