Elitist Book Reviews

Gideon Smith's father is a fisherman, and one day the ship returns to port in Sandsend, England, without his father or the crew. Determined to find out how a ship could lose its crew on a calm sea, Gideon begins to hear reports about monsters appearing in the local caves. He happens across a Mr. Bram Stoker, who is searching for inspiration for a new story. But Gideon's obsession with World Marvels & Wonders, a penny dreadful that recounts the heroic exploits of Captain Lucian Trigger, at first makes Bram wonder about the believability of Gideon's story.

They part ways: Gideon to London to look for Captain Trigger and Bram to investigate the arrival of a Russian ship without its crew. We are thrown into an adventure with vampires, mummies, automatons, dirigibles, and Egyptian artifacts. The characters are varied, with a cast of recognizable heroes: the inexperienced but enthusiastic youth, the cynical reporter, the mentor, the woman dirigible pilot, the pirate, and etc. The world terrain is different than we're used to, steampunk technology is everywhere, and yet much of it is still familiar.

GIDEON SMITH AND THE MECHANICAL GIRL uses these with flair in a pulp fiction style. The main character is likable, but even our heroes have their dark sides, who despite their foibles can overcome their weaknesses to save the day. It's a story of love, hope, redemption, and what makes a true hero.

So why did it take me so long to read this book? Why did I drag myself through each chapter and PoV?

GIDEON SMITH is not a bad story or poorly written. In fact the prose is pretty nice, the plot engaging and twisty enough to keep you guessing. There are so many cameos, such as Countess Elizabeth Bathory (Google her, seriously), Bram Stoker, Walter Jones (Henry's father), and so many more, many of whom I found amusing if somewhat distracting.

It's an entertaining enough read, but Barnett adds things that give it a dark edge which turned me off to the story. It's really a personal thing, you may not be bothered, and perhaps even like the realistic dark side of people and events. For example, the reporter was a crass, profane guy who was obsessed with the female form in a way that was juvenile and not funny. Or the married man knowingly being drawn into circumstances that hurt his reputation and strained his relationship with his wife. References to the automaton's sexual slavery. There are other examples. I guess I didn't see how such additions made the story better and all it did was make me want to put the book down because it caused me to distrust the characters when I should have been compelled to keep reading about them.

Another problem was the pacing, which suffered up until the end as characters move from place to place, make discoveries, cross paths, and etc. This is just the style of Barnett's storytelling, the prose more interested in detail of movement than actually moving the story along. I think the voice/prose/style is great for the genre, but because I felt that disconnect from the characters the story felt slow.

Barnett makes up for the pacing by the last quarter when events start snowballing and we make discoveries that build on what's come before. By the exciting end you are rooting for Gideon and you may even want to check out the sequel as a result.

Recommended age: 17+
Language: Yes
Violence: Fairly frequent, although not gruesome
Sex: Referenced, one character in particular is quite crass

Find this first book for a new series here:

GIDEON SMITH AND THE MECHANICAL GIRL

And the sequel is out:

GIDEON SMITH AND THE BRASS DRAGON

THE FICTIONAL MAN by Al Ewing was not an easy book to read. The main character Niles Golan is a jerk. He's spent his entire life in denial of his own faults (of which there are many) and now that he's alone and miserable he's finally beginning to understand why.

In Niles' world cloning technology exists, but there's too many legalities involved in making clones from real people. The workaround is "fictionals," which are people created from tubes that are the live embodiment of fictional people, for example Sherlock Holmes. Imagine what it would be like to see James Bond in real life--or at the least playing himself in a movie.

But if fictionals aren't real should they be able to have a relationship with real people? Will their wiring allow it? How would real and fictional people interact? What would life be like for a fictional--never growing old, always being stuck being a certain way?

Niles doesn't consider himself a "realist," or a person who considers fictionals to be second-class citizens. His best friend is a fictional (Bob Benton, the Black Terror!), he hired a fictional life coach since his last therapist was so ineffective, and at the bar he often visits sits a woman he stares at who's a fictional (maybe). But as the story progresses it becomes painfully obvious that Niles does have an issue with fictionals, the question is how long will it take him to realize it for himself?

Because Niles is not a very sympathetic protagonist, and he stumbles around his life without any purpose other than his own self-aggrandizement, I had a hard time caring about where the story went. Sure the premise is interesting, and Ewing presents it in a very close-up, visceral way that makes the reader think about prejudice in general and the stereotypes involved. And sure Ewing can tell a story about a very flawed man in a very flawed world where rose-colored glasses were long ago thrown down and ground under foot. But, ultimately this book wasn't for me, because...well, I happen to like roses and nice people and protagonists I want to root for.

Set in an alternate current-day Los Angeles, THE FICTIONAL MAN revolves around Niles' movement as he attempts to come up with a movie pitch based on a remake. But Niles finds layer after layer of background inspiration, and he's compelled to uncover the mystery. Among the mystery are Niles' memories, self-narration, visits with his ex-wife and friend Bob, and so on--all of it together, it's all just so weird. This is an uncomfortable book to read, and it doesn't help that the steady pace is slow and pedantic. The prose is great, very clean and smooth, and it's obvious Ewing's skill with words. Doesn't make the story less weird, though.

So if you like weird stuff with seriously flawed characters and a subtext asking what being "real" really means...then THE FICTIONAL MAN is for you.

Recommended Age: Adults only
Language: Frequent
Violence: Some punches thrown but that's about it
Sex: Lots of references and details

Find this book here:

THE FICTIONAL MAN

The aliens have arrived.

Now mankind is on the verge of extinction, and Cassie is alone, having lost her family and escaped to the forests outside Dayton, Ohio. She can't trust anyone, even other humans, because she's convinced that some of them work for the aliens.

But Cassie has a purpose beyond simple survival: her five-year-old brother Sam was taken to a camp where he'd supposedly be safe. She wasn't allowed to go with him, but promises she'll find him no matter what.

From the start of THE 5TH WAVE, the author Rick Yancey creates a tone of lingering terror as he builds the setting and Cassie's story with vivid detail. She's camped out in the forest outside of town, but is afraid of lighting a fire and being seen, she sleeps with an M16 and her brother Sam's teddy bear, and has learned that staying away from other people is what will keep her alive.

We learn bit by bit about the waves of destruction: a worldwide EMP, coastal flooding, a plague, and then being hunted by drones. We also learn about how Caseei's life has irrevocably changed from the awkward high school girl she was mere months ago. She's is a great heroine with an engaging voice, who somehow retains her humanity despite the horrors she's faced. We also see Sam's PoV, which, while interesting to see the apocalypse from a child's perspective, he is really only a kid and as a result lacks depth. Then there's Zombie, the third PoV, another high-schooler who is rounded up with other youth and taken to a military training camp to teach the children how to fight back. We learn his tragic backstory and find him endearing by how he can be kind-hearted despite his situation.

Yancey's prose is fantastic, especially compared to most YA novels I've read. The imagery and emotions draw readers into the immediacy of the story. The pacing is excellent despite several flashbacks at the beginning of the book, Yancey handling them quite seamlessly. We're carried along from event to event as Cassie tries to find her brother, as Zombie struggles with boot camp, as Sam attempts to adjust to his new life--and we want to know what's going to happen to these people we've become attached to.

After I finished THE 5TH WAVE I set it aside and thought about it. It was a compelling read with an exciting conclusion and I finished it quickly. But there was something holding me back from giving it a love rating and unfortunately it wasn't a small problem:

The plot is highly contrived.

I'm guessing that the main reason why is because we're limited to human PoVs and therefore we aren't able to learn much about the aliens. Except we do learn a little, like how they've been watching us for thousands of years and know everything about us...so they decide to take over Earth with gimmicky "waves" that don't make much logical sense. The events are random and ineffective methods of destruction, especially considering that the aliens are an advanced race. So what's the point of the waves then? Maybe the aliens have a flair for the dramatic. Heck if I know.

Also, while I'm a girl who digs a love story, Cassie's relationship with Evan was strange and really creepy. The vibe was just off. It was sometimes sweet and at first I liked it, but as things progressed I had a hard time understanding Evan's motivations and Cassie's willingness to put up with his odd behavior. The whole thing felt pointless other than Cassie having a helper to find and save Sam. Again, contrived.

Plot holes galore, an impossible climax, unbelievable aliens, a bizarre love story...it was all too much. Despite compelling characters and excellent prose, too many questions were left unanswered, making the story feel forced and incomplete. Perhaps your teen will like it anyway.

Recommended Age: Similar in tone and reading level to THE HUNGER GAMES, but more violence is on screen, so 13+
Language: A fair amount of all varieties from euphemisms to a handful of the stronger variety
Violence: Teens shooting people, blood, some gore
Sex: Teenage hormones and innuendo, but no scenes

Find this book here:

THE 5TH WAVE

If you like THE 5TH WAVE and want to try some classic (and more logical) alien invasion books try CHILDHOOD'S END (EBR review here) and WAR OF THE WORLDS. They may not have Yancey's finesse with words, but at least they had the right idea.

When Steve read SHADOW OPS: CONTROL POINT last year he was able to find both the good and the bad in Myke Cole's debut novel. His review (read it here) was fair and accurate, and I would have expected no less. When I read it a week ago I couldn't find as many good things to say of it. I recognized the potential within but I couldn't get past my intense hate of the protagonist, Oscar Britton. Ordinarily I would have skipped the sequel altogether but there seemed to be general agreement that SHADOW OPS: FORTRESS FRONTIER was an improvement over the debut. I wanted to see Myke succeed so I gave it a shot. For the most part I'm glad I did.

Colonel Alan Bookbinder is a glorified paper-pusher. Every day he faces armies of documents on the battlefield of his desktop. That is, until he unexpectedly and inexplicably manifests a magical power. In no time Alan is torn away from his comfy office, separated from his loving family. He is thrust into a logistics role at Forward Operating Base Frontier, America's armed presence on a hostile alien planet called the Source. When Oscar Britton escapes from FOB Frontier he causes a massive crisis, leaving the soldiers stationed there without support in the face of increasing assaults. To save the men under his command, Alan will have to become a true soldier and a true leader.

It only took a few chapters before I was able to breathe a sigh of relief. Alan Bookbinder (yes Bookbinder, apparently his occupation was fated at birth) is not the despised Oscar Britton. Despite being a desk jockey, Alan displays more courage in the first few pages than Oscar does in all of SHADOW OPS: CONTROL POINT. As an administrative worker posted on a frontline military base he is a fish out of water. He's painfully aware of his shortcomings, he doesn't delude himself as to his position in the scheme of things. He struggles to find his command voice and he's determined to do his job to the best of his abilities. It's charming to follow the progression of Alan's character arc as he learns to assert himself and eventually become a fighter and a commander. It's also neat to read from the bureaucrat's POV for once, given all the military fiction where "real" soldiers find themselves battling logistical and political red tape. It's also great to experience the Supernatural Operations Corps from a less negative perspective than Oscar's.

SHADOW OPS: FORTRESS FRONTIER doesn't waste much time getting into the thick of it. Having read the first book in the series I appreciate this greatly, though newcomers may not. Still, I think this book is mostly accessible to the uninitiated.

Things were going very, very well for the first 80 pages - and then Oscar Britton made his return. I knew that Oscar would be featured but I was unaware that he would get his own POV. I was far less enthusiastic about the following 80 pages. Oscar is as hypocritical and grating as ever. Not even the people he broke out of prison like him, and rightly so. At one point the character Swift tells Oscar that he is a "sanctimonious, self-righteous douche bag" so at least I'm not alone in that belief. You might also expect Oscar to be less trusting given the betrayals he has faced. All it takes to earn his approval is a few kind words and since that's the case I've got a bridge I'd love to sell him. "They told me you were dumb, just not how dumb." Go ahead and pile low IQ on top of that extensive list of flaws and you're left with a character that is impossible to care about.

I will say this about Oscar Britton, the anti-Mary Sue: he's no longer indecisive. I can't call him Lieutenant Waffles anymore.

Therese, the obligatory love interest is nearly as annoyingly smug as Oscar. It doesn't help that her only interest in Oscar is his status as protagonist. The relationship is heavily contrived. Sarah Downer is pretty well worthless. I started out hating her in SHADOW OPS: CONTROL POINT because she massacred a bunch of school kids with her magic and Oscar spent the rest of the novel making excuses for her behavior. I can't even hate her anymore. She manages to get horribly injured in almost every battle fought. Both books lack a strong female presence. Therese is a love interest, Sarah is an ineffectual child, and Woon (who is introduced in this book) undergoes no development.

I was excited that Harlequin made an appearance later on in SHADOW OPS: FORTRESS FRONTIER. His conflict with Oscar made him the hero of the first book in my eyes and though his POV is brief, it had me hoping that he might feature more heavily in future entries to the series. None of the other characters get much development. Most are flat and featureless. The villains are not "heroes of their own stories" they are just villains of this one.

SHADOW OPS: FORTRESS FRONTIER introduces the naga, a race of snake-people. The naga are much more regal and intimidating than the goblins. Including the naga and the Indians was a wise move on Myke's behalf. It expands the setting past the United States (and the US base). One of my biggest complaints with the first book was that it failed to capitalize on the global ramifications of the Great Reawakening. The naga are extremely cool and unique as far as fantasy creatures go. They, like the Indians, also have their own agenda calling to mind the quote, "Defend me from my friends; I can defend myself from my enemies."

The action is even tighter than before. The fight against the agni danav was a standout scene, and the battle at the finale is a thrilling moment. The combination of magic powers and modern military might against hordes of wicked creatures makes for an exciting read. The diplomacy with the naga can be just as compelling as a good fight scene. Portamancy (the magic of portals) is cool but it's so useful as both transportation and offense that the only way to prevent it from being overused to solve every problem in the universe is to give it to Oscar Britton, the wildly unimaginative grunt. Assassinating the witch Scylla could have been as easy as opening a portal behind her and shooting her in the back of the head but this is Oscar we're talking about. It would have been equally as logical for the SOC to send a scout sniper to take out Scylla from half a mile off come to think of it - she's powerful but not omnipotent. Alan's magic proves to be just another reason to love him. Alan does not belong to any of the establish schools of magic, instead he is somewhat of a magic thief. He can steal the magic of other sorcerers and bind it to objects. This struck me as a neat wink at the RPG crowd. Instead of the Flaming Sword of Xuzl you get ice-enchanted shotgun slugs.

In tone and plot SHADOW OPS: FORTRESS FRONTIER feels similar to more traditional military science fiction than fantasy. This suits me just fine. The first book was an irritating struggle against authority, revolving around the same argument time and again until the final page. This novel examines the challenges of leadership and duty. The writing is as strong as before, as that's something Myke already had a solid grasp of. SHADOW OPS: FORTRESS FRONTIER makes massive leaps of improvement over its predecessor, earning my grudging respect and affirming my faith in the potential of this series. Now if only he'd just kill Oscar Britton...

Recommended Age: 16+
Language: Lots of swearing, these are rough military types after all.
Violence: Death and destruction, guns and magic.
Sex: None.

Want SHADOW OPS: FORTRESS FRONTIER? Get it here. 
Or you can get SHADOW OPS: CONTROL POINT here.

Did you read VARIANT by Robison Wells? If you answer, "Yes" then by all means read on. If you answer, "No" then STOP. Just stop. Go on Amazon and buy a copy, read it, and then you can come back to browse this review. VARIANT is one of the best YA books of 2011, far superior to the YA fiction behemoth that is THE HUNGER GAMES in my not-so-humble opinion. Now here is the highly anticipated sequel, FEEDBACK. I'm going to try and give away as few spoilers as possible but if you haven't read the first book please check out our review of VARIANT here instead of continuing on.

Here's the Amazon book description (if you find this spoilerish send them your hate mail): 

Benson Fisher escaped from Maxfield Academy's deadly rules and brutal gangs. The worst was over. Or so he thought. But now he's trapped on the other side of the wall, in a different kind of prison. A town filled with familiar faces. People from Maxfield who Benson had seen die. Friends he was afraid he had killed. They are all pawns in the school's twisted experiment, held captive and controlled by an unseen force. And while Benson struggles to figure out who, if anyone, can be trusted, he discovers that Maxfield Academy's plans are darker than anything he imagined—and they may be impossible to stop.

VARIANT was like a beautiful thriller conglomeration of THE HUNGER GAMES (the ideas not the execution), LORD OF THE FLIES, and the psychological horror/thriller film CUBE. It was streamlined and focused and creepy and brilliant. Reading it brought to mind the controversial Stanford Prison Experiment, and even bits of ENDER'S GAME. Too much name dropping? Probably, but you'll live. The point is that VARIANT kicked serious butt and because of this my expectations going into FEEDBACK were incredibly high. By now you've probably noticed I do this thing where I build up expectations that can't possibly be met.

FEEDBACK starts off right where VARIANT left off. Benson and Becky have escaped the Academy but are surrounded by miles of forest. They are actively being pursued and have no idea where to go or what to do when they get there. Becky is badly injured. And then Benson discovers that some friends he thought dead are actually very much alive.

The sense of mystery and paranoia that permeated life at Maxfield Academy in VARIANT was the most compelling aspect. Student life at Maxfield was this strange mixture of clashing gangs, constant surveillance, and paintball. Yeah, I said it. Paintball. Benson and Becky have escaped all this and made it to a town inhabited by friends they previously thought lost. So Benson and Becky trade one kind of prison for another. In FEEDBACK there are no bars, no rules, and no gangs. And that is largely where the problem is. This newly introduced town just comes across as a sort of limbo, much like that long and tedious camping section of that last Harry Potter book. There are no gangs but the town is divided into two factions: those dedicated to escaping and those who have resigned themselves to their fate. Unfortunately the faction dynamics aren't explored to a great degree. The psychological themes of VARIANT that I found so absorbing (the banality of evil) are mostly missing in FEEDBACK. There is however one scene that really struck a chord with me, a sort of trial by mob that carries the same dark weight as the first book.

The same could be said of the characters. I was already a fan of Benson. Yes, when this series gets made into a huge blockbuster movie you will likely catch me wearing a "Team Benson" t-shirt. Don't judge. Benson struck me as a great YA character. He's not overly angsty. He's not a vampire/werewolf. He takes charge of his own fate. He's a troublemaker and he wants to be free. He's still great in FEEDBACK but he gets another degree of depth as he tries to cope with the guilt and responsibility that comes with the consequences of the end of VARIANT. The rest of the cast falls a little flat though in the sequel. So many of the characters have returned from the first book that there just isn't enough time spent developing or examining relationships. Returning characters feel vaguely like strangers and new characters feel even more indistinct.

The good news is that readers will gets answers. The ending feels rushed (and a bit contrived) after so long spent hiding in the town but Wells does provide an answer to the big question. Some readers are bound to take the reveal better than others, and I'm sure some already suspect what it may be. Those who took the twist of VARIANT in stride will be fine. Those who didn't probably won't. I'm still considering the implications of the finale.

I'm disappointed and it's not even because FEEDBACK is a bad novel. It's not a bad novel. I recognize the things I love about the first book in it. Benson is a great character and I was very invested in how his story turned out. I love the thriller elements of this setting Wells has created. FEEDBACK needs more. More character development, more exploration of the themes, and more time spent on the conclusion. Additionally, the clarity of writing just wasn't as clear in the sequel as it was in the original. VARIANT proves that Wells has the talent for all of this, FEEDBACK is just lacking. Then again it could just be my expectations tainting things. Regardless, if you haven't read VARIANT and chose to disregard my initial warning GO BUY IT and then you can decide whether or not to read the sequel.

Recommended Age: 14+
Language: Very, very little. Almost none.
Violence: Yes, some...sci-fi violence and some more disturbing violence.
Sex: Nope.

Buy VARIANT here.
Buy FEEDBACK here.

I like being proven wrong. Well, let my qualify that statement, because I hate being told that I'm wrong.  I do, however, enjoy being surprised by finding out for myself that something is not the way that I thought it was. After reading several short stories and a novel by Mr. Lake, I'd pretty much written him off as someone that I wouldn't enjoy reading any more of.  So having this book land in my pile was an interesting experience to say the least.  As with my most recent foray into Science Fiction, I of course felt obligated to read the first book in the series before I read this one. 
ENDURANCE is the second book in the "Green Universe" authored by the prolific Jay Lake.  I had previously read the first book in his "Mainspring Universe", MAINSPRING, and was less than enthused by what I found.  In essence, great writing, interesting characters, a decent--if slightly wandering--plot, with a horrible lack of an ending.  It is a tribute to Mr. Lake's prose and storytelling ability that he made me forget about that final point when I dove into GREEN and subsequently with ENDURANCE.

The main character of both novels is Green.  Her tale begins as she is sold at a very young age by her father to a foreign man from far across the sea.  She knows neither why her father has sold her, nor where she is bound--only that she doesn't want to leave her home, her family, or her Ox, Endurance.

Catch that reference?  Uh huh.  So did I.  Don't worry about it too much though, as it didn't make very much difference.

GREEN covers the tale of her life as she grows from youth to young woman within the confines of the Pomegranate Court where she is being groomed to be a trophy wife for the nobility of the cities of the Stone Coast.  The abusive teaching methods of her instructors, and her secondary, more lethal Pardine (cat-woman) instructor, mold Green into a woman that is both proper and deadly.  A wicked combination that some would like to exploit.  I loved the book right up until the end, when it took a serious turn into left field.  On Amazon, I found a wide array of reviews all across the board.  After thinking about it for a while, I came to the conclusion that the book was amazing, but lacked any kind of foreshadowing to support the ending.  I didn't necessarily hate what happened.  It was seriously just unexpected.  Despite the title of the second book.

ENDURANCE picks up pretty quickly from the end of GREEN, and deals with several of the political entities that Green interacted with in the first book as they converge upon her at the same time for reasons unknown.  Where GREEN was very intimately structured around Green and her life and growth, ENDURANCE becomes very wrapped up in how all these other various parties influence her choices.  She also has to deal with the consequences of several of the choices she made in the previous story.  One of those choices, has to do with her Ox, Endurance.

This was perhaps one of the facets of the story that I most enjoyed.  Seeing direct consequence to Green's ignorant and/or poor choices impact her life in this book solidified her character for me. Lake does a really good job with Green's character and the way that she interacts with the world around her.  It's so easy to get caught up in this story, and indeed that happened very easily for me.

It wasn't until I finished the book and stepped back that I got annoyed.  Because after all this story, do you want to guess what happened at the end?  Yup.  Big fat orange right over the first baseman's head. Another big "boo" from left field.  I was seriously annoyed. Again? Really? Argh! How am I supposed to like a book that doesn't have a decent ending? If the whole book is bogus, okay, fine. I'm not expecting anything amazing. But good book + a wth ending? How am I supposed to respond to that?  Reminded me of the frustration I had at the ending of PERDIDO STREET STATION by Miéville.  Then again, maybe I'm just jaded.  Fool me once, and all that jazz.

Reading these books has given me one thing though:  a realization that Mr. Lake is getting better.  I mean, he moved from the total lack of any ending at all to an ending that I completely didn't expect or understand.  The sad thing is that he has everything else that a great fantasy novelist needs!  So many ideas and skills to weave these tales that readers like me love to read.  If you can enjoy a book with a poor ending, seriously pick this one up.  If you're more of a reader like me, I'd give the guy another few passes or so.  He'll get it eventually.  Well, hopefully.  I really hope he does because this guy could be one of the greats.

Recommended Age: 18+ (GREEN), 14+ (ENDURANCE)
Language: Very little, but pretty strong at times
Violence: Physical violence, but relatively little blood or gore
Sex: A few strong scenes and references (GREEN) and a few references (ENDURANCE)

Interested?  Take a trip to Lake's Green-land:
GREEN
ENDURANCE

Young Adult fiction has really evolved from what it used to be. There are a lot more options than there were when I was a kid. It's not just the scope of books that has increased but the depth as well. Authors are examining mature themes that really didn't seem so present years ago. Then again it could just be me, but I really don't remember any YA books that examined the plight of war refugees in dystopian societies. I have to applaud authors like Paolo Bacigalupi for writing books like THE DROWNED CITIES. Teenagers do not like being condescended to in the least and THE DROWNED CITIES offers some very dark, adult themes.

War orphans Mahlia and Mouse spend their days just trying to survive. The two live in a town on the outskirts of the Drowned Cities where armies of child soldiers led by demagogues vie for control of the ruins. They live a stable life but the threat of encroaching war is pervasive. That is, until they cross paths with the genetically engineered war machine named Tool.

So the new trend in YA fiction is "dystopian" and THE DROWNED CITIES has to be one of the most dystopian novels I've read all year. What separates Bacigalupi's companion novel to the award winning SHIP BREAKER from the rest of the dystopian YA fiction is just how real it is. This is a novel that explores the banality of evil and the horrors of war. The thing is, these aren't professional soldiers caught in the meat grinder. These are children. The armies fighting over the sunken remains of America's capitol are composed of kids plucked from the comfort of their homes and bathed in blood and fire. It's sad and disgusting and it's real. Obviously it isn't happening right now in America but it is a fact of life in other places across the globe.

Bacigalupi does a commendable job writing about the dreadfulness of such a pointless conflict. Violence is never once glorified though there is an abundance of it. One of the reasons I felt like THE HUNGER GAMES was such a failure is that it utterly failed to reflect upon the toll of violence upon the characters and the world they inhabited. This is not so with THE DROWNED CITIES. The toll of fighting is apparent from the moment readers are introduced to protagonist Mahlia. This is a girl whose entire life has revolved around, and been demolished by, war. Mahlia is shunned because of her heritage. Her father was a peacekeeper involved in the suppression of warlords throughout the Drowned Cities. Because of his allegiance, Mahlia has had her hand removed by those who consider her a traitor and collaborator.

Mahlia is a strong protagonist. She is a survivor. She quotes and applies the military doctrines of Sun Tzu to her daily life. She has no surviving family and only one friend, fellow orphan Mouse. Mahlia is a strong protagonist but not necessarily likable. She has flaws that are to be expected, but her personality kept me from ever developing a connection. Mouse is the more likable of the two but there is not enough time spent following his perspective for him to develop further than first impressions. Tool, the genetically engineered war machine, is pleasurable to read about because of his unique mindset. Tool was born a slave and a weapon. His genetic makeup consists of all sorts of apex predators and he has only ever known killing. Despite Tool's remarkable nature he also fails to develop past initial impressions. The relationship that develops between Tool and Mahlia is of the predictable, beauty & the beast variation minus the romance.

The real standout character of THE DROWNED CITIES is Sergeant Ocho. Ocho is a war orphan much like Mahlia and Mouse but for the fact that he is a child soldier. Ocho has grown up, not avoiding war parties, but conducting them. He has fought and killed and lost the innocence of childhood at an early age. No matter what he has seen or done Ocho is still a human being underneath all the layers of indoctrination. This is a sympathetic character that adequately displays the evils man is capable of, written in a YA setting. This is a mature character in ways that Katniss Everdeen could never be.

THE DROWNED CITIES isn't a fun read. It is deep. It is dark. It is though provoking. But it isn't exactly fun. With novels of such heavy tone a little humor and levity can go a long way toward buoying the reader. Brief moments of happy respite are crucial to emphasize the bleakness of dystopia and these are largely missing. I wouldn't take THE DROWNED CITIES as a fun beach read. I would recommend that the book be discussed in a classroom setting. If a civics teacher wants to promote critical thinking and discussion on matters of war and politics I can see where this would be the perfect catalyst. After all, Bacigalupi's near-future America is scary because it is so plausible. At a time where political division is at an all time high we are frighteningly close to fulfilling this fictional representation.

If you enjoyed Bacigalupi's THE WIND-UP GIRL and SHIP BREAKER you will most assuredly appreciate THE DROWNED CITIES. If you found those stories to be too heavy and dark for your liking then chances are this is not the book for you. If anything THE DROWNED CITIES strikes me as even darker than THE WIND-UP GIRL just because the characters are so young and the setting strikes so close to home. I recommend this to fans of dystopian fiction (young and old alike) as well as professors of social studies who desire to spark a dialogue with their students.

Recommended Age: 16+
Language: More profanity than I've experienced in any other YA fiction novel.
Violence: More violence than I've experience in any other YA fiction novel, and don't forget that these are kids killing kids.
Sex: Prostitutes mentioned by the term of "nailshed girls" but sex is only vaguely mentioned.

Want it? Buy it here.

Right from the moment you pick up a Dan Simmons novel and first set eyes upon the page, you know you're in for a whole new kind of reading experience. It took me an entire paragraph (yes, the first one, because it’s just that obvious) to realize this would be the case. There is detail, flow and a sense of perfection in the way Simmons has crafted the first scene in BLACK HILLS, and I have to admit that I readily gobbled down every delicious bite of it. What’s more, I found that I continued to devour the pages by great sheaves despite the growing concerns niggling at the back of my neck.

Dude can write.

Paha Sapa is the promised hero of BLACK HILLS, and we get him in full measure. The story starts with the young Sioux boy being jolted to his core by the invasion of a white man’s ghost. But this isn’t just any white man. It’s General George Armstrong Custer, who has just been killed in his famous Last Stand against the American Indians. In the confusion and chaos of the battle, Paha Sapa (Sioux for “Black Hills”) rolls and flops on the ground as the ghost asserts itself within him. In time, Paha Sapa gains control and returns to his father with the prattling voice of this white man echoing in his skull.

We see Paha Sapa’s life as it stretches across time, covering a vast portion of the United State's history. The time of his youth is fraught with danger; from continued ranged attacks by the ever-expanding white settlers and the soldiers protecting them, to the frantic attempts of Chief Crazy Horse to know his future from Paha Sapa’s forward-looking visions. The narrative also carries us into his adult life, through times of economic depression, through the great Dust Bowl, and finally into his marriage and fatherhood. Then last--with the story line that most intrigued me--we read of Paha Sapa as a dying senior, working as a powder man on nothing less than the slowly emerging face of Mount Rushmore--a monument which he plans to utterly destroy.

Simmons weaves us through this man’s life, jumping from one timeline to the next, and paints a picture both beautiful and sublime. At several points we also get some of what the general has been raving about for so long as Paha Sapa eventually comes to understand the white man’s language. These sections are constructed as the General speaking to his beloved wife, of the memories they have made and the times they have shared, while he supposedly lays in an extended healing-darkness after what he can only assume has been a grievous wounding at the Battle of the Greasy Grass.

So much goodness, and as I said I found that I couldn’t stop turning the pages. At various times I would lift my head and stop to think a moment, forcing myself to look at the story as a reviewer duly should, and though I found some concerns and difficulties waiting for me there, I very easily dove right back in and lost myself in the pages once again.

Alas, all good things must come to an end, and in this case it really is too bad.

Multiple times over.

Let me make something perfectly clear: when you write a story (Take notes people. I’m only going to say this once.) you are, very literally, making promises to your readers.

When we see that a ghost has chosen to inhabit our main character, we expect that this is going to have some impact upon him. BLACK HILLS doesn’t do this.

When we see focused intent within our character, driving him toward a particular purpose, we expect that he will either see it to fulfillment or turn from it for justifiable reasons. BLACK HILLS doesn’t do that either.

And when we read those first words on that first page, we expect an ending. We expect that we’ll have made the journey, and enjoyed the trip, and that the time we spent within its pages has been well spent. All of these things are important. But BLACK HILLS doesn’t even attempt do this.

BLACK HILLS is not a novel. It’s a history, plain and simple. Have you ever watched a movie that’s based on historical events, and at the “end” instead of including something even approximating a real ending they just have an explanation session about who died and who lived and what the live ones are doing now? (No, zombies do not count here.) I’m good with additional facts. I really am. It’s the lack of an ending that just kills me. (Great example: Valkyrie. Awesome movie. No ending.) This book is exactly like that.

But it gets even worse.

Due to the extreme backlash that would result upon my person from the Great Overlords of the Elite were I to divulge any specifics from the “end” of Black Hills, I shall instead parrot an early review for Towers of Midnight (which I recently read over at Tor) and give you only my responses while reading such specifics.

1) Ooh! Here it comes, everyone! "Hold on to your butts." (Loads of meaningless points here for knowing the quote on that last one)
2) Uh...what?
3) Are you freaking kidding me?
4) Okay, so where is this going now?
5) Well, that sucks.
6) "Coincidence? I think NOT!" (Double those meaningless bonus points for knowing this one)
7) Oh...wow. What just happened? Seriously. I’m completely lost.
8) The end? Alllll right...

When I sat down to write this review, I had a song running through my head that just wouldn’t quit. So, I jumped over to YouTube and found that the song did indeed say it all. Ah, what insight we can receive from the Naked Eyes. They say it best: Promises, promises. Indeed.

As I mentioned above, this is a history book. A very well-written history book, granted, but a history book nonetheless. If you like history and only care about history, then you will very easily be able to love this book. Me, I like stories. When I read a novel, I expect story. I expect an ending. I expect closure. And I got none of those here.

This comment from the Acknowledgments page at the back of the book is the very epitome of the book:

“A special thanks here to the members of the Dan Simmons Forum at dansimmons.com for their help on the long and amusing chase through original newspaper accounts and other printed materials to discover which way Mr. Ferris’s original wheel rotated.”

If this is the kind of stuff you’re willing to just kill for, READ THIS BOOK.

If not (and I mean “not” in the most meager of senses possible) "LEAVE NOW AND NEVER COME BACK!" (Triple those meaningless bonus points if you get this last one as well)

BookInTenWords: One Indian’s battle to defeat the white man. Just kidding.

Recommended age: 18+ for content
Language: Two or three minor characters spout off for a bit each.
Violence: Little. There is a major war, but no real detail.
Sex: Two scenes, both pointless to the story and reminisced by General Custer.

Dan Simmons’s Website

Final note: Though I will absolutely try reading another Dan Simmons novel (probably an old one), I plan on staying away from anything of his that looks too historical in nature. I just don’t think I could handle another let down like this.

Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games series has created a buzz in the Young Adult world. Her version of a future American dystopia is grim and disturbing. And compelling. The final novel, MOCKINGJAY, was released in August with great anticipation...but was it worth getting all worked up about?

The series begins with THE HUNGER GAMES, an exciting, brutal, and clever story. The setting is well done and artfully displays a society that's rotting from both ends. HUNGER GAMES explores the themes of an influential propaganda machine and an extravagant Capital at the expense of the people, then takes it the next frightening step.

The second novel, CATCHING FIRE, is the weakest in the series because not only is it a rehash of THE HUNGER GAMES, the entire first half is a distanced narrative that doesn't advance characterization and only minimally advances plot. It was as though Collins wanted to get the start out of the way so she could set up even more over-the-top Games for this round (which, I have to admit, were decidedly clever, the new characters interesting), and set up the events for the final novel.

In the third installment, MOCKINGJAY, the aftermath of the 75th games can now finally resolve book two's cliffhanger ending. District 13, the name the rebellion has given itself, has taken over the former District's underground bunker and created a new life for Panem's refugees--one that's startlingly similar to the Capital in it strictness and control. District 13's leader, President Coin, wants to use Katniss Everdeen as the face of the revolution, call her the Mockingjay (a reference to the Capital's past failed manipulations), and use the rebels' own propaganda to garner support from the other districts. If they succeed in taking the other Districts, then they plan to invade the Capital itself. But will Panem only be trading one tyranny for another?

MOCKINGJAY expands the themes from the first two novels: Is war the best way to resolve conflict? Is revenge justifiable? Is controlling people ever reasonable? Collins succeeds in building on the the setting as she explores District 13 and its own distinct culture, and creates a world we'd be afraid to live in--a world frighteningly similar to the Games itself. Katniss must deal with Peeta's imprisonment by the Capital, Gale's romantic frustrations, and decide whether being the Mockingjay is the right thing to do. She has a hard road ahead of her.

Collins is consistent with Katniss' character, her first-person present tense PoV clean, straightforward, and engaging. Katniss starts out the series strong and capable, if cynical; but when we reach MOCKINGJAY, instead of growing as a character, she stagnates. This is supposed to be a coming-of-age story and instead of growing into a woman she continues being a whiny and indecisive teenager who, despite a few bursts of independence, gives up. The only thing she's truly decisive about is her desire to kill President Snow, but at the same time is ambivalent about the war. It doesn't help, either, that she spends half the novel in the hospital or recuperating from injury, which was too much downtime. Katniss has spent her life taking care of her family in the absence of her father and has even survived the Hunger Games twice, so she's earned the right to claim her adulthood--but instead fails to take the next crucial step. This alone will disappoint readers. But wait, there's more.

The story starts out fine enough, but it progresses slowly with spurts of action. By the end the rebellion contradicts its goals, the battle's high body count has no clear purpose, the PoV character Katniss doesn't witness the climax, and then at the end there's ambiguity as to what life will be like for Panem after the war. "But," you say, "Collins is showing us how the powerful will control and hurt innocents to get what they want. And Katniss' ineffectiveness is simply a result of their control!" My reply: Collins' points could have come across just as well with a clearer resolution and more complete character arc. However, Collins is true to her story, and as a result the characters don't emerge unscathed--for a story like this it's difficult to have other than a bittersweet ending. This hard reality may leave readers ambivalent about how Collins chooses to end MOCKINGJAY.

If you haven't read the series, perhaps you're wondering if all three are worth reading. The up-side is that the novels are short so it's not a huge time commitment to read all three. If you have teenagers, they'll likely want to want to read the series, and you'll need to know how to discuss its disturbing themes with them. But beyond that, what do I really think? Only read THE HUNGER GAMES and call it good enough.

Recommended Age: 12 and up, or older depending on your kids, due to themes and violence.
Language: None.
Violence: Quite a bit, actually, for a YA novel. While most of it does happen off-screen, it's still disturbing and frequent for its target audience.
Sex: Katniss is frustratingly oblivious to romantic overtures. There's kissing, falsely implied intimacy, and references to sexual abuse.

Shadowspawn used to rule the Earth as gods. But you can get kind of lazy when you're immortal and nearly indestructible. After thousands of years of cross-breeding with humans, today's Shadowspawn posterity isn't as pureblooded, making for all kinds of problems. Even worse, humans have over-populated the Earth and kind of taken over things. By the time you get around to dealing with the issue, you have to do something drastic, say, another plague to wipe out all the extra humans so you can reestablish yourself as the one in charge.

Adrian Brézé may not be pureblood Shadowspawn, but he's got enough that his ability in the Power is stronger than most, and he's decided that the blood is no excuse to treat the human race as sheep. The only problem is that the other almost-purebloods not only outnumber him thousands to one, they would never agree with him to leave humans alone. After years of trying to help the Brotherhood, a group dedicated to the eradication of Shadowspawn, he retires from the civil war. Unfortunately, his sister Adrianne decides to yank him back into Shadowspawn politics by kidnapping his ex-girlfriend. As he works to save Ellen, Adrian discovers the dismaying plans the Council has for the human race.

I'm not sure why, but S.M. Stirling decided it was his turn at a vampire urban fantasy series starting with A TAINT IN THE BLOOD. His successful Change Series has garnered him a well-deserved following, the post-apocalyptic stories grim yet hopeful. Now, instead of a retro Dark Ages setting, he tries his hand at magic and demons. Most of us are getting tired of all the blood-sucking out there (Gaiman thinks so too), but if it's going to stick around, the writing might as well be decent--and fortunately Stirling will force those vampire wannabe writers to step it up a notch, especially in showing how much vampires really are monsters. It's about time.

Stirling's big strength in all his books is world building. Here he takes the traditional vampire lore and twists it into a shape that's more interesting than most urban fantasy. There's the history and origins of modern-day 'demon cannibals' who are born not made, mix in Shadowspawn proclivities and lifestyle, add a pinch of killing methods and details about warfare, and fold in the rules of the Power and how to work around it. Then you bake it into something that looks like a regular cake, but is actually a lava cake filled with chocolaty goodness (couldn't help myself, the novel is filled with all sorts of foodie details).

This book has all the clichés. There's the main character Adrian, the wealthy and brooding immortal who's trying to break away from his evil family and their 'humans are only good for food' attitudes. There's the grizzled mentor Harvey, thrice divorced, who carries around his sawed-off shotgun with silver bullets and used to work with Adrian for the Brotherhood. There's the plucky heroine Ellen with the body of a goddess (she's a dead ringer for Marilyn Monroe...), who endures torture at the hands of Adrian's sadistic sister while she awaits rescue. Have we read all this before? Sure, but not written with this much tongue-in-cheek and depth at the same time.

Yet, while TAINT is better than your average urban fantasy, it has its flaws. The most petty being that Stirling is italics happy--between all the telepathy and PoV character thoughts it got to be a little ridiculous. If you want me to get more serious, then I could complain about how poor Ellen must suffer Adrienne's sadist tendencies, and unfortunately we end up having to watch, including one incredibly unpleasant S&M scene. While Adrienne is a deliciously evil villain, the constant sexual abuse witnessed first hand and talked about among her blood herd of 'lucies' got redundant and overbearing.

One thing that starts out as a strength but ends up becoming a problem later is the pacing. Like his other novels, Stirling starts TAINT at a sprint, and blabs about back history along the way, hoping you can keep up. Sometimes you can, sometimes you can't, but the action is enough to keep you reading even if you don't 100% know what's going on. The action does get breakneck enough that readers will stumble and have to re-read when transitions are light on explanation; on the other end of the spectrum is a big gap of time that's glossed over, and even includes a hokey 'Rocky trains for the big fight montage' reference. It kind of felt like Stirling rattled off this book one weekend and had a lot of fun writing it, throwing together interesting concepts along the way, but didn't bother to go back and smooth it all out. What starts out as interesting world building by the end leaves some holes about how the magic works, which is pretty crucial to the plot. Add to that some contrivances, and you read the climax thinking, "What the..." or "That should not have worked."

I really wanted to like TAINT because I enjoyed Stirling's Change Series novels, but while it's well written and interesting, its over-the-top cruelty was difficult for me to read. The novel could give romantic vampire urban fantasy the jump start it needs, forcing realism and excellent writing into a usually fluffy and melodramatic sub-genre, and could attract readers who usually wouldn't pick up this kind of book.

Recommended Age: 18 and up, this book is for adults only.
Language: Yes, and it's relatively frequent.
Violence: Between the fighting, sexual abuse, and torture there's a lot and it's graphic.
Sex: There's quite a bit and the talk can get crass.

I came across THE RED WOLF CONSPIRACY for the first time a few months ago at the library. It caught my eye because the cover was striking, the title intriguing, and it had some good quotes from people I actually recognized. At the time, I was in the middle of another novel and ended up forgetting about the encounter. Interestingly enough, I was given the chance by our illustrious Overlords to once again get this book in my hands, and this time to say something about it.

CONSPIRACY is the first in a planned trilogy (of course, it IS fantasy after all…) of books by Robert V. S. Redick and is his debut novel as a published author. As such, I expected going in that there would be some decent world-building, a fairly direct plot, possibly some good characters, and more than likely some horrible “new author” errors that would make the experience a less-than-shining example of perfection.

Of course, that’s exactly what I found.

Pazel Pathkendle seems to be the main character of the story. An orphan of sorts that makes his life as a tarboy on ships from the Kingdom of Arqual, Pazel has lived and worked as he made his way from one great vessel to the next. (Think old-school, pirates, cannons, bilge rats.) He hails from a small country and everyone instantly hates him for it. His father was a captain before disappearing from Pazel’s life, though it seems like just about everyone the boy talks to has heard about his father, the traitor. Another reason to hate or suspect him. Eventually, Pazel finds himself hired onto the Chathrand, the last of a fleet of massive ships made long ago, on which sails the peace-offering bride of the Arquali kingdom to their enemies from Mzithrin, Thasha Isiq.

Emperors, rulers, mad-men, kings, Benegeserit-like nuns, Brownies (though not named as such), and yes even a sentient rat or two, take part in this fairly straight-forward story that has come together after four decades of Arquali planning and intrigue. (Why so long? Honestly, I’m not quite sure. Yes, even AFTER reading the whole thing.) The Arqualis and the Mzithrins finally want peace. Or do they? Certainly not everyone does. And thus, comes the story to us.

The first few pages easily passed my test. Redick writes fluidly and with great control. He pulls you into the world of Pazel and his friends and we’re instantly transported into his world of ship-life. Though quickly, on comes the world-building. For the most part, this is handled decently-well. There are certainly long passages of semi-pertinent information, great chunks of history passed onto the reader, and several sufficiently-long-that-they-bothered-me bits of dialogue that would have made the book much more difficult to get through if the writing hadn’t been quite so good. After forty-five pages (ten percent, my typical allowance for a new author) it hadn’t really caught my interest, and I probably would have given up on it right then if I hadn’t been reading it for a review. But I persevered. Jogging through mid-scene jumps in character perspective, slogging down significant summaries of interim story, and even past being addressed directly as a reader several times (this is almost an unforgivable sin in my book). The characters seemed pretty one-dimensional, mostly due to the fact that we spend so little time getting to know them because the dang pacing of the story is so fast, and because of this I repeatedly found myself asking, "So what?"

In the end? There were definitely parts of CONSPIRACY that I liked. There were a few “Yes, finally!” moments that came...and quickly passed. The ending left a whole lot to be desired, skewing from the Chathrand completely, wandering through lots of extra world-building touches, and then devolving into about fifty pages of confession and explanation. Though the tale was very fast-paced and had some great potential, the execution was bad enough that I don’t think I can recommend the book very heartily. Lots of good reviews have been garnered by Conspiracy , focusing mostly on Redick’s great world-building, which is good but not spectacular--being mostly a bunch of single pieces and not one interlocking puzzle-riffic whole. (You didn’t know that was a word, did you? Now you do.) If you’re looking for the “Ooh! Aah!” factor more than a story/character-oriented tale, this may just be the book for you. But it wasn’t for me.

I can’t emphasize enough though just how much I liked his writing/words/language. It really did pull me in and drag me along. If Redick’s story had just been put together better, presented better, I could easily see myself liking this book. My suggestion would be to skip this one and try picking him back up again after he’s written a few more. Maybe he’ll have learned the whole trade a bit better by then. We can only hope.

Recommended age: 14 and up
Language: Little to none that I remember
Violence: Very little until the end and then some but not heavy, just…surprising
Sex: Discretely addressed in a few conversations/situations, mild

If you are an aspiring author, we can guarantee you have heard this advice: write what you know. Now granted, for the most part you can come to know most anything via study and research. When it comes to disabilities, however, you simply can't know unless you've experienced it. We use this as a preface to Blake Charlton's SPELLWRIGHT, because Charlton took that bit of advice and ran with it.

Charlton grew up battling dyslexia and the stereotypes and difficulties that come with that disorder. He channeled that experience into his debut novel, SPELLWRIGHT, and created a magic based on language. Spells need to literally be spelled. His PoV, Nicodemus Weal, has the spark for magic, but is dyslexic (both magically and literally, which in this novel amount to the same thing). The ideas here are absolutely incredible. In most cases, when authors give their PoVs a disability, that disability is just a gimmick. Not so with the characters in SPELLWRIGHT (well, at least for Nicodemus, more on the other characters in a bit). Nicodemus' inability to "spell" is addressed as cacography, and it is vital to the plot. He may either be a herald of salvation or doom, the majority of the plot revolving around his (and others) attempts to figure out which. Again, the ideas here are great, and the magic system is creative and fitting.

But...

There are a ton of problems with this debut. For many people they may be deal-breakers (especially those of you who would claim to be literary elitists).

The over-arching problem is clarity. From characters, to setting, dream sequences (ESPECIALLY bad and unclear), transitions, to visualizing the magic (at times)...it just lacks the needed clarity that would have pushed this novel into excellence. The characters didn't grab us at all beyond the main PoV, and not even he was all that gripping (he whines A LOT). His disability was handled well, and made important. But there is also a blind guy. And a seizure girl. And another girl who shouts out "obscenities" (they are lame) almost in parody of Tourette syndrome. Another can only say three phrases. It's over-kill, and other than the main characters dyslexia, the rest all feel like gimmicks or parodies, and are all basically pointless. There ARE reasons for the disabilities, though the explanations tend to make them even more frustrating and gimmicky.

The setting is mostly in a magic school/academy. Yup, seriously. And there is a prophecy about demons coming to destroy the world. Our main PoV, who is unsure as to his lineage, might be the savior or destroyer. But see, he is conflicted. He just wants to be a normal boy...Get the idea? Yeah, the actual story is pretty cliché. Luckily the magic system isn't, and really is the saving grace of this novel.

Another issue has to do with how information is presented to the reader. 90% of the time, it comes across in info-dumps layered in page upon page of exposition. 9% of the time we get it via class/teacher lectures (We don't need anymore school, thank you. We already suffered through the horridly inconsistent Harry Potter novels, and have forked over tens of thousands of dollars for REAL school. Less school, more imagination. kthxbai). What does this do? Well for one, it kills all pacing. There are moments where things start to move along beautifully...only to be undermined by fifteen pages of blatant info-dump. There is one section, approximately half-way through the novel, where we get a long-winded, repetitive conversation (see the numbered list below) mixed with flashes to an action sequence. The action sequence is ruined because if this obvious attempt to break up an extremely boring student/teacher discussion. Yawn. It happens like this.

1) Here is 1 page of plot progression.
2) PoV says, "I don't understand."
3) 10 page info-dump explanation.
4) PoV says, "I don't understand."
5) Another 10 page info-dump explanation.
6) 1 page plot progression.
7) Repeat.

You can see where the frustration comes in. Mostly because the actual plot stuff seems like it could be entertaining.

Show vs. Tell. You all know the phrase. SPELLWRIGHT is 1% show and 99% tell. And the telling persists up until the last freaking page. No joke. Perhaps you heard a random scream the other night. That was Steve screaming, "STOP TELLING ME THIS CRAP AND SHOW IT TO ME!!!! FRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAKKKKK!" That may or may not be a direct quote.

But...

Nevertheless, there was a lot to enjoy here in spite of the many frustrations. The ideas behind language magic, and the evolution of it throughout the novel are fascinating. SPELLWRIGHT is a confusing novel in terms of "what the heck do we think of it." The more and more we digested it, we began to think of it in the same vein as the simpler fantasy novels. You know, like from our Fantasy 101 post. Had there not been such a nifty premise with the magic here, we may have put the novel down. However the magic itself, though unclear visually at times, really pushes this novel up several notches. We were very strongly ambivalent towards it. Will we read the follow-ups? Yes. With all the back-story, history and info having been dumped in this first novel, the following novels could be great (if simple) fantasy.

The question is, will you like it? Should you go out and spend the hardcover price on it? We are gonna say that you should borrow it, and decide for yourself. If you are in to the older feeling, simpler written fantasy, then give Blake Charlton's novel a shot.

Recommended Age: 12 and up. Honestly, this could almost have been YA.
Language: Not really. The made-up "swearing" in the novel feels very forced and mild. Like us saying, "crud." The actual swearing we are used to only happens maybe twice in the novel.
Violence: Not much. Extremely tame where it actually happens, and pretty random and unclear.
Sex: No. Some childish discussions. Again, kinda YA.

James Dashner's THE MAZE RUNNER has garnered a lot of attention since it's release. It is a novel filled with really cool and unique ideas, so on that end, its attention is completely understandable.

The plot centers around a group of amnesiac teenagers, stuck together in a foreign, hostile, and deadly maze, where bizarre creatures roam. These creatures are called Grievers, and they hunt the Gladers--as the kids call themselves--while the walls of the Maze are constantly changing. They are in marginal contact with their "captors" who send them supplies and new kids. However, the schedule of "one new kid a month" is broken the day after the main character Thomas arrives, when Teresa, the first girl Glader ever arrives with a message that "Everything is going to change." We should mention hate this over-used phrase.

We both froth at the mouth for a good dystopian story, go into convulsions for a post-apocalyptic story, and one of Nick's favorite topics is social experimentation. With all of that going for it, you would think this good would be a shoo-in for a recommendation for us, right?

Uh...hesitantly so. Kinda. The first conclusion that we both came to after reading the book, was that it was a fantastic book, completely entertaining, and ridiculously annoying. It's probably the most irritating good book we have read.

The first thing to mention about our irritation is that it has all the bad parts of the TV show Lost, and the irritation of WoT. None of the characters will communicate! We think it is cheating to fake adversity because the characters act like idiots, when it behooves them not to. Maybe we give too much credit to humanity, but when there is a problem to be solved, usually people will, at least eventually, come together to solve it. While the Gladers do cooperate to create a kind of Lord of the Flies hierarchy and governance so that they can survive, they don't cooperate when it matters most.

It seems like Dashner just included zero communication simply for the sake of adding conflict. So many times it made sense for the characters to talk to each other, but instead nearly all of the dialog devolves into "You're so dumb for asking that question. We aren't going to explain anything to you because you're a newbie. We get really upset and irritated when you ask questions, but we sure aren't going to answer them so you will stop asking. We'd prefer that you just keep asking us questions so we can call you names and stay in this awesome Maze forever. Let's go eat, so you can ask me more questions that we won't answer so we can call you more names, that you don't understand, because we won't answer your questions."

OK...we exaggerate...barely. Some quotes from the book:

"Why do you come in here asking stupid questions? It's really annoying." No, Dashner, what is annoying is your way of avoiding having to answer questions.

"Thomas wanted to scream. He knew he had a lot to learn. That's why he was asking questions." We wanted to scream too.

Another thing that bugged us, more than just a little bit, were the logical inconsistencies in the book. Yeah, we know it is a YA book, and perhaps our expectations were a bit too high. Admittedly, when we read a book like this we want our minds blown, not mildly stirred.

Example? For over TWO YEARS the Gladers were mucking about in the Maze, and they couldn't figure it out until Thomas and Teresa came to the Glade. The solution was obvious from close to the beginning, and we both were hoping it would be something a bit more inventive. It wasn't, which made us mad because we couldn't believe it never occurred to the characters to try it.

Then there is the fact that if the characters get stung by a Griever, if they get back to the Glade in time, they are given Grief Serum which briefly, and violently restores some of their memories. But if they talk about them, something happens they wind up doing crazy stuff like trying to kill themselves. Well a certain character (we don't want to spoil it) gets stung, gets the Serum, and then proceeds to disobey all the rules Dashner has set on how characters react to this...with no repercussions.

So yeah. Logic holes. They bother us.

Also...the book hamstrings itself. The aforementioned problems keep the throttle in idle instead of letting it roar, and the ending happens a few chapters too early, making the climax actually pretty boring.

We guess we should throw in a mention of what we actually thought of the characters themselves. Honestly, it was somewhat hard for us to care about them. Dashner's focus on denying information to both the characters and the reader was 100% successful, but had the side effect of denying us a connection to them. When any of them died, it was with no drama, for us, whatsoever. We didn't care at all what happened to any of them. Even when a certain character dies that was supposed to be a big deal...well, it just wasn't.

OK, that's a lot of negative...and normally would be enough for us to put the book down. However, it was a short read. Just a couple hours, which helped it out immensely. We both, despite the irritation, liked the book. When we talked about it, it was much harder to define why we liked it than why we didn't but we kept coming back to the conclusion that we did enjoy it. How's that for vague?

Perhaps it was the fact that it truly was an attempt at something very unique. Yes it took things that have been done, but blended them into this cross-genre tale. If you took ENDER'S GAME and LORD OF THE FLIES, and smashed them together, you would get something a lot like this. Which, is more than just one point in the win column.

We suppose our final conclusion is that if you like to read YA a lot, and you can forgive the lack of communication in the novel, you should give this book a try. If you like dystopian stories, then you will find something to enjoy here.


Recommended Age: 13 and up.
Language: Well it is obvious that Dashner wanted some vulgarity in the dialog, but he replaces all the words with something else. We know what he is saying, but it doesn't actually swear at all.
Violence: There are a few scenes but it is really tame.
Sex: None. At all.