Neth Space

Review: Kultus by Richard Ford

2012-02-06T08:00:00.000-07:00

Kultus by Richard Ford (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound) is the debut of a new secondary-world urban fantasy series with a steampunk setting and an undercurrent of dark magic and demons. I can see how this will appeal to some audiences, but for me there were too many flaws to overcome the potential.

Thaddeus Blaklok is something of an underworld badass. He’s got a nasty reputation and apparently the skills to back it up. His demonic employers have tasked him with acquiring the Key of Lunos – only he’s not the only one looking for it. Blaklok finds himself up against a few demonic cults, the Judicature (police) and various gangs of the underworld as he carves a path of destruction through the dark streets of the Manufactory.

First, let me say that this book has potential, but that potential doesn’t rise up until far too late in the story. The setting is well formed – it’s dark, layered and a fun sort of steampunk. The interaction of demons with humanity and the only barely mentioned church is a great backdrop. And everyone loves an anti-hero.

However, the beginning of the book in particular has a number of flaws. The prose is over-written and interspersed with clumsy info-dumps. The descriptions are evocative, but they go at least one step too far and often end up contradictory as a result.

He closed the window and fastened the latch. Pausing a second more to look out at the vast metropolis, he suddenly caught sight of his image reflected in the glass. Beuphalus had never been a handsome man but he had always prided himself on personal grooming. Alas, the years were beginning to catch up with him and soon no amount of preening and trimming would be able to halt the onset of age. It was in that moment he that he saw his own reflection was not the only one caught in the window. Someone was standing behind him, just visible in the shadows. Someone…or something.

This passage isn’t all that damning on its own, but the cumulative effect of page after page of this sort of writing drags on. And then we come to the primary point of view that we get, that from Blaklok.

There was nothing else for it, he needed advice. First of all he needed to know exactly what he was dealing with. What was this bloody Key and why was it so important? The rest he would figure out as he went. After all, how hard could it be? The Repository’s safeguards might be considered insurmountable by its custodians, but then again they had never tried to stop Thaddeus bleeding Blaklok!

And it goes downhill from there. Yes, Blaklok isn’t a very nice guy. Apparently he’s pretty tough, but the unsupported confidence and pathetic arrogance is just too much. And from there, we get to see Blaklok repeatedly fail, get beat up, captured multiple times, and nearly killed a few times along the way while that arrogance never goes away. Finally toward the very end of the book Blaklok suddenly starts using all of these powerful magical abilities that he hadn’t bothered to use when his life was just as threatened at earlier times in the book. It simply doesn’t fit together.

The depth that you get from the quote above is about as deep as Blaklok gets. That is until the very end, when we get just a few hints that there is actually reason behind his madness and perhaps something even interesting about him. I really don’t have the desire to read about some arrogant asshole without any real motivation. But someone with a conflicted past, someone in it for a greater purpose? Hell, it may be rather cliché, but at least there’s potential. It’s a real shame that this sort of hints didn’t happen until the last few pages of the book.

And finally, there is a distinct lack of female characters. Yes, the head inspector for the Judicature is a woman, but she is literally the only female character I can think of in the whole book. (at least who isn’t a whore). It’s promising that she’s not there as a sexual object or damsel to be rescued, but that doesn’t seem to be enough. I suppose that the world portrayed is a very male-dominated society, but the lack of women certainly doesn’t help the book out.

So, while there is potential, the flaws that plague Kultus outweigh the good. I think this book will probably be enjoyed by some people, but it didn’t work for me. Perhaps if I hear outstandingly good things about any sequels to come I’ll change my mind, but I’d be surprised.

The Day After Groundhog Day

2012-02-03T06:00:00.000-07:00

So, not that any of you have been counting (which is more than just understandable) but this blog was ‘born’ on this day (also a Friday by the way) six years ago. That makes me something of an internet old fart, if not an ancient like a few out there. I find it suitably ironic and appropriate that it was the day after Groundhog Day that this was founded. Certainly I’ve evolved a lot over the years, but at the same time, there is certainly a very repeatable cycle to discussion in blogs that does indeed remind one of a certain Bill Murray movie (and yes, it is indeediSuntory time, though that isn’t the Bill Murray movie I’m referring to).

I’ve had many starts and stops along the way – from regular cover art posts, to rants, to travel posts, to Questions Five interviews, to the SFF Literary Pub Crawl, to something completely different photos, to room with a view photos, to whisky reviews, and of course, lots and lots of book reviews. I’ve gotten much better at reviewing and I’ve had the opportunity to meet and interact with many of my favorite authors (in person and on-line). It’s been a wild ride, and even though my ‘productivity’ has declined over the last year or so, I plan to forge ahead for the foreseeable future. So, thanks for reading, I’ll see you ‘tomorrow’ and now it is Suntory Time.

Cheers! Salud! Na Zdravi! Kampai! Noroc! Sláinte! Or however you prefer…

Books Received: January 18 - February 2

2012-02-02T12:47:00.003-07:00

Books Received: January 18 - February 2, 2012

A Red Country by Joe Abercrombe - Update and Synopsis

2012-02-02T09:48:00.003-07:00

Over the past few years, one of my favorite authors in the SFF world has been Joe Abercrombie. He has a new book coming out, probably this fall, called A Red Country (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound) and he's just given us a bit of synopsis for it.

“Shy South comes home to her farm to find a blackened shell, her brother and sister stolen, and knows she’ll have to go back to bad old ways if she’s ever to see them again. She sets off in pursuit with only her cowardly old step-father Lamb for company. But it turns out he’s hiding a bloody past of his own. None bloodier. Their journey will take them across the lawless plains, to a frontier town gripped by gold fever, through feuds, duels, and massacres, high into unmapped mountains to a reckoning with ancient enemies, and force them into alliance with Nicomo Cosca, infamous soldier of fortune, a man no one should ever have to trust…”

Now, I've really been looking forward to his take on a fantasy western, with a vision of Quentin Terantino meeting Sergio Leon. However, this synopsis has a tidbit that makes me even more excited - Nicomo Cosca. This is probably my favorite Abercrombie character, and IMHO, it was Cosca that saved Best Served Cold (review) from being an unreadabley bleak book.

I can't wait!

Ebooks for Breast Cancer Support

2012-02-01T13:13:00.002-07:00

So, many of you following the news here in the US have seen that the hugely popular Susan G. Komen Foundation has decided that it will stop providing funding for Planned Parenthood and will in effect, end the access of many poor women to breast cancer screening and treatment. I find this deplorable and don’t for a second buy into the idea that this has nothing to do with political motivations of the far-right. But, let’s forget about this.

John Scalzi has a great article that he wrote about it all and has organized a nice opportunity to give back. Buy copies of ebooks by him at Subterranean Press and the proceeds will go to Planned Parenthood to support breast cancer services. Or you can donate directly.

Review: Hammered by Kevin Hearne

2012-01-28T20:12:00.000-07:00

The Iron Druid Chronicles by Kevin Hearne are just about the perfect mindless entertainment – the books are full of a fun humor, they are largely set in Arizona (where I live) and they are short, quick reads. Hammered (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound) is the third book in the series and it picks up after the first two and continues forward with Hearne’s fun and irreverent style.

Atticus, the world’s last Druid, has a promise to keep – he must help a vampire and a werewolf kill the Norse god Thor, who it seems is a grade-a asshole. He knows that there will be consequences to such an action, and several other gods have mentioned as much to him. It’s time to start digging up the roots he grew in Tempe, Arizona and move on. And it’s time to kill another god.

These books aren’t particularly deep, the characterization doesn’t really go beyond Atticus and his dog and if one thinks too hard on everything, the world that Hearne has created would come crumbling down. And that doesn’t matter one bit since the books succeed in what they want to do – provide a fun, exciting adventure in a creative setting with magic, gods and all sorts of mythological creatures. In Hammered Hearne keeps the fun rolling.

One aspect that I was happy about in Hammered is that there seems to be a lot less of the wish-fulfillment we got in the first two as Hearne settles in to tell the story and escalate the terms a bit. That and the fact that Hearne is happy to have Atticus and friends really shake things up.

So, if you’re looking for a fun, creative urban fantasy series that is quick to read and not particularly deep, The Iron Druid Chronicles may be just what you want. The humor is over-the-top and often caters to geek culture and the adventure is high in a world where all the myths and legends seem to be true and all the gods are real, yet the world is remarkably just like our own. A cool character kicks a lot of ass and he has a faithful dog for a sidekick and a sexy young apprentice along (who I really hope will become more involved in the stories to come). And the bonus is it’s all set in Arizona, a setting rather underutilized in the world of urban fantasy. I can’t wait to read more and Tricked (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound) will be published in April, 2012, so I won’t have to wait long.

Review: Moon Over Soho by Ben Aaronovitch

2012-01-27T20:40:00.000-07:00

When reading the follow-up book in new, rather pulp-ish urban fantasy series a reader really is looking for more of the same magical entertainment they found in the first. I’m happy to say that Moon Over Soho by Ben Aaronovitch (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound) does just that in its follow-up to the wildly popular debut in the series, Midnight Riot, aka Rivers of London in the UK (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound). Only, there is more – Aaronovitch lays the groundwork for some potentially interesting complexities moving forward.

Someone, or something, appears to be killing jazz musicians in London. Constable Peter Grant is on the case as he continues his apprenticeship to his senior officer, who is London’s last remaining wizard. Things get complicated, a new romantic interest enters the scene as Peter copes with horrific damage his close friend recovers from. Jazz vampires, vaginal teeth and chimeras all await Peter, who for all his potential as London’s next wizard, is still just a rookie copper.

It’s odd, looking back on Midnight Riot I see that my main complaints really don’t have that much do with Aaronovitch’s writing. There is the whole white-washing cover issue which is still present but has no impact on the story. And there is my complaint of ‘Americanization’ of some of the language. This second issue seems much less prevalent in Moon Over Soho than it did in Midnight Riot, though I did still catch a remark or two about ‘soccer’ (come-on, what self-respecting Londoner would call football, soccer?). Excepting that, Aaronovitch creates the perfect atmosphere of a London that most people never see.

The plot of Moon Over Soho owes a lot to traditional pulp mysteries. I don’t want to spoil anything, so I’ll just say that much is predictable, but it doesn’t really matter since it’s fun and engaging. I find I’m much less interested in the immediate plot on hand than the background. What is the history of Peter’s boss Nightingale? Peter’s own evolution as a wizard. Just how is magic operating in a modern London? And frankly, Peter is just a fun guy to follow and the ‘real’ London that Aaronovitch creates is addicting. Peter isn’t perfect – he’s a rookie that makes mistakes and doesn’t know all that much. And it’s always a relief to have a character who doesn’t miraculously become an expert in everything – even if Peter does have the occasional miraculous leap.

In many ways, the conclusion to Moon Over Soho was both hugely disappointing and quite satisfying. The original mystery on hand is resolved, however other introduced issues are not. More resolution would have been great – but I’m also very intrigued by the possibility of an ‘arch-nemesis’ being introduced. And the future of The Folly is going to get quite interesting.

This is another fun entry in what is fast becoming one of my favorite ongoing urban fantasy series. I may not be able to physically travel to London near as often as I’d like, but at least I get a tour that the tourists don’t when I read about Peter Grant’s London. Thankfully, the wait for the next entry won’t be long because Whispers Under Ground is coming in May, 2012 (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound).

Review: The Whitefire Crossing by Courtney Schafer

2012-01-26T20:54:00.000-07:00

I eavesdropped on a Twitter conversation a couple months ago between a couple of bloggers whose opinions I (generally) respect. The conversation was about the tired old issue of genre and sub-genre definitions and classifications. This is generally a topic I have little taste for as I tend to take a pretty broad definition and am not bothered when things become a bit nuanced for standard definitions. The book at the center of the discussion was The Whitefire Crossing by Courtney Schafer (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound) and the meat of the discussion tended to revolve around whether or not it is epic fantasy. The Whitefire Crossing doesn’t quite fit into a traditional epic fantasy definition, though it shares many of the same tropes – it’s also not really urban fantasy or sword & sorcery. Apparently I wasn’t the only eavesdropper and the author herself eventually entered the discussion by saying that she preferred the term ‘adventure fantasy’. I now understand why the discussion occurred a bit more since reading the book, though I still tend to shy away from whatever classification ‘controversy’ may exist here. In the end, this is a fun book and impressive debut that is hard to pin down (finally, I did get to the point of the long intro).

The Whitefire Crossing tells the story of a young, desperate caravan guide and part-time smuggler (Dev) hired on for the biggest challenge he’s faced – how to smuggle a person (Kiran) past a tightly-guarded border on the other side of the Whitefire Mountains. What Dev doesn’t know is that Kiran is a mage and even more desperate than him. Kiran is wanted by many, including one of the most powerful mages in the world and Dev finds himself trapped in a deadly game, forcing him to choose between the morals he wants to cling to, his own well-being and promises made long ago.

One of the first things that stands out about The Whitefire Crossing is the way in which Schafer chooses to tell the story. The story is told through only two points of view – Dev with a first-person point of view and Kiran with a third-person limited point of view. This allows Schafer to create two very well-rounded characters, complete with flaws, limitations, stupidity, and moments of heroism (these are often moments of stupidity as well). It also allows the reader to share the ignorance of the two main characters, while at least getting a glimpse at the other. I rather liked the approach that at times borders on a ‘he-said, she said’ interplay. A potential negative to this is that the language used is decided ‘modern’ feeling, something that often turns off fantasy readers, though I’ve never been particularly bothered by it.

Another standout aspect of The Whitefire Crossing is that Dev is essentially a rock-climber. Sure, his job is that of guide, but climbing is his passion. It’s no coincidence that Schafer is climber herself, allowing for a fairly accurate view of climbing, though it’s a pretty minor aspect of the book. Since I’ve dabbled with climbing a bit over the years and I spend a lot of time in the mountains, I enjoyed this aspect of the book. And I think it’s worth noting that this places The Whitefire Crossing in the unique position of cornering the market for rock-climbing SFF fans.

The story itself is a pretty standard fair with desperate protagonists who don’t really trust each on the run from powerful enemies. It’s fun and engaging and throws in enough twists to keep things interesting. Schafer shows herself to be a new author with a few pacing issues from time to time, though they are minor and overall The Whitefire Crossing is well-done. The end resolves the issue the main issue, but of course sets the stage for coming books, as this the first book of The Shattered Sigil trilogy. In one respect, there is a bit of a cliff-hanger ending that would almost feel more appropriate in the middle book of the trilogy, which was a nice touch.

There’s a magical city in the desert, near impassible mountain range, backstabbing, mages battling for survival, desperate survivors on the run, rock climbing, and even a hint of romance. So whether you choose to call The Whitefire Crossing epic fantasy, heroic fantasy, adventure fantasy or speculative fiction, it is the debut of a new author talent and new fantasy trilogy that I look forward to seeing more of. Book 2, The Tainted City, is coming later this year and I look forward to reading it.

Whisky Review: BruichLaddich 18

2012-01-20T20:55:00.001-07:00

Single Malt

Style/Region: Islay

Age: 18

Cask Type: French Oak

Alcohol: 46%

Water added: Yes

Nose: Sweet, wonderfully sweet that caries across the room, overtones of honey and brandy. After water was added a distinct raisin nose combined with the slight honey sweetness.

Mouth Feel: Delightfully thick and oily.

Flavor: Complex, smooth and sweet. A raisin-oak flavor takes over., and hint of sweetness that is slowly overtaken by a light smooth peat smoke.

Finish: The smooth sweetness lingers a bit before slowly fading away. Very nice.

Overall Impressions: This is a very nice, sweet scotch that should be friendly to beginners, yet wonderfully complex for the snob. It was Mark C. Newton who got me to expand my blog into whisky and he blogs often of the wonderful scotch being put out by BruichLaddich. I now know why. While it is technically an Islay Scotch, this 18-year has more in common with the best of Highland. There is no peat to speak of. And that’s not a bad thing, not at all. The obvious influence of the French Oak cask and the sweet wine it aged makes this somewhat experimental (or progressive if you like), and a trip to the website shows that BruichLaddich has a lot of variety to offer. This is a bit pricey and many of the most interesting offers are tough to come by here in the States, but I’ll certainly be looking. It’s nice to have smooth, yet complex dram that is just as appropriate for the warm, sunny summer day as it is for the dreary, wet cold of winter.

Books Received: Nov. 30 - January 17

2012-01-17T15:48:00.003-07:00

It's been a while since I've posted one of these, so here the some books I've received lately. Hopefully I'll get another review written after this big deadline at work passes. No promises.

Books Received: November 30, 2011 - January 17, 2012

Review: Blackdog by K.V. Johansen

2012-01-13T10:57:00.000-07:00

It’s not often that I choose to read a book based only on a comparison with another, but that was the case for Blackdog by K.V. Johansen (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound). I saw several reviews and they all mention Blackdog as a favorable comparison to The Malazan Book of the Fallen series by Steven Erikson. I can see where the comparison comes from – gods and demons that actively interact with humanity and have flaws all their own that mirror and even magnify those of humanity. However, excepting that rather trivial comparison, I did not find Blackdog to be really comparable with Malazan. It took me a bit to get over that – after all, I’m a big fan of Erikson and Malazan, however it is unfair to Blackdog, a work that has a much more mythic feel than the stark realism of Malazan, to judge only on the (failed) comparison. The feel of the world of Blackdog is more lyrical and poetic, lending it the feel of myth and legend, all the while maintaining something of a modern-seeming realism at its surface. And Blackdog is essentially a stand-alone (though a sequel is in the works, I don’t think it’s intended as a traditional series) while Malazan is epic that spans 10+ books and has enormous depth that Blackdog simply does not.

In the world of Blackdog humanity is as divided by which god they follow as they are by race, clan and nation. Essentially the entire land is filled with gods – gods of rivers, springs, lakes, hills, plains, that big rock over there, etc. Some of the gods are rather powerful with large followings, others are weak and out of touch with the world. Some are harsh, some are benevolent, some are peaceful, some are warlike, and some are completely insane. There are demons as well, though they play a lesser role than gods, and there are devils – god-like entities that are often more powerful than gods and were imprisoned away from the world after a big war in antiquity that nearly destroyed the world. Those devils are gaining their freedom and the gods are scared.

The Goddess Attalissa of the lake is continually reborn into a mortal form. She is surrounded by worshippers and protected by the Blackdog – a powerful creature that is both man and beast. A mysterious wizard appears that is more powerful than the goddess and the Blackdog who usurps her lands and temple and forces the goddess and Blackdog to flee. The goddess, only a girl, is raised on caravan route under the watchful eye of the Blackdog as she grows into her power and plots her return. Meanwhile, the mysterious duo of Moth and Mikki hunts the wizard for their own purposes.

Blackdog invokes a feeling of a time long past, a hard time, but also a simpler time. The mountain folk keep to themselves and deal sparing with traders who travel from spring to spring along the caravan route between the harsh worlds of the high mountains and the inhospitable deserts. There are great nomads of grasslands, people of the northern forests and those of distant lands not described. The world feels both small and large. Blackdog is really a near-perfect example of worldbuilding – the setting is familiar yet not the carbon-copy medieval England so common in fantasy. The history is deep, but not dwelled upon. The world is vast, yet we only see a relatively small portion of it. The people and cultures feel real, unique and cleverly worked from cultures long past. I suppose this is what you would expect considering Johansen with scholarly roots in medieval studies.

The story itself is pretty good, though I think it bogs down a bit in the middle. Blackdog isn’t a short book at 546 pages and it could have benefited from a smaller page count. However the end was both the best part and one of the more disappointing. Simply put, the payoff is great and the way the pieces were placed throughout the novel and came together for the finale was spectacular. Relatively few endings of books feel so satisfying. However, some of the events seemingly came out of nowhere. The proper set up, particularly with Moth is lacking and leads to confusion. The ending of Blackdog could have stood out among the best in fantasy today, instead it was just flawed enough to hold it back.

Another issue with Blackdog is the characterization. I found many of the main characters difficult to become invested in. They were likeable enough, just not engaging to the point that I was rooting for them to win. This made the book far too easy to set aside for other things. Hopefully Johansen can get a bit better at this since I think this world has a lot of potential.

Blackdog is a relatively strong debut into adult fantasy fiction by author Johansen. However, it is overly long and at times a bit confusing. I loved the atmosphere and mythic quality to the writing and the worldbuilding very well done. The end was strong, if flawed, and the characters just not as engaging as they should have (until the end, which one of reasons the end of the book was so relatively strong). Blackdog stands alone, though at least one sequel is planned, and I’m looking forward to see where Johansen takes us next.

Scott Lynch: The Republic of Thieves Release Update

2012-01-13T09:14:00.000-07:00

I usually don't post updates or release info around here, but for books I'm anxiously awaiting, I'm happy to. And Scott Lynch is wildly popular with many who read this blog. And we have all been waiting patiently (or not) for the next book in his Gentlemen Bastards series, The Republic of Thieves (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound). And Gollancz (his primary publisher) has just given us an update.

Well, the months have rolled around faster than anyone could quite credit and we find ourselves in 2012 and still without that final confirmed delivery of the completed draft of Scott Lynch’s The Republic of Thieves. Sadly those who expressed their doubts have been proved right and we’re now forced to move the likely date for Scott’s publication into the Autumn of this year.

Scott is still facing up to his issues and we’re still having to face up to the wait for his book. I know which I’d rather be dealing with.

So, we send our apologies to you and our very best wishes to Scott. Thank you, on his behalf, for bearing with us. And in the meantime, of course, (and to take some of the pressure of Scott) there are plenty of other wonderful books to be reading until The Republic of Thieves does make its appearance.

So, it's not good news, but I'm not going to be critical. Scott has been heroically public with his battle with crippling depression. The battle goes on and I wish him luck. Get healthy - then get us the book if you can.

In the mean time, I can recommend some books for those looking....

2011 in Review

2012-01-04T11:22:00.001-07:00

2011 was another busy year here at Neth Space. The real world has kept me from reading as much as I’d like – but that’s nothing new, just a bit extreme as I adjust to life with 2 kids (one of which has a bit of a medical condition that takes up quite a bit of time and stress). I only managed to read 23 books in 2011, a disappointment, but I still count it as a victory. A few interesting stats are summed up below.

Stats:

23 books read
21 Published in 2011
2 Published in 2010
None were marketed as YA (down from 1 in 2010)
18 are part of a series
22 were provided by the publisher
I read more books published by Random House (6) and its various imprints than any other – 4 from Del Rey, 1 from Spectra, and 1 from Doubleday (I suppose you could bounce it up to a total with 7 if you count 1 book from Transworld on the other side of the pond). The next closest was Orbit with 5.
4 books were published by ‘small press’ (up from 3 last year)
1 was an anthology (down from 2 last year)
4 are written at least in part by female authors (down from 8 last year) and 1 was written by a person of color or other distinct ethnicity from my own (down from 4 last year) (possibly more since this is a difficult thing to keep track of)
3are what I consider science fiction (down from 6 in 2010)
8 are what I consider epic fantasy (down from 10)
Only 1 is what I consider steampunk (same)
6 are what I consider urban fantasy (down from 8)
2 are what I consider sword and sorcery (down from 4)
Only is what I consider alternative history/historical fantasy (same)
I conducted 2 interviews and helped out with a couple of others
There have been approximately 54,000 site visits this year (not counting RSS) from 131 countries. Roughly 45% from the USA, 14% from the UK, and 9% from Canada.
The Westeros Forums and Pat’s Fantasy Hotlist are the top referring sites (other than Google).
My review for the Malazan Book of the Fallen series by Steven Erikson the most popular post, followed by my review of The Crippled God by Steven Erikson. So, this year was clearly Steven Erikson’s year on Neth Space. Third place goes to my review of The First Law Trilogy by Joe Abercrombie – a series that has been out for a while now and a review that is several years old (this was 4^th place last year). This tells me that Joe has a strong staying power (or that my Google-fu for that post is particularly good). I was pretty surprised that my interview with Brandon Sanderson comes in 5^th (I expected it would the most popular post this year).

So, the best books I read this year are listed below. With only 23 total books read this year, I’ve limited it to the few that managed to stand out.

The Heroes by Joe Abercrombie (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound)

Joe just keeps getting better and better. And this one really is his best one to date. (review)

The Crippled God by Steven Erikson (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound)

An outstanding conclusion to his epic 10-book series. I’m a huge fanboy for this series, which I consider the best completed fantasy series in long time, possibly ever. (review)

The Sacred Band by David Anthony Durham (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound)

Another great conclusion to a series. This one is often overlooked and it shouldn’t be. (review)

Honorable Mentions

Of course there are quite a few very good books that didn’t quite crack the uppermost tie – the 2 below just missed the cut. But really, I only read 2 or 3 books that I wouldn’t recommend for one reason or another.

The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss (review)

The Dragon’s Path by Daniel Abraham (review)

And for kicks – the worst book I read in 2011

The Dark Griffin by K.J. Taylor (review)

This one tries but couldn’t ever be more than terribly cliché.

And the most disappointing book I read in 2011

The White-Luck Warrior by R. Scott Bakker (review)

I wanted to like this one – this was one of the books I was looking forward to most in 2011. But it simply didn’t work for me. After the great start to this new series with The Judging Eye (review) I was very disappointed.

Whisky Review: The Peat Monster by Compass Box Whisky Company

2012-01-03T20:44:00.000-07:00

Blend

Non-chill Filtered

Style/Region: Blend of Islay and Speyside

Age: Unspecified

Cask Type: American Oak

Alcohol: 46%

Water added: Yes

Nose: Heavy peat smoke with hints of brine. After water was added a briney oak with a hint of sweetness overtakes the peat smoke.

Mouth Feel: Delightfully thick and oily.

Flavor: Complex with a peppery oak, and hint of sweetness that is slowly overtaken by a light smooth peat smoke.

Finish: Smooth smoke and peat that lingers.

Overall Impressions: I don’t normally drink blends – I prefer the variety of a good single-malt. However, I have learned over the years that being snobby about blends is a huge mistake – If I were to attempt to make a list of the best Scotch Whisky I’ve ever had, a blend would either be at the top or near it. The Peat Monster is a product of the Compass Box Whisky Company and is part of their Signature Range series of whiskies that highlight the character of Scotch Whisky. The title says it all – this one is about peat. And it’s a good one. In fact, read my impressions of this and then read my impressions of Ardbeg Uigeadail. They are nearly identical. Now, I’m not saying that this is as good as Ardbeg, but it’s close – way closer than I would have imagined. It’s complex – the smoky peat flavor is the star, but subtle sweetness rounds this out. The blend features Islay single malts from the village of Port Askaig, an Islay south shore malt, a smoky malt from the Isle of Mull and a medium-peated Speyside malt.

So, learn the lesson – single malts are great, but don’t disdain the blends. I will happily be sampling the other Signature Ranges offered by Compass Box.

Review: Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey

2011-12-30T10:36:00.000-07:00

Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound) is a pulp-ish space opera occurring just prior to humanity’s expansion beyond our solar system and any contact with extraterrestrial life. Earth and Mars are the big military powers while settlers in the asteroid belt and beyond (known as belters) are a sort of second-class of humanity with revolutionary aspirations. War breaks out as harried captain of a diminished cargo crew (Holden) and a down-on-his luck detective from the asteroid Ceres (Miller) find themselves at the center of something bigger than the escalating war around them.

James S.A. Corey is the pen name for the writing duo of Ty Franck and Daniel Abraham – with Abraham being a something of a darling for on-line critics and reviewers with a wide variety of works on the market and Ty Franck best known as George RR Martin’s assistant. With that, Leviathan Wakes has been widely reviewed with relatively high praise. I’m not quite as high on it as others, though it is certainly a good, fun read that combines classic space opera with a more modern sensibility (if vomit zombies are sensible that is J).

Leviathan Wakes is not hard SF, but it does feel for the most part like a reasonable possibility. Humanity and its flaws don’t change, they just change location. However the feel of the society at times rubbed me the wrong way – it feels like things are now. I find it hard to believe that society would seem so similar, in spite of few things clearly inserted to try and make things feel advanced – such as the family of Holden, which is a family of multiple ‘parents’ living together in a sort of communal setting and raising a single child (this is also pretty much the only family structure mentioned in the book).

Of course the most topical aspect of the book that you’ll either love or hate are the zombies. Yes, there are indeed space zombies in Leviathan Wakes – or as the they say in the book, vomit zombies. It’s not a cheesy as I make it sound and it’s actually rather interesting, however for some insane reason I couldn’t help but think of ‘space herpes’ from the 1980s SF movie, The Ice Pirates – which really has no resemblance, but that’s how my mind rolls. But there is quite a memorable scene as Holden and Miller flee from legions of vomit zombies while suffering the effects of acute radiation poisoning.

In my opinion what is more interesting and much more successful are the political and personal interplay between various characters and factions. The trust, lack of trust, bad judgment, idealism, obsessive devotion and conflicted loyalty show the flawed human spirit in action.

In short, Leviathan Wakes is a fun new space opera and the opening book in a series called The Expanse and yet another example that SF is not dead, nor will it be anytime soon. As with many others, I’m eagerly awaiting the publication of Caliban’s War, due out in June, 2012 (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound).

Something Completely Different + update

2011-12-27T10:06:00.004-07:00

I hope all have had and are having a wonderful holiday break (or at least not a terrible one). It's been quite around here for the usual reasons - family, work, etc. It'll continue to be quite since I've got a fair amount of travel coming and a huge deadline at work, though I do hope to get a few things tied up around here before the year ends. I still owe reviews for Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound) and Blackdog by K.V. Johansen (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound). Leviathan Wakes will probably be a mini-review since it's seen so much coverage and I'm a couple months late on it anyway. I also should get up the standard 'Year of ...' post in the next couple of weeks. Anyway, even though I'm quite busy I do hope to get to a more regular blogging schedule over the next month or so.

And now for something completely different....

The week prior to Christmas I was in Cedar City, Utah doing some work on a big landslide that has shut down a state highway for several months. This photo is a nice view we had on a very cold afternoon - note that trees on landslides often aren't exactly vertical.

Cedar Canyon, Utah

The Hive Mind Recommended Me Some Books for a Christmas Gift

2011-12-06T13:30:00.001-07:00

Last week I asked of the hive mind of my Twitter followers for a book recommendation - not for myself, but for my cousin for her Christmas gift (technically I suppose she's my second cousin). She is an 11-year old girl who is an avid reader, particularly of fantasy. She even has a review blog (not linked because I don't want gift to be spoiled :) ). So, obviously the usual suspects won't do so well. And I imagine she's a bit under-read on the older books since she gets lots of books from her aunt who was a long-time manager at an indie bookstore.

Anyway, the recommendations that came from Twitter are below. Any other suggestions are welcome in the comments of course.

I've made no decisions yet, but thanks again to all those who provide recs.

Iron Fey Series by Julie Kagawa (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound

Redwall by Brian Jacques (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound)

The Abhorsen Trilogy by Garth Nix (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound)

Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound)

Howl’s Moving Castle by Dianna Wynne Jones (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound)

Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound)

Zahrah the Windseeker by Nnedi Okorafor (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound)

The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound)

Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound)

Dreamdark by Laini Taylor (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound)

The Black Magician Trilogy by Trudi Canavan (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound)

Discworld by Terry Pratchett (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound)

Johannes Cabal the Necromancer by Jonathan L. Howard (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound)

Lightbringer by K.D. McEntire (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound)

Theft of Swords by Michael J. Sullivan (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound)

Helping Those in Need – Genre-Style

2011-12-02T12:31:00.001-07:00

So, it’s that time of year when it’s all about getting stuff for you or others – or essentially spending money. But there are plenty of opportunities to put your money to a more charitable use, and various places around the world of SFF authors and bloggers can help you do just that. So, this post rounds up a few charitable enterprises around the SFF blogosphere. Please consider giving if you are able.

Patrick Rothfuss and Worldbuilders: This has become an annual tradition where Patrick Rothfuss sponsors a campaign to gain donations for Heifer International, an established charity that provides sustainable food for parts of the world that really need it. Last year the campaign raised over $190,000! The bonus – authors, publishers and various others have generously donated hundreds (perhaps even thousands) of items that can be won. Other items can be purchased (with the funds going to the cause) and there are auctions for some really special products/services. It’s a great cause that I happily contribute to every year now.

Pat’s Fantasy Hotlist for Breast Cancer: Pat has done quite a bit over the past few years to raise money for breast cancer, and this year is no different. It’s not quite as glamourous as what Patrick Rothfuss does, but it’s still a great cause.

Terri Windling Benefit: Author/editor Terri Windling has come across some hard times and a lot of her friends and colleagues have teamed up to raise money to help her out. There are lots of books and other stuff that can be bought for the benefit.

Ronald McDonald House for Neth Space: I’ll go ahead and throw this into the mix. Over the last year and a bit I’ve dealt with a number of health challenges with my very young daughter. There have been 2 surgeries and an additional hospital stay in the first year of her life – at a hospital about 150 miles from where we live. As a result, my family and I have been beneficiaries of the Ronald McDonald House of Phoenix, and as a result I plan to become essentially a life-long donor. It’s a great cause, a needed cause and one that has touched me and my family directly. So, please give if you are able to the Ronald McDonald House of Phoenix or your local Ronald McDonald House.

I'm Not Dead Yet...and a Few Books Received

2011-11-28T10:51:00.001-07:00

So, it's been completely quite around here for quite some time. Yes, this is another post saying how busy I am and why I haven't yet written a review for Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey (lot of fun) or the full Acacia Trilogy or something else. As usual it's work and personal life plus the continued health challenges of my daughter that keep things so slow. Complicating matters are my computer dying a couple of weeks ago with me still on a loaner from IT (so, I'm without all my usual files) and the Thanksgiving break (very much needed). So, in the next few weeks I hope to catch up a bit. Keeping track of me on Twitter is recommended for any who would care.

Anyway....patience...patience... Here are a few of the books I've received in the last month or so.

Books Received: November 4 - 29, 2011

Interview: Brandon Sanderson

2011-11-07T14:49:00.000-07:00

In the world of fantasy Brandon Sanderson hardly needs an introduction – simply put, he is one of the most prolific and best selling fantasy authors around. He was already gaining popularity when he agreed to finish the Wheel of Time series for the late Robert Jordan and was propelled into the spotlight. Somehow while writing the final three Wheel of Time books he’s managed to publish The Way of Kings (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound, my review), the first book in a planned 10-book series and his latest, The Alloy of Law (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound), a stand-alone story set in the Mistborn (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound, my review) world several hundred years after the original trilogy. Here is the blurb and a link to some sample chapters available on-line:

Three hundred years after the events of the Mistborn trilogy, Scadrial is now on the verge of modernity, with railroads to supplement the canals, electric lighting in the streets and the homes of the wealthy, and the first steel-framed skyscrapers racing for the clouds.

Kelsier, Vin, Elend, Sazed, Spook, and the rest are now part of history—or religion. Yet even as science and technology are reaching new heights, the old magics of Allomancy and Feruchemy continue to play a role in this reborn world. Out in the frontier lands known as the Roughs, they are crucial tools for the brave men and women attempting to establish order and justice.

One such is Waxillium Ladrian, a rare Twinborn, who can Push on metals with his Allomancy and use Feruchemy to become lighter or heavier at will. After twenty years in the Roughs, Wax has been forced by family tragedy to return to the metropolis of Elendel. Now he must reluctantly put away his guns and assume the duties and dignity incumbent upon the head of a noble house. Or so he thinks, until he learns the hard way that the mansions and elegant tree-lined streets of the city can be even more dangerous than the dusty plains of the Roughs.

And for those interesed in the audio book, here is a nice sample for you to listen to.

Sample Alloy of Law:

A few years ago I had the privilege of meeting Brandon and spending a good bit of time with him while he was touring for The Gathering Storm. He’s a great guy and very easy to talk to. So, it was late one night when I finished reading The Alloy of Law and I was excited, I simply had to talk with someone about it (my review is here). So, I got on the computer – however this was over a month before the official release date, and not many people had read the book and certainly no one was talking publically about it. Naturally, I thought that it’d be awesome to talk with Brandon about it – of course we all know how busy he is wrapping up the Wheel of Time. So, next best thing, I set up an interview with him with the help of his ever-faithful assistant, Peter. I love that a long-lasting blog comes with such privileges. Anyway, the interview below is the result and it’s almost entirely focused on The Alloy of Law. Of course since I didn’t really want to spoil the whole book, we don’t discuss everything that I wanted to, but this should give a nice taste of what The Alloy of Law has to offer. Warning, question 4 contains spoilers for the original Mistborn trilogy (Brandon mentions as much so there is a second warning).

Thanks again to Brandon for taking time out of his busy schedule to answer these questions and thanks again to Peter for making it happen. Enjoy!

Neth Space: The Alloy of Law seems to have literally sprung up from nowhere. So, where did it come from? How has The Alloy of Law impacted your overall plans for events on Scadrial [the planet where the events of Mistborn occur]? Is it part of the original set of trilogies you had mapped out?

Brandon: This may be new information to some readers, but I’ve mentioned several places before that the Mistborn series was pitched to my editor as a sequence of three trilogies. Past, present, and future—epic fantasy, urban fantasy, and science fiction; all with the running thread of the magic system.

Since I just started coming out with the Stormlight Archive, I want to commit myself to that and don’t want to dig into the second Mistborn trilogy for quite a while. Yet I want to prep people for the idea that Mistborn is going to be around for a while, and they are going to be seeing more books. I didn’t want it to just come out of nowhere at them in ten years or whenever I get to it. So I decided to do some interim stories.

One of the things I’d been playing with was the idea of what happened between the epic fantasy and the urban fantasy trilogies. We have some very interesting things happening in the world, where you’ve got a cradle of mankind created (by design) to be very lush, very easy to live in, so a great big city could grow up there relatively quickly; civilization could build itself back up over the course of just a couple of generations. Yet there would be very little motivation to leave that area at first, which I felt would mean that you’d end up with this really great frontier boundary. The dichotomy between the two—the frontier and the quite advanced (all things considered) city in the cradle of humanity—was very interesting to me. So I started playing around with where things would lead.

To worldbuild the urban fantasy trilogy coming up, I need to know everything that happened in the intervening centuries. Some stories popped up in there that I knew would happen, that would be referenced in the second trilogy. So I thought, why don’t I tell some of these stories, to cement them in my mind and to keep the series going.

I started writing The Alloy of Law not really knowing how long it would be—knowing the history and everything that happened, but not knowing how much of it I wanted to do in prose form. Things just clicked as they sometimes do, and I ended up turning it into a novel.

Neth Space: The Alloy of Law has the feel of a Western with just a dash of Steampunk. Did you do a lot research into Westerns to try and figure out how one could fit into your world or was it more of an organic process?

Brandon: I’d say more organic. I honestly don’t look at it as much of a Western. The part that is in a Western setting, the prologue, is actually the last thing I wrote, feeling I needed a better introduction. Originally the story just started in the city.

As I said, I view it as a clash between these two concepts, the city and the frontier. Mistborn as a series has always been city-based, urban. I intend to keep it that way, mostly. The story here as I saw it was of the man who had been living out on the frontier for a long time who comes back and has to integrate into society. Which is another theme of the Mistborn books—just as in the original trilogy Vin had to go from the streets to upper society, I wondered what it would be like to deal with a character who had lived among the two-faced society of city politics and more or less rejected it, who gets pulled back against his will. So I would say it’s less a Western and more a clash between that more simple, rugged lifestyle and the city lifestyle.

Neth Space: Wax is quite the archetype, complete with a side-kick and (potential) love interest. Where did he come from?

Brandon: I don’t generally sit down and say I’m going to write someone who’s this archetype or that archetype. What I wanted for this book, honestly, was just to have fun. I love writing epic, awesome stories; I love stories that are full of deep character conflict and broad world-spanning conflict—but sometimes I just want to back away from that and have fun.

The Wax archetype with the sidekick—the two of them were built from the ground up to be characters who played off one another well to facilitate good banter. Because I like to write good banter. I like to read it, I like to enjoy it. Whether it’s Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, or Holmes and Watson or whatever—I get a kick out of these types of stories. So when I was writing this book, I was really just saying let’s step back for a little while from the kind of stories I was writing with the Way of Kings and the Wheel of Time—which are both (I hope) very awesome, and deep, and complex—and let’s do something that’s just fun.

Neth Space: How has religion and mythology changed in the 300 years since the events of the Mistborn trilogy?

Brandon: I had a bit of a challenge in this book because—and you may want to put a spoiler warning on this interview—at the end of the first Mistborn trilogy, one of the characters became the god of this world. He became a god figure, an almost omnipotent figure. I had planned this from the beginning, but it also offers a challenge, because in this world you have a real deity that is interacting, that is a character—not to say that in our world God doesn’t interact with us, because as you know I am a faithful, religious person. However, I think there is a different interaction going here where the reader has spent time with this person as a character, and now he is a deity figure. So how to deal with this is one of the big challenges in worldbuilding this next several hundred years.

I wanted Sazed to be involved—I didn’t want to just have him vanish and not be part of things. I wanted to acknowledge what happened with him and make it part of the mythology of the story. But at the same time, having one of your characters turn into God runs you right into the trouble of literal deus ex machina, once one of your characters has all of this power. So walking that line was both exciting and also very challenging.

I like to deal with religion in my books. I like to look at all aspects of it, and in this book I wanted to look at what it would be like if someone like Sazed had been put in this position and people started worshipping him—what do you do with that?

Neth Space: For those readers who read Mistborn years ago (or even not at all), what do they need to know before reading The Alloy of Law? Do you think this book is a good introduction to the world of Scadrial?

Brandon: I honestly don’t think you need to remember that much of the original trilogy, or even need to have read it at all, to enjoy this book. Granted, I drop some bombs on you in the epilogue—the epilogue and near ending of this book are deeply tied to the original trilogy, but the actual story of this book other than those after-the-fact bombs is very self-contained. Allomancy and Feruchemy are reintroduced; readers get some quick explanation of that. I think you can pick this up without having to read or reread the whole trilogy.

Neth Space: High Imperial? And where was Hoid?

Brandon: You will have to look. Hoid is in the book, though his name doesn’t appear. But the things happening here during this interim are not of deep interest to Hoid like the things happening in the original trilogy, so he is playing a much smaller role here than he was in the original trilogy.

Also, High Imperial just cracks me up.

Neth Space: My understanding is that The Alloy of Law is intended to be more or less a stand-alone book. However, without giving too much away, it feels like there is a whole lot more of Wax’s story to be told. When’s the sequel coming?

Brandon: I will most likely write a sequel. However, what you’ve got to remember is that I will be writing that future trilogy, the urban fantasy trilogy. The events in this book are of relation to what's happening in the future, so you will find out eventually the answers to the questions this book gives you, even if a sequel to this book never comes. But I more than likely will write more of these books over the next few years. The Stormlight Archive is my main focus following the Wheel of Time; I don’t want to leave people hanging too much where that’s concerned. But between books I will probably write more about these characters.

Neth Space: Since pretty much all fantasy fans are eagerly anticipating one story or another from you, let’s do the obligatory update on your on-going projects. How is A Memory of Light coming? Stormlight Archive 2? The Rithmatist? Alcatraz? Are any other side projects about to unexpectedly see the light of day?

Brandon: As of doing this interview, the last book of the Wheel of Time is nearly done, but boy, that’s a big “nearly.” There’s so much work to do with the last chunk of this book that it’s feeling pretty overwhelming right now. My goal is to have a revised manuscript in to Harriet by January 1st. When it comes out will depend on how long it takes to edit it.

The second Stormlight Archive book is in the planning stages; I should go right into writing that starting January 1st, with it coming out hopefully around a year after that, maybe March 2013. That’s a long wait since The Way of Kings was released, and I hate to make people wait that much, but I plan to write the third book fairly soon thereafter.

Alcatraz is on hold until I decide what to do with the series. I will write one more book in that eventually. The Rithmatist is exciting; it’s fun; but I also don’t want to have too many balls up in the air that people are reading and having to keep track of. So I keep delaying it with Tor, saying we shouldn’t release it until I’m sure I can commit to getting the trilogy done in a reasonable amount of time.

Other than that, I have a few random side projects in the works that should be coming your direction. I always have random side projects in the works, but none of those are ready for announcement yet.

A Challenge From My Wife…Or My Favorite Books

2011-11-07T12:16:00.000-07:00

My wife recently issued me a challenge – she asked ‘what are your favorite 5 or 10 books’. On the surface it doesn’t sound like much of a challenge, but she knows me well enough to know that for me it was quite a challenge.

I’m terrible with lists of this sort – my mind simply doesn’t work in terms of favorites. I immediately said I needed qualifiers for a list like that – her response: ‘I knew you’d say that’. I needed to know what she was after – most entertaining books, books that ‘moved’ me the most, that lingered the longest, etc. – because a list of each of those qualifications could be very different. What about series? I may like a series enough to want to include it on the list, but that could be several books long and full of caveats.

So, I pestered her some more – basically she wanted to know what books I enjoyed the most so she could read them and appreciate more about what I like and get to know me better. After 10 years of marriage, I found this very touching – we’ve always shared books, but it’s generally more like ‘I think you’ll really like this book’. This time it’s all about the books I like.

I also got her to cut out series – she doesn’t have much free time, so she just wants books that can stand alone. Awesome, that cut things down considerably.

So, where did I go from there? It was tough and I thought about it quite a lot. But honestly, once I got into it the list began forming rather easily. Now, it’s a list with lots of variety. And some of these are books that I haven’t read in many years, so if I were to read them today I’m unsure if I’d truly place them on the list. Also, some of the books that I really enjoy are because of the ways they may subvert or build from ideas in hundreds of other books that I’ve read – my wife is not as well read in the SFF world to ‘get it’. However, I decided it didn’t matter and just went with my gut. She will probably learn a lot about me – some of it will bewilder her, some of it will amuse her, some of it will be expected, other parts less so. And now you get to too, if you so choose.

I ended up choosing 8 books. Another day may have been more or less and other books may have made the list with some of these being left off. But here is the list at the moment (in no particular order, so I’ll go alphabetical).

City of Saints and Madmen by Jeff VanderMeer (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound)

Crack’d Pot Trail by Steven Erikson (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound)

Escape from Hell! by Hal Duncan (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound)

Medicine Road by Charles de Lint (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound)

Mythago Wood by Robert Holdstock (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound)

Perdido Street Station by China Miéville (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound)

The Forever War by Joe Haldeman (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound)

Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound)

I thought about giving reasons, but I’m going to keep them to me for now. I’ve linked reviews where available , so you can get an idea (note, some of these reviews are quite old and I would hope that I've improved a bit in my reviewing skills since then). Obviously it’s a very eclectic list – some are probably expected, others are probably not books your familiar with. I’ve ‘enjoyed’ each in some way, though in very different ways. But I’m sure I could find common threads in each if I were so inclined. Anyway, there you have it…as close to an absolute best of list that you’ll ever see from me. Enjoy!

Books Received: September 28 - November 4

2011-11-04T09:50:00.001-07:00

It's been a while since I had a crazy schedule with work, volunteer duties, organizing a conference and then my daughter going to the hospital for a few days (150 miles from where we live). Things are beginning to approach normal (well as normal as normal is anymore), but I'll still be just as busy (if not more) for the foreseeable future.

Books Received: September 28 - November 4, 2011

Review: The Alloy of Law by Brandon Sanderson

2011-11-02T11:45:00.000-07:00

Late one night I finished reading The Alloy of Law by Brandon Sanderson (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound) and reacted in a way that I rarely do – I was excited, very excited. I immediately got out the computer and wanted to talk about it with people. Which proved to be difficult since I had read it over a month before it was released, but the excitement was real and unusually strong.

Waxillium Ladrian (Wax) is a young aristocrat who left the civilization of the big city behind of Elendel to find his way as a lawman in the wild frontiers. After the tragic death of his lover he is called back to the city to take over as the head of a major noble house and suffer the politics of high-society. It doesn’t take long for a string of crimes to hit close to Wax as his role as patriarch and rugged lawman collide.

In many ways Sanderson has become very well known as something of a ‘cool magic system guy’. He first developed this magic system in the Mistborn trilogy (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound, my review) and he takes it to the next level with The Alloy of Law. It’s cool, it’s fun – it’s magic with guns and train robberies. The action keeps coming and coming as genres are mashed together – Fantasy, Western, Mystery, with a dash of a few others.

In The Alloy of Law Sanderson steps things up from previous novels he’s written, speeding up the pace and ratcheting up the action. It’s fun, exciting, utterly addicting and hard to put down. This isn’t supposed to be deep, meaningful fantasy, it isn’t supposed to be gritty and subversive, it’s not even particularly epic – it’s entertainment and it succeeds well within its goals.

The Alloy of Law is enthusiastic and energetic. In comparison to his previous works, think of the best of his fight or battle scenes in Mistborn and The Way of Kings (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound, my review). The Alloy of Law carries that high level of energy throughout most of the book.

Archetypes rule in The Alloy of Law. This is the buddy movie of fantasy thrown in with a hefty dose of Western where the wild-wild west meets up with civilization. Wax is a classic hero and Wayne his faithful sidekick. The Lady Marasi is the equally classic potential love interest. The big, bad enemy is also pretty standard – he knew Wax in the past, he’s a former lawman turned bad for his own sort of idealistic reasons that Wax can almost sympathize with. I suppose you could call it all cliché, call the hero a Gary Stu, etc. However that is the point – the cliché is embraced and the rather predictable story is hugely entertaining. The Alloy of Law succeeds because it doesn’t try to be anything it isn’t.

Of course this is where the problem will lie for many. Classic, archetype fantasy is not what is ‘in’ these days – fantasy is supposed to be hard core, gritty and subversive. Characters aren’t just flawed, they are really messed up, dialogue as rough as the slums, etc. Sanderson is both praised and criticized for his more PG to PG-13 portrayal of fantasy and the dreaded YA label is often thrown about (I’ve ranted before about how that’s a pretty short-sighted view). Sanderson has also come under fire for his dialogue – and I think that the overly witty dialogue of The Alloy of Law will be seen by many as a step backward.

But for me, this is all expected and not (necessarily) a bad thing. Sanderson does it all well and he tells the story in his typical style that has become very recognizable. Basically, I find his prose and style to be essentially negligible. To put it another way, it’s so benign that it fades to the background and the story takes over. I find it a perfect balance for getting sucked into the story and just running with it. The flaws and minor annoyance pass by without impact or notice as I simply enjoy the ride.

I started this review with the excitement I felt after finishing the book, so I should really discuss that a bit more. The Alloy of Law is billed as a stand-alone book in Sanderson’s Mistborn world. This is only somewhat true – for the end of the book throws a wrench into things. There are many questions left unanswered, a few exciting reveals that leave ending literally begging for an eventual sequel. And I really want to read that sequel. Unfortunately Sanderson is quite busy with other projects and any sequel is seemingly far off into the future, but I am hopeful – The Alloy of Law came out of nowhere, surprising Sanderson fans, so I hope that in the near future another surprise will emerge bearing the continuation of Wax’s story.

To sum it all up, The Alloy of Law really comes down to how you feel about Sanderson’s books. If you haven’t been a big fan of his previous books, particularly Mistborn, then this probably isn’t the book for you. However, if you like Sanderson’s books, particularly Mistborn, this will probably turn out to be one of the better books you’ll read this year. And fear not, if you haven’t read Mistborn, The Alloy of Law is fine introduction to Sanderson’s writing. The Alloy of Law is a relatively straight-forward book with lots of action and overly witty dialogue. It isn’t trying to be anything overly deep, gritty or subversive. It succeeds very well within its goals and yes, it's a lot of fun with some really clever use of a cool magic system.

Something Completely Different

2011-10-28T06:00:00.000-07:00

Cholla skeleton, SE Arizona

Review: The Edinburgh Dead by Brian Ruckley

2011-10-14T16:21:00.000-07:00

The Edinburgh Dead by Brian Ruckley (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound) is a significant departure from the epic fantasy trilogy that brought Ruckley to the attention of fantasy fans. Set in 1828 Edinburgh, a historic detective tale morphs into something darker and more sinister as Ruckley brings 19^th Century Edinburgh alive in his best work to date.

Adam Quire is a war-hardened veteran and an officer for the newly-formed Edinburgh police. A particularly gruesome death doesn’t add up and Quire’s investigation leads him into puzzling and dangerous ground that points to the pillars of Edinburgh society. And then it gets personal and Quire releases the talent he keeps at bay – a talent for survival and extreme violence.

The Edinburgh Dead is the first book by Ruckley that I’ve read since his debut Winterbirth (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound). I found Winterbirth to be on the mediocre side and haven’t been inspired to finish the trilogy (though I do plan to eventually). In The Edinburgh Dead I immediately noticed that Ruckley’s writing has improved significantly. His descriptions are powerful and set the mood well – early 19^th Century Edinburgh comes alive through his words. We see the intellectual powerhouse that Edinburgh has become – we also see the dark underpinnings that props up that distinction. There is privilege and there is everyone else. Lives are hard and dangerous – and there is the ever present need for more bodies to dissect on the cities medical stages.

The Edinburgh Dead is a true blend of many genres into one coherent and very well told story. It’s historic fiction, it’s a hardboiled mystery bordering on noir, it’s gothic horror, and it’s an urban fantasy supernatural thriller. Often when such cross-over happens, one still dominates or the combination doesn’t quite fit as well as it should – with The Edinburgh Dead it’s seamless – a natural blend.

The real strength of The Edinburgh Dead is the setting and the way in which Ruckley draws the reader into the dark and dangerous streets of Old Town. Edinburgh comes to life through the broken, beaten and resourceful Quire, a sinister life beneath the glamour of enlightenment. The relatively slow and steady pace continually builds towards the end – a perfect balance that resists the urge to rush. The only real fault is that Ruckley at time over-indulges with his descriptions, particularly in the latter half of the book where the mood has already been set.

The Edinburgh Dead is told mostly from the point of view of Quire and his personality dominates the book. This both good and bad – Quire is a powerful personality and vividly reflective of Ruckley’s 19^th Century Edinburgh, however there are a few minor characters who could have been brought out more. If the book had been told entirely from Quire’s point of view, this flaw would have been less noticeable, but increasingly as the novel moves forward we see bits and pieces from other points of view to fill in the blanks of the evolving mystery.

All in all The Edinburgh Dead was refreshing change of pace from Ruckley and a very good historical gothic mystery horror urban supernatural thriller. I hope that Ruckley continues in this direction with more surprises to come.

Something Completely Different + an Update

2011-10-14T06:00:00.000-07:00

I know that anyone who still bothers to read this blog (and thank you for doing so loyal readers) another update on how real content is slow in coming is not what you want to read - but the sad truth is that this is the new normal for me. For the foreseeable future I simply won't have the time to read and write reviews at the same pace as I have in the past. I suspect that it'll be just one or two a month. Once I get closer to an equilibrium I'll hopefully fill in the space with a few more interesting posts, but that's still a work in progress.

I've actually got a draft (that still needs quite a bit of work) review for The Edinburgh Dead by Brian Ruckley (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound), so hopefully that will go up in the next couple of days. I've also got a review of The Alloy of Law by Brandon Sanderson (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound) partially written in my head, though I'll hold back on that one until the end of the month. And I'm hoping for a nice bit of good, high-profile content along the way, but I'll wait a bit before saying any details.

Anyway, on to something completely different - and in honor of my forthcoming review of The Edinburgh Dead I figured this is appropriate.

View of New Town, Edinburgh, Scotland

Winner of The Sacred Band by David Anthony Durham

2011-10-10T20:16:00.000-07:00

With the help of Random.org, I picked a winner for my extra copy of The Other Lands by David Anthony Durham (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound). The winner is:

Zoe from Carterton, UK

Congrats Zoe!

Giveaway: The Sacred Band by David Anthony Durham

2011-09-30T11:01:00.000-07:00

Sometimes when a publisher sends me books they never arrive – and sometimes when a publisher sends me books I get double. Thanks to the latter, I have an extra copy of The Sacred Band by David Anthony Durham (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound). This book finishes up the Acacia Trilogy in great fashion (read my full review) and I highly recommend this largely underrated series (my reviews of book 1 and book 2).

With the first two books in the Acacia Trilogy, Acacia and The Other Lands, David Anthony Durham has created a vast and engrossing canvas of a world in turmoil, where the surviving children of a royal dynasty are on a quest to realize their fates—and perhaps right ancient wrongs once and for all. As The Sacred Band begins, one of them, Queen Corinn, bestrides the world as a result of her mastery of spells found in the ancient Book of Elenet. Her younger brother, Dariel, has been sent on a perilous mission to the Other Lands, while her sister, Mena, travels to the far north to confront an invasion of the feared race of the Auldek. Their separate trajectories will converge in a series of world-shaping, earth-shattering battles, all rendered with vividly imagined detail and in heroic scale.

David Anthony Durham concludes his tale of kingdoms in collision in an exciting fashion. His fictional world is at once realistic and fantastic, informed with an eloquent and distinctively Shakespearean sensibility. (Read Chapter 1)

So, the giveaway is simple. Just send an email to nethspace ‘at’ gmail ‘dot’ com. Remove and replace the ‘at’ and ‘dot’ with the appropriate symbols or use the email link in the sidebar. Use the subject of ‘SACRED’. Include you're name and mailing address. The deadline is Friday, October 7^th. Only one entry please and this is open to all. Good luck!

Books Received: September 17 - 27

2011-09-28T09:00:00.000-07:00

Books Received: September 17 - 27, 2011

A Room With a View, an Update and a Bonus

2011-09-27T15:52:00.003-07:00

Well, I'm back from Alaska and an very fun but very exhausting conference. I did actually see some Alaska, but mostly I was confined to a hotel in Anchorage. The red-eye back almost killed me (it didn't leave until about 2am). I did do some reading, but not much. I finished up The Edinburgh Dead by Brian Ruckley (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound), which I really enjoyed. I'll probably start up The Alloy of Law by Brandon Sanderson (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound) next, though I still haven't decided for sure. So hopefully I'll get some nice content up soon - and stay tuned, I think I've decided to do a giveaway with a book or two that I've received multiple copies of.

So, here is the view from my room in Anchorage, Alaska.

And for a bonus (not really), here is my view from a hotel room in Green Valley, Arizona from a trip just before the Alaska trip.

Books Received: September 2 - 16

2011-09-16T13:16:00.000-07:00

Books Received: September 2 - 16, 2011

PHD the Movie

2011-09-16T09:27:00.001-07:00

I know I pretty well keep this a to book-focused blog, but then it is my blog and I do post about whatever interests me at the time. So, I'm excited that PHD (Piled High & Deeper), the popular webcomic about life graduate school, is going to be a full-length movie starring a few grad students from Caltec. Back when the comic first started I read it every day because I was essentially married to Celia (at least my wife repeated told me that she was Celia). Thankfully she graduated, finished up the post-doc, and has moved on to a non-academic research institution. And since that move I've stopped keeping up with the comic - but it remains a very insightful (and hilarious) view of the trials of graduate school. Anyway, the trailer is below and more info is available here and here.

PHD Movie Trailer from PHD Comics on Vimeo.

Something Completely Different

2011-09-16T06:00:00.000-07:00

Well, on Sunday I leave for Alaska, so don't expect any real content next week (perhaps a room with a view post, but probably not much more than that). So, in honor of my northern excursion...

Sponge, Bonaire, Netherland Antilles

Review: The Sacred Band by David Anthony Durham

2011-09-12T10:39:00.000-07:00

The Sacred Band by David Anthony Durham (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound) is the third and final book of the Acacia Trilogy. Durham’s ambitious trilogy takes the largely conservative genre of epic fantasy in a new direction of rather progressive thought and action and builds things up to a very fitting and satisfying conclusion.

As always with the third book in a series, any sort of description of plot is difficult as it would spoil any events in the earlier books and feel largely out of context to those not familiar with the books. So, I’ll just say that events in the second book are continued forward, destinies are realized, battles fought, mistakes atoned for, and poetic justice found as Durham neatly ends the trilogy.

Ultimately epic fantasy is traditionally a conservative genre, in spite of the recent trends to spice up the genre with grit and subversion. Generally, monarchies or other essentially authoritarian governments rule and even the good guys fight for such institutions. Good and evil is typically laid out in recognizable form (in spite of the shades of gray so often used). But I feel what makes epic fantasy most conservative is that it is typically infused with some form of nostalgia that looks backward in time rather than forward. It’s that nostalgic, backward look that brings the comfort to so many readers that generally seeking an entertaining escape. And I’m not condemning that, as it’s more or less the same goal I have in my own reading.

Durham blends his form of epic fantasy with the nostalgic backward look but infuses the societies of his world with our own world’s current and past issues in a much more realistic and applicable form than seen in typical epic fantasy. Nationalism, racism, drug addiction, slavery, corrupt government, outside interests controlling government affairs, the rich and elite immune to the troubles of the common person, etc. In Durham’s world the Acacia Kingdom (though really it’s more of an empire) rules by addicting its population to drugs to keep it pacified as children are sold into distant slavery. This leads its leaders into various ways of dealing with their guilt – drug addiction of their own, inspired yet unrealistic idealism, or corrupt certainty that they are only doing bad things because it’s what’s best for the people whether they know it or not.

The battles fought contain the full range of human motivation – greed, power, freedom, survival, etc. Yet it’s always clear who the good guys are and leaders actually learn from their mistakes and become better for it. True sacrifices are made. Justice is found. Inspired solutions reached. Peace found with understanding if not forgiveness. The ending is idealistic – the good guys win, though not necessarily survive. Hope for the future is real. Systemic societal problems actually seem to be solved. I think many may complain that the ending is too neat and pretty, too unrealistic. But I think this is the point – Durham wants to show what a progressive message in epic fantasy can look like. Not the conservative, nostalgic end so common and not a cynical response to that conservatism. He presents a truly progressive move forward rather than backward or a simple reestablishment of a status quo. A vision of hope that could translate into our own lives and society, though obviously the series is still limited to ultimately less complicated depictions that don’t show details on how things actually move forward.

Durham’s writing style initially took some getting used to in the first book, but in The Sacred Band seems to flow freely – either his writing has gotten a bit more accessible through time, I have adjusted to his style, or most likely, a bit of both. One strategy Durham employs is to end seemingly every chapter on a bit of a cliffhanger. I find this both frustrating and rewarding. It gets a bit annoying that nearly every chapter ends with a cliffhanger only to move onto a completely different part of the world. However it also keeps the tension high throughout the book and invited me to be even more invested in the book.

Durham walks a very delicate balance with the number of points-of-view he presents. He verges on having too many and loosing the necessary focus of the book. Yet he has enough that a wide variety of events are seen and experienced by the reader. The balance he achieves is probably about as good as one could expect.

All in all, The Sacred Band and the Acacia Trilogy as a whole is a wonderful breath of fresh air. It has all the cool sense of wonder that great fantasy can have – unique and weird animals, dragons (of a sort), magic, mad sorcerers, a corrupt powerful queen, an idealistic prince, a warrior princess, and a dashing brigand. Each deals with their place in realistic ways that serve to transcend the cliché. And the action and setting are just what fantasy fans look for. It’s a really well put together work and a satisfying conclusion to an often underrated trilogy.

Durham’s foray into fantasy ends successfully. And it leaves me craving for more. Durham has said that for now he wants to move on to the next thing in writing – back to historic fiction and perhaps some more literary fiction. I can only hope he comes back to the SFF world again with another breath of fresh air.

Room With A View - San Diego

2011-09-07T17:17:00.001-07:00

So, I'm in San Diego for a conference. It's a nice hotel right on the waterfront. All the rooms have balconies. I had high expectations of lovely view of the bay and nice balcony to enjoy it from. This is what I have...

I suppose the garden is better than the parking lot it's blocking out, but still - first floor? The lobby is even higher than this. And do you see the manhole? Yep, that's for the sewer. When the air is still I get a lovely odor of sewer gas while sitting on the porch. I guess that's what you get with the relatively cheap conference room rate I have. Oh, and there isn't any decent food nearby for a reasonable price.

Ok, enough complaining. Hopefully some real content soon. I've been reading good stuff lately.

Something Completely Different

2011-09-02T06:00:00.000-07:00

hmmm....no comment...

Hoodoo in Arches National Park

Books Received and an Update

2011-09-01T12:01:00.003-07:00

Update first - actual interesting content will continue to be sparse around here for quite a while. Life has me as busy as ever and with the AZ Diamondbacks in a penant race, my reading time is as short as ever. I'll also be travelling for half the month of September (4 days in San Diego and 9 days in Alaska). So, be patient and I'll see if I can come up with anything of actual interest. Anyway, now to the books received since August 12th.

Books Received: August 13 - September 1, 2011

Tor and NASA in Collaboration

2011-08-23T08:46:00.000-07:00

I generally avoid posting press releases and such on this blog because that just isn't my style or desire. But, I am a scientist who cringes at the state of science education these days and the relative lack of science inspiration in our society today. I'm also married to a PhD planetary geophysicist who does a lot of work for NASA and I imagine that some of my friends and acquaintances from grad school will be directly participating in this collaboration. So in this case, I'm happy to spread the news.

Tor/Forge Books and NASA Jointly Announce Publishing Collaboration NEW YORK, NY (August 23, 2011) – In an effort to educate and encourage math and science education Tor/Forge Books, an imprint of Tom Doherty Associates, LLC, and NASA have embarked on a collaboration to publish a series of science based, commercial fiction books, referred to as "NASA inspired Works of Fiction" around concepts pertinent to the current and future work of NASA. NASA will allow existing and new Tor/Forge authors to team up with NASA Goddard Space Flight Center’s (GSFC) Subject Matter Experts (SME) to create scientifically accurate and entertaining novels in a distinctly unique way.

Tor/Forge and NASA hope that pairing scientists and engineers with the imprints’ award-winning roster of writers will raise awareness and inspire the study of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), in line with the President’s Technology Agenda. They also hope to contribute towards the goal of attracting and retaining students in the above fields, thereby strengthening NASA and the nation's future workforce in a compelling manner.

“When I was a boy, books by Isaac Asimov, Robert Heinlein and their colleagues excited me, inspiring a lifelong fascination with space and the science and technology that would get us there,” said Tom Doherty. “From Fulton and his steamboat, through Alexander Graham Bell and Edison, to Silicon Valley and the advent of the internet, innovative Americans have built a future in which we lead the world.”

GSFC’s Innovative Partnerships Program (IPP) Office will host a select group of Tor/Forge authors – some of whom already write science based fiction – to learn more about science and space exploration. Authors will visit GSFC for a two day workshop in November consisting of presentations, facility tours and one-on-one sessions with SMEs. NASA contributions to the project will also provide access to their data, facilities, and educational design and evaluation experts."Ultimately this agreement will benefit taxpayers as we look for innovative ways to train students for the science challenges of the future," said Nona Cheeks, Chief of GSFC's IPP Office, which is managing the project's implementation.

The enormous popularity of science fiction is a key element in this collaboration to make these NASA inspired Works of Fiction a gateway to reach the general public and to generate awareness of the significant role NASA plays in everyday lives. Many people who work in the fields of science and technology credit science fiction as a significant inspiration for their career choice.

“It is my hope that in working with NASA in the creation of new stories of science and discovery we will inspire the next generation of explorers and inventors, because it all starts with the imagination – with stories and dreams of better things to come,” said Doherty.

For more information about NASA and this project contact Enidia Santiago-Arce at 301.286.8497, Enidia.Santiago-Arce@nasa.gov

Something Completely Different

2011-08-19T06:00:00.000-07:00

Graffiti, Chuska Mountains, New Mexico

Books Received: July 30 to August 12

2011-08-12T15:20:00.001-07:00

Books Received: July 30 - August 12, 2011

Review: The Urban Fantasy Anthology Edited by Peter S. Beagle & Joe R. Lansdale

2011-08-12T14:39:00.000-07:00

The Urban Fantasy Anthology (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound) is edited by two powerhouses in genre and beyond – Peter S. Beagle and Joe R. Lansdale. They have amassed 19 previously published stories, 1 original story and 4 non-fiction essays that attempt to capture what the genre of urban fantasy really is. The result end up being more of a highlight of the identity crisis of urban fantasy rather than a clarification, while providing some interesting and fun reading.

As I discuss the details of the anthology below, I give my thoughts and reactions in the order the material is produced in the anthology. The resulting review ranges from short reviews of individual stories, to reactions to the essays, and ends up being nearly an essay of its own.

Introduction. Beagle writes a good and informative introduction to anthology that I largely find myself agreeing with. He outlines the evolution of urban fantasy from its beginnings, with a general evolution from what this anthology categorizes as mythic fiction to paranormal romance and finally to noir fantasy. Beagle spends a good bit of time discussing Buffy the Vampire Slayer and essentially credits it with the creation of paranormal romance and the shift away from mythic fiction in urban fantasy. A quick look at the original copyright dates for the stories in the anthology reveals how this is an over simplicity – the earliest paranormal romance story was first published in 1989, predating Buffy. The oldest story included is actually from the noir fantasy section (which is presented as the final evolution of urban fantasy in this introduction) and was first published in 1983. This introduction presents a rather simplistic evolution of urban fantasy, the dates alone show that things evolved on their own and at different times, with their popularity ebbing and waning on yet another timescale. Not that I really thing Beagle would disagree with this, it’s just that he oversimplifies things a bit to get his point across.

Mythic Fiction

“A Personal Journey into Mythic Fiction” an introduction to mythic fiction by Charles de Lint (2011). De Lint presents a very personal journey of his becoming a writer and developing his style, which if you’ve read de Lint before is easily recognizable. His reflections quickly reminded of me why this is sort of urban fantasy I tend to enjoy the most.

“…the biggest difference is that mythic fiction has room for a story to be told at a slower pace. The preternatural elements are present, not only for their coolness factor (werewolves and witches and vampires, oh my!), but because fairy tales and mythology tap into a deeper part of the psyche than an adventure story can reach.”

“A Bird that Whistles” by Emma Bull (1989). This story very quickly reminded me of why I love mythic fiction so much. A young musician is taught by a fae, while he just may have taught the fae a thing or two. This is a pleasant and easy to read story with more depth than readily apparent. When it ended I was sad – I really wanted to know more.

“Make a Joyful Noise” by Charles de Lint (2005). While I wouldn’t place this among de Lint’s best work, it was a very pleasant reminder of how much of love his writing. This story of a couple of corvid (crow) immortals amuse themselves by helping out a ghost is at once melancholy and irreverent.

“The Goldfish Pool and Other Stories” by Neil Gaiman (1996). I had a huge sense of déjà vu while reading this story – whether real or not, this is that sort of story.* It’s a story about Hollywood – as much about the past as it is about the current. I love that the editors include this in mythic fiction to highlight a belief that all myths aren’t all ancient. The contemporary world is creating myths all its own and the recent past has as well. It’s really hard to separate the fact from the fiction in a story that Gaiman clearly writes about himself.

*Of course the déjà vu is real since I have read this story before in one of Gaiman’s collections.

“On the Road to New Egypt” by Jeffrey Ford (1995). A driver in New Jersey picks up a hitch-hiking Jesus and the Devil joins them. This irreverent and surreal journey has Jesus and the Devil palling around with both less and more separating them than you may expect. The ride was fun, but the little shit in me couldn’t help but be disappointed that Ford didn’t take it even further.

“Julie’s Unicorn” by Peter S. Beagle (1997). Beagle’s story of a young woman who unintentionally releases a unicorn from an ancient painting is an interesting exploration that ultimately didn’t stick with me very far.

Mythic Fiction. These five stories all look deep into the past in one way or another. They tend to be melancholic yet ultimately hopeful with a strong feeling of retrospect, even when they are set in the now. I think it must be this introspective and backward look that touches me in a deeper and more meaningful way than other stories in this anthology.

Paranormal Romance

“A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Urban Fantasy” an introduction to paranormal romance by Paula Guran (2011). Guran presents a very interesting and rather defense exploration of the origins of paranormal romance while she eschews the term – she prefers the far more awkward urban fantasy/paranormal moniker. Guran seems unhappy with the stories included in this section of the anthology and goes on further to say that this sort of story doesn’t lend itself to short fiction. I disagree. I believe that it’s more likely that the majority of writers in this sub-genre don’t write short fiction. Guran’s essay quickly becomes rather tedious – she rambles, she’s defensive and I have no better understanding on what this sub-genre is. However, Guran does correctly point out that while Buffy certainly played a big role in the popularity of this sort of fiction, it was not the origin of it. The anthology still calls it paranormal romance, but apparently the authors writing it hate the term. There are of course good reasons for this – particularly where there is disparity between how male and female writers are treated when writing essentially the same thing – how many male urban fantasy writers earn the label paranormal romance. It is also noted that there are plenty of examples that do fit firmly into a label of paranormal romance – often more from a traditional romance background. Ultimately, it’s unfortunate that Guran’s essay comes off as a bit too defensive and whiney in places and looses the effect that it could have.

“…all the fiction collected [in this section] has something in common: an intersection of “the other” – the magical, the strange, the weird, the wondrous, the dark that illumines, the revelation of the hidden – with the mundane, the world we know.

Our world is in perpetual need of this otherness. It entertains and, at its best, enlightens. We need both.”

“Companions to the Moon” by Charles de Lint (2007). A young woman begins to question her relationship and suspect her partner of infidelity, but she’s not prepared for the truth. Inclusion of this story in the paranormal romance section is curious – there is a dominant romantic aspect that is probably the reason behind the placement, but the tone and style of de Lint’s writing probably make this a better example of mythic fiction. And as with de Lint’s earlier story, his writing style appeals to me at a very personal level.

“A Haunted House of Her Own” by Kelley Armstrong (2009). A couple purchase their dream home in hopes of converting it into a successful bed and breakfast – and nothing makes for a more successful B&B than a haunting. This is another curious story to place in this section of the book – I felt this was much more of a standard horror story. A pretty darn good horror story.

“She’s My Witch” by Norman Partridge (1995). A passion-filled relationship between two youths, with a pretty standard dominant male (though not abusive) and submissive girl. Only the twist is that he’s dead and she’s the witch who brought him back. In this story we have a much better fit for what this anthology calls paranormal romance – someone who is down, who is overlooked, comes into their own and others come to regret it.

“Kitty’s Zombie New Year” by Carrie Vaughn (2007). A New Year’s party comes to a shocking halt when a zombie shows up at the door. The story itself has much more in common with horror than paranormal romance, though Vaughn’s novels certainly fit the label. I love that the ‘heroic’ actions aren’t exactly traditionally heroic.

“Seeing Eye” by Patricia Briggs (2009). Witches and werewolves falling in love. This is paranormal romance. And a pretty enjoyable story as well.

“Hit” by Bruce McAllister (2008). A hit man is hired by angel to kill a vampire. The price – redemption. Here is yet another example of a misplaced story – this is more of a combination of mythic fiction and noir fantasy than paranormal romance. But, forget the labels, this is one of the best stories in the anthology.

“Boobs” by Suzy McKee Charnas (1989). “Boobs” is the story of a teenage girl’s journey to early womanhood by being the first in her class to grow real breasts and have her period. Then she turns into a werewolf and eats the boy who picks on her. It completely lacks romance but otherwise fits well. While I can’t relate to this story on a personal level, I imagine that many female readers will find this a rather enjoyable read.

“Farewell, My Zombie” by Francesca Lia Block (2009). The general theme of this section of the book is that stories that don’t really belong are forced in. This story is probably the most forced - there is no romance, heck, it could be argued that in spite of the zombie title and talk of zombies in the story that it has no real speculative component at all, particularly considering that I’m not sure the main character is actually sane. This is true horror – a mother suffering extreme grief from the loss of her son, to the point where she seems to have invented an alternative world. Either that or zombies really are out to get her, it’s a bit unclear. Whatever it is, this is the most powerful story in the anthology.

Paranormal Romance. The introduction and following stories reveal a fundamental aspect of this sub-genre – it suffers from an identity crisis. It doesn’t know what it is or what it wants to be. Most of the stories included seemed to be forced in to lend it legitimacy. I suppose they could be attempting to broaden the sub-genre that becomes limited by using the paranormal romance label. Or maybe there really is a lack of good short stories to include here. Whatever the cause, the result is that the stories included don’t feel quite right. Guran seems intent on ducking and dodging the romance side of the label and Beagle and Lansdale seem at a loss on which stories to include. It almost seems they try so hard to avoid the Buffy-wanna-be’s that they missed the boat entirely on the sub-genre so many love. Well, get some confidence, stand up for yourself and kick some ass – don’t shy away from what the genre is. It is paranormal romance, sometimes less and sometimes more on the romance. Romance can be of the sexual/attraction side or a something taken out of Romanticism with 21^st Century wish-fulfillment and kick-ass adventure. And the best of it has a near post-modern vibe. It works, people buy it, people are entertained, and some people will deride it. However, I wish there was more of deeper discussion on societal pressures that make this so popular – such as a reaction to the post-cold war world of anonymous terrorism and fear of the dark, complete lack of confidence in our government’s ability to govern and the rising equality of women, minorities, and others that still has a ways to go. Or maybe we all just wish we could release some kind of an inner-beast.

Noir Fantasy

“We are not a Club, but We Sometimes Share a Room” an introduction to noir fantasy by Joe R. Lansdale (2011). This anthology really develops into a fascinating journey through the subgenres of urban fantasy with the three introductions: first justifying the need for a label, then bitching about a bad label and the search for a new one, and finally Lansdale concludes with a very eloquent discussion on the lack of meaning of labels and how writers don’t (or at least shouldn’t) write for a label. With that you know that the stories to come will bust right through the label.

“The White Man” by Thomas M. Disch (2004). Here’s another story that is hard to call truly speculative or even horror as many of the noir fantasy subgenre trend to. It could be speculative – perhaps there really are vampires in the story. Or perhaps it’s African folklore coming into conflict through immigrants in America – and of course the white man. Or maybe it’s just a charismatic preacher manipulating a young girl. Whatever you choose to call it, it’s certainly a thought-provoking story.

“The fiction has the stink of urban about it…either because they take place in the city, or display the weaknesses of humanity in large numbers and close quarters. The terror is often due to the actions of people: pollution, street crime, over population, dehumanization, and so on. What supernatural elements there are, are dragged out of the haunted house and into the tract house and walk-up apartment, or they take place in the wasteland of some horrid aftermath brought on by the mistakes of civilization.”

“Gestella” by Susan Palwick (2004). This and the next story are the anti-paranormal romance stories of this anthology. The werewolf in this story is submissive, she is not empowered, she is the victim. And this is not overcome as would be expected. I love what the story does, though I can’t say I enjoyed the story.

“The Coldest Girl in Coldtown” by Holly Black (2009). A young woman is infected – she may become a vampire or she may be able to wait out the infection and live. She has a choice to make. Like the story before it, this could be paranormal romance, only it turns out be more of an answer against paranormal romance. This one works – the end is absolutely terrific, heavy on the terror.

“Talking Back to the Moon” by Steven R. Boyett (2011). This is a post-apocalyptic journey through the remains of LA with a young girl and a centaur. The story is subtle and surreal, and I simply wanted more. There is so much behind this that I want to know – this one should be a full novel.

“On the Far Side of the Cadillac Desert with Dead Folks” by Joe R. Lansdale (1989). More post-apocalyptic fun, this time in typical Lansdale style as a bounty hunter catches his target only to be captured by a weird zombie religious cult. My instinct would not have been to classify this as any form of urban fantasy, but that doesn’t take away from this being one of the best stories in the anthology.

“The Bible Repairman” by Tim Powers (2005). This is a surreal story of an old man who repairs bibles. He’s damaged physically and emotionally, a consequence of his former profession. A new job comes up, one he can’t refuse. This is a story I need to read again – it’s deep and cynical, though maybe not as much as on first take. Another of the best offered in the anthology.

“Father Dear” by Al Sarrantonio (1983). “Father Dear” is another dark, surreal tale that feels post-apocalyptic even though it’s not. It’s the story of son’s reaction to the destruction inflicted by an abusive father destroys with a bit of twist.

Noir Fantasy. It’s either funny, ironic or some odd combination of a bunch of things that the noir fantasy section doesn’t really have any true noir stories. More seem to be post-apocalyptic, though a dark, surreal mood may be the more common thread. This seems another example of forcing a label that just doesn’t fit, or intentionally choosing stories that don’t fit the label. Either way, it serves to highlight the identity crisis contemporary urban fantasy suffers. It’s also interesting that the stories included in this section are more stylistically diverse – from second person to first person to subversion and all with a surreal aspect that is just as other-worldly as the speculative components.

The bottom line is that this is a solid anthology, all the stories are good, and there is a distinct lack of the dud story all too common in anthologies. There aren’t a lot of truly great stories, but all are entertaining and good enough. I’m not sure if the goal of the anthology is met – I can’t say that I really have any better of an idea of what contemporary urban fantasy is than I did before reading it. It’s certainly a range from mythic fiction to paranormal romance to fantasy noir, though many of the stories chosen work mostly as a reaction to the labels given. Perhaps this anthology is more of a statement of what urban fantasy isn’t than what it is. Either way, it shows the huge range of contemporary urban fantasy as well as reminding us that it’s been around for a while. Mostly, The Urban Fantasy Anthology highlights the identity crisis that the genre/sub-genre faces. No one seems to know what urban fantasy is. A few have ideas of what it should be, but the reader is left with ‘I’ll know it when I see it’ rather than easy definitions with clearly defined boundaries. I suppose, that’s just how it should be.

Something Completely Different

2011-08-05T06:00:00.000-07:00

For the past 13 years or so me and a few friends have been homebrewers. Our production has been down over the past few years, but that didn't stop me from planting hops in my yard a couple of years ago. This year it looks like I'll finally get a crop. It seems a bit early, so hopefully there will be more coming and we'll be able to brew an entire batch with homegrown hops. But I'm quite happy to see this.

Northern Brewer Hops, August 2011

Mini-Review: Hexed by Kevin Hearne

2011-08-01T09:39:00.000-07:00

Following up on his successful debut, Hounded (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound), Kevin Hearne’s second book in The Iron Druid Chronicles, Hexed (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound), offers another satisfying dose of action-filled, wish-fulfillment, urban fantasy fun. This will be brief, because my thoughts on Hexed pretty much mirror what I wrote about Hounded.

In Hounded, the 2000-year old druid, Atticus, faced off against ancient Irish gods and a few witches. In Hexed, the fight is with more witches, a few succubi, a fallen angel and a couple of radical witch hunters. Atticus is once again joined by his vampire and werewolf friends and his ever-present dog through a number of supernatural fights in the vicinity of Phoenix, Arizona.

These books are simply fun – don’t think too hard about them and the world that Hearne creates, just sit back and enjoy the ride. The takes on various pantheons of gods are fun, the action satisfying and it’s all woven together with a geek humor that refuses to take itself seriously. Another huge positive (for me anyway) is that they are short and fast to read – Hexed took me just a couple of days to read, and I could easily have knocked it out over a relaxing afternoon (not that I ever had one of those). Hearne’s writing is quickly becoming something of a comfort read for me, probably in no small part due to them being set in Arizona.

The next book in the series, Hammered (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound), is already out on the streets and Del Rey has picked up Hearne to write more books in the series with Tricked coming in April, 2012.

Whisky Review: Ardbeg Uigeadail

2011-07-30T20:38:00.001-07:00

Single Malt

Non-chill Filtered

Style/Region: Islay

Age: Unspecified

Cask Type: Sherry

Alcohol: 54.2%

Water added: Yes

Nose: Heavy peat smoke. After water was added a briney oak with a hint of sweetness overtakes the peat smoke.

Mouth Feel: Delightfully thick and oily.

Flavor: Complex with a peppery oak and hint of sweetness that is slowly overtaken by a light smooth peat smoke.

Finish: Smooth smoke and peat that lingers and lingers and lingers...

Overall Impressions: This is the real deal – Ardbeg has a reputation of being among the best of the best and it is deserved. This is an Islay whisky unlike most – it’s complex and subtle, more than just peat and smoke. Much more. When you drink Uigeadail you can understand why the old Gaelic translation of whisky (uisge beatha) is ‘water of life’ (yes, folks on the SFF blog, the ‘water of life’ is whisky, not worm juice). Though as I enjoy a glass on a warmish July evening I think that perhaps this is more of a cold weather drink. Of course is there a time that you shouldn’t drink the ‘water of life’?

Books Received: July 16 - 29

2011-07-29T13:13:00.000-07:00

Books Received: July 16 - 29, 2011

A Quick Update

2011-07-26T16:20:00.001-07:00

I know I've been terrible at producing real content around here. All I can say is the job, plus travel, plus family (2 young kids), plus attempts at having a social life, plus a desire for at least 6 hours of sleep a night equals not much time for reading and/or blogging.

I finished up Hexed by Kevin Hearne (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound). My reaction is pretty much the same as for Hounded (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound). That will probably be just a mini-review when I get around to it.

I'm enjoying The Urban Fantasy Anthology edited by Peter S. Beagle and Joe R. Lansdale (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound). I'm writing my review as I go - it will be long and probably as much an essay about urban fantasy as a review of the anthology. It'll be unlike any review that I've written before.

Anyway, I'm off to Utah and the Arizona Strip for a quick field project so it'll be pretty quite for a few days.

Something Completely Different

2011-07-22T06:00:00.000-07:00

Peas in the garden (actually a pic from last year - the peas are generally not doing as well this year for some reason).

Name it Gaiman

2011-07-21T09:31:00.002-07:00

I don't usually jump on bandwagons around here (or at least I try not to), but I'm bored today and this sounds like a good idea to me. It turns out Pluto has a fourth moon that was just discovered. As yet, it has no name beyond the designation of P4. It seems that we are in the early stages of a viral movement to get the moon named after Neil Gaiman. Let's do it - spread the word and let's get Pluto's new moon named Gaiman.

#NameItGaiman

Upcoming Release: Orb Sceptre Throne by Ian C. Esslemont

2011-07-19T09:07:00.002-07:00

This morning I was looking through Transworld's catalog for the rest of 2011 and they have Orb Sceptre Throne by Ian C. Esslemont (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound) slated for a ~~December 8th, 2011~~ release (update - it now seems to be a January 12, 2012 release). They list the title as Orb Sceptre Throne (which surprises me because I find it kind of a silly and awkward title and expected it to change). So, fans of the Malazan world and it's greater story can rejoice. There is no cover art yet but they do have a synopsis (that is full of typos). I can't copy it, so I've transcribed it below (I try to preserve the typos in the transcription - there are lots):

The epic new chapter in the history of Malaz - the new epic fantasy from Steven Erikson's friend and co-creator of this extraordinary imagined world...

The tumult of great powers colliding has passed, leaving the city of Darujhistan and its good citizens to get one of their lives of politcking, bickering, trading and above all enjoying the good things it has to offer. However, this peace is illusory because of a treasure hunter, digging amongst the ancient burial grounds that surround the city, is about to uncover a hidden crypt, full of sealed vaults. Armed with magic-deadening otataral, he will open the last vault - the one no other dared touch - and in so doing will set free the most powerful and destructive of the Jaghut tyrant kings...

And fortune hunters are also at work far to the south of the Malaz. A fragment of Moon's Spawn, once the home of Aonmander Rake, Son of Darkness, crashed into the Rivan Sea and created a chain of small islands. Legends have already arisen around them, the most potent of which is that here is hidden the Throne of Night - claimed by some to be the seat of Dracoinus, ruler of Eternal Night, and by others to be the throne of Mother Dark herself. Either way, all who seek this ancient artifact - from magic-weilding mages and battle-scarred warriors to a Malazan army deserter called Grift - believe it will bestow unlimited power upon the eventual possessor. The stakes are high, greed is rife, betrayal inevitable and murder and chaos lie in wait...

Books Received: June 27 - July 15

2011-07-15T14:45:00.000-07:00

Books Received: June 27 - July 15 2011

Something Completely Different

2011-07-08T09:59:00.003-07:00

When life and work get busy this series tends to get overlooked. So, it's a been a while. The picture below is of the Hoover Dam Bypass bridge that straddles the Arizona-Nevada border and Colorado River (it's about 800 feet above the river). Not only is a cool bit of engineering, but it's special to me because I did the geologic investigation for it's design. I spent about 6 months in the field for the project that included geologic mapping, rappelling, lots and lots of drilling, helicopter recon and more mundane things like providing traffic control for the drillers. It was a lot of hard and often very miserable work (temperatures in the summer routinely hit 135 in shade (57 C) and there was pretty much no shade to be had - the rock got hot enough to cause second degree burns to exposed skin. And now it's awesome to see the project completed. A couple of weeks ago (when the picture was taken) was my first trip back to that area since I last did field work on the project. It was a nice experience, in spite of it being 115 in the shade (46C).

Hoover Dam Bypass, Nevada-Arizona

Review: The White-Luck Warrior by R. Scott Bakker

2011-07-06T16:57:00.002-07:00

The Great Ordeal is the name of a vast army under the command of the Aspect-Emperor and purported God of Gods, Anasûrimbor Kellhus. They march north to confront the forces of the No-God and forestall a coming apocalypse. The Great Ordeal is a collection of ancient enemies and allies with a greater number than any army in thousands of years. However the land they travel through is barren, lacking water and food. They are surrounded by enemies, the half-man, half-animal Sranc that have numbers far greater than they. They are constantly attacked – they are hungry, tired and thirsty. They are doomed and dying. It is The Great Ordeal.

Unfortunately, my reading of The White-Luck Warrior by R. Scott Bakker (The Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound) also felt like The Great Ordeal*. It was an effort to read from page one. I was starved for interest, I thirsted for understanding, and I was constantly harried by philosophical rantings through to the end. Frankly, even though I’ve raved about Bakker in the past and still consider myself a fan, I’m surprised that I finished this book.

The White-Luck Warrior is the second book of The Aspect-Emperor Trilogy and functions pretty much like you’d expect a middle book to. It takes the threads of the first book further, a lot of ground is covered (physically and philosophically), there is some cool action and a few pretty big reveals but nothing is really resolved and the book is left hanging on the cusp of something new. The Judging Eye (The Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound) was a book that figuratively and metaphorically looked backward in time – The White-Luck Warrior is most often too wrapped up in the present to worry on the past or future. Presumably the third book, tentatively titled The Unholy Consult, will look to the future.

In The Judging Eye Bakker set out to write a much more accessible book than those in The Prince of Nothing Trilogy – a book that could be enjoyed on a more surficial level without sacrificing the deeper, intellectual and philosophical journey. I felt that The Judging Eye was a huge success in this approach. So I was surprised and dismayed that Bakker chose to not write The White-Luck Warrior in the same style – there is almost nothing accessible about it. The style is dense, the language is very technical and philosophical and there is an over-reliance on referencing the history and long-dead peoples of the world (and their long, unpronounceable names). Generally this makes for a hard, slow slog of a read that can only be stomached in short doses and fails to create any connection between the reader and the book.

The lack of accessibility is made worse by the overwhelming negativity of the book. Sure, this is the second book of trilogy – there should be despair and a general lack of hope. But Bakker takes this several orders of magnitude further. I cannot and will not pretend to understand much of the philosophical underpinnings of Bakker’s writing, but I will say that it doesn’t present humanity in a positive light. In combination with a harsh, caste society under the thrall of Kellhus, it becomes downright unbearable. Even the few attempts at dark humor Bakker attempted in The Judging Eye are lacking, leaving nothing hopeful to grasp. I understand this is largely the point, but again, it makes for hard, uninspired reading.

If you take the time to read an interview with Bakker or (god help you) read his blog, then you’ll get an impression of Bakker being rather unsympathetic towards readers who do not take the time and mental effort to read into the philosophical underpinnings of his books. After all, that is the point of them. He is also well aware that the choices he makes in his writing style will largely be inaccessible. Considering these, I must admit that I don’t have the time or inclination to read as deeply into this book as necessary (and quite possibly not the intellectual acumen).

My family life and work life keep me so insanely busy that I only have short chunks to read in. And I’m usually both mentally and physically exhausted when it’s time to read. For me reading is a break – an escape. Yes, I read as a form of escapism. I’m not after pure pulp fiction, I generally like a good bit of meat with my fiction (as evidenced in my opinions of other books, including Bakker’s earlier work). But The White-Luck Warrior simply did not work for me, due both to Bakker’s choices in writing and my own situation. We didn’t fit. That’s a shame. I still believe that Bakker is one of the most important writers in the SFF field today, but with The White-Luck Warrior he has become even more of a niche that only the few will be able to enjoy.

*OK, perhaps my intro is harsh sounding and just a bit too clever and campy, but in the two months it took me to read this book I often referred to it in my head as The Great Ordeal and the slog of slogs (my typical time to read a book is 1-2 weeks, so 2 months was excruciating).

Dancing With Dragons

2011-07-01T21:25:00.001-07:00

I came home from a couple of day sof travel to find this waiting. Awesome! Though the truth is that I won't be reading it anytime soon as I decided many years ago to wait until the series is complete before reading any more (I've read the first 3). I simply don't have the time to do the re-reads necessary to stay sharp on this series before each new book with such a long interval in between releases. Though I'm not complaining - George, take as long as you need to do it right. I've got plenty of good books to keep me busy while I wait.

Thoughts and Links

2011-06-28T13:11:00.003-07:00

I don't typically do link posts these days, but I've seen a lot of fun and interesting things, so I decided it was worth a full post.

Apparently a few copies of A Dance With Dragons by George R.R. Martin (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound) got shipped early by Amazon in Germany and fans are anxious, spoilers are appearing, and bunch of folks have their panties in a bunch. Oh well, I find it amusing, but I can see the issues.

China Mieville created a monster for Mark Charan Newton - how cool is that!

I can't say that I watch much many beauty pageants so it's through the links of others that I found out that the latest Miss USA show actually asked contestants if evolution should be taught in schools. As a scientist (and also as a religious person) I find the very concept horrifying and fear the future of a country that refuses to believe in science. Thankfully I'm not alone, and others are much more humorous than I - should math be taught in schools? (trust me, it's brilliant) Oh, and the actual winner was one of the few who stood up for evolution (and she's a big fan of George R.R. Martin).

I posted a mini-review* of Wolfsangel by M.D. Lachlan (Book Depository, Powell's Books, Indiebound) last night. The good folks over at @tordotfantasy retweeted the link. Apparently M.D. Lachlan (@mdlachlan) - a pseudonym for author Mark Barrowcliffe - didn't like that @tordotfantasy would tweet an ultimately negative review. I find that sort of public reaction fascinating, amusing and a bit troubling and unprofessional. I also find it troubling that @tordotfantasy quickly tweeted a link to a more positive review that Lachlan suggested. It's not so much that @tordotfantasy tweeted another review, it's the apparent influence that the author has. The inevitable question is do authors advocate for what reviews get tweeted (or not) for folks like this?

I've always considered Orson Scott Card to be a real asshat, but this old article that is new to me really brings home the point - oh, and it's entirely possible that OSC didn't actually write Ender's Game, which it turns out is basically retelling of the life of Hitler (according to the article anyway).

*For me, a mini-review is something short and to the point. There is very little detail or supporting evidence, just my quick opinion of a book. Basically, either I don't have the time or I don't have the inclination to write a full review.

Mini-Review: Wolfsangel by M.D. Lachlan

2011-06-27T20:59:00.000-07:00

Wolfsangel by M.D. Lachlan (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound) has a lot going on – it’s a Nordic epic as a young prince falls from grace and fights through the known world to find the woman he loves, it’s a historic journey through the Viking world, it’s an urban fantasy in a time and place without a true urban setting, it’s a classic tragedy about brothers separated at birth and star-crossed lovers, and it’s the mythic beginning of werewolves as the Norse god Fenrir seeks to fulfill his destiny to kill Odin with a little help from trickster, Loki.

Unfortunately, for me, even with such a variety of interpretations, Wolfsangel largely falls flat. I believe that this is due in large part to the characterization – I simply didn’t connect enough with any of the main characters to care much about the outcome. Additionally, the epic adventure across Viking lands fails to feel epic – it felt like an uninspired re-telling of a great story with an annoying teenager at the center. However, I think it was the unrealized potential that disappointed most – that and relatively high expectations from so many positive reviews.

In spite of my disappointment, I am rather excited to see where Lachlan goes from Wolfsangel. It appears that this will be an epic series that spans the ages as the main players are re-born again and again through history and into modern times. The series continues with Fenrir (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound) with a Viking siege of Paris 100 years after events the events of Wolfsangel. Perhaps I’ll feel the potential is realized in these future volumes – I hope so.

A Room With A View: Las Vegas, Nevada

2011-06-27T14:12:00.003-07:00

I was at a conference in Las Vegas last week and the view below is from the hotel room. It was nice - I managed to avoid ever going into a casino even though I was close to The Strip and literally right across the street from the Hard Rock Cafe Casino. The coolest parts - I stood on the edge of a crater created by an atomic bomb and saw the now completed Hoover Dam Bypass Bridge (which I did the geologic investigation for). As for around here, I'm hoping to have an actual review or two up this week. We'll see.

Books Received: June 13 - 27

2011-06-27T11:31:00.001-07:00

Books Received: June 13 - 27, 2011

Update

2011-06-21T10:35:00.004-07:00

I'm off to Vegas for a conference, so real content will be light around here for a bit more. I have a mini-review of Wolfsangel by M.D. Lachlan (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound) to write and I'm still slogging through The White-Luck Warrior by R.Scott Bakker (Book Depository, Powell’s Books, Indiebound). I also have a whisky review mostly written and I'm sure I'll post a couple of pictures, but the real content is still a bit off as I'm overwhelmed in life and work.

A Room With A View: St. George Utah

2011-06-13T14:22:00.000-07:00

I had to do a fast-turn-around project at the end of last week outside of St. George, Utah. I'd never been there before, so it was nice to see. Especially since I spent a few hours in Zion National Park on the way.

St. George, Utah

Books Received: May 24 - June 13

2011-06-13T14:16:00.000-07:00

Books Received: May 24 - June 13, 2011

Something Completely Different

2011-06-10T07:00:00.000-07:00

A short-fuse project came up this week that required me to go to southwest Utah. The challenges of getting around the Grand Canyon from where I live meant that I drove accross norhtern Arizona and southern Utah to get there - which is some of the most spectacular scenery in the country and world. Included was a brief stopover in Zion National Park. In fact, about the time this post goes live, I'll probably be back in Zion on my return home - I plan to spend a few hours hiking before making the 5-hour drive back to the house and family.

Zion National Park, Utah