The Invisibles by Francis Gideon Now Available on Amazon

The Invisibles by Francis Gideon - a short story of life and romance between teenage boy Mike and his new friend Johnny, is now available on Amazon. You can see my full review here.

I really enjoyed this book - it was sweet, well-written, and thoughtful. If it looks like your kind of thing, then give it a try.

Full Disclosure: I am an Amazon Associate and will receive a small commission should you choose to use any of my links to make a purchase. I received a free digital review copy of the 'The Invisibles' from the publishers, via NetGalley, in return for an honest and fair review.


                                                

Buy Now UK - Buy Now USA - Goodreads – Author's Site

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Review Time! - Dead Ice by Laurell K Hamilton

Title: Dead Ice.

Author: Laurell K Hamilton.

Genre: Paranormal, Urban Fantasy, Zombies, Vampires, Crime, LGBTQIAP+ and Polyamorous

Series: Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter (#24.)

Amazon: UK - USA.

A few starting notes:

I received a free paperback review copy of this book from the UK publisher, Headline, in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This is #24 in the series - I know, it's a big series. I'd read a few before, and really enjoyed them, but haven't read all of them, and certainly not in order.

Dead Ice can be read as standalone with very little problem, but there are a few spoilers for previous events in the series, so be aware of that if you want to read this book as standalone. 

As usual, the level of spoilerage in this review won't go beyond what's in the blurb of the book.

Premise:

US marshal, zombie animator, and legal vampire executioner, Anita Blake, is on the trail of someone making zombie porn.

That's ick enough in itself, but there's something different about these zombies... zombies shouldn't be capable of fear.

If that wasn't enough, Anita also has wedding plans to deal with, and relationships - both personal and political - to juggle as well. Things are going to get interesting.

Best bits:

I love the frenetic energy of these books - things happen in a whirlwind of personal, professional, fur (there are wereanimals,) and fangs.

Anita's sarcasm and exasperation are, quite simply, awesome. And she's pretty kick-ass in general.

This series is pretty much the pinnacle of urban fantasy (and I do love me some urban fantasy - what with all the paranormal faffing around cities and everything...) and this instalment does justice to Hamilton's reputation as the queen of this genre.

The plot here is involving enough to keep you reading - keeping the right mix of Anita's personal and professional lives with the promise of a criminal case leading through it all.

Strangely, this book is also pretty emotionally healthy. Nope, I mean it.

Sure, bad stuff happens, a lot, and everyone is slightly broken because of it (of course,) but Anita and her household work pretty damned hard to make sure everyone is open, and no-one ignores what they're feeling. Nice and refreshing in any book.

Not so great bits:

Not everyone is going to be happy with the references (though no graphic scenes,) to BDSM.

There are also explicit sex scenes, including with wereanimals, which ultimately aren't going to be to everyone's taste. They are however handled about as tastefully as you could reasonably expect of explicit sex scenes.

There's a lot of characters here - which can get a little confusing when you're trying to remember who said what with who. But overall, it's not too difficult to regain your bearings.

Some of the LGBTQIAP+ representation - especially regarding intersex people - might be a bit off; though there is so much going on here that it's difficult to fully define that. Overall though, just having this amount of LGBTQIAP+ rep in a book is great.

Verdict:

An enjoyable instalment in a tried-and-tested urban fantasy series, showing that Ms Hamilton has enough in reserve to keep the involving plots and intrigues going for quite a while yet.

Buy Now UK - Buy Now USA - Goodreads - Author's Site

Amended 29th October 2016

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Review! (Yaaaay!) - The Invisibles by Francis Gideon

Title: The Invisibles.

Author: Francis Gideon.

Genre: YA, Romance (M/M), Contemporary, LGBTQ+.

Release Date: Jan 6 2016.

Amazon: UK - USA.

A few starting notes:

I received a free digital review copy of this book via NetGalley. NetGalley provides review copies from publishers (in this case +Less Than Three Press, LLC ) in exchange for fair and honest reviews.

I didn't really have any expectations of this short story - never heard of it, never heard of the author. I picked it solely on the premise, because it seemed quite interesting.

Premise:

Mike is the new kid in school. No one suspects that the 9th of September, 2001, will be anything but another day.

In the chaos that hits the whole country when the towers fall, Mike slips out of school with Ray and Johnny - and they bond over movies and comic books.

Against a backdrop of comics and friendship, Mike starts to wonder if Johnny has his own secret identity... and if it's an identity he's willing to share.

Best bits:

This is a really sweet (but luckily not overly sweet,) story - capturing perfectly the awkwardness of teen identity, friendship, and romance.

The awkwardness never gets cringe-y, and remains cute but not patronising. To be honest, achieving this balance is pretty damned difficult to achieve, and I was impressed by the level of skill that Francis Gideon uses to pull it off.

I also love the comic-book language that the boys use to converse, and to make their way through life.

Of course, being a total nerd, and knowing that comics are more than just comics, I would delight in these bits - but I'm pretty sure non-comics-savvy-folk would understand enough to not be left in the dark.

Not so great bits:

Some people may not be too happy about the references to porn, but there's nothing graphic sex-wise here. There is some swearing, which won't be to everyone's taste.

Occasionally, there is an awkwardness to some of the prose - maybe the syntax (order of the words - check me out with my technical terms and my smarticalness!) is a bit off in places. It's not a big problem, but it's a little jarring when reading.

To me, the 9/11 fixation seemed a little much, but then I was very small and living in South Wales at the time, so wouldn't know to what extent it affected everyday life in the USA.

Verdict:

This is a sweet and well-written romance with an excellent depiction of the awkwardness of teenage social life, and the uncertainties of love and identity.

It flows really well, and will melt some of the most frozen of hearts.

Buy Now UK - Buy Now USA - Goodreads – Author's Site

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Review Time! - Dark Hope by Monica McGurk

Title: Dark Hope.

Author: Monica McGurk .

Genre: YA, Paranormal, Angels.

Series: Archangel Prophecies (#1.)

Amazon: UK - USA.

A few starting notes:

I received a free digital review copy of this book via NetGalley. NetGalley provides review copies from publishers in exchange for fair and honest reviews.

 

It's strange isn't it, just how many angel books are set in the Southern states of the USA? Still, this seemed interesting, so I decided to give it a shot.

Premise:

When Hope was a small child, she was abducted.

 

Miraculously unharmed, she was left with only a strange tattoo-like mark on her neck as a reminder of that day. Well, that and the effect the whole thing had on her parents of course.

 

Now little Hopie is a teenager - trying to forget about the past and forge a new life for herself in a new school.

 

But there are things that Hope doesn't realise - things which will drag her into a world of angels and Fallen Ones.

Best bits:

The focus on human trafficking involved here was not only bold, but also carefully handled. Nothing is explicit, the implications tell the tale for you.

 

Working with such a sensitive topic - and actually becoming involved in anti-trafficking work, as McGurk has done - is hugely admirable, and hopefully McGurk's work will help to make a difference.

 

I found the last third of this book the most readable and the most involving - this is the portion, at least as far as I'm concerned, where McGurk gains some confidence and begins to truly carry the reader along in the plot. Credit where credit is due, it's a good plot.

 

It's in this last portion of the book where Hope's parents really come to the fore. Parents? Being useful? Actually doing something? In YA fiction? I know! It was nicely refreshing, I have to say.

Not so great bits:

The religious stuff isn't going to be everyone's cup of tea - but then, it's an angel book, inclusion of religious-y things is almost a pre-requisite.

 

The violence, the implied sexual abuse, and the general topics of trafficking and abduction, as well as other, less prominent issues, may be distressing to some readers.

 

I did have some trouble really getting into this book - but that may just have been me, rather than the book.

 

What bugged me was the stupid decisions. McGurk used to write Twilight fanfiction, and seems to have borrowed a couple of Bella's stupid pills to give to Hope - stupid decisions, I'm telling you.

 

Luckily, this is fictional - but this is not a healthy way to conduct a relationship. Never let yourself be treated like this - please.

Verdict:

Fans of angel books will be happy with this offering. True, there are some problems, but it's competent and shows some promise; authors brave enough to take on sensitive topics in compassionate yet realistic ways are always worthy of praise.

Buy Now UK – Buy Now USA – Goodreads – Author's Site

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Coming Soon - Popcorn Reviews

...No, I don't mean reviewing popcorn (shush, you silly people,) I mean film reviews.

"What? But C R, surely you can't mean that? Films aren't books!"

Yes, I'm aware of that - but here's the selling point my dearest friends, readers, and randomers who've just stumbled on my blog by accident (don't leave! I love you!) - I'm planning on writing my Popcorn Reviews on book-to-film adaptations (and other book-related fare.)

Keep your little eyes peeled my dears, hopefully there will be a Popcorn Review with you very, very soon.

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I Got Ninety-Nine Problems, and Sonja Ain't One

You know me, yeah? The bookish rebel with a penchant for all things nerdy.

I appreciate a good graphic novel. I don't even mind the odd naked lady (I have little shame left at this point.) So when I'm complaining about over-sexualisation, it's for a reason.

What am I blathering on about? Well my erstwhile readers, as a measure of how well, or not so well, my blog is doing, I sometimes Google it. (I know, I know, but really - the search engine is right there and it's not like I'm googling my name; it's for research... *hoping you believe that.)

So, I'm there, googling away, and come across a link to my Red Sonja: Black Tower review on a Facebook group. And at first I'm like, yay! Someone knows I exist! And then I read the first comment...



 

I was like... hang on, did this guy just completely dismiss my opinions... purely on the grounds that I'm a young woman?

 

And did this guy even read my review?

 

Firstly, it was the degradation involved, not the realism. If I wanted to criticise realism, then the mad as a box of frogs storyline would've been in the firing line... though as I mentioned in the review, I was kind of loving the bonkers aspects.

 

Also, I think my problem was more with the lack of outfit, rather than the outfit itself. But eh, potato/potahto. If you want to ramble on about bikinis then don't let me stop you (am I bovvered? - sorry, Catherine Tate moment.)

 

Last time I checked, strange though it may seem, characters were an integral part of story; funny that. Therefore, anything that bugs me enough to move me to write about it, is fair game my dears. Otherwise it would be dishonest. And I don't do that.

 

'Why state the obvious?' he asks. Because I don't like what that obvious implies - that Sonja needs to be nearly naked, butt and boobs to the wind, in order to be popular, powerful, successful, and worth-while. That somehow all her other qualities aren't enough.

 

I really love Sonja. She herself is not my problem. It's people who can't see past the bikini, and never draw her in actual clothing, that annoy me.

 

And despite the flaws, I do like the book. Strange that, a 'female reader' - who clearly could never be the target audience of anything and therefore has no relevant opinions *rolls eyes sarcastically* - liking a graphic novel, and having things she both likes and dislikes about it.

 

It's almost as if I had a mind of my own or something... but maybe I'm just confused. I thought I was 20-something, not 20. You might not think the 'something' matters, but as someone who gets ID'd for things all the damned time, it kind of matters to me. Personal niggle that.

 

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Why I Don't Provide a 'Star' Rating

You may or may not have noticed, if you've read any of my reviews previously, that I don't provide star ratings, or a rating system of any kind.

I know a lot of people do provide some sort of numerical rating. And good on them, if that's the way they like to review them I'm not going to argue.

So what's the point of this post then? Well, just to give you a little insight into why I choose not to provide ratings.

I'm a hard-ass

When I'm using sites or systems where I have to provide some sort of star rating, I absolutely hate it. Because I feel like the way that I rate things using a number value doesn't actually give a fair judgement on a book.

Putting it plainly, I'm a hard-ass; I will give the vast majority of books 3/5, just because I think that pretty much everything is average. (That's what makes it average, isn't it? The fact that it's on a par with the majority of other things? ...See? I'm a hard-ass.)

I'm hesitant to give pretty much anything four or five stars. And I probably give a lot of things four stars which, to most reviewers, would be given an automatic five.

One reviewer's trash...

We're all different. What I get out of a book and what you get may be two completely different entities.

How is anybody then supposed to provide a useful review? Well, I try to point out the good points, and the bad points, and leave it up to you whether to give that book a chance.

If I gave a book only 1 star, I may put you off something you would really enjoy, whereas if I point out the things I thought were good and not-so-good, you're more likely to come to an informed decision.

Couldn't I do both? Well, yes, but that rating would still be there, in the back of your head, influencing your perceptions. And I don't want to dictate what you're allowed to enjoy.

Wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey things

Maybe it's just me and my inconsistency, but my view of books tends to change as time goes on.

Sometimes this is because of re-reading something and getting a different experience from it, and sometimes it's just me being fickle; but I may one day find myself in the position of disagreeing with my own rating assessment of a book. And that would just make me feel guilty for no reason. (Which is bad... just saying.)

Every book has an audience somewhere

If I didn't like something, it doesn't mean it was bad - just that it wasn't my thing.

Read what you want, and don't let the shamers get you down!


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