Book Reviews
Guest Review: “Dead Reckoning” by Charlaine Harris
I get a bit exhausted for Sookie. There are always someone or some things “out to get her.” Throughout Book 11, there are constant threats from different sources, and Sookie is on high alert most of the novel. Sookie still struggles with being a good person, for her world is continually violent and evil visits her seemingly day in and day out. In Dead Reckoning, you don’t see her grow much as a character, as she doesn’t have time to do much of anything except try to stay alive.
Review: “Poison Study” by Maria V. Snyder
Enraptured. I cannot remember the last time I read an entire book in one sitting. I could not, did not, put it down.
Yelena is everything you could ask for in a heroine: courageous, clever, resourceful, vulnerable, and strong. From the outset, her situation is dire. She is given a poison that will kill her if she does not return for her daily antidote. And even if she doesn’t, she may simply die from doing her job well.
Review: “City of Ember” by Jeanne DuPrau
Have you ever read a book that is SO good, that you can’t wait to read the next one? That’s this book. It’s the best book I have read so far! The City of Ember is far underground. Which I thought, wow this be really cool to read about.
Review: “Keeper of Light and Dust” by Natasha Mostert
Set in modern day London, Keeper of Light and Dust is attempting to elevate the vampire romance into a more modern “literary” form. (This would be the form I always find vaguely depressing – you can see why the book is not gelling for me.) Our young heroine, a tattoo artist is a Keeper. Keepers are mystic guardians and warriors and… well, frankly I lost interest at that point.
Review: “SOMETIMES THE MAGIC WORKS: Lessons from a Writing Life” by Terry Brooks
Take a sneak peek into the imagination of an amazing writer…and a good guy to boot. Sometimes The Magic Works is a book for everyone who either loves to write, loves to read, or loves to dream.
Review: “Outrageous Fortune” by Tim Scott
Outrageous Fortune is absurd — not comedic in a way that will necessarily make you laugh out loud, not constructed of jokes and punch-lines. It’s absurd in the vein of Dali, which I think becomes quite apparent in Tim Scott’s prose.
Review: “Just a Geek” by Wil Wheaton
It’s not often I read books which both reverse and elevate my opinion of the author. Before reading Just a Geek, Wil Wheaton was the child-actor who played arguably the most hated character on Star Trek:TNG, as well as the kid with the biggest (leech-infested) one in four counties. After finishing the book, Wil has become one of my Personal Heroes.
Review: “Reiffen’s Choice” by S. C. Butler
I really enjoyed the writing style. While the book is targeted for the young adult, descriptions and dialogue do not blatantly point it out. Readers who enjoy writers like Raymond E. Feist and J. K. Rowling will not be disappointed by Reiffen’s Choice.
