For the most part, my neighbors keep to themselves.  Sure, I’ve been able to witness a few drug induced psychotic break downs, two severe beatings, one hilarious domestic dispute, a massive building fire, one malicious stabbing and a handful of grand theft auto’s.  Usually these instances are instigated by friends and family of my neighbors and not the actual neighbors themselves, so I’ve got that going for me.

One of my neighbors, Mike, recently moved out.  Mike is what Dave Anthony and Greg Behrendt of Walking the Room would call a “hobotang.”  He was a person who constantly believed he could have my things if only he could ask or run off with them when I wasn’t looking.  Leave my mountain bike in the hallway while I grab my helmet?  Bike is being rolled into his apartment as I walk back out.  Having a beer on the steps after a long day of work?  He’s going to help himself to one and walk inside.  Have a smoke while walking the dog?  Going to be accosted for at least two loosies.  UPS leaves packages at my door?  You betcha…they are fucking gone.  He once offered to take care of my dog when I had a business trip.  I honestly didn’t know how to respond.

Mike regaled me with many other odd and annoying traits I’ve never experienced before.  Mike hated to carry keys.  In his words, “keys are the devil!”.   This meant he would buzz my door to let him in the building at all hours of the day.  Oh, the fun and excitement of Mike asking to be let in at 3 am, reeking of Old English and “medicinal” weed as he asks me for a sandwich!  Mike also doesn’t work.  He’s been on workman’s comp for about 10 years because of a “back injury.”  Apparently he uses his free time to play a lot of golf in the middle of the apartment complex because he’s always outside blasting balls at the buildings across the street.  Mike’s favorite pastime, however, was listening to our other neighbors fight by putting a dixie cup up to their doors.  What a wacky character.

I had resigned myself to the fact that Mike lives by a code I just don’t understand, and I can’t say I was all that sorry when he finally moved away.  I’ve had 2 months of peace and quiet, until this morning.  I awoke to someone buzzing my door.  Unfortunately, in my morning brain coma, I didn’t make it up and out of bed in time to figure out who it was.  About 90 minutes later I headed out to do some grocery shopping and found a note under the windshield wiper of my car.

I don’t even want to dissect the writing in this missive.   It’s too difficult and head-wrenchingly painful.  Needless to say, I think I have uncovered actual written proof of the elusive North American hobotang.  The sad thing is, I’m thinking of calling him just to see what happens.  How much of my stuff that I’m “trowing” away will he take?  What are his limits?  When will even he walk away?  I’m fascinated and I know I shouldn’t be.  I really shouldn’t be.

This will be a long project.  For all intents and purposes, Ruled by Books is now (partially) offline. I will be re-tooling and re-posting each and every one of my book reviews from the last 3 years.  All the existing comments have been removed, and I’m introducing a new review system that will allow my readers to comment on the books they like.  I’m also working on getting a handful of guest reviewers to join me to expand upon the number of reviews available.

Again, I apologize if you came here from Google and received a 404 error looking for an older review.  It will be back up as soon as possible, but it’s going to take some time.  Please keep coming back and feel free to sign up and start commenting and rating reviews.

Thank you.

Jaime

What I Liked

Ready Player One is an engaging and fun, exciting and vividly nostalgic roller-coaster ride set in a dystopian future filled with poverty, corporate malfeasance and addictive mental diversions.  Ernest Cline made me laugh, scream, wince and cry during this book which details a riddle-laden treasure hunt set in 2044 by a group of 80′s pop culture obsessed teens and twenty-somethings who live their lives in the virtual world of the Oasis.

Most of the book takes place in the Oasis, a massively multiplayer online game that has come to replace all operating systems, social networks, and even the Internet as the communication interface for the entire world. The inventor of the Oasis, James Halliday, has died and left his entire fortune and control of the Oasis to whomever can decipher his riddle(s) and locate his hidden easter egg inside the Oasis.  Egg hunters, or gunters, search for years but no one comes close to finding the first of three keys and gates that lead to the final egg.

That’s where Wade Watts, aka Parzival inside the Oasis, comes into play.  He becomes the first player ever to solve the first riddle, locate the key and open the first gate.  He’s an instant celebrity and target for every gunter out to find Halliday’s egg…a prize that many would kill for in the real world to find and claim for their own.  The key to it all seems to be Halliday’s obsession and love for all things from the 1980′s.  Suddenly, the 80′s are back as everyone goes retro to prepare themselves for the hunt.

The mix of sci-fi with classic 80′s pop-culture was – to put it very simply – awesome.  Cline is quite obviously an aficionado of the era because he incorporates so many far-flung references to things I loved in my childhood yet had forgotten about that my head was spinning and I was tittering in joyful remembrance.  Cline’s extensive knowledge shines at every turn.  Whether it be music, movies, games, cartoons, TV, or anything else from the era, he packs it into every square inch on the page.  I laughed so many times just from the joy of an obscure reference that I had to seem like a madman…and I didn’t care.

The characters in Ready Player One are well written, and it is very easy to feel care and concern very quickly for Parzival, Aech and Art3mis as they compete against each other and also battle against the sixers.  I also liked how Cline moves back and forth between the sorry state of the real world and the virtual world of the Oasis.  The real world is plagued by poverty, global warming, the scarcity of available power supplies, and the general malaise of the constantly downtrodden.  The Oasis is an escape, where you can be anyone and anything you want to be.  It is no surprise to see people abandoning the real world for the Oasis.

What makes Ready Player One special for me is that it was so incredibly fun to read.  It parodies and praises the decade of my childhood in ways that directly tap into the core of who I am.  Cline pulls so much of what I loved about the 80′s into his story that it’s hard not be nostalgic.  To also deliver such an exciting science fiction tale only makes this story that much richer and more enjoyable to take in.

What I Didn’t Like

Not a thing.  Nothing.  I have no complaints.  I loved this book so much I listened to the audiobook immediately after finishing it because I didn’t want it to be over.  If this were a movie, I’d watch it 10 times at the theater.  I have not had this much fun with a book in a very long time.  Let’s all cross our fingers and pray to whatever imaginary beings we must that there is a sequel and a movie made very soon.  Cross them, I say!

Why You Should Read This Book

If you are a child of the 80′s or have a love for the original pop-culture decade, you need to read Ready Player One.  If you love action packed science fiction with thriller filled twists and turns, you need to ready Ready Player One.  If you haven’t already read it, you NEED TO READ READY PLAYER ONE.  This is – hands down – one of the best books I’ve read in the last 5 years. I haven’t had this much fun reading a story in a very long time.  It raises the bar on what I will now give a 10/10 review.  Please, pick up a copy of Ready Player One and take a trip to the past and future at the same time.  It’s what you should be reading.

Book Information

Description:  A world at stake. A quest for the ultimate prize. Are you ready? It’s the year 2044, and the real world is an ugly place.  Like most of humanity, Wade Watts escapes his grim surroundings by spending his waking hours jacked into the OASIS, a sprawling virtual utopia that lets you be anything you want to be, a place where you can live and play and fall in love on any of ten thousand planets. And like most of humanity, Wade dreams of being the one to discover the ultimate lottery ticket that lies concealed within this virtual world. For somewhere inside this giant networked playground, OASIS creator James Halliday has hidden a series of fiendish puzzles that will yield massive fortune—and remarkable power—to whoever can unlock them. For years, millions have struggled fruitlessly to attain this prize, knowing only that Halliday’s riddles are based in the pop culture he loved—that of the late twentieth century. And for years, millions have found in this quest another means of escape, retreating into happy, obsessive study of Halliday’s icons. Like many of his contemporaries, Wade is as comfortable debating the finer points of John Hughes’s oeuvre, playing Pac-Man, or reciting Devo lyrics as he is scrounging power to run his OASIS rig.  And then Wade stumbles upon the first puzzle.  Suddenly the whole world is watching, and thousands of competitors join the hunt—among them certain powerful players who are willing to commit very real murder to beat Wade to this prize. Now the only way for Wade to survive and preserve everything he knows is to win. But to do so, he may have to leave behind his oh-so-perfect virtual existence and face up to life—and love—in the real world he’s always been so desperate to escape.

About the Author:  ERNEST CLINE has worked as a short-order cook, fish gutter, plasma donor, elitist video store clerk, and tech support drone.  His primary occupation, however, has always been geeking out, and he eventually threw aside those other promising career paths to express his love of pop culture fulltime as a spoken word artist and screenwriter. His 2009 film Fanboys, much to his surprise, became a cult phenomenon.  These days Ernie lives in Austin, Texas with his wife, their daughter, and a large collection of classic video games.  READY PLAYER ONE is his first novel.  [Official Homepage]

And what an ending!  Fast paced action has been a staple of this series, but Sullivan really pulls out all the stops for this final quest line adventure tale to save the kingdom from the invading elven army.  While the Empress seeks to strengthen her army and shore up her walls, a small band of heroes seeks to find the answer to stopping the invasion, but that means finding the legendary lost city of Percepliquis and braving the horrors that await.

What I Liked

As with all of the previous entries in the series, Percepliquis exhibits Sullivan’s writing as he deftly pulls together themes reminiscent of adventure tales, mysteries, classic fantasy, and big budget cinema blockbusters.  These are fun books to read that will get your blood pumping at one moment only to bring a tear to your eye in the next.  Sullivan has the ability to pull emotion out of his reader by making them care deeply for his characters.  It’s manipulation of the reader in the very best ways possible.  One of the best aspects of reading this series was being able to witness the growth of a writer.  What begins in The Crown Conspiracy becomes so much bigger, so much grander, so much deeper and richer by the time it reaches Percepliquis.

Percepliquis also ties together the many plot lines and characters into a satisfying ending.  Without giving any specifics away, I’ll simply state that all my major questions were answered, and I was thrilled to see that the good guys won the day, and the bad guys received their due come-uppance.  I was afraid that Sullivan would choose to leave some gaping holes in place as so many authors now do.  The allure of being able to revisit a series to fill those holes with future books is profitable, though it too often lessens the impact of ending a series arc.  I am happy to report that Sullivan does not make this mistake, and that he truly provides a satisfying conclusion to his epic series.

What I enjoyed most were Royce and Hadrian’s personal journeys.  Royce is still reeling from an incredible loss in Wintertide, and Hadrian is trying to find his place in the world now that he’s found the heir of Novron.  Both men find themselves at a crossroads where their friendship is strained, yet remains as one of the only things supporting them both.  The ways in which Sullivan weaves his tale to make these two unlikely friends and fellow thieves into the saviors of the realm is astounding.  Just as I had a love for Tanis and Flint, Drizzt and Bruenor, Strider and Frodo…I now have a special place on my bookshelf for Royce and Hadrian.  These are two characters who will stick with me for a long time, and I know that I will be revisiting these books before too much time has passed.

What I Didn’t Like

It’s over!  I realize this is a contradiction because I’ve praised how well Sullivan concluded this series.  That doesn’t change the fact that my journey with this favored series is now ended.  A part of me rejoices for how everything gets wrapped up, yet part of me is also sad that I don’t have another chapter with two of my favorite characters.  I hope that – someday – Sullivan returns to Royce and Hadrian to let his readers see how things turned out years down the line. It’s a glimpse I’d love to have, though I know it would still be bittersweet.

Why You Should Read This Book

If you enjoy old school fantasy stories with interesting characters, exciting action, adventure, and just enough magic to tantalize, you need to stop what you’re doing and pick up copies of Michael J. Sullivan’s Riyria series.  I’ve read a lot of new fantasy over the last 3 years since starting up Ruled by Books.  I’m happy to say that Sullivan’s books are among the best of the bunch.  I put him right up there with Rothfuss and Lynch as one of my favorite authors working in the genre today.

The good news is that the six books have been re-released as three new books, and if you look at the top fantasy books on Amazon, you’re bound to come across them.  Hundreds of new fans are finding Sullivan’s work and you should be one of them.  Spend some time with Royce and Hadrian, and be sure to savor Percepliquis when you get to it.  It’s what you should be reading.

Book Information

Description:  IT ALL COMES DOWN TO THIS…THE ELVES HAVE CROSSED THE NIDWALDEN. TWO THIEVES WILL DECIDE THE FUTURE. Percepliquis is the final installment of the epic fantasy, The Riyria Revelations. In this saga that began with The Crown Conspiracy, two thieves caught in the wrong place at the right time were launched on a series of ever escalating adventures that have all lead to this moment. Three thousand years have passed and the time for Novron’s heir to act has arrived.

About the Author:  After finding a manual typewriter in the basement of a friend’s house, Michael J. Sullivan inserted a blank piece of paper and typed: It was a dark and stormy night, and a shot rang out. He was just eight. Still, the desire to fill the blank page and see where the keys would take him next wouldn’t let go. For ten years Michael developed his writing craft by studying authors such as Stephen King, Ayn Rand, and John Steinbeck, to name a few. He wrote thirteen novels, and after finding no traction in publishing he quit, vowing to never write creatively again.

His hiatus from writing lasted nearly ten years. The itch returned when he decided to write books for his then thirteen-year-old daughter, who was struggling because of dyslexia. Intrigued by the idea of a series with an overarching story line told through individual, self-contained episodes, he created the Riyria Revelations. He wrote the series with no intention of publishing it, but upon presenting his book in manuscript form to his daughter, she declared that it had to be a “real” book, bound and formatted, in order for her to be able to read it.

So began his second adventure on the road to publication that included drafting his wife to be his business manager, signing with a small independent press, and creating his own publishing company. He sold more than sixty thousand books as a self-published author and leveraged this success to achieve mainstream publication though Orbit (the fantasy imprint of Hachette Book Group) as well as foreign translation rights for France, Germany, Spain, Russia, Poland and the Czech Republic.

Born in Detroit, Michigan, Michael presently lives in Fairfax, Virginia, with his wife and three children and continues to fill the blank pages with three projects under development: a modern fantasy novel, a literary fiction piece, and a prequel to his best-selling Riyria Revelations. [Official Homepage] ]]> http://www.ruledbybooks.com/2012/02/percepliquis-by-michael-j-sullivan/feed/ 0 http://www.ruledbybooks.com/2012/01/the-strange-affair-of-spring-heeled-jack-by-mark-hodder/ http://www.ruledbybooks.com/2012/01/the-strange-affair-of-spring-heeled-jack-by-mark-hodder/#comments Fri, 27 Jan 2012 00:45:36 +0000 Jaime http://www.ruledbybooks.com/?p=92 I will readily admit that I have a liking for Steampunk, but also that I tend to be very picky when it comes to just what I like in the genre.  More often than not I’m disappointed in what the genre has to offer.  I don’t know if that’s because so much of it seems to be so formulaic, or if the genre is still so relatively underpopulated as to have offered outstanding representatives of its form.  That doesn’t stop me from jumping into the world of cogs and gears when I can, and at times I count myself as fortunate to find a real gem.  The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack by Mark Hodder, as it turns out, is a true diamond worthy of any adventure lover’s time, and it sets a very high bar against which all future authors of Steampunk will be gauged.

What I Liked

The mix of Victorian figures in this alternate historical mystery is what truly sets Hodders work ahead of his peers.  So many familiar faces from the time period make their way through the story, all slightly (or greatly in some cases) altered to create an increasingly intricate and twisting plot that both entertains and engages the reader.  Hodder deftly brings to life the world-changing ideals of the era in which Darwin rubbed shoulders with Burton, and Libertines attacked social mores with vim and vigor.  Into this, Hodder implants a lost in time, era hopping man on the brink of insanity seeking to change his family’s name by stopping an infamous ancestor from committing a vile act of assassination.  When every attempt only makes the future worse, the world changes forever and the Victorian age becomes a very different time period in our history.

The characters in The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack are – to put it very bluntly – superb.  Hodder makes excellent use of Sir Richard Burton and Algernon Swinburne along with a who’s who of a supporting cast that makes me wish my history classes had been this exciting.  The dialogue is spot on in terms of delivering the flavor of a past age while making it accessible to the modern-day reader.  Hodder takes his characters and twists them all into a fast paced action adventure mystery akin to James Bond meeting Sherlock Holmes.  His choice of villains had me gleefully turning the page late into the night just to see how far he could reinvent the past to excite and entertain.

Lastly, the Steampunk elements in the book are perfect.  That is to say they are supporting elements and not the reason for the story.  Far too many of the recent Steampunk books I’ve come across are more about the amazing cogworks and mammoth dirigibles than about story.  Steampunk should set a tone, not be the reason for the story.  Hodder navigates through this distinction with aplomb.

What I Didn’t Like

The only part of the book that I found a bit jarring were the multiple chapters inset to tell the story of the real Spring Heeled Jack.  The book changes perspective away from Burton for a bit, and it felt out of place.  The necessity of including the alternate point of view is evident, but I wish it had been handled in a different manner because it cuts into the middle of the book and muddles the pacing a bit.  It reminded me of some of the early Sherlock Holmes stories in which a character suddenly reveals a long litany of past events.  Yes, the connections provided by the information are relevant, but the method of delivery is a detriment to the overall story.  It doesn’t mean I enjoyed the book any less, but rather that I wish this singular piece had been handled differently.

Why You Should Read This Book

If you enjoy Steampunk and/or action packed adventure tales with mystery and intrigue, you absolutely must pick up The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack.  I rank it right up there with Cherie Priests Boneshaker as an example of what is great about the genre.  I’ve already lined up the sequel, Curious Case of the Clockwork Man, on my Kindle, so expect that review in the next few weeks.  In the meantime, catch up with me and spend some time with The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack by Mark Hodder.  It’s what you should be reading.

Book Information

Description:  Sir Richard Francis Burton—explorer, linguist, scholar, and swordsman; his reputation tarnished; his career in tatters; his former partner missing and probably dead.Algernon Charles Swinburne—unsuccessful poet and follower of de Sade; for whom pain is pleasure, and brandy is ruin!They stand at a crossroads in their lives and are caught in the epicenter of an empire torn by conflicting forces: Engineers transform the landscape with bigger, faster, noisier, and dirtier technological wonders; Eugenicists develop specialist animals to provide unpaid labor; Libertines oppose repressive laws and demand a society based on beauty and creativity; while the Rakes push the boundaries of human behavior to the limits with magic, drugs, and anarchy.The two men are sucked into the perilous depths of this moral and ethical vacuum when Lord Palmerston commissions Burton to investigate assaults on young women committed by a weird apparition known as Spring Heeled Jack, and to find out why werewolves are terrorizing London’s East End.Their investigations lead them to one of the defining events of the age, and the terrifying possibility that the world they inhabit shouldn’t exist at all!

About the Author:  Mark Hodder is the creator and caretaker of the BLAKIANA Web site (sextonblake.co.uk), which he designed to celebrate, record, and revive Sexton Blake, the most written about fictional detective in English publishing history. A former BBC writer, editor, journalist, and Web producer, Mark has worked in all the new and traditional medias and was based in London for most of his working life until 2008, when he relocated to Valencia in Spain to de-stress and write novels. He can most often be found at the base of a palm tree, hammering at a laptop. Mark has a degree in cultural studies and loves British history (1850 to 1950, in particular), good food, cutting-edge gadgets, cult TV (ITC forever!), Tom Waits, and a vast assortment of oddities. [Official Homepage]

What I Liked

Lawrence has skillfully populated this book with memorable characters, none more so than Jorg.  Prince of Thorns tells the tale of Prince Honorous Jorg Ancrath and his mercenary band of brothers.  Jorg seeks to claim the shattered Empire as his own, and this first book in The Broken  Empire series lays the ground work for that journey.  Jorg is a very dark and violent young man who is ruthless in battle, seeking victory through any means.  He will sacrifice anything to reach his goals, and this makes him tough to empathize with as a reader, though Lawrence deftly weaves the narrative to make you do just that. Jorg lives in constant remembrance of the brutal slaying of his mother and young brother, and that violent memory from his childhood drives all of his current motives.

Much of the book is told in a back and forth time jumping chapter format where Jorg is introduced as a child then depicted as a young man out for vengeance.  This format works very well as the understanding of why Jorg has become the person he is in integral to the reader accepting and even liking the character.  This also assists with the plot reveal of the puppet masters behind the broken kingdoms that Lawrence slowly unveils

I like dark fantasy with brutal, flawed characters, and Lawrence delivers with Prince of Thorns.  This is not high/epic fantasy with beautiful princesses, unicorns and a grand quest.  This is war, death and vengeance filled with dark magic, political machinations and mysterious puppet masters controlling the fate of the kingdoms.  Jorg is malicious and temperamental and at all times focused intently on his own desires.  His mercenary band is filled with ex prisoners, all violent and brutal men in their own right, and Jorg rules them with an iron hand and simple force of will.  The constant conflict of his control over them was some of the most poignant and powerful writing in the book, and it’s well worth the price of admission just to read those pieces alone.  When added to the quest line of returning home and seeking control of the kingdom, Prince of Thorns becomes a must read for any fan of the fantasy genre.

What I Didn’t Like

I don’t really have any complaints about Prince of Thorns.  It’s well paced and the characters were well-developed.  The action is visceral and just enough common archetypes of the fantasy genre are included to provide sufficient world building.  The only piece of the story I could have done without is the realization that the Empire is apparently a version of a post apocalyptic Earth.  It’s just a personal preference, but I like when the fantasy world is completely its own. This doesn’t take away from the story in any way, and in some key ways allows Lawrence to move the plot forward, so I recognize its necessity.  In the end, however, it’s just a personal preference I have when it comes to fantasy world building.

Why You Should Read This Book

If you enjoy dark fantasy with brutal depictions of violence and themes of revenge, Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence is a must read.  This book marks the beginning of a great new talent in fantasy, and a great new series with a remarkable main character.  If you enjoy getting pulled along by characters you just might hate to love, spend some time with Prince of Thorns. It’s what you should be reading.

Book Information

Description: When he was nine, he watched his mother and brother killed before him. By the time he was thirteen, he was the leader of a band of bloodthirsty thugs. By fifteen, he intends to be king… It’s time for Prince Honorous Jorg Ancrath to return to the castle he turned his back on, to take what’s rightfully his. Since the day he was hung on the thorns of a briar patch and forced to watch Count Renar’s men slaughter his mother and young brother, Jorg has been driven to vent his rage. Life and death are no more than a game to him-and he has nothing left to lose.But treachery awaits him in his father’s castle. Treachery and dark magic. No matter how fierce, can the will of one young man conquer enemies with power beyond his imagining?

About the Author:  Mark Lawrence is a research scientist working on artificial intelligence. He lives in England with his wife and four children. The Prince of Thorns is his first novel. [Official Homepage]

To sate his fans needs for more of Royce, Hadrian, Alric, Arista and their friends, Sullivan released this short story for free to his fans.  I jumped in thinking that even a taste of Riyria was better than waiting patiently for Percepliquis.  Unfortunately, it was like trying to eat just one chocolate chip cookie…You promise yourself that a little taste will be enough, but then you wish you could eat the whole bag.

What I Liked

The Viscount and The Witch is a short story set before the beginning of the Riyria Chronicles. It depicts Royce and Hadrian on the road early in their careers and friendship before they’ve learned to trust and confide in one another.  Their relationship is still very rough around the edges, and there is little trust between the two thieves.  Sullivan quickly puts them in a situation (no spoilers!) where their individual expertise and personalities begin to emerge.  I don’t want to say more than that as fans of the series deserve to experience it first hand, and new-comers should enjoy this glimpse into what was before digging into the real meat and potatoes of the full series.

As with all his writing, Sullivan is adept at bringing his characters to life quickly through unique voicing.  It is very easy to imagine the differences between Royce and Hadrian even during their quick back and forth conversations.  Yes, I already love these characters, which likely makes me a bit biased.  However, it is still testament to Sullivan’s understanding of his craft that he can draft such a succinct short story wherein he breathes life into his characters so quickly.  He writes great characters, and that’s some of the best praise I can give to any author.

What I Didn’t Like

It’s too short!  I know…I know.  It’s a short story to show Royce and Hadrian before the events of the Riyria series, and it does an excellent job of giving the reader a brief overview of the dynamic relationship between them.  It’s just that the two are such powerful characters with entertaining and engaging personalities and voices that a short story becomes a severe tease to the reader.  How could I not want more knowing where these two have taken me thus far?  I thought waiting for Percepliquis was hard before.  Now I understand just how difficult it’s going to be.

Why You Should Read This Book

If you are already a fan of the Riyria Chronicles, you should certainly take a look at The Viscount and The Witch if only to see an earlier rendition of Royce and Hadrian.  If you are brand new to the series, you should enjoy seeing how the characters begin in contrast to where you’ll find them now.  If you’ve never read any of Michael J. Sullivan’s work, please take some time to do so.  He’s writing some of the best action and adventure fantasy in the genre right now that hearkens back to the classics that made me fall in love with these kinds of stories as a teen.  If you enjoy fantasy at all, I can guarantee that you will fall in love with Royce and Hadrian.  Spend some time with The Viscount and The Witch.  It’s what you should be reading.

Book Information

Description:  THE VISCOUNT AND THE WITCH (A Riyria Chronicles Short #1) - Eleven years before they were framed for the murder of a king, before even assuming the title of Riyria, Royce Melborn and Hadrian Blackwater were practically strangers. Unlikely associates, this cynical thief and idealist swordsman, were just learning how to work together as a team. In this standalone first installment of The Riyria Chronicles, Royce is determined to teach his naive partner a lesson about good deeds. Join Royce and Hadrian in this short story (5,400 words) about one of their earliest adventures.

Author:  After finding a manual typewriter in the basement of a friend’s house, Michael J. Sullivan inserted a blank piece of paper and typed: It was a dark and stormy night, and a shot rang out. He was just eight. Still, the desire to fill the blank page and see where the keys would take him next wouldn’t let go. For ten years Michael developed his writing craft by studying authors such as Stephen King, Ayn Rand, and John Steinbeck, to name a few. He wrote thirteen novels, and after finding no traction in publishing he quit, vowing to never write creatively again.

His hiatus from writing lasted nearly ten years. The itch returned when he decided to write books for his then thirteen-year-old daughter, who was struggling because of dyslexia. Intrigued by the idea of a series with an overarching story line told through individual, self-contained episodes, he created the Riyria Revelations. He wrote the series with no intention of publishing it, but upon presenting his book in manuscript form to his daughter, she declared that it had to be a “real” book, bound and formatted, in order for her to be able to read it.

So began his second adventure on the road to publication that included drafting his wife to be his business manager, signing with a small independent press, and creating his own publishing company. He sold more than sixty thousand books as a self-published author and leveraged this success to achieve mainstream publication though Orbit (the fantasy imprint of Hachette Book Group) as well as foreign translation rights for France, Germany, Spain, Russia, Poland and the Czech Republic.

Born in Detroit, Michigan, Michael presently lives in Fairfax, Virginia, with his wife and three children and continues to fill the blank pages with three projects under development: a modern fantasy novel, a literary fiction piece, and a prequel to his best-selling Riyria Revelations. [Official Homepage]

What I Liked

The cursed figurine that allows weres to create more weres through bites rather than birth is still at the middle of Rachel’s current batch of problems to solve, and Harrison uses it to introduce some darker conflict than those seen in her previous entries in the series.  I like the sense of doom and the out of control events introduced in For A Few Demons More.  Just as I grew to enjoy the Dresden Files more when things got dark for Harry, I am also finding that I enjoy the Hollows even more as Harrison creates a deeper sense of world altering/ending conflict and despair.  Rachel and her friends must rise to the occasion, and it is exciting to ride along with them as they do.

As with all of the previous books, what stands at the fore of what makes these fun reads are the characters.  At the core, Rachel, Ivy and Jenks are what make me keep coming back.  It’s rare enough to find a single ass kicking female lead who isn’t a cliché.  Harrison gives you many and I can’t thank her enough for it.  Sure, I’m a red-blooded male who likes guy movies filled with explosions and/or robots/dragons/armies/guns/sports teams/etc.  I also like tough, sexy women and I’m unashamed to say that they can make awesome lead characters that are just as riveting as anything being published with guys at the helm.  I dare you to spend some time with Rachel and not be enamored of her.  She’s jut that good.

What I Didn’t Like

I’ve complained about the Ivy/Rachel vampire love thingamabob during each of my reviews of this series.  I’m happy to say that it’s taken a much deeper, more endearing turn in this book.  Harrison has done what so few authors have done with the vamp/human love theme.  She’s made it truly tragic and beautiful.  Ivy’s pain and Rachel’s willingness to free her from it are – to put it simply – beautiful.  I wish that it had this depth to it in the previous four books.  That’s my only complaint…that it took this long to become what it is.

Why You Should Read This Book

The contemporary urban paranormal fantasy genre(s) has exploded over the last few years.  There are some great books coming out.  There’s also a lot of formulaic crap.  Kim Harrison’s Hollows series is an example of how to do the format right.  If you enjoy fast paced, bone jarring action mixed with elements of mystery and magic, take some time to catch up on Kim Harrison’s Hollow series, and especially For A Few Demons More.  It’s what you should be reading.

Book Information

Description:  Despite dating one vampire and living with another, Rachel Morgan has always managed to stay just ahead of trouble . . . until now. A fiendish serial killer stalks the Hollows, and no one living in or around Cincinnati—human, inhuman, or undead—is safe. An ancient artifact may be the key to stopping the murderer—a mysterious relic that is now in the hands of Rachel Morgan, fearless independent bounty hunter and reckless witch. But revealing it could ignite a battle to the death among the vast and varied local supernatural races. Rachel’s been lucky so far. But even she can’t hide from catastrophe forever.

Author:  New York Times bestselling author Kim Harrison was born and raised in Michigan, and has recently returned there to escape the South Carolina heat. Her bestselling Hollows novels include Dead Witch Walking; The Good, the Bad, and the Undead; Every Which Way But Dead; A Fistful of Charms; For a Few Demons More; The Outlaw Demon Wails; White Witch, Black Curse; Black Magic Sanction; and Pale Demon, plus the graphic novel Blood Work. She also writes the bestselling Madison Avery series for young adults, including Once Dead, Twice Shy and Early to Death, Early to Rise. [Official Homepage] ]]> http://www.ruledbybooks.com/2012/01/for-a-few-demons-more-by-kim-harrison/feed/ 0 http://www.ruledbybooks.com/2012/01/a-fistful-of-charms-by-kim-harrison/ http://www.ruledbybooks.com/2012/01/a-fistful-of-charms-by-kim-harrison/#comments Mon, 23 Jan 2012 17:38:35 +0000 Jaime http://www.ruledbybooks.com/?p=121 I’ve become a fan of the Rachel Morgan series, though I’ve been spacing out the books rather than devouring them all at once.  I did that with the Dresden Files and, in the end, those books all began to bleed together.  That’s not a criticism of the series, but rather a positive commentary on the ability to thread powerful narratives between multiple books.  Kim Harrison has this same ability with her Hollows series, and  I find that digesting the narrative in smaller chunks is extending my enjoyment of her characters.  To draw you a simple picture, instead of wolfing down my dinner, I’m savoring each course.  This is a good thing as her characters are worth lingering over.

What I Liked

I like strong, kick ass, tough-as-nails-yet-lovingly-vulnerable female lead characters, and Rachel Morgan succinctly fills that role with a style and flair all her own.  She can take down a bad guy in one chapter and be a puddle of confused emotions in the next.  It makes her a lovable character, and I have to admit a very strong connection to her voice.  She’s just fun at all levels, and I wish I could meet a real life version of her just for a beer or two.

The action in A Fistful of Charms is some of the best that Harrison has written to date in the series.  Moving the series away from Cincinnati and onto a wooded island adds a new environment for the various magical elements of the series to shine.  Particularly, I liked how Harrison uses werewolves and the tribal aspect of their packs.  It’s a commonly used idea in paranormal contemporary urban fantasy, but Harrison uses it as a powerful force rather than as  the third leg in an annoying love triangle.  Sincerely, I’m tired of the entire genre of pitting weres against vamps with some emo goth teenager in between.  Harrison avoids this by making the weres powerful and dangerous and decidedly off the leash.  It’s a breath of fresh air and I enjoyed it immensely.

Lastly, I’d like to mention that I liked the return of Jenks and the ways in which Harrison repairs the relationship between him and Rachel.  The series seemed askew without him as a supporting character who is always on Rachel’s side.  I’m very happy to see him back where he belongs while I also worry about the real reasons why he admits to leaving in the first place.  There are some sad days ahead, I’m afraid to say, but it’s a great hook to keep me coming back.

What I Didn’t Like

I know that the central relationship between Ivy and Rachel is a major plot line for the series, but I’m getting tired of the constant push and tug of their back and forth.  I know it’s necessary, but considering it seems to pop up ever other chapter….well, I’ll just say that it becomes far too repetitive.  This is the only thing that slows down this series for me, and it’s not enough to make me walk away, but I have to admit that the human vs vamp sex and love thing has been done to death.  It’s tiresome and over done.  If I could remove one thing from the series, it would be this one thing.  The added tension and conflict are no longer needed as Rachel has moved onto bigger and more nefarious bad guys. Was the tension good in the first book while Harrison was world building?  Sure.  Do we still need it now?  For me, the answer is simple.  Not at all.

Why You Should Read This Book

If you enjoy contemporary urban fantasy, paranormal fantasy, or any other type of fiction that could fall under the moniker of modern-day wizarding and witchcraft, then you should most certainly spend some time with Kim Harrison’s A Fistful of Charms.  This is a very fun read which is easily the best in the series thus far.  Harrison progresses both as a writer and storyteller, which pays off in one kick ass book filled with action, magic, and mayhem.  If you like fast paced books with outstanding characters, get into the Hollows series.  It’s what you should be reading.

Book Information

Description:  The evil night things that prowl Cincinnati despise witch and bounty hunter Rachel Morgan. Her new reputation for the dark arts is turning human and undead heads alike with the intent to possess, bed, and kill her — not necessarily in that order. Now a mortal lover who abandoned Rachel has returned, haunted by his secret past. And there are those who covet what Nick possesses — savage beasts willing to destroy the Hollows and everyone in it if necessary. Forced to keep a low profile or eternally suffer the wrath of a vengeful demon, Rachel must nevertheless act quickly. For the pack is gathering for the first time in millennia to ravage and to rule. And suddenly more than Rachel’s soul is at stake.

Author:  New York Times bestselling author Kim Harrison was born and raised in Michigan, and has recently returned there to escape the South Carolina heat. Her bestselling Hollows novels include Dead Witch Walking; The Good, the Bad, and the Undead; Every Which Way But Dead; A Fistful of Charms; For a Few Demons More; The Outlaw Demon Wails; White Witch, Black Curse; Black Magic Sanction; and Pale Demon, plus the graphic novel Blood Work. She also writes the bestselling Madison Avery series for young adults, including Once Dead, Twice Shy and Early to Death, Early to Rise. [Official Homepage] ]]> http://www.ruledbybooks.com/2012/01/a-fistful-of-charms-by-kim-harrison/feed/ 0 http://www.ruledbybooks.com/2012/01/double-dead-by-chuck-wendig/ http://www.ruledbybooks.com/2012/01/double-dead-by-chuck-wendig/#comments Wed, 18 Jan 2012 18:24:01 +0000 Jaime http://www.ruledbybooks.com/?p=124 I’ve been spending time changing the format of my reviews for 2012, and I’m happy to say that the first to get the updated treatment is Chuck Wendig’s Double Dead.  I know that Ruled by Books has been a bit of a mess over the last few weeks, and I apologize to my returning readers.  I’m trying to make the site easier to use and more fun to visit regularly.  Hopefully the new layout is helping with that.  I’m pretty pleased with it, and now I need to get back to posting reviews.  I’m about 7 books behind (YIKES!), but I plan to power them out this week/weekend so that I’m all caught up by next Monday.  Up first is a book I actually read in December just a week after its release.  It’s no secret I’m a Chuck Wendig Fan, and I was eagerly awaiting his post apocalyptic vampire tale mixed with zombies.  I was not disappointed, but I’m getting ahead of myself.  With that being said, on to the review…

What I Liked

Finally, a vampire book with bite!  No twinkling.  No longing to go to the prom.  No love story.  No guilt about draining victims.  Finally, I get to see a true bad-ass vamp bringing his A-game to the feast.  And there are zombies?  And the vamp is worried about how to find blood to keep alive amidst all the walking dead?

Hot damn!  I just got sticky.

As with all of Wendig’s work, what I enjoyed most in Double Dead is how the language shines.  He’s not afraid to let his narrative get down and dirty, and I appreciate the occasional absurd and humorous turns of phrase he wiggles into the story.  I’m also appreciative of his ability to use slang and expletives without shame.  Sometimes “fuck” is the right word.  Author’s shouldn’t be ashamed of it, nor should they agonize over an alternative that will never truly fit.  Wendig doesn’t agonize.  Hell, he seems to revel naughtily like a pig in the proverbial shit, and I love that he doesn’t shy away from using the words that need using.

The world Wendig creates in Double Dead is eerily familiar yet foreign enough to ring true.  The time and place after the shit hits the fan doesn’t disappoint.  I especially love the tribal clown gang that Wendig invents.  I’ve never wondered what would happen if Mad Max met Insane Clown Posse, but now I know what their bastard love child would look like, and it’s frightening and laugh inducing all at the same time.

My absolute favorite part about Double Dead – hands down! – has to be what Wendig creates by mixing the vampiric curse with the zombie virus.  The bestial offspring is absolutely horrific, and I wish I could see it brought to life on the big screen.  This is the kind of fright inducing monster that begs to jump out of the dark and make audiences jump.  Wending has created a twist on zombies and vampires that sets a new bar for horror creatures.

Before I move on, let me make a note about the characters.  Of note is Coburn, the vampire who reawakened into this insane world of zombies and crumbling civilization.  Coburn is dark and tragic, yet also comedic and slightly unlovable.  His journey of self discovery is not something I would have expected from a vampire meets zombie novel, but damned if it doesn’t work.

What I Didn’t Like

I wanted more gross out moments, to be entirely honest.  There are quite a few of them, but I’d like more.  In my opinion, Wendig is at his best when he’s describing something utterly vile only to follow-up with an absurd aside from one of his characters.  There’s no author who makes me cringe and laugh at the same time quite like Wendig does.  It leaves me wanting more of that, which means I’ll have to be patient for the sequel.

Why You Should Read This Book

If you enjoy any of Chuck Wendig’s other work, you’re going to love Double Dead as it delivers more of his unique style.  If you enjoy hard-hitting, bloody vampire tales wherein the vamps aren’t trying to find girlfriends, you’ll enjoy Double Dead.  This is a fast paced, action packed, bloody fun romp through a zombie filled apocalyptic wasteland.  Who wouldn’t love that?  Spend some time with Double Dead by Chuck Wendig.  It’s what you should be reading.

Book Information

Description:  Coburn’s been dead now for close to a century, but seeing as how he’s a vampire and all, it doesn’t much bother him. Or at least it didn’t, not until he awoke from a forced five-year slumber to discover that most of human civilization was now dead—but not dead like him, oh no. See, Coburn likes blood. The rest of the walking dead, they like flesh. He’s smart. Them, not so much. But they outnumber him by about a million to one. And the clotted blood of the walking dead cannot sustain him. Now he’s starving. And on the run. And more pissed-off than a bee stung rattlesnake. The vampire not only has to find human survivors (with their sweet, sweet blood), but now he has to transition from predator to protector—after all, a man has to look after his food supply.

Author:  Chuck Wendig is a novelist, a screenwriter, and a freelance penmonkey.  He has contributed over two million words to the roleplaying game industry, and was the developer of the popular Hunter: The Vigil game line (White Wolf Game Studios / CCP).  He, along with writing partner Lance Weiler, is a fellow of the Sundance Film Festival Screenwriter’s Lab (2010). Their short film, Pandemic, will show at the Sundance Film Festival 2011, and their feature film HiM is in development with producer Ted Hope.   Chuck’s novel Double Dead will be out in November, 2011.  He’s written too much. He should probably stop. Give him a wide berth, as he might be drunk and untrustworthy. He currently lives in the wilds of Pennsyltucky with a wonderful wife and two very stupid dogs. He is represented by Stacia Decker of the Donald Maass Literary Agency.  You can find him at his website, terribleminds.com. [Official Homepage]