Tag Archives: xposted to OSgA reviews
Heartless by Gail Carriger
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Oh, goodreads, why do you let a few people keep the rest of us from having half stars. By rights, Heartless should get 3.5/5 or 6/10 stars. As it is, because I like the series & goodreads is lame, I’m giving it 4. In this latest addition, we see a lot more of the same. The primary plot is nowhere near as interesting as some of the things we learn about our primary and supporting characters. Some of them have pasts much deeper and more complicated than we previously knew. We also learn more about Alexia’s father. Naturally, these are the tamer aspects, but, you know…spoilers! Regardless of the ways this book went flat, I definitely am looking forward to the release in March of the next in the series.
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Leave a comment | tags: 3.5 stars, aristocracy, book review, books, drinkers of blood, fantasy, gail carriger, heartless, infant inconveniences, london town, never-ending tea time, parasol protectorate, review, romance, steampunk, sweet sweet luuurve, that is not natural, too stubborn for their own good, wolves of the were persuasion, xposted to OSgA reviews | posted in Words
Blameless by Gail Carriger
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
I don’t know quite how I would explain why I love Gail Carriger‘s Parasol Protectorate series so much, but I really do. While not so good as the others, Blameless has that same mixture of wit and “d’aww” reaction that I enjoyed in the previous books. As always, Alexia is involved in crazy adventures and Conall rages about wildly. Well, that isn’t all, but it does take up a fair amount. Basically, I continue to recommend these books to those who like Regency romances, even though these are set in Victorian times, as well as those who like light urban fantasy. There’s a little something for everyone here. For me, it’s on to Heartless! (Oh yes, ladybugs and pesto both play major roles in this. What’s not to love?)
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Leave a comment | tags: 3.5 stars, aristocracy, blameless, book review, books, boozy, drinkers of blood, fantasy, france, gail carriger, infant inconveniences, italy, london town, never-ending tea time, parasol protectorate, review, romance, steampunk, sweet sweet luuurve, that is not natural, the fuck is this the fuck was that, too stubborn for their own good, wolves of the were persuasion, xposted to OSgA reviews | posted in Words
Changeless by Gail Carriger
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
While not quite as good as Soulless, Changeless was a delightful read and exactly what I needed to cleanse my brain after reading American Psycho. Gail Carriger writes good, funny yarns. There is a definite amount of repetition, but it can be forgiven. I can’t bring myself to say that her stories and characters are original, but there is a certain freshness to her stories. Perhaps it is the way her points of view are written or the very, very mild inclusion of a few steampunk elements. Regardless, I look forward to continuing the series. I mean, how often are Victorian romances & fantasy mixed without being tedious? Not often enough, I say.
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Leave a comment | tags: 3.5 stars, aristocracy, book review, books, changeless, country houses, drinkers of blood, fantasy, gail carriger, london town, never-ending tea time, parasol protectorate, review, romance, steampunk, sweet sweet luuurve, that is not natural, the fuck is this the fuck was that, too stubborn for their own good, wolves of the were persuasion, xposted to OSgA reviews | posted in Words
The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Incredible. Parts of “How to Tell a True War Story” come to mind regularly. I love Tim O’Brien‘s writing. Those were the three things I had to say about The Things They Carried when I initially “reviewed” this book. I hold to all of those. This is my third reading and I found the book even better than it was eleven years ago. “How to Tell a True War Story” has probably influenced my views on writing and literature more than anything else I have ever read. There is a beautiful clarity and painful honesty that permeates this book. I can’t say enough good things about it.
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Leave a comment | tags: 5 stars, book review, books, favorites, fiction, historical fiction, history, jungles & swamps, military, non-fiction, re-read potential, read multiple times, recommended by a friend, review, the things they carried, tim o'brien, vietnam, war, xposted to OSgA reviews | posted in Words
The Unit by Ninni Holmqvist
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
The Unit is the saddest piece of dystopian fiction I have ever read. Normally the genre leaves me angry or frightened or feeling the need for a good shower, but this made me feel heartbroken. The Unit is a place where women who have reached the age of 50 and men who have reached the age of 60 without having children are sent to live in order to participate in “humane” experiments and act as organ donors for the so-called needed. These people are known as dispensable.
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Leave a comment | tags: 4.5 stars, book review, books, dystopia, eccentric old ladies, eccentric old men, everybody dies, infant inconveniences, intriguing review, ninni holmqvist, re-read potential, review, science fiction, science gone wrong, the unit, xposted to OSgA reviews | posted in Words
Soulless by Gail Carriger
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This book brings together so many things I love: kickass female heroines who don’t dress like they belong in a film mockery of an S&M video, food, vampires and other such magical types, love, dirty scenes, and the London Season. Didn’t see that last one coming, did you? Well, it’s true. Gail Carriger manages to fit all these things into Soulless, a book that is more funny than sincere, more romance than steampunk, and less creepy than you might think when you realize what the main couple has to overcome. Basically, I recommend it, despite being skeptical when I picked it up. It’s fun in so many ways.
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Leave a comment | tags: 3.5 stars, aristocracy, book review, books, drinkers of blood, fantasy, gail carriger, london town, never-ending tea time, parasol protectorate, review, romance, soulless, steampunk, sweet sweet luuurve, that is not natural, too stubborn for their own good, wolves of the were persuasion, xposted to OSgA reviews | posted in Words
The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Locke Lamora is what Oliver Twist could have been, had he not been so impossibly perfectly naive to the point of stupidity and dull innocent. Actually, I suppose one would have to say Locke has more in common with The Artful Dodger. An orphan who becomes a skilled thief, but with far more intelligence and skill. And burning down of large inns. In The Lies of Locke Lamora Scott Lynch creates a cast of characters who you’ll love and who will make you laugh. An equisite work of fantasy that overlaps heavily with the action genre, I highly recommend this work to anyone who likes their characters to be badass and have questionable motives.
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Leave a comment | tags: 4 stars, action or adventure, badassery, bloody spiders, book review, books, everybody dies, fantasy, fiction, questionable motives, review, up to no good, xposted to OSgA reviews | posted in Words