The Blue Fairy's Bookshelf

Fearless Defenders Volume 1: Doom Maidens Cullen Bunn, Will Sliney, 2013 Premise: Collects Fearless Defenders #1-6 . Valkyrie has a problem. Since the troubles that Asgard has been having (it’s super complicated, but you don’t need to know the details to read this title), she was supposed to put together a new cadre of Shield-maidens to replace other vanished valkyries. She hasn’t exactly done that, and now an ancient team of death warriors are rising from their graves to correct the balance. Valkyrie and Misty Knight might need all the ladies of Marvel to get on board to save Earth from the Doom Maidens. This was really fun to read. The writing is really strong, the dialogue is snappy without being gimmicky, and the art only occasionally strays too far into cheesecake territory. It’s a great showcase book for a bunch of somewhat lesser-known Marvel superheroines. Valkyrie is the one I knew best, from a few issues here and there of various events and team books she appeared ...

A Yuletide Universe: Sixteen Fantastical Tales Editor: Brian M. Thomsen, 2003 Crossposted to Mainlining Christmas Hooray! Despite opening with an epigraph/poem that made me cringe (it started out rhyming, and then… stopped?) this was a much better collection of holiday cheer than the others I've read this year. My favorite stories are starred( * ). The collection opens with three super-short pieces: “Nicholas Was . . .” by Neil Gaiman, 1989 “Cyber-Claus” by William Gibson, 1991 * “Holiday” by Richard Christian Matheson, 1982 The Gaiman and Gibson are brief and forgettable, but the Matheson (this Matheson is the son of the more famous author) is a nice, subtle piece about a guy who runs into Santa on holiday in the tropics. “Nackles” by Donald E. Westlake, 1964 Westlake is mostly a crime fiction author, and this little spooky story about the creative power of belief is well done, if not (in 2013) particularly original. “Santa Claus vs. S.P.I.D.E.R.” by Harlan E...

The Knights of Christmas Suzanne Barclay, Margaret Moore, Deborah Simmons, 1997 Crossposted to Mainlining Christmas Yup, it’s officially a theme. MORE SHORT STORIES. These ones are a little more like novellas, though. This is a Harlequin Historical compilation, three short works set at Christmas. I thought it might be a somewhat entertaining read: a bit of fluffy medieval holiday romance. Well, I was right, sort of, in that it was fluffy (in a shallow way) and medieval (in its uneasy gender roles). The first story, Kara’s Gift , was the one I actually liked. It has in common with its sibling stories awkward and somewhat off-putting description in the sex scenes, but the characters are at least likable, the story super-cliche but amusing. Duncan is a landless knight, back from the crusades with enough treasure to wed his childhood sweetheart, but instead he’s swept up in a Scottish clan-war and a wild-hearted pagan lass. It’s actually kind of sweet by the end, and the romanc...

Miracle and Other Christmas Stories Connie Willis, 1979 Crossposted to Mainlining Christmas Awww, man! More disappointing Christmas stories. I went into this one with high hopes, because Willis’ story “Pony” was one of my favorites in Christmas on Ganymede . Unfortunately, it was one of my favorites here, too. It starts strong, with an introduction that was worth borrowing the book from the library for, just for the snark about Hans Christian *overrated hack* Andersen and the list of other recommended stories and movies, some of which weren’t on our radar yet! Sure, she thinks The/A Christmas Story is actually quality, and that's just wrong, whether you’re talking about the myth as literature or the movie as cinema (she likes both). But Willis is a Hugo winner! Surely, there are some good genre stories in here, right? Sort of. Lets run through the contents, shall we? “Miracle” Starts strong, woman receives visit from accidentally conjured hippy Spirit of Christma...

The Ice Harvest Scott Phillips, 2000 Crossposted to Mainlining Christmas Premise: Charlie Arglist is making the rounds on Christmas Eve, 1979: the bars he likes, the strip joint he runs and the one that he patronizes. He’s not telling anyone that he’s leaving town in the morning. Charlie’s not having a good night. I didn’t like the movie of this as much as Erin did, but I did really enjoy the book. It’s got a bleak humor that places it firmly in the best noir tradition. Charlie’s a lawyer, and he works in the machinery of the mob that runs much of the town, managing businesses like porn shops and the Tease-O-Rama. He’s skipping town in the morning. That’s all you know at the start of the book, and I really liked the slow build. The movie hits you right at the start with Charlie’s partnership with Vic, and why and how they plan to leave town, but for fully half of the book, all you know is that Charlie’s leaving, and he has to meet Vic at two. The book takes place over le...

Christmas on Ganymede and Other Stories Edited by Martin H Greenberg, 1990 Crossposted to Mainlining Christmas I was so excited when I found this book! A collection of sci-fi themed Christmas stories, just the thing to break up the Christmas monotony, right? Now I know why I kept finding copies of it for a dollar. It’s not all bad, there are some stories I liked, but most of the authors are phoning it in here. It’s like everyone had one mediocre holiday story in them, and instead of reading it in a collection of other good stories on other topics or other good stories by the same author, it’s bundled with every other author’s one mediocre story. But let’s be more specific, shall we? “To Hell with the Stars” Jack McDevitt, 1987 To hell with your pessimistic cliche attitude, Mr. McDevitt, warp drive might still be possible - 1 Star “A Midwinter's Tale” Michael Swanwick, 1988 A nicely creepy Solstice tale, well done - 4 Stars “Christmas on Ganymede” Isaac Asimo...

Cocaine Blues Kerry Greenwood, 1989 Premise: When Colonel and Mrs. Andrews ask Phryne Fisher to check in on their daughter, who they fear is in danger from her husband, she takes the opportunity to try her hand at being a Lady Detective. It's 1927, and Phryne may have found her calling. Oh, I love finding a new series to enjoy. I heard about this series because someone recommended the new television adaptation (now on Netflix!). I found it a quick and delightful read. Phryne is pragmatic in all things, including matters of the heart. She's multitalented and possibly an example of a female “hero”. By this I mean a Holmes, a Bond. One of those characters, sadly almost universally men, who can be practically perfect in every way, yet never are accused of being uninteresting. (I hope you are now picturing Batman dressed as Mary Poppins. If you weren’t before, you’re welcome.) The book is full of interesting characters, mostly women, and archly humorous turns of phrase. ...

Catwoman Volume 2: No Easy Way Down Ed Brubaker, Cameron Stewart compilation 2013, original issues 2002-2003 Premise: Follows on from Volume 1. Selina’s made an impression on the Gotham underworld… that’s not always a good thing. She learns the hard way that doing nice things for Gotham City will only get you beaten back down. Collects Catwoman #10-24 and Catwoman: Secret Files and Origins #1. “One thing I’ll never get used to about the past is that it’s never really over...Just when you think that your history is done--locked away, forgotten...It rears its ugly head to remind you that no matter how fast you are, you can never escape yourself.” This thick volume starts off with a couple warm-up one-story issues illuminating aspects of Selina’s personality and technique, then dives into a multi-layered epic tying back to the events of Volume one and other parts of Selina’s history. But don’t worry if you’re new, you’ll pick up all the context you need along the way. The...

The Darwath Trilogy Barbara Hambly The Time of the Dark (1982), The Walls of Air (1983), The Armies of Daylight (1983) Premise: Gil dreams. She dreams of a haunted city, full of people in clothes she doesn’t recognize, not even from her historical scholarship. She dreams of a king, and a wizard and an infant prince. She dreams of the Dark which besieges them. And then the dreams are no longer dreams… It was very odd, reading this after reading Hambly’s later series which starts with The Silent Tower . There are a lot of parallels between the two books. Both focus on a person or persons drawn from California into a fantasy world, who have to learn to survive there and decide what they want to do next, whether it’s get home above all else or help the people where they end up. However, while I wouldn’t read them back-to-back, there are enough differences as well to make both series worth reading. I loved the variety of characters here, the range of plausible perspectives ...

Captain Marvel Volume 2: Down Kelly Sue DeConnick, Christopher Sebela, Dexter Soy, Filipe Andrade, 2012 Premise: Collects Captain Marvel #7-12 . Carol Danvers is still reeling a bit from her time-travel escapades, but she’s ready to help out her friend Monica Rambeau to determine what’s causing ships to go missing off of New Orleans. Later, are her own powers failing her, or is something more complicated going on? I read the first arc of the new Captain Marvel series in issues, and I liked it well enough, but decided to wait for trade for the next part. I’m glad I ended up picking it up, both because it was great to read all at once, and because it’s easier to review and recommend in trade than issues. In this volume, I feel that this book is really hitting its stride. The balance between drama, snark and realism is well-tuned and the character relationships both build on decades of continuity and are easy for me to understand, whether or not I have context. The art isn’t ...

NOS4A2 Joe Hill, 2013 Crossposted to Mainlining Christmas Premise: Victoria “Vic” McQueen has a special talent: she can use her bike and a bridge that isn’t there to find lost things. Unfortunately, Charlie Manx has a talent too. Vic is the only child to escape from Manx’s one-way trip to Christmasland, but it takes more than luck to break an evil man, and every power comes with a price. I thought this book was good, but I’m not sure I actually enjoyed reading it. The tone wasn’t quite my cup of tea, and it needed to be more tightly written. Some positives: Vic herself is a great protagonist. She’s broken and flawed in completely believable and sympathetic ways. She’s brave when she has to be, even if she has to talk herself into it. The talents are interesting. Broadly and only vaguely defined, they hint at much more out of sight. The writing is quite good: the descriptions of the supernatural and creepy as well as the mundane and everyday were evocative and often poign...

The Dispossessed Ursula K. Le Guin, 1974 Hugo Award Winner - 1975 Premise: Shevek is a physicist on the moon Anarres. The followers of Laia Odo fled the planet Urras several generations ago to settle on Anarres, to create a truly free society, without government, where everyone shares in needed work per their skill. Shevek eventually discovers that freedom and choice might be as complicated as any theory of the universe. I put off reviewing this book for a long time, because I wasn’t sure what to say. I’m still not entirely sure. As a story of two different societies and a person trying to survive in each, it succeeds very well. It reminds me a little of The Left Hand of Darkness, because that also took as its main character a man seeking to understand a culture foreign to his own. This moved me less than the former book. However, I think it’s because I personally care much more about perception of gender than political theory. Both Anarres and Urras have problems with the...

The Godborn (Forgotten Realms: The Sundering, Book Two) Paul S Kemp, 2013 New Release! I received an electronic copy of this book via Netgalley for review. Premise: Dungeons and Dragons is coming out with a new edition next year. This series of books (each focused on a different set of characters) take place during the in-world adjustments necessary so that the abilities of the characters in the novels will match the adjustments to the rules of the game. Insert eyeroll here. Okay, remember how I said that the first one of these books wasn’t a good jumping on point? This one is worse. Now, my reaction is probably partially due to the fact that rather than starting with a bit of poorly-remembered background on the characters, I had nothing going into this one. However, these books were not only offered to Netgalley reviewers, they were specially   promoted to them , so it’s Wizards of the Coast’s own PR department’s fault if new readers are reviewing these. This book...

Archer's Goon Diana Wynne Jones, 1984 Premise: Howard's family's life is normal. His dad's a writer, his mom teaches music, he and his sister are in school. One day he comes home to find a Goon in the kitchen, and Howard has to figure out what his dad's arrangement with the town council has to do with all the odd goings-on... This is actually the first book by Diana Wynne Jones I have read, and it was an absolute delight! This has a tone and style reminiscent of my very favorite children's books. The characters are balanced nicely between larger-than-life and sweetly grounded. As more and more of the powers behind the town are revealed, things get complicated and dangerous, but I can't see it being too scary for any but the youngest readers. The style is simply fantastic. Howard's young perspective lends itself to both sly asides on his parents' behavior and matter-of-fact observations on ridiculous events. I think just enough of the supe...

Rendezvous With Rama Arthur C. Clarke, 1973 Hugo Winner - 1974 Premise: First it looked like a spark. Then a comet with an odd trajectory. Once observers realized what the object was, it was almost too late to divert the ship Endeavour to take a closer look. The crew of the Endeavour are in for a truly unique experience. This was delightful. It's one of the ‘hardest’ SF tales to come up in the ranks of the Hugos so far, but Clarke does a brilliant job surrounding the scientific theorizing with human characters and human concerns. I don't think it's much of a spoiler to say that the object designated Rama is a spaceship: source, destination and purpose unknown. The crew have to figure out how to explore the alien structure thoroughly and quickly, because they are unable to alter its course and they must break away by a certain deadline. The captain also has to balance the reality before his eyes against the sometimes-contradictory orders coming from Earth. W...

60 hikes within 60 miles: Seattle Andrew Weber and Bryce Stevens, 2006 This is a very different sort of review for me, but I've probably read this one book more over the past few months than any other. The premise is just what it says on the front: 60 hikes within a hour or two drive from the city. I wanted a book for suggestions for day hikes to do on the weekend, and this fit the bill beautifully. The front of the book has an easily referenced map of all the hikes and a series of great lists to narrow down your search. For example, if you're looking for a short hike with a waterfall, or maybe a less well-known hike with good bird-watching, or a long hike to an overlook, you can quickly cross-reference the lists to get some options. The actual hike descriptions are clear and thorough. They include information about facilities, parking, height gain, distance, the primary features and difficulty are restated here, and there is both a map and a description of the nota...

The Companions (Forgotten Realms: The Sundering, Book One) R.A. Salvatore, 2013 New Release! I received an electronic copy of this book via Netgalley for review. Premise: Dungeons and Dragons is coming out with a new edition next year. This series of books (each focused on a different set of characters) takes place during the in-world adjustments necessary so that the abilities of the characters in the novels will match the adjustments to the rules of the game. Yes, really. Have you ever read a book starring Drizzt Do'Urden? If the answer is no, then stop right here. Do not pass go. Do not read this book. This is a terrible, horrible jumping on point. It made next to no sense to me for large chunks of the story, and I’ve read and enjoyed books with these characters, in this world. There are some small spoilers in this review, because superfans have already pre-ordered their copy, and people with no knowledge have already clicked to something else. So a few more details f...

Morning Glories, Volume 1: For a Better Future Nick Spencer, Joe Eisma, Robin Esquejo, 2011 Premise: Collects issues 1-6. Six teenagers have been accepted into one of the most exclusive prep academies in the country. Morning Glory Academy isn’t an ordinary school, though, and if the new kids want to figure out what’s going on, they’ll have to work fast. First they have to figure out who to trust, if they want to stay alive. I definitely see why Morning Glories made a splash when it first appeared. The first issue throws you into the action, telling you just enough to be creeped out and/or horrified, then introduces the main characters. We get a quick, effective intro to each teenager, then things go south fast when they arrive at Morning Glory Academy. My only problem with this volume is how few answers we get by the end. I like the characters; I like the way they balance between playing into stereotypes and a modern teenage self-conscious self-awareness. The art is wonderf...

Locke & Key: Volume 5: Clockworks Joe Hill, Gabriel Rodriguez, 2012 (issues originally 2011) Premise: Sequel to Keys to the Kingdom . All the players take their places as we hurtle towards the final struggle with Dodge. First though, Kinsey and Tyler will discover one more key, and this one will show them the dark history of Keyhouse, the secrets of their father's past and finally, what the Omega Key does and why Dodge wants it so badly... For an arc that is largely exposition, this was extremely gripping. We finally get many the answers that have been teased the whole time: how all the minor characters fit together and the history and origin of the keys of Keyhouse. Now that I have that history, I want to go back and read the whole thing again from the start, because I'm sure I'll catch new wrinkles and more pieces of the mystery will make sense. I loved how well everything fits together, all these seemingly disconnected bits of magic and history and various...

London Falling Paul Cornell, 2013 (2012 in UK) New Release! I received an egalley of this book from NetGalley for the purpose of review. Premise: Undercover cops Costain and Sefton, along with their Detective boss Quill, have been working this case for a long time. When the bust goes abruptly south, they, along with analyst Lisa Ross, delve deeper. But what they find turns reality on its head and they soon realize that this may involve going after a villain like no-one they’ve ever seen. Paul Cornell is mostly known for writing comics and well-loved episodes of Doctor Who. Here he proved he’s definitely got solid urban fantasy chops as well. I liked this book a lot, although it has a really slow burn. You meet the characters gradually, and it’s a solid police drama for at least the first five chapters or so before anything explicitly supernatural starts happening. Once it does, the pace picks up in a hurry. I eventually liked all the characters, although it took me awhi...

Search For the Star Stones Andre Norton, 2008 (Originally 1968, 19 69) Premise: Originally published as Uncharted Stars and The Zero Stone . When his father died, Murdoc Jern was left with very little. He had an apprenticeship to another gem trader and a ring of unknown material found in deep space. Circumstances and a new friend will cause him to undertake a desperate search for the zero stones; source of power and magnet for violence. This was a re-read for me, I had these books when I was young and they were some of my favorite Andre Norton books I'd read. I still think they're good, although a character who's an alien space cat with psychic abilities is less of an instant draw for me than it once was. Murdoc is a space trader; he's not in the business of cheating others but isn't any sort of paladin, he's just trying to survive. I like how underplayed the friendship between Murdoc and Eet is. Murdoc sometimes resents Eet's high-handed treatm...

The Judas Contract Marv Wolfman, George Perez, 1988 Original Issues released 1983-84 Premise: Collects The New Teen Titans #39, 40, Tales of the Teen Titans #41-44 and Annual #3. One of the most well-known story arcs in the history of the Teen Titans. Tara Markov, known as Terra, joined the team months ago, and has become one of their own. None of the Titans know she’s secretly a double agent. There were aspects of this story that I liked, but overall this was a little too dated and melodramatic. I wish the collection had included more of Terra’s introduction. The book starts when she’s an established member of the team, but right before the reader is let in on her secret. The good: Sketchy-scary-evil Terra is cool in much of the lead-up to the betrayal, and this volume includes the introduction of Dick Grayson’s Nightwing identity, which has some sweet moments. There’s a fun sparring scene between Donna Troy (Wonder Girl) and Koriand'r (Starfire). Raven gets to be bada...

The Gods Themselves Isaac Asimov, 1972 Hugo Winner - 1973 Premise: The Electron Pump is the most revolutionary invention in history, creating free energy through a complicated exchange system with another universe. Only young physicist Lamont begins to believe that the downsides to the Pump might soon outweigh the benefits... This was a great read. It’s divided into three sections, which were originally published as (and still work as) separate but interlinked stories. The first part works the best on its own, and I was actually a little disappointed that the story continued; it has such a great, pointed ending. The second section takes place in the parallel universe, focused on an utterly alien, three-gendered race. This was equally fascinating for completely different reasons. The social structure and norms of the aliens are not completely divorced from human culture, but there are tons of intriguing wrinkles. If you’re not paying attention, you might miss the allusion to...

Locke & Key Volume 4: Keys to the Kingdom Joe Hill, Gabriel Rodriguez, 2011 Premise: Sequel to Crown of Shadows . Life continues to get stranger for the Locke family as Tyler, Kinsey and Bode keep trying to solve the puzzles of Keyhouse, and trying to stay alive as Dodge steps up his pursuit of the Omega Key. Locke and Key continues to be awesome and disturbing by turns as the action ramps up even more. I’m torn on this volume between being happy the pace is picking up and sad that there are so many new adventures and new keys that we’re only getting to see in passing, or in a montage. The power of the keys is starting to influence our heroes in more insidious ways, though, which is interesting. The plot threads are starting to pull further together here, all the minor characters getting lined up for the next act. Each issue in this collection is very different from the last, and each is special. The ending was shocking and amazing and horrifying. So, yeah, par for thi...

To Your Scattered Bodies Go (Riverworld 1) Philip José Farmer, 1971 Hugo Winner - 1972 Premise: Sir Richard Francis Burton saw many things and had many adventures in life. He is rather surprised to continue doing so after death. All of human history has been mysteriously resurrected along the banks of the great River, although no one knows why. This is one of those books where I found the premise really interesting but the execution lackluster. The descriptions of the Riverworld and the juxtaposition of people from different points in history was pretty neat. (Not as neat as in The Big Time , but still.) Burton is an interesting choice as protagonist, a historical person whose life reads like fiction. However, because the narrative so closely follows Burton and his (dated, chauvinistic) attitudes, it has some issues with its female characters. They feel a bit like props used to prove a point when they are present at all. Somewhat oddly, the character of Peter (J) Frigate se...