Runaways 6: Parental Guidance (2006) Brian K Vaughan, Adrian Alpohna, Craig Yeung I somehow missed publication of volume 6 of Runaways, but saw when volume 7 came out. Considering the events in Parental Guidance, I was quite confused when I started to read volume 7, and quickly realized I’d missed several important events. Luckily, Amazon […]
Fables 9: Sons of Empire (2007) Bill Willingham, Mark Buckingham, Steve Leialoha, Michael Allred, and Andrew Pepoy If you haven’t been reading Bill Willingham’s “Fables” then you have been missing out. In Sons of Empires we spend more time with Pinocchio and Geppetto and learn how they plan to carry the war into the Mundane […]
Sea Without a Shore (1996) Sean Russell Sea Without a Shore takes up immediately after the close of World Without End. Tristam is recovering from the events on the Lost Island, Averil Kent is further embroiled in politics and working with the Countess of Chilton to keep Palle and his followers from creating a mage […]
World Without End (1994) Sean Russell Reading “The River Into Darkness” series made me want to read another series written by Sean Russell, so I picked up the “”Moontide and Magic Rise” series, for which “The River Into Darkness” is the prequel. I was surprised to discover that I found this series much easier to […]
Magic Bites (2007) Ilona Andrews Kate Daniels works as a mercenary in a world that used to be ours, where technology is losing out to magic. Vampires are not romantic creatures (think the older vampires on Buffy) the vampire faction is held at bay by the shape shifters–neither group can take control, which is probably […]
The Demon and the City (2006) Liz Williams After reading The Snake Agent, I’ve been looking forward the reading the next Detective Inspector Chen book. (In fact, the paperback edition has been on pre-order for several months.) As with many authors I like, after getting a book, I’m hesitant to read it, for fear that […]
A Fistful of Charms (2006) Kim Harrison The fourth book in the Rachel Morgan series, A Fistful of Charms takes place several months after Every Which Way But Dead. Rachel and Ivy are still trying to figure out how to mend their relationships with Jenks, and Rachel is enjoying her relationships with Kistin, although she […]
The Stars Dispose (1997) Michaela Roessner I picked up The Stars Dispose used, several years ago. But for one reason or another, never got around to reading it. However, when I was looking for something different to read, I finally picked it up. In the 1500s, there was a power struggle in Florence. The de […]
Unshapely Things (2007) Mark del Franco Connor Grey is a druid who has lost most of his powers. An attack by radical environmentalist elf has left him crippled–not physically, but magically. So in addition to his disability payments, he takes occasionally jobs helping the Boston police department in attacks involving the fey. What I found […]
Proven Guilty (2006) Jim Butcher I started this book several weeks ago, and then put it down because I remembered why Harry had been annoying me so much for the past several books.However, I decided to give Proven Guilty and Harry another chance. At the start of the book I was still annoyed with him–he’s […]
Mister Monday (2003) Garth Nix I absolutely loved Sabriel. The following two books were also excellent, but I just adored Sabriel. I also liked his collection of short stories, Across the Wall. So when I saw he had another series, The Keys to the Kingdom, I… hesitated. Sometimes when an author has written a book […]
Petty Treason (2004) Madeline E. Robins The second Miss Sarah Tolerance mystery, Petty Treason takes place several months after the events of Point of Honor. Although her courtroom testimony following her last case has made her name known in London, she is continuing to work as an Agent of Inquiry, taking cases primarily from women […]
Point of Honour (2003) Madeleine E. Robins Point of Honour is a mystery novel set in Regency London. Sarah Tolerance is a Fallen woman, and as such she has few venues open to her that would allow her to make a living. The most common “career” for a fallen woman was prostitution, and indeed Sarah’s […]
The Dante Club (2003) Matthew Pearl Based on historical facts combined with a murder mystery, The Dante Club tells how Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Oliver Wendell Holmes, James Russell Lowell, and J. T. Fields worked to translate Dante’s Divine Comedy into English. Unfortunately, the administration at Harvard University–for which Holmes and Lowell both work–is opposed to […]
Greywalker (2006) Kat Richardson Greywalker starts off strong–Harper Blaine gets beaten to death–although she is dead only for a few minutes. I’d been surprised when the guy belted me. Most people don’t flip out when they get caught in such a small fraud. I had expected am embarrassed apology and a hasty check to appease […]
Working for Devil (2005) Lilith Saintcrow Dante Valentine is a necromance–she is able to visit the realms of the dead and draw spirits back to the world where they can answer questions or communicate again with their loved ones. Although mages and other psis are out and somewhat accepted by the public, necromances still are […]
Snake Agent (2005) Liz Williams When I purchased this book I thought it was a mystery, after all, it’s “A Detective Inspector Chen Novel.” And since I bought the book on-line, I couldn’t see the cover clearly, so that didn’t tell me anything either. I just knew it had come up as recommended for me, […]
Lucifer Vol 1: Devil in the Gateway (2001) Mike Carey, Scott Hampton, Chris Weston I’d considered picking up Lucifer since I finished reading The Sandman. I liked the characters of Lucifer and what Neil Gaiman did with him, but I’d hesitated picking up the Lucifer, since it wasn’t written by Neil Gaiman, and I’ve been […]
Lady Crymsyn (2000) P.N. Elrod After finishing the last three books, I was reluctant to read this book, for fear it would continue what felt to me as a downward spiral. However, I was pleasantly surprised to discover that Lady Crymsyn went back to the things that I had liked so much about the previous […]
The Price of Murder (2003) Bruce Alexander The Price of Murder is the last, complete Sir John Fielding book written by Bruce Alexander. The body of a child is pulled from the river, and it is believed to be the body of a young girl reported as missing by her mother several weeks earlier. Meanwhile, […]
Jack, Knave and Fool (1998) Bruce Alexander I think the Sir John Fielding mysteries get better as the series continues. Characters continue to be introduced to the series, while familiar characters continue to make an appearance and play an important part in the life of Jeremy Proctor. In Jack, Knave and Fool Jeremy speaks of […]
Person or Persons Unknown (1997) Bruce Alexander About a year has passed since the events of Watery Grave and Jeremy Proctor is starting to become a full fledged teenager–in though if not in deed. Although he appreciates what Sir John Fielding has done for him, he begins to feel that he is being treated like […]
Nightlife (2006) Rob Thurman This book starts the action right on page one: It was the touch of a much warmer liquid on my fingers that let me know differently. It was blood. My blood. I tightened my hand over the one that held the knife handle. The blood covers both our hands, his and […]
Zorro (2005) Isabel Allende translated by Margaret Sayers Peden As I’ve mentioned before, I love swashbuckling adventures, and as swashbuckling adventurers go, Zorro is one of my favorites. Last summer, when “The Legend of Zorro” was out, I saw this book, but assumed it was related to the movie, and didn’t pick it up. My […]
His Majesty’s Dragon (2006) Naomi Novik During the Napoleonic wars, Captain Will Laurence of the HMS Reliant captures the French ship Amitie and its valuable cargo: a dragon egg. Unfortunately, the egg is close to hatching, so someone on the ship must become bonded to the dragon upon its hatching, and then leave the Navy […]
Whom the Gods Love (1995) Kate Ross Alexander Falkland has been killed. His head smashed in with a poker while one of his famous parties rages upstairs. But Alex is the darling of the ton (it took me awhile to figure this one out; the ton is the bon ton, or high society in London) […]
A Broken Vessel (1994) Kate Ross The second Julian Kestrel mystery, A Broken Vessel looks at prostitution in 1800s London, and the Reclamation houses that existed to recover these women. Julian is introduced to this world through his manservant Dipper, who discovers his lost sister, who is working as a ladybird. One of the most […]
Kingdom of the Golden Dragon (2004) Isabel Allende translated by Margaret Sayers Peden Alexander Cold asks his grandmother, Kate, if he can accompany her on her latest expedition for International Geographic, this time to a remote country in the Himalayas. A country nicknamed The Forbidden Kingdom, because of its far location and the fact that […]
Cut to the Quick (1993) Kate Ross Reading the T. F. Banks books put me in the mood for another Victorian mystery, and lucky for me, I had one waiting here to read. Julian Kestrel is a dandy. He’s making his mark on London society by being a sharp dresser, and the perfect gentleman–even if […]
The Thief Taker: Memoirs of a Bow Street Runner (2001) T.F. Banks aka Ian Dennis and Sean Russell I was browsing Sean Russell’s web page, when I saw two books listed that I didn’t own: The Thief Taker and The Emperor’s Assassin. My immediate reaction was one of shock: Sean Russell had co-written a series […]
Definitely Dead (2006) Charlaine Harris First things first, this book had me laughing out loud, and reading passages to Michael. That usually only happens for Steven Brust books, but in multiple places Charlaine Harris nailed the dialog, and forced me to keep interrupting Michael game so he could laugh with me. Additionally, for those of […]
Moon Called (2006) Patricia Briggs I have to say, Moon Called was a lot of fun to read. I had no expectations of the book at all (I bought it because I liked other books by Patricia Briggs), so everywhere the story went was a surprise. And a pleasant surprise at that. Also, this book […]
Blood Trail (1992) Tanya Huff Okay, I did have a very strong drink to celebrate the end of the semester, so that may have been part of the reason why I laughed out loud several times last night while reading this book. Or, it could be that the book was actually amusing. Your call. Vicki […]
Runaways Vol 3: The Good Die Young (2004) Brian K. Vaughan And finally, the conclusion of the story arc started in Pride and Joy. We finally learn why the Pride formed, and what they were trying to do. And the teens finally resolve the problem. We also learn who the mole was, and why the […]
Dead As A Doornail (2005) Charlaine Harris Dead As A Doornail is the fifth book in Charlaine Harris’ Southern Vampire series, and full of complications and murder and danger. Someone is killing the double-natured, and since Sookie’s brother Jason was bitten, he’s in the same danger as the rest. I really liked several different things […]
Raven’s Shadow (2004) Patricia Briggs Yes, I am gouging myself on new books. I’d been very good, about not bought myself any books for several months, so I figure I’m entitled to a small binge–especially when I can find books on sale. Seraph, a Traveler, a mage, and the last of her clan, is saved […]
Fool Moon (2001) Jim Butcher Nope. I wasn’t at the bookstore right when it opened this morning, to get the second book in the Harry Dresden Files. The store had been open for at least twenty minutes when I got there. Plus, it was on the way to the grocery store. Fool Moon is set […]
The Onion Girl (2001) Charles de Lint First things first, this is an excellent book. It’s the Jilly book that you always wanted, getting inside her head and learning why she’s the way she is. However, I have to admit that this is one Charles de Lint book that I just don’t like to read. […]
Moonlight & Vines (1999) Charles de Lint The third Charles de Lint short story collection, Moonlight & Vines returns again to Newford. Although it starts and ends with a Christie Riddell story, and there are plenty of appearances by the characters with whom we’ve become familiar, there are also new characters, some we’ll meet again, […]
The Ivory and the Horn (1995) Charles de Lint The Ivory and the Horn is the second short story collection by Charles de Lint, and like Dreams Underfoot, is set in Newford, the mythical North American city, where mythical beings reside. Reading these short stories makes me wish there there really was a Newford, so […]
Dreams Underfoot (1993) Charles de Lint I believe that Dreams Underfoot is the first Charles de Lint book I bought. I may have read one of his stories somewhere (Now that I look, I may have first read “The Moon Is Drowning as I Sleep” in Snow White, Blood Red, and from there been sucked […]
The Lord of Castle Black (2003) Steven Brust The second volume in the Viscount of Adrilankha series takes up where the first left off, even going back a bit to cover events that occurred towards the end of Paths of the Dead Zerika is now Empress in name, but has yet to become Empress in […]
The Paths of the Dead (2002) Steven Brust For me, Steven Brust books are like potato chips; I can’t read just one. And so, having recently finished all the Vlad Taltos book, The Phoenix Guards, and Five Hundred Years After, there was nothing to do but read The Viscount of Adrilankha. The Paths of the […]
Orca (1996) Steven Brust Set about a year after the events of Athyra, Vlad has wandered into Northport in search of a sorcerer who might be able to cure Sven, the Teckla boy who lost his mind during the events of Athyra. He finds one, however, her price is keeping her from being evicted from […]
The Golden Key (1996) Melanie Rawn, Jennifer Roberson, Kate Elliot At 889 pages, The Golden Key is a very long book. Admittedly, I have not had a lot of time for reading, but even so, more than a week for me to read a book is really slow. Part of the reason is that the […]
The Assassin’s Edge (2002) Juliet E. McKenna The fifth and final book of the Einarinn series, The Assassin’s Edge tells of how Ryshad, Livak, Temar, and others seek to finally make Kellarin secure against invaders from the Ice Islands. This is, far and away, the best book of the series. Juliet McKenna does a wonderful […]
For Camelot’s Honor (2005) Sarah Zettel In a burst of paranoia, I held of reading this book, for fear that it wouldn’t be as good as the previous in this series, In Camelot’s Shadow. Once again I was proven to be just that–paranoid. I was pleased to discover that Sarah Zettel did a good job […]
A Great and Terrible Beauty (2003) Libba Bray I picked this book up because the cover caught my eye. I think it’s the corset, which looks both authentic and terribly uncomfortable (or so says the eternal tomboy). Then I read the title and had to know more. Before the book starts, Libba Bray quotes part […]
Agents of Light and Darkness (2003) Simon R. Green >In the second Nightside book, John Taylor, back working in the Nightside, but still living in the Real World, is hired to find the Unholy Grail, so that it can be returned to the Vatican. I really liked this book. We learn a little more about […]
The Queen of the South (2002) Arturo Perez-Reverte translated by Andrew Hurley If you’d like to know the power of Arturo Perez-Reverte’s writing, pick up this book, read a few pages, then put the book down and try to forget the story. A couple of months ago I picked up a book, thought it looked […]