Thraxas at War (Thraxas #7)

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.com by  Bookstooge's Exalted Permission.
Title: Thraxas at War
Series: Thraxas
Author: Martin Scott
Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: 272
Format: Kindle digital edition

Synopsis:

While the war council for Turai is in session, a Senator is murdered and Lodius is the main suspect. Lodius' wife hires Thraxas to prove his innocence. Thraxas reluctantly takes the case. The orcs pull a sneak attack on Turai with the help of a traitor and while the city survives, no allies are going to be able to help for months.
Thraxas solves the case but it is completely overshadowed by the traitor and the war. Ends with Turai under siege.

My Thoughts:

This really sucked me in. A lot of the time the "mystery" doesn't do much for me and I just swing along for the ride. But for whatever reason, this time around, it just sucked me in.

The war story is bigger than one book so while this is the start, it doesn't conclude anything or even really continue. I guess I'll have to read the next book or 3 to finish that.

Musashi (Eyeshield 21 #7) (Manga Monday)

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.com by  Bookstooge's Exalted Permission.
Title: Musashi
Series: Eyeshield 21
Author: Riichiro Inagaki
Artist: Yusuke Murata
Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Manga
Pages: 208
Format: Digital Scan

Synopsis:

The coach of the American Team reneges on his deal and doesn't come to Japan. Hiruma puts together a very insulting video and releases it on the internet, thus forcing the coach and his team to come to Japan or be labeled as cowards.
Various aspects of the Devil Bat's team members are shown to progress character growth. Sena and Monta find out who Musashi is and make a deal with him that if they can win against the Americans that he'll come back to the team as the kicker. The book ends right before the game against the Americans start.

My Thoughts:

I am reading a scanned copy, so the American coach is represented as a complete rascist against anyone not white and as a complete ass hole. I'm sure he's still presented as a jerk in the official release, but it makes me want to go hunt down a paper copy to see how it was changed. It is also shown that he's making his team's public face "mighty white" and keeping the one black guy on the team on the bench. Which just doesn't jive with real football.

That aside, not a lot really happens. It is amazing how I can read 200 pages of misc stuff, setup stuff and still enjoy it. A little bit of attention is given to various characters and it really works. They are starting to feel more like real people and not just cliches in a sports manga. This time around it was one of the 3 delinquents. He doesn't want to be useless but he doesn't want to leave his 2 friends. I'm hoping he can drag them upward with him.

The journey to find Musashi, the guy who started the club with Hiruma and Kurita but then dropped out of highschool, is part of the story but I wish they'd concentrated on finding another kicker. They showcase one guy who wants to go head to head with Musashi, so maybe later in the series he'll come on board, but for now he's disappeared.

Emissary (Legends of the Realm #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.com by  Bookstooge's Exalted Permission.
Title: Emissary
Series: Legends of the Realm
Author: Thomas Locke
Rating: 3 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: 401
Format: Kindle digital edition

Synopsis:

Hyam, former mage apprentice and current farmer, is cast out of his village when it becomes obvious that he has a power that hasn't been seen in the land for years. Somehow he must get a group together to overthrow the bad wizard and the bad king and save the land. All while bitter about life. Boohoo...

My Thoughts:

Some story tellers can weave their tale in such a way that you become part of the story. They are skillful artists, able to use words like food ingredients in a complicated and tasty recipe. Other story tellers can tell a story in such a way that you can picture what they are telling you. Finally, you have those who just tell a story without much skill and you kind of drag along for the ride.

Sadly, this was an example of the latter. It was a decent story, it just wasn't that skillfully told.  In the right hands, it could have been a pretty good story. In many ways it reminded me of the Belgariad by Eddings.

I will not be reading the sequel. This just isn't good enough for me to spend more time on.

The Pilgrim of Hate (Brother Cadfael #10)

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.com by  Bookstooge's Exalted Permission.
Title: The Pilgrim of Hate
Series: Brother Cadfael
Author: Ellis Peters
Rating: 3 of 5 Stars
Genre: Mystery
Pages: 270
Format: Kindle digital edition

Synopsis:

The bones of St. Winifred are being brought out to display and for a miracle to happen. Pilgrims flock to the Abbey. Some true pilgrims, some scofflaws and others with very mixed motives. Cadfael is still feeling guilty about burying Winifred back in Wales and wants a sign that he did right.
While this is all going on, the war for the Kingdom continues. London is far away but what happens there ripples out to the rest of the land. A murder there affects a whole group of Pilgrims at the abbey, whether they know it or not.

My Thoughts:

Been about 2 months since my last Cadfael read. That seems to be a good space. Any sooner and I'd start champing at the bit with these.

This story had as much historical action as the previous book. Empress Maude makes the classic blunder of not sucking up to those in power and they spurn her attempt at  becoming Queen. So the war between her and Stephen continues. Which is just the backdrop for everything happening at the abbey.

Cadfael is all doubt'y until his son shows up and then it is all rainbows and ponies and a sign that Winifred approves his decision. Cadfael, while having given up the life that he led before, certainly doesn't seem in the least repentant for ANY of it. I know that the religious and theological isn't the main purview of this series, but still, I'd like that aspect touched on a bit more, even if it "is" Catholicism ;-)

The one thing that really bugged me however was all the references to previous stories. I don't remember individuals from the other books and so to have them mentioned was just an annoyance. I don't keep that kind of detail in my head for more than about 2 days, then *delete*, it is gone to make room for the next book I'm reading. Which is why reviews of books that I have finished over a week ago tend to be quite a bit sparser than ones done immediately after reading.

Finally, I am really liking these MysteriousPress.com covers. While they don't have the Priest'y vibe of the earlier ones, I am very much drawn to the whole colored cover thing. It works for me.

Myth Alliances (Myth Adventures #14)

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.com by  Bookstooge's Exalted Permission.
Title: Myth Alliances
Series: Myth Adventures
Author: Jody Nye & Robert Asprin
Rating: 2.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: 275
Format: Kindle digital scan

Synopsis:

Skeeve is feeling insecure, as usual, and so to prove that he can actually be on his own, takes a job to help some world that has been taken over by a bunch of Pervects.
Of course, Skeeve being the total idiot that he is, gets everything wrong, still solves the problem and makes his former mentor Ahz proud of him. Trophies of Participation for everyone! *gag*

My Thoughts:

I deliberately omitted the "humor" tag because this just wasn't funny. I think there were places where it was "supposed" to be, but it fell pretty flat. The story was mediocre as well and the characters were so manipulated that it wasn't well received by this reader at all.

Skeeve has had an on again, off again, potential with both Tananda and Bunny, but here the authors just have him come out and say he couldn't get involved with either of them because "they were like sisters to him". Oh for phracks sake. Just introduce another female character for him to fall in love in love with and let the other 2 fade out. Don't pull manipulative writing to introduce tension. This isn't the series for it.

Even though I've read this far along and there are only 19 books in this series, if the next one isn't a notch higher, I'll be done. I can't stand this much mediocrity packed into only 1 book. And especially after the introduction was practically a love fest for Jody Nye being a new collaborator. I expected more and was sadly disappointed.

October '16 Roundup & Ramblings

This past month was the the most up and down that I've had for some time. Quite a few DNF's and then on the other side of the spectrum I had several 4.5 or 5 stars read. So really, quality wise it all kind of evened out to my typical 3 star life :-)

Booklikes drove me as close as it ever has to making me leave. Weekends were consistently unusable and there was one whole week of the same. Things have smoothed out, but in that time I've begun preparations to be social over at Wordpress. I'm sticking around here until the New Years [hence the Don Quixote buddy read] but if at least one staff member doesn't return by then and start giving us signs of life, then I'll be leaving. I've let a lot go, worked around things, put up with a site that didn't work. I haven't really drawn any lines in the sand, but the time has come for me to decide what I can or can't deal with here at booklikes. So, a staff member needs to be appear, and stick around, by the end of the year. If that happens, I'll keep on sticking around even if the site issues continue. But no staff and I'm gone, even if the site dramatically improves. Just so you all know what my thoughts and plans are. I'm not just going to up and disappear one day without a word.

I'm also cross posting everything at Wordpress. So to you "new to me" WP peeps, thanks.  And sorry about dragging you through my Booklikes issues.

And since this has been more about Booklikes issues than about the books I've read, it is time to wrench this train back on the tracks. I'll wrap this post up with my 2 favorite covers.

First one is Caliban. It just screams Space Opera and I LIKE Space Opera.





This second one, Vets Might Fly, appeals to me because of it's simplicity. Very calming, just like the stories within.





I am looking forward to the Buddy Read of Don Quixote starting in 2 weeks. I plan on doing a Pre-Post about it tomorrow, so if it sounds like something you might like to be a part of, stay tuned.

Devil Bats Take Flight (Eyeshield 21 #6) (Manga Monday)

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.com by  Bookstooge's Exalted Permission.
Title: Devil Bats Take Flight
Series: Eyeshield 21
Author: Riichiro Inagaki
Artist: Yusuke Murata
Rating: 4 of 5 Stars
Genre: Manga
Pages: 208
Format: Digital Scan

Synopsis:

After a brutal game, the Devil Bats manage to tie the score at the end of the game. The de facto leader of the Sphinx admits that since the Devil Bats tied on the Sphinx's home turf, that it is a win for the Bats. So the Devil Bats are the ones to play the American team.
Then everyone goes and watches a game between the White Knights and gods and undisputed champions of highschool football, "The Something Or Others" [I tend to lose track of the names as they don't mean anything to me]. In the previous season the White Knights almost unseated them but a pair of freshman turned the game around. Now those freshmen are experienced and trained. And they destroy the White Knights. The leader of the two looks like he'll be the Nemesis of Sena, as he is portrayed as a pretty bad guy.

My Thoughts:

Finally, we get someone who is just plain bad and not "striving to be better" and all that macho stuff. He's just at the end of the volume but it is apparent that he'll be around for some time, as his talent and his teams quality make them the top team.

The game between the Bats and the Sphinx's ended up satisfactorily without the "underdog team wins every game by hook or by crook" that is the hallmark of many Disney movies. I do like how the manga-ka's breakdown a particular part of the game [albeit in a simplistic way] and make it the focus of one whole game, hence allowing the new Devil Bats, as well as the readers unfamiliar with football, to become "experts". I'm a social sports fan, so I don't know how this would come across to a serious football fan. They'd probably laugh it off or point out all the wrong things :-) But it works for me and considering that this is a manga, I suspect the target audience are not hardcore Patriots fan [the Patriots are the Number One team here in the United States and have been since they came into existence in 1792!]
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Thraxas and the Dance of Death (Thraxas #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.com by  Bookstooge's Exalted Permission.
Title: Thraxas and the Dance of Death
Series: Thraxas
Author: Martin Scott
Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: 256
Format: Kindle digital edition

Synopsis:

Lisutarius has lost a priceless gem that helps protect Turai against an orcish invasion. So she hires Thraxas to find it without anyone else finding out. But of course things don't go quite according to plan and everywhere the gem goes, death follows. So much so that an enterprising fellow starts a betting ring on how many people will die before Thraxas can find the jewel.
An undead sorcerer comes to town to steal the jewel for himself, falls in love with Makri and threatens Thraxas.

My Thoughts:

It was nice returning to Turai and watching Thraxas threaten, bluster and bumble his way through yet another investigation.
Things get a little bit more serious as Thraxas must deal with politics, having his investigators license revoked, Tanrose leaving the inn and a possible orc invasion just as the city is being wracked by a dwa epidemic and the elves are weaker than ever.

I tore through this in about 3 lunchbreaks. The only problem is that by the time I get around to writing a review, I'm halfway through the next book and get the details muddled in my head. But I remember having fun reading this, so I think that is enough.
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Hominid

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.
Title: Hominid
Series: -----
Author: R.D. Brady
Rating: 1/2  of 5 Stars
Genre: ----
Pages: Abandoned
Format: Kindle digital edition

My Thoughts:

The author references the main character's brother as gay and married to another man. I'll not fill my mind with such perversions.
Abandoned at 5%

Vets Might Fly (All Creatures Great and Small #5)

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.com by  Bookstooge's Exalted Permission.
Title: Vets Might Fly
Series: All Creatures Great and Small
Author: James Herriot
Rating: 3 of 5 Stars
Genre: Non-fiction
Pages: 240
Format: Kindle digital scan

Synopsis:

Jim is training to be a pilot for the RAF during WWII and various people and circumstances bring back memories of his vet times in Darrowby. At the same time his wife is expecting their first baby and he relates several instances of him sneaking away from training to be with her.

My Thoughts:

This is a series that continues strong story telling but the sameness of the stories brings the rating down for each book. I think my rating would be higher if I read one of these a year instead of every 2 months.

I was hoping for more military training stories than I got. What I did get were all very compact and led right into a vet story. I think the most amusing story was about his son being born. Jim asked the nurse if he was "normal" because he was such an ugly little thing and asked if he could see another baby, "just to compare". The nurse got upset, Jim was confused and I just grinned. Newborns ARE ugly but you'd think a vet would be used to that whole thing.
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