https://blog.vollink.com/tags/book-review+sff/ Recent content in book-review+sff on On My Mind... Hugo -- gohugo.io Wed, 18 Sep 2019 12:00:00 -0400 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/09/the-graveyard-book/ Wed, 18 Sep 2019 12:00:00 -0400 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/09/the-graveyard-book/ Book cover The Graveyard Book isn't a horror novel, but it is absolutely goth and macabre. The story follows a boy from 18 months old when his whole family is murdered and he wanders off into the night through his childhood as he is raised in a graveyard by two ghosts and a vampire as guardian (who supplies physical things, like food and clothes).  At one point, we meet a werewolf and ghouls as well. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/08/defy-the-fates/ Wed, 14 Aug 2019 12:00:00 -0400 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/08/defy-the-fates/ Book Cover This is the final book of the Defy the Stars trilogy (start with reviews of book one and two).  There are probably mild spoilers for the first and one major spoiler for the second book in this review of book three, so please proceed with that in mind. As I wrote in my review of Defy the Worlds, I do not recommend diving into this book without reading the previous two first. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/08/peter-pan/ Wed, 07 Aug 2019 00:05:00 -0400 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/08/peter-pan/ Book cover Originally a play, then released in book form as Peter and Wendy, this book is the basis of Disney's cartoon movie, Peter Pan.  The movie is surprisingly faithful to the book with the exception that Disney's version doesn't portray deaths that the book does. Problematic doesn't begin to describe this experience.  Like a lot of classic literature, defenders will point out that this is a product of its time. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/07/master-and-apprentice/ Wed, 24 Jul 2019 12:00:00 -0400 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/07/master-and-apprentice/ Book cover Set before the first prequel movie, this book follows Jedi Master, Qui-Gon Jinn, and his Jedi Apprentice, Obi-Wan Kenobi, on a diplomatic mission set forth by the Jedi council.  They are sent to a planet, Pijal, that we haven't seen before, which really is a great way to see the author's creativity. We are presented with a wide array of new characters on this new world, like the Jedi Rael Averross, who has been the regent of Pijal for the last 8 years, and the escaped slave Rahara Wick. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/07/treasure-island/ Wed, 17 Jul 2019 12:00:00 -0400 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/07/treasure-island/ Book Cover Every once in a while, I try to get in a review of a classic.  Something that some of my readers are likely to have read themselves.  I do this, mostly, to help readers calibrate my taste...  That is, it seems likely enough that some readers are likely to disagree with everything I like, and might find it compelling to read a book that I really didn't like. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/07/binti-trilogy/ Wed, 10 Jul 2019 12:00:00 -0400 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/07/binti-trilogy/ Book cover This short book (novella) is the first in the trilogy.  Binti is the name of the main character.  This book starts on a distant future (unspecified timeline) Earth where humans are now space-faring, and alien races are known. There is a lot to unpack in the world-building and the world is built along with the story.  Each chapter is unusually episodic, in that some small part of the last scene of a previous chapter will be often be repeated at the beginning of the next. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/06/defy-the-worlds/ Wed, 26 Jun 2019 12:00:00 -0400 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/06/defy-the-worlds/ Book cover This is book 2 of the Defy the Stars trilogy.  I recommend first reading my review of Defy the Stars before diving headlong into this review.  Also, there may be mild spoilers of the first book in this review.  I'm not sure that can be helped. I recommend not reading Defy The Worlds until Defy The Stars has already been read.  Like most sequels, this book could stand-alone, but there is not as much exposition and recap as I'm used to reading in sequels. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/05/defy-the-stars/ Wed, 29 May 2019 12:00:00 -0400 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/05/defy-the-stars/ This is book one of a three book series (the third book came out earlier this month), and since I've already had good reviews of two other books by this author, I decided to pick up this series as well to see what she had done outside of the Star Wars universe. Book cover Through a ring of stabilized wormholes, large enough for whole ships to pass through, Earth expanded to five other planets. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/05/spinning-silver/ Wed, 01 May 2019 17:48:00 -0400 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/05/spinning-silver/ Book cover This is the second book that I've reviewed by Naomi Novik, the first was Uprooted.  At a high level, there are some parallels between these books, but they are definitely different worlds.  Here's a quick overview of the setting: A Jewish girl of about 16 named Miryam lives in a medieval small unwalled town with the name of either Pakel or Pavys, but the residents simply called it town which is a third of the way between two larger cities in the Kingdom of Lithvas. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/04/predators-gold/ Wed, 17 Apr 2019 16:26:00 -0400 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/04/predators-gold/ Book cover This is book 2 of the Mortal Engines Quartet.  For convenience, here is a link to my review of book 1, Mortal Engines, which I posted a month ago. I'm going to start this review with a note about a changed name.  The books were originally released in the UK with a character named Shrike.  For the initial US release of the books, that character was renamed to Grike. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/03/mortal-engines/ Wed, 20 Mar 2019 12:00:00 -0400 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/03/mortal-engines/ Book cover Over a thousand years before the book's present, there was a war that effectively destroyed all of society.  Picking up the pieces of the technology that was left behind, London was put onto treads, run by steam, so that it find and consume other towns for resources and, ultimately, more fuel to keep moving. Over time, other towns and cities did the same, while another group, called the Anti-Traction League, created a defensive wall across the only pass in a mountain range to keep these traction cities at bay on the other side. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/02/ball-lightning/ Wed, 06 Feb 2019 12:14:00 -0500 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/02/ball-lightning/ Book cover I have a fairly particular view of science-fiction and how it is different from fantasy.  The fantastic element in science fiction is usually both a catalyst for the story itself as well as a way to explore the reactionary side of society.  Where in fantasy, the fantastic element is simply present.  Used as a tool, maybe even explored in depth, but isn't the main goal. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/01/comic-darth-vader-1-25-by-charles-soule-art-giuseppe-camuncoli/ Wed, 23 Jan 2019 12:00:00 -0500 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2019/01/comic-darth-vader-1-25-by-charles-soule-art-giuseppe-camuncoli/ Issue 1 cover If you read my review of the book, Oracle Year, I mentioned that Charles Soule writes for comic books, this is one of them that I've kept up on, and have read from start to finish, as this run ends at #25, though Charles Soule will have more to write for Marvel in the Star Wars world. This series starts moments after the end of Star Wars episode 3, Revenge of the Sith, and tells the story of both Darth Vader becoming the Dark Jedi Master under Palpatine, but also tells of the growth of the Empire during that time. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2018/11/a-guile-of-dragons/ Wed, 14 Nov 2018 12:00:00 -0500 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2018/11/a-guile-of-dragons/ Book cover The book starts in a very promising place.  It offers a map.  All of my favorite fantasy novels have included a map, and this leaves me excited for a tale with some traveling.  The first very short chapter introduces some world building back-story, a short story about gods.  Then, on page 19 (or the third page of story) the novel lands in a fantasy space that I find very overused and tired. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2018/10/bloodline/ Wed, 17 Oct 2018 22:38:00 -0400 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2018/10/bloodline/ Book cover I realize that I've read and reviewed a lot of books that I don't really like.  This review isn't that.  I liked the book, Leia; Princess of Alderaan by Claudia Gray so much that when I found out she had another book in the Star Wars universe, I bought it right away. I really like to keep these reviews spoiler-free, and if I really enjoy a book, I actually have a much harder time writing about it, because - well - everything I enjoy about a book seems like a possible spoiler. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2018/09/leia-princess-of-aderaan/ Wed, 12 Sep 2018 12:00:00 -0400 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2018/09/leia-princess-of-aderaan/ Book cover This book is a Star Wars story.  It takes place during Leia Organa's 16th year.  I would like to say that familiarity with the Star Wars universe isn't absolutely necessary, but I cannot be sure of that.  It is, at its base, an exhilarating and sometimes sad, coming of age story, where we see Leia grow from a teen who thinks she's all grown up, to a woman who knows she isn't quite there. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2018/08/drawing-the-dragon/ Wed, 22 Aug 2018 12:00:00 -0400 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2018/08/drawing-the-dragon/ Book cover Imagine the universe of Battlestar Galactica but add elves, trolls and dragons, remove the religious overtones entirely.  The dragons are spaceships, a bit like the galactic whale from Jim Henson's Farscape.  Instead of Battlestar's Cylons, we have Constructs, which are a bit closer to the Nexus of Bladerunner fame. Scarlett, Jade and Blue are elite pilots of young dragons on the cruiser known as the Opal Dragon. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2018/08/norse-mythology/ Wed, 15 Aug 2018 12:00:00 -0400 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2018/08/norse-mythology/ Book cover According to the preface, this book is a carefully researched retelling of surviving stories of the Nordic gods, Odin, Thor, Loki, Freya and others.  Where surviving versions of a story differ, artistic license allows for the best of each to be used. First and foremost, these are Nordic tales.  If you are familiar with these characters from Marvel comics or movies, be prepared to relearn a lot of what you thought you knew. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2018/08/she-would-be-king/ Wed, 01 Aug 2018 12:00:00 -0400 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2018/08/she-would-be-king/ Book Cover (from publisher) This is divided into two books, THE THREE and SHE WOULD BE KING.  A quote from the Author's Note (before the book even begins): {Gbessa is pronounced "Bessah"} The first book is the story of three characters, each from different places and backgrounds.  Gbessa is exiled from her African village as a witch.  June escapes slavery from a plantation in Virginia. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2018/07/skyward-omnibus/ Wed, 25 Jul 2018 12:00:00 -0400 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2018/07/skyward-omnibus/ Before I start this: I met Jeremy Dale with Kelly by his side on several occasions at various comic book conventions.  I am always on the lookout for a well written all-ages comic book story, and I found Jeremy and Skyward when there were only two issues, self-published and in black and white.  Later, I saw him at a different convention and got issue 3, and he said that issue 4 should be out by NYCC. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2018/06/catching-stars/ Wed, 20 Jun 2018 12:00:00 -0400 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2018/06/catching-stars/ Book cover The world building is probably the thing I liked the most about Catching Stars.  There are people who have magical abilities and a larger group of people who don't.  Within magic users, there are different types of magic users.  There are kingdoms and politics, palace intrigue, roving gangs, sailing ships, petty rivalries and fierce prejudices.  Though the story is quite different, the emotional feel of the world is similar to the book Steeplejack by A. https://blog.vollink.com/post/2018/06/oracle-year/ Sun, 03 Jun 2018 18:09:00 -0400 https://blog.vollink.com/post/2018/06/oracle-year/ I read this book in only two days, which is way shorter than I usually read, especially a book of 416 pages.  I generally only read on weekends, and usually only for a few hours at a time.  This book really had me hooked from start to finish.  I definitely lost sleep for reading. Will Dando, a struggling New York musician, dreams up 108 predictions.  A line of information and a date for each.