Baby, It's Cold Outside: Cold Magic

Cold Magic by Kate Elliott (NEW READ)

To start off, I wanted to address the fact that this book has been marketed as steampunk. After reading (and enjoying) it, I don't feel that's accurate. Maybe the marketing team jumped on "steampunk" since the genre is heating up, but other than a zeppelin that appears briefly there aren't any steampunk elements in the book- and that's just fine. In fact, I appreciated "Cold Magic" MORE for not being straight-up steampunk and instead introducing elements and cultures more original than goggles and gears.

Photo by smile4camera:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/captured-spirit_/125496510/

Catherine Hassi Barahal lives in a Europe where Britain never detached from the continent, where the Roman Empire is still going strong in 1837 and where a ghoul plague in Northern Africa has led to mass migration and the intermingling of the cultures of Mali and the Celts. Powerful mage families vie with up-and-coming industrialists to rule the continent. Cat's middle-class life with her aunt, uncle and cousin/ best friend Beatrice abruptly alters when a powerful young cold mage turns up at the door demanding the fulfillment of a contract owed to his family. Before she knows what's happening Cat finds herself married to Andevai (the mage) and on a strange trip across Britain.

If you're just starting this book it can seem a bit overwhelming. Since it's alternate-history, the reader is bombarded with alternate and (to us) archaic names for places and peoples that will send you scampering off to Wikipedia to find out where the Phoenicians lived and who they are today. There is also a bit of set up which meanders through a school day for Cat and Beatrice- a trip to the principal's office and a stolen sketchbook aren't up to the level of adventure seemingly promised by the blurb. Once the mage appears things speed up, but since Cat doesn't really know what's going on as a reader you feel like you are traveling with her at a breakneck pace, not sure of where you are going. The part of the book that really engrossed me was after a big spoilery plot reveal. Cat's travel's and interactions with Andevai change dramatically, and a new character that injects a great deal of humor into the story appears. It becomes a different kind of travel and intrigue book, one where I enjoyed the characters more than in the first half.

One element of "Cold Magic" I found particularly excellent was the relationship between Cat and her cousin Beatrice. One bookish, tall cousin + one short pretty girl- you think you know where this is going, but you'd be wrong. Cat and Bee are utterly devoted to each other, and their relationship is one of close sisters. When there is trouble each inevitably thinks of the other and plans how to save her. Although they spend most of the book apart, you know they are never far from each others thoughts. This is particularly impressive in the case of Bee, who is not a POV character.

I found the connection between the cousins much stronger and sweeter than the relationship between Cat and Andevai. Of course they are not supposed to like each other, and are gradually working past respect to something more but I had some real problems with how Andevai behaved for most of the book. Now that I think of it, it wasn't so much his behavior as Cat's reactions- even though she is mad at him most of the time she is constantly thinking of how good he looks, how hot his jawline is, stuff like that. Sure we are all human, but if someone had just tried to stab me in the throat I might not have a problem keeping myself from checking him out.

I haven't even gotten into the trolls, Roman politics and minute world-building going on in this book. My last experience with Kate Elliott was pretty dark. (Lots sexual abuse, torture, war, not necessarily a bad thing.  What killed me was a character thinking how hot the man who had sexually abused her friend was, even though she knew he was a bad guy. DNF ) I wasn't sure how I felt about reading her new series, but "Cold Magic" is definitely more my speed, and I can't wait for the next one! Even Andevai won me over with his very LAST line. Smoooooooth.

If you are looking for first-rate world-building and appealing characters, give "Cold Magic" a try!

Pegasus

Pegasus by Robin McKinley (NEW READ)

I've been a Robin McKinley fan since high school, but I feel like I haven't loved her newer work as much as "Hero and the Crown", "Deerskin" or even "Beauty". This book looked like a return to her old form, so I was looking forward to it. Plus the cover is gorgeous- it really looks like the girl and pegasus are in different worlds (earth and sky), but their placement makes them look like they are trying to reach each other.

Sat down and started reading and got a big old history lesson on the how the kingdom was founded. Great, not only was I in infodump city, but it made the pace of the first 100 pages slooooooooooow. I'd rather have started with the main characters (Sylvi, the princess and Ebon, the pegasus) meeting and learned more through their character development, but I felt like I was getting the worldbuilding in huge boring chunks.

Since the start was so slow, I had to hang in there until things got better. And... they did get better. The descriptions of pegasi culture were fascinating, and I wish we had spent more time there early, or maybe had a pegasus narrator for alternating chapters. McKinley actually comes up with a decent reason that beautiful flying magic horses might feel jealous of humans (they long to create, but only have a few fingers which are super delicate and weak). Human hands actually feature in the pegasi fairytales, which is a nice way to round out their culture (not perfect, wants things they don't have).

Unfortunately, I did not know that this book was half of what originally was one story. The end comes at what would be a climax in the story complete, which makes for a horrible cliffhanger and gives the book almost no story arc of its own. I haven't said "Fuck!" this much about a book in a long time. I felt strongly about it- too bad I felt anger and disappointment. I'd like to know what happens, but I feel so cheated I will have to make myself pick up the next one.

Ideally, I wish this book had been more heavily edited to remove the boring bits (court politics, suspicious wizards that are OBVIOUSLY evil but spend pages wasting our time) and then released as a complete story, instead of only half a book.

Behemoth

Behemoth by Scott Westerfeld (NEW READ)

I am a huge sucker for this series to begin with, since it is A) good steampunk B) cross-dressing adventure  C) fabulously illustrated, but this book really upped my interest in where the plot is going. It felt like a lot of "Leviathan", the first book was spent in set-up, whereas in Behemoth we jump right into the action. And the action just keeps on going.

The Leviathan is headed for Istanbul (not Constantinople) so the "lady boffin" Dr. Barlow can present the Sultan with a mysterious present that might help halt the war. Of course things go wrong- the almost-electrocution of the giant flying whale, a hijacking of a huge mechanical war elephant. Meanwhile Alek and his crew are desperately trying to escape their English captivity. A botched attempt leads Alek right into the middle of a revolution...

(Picture from Keith Thompson's Gallery just to give you a taste of how great the art is. Don't you want to go buy a print now? I know I do!)

My favorite character in the book is Deryn Sharp, my new girl-dressing-as-a-boy role model. Incredibly capable, fairly fearless and sometimes baffled by how weird boys are, Deryn is always in the middle of something crazy. Behemoth delves more deeply into Deryn's feelings about both her father's death and her feelings for Alex (OMG does she LIKE like him?!) but mostly it just features Deryn kicking ass and taking names. It seems like her secret identity as the best (not)boy in the British Air Corps is a little closer to being exposed but so far is in safe hands. Also, an almost love triangle that doesn't turn out quite the way Deryn expects. Ha ha, "MR. Sharp"

The secret of the mysterious eggs from the first book is revealed and it is ADORABLE. Imagine one of these but it speaks better Turkish than you, is named after a British meat extract and keeps making sarcastic references to your secret identity. Pretty much the perfect pet.

The next book in the series looks like it will deal with the Orient Express. I love trains so I am EXCITE. Can't wait to read the further adventures of Deryn and Alek!

A Primate's Memoir

A Primate's Memoir: A Neuroscientist's Unconventional Life Among the Baboons by Robert M Sapolsky (NEW READ)

I love me some nonfiction on occasion, and this book came recommended on the Tor.com blog so I elected to give it a shot. As a graduate student, Robert Sapolsky traveled to Kenya to observe a troop of baboons and observe how social interactions affect health. (This leads to a great chapter on just how difficult it is to drug a baboon using darts and a blowgun.) Living in a tent eating canned spaghetti and fish, dealing with corrupt government officials and local tribes, Sapolsky's book is fascinating as a portrait or early-80s Africa in addition to his wildlife observation.

The first thing that happens when R.S. gets off the plane is that he is scammed by no less than 3 people. He's not angry about this- in fact, he recounts that he still sees the same scammers working over newbies on his later trips. Bribes are a way of life, but he never seems frustrated with this custom. R.S. names all the apes in the troop after Biblical figures and accounts their unique personalities and his personal favorites (Benjamin). It sounds like the baboons are all acclimated to having people around, as R.S. hangs out with them on rocks and some even climb into his Jeep!

Another interesting point in the narration is the dealings with the local Masai village. In the US we seem to have a romanticized view of the Masai as a herder/warrior culture, but while he cares for them personally R.S. definitely sees the downsides to their culture. Other local tribes are raided, education is not initially regarded as important and warriors kidnap schoolboys to raise them in the bush away from their families. Despite this the Masai are close to local researchers and they help each other in times of need (especially when it comes to transportation). There's a hilarious anecdote where R.S. tries to convince to warriors that a baboon is his cousin, with angry angry results.

Sapolsky also traveled to several other African countries outside of Kenya and the conditions he describes are pretty horrific. On a raft for a week with everyone (people and goats crapping on the deck), crammed into a truck with dozens of other people driving through the desert and several politically-fraught situations, you can see why maybe people in Kenya like to stay close to home. Meanwhile, tourists are staying in expensive resorts that encroach upon the national parks.

It is one of these resorts that brings disaster to Sapolsky's baboons. A local butcher cutting corners leads to an outbreak of tuberculosis among the baboons near the resort. Despite all his efforts, many of the baboons succumb (though a few recover). The end of the book leaves the reader wondering about the effect US tourists have on the local environment, and makes you think about whether the trip of a lifetime is worth the life of hundreds of animals.

Quick Haiku Reviews

This Gorgeous Game by Donna Freitas (NEW READ)

Won writing contest
College, boys, but something is wrong
Stalked by a priest, yuck

Avalon High by Meg Cabot (REREAD)

Camelot reborn
Elle is NOT the Lily Maid
Though she loves the pool

"Magic Strikes" audio, "Bleeding Violet", "Nicholas Sayre and the Creature in the Case"

Nicolas Sayre and the Creature in the Case by Garth Nix (REREAD)

Like I mentioned in my Lirael review, Nicholas seemed kind of bad-ass in his first appearance before he got all possessed and needed to be saved. Since he seems to be set up as a possible romantic interest for Lirael, obviously he should be tough as nails or at least not afraid of zombies. In this novella he not only gets to be the resident freakish incident expert, he gets his own James Bondian chase sequence involving motorcycles, cars and trains. Dark as most of this series, with lots of deaths, this story was also a lot of fun and I wish there would be more stories written in this world.


Magic Strikes (audiobook) by Ilona Andrews, read by Renee Raudman (NEW LISTEN, REREAD)

This series is one of my favorite reads I've come across in the past few years. I love to reread them, but that doesn't mean they'll make a good audiobook. A lot depends on the reader, and in this case it's a perfect fit. RR is just right for the protagonist Kate Daniels, but she also does a mean Southern accent (and not True Blood Southern, Beeeeeeel!). The snarkiness of the narration shines through in audio form, with all its asides and in-jokes ("Dingoes ate my baby!" makes an appearance). There are books I love that I won't touch in audio, but this series is getting added to my Audible list ASAP.


Bleeding Violet by Dia Reeves (NEW READ)

I just finished this book 15 minutes ago, and I'm still a little shellshocked. It turned into something totally different than I was expecting, much darker than most paranormal YA coming out today. By the end of the day so much crazy violence and magic has happened that the protagonist's manic depression has become a minor problem, even one that is beneficial to her. Not even sure how to write a summary for this unless I think about it more, but people looking for some YA fantasy with a dark, dark twist might want to give this book a shot.

Tags, Genres, Post Apocalyptic Supplies

I'm thinking about going back and specifying genre and possibly audience (YA, etc.) for my entries. Although this blog is mostly for me to keep track of my reading, maybe it would be helpful and make it more like a REAL review blog.

Starting to plan my vacation has gotten me in the mood to plan what would be in my EXTREME survival backpack. Thanks to Mr. Page's junior year biology class and my literary preferences I'm obsessed with the mechanics of survival in a post-apocalyptic world, so I thought it would be fun to plan what I would need to have on hand. This week I hope to get reviews up for "The Gift of Fear" and "Wilderness Survival for Dummies" and get my supply list started.

Gotta Fever, and the Only Prescription is more Audiobooks

Since I've been working on knitting as many hats as possible, I've turned to audiobooks and gotten completely hooked on the one I listened to this weekend.

Lirael by Garth Nix (REREAD) (YA, fantasy)

Lirael spends her childhood feeling like an outsider. Physically distinctive from all her cousins, she also lacks the gift of foresight that is the mark of her people. When she finds she must leave on a mysterious journey she meets with Prince Sameth, a man with a dangerous job he is not sure he can actually bring himself to do.

This audiobook is narrated by TIM CURRY. So great! My favorite is when he does the voice for the small, evil, white cat. His women's voices can be a little nasal but it's Tim Curry and he's so great I don't care.

One character who seemed very different to me in my relisten of this book is Nicholas. For most of the book(s) he is possessed or sickly with everyone trying to rescue him, but for the 15 minutes or so when he's NOT possessed he's actually kind of badass. He saves his rugby team from being blown up by friendly fire, helps them start a signal and make noise then grabs a sword to fight a necromancer. And... that's about as far as he gets. But still, not bad.


Honestly I've always loved this because because it's so teenage emo. Lirael doesn't fit in, she feels like she'll never be as good as everyone else, blah blah. It's like a slow-flowing stream of emo interrupted by awesome monster killing and talking dog. Once the adventure really gets going I have trouble putting my CD player away to go to bed, so the story does pick up.

Sam is pretty emo too- at one point he even admits to himself like he's acting like a spoiled baby- but he also has a lot of fear, which I think is a cool thing to see in a fantasy hero, most of whom don't seem to feel fear at all (or if they do it's just a kind of nervousness). Sam is genuinely terrified of death, to the point where he has awful physical symptoms. I like his unexpected talent, and would like to see more of it and how it works (in another book maybe pleeeeease?).

Looking forward to finishing this tonight and moving on to "Abhorsen".

Warden threw a party in the county jail...

Lockdown: Escape from Furnace by Alexander Gordon Smith (NEW READ) (YA, dystopian, adventure)
  I love a good prison story, and this one definitely has interesting elements. Alex is running a string of burglaries when he and his best friend are caught in the act, and Alex is framed for murder. Once caught, Alex is sentenced to life in the infamous prison "Furnace". Furnace houses only teens, created especially for that purpose after a summer of shocking gang murders several years earlier. Not only is Furnace unusual in that it is almost completely underground, there are also huge freaky guards, monster dogs and machine guns. Worst of all are the men in gas masks who take you away in the middle of the night...
  While the writing in this book didn't really grab me, the situations the story portrayed felt very real. Furnace is a little like junior high: try not to cross authority figures, avoid the Crazy kids who are Trouble, make a decent showing but don't come off like you're looking for a fight. It's a complicated social structure, and I like how the reader gets to struggle along with Alex about the choices he makes. I enjoyed the scifi elements like the dogs and men in gas masks- can't wait to find out what the story is there, though a big hint is dropped near the end of the book.
  All in all a fast read, not particularly deep but an interesting and intense beach book.

Lovin' those secondary characters

The Incredible Hercules: World War Hulk (NEW READ) (comics, superheroes)
I didn't read this to catch up with Hulk so much as to find out what was going on with Amadeus Cho. Punk mastermind hacker hanging out with an Olympian Demi-God? Yes please! So in this comic stuff blew up, Amadeus outsmarted everyone and believed in the Hulk (cuz friends! Hell yeah!) and in the end no one was really all that happy. But since that leads to Herc and Amadeus on the road having crazy adventures in later issues I'm totally fine with that. For more reasons on why this character is so awesome, see The 7 Most Brilliant Moments of Amadeus Cho.
Now I've gotta check out his Prince of Power miniseries!

Monday Holiday Reading

"Magic Mourns" from "Must Love Hellhounds" by Ilona Andrews (NEW READ) (urban paranormal)
A cute story about how Andrea and Raphael finally got together- and fought Cerebus a few times. I liked that it was from Andrea's point of view- it's fun to see how well-rounded and distinctive the other characters in the cast are.

"Veil of Night" by Linda Howard (NEW READ) (romantic suspense)
Light suspense / romance. The romance was not happening for most of the book, and you could tell who the villain was early on, but I still enjoyed this as a quick read. I liked that the one night stand stayed that way and didn't immediately turn into true love. Bridezilla getting hers was the most satisfying part of the book. >:)

Day off reading

Fell into a bit of a lull this week, but yesterday when I found out the new Kresley Cole was out I blazed through it and another title I had half finished.


Demon From the Dark by Kresley Cole (NEW READ) (paranormal romance)
   I enjoyed this book more than the last one in the series (Pleasure of a Dark Prince), but I think that is because PoaDP took place in the past timeline-wise, so I felt like we were retreading territory we had already seen. I'm also still trying to work out how well the events tied into the established canon.
   DftD takes place after the events of previous books and avoids this problem. Carrow, the witchy best friend of Mariketa (book 3 heroine) has been captured by a mysterious organization bent on studying and eliminating immortals. Since the last book ended on a cliffhanger with quite a few characters (strangely all single...) being kidnapped, here we get to see how they are faring in captivity. Carrow learns she is now the guardian of a young witch before being sent on a mission to capture an incredibly powerful vampire/demon (vemon!) Of course this leads to destiny and sexytimes.
   I liked how the book had several distinct sections, and didn't just end where I thought it would- it carried on into a full jailbreak/war that I can't wait to read about in the next book. On the other hand I was a little uncomfortable with how the characters used sex to manipulate each other (especially emotionally). Some of their fights were pretty cold, and I wished they had talked things out a bit sooner. I like that there is a big reveal scene where everyone's feelings get out in the open, but at the same time I wish it wasn't necessary and thought it was strange that that was all it took for their problems to be solved.
   Overall, I enjoyed the plot, didn't enjoy some of the sexual politics as much but love the wide variety of characters present in the world. ALSO, this is the first Kresley Cole where I found myself correcting the grammar. I am not that great with editing and grammar, but I still picked out some clauses that need to be flipped and have their commas removed. Hopefully this is not a sign of declining quality.



Iron Daughter by Julie Kagawa (NEW READ) (YA, fantasy, romance)
   Meghan Chase has rescued her little brother from Faerie and killed the Iron King, but now she is bound to return to the Winter Court with hot hot faerie prince Ash. The Winter Court isn't a friendly place for a half human/ half Summer fey, and when Meghan is framed in a horrible crime she realizes that the Iron Fey are on the move again.
   I was happy to see Ironhorse return in this book: It's a horse! Made of metal! I want one! Grimalkin and Puck all come back to join in the adventure. There's quite a bit of slow bits followed by ACTION ACTION ACTION, which made it easier to get stuck on the down parts. I found the love triangle one of the slow areas, just because it was obvious she had already made up her mind and was just stringing things along in an effort to be nice.
   Iron Fey are based in Silicon Valley- perfect! I do wonder if all the Iron Fey are evil. The other fey all hate them, but they can't really help what they are. Meghan seems SO SLOW to realize what is going on with her Fey powers, and only Ironhorse had figured it out by the end of the book. I can't tell if they are willfully ignoring *SPOILER* but it left me seriously questioning the intelligence of the characters (and wondering what the author thought of me the reader, dropping such BROAD HINTS and then not mentioning them).
   I'll still give the next book a go, since I want to know more about the Iron Fey- those computer nerds sound like my kind of magic.

Mine Till Midnight

Worked late last night but finished off my day by reading:

Mine Till Midnight by Lisa Kleypas (REREAD) (romance)
I almost always enjoy Lisa Kleypas, but this book employed one of the romance book standards I don't really care for- the instant "I want that person and don't know why" on the part of the guy. I mean REALLY? You have no idea? Is it because she's hot? Because she's a classy lady? Because she's an intelligent and family-focused woman? Pick a reason, it would be more realistic than this befuddlement!

Despite the not-so-beloved trope use the rest of the book was very enjoyable. The heroine's family are all eccentric in their own ways, and there is especially some character development in the case of the second sister Win (heroine of the next book) and Leo, the older brother also had his own character arc. Not sure that I like this series as much as "The Wallflowers" but it is still one of my picks for historical romance.

Mary Roach!

Supa-kawaii

Mary Roach came to our library! I got to have dinner with her and she is super nice! We talked about stuff like Piranha 3D, Dolly Parton and all kinds of random things. She spent time with everyone who wanted a book signed and at the end of the event I got to shock her when I told her that Fabio had been hit in the face with a goose while riding a rollercoaster (she's met Fabio!). She didn't believe me, so I got photographic evidence off the internets (not too hard to find).

Sick Day Reading

I spent Monday home with a stomach bug, so I read quite a bit:

The Twelve Kingdoms: Skies of Dawn by Fuyumi Ono (REREAD) (YA, fantasy, epic)
This is some of my favorite Twelve Kingdoms material. There are more characters than in the first arcs which can make it confusing, but I love how all the viewpoint characters in this series start out as horrible people and personal journey themselves into awesomeness. The introductory sections can drag a bit but the coup against corrupt officials is super-exciting (especially once you know who is taking part in it). I'm not usually a shipper, but I'm all for Shoukei x Kantai like woah. She's a former princess! He's a general who's sometimes a bear! Together they're all about piggyback rides and doing the dishes together, awww.

Magic Strikes by Ilona Andrews (REREAD) (urban paranormal)
This series is a cure for all the overpowered, hyper-sexy paranormal romance heroines out there. Yes, Kate is powerful, but she gets hurt an awful lot, sometimes doing stupid things. The worldbuilding and magic are well thought out, and there are plenty of interesting secondary characters.


Magic Bleeds by Ilona Andrews (REREAD) (urban paranormal)
Read two in a row, just because I had the time and could. :P

Tudors in the Privy

Henry VIII, non-sexy flavor

(REREAD) Henry VIII: The King and His Court by Alison Weir
   I'll admit to keeping a book in the bathroom just in case, but I'm not camping out in there like a guy. The ideal bathroom book has to be something that you can pick up and put down at anytime and still be entertained, and this 600+ page biography fits the bill. Filled not just with the facts of Henry's life, it also covers what life was like for those at the royal court. Some of my favorite details were things like the rules the had to set down for behavior: No peeing on the floor, No drawing a penis on the wall. The more things change, huh?

   It's also interesting to see how overwhelmingly positive people were at the start of Henry's reign and how as he aged they became less optimistic. Henry was pretty much like the second coming until he started divorcing queens and breaking with the church. There's some nice coverage of all the palaces built during his reign, though not all of them have survived to the present day. This is a book to reread whenever you feel like going back in time to learn about a different way of life.

Read a Comic in Public Day

Reading "Saint Young Men," a totally cracked out manga. Jesus and Buddha are living as 20-something roommates in Tokyo- watch as they visit Disneyland, go the pool and more!

Ohisashiburi

Felt like blogging and remembered this was here.

Read this week:

(REREAD)  Emissaries from the Dead by Adam-Troy Castro. I had forgotten how violent the opening to the book is, but I enjoyed revisiting the huge artificial world One One One and its sloth-like inhabitants. Although Andrea has a violent past she doesn't spend too much time either angsting over it or excusing herself due to circumstances. I'd like to know more about how the universe operates, and see a wider variety of people who are working in indentured servitude.

(NEW READ) I also read Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins, but don't want to say too much to avoid spoilers. In the end I felt that any character that DID NOT come out of the book with horrible PTSD was a bad person. When I finished I was actually shaking, not sure if it was the book or the one session reading I gave it.

On the radar:

Scandal by Carolyn Jewel -  Need to finish this one. Heard about it when people started muttering that it should have won the RITA for best historical. That seemed unusual in the romance communities I frequent (where most people try to avoid acting like dicks) so I figured this book must have been really something. Enjoying it so far, just put it down for other things.

Grass by Sheri S. Tepper - SST's book often come across as way to didactic for me, but I keep returning to Grass. I love the setting so much, even the crazy giant church that runs the Earth (where the important stuff is in the basement and the peons all live in the soaring architectural towers). Grass just takes me away to another place.