Book Review: "Slave to Sensation" by Nalini Singh

Slave to Sensation by Nalini Singh
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Ignore the strange pink smoke and the crazy cover - this is not your mother's romance novel.

I admit - I never really read romance or erotica before because every time I tried there was basically no plot, nothing to hold my interest. Then I found Nalini Singh and WHAM! Instant love!

Ms. Singh writes two different series at the moment; "Slave to Sensation" is the first book in her Psy-Changeling series. I love these books because Ms. Singh creates an entire universe populated with believable characters. In this universe, the human race has split into three subgroups: regular humans, Psy, and changelings. The Psy have mental abilities, such as telepathy and foresight. Also, the Psy are all connected to each other through the Psynet. The changelings possess the ability to change into various animals, such as leopards, bears, and wolves.

At the beginning of the novel, you learn that the Psy attempted to remove emotion from their lives about 100 years ago through a protocol known as Silence. The main female protagonist of this story, Sasha Duncan, is a Psy who is about to break her Silence. Breaking Silence means a virtual death, so Sasha tries as hard as she can to fool everyone into thinking she is as Silence as everyone else.

The main male protagonist is Lucas Hunter, the leader of the local leopard pack. He and the changelings are on the warpath, because there is a Psy serial killer on the loose who is hunting changeling women. Someone in Lucas's pack has been murdered, (view spoiler)[and a local woman from the local wolf pack gets kidnapped early on in the book. (hide spoiler)]

Ms. Singh brings together these two people in such a way as to resolve both immediate conflicts, but she sets up a large story arc that has spanned 12 books and multiple novellas. Her next book to be released finally begins a new story arc in this universe.

Overall, I love the characters, the universe, and Ms. Singh's writing style. I never thought I'd say this, but I will be looking forward to more books from her, more romance novels, in the future.

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Book Review: "Lost" by Sarah Prineas

Lost by Sarah Prineas
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

"Lost", the second book in The Magic Thief series, picks up right after the first book ends. Conn is still a wizard, but without his magic loci he cannot do any spells. Feeling lost and empty, Conn attempts to do magic using pyrotechnics - and by "pyrotechnics", I mean explosions.

The action and characters in this book work for me, as the plot moves along at a nice, believable pace. I like how the author keeps everyone true to form, but allows for the characters to change and grow as the story moves forward. I especially like that Conn manages to bother those in charge by being right about matters in which they want him to be wrong.

For those who haven't read the first book, the main portion of "Lost" is written from Conn's point of view. But the author, Sarah Prineas, lets the reader see into other character's heads through letters and diary entries. I like this format, as it gives me a bit more information about what is going on in a believable way.

I recommend The Magic Thief series from both kids who enjoy reading fantasy to adults who don't mind getting books in the Young Adult section of the library.

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Book Review: "The Magic Thief" by Sarah Prineas

The Magic Thief by Sarah Prineas
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Pick up this book and read it!!!!

If you like adventure, read it.
If you like fantasy, read it.
If you like magic, read it.
If you like good characters, read it.
If you like evil characters, read it.

Basically, "The Magic Thief" has it all!

I checked this book out of our local library because I love reading fantasy books with magic in them. I have a few other books that I am reading at the moment, so I didn't give "The Magic Thief" much thought. Then I opened it up and began to read. About 100 pages later, I realized that I hadn't put it down.

Sarah Prineas' writing is deceptively simple, easy to follow, and fun to read. She weaves the words around, giving just enough details for you to see a picture in your head without boring you to death with the color of each flower petal. She weaves more words around and poof! Nicely developed characters, appropriate to their place in the story. She weaves even more words and a plot appears. Sometimes I felt that the bad guys were a bit obviously the bad guys, but so do several characters in the story. So instead of feeling badly written, it felt like the slimy people were clearly slimy to everyone.

As an added bonus, this book works for kids as well as adults. So if you are looking for the next book series to read with your kids, viola!

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Book Review: "Discount Armageddon" by Seanan McGuire

Discount Armageddon by Seanan McGuire
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

"Discount Armageddon" by Seanan McGuire promises a good story - and the story fulfills the promise with gusto. In the beginning of the book, you meet Verity Price, a cryptozoologist with aspirations to be a professional ballroom dancer. The first several chapters vacillate between current action and providing background information for the reader, then it's full steam ahead.

I love how the author, Ms. McGuire, balances suspense and comedy within the story. The Aeslin mice are my favorite supporting cast - I almost wish I had my own splinter colony living in my house.

As for the characters, everyone seemed deep enough for their participation in the story. The only place where I wished for a bit more is the interaction between Dominic and Verity. For solid enemies, it seems like they learn to tolerate each other a bit too quickly. Not that I'd change their story, it just seems too convenient.

I recommend this book to anyone who has a few hours to spare.

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Remembering the Legacy of Ray Bradbury, 1920 - 2012

Ray Bradbury, the man who wrote classic books such as Fahrenheit 451, The Martian Chronicles, and The Illustrated Man, died yesterday in Los Angeles.  

I shed a few tears when I read that this morning. Ray Bradbury was one of the first science fiction authors that I read, introducing me to a genre that influences me to this very day.  

I could ramble on for pages over the insights reading Bradbury books bring to readers, or how even Hollywood loves Ray Bradbury with the making of several books into movies. I could wax eloquently over the evil of burning books, or the destinies which mankind faces, or any of the other topics that Bradbury covers.

But I think that Bradbury himself said it best:

"People ask me to predict the future, when all I want to do is prevent it. "Better yet, build it. Predicting the future is much too easy, anyway. You look at the people around you, the street you stand on, the visible air you breathe, and predict more of the same. To hell with more. I want better."

- Beyond 1984: The People Machines

Here's hoping that we manage to build a better future. Thank you and goodbye, Mr. Bradbury.

Review: "One Right Tricky Bastard" by Craig Sottolano

One Right Tricky Bastard by C. M. Sottolano
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Let me be honest up front - the author for this book, Craig Sottolano, is my cousin. Some people might think I'll be nicer to my cousin, and they are almost right. If he wrote a book that I absolutely hated, I'd just delete it from my Goodreads list and never mention it again.

But I did read the book, and I'm keeping here because I am quite proud of this novel.

"One Right Tricky Bastard" blew my mind. The story begins with a magician, Milo Gives (rhymes with "strives") accidentally getting a phone call meant for someone else. A young girl named Pandora is in trouble, and Milo decides to help her, because he really is just that kind of guy.

The novel is set in a different universe - one with magic, fay, angels (though you don't really see them), spirits, and ghosts. The novel begins with a bang, and maintains a nice, steady pace of action the entire way through. The characters all develop nicely throughout the story - even a few who only appear in the end are more than two-dimensional figures. There are a few surprises, but the story foreshadows most twists so the reader doesn't feel jerked around.

As for the ending, well, Craig managed to create a happy ending that was neither sappy nor perfect. I will say that I had a question from quite early in the story that didn't get answered until the end, but it was worth the wait.

I give "One Right Tricky Bastard" four stars.

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