103-106

Sep. 4th, 2008 07:57 pm
blue_ant: (daniel [rock star])
[personal profile] blue_ant
103. Point Blank by Anthony Horowitz
The second book in Horowitz's Alex Rider series. I throughly enjoyed the story. Alex, a young, though reluctant, spy for MI6 is asked to pretend to be Alex Friend, son of the owner of the Friend Grocery Stories (football teams, and so on) in order to attend Point Blanc, an exclusive school for boys who have been kicked out of all other schools. MI6 thinks something fishy is going on, due to the deaths of two fathers of former students at the school. It's a mildly amusing premise, but Horowitz does an excellent job drawing you into the story. I can't wait to read more Alex Rider books.

104. Infoquake by David Louis Edelman
This is Edelman's first book, and it's the first book in his Jump 225 series. The story is interesting and focuses on expanding our ideas of virtual reality (and eventually multi reality). It's a cyberpunk book in a lot of ways, reminiscent of some Gibson works, but it's not nearly as good. I did enjoy the book, though the ending was unsatisfactory due to the fact that it's a trilogy. One of Edelman's strong points is his character development. Even though I disliked the main character, Natch, I was able to hope for him (and his team) to succeed. His team was even better, a mix of different types of people that had moderately well developed backgrounds and were, even with all their faults, likable. The one thing I didn't like was how, about a third of the way through the book, Edelman changed perspectives to give us Natch's history. It was interesting and important, but it came out of the blue and was kind of a shock. Otherwise, the book held together well and I'll eventually read the remaining two books whenever they are published.

105. Stormbreaker: The Graphic Novel by Anthony Horowitz
I actually read this book either last month or in July, but somehow it escaped review and I never added it to Library Thing. Anyway, this is basically just the movie (which I've seen) in graphic novel format. The art is exceptional and does a good job telling the story. It's not as interesting as the book and certain things are changed (which you don't realize if you've never read the book(s)). Overly I enjoyed it and would read others.

106. Point Blank: The Graphic Novel by Anthony Horowitz
Unlike the graphic novel for Storm Breaker, there's no movie for this to be based on (though I read that Horowitz has been working on a movie script). This was a let down, but I'm not sure if it's because I'd just read Point Blank or because it wasn't very good. The drawings were just as detailed and engrossing as Stormbreaker, but there was something a bit off with this book. I think next time I'll wait a bit before reading the graphic novel version of the book.



106 / 120 new reads. 88% read!

101-102

Sep. 4th, 2008 05:56 pm
blue_ant: (ianto [reading])
[personal profile] blue_ant
101. The Art of Destruction by Stephen Cole (read by Don Warrington)
This was one of the best Doctor Who audiobooks so far. Not just because Rose had a pretty decent role and good writing, but the plot was solid and interesting. And not only that, but the characters were fun, the story was both science fiction and relevant and it took place in a part of the world the Doctor rarely (as far as I can recall) goes to -- Africa. I quite enjoyed the story and Don Warrington was a great reader.

102. Mind's Eye by Hakan Nesser
Oh, how I love Hakan Nesser. This book is the first in his Inspector Van Veeteren novels, so it was kind of interesting to learn about all the characters I was already familiar with. Intersecting in a good way, that is. The mystery is incidental to the story, it's mostly about character development, but it is interesting. A woman dies, her husband is accused and the weirder things start happening. As with many Scandinavian crime novels, we get a good idea of what's going through the killer's mind, without ever knowing who he is. The reveal is fascinating but not ground breaking. Overall, Mind's Eye is a good introduction to the series, but not necessary if you're read the other books (unless you want to see how the story and characters have grown -- which was one of the most fun things to discover while reading the story).



102 / 120 new reads. 85% read!

99-100

Aug. 24th, 2008 01:30 pm
blue_ant: (carli [reading])
[personal profile] blue_ant
99. Midnight Never Come by Marie Brennan
First of all, it was a review I read somewhere that got me interested in this book (possibly PW, but maybe it was Scalzi's blog, I can't remember). Anyway, Midnight Never Come is basically fantasy and historical fiction mixed with more than a little intrigue. Of those three things, I only like the intrigue in my books. Except ... I absolutely loved this novel. It's extremely well written, lots of fun (and a little stressful, but in a good way -- like a good mystery) and basically awesome. It is the story of two Queens of England, one human and the other fairy. Obviously, there's much more to the story, including secret romances, fascinating explorations of historical events through the idea of fairies and, of course, death and violence. I recommend this book even to people who don't like, well, anything I've listed above. There's just something about Brennan's writing that makes the book fantastic.

100. The Black Path by Åsa Larsson
I absolutely love Åsa Larsson's writing. The Black Path is a fantastic third novel and explains a lot of the things that happened in her previous two books. One of the things I enjoy about Larsson's writing is the fact that she takes the time to develop her characters, not just in the first book, but over all three. The atmosphere she's created really draws you into the story and, in turn, helps you to love the main characters and all their little quirks and problems.


100 / 120 new reads. 83% read!

93-95

Aug. 19th, 2008 10:40 am
blue_ant: (ianto [reading])
[personal profile] blue_ant
93. The Creature from the Pit by David Fisher (read by Tom Baker)
This was a throughly enjoyable audiobook. Tom Baker has yet to disappoint as a reader and, for me, his doctor is by far the most amusing. This story was a bit scary, as it was supposed to be, but a lot of fun. The Doctor and Romana end up on a rather odd island, only to get captured by some rather ruthless people. K9 also makes several appearances, much to my joy. I look forward to listening to more audiobooks read by Baker.

94. Pest Control by Peter Anghelides (read by David Tennant)
I really liked this, mostly because I was so caught up in the story that I forgot it was David Tennant who reading it. Amusingly, he was obviously using his natural accent, and changing it for Donna and the Doctor's parts. The audiobook also did a fantastic job of portraying Donna's character as she is on the TV show. I know [livejournal.com profile] fiveforsilver thought it was a bit predictable, but I rather liked it.

95. Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz
This was a cute book, better than the graphic novel (and with less romance). The book, which the movie was based on (and the graphic novel was based on the movie), was well written and engaging. It wasn't the best thing I've read, but by no means was it the worst. I think it's a good book aimed at that hard age for boys, the teens. It's smart enough that kids won't feel stupid, but clever enough that they'll admire Alex Rider and what he does.


95 / 120 reads. 79% new reads!

89-92

Aug. 7th, 2008 08:41 pm
blue_ant: (carli [reading])
[personal profile] blue_ant
89. Slow Decay by Andy Lane (read by Burn Gorman)
This audio book was very creepy and more than a little gross. That being said, I quite enjoyed it. It did remind me a little of a one of the new Doctor Who episodes, but it was much, much more sinister. One of the things I really enjoyed was the fact that Gwen and Rhys' relationship was an important part or the book. A lot of the others I've listened to have played down that aspect, but it was nicely done here. Also, Burn Gorman is a fantastic reader. He does voice, to some extent, but it's mostly a good straight read.

90. Everyone Says Hello by Dan Abnett (read by Burn Gorman)
While not as gross as Slow Decay, it certainly is creepy. I think this is probably the best, plot-wise, of all the Torchwood audio books I've listened to so far. Gorman does a great job portraying the fear of the characters that we know they're feeling as well as the urgency in which they act. The plot is very strong and the fact that we focus a lot on other characters, other than the Torchwood folks, really drives the storyline. I found this to be quite good.

91. Mappa Mundi by Justina Robson
I'm a big fan of Robson's newer SF/F books. Mappa Mundi was good, but not great. I think she went into far too much scientific detail (her Earth's science) for my tastes. I'm not big into hard sf, and this was close. But what makes it different, and good, is the tiny twist of magic that our heroine, Natalie must learn to control. It's not really magic, but it could be seen that way. I really enjoyed the characters of Natalie and Jude, but I felt that the book was lacking something while at the same time being just a bit too long.

92. The Nightmare of Black Island by Mike Tucker (read by Anthony Head)
I loved this Doctor Who audio book. Read by Anthony Head (Giles from Buffy the Vampire Slayer), this book was fantastic. The author actually works on Doctor Who, so his insights were very good. One of the other things that I liked about this book was how important a role Rose played, unlike the previous titles (with the exception of The Stone Rose). The Nightmare of Black Island not only gave Rose important roles in the plot, but the real heroes of the story were an elderly woman and a young girl. I applaud Tucker for holding up the high standard set by the show. I thought Anthony Head did a great job reading as well, even if he claims in the post-book interview that it was hard. He was exceptional.



92 / 120 new reads. 77% new!

86-88

Aug. 2nd, 2008 12:35 pm
blue_ant: (the doctor/rose [dw])
[personal profile] blue_ant
86. Betrayed by PC Cast & Kristin Cast
The second book in the House of Night series. And, well, I loved it. This book forwards the storyline and plants some interesting thoughts in our minds, preparing us for what happens in book three. I like what the Casts do with Zoey, the main character. While she's got a lot of attributes that might be close to calling her a Mary Sue, she avoids this because, well, she's not perfect. Things go wrong, but in the end, at least in this volume, they work out okay. I was going to wait to read the third book, but as you can see, I didn't wait that long.

87. Chosen by PC Cast & Kristin Cast
While both Marked and Betrayed had their share of angst and issues, Chosen went the way that most YA books about vampires tend not to go. Things didn't work out for Zoey, bad things (which I won't spoil) happened and people got hurt, even killed. I applaud the Casts for taking this leap and for making sure that while Zoey did what she thought was right (or in some cases, knew was wrong , but couldn't help herself), she was forced to pay the consequences. It's hard to pull that off in YA books, especially in the fantasy realm where almost anything goes. I am excited about the fourth book.

88. The Stone Rose by Jacqueline Rayner (read by David Tennant)
Another Doctor Who audio book read by David Tennant. Of all the audio books I've listened to (including the Scott Sigler podiobooks and the Torchwood audio books), this one was by far the best. The story was fantastic, Rose and the Doctor end up in ancient Rome and there's some sort of trouble with a missing son and a sculptor. Eventually, though, something happens to the Doctor and it's Rose who has to sort things out. And it is utterly fantastic. One of the other things I loved about this book was the fact that the author realized just how much the Doctor loves Rose, and wrote that aspect of the characters perfectly into her plot. I highly, highly recommend this title. Also, Tennant's reading of the story was fantastic, as wel.


88 / 120 new reads. 73% read!

83-85

Aug. 2nd, 2008 12:12 pm
blue_ant: (ianto [jack])
[personal profile] blue_ant
83. Another Life by Peter Anghelides (read by John Barrowman)
More audio books. This one is based on the show Torchwood and is read by it's star, John Barrowman. Barrowman is not the best reader, but is quite good and I love listening to him, so that worked out. Another Life is an interesting, if predictable, book. It's the story of an alien warrior who possesses people -- when all he wants to do is go home (in theory, at least). I liked it, mostly because it made my car trip home from Ohio go by much, much quicker.

84. Resurrection Casket by Justin Richards (read by David Tennant)
Steampunk + Doctor Who = this audio book. And oh, I loved it. It's not the best one, but it's simply great. My one complaint is that there should have been more Rose. Other than that, it was so much fun and I really hope that there are some Steampunk episodes of Doctor Who in the future of the show.

85. Border Princes by Dan Abnett (read by Eve Myles)
I loved this book, not just because of the story (which was draining, but very good), but because of Eye Myles. Her reading of this story was completely and totally engrossing. I was caught up in the story and hanging on her words because she knew just how to read them. The story focus on the end of the world, as usual, and Torchwood has a new member, James Mayer, but is he all he seems to be? There's more, but I don't want to spoil it, of course.


85 / 120 new reas. 71% read!

79-82

Aug. 2nd, 2008 11:59 am
blue_ant: (four [doctor who])
[personal profile] blue_ant
79. The Dead of Night by John Marsden
This is the second book in a series about a war in Australia. It's just as good as Tomorrow, When The War Began, but neither book is a work of great YA literature. What I do like is how Marsden creates and maintains the characters and the plot through to the second book. I don't know if I'll go on reading, mostly because he's taking far too long to resolve things and I don't know if I have the patience to read the rest of the series. After all, these books are extremely emotionally draining.

80. Carte Blanche by Carlo Lucarelli
The first book in the De Luca Trilogy, about Commissario De Luca. Set in 1945, with the backdrop of Fascist Italy, this book is utterly fantastic. I loved it in every way possible and really want to read the next books in the series. De Luca, while a brilliant detective, has so many flaws and issues you don't even know where to start. But instead of bogging his character down, Lucarelli created an almost lovable character who must butt against everything he used to be in order to bring about justice.

81. State of Decay by Terrance Dicks (read by Tom Baker)
So, I've finally made that jump into audio books (and not podiobooks). While this was no great work of literature, it didn't need to be. What I wanted was a book about Doctor Who read by Tom Baker and it was brilliant. I love listening to Tom Baker and this was fun. The story was about a giant vampire (LOL) and was great fun, if totally unrealistic, even for Doctor Who.

82. Feast of the Drowned by Stephen Cole (read by David Tennant)
Now that I've started down this road, I find it impossible to stop. So, yet another Doctor Who audio book. This is a story about aliens on Earth who making people mysteriously disappear, while others try to throw themselves into the Thames. Overall, fun, the book wasn't that great, but the reader was aboslutely fantastic. I mean, hello, it was David Tennant!


82 / 120 new reads. 68% read!

75-78

Aug. 2nd, 2008 11:29 am
blue_ant: (ianto [reading])
[personal profile] blue_ant
75. The Thinking Fan's Guide to the World Cup by Matt Weiland
What I liked best about this book is the fact that each chapter (one for each of the 32 teams at the 2006 World Cup). I enjoyed certain ones most, though I can't remember which ones because it's been so long since I finished the book. Overall, it was really interesting, though not for people who know everything there is to know about football. I would probably recommend to new fans of soccer or people who only watch the WC.

76. Naughts & Crosses by Malorie Blackman
A YA book that turns racism on it's head, or so it tries. It's decent enough, not great, but not really bad either. It is part of a trilogy, but it wasn't interesting enough to make me want to read the next books. Basically, it's the two of two friends, one the daughter of a really rich black family and the other, the son of the white maid (see how that works?). They can't be friends in public, but when the boy gets accepted to the white girl's school ... Drama ensues and it just goes from there. It's rather predictable and I probably wouldn't read it again.

77. Marked by PC Cast & Kristin Cast
The first book in the House of Night series. One of the things I absolutely loved about this book is the fact that the vampires are not the bad guys. Sure, the humans are, but even then, it's only certain ones and not all of them. I love the character development, the writing, the plot, the everything. This was a highly enjoyable book and the main character has flaws and she suffers because of them. There are certain things that are not quite realistic, but in the context of the book, they don't matter all that much. I highly enjoyed Marked and couldn't wait to read the next ones.

78. The Fourth Man by KO Dahl
I love most these Scandinavian mysteries and The Fourth Man was no exception. What was different about this book is that the main character, Frank Frølich ends up having a relationship with someone close to the case he's supposed to be working on. As you can guess, this doesn't go over well with his bosses, and Frank ends up working bits and pieces of the case on his own. The book is fantastic and the translator (Don Bartlett) does a really good job. Considering that I didn't like the last Norwegian mystery title I read, The Fourth Man really exceeding my expectations and I cannot wait to read more of Dahl's works.


78 / 120 new reads. 65% read!

73-74

Jul. 2nd, 2008 10:06 am
blue_ant: (tezuka [from behind])
[personal profile] blue_ant
73. The Prince of Tennis, Volume 4 by Takeshi Konomi
74. The Prince of Tennis, Volume 5 by Takeshi Konomi

No reviews because, what is there to reviews? They are cute stories about cute Japanese tennis players. What more do you need?



74 / 120 new reads. 62% read!

70-72

Jun. 26th, 2008 10:58 am
blue_ant: (daniel [rock star])
[personal profile] blue_ant
70. The Museum Vaults: Excerpts from the Journal of an Expert by Marc-Antoine Mathieu
This is one of the graphic novels written for/about the Louvre. This is, in many ways, a sequel to Glacial Period. It's the story of an expert who goes into what we later discover is the remains of the Louvre. It's a fantastic story, not quite the graphical masterpiece that is Glacial Period, but the literary quality of it is fantastic, as are some renditions of the art that just blow my mind. I cannot wait for the other two (I believe) volumes of this series.

71. Batman: Cataclysm (Prelude to No Man's Land) by Chuck Dixon
This is actually something I read back in May. It's the story of Gotham City after a huge earthquake (hence the title being cataclysm). It's dark, scary and of course well written. The significant thing to me is that I finished it the day before the earthquake in China. Like, literally the day before. Freaked me out though. I recommend this for people who like Batman and people of his world/stories.

72. The Good Fairies of New York by Martin Millar
While an excellent story, this book was one of the oddest books I have ever read. Not bad, mind you, but just odd. Millar holds nothing back, not in his descriptions of the main characters or really, well, anything else. He is a truly fantastic writer, but at the same time a little brash, though I think the book wouldn't be as good if he censored himself. It was a fun read, but not something that I would go out and buy, no matter what Niel Gaiman had to say about it.



72 / 120 new reads. 60% read!

67-69

Jun. 23rd, 2008 01:49 pm
blue_ant: (devon [fandom + work])
[personal profile] blue_ant
67. The Myth Hunters by Christopher Golden
This was one of the most unique books I've ever read. I've also recommended it to a lot of people, so it's that good too. I mean, the writing isn't that great and the story is, at times, more than a little cliched, but there's something about Golden's style and his ability to tell a tale, that makes none of that matter. Myth Hunters is about Oliver Bascombe and the night before his wedding. He ends up hanging out (sort of) with myths (yes, myths) from different cultures. The story has a little Peter Pan twist (relating to believing and not clapping), but what keeps it going is the way Golden weaves Bascombe's story with that of the detective who is tryign to find him. There is no resolution to the story in this first book of The Veil series, and while I enjoyed reading this book, I was not compelled to immediately go and find (and read) the next book. Eventually I will, but it was enough to tide me over, I suppose.

68. Come to Think of It: Notes on the Turn of the Millennium by Daniel Schorr
I cannot even begin to count the ways that I loved this book. NPR Senior News Analyst Daniel Schorr writes a brilliant introduction to the book. Basically, the book is a collection of news analysis that he's done over the years (Dec 1990 to about Marc 2007) and it is magnificent. I highly recommend this book, even if you've never listened to a day of NPR in your life.

69. Ink Exchange by Melissa Marr
This is a sequel, of sorts, to Marr's first book, Wicked Lovely, which I adored. Ink Exchange is very different, though. Well, the plot is quite similar, but the story is not. And really, what allows both of these books to have similar plots and yet be fantastic (unlike, say, Dan Brown's books), is that the writing is fantastic. We're not talking Stephanie Meyer lack of quality, we're talking Diane Duane and Robin Mckinley (in Sunshine) and others. Marr knows how to write a story, draw a reader in and then keep them there. I devoured Ink Exchange and it ended, while not quite how I'd wanted, just the way it should have ended. After talking to [livejournal.com profile] fiveforsilver about it, we both decided that Marr wrote the best possible ending for her story. I do hope she keeps on writing!


69 / 120 new reads. 57% read!

62-66

Jun. 4th, 2008 06:23 pm
blue_ant: (daniel [rock star])
[personal profile] blue_ant
62. Prince of Tennis, Volume 1 by Takeshi Konomi
63. Prince of Tennis, Volume 2 by Takeshi Konomi
64. Prince of Tennis, Volume 3 by Takeshi Konomi
Not much to say about these. I've actually read some of these before, but I'm counting them as new, because I don't remember anything from them and I'm reading someone's translation, not official copies you get from the library/bookstore. I like these because they don't censor the language and the mistakes (as in typos, though they are rare) are amusing. Overall, these books are extremely cute and lots of fun to read. I plan to read all of them eventually.

65. InterWorld by Neil Gaiman
I can definitely see why people weren't really too thrilled about this book. It's a little simplistic, but I feel that's the point. Anything more complicated and it would end up in adult fiction and probably be much longer. The plot is decent enough, the story telling is quite good, as is the premise. The one thing that really bugged me is how the book just sort of ended. I liked the ending and what happens to Joey and I like the other characters, but it felt a little forced. Overall a good book, especially for a kid who isn't quite ready for more difficult SF.

66. M Is for Magic by Neil Gaiman
This was a nice short collection of short stories. The introduction, written by Gaiman himself, is quite good as well. In fact, if you're planning to read the book, I recommend reading the introduction first. I enjoyed, to some degree, all the stores, but my favorites were Troll Bridge, Chivalry, How to Talk to Girls at Parties, and Sunbird. I liked The Witch's Headstone, but it felt incomplete. Great introduction to fantasy for kids who aren't ready for novel-length stories just yet.


66 / 120 new books. 55% read!

59-61

Jun. 2nd, 2008 06:07 pm
blue_ant: (devon [fandom + work])
[personal profile] blue_ant
58. Final Warning by James Patterson
The fourth and perhaps final book in the Maximum Ride series. This was not the best book and probably not worth the wait. It was interesting, but Patterson came off as too preachy for my liking. I get that kids need to learn about global warming and that he felt the need to education, but it read too much like a science book in some parts. An approach more like Westerfeld in Peeps might have been more appropriate. Also, I thought it tried to tie things up neatly and failed completely. And, of course, he left it open to more books, should he choose to write them. That's not to say that I didn't enjoy it, because I did. It just wasn't as good as the others.

59. The Demon of Dakar: A Mystery (Ann Lindell Mysteries) by Kjell Eriksson
This was a fantastic book for a variety of reasons, the main one is that Eriksson took our "bad guy" and made him completely and utterly likable. Usually in mystery books (at least the ones I've read), the bad guys are bad guys, regardless of their motives and/or states of mind. In Demon of Dakar, there are the clear cut bad guys and then there's Manuel Alavez. He is unlike any bad guy I've read about for a long time. I loved the way Eriksson wove his tale, both from our history of the events as (and before and after) they happen. I really loved this book, and if you like a good mystery with extremely good character development, I recommend this one.

60. Blood Debt by Tanya Huff
It took me forever to read this book, not because it was bad or long or ... pretty much anything negative. It took me a long time because it was the last book in the Blood series and I wasn't sure I wanted to know what happened. I'm still not sure I like what Vicki has become, but I must say that I love how the book kind of shifted to being from Mike's point of view. After finally finishing it, I realized I'd kind of falling in love with Mike. I applaud Huff for doing such a good job with the last of the Blood books. A good ending (of sorts) to a good series.

61. The Eternals by Neil Gaiman
A good, though very easy read. Gaiman's reworking of an earlier comic series about gods. The writing is fantastic and the drawings are even better. I didn't really know a lot of the characters, but it did make me want to go see Iron Man, if only because his character in the graphic novel is kind of hilarious. I hope Gaiman writes more of these style graphic novels. I enjoy his alternate take on history.


61 / 120 new reads. 51% read!

55-57

May. 10th, 2008 04:38 pm
blue_ant: (daniel [bookstore superstar])
[personal profile] blue_ant
55. Singularity's Ring by Paul Melko
This was one of the best SF books I have read in ages. Melko tells the story of pods, or rather one pod. The pod is a group of five children (though they are not children, but not yet adults either, sort of teenagers) who form this pod. The story, when you ignore everything SF about it, is basically about individuality vs collectivism and where the two coincide. The story is how this pod (Apollo) must work together and separately to save it's/their lives. The story is well written and engaging and the plot is fantastic. Melko does an excellent job of dealing with ethical and moral issues, relating to individuals, the pods and collectivism. I highly recommend this book.

56. Detective Inspector Huss by Helene Tursten
I've read Tursten's other books that have been translated into English, they were excellent and this first book in the series is no exception. It is longer than the others, but it does start out Tursten's DI Huss books. We learn about her family, about her work, her history and so on. I found this book to be engaging, not just the plot (I really do love a good mystery), but also the characters and descriptions. Probably one of the best scenes takes place with Huss' partner, Tommy, and her family (two daughters and husband), relating to the Holocaust and neo-Nazis. Again, I highly recommend this book (and her whole series).

57. Tomorrow, When The War Began by John Marsden
I read about this book, just briefly, on a blog (Westerfeld/Doctrow/Scalzi, can't remember which). It's a realistic fiction YA book that deals with an extremely scary prospect. What would happen if you went out into the woods for a camping trip, and when you came back, there was no one left? That's what happened to the seven kids in the novel. It's a story of survival, of fighting back, and of coming to terms with the fact that their lives have changed. Yes, it is a coming of age novel, but it's also so much more. It's also the beginning of a series of books, which I will keep reading. If you liked realistic fiction and books such as Life as We Know It, you'll probably like this one, too.


57 / 120 new reads. 48% read!

51-54

May. 5th, 2008 01:27 pm
blue_ant: (devon [fandom + work])
[personal profile] blue_ant
The last of my April books.

51. Blood Price by Tanya Huff
52. Blood Trail by Tanya Huff
53. Blood Lines by Tanya Huff
54. Blood Pact by Tanya Huff

I'm going to review these altogether. First off, let me just say that I absolutely love Tanya Huff's writing. Her style is fun and easy (not that this is overly important, but it is nice) to read. Not only that, but her ability to create likeable characters (ignoring, for a moment, that I watch Blood Ties) is fantastic. These four books are excellent. I think that probably Blood Trail is my favorite, because I simply adore the werewolf family.

I also love the dynamic between Henry, Vicki and Mike. As a fan of the show, I already had some idea of what Huff was tryignt o do with the characters. What the books did (aside from just being awesome) was allow be to take what I knew from the show and turn it into something better than just a TV show. While in the books, Vicki is much taller than Henry, she's not that way in show. And it never really bothered me because I know and like the characters on the show. It wasn't hard to imagine them while I was reading.

The events at the end of Blood Pact blew my mind, to be hoenst. I won't spoil anything, but that's why I haven't read the fifth book yet. I will, but I'm not ready to go there. Anyway, I totally loved the series and will definitely read more.


54 / 120 new reads. 45% read!

48-50

May. 1st, 2008 03:46 pm
blue_ant: (daniel [rock star])
[personal profile] blue_ant
48. How Soccer Explains the World by Franklin Foer
Although a lot of soccer/football fans I know didn't really like this book, I did. It did seem disjointed, but I think it worked for the style that Foer was going for. I enjoyed his anecdotes and the brief histories that he provided. I did think the book was lacking, but it wasn't meant to be a comprehensive look at the history of soccer. I think it's good, especially for people who aren't familiar with the sport.

49. Specials by Scott Westerfeld
I love Scott Westerfeld and I really loved this book. It's the sequel to Pretties and it's just fantastic. One thing I did that I'm glad I did was wait a week before reading this. Uglies and Pretties were such strong books with lots of depth, that I needed time to process them. So, when I finally got to Specials, I had a good handle on my feelings. I loved Specials as much as I loved the other two, and I can't wait to read Extras. Westerfeld continues to impress me.

50. Earthcore by Scott Sigler
Another Sigler audiobook. This was the first one he did, so there are a few errors, but over all, it's really fun to listen to. This one did not end quite the way I expected, but it was quite a fun thing to listen to. I want to listen to more, but it's hard because I not only feel like I'm cheating on actual hard copy books, but I want to know what happens and I can't listen right away all the time. Whereas with paper books, I can read at my own pace. But, over all, Sigler does a good job promoting audiobooks.


50 / 120 new reads. 42% read!

45-47

Apr. 10th, 2008 09:50 am
blue_ant: (daniel [bookstore superstar])
[personal profile] blue_ant
45. Ancestor by Scott Sigler
My first audio book and it wasn't really an audio book. It's something called a podio book, which is basically a book produced like a podcast. I'm listening to another one of his books at the moment. But back to Ancestor. This is a fantastic book, a science fiction story about genetics gone crazy. It has a nice, healthy twist of a love story and some characters are utterly brilliant (both the good and the bad guys). I throughly enjoyed reading it, even if I felt like I cheated on books when I finished. I know I'm weird. But, yeah. The voices are good, if a little weird. My only complaint is that one of his characters is described as fat throughout the novel. I don't know if this would have bothered me so much had I not been listening to the book, but it bothered me a little. Though perhaps not as much as it could have, because it was clear Sigler has affection for all of his characters.

46. Pretties by Scott Westerfeld
I finally read the second book in this series. I really liked Uglies, but I have to say that Pretties is better. While it is just as frustrating, I can let that pass because of the circumstances of Tally. I like the new characters we're interested in and I love how Tally is so conflicted and flawed and blames herself. She's extremely strong, while at the same time being quite weak. I am excited to read Specials, which is the third book in the series. Westerfeld has proved once again to be a fantastic writer and storyteller.

47. The Trouble With Poetry: And Other Poems by Billy Collins
The thing about Billy Collins is that I love him. Well, his poetry at least. I love the way he writes, the way he evokes images. And I love the way he reads his poems. Here are my favorites from this collection:
You, Reader, The Peasants' Revolt, Theme, Eastern Standard Time, Flock, Special Glasses, The Lanyard, Genius, The Student, The Order of the Day, The Flying Notebook, and Evening Alone

47 / 120 new reads. 39% read!

42-44

Apr. 10th, 2008 09:11 am
blue_ant: (devon [fandom + work])
[personal profile] blue_ant
42. At City's Edge by Marcus Sakey
This was an extremely good book. While I liked Sakey's first book (The Blade Itself), I firmly believe this one is better. The characters are better, the plot is better and the story is better. I think this partly has to do with the fact that there's no real evil, unlike in The Blade Itself. And, also, the characters are much more likable. I also like the plot twists that Sakey throws at us. There aren't a lot, but there are just enough that you can't quite trust yourself to guess what will happen next. And, like all good novels, he manages to the end book well. I didn't feel let down or anything (like so many potentially good novels). If you don't read anything else by Sakey, read At City's Edge. It's that good.

43. Blackbird and Wolf Poems by Henri Cole
It is National Poetry Month, I've chosen to read a couple of poetry books. This one is by Henri Cole, a poet I'd never heard of until I was browsing the stacks. The book is short, though not all the poems are. Instead of reviewing each of them, here the list of poems that I quite like:
To Sleep, Twilight, The Erasers, Birthday, Gravity and Center, Quarry, Haircut and Mirror

44. Evil Genius by Catherine Jinks
This book was a disappointment. I don't know if I had high hopes for it or what, but I didn't really like it. And, sadly, it's turned me off of YA hackers books. Evil Genius reminded me far too much of the Artemis Fowl books that I like. But instead of being flawed, the main character of Evil Genius, Cadel, is too moral. He has too many easily explained away traits that "evil geniuses" as it were, shouldn't have. I also didn't find the book to be written particularly well. I really did keep thinking about how this was almost like Artemis Fowl, except it was missing all the good parts. It was kind of annoying to read and I couldn't even be bothered to really care when it ended.


44 / 120 new reads. 37% read!

41

Mar. 31st, 2008 08:45 pm
blue_ant: (daniel [rock star])
[personal profile] blue_ant
41. Thirsty by MT Anderson
Thanks to [livejournal.com profile] fiveforsilver, I started reading vampire YA fiction. It's such a huge category and you never run out of stuff to read. All of the books share some characters (vampires, for example), but each one obviously deals with vampires in a different way. Thirsty is no exception. MT Anderson is an exceptional storyteller. Feed, one of his other books, was one of the best books I read last year. In many ways, Thisty is a lot like Feed, both are first person stories about boys whose lives are changing, and both are boys who like girls. But Thirsty is much darker, where Feed has a little bit of light to it. Of course, where Feed is science fiction, Thirsty is fantasy.

One of the things reviewers seemed not to like was how fast paced the book is. I don't think Anderson can be faulted for that. The whole concept behind the novel requires it to be fast paced. Chris is becoming a vampire and the story revolves around his race against the clock, as it were. Others stated that the end was a disappointment, and I can kind of see that. But Anderson's extremely good at the heartbreaking ending that you see coming without realizing it. He did the same thing at the end of Feed and I expected no less with Thirsty. This is an extremely good book and quick read, which enhances, rather than detracts, from the quality of both the story and the writing.


41 / 80 new reads. 51% read!

ETA: I have decided on the advice of a couple of people to change my challenge from 80 books to 120. Here's the new meter:

41 / 120 new books. 34% read!

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