Changeless by Gail Carriger

 Alexia Tarabotti, the Lady Woolsey, awakens in the wee hours of the mid-afternoon to find her husband, who should be decently asleep like any normal werewolf, yelling at the top of his lungs. Then he disappears – leaving her to deal with a regiment of supernatural soldiers encamped on her doorstep, a plethora of exorcised ghosts, and an angry Queen Victoria. But Alexia is armed with her trusty parasol, the latest fashions, and an arsenal of biting civility. Even when her investigations take her to Scotland, the backwater of ugly waistcoats, she is prepared: upending werewolf pack dynamics as only the soulless can. She might even find time to track down her wayward husband, if she feels like it.

Changeless is the second book in the Parasol Protectorate series, and takes a closer look at the werewolves and Lord Maccon’s past.  Alexia is a highly entertaining character, and at the beginning of Changeless, is settling into married life, bossing the pack around and generally enjoying the freedom of a married woman.

When mysterious supernatural canceling areas afflict London, and then greater England; Alexia swings into action to investigate, hampered by her fashion-challenged friend Ivy and Alexia’s bitchy half-sister, and aided by her lady’s maid and a French inventor, both of questionable trustworthiness.

Carriger seems to regard Ivy as comic relief, but I find her annoying and barely relevant to the plot.  Ivy and Alexia’s friendship was plausible in Soulless but I had assumed it would fade with Alexia’s marriage.  Still, I can hope for less Ivy in the next book!

I still find Lord Akeldama and his drones fascinating, I’d love to know what happens when Biffy’s aristocratic father finds out he is a drone. 

The background on Alexia’s fathers life was interesting, I wonder if the coincidences have a point to them?  I still can’t work out why her mother married someone so unconventional.

Overall, I found Changeless to be fast-paced and highly enjoyable, with wonderful characters and dialogue.  Carriger’s writing has improved, with less Americanism’s, and a surer hand with the style.

The setup for the next book occurs in the last few pages and left me bemused at the sudden accusatory nature of one character, but I trust Ms Carriger to explain all in the next book, Blameless, to be released in September this year.

Other books by Gail Carriger that I have reviewed: Soulless

Walking The Tree by Kaaron Warren

Botanica is an island, but almost all of the island is taken up by the Tree.

Little knowing how they came to be here, small communities live around the coast line. The Tree provides them shelter, kindling, medicine – and a place of legends, for there are ghosts within the trees who snatch children and the dying.

Lillah has come of age and is now ready to leave her community and walk the tree for five years, learning all Botanica has to teach her. Before setting off, Lillah is asked by the dying mother of a young boy to take him with her. In a country where a plague killed half the population, Morace will otherwise be killed in case he has the same disease. But can Lillah keep the boy’s secret, or will she have to resort to breaking the oldest taboo on Botanica?

Kaaron Warren’s first novel, Slights, had very good reviews, but I don’t like horror, so I was happy to hear that her second book, Walking the Tree, was fantasy.

The island Botanica, almost entirely taken up by the Tree, is a fascinating place, filled with many different small communities.  Each community has adapted slightly differently to their place on the island, and I enjoyed seeing Lillah experience each new Order, and slowly picking up clues about the true nature of the Tree and the ghosts.

Unfortunately, I didn’t feel emotionally connected to Lillah or Morace.  I only finished Walking The Tree because I wanted to know about the Tree and the ghosts; I didn’t really care about Lillah’s journey to find her place on the island, or whether Morace’s secret would come out and he would be killed.

Regretfully, I have to say that I found Walking The Tree to be intellectually interesting but emotionally unsatisfying.

Servant Of The Underworld by Aliette de Bodard

Year One-Knife, Tenochtitlan – the capital of the Aztecs.

The end of the world is kept at bay only by the magic of human sacrifice. A priestess disappears from an empty room drenched in blood. Acatl, high priest, must find her, or break the boundaries between the worlds of the living and the dead.

But how do you find someone, living or dead, in a world where blood sacrifices are an everyday occurrence and the very gods stalk the streets?

Servant of the Underworld is the first novel by Aliette de Bodard, and was written in her second language, English. (I can’t even speak another language, let alone write in one!)

Servant of the Underworld is an intriguing murder mystery set in the capital city of the Aztec empire.  The main character, Acatl, the High Priest of the Dead, is reluctant to get involved with politics, and devoted to his duty.  During the course of the investigation, he has to explore his conflicted family history and face the consequences of his avoidance of responsibility.  I really enjoyed Acatl’s emotional growth.

All the minor characters are interesting, particularly the young warrior, Teomitl, and I want to know more about Ceyaxochitl, who seems to have plans for Acatl. (What does she know that he doesn’t?)

The mystery was interestingly complicated (but then I can never guess who’s done what, so all mysteries intrigue me) and I really liked that the stakes started out high and kept getting higher.  I loved the Aztec setting, so exotic and different, and I’m always interested in characters whose culture and mindset is different to mine.  (I’m glad Acatl wasn’t the High Priest for a god who liked human sacrifice though.)

My main problem with Servant of the Underworld was that I had trouble pronouncing the names.  This was not unexpected, with the Aztec setting, but because I had to make up pronunciation for the names (and in many cases shortened them), it delayed my immersion in the story.  I recommend that the publisher add a character and pronouciation guide to the next book.  (Similar to that in Seanan McGuire’s October Daye books - finally I can correctly pronouce celtic mythological words!)

I’m very much looking forward to reading Servant of the Underworld again, and I’m sorry I have to wait for book 2, Harbinger of the Storm, to be published.  (Why does it take so much longer to write a book than it does to read one?)

In addition, I think this is the first book published by Angry Robot I have read, and I really liked the way they laid out the backcover, lots of little touches that let you know what flavour of fantasy this is, and encourage you to pick it up.

Steamed by Katie MacAlister

Computer technician Jack Fletcher is no hero, despite his unwelcome reputation as one.  In fact, he’s just been the victim of bizarre circumstances.  Like now.  His sister happens to disturb one of his nanoelectrical system experiments, and suddenly they aren’t where they’re supposed to be.  In fact, they’re not sure where they are when…

they wake up to find a woman with the reddest hair Jack has ever seen – and a gun.  Octavia Pye is an Aerocorps captain with a whole lot of secrets, and she’s not about to have her maiden voyage ruined by stowaways.  But the sparks flying between her and Jack just may cause her airship to combust, and ignite a passion that will forever change the world as she knows it.

What you expect from this book will affect how much you enjoy it.  If you’ve read any of Katie MacAlister’s books before then you’ll know that they contain zany characters, witty banter, very little angst over the romantic relationship and some plot coincidences that you just don’t want to look at too closely.

In fact this entire book doesn’t want to be looked at too closely – I could list the ways that Steamed doesn’t work, point out all the holes in the plotting, and the thin characterisation, but that would detract from what Steamed actually is - a light, funny, fast read that didn’t tax my brain.

In fact, I think the perfect analogy is to compare Steamed to candyfloss*: it looks good and goes down easy; yes, it’s insubstantial and too much is unhealthy; but as a treat, it’s just right.

* cotton candy, fairy floss, spun sugar…

A Kiss Before the Apocalpyse by Thomas E Sniegoski

Boston PI Remy Chandler has many talents.  He can will himself invisible; he can speak and understand any foreign language (including the language of animals); and if he listens carefully, he can hear thoughts.

Unusual, to say the least – for an ordinary man.  But Remy is no ordinary man – he’s an angel.  Generations ago, when he was known as the angel Remiel, he chose to renounce heaven and live on Earth.  He’s found a place among us ordinary humans, with friendship, a job he’s good at – and love.

Now he is being drawn into a case with strong ties to his angelic past.  The Angel of Death has gone missing, and Remy’s former colleagues have come to him for help.  But what at first seems to involve much more – a conspiracy that has as its goal the destruction of the human race.  And only Remy Chandler can stop it…

I really wanted to love this book.  The premise sounded interesting, and the fact that Remy Chandler’s wife is now an old woman and dying, made A Kiss Before the Apocalypse sound different than many other urban fantasies.

Unfortunately, aspects of this book just didn’t work for me.  I’m not a dog (or cat) person, so, rather than charming or realistic, I found the conversations with Remy’s dog to be repetitive and not particularly important to the plot.

It also seemed unrealistic that all the people that Remy needed to visit to find out information would all live in the same city in America, especially since many of these people are biblical in origin.  I thought it would make more sense for at least some of them to live in the Middle East, among cultures similar to those they had interacted with the most.

While I couldn’t feel much connection or sympathy for Remy Chandler’s character, his relationship with his elderly, dying wife, did intrigue me.

Ultimately, I finished this book feeling slightly irritated with Sniegoski’s interpretation of Christian mythology, and vaguely disappointed.  A Kiss Before the Apocalypse was not the enjoyable book I had hoped it would be.

Shadowlight by Lynn Viehl

With just one touch, Jessa Bellamy can see anyone’s darkest secrets, thanks to whoever tampered with her genes. What she doesn’t know is that a biotech company has discovered her talent and intends to kill her and harvest her priceless DNA…

Gaven Matthias is forced to abduct Jessa himself so he can protect her, but Jessa has a hard time believing the one man whose secrets she can’t read. As a monstrous assassin closes in and forces them to run, Jessa will have to find another way to discover if Matthias is her greatest ally—or her deadliest enemy.

Shadowlight is the first book in the Kyndred series, set in the same world  as the Darkyn series that Lynn Viehl completed in January 2009.  The Kyndred books will explore the lives of a group of genetically modified humans, who are searching for why and who modified them, and a way to be safe from exploitation.  Currently the Darkyn do not know about the Kyndred, but that looks set to change over the course of the series, as a Darkyn couple (Lucan and Samantha from Dark Need) are minor point of view characters in Shadowlight.

Some of the same issues that I had with the Darkyn series are present here.  There seems to be slightly too many point of view characters for me to keep track of easily and many subtle hints are dropped that need to be keep in mind. If I can remember to read the next book all in one go, these issues should be minimised for me, but I wonder if people who read slower than me have the same problem. (It could just be me!)

Shadowlight was fast-paced and I enjoyed Jessa and Matthias’ romance.  Drew and Rowan were interesting secondary characters I will enjoy seeıng more of.  Rowan’s story will be book 2, Dreamveil, and I hope Drew will have his own book as well.

The information discovered and the hints that are dropped about where the Kyndred have come from are very intriging, leaving me waiting to read Dreamveil when it is released.

Note:  This was an e-ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) sent by the author.  The only condition was that I post a review (positive or negative) before Shadowlight’s release date.

Lynn Viehl also writes science fiction as S L Viehl, I really enjoy the StarDoc series.  I also recommend Lynn’s blog. I check Paperback Writer every day, there is always something entertaining, interesting or informative to read.

Trick of the Light by Rob Thurman

Las Vegas bar owner Trixa Iktomi deals in information.  And in a city where unholy creatures roam the neon night, information can mean life or death.

Not that she has anything personal against demons.  They can be sexy as hell, and they’re great for getting the latest gossip.  But they also steal human souls and thrive on chaos.  So occasionally Trixa and her friends have to teach them some manners.

When Trixa learns of a powerful artifact known as the Light of Life, she knows she’s hit the jackpot.  Both sides – angel and demon – would give anything for it.  But first she has to find it.  And as Heaven and Hell ready for an apocalyptic throwdown, Trixa must decide where her true loyalty lies – and what she’s ready to fight for.

Because in her world, if you line up on the wrong side, you pay with more than your life…

I enjoy Rob Thurman’s Cal Leandros series, so I was very keen to read Trick of the Light, the first book in her new Trickster series.

I found the first third of Trick of the Light was slow going.  My main problem with the beginning was the amount of time spent telling me that Trixa’s friends Zeke and Griffin were damaged and their co-dependancy made them functional, but not actually demonstrating this.  By the end of the book, Zeke and Griffin’s issues had been clearly shown to me, so I understood the choices they had made.  It was just the first part of Trick of the Light that drove me crazy!

 This telling not showing issue could be because Rob Thurman is trying to settle into a new first person character after 4 successful books with Cal’s first person narrative, or it could be an issue with introducing the reader to a new world.  (Actually, it’s the some universe as the Cal Leandros books, just exploring a different part.) 

I guessed some of Leo’s (the bartender and Trixa’s closest friend) background, and a tiny part of Trixa’s, but most of the background information about the characters is revealed in the final confrontation.  And what a finale!  I forgive the annoying beginning because of the totally awesome ending, that leads you to rethink everything that has happened previously.

Trick of the Light works because Trixa hasn’t told us even half of what we find out at the end.  I wonder how Rob Thurman will be able to write another Trickster book – but I’m eagerly waiting to find out!

Graceling by Kristen Cashore

In a world where people born with an exceptional skill, known as a Grace, are both feared and exploited, Katsa carries the burden of a skill even she despises:the Grace of killing.

As a Graced killer who has been able to kill a man with her bare hands from the age of eight, she’s forced to work as the king’s thug.  Feared by the court and shunned by those her own age, the darkness of her Grace casts a heavy shadow over Katsa’s life.

Yet Katsa remains defiant, and when the King of Liend’s father is kidnapped she investigates, and stumbles across a mystery.  Who would want to kidnap the old man, and why?  And who was the extraordinary Graced man whose fighting abilities rivalled her own?

The only thing Katsa is sure of is that she no longer wants to kill.  The intrigue surronding the kidnapping offers her a way out – and little does she realise, when she takes it, that something insidious and dark lurks behind the mystery, something spreading form the shadowy figure of a one eyed king…

Graceling is the debut novel by Kristin Cashore, and  I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.  Katsa is an intriguing character; because people have been afraid of her for her entire life, she has few friends, and a lack of understanding of  people.  As she investigates the kidnapping and begins to defy her uncle, Katsa becomes more open to people and she is better able to relate to them.

Katsa’s relationship with her uncle was problematic for me.  Cashore did not show me how he was able to control Katsa, to force her to kill and torture on his word, I am told this instead.  As Katsa defies her uncle, she thinks this is the hardest thing she has done, and how close she was to turning back, but I don’t feel this with her.  I know it only because I was told, and this lessens the power of the scene.

Katsa’s new-found independence and sense of self is thrown when she realises her attraction to Po and his to her.  This romance is one of the most touching and sincere I have read.  I loved that he was not bothered about her superior fighting and hunting abilities, that it was Katsa instead who was unused to being protected and relying on someone for help.

At first I thought Po was a perhaps a little too understanding and supportive, but his upbringing has forced him to be more perceptive and understanding than normal.  Near the end of the book, Katsa gets a chance to support Po through his trials, which showed me the depth and solidity of their relationship.

I highly recommend Graceling to anybody who enjoys YA fantasy.

Fire, a companion/prequel novel to Graceling, will be published in October 2009.

Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews

Atlanta would be a nice place to live in if it weren’t for the magic…

When the magic is up, rogue mages cast their spells and monsters appear, while guns refuse to fire and cars fail to start.  But then technology returns, and the magic recedes as unpredictably as it arose, leaving all kinds of paranormal problem in its wake.

Kate Daniels is a down-on-her-luck mercenary who makes her living cleaning up these magical problems.  But when Kate’s guardian is murdered, her quest for justice draws her into a power struggle between two strong factions within Atlanta’s magic circles.

The Masters of the Dead, necromancers who can control vampires, and the Pack, a paramilitary clan of shapechangers, blame each other for a series of bizarre killings – and the death of Kate’s Guardian may be part of the same mystery.  Pressured by both sides to find the killer, Kate realizes she’s way out of her league – but she wouldn’t have it any other way…

Magic Bites is the first book in the Kate Daniels series, written by husband and wife writing team, Andrew and Ilona Gordan, under the name Ilona Andrews.

When I first read this book last year, I found it difficult to get a handle on the world building.  Part of the reason I love fantasy and sci-fi is being dropped straight into a new world and having to figure out the rules of magic, the similarities and differences with our world.  However this relies on the writer to drop hints in the right order, and in Magic Bites these hints could be confused.  eg: one scene ends with Kate going to a ley-line, and the next scene she is at home.  It isn’t until later in the book that we find out that ley-lines can be used for travel when the magic is up.

I really enjoyed Kate’s character.  Initially she comes across as the typical urban fantasy heroine -smart-mouthed, super strong, and a loner.  As we get to know her better, we see that her smart mouth is a form of self-defence, partically when she is scared.  Kate acknowledges that any male who is as well trained with a sword as she is will beat her.  Her unusual heritage (which is only hinted at) has lead her to be self sufficient; near the end, a comment by a secondary character hints at this changing over the course of the series:

“If I were on my own, packing some power, and for some reason not wanting to be found, I might lie low for a while,  But I’d know that sooner or later I’d have to come out and play, because whoever’s looking for me would eventually find me.  I’d start building some connections.”

Re-reading Magic Bites, the only point that still throws me out of the story occurs in chapter 8.  (Note: Slight spoiler ahead!)

Curran suggests that the guy Kate has dated a couple of times is the monster they are looking for.  After testing he is not, but then everyone acts like it was Kates suggestion.

“Do me a favor,” he [Curran] said. “Next time you get a hunch, don’t tell me.” 

Later:

I had a feeling that Curran was too disgusted with me to care one way or the other.

I’ve gone back several times to try and find where Kate is anything other than reluctant to consider that her date is the monster.  I can only conclude that this is one of those things that gets changed with rewriting and was unfortunately not picked up in the editing process. 

The flaws I have mentioned did not stop me from enjoying Magic Bites, and I went straight out to buy the second book, Magic Burns.  Currently I’m waiting for the just published third book, Magic Strikes, to arrive in my letterbox, hopefully before I leave for New Zealand!

Other books by Ilona Andrews that I have reviewed: Magic Burns

Bone Crossed by Patricia Briggs

By day, Mercy is a car mechanic in the sprawling Tri-Cities of Eastern Washington.  By night, she explores her preternatural side.  As a shapeshifter with some unique talents, Mercy has often found herself having to maintain a tenuous harmony between the human and the not so human.  This time she may get more than she bargained for.

Marsilia, the local Vampire Queen, has learned that Mercy crossed her by slaying a member of her clan – and she’s out for blood.  But since Mercy is protected from direct reprisal by the werewolf pack (and her close relationship with its sexy alpha), it won’t be Mercy’s blood Marsilia is after.

It’ll be her friends’.

Bone Crossed is the fourth book in the Mercy Thompson series and the first to be published in hardcover.  I would not suggest starting with this book if you have never read the series before.

Bone Crossed necessarily deals with the repercussions of Mercy’s rape at the end of Iron Kissed.  Mercy is refusing to allow what happened to shape her life.  She doesn’t want to be a victim and feels angry when she has panic attacks.  Mercy doesn’t want to allow herself time to heal.  Luckily, she has people in her life who gently make her deal with her feelings and help her though the panic attacks.

I loved the interactions between Mercy and Adam, each trusting the other.  Despite being an Alpha, Adam has the self-control to let Mercy handle her problems, he will only help if she is unable to solve them.  Mercy understands Adam enough that she is not angry at him when, out of frantic concern and desperation, he does something that will permanently affect her, without her consent.

There is a lot going on in Bone Crossed, and the main mystery is only part of that.  A very intriging part however!  An old college friend asks for Mercy’s help in dealing with a ghost her son says he can see.  To reduce the danger to her friends from Marsilia, Mercy decides to go out of town and help her friend.  I loved the son, Chad, and his relief when Mercy says she can see the ghost.  It is (of course) more than a just a simple ghost.

While Mercy is out of the town the werewolves are negociating peace with Marsilia.  It was good to see the werewolves deal from their own position of power, and that unlike some other series, Mercy is not the only person who can solve a problem.

Bone Crossed was a wonderful installment in one of my favourite series.  Patricia Briggs has said that the next book, Silver Borne, will be out in Feb 2010, and will focus on Samuel.

Other books by Patricia Briggs that I have reviewed: Masques, Cry Wolf, Moon Called