Book Reviews
Review: “Night Train to Rigel” by Timothy Zahn
Timothy Zahn’s a prolific writer with many succesful books both in his own and in other people’s universes.
What’s more, his name makes him eminently suited to be a bad guy in a Star Wars movie himself.
Darth Zahn’s latest book, Night Train to Rigel, delivers why-didn’t-I-think-of-that clever ideas and a zippy plotline that kept me flipping paper to the end.
Review: “Four and Twenty Blackbirds” by Cherie Priest
Cherie Priest’s debut novel, this atmospheric Southern Gothic ghost story was originally published by a small regional press in 2003. The (shorter) new edition from Tor is an indication that greater things lie ahead for this new voice in fiction. A sequel, Wings to the Kingdom, is due from Tor in the fall, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the publisher sees a potential franchise here. Heck, I could see this showing up on the new CW network. If you like ghost stories with more texture than genuine twists, Four and Twenty Blackbirds is worth a look.
Review: “Bone Song” by John Meaney
If I had to name the style of Bone Song, I would call it Cyber-Zombie Noir. But lest I give the impression that it’s a book about Zombies let me say that Meaney has created a world with a death based Economy.
Review: “Haunted” by Kelley Armstrong
When she was alive, you didn’t fuck with Eve Levine. A half-demon witch and master of the black arts, she didn’t exactly seek opportunities to dole out pain and death, they just presented themselves on a regular basis. An unfortunate consequence of the life she chose. But she never flinched from what she had to do. Yup, in life, Eve was the biggest badass around.
In death, not so much.
Review: “A Companion to Wolves” by Sarah Monette and Elizabeth Bear
Now this was a surprise. Here is one of those rare books not produced as a precursor to a series.
This is not to say that the land Monette and Bear have created couldn’t support multiple visits. It is merely to say that they have constructed a tale that is complete and unconcerned with possibilities and marketing strategies beyond its own ken.
Review: “Lord of the Changing Winds” by Rachel Neumeier
What is refreshing about Lord of the Changing Winds is that it presents a refreshingly new adaptation of griffin lore. When neighboring kingdom Casmantium begins to threaten their desert with ice, the Griffins are forced to flee, taking their desert with them. Griffins are so intimately bound with the element of fire, it has become their own life essence, their spirit.
Review: “Gaudeamus” by John Barnes
When John Barnes gets a visit from his old buddy and private detective Travis Bismark, he knows two things for sure: Travis needs a ride, and he’ll get at least one new science fiction book out of it.
Review: “The Kingdom Keepers: Disney After Dark” by Ridley Pearson
What I will remember about this book is how the kids worked together to find the answer to what is going on in the part at night, and how they all became friends. I loved the sci-fi part a lot! How they made the holograms work and how it couldn’t do some things, and even though I don’t like young adult books too much, I really liked this one.
