The Killing Moon by N.K. Jemisin

No, it's not a romance novel.  Well, I don't think there is a romance, there is some action but it's off the page so I don't suppose it counts either.

This is my first fantasy novel by N.K. Jemisin and besides really liking the book I also very much enjoyed the author's interview with herself at the end of the book. :)

The city-state of Gujaareh is a place where the peace is kept, no matter what.  What would you give up for security and certainty.  What if euthanasia were so accepted it was asked for almost lightly? What happens when a state has too much power?

I know, I know, no earth shatteringly new philosophical questions here but the characters are richly drawn, the social mores are unusual and interesting and the plot unfolds with enough tension to keep you reading.  In addition there is enough ambiguity to the "answers" to the social questions that the author doesn't hit you over the head with her opinions on the above questions.

I really enjoyed the book and am looking forward to reading the second book in the series.

Egyptian Inspired Fantasy 2012: 4.5 out of 5 humming jungissa.

Unchained by Caris Roane

I am so shallow.  Sucked in not once, but twice by a delicious cover and I have to admit, a cool author name.  I didn't realize before that I ever even pay attention to author names but the interesting font and strange emphasis on the "i" in Caris's first name definitely caught my attention.  (Yes I am boring you with talk of font, cause I'm not gonna talk about what attracted my attention about the half naked man on the cover. My mother raised me better than that, people.)

So Shayna is an incredibly beautiful blond strangely lightly blue eyed 24 year old anthropology grad student who looks 18, which is really annoying to her.  The cover tells you pretty much all you need to know about the strangely powerful vampire hero.

Again, just about any cheesy plot/character set up can still suck me in if it's well written. That is unfortunately not the case here.  I felt like the phrase "stating the obvious" went through my head a lot. And since I am not an English major, and you shouldn't just take my word for good/bad writing, let me give you one plot moment that pretty much brought all my frustration to a head.

Vampires live in caverns underground and conveniently can travel through rock and earth to get there, explaining why they have avoided detection by humans for so many years.  Maurius and Shayna travel to a sealed ice cavern deep under Sweden to find a part of an "extinction weapon" before his evil father can find it, but darn, evil Daniel is already there.  After they defeat Daniel's twenty minions and Daniel runs away, Maurius explains he needs to clean up before they can leave. 'Cause you know, they want to remain unknown to humans.  He pulls out his iphone, calls his friend (who he can also talk to telepathically from any distance) and asks him to send in a clean-up crew. His iphone! Yup, they have a whole group of vampires who volunteer for hazmat duty 'cause even if they're at war, they wanna keep it on the low down.

Oh my aching head.

Fantasy Romance 2014: 1 out of 5 magical new powers I never knew I had.  

M.K. Hobson "The Native Star"

If I'm anything, I'm a trendsetter. I just found this amazing book that you all should read. Okay, I went over to the Book Smugglers again and searched their top rated reads. But in case you haven't done the same, I'm gonna tell you what I thought anyway.

The Native Star is probably best described as a steam punk (historical/magical) fantasy novel with just a hint of romance. Emily lives in the Sierras of California in 1876 in an alternate US where warlocks are ascending the power structures and scientists are having a hard time proving themselves useful with magic around to upstage them. Emily gets herself into a bit of a fix when a magic rock embeds itself into her palm. Luckily there is a persnickety warlock around to help her gallivant all over the country trying to find someone who might not kill her to get the rock for themselves.

It bills itself as a romance but really it's a fantasy quest novel, and a good one. I was expecting more romance so was slightly disappointed but given the right expectations, fans of fantasy and especially those looking for steam punk themes will be very pleased with this one.

Fantasy Steam Punk 2010: 4.5 of 5 flying cockatrices.

Zoe Archer "Rebel"

I really needed to get that ham off the top of my page. And I finished my semester finally on Tuesday! What a relief. I'll let you know when I get my self dug out from underneath the laundry I haven't done in a month.

Since it's that holiday buying time of year I was in Borders with a coupon and well, I did get one or two presents but I couldn't resist celebrating finishing my finals with a new thick book. I couldn't find the first one in the series so I picked up Rebel by Zoe Archer, book three in the Blades of the Rose series. It falls into the romance/fantasy/vaguely steampunky type genres. Although for fantasy fans, it's pretty heavy on romance. There is a quest, and there is action but the action is at a bit of a distance for the most part and the "how do we outsmart them" parts aren't particularly smart. The book really has to stand on the romance aspect.

So, I liked the characters, I liked their relationship and how they arch through their issues. The sex is a bit on the raunchy side, which is fine with me, but in the end, the quest requires this book to go about 80 pages longer than it should have. For the most part the action is good, not great, but good enough to support the character focus. The characters are fun and the tension is good. Just a bit too long.

I will definitely pick up another book in this series, I liked the world she created and the writing was good.

Romance/Fantasy/Paranormal 2010: 4 out of 5 experienced mountain women.

Suzanne Collins "Mockingjay"

I'm going to try hard not to give away anything about Mockingjay but I'm assuming you've read the first two books so be forewarned (spoiler alert).

In case you haven't read The Hunger Games and Catching Fire, what are you waiting for?! It's a dystopian story about a young girl whose sent to represent her district in the annual Hunger Games where 24 teenagers battle to the death in the arena.

When I read The Hunger Games I was struck by the skill with which the book handled so many different ambiguities. Does she "love" Peeta or Gale, what does "love" mean as it applies to each of them? Where are the moral lines between survival and retaining your humanity? While we condemn the Capitol viewers for their interest in the Hunger Games, isn't the pace and violence and uncertainty one of the things that keeps the reader reading this book? Not only is the book brilliant but it's riveting and you can't help but fall in love with the characters making it readable on many different levels.

Catching Fire was terrific but I think most noteworthy for being, really, a very decent middle book. That's not easy to do either.

Mockingjay completely lives up to this entire series. The brilliance of the first book lies in what it didn't resolve. I worried that in a third book, where you certainly expect things to be resolved, there was no way to not be disappointed. Ms. Collins, I'm impressed. The book effectively and logically ties up a lot of issues, but dives even deeper into war and how one retains one's humanity under impossible circumstances. Wow.

And no. Not gonna tell you which boy. But I will say, both live and so in the end, she does have to choose. :)

Young Adult dystopian novel 2010: 18 of 5 decapitating lizard mutts.

Ilona Andrews "Magic Bites"

The first book in the Kate Daniels series, this book is a nice ride. The pacing of the plot is pretty much perfect, just enough action balanced with sleuthing and clues and a little emotional exploration thrown in for good measure. I fall in love with most of Patricia Briggs strong heroines, but Kate I didn't love, I more liked her a lot. Mostly because she's a bit more, well, standoffish. But with a series of books ahead of us, I'm okay with figuring her out over the longer haul.

Just a note: true to Urban Fiction/Fantasy the hero/heroine arch isn't all tied up in a frilly bow at the end. As a matter of fact there isn't much sex in the book at all.

Fantasy Paranormal Magic novel 2007: 4 out of 5 bottles of Boone's Farm Sangria.

Robin McKinley "Sunshine"

Did I say to myself while reading this book, "It's just a classic fantasy quest tale: and really, the angst sections go on a bit too long and her worries about demon blood seem silly." Yes, my logical mind registered these judgments.

And did I think, the vampire thing is sooooo overdone at this point, I'm surprised Robin McKinley would go there (not knowing that this was written in 2003 but still...). Yes, I thought that. So why did this book seem to squirm back toward my hand every time I put it down, like one of Rae's charms in her glove compartment. Why did I carry it with me everywhere just in case I had an extra second? Why did I finish it and sit staring at the cover for ten minutes just luxuriating. Then when I felt the cover was inadequate to the beauty of the book (and this cover is awesome) why did I have to go back over all of their conversations, just to see what I had missed, forgotten, not entirely understood?

Because that's how Robin McKinley gets me every time. Were there problems, yes. But in this book she takes the simple fantasy quest framework and adds something very very important. First she walks us through what it might cost someone to accept their 'special' status as the world saver. Then she lingers after the successful destruction of evil to recognize what it might have cost the warriors. What does it cost someone to even face and recognize that kind of evil, what does it cost someone to learn that they are capable of destroying that evil, not because they are so above it, but because they have some affinity for it. I can leap from this fantasy to Darfur much too easily. That is the mark of an exceptional author.

Fantasy Vampire Novel 2003: 5 out of 5 black silk shirts.

Lois McMaster Bujold "The Sharing Knife"

Okay, I'll admit I have been sneaking in a bit of reading around all my school work. Shhh! Don't tell my husband. For the record, I have never done pleasure reading while he has had the kids by himself to give me time to study, I swear.

Okay, guilty admissions out of the way, I'll try to recap what I've made it through recently (from memory). Tess Dare's Goddess of the Hunt was very enjoyable and who can dislike a book with such a good title, really. I also picked up a Lois McMaster Bujold's book called Beguilement: The Sharing Knife Book 1. I saw it at my library (pictured here for Wendy Super Librarian) and like most of my reading, I picked it for the cover and the title. :) I was unfamiliar with Bujold's other books, apparently she writes mostly fantasy/sci-fi and this was an attempt at a book where romance was more central to the story. Works for me. It's just a terrific cross cultural love story between (dare I say it) a spunky heroine and a war weary hero. The world is typical "pseudo-medieval with supernatural elements" fantasy which I enjoy. But in the end it's the two main characters who pull the whole thing together.

In the second and the third books (I'm half way through number 3) the tension of "are they going to get together" is missing since they get their happy ending in book one. The question then shifts to "can they make a space for their relationship within their different societies who don't want to accept them together." So for me (have I mentioned I'm addicted to sexual tension) these two books are much slower, but I love these characters so much, it's still fun to follow them around. If you like fantasy and like some romance in your fantasy, try this one out. Highly recommend it.

Fantasy Romance 2006: 4 out of 5 sharing knives (duh!).

C.L. Wilson "King of Sword and Sky"

I logged on to try to get one of my 'to be reviewed' books off my desk and my google 'reading list' sent me immediately off into blog hopping land. Is it really a good thing to aggregate blogs in one place so I'm so easily distracted? Ah well, the dangers of bloglandia.

And another thing, is there any evidence out there that caffeine delivered with sugar goes straight from your stomach to blast into your brain? I'm trying a new drink, Sweet Leaf: Sweet Tea and I swear my porch is spinning. If I hadn't had normal food in the last couple of hours I might understand.

Oh, I am so distracted.

Wilson burst onto the romance/fantasy scene last year with Lord of the Fading Lands and Lady of Light and Shadows that I reviewed in December. In my opinion they were really one long book that the publisher made her split into two books. No, I have no proof of that....and they were terrific. The story continues with Rain taking Elysetta back to the Fading Lands. As with most super hyperbole stories, the level of amazingness can be hard to maintain.

I felt some of that here, but I thought Wilson did a good job of shifting the focus from the ultimate love these two feel for each other, to the struggles of the Fey as they gear up for all out war with the wizards of Eld. So, no, this book did not transport me the way the first two did but it respectably furthers the story and I'm looking forward to the next one. I will say, if the author drags this storyline out too much further I may lose interest. There is only so much delayed gratification a romance reader can take. :)

Cheryl Brooks "Warrior:The Cat Star Chronicles Book II"

I started this book a while ago. Got through the descriptions of Tisana, 'ye good witch who heals' but isn't really accepted by her village. Leo gets dumped on her doorstep as an alien slave of the local lord who is in bad shape. Leo recovers quickly and Tisana discovers his unusual penis which not only has a corona that drips snard, orgasm inducing semen, but is controllable with muscles that allow it to move independent of Leo's body. One little lick of snard and Tisana sees stars and passes out.

I put the book down. Really not intending to re-visit it after their second sexual encounter was so unbelievably mind blowing that the third was down right boring. This for me, is the definition of the difference between romance and porn (complete lack o' sexual tension if I had to nutshell it for you.)

A couple of weeks later, I picked up the book again and got caught up in Tisana's journey to save the local lord's children from being kidnapped. And that sums this book up neatly. It's from Tisana's point of view, which exacerbates the problem but even without this filter, Leo is a complete non-entity. He is a walking sword wielding cock machine.

Unfortunately, even if you like your romance novels with no hero, except as a stud service for your heroine, this book becomes annoying in other ways. Tisana has A LOT of internal dialog working through the 'kidnapped sons' plot over and over.

Page 137, opened at random, and Tisana says, "Of course I knew that was what I was doing...... but it made me wonder about Rafe and Leo .....On the other hand....Or Rafe may have been...."

If you can deal with this, the end of the book just sent my snort meter off the charts. Tisana was raised as 'ye good witch who heals' on a decendant planet of earth with a kinder and gentler medieval setting. She misses her home while they are ten miles away saving the kidnapped boys. Then when the plot is resolved they randomly run into a starship captain, her also Cat Star husband, and three kids and decide to join them and roam the galaxy.

I have some tolerance for modern language in 'historical/fantasy' settings, but really: Page 310. "Bending down she herded three pint-sized versions of her husband toward me. "And these guys are Larry, Moe, and Curly. They've got Zetithian names, of course, but they're as unwieldy as Carkdacund; I had to call them something for short! I wanted to name them Larry, Darryl and Darryl, but Cat wouldn't let me - thought it would be too confusing."

They're watchin Bob Newhart re-runs in space?!

Fantasy Paranormal 2008: 1 of 5 points of the corona!

Patricia Briggs 'Bone Crossed'

This is book four in the much touted Mercy Thompson series. Mercy is a coyote shape shifter, her boss was a fae metalworker (who sold her his auto repair garage), she was raised by werewolves, her neighbor is the Alpha for the local werewolf pack and her favorite customer is a vampire.

I'm not sure I can objectively review this book. I've been well and truly sucked into the Mercy Thompson fan club so telling you that the fourth installment in her story is really, really good, probably won't mean a lot. I can say that the plot clips along as usual and Mercy continues to be a ridiculously decent person. I do wonder when she is going to go into full system shut down with all the trouble she keeps digging up, but then I don't want the stories to end any time soon, so....

If by some chance you haven't read any of the Mercy Thompson books, and you like fantasy at all, even remotely, pick up Moon Called. You won't be disappointed.

Spoiler Alert: I like Stephen and thought Mercy was a bit hard on him with the killing innocents thing, but why are all these boys still pining for her as she and Adam solidify things?? And was Amber just a little too convenient of a character?

Fantasy Novel 2009: 4.5 of 5 animated corpses.

Patricia Briggs 'Cry Wolf'

You may have noticed I'm quite into Patricia Briggs lately. A good friend just gave me Robin McKinley's book Chalice and the two authors remind me of each other. Not in the writing style, but in the power of the characters and storylines.

Cry Wolf is probably my least favorite Patricia Briggs book so far. I suppose any book that is related to the Mercy Thompson books but doesn't have her in it, is going to be a difficult sell. Mercy's (relatively) complicated world doesn't draw me, she does.

Anyway, Anna is an Omega wolf. She's been abused by her pack leader in Chicago and when the marrok finds out about it, the alpha of her pack is killed and she's taken back to Montana for safe keeping. Charles, the marrok's son and his enforcer, recognizes her as his mate....

I was annoyed that being an Omega is not explained, and I didn't really buy the fact that no one explained it completely to Anna, much less to me. Way too much of the book's plot relied on the fact that Anna and Charles are very taciturn. Okay, there's taciturn, and then there's taciturn.

I like Patricia Briggs, she writes a good story, I just didn't love either of these characters. There was a lot that could have been avoided if a few of the characters had talked to each other at all, so the plot didn't ring as true to me as it might have otherwise.

Fantasy Werewolf Fiction 2008: 2.5 out of 5 immortal Spanish witches.

Patricia Briggs 'Moon Called'

I read my first Patricia Briggs book this year and really dug it, and I'd seen a lot of fans of the Mercy Thompson books so I picked up this one, the first in the series. I don't know that I liked it as much as 'Steal The Dragon' which was all about the female protagonist, I barely remember the love interest in that one. Mercy is surrounded by men who love her. Older characters who are looking out for her, younger characters who have crushes on her and then the characters who outright vie for her affections, although she gives them little encouragement.

Mercy as a character is terrific, she's stubborn, smart but willing to act impulsively for things she thinks are right and worth some risk. She also thinks she knows the limits of her abilities (a smart/likable trait) but keeps finding that they might be wider than she thought (a lovely trait in a fantasy character).

There's the female teenage sidekick type character who needs to be rescued, a very convoluted bad guy plot, and a bunch of werewolves running around. I will knock the book for the overly convoluted bad guy plot, but I personally didn't mind too much as I was more interested in the character development and the world building. I have to guess that the author was as well.

The only other defect, although that's a strong word, was the number of males vieing for Mercy's affections. I mentioned I don't even remember the love interest in Stealing the Dragon, that's because that book was only marginally about love. This book spends a lot of time obliquely fixed on Mercy's possible male match-up's and while that tension drew me through a lot of the book, it's not resolved at the end. I knew this wasn't a romance novel, so I didn't feel cheated by the lack of resolution, but if it ain't a romance novel, maybe I can complain a little about the focus on (in this werewolf world) mates.

That being said, I love P. Brigg's female characters. They're tough, but use their smarts, not their brawn to get out of the trouble that their soft hearts get them into. I would highly recommend this book to lovers of urban fantasy/women protagonist fiction. This is a good one, and I'm looking forward to the rest of the series.

Naomi Novik 'His Majesty's Dragon'

This one is not a romance novel, definitely a fantasy novel, and totally kick-ass. I saw The Smart Bitches give it a good review a couple months ago, maybe longer, and I kept thinking, dragons and Napoleon? I just don't think I'd like it. If you liked the movie Master and Commander at all, if honor and brotherhood under fire turns your crank in the least, you have got to read this book. Really.

A friend of mine is a collector of hardcover versions of her favorite books. I like the feel of a hardcover book, but never felt the need to search them out. After finishing this book, I immediately went to see if I could buy all the series in hardcover. Captain Laurence is a British naval officer, he captures a rapidly hardening dragon egg from a French frigate and they know it will hatch before they reach land. If no one attempts to harness the dragon it will turn feral, a great loss to the aerial corps of his Majesty's army. None of the sailors wants to be the one to harness it because an aviator can never 'retire' from service to a normal life. They draw lots and Laurence is relieved when he does not draw the short straw. When the dragon hatches however it ignores the assigned harnessor, makes a b-line for Laurence and asks him why he is frowning. Thus starts their journey together.

Historical Fantasy Novel 2006: 5 of 5 acid spitting longwing dragons.

Patricia Briggs 'Steal The Dragon'

One of my pet peeves, there are many, is when titles of books are inserted into the book awkwardly. Not only did I enjoy this book thoroughly, but the title is very cleverly taken from the story. I won't categorize this book as a romance, although there is a romantic relationship that develops, mostly because there is no sex. I know there is an entire section of romance that does not include coitus but those aren't the books I typically read or review.

Rialla is a former Daran slave who escaped to the mercenary nation of Siamin, where she is now a horse trainer. She is recruited to return to Daran posing as a slave again to help protect a Daranian lord who wants to end slavery in Daran, a dangerous endeavor.

I particularly liked how, while she has been trained as a mercenary (everyone is in Siamin) as a horse trainer, she is realistically less skilled in combat than some of her companions and more skilled in outwitting her enemies. The plot unfolds quickly and well. If you really enjoy fight scenes, these may not be riveting, but I liked the way they were more about smarts than gore. The characters are not completely stock and genuinely different from each other, not something you always see in genre fiction. And finally the world creation is terrific. I was completely sucked in and enjoyed the ride.

SF/Fantasy Girl Power 1995: 4.5 of 5 sylvan mages.

C.L. Wilson 'Lady of Light and Shadow'

When was the last time you read a series book and the second was better than the first? Yeah, excuse my squeeing silliness, but this book was delightful. It's pretty clear that some publisher convinced the author to split what was one book into two, but with publishing dates of Sept and Nov. I can live with that. This story deserves to make as much money as possible.

Is this a literary masterpiece? No it's not Atonement, but really if you like fantasy novels and like them even better when their is great love involved, and don't mind some hot sex wrapped in, these are the two books you MUSTread. I really don't re-read books and I immediately started over after finishing it. I just don't want it to end.

C.L. Wilson, I hope to goddess you are writing your little heart out right now!

Fantasy Romance 2007: 5 fold weaves all glowing bright.

C.L. Wilson 'Lord of the Fading Lands'

I'm a sucker for fantasy novels, have been ever since I read The Blue Sword in seventh grade so it won't be too surprising when I say, I FRIGGIN' LOVED THIS BOOK. It's got everything you could want in a fantasy, a heroine whose plain and lanky and raised by a woodcutters family. She suffered seizures as a child so she's been avoided and made fun of most of her life. A hero who's mythic, the last Fey king who still can change into a Tairen (a large flying black leopard no less). He sees her in a magic crystal because she is the only one who can save the Fey from dying out. And then there are his cadre of leather wearing, knife throwing stoic warriors whom our heroine wins over with her inherent goodness. Oh this is better than Ben & Jerry's!

If you have ever liked a fantasy novel, read this one. It's a pure delight.

As an aside, this is the first romance/fantasy that I have come across that could fall into the much complained about category of 'not ending each book with a clear happily ever after in order to continue the story into a series.' I have the second book, Lady of Light and Shadows, so the To Be Continued, didn't piss me off too much. I'll let you know if the ending of the second book (since the third is not out yet) annoys me.

Fantasy Romance 2007: 5 out of 5 tairen souls.

Shana Abe 'The Dream Thief'

This book is a wonderful example of a really good story that's woven around an epic love affair with a HEA worked in there as well. I am impressed. I imagine you should enjoy the fantasy genre to truly enjoy this story. I do, so I can't say if it would appeal to everyone.

Lady Amalia is a late blooming member of the drakon species. She sees the future in her dreams and hear's music from gem stones. Her hero is a petty thief who got involved with the drakon as a youth and now is their 'trusted' emissary to the human world they prefer to stay separate from. They head off together to find the legendary diamond Draumr. The diamond whose owner has the power to control any drakon.

Really, really liked this book.

Fantasy Romance 2006: 5 out of 5 stars.