October rolled in the fall, cooling temperatures outside down, while also slowing the frequent storms of the late summer. Unfortunately that meant that I was outside more often enjoying friends, family and other activities more so then attempting to read. I also back tracked and re-read two books I've read before, partly due to some of the novels I was attempting, being rather annoying, and partly because sometimes you just need a comfortable easy read.
Even so, I was able to read five new novels this month.
Bitterwood - James Maxey - First book of the Dragon Age series, it's about a fantasy world, where Dragon's are as smart as humans, and thus rule them in a feudal manner. It's also science fiction, in that it takes place over a thousand years in our future. It was a very enjoyable novel, pacing itself well, edited well, with a very unique idea and story at it's core. One thing I also liked, is that unlike other first books in a trilogy it didn't shorten itself, nor force you to pick up the next book. That is, it was written as if it was the first and the last, and could be enjoyed all on it's own. I'm still going to pick up the next two as it was that enjoyable, but I feel like I can read them on my own merit because of how complete this first novel is. [Cost 3.00; Rated 7.00]
Cold Warriors - Clare Dargin - Digging through my archives, I came across this Sci-Fi Romance novel. Taking place an indeterminate and short time in the future, it's able people who were frozen at the time of death, the resurrected. But the word their are resurrected into, treats them as second class citizens, only good for fodder in an interstellar war. To begin with, either my copy was a very rough first draft, or the author needs an editor. I'll give the benefit of the doubt, as currently the book is unavailable for sale, although it was initially available via Amazon in 2008. Secondly, the whole second class citizen thing, doesn't quite make sense, as why would a society who detests people who are frozen, even bother reviving them in the first place? They don't treat them as even worth it, so why bother? The idea was just inconsistent, and it was a rather hard read to get through. [Cost 2.00; Rated 1.00]
A Modern Witch - Debora Geary - A (fictional) take on what real witchcraft is, in history and modern times. The novel is first of a series (and currently a spin-off series as well) about witchcraft as told through a modern lens. The problem is, the novel itself is just one giant infodump. There is a plot, and kind of a climax, but what there is doesn't feel pressing, nor very profound. The novel is really a feel good piece of fluff, designed to tell you what witchcraft really is. Admittedly the writing was smooth, but it's definitely a niche type audience. [Cost 4.00; Rated 2.00]
How to Ditch Your Fairy - Justine Larbalestier - A young adult book, this book could have also been titled "How to Ditch Your Superpower". In this city, almost everyone has a personal fairy, one that can't see, that grants them a power, such as Finding Lost Change, or Always Getting the Best Parking Spot. Yet some of the people, such as our Heroine, intensely dislike their Fairy and really want a different one. But how can you get rid of something you can't see, and if you do get rid of it, what happens when you get a new one, that's even worse? Although I'm not the core audience this book is geared toward, I did find it an enjoyable read none the less. Admittedly, I would mostly recommend this to teen girls, or women who enjoy Young Adult novels, I'd still give it good marks, for it does tell a story about looking beneath other's covers, and that the grass is not always greener on the other side. [Cost 4.80; Rated 5.00]
The Highest Frontier - Joan Slonczewski - It's the future, and the Earth is doomed! Okay, not quite doomed just yet but very close to it, with global warming into overdrive Antarctica is the new farming belt. Nano-technology has made things very modular, but still it requires energy. Humanity isn't quite living in orbit yet, but at least one of the Habitats has a College, and a possibly alien roommate. But when you are the grand-daughter of a very famous president, and essentially their clone, how would you respond to your Freshmen year? A quite hard SF novel, The Highest Frontier is typical in that it's kind of hard to get into. Complex from the start, it's infodumps small and relatively sparse, if really infodumps at all, it does take a bit to get into. In the same vein however, it's complex universe does make for a very interesting place to read about, enough so that when the tipping point of understanding is reached, it becomes a much faster and enjoyable read. I'd tentatively classify it as a Late Young Adult, it's still a rather large and good novel. [Cost 13.00; Rated 10.00]
I also started and stopped a number of novels. Not because they were horrible, horrible books, but often it was because they were complex enough, that they were really slow to read, and I hadn't reached a tipping point of understanding by the time I wanted to really read something. Also often I will go back and read them again at a later point, but if I force myself, it feels like work.
Novels also read in October, but not finished:
The Clockwork Rocket - Greg Egan
No Shoes, No Shirt, No Spells - Rose Pressely
God's War - Kameron Hurley
Coming Up:
Reamde - Neal Stephenson (I promise this time!)