RaV reviews Star Wars Rebels - Rise of the Old Masters (S1E03)

Book Preview: What Waits in the Woods

Release Date: March 31, 2015

Dust jacket summary: Seeing things. You were just seeing things.

For city girl Callie Velasquez, nothing sounds more terrifying than a night out in the wilderness. But, wanting to bond with her popular new friends, Lissa and Penelope, she agrees to join them on a camping trip. At least Callie's sweet new boyfriend, Jeremy, will be coming too.

But nothing goes as planned. The group loses half their food supply. Then they lose their way. And with strange sounds all around her--the snap of a twig, a sinister laugh--Callie wonders if she's losing her mind.

Tensions swirl among the group, with dark secrets suddenly revealed. And then, things take a fatal turn: Callie stumbles upon a cold dead body in the woods.

Is the murderer close by, watching them? Callie has to figure out where she can turn and who she can trust, before her own life is at stake.

Kieran Scott weaves a thrilling mystery that explores love, loyalty--and the dangerous decisions we make in order to survive.

Graphic Novel Review: Walking Dead - Days Gone Bye

Zombies in a post apocalyptic setting…ah…can’t get much better than this. The creator, Robert Kirkman, explains in his introduction that it is not his intention to scare readers as he wants to take a deeper approach and explore how people would survive in a post apocalyptic America. He will accomplish this by following one character, Rick Grimes, through his basic struggle for survival and the battles with the walking dead. Essentially, he has created the never ending zombie movie, which is all good in my book.

Rick Grimes is police officer in a small town; he is married and has son. The story begins with Rick and his partner in a shoot out with a criminal. Rick is shot and ends up in a coma. About 30 days later he wakes up in a hospital to a very changed America. He doesn’t realize it yet but the zombies now rule the country and Rick is just another meal. After escaping the coma ward, he meets up some other survivors and discovers that his wife and child likely escaped to Atlanta. The government herded the people into major population centers. As plans go, this is bad idea, especially when you are trying to stop a zombie outbreak.

Rick makes it to Atlanta cowboy style and nearly gets killed by a swarm of zombies. His is rescued by a teenage boy and taken to a small settlement of survivors just outside the city. And surprise, surprise, he finds that his wife and child are still alive. He also learns that his partner also survived and had been taking care of his wife. From this point forward the story really comes into it’s own as the small band of people are forced to deal with their predicament. There is also some drama as Rick’s partner has other intentions with regards to his wife. So, in addition to fighting the zombies, Rick is forced to deal with real life problems.

The art is in black and white but I have always liked this style. It allows more emotion and expression to come across the panels and it works very well with this story.

What I liked: Uh…zombies and more zombies. I also like Mr. Rickman’s goal of a continued exploration of a zombified post apocalyptic America. This has a potential to become a very addictive story.

I also enjoyed the set up with a small band of people that do not necessarily agree on social issues are forced to become unified if they want to survive. Basically it comes down to “Live together or die alone”.

What I didn’t like: The beginning of the story is very hurried as way too much action occurs and it had me worried the entire novel was going to move at this pace. Luckily when Rick gets to Atlanta the story slows down to more of a manageable pace and it is allowed to breathe.

Last word: Overall I really enjoyed the first volume of The Walking Dead and have already picked up the second volume. It is a good foundation in what looks to be a promising series.

Book Review: The Red Wolf Conspiracy

The Red Wolf Conspiracy is the first book in a planned trilogy. Overall there are enough good elements to the story that it outweighs the unevenness in the third act. Mr. Redick attempts to introduce new and distinctive components into his story to make it stand out from other fantasy novels and for the most part he succeeds.

For about the first 100 pages the reader is introduced to numerous interesting characters that constitute a story of intrigue that eventually develops into wide ranging plot that will lead the world into a horrific war. At first, it is hard to keep all the characters and plots straight but Mr. Redick solves this problem by basically narrowing the story down to one main character, Pazel Pathkendle. Unfortunately, in my opinion, this was the big misstep of the novel.

The Red Wolf Conspiracy takes a different tact that your standard fantasy novel. The reader is aware of a conspiracy that is being put together by nefarious means and it is all acted out on a grand ship named HMS Chathrand. The grand ship used to be one of many but over thousands of years they have been destroyed leaving only the Chathrand. The ship is extremely large as it is described as a city on water. This element of the story was fascinating and I really liked Mr. Redick’s treatment of sea life regarding the sailors and the tar boys.

I also really enjoyed the introduction of different type of species that you normally do not see in fantasy novels, like woken animals, the murths and my favorite the ixchel. The Ixchel are also known as the Crawlies. They are eight inch tall humans that live in the shadows. The reason being is that normal sized humans fear the Ixchel and will kill them upon sight. In retaliation the Ixchel’s will kill any human that learns of their existence. So the Ixchel have found interesting ways to survive and travel on ships.

The ending is less than it should have been. Up to about page 300 the story was building nicely but Mr. Redick goes left by moving away from the action and the reader learns what happens from others. Mr. Redick should have taken the middle road by allowing the characters to be part of the action so the reader did not feel that they missed the significant events of the novel. Which is a shame because I totally bought into the ending of the story and the Lord of the Ringsesqe aspect of it.

What I liked: I really enjoyed the tone of this novel. The main character, Pazel Pathkendle, is a tar boy which is a necessary function of any sailing ship but they are on the lowest rung. The atmosphere that Mr. Redick creates surrounding life aboard the ship is highly believable and one of the strengths of the story. It reminds you of movies like Mutiny on The Bounty or Pirates of the Caribbean.

What I didn’t like: The weakness of the novel is its unevenness. Mr. Redick starts off by introducing several characters that all have a part to play in the conspiracy surrounding the Red Wolf. As the story continues it eventually narrows down to only one character and his adventures. Unfortunately that character is tossed off the ship at about page 300 and is not involved with any of the major events. In essence, Mr. Redick does an excellent job of building intrigue for the first 2/3rds of the story only to toss it aside for what amounts to be basically a side quest.

Last word: The Red Wolf Conspiracy by Robert V.S. Redick is an ambitious, unique but ultimately flawed fantasy adventure. But the there is enough of foundation to build a tremendous series out of it but only if the plotting weakness’ can fixed in future volumes. While not the strongest debut novel I have read, Mr. Redick does have great talent as a writer and you need to look out for him in the future.

Graphic Novel Review: Star Trek - Countdown TPB (Star Trek (IDW))

This graphic novel is being advertised as the prequel to the upcoming Star Trek movie with specific insights into the origin of Nero. I suspect that the movie will also cover some of the ground for the plot to make sense, but if it doesn’t then this graphic novel will be a must read for all Star Trek fans.

The novel is set in The Next Generation universe in which Data is now the captain of the Enterprise, Spock is an ambassador on Romulus and Picard is an ambassador on Vulcan. The story generally follows Nero, a Romulan decalithium miner who witnesses a Star go supernova. The problem is that the Star continues to increase in power and threatens to destroy Romulus. Ambassador Spock presents a daring plan to the Romulan Senate to save their planet, but Romulans being Romulans do not trust the Vulcan and turn him down flat. Nero overhears Spock’s plan and decides that he can trust the Vulcan. So the two join forces in desperate attempt to save Romulus but that doesn’t work out as planned. Spock and Nero attempt to enlist the help of the Vulcans and gain access to a weapon that will destroy the supernova. But the Vulcans don’t trust Romulans anymore than the Romulans trust the Vulcans, as such, the Romulans as left to their fate. The hapless Federation is caught in the middle trying to help but it just never works out for them. This all leads Nero into a blood feud against anything that is not a Romulan. The ending of the graphic novel is VERY familiar and really not much of a surprise.

I am somewhat suspect of the plot of the upcoming movie as it involves time travel once again, which is a favorite plot device of the Star Trek movies. While it worked well in First Contact and The Voyage Home, I had déjà vu feeling of Star Trek Generations that kept running through my mind while I was reading this novel. You know, a major original Star Trek character travels into a different time period to due battle with an invincible bad guy and it will most likely cost the icon his life (this is all speculation as I have not scene the movie yet).

What I liked: I enjoyed the back the story of Nero but I also suspect that the movie will have to cover the same ground. The art is well done and really the highlight of the novel as the writing is alittle flat.

What I didn’t like: The plotting is very uneven and forced in the graphic novel. They cover a lot of ground over 4 short chapters and I believe that story would have worked better if spread out more and allowed to breathe. Basically you get the Reader’s Digest version as the major highlights of story are represented and the nuisances that would have a compelling story are by-passed.

This is also essentially a Next Generation story. I was hoping the movie was a strictly a reboot of the TOS universe and the graphic novel would stay within that world. As with the Star Trek Generations movie they are attempting to co-mingle the two universes and this has me concerned. I just wish that they would get away from The Next Generation universe and characters as they are getting a little long in the tooth. Let me put it this way, if they waste Spock in the upcoming movie the way they wasted Captain Kirk, I will be pissed.

Last word: This graphic novel was somewhat of a let down. If they do not cover the same material in the movie then it is essential that you pick this graphic novel up to fully understand Nero’s background, just don’t expect it to be earth shattering.

Book Review: The Secret History of Giants

While waiting around in the kid’s area of the bookstore I noticed this book. So I picked it up to kill some time and couldn’t stop reading it. It reminded my of when I was kid and I used to read my Grandpa’s copy of Gnomes by Wil Huygen and Rien Poortvliet. I would spend hours reading that book and staring at the illustrations. I even forced my mother to buy and put up Gnome wallpaper in my room. A fact that my mother will never let me live down.

Professor Berk explains that he is a member of The Order of the Golden Quills who have archived the long lost knowledge of the giants. Other members of the Order include Merlin, Alexander the Great, Francis Bacon and William Shakespeare. The Order has housed all their artifacts in what is known as The Hall of Giants. From their collection and evidence found in nature Professor Berk walks the reader through what is known about giants, such as their lore, clothing, children, etc. He even explores the mysteries of the giant’s sack (not as dirty as it sounds).

The art in the book is absolutely gorgeous, all the way from the cover to all the strange and interesting illustrations inside. The art inside is fascinating in its detail and will set your imagination into overdrive. You will then find yourself looking in the woods for evidence of giants. Just watch out for their sacks as it better to be a passenger and not the meal.

What I liked: I loved art inside the book. It was done in a way that lends to the style of the book and makes it seem more authentic. The illustrations alone are worth the price of admission.

There is also a ton of tidbit information about giants such as recipes for Fowl Pie and Old-Style Sheep. Professor Berk also weaves the history of the giants in with the well known nursery rhymes, for example he explains how the old woman came to live in a shoe.

What I didn’t like: The last third of the book explores different parts of the world that have had a history of giants, such as giants in the Americas, Celtic Giants and Norse Giants. While this part was well done, I found it to be less interesting than the first part of the book.

Last word: Hey, it is fun for the whole family and will inspire you or your child’s imagination. And don’t blame me the next you drive by a hill and wonder if there is a giant living there.

Book Review: The Mystery of Grace

Major spoiler warnings are ahead as it is difficult to talk about the book without giving away certain important aspects of the plot.

The advertising on this novel got me. Up front it mentioned that it was partially about Hot Rods and surf guitars. I used to work on muscle cars and I love the old rock music that celebrated the Hot Rod culture. So it kinda hit a soft spot for me plus it had supernatural slant which made me somewhat curious what this novel was all about.

This is a character story, which means that you need to identify and like the main character of the story or else you will not enjoy it. Altagracia “Grace” Quintero is female mechanic who works for Sanchez Motor Works. Her specialty is working on any old coupe but her true love is old Fords as her personal ride is a 1957 Ford Fairlane (see pic below). Grace learned about restoring cars from Abuelo, her grandfather. There are numerous passages about Grace reminiscing about her and Abuelo fixing up old sedans, Model A’s, etc. I really enjoyed these parts of the novel as it brought memories of my misspent youth of turning wrenches and drag racing.

The other important aspect of Grace’s character is her tattoos. Her body is covered with them but each one has a special meaning. For example, she has her guardian saint, Altagracia, on her shoulder and Ford Motor Company on her leg. She likes to use to the tattoos as a way to judge people. If a person pre-judges Grace by the ink on her body then she quickly knows this not type of person she needs to be friends with. So all in all, Mr. De Lint does an excellent job of creating a complex character that you want to read more about.

The plot pretty quickly jumps into the mystery behind Grace. Essentially, she is dead. Grace was killed in an armed robbery attempt but she never fully moved on to the after life. She wakes up in the same neighborhood that she was living in before but there are a few differences. When someone dies the building that they died in is “renewed” but the rest of the neighborhood stays the same. So you have various shops that are from the 60’s mixed in with newer buildings. Also, there is a mist outside of town that you can enter but it transports you to the other of town. So you are stuck within a several mile radius of Grace’s apartment building.

As Grace explores her new environment she encounters several other dead people living inside this small community. She learns that whenever someone dies close to her apartment building they are brought back into this world to roam forever. Needless to say, it is very depressing. But Grace does learn that the dead are allowed to go back to the real world but only for 2 days of the year and only from sunset to sunup. The story really begins when Grace takes her first trip back into the real world and meets the other main character, John.

The other major plot line involves Grace and her friends trying to uncover the reason behind this strange afterlife and why it exists. These portions are by far the strongest and weirdest aspects of the book but are most enjoyable and make it worth reading.

What I liked: I totally loved reading about someone who loved old cars and had a true passion for them. It was like watching American Graffiti, Hollywood Knights, Two-Lane Blacktop, or any other car-centric movie. It made me want to go out and buy my dream car, a 69 Chevy Camaro, and start turning wrenches again.

I find this hard to say but I also bought into the romance aspect of the story. It is an unrequited love with one person being dead and the other being alive. They can only see each other 2 days a year but the attraction is beyond what they can control.

Lastly, this novel has a true beginning and end. There is no continuing series to wrap up other plot threads and it was nice to read a novel that you know will have a proper ending.

What I didn’t like: This is extremely nitpicky and not really fair to the book but at times Grace’s character did not ring true to me. As I was a motorhead in high school and work in a mechanics shop, I knew a few girls who worked on cars and they were usually tough with huge chips on their shoulders. For some reason Grace just did not have enough attitude for me to be a true gear monkey, but then again this is just personal experience.

Last word: While this is not my typical type of book, I found myself enjoying this story more than I would have expected and highly recommend it.

RaV Review: Star Wars Rebels - Fighter Flight (S1E02)

Book Review: Scar Night

This is a truly stunning debut novel by Alan Campbell but it is not an easy book to love. The world that is created inside this novel is definitely unique and utterly fascinating to explore. Scar Night is set in the city of Deepgate, which is suspended by chains over a bottomless abyss. The people of Deepgate worship the rebel God Ulcis. When the main god Ayen shut the door of heaven to human souls numerous angels rebelled, including her son Ulcis. They wanted to take Heaven back from Ayen but Ulcis was eventually defeated and escaped into the abyss below Deepgate before he was killed. Deepgate’s religion centers around providing Ulcis with souls in order for him to rebuild his army and retake Heaven from Ayen. The heathens who live outside Deepgate are loyal to Ayen and have constantly been at war with the city of Deepgate.

The belief is that when a Deepgate citizen dies, the soul must be recovered by the Church in order to add it to Ulcis’s army and then the body is cast into the chasm. If the body has bled out before the appropriate rites are performed then soul enters the eternal maze of the evil god Iril.

This is just the set up for novel and it is not until about page 100 that most of this explained. As you can tell this is a very complex story and at points it is somewhat difficult to keep up with. The story follows several different characters in their various pursuits mostly within Deepgate. Dill is an angel and the last descendant of a long line of warriors who fought to protect the Church of Ulcis. Since he is the last angel, the Church elders protect Dill and he leads a very sheltered life. They are afraid of him being killed and will not even allow him to fly. Personally, Dill is my least favorite character as he is kinda of a putz through most of story. Likely, this is a set up for the other novels as I can imagine it being central to this entire saga.

Mr. Nettle is a scrounger and the father of Abigail. Abigail was killed by nefarious means and his pursuit is to hunt down and kill the person who murdered his daughter. This mission leads him across Deepgate and into dangerous parts of the city and eventually below it.

My favorite character, who is introduced about a quarter way into the novel, is Carnival. She is one of the last surviving angels and she only comes out on Scar Night to drain the blood of a single human. This act has allowed her to live for three thousand years as it is the only way to prolong her life. She is constantly hunted by the Spine or Church assassins. So every 30 days Carnival and the Spine play a deadly cat and mouse game but since Carnival has lived for so long, guess who wins the battles? What makes Carnival so interesting is the internal struggle that she must deal with. She doesn’t like the monster that she has become but she is left with no other choice.

There are several other side-characters that are also interesting, which include Rachel Hael, an aspiring Spine assassin who is appointed to train Dill; Devon is the Head Poisoner and a complete madman and lastly, Presbyter Sypes who is the head of the Church of Ulcis and keeper of codex or library.

Eventually, all the characters pursuits come together in an explosive third act that has ramifications that Deepgate will never recover form.

What I liked: The world building is incredible. Mr. Campbell must have spent a long time creating his world. The story is honestly grounded in this environment as it feels totally genuine and not like some made up world.

What I didn’t like: As I said in my introduction this is not an easy book to love. It took me forever to get through the first half of the book. Mr. Campbell has bad habit of not spoon feeding the reader with information and acts like you live in Deepgate, so you should know this all ready. Eventually explanations are dulled out slowly but not before confusion has set it in. Luckily this is rectified in the second half and the story takes off at a furious pace.

Last word: If you give Scar Night a chance then you will be rewarded with an exceptional experience that does not come along very often.

Book Review: Genesis

This is an interesting small book that in a way reminds me of I am Legend by Richard Matheson. By this I mean the book is pretty typical story until the ending, in which there are two significant plot twists that change the story back upon itself. Afterwards you will find yourself in a state of shock and more importantly, thinking of the events that lead to ending because you won’t see it coming, at least I didn’t.

The setting is in the near future in which the world has just got done fighting what is known as The Last War. Soon after the war, a Great Plague has affected the world’s population killing the majority of the people. A leader known as Plato has broken off from the world and formed his nation known as The Republic. The Republic is a city that is located on island and is walled off from the rest of the world. Plato rules his city with an iron fist and the citizens are forced into one of four classes, Laborers, Soldiers, Technicians and Philosophers. Children are separated from their parents at a young age. They are tested to determine which class best suits them and then trained for that job. There is no descent against the state as everyone has their place society.

The story line insinuates that the events of the novel take place right after downfall of The Republic government. The narrative is told in an interesting fashion. It follows Anaximander or Anax as she is given four-hour oral question and answer session to determine if she will be accepted into the Academy. So basically, you are reading a transcript of the interview with a few paragraphs in between telling the characters thoughts and motivations. Luckily, Anax is a historian so she goes into the history of The Republic and then focuses on the history of a man called Adam. They cover two important time periods during Adam’s life which has forever changed The Republic. There is a lot of discussion between Anax and her interviewers as to what it means to be human and what sets us apart from machines.

Then the ending comes along and it is completely shocking. It fits perfectly with the story and I applaud the author for taking risk with his story.

What I liked: This is one of the few books that hit me at the end in a similar way that I am Legend did. The expression I felt was one of shock, since I did not expect this ending but once you sit with it for a minute it makes total sense. I was just mad at myself for not seeing it sooner. I found myself thinking about this novel over the next several days which is pretty rare that a story rattles around in my brain for any length of time.

What I didn’t like: The main issue I have is the price of the novel. The page count is 150 but in reality there are only about 140 pages at a cost of $20.00. Should the author have made the story longer? No, I think the length works in its favor but I would have recommended that some short stories be included in with the book. He could have fleshed out the world or provided additional insight as to what occurred to The Republic.

I also began to get weary of the back and forth discussion. This is a Philosophy teacher’s wet dream. Going over the same issues over and over and arguing over the fine points really began to test my patience during the second half of the book. After the ending, you understand the purpose of it but it still seamed drawn out a bit.

Last word: The old axiom applies, good things comes in small packages. Mr. Beckett has written an ole fashion tale in the vein of Matheson or Asimov that will entertain and force readers to reflect upon the meaning of humanity.

Star Wars Rebels: Vader Sneak Peek

Book Review: Sun of Suns

To be completely honest, it was the cover art that really attracted me to this series. I have not read any other of Karl Schroeder’s novels in the past, so I wasn’t sure to expect. The cover art is misleading though, it shows what looks like cool metal spaceships but in this world only flying wooden ships exist. Beside that minor issue, Mr. Schroeder is able to successfully blend Sci-Fi and Fantasy together in a high adventure that will be sure to please fans of both genres.

The one item you hear most this novel is the world building. I am not sure if that is a good or bad thing. Likely it will depend on your taste. To me the world is secondary to the characters and the plot. Don’t get me wrong, I love cool new types of environment but it should stay in the background. Virga is essentially a three thousand kilometer balloon that floats in space but is filled with air, water, ice and chunks of rock. There is no gravity inside Vigra so spinning rope wheels are used to create centrifugal gravity. The towns are built of wood and would easily fit in a Western novel setting. Most of the larger cities have their own fusion suns to provide heat. Unfortunately, the smaller towns do not and are dependent upon the larger cities for their heat, light, etc.

The novel follows the adventures of Hayden Griffen who is from a smaller town known as Aerie. Aerie attempted to build their fusion sun so that they could separate themselves from a larger nation known as Slipstream. Slipstream found out about the plan and sends an armanda to destroy the almost completed sun. During the attack Hayden’s parents are brutally killed. Now Hayden has sworn revenge on the individual who lead the raid, Admiral Caison Fanning.

Later on, Hayden Griffen falls in with the resistance that are fighting against Slipstream. He becomes a covert agent for the resistance and through luck is taken on a top secret mission lead by Admiral Caison Fanning to save Slipstream from a even bigger foe. The majority of story involves Caison’s band of ships seeking the treasure of a long dead pirate. He is hoping to find one item that will save his city from becoming a smoldering ruins. This leaves Hayden Griffen with a problem, does he kill Admiral Caison and let Slipstream become dust or does he become a hero?

If you take out the Sci-Fi elements then the story could easily fit within the pirate swashbuckling universe of the 1700’s which I suppose is what Mr. Schroeder was aiming at.

What I liked: The novel was just plain fun to read. If you like swashbuckling, pirates, wooden ships of the line going toe to toe then this a novel for you. The world building is also really inventive and different; just don’t think about it too much.

What I didn’t like: But, kinda like the Pirates of Caribbean movies, this was great fun when reading but after about week the novel left no real impression on me. Also, the entire set up of the story rang a bit false. Hayden’s entire back story was built around his thirst for revenge and when his opportunity arises, and they are numerous, Hayden questions it and continually decides against going through with it.

Last word: Karl Schroeder has created a truly unique novel and setting that will please fans across the spectrum but your mileage will vary depending on what type of story you enjoy.

Book Review: Terminator Salvation - From The Ashes

This novel is being billed as “This is the story you must read before the brand-new movie hits theaters!” So, it is a must read for Terminator fans? I guess so. Does it give special insight into the movie? Not sure as I have not seen the movie yet but I will assume that you will be able to enjoy the movie without reading the novel.

In reality this is a self contained story with a beginning, middle and end. There is no real special insight into the Terminator Salvation universe to be gleamed from this novel (I use the term Terminator Salvation universe to mean the time line that is created by the upcoming movie as there are numerous other time lines created by the previous Terminator movies and TV Show). The book is just a fun and light read that will entertain you between other challenging novels.

There are essentially two main plot threads running through this novel that converge in the end with a huge battle against Skynet. The first involves a young John Connor leading his own resistance cell. The generals in the larger resistance army are not willing to fold Connor’s cell into their army unless they can prove they are ready for prime time. So Connor works up a daring plan that will be giant defeat to the terminators and Skynet. I am not sure why the requirements are so stringent to become an official resistance soldiers since most of the human race was killed off, you think that they would need anyone and everyone to help fight.

The second and more interesting story line involves Sergeant Justo Orozco. This thread follows the typical post-apocalyptic theme in which a group of survivors band together to form some assemblance of a civilization. Sergeant Orozco was a US Marine before Judgment Day and after he becomes head of security for a community known as Moldering Lost Ashes. They have fought off gangs in the area and have become somewhat comfortable in their lives until the big dog on the block, Skynet, takes notice and decides to wipe them out. Kyle Reese and a new character, Star, are also residents of Moldering Lost Ashes but they never really add much to the story except for constantly running from the terminators.

The third act consists of Connor’s cell and Moldering Lost Ashes joining forces to fight against Skynet that is both thrilling and exciting as I suspect that the movie will be.

What I liked: The action sequences are well done. But I generally enjoyed reading about the day to day struggles of Moldering Lost Ashes to become a viable community more than the battle against Skynet. Maybe it is because this ground has been covered numerous times before making the other plot line more interesting.

What I didn’t like: No Summer Glau. I also would have liked more of insight into Skynet and how it operates. But then again, maybe it is better to have a faceless enemy whose only goal to kill all humans.

Last word: Mr. Zahn is no stranger to movie tie-in novels and can generally squeeze the material for all it’s worth. This novel is no exception. Overall, it was a fun read that I found myself picking it up more and more instead of some other serious Sci-Fi novels that I have laying around.

Dead Story #03: New Walking Dead & Toy Story Mashup

RaV Review: Star Wars Rebels - Droids in Distress (S1E01)

Book Review: Heart-Shaped Box

Narrator: Stephen Lang
Audio Length: 11 hours 3 minutes

It was the Richard Bachman situation for me all over again. I had been eying this horror novel for sometime, ever since it won the 2007 Bram Stoker Award for Best First Novel. The other reviews that I read were extremely positive so I picked up a Hardcover copy at a second hand bookstore but could not find the time to read it. Then a couple of weeks ago I was looking for a Audio Book to listen to and saw that Heart-Shaped Box won the 2008 Best Audio Book in the Thriller / Suspense category (yes, I now have both the Hardcover and Audio editions and no, I will never learn). After all this, I decided to read up on the author and discovered that he is the son of one of my favorite authors, Stephen King. So congratulations, you did it to me again.

What I learned was that Joe Hill aka Joseph Hillstrom King changed his name in 1997, because he wanted to thrive based solely on his own merits rather than as the son of his famous father. After achieving a degree of independent success, which includes a Bradbury Fellowship, World Fantasy Award for Best Novella, 3 Bram Stoker Awards, International Horror Guild Award and a British Fantasy Award, Hill came out of the closet and confirmed his identity.

Does Heart-Shaped Box live up to the billing? In most respects it does and it is well worth reading if you enjoy ghost stories. The main character is Judas Coyne and he used to be a heavy metal rock star. Now he lives in his mansion with his girlfriend of the month, Georgia (he calls his girlfriends by the state that they came from instead of their real name). He also collects macabre items so he was the perfect customer for an offer to buy a ghost. He couldn’t really by the ghost per se, but had to buy the dead man’s suit and the ghost would come along with it. There are no returns, no refunds. So Judas pays the $1,000.00 for the suit and it is delivered later in a heart-shaped box.

Of course the ghost is not very nice and starts tormenting Judas and Georgia. The first half of the novel was slow as the majority of the action takes place inside Judas’s mansion. Most of the action between the ghost and the main characters is pretty standard stuff found in numerous horror flicks. Eventually, Judas discovers that the ghost was not sent to him on a random chance but there is an actual purpose behind the haunting. By this point, it is a pretty average horror novel.

Judas and Georgia decide to take road trip to find the original owner of the ghost and to make it go away. In my opinion, the novel exponentially picks up from this point forward and becomes a much stronger novel than the first half. Judas and Georgia backgrounds are further developed and the characters become much more interesting. As you start to identify with Judas then you really start to hope that nothing bad happens to him. This is exact opposite from the first half of the book it which I really didn’t care if he lived or died.

Narration: The narration by Stephen Lang fits this story perfectly except for Judas’s speaking parts. Mr. Lang’s voice has a southern gothic quality that gives the story added spookiness. When Judas and Georgia travel to the southern states you have added realism to the story. My only problem was Judas. Even though he grew in the south, the novel states that he worked hard to get rid of accent and had spent most of his life as a rock star. To me, he wouldn’t have sounded like a good ole boy. But the strengths of Mr. Lang’s narration far outweigh the negatives. The Audio presentation is deserving of it’s award for 2008 Best Audio Book in the Thriller / Suspense category.

What I liked: Joe Hill spends a lot time on creating atmosphere all through the novel and for the most part it really improves the tone of story. At times his descriptions seem alittle over the top and a bit too frequent but then again, this a debut novel. For example;

“The Denny’s was loud and overcrowded, thick with the smell of bacon fat and burnt coffee and cigarette smoke. The bar, just to the right of door, was a designated smoking area. That meant that after five minutes of waiting up front to be seated, you could plan on smelling like an ashtray by the time you were led to your table.”

Pretty sounds like every Denny’s that I have been to. And another example;

“These woods, behind the Days Inn, were different from the forest around his farmhouse in Piecliff, New York. They were unmistakably southern woods, smelled of sweet rot and wet moss and red clay, of sulfur and sewage, orchids and motor oil. The atmosphere itself was different, the air denser, warmer, sticky with dampness. Like an armpit.”

Good description but in my opinion somewhat over the top.

What I didn’t like: As I stated previously, I was not entertained by the first half of the story during the cat and mouse game between the ghost and our heroes. But the second half of the novel more than makes up for it and I will be anxiously looking forward to Mr. Hill’s next novel.

Last word: Joe Hill tended to wander aimlessly during the first half of the book but once he found his direction the novel is at it’s best and made it an overall enjoyable read

Book Review: Steal Across the Sky

Let me start off by saying that this is an absolute brilliant novel. To me, this novel harkens back to the great Sci-Fi books of the 1970’s and also reminded me of the fun I had reading Robert Charles Wilson’s Spin. By that, I mean this is a concept novel. Ms. Kress develops the big-idea concept, leashes it in on the world and explores the ramifications. Why this novel succeeds above others is that it is also highly entertaining.

This story is set a near future with events taking place in the years 2020 to 2021. An alien race called the Atoners suddenly becomes known by requesting volunteers to become Witnesses. This is accomplished by setting up an untraceable website stating the following:

“We are an alien race you may call the Atoners. Ten thousand years ago we wronged humanity profoundly. We cannot undo what has been done, but we wish humanity to understand it. Therefore we request twenty-one volunteers to visit seven planets to Witness for us. We will convey each volunteer there and back in complete safety. Volunteers must speak English. Send requests for electronic applications to witness@Atoners.com.”

At first everyone thought it was joke. But when the Atoners set up a base on the moon to begin interviewing all potential witnesses, their offer is taken seriously. Millions of people apply for the job but only 21 are chosen. There are seven different planet systems with two planets each, so one Witness will be sent to each planet with one person left behind in space to monitor the two witnesses.

The novel essentially follows one group of Witnesses; Cam, Lucca and Soledad. Lucca and Cam are sent down to planets known a Kular A and Kular B. Soledad remains behind the main spaceship to monitor their progress. The Atoners have lent the explorers technology such as personal shields and a gun to keep them safe from threats. Both Lucca and Cam quickly discover human civilizations that are distinct and diverse from one another. The novel settles in comfortably while the two explore their respective worlds and continue their attempts to discover what there are supposed to witness for the Atoners.

About this point is where Ms. Kress takes a risk in her novel but I think pays off. About half way through the story the Witnesses discover the great crime that was committed by the Atoners against humanity. How the reader will react to this revelation will depend on your personal beliefs though. This discovery is taken back to Earth and exposed to the entire world. People react as people do, some go off the deep end, some don’t care, etc. The scientists look for answers while the Government deals with crisis. What makes this worse is that the Atoners suddenly disappear without explanation.

Ms. Kress is a gifted enough writer to keep the story interesting and moving forward even though she gave up the big reveal half way through the novel. To me, this makes the story more interesting to see how the characters and the world react to a huge life changing event.

What I liked: I am a big, big, big fan of this novel. This is the type of Sci-Fi that I really enjoy. The mystery of the Atoners crime and exploration of Witness to uncover this crime makes for a highly engrossing page turning novel. Like I said, it is a big idea concept novel and one that really deserves to be read.

What I didn’t like: I would have like to seen more debate about the revelation between the main the characters and what it all means. Frank, a witness introduced later in the novel, is highly religious and Lucca, who is believes there is a scientific explanation, could have provided some highly entertaining and thought provoking insight into their respective beliefs.

The ending was a little flat. After the all build up I was expecting more of bang but overall it makes sense within the context of the story. As side note, I can’t believe I didn’t guess the ending. Maybe it was one of those, it is so simple solutions that it made impossible to guess.

Last word: This novel hooked me from the first page to the very last page. The dust jacket notes that it is a Sci-Fi Essential book and for once, they are correct. As a secret a wish, I hope that Ms. Kress is planning a sequel as it would be interesting to come back to this world several hundred years later and find out was the result.

Book Review: Thunderer

Hi, my name is Matt and I am cover junkie. Hi Matt.

When Felix Gilman’s Gears of the City was released I instantly fell in love with the cover art. Yes, I freely admit that I do buy books with cool cover art. When I got home I actually realized that it was a sequel. So back to the store I went to pick up a copy of Thunderer, which, by the way, has cover art I do not like that much.

This was a frustrating read for me. At times, this is brilliant novel and at other times I had to force myself to continue to read it. I can really see flashes of brilliance in Mr. Gilman’s work but he makes you work for it. The strength of this novel is definitely in the world building as it is exceptional. But the story suffers under excessive plotting. The novel is saved by a strong third act that pulls the story together in a very enjoyable way.

The novel essentially follows two characters, Arjun and Jack Silk. In my opinion, Arjun is the more enjoyable of the two. Arjun is on a mission from his home city to locate their lost God, The Voice. He decides to search the vast city of Ararat where there is numerous Gods and it possible that The Voice is hidden somewhere in the city.

Jack Silk is young man forced to work in a warehouse. One day, with arrival of the God known as the Bird, Jack plans his escape. As the giant Bird flys over Ararat it imparts the gift of flight to all who come into it’s range. Jack is able use this partial flight gift to help leap over the building’s defenses and escape. Unbeknownst to Jack some of this abilities become permanent.

The most important character in the novel is the city itself, Ararat. It is called the city that cannot mapped because the Gods are constantly changing the streets, canals, etc at their own whim. The reader explores a very small portion of the city but what a wondrous place it is. Other portions are mentioned but I like that Mr. Gilman had the restraint from describing every portion of the city and will this leave to other novels. The city is also lousy with Gods. There is the Spider, Canal, Ball, Chain, etc. Gods play a important roll in peoples lives. But the Gods motivations are never clear, which makes life more of a mystery. As I said, the City is the true star of the book.

I haven’t mentioned the name behind the title. The Thuderer is a warship which steals a portion of the Birds flight capability and can attack any in the city unmolested. Believe or not, the ship only plays a minor role in the story.

What I liked: The world building is incredible and the real strength of this novel. Mr. Gilman makes a good a choice in having a non-native, Arjun, explore the city. So, as he explores, you explore.
What I didn’t like: I really did not like the character Jack Silk. His story takes up about 30% of the novel and I found myself reading fast to get back to Arjun and his adventures.

Last word: This novel was a struggle for me but in the end I am glad I stuck it out. I will be reading Felix Gilman’s follow up novel, Gears of the City (you know, the one with the cool cover). This novel will not appeal to everyone as the slow plotting will aggravate some readers, but if you can stick it out until the third act then you will be rewarded with a great story.

RaV Reviews Star Wars Rebels - Spark of Rebellion (TV Movie)

Book Review: The Warded Man

I cannot even begin to put into words how much I loved this novel. It is a simple idea but complex in it’s tones. This is the type of book breathes air into the fantasy genre and puts the joy back into reading. Nothing is better than stumbling across novel with no expectations and by the end of the story; it has become a beloved novel that only comes around every so often. I can say with fair certainty that Mr. Brett will be hating life in the next few years with fans that will be constantly pestering him about when his next book in the series will be released.

The Warded Man’s world is one of fear and cowardice. Thousands of years ago the humans defeated the demons and drove them into near extinction. Humans fought on equal terms with various types of magical Wards. Before all the demons could be wiped out they suddenly disappeared. The humans declared victory and eventually began to fight among themselves. Approximately 300 years from the start of the novel the demons reemerged with a vengeance. Most of the wards, especially the killing wards are lost to history and the humans are only left with defensive wards. Now they are forced into shelters at night to hide behind wards that are painted on the buildings. At times the wards fail and people die. Needless to say, the demons rule the night and the people live in fear.

The novel alternates between our three heroes, Arlen, Leesha and Rojer. Each background is fully explored with Arlen taking center stage through most of the novel. Arlen is involved in tragic event that leads to the death of his mother. Arlen blames his father for being a coward in fearing the demons and this fear lead to his mother’s death. He vows to find a way a stand against the demons. His adventures allow you to explore the world of The Warded Man and interact with different cultures.

Leesha’s tale is the most fascinating of three. This is a world where women are treated as second class citizens so she is forced to make a stand against the norms of society as much against the deadly demons. During her tale, you are introduced to one of my favorite characters, Bruna. Bruna is a very, very, old Herb Gatherer (medicine women) that is gruff and says what she means with consequences be damned. Eventually, through a difficult situation, (not caused by a demon but something worse, a man) Leesha becomes Bruna’s apprentice. Of the three, Leesha is my favorite because I like her quick wit and her force of will.

Rojer is least explored of the three. His tale is lightly touched upon in the beginning and becomes more prevalent as the novel enters the last act. Rojer’s parents are killed by demons and he is literally adopted by Arrick. Arrick is Jongleur (fool, clown) that takes Rojer under his wing due to his guilt about his actions on the night that Rojer’s parents are killed. Eventually, Rojer learns he has hidden magic talents that can combat the demons.

I can see why Del Rey is excited out this novel. I was totally absorbed from page 1 until the very end. I suffered a few a tough days at work for the lack of sleep. It drew me in the same way as did Patrick Rothfuss’ The Name of Wind. So if you enjoyed Rothfuss’ novel then this novel is right down your alley. As you can tell, I cannot recommend this novel highly enough and will not be surprised to see it on the 2009 Hugo shortlist.

What I liked: To be a top flight fantasy novel the characters must click with the reader. Mr. Brett does a great job at balancing the three main characters and in developing their own unique personalities. This is one the few times I can remember not being let down when the story switches to another character. Usually, in a novel involving multiple character arcs there is always one or two you don’t care for and eagerly await the chapter to end. Not is the book, you welcome each chapter as you would spending time catching up with an old friend.

What I didn’t like: There are 3 things that bothered me about this novel. First, the British dust jacket cover is far superior to the American version (see picture to the right). I do like the American title better, The Warded Man, versus the British version, The Painted Man, though.

Number two; there are significant gaps in the each of the characters lives. I understand that the novel cannot be 2000 pages long but I would have liked to find out more how they got from point A to B, plus it is a little jarring when you suddenly find out that their lives have advanced several years from when you last left them. Maybe this product of being so engrossed with the story that I didn’t want to miss a thing.

Lastly, there is a scene that involves the well worn plot device of a female being raped. I really wish authors would develop another plot device with their female leads. I understand why Mr. Brett included it, but he is a better writer than this and could work out a different solution to make the point.

Last word: The best damn novel ever written on a Smartphone*. It is destined to become a classic with a legion of fans.

* Peter Brett related that he wrote the majority of this novel on a Smartphone during his morning and evening commutes. Flippin’ amazing.

Book Review: A Winter Haunting

It is that time of year again when I like to sit down and read a few scary books.  Nothing is better when the weather turns cold than curling up with book that spooks you and makes the odd noises in your house more ominous.  So I went through my through To Read Pile selecting five or six books that hopefully fill the bill.  First up is Dan Simmons’ A Winter Haunting.  This is a novel I have been meaning to read for some time but have never got around to it.  I did not realize that it was sequel to earlier novel, Summer of Night.  The other reviews indicate it was helpful to read the other novel, but not necessary.    

A Winter Haunting is the tale of Professor Dale Stewart and his descent into madness.  Dale has had a bad run of it for the last several years.  He cheated on his wife with a graduate student causing his wife and his two girls to leave him.  Then the graduate student left him to pursue her studies at Princeton.  He began to suffer from depression and unable to sleep at night.  He cannot even commit suicide properly.  Dale had the shotgun in his mouth, pulled the trigger but the shell did not fire.  It seems things are not going well at all for Professor Stewart.  But then again most of these problems are of his making.

So Dale decides that he needs a change of scenery to get his head straight and finish the novel he is working on.  He decides to move to his boyhood town of Elm Haven, IL.  This is a great idea as his novel is about his summer of 1960 and the adventures that he and his shared.  Unfortunately, Dale has a hard time remembering certain horrific details about that summer, especially how his friend Duane McBride was killed.  It is my understanding that this was the story Dan Simmons’ Summer of Night which was a cross of The Body aka Stand by Me and It.  So, is it necessary to read the first novel to follow the events in this book?  My answer would be yes as there are events in the novel that made no sense and was hopefully covered in Summer of Night. 

The question is, was this book filled with tension and did creep me out?  For the most part the answer is no.  The first three-quarters of the story plods along with portions of the story alternating between his exploits in Elm Haven and the details of his extra-martial affair.  This would be fine if the character was in any way interesting.  Stephen King is the masters of building up his characters to a point were you care about them and making you squirm for the rest of the novel while he messes with them.  In this respect Dan Simmons falls short. 

There are some real creepy events in the last 100 pages that really started to make the novel interesting.  Some of them are bit contrived but work in the context of the novel.  At the conclusion Mr. Simmons takes a left turn back into reality and in my opinion spoils the ending.  I would have liked for him to push his story to the next level instead of taking the safe route. 

In Essence, there is a long build up to an exciting conclusion but instead of allowing certain forces to unleashed Mr. Simmons takes the least interesting way out of his novel.  It would be as if Stanley Kubrick changed the ending of his superb movie The Shining to have a bunch of thugs burn down the hotel allowing the Torrances to escape.  All of the moody tension and horror built up during the movie would have gone for not.

Beware of the Red Shirts

Book Review: A Madness of Angels

A Madness of Angels is written by Kate Griffin which is a pen name for Catherine Webb, a successful Young Adult author.  This is her first adult fantasy novel and the first in series.  I really, really, really wanted to like this book but had an extremely hard time finishing it.  I almost gave up about half-way through but was able to find the strength to make it to the end.

Essentially, this is a tale of revenge.  Matthew Swift, our anti-hero, was taken in by the talented magician Robert Bakker when he was very young.  Mr. Bakker tutored young master Swift into his adolescence in the secrets of magic.  Eventually, Mr. Bakker begins to suffer from the typical aliments that happen when you age and he is not ready to pass quietly in the night.  Mr. Bakker formulates a nefarious plan to extend his life.  You see, Matthew has very special talent as he is of the few that can hear the Blue Angels inside the phone lines.  Mr. Bakker is aware of this talent and demands that Matthew draw out the Blue Angels so that he can use them to his benefit.  Matthew is unwilling to obey with his request.  No one ever refuses a request from Mr. Bakker and in response he sends a dark magical creature to kill Matthew.  As expected, things do not go well for Matthew and as he lies dying, he picks up the phone and suddenly disappears. 

Fast forward two years, Matthew Swift suddenly returns to the world of the living and he is pissed.  He also brought another entity back with him that is extremely powerful and dangerous.  The only problem is that over the same two years Robert Bakker has built an empire called the Tower.  He has surrounded himself with powerful magicians and an army.  Bakker has become the godfather of the magical universe.  As with any empire, there are enemies and Matthew must find some way to form alliance with these dissidents in order to help him get his revenge.

The essence of a solid urban fantasy story exists inside this novel but it takes way too long to get things moving.  There are some really fresh and creative ideas that Ms. Griffin develops in her book.  She explores several other magical communities, such as the Beggars, the Whites, the Bikers and the anti-magic group called the Cult.  All these groups exist inside the confines of London.  Ms. Griffin does a good job of building a believable magical world. 

For me, the real problem has to do with the writing style.  Ms. Griffin tends to over write almost every aspect of this novel.  Too much time is spent describing every sight, smell and sound of each and every part of London.  After awhile this just becomes tiresome and sucks out any momentum.  At points it became so tedious that I gave consideration of putting it on the shelf of shame (where books go when I cannot take it anymore). 

I’m glad I stuck it out and finished the novel.  There are so many interesting aspects to the story but it is dragged down by a tiring writing style.  I will likely pick up the next book in the series in hopes the prose is crisper and the story is allowed to shine through.

Book Review: The Prefect

The Prefect is fifth book in the Alastair Reynolds’ Revelation Space saga. I am sad to say that I have not read any of the Revelation Space novels and this is my first Alastair Reynolds book. The reason I used this as a starting point is that it predates the events in Revelation Space and is a stand alone novel. In essence, it is a good place to begin and a way to get an introduction into this universe.

The Prefect takes place in a huge space station known as the Glitter Band. It contains thousands of orbital habitats that surround the planet Yellowstone in the Epsilon Eridani system. The Perfects main job is to protect the citizens voting rights and against election fraud. Each band can decide how they want live, no matter how diverse or strange, but they must allow each citizen the right to vote and this right is protected by the Prefects. The Prefects are only allowed to carry whip-hounds which are electronic whips that are used primarily as a defensive weapon. If they want to use offensive weapons then the entire Glitter Band must vote on it .

The majority of story follows Prefect Tom Dreyfus. Prefect Dreyfus is the no nonsense detective who is driven to uncover a nefarious plot that is being waged against the Glitter Band. The story starts off with the destruction of a habitat named Ruskin-Sartorious. At first, the Ultras are blamed. The Ultras are a society that lives outside the Glitter Bland and are people who have melded with technology in very strange and perverse ways. There is constant tension between the Ultras and the Glitter Bland. Prefect Dreyfus uncovers clues that first lead him to believe that Ultras were responsible but as with every good story it is not always as it seems. Because this is a crime story and one clue builds onto another, I hesitate to give away more of the plot as I do not want to spoil it.

What I liked: The ideas explored in this novel are fascinating and at times mind blowing. For example, there is debate running through the novel to decide if an electronic copy of person is actual person or not. The Prefects can bring back dead citizen if there were a surviving digital back up known as beta-level invocations and these back ups can provide testimony as to what happened. There several passages between Prefect Dreyfus and a beta-level Delphine that thoroughly explore this idea and provide some food for thought.

The characters are also the strong point in this novel. Besides Prefect Dreyfus, there are strange and interesting character littered throughout the story. For example, Jane Aumonier, who is the Supreme Prefect, was previously attacked by a villain known as the Clockmaker. The Clockmaker attached a robot to the back of her neck that will not allow her sleep or allow people to come within a certain distance of her without killing her. The Clockmaker also plays an important part in this story much to everyone’s fear.

What I didn’t like: There is entire side story involving Prefect Thalia Ng updating the voting rights software inside several of the Glitter Bands habitats. She gets trapped when everything goes haywire and needs to find a way out. This part of story tends to drag and I found myself reading fast to get back to the main part of the story.

Last word: Alastair Reynolds successfully weaves a complex crime drama and Sci-Fi in thoroughly exciting adventure that also will give you new ideas to chew on. This may have my first Alastair Reynolds novel but it sure won’t be my last.

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