Tehanu (Earthsea Book 4) - Ursula K. Le Guin

Title: Tehanu (Earthsea Book 4)
Author: Ursula K. Le Guin
Genre: Fantasy
Published: 1990
Formats: Hardback/Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
The Book Depository
Amazon UK

Review:
“Tehanu” by Ursula K. Le Guin is the fourth book in the Earthsea fantasy series. The story is returns the reader to the island of Gont and the woman Tenar who had been brought to the Island by Ged after he had rescued her in the previous novel “The Tombs of Atuan”. Years have passed since then and she is ow as a widow with her own grown-up children. However, her seemingly ordinary life soon changes when she opts to take in a severely abused child as a foster daughter.

The book was written several years after the original trilogy and it is therefore quite different from the previous books, in both style and substance. Le Guin has quite clearly picked up a stronger feminist viewpoint since the original trilogy and has used “Tehanu” as a novel in which she can call out the inequity between the sexes in both the fantasy genre and the world in general. Fundamentally, I don’t have an issue with this except for the fact that I think she takes it too far. Perhaps this is just a defensive viewpoint from a man, but at times it almost felt like every female character was somehow worthy and important whilst the men were portrayed as weak and flawed. In fact, the way in which Ged has been reduced to depressed individual who mopes around feeling sorry for himself felt rather inconsistent with the man we had come to know in the other novels.

Her writing of course is as skilful as always and overall plot itself was rather intriguing if not brimming with action or a fast pace. But to be honest, anyone who has read any of Le Guin’s other Earthsea books should be used to that by now. The ending itself was left a little bit open for my liking but I think this is intentional as it is being used to set up future books in the series.

Overall, I did enjoy this latest book in the Earthsea series but it wasn’t a favourite of mine. I found the stripping back of Ged’s dignity a bit sore to take and the in your face feminist slant just came across to strongly.

Epic Fails - Scott Rhine

Title: Epic Fails
Author: Scott Rhine
Genre: Fantasy
Published: 2013
Formats: Paperback

Available at:
Amazon
Amazon UK

Review:
“Epic Fails” by Scott Rhine is an anthology of fantasy short stories which all focus around one fundamental point, failure. By calling it fantasy however, you should not expect any Epic, High Fantasy here, the fantasy on show here is rooted in our own world. Due to the stories being based around failure, I found that the collection contains and interesting mix of both humour and darkness.

Rhine provides the reader with an introduction to each story, providing an element of background to each one which I did find rather interesting and helpful considering the range of stories the collection contains. What I mean by a range of stories is that there is a variety of sub-genres and styles on show. Whilst, I suspect this variety is mainly related to the fact they were written over a period of time, I think it does a good job of highlighting Rhine’s talent and ability to write engaging and entertaining stories in various different manners.

I don’t really want to say much more as detailing short stories tends on the whole to spoil them too much for the reader. However, if you haven’t read anything by Rhine, I can’t help but recommend this collection as an entertaining introduction to a talented Indie Author. There really is something in the collection for almost any fan of speculative fiction in the collection.

Shaman (Behind The Walls of Sleep Book 2) - Scott Rhine

Title: Shaman (Behind The Walls of Sleep Book 2)
Author: Scott Rhine
Genre: Fantasy
Published: 2014
Formats: Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
Amazon UK

Review:
“Shaman” by Scott Rhine is the 2nd novel in his YA fantasy series, “Behind the Walls of Sleep”. The story picks up directly on from the ending of the previous novel “Messenger”, although the majority of the plot this time takes place in the real world. Whilst staying with his Native American family, Daniel must learn to become a shaman with all the responsibilities required of that role. However, he discovers that a teenage girl is being held in New Orleans by a coven and soon embarks on an adventure with his cousins to rescue her.

I really appreciated that the majority of this book took place in the real world as it was those sections which really shown in the first novel. In that book, Rhine used the real world to really grow the characters and he has once again done it here. We get to see some real development of Daniel’s and I loved witnessing how his own interpretation of events changes as he matures. Those earlier viewpoints were quite fundamental in affecting his behaviour, so it was easy for the reader to follow and appreciate his changing characteristics. In addition, it was also good to learn about the culture and history of his Native American family alongside him; I think that it is always easier to appreciate a character and their reactions when it feels like you are learning something at the same time as them.

In regards to pacing, this book continues on from the “Messenger” in that it is slower that what I am used to from Rhine. In fact, I think this one may have been even slower and more deliberate as Rhine tries to develop both Daniel’s character and some of the secondary characters. Whilst this slower pace may be a little surprising to regular readers of Rhine’s work, I enjoyed the more measured pacing which helps sell the character driven aspects of the novel.

Overall, this is an entertaining YA Fantasy novel that kept me fully engaged from start to finish. I really enjoyed following Daniel on his adventure and appreciated that Rhine tried to showcase his growth.

Grail Mysterium: An Adventure on the Heights - Thomas Kaplan-maxfield

Title: Grail Mysterium: An Adventure on the Heights
Author: Thomas Kaplan-maxfield
Genre: Fantasy
Published: 2012
Formats: Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
Amazon UK
The Book Depository

Review:
“Grail Mysterium, An Adventure on the Heights” by Thomas Kaplan-Mansfield is a rather intriguing fantasy/mystery novel. The story follows a group of friends at Boston College who begin to notice strange things occurring such as high performing students just dropping out, ghost sightings and a rather virulent illness. When one of the group, Jack Knecht, a huge fan of Harry Potter begins to investigate he soon finds himself involved in uncovering the ancient secrets of the mythical Holy Grail.

Kaplan-Maxfield has created a very interesting story by mixing elements of fantasy and magic with religion and science alongside a mystery plotline which is full of twists and turns. I found myself completely unsure which characters I should believe or trust as the story progressed which was a credit to the mystery being told. Unfortunately I did find that the plot was little bit too convoluted at times. The amount of twists, red herrings, philosophical musings and characters were actually a little bit too much for me. It was quite a slow read as I worked through the novel trying to ensure I understood everything that was going on.

In regards to the characters, they are all well-crafted in a manner which ensures that they all seem like specific individuals. I easily found myself caring about what happened to them although I have to admit I found most of them quite juvenile in behaviour. Maybe I am just a grumpy old man with false memories of my own youth but I am sure that as a University student I had a bit more maturity than what we see in this book. If the story was based around High School seniors then I could understand their behaviour but these students are older than this and it just didn’t fit with me.

Overall, this is an entertaining enough book but at times the plot could be a bit over complex which slows down the pace. I also think the characters were a bit more juvenile than they needed to be but in a way I suspect this will ensure the book appeals more to teenagers.

Something Wicked This Way Comes - Ray Bradbury

Title: Something Wicked This Way Comes
Author: Ray Bradbury
Genre: Horror
Published: 1962
Formats: Hardback/Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
Amazon UK
The Book Depository

Review:
“Something Wicked This Way Comes” is a dark fantasy tale written by Ray Bradbury which follows the adventures of Jim & Will, two teenage boys who live next door to each other in a run of the mill small town. When a carnival comes to town, their initial excitement soon leads to trepidation as there is a sinister felling which pervades the carnival and its owner Mr Dark. When the boys witness some magical aspects of the merry go round their lives are put under threat as they try to avoid Mr Dark and his rather eerie “employees” who are hunting them down.

The plot itself is reasonably enjoyable, nothing truly remarkable but it was at times mildly creepy and entertaining. The real selling point however is the focus the novel gives to the theme of aging. It takes an intriguing look at people’s psyche in regards how adolescents dream of being older whilst the middle-aged wish for youth. It takes a gentle swipe at how humanity can sometimes put too much stock in their age and therefore miss out on what they can and should be enjoying each day.

There were a couple of issues that I did note regarding the writing itself. First up the prose used hasn’t aged very well and it was very obvious to me that the book was written many decades ago which does limit the ability of a reader to get fully immersed in the story. On its own I probably wouldn’t have noticed this that much except for the fact that Bradbury loves to use a fair amount of poetic and descriptive imagery. This just slowed the plot down to the point that I found some of these extended descriptions to be rather tedious. If you enjoy reading books that are written in pretty and lyrical styles like this then I am sure you will love it, but to me it was just a distraction.

Overall, “Something Wicked This Way Comes” is a reasonably entertaining novel that takes an interesting look at humanity’s obsession with aging. However, Bradbury’s style of writing with its description and dated prose could be a little bit too much for some readers.

Strange Circumstances - Marshall J. Stephens, Weston Kincade & David Chrisley

Title: Strange Circumstances
Author: Marshall J. Stephens, Weston Kincade & David Chrisley
Genre: Paranormal
Published: 2012
Formats: Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
Amazon UK

Review:
“Strange Circumstances” is a collection of speculative fiction short stories written by Weston Kincade, Marshall J. Stephens and David Chrisley that take a look at fate and destiny. I was drawn to this collection because of Weston Kincaid’s involvement, a man who’s paranormal and fantasy books have kept me thoroughly entertained. However, it is obvious from reading the stories that both Marshall J. Stephens and David Chrisley are capable authors themselves and together all three of them have crafted some superbly entertaining stories.

What I enjoyed the most was that whilst there is an overall theme relating to fate and destiny, each of the stories vary substantially in subject matter although all of them have a speculative fiction feel. Each story is wonderfully well written and sucks the reader in before usually delivering an intriguing twist that left me wanting to read the next one. At times it felt like I was reading a collection of stories that would have worked in a TV series like The Twilight Zone, The Outer Limits or Black Book.

The only complaint I can level at the collection is that just as I am getting into the interesting worlds that have been created the story ends. A minor complaint for sure as there isn’t much you can do about this when you are using the short story form but it is still rather aggravating that none of the worlds explored here have been expanded upon.

Overall, this is a thoroughly entertaining and enjoyable collection of stories. There is pretty much a story in here for anyone who enjoys speculative fiction so no one should be disappointed.

Batman: Year One - Frank Miller & David Mazzucchelli

Title: Batman: Year One
Author: Frank Miller & David Mazzucchelli
Genre: Fantasy (Superhero)
Published: 1987
Formats: Hardback/Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
The Book Depository
Amazon UK

Review:
I picked up “Batman: Year One” by Frank Miller & David Mazzucchelli in order to meet the graphic novel requirement of the 2014 Eclectic Reader Challenge. I will admit that I don’t normally read graphic novels however as a fan of superhero films etc. I have constantly heard of “Batman: Year One” as being the real basis for how we view Batman nowadays. Therefore I decided that this book would be the one I read to complete this element of the challenge.

The novel chronicles both the emergence of Batman and the rise of Jim Gordon through the ranks of law enforcement. The whole thing is very melodramatic and it feels like an 80’s action movie as our hero gets shot, beaten up and hurt in various ways but fights through the pain to get things done. Batman in this novel is a “real man” who goes out and gets thing done then goes on a skiing holiday to recuperate.

It is also definitely aimed at mature audience and it is not something for a young child to read. Miller is more than happy to show us the underbelly of Gotham with violence and prostitution being brought to the fore. However, I found this was undermined a bit by the rather dated 80’s styled images which did tend to undo any grittiness that the story was trying to portray.

In regards to the characters, I actually found Batman to be rather uninteresting to be honest, yes his weaknesses and inexperience showed him to be human but he feels very one dimensional. It is actually Gordon who comes across as a multifaceted character and draws you into the story. He is a good cop trying to do his job in the face of corruption in the police and the city itself. His attempts to maintain his integrity in the fact of vast challenges endears him to the reader.

Overall, I did find this to be an enjoyable novel even if Batman himself was rather uninspiring. It was also interesting to follow the story which actually created the modern Batman genesis mythos.

Empress of Dreams (Temple of the Traveler Book 3) - Scott Rhine

Title: Empress of Dreams (Temple of the Traveler Book 3)
Author: Scott Rhine
Genre: Fantasy
Published: 2012
Formats: Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
Smashwords
Amazon UK

Review:
“Empress of Dreams” is the third and final novel in Scott Rhine’s epic fantasy series, “The Tales of the Traveller”. It picks up from the ending of the 2nd novel although due to the nature of that ending I found that this book did have a different feel to the previous novel. In the end though it did close out the open plotlines in a satisfactory and enjoyable manner so is without doubt in my opinion a successful conclusion to the series.

In regards to the plot of this novel, Jotham, the priest of the Traveller who helped close that the final Door to Eternity is transformed by his actions into a new body complete with the six fingered hands of the Imperial race and a new name, Pagaose. His arrival at the heart of the Empire results in him being proclaimed Emperor and so begins a new adventure for this former priest. He must gain the acceptance as Emperor, find a wife and defeat the pretender to his new throne.

Again, we have an intelligent, complicated story that really delves down into the mythos and culture of the world which Rhine has created. Rhine has tried to tone down the pacing even more in this novel which ensures the reader can really digest and understand what is going on. Personally, I really hope Rhine continues to try and slow his stories down like this as it allows the reader to get immersed in the world he has created and appreciate the story that is being told.

In regards to characters, well I have two main points to make, the first of which is that the characters we have grown to know continue to evolve and mature in this novel. It was wonderful seeing Pinetto grow from student to teacher and Pagaose/Jotham really blossoms as he uses his knowledge, morality and experience to become a great Emperor. The second point is that the vast amount of characters Rhine had previously bamboozled us with is increased yet again. Luckily, I understood the original characters well enough and the new ones were different enough that I managed to avoid getting confused. This is a true ensemble story with multiple characters and multiple stories all being treated with equal importance. Basically, if you like books which concentrate on just a handful of characters then I think you may need to stay far away from this series.

Overall, I found this to be a great conclusion to the series and probably my favourite of them all. In part this is because by this point in the series I understood the characters and culture but it was also a very fun and enjoyable story. If you have read the other novels in the series then without doubt you need to go and pick this book up as it should leave you feeling very satisfied an the ending provided.

The Fisherman's Son (The Fisherman's Son Book 1) - Marilyn Peake

Title: The Fisherman's Son (The Fisherman's Son Book 1)
Author: Marilyn Peake
Genre: Fantasy
Published: 2002
Formats: Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
Amazon UK

Review:
“The Fisherman’s Son” by Marilyn Peake is the first novel in a fantasy series aimed at a young audience. The story follows Wiley, a boy from a poor family whose mother dies from a disease that has infected his village. His drunk father isn’t around and so Wiley is forced to travel to the next village to find a priest so that his mother’s body is properly cared for. However, on the journey he encounters a mysterious woman who sets him off on an adventure that will lead to him to see wondrous things and also teach him the history the very land on which he lives.

I need to start by saying that I am clearly not the target audience for this book so perhaps some of my comments here are a bit unfair. Anyway, I struggled to read this story to be honest, yes the plot is interesting and quite unique but at times I couldn’t understand why anything was occurring or why things were linked. Seriously, I still don’t get what the magic cups, giant bears or talking dolphins have to do with a long dead civilisation or why the young lad Wiley was dragged into it all.

Then there are the problems with the writing itself which was quite uninspiring. Everything is described to a level beyond what is really needed and there are several logical inconsistences with the story. For example, I can’t imagine anyone finding strawberries in the frozen cold and not thinking that there is something odd there. Then there is the rather strange section in which is drinks himself full on milk and 5 minutes later is starving and fights some chickens for some food.

Overall, I found the entire book quite an unsatisfying experience, what could be an interesting plot is let down by how it is actually being told. I suspect its target audience of younger children would potentially still enjoy it as they are more likely to ignore the logical failings etc. but it just doesn’t work as a book which can reach other age groups. For myself, I can’t see myself picking up the other books in the series.

Dreams of the Fallen (Temple of the Traveler Book 2) - Scott Rhine

Title: Dreams of the Fallen (Temple of the Traveler Book 2)
Author: Scott Rhine
Genre: Fantasy
Published: 2012
Formats: Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
Samshwords
Amazon UK

Review:
“Dreams of the Fallen” by Scott Rhine is the 2nd book in his epic fantasy series, “The Tales of the Traveller”. This book follows on from the 1st novel and really develops the story and characters further. The plot continues to be complex and varied and due to this I think you really need to have read the previous novel to ensure you get some enjoyment out of this one.

I won’t really detail that much about the plot here as it is hard not to spoil things but we get to see Tashi and Jotham’s quest continue with both of them facing some tough challenges along the way. They even have to face the Gods themselves, some of who have no real interest in seeing them succeed.

The story Rhine is telling here is intelligent, complex and fascinating. He has continued to develop a world and characters that are unique and thoroughly interesting to follow. This time however the pacing is much better as the primary mythos of the world has already been explained in the previous book. This enables Rhine to really delve into the action and adventure that he seems to love filling his novels with. As I read this book I realised that the effort and concentration I had spent in getting through and understanding what was going on in the first novel is paid back in dividends with this book.

Don’t get me wrong the problems I had with the first book are still present to some extent in that the story can get confusing at times as it jumps between the vast array of characters. This is compounded by Rhine’s decision to add even more characters into the mix to increase what was already quite a large cast. However, it was much less distracting this time as the main characters were all well known to me now and I understood the basic principles of the world itself. In addition, one of the new characters, Sarajah was actually a very interesting and enjoyable character to follow as she transforms from an evil person through to picking up the pieces or her life after an encounter with our heroes and then into a real force to be reckoned with.

Overall, this is a thoroughly enjoyable chapter in the “Temple of the Traveler” series. Rhine has used the world and plot building of the first novel incredibly well in this sequel to ensure it is an enjoyable romp with characters that we have grown to like and understand. If you enjoy Fantasy novels then this series shouldn’t disappoint.

Messenger (Behind The Walls of Sleep Book 1) - Scott Rhine

Title: Messenger (Behind The Walls of Sleep Book 1)
Author: Scott Rhine
Genre: Fantasy
Published: 2014
Formats: Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
Amazon UK

Review:
“Messenger” by Scott Rhine is the first book in his YA fantasy series entitled “Behind the Walls of Sleep”. It is Rhine’s first attempt at writing for the YA market and I can easily see how it could tap into the mind-set of online game playing teens the world over. The story follows Daniel, a young teenager who has suffered a terrible accident in his past which led to his mother going to prison and his movement between foster families before his unknown relatives took him in. Whilst living with them, Daniel soon discovers that whilst he dreams he can pass through into another world reminiscent of a roleplaying video game where wizards and barbarians roam. However, before long it becomes clear that what he is doing in one world is upsetting people in the other and Daniel’s life is far from being safe in either place.

My first impressions of the book was that the sections in the dreaming world really did feel like I was following someone’s adventure in a game such as World of Warcraft with respawn points, loot, NPC style characters and quests clearly evident throughout. All you would have needed to was switch the going to sleep for powering on the PC and it would have easily fit. The interesting bit here is that I found most of the charters in this world to be rather flat and uninspiring but I actually found that this enhanced that online game feel and made it all feel very familiar.

The real meat of the story to me however was in the real world; it was here that I found some more development in the characters which contrasted wonderfully with the dream world. It is also here that Rhine really tries to tap into the YA writing elements of showing Daniel’s attempts at discovering who he is and what he wants to truly wants become.

It was actually nice to see Rhine slowdown his pacing with this book as many times in the past I have found his work to quickly launch the reader from one fast paced section to the other which can be fun to follow but does sometimes leave the reader feeling dizzy. Yes, the dream world still seems a bit madcap and fast but this worked due to the nature of the world itself and was again wonderfully contrasted by a slower and further developed real world story.

My biggest issue with the story is the ending which left me feeling rather disappointed as it is all rather sudden without any real resolutions. I know it is setting up for the sequel but I do still like to see some sort of reasoned ending to a book in any series and I felt that this was missing from this novel.

Overall, this was a very different book from what I have seen before from Rhine which was actually nice to see. I think he has done a great job in trying to reach the YA audience, especially those who enjoy online gaming and fantasy adventures. Personally, whilst I am not the target audience I still appreciated the story, helped along I am sure by my own love of gaming so I know that I will be picking up the sequel when it is released.

Doors to Eternity (Temple of the Traveler Book 1) - Scott Rhine

Title: Doors to Eternity (Temple of the Traveler Book 1)
Author: Scott Rhine
Genre: Fantasy
Published: 2012
Formats: Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
Smashwords
Amazon UK

Review:
“Doors to Eternity” is the first novel in Scott Rhine’s “Temple of the Traveler” epic fantasy trilogy. The story is mainly told from the viewpoint of two characters, Jotham who is both a historian and priest and Tashi who is a sheriff of their religion and an acolyte to Jotham. Jotham and Tashi are on a quest to close the doors of eternity but with the kingdoms of their land close to war, their religion outlawed and new enemies appearing with each door they close this is no simple task.

As I have come to expect in a novel by Rhine the majority of the story is told at a blistering pace with a lot of action and adventure thrown in. However, Rhine has actually tried to slow the story down in sections aided by swapping between various points of view. Whilst I commend this as a tool to try and really develop the story and world beyond the entertaining action sequences it does result in the pacing feeling a bit uneven at times. Personally, I think the problem is that the changes in pacing just felt very sudden and abrupt rather than it being a bad thing to have done.

Another issue I had is that it felt like I was being dropped into the middle of a story already being told. For the first part of the book I was busy trying to understand who everyone was and what the world’s mythology was meant I wasn’t enjoying the book as much as I should have. It was just rather confusing which was enhanced by the swapping in view points and the large cast of characters being employed.

Of course once I began to understand who everyone was and how the world functioned I really began to enjoy the journey that Rhine was taking me on. The world, characters and plot are interesting to follow and the myriad of action sequences are all fun and enjoyable. There is also some interesting observations about the morality of the characters evoked via various discussions between them such as if it was right for the “hero” of the story to kill people or not.

Overall, this was another enjoyable book by Rhine which struggled at first to grab my attention but as the story progressed and I understood more about the mythos of the world I soon found myself hooked. Personally, I am looking forward to picking up the 2nd novel in the series and suspect I will enjoy that one more as I should know right from the off who everyone is and what is happening.

The Farthest Shore (Earthsea Book 3) - Ursula K. Le Guin

Title: The Farthest Shore (Earthsea Book 3)
Author: Ursula K. Le Guin
Genre: Fantasy
Published: 1972
Formats: Hardback/Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
The Book Depository
Amazon UK

Review:
“The Farthest Shore” by Ursula K. Le Guin is the third book in the Earthsea fantasy series and was the final book in the original trilogy although the series has of course been expanded since then. I think that this was my favourite novel in the series, and captivated me in ways that the other novels hadn’t. The scope was grand and the story felt like an epic adventure rather than being a collection of interlinked plot points which was an issue I had with the first novel.

The plot itself follows Ged, the Earthsea series’ most central figure who is now Archmage on the Isle of Roke. When, a young prince named Arren arrives with news that magic is disappearing from the more distant lands in Earthsea, Ged realises that he must head out and seek the cause. So, along with Arren he heads out away from Roke hunting out the cause of this magical loss in the hope that they can reverse it before it encroaches upon Roke itself.

As touched on in my first paragraph, this is a grand adventure that contains all the traditional elements of a fantasy epic; a threat to the entire world, an old and aged hero and a young and untested apprentice. It is exciting and fun in a manner that I hadn’t experienced with the other two books in the series but yet still manages to retain the ability to try and explore complex issues. For example, a prime thread is the novel is an interesting look at the almost universal fear of death in which humanity struggles to come to grips with the idea of future non-existence.

In regards to the writing, well the overall flow of the plot isn’t perfect and can meander a bit into detailed exposition as I have come to expect with Le Guin but there was still enough forward momentum to keep me hooked. The upside of this meandering plot is that once again we really get to visualise and understand both the world and its characters as Le Guin colourfully details everything. It is quite clear to me Le Guin has grown as a writer throughout the original trilogy learning and has managed to keep me both entertained with the plot in addition to enjoyed the world she had created.

One slightly negative observation I had is that there was no real continuation of the story of Tenar, from the previous book “The Tombs of Atuan”. Yes elements of what occurred in that book were touched upon but Tenar was reduced to being mentioned in the odd comment. After getting a real feeling for her in the last book it was disappointing not to see anything about how she moved on in life etc. After doing such a U-turn in the previous book to introduce the reader to her, it was disappointing to see her abandoned.

Overall, this has been my favourite book in the series so far and Le Guin has done a good job in mixing an epic adventure story with her love for exposition and world building. Yes, it doesn’t have the best narrative flow in the world but this isn’t anything new from Le Guin so I think that anyone who has enjoyed the previous books is in for a real treat with this one.

Salvation (Altered Realities Book 2) - Weston Kincade

Title: Salvation (Altered Realities Book 2)
Author: Weston Kincade
Genre: Fantasy
Published: 2013
Formats: Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
Smashwords
Amazon UK

Review:
"Salvation" is the 2nd novel in Weston Kincade’s Sci-Fi/Fantasy series known as “Altered Realities”. If you haven't read the previous book then I do advise that you avoid reading this review as some of my commentary is likely to include some spoilers due to this novel

Anyway, the story follows on directly from “Invisible Dawn” with Madeline and her colleagues continuing to travel across multiple dimensions in their continued attempt to evade Leodenin, the PASTOR agent that has consistently been on their trail. However, Madeline soon realises that the only real way for them to escape is to take the fight to PASTOR itself and before long a daring plan to strike at the heart of PASTOR is put into motion.

As with the first novel, there is an enjoyable blend of Science Fiction and Fantasy throughout the story with alternate dimensions, vampires and psychic powers all being utilised in an entertaining manner. The fast paced action sequences also really keep the fun factor high which is complemented by some interesting and varied worlds.

I enjoyed the characters that were introduced in the previous novel and Kincade has continued to develop them well in this novel. We get to understand their thoughts and feeling on a deeper level and also get to learn more about them and the various powers they have. This helped ensure that there was a feeling of character growth within the novel as well as action and adventure.

The think I really appreciated with this novel is that Kincade gives us a much better ending than what was seen in “Invisible Dawn”. Yes it is still open ended to an extent but at least the overall story of this book was concluded in a manner which left me satisfied enough but still wanting more which wasn’t something I could say when I finished the previous novel.

Overall, I felt this book continued the enjoyable and action packed story that was started in “Invisible Dawn”. As with its predecessor it was difficult to put down, but this time I felt much more satisfied when I finish the book. If you have read and enjoyed the previous novel then I am happy to say that you shouldn’t be disappointed when you read this.

The Tombs of Atuan (Earthsea Book 2) - Ursula K. Le Guin

Title: The Tombs of Atuan (Earthsea Book 2)
Author: Ursula K. Le Guin
Genre: Fantasy
Published: 1970
Formats: Hardback/Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
The Book Depository
Amazon UK

Review:
“The Tombs of Atuan” is the second novel in Ursula K. Le Guin's classic YA fantasy series known as the Earthsea cycle. As with the first book in the series I found this novel to be okay but there was nothing that really wowed me within its pages. It did attempt to remedy one of the major issues I had with the first book in regards to trying to cram too much story into too few pages. However, this was done by cutting back the overall scope and adventure of the story rather than by trying to increase the page count which is a bit of a shame.

In regards to the story, it is based around a young priestess who was taken from her family as a child and brought up to serve the nameless ones as head priestess at the Tombs of Atuan. However, when an interloper breaks into the tombs, she finds herself unable to order his death as she should have. Instead, she speaks to the man, discovering he is a wizard from foreign lands and slowly but surely he helps her release the truth about the nameless ones she serves.

As mentioned earlier, the scope of this story is nothing like the epic tale told in the first novel and this has some positives and negatives. For example, it enables Le Guin to really delve into the characters and the world more, I really appreciated the way in which she spent time detailing and describing the places, people and culture around the tombs. However, the feeling of action and adventure was missing, it was much more claustrophobic and cerebral a story which was entertaining enough but it just wasn’t as much fun to read.

Another thing that I am also unsure about is the decision that Le Guin took to move the overall Earthsea story to a different place and viewpoint. Yes, it was an interesting and enjoyable attempt to further explore the world but I would also have enjoyed seeing more development in the life of Sparrowhawk himself. I felt that the relegation of him to a side character who appears in the latter half of the book made it a little bit more difficult to get into the novel than it needed to be.

Overall, it was an interesting and enjoyable enough story that really helped to build a more detailed picture of some aspects of Earthsea. What I would really love to see Le Guin do in in the future is merge this detailed look at characters and world alongside the epic and enjoyable adventure she showed us in the first Earthsea novel. I am going to keep working through the series because either way I am curious to know what type of novel she decided to create next.

No Good Deed (Kelly & Umber Book 1) - Bill Blais

Title: No Good Deed (Kelly & Umber Book 1)
Author: Bill Blais
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Published: 2012
Formats: Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
Smashwords
Amazon UK

Review:
“No Good Deed” by Bill Blais is the first in a series of Urban Fantasy novels entitled the Kelly & Umber series. The story follows Kelly McGinnis, a typical suburban mother who accidently discovering the existence of demons when she interrupts what she initially believes to be a case of police brutality. When she manages to defeat the demon through a fair dose of luck, she begins to wonder if what she saw really happened. However, she soon gets approached by a group of people who have been fighting demons and wish to now offer her a job on their team. And so Kelly embarks on a life in which she must face monsters that she never knew could really exists.

As you can see the plot above sounds pretty standard for an Urban Fantasy novel and on the whole I can’t say it varied too much from what I expected. However, this doesn’t mean it isn’t enjoyable and it doesn’t mean there aren’t some interesting aspects present. For example I really liked the novel’s pacing as it moved along at a good rate and the action packed elements kept me turning the pages to find out what would happen next. In addition, I think Blais has worked hard to detail and describe the various demons, it was nice to see such depth and I found it easy to envision what he was writing about.

Then there is Kelly herself who I really enjoyed reading about because she was one of the more interesting and different elements to the novel. She isn’t the usual young, good looking, popular heroic character that you will see in many other books, instead she is a middle aged, overweight and unfit mother who you would never expect to be out trying to save the world. I just appreciated getting to see a protagonist like this and I can imagine many readers enjoying getting to see someone who may be more like them than many other characters out there.

I did have some issues however, the first of which is the believability of it all. I know that you need to suspend your disbelief when reading speculative fiction but I did find it a little hard to accept that just because Kelly managed to kill a demon a group of skilled, veteran fighting would suddenly believe that she would be good for the team. Then there is her family, who just came across as being a little bit too wonderful and sweet. It felt to me like they had been set up in a way to ensure Kelly could do everything she needed to without an issue. As a parent myself I found it rather unbelievable how easy it was for her to arrange everything she needed too without any real issues.

Overall, as long as you accept the minor believability issues with Kelly’s life and how she gets involved in demon hunting then this is an entertaining urban fantasy novel. Kelly herself is an interesting character that many readers should be able to relate to on some level which helps to enhance the story. The demon hunting team plot line isn’t anything that original but it should still be enjoyable for many fans of the Urban Fantasy genre.

Neverwhere - Neil Gaiman

Title: Neverwhere
Author: Neil Gaiman
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Published: 1996
Formats: Hardback/Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
The Book Depository
Amazon UK

Review:
“Neverwhere” by Neil Gaiman is the latest book I have read as part of the 2013 Eclectic Reader Challenge. This book fulfils the Urban Fantasy requirement of the challenge and I was looking forward to delving into it as I fondly remembered my previous experience of Gaiman from reading “American Gods”.

The story follows Richard Mayhew, a normal guy living in London with a regular job and an attractive fiancé. However, when he stumbles across an injured girl lying in the street he decides to help her out and unwittingly changes his life forever. He soon discovers that the ATM doesn’t recognise his bank card, his fiancé doesn’t remember him, his flat is rented out to another person. He therefore attempts to understand what has happened by trying to locate the mysterious girl he assisted. His search leads him to “London Below”, a mysterious and dark place where the lost and forgotten end up. On his journey through “London Below” he confronts talking rats, assassins, monsters and even the odd angel but keeps on going determined to get his old life back.

Quite simply, I loved this book as I felt it was the perfect urban fantasy with the fantastical underworld of “London Below” really complementing Richard’s easily recognisable normal urban life. The writing itself was of a high standard with the clever, humorous and witty language being utilised to help the reader visualise the various dark and surreal locations, events and characters. To be honest, I think the language really does strike home with me that this is a British novel with a sense of style and humour that should be highly recognisable to those who live in the UK. However, it should still appeal to people the world over as it is an expertly written piece of dark urban fantasy.

In regards to the locations, I really enjoyed witnessing the way in which the names of stations on the London Underground actually linked to places in “London Below”. I found this little quirk of the story to be both original and very interesting to see in action. As a clarification, you don’t need to know about London to enjoy the story although I think that some knowledge of the various locations will probably help to enhance the overall experience.

The characterisation was also exquisite with a huge level of diversity as you would expect to see in a city like London. Everyone was different in regards to history, ability and aims but everything was well portrayed and developed so that what they did made sense on some level. Richard in particular was a joy to follow, his naivety, confusion, dear and curiosity about his own sanity all felt real. Quite simply, he was regular person and I could easily imagine most people reacting in the same way if confronted with the world he ended up facing.

Overall, this was a surreal and imaginative urban fantasy novel that ticks all the right boxes. There is originality, innovation, humour, wit and competent writing throughout the novel which ensured I was hooked from start to finish. The only negative I can think of is that there has never been a sequel! Therefore, if you are a fan of urban fantasy, especially the dark variety then I think you need to go and pick this book up

Corpus Pretereo - Edited by Patrick Jennings-Mapp & Alexandra J. Ash

Title: Corpus Pretereo
Author: Various (Edited by Patrick Jennings-Mapp & Alexandra J. Ash)
Genre: Speculative Fiction
Published: 2011
Formats: Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon

Review:
“Corpus Pretereo” is an anthology of sixteen short stories by various different authors that span several different genres under the speculative fiction umbrella. This includes genres such as fantasy, horror and science-fiction with the overall subject of the stories being that of escape.

As is normal with anthologies such as this the stories are a bit of a mixed bag in terms of quality and entertainment. For example, some of them are enthralling complete stories that provide well thought out endings whilst others just come across like an opening chapter in a much longer story. However, overall there was more than enough enjoyable stories contained here to make me feel that the anthology is well worth the price.

As there is such a large collection of stories in the collection I will not comment on all of the stories, but will pick a sample of both the positive and negative to give as balanced a review as I can. The Devil and Neil Armstrong: This clever and thoughtful story was probably my favourite story in the collection. It involves two concepts I find interesting, space exploration and time travel to create an interesting concept that had me contemplating the way in which the past influences the present.

The Carnival: Whilst I found this story to be very atmospheric and had me very intrigued, however it was let down by a terribly inclusive ending. This story more than any other struck me as being the opening chapter in a novella rather than it working as a satisfying standalone short story.

Crash: A superb dystopian story in which a group of children try to survive and find a place for themselves in a hostile world. Even with the stories’ short length, the author has managed create well developed and interesting characters that suck the reader in. This is supported by a strong narrative voice and interesting depth to the world. The ending was conclusive but I would still love to learn more about the characters and their world.

The Curl of the Wave: I found the writing to be perfect in evoking an entertaining and strong image of what the author was trying to portray. However, I think it was let down by a lack of characterisation that just made it hard to fully become engaged with the characters and therefore the story as a whole.

This is just a short taste of what the collection contains and there are further stories that I enjoyed and others that just didn’t appeal although as you can see from my comments above the negatives didn’t always necessarily ruin my interest in a story. However, overall I found that there were enough interesting, enjoyable and entertaining stories within the collection to make me more than happy to recommend it. So if you are a fan of speculative fiction and would like to sample the work of various authors that they may not normally read then this anthology more than fits the bill.

Calm Before the Storm (Stewards of the White Circle Book 1) - JT Brewer

Title: Calm Before the Storm (Stewards of the White Circle Book 1)
Author: JT Brewer
Genre: Fantasy
Published: 2011
Formats: Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
The Book Depository
Amazon UK

Review:
“Calm Before The Storm" is an interesting urban fantasy novel written by a husband/wife duo known as JT Brewer. The interesting thing about this story was that I had originally been asked to read it under a different title which was “Omega’s Shepherd” but before I got onto it the authors asked me to hold off as they were re-working the novel. Anyway, the novel as it stands now is going to be the first in a series of novels known as “Stewards of the White Circle” and after reading this book I am looking forward to reading the future novels.

The plot itself follows a famous Biology professor known as Dr James Omega who is drawn to a University in Colorado as he searches for someone known as the Shepherd who appears to have some sort of special destiny regarding life on Earth. Of course, he isn’t the only one searching and a demon has been unleashed from hell to try and thwart the aims of Dr Omega and his fellow Stewards of the White Circle.

The story itself does involve an interesting premise and I was very curious about where the overall plot is heading in the long run. In addition there were some really interesting references to a deeper history that I am sure will be further developed in future novels. However, a problem I did have is that the novel suffers from being dedicated to the overall set up with little real tension or excitement. The authors do try to include something in regards to an avalanche at one point but this just doesn’t work for me as the other characters involved were just random people that were never introduced and were never mentioned again.

The writing itself was tidy, descriptive and easily captured the imagery that the authors were trying to invoke. In addition, I actually found the pacing to be more than competent enough to stop my mind drifting off which was nice to see considering the issues I had with the lack of tension etc.

The biggest issue I probably had with the novel however is in relation to the characters who just felt a little bit too flat for me which made it hard for me to really connect with them. They were all just so black and white and lacked any meaningful depth or complexity which would have really drawn me in. This is epitomised by the romantic relationship between two of the protagonists which was quite simply bad. I found it to be clichéd, unimaginative and obvious to the point that it actually irritated me a little.

Despite this review sounding rather negative, I did find the book to be an interesting and enjoyable introduction to a new series of fantasy novels. However, I do think it is missing a real sense of tension and I hope we can see some real development in the characters going forward. Personally, I am still looking forward to reading the next book in the series which is a good sign for any introductory book such as this.

Parallels: The Black-Eyed Susan (On Dark Shores Prequel) - J.A. Clement

Title: The Black-Eyed Susan (On Dark Shores Prequel)
Author: J.A. Clement
Genre: Fantasy
Published: 2012
Formats: Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
Smashwords (Free)
Amazon UK

Review:
“The Black-Eyed Susan” is a short story that serves as a prequel to JA Clement’s “On Dark Shores” series (for the review of book 1 in the series please click here). I decided to read this short story as I have enjoyed the series so far and I did have some time to waste as I wait for the 3rd book in the series to be written.

The story is set ten years prior to the events contained within the first book in the series and it details the meeting between the Captain of a ship called the Black-Eyed Susan and a moneylender known as Copeland. Basically, Copeland has set up events to ensure that the Captain would be unable to repay his debts and would therefore forfeit the ship and this short story details the initial outcomes of this.

This really is a very short piece of fiction and therefore for someone new to the series I am not sure there is enough time to really detail the characters that will go on to influence the series of novels. However, the basics fundamental morals of the characters are there to see which should pique the interest of any reader. In addition, the writing is concise, descriptive and formatted well which is of course a good advert for the series as a whole.

To be honest, I believe that this book will appeal most to those who have already started reading the series and are familiar with the characters and rich setting. It really does fill out some of the key characters and further explains some of the motives for their future actions. However, there is still be enough here for new readers to gain a nice quick introduction to what is a varied and interesting world. So I can only advise that people go and pick this up, especially as it can usually be found for free on various websites.