Lish McBride
Necromancer: A Novella (2011)
One of the things I’m coming to adore about the Kindle (and there are many) is authors can put up short stories and novellas–for free!–to give you an introduction to their work. Which is how I ended up downloading “Necromancer: A Novella” because who is opposed to a free short story? (Not me!)
Necromancer is associated with the book “Hold Me Closer, Necromancer” and a good introduction to the author’s writing and world. It is also A COMPLETE SHORT STORY! WOOT!
Let me say that one more time: IT IS A SELF-SUFFICIENT SHORT STORY! Lish McBride, I may love you.
Here’s the thing, a lot of these “short stories” are little more than teaser chapters or stories for existing books.
That does not make me want to read more by the author. That annoys me.
Necromancer, however, is a complete short story about Matt and Ash. Matt is a loner teen and Ash was his best friend for years. Until she died. And later came back as one of the incarnations of death. But although this story contains death, it is more about the characters, their past, and their relationship.
And it is very well done.
No, I did not immediately purchase “Hold Me Closer, Necromancer” but that is only because my TBR pile has gotten out of control again. But once I get it pared down, I am definitely going to get it.
Rating: 8.5/10
Hold Me Closer, Necromancer (2010)
Sam can’t decide what to do with himself, which means that by default he has fallen to the painful default of food service. His life is going nowhere, he’s job is crap, but he has friends, and friends can make anything easier. Even drawing the attention of a very scary man and his even scarier minions.
This is a fabulous young adult book. There is boinking, but it’s off screen (so to speak) and shouldn’t keep this book from young adult users.
The story is very good, but what I liked best was Sam’s relationship with his friends, and his recognition that friends are there to help you when you need it. It’s nice to read about teens/young adults with strong friendships. Sure, there’s angst, but it’s hard to be too angsty if you have a best friend to kick you in the butt when you get too full of yourself.
I read this because I had downloaded and read Necromancer: A Novella (free! it was free!) and enjoyed the writing and characters. (Let that be a lesson to you, publishers. I most likely would never have bought this book if I hadn’t read the free novella. But I enjoyed the novella so much I wanted to read more books by the author.)
There is, quite obviously, going to be a sequel, but for the most part the story arc was resolved, and I want to read the next book not because of any unresolved bits, but because I enjoyed the characters and writing.
If you think a story about a boy becoming a necromancer might be at all interesting to you, I highly recommend reading “Necromancer: A Novella” because if you enjoy that, you’ll certainly enjoy Hold Me Closer, Necromancer.
Rating: 8/10
Published by Henry Holt and Co
Necromancer: A Novella (2011), Hold Me Closer, Necromancer (2010)
