Review: Tricks of the Trade by Laura Anne Gilman

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Nov 102011

Paranormal Scene Investigations #3

The Blurb:

WHEN MAGIC GOES WRONG, WHO ARE YOU GOING TO CALL?

The name’s Torres, Bonnie Torres, and I’m a paranormal scene investigator—rooting out the truth about crimes of magic. It’s dangerous and boring and scary and fascinating. Though not everyone in the Cosa Nostradamus is happy we’re around, which can make things…tricky.

Working two cases—looking into a murder for the NYPD, and a rich man’s break-in—should be well within our abilities. But when things start getting weird in the Electric Apple, Private Unaffiliated Paranormal Investigations is stretched to the limits, trying to keep one step ahead and out of trouble. Add in rumors of a powerful creature gunning for us and it’s not just our rep on the line this time—if we don’t solve this case, everyone will suffer.

Fortunately, around here, when the going gets weird, the weird hire us.

My Review:

Yeah, yeah, I know. I’m a total Laura Anne geek. Whatever. I can do nothing but embrace my fangirlishness, apparently. Plus, I couldn’t resist requesting this book on NetGalley and that means you get a review. So here. Have one.

This is the 3rd book in the series and I think it’s really hitting it’s stride now. The mystery in this one doesn’t quite have the political/social significance of the last, but it’s just as twisty. And Gilman comes up with the perfect didn’t-see-it-coming-but-couldn’t-end-up-anywhere-else ending (again).

Honestly, the only complaint I have with this is that I’m a little ‘meh’ about the romance. But I’m almost always a little ‘meh’ about the romance, so I’m fine with that. (An aside: an urban fantasy with a romance I’m not ’meh’ about? Devon Monk’s Allie Beckstrom series. Read it. Live it. Love it.)

I liked Bonnie a lot more in this one. Maybe it’s the little-bit-less self-assured, little-bit-more insecure vibe she’s giving off here. She was kind of arrogant before, so I’m enjoying seeing her get broken down a smidgen.

So. Yeah. Have you read Gilman yet or are you procrastinating? Well, stop that. Go get one. You know you want to. (This book releases November 15th per Their Majesties at Amazon </sarcasm> so you have 5 days to get caught up and buy this one!)

Review: Child of Fire by Harry Connolly

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Nov 052011

The Blurb:

Ray Lilly is living on borrowed time. He’s the driver for Annalise Powliss, a high-ranking member of the Twenty Palace Society, a group of sorcerers devoted to hunting down and executing rogue magicians. But because Ray betrayed her once, Annalise is looking for an excuse to kill him–or let someone else do the job.

Unfortunately for both of them, Annalise’s next mission goes wrong, leaving her critically injured. With the little magic he controls, Ray must complete her assignment alone. Not only does he have to stop a sorcerer who’s sacrificing dozens of innocent lives in exchange for supernatural power, he must find–and destroy–the source of that inhuman magic.

My Review:

Damn, this is a depressing book. Ray is living with his own death hanging over his head, waiting for his boss to turn around and kill him instead of look at him. In the meantime, there are children bursting into flaming silver worms and when nothing but their ashes are left not even their parents remember they ever existed.

The mysterious Twenty Palace Society is intriguing but not explained. At all. Even their name remains an enigma – not to mention their membership, powers, goals, etc. Personally, despite their (somewhat) good intentions, they kind of sound like assholes. Ray would have done a much better job if someone had explained some stuff to him.

I respect the techniques that Connolly has used in this book. You can read the author’s explanation for some of his choices here. I feel, however, that some of them – especially not explaining more about the Twenty Palaces – serves more to isolate the reader than to engage them. Instead of wanting to know more about these people, I ended up deciding that they were a bunch of jerks that I really didn’t want to know at all. Honestly, despite Ray being a (mostly) sympathetic character, it was the lure of needing to know who, what, and why someone was preying on the children that kept me reading.

I get that having the new guy take a grand tour of the supposed-secret society is really stupid. Yet the reader has to have SOME sort of sense of who these people are and what they stand for (besides, apparently, “they’re the good guys even though they’re assholes”) or it’s hard to care which side wins.

Anyway, my biggest problem was a lack of engagement with the supposed “good guys”. That doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy the book. The language was great, with good imagery, and the pace was rocket-fast. I’d be picking up the next two in the series right now, except… Except if you read the rest of that link to the author’s post, you’ll know that the series has been canceled by the publisher, uncompleted.

Boo. Just when I’d picked up the series after hearing so much about it (and I was literally in the middle of the first book when that announcement was posted), it was coming to a sad, unfulfilled end. Just because there were some problems in execution, that doesn’t mean the book has no value. In fact, my bottom-line opinion is that this is an excellent author who made a couple of bad choices, has learned from them, and will do better next time. Read his post and decide for yourself.

Here’s what I will say right now:

I don’t have the time to invest in a series that doesn’t have an ending, but
The very second Harry Connolly releases another book, I’m going to be all over it, and –
I’m going to promote the shit out of it.

I can’t wait.

Review: Graceling by Kristin Cashore

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Oct 102011

Graceling

The Seven Kingdoms #1

Written: Kristin Cashore

Published: October 2008

Publisher: Harcourt Children’s

ISBN: 9780152063962

Obtained via: Gift

Blurb:

Katsa has been able to kill a man with her bare hands since she was eight—she’s a Graceling, one of the rare people in her land born with an extreme skill. As niece of the king, she should be able to live a life of privilege, but Graced as she is with killing, she is forced to work as the king’s thug.

When she first meets Prince Po, Graced with combat skills, Katsa has no hint of how her life is about to change. She never expects to become Po’s friend. She never expects to learn a new truth about her own Grace—or about a terrible secret that lies hidden far away . . . a secret that could destroy all seven kingdoms with words alone.

My Review:

This book kept me up until 2am. I had no intention of staying up this late, and even though I read this on a Friday, I am still ticked off about it.

Katsa is the teenage assassin of a king. Her job is to kill or torture anyone her king points her toward. So – it’s your typical coming-of-age story, really. Katsa struggles to find herself while under the yoke of her king and then strikes out on her own to solve a mystery, fall in love, and save the world.

It’s what I wanted as a teenager. Didn’t you?

This book also has the creepiest bad guy I’ve run across in a long, long time. I won’t spoil it for you, but – Wow. Creeptastic.

The romance is sweet and tender. I love that it’s so clear and true – no ambiguous love triangle, like I’ve seen in so many other young adult novels lately. Stable couples have become a personal preference of mine.

Only pick up this book when you’re ready to devote the time to finish it. One page will hook you and you’ll look up hours later to realize you’ve spent all day (or night) caught in the grip of Kristin Cashore’s world.

You’ve been warned.

Rating:

L.J. McDonald Giveaway Winner!

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Oct 082011

Random.org says the winner of the L.J. McDonald giveaway is…

~ap~

Congratulations ~ap~! You should be receiving an email soon with a free download code for your book!

Signal Boost! A Walker Papers Kickstarter Campaign

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Oct 022011

If you’re a CE Murphy Walker Papers fan – or just want to toss a great author an extra few bucks, then check out this Kickstarter campaign for a new novella and possibly extras!

It’s been 24 hours and the campaign is already fully funded but you still have a few weeks to jump in and get this story if you’d like to be included.

In other WFF news – don’t forget to add a comment to this post to win a digital copy of L.J. McDonald’s newest book!

Guest Post + Giveaway: What’s In A Name? by L.J. McDonald

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Oct 012011

L.J. McDonald is an author for Dorchester Publishing, home to our already esteemed Leanna Renee Hieber. She is the author of the Sylph series, consisting of The Battle Sylph, The Shattered Sylph, and the upcoming Queen of the Sylphs. If you haven’t heard of L.J. McDonald before, don’t worry – I hadn’t either. What I can tell you now, after reading the first book in the series, is that if you’re a fantastical or paranormal romance fan, then I think you want to give this series a try. I am admittedly hesitant to pick up any sort of romance novel, and yet I read the first book in this series and really enjoyed it. It was original and engrossing – and reading it digitally means there are no embarrassing “man-candy” covers to display in public! As my regular readers know – from me, this is a huge endorsement! Stay tuned after the guest post for an e-book giveaway!

WHAT’S IN A NAME?

L.J. McDonald

Sòlas is a Gaelic word meaning solace, comfort, consolation, contentment, pleasure. I can’t pronounce it. My ability to speak French, the second language of my country, makes people laugh. My ability to say anything in Gaelic, which I don’t speak at all, is likely an abomination. However, I can look in a dictionary with the best of them.

If anyone does any serious study of the history of English – I haven’t, which means I just know enough to get myself into trouble – they learn that a lot of English words find their origins in ones from other languages, such as Latin. J.K. Rowling took all the spell names she used in her book from Latin words. I think this is brilliant, not that I knew enough Latin to realize it until I read the fact on a blog somewhere. It’s also something I’ve been doing for years, likely the same as a lot of authors, but I’ve been using Gaelic instead of Latin.

I brought up the word Sòlas because that’s the word I used to come up with the name for Solie, one of the heroines in my Sylph series. Obviously, I immediately bastardized it, since I don’t particularly want anyone to look at the name and go “hey, she named her heroine Comfort.” Plus I only know the definition of the word and nothing about how it’s used in context.

I don’t always do this. Sometimes the name just comes to me. I have a mental list of names I’d always planned to use and sometimes they fit that way. Leon got his name that way. Sometimes, however, it backfires on me. I love the name Blue. Took me a while to realize I’ve used it in three separate books now. All minor characters. After I finished laughing, I decided to leave it that way, just to see down the road if anyone notices. Only one of those books is on the shelves right now. Autumn’s shown up twice too. That one I’m more peeved about. It’s going to change in the other book once I get around to getting it fully typed and published.

Heyou’s name was a joke from Solie’s first words to him of “hey you”. So was Wat’s. It’s basically a misspelling of ‘What’? I’m sure there’s some sylph out there somewhere whose name is “Ohcrap” or even something ruder.
Back to the use of Gaelic. Sala definitely came from Gaelic, though there’s no exact use of the word Sala in Gaelic. It’s a corruption of a word that gives a very large hint as to her character. That’s why I like it. By taking a name from an existing word, I can give it a meaning, even if it’s one only I know.

A character’s name is very important. In a novel, it can give a fast first impression of that person and affect the way that people see them. In a fantasy it can throw the reader right out of their immersion in the world. I have a minor character in QUEEN OF THE SYLPHS called Fhranke. In the first draft, I called him Frank. I was asked to change that because it was too jarring for the beta readers. I’m sure no one would take a battler seriously if I named him Bubbles, but if I felt so inclined, I could name him Suilean and only true Gaelic speakers would want to throw the book at my head (which means I’d likely called him ‘Suilen’ instead. Close enough to Bubbles the battle sylph to make me laugh).

I’m not entirely sure how other authors come up with their names for people and places, but it doesn’t come easily to me. Using Gaelic as a source helps in finding a word when I’m stuck that has a flow to it that doesn’t sound like English and feels like it could be from a fantasy world. Besides, that way I can name some villain Asalpur someday and only I would ever know that it loosely translates as ‘donkey butt’.

Asalpur….hrm….I like it.

This is Kiara back again and now it’s time for our giveaway! One lucky winner who comments here by October 7th (11:59:00 PM Eastern) will win a download code from Dorchester Publishing to get their own copy of Queen of the Sylphs!

Here’s the blurb:

It was a dream come true. Solie had her own battler, a creature of almost infinite magic who could vaporize legions in the blink of an eye and would willingly suffer a thousand bloody deaths to protect her. She was his love. More simply, she was his queen.

Many others feel the same. The new-built settlement is a haven for all. Erected by sylphs of earth and fire, air and water, the Valley is Solie’s dominion. But, lovers without peer or killers without mercy, the very nature of their battler protectors means peril. It is not in any sylph’s nature to disobey, and while some are hers to command, others are the slaves of Solie’s enemies—the jealous, the cruel. Those who guard her must not fail. Their peasant-born ruler is not yet safe as…QUEEN OF THE SYLPHS

Review: The Death of Torberta Turchin by Shannon Mawhiney

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Sep 272011

The Death of Torberta Turchin

Written: Shannon Mawhiney

Published: 03/11/11

Publisher: Createspace

ISBN: 1460937902

Obtained via: Author

Blurb:

Torberta Turchin, or Torby for short, is a 14-year-old girl who has spoken to the dead ever since she can remember. After her parents’ death in a tragic car accident when she was very young, her relatives sent her to St. Christopher’s boarding school for the mentally ill, where she lives a relatively normal and happy life. Short of some demanding and needy ghosts, Torby has never been much bothered by the voices, especially because her best friend, a musician named Charlie who died in the 1930s, is among them.

When she becomes the target of strange events at the school though, she needs Charlie’s help, and the help of a new boy who not only can hear Charlie… he can see him. Together they must figure out who is behind the attacks, before it’s too late, for Torby and for her classmates.

Will she survive to another year? …or will she join Charlie on the plane of the dead?

My Review:

The Death of Torberta Turchin is a surprisingly well-written and engrossing YA novel. The kids at St. Christopher’s have so many problems that it’s easy to sympathize and feel sorry for them. The mystery is intriguing, even if it is easy to puzzle out.

The ending, though, seemed a bit sudden and had a tacked-on-with-glue feeling. You know by the title how the story will end, but the author’s vision of the afterlife seems not nearly so fleshed out as that of the living world. There is an obvious allusion to a sequel, however, so the author should have ample opportunity to expand that later – though that’s not an excuse for leaving even the bit we do see here lackluster.

I admit to being a bit put off by what seems to be the “moral” of this story. Torby’s fate seems to say, “All my problems were solved by dying!” My guess is that this isn’t what the author meant to say. At least, I hope it isn’t. That would be a very poor lesson to give teenagers who have enough pressures in the current day.

My biggest concern is that, if the author isn’t trying to tell teenagers that death is preferable to living with a mental or emotional problem, then she failed to get her real message across. This is bad. Still, a book can be just a book and not a life lesson, so I wouldn’t recommend readers avoid this story on that alone.

The book touches on serious things that are real life problems: schizophrenia, pyromania, trichotillomania, and bulimia are a few. Though it doesn’t truly address any of these things, they are depicted as treatable conditions that one can adjust to and live with – encouraging if you’re a teen who is dealing with one of them.

If you’re a YA paranormal fan, I’d recommend it. Though, as should always be a given, I recommend adults who are unsure of the themes to read it before, or along with, their kids.

Rating:

Review: Hard Spell by Justin Gustainis

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Sep 012011

Hard Spell

Occult Crimes Investigation Unit #1

Written: Justin Gustainis

Published: July 26, 2011

Publisher: Angry Robot

ISBN: 0857661159

Obtained via: Purchase (So long, Borders, we hardly knew ye!)

Blurb: (Reviewers note: This ‘blurb’ is a mash-up of the ones found on the author’s website and GoodReads.)

Stan Markowski is a Detective Sergeant on the Scranton PD’s Supernatural Crimes Investigation Unit.

Like the rest of America, Scranton’s got an uneasy ‘live and let unlive’ relationship with the supernatural. But when a vamp puts the bite on an unwilling victim, or some witch casts the wrong kind of spell, that’s when they call Markowski. He carries a badge. Also, a crucifix, some wooden stakes, a big vial of holy water, and a 9mm Beretta loaded with silver bullets.

In this “alternate universe,” supernatural creatures really exist, and everybody knows it. In Scranton, PA, when a “supe” breaks the law, they call Detective Sgt. Stan Markowski of the Occult Crimes Unit. Now somebody is murdering vampires in Scranton, and Stan learns that it’s all part of a renegade wizard’s ritual to gain ultimate power. Unless this evil magician can be stopped before the spell is completed, Bad Things Will Happen. Fortunately, when it comes to busting supes, Stan Markowski is one bad motherf**ker.

My Review:

Justin Gustainis is a super-cool guy. He’s been recommended by the likes of Lilith Saintcrow, Charlaine Harris, Rob Thurman, and Jim Butcher. He is the king of the cross-reference, the pop-culture allusion, the nerd-culture in-joke. He even had Mac, of Mac’s Pub Harry-Dresden’s-favorite-place-for-a-steak-sandwich fame, in a cameo in one of his books. (That would be Evil Ways.) In other words, I highly recommend that you get off your butt right this second, rush out (or to your computer) and give this guy’s work a try.

Still need convincing? Fine. Fine. Here’s the rest of my review.

Hard Spell is the first installment of a new series called Occult Crimes Investigation Unit series, henceforth known as OCIU because wow, what a mouthful! Stan Markowski is a detective with the OCIU in exotic Scranton, PA (*snerk*) and he’s having a bad day. He was recently widowed AND his partner was just killed by a drug-addicted goblin. Supernatural citizens of Scranton are turning up murdered, and there’s a truly Evil book missing that everyone refuses to talk about. The department’s white witch on staff has disappeared after a necromancy ritual gone wrong (which Stan feels responsible for), and a couple of jerky witch-hunters sniffing around after her. Oh, and did I mention that Stan is still not sure what to do with his estranged daughter, Christine – who also happens to be one of the vampires Stan hates most?

There’s a lot going on here, and though the story is fast-paced and gripping as hell (kind of literally, actually), there are some problems. First, there’s a bit of disjointedness in the beginning. The story of Stan’s partner Paul being killed by the goblins is interesting and is a great introduction to the world. However, since it happened seven week before the rest of the plot, I’m still trying to figure out where it fits with the story. Gustainis’ work is usually much tighter than this, so I was a little shocked at how out-of-place this seems. It is a pretty awesome scene, though, so I kind of can’t blame him for not cutting it.

Second – and this was a problem so big that it threw me right out of the story – is the copy-editing. The really, really terrible copy-editing. For the record, I read the mass market edition, so I don’t know if the same problems exist in the digital version. There are words that seem to be missing in places or the wrong word is used entirely. Those are big enough to notice but small enough to ignore if you have to do so. (Many, many books do this. It happens, and if you’re an habitual reader you get used to it.)

The scene I have the most problems with is Rachel’s necromancy ritual. First, she makes four forty-five degree “quarter” turns, and ends up facing back the way she started. (Those would need to be ninety degree turns, folks!) Then during her invocation of the elements, she calls upon fire twice and skips water all together. (I’m a Pisces, which is a water sign. Maybe I’m being too sensitive? Nah!) Anyone familiar enough with the paranormal to enjoy reading urban fantasy is going to remember that the four elements are NOT air, fire, fire, and earth!

Honestly, that scene alone would have made the book a wall-thumper IF this had not been written by Justin Gustainis. It was only my respect for his other work that made me grit my teeth, chalk it up to a bad copy-editor at a new publisher, and soldier on.

I’m glad I did, too. The integration of supernatural and mundane is pretty fascinating. How many urban fantasies do you remember with goblins? Stan is a flawed guy who often ends up doing all the wrong things for the right reasons. I also find the setting of Scranton, Pennsylvania kind of humorously intriguing. Why Scranton? Don’t get me wrong, I’m thankful it’s not another New York-Los Angeles-New Orleans-Atlanta kind of story. And Kim Harrison already took the unique approach of using my hometown of Cincinnati. I’m just curious what the allure of Scranton was for the author. (Not for the characters, though, as that’s explained in the narrative.)

Bottom line? This story is at about 80% the quality of the Quincy Morris series. It’s obvious that this world isn’t as “solid” to the author as that of the other. If you’re new to Gustainis, I recommend you start with Black Magic Woman instead. That said, I still think OCIU #1 is a worthwhile book. As the first in a new series with a new imprint, I’m willing to give it a break for now. I will definitely be catching the next one.

Rating:

Review: Dragon Virus by Laura Anne Gilman

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Aug 292011

Dragon Virus

Written: Laura Anne Gilman

Published: June, 2011

Publisher: Fairwood Press

ISBN: 1933846259

Obtained via: Purchase

Blurb:

It began soon after the Millennium. Reports of newborns with strange malformations, too weak to live . . . caused by a single genetic mutation. Or, as the press quickly dubbed it, the Dragon Virus. Scientists predicted that it was an evolutionary dead end; that the mutation would burn itself out quickly; that it was nothing to be worried about.

They were wrong.

Every racial type. Almost every continent. No known cause. Human-created, maybe. Or just God, throwing the dice. Infecting us, warping us. Tied into our genetic code, from here on in. No known treatment. No idea where even to begin.

Everything was about to change.

My Review:

The Apocalypse. It’s been written of in many, many ways over recent years: viral plagues, meteors, zombies, climate change, earthquakes, vampires, hurricanes and floods. Dragon Virus is another of those apocalyptic stories – but it’s not at all the same. As the title pages says, this is ‘a tragedy in six evolutions /an evolution in six tragedies’. Or, as T.S. Eliot famously said,’This is the way the world ends/Not with a bang but a whimper.’

What Dragon Virus gives us is six glimpses of a unique apocalypse that spans generations. Generations during which humans manage to breed themselves out of existence. The titular disease is actually a genetic mutation, an aberration which scientists originally said would be a short-lived mistake of Mother Nature.

They were wrong.

This is no X-Men-esque story, where beings of special looks and talents (though there are those) become both humanity’s villains and saviors. As so often happens in real life, the true villain of the story is human nature. It is human nature that causes the rift between homo sapiens and other. And it is “human” nature in both – shall we call them species? – that causes the eventual implosion of society and culture as the rift tears the world as we know it apart.

From the body of a tiny stillborn Dragon child, to the pitiful remains of a human baby so loved by her Dragon brother that he smothers her in her crib rather than see her persecuted for being “different”, this is no happy story. Gilman has left us no shreds of hope here that homo sapien will triumph – indeed, this is a true apocalypse, as when the story is done humanity no longer even exists at all. This is an unflinching look at the most brutal parts of society and people in general: prejudice, persecution, violence, suicide, violation, murder.

Dragon Virus is a small, unassuming volume. Slim and nonthreatening, even with it’s bloody cover art. Don’t be fooled. Between it’s covers is a truly frightening look at how easily humanity could really fall apart.

Available as a limited, signed, numbered hardcover edition from Fairwood Press, there are still copies available. (I received copy #26.) I can tell that I personally debated the price point for quite some time, before I admitted that I was intrigued enough by the blurb that I needed to be able to read it. I wasn’t at all disappointed in what I got back for my money.

It’s no secret that I think Gilman is one of the oft-overlooked masters of the craft. Dragon Virus, although not for the faint of heart, is not only worth the money – it’s worth the nightmares afterward, too.

Rating:

Review: In the Dead Volume 1 by Jesse Petersen

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Aug 152011

In The Dead: Volume 1

Companion to Living with the Dead Series

Written: Jesse Petersen

Published: July 2011

ISBN: 0012768200

Obtained via: Author

Blurb:

When the Zombie Apocalypse began in Seattle and spread within days to almost the entire western half the country, the survivors had to figure out how to deal with the plague and live one day at a time. These are their stories.

If you liked Jesse Petersen’s zombie comedies Married With Zombies, Flip This Zombie and Eat Slay Love, these nine stories are set in the same world, but from the perspective of other survivors.

My Review:

This is a collection of shocking and compelling stories telling of the human condition during and after a zombie outbreak. Some are tender, some filled with the resilient human spirit of hope… and just a few end in despair. All of them are likely to break your heart at one point or another. This volume is an excellent introduction to Petersen’s work, or a must-have addition to a fan’s shelf. And, this digital edition is easy to carry in case of Zombie Apocalypse!

It also has a wonderful price point — only $2.99 over at Barnes and Noble or Amazon.

(And my deepest apologies to the author. I thought I’d posted this review two weeks ago, and turns out it hadn’t gone up as planned. Oops!)

Rating:

Review: The Mumbo Jumbo Circus by Jane George

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Jul 262011

The Mumbo Jumbo Circus

Written: Jane George [website]

Published: April 15, 2011

Publisher: Red Willow Publishing

ISBN: 9781936539086

Obtained via: Author

Blurb:

Magic. Mystery. Mayhem. The MUMBO JUMBO CIRCUS…

When the enigmatic Ringmaster asks 15-year-old Evanja (Evan) Leane to run away and join the circus, she says yes. Anywhere’s got to be better than foster home Number Eight. Evan learns that this ragtag circus, a haven for throwaway teens, relies on more than spectacle and illusion. This circus is built on magic. Each of the teens possesses a donvrai, a true gift, that manifests only in the presence of the Ringmaster’s mysterious Ju-Ju. Unlike many of the other teens who must wait for their donvrai to emerge, Evan’s gift surfaces on her first night: she can read horses’ minds. This would be totally awesome except she has been deathly afraid of horses since foster home Number Three. But circus is a dying art. If Evan wants to save her beloved new-found home, she must concoct a brilliant horse act that will bring in the crowds. And she’d better get over herself and get on with it fast; there’s a traitor close to the Ringmaster who will stop at nothing to make sure she doesn’t succeed.

With B&W illustrations.
Contains: some swearing. Recommended for age 14 and up.

My Review (Which Contains Vague Spoilers, If You Care About Such Things):

The Mumbo Jumbo Circus is a sweet and eccentric coming of age story filled with all the strangeness a circus story should have. I haven’t had this much fun with a circus novel since Toby Tyler, or Ten Weeks with a Circus. The writing is lovely and the story is a breath of fresh air. I really like it, and am looking forward to buying a copy for my niece in a few years.

I only have one or two beefs with the book. Jacques and his henchmen kidnapped Evan, and she was rescued — but there was no final confrontation. The good guys didn’t “win” so much as the bad guys were put off for another day. That plot line just kind of petered out and never resolved itself, leaving me feeling vaguely cheated. And what about Chandi the Tiger Tamer? Are she and her tigers stuck being tormented simply because the Mumbo Jumbo “ju-ju” said so?

Happily, I sent off a question to the author, and discovered that Mumbo Jumbo *is*, in fact, the beginning of a series. There are six books planned, each with a different POV. This fixes most of my issues – namely, the unanswered questions. It still feels a bit like the big climax happened in the middle of the book, but since this is just the beginning of things I’m much more willing to forgive that.

Honestly, I was quite pleasantly surprised* and pleased with how well this book was written, and its deft exploration of significant teenage themes like fitting in, contributing to society, teamwork, and standing up to bullies. The illustrations were lovely. (Why don’t more books do that?) I recommend this for teenage readers who don’t mind a bit of whimsy; it’s certainly a nice change from the very necessary but fairly dark turn that some YA books have taken lately.

*The surprise wasn’t really this author’s fault. I’ve just had a bit of a bad run lately with the quality of books I’ve been asked to review.

Rating:

Review: Hounded by Kevin Hearne

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Jul 152011

Hounded

The Iron Druid #1

Written: Kevin Hearne [website]

Published: May 3, 2011

Publisher: Del Ray

Obtained via: Purchase

Blurb:

Atticus O’Sullivan has been running for two thousand years and he’s a bit tired of it. After he stole a magical sword from the Tuatha Dé Danann (those who became the Sidhe or the Fae) in a first century battle, some of them were furious and gave chase, and some were secretly amused that a Druid had the cheek to defy them.

As the centuries passed and Atticus remained an annoyingly long-lived fugitive, those who were furious only grew more so, while others began to aid him in secret. Now he’s living in Tempe, Arizona, the very last of the Druids, far from where the Fae can easily find him. It’s a place where many paranormals have decided to hide from the troubles of the Old World—from an Icelandic vampire holding a grudge against Thor to a coven of Polish witches who ran from the German Blitzkrieg.

Unfortunately, the very angry Celtic god who wants that sword has tracked him down, and Atticus will need all his power, plus the help of a seductive goddess of death, a sexy bartender possessed by a Hindu witch, and some good, old-fashioned luck of the Irish to kick some arse and deliver himself from evil.

You can read the first six chapters of HOUNDED for free right here.

My Review:

Kevin Hearne is my newest discovered favorite author. I read both Hounded and Hexed (book 2 in the series) in a row, and I’d have read the third, Hammered, too, if I’d only been able to find it. (It will be released the day after I am writing this, on July 5th!)

Atticus O’Sullivan’s voice has all the snark and pop culture references of Jim Butcher’s Harry Dresden without the tinge of misogyny that drives some people batty. (For the record – not me.) And, as much as we all love Harry (and we do, don’t we?), that series has gone to some very dark places recently. Except Atticus is really nothing like Harry at all, and making that comparison does both men a disservice. Saying, “X is just like Y!” is sort of disrespectful to the work both authors have done to make their work unique. Although, let’s be honest, I’ll lie a bit and make the comparison anyway if it gets some people to read this series. I’m sneaky that way.

Anyway!

Atticus is a 21(hundred)-year-old Druid living in today’s Tempe, Arizona (which, let’s face it, is basically Phoenix – unless you live there, in which case it Totally. Isn’t.) His best friends are his telepathically linked Irish Wolfhound, Oberon; the nice old Irish lady from his neighborhood, who likes to drink whiskey and sexually harass him when he mows her lawn; and Morrigan, the Celtic goddess of death and the battlefield, who usually takes the form of a crow with glowing red eyes and would just as soon eat him as look at him.

With a pissed-off love god coming to kill him to reclaim a legendary Irish sword, the Tempe police tailing him because of a dead body in the desert, and a coven of Polish witches meddling in his affairs, Atticus can’t tell his friends from his frienemies. He’s used to running away from his problems, but this time he decides to take a stand.

I loved this book, and I can see even just from the following volume that the author’s work is getting even better. I look forward to following this series through a long and prosperous life.

Rating:

Review: Goblin Tales by Jim C Hines

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Jul 102011

Goblin Tales by Jim C. Hines
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I adore Hines’ Goblin books about Jig, the reluctant goblin hero, because of the way they poke fun at the old “D&D” fantasy tropes. Plus, I enjoy rooting for the underdog, and there’s nothing quite as ”underdog” as an entire race of creatures known affectionately as “cannon fodder”.

In this collection of short stories, we see a couple of glimpses into Jig’s younger days. Baby Jig is absolutely gobli-dorable! Veka’s story is also funny and heart-wrenching and disturbing — sort of like high school. I think the best part of the collection, though, was the glimpse we get into the world of the upcoming Libriomancer series.

Libriomancer sounds like a fun new world that will be fascinating to those who’ve spent some time reading in the SF/F genres. I can’t wait to read it and see if I “get” all the references.

This collection is at a great price, is DRM-free, and worth the price for the Libriomancer sneak peek alone. If you buy this and you’re disappointed… Well, then I’ll be disappointed in YOU.

Review: My Life As A White Trash Zombie by Diana Rowland

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Jul 072011

My Life As A White Trash Zombie

White Trash Zombie #1

Written: Diana Rowland

Published: July 5, 2011

Publisher: DAW

ISBN: 9780756406752

Obtained via: Purchase

Blurb:

Teenage delinquent Angel Crawford lives with her redneck father in the swamps of southern Louisiana. She’s a high school dropout, addicted to drugs and alcohol, and has a police record a mile long. But when she’s made into a zombie after a car crash, her addictions disappear, except for her all-consuming need to stay “alive”…

My Review:

For a hot pink book featuring a wonderfully white-trashy, Louisianna-bayou-living redneck heroine with a pill addicion, this book has it’s surprisingly deep moments. I loved it to pieces (pun intended).

Underneath the decomposing bodies, blood, and brains is the story of a girl with mentally ill and alcoholic parents who has hit rock bottom via a horrific accident that left her wandering overdosed and naked on the side of a swampy road. A mysterious benefactor has saved her life and gotten her a job at the local morgue (and – oh, yeah – turned her into a zombie!) Except a serial killer starts depriving people of their brains, and Angel suspects a fellow zombie has gone rogue. Since the cops don’t even realize zombies exist, it’s up to Angel to stop the killer. In the meantime, Angel has to deal with a selfish, criminal boyfriend; her alcoholic dad; her own pill addiction; as well as avoid arousing the suspicion of her co-workers as she steals the brains she needs to survive.

Rowland manages to mix the macabre with the sincere in this book, balancing the grotesque with the sarcastic, and the desperate with the ordinary. In case you can’t read between the lines: this book has its revolting and hilarious moments. I mean, we’re talking about a zombie who’s a morgue tech. If you can’t assume we’ll have some blood and guts and some callous disregard for the dignity of corpses, then you probably shouldn’t be reading at all, okay?

This is a fun book, with a bit of depth if you care to look for it. The romance plot line is subtle enough for us anti-romance-ers (okay, me), at least until the bottom of the ninth when it kind of smacks you in the face. But it’s a gentle smack, at least, and I give Rowland props for not using the “in love in less than two days” scenario that so many books do. The “twist” ending isn’t very twisty but it’s enjoyable, if a smidgen on the abrupt side. The book is worth buying just for Dan Dos Santos’ amazing cover (even if it is pink!), but happily the inside is just as yummy as the outside.

I’m going to give it 4 and 1/2 stars, not because it isn’t awesome, but because I think it will get even better as we go along.

Oh, and I almost forgot…. If you’ve read this far, you get a special surprise! I promised the author herself I’d give away two copies of this book on my blog. And I’m fulfilling that promise. Comment on this post if you want entered to win your very own copy of WTZ. Contest closes July 14, 2011 at midnight in the US Eastern time zone. I’ll ship anywhere in the US, mostly because I can print that postage online. (If it requires a trip to the post office, it won’t get done for a very long time. I’m lazy. Sorry. Just ask my previous contest winners!) Note: I don’t care where you actually live, as long as you give me a US address to mail to. If you have a friend who’ll forward it, that’s good enough for me!

“Zombie Super Powers, Activate!”

Rating:

Review: Dead Iron by Devon Monk

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Jul 052011

Dead Iron

Age of Steam #1

Written: Devon Monk [website]

Published: July 1, 2011

Publisher: Roc

ISBN: 9780451463968

Obtained via: Author

Blurb:

Welcome to a new America that is built on blood, sweat, and gears…

In steam age America, men, monsters, machines, and magic battle for the same scrap of earth and sky. In this chaos, bounty hunter Cedar Hunt rides, cursed by lycanthropy and carrying the guilt of his brother’s death. Then he’s offered hope that his brother may yet survive. All he has to do is find the Holder: a powerful device created by mad devisers-and now in the hands of an ancient Strange who was banished to walk this Earth.

In a land shaped by magic, steam, and iron, where the only things a man can count on are his guns, gears, and grit, Cedar will have to depend on all three if he’s going to save his brother and reclaim his soul once and for all…

My Review:

This book is the steam punk story I’ve been waiting for since my husband forced me to watch Full-Metal Alchemist. Lots of authors seem to think that if only they throw a couple of gears into the story that it will qualify as steam punk. Dead Iron, though, is the only story I’ve found that manages that same creepy, brass-plated, “playing with powers beyond mortal ken” kind of feel that FMA had. But it is the human elements of both stories that call to me: among the steam-powered robots and creepy alchemical creatures is a tale of sorrow, loss, and love. Of course, there are also some kick-ass fight scenes and incredibly funny moments, too.

With werewolves, witches, fey creatures, steam punk robots, and railroad tycoons all mixing it up in the Old West, one would think that the story would be jumbled with too many disparate elements. It isn’t. I don’t know how the author does it, but she does it well. If you are of the inclination that Dead Iron might be a fluke – you need to read her short story collection, A Cup of Normal. Monk does strange as naturally as breathing, and just as practiced. The only disappointment I have with the story is that there wasn’t another 3,000 or so pages of it. I can’t wait for the next volume so I can see what happens next!

Rating:

Review: Eat Slay Love by Jesse Petersen

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Jun 272011

Eat Slay Love

Living With the Dead #3

Written: Jesse Petersen

Published: 07/01/2011

ISBN: 1849835292

Obtained via: NetGalley

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The blurb for this book has what some may consider spoilers for the previous two volumes. Please continue with caution.

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Blurb:

Sarah and David have survived the zombie apocalypse. They stood side by side and fought the undead, mad scientists, and even bionic monsters until the unthinkable happened. A zombie bite. But not even that could stop them. Now, with a possible cure in hand, they’re headed east, looking for a safe zone behind the rumored “Wall.” They’re feeling pretty optimistic.

That is until Dave stops sleeping and starts lifting huge objects.

Eat. Slay. Love.

Because they haven’t got a prayer.

My Review:

This series is my favorite recent zombie tale. I love that there’s a stable romantic couple in the lead. I love the crazy gross zombies and the weird surprises of the story. (Cult leaders! Mad scientists! Investigative reporters!) I especially love the snarky narration of the main character, Sarah.

I just enjoy this series to pieces. Each book has been more enjoyable than the last, and I can’t wait for the next (and concluding… for now) volume. They’re fairly short works, compared to some of the monster fantasies I’ve read in the past (I’m looking at you Pat Rothfuss!), only 250 – 300 pages. That means you can read each of them in a day or a weekend – making them wonderful beach reads or a great way to spend a lazy summer weekend.

If you’re already reading this series, you don’t need me to convince you to buy this book. If you’ve not yet picked this up, go back to Married with Zombies and get started!

Rating:

Review: The Perilous Prophecy of Guard and Goddess

Books, Featured, Reviews 1 Response »

Jun 082011

The Perilous Prophecy of Guard and Goddess

Strangely Beautiful #3 (Prequel)

Written: Leanna Renee Hieber

Published: 5/3/2011

ISBN: 9781428511163

Obtained via: NetGalley

Blurb:

The Goddess: In the beginning, there were lovers: a winged deity of power and light, and a queen of graceand beauty. Phoenix was murdered, his beloved stolen away to the Whisper-world. But their passion inspired the Muses. Through great sacrifice, it could live again.The Guard:

There are always six, mortal hosts for the divine. Battling spirits through the ages, they defy Darkness, Lord of the Dead. In 1867, a shadow rises. The tide turns against them, and all hope falls on a child of prophecy, an eerie, snow-white girl yet to be born. But her path must be cleared. A Great War is coming, and song, wind and stars whisper that the eighteen-year-old Beatrice Smith must give everything to prepare.

My Review:

Beautiful and elegant as ever, this is probably my favorite book in the trio so far. We learn much more about the history of the Guard here, and see their immortal patron goddess in her original flesh. I enjoyed the further glimpses into Darkness, Persephone’s underworld captor. This series is certainly a unique twist on the old myth, and I always enjoy those.

We get to meet the members of the Guard who were active before Percy and Alexi’s group, and I loved seeing the Muses in new bodies. It was like meeting old friends with new faces (except less creepy than that would be!) I had no idea that these Guard had such a brief time together as an active group. I wonder if I missed a hint in one of the previous two volumes.

Of all the great loves among the guard, it is that of Beatrice and Ibrahim that touches me deepest. Their love, the one that took years to build as a bridge over a gulf of pig-headed stubbornness, the love that crosses racial and cultural divides, is the one that most closely mirrors my own. New York and Ohio are not so far apart as London and Cairo…. But only just.

Prophecy is the volume that will break your heart, the story that weaves a wondrous foundation for the previous pair. It gives the world a strength and depth that fans just can’t miss.

Rating:

Interview with Vicki Pettersson, Author of Signs of the Zodiac

Books, Discussion, Featured, Interviews, Recommendations 1 Response »

May 292011

Welcome to Waiting for Fairies’ first ever author interview! Vicki Pettersson, author of The Signs of the Zodiac series, Feathered and Sequined Goddess of the Southwestern Desert, graciously agreed to “break [us] in”, so to speak. She even agreed not to do the interview by smoke signal as originally planned. My signal fire was a little weak that day, what can I say? This premiere interview is awfully fitting, since the very first book review ever posted at Waiting for Fairies way back in March of 2007 was Vicki’s first book: The Scent of Shadows!

I have to say, I was nervous to do this interview. Who wouldn’t be nervous when speaking to a tall, leggy redhead who is not only a NYT best-selling author but could also probably Can-Can me into the ground? You have no idea how often I’ve double, triple, and quadruple checked that I have spelled that name correctly, every time, so I wouldn’t completely humiliate myself. (Especially after recently doing a review of Jesse Petersen‘s last book!) Luckily for me, Vicki is a classy lady who didn’t begrudge me my interview-ginity. And, P.S. – it’s Swedish and pronounced “Pet-ter-suhn”, in case you were curious!

If you’re unfamiliar with Signs of the Zodiac, you can read yesterday’s review, check out Vicki’s bio on her website, or just skip ahead for the interview!

Q1: The Neon Graveyard is the last book in the series. I’m sure Joanna is relieved her author won’t be off plotting new horrible things to do to her. Are you sad to be saying good-bye?

VP: Oh, sure – blame me!

Here’s a secret, one I’ve held close to my heart throughout this entire series: I didn’t initially think the series, or Joanna, was all that dark. I mean, I was always aware that she was tough, but the way I saw it, my job was to create antagonists and conflicts to rival that toughness. So Joanna created her enemies (and the plot twists) which then returned to shape Joanna, and on it went.

It wasn’t until I was having dinner with my editor – who loves the series as much as I do – that I realized just how dark I was going with this character. I casually mentioned that Joanna’s reactions didn’t seem all that extreme to me, and my editor looked at me like I’d just stolen her cocktail. Twice.

That said, I too started feeling Joanna’s fatigue, especially after CITY OF SOULS. How much can one woman go through? And it was the answer to that question that steered me toward ending the series. I didn’t want to throw new monsters at her just for the sake of conflict, or to merely extend the series. That would cheapen Joanna’s previous efforts, and dilute the emotion of such a hard-fought journey. So I’m happy with this ending, and thrilled that even after everything she’s been through, she can believably retain her toughness and go out swinging.

Q2: Speaking of those horrible things… You never, ever pulled any punches in this series. Was there ever a point where you stopped and said to yourself, “Man, this is getting pretty brutal”? I know you practically had a reader revolt on your hands after City of Souls. Man, that was a long, long year to wait for resolution! Did you ever want to be nicer to your cast of characters?

VP: That year-long wait was awful for me too. I wanted to tell each and every reader, “Just wait, please trust me. I know what I’m doing!” But I think that strong reader reaction came precisely because Joanna’s journey had gotten so brutal. It also had nothing to do with the story’s fantastical elements. Readers had put themselves in Jo’s shoes, and were feeling her emotional pain acutely, so that was a real turning point in the series. From the fourth book on, the series had less to do with fantastical new creatures, or the world of the Zodiac, than it did with Jo’s emotions and personal life.

Did I ever want to be nicer? Yes. But not as much as I wanted to tell the truth about her and her world.

Q3: Midheaven is an interesting aspect of the books, and I’ve always wondered what you intended when you describe it as a “woman’s world”. What did you want people to take away from that description? For instance, I found it beautiful and mysterious – yet also pretty savage (kind of like women in general can be at times). Were you trying to make a gender statement there or was it simply something to fuel the story?

VP: I believe the primary purpose of fiction is to entertain, so while I wasn’t trying to make a statement, I did want to explore this matriarchal society I’d set up in the Zodiac series. Preaching, or having some sort of authorial agenda is a no-no, yet novels are such a great way to explore haunting social or emotional questions. Would it really be so much better/different if a woman were running things? My conclusion was exactly what you stated: at their best, woman are beautiful and mysterious. At their worst, they can be savage. Exactly the same as men actually, if in different ways.

Q4: When we readers are finally ready to say good-bye to Joanna and company, it appears you have something else wonderful in the works. It’s being described as “a partnership between a supernatural private eye and a rockabilly reporter with a real nose for trouble.” What can you tell us about the new Celestial Blues series that we can’t already find out from your FAQ?

VP: The first book in the Celestial Blues series is called THE TAKEN. It alternates narratives between Griffin Shaw, a moody fallen* angel/P.I., and a female reporter named Kit Craig, who is full of modern-day rockabilly swagger. Mind, “fallen angel” is a bit of a misnomer. Grif hasn’t fallen as much as he’s been busted, and working with Kit is a by-product of his punishment. I’ve just handed in the first draft, so I promise you’ll be hearing a lot more about THE TAKEN very soon!

Q5: What authors are YOU reading right now? I know in the past you’ve praised the work of Richard Kadrey. Is there anyone else we should be checking out while we wait for Celestial Blues?

VP: Other than the usual suspects, I can recommend Sophie Littlefield, who does an amazing job in both mystery and UF. She’s quickly becoming one of my auto buys, and UF readers should definitely pick up her AFTERTIME. I got behind on my reading in J.D. Robb’s IN DEATH series, so I’m playing catch-up now. (Problem is, she writes faster than I can read!) Alie Condie and Suzanne Collins are my most recent YA reads; I’m really enjoying the dystopian YA trend. Other than that, lately it’s been a lot of thrillers. I also can’t recommend Diana Gabaldon enough to those who may not yet have picked up OUTLANDER. I actually feel sorry for people who haven’t read that book.

Q6: Thank you so much for stopping by and giving us a little bit of your time! Is there anything else you’d like to say to either long-time readers or those just picking up the series?

VP: I just want to say thank you to all my readers – no matter when they started reading. Without them, there wouldn’t be a Signs of the Zodiac series … or the upcoming Celestial Blues series. I also want to give props to those readers who’ve been with me the last four years. Following Joanna Archer hasn’t always been an easy journey, but I hope you’ve enjoyed it as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it.

Thank you, Vicki, for stopping by! I hope my readers out there will consider picking up Signs of the Zodiac if they haven’t already. This series has the Waiting for Fairies Seal of Approval! (Yes, I just made that up. I can totally do that. It’s my blog!)

Review: The Neon Graveyard by Vicki Pettersson

Books, Featured, Reviews 2 Responses »

May 282011

The Neon Graveyard

Signs of the Zodiac #6

Written: Vicki Pettersson [website]

Published: May 31, 2011

Publisher: Harper Voyager

ISBN: 978-0061456794

Obtained via: NetGalley (& Purchase)

Blurb:

Once she was a soldier for the Light, the prophesied savior who would decide the outcome of the eternal conflict raging unseen in the dark corners of her glittering hometown. Now Joanna Archer is just another mortal—still born of an impossible union of Shadow and Light . . . still hunted by both—and carrying the unborn child of a lover held captive by a depraved demon goddess. Joining forces with a band of rogue Shadow agents, Joanna’s ready to storm the stronghold of her demonic foe, risking everything to enter this ghastly, godforsaken realm where the price of admission is her eternal soul. Because in a world that has stripped her of her power, identity, and fortune, Joanna has nothing left to lose—except her baby, her future, and the epic war poised to consume the city.

My Review:

If you’re a fan of this series, I don’t need to try to persuade you to read this book. If you’re not a fan – what are you waiting for?

This series has more goodies than a reader knows what to do with: debutantes and superheroes; villains; cool weapons; casinos; the sweaty, sunny Las Vegas desert; a comic book store complete with preternaturally creepy pre-teens; defenestration; sex; violence; mystery; astrology. It’s an awfully good thing that our author does in fact know what to do with it all!

The Neon Graveyard is the absolute perfect end to the series. Joanna has been built up and torn down over and over (and over) and this ending is just as ugly and messy and visceral as her life has always been. Things do not fit together in a tidy package with a cute little Olivia-worthy bow. No. It is put together like when I try to wrap a gift: the edges of the paper are cut crooked and folded in too many places to be pretty, the bow is mangled and has too many frayed ends. But the paper is unique, providing its own entertainment, and there is enthusiasm and care wrought into every crinkle and excess line of tape.

This story has always been messy, tangled, bloody and real. This ending gives us satisfaction and hope. Happiness? Well. That’s really for the reader to decide.

Now that the story is complete, new readers can take it all in one go. I imagine that reading all six books at once is sort of like having incredible sex in the middle of the southwestern desert: fantastically freeing, exhilarating, and absolutely unique. You’ll be completely emotionally, mentally, and physically exhausted by the end of it. You’ll be wrung out, sweaty, and utterly satisfied. And — if you don’t manage to die from thirst, sand abrasions, heat stroke, sun burn, or a stray scorpion — it’ll be totally worth it. Just imagine the orgasm.

I can’t wait to try it myself! (The complete read-through, that is. I am much too much of an old married woman now to even want to attempt outside nookie in the middle of a desert. Imagine the chafing! Not to mention the sunburn….)

BUY IT!*

Rating:

*This is an affiliate link.

Review: The Diva Doctrine by Patricia V Davis

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May 092011

The Diva Doctrine

Written: Patricia V. Davis

Published: 05/01/2011

Publisher: Bonneville Books

ISBN: 1599554801

Obtained from: Netgalley

Blurb:

Patricia V. Davis may be the first to tell you she’s an expert in failed relationships. But ask any of the readers who helped a post on her advice blog go viral, and they’ll say that whether you’re wide-eyed twenty-something dreamer, the world’s grooviest grandma, or something in between, there’s no one better able to help you on your way to becoming aTrue Diva!

My Review:

This is a non-fiction interlude to our (ir)regularly scheduled SF/F reviews. I saw this book on NetGalley and was intrigued. How does a single blog post become a book contract? What kind of advice does Ms. Davis have that is so applicable to the rest of female kind?

The problem with most self-help books is that they very rarely tell you anything that you couldn’t figure out for yourself. They may present them a little better, and they’re great at giving you little blurbs and quotes to chant to yourself in times of stress — but they even more rarely have anything to say that’s of tangible value.

The Diva Doctrine doesn’t really contain any information that a woman can’t learn from experience. Nearly every woman will eventually have a bad relationship, a dead-weight friendship, or a disagreement with family. And nearly every woman will eventually learn how to take care of herself inside and out. Some of us end up taking a bit longer than others to learn these lessons, though. Some women even need to learn them over and over again.

The author’s goal here is to lay out these learning experiences in terms that someone who hasn’t lived them can understand. If you haven’t yet figured out confidence, how to say no, where to draw the line, or how to take care of yourself – then you are in the target audience for this book. The original blog post that inspired the book was framed as advice ‘From an Older Woman to a Younger One’.

If the author wasn’t so warm and funny, it might have sounded pretentious. So it’s a good thing that she manages to sound self-effacing: matter-of-fact about her mistakes and like she is genuinely writing to help people, and not to simply create a book that those desperate for help will buy.

Will the advice in this book be life-changing? Ehhhh… I’m not so sure about that. Maybe if I’d had it at fifteen and been willing to accept and follow it. Are the author’s words personable, endearing, and entertaining? Yes, absolutely. Sometimes we all need reminders about being good to ourselves, how to banishing negativity (both internal and external), and how to find but not force love.

This is a perfect commiseration book. If you’re feeling down and want some sympathy from a woman who’s “been there” (or done worse), this book can certainly provide it.

Rating:

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