Busy Life... but busy reading as well....

Hey Folks,

We've been away for quite a while, but with good excuse. We had our first child and that's taken just a little bit of our time. But that also gives us some time when you think about being up a little late at night to feed, or when you're waiting for her to go to bed. All in all, I think I've read five books since the last one review I've put up. That's pretty bad, but we're going to get back into the swing of things. I'm still suckering everyone with Sci-Fi and Fantasy with a couple new authors(Guillermo Del Toro and Mark Chadbourn), a new book by an old author(Joe Abercrombie), and a couple oldie but goodies(Joe Abercrombie and Glen Cook). All new to the blog though... Oh, and a graphic novel to boot.

Thanks for staying on with us even though we've been quiet. We're both hoping to get back to it and even write something people enjoy reading about.

-D

Song of Susannah

In my last post I noted that I was working on a couple other books prior to attempting to finish The Dark Tower series..... well, we can see how that worked out. I need to always bring the book I'm reading whenever we go out of town rather than just the Nook. We went out for my birthday last month and went out this weekend for a small family reunion. That just got the ball rolling for Song of Susannah (The Dark Tower, Book 6) and allowed me to finish it up. I'm now working on World's End, The Heroes, The Dark Tower (The Dark Tower, Book 7), and some baby book to attempt to learn something about the labor. I'm hoping to help in some measure, but without seeing all other stuff. =|

The Song of Susannah was an interesting read of Stephen King's Dark Tower series. It definitely wasn't my favourite by any stretch. I have a problem with inserting the author into his own book. It might be a great way to push the story along, a way to advertise, or a little bit of an ego trip. We learn a little bit about the story, but progression was a little slow. It seems that it was more about telling a few bits to make sure the last story finally comes together. We'll see if it works.

If you've gotten this far in the series then you know that it's going to be worth it to finish....... it has to be worth it!!

Rating: 5 CBs - better in the series.

-D

Wolves of the Calla - we meet again, Dr. King.

I know, I know... why do you read books from the same author one after another? It's so hard to read different authors when I haven't finished the entire series from another. Perhaps stepping away from Science Fiction or Fantasy would help with this problem, but I love these books too much. Might as well take me away from drinking Human Blood and having a healthy portion of Unicorn Meat.... don't judge me!!! Ahem, so, technically, The Stand is not part of The Dark Tower series, but Stephen King has created a tie-in throughout many of his other novels to his longest series. I'm sure that I don't have to read them to understand, but it's nice to know that characters that pop up here will never really be resolved when I reach book 7. I can't figure out if this is a great way to pursue your career in authoring, or if it's just a shrewd marketing ploy. *shrug* (must be the Kool-Aid talking).

So let's get on to Wolves of the Calla and the next chapter in The Dark Tower epic. We've seen Roland along his quest for the Tower for quite some time now. There was a point where Roland was alone in this crumbling world to the point where he's now running a new ka-tet(group of friends/comrades/helpers/etc) with varying dispositions. The journey has led them through multiple worlds while following the Path of the Beam(the way to the Tower). It's now taken them to a town in the Calla's where the children are 99% born as twins. This hasn't been a happy not for the town as the Wolves come every generation or so, take one of the twins, and return them later as Roont.... perhaps mentally challenged would explain well. Will Roland and crew help with the problem? Will they move on with their own quest? Will they even stay in this world or be transported to another? Only reading will tell....

As far as writing goes, Stephen King brings along another good continuation for his epic masterpiece. This is an easier read from some of the previous reads. He's not a sexually graphic as he can be and I've been pretty vocal about not being comfortable with that type of writing. The story itself does a decent job of being engaging through the entire 600 pages or so. There was a small part in the middle that seemed to drone on, but once you're past that it breezes right to the end. The book also feels somewhat like a filler novel. It doesn't feel like it ends up with you bring that much closer to the conclusion. The characters are definitely fleshed out more throughout this. Think M.Night Shyamalan's Unbreakable rather than The Village or Sixth Sense. This is about character development more than plot structure. Also, DON'T READ THE STAND, but pick up Salem's Lot. It helps tie-in one of the new characters. The Stand would be worth reading prior to picking up The Dark Tower series. =\ Should have paid more attention.

Rating: 6 CBs - I am now more excited to come to the Dark Tower conclusion... I'd like to know what's going to happen! It's worth the read and a little better paced than others.

Now, while I'd like to finish up the Dark Tower series, I'm going to have to put it down for a couple books. I have the opportunity to read some copies that were sent to me from PyrSF! Sometime last year I emailed them asking if I could review some of their novels (they happen to have published The First Law trilogy by Joe Abercrombie - highly recommended and I will read again and review... can count on it). A couple months ago I received an email back asking for the blog and a couple other questions about reviewing. Fast forward to now and I've been sent three books to read and review. Very exciting news!!! I'm about 40 pages into the first novel - World's End (Age of Misrule, Book 1) - and hope to finish shortly. Between work and the baby on the way, I'm hoping that I get it out pretty quick. In the meantime, take a look at their catalogue and try out one of their books. At the moment, I highly recommend Abercrombie.

-D

The Stand....

I've been attempting to read The Stand for the last few months. After starting up The Dark Tower series by Stephen King, I found out that many of his books coincide or correlate with his other novels. It took me till Wolves of the Calla to notice this and I figured I might as well read about the characters that happen in one series from the other novels. I thought that The Stand was going to have a character named Callahan. Little did I know, I screwed up on what book correlates with another. Callahan happens to be from Salem's Lot and not The Stand. That's one fail for me. =\ BUT! Randall Flagg happens to make a cameo... well, maybe more than that... in The Dark Tower so all is not lost. 

If you haven't read The Stand and are not a complete Stephen King fan, I don't know if I can recommend this book to you. First, it's incredibly long! At a little over 1000 pages it'll keep you busy for a while unless you really get into it. It's also a little heavy on the detail side. In a novel like this, King could have cut down on some of the minutiae to cut to the chase. The book is about a super virus that takes out most of the American population, if not the world's. This might sound like I'm giving away a ton, but it happens early and they've made a TV series about it. It's also not that new of a concept after all these years. You'll have plenty of information about humanity getting back together. That's where it gets boring. There's only so much you can do to talk about people coming together and getting the power going. *sigh*

Just because the book is long doesn't mean that it was horrible. The underlying story is incredibly intriguing! The sub-plots are interesting as well. Most of the characters are fleshed out enough that you can enjoy them or want to know what happens to them. I do have some problems though. It almost seems that King wanted to get to the end too quickly after writing for page after page about development. A few of the characters that you expected to play a big part (b/c they had large roles at the beginning or middle) were marginalized by the end. Those were some of the more interesting characters as well. It also wrapped up a little neatly for me except for the Jurassic Park twist at the end. I'll save it for those that want to read it.

All in All, I would recommend the Dark Tower series first before going off to read this one. It also makes me want to read Salem's Lot. I'm again stuck in my ways with reading more novels from a specific author even if I don't seem to like him. A little strange. If you do like Stephen King then you can't wrong. Oh, if you don't like graphic sex scenes and cussing then don't grab this one. (I'm not surprised)

CBs - 5 of 10.... love the idea of almost anything post-apocalyptic but this one left me with concerns.

-D

A Journey through L.E. Modesitt Jr.

 I know it's been a long time since I've written a book review and I apologize. Most of the authors that I enjoy reading have extensive book series. I often find myself reading a few in a row, but it's hard to continue writing about one book after another based on the same characters. They are incredibly fun to read, but maybe not to read reviews of. Modesitt has been the last author that I've been reading new novels based off of one world. Instead of reading them based on their release date, I've been reading them in chronological order. I still have a few more to go in the series, but after these four I'll be switching it up a little bit - maybe The Stand or perhaps something totally different (True Grit).

Magi'i of Cyador and Scion of Cyador follow the story of a young student learning the ways of Chaos ( one half of the worlds magic system). Lorn happens to excel at what he does, but is not necessarily cut out for the Magi. He's ultimately shipped off to become a Mirror Lancer - think Army, but a different world. This world is changing, and Lorn happens to be at the center of it all. The technology is failing, and with that failure, every person is going to have to face a harder world. 


Fall of Angels (Saga of Recluce) happens 500 years after the story of Lorn and the nation of Cyador. Modesitt takes the Saga of Recluce into a realm filled not only with Fantasy but also Science Fiction. The Angels happen to be the crew and soldiers of a space ship that gets transported to a different realm or a different universe. They aren't too clear, and I guess that allows for some speculation. They have to land on this new world and are immediately attacked by the locals. You follow the story of Ryba, Nylan, and Arlyn as they look to survive in a foreign world with unique powers. Now, if you read my other Modesitt reviews you'd notice that the protagonist from The Towers of the Sunset is an ancestor from the nation the Angel survivors create.

Lastly, The Chaos Balance follows Nylan, Arlyn, and Welyn ( Nylan's son, and also the father of the Towers of the Sunset hero) as they leave Westwind and find somewhere they might belong. This doesn't sound as easy as you might think since most of the world still fears and mistrusts these new people. It also doesn't take long till they're pulled into a new struggle with old Cyador ( yup, still around) and Lornth ( they don't tell you why it's named after the old leader). My only beef with this book is how transformed Cyador is from what you first read about without telling how it got there. It was a half-decent nation that turned into a cesspit, IMHO.

L.E. Modesitt Jr. continues to provide an entertaining series. It's the first book series that I've read that has dialogue from an infant. In some ways, it helps to see the progression of a character that you will hear about later, but I'm not sure that it's necessary. Reading chronologically will also help get better clarification of the magic system throughout Recluce prior to getting to the point where it just IS. You also won't find a lot of inappropriate content. There might be a little innuendo but not to the point that you can't let someone younger read the novels (unlike Abercrombie... though I really enjoy him!)

Ratings:
Magi'i of Cyador - 6 CBs - some slow progression, but engaging characters
Scion of Cyador - 5 CBs - still slow in parts; could use a little less tedium
Fall of Angels - 6.5 CBs - good story with new Sci-Fi elements
The Chaos Balance - 5 CBs - some slow parts; thank you for being a shorter novel.

-D

Citizen Vince

Don't ask me what intrigued me about this book when I first saw it, because I can't tell you. Maybe the Edgar award notification on the cover helped (I had not read anything with this award to my memory). Awards aside, Citizen Vince is utterly worth the read (even if you have to read some passages with your fingers over you eyes, like peeking at a horror movie)!

The story involves the main character, Vince, a reformed mafia guy relocated and given a new identity via the Witness Protection Program. The characters inhabiting Vince's new-found world including: prostitutes, card sharks, a pot-head teeanage baker, and his new criminal buddies are well-formed and interesting. And the situations Vince finds himself in are unexpected. What makes the story worthwhile though is the thought-provoking meditations on choice. What will Men do when faced with something they never thought they would? What is worth dying for and what is worth killing for? Also, if you got the chance to forever change your life in one moment, would you do it, or would you choose what you already know?

I loved the background to this novel, set in the week leading up to the election of 1980 - Carter vs. Reagan. Since I am a lover all things 80's, I found the historical background matched very nicely what the characters were going through - the end of an era, the hope for the future despite the struggles of the present.

This book is definitely worth the time. It is original and often funny, filled with great characters. I look forward to checking out the other books by Jess Walter.

Rating: 6 out of 7

-L

The Great Divorce

I am not one to exaggerate on books very often.  The list of earth shattering, life changing books for me is very short (i.e. one).  Similarly, I am not one of those to be challenged by books so often that they shape my world view or resonate with me beyond the closing of the book (my apologies to all authors who thought that is what they were doing).  But the list of challenging books for me just got lengthened by one.

The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis engaged me in a way that "fantasy" fiction never has (most of the time I don't give it a shot).  This may be because the book is really just a thinly veiled allegory for the things we hold onto so we don't have to step out in faith.  For the uninitiated (as I was), the story is that of a man who takes a bus ride to heaven.  The unfolding scenes are the backdrop for discussions that cut to the heart of faith, unbelief, rebellion, and selfishness.

I realize that all our readers would not generally be interested in anything by C.S. Lewis (other than the Narnia series) based on his religious beliefs, but I truly think this story deserves a hearing.  By way of encouragement, I offer these tips for reading this book:

1. Read it out loud, as you would to a child.  Throw the voices in, as well, you will have fun trying on a Scotch accent for size, at the very least.
2. Read only one chapter a day.  This should take no longer than 10 minutes for the longest of the chapters.

I don't know if it was just these strange choices for reading this novel that led me to such a rich enjoyment of the book, but I know it really added to the experience.  I even found myself weeping at the end of the book (haven't done that in a while), a strange and beautiful crescendo of an ending whose denoument is all to brief.

Have any of you read this book and if so are you as enraptured with it as I am?

Rating: 6.9 out of 7

-L