Shelf Reflections

Click image to purchase from Amazon One of the pressing issues in epic fantasy is that of how much scope should the novel cover.   Should far-off events be hinted at, or explored in detail?   Should every character’s decisions and actions be chronicled, or can some be glossed over?   It’s a delicate balance to strike, and as can be seen in the case of Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series, it’s easy to go overboard in the wrong direction. I’m on the fence as to how well The Dragon’s Path did in this regard, as there’s a good case to be made for either side. In a world where long-dead dragons created the thirteen races of humanity, war is brewing.   Marcus Wester, former military man, is now reduced to guarding caravans.   When his men get arrested, he has to hire some unlikely helpers to get a caravan to its destination.   One of the wagons contains, not merchant goods, but the aggregate wealth of an entire bank. ...

Click image to purchase from Amazon I’ve been reading Carrie Vaughn’s Kitty Norville novels since they first debuted, and I find her writing very enjoyable.   Now that she’s doing stand-alone stories, I wanted to pick those up as well.   The first one of hers that I’ve read, Discord’s Apple , contains many plot elements that I love—myth, magic, action—but it’s debatable whether the story forms a cohesive whole. The world of this novel is a much scarier place than we know.   Martial law is in effect and everyone is afraid of unrest.   Evie Walker hurries home to Hope’s Fort, Colorado to care for her dying father, leaving behind her work on a popular comic book.   But when she arrives there, she finds that her family holds secrets that she never could have expected.   Specifically, her father’s basement is a storeroom filled with magical artifacts.   And Evie is expected to become its next guardian. Occasionally, someone will come and request an it...

Click image to purchase from Amazon This review contains minor spoilers. I have a love/hate relationship with steampunk.   I never fell head-over-heels in love with the genre the way some people have.   At best, I’ve tolerated its presence on the shelves.   Recently, I’ve read some steampunk that I thought was good, but I still don’t consider myself to be an aficionado.   Therefore, I tend to approach any novel with steampunk elements with a bit of trepidation.   Phoenix Rising does indeed fit the bill of steampunk, but contains many other story elements as well. Wellington Books, Archivist for England’s Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences, finds himself in a most uncomfortable position: captive by the House of Usher.   But his salvation comes in the peculiar form of Eliza Braun, field agent for the Ministry and someone overly fond of explosives. As a result of the dramatic rescue, Braun is reassigned to the Archives with Books.   Although initial...

Click image to purchase from Amazon I’m not normally one for novels with a heavy religious baseline, but something about the Remy Chandler novels intrigued me.   The series first came to my attention when I read a novella in the anthology Mean Streets , and I ended up hunting down the first novel soon after.   A Hundred Words for Hate is the fourth novel in the series, and unfortunately, it just doesn’t live up to the previous stories. After losing his wife Madeline to disease and age, Remy never thought to love again, but he finds himself in a budding relationship with Linda, whom he met recently.   But they barely have time to explore what they feel for each other when Remy is once again caught up in the events of Heaven and Hell. The Sons of Adam, protectors of the original man, seek out Remy to enlist his help.   The Garden of Eden is returning to the world, and a dying Adam wants nothing more than to be buried there. ...

Click image to purchase from Amazon I’ve really come to like the recent upsurge in urban fantasy novels that blend the supernatural with police procedural.   The two elements mix well and often create a tense and gripping story.   Ben Aaronovitch has tapped into this with wonderful results.   His second novel, Moon Over Soho , continues the adventures of PI Peter Grant in the streets of a London far different than what you may have seen. Peter Grant may still be recovering emotionally from the events of a couple of months back, but his partner Leslie is still physically healing from her horrible facial wounds.   While she recovers, Grant works with his mentor Nightingale to improve his ability to control magic.   But the respite isn’t long, and soon there’s another body to deal with—this one emitting the faint strains of a jazz tune. Now Grant and Nightingale are caught up in a mystery that may have begun during World War...

Keep Me Wild! This is a website set up by the California Department of Fish and Game explaining the need to not feed wild animals and demonstrating how to be safe around such animals.  Read it and know how to treat our precious wildlife!

Click image to purchase from Amazon I’m a huge fan of good, meaty character development.   I do enjoy books where the characters are pretty set and their reactions to situations are what drive the story, but sometimes the evolution of a great character trumps just about everything.   With the second Eli Monpress book, The Spirit Rebellion , Rachel Aaron demonstrates her skill at advancing her characters in a realistic and exciting manner. Miranda Lyonette failed to catch Eli Monpress, but she did save an entire kingdom by offering her own body as the vessel for an ocean spirit.   However, she returns to a Spirit Court rife with politics.   A trumped up charge brands Miranda an outcast, and she runs, hoping to somehow clear her name… and maybe catch that pesky thief Eli in the process. Meanwhile, Eli and his friends Josef and Nico have arrived in Gaol, following the rumors of an impregnable fortress and a fabulous treasure. ...