Master of None is yet another urban fantasy, but this time our protagonist is male. Gavyn Donatti is a thief whose jobs always seem to go wrong. He thinks he's just the unluckiest person alive. After stealing and then losing an artifact that had been commissioned by a psycho crime boss, at the beginning of the novel he is on the run, and time has just run out. Cornered in a warehouse by the crime boss's thugs, he is about to take a trip to visit the psycho bastard who wants to hurt him very badly.
He is rescued by a surly man who claims to be a djinn. They have adventures trying to stay ahead of the crime boss, and Gavyn tries to call in favors from a couple of his former colleagues who both have good reason to hate him. Not surprisingly, things backfire. They get the shit kicked out of them repeatedly but Gavin, who turns out to be more than human, eventually manages to marshall his newfound powers sufficiently to save the day.
I don't really have a lot to say about this one. It was a quick read from the library. The writing itself is perfectly competent, but I wasn't really enjoying the story the author had to tell. It felt a bit forced at times as the author maneuvered things so that the djinn couldn't act at various points and Gavyn had to be the one to do it, and I wasn't really that interested in the djinn politics. Shrug. This one didn't inspire a very strong response from me either way. It was okay, I guess.
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Thursday, July 28, 2011
I am not posting about the Hugo nominees this year
Ususally by this time of year I would have several posts up about the Hugo-nominated novels. After all, I am going to Worldcon, and I always cast a Hugo ballot. But this year is different; I haven't read any of the novels, and don't intend to.
There are two reasons for this. First of all, I am very, very underwhelmed by the books on the ballot. I'm uninterested in any of them. I've heard good things about the Jemison and the McDonald works, but they really don't interest me. I just don't read a lot of secondary-world fantasy any more, so the Jemison doesn't appeal much, and my prior experience with McDonald has led me to the conclusion I'm unlikely to like his other works, either, no matter how much praise they get. And the other books are even less appealing to me. Nevertheless, in a normal year I would have attempted them, anyway, out of a sort of sense of duty.
Which leads to the second reason: My reading resolution this year is to read whatever I want, whatever catches my eye, and not worry about what I "should" be reading. As in, I "should" read this book that people are talking about, or I "should" be reading more science fiction and less paranormal romance, or I "should" read the books on the Hugo ballot. I'm not in school, and I'm not taking assignments this year. My reading follows my whims, and I'm not going to waste my time on books that I'm not that into, or feel guilty because I'm reading fun fluff instead of meatier, more serious work. The only assignments I've accepted this year are the books for my mystery group, where it's getting to be a running joke that I don't bother to finish the books if I'm not enjoying them; and review copies I get from Librarything, where the deal is that you have to read and review the book. Which is why I slogged through Embassytown, even though I really, really didn't like it. And it was a miserable waste of time, so the experience just reinforced my inclination to not allow others to dictate or influence what I read.
As for the short works on the Hugo ballot, I attempted a couple of them and was alternately bored and repulsed. But SF shorts have never worked for me, so that's no surprise.
I think that participation in the Hugos is important, especially at the nominating stage (and I did submit a nominating ballot), because you shouldn't complain about the result if you didn't bother to vote. And so I always vote in the years I am able to do so, even though my tastes and those of the other Hugo voters do not really align, and I am usually unhappy with the end result. I still think the only way to change that is to participate. And so I ought to feel guilty that I am not participating this year, but actually I feel free to have slipped out from under the burden of forcing myself to read books I'm not into in order to vote in a race that rarely produces what I think is the right winner.
There are two reasons for this. First of all, I am very, very underwhelmed by the books on the ballot. I'm uninterested in any of them. I've heard good things about the Jemison and the McDonald works, but they really don't interest me. I just don't read a lot of secondary-world fantasy any more, so the Jemison doesn't appeal much, and my prior experience with McDonald has led me to the conclusion I'm unlikely to like his other works, either, no matter how much praise they get. And the other books are even less appealing to me. Nevertheless, in a normal year I would have attempted them, anyway, out of a sort of sense of duty.
Which leads to the second reason: My reading resolution this year is to read whatever I want, whatever catches my eye, and not worry about what I "should" be reading. As in, I "should" read this book that people are talking about, or I "should" be reading more science fiction and less paranormal romance, or I "should" read the books on the Hugo ballot. I'm not in school, and I'm not taking assignments this year. My reading follows my whims, and I'm not going to waste my time on books that I'm not that into, or feel guilty because I'm reading fun fluff instead of meatier, more serious work. The only assignments I've accepted this year are the books for my mystery group, where it's getting to be a running joke that I don't bother to finish the books if I'm not enjoying them; and review copies I get from Librarything, where the deal is that you have to read and review the book. Which is why I slogged through Embassytown, even though I really, really didn't like it. And it was a miserable waste of time, so the experience just reinforced my inclination to not allow others to dictate or influence what I read.
As for the short works on the Hugo ballot, I attempted a couple of them and was alternately bored and repulsed. But SF shorts have never worked for me, so that's no surprise.
I think that participation in the Hugos is important, especially at the nominating stage (and I did submit a nominating ballot), because you shouldn't complain about the result if you didn't bother to vote. And so I always vote in the years I am able to do so, even though my tastes and those of the other Hugo voters do not really align, and I am usually unhappy with the end result. I still think the only way to change that is to participate. And so I ought to feel guilty that I am not participating this year, but actually I feel free to have slipped out from under the burden of forcing myself to read books I'm not into in order to vote in a race that rarely produces what I think is the right winner.
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Tempest Rising by Nicole Peeler
Tempest Rising is sort of urban fantasy, except that there's nothing urban about it. Once again we have a heroine who discovers she is a special snowflake attracting the interest of hot, powerful paranormal males. Once again she is jerked into the magical underworld that most humans know nothing about, and she's in over her head. Yeah, whatevs, seen that many, many times before.
However Tempest Rising is much less irritating than most of this type of story. I realize that's not a ringing endorsement, but I mean it sincerely--it's really hard to strike the right note with one of these heroines, to make her not an annoying, whiny, self-absorbed little brat, or have the rest of the cast revolve around the annoying, whiny, Special Snowflake heroine.
Jane True lives in a small seaside town in Maine. She is pretty much the town pariah, and has the self esteem to match. The only thing that makes her happy is skinny-dipping in the ocean, year-round, swimming out far from shore where the currents are dangerous. It is of course no surprise to the reader to discover that Jane is half-selkie, but I thought she handled the discovery well, with a mixture of knowing it's true on a gut level while still doing a serious reality-check. What follows is not Jane whining about how she just wants to be normal, thank goodness. Instead she gets pulled into the investigation of the death of another halfling like herself, and she discovers that there are quite a few other supernatural creatures living in town, too.
She also gets involved romantically with a hot, hot, sexy vampire. And she has the good sense to wonder if it's really a good idea, given that he exists by seducing and feeding off women. The other possible love interest was evident to me immediately, because I know how stories are put together and it seemed pretty obvious, but Jane was totally oblivious. But I loved Jane's internal monologue throughout, as she keeps wondering if things are too good to be true, if things are not quite as they seem, if reality is going to soon come crashing down on her again. She's got good instincts, and I appreciated that she could keep thinking, and not just become the unthinking victim of her throbbing vulva, as usually happens in paranormal romances. Jane really does have a good head on her shoulders.
I don't think there's really anything that original or different about Tempest Rising, it's another entry in a crowded field of similar works, but what makes it stand out is that it's well-done, and I didn't hate the heroine. That is an accomplishment. In fact, I think it's likely that I will track down the rest of the series. It was actually quite refreshing.
However Tempest Rising is much less irritating than most of this type of story. I realize that's not a ringing endorsement, but I mean it sincerely--it's really hard to strike the right note with one of these heroines, to make her not an annoying, whiny, self-absorbed little brat, or have the rest of the cast revolve around the annoying, whiny, Special Snowflake heroine.
Jane True lives in a small seaside town in Maine. She is pretty much the town pariah, and has the self esteem to match. The only thing that makes her happy is skinny-dipping in the ocean, year-round, swimming out far from shore where the currents are dangerous. It is of course no surprise to the reader to discover that Jane is half-selkie, but I thought she handled the discovery well, with a mixture of knowing it's true on a gut level while still doing a serious reality-check. What follows is not Jane whining about how she just wants to be normal, thank goodness. Instead she gets pulled into the investigation of the death of another halfling like herself, and she discovers that there are quite a few other supernatural creatures living in town, too.
She also gets involved romantically with a hot, hot, sexy vampire. And she has the good sense to wonder if it's really a good idea, given that he exists by seducing and feeding off women. The other possible love interest was evident to me immediately, because I know how stories are put together and it seemed pretty obvious, but Jane was totally oblivious. But I loved Jane's internal monologue throughout, as she keeps wondering if things are too good to be true, if things are not quite as they seem, if reality is going to soon come crashing down on her again. She's got good instincts, and I appreciated that she could keep thinking, and not just become the unthinking victim of her throbbing vulva, as usually happens in paranormal romances. Jane really does have a good head on her shoulders.
I don't think there's really anything that original or different about Tempest Rising, it's another entry in a crowded field of similar works, but what makes it stand out is that it's well-done, and I didn't hate the heroine. That is an accomplishment. In fact, I think it's likely that I will track down the rest of the series. It was actually quite refreshing.
Sunday, July 17, 2011
A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
This is a paranormal romance that's trying to pass as something else. It's published by Viking, and I think being sold as mainstream, but really, it's a paranormal romance. Except that if it were published as paranormal romance it would be quite a bit shorter and probably better.
Our protagonist is a witch who is trying to avoid using her magic. She comes from a long line of powerful witches, and she is uninterested in the expectations from the other witches. She wants nothing to do with them, or magic. However she is an exceptional Special Snowflake. She graduated high school early, went straight on to college, where she was brilliant and graduated at twenty, then went on to get advanced degrees with brilliance and at a young age, and then she got tenure at Yale, even though everyone agreed she probably wouldn't get it. She studied in England and now is on a one-year sabbatical where she's doing research at the Bodleian, and she loves tea, and rows on the river, and she seems to want to be more British and the British. Gag. We later learn that she is probably the most powerful witch alive, if only she knew how to use her powers. And most people like her, and she can charm animals. Double gag.
The love interest is a 1,500 year old vampire who is astonishingly handsome, and also brilliant. He holds multiple advanced degrees and has a research lab where he is working with the DNA of supernatural creatures. He becomes interested in the heroine because he thinks she has an old and powerful magical manuscript he wants to read, but very quickly he is astonished to realize that he loves her like no other woman in his long life, but he's worried because he's too badass and evil for her, and so there's tension as she wants him and he holds back to try to protect her from himself. Triple gag.
There is nothing particularly special about this book, except that it's too long. The author indulges in too much description of things we don't need to see -- I'm pretty turned off in the first chapter or two of a book to be given the character's life history in a huge infodump. I'm not that interested in flashbacks from secondary characters' pasts. When the two of them went to yoga together, we most likely didn't need a long description of the class. Nor a long description of the heroine going to the river to exercise. And so on, and so on. If there is one rule that writers should follow, it's this: leave out the boring parts. Harkness is far too wordy, and takes far too long to not say very much.
Anyway, I threw this one across the room halfway through. It's nothing special, and fairly irritating. There are much better books out there with supernatural creatures facing tough situations and falling for each other. Not recommended.
Our protagonist is a witch who is trying to avoid using her magic. She comes from a long line of powerful witches, and she is uninterested in the expectations from the other witches. She wants nothing to do with them, or magic. However she is an exceptional Special Snowflake. She graduated high school early, went straight on to college, where she was brilliant and graduated at twenty, then went on to get advanced degrees with brilliance and at a young age, and then she got tenure at Yale, even though everyone agreed she probably wouldn't get it. She studied in England and now is on a one-year sabbatical where she's doing research at the Bodleian, and she loves tea, and rows on the river, and she seems to want to be more British and the British. Gag. We later learn that she is probably the most powerful witch alive, if only she knew how to use her powers. And most people like her, and she can charm animals. Double gag.
The love interest is a 1,500 year old vampire who is astonishingly handsome, and also brilliant. He holds multiple advanced degrees and has a research lab where he is working with the DNA of supernatural creatures. He becomes interested in the heroine because he thinks she has an old and powerful magical manuscript he wants to read, but very quickly he is astonished to realize that he loves her like no other woman in his long life, but he's worried because he's too badass and evil for her, and so there's tension as she wants him and he holds back to try to protect her from himself. Triple gag.
There is nothing particularly special about this book, except that it's too long. The author indulges in too much description of things we don't need to see -- I'm pretty turned off in the first chapter or two of a book to be given the character's life history in a huge infodump. I'm not that interested in flashbacks from secondary characters' pasts. When the two of them went to yoga together, we most likely didn't need a long description of the class. Nor a long description of the heroine going to the river to exercise. And so on, and so on. If there is one rule that writers should follow, it's this: leave out the boring parts. Harkness is far too wordy, and takes far too long to not say very much.
Anyway, I threw this one across the room halfway through. It's nothing special, and fairly irritating. There are much better books out there with supernatural creatures facing tough situations and falling for each other. Not recommended.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
NADWCon
Last weekend I went to Madison for five days to attend the North American Discworld Convention. The con itself had a very different vibe than the other science fiction conventions I've attended, and mostly was a bit of a bust. I'm glad I saw Terry again, and I particularly enjoyed the conversation between him and Neil Gaiman. But other than those mid-afternoon events, the con just wasn't that interesting to me. I have concluded that while I am a fan of Discworld, I am apparently not a Discworld Fan, if you see what I mean.
Nevertheless, that left plenty of time for wandering around Madison.
I experimented on this trip with not bringing a computer. Instead I got myself an iPod Touch, which allows me to check my email and surf the web with a wireless connection. It worked pretty well. I also used it to take my photos on this trip, and found that it's not a great camera. So sorry about the picture quality.
We were staying just one block from the Capitol, and near State Street, so we spent a lot of time wandering around that area. There was a huge art fair going on around the Capitol last weekend, and we wandered until I was sunburned, overheated, and foot-sore. We also found part of the farmers market, and picked up berries and jerky and bread for lunch. By this time, after hours surrounded by stuff for sale, the buying frenzy was apparently on me, so I also bought two jars of jam to bring home with me. Considering how little jam I eat, this doesn't make much sense. Apparently it was the heat and the exhaustion.
Because this trip was exhausting. The weather in Madison was hot, humid, and sunny, and we spent hours outside in it each day. I find being out in the sun and the heat tiring, and five days in a row of it really wore me out. Plus the hotel elevators were not up to the strain of hosting an SF convention (nothing new there). But after climbing the stairs to the sixth floor three times, I decided that waiting for the elevator really wasn't such a bad thing. Anyway, I haven't managed to blog since I got back because I've been wiped out. Last night I finally conked out about three hours earlier than usual, and I'm feeling much better now.
We went back to the art fair again on Sunday, where I Spent Too Much Money, which seems to have been the theme of the weekend, and also wandered around the state Capitol. It's a really beautiful building, though I didn't do a very good job of photographing it.
Monday we went to the Arboretum, which was also a bust. But we wandered around for a while until our feet were thoroughly soaked and looked at trees and wild turkeys. The turkeys were really cool. The rest, not so much. Then we went over to the Henry Vilas Zoo, which was a very pleasant surprise. It's clean, well-maintained, and seems to be well-funded. I fed the goats and we had hot dogs for lunch.
Tuesday we left Madison early and on the way home stopped at Taliesin, Frank Lloyd Wright's home in Spring Green. It was both cooler and not as good as I expected. We took the 2 hour house tour (which cost $47!! Holy crap!), and I enjoyed it much more before we actually went into the house. We spent quite a bit of time outside, looking at the landscape and the garden and the exterior of the house, and talking about Wright's ideas and how he ran the place with his students doing a lot of the work. The garden was beautiful, and inspiring. I think I may rip out a whole bed on the south side of my house and start over. The house, on the other hand, was less than I expected. It's actually a pretty big place, but the tour only takes you into six rooms, and the place isn't air conditioned, and it quickly became obvious the place is kind of falling apart. So it was hot and tedious and my hips were hurting from standing in one place too long, and the tour would have been better if it were about half an hour shorter, and the time was cut off the inside portion of the tour. Nevertheless, I'm really glad I saw it.
Nevertheless, that left plenty of time for wandering around Madison.
We were staying just one block from the Capitol, and near State Street, so we spent a lot of time wandering around that area. There was a huge art fair going on around the Capitol last weekend, and we wandered until I was sunburned, overheated, and foot-sore. We also found part of the farmers market, and picked up berries and jerky and bread for lunch. By this time, after hours surrounded by stuff for sale, the buying frenzy was apparently on me, so I also bought two jars of jam to bring home with me. Considering how little jam I eat, this doesn't make much sense. Apparently it was the heat and the exhaustion.
Because this trip was exhausting. The weather in Madison was hot, humid, and sunny, and we spent hours outside in it each day. I find being out in the sun and the heat tiring, and five days in a row of it really wore me out. Plus the hotel elevators were not up to the strain of hosting an SF convention (nothing new there). But after climbing the stairs to the sixth floor three times, I decided that waiting for the elevator really wasn't such a bad thing. Anyway, I haven't managed to blog since I got back because I've been wiped out. Last night I finally conked out about three hours earlier than usual, and I'm feeling much better now.
We went back to the art fair again on Sunday, where I Spent Too Much Money, which seems to have been the theme of the weekend, and also wandered around the state Capitol. It's a really beautiful building, though I didn't do a very good job of photographing it.
Tuesday we left Madison early and on the way home stopped at Taliesin, Frank Lloyd Wright's home in Spring Green. It was both cooler and not as good as I expected. We took the 2 hour house tour (which cost $47!! Holy crap!), and I enjoyed it much more before we actually went into the house. We spent quite a bit of time outside, looking at the landscape and the garden and the exterior of the house, and talking about Wright's ideas and how he ran the place with his students doing a lot of the work. The garden was beautiful, and inspiring. I think I may rip out a whole bed on the south side of my house and start over. The house, on the other hand, was less than I expected. It's actually a pretty big place, but the tour only takes you into six rooms, and the place isn't air conditioned, and it quickly became obvious the place is kind of falling apart. So it was hot and tedious and my hips were hurting from standing in one place too long, and the tour would have been better if it were about half an hour shorter, and the time was cut off the inside portion of the tour. Nevertheless, I'm really glad I saw it.
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