It Shouldn't Happen to a Vet (All Creatures Great and Small #2)

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Title: It Shouldn't Happen to a Vet
Series: All Creatures Great and Small
Author: James Herriot
Rating: 4 of 5 Stars
Genre: Autobiography
Pages: 290
Format: Scan







Synopsis:
Year 2 of Jim's Adventuring in Vet'ing.

My Thoughts:
I didn't enjoy this one quite as much as the previous book. I think that is mostly because the novelty had worn itself out in book one.

Other than that, this was just as solid. Good character sketches, interesting descriptions of happy and sad times. This time around we also get some of the social interactions that Jim has; even if only to get completely plastered, fall down a hill with a drunk woman and then meet the girl he wants to impress.

I am glad I am reading these.

The Dracula Caper (Time Wars #8) DNF@38%

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 & Bookstooge's Reviews on the Road Facebook Group by Bookstooge's Exalted Permission.
Title: The Dracula Caper
Series: Time Wars
Author: Simon Hawke
Rating: 1/2 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: DNF
Format: Kindle digital editions







Synopsis:
The Multiverse continues the war. Now Drakov, the crazy russian, has introduced genetic creatures, namely were-wolves and vampires, into "our" timeline in London in an effort to destabilize our timeline and destroy us.


My Thoughts:
This book is where I stop reading this series. It wasn't that the plot was any cheesier than previous books. It wasn't that the characters were suddenly stiffer than cardboard, because they've always been standup cutouts.

Nope, I quit because this was more than half exposition about Time War physics and other such immaterial crap. This was the 8th book in the series. I don't need the whole primer for the Time Wars, an exposition about why things are so bad and history of each character and why they are the way they are.

It frustrated me so much that I just quit, the book and the series.

Good riddance!

Dreams of Steel (The Chronicles of the Black Company #6)

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 & Bookstooge's Reviews on the Road Facebook Group by Bookstooge's Exalted Permission.
Title: Dreams of Steel
Series: The Chronicles of the Black Company
Author: Glen Cook
Rating: 4 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: 383
Format: Kindle digital edition






Synopsis:
The Lady must pull together a whole new Black Company, as most of the group gathered in the last book were beaten. With Croaker out of the picture, she must fulfill the obligation to the Taglians and take down the Shadowmasters, her former apprentices known as the Taken.
Problem is, the Taglian leaders don't want her, or the Black Company, around any longer; and a Death Cult gets involved and tries to make the Lady the death goddess's avatar; and the Shadowmasters play their games against the Lady and each other.

"It's complicated" only scratches the surface!

My Thoughts: Spoilers Ahead Matey's!
Thankfully, we learn relatively early on that Croaker's not dead, but being held captive by the Lady's sister, a Taken and now a Shadowmaster named, Catcher? I can't keep track of which Taken is which much less when they start with the whole new identity thing and switch it all up.
Needless to say, I'm glad he's alive even if he played a very small part in this book.

I really wish I had read these back in the day when I was part of the SFBC. These books make Steven Erikson's whole Malazan Book of the Fallen series look like the bloated up pompous bag of wind that they turned into in the last 3 books. The Black Company books are superior in almost every way and as a bonus, I get answers.  Well, I guess late to the Black Company party is better than never.

The reveal at the end, about the Lady's child, was almost so not there that I had to read the couple of paragraphs a couple of times to make sense of it. Little things like that are why I prefer an omniscient narrator style instead of the unreliable. But it fits with the whole tone of the series and Cook writes it so it isn't clunky, choppy or distracting.

Finally, I enjoy Cook's writing. I don't skim. Anything. It is interesting and he does a great job of hiding little nuggets of info among otherwise random things. It is kind of fun actually. All the battles, fighting and magic make it ok too *wink*

Unclean (The Haunted Lands #1) (Forgotten Realms)

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 & Bookstooge's Reviews on the Road Facebook Group by Bookstooge's Exalted Permission.
Title: Unclean
Series: The Haunted Lands
Author: Richard Lee Byers
Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: 352
Format: Kindle digital edition







Synopsis:
Following a griffin rider/mage, a mercenary and the machinations of several Red Wizards of Thay, including Szass Tam.
Some power is raising hordes of undead, some not seen for centuries and invading the Kingdom of Thay. The griffin rider is the survivor of 2 attacks and becomes a de facto general in the new army raised to fight the hordes. The mercenary is trailing a band of rogue Red wizards who have taken his betrothed, along with hundreds of others, for experimentation. And the Wizards council is playing games as Szass Tam, the lich wizard, attempts the long game of taking over Thay.

My Thoughts:
This was pretty standard fare. There seemed to be a couple more POV's than I was used to in a Forgotten Realms book but since they all advanced the story, it made for the scope of the story to be told in a wider sense. It worked even while annoying me for not staying strictly with 2-3 characters like I am used to in a FR book.

My issue [and I always seem to have at least one with any of these churned out stories] was the plot line dealing with the mercenary and his kidnapped love interest, who ends up being turned into a super vampire. His pov and adventures added nearly 1/4 of what we see and while it was necessary, the whole "love interest" part just didn't ring true. It would have worked better if the love interest was a family member instead of a love interest.

And at the 90% mark, I realized I had already read the end of the story arc in the book The Crimson Gold, a stand alone book in the Rogue series. Which was kind of a downer, as the suspense is gone, but at the same time was neat as I now had a destination already in mind and I just needed to see how the author would get to there.

The River of Shadows (The Chathrand Voyage #3)

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 & Bookstooge's Reviews on the Road Facebook Group by Bookstooge's Exalted Permission.
Title: The River of Shadows
Series: The Chathrand Voyage
Author: Robert Redick
Rating: 2 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: 593
Format: Kindle







Synopsis:
The crew of the Chathrand are pretty much captured, lots of things happen, Arunis pretty much wins even while being killed.

My Thoughts:
You know what? I like the overall story. But I can't stand the palpable despair and hopelessness that permeates every action, every thought of every character.
It seems like they are racing ahead of a tsunami, once step ahead of being completely swept away.

I am not a fan of hopelessness.

Batman versus Predator (Batman versus Predator #1)

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 & Bookstooge's Reviews on the Road Facebook Group by Bookstooge's Exalted Permission.
Title: Batman versus Predator
Series: Batman versus Predator
Author/Artist: Dave Gibbons, Andy & Adam Kubert
Rating: 4 of 5 Stars
Genre: Graphic Novel/Comic
Pages: 128
Format: Digital scan







Synopsis:
A Predator comes to Gotham and starts hunting the top dogs. Batman gets involved and it comes down to a brutal finish between a wounded Batman and a wounded Predator.

My Thoughts:
I own this in paper. I bought the collected edition when it came out in the 90's and my teen self was amazed at how amazing amazingly amazing this was. What could be more amazing than Batman, in amazing bat armor,  fighting an amazing predator?

Yeah, that is a lot of amazeballz there.

Reading this now, it is a solid, if a bit short, story.  There is actually very little of Batman fighting the Predator, more like skirmishes while the Predator kills off various Gotham elites. Thankfully, right at the end, there is a scene where Batman takes a baseball bat to the Predator. I think that scene alone would make this book worthwhile.

I am not sure I'll ever be reading this again though. It had sat on my bookshelves, lo these long years, and I hadn't even thought of it until I read that silly book, Archie versus the Predator. That was just so much fun that I had to dig these out [there are 3 graphic novels in this series, even though each is a standalone story if I remember correctly] and see how they've fared over time.

I was planning on reading all 3 in a row and then review them right after the other but after this one I think I'll let it rest for a week or so before trying the second.

He Fell in Love with His Wife (Classic)

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Title: He Fell in Love with His Wife
Series: -----
Author: Edward Roe
Rating: 4 of 5 Stars
Genre: Romance
Pages: 308
Format: Kindle digital edition







Synopsis:
A farmer's wife dies and leaves him on his own. After several disastrous attempts at hiring women to take care of his domestic needs, he enters into a business marriage with a woman who has been used, lied to and cast aside.
What neither of them expects is to fall in love with the other. However, when the cad who ruined the woman returns, all comes into the open and love and justice prevail.

My Thoughts:
After the Best Book of 2015 came from Roe (His Sombre Rivals) I deliberately lowered my expectations for this book.

In some ways that was a good thing. This was a rather dry romance. It was a romance that I could believe in. Nothing like those pornographic books today that are called romance but are not much more than passion and sex. It also wasn't the Jane Austen variety of romance [of which I am a big fan] with its funny, quirky, irascible, heroic and villainous characters who were in very circumscribed circumstances. However, what this was a romance that dealt with some deep issues and had some weight behind it.

A couple of things that I really did like:


1) One night a group of young men come to the cottage and perform some backwoods thingy, where they scream and insult the wife and husband. Well, the farmer knows that what they are saying is false but the wife doesn't and she is so afraid that she faints. The farmer then gets a hickory stick and beats the boys black and blue. But all the while he knows the boys aren't trying to harm his wife and he doesn't hold a grudge. He is punishing them for frightening her and to teach them to think before they act.

2) Near the end of the book the farmer confronts the man who ruined Mrs Farmer's reputation [by marrying her and hiding the fact that he was already married] and whips the man until he leaves.

Men are creatures of violent natures, even those most inclined to peace and tranquility. Most of the time we see that violent nature at its worst; in murder, in abuse, in rape. But when properly channeled and in a right cause, a violent man is a thing of wonder to behold.

So overall this book was a success for me. I have several more of Roe's book in my Calibre library and I am glad that I'll be reading more of him.

Something Under The Bed Is Drooling (Calvin and Hobbes #2)

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 & Bookstooge's Reviews on the Road Facebook Group by Bookstooge's Exalted Permission.







Title: Something Under The Bed Is Drooling
Series: Calvin and Hobbes
Author/Artist: Bill Watterson
Rating: 5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Comics
Pages: 128
Format: Digital scan



Synopsis:
The further adventures of Calvin and his best friend Hobbes. We are introduced to Rosalyn the infamous babysitter. Susy the girl next door becomes more entrenched as the love/hate interest. And life as a kid is shown in all its glory and all its horror.

My Thoughts:
What a wonderful book. This was as good as the first. Since this is a series of daily strips, there is not an overall plot. You might get several comics in a row dealing with the same story arc, but that is it.

The art is simple and yet Watterson is able to portray so many intricate feelings and situations. It seems simple but if I were to try to portray these comics with words, I am not sure I could do it. Watterson does it with almost stick characters. I used the word "genius" in my review of the first book I believe and I can only say the same again.

The Jewel of Turmish (The Cities #3) (Forgotten Realms)

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 & Bookstooge's Reviews on the Road Facebook Group by Bookstooge's Exalted Permission.
Title: The Jewel of Turmish
Series: The Cities
Author: Mel Odom
Rating: 2.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: 320
Format: Kindle







Synopsis:
A half elf teams up with a human mercenary to hunt down a wolf that has taken to killing humans. Said elf is part of an enclave of Sages dedicated to keeping the undead from their part of the Sea of Fallen Stars.
At the same time, a long dead zombie lord arises and begins anew his assault on the area.
The conclave must defeat the zombie lord, who is being backed by a group of mysterious black magic sorcerers.

My Thoughts:
The only other book I've read by Odom is The Rover and I remember not really liking it.
This was just a mish mash of tropes all pushed together.

The mysterious group of magicians for instance. They are mentioned and used as motivation and then just abandoned like they never existed. It was annoying.
The half elf and the mercenary lady were as stiff as a whittled pine board and their supposed romantic feelings were as believable as me expressing my feelings for a mountain.

Overall, this was just bleh. Odom did nothing to make me want to read more of his stuff. I've got one other Forgotten Realms trilogy by him that I'll eventually get to and then it'll be quits between us.

A Cosmic Glow (Mobile Suit Gundam The Origin #11) (Manga)

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 & Bookstooge's Reviews on the Road Facebook Group by Bookstooge's Exalted Permission.
Title: A Cosmic Glow
Series: Mobile Suit Gundam The Origin
Author & Artist: Yoshikazu Yasuhiko
Rating:  5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Manga
Pages: 372
Format: Paper




 Synopsis:
The Feds are throwing everything they have at A Baoa Qu, a military base controlled by Zeon that is right next door to the Principality of Zeon.
Zeon responds with their own Super Laser and wipes out a ton of Feds.
So it is up to the White Base to be a rallying point for the survivors to take the base.
Amuro heads up the mobile suits and is, obviously opposed by Char. But Lalah is involved and things don't go as anyone planned.
At the same time, the Zeon children are fomenting revolts of their own, against their father and each other.
The Deikun heirs, Char and Sayla ne~ Artesia, reveal themselves and bring even more chaos to the unfolding situation.
And Amuro and Char just plain duke it out!

My Thoughts: Spoilers Ahead, Mateys!
First off, I wish that the bloody publishers, Vertical, had official synopsis's on their website. It would make things SO much easier because let me tell you, this book was jam packed!

As much as I've enjoyed this series, at times having White Base "go there, go here, fight, fight, fight" got rather boring. This book kicked the boring right out of the door. Amuro is exponentially increasing in his piloting abilities and Char is slavering at the mouth for a chance to test himself against him again. What complicates things is Lalah. I don't understand WHY she chose to stay with Char. She and Amuro obviously had a Newtype connection, so why stay with Char? And it got her killed. That scene was incredible. And you get to see how Char cares nothing for anybody but himself. Even her death didn't throw him into a homicidal rage but he used it to egg Amuro on. At that moment I really hated Char and hoped he would die a horrible death.

Amuro's situation is complicated by the fact that Fraw is in love with him and he returns the feelings but he can't deny what he and Lalah had. And then for him to kill Lalah, even by accident, was just too much.

Seeing the disintegration of the Zeon leadership was a lesson in evil devouring itself. Please excuse me if I get the names wrong. Zabi, the father, is going to meet with the Fed military leader to sue for peace. His son, Gihren, uses the super laser to wipe out the Fed leader, knowing that his father would be there, all because he, Gihren, wanted to be in charge. When the sister, Kycilia, learns of Gihren's actions, she executes him and takes command. All the while Sayla/Artesia is leading a revolt of soldiers loyal to her father, the originator of the Zeon Freedom movement. And Char is watching it all play out and just laughing at the death and destruction. It is better than a Shakespeare play for drama.

Overall, this book shook me out of any lethargy I had for the series. It surprised me with its insight into the human characters and their motivations. While not a strong contender, it did earn a spot in my "Best Book of the Year" line up.  It has also renewed my desire to own the complete series as these are just gorgeous books. Heavy covers. Heavy, glossy pages that will not degrade. Bright colored pages. Black and white drawings that aren't a mess. These are quality books that I want on my bookshelf.