The Bone Witch - Rin Chupeco

The Bone Witch - Rin Chupeco
Source: NetGalley (in exchange for an honest review)
Original Review: March 2, 2017
Rating: ★★☆☆☆

The Magic
Chupeco obviously has skill in bringing setting and environment to life in the mind. Her descriptions are fluid, and in many cases seem natural (with one caveat, noted later). Her use of simile and metaphor, if overdone, at least make sense. And her decision to use taste as the sense used to describe how using magic felt was not only out of the box, but also skillfully done. I definitely applaud her descriptive skills.

The idea of a Heartsglass is definitely unique. I don't know that I've encountered anything like it (though I do have to admit I have a LOT of fantasy previously released that's in my TBR pile, so anything is possible!).

The Madness
So... I have one major, major gripe with this book. It's obviously a part of the fantasy genre. One big note that's made constantly to authors is this - write what you know, and read the genre you plan to write in. Get familiar with it. Be familiar with what you are writing.

But don't make it familiar. At too many points in this book, I was distracted from the story by a scene, an organization, a moment being familiar because of another book. Another fantasy book. In The Bone Witch, I saw manifestations of The Kingkiller Chronicles, the Wheel of Time, Kushiel's Legacy, Memoirs of a Geisha (which I figured even before Chupeco pointed out on Goodread's that the women were Geisha-esque. Tsk.), and even World of Warcraft!

*sighs* If I see one more story of magic where the first use is accompanied by life-threatening illness, I just might explode.

And, perhaps this is just the fact that Chupeco fell victim to the fact that her heroine is both narrator and heroine, but there was far too much description in this book, and the action that did exist also fell victim to the "show, don't tell" folly. For as much as I love the way she describes things, it's hard to continue to appreciate something that is so overdone.

The Musings
All in all, my opinion of this book seems to fall in line with a lot of others I've seen. I want to love this book. I love the premise. But there is absolutely no real tension to speak of. The heroine is indestructible. So is her sidekick. The switching back and forth between events is distracting, especially since we're still seeing things from only one point of view.

Beyond that, I really don't have anything to say about this book. I was excited to read it, but it let me down. Perfectly ordinary. I almost put it down, but I kept hoping, since it wasn't a total disaster, that something would happen to redeem it's blandness. But while it wasn't a total disaster, it also didn't really stand out as anything special.

The Obelisk Gate - N. K. Jemisin [The Broken Earth]

The Obelisk Gate - N. K. Jemisin [The Broken Earth]
Source: Library
Original Review: February 17, 2017
Rating: ★★★★★

The Magic
The moment everything clicked for me. The sudden realization that the real story wasn't at all about Essun/Nassun, the Stone Eaters, the Orogene, the Guardians... the real story, here, is about the Earth. Yes, it's approached so much as mythology, or a theology, depending on who's perspective is speaking, but that's what this whole story is about. The reason I couldn't connect with the characters being displayed is because those stories aren't important in the grand scheme of things.

Brilliant.

And if I had to point out one thing that demonstrated the utter skill Jemisin possesses as a writer, it would be in the use of second person POV. Even without the revelations made in this part of the story, it never really registered as being awkward or strange at all. It seemed natural, and a great way to tie everything together. Even matters left hanging in the first book were finally brought to light here, and if it had been any other POV other than second person, I don't know that it would have worked out as well as it did.

I am starting to develop more of an interest in some of the characters, though maybe not the ones that might seem the most likely. Schaffa, for one. I'm disappointed to see so many reviews that don't even mention how much more insight we get into his character - and that of the other Guardians - in The Obelisk Gate. Into them, and into the Stone Eaters.

The most magical thing about The Obelisk Gate, however, is the fact that, when I sit down and really think about it, and the information I have so far... I can't tell which side is the one I'm supposed to be rooting for. I can't even tell which side I want to be rooting for, because... well, there's death, destruction, and a self-perpetuating exclusionary mentality that pervades every side, which seems to be the very thing everyone is railing against. Which right, is right?

The Madness
I'm still catching vibes of the Aes Sedai from Robert Jordan's WoT series. The way the Orogene's can link, the way the Obelisks can work with Orogenes, the "potential" in Guardians vs. the manifestation in Orogenes.

And while I adore getting so much more information on the Guardians and the Stone Eaters, it unfortunately makes certain things about this book so much more confusing. Then again, the way The Obelisk Gate wrapped up confusions from The Fifth Season, it could just be a way to tie this book into the next more smoothly.

The Musings

The Obelisk Gate has completely turned my gripe about the lack of characterization on it's head. Jemisin characterized where it counted - where it really mattered - to the overall scope of the story she's writing. The Obelisk Gate has cemented her place as one of my favorite authors, for her brilliant use of perspective, characterization, world building and yarn spinning. I was so engrossed in this story it took me a mere few hours to read, with the conclusion that I would willingly go back and listen to it, despite my aversion to audiobooks.

I knew I would give this book five stars before I was even half of the way through it.

The Fifth Season - N. K. Jemisin [The Broken Earth]

The Fifth Season - N. K. Jemisin [The Broken Earth]

Source: Audible

Original Review: February 16, 2017

Rating: ★★★★☆

The Musings

I have some key issues with certain elements of the book. I find the characters flat, two-dimensional, and lacking any kind of real depth or scope. The kinds of things I really need to be able to get engrossed in a book. I need it all – world building, characterization, clean writing and a clear purpose. Jemisin did a fantastic job with the world – I haven’t ever read anything like this before. The premise is unique and grabbing, and she definitely has skill with the written word. However, for all her skill, there is something utterly lacking when it comes to her characters.

Ultimately, though, I would read it again. And I’m currently hunting down the next book in the series, hopefully at a local library, so that I can keep reading.

The Magic

I take such a big issue with the lack of characterization in The Fifth Season because there are moments where you can tell that Jemisin does understand her characters. Nesun is a prime example, as she was done so well that, while listening, I could almost forget I was me, and found myself listening through her ears, seeing through her eyes, and experiencing what she was going through as her. For me, she is what makes this book special. Not Cyanite, or Hoa, or the child that comprises the third perspective along with Cyanite and Nesun (I’ve forgotten her name already, in favor of all the others).

***SPOILER***

In fact, the whole book could be viewed as nothing but character development for Nesun – but then that would take away from how large of a roll the fact that the world is ending plays in the whole story as well.

***ENDSPOILER***

And the world. The World. “This is the way the world ends… For the last time.”

Honestly? That’s what got me. That’s what got me interested in the book. That is what kept me going when the characters were disappointing and the momentum stalled. The fact that the world was going to end. That meant that, somewhere, at some point, something was going to have to happen of more significance than ***SPOILER*** Nesun stifling a shake when nobody was supposed to know who she was. ***ENDSPOILER***

There’s not a lot of description given for the world. Nothing that fed my imagination enough to be able to see it in my minds eye, but the world being integral the story wasn’t about it’s terrain or geography or any of that. It was about the battle between the earth and its inhabitants, what started it, what caused it, how it was going to end – if it was going to end. The stone lore. I want more stone lore!

The Madness

There’s really quite a few elements that don’t match up. On several instances there were statements made or data given, that within a few paragraphs was re-stated, but completely different information. (One instance I believe was in reference to the number of miles Alabaster and Cyanite had travelled. Somehow it doubled – or more – depending on who was speaking). It’s a little jarring when being listened to, though I don’t know how distracting it would be had I been reading it in text instead of listening through audio.

The relationship between the Guardians and the Orogene’s almost immediately made me recall the damane and marath’damane from the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. The interaction, the relationship, and the intent and purpose of the two, the origination… there are very many parallels between the two.

One of my biggest issues is this – I’ve read books where people were put into horrendous situations – and I felt appropriately horrified. I mean, there have been scenes I simply have not been able to read because I felt so much empathy for the characters involved I couldn’t bear it (Kushiel’s Avatar being a prime example). I know, at certain points in this book, I should have felt, at the very least, disgust. Or something, perhaps, beyond intrigue. Yet, there wasn’t anything I could create a strong enough connection to in order to feel emotional about. This, I can’t blame entirely on being an audiobook as I have had appropriate responses to scenes in audio as well as in text. This book just simply didn’t reach me as well as others have.

Troubled Waters - Sharon Shin [Elemental Blessings]

Troubled Waters - Sharon Shin [Elemental Blessings]
Source: Library
Original Review: February 6, 2016
Rating: ★★★★★

Thanks to one of the myriad of reading challenges I'm participating in, I grabbed a copy of this from the library as well. And it had me hooked from within the first few pages. The societal customs and beliefs underscoring them have the power to make me think. For a novel to do that so early on is fairly impressive from my standpoint - even if those elements have nothing to do with the overall story arc.

Lucky for me, they did.

For the story itself, there was obviously quite a bit of thought put into how to capture the reader. When we meet Zoe, she is watching her father burn on a funeral pyre. That particular event foreshadows more than anyone could guess, though it wreaks havoc on how Zoe approaches what's coming. She is numb with grief - and behaves as such, surprising her own self in her actions and decisions. Grief makes people do strange things.

That may be why the first "twist" quickly fades from the mind and only comes back with time and some thinking. It occurs mere days after Zoe's father's funeral, while she is still wrapped in the shroud of grief - and we are wrapped in it with her to such an extent it barely registers as passing strange. The next one, which comes when she is well out of that haze, is much more significant, and has a much broader impact.

The main counter to our heroine - Darien - is likeable enough from my perspective. He doesn't let Zoe run him over, for all her personality is water based, she is very passionate. He is, if not stable, then at least steady. He also does not condemn her for not easily going along with his plan for her in her grief, and in fact seems pleased to have her fully present in the role she has to play. Even if she does not trust him - or like him much.

Shinn's approach to her characters is definitely more idealistic than realistic, I would have to say. While Zoe, Darien, and other's behavior and deeds aren't particularly exceptional, they are what I could call "appropriate" - Zoe mourned for an appropriate amount of time and in an appropriate manner. Darien's approach after finding her was appropriate. Zoe's reactions to discovering the extent of her fate was acceptable - and her response to her dead father's trespasses was most certainly ideal. Everything extremely calculated and every word written with specific intent.

It's that, and something else I can't quite identify, that helps the story move as one of the most organic ones I have ever read. There really isn't a while lot of drama - at least, nothing major. There are feuds between people, families, enemies and friends, but the flow of interaction, of cause and effect, makes it easy to be absorbed into the story - to find my own place in it as an observer.

Troubled Waters is very much like people watching. Watching the tension build between Zoe & Darien has me held rapt, my pulse fluttering as if I was Zoe - and wondering at her placid response - before realizing it is simply the way she was written to play it. Which makes sense. It's the way I would - and have - played it. It's a pleasure to, again, see something grow so naturally in a story that it seems like an integrated part of it instead of some random addition. There's no "intense, sudden connection" or "mysterious draw" between them - just a natural evolution from dislike to distrust, from distrust to social dependence, and from dependence to affection to love.

When I reached the final scenes, I found myself holding my breath as often as not, as secrets were unraveled and their potentially disastrous consequences revealed. Though I don't know yet if we've seen the full extent of Zoe's power just yet, we certainly see a few impressive displays - both as acts of heroism (calmly controlled) and wildly reactive. We see the results - both good and bad - of Zoe being raised away from her inheritance.

Ultimately, Zoe's preferred behavior is explained by her culture. Every person, from my understanding, "chooses" an elemental association. Certain blessings and behaviors are expected - and while Zoe is often referred to as being all water, she has a heart of fire, inherited from her father's family. Without having that to take into consideration, Zoe would likely come across as too perfect, too contrived. As I mentioned, the characters are all set up to be idealistic representatives of human nature, where any deviation is clearly explained with some sort of dire circumstance.

It is hard or me to find fault with this book, as it really was an enjoyable, well-paced read. I simply did not want to put it down, was sad when it was finished, and looking forward to the next!

The Burning Sky - Sherry Thomas [The Elemental Trilogy]

The Burning Sky - Sherry Thomas [The Elemental Trilogy]
Source: Kindle
Original Review: January 22, 2016
Rating: ★★★★☆

Atlantis has returned.
Or perhaps they never left. They rule under a being called Bane, and hunt for Mages of exceptional power.

Iolanthe is just such a Mage, which she discovers in the most unfortunate of ways, attracting the attention of not only Atlantis, but of the local ruling prince - who attempts to come to her rescue when he sees an omen of his fate yet to come.

Upon escaping the initial reach of Atlantis, Iolanthe finds herself unceremoniously dumped in London - a non-mage territory, at the not-so tender mercy of an exiled Mage. Though the Prince's earlier attempts to rescue Iolanthe were unsuccessful, he this time manages to free her from the grip of the insane exile, and entrench her firmly into the ranks of Eaton seniors via way of a pre-fabricated story and much magic and manipulation.

The story doesn't progress quite as quickly from there, which I am thankful for as it was easier to enjoy the latter 2/3 of the book much more than the first part. Thomas does not seem to be a very "descriptive" writer, in terms that we don't get very much input on how to visualize these characters, but there is certainly no shortage of personality to aid our imaginations!

Some of the inconsistencies can be jarring.

It is made very clear that Iolanthe and Tidus exist in the 1800's. However, when we read entries supposedly made by Tidus' mother in a journal she had kept in Tidus' early years, they were only dated in the 1100's. At one point, when there is some portal-hopping going on, it almost seems to skip a step from Iolanthe's side to get to where Tidus is.

I do have a tendency to hold on to that kind of detail where others might not, so to others it may not be as big of a deal as it is to me. However, it did detract for me from a read that was otherwise by far more consistent than many others I have read.

Usually don't give YA fiction of any variety such a high rating.

In almost all cases - such as this one - I actually forget that the characters are so young. Their depth and strength and overall development seems far above that of your typical teenager/young adult would have. Granted, the circumstances are far different from what an ordinary YA would experience, but I struggle to think that young adults of this day and age would conduct themselves so well were they faced with the same conflicts Thomas' characters did.

On top of that, being a person interested in spiritual ideas, Thomas introduced some very interesting points for me to ponder. I would have loved to see some expansion (particularly on the "what has been seen should not be changed", as opposed to the pervading belief of fate/destiny that it cannot be changed), but I understand - 'twas not the point of the book!

But not without it's flaws...

And at that, there's really only two that made me cringe. Certain "devices" should be left to the screen - and even then, they have passed the point of being cliche and overdone. Iolanthe also seems to be suspiciously good at everything - she essentially has no faults - which makes the whole charade of her being at Eaton rather boring until nearing the end of the book. Yet even then, her wit and skill save the day - again, and again, and again. (The Prince must be getting a complex by now...)

The only other complaint that I could have, if you could consider it a complaint, is that by only 40% of the way through the book, I felt as if I should already be nearing the end for how quickly the story progressed. It took quite some time after the first arc of the story completed to feel engaged again.

Would I recommend this book?

Despite not giving it a full five star rating (for the issues mentioned above), the answer would be a resounding yes. There is romantic - not sexual - tension between Tidus and Iolanthe, which is both complicated and made amusing by the fact she is attending an all-boys school under false pretenses. There is drama, though quickly snuffed by Iolanthe's brilliance. But overall, there is a unique alternate-history fantasy where Mages are openly accepted and used by the ruling government, until they outlive their purpose. There are characters with more than enough personality to keep you interested, and a heroine who you will find yourself cheering for before you even notice it (because let's admit it - she starts out as kind of a snit...)

Daughter of Smoke & Bone - Laini Taylor [Daughter of Smoke and Bone]

Daughter of Smoke & Bone - Laini Taylor [Daughter of Smoke and Bone]
Source: Kindle
Originally Reviewed on Goodreads: March 26, 2014
Rating: ★★★★☆

Well, now.

I like to read. A lot. Typically when I read a book by a new author, if I find I enjoy it, I'll set it aside and come back to it later, read it again, and think about whether or not I'll pursue additional works by the same author.

That is NOT the case here. Laini Taylor has captured my imagination with Daughter of Smoke and Bone. The end is merely alluded to in the title, not to be understood until you manage to make it all the way through to the end. And what an amazing end it was.

I had my doubts early on. Karou talking about her drawings of Brimstone and the others made me think of something more along the lines of comic book characters. When the narrative went into conversations she had with these creatures, I raised my eyebrow and wondered what I had gotten myself into. And, wishes? Simple, silly wishes based off of a bead?

Then we actually get to MEET Brimstone, and the entire dynamic changes. We hear more about the other kinds of wishes, and his job of collecting teeth, we see the relationship that Karou has with the chimaera inhabiting the shop. We start getting glimpses hear and there into Karou, her life, and her "job". The split life of someone who works for creatures who don't dare show their faces outside the shop on one side, and who attends an arts school who has friends and relationships on the other side.

Of the chimaera who are merely shopkeepers and caregivers in need of teeth to carry out some unknown purpose on one side, and highly valuable members of an entire race of beings on the other side.

The intricacies of these relationships are handled very well. I was pleased with the continuity, the flow of the story and of the writing. It moved at a very good pace to keep me engaged without being overwhelmed or bored.

Then the angel appeared. It was as if from that point on, the entire story became one gigantic whirlwind of "WTF?!" - which was appropriate considering, had this all been real, Karou's life probably would be about there as well.

The ending revelation wasn't as big of a surprise as I'd hoped, and it was there that I started feeling things got a little too drawn out - a little too... cookie-cutter. From that point on until the end, everything pretty much went as expected, which was a sad turn from earlier.

No matter how you look at it, though, Taylor spins a good story. My imagination was thoroughly engaged, visualizing these characters with all these different features, the remarkable dress of Karou's, the whole idea of... well, I won't spoil that for you. It's one of the biggest curiosities of Karou's throughout the book, and now I can certainly understand why. I thought it was pretty brilliant, myself.

If you're looking for the next great thing in fantasy set in modern times, this is a book you definitely need to add to your collection.