Danse Macabre, by Laurell K. Hamilton

Originally published on Chapters.ca here.

*SIGH*
Reviewer:Bibi from Toronto
Date:13/07/2006 1:12:21 PM

This book was *not* good. I have been a long-time fan of the Anita Blake series -- I even enjoyed Micah for the kind of book it was. But Danse Macabre was ... bad. If you feel compelled to read it for the sake of loyalty and continuity, by all means go for it. But do yourself a favour and borrow it from the library instead of wasting money on the hardcover. Sure, ok, there is at least one hot sex scene in this book. And? If that was all I was looking for from a Laurell K. Hamilton book, I would have bought something from the Merry Gentry series. There is no mystery plotline. The conflict(s) feel contrived. The author frequently tells the reader what a character is thinking or feeling rather than showing us -- one of the fundamental no-no's of good writing. This book was so tedious that I literally skipped paragraphs, even pages. I got within the last 3 pages of the end of the book and couldn't be bothered to finish it for days. Maybe Ms. Hamilton has gotten bored of her characters, or of this series. If so, she needs to either take a break or do something else. Me, I'm getting her next book from the library and looking into other fine authors in this genre again.

Every Which Way But Dead, by Kim Harrison

Review originally published on Chapters.ca here.

Favourite book in the series!
Reviewer:Bibi from Toronto
Date:06/06/2006 9:16:01 PM

I love this series. But this particular book, for some reason, is the one I pick up and re-read whenever I'm between gripping novels.

Good action, emotional layers, and it fleshes out the relationships between the characters -- in more ways than one! ;-)

It does not work as a stand-alone; you have to have read Dead Witch Walking and The Good, The Bad and The Undead to know what's going on. Frankly, every so often I go on a binge and read all three again. The main character, Rachel, kicks butt. She can take care of herself even as she allows herself to lean on those around her.

In this book, her powers expand even further and she deals with the ramifications of this. Trent becomes a more sympathetic character as we get to know him better, as does Quen ... and Kisten. If you enjoy entertainment like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake series (before the last few releases), Kelley Armstrong and Charlaine Harris ... you'll want to check out this book -- and the ones that came before it.

Anansi Brothers, by Neil Gaiman
Part 1

Strangely enough, I'm starting off this blog with a book not exactly in the genre I tend to read. It's got magic, it's got folklore. Too early to tell whether or not I like it yet.

So far, it's got that casual and third-person-removed feeling to it with a main character who isn't automatically likeable. His nickname is "Fat Charlie", he has a job he doesn't really enjoy but can't aspire to much more, his mother has died, his father is an embarassment.

I'm about 30-50 pages into the book, and it started to get more interesting on the subway ride down to work this morning.

More to follow.