One imperfect letter, one missing page

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!

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!

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!

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!

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!

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!

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!

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!

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!

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!