Review of INDIE NOVELLA Night’s Tooth – Book 1 of Tales of the River Vine series by Jean Lee #Brainfluffbookreview #NightsToothbookreview

I’ve known Jean as a wonderful book blogger for some years now – check out her site Jean Lee’s World and my interview with her, and you’ll know that she is an inspired writer with a quirky take on life. I read and loved her fantasy novel, Fallen Princeborn: STOLEN – see my review. I also had the pleasure of reading an early draft of this one, so was a bit flummoxed to realise that I hadn’t then bought a copy and read the finished article – surely I must have done that? Must have been in the parallel universe I keep sliding into…

BLURB: Mississippi River Valley, 1870s. The white man wields rails and guns to bring law to the land. But there are more than wild animals hiding in the territories, and it will take more than guns to bring them down. Sumac the bounty hunter needs no guns to hunt any bandit with a price on his head, even one as legendary and mysterious as Night’s Tooth. But Sumac didn’t count on other bounty hunters coming along as competition, nor did he expect hunters sharing his own magical gifts. It’s one man against a gang and a mystery, all to protect a train that must cross the territories at all costs…

REVIEW: Lee’s punchy immersive style doesn’t take any prisoners. This one grabs you by the collar and hauls you right into the middle of the story and you’d better pay attention, or you’ll miss something vital. But that’s just fine – because I want to pay attention. Her prose sends shivers up my spine and has me alert and scenting danger, along with Sumac. I immediately care about him, even though I’m not totally sure what he is. And as for that sheriff with the squirrel-tail moustache…

Each tense exchange in this story is an event and the narrative tension only pauses to ensure no one is following. The action scenes are well described and the sensory writing means I can smell, taste and feel this freezing scenario on the outskirts of a town set in the Wild West, where the other side are also shapeshifters on the hunt…

I blew through this one in a single sitting and emerged, blinking owlishly to discover that I’m not some muscle-caked shapeshifter desperate to save the children – but a middle-aged woman who just finished a cracking story. Recommended for fans of gritty fantasy where you experience the world.
10/10

May 2020 Roundup – Reading, Writing and Blogging… #BrainfluffMay2020Roundup

I recall I said something to the effect that there had never been a month like April in the whole of my life – except that May was exactly the same. Eerily so. Staying at home and seeing no one else, other than Himself. Though we did drive across to my daughter’s house and deliver her bike, so she could also cycle with the children. It was bittersweet seeing them after such a long time and I’m hoping this month, with the easing of the lockdown, I might once more be able to be a regular visitor, again. The weather continues to behave as if we are in July or August, further skewing the sense of abnormality. But thank goodness for books and writing projects!

Reading
I read fifteen books in May, but as I also broke off to read a couple of my own books on editing runs, that did impact on my general reading time. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed my selection, so there were no DNFs. They were:

Oranges and Lemons – Book 17 of the Bryant and May: Peculiar Crimes Unit series by Christopher Fowler
The Pursuit of William Abbey by Claire North – see my review
Hammered – Book 1 of the Jenny Casey series by Elizabeth Bear
The Physicians of Vilnoc – Book 8 of the Penric and Desdemona series by Lois McMaster Bujold – see my review
Relatively Strange – Book 1 of the Strange series by Marilyn Messik – this is my outstanding read of the month
AUDIOBOOK Starsight – Book 2 of the Skyward series by Brandon Sanderson
The Valhalla Call – Book 4 of the Hayden War Cycle by Evan Currie
Even Stranger – Book 2 of the Strange series by Marilyn Messik
Stranger Still – Book 3 of the Strange series by Marilyn Messik
The City of Brass – Book 1 of the Daevabad trilogy by S.A. Chakrobarty
The Kingdom of Copper – Book 2 of the Daevabad trilogy by S.A. Chakrobarty
AUDIOBOOK The Fire Court – Book 2 of the Marwood and Lovett series by Andrew Taylor – this is my outstanding audiobook read of the month
Night’s Tooth – Tales of the River Vine novella by Jean Lee
Gravity is Heartless – Book 1 of the Heartless series by Sarah Lahey
The Obsidian Tower – Book 1 of the Rooks and Ruin series by Melissa Caruso

Writing
I finished the first draft of my Wordmanship Handbook – How to Write Convincing Characters, which went really well. While I had intended this to be part of a series, I decided that if I found it too much of a trudge, then it would be a standalone, but it ended up being quite a lot of fun to write. So during the year I am hoping to write at least another book in the Wordmanship series. The handbook aspect of it – with a quick checklist so an author can tick off possible issues as they go, either during the writing phase, or during an editing run – ended up being about the right length, too.

I then turned back to Mantivore Warrior to do the first editing pass. This is always slightly nerve-wracking. Once I’ve gained a bit of distance, I can work out whether it’s a hot mess, or if it hangs together. And as it is the first book that I thoroughly plotted before I started, I was keen to see how it held up. And I’m delighted – those fixes I put in last month strengthened the overall narrative, so there was only one major addition and then it was a question of smoothing the prose and looking for mistakes.

So once again, it’s been a wonderful writing month. Overall, I wrote just under 43,000 words in May, with just over 15,500 on the blog, and just under 26,000 on my writing projects.

Blogging
The big event during May was Wyrd and Wonder 2020, which I discovered thanks to Tammy from Books, Bones and Buffy. It was about alll things fantastical and I really enjoyed taking part. Huge thanks go to Imyril of There’s Always Room for One More, Lisa from Dear Geek Place and Jorie Loves a Story for all their hard work and effort throughout May to make this such a success.

I hope everyone is managing to keep well and healthy, both physically and mentally – the situation has been a strain on everyone, not helped by some dodgy decisions by those in charge. Take care and stay safe.x

Sunday Post – 31st May, 2020 #Brainfluffbookblog #SundayPost

 

This is part of the weekly meme over at the Caffeinated Reviewer, where book bloggers can share the books and blogs they have written.

Mantivore Dreams is free for today and tomorrow – just click on the cover in the sidebar, which will take you to your local Amazon outlet to claim a copy…

The weather feels like high summer – long, sunny days and no rain. Except for a bit of a nip in the air. So Himself is still trudging around with the watering can. The bronze and pink bed is looking fabulous and my cordyline has started flowering – the scent is amazing, intense and lily-like. And now my yarrow is looking beautiful.

I have now finished my first major edit of Mantivore Warrior and I’m really pleased and excited at how that is going. Wyrd and Wonder 2020 has just finished and I thoroughly enjoyed taking part. Many thanks to Imyril @ There’s Always Room for Another, Lisa @ Dear Geek Place and Jorie Loves a Story for all their hard work in making the event such a success.

A lot less happily – I had a go at the WordPress block editor option which is about to engulf those of us who haven’t yet switched across during the week and it was a complete car crash. It won’t successfully wrap text around images, the way I’ve doing for years and I don’t find it remotely intuitive. I managed to flip back to Classic, but I know that eventually I’ll have to get to grips with it and I’m dreading it☹. I wasn’t impressed with the quality of the help provided – while the assistant was very friendly, the instructional videos wouldn’t load, the graphic how-to clips moved far too fast for me to follow. And at one point when trying to load yet another non-functioning link they provided – my trusty desktop fizzled to a stop – it never does that! Which was when I broke off asking for help… So my blogging in the coming weeks might be a bit sporadic while I grapple with the misery ahead of me.


Last week I read:
Less than usual, because I started off rereading Mantivore Prey, the second book in my Arcadian Chronicles series, before starting the edit of Mantivore Warrior – but I don’t count that in my reading listings, as it comes under the heading of Editing!

Night’s Tooth NOVELLA by Jean Lee
Mississippi River Valley, 1870s. The white man wields rails and guns to bring law to the land. But there are more than wild animals hiding in the territories, and it will take more than guns to bring them down. Sumac the bounty hunter needs no guns to hunt any bandit with a price on his head, even one as legendary and mysterious as Night’s Tooth. But Sumac didn’t count on other bounty hunters coming along as competition, nor did he expect hunters sharing his own magical gifts. It’s one man against a gang and a mystery, all to protect a train that must cross the territories at all costs…

I love Jean Lee’s immersive, punchy writing style and she completely nailed this gripping shapeshifter Western fanatasy story. Review to follow.


Gravity is Heartless – Book 1 of the Heartless series by Sarah Lahey
The year is 2050: automated cities, vehicles, and homes are now standard, artificial Intelligence, CRISPR gene editing, and quantum computing have become a reality, and climate change is in full swing―sea levels are rising, clouds have disappeared, and the planet is heating up. Quinn Buyers is a climate scientist who’d rather be studying the clouds than getting ready for her wedding day. But when an unexpected tragedy causes her to lose everything, including her famous scientist mother, she embarks upon a quest for answers that takes her across the globe―and she uncovers friends, loss and love in the most unexpected of places along the way. Gravity Is Heartless is bold, speculative fiction that sheds a hard light on the treatment of our planet even as it offers a breathtaking sense of hope for the future.

This was an entertaining action-filled near future adventure that left everything on rather a cliffhanger. Review to follow.


My posts last week:

Three AUDIBLE mini-reviews – How To Betray a Dragon’s Hero; The Lost Plot; Uprooted

Friday Face-off featuring Dark Lord of Derkholm – Book 1 of the Derkholm series by Diana Wynne Jones

Mantivore Dreams – Book 1 of The Arcadian Chronicles is FREE!

Review of Sacred Bride – Book 3 of the Olympus trilogy by David Hair & Cath Mayo

Can’t-Wait-Wednesday featuring Grave Secrets: the Lavington Windsor Mysteries – Book 1 by Alice James

Get to Know the Fantasy Reader tag – Wyrd and Wonder 2020

Review of The Zero Curse – Book 2 of The Zero Enigma by Christopher G. Nuttall

Sunday Post – 24th May 2020

Interesting/outstanding blogs and articles that have caught my attention during the last week, in no particular order:

My Own Sorrow https://thetattooedbookgeek.wordpress.com/2020/05/27/my-own-sorrow/ Some of you might know Drew as an outspoken book blogger, whose forthright views often include rather sweary language – but he also produces poems of wrenching sadness…

It’s Never Too Late: 10 Writers and Artists That Were Late Bloomers https://leighhecking.com/2017/04/04/its-never-too-late-10-writers-artists-that-were-late-bloomers/ As someone who won’t see 60 again, I found this article very encouraging…

10 of the Most Beautiful Poems in the English Language https://interestingliterature.com/2020/05/beautiful-poems-english-language/ Regulars to my Sunday Post will know I’m a fan of this site – but this is a VERY big claim to make. I wholeheartedly agreed with one of these choices and thought a couple more were maybes – what do you think?

Breaking Through Writer’s Block https://writerunboxed.com/2020/05/27/breaking-through-writers-block/ This is a subject that fascinates me, particularly after watching several talented students wrestle with this distressing problem…

Thursday Doors – Castle Saunderson https://jeanreinhardt.wordpress.com/2020/05/21/thursday-doors-castle-saunderson/ Somehow I’ve missed out on Jean’s posts recently, so I was delighted to catch with this magical offering…

Thank you for visiting, reading, liking and/or commenting on my blog – I hope you and yours have a peaceful, healthy week. Take care.

Sunday Post – 19th January, 2020 #Brainfluffbookblog #SundayPost

This is part of the weekly meme over at the Caffeinated Reviewer, where book bloggers can share the books and blogs they have written.

This week was one I’ve been looking forward to with really mixed feelings. On Monday, Himself drove up to Cambridge to collect up Robbie’s possessions and bring them back here, as he was moving out, so that when he travelled down on the train on Wednesday evening, he only had a light bag to carry. Thursday was spent sorting out Robbie’s clothes – what he was going to take with him, and what he was going to leave behind for the clothing bank or his nephews. But Friday morning pitched up far too fast, when came the time to load everything in the car, drive him up to Gatwick airport and see him off on his journey to L.A. I am so thrilled for him that he has found a lovely girl and his career is falling into place. But so sad that from now on, I can’t just hop on a train and get a fix of that huge personality of his…

Thank goodness I didn’t have time to brood – because that evening, I was off to Chichester Festival Theatre with my daughter and grandson to see Six, the hit musical about Henry VIII’s six wives. I can see what the fuss is about – it was absolutely brilliant. We were on our feet whooping and clapping till our hands stung at the end and as the show is about to embark on an international tour, I recommend you go and see it if you get the chance. Afterwards, we went for a meal together and agreed we must do this more often.

On Saturday, I was running a Poetry Day here at the house for a few folks, so we were both up early, flying around and getting the kitchen presentable – it frankly looked as though a bomb had hit it. And organising the casserole and apple pudding I was serving for lunch. It was a lovely day – wonderful to catch up with the five folks who attended, hear their work and immerse myself back into another world. Rob has arrived safely in L.A. and today we need to start dealing with the pile of stuff in the spare room, as I have Mhairi arriving tomorrow… Thank goodness for busyness. And the amazing rock in my life – Himself.

Last week I read:

Termination Shock – Book 1 of the Interstellar Enforcement Agency by Gillian Andrews
Ryler Mallivan’s comfortable life as an upstanding young freighter captain has just imploded. Avaraks are storming the training ship he is on and the bullets being fired are not blanks. Interstellar war has broken out and unless he moves fast they will all be as stone dead as the instructor lying at his feet. But this is one conflict they can never escape. The cause of the trouble is far closer than they know and will bring Mallivan and his ragbag fledgling crew under ferocious attack from all sides
I spotted this one on Netgalley, and wanted a bit of space opera goodness, so requested it. Great fun – full of action and an engaging protagonists – but also including a really annoying alien child… Review to follow.

AUDIOBOOK Over Sea, Under Stone – Book 1 of The Dark is Rising series by Susan Cooper

On holiday in Cornwall, the three Drew children discover an ancient map in the attic of the house that they are staying in. They know immediately that it is special…
This classic fantasy adventure is one I never got around to reading as a child, but as it was on Frankie’s audiobook list, I gave it a go. While in places it showed its age, I nonetheless thoroughly enjoyed it, aided by the excellent narration.

 

The Last Smile in Sunder City – Book 1 of the Fetch Phillips Archives by Luke Arnold
I’m Fetch Phillips, just like it says on the window. There are a few things you should know before you hire me:
1. Sobriety costs extra.
2. My services are confidential – the cops can never make me talk.
3. I don’t work for humans.
It’s nothing personal – I’m human myself. But after what happened, Humans don’t need my help. Not like every other creature who had the magic ripped out of them when the Coda came…
I just want one real case. One chance to do something good.
Because it’s my fault the magic is never coming back.
I was attracted by the premise and quirky cover. I haven’t seen Black Sails, so the author’s other life as an actor wasn’t a factor in my picking this one up. The world didn’t disappoint – wonderfully described dystopian landscape where magic has abruptly disappeared. Review to follow.

A Longer Fall – Book 2 of the Gunnie Rose series by Charlaine Harris
Lizbeth Rose is hired onto a new crew for a seemingly easy protection job, transporting a crate into Dixie, just about the last part of the former United States of America she wants to visit. But what seemed like a straight-forward job turns into a massacre as the crate is stolen.
I really enjoyed my second visit to this dystopian world, following the twists and turns of the plot as Rose tries to find out why so many people had to die.

 

My posts last week:

Friday Faceoff featuring Heavy Time – Book 4 of The Company Wars by C.J. Cherryh

*NEW RELEASE SPECIAL* Review of A Longer Fall – Book 2 of the Gunnie Rose series by Charlaine Harris

Can’t-Wait-Wednesday featuring The Apollo Deception by Mitch Silver

Review of AUDIOBOOK The Rules of Magic – prequel to Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman

Sunday Post 12th January 2020

 

Interesting/outstanding blogs and articles that have caught my attention during the last week, in no particular order:

10 of the Best and Most Famous Opening Lines in English Poetry https://interestingliterature.com/2020/01/famous-opening-lines-poetry/ There are some lovely examples here – but do you think a great opening line has been unfairly left out?

Thursday Doors – Boats https://jeanreinhardt.wordpress.com/2020/01/16/thursday-doors-boats/ Jean rings the changes – we get to see a number of boats, instead of doors. And you’ll NEVER guess what is growing on the cabin roof of one little motor cruiser…

Tidings from the Crew – galaxy quest (1999) movie review – old sci fi movies reviews continue! https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/2020/01/15/tidings-from-the-crew-galaxy-quest-1999-movie-review-old-sci-fi-movie-reviews-continue/ This is a lovely, affectionate review of one of my all-time favourite films…

The brilliance of RUNNING UP THAT HILL by Meg Myers https://redpenofdoom.com/the-brilliance-of-running-up-that-hill-by-meg-myers/ I loved this tribute to both Kate Bush (whose work I ADORE) and this fabulous cover version – including the remarkable video to accompany it…

A Little Bit Like Grandpa https://writersite.org/2020/01/13/like-grandpa/ I really enjoyed this slice of family history, along with Luanne’s musings on her writing…

Thank you for visiting, reading, liking and/or commenting on my blog – I hope you have a wonderful week.

Friday Faceoff – Gorgeous hair is the best revenge… #Brainfluffbookblog #FridayFaceoffhaircovers

This meme was started by Books by Proxy, whose fabulous idea was to compare UK and US book covers and decide which is we prefer. This meme is now run by Lynn’s Book Blog and the subject this week featuring on any of our covers is HAIR. I’ve changed things around this week – I’ve selected the series of covers produced for The Iron Druid series by Kevin Hearn, which I’ve always thought were so very well done. I love the fact it’s the same model throughout and that his hair is fabulous…

 

Hounded, the first in the series, was produced by Del Rey in May 2011 – and set the tone and style for the rest of the series. I love the fact he’s in a t-shirt, featuring THE sword and not even looking at us. And the way the light plays through that adorable blond hair is just so effective… This is Atticus as I’ve imagined him throughout the books.

 

Published in June 2011 by Del Rey, that hair is now being blown across his face as he faces off against a foe we can’t see. Interesting to note that this series started off being released so quickly…

 

This, the third in the series was released in July 2011 by Del Rey. I’ll be honest, this is probably my least favourite of all the covers. I don’t like the fact that the lower half of the cover is so very dark, effectively chopping poor old Atticus off at the waist. Still think the hair is awesome, though😊.

 

The fourth book was released in April 2012 by Del Rey – and now we see Atticus use his magic. I love the drama of this one and the lurid lighting – I think it’s one of the most eye-catching and attractive of them all.

 

This fifth book, released in November 2012, is a real contender as my favourite for the series – and to be honest, was the cover that popped into my mind when I saw that HAIR was this week’s theme. Two wonderful heads of hair for the price of one…

 

This one, published in June 2013, has Atticus once more brandishing his sword as he battles lethal gods and goddesses that he’s annoyed, with those storm-tossed blond locks looking so fabulously disarranged.

 

And – this cover is my favourite. Released in June 2014, I love the determined expression on his face… the way the light plays around his sword… the runes in the air… and of course, that hair.

 

This, the eighth book in the series clearly took a bit longer to write as it wasn’t released until January 2016 – and hats off to them that they still managed to feature the same model they’ve used throughout. I just wish the title font wasn’t quite so large, so we could see more of those stakes.

 

The final book in the series manages to produce a cover that defines the series – poor old Atticus still swinging that sword of his, looking seriously worried. Revisiting these covers has brought back a raft of really happy reading memories.

 

While I loved them, the only niggle I have is while there is a fair amount of angst, there are a lot of laugh-aloud moments in all the books, courtesy of Atticus’s greyhound, who has a telepathic link to the druid and a penchant for attractive female poodles and sausages. And there isn’t a hint of that humour in any of the covers. Ah well, they feature a gorgeous blond bloke – I suppose you can’t have everything… Which is your favourite cover?

Review of KINDLE Ebook An Easy Death – Book 1 of the Gunnie Rose series by Charlaine Harris #Brainfluffbookreview #AnEasyDeathbookreview

I’m a fan of Harris’s writing – see my review of Midnight Crossroad here. So when a steady trickle of enthusiastic reviews turned into a stream, I alerted Himself, who decided to treat both of us to this offering. Our book budget for this year hasn’t been busted – more like broken beyond repair…

Set in a fractured United States, in the southwestern country now known as Texoma. A world where magic is acknowledged but mistrusted, especially by a young gunslinger named Lizbeth Rose. Battered by a run across the border to Mexico Lizbeth Rose takes a job offer from a pair of Russian wizards to be their local guide and gunnie.

And that is as much of the very chatty blurb that I’m prepared to share. I would add that the States is very different to our version, as it also includes a Russian enclave in this alternate history where the Romanov dynasty didn’t die in a basement in a hail of bullets, but instead survived to flee across the Atlantic accompanied by their magic-user, Rasputin. As for Texoma, think Wild West complete with bandits. It’s an interesting world, where life is cheap, travel exceedingly dangerous and luxuries such as electricity tend to be erratic. Each settlement or town seems to have its own set of laws that those passing through need to know.

I really liked the character of Lizbeth Rose, whose tough, self-reliant attitude helps her bounce back after the initial devastating incident at the start of the book, which puts her in the path of the two Russian wizards. Harris is good at making us care for her protagonists and I was quickly invested in Lizbeth prevailing against the odds. This dystopian, broken-backed landscape where the remains of metalled roads and ruins of houses pock the countryside should have given this book a more downbeat feel, but Lizbeth’s first-person narrative rescued this from being a grim, post-apocalyptic exploration of a destroyed civilisation. While she mentions such features, she’s matter-of-fact about the whole business, which happened before she was born. And besides, she’s too busy trying to keep herself and her clients alive to spend too much time brooding about the past.

Harris perfectly paces this adventure, so that we have plenty of time to appreciate what is at stake, before the situation flips around to heighten said stakes and once more Lizbeth is engulfed in yet more life-threatening action. It became physically impossible to put this one down, as I kept turning the pages as if my life depended upon it – and once I reached the end of the story, I felt drained and a tad shaky, suffering a real book hangover, which doesn’t happen very often to me, these days.

If you like your fantasy with a sideorder of wild west action and backdrop, then track this one down. I’m looking forward to seeing how this one plays out on TV, too…
9/10

*NEW RELEASE SPECIAL* Review of NOVELLA Taste of Marrow – Book 2 of River of Teeth series by Sarah Gailey

After enjoying the hippo-related mayhem of River of Teeth and looking forward to reading what happens next as the first book left everything on something of a cliffhanger, I was delighted to spot this one on Netgalley.

A few months ago, Winslow Houndstooth put together the damnedest crew of outlaws, assassins, cons, and saboteurs on either side of the Harriet for a history-changing caper. Together they conspired to blow the damn that choked the Mississippi and funnel the hordes of feral hippos contained within downriver, to finally give America back its greatest waterway. Songs are sung of their exploits, many with a haunting refrain: “And not a soul escaped alive.” In the aftermath of the Harriet catastrophe, that crew has scattered to the winds. Some hunt the missing lovers they refuse to believe have died. Others band together to protect a precious infant and a peaceful future. All of them struggle with who they’ve become after a long life of theft, murder, deception, and general disinterest in the strictures of the law.

My first piece of advice would be – don’t start with this one, go back to River of Teeth as this novella picks up from where the first book left off and there isn’t anything in the way of ‘The Story So Far’. While there is a bit of explanation about what happened, it comes fairly late in the story and in the meantime, I think newcomers to this series could flounder.

As we plunge straight back into the action only a few weeks after the climactic events at the end of River of Teeth we meet up with all the protagonists once again as they start to count the cost of that dramatic day. It took me a while to get back into this, because not only wasn’t there much explanation, neither did we have any rebonding moments with the main characters. I did care about several of the gang members, but was rather detached from Winslow, whose behaviour wasn’t particularly pleasant. While I understood it, because the reason for it was in the previous book, we didn’t get a chance to see the justification and I think this hampered some of my enjoyment.

I do like the world very much and there was plenty going on – but I wanted more character development and longer to enjoy this interesting, vivid setting. There was a sense that this was a quart-sized story squeezed between pint-sized covers. That said, if I hadn’t liked it so much then clearly I wouldn’t have wanted more – this is really cool idea and was brought to a satisfactory conclusion this time around. I’d love to see a full-length novel set in this world, though… While I obtained the arc of Taste of Marrow from the publisher via NetGalley, this has in no way influenced my unbiased review.
8/10

Sunday Post – 10th September 2017

This is part of the weekly meme over at the Caffeinated Book Reviewer, where book bloggers can share the books and blogs they have written.

It’s been a mixed week. My rewrite of Miranda’s Tempest has stalled at just over 1,000 words added to the manuscript as all sorts of deadlines have been knocking on the door. We had a lovely time with the grandchildren last week-end, which was great as it is possibly a while before we’ll see them again.

It was Himself’s birthday on Wednesday so my sister, J and I went out to our favourite Chinese restaurant and once again had an excellent meal – a real treat as being vegetarians means that eating out can be something of a lottery.

Unfortunately, I’ve been laid low with a cold, which has really knocked the stuffing out of me. While I’ve not got much in the way of a blocked nose, it’s the temperature, aching joints and sore head and throat which is the misery. It’s meant that I’ve missed teaching Tim on Friday and the first rehearsal session for the filming on Saturday – and the way I’m feeling today, I don’t think I’ll be making the lesson tomorrow unless I feel a whole lot better, either.

Today is our wedding anniversary – we’ve now been married for 22 years, which I can’t quite believe… Where did all those years go? It was the best thing I ever did. At least Himself is having his annual leave at the end of this month, so hopefully we’ll be able to make up the fact that we’re having a very quiet day at home while I snivel and shiver over the computer feeling sorry for myself… Have a great week, everyone.

This week I have read:

The Last Dog on Earth by Adrian J. Walker
Every dog has its day…
And for Lineker, a happy go lucky mongrel from Peckham, the day the world ends is his: finally a chance to prove to his owner just how loyal he can be. Reg, an agoraphobic writer with an obsession for nineties football, plans to wait out the impending doom in his second floor flat, hiding himself away from the riots outside. But when an abandoned orphan shows up in the stairwell of their building, Reg and Lineker must brave the outside in order to save not only the child, but themselves…
I absolutely loved this one, despite the extreme language. Walker’s first person viewpoint of boisterous Lineker is marvellous and the story is gripping, shocking and tender.

 

The Bridges of Madison County by Robert James Waller
The story of Robert Kincaid, the photographer and free spirit searching for the covered bridges of Madison County, and Francesca Johnson, the farm wife waiting for the fulfillment of a girlhood dream, THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY gives voice to the longings of men and women everywhere-and shows us what it is to love and be loved so intensely that life is never the same again.
It is beautifully written and the love affair is depicted with tenderness and passion. However, I wanted to shake Francesca till her teeth rattled.

 

Spellslinger – Book 1 of the Spellslinger series by Sebastein de Castell
There are three things that earn you a man’s name among the Jan’Tep. The first is to demonstrate the strength to defend your family. The second is to prove you can perform the high magic that defines our people. The third is surviving your fourteenth year. I was a few weeks shy of my birthday when I learned that I wouldn’t be doing any of those things.
Magic is a con game. Kellen is moments away from facing his first mage’s duel and the start of four trials that will make him a spellcaster. There’s just one problem: his magic is gone. As his sixteenth birthday approaches, Kellen falls back on his cunning in a bid to avoid total disgrace. But when a daring stranger arrives in town, she challenges Kellen to take a different path.
This YA coming-of-age adventure is great fun and I loved Kellen’s character and the surprises that kept coming all the way through the story. And the squirrel cat is delightfully snarky, too.

 

Taste of Marrow – Book 2 of The River of Teeth novella series by Sarah Gailey
A few months ago, Winslow Houndstooth put together the damnedest crew of outlaws, assassins, cons, and saboteurs on either side of the Harriet for a history-changing caper. Together they conspired to blow the damn that choked the Mississippi and funnel the hordes of feral hippos contained within downriver, to finally give America back its greatest waterway. Songs are sung of their exploits, many with a haunting refrain: “And not a soul escaped alive.”
In the aftermath of the Harriet catastrophe, that crew has scattered to the winds. Some hunt the missing lovers they refuse to believe have died. Others band together to protect a precious infant and a peaceful future. All of them struggle with who they’ve become after a long life of theft, murder, deception, and general disinterest in the strictures of the law.
This novella deals with the aftermath of the previous book – and my firm advice would be that if you haven’t read River of Teeth then go and search for that book first. There is more mayhem and chaos as feral hippos continue to infest the river system, causing carnage wherever they go…

My posts last week:

Sunday Post – 3rd September

Review of The Voyage of the Basilisk – Book 3 of The Memoirs of Lady Trent series by Marie Brennan

Teaser Tuesday featuring Spellslinger – Book 1 of the Spellslinger series by Sebastien de Castell

*NEW RELEASE SPECIAL* Review of The Uploaded by Ferrett Steinmetz

*NEW RELEASE SPECIAL* Review of Just Off the Path by Weston Sullivan

Friday Face-off – Everybody’s got haters but your city’s always behind you… featuring Zoo City by Lauren Beukes

*NEW RELEASE SPECIAL* Review of Sea of Rust by C. Robert Cargill

Interesting/outstanding blogs and articles that have caught my attention during the last week and a bit, in no particular order:

Waterford Walls – the Sea – some more https://inesemjphotography.com/2017/09/08/waterford-walls-2017-some-more/ I make no apologies for including another post from with wonderful photographer

Monday Funnies – Piracy You’ll Enjoy Reading About… https://blogging807.wordpress.com/2017/09/08/monday-funnies-4/ Have to confess – it was the cartoon about pilates that sold it for me. Now I’ve restarted my classes, I was howling with laughter at this one.

Running Out of Space Blog Tour – http://www.lolasblogtours.net/blog-tour-running-out-of-space-by-s-j-higbee/ To be honest, I’ve included this just because it still feels very unreal and seeing my book cover online is thrilling. And terrifying…

Writer’s Music: Daniel Pemberton https://jeanleesworld.com/2017/09/07/writers-music-daniel-pemberton/ This is a real treat – Jean writes about how she uses music when writing and then provides some wonderful tracks. This album is certainly one I’m going to be acquiring.

Poetry: The Misunderstood Merman http://blog.kristenburns.com/the-misunderstood-merman/?utm_campaign=shareaholic&utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=socialnetwork
I love this one – funny and poignant…

Thank you very much for taking the time and trouble to visit, like and comment on my site and may you have a great week.

2016 Discovery Challenge – November Roundup

After reading Joanne Hall’s thought-provoking post, I decided to read and review at least two women authors unknown to me each month. During November, I read two Discovery Challenge books, which takes my yearly total so far to thirty four books I’ve completed written by women authors I haven’t previously encountered.

Synners by Pat Cadigan

In Synners, the line between humanity and technology is hopelessly slim. The human mind and the external landscape have fused to the point where any encounter with ‘reality’ is incidental. Now you can change yourself to suit the machines – and all it will cost you is your freedom. And your humanity.

This cyberpunk winner of the Arthur C. Clarke Award takes a while to get going as the group of disparate characters are established amongst a tech-heavy world in a near-future where everyone is increasingly reliant on their technology. Given that this was written and published back in 1992, before many of our current technological gismos were in current use, Cadigan’s world is eerily prescient. I felt very at home with much of her near-future predictions, which is a tad worrying when considering how it all ends.

 

Renting Silence – Book 3 of the Roaring Twenties Mysteries by Mary Miley
Can 1920 s script girl Jessie do Mary Pickford s bidding and uncover a real killer? When Jessie is asked by her idol, the famous actress Mary Pickford, if she can do some private investigating for her, Jessie reluctantly accepts. A girl was found stabbed in her bedroom with another woman lying unconscious on the floor next to her, a bloody knife in her hand. With no police investigation into the murder, it’s up to Jessie to hone her amateur detective skills and prove the girl’s innocence before she hangs for murder.

While I was aware that I’d once more crashed midway into a series, this isn’t a major deal as Miley is far too adept for keep her readers floundering. Instead I quickly bonded with Jessie, a sparky character with plenty of spirit who is embracing the opportunities Hollywood has presented for her. It is also the perfect setting for all sorts of mayhem and murder.

As with all the best historical whodunits, Miley uses the adventure to present us with a slice of Jessie’s life. While I cared about seeing the mystery solved, I was every bit as involved with Jessie’s ongoing concerns, such as her wardrobe choices, her problematic romance and interest in the Hollywood gossip. Miley vividly recreates the 1920s world for us, from the clothes and the Hollywood glamour and the thrill of drinking forbidden alcoholic drinks.

 

Tackling my TBR
In a bid to try and reduce the teetering pile by my bed, I’ve decided to report back on how I’m doing in the hope that it will nudge me to read more of them. Last month, I’m pleased to say, I managed to read four books languishing on my To Be Read pile:

Penric’s Mission – a Penric and Desdemona novella by Lois McMaster Bujold
Learned Penric, a sorcerer and divine of the Bastard’s Order, travels across the sea to sunlit Cedonia on his first covert diplomatic mission, to attempt to secure the services of a disaffected Cedonian general for the Duke of Adria. However, nothing is as it seems and Penric is forced to use his own wits and resources. As well as those of the demon that lives alongside him in his body…
Firstly, avoid reading the blurb – it gives away far too much of the story and given this is a novella, there simply isn’t time for the narrative arc to recover from such a reveal. I’ve included a modified version that doesn’t contain any spoilers.

Fairly rapidly, Penric’s mission is in trouble and from then on, he is forced to think on his feet. I really like the way Bujold sets this up as one kind of story – and then suddenly changes everything around. I had intended to begin this book this morning and break off to complete it later tonight – except that once I started it, I couldn’t put it down until I’d reached the end. Once more, Penric’s wry humour, his self-effacing manner and the real danger he and his companions find themselves in hooked me in and wouldn’t let go.

 

Bloodrush – Book 1 of The Scarlet Star trilogy by Ben Galley
“Magick ain’t pretty, it ain’t stars and sparkles. Magick is dirty. It’s rough. Raw. It’s blood and guts and vomit. You hear me?”
When Prime Lord Hark is found in a pool of his own blood on the steps of his halls, Tonmerion Hark finds his world not only turned upside down, but inside out. His father’s last will and testament forces him west across the Iron Ocean, to the very brink of the Endless Land and all civilisation. They call it Wyoming.
This is a story of murder and family.
In the dusty frontier town of Fell Falls, there is no silverware, no servants, no plush velvet nor towering spires. Only dust, danger, and the railway. Tonmerion has only one friend to help him escape the torturous heat and unravel his father’s murder. A faerie named Rhin. A twelve-inch tall outcast of his own kind.
This is a story of blood and magick.
But there are darker things at work in Fell Falls, and not just the railwraiths or the savages. Secrets lurk in Tonmerion’s bloodline. Secrets that will redefine this young Hark.
This is a story of the edge of the world.

I immediately liked the premise of a fantasy set in the Wild West as the railroad is being built and very much hoped the book would live up to the punchy blurb. It does. Merion is a really appealing protagonist – a suddenly orphaned thirteen-year-old, who is uprooted from all he knows and shipped out to the wilds of the frontier to live with an aunt he’s never met.

 

Synners by Pat Cadigan
See above – this offering also had languished on my TBR pile FAR too long…

 

The Banished Craft – Book 1 of The Shkode trilogy by E.D.E. Bell
Struggling to solve the mystery of her parents’ murder, Cor comes across a mystery much deeper—a secret society who predicted that someday their world would be devastated. That time is now. In a world where women are not allowed to read, live alone, or pursue knowledge Cor presses forward, discovering a new magic and the power to wield it. A world away, Atesh works in the Imperial Labs, devoting his study to the turmoil destroying his home and endangering dragonkind. Instead he discovers a long-hidden truth. Humans are real.

One of the reasons why I wanted to return to this world is its richness and sheer quirky difference. I’m used to worlds being endangered by maniacal gods/powerful mages/artefacts – I can’t recall another world risking extinction because the child of a powerful being accidentally touched it… However, any impulse to burst out laughing is steadily eroded as we become engrossed in the lives of our protagonists on the sundered worlds. Bell handles the epic nature of her narrative really effectively, as both societies – stressed by the environmental upheaval – start to fall apart.

So that’s where I am so far on Tackling my TBR challenge. Once again, November was a far better reading month than I’d expected and my Discovery Challenge target, which was twelve books now looks stupidly unambitious, but then I’d expected to be doing a great deal more writing this year. How are you getting on with your reading challenges now the year is rapidly drawing to a close?

Review of Indie KINDLE Ebook Bloodrush – Book 1 of The Scarlet Star trilogy by Ben Galley

Ben came to talk to West Sussex Writers’ last month about the ins and outs of self-publishing and how in just six years he has managed to establish himself as a successful indie author with a string of well regarded books. It was one of the best, most informative talks we’ve ever had. I’d downloaded one of his books a while ago and decided it was high time to read it.

“Magick ain’t pretty, it ain’t stars and sparkles. Magick is dirty. It’s rough. Raw. It’s blood and guts and vomit. You hear me?”
When Prime Lord Hark is found in a pool of his own blood on the steps of his halls, Tonmerion Hark finds his world not only turned upside down, but inside out. His father’s last will and testament forces him west across the Iron Ocean, to the very brink of the Endless Land and all civilisation. They call it Wyoming.
This is a story of murder and family.
In the dusty frontier town of Fell Falls, there is no silverware, no servants, no plush velvet nor towering spires. Only dust, danger, and the railway. Tonmerion has only one friend to help him escape the torturous heat and unravel his father’s murder. A faerie named Rhin. A twelve-inch tall outcast of his own kind.
This is a story of blood and magick.
But there are darker things at work in Fell Falls, and not just the railwraiths or the savages. Secrets lurk in Tonmerion’s bloodline. Secrets that will redefine this young Hark.
This is a story of the edge of the world.

I immediately liked the premise of a fantasy set in the Wild West as the railroad is being built and very much hoped the book would live up to the punchy blurb. It does. Merion is a really appealing protagonist – a suddenly orphaned thirteen-year-old, who is uprooted from all he knows and shipped out to the wilds of the frontier to live with an aunt he’s never met. Galley manages to establish him as sympathetic and beleaguered without turning him into a passive victim – a tricky balancing act to pull off successfully. I also loved Rin – he’s probably my favourite character in the story – a fae rebel on the run who befriends the isolated boy struggling to live up to his father’s iron-bound expectations. However, these two protagonists both make disastrous mistakes and are often selfish and obstinate, which I enjoyed, as I find it easier to bond with main characters when they are flawed.

The story is fast-paced with plenty of action and the scene setting is wonderful, so close our Victorian era but with some significant differences. The blood magic works extremely well – to the extent that at the back of the book there is a glossary explaining the rules and attributes that drinking the blood of various animals will provide the rusher. This is a rigorous magic system where users pay a price and the costs of getting it wrong can be fatal.

The major surprise at the end of the book had my jaw dropping – looking back I should have guessed it, but I didn’t and I am definitely going to be getting hold of the next book in this series. I want to know what happens next to our intrepid duo. If you enjoy action-packed fantasy with a strong setting, good magic system and engaging characters, then go looking for this one. Highly recommended.
9/10