Steampunk Worth Reading

The Burning Sky
By Joseph Robert Lewis
Joseph Robert Lewis (2011),
Kindle Edition
Rated 4 stars of 5 possible

The Burning Sky is a gripping, thrilling story, full of action and adventure, as well as interesting and well-developed characters. The characters' actions are consistently realistic within the rules of their world, which is not the same as ours. Thus, actions that make sense in their world would not necessarily make sense in ours... yet the envelope of suspension of disbelief isn't broken. In fact, it's not even stretched much.  As part 1 of a trilogy, The Burning Sky involves the reader in the lives of the characters and embeds their world into the reader's soul so that, laying aside the book when it's finished leaves the reader feeling as if he/she is missing out on something.

For adult readers of fantasy who like stories with substance to them, The Halcyon series books are good candidates to bring on to your Kindle or other e-reader. for now, the books are not available in printed formats, which is my only regret.  The time reading the series was well-spent and has provided excellent entertainment.

Recommended to all adult readers of steampunk who don't shy away from the inevitable violence of a frontier world.  This review, for which I have not received any financial compensation, has been posted on Dragon Views, Amazon.com and LibraryThing.

Award-winning Debut

The Windup Girl
Paolo Bacigalupi
Night Shade Books (2009)
Hardcover, 368 pages
Rated 4 Stars of 5 Possible

The Windup Girl depicts a world in which cloning is not only permitted, but has become common place. The clones are genetically altered so that their movement is not smooth or graceful and this betrays their artificial status. The author has touched upon sensitive issues, such as racial abuse, from our own world in this high-tech science fiction novel.

The novel starts slow, and builds suspense from the beginning, yet remains interesting enough that it's hard to put down... and it gets better as the reader turns the pages. Many of the characters are only superficially developed, and these would have been more interesting if they had been developed more in-depth. The Windup Girl is not a "fluffy" read and requires concentration from the reader to fully understand what's happening. In fact, one almost needs to take notes at a few points because a lot happens in the story.

In the end, I felt I needed to deduct one star for the sometimes lengthy and apparently unnecessary descriptive passages in which little is happening to further the ends of this otherwise interesting tale.

This review, for which I have not received any financial compensation, has been posted on Dragon Views, Amazon.com and LibraryThing.

Patriotic, Christian Fiction

What So Proudly We Hailed
James Howard
CreateSpace (2010),
Paperback, 280 pages
Rated 4 stars of 5 possible

What if... there was a nuclear attack on the United States? What So Proudly We Hailed takes that question and runs with it. The title makes this book seem to be a story about the beginning of the United States, but that's not the case.  It is, in part a story of war, but of more modern times; an alternate reality, if you wish. The characters do exhibit patriotic characteristics though.

The scenario seems plausible and the book is well written. Especially in the last half, the narrative tends to get a bit preachy for my tastes, which explains the one star rating drop.  Still, the story is enjoyable.

Recommended for readers age 16 and up who enjoy reading books which promote a Christian viewpoint. The author has put his characters into some controversial situations, which would make for good group discussion material. 

This book was provided to me free by author in exchange for review. This review has been simultaneously posted on Dragon Views, LibraryThing, Amazon.com and wherever else I may deem appropriate.

Teaser Novella

Gaslight Chronicles
Photographs & Phantoms
Cindy Spencer Pape
Carina Press (2011),
Kindle Edition
Rated 4 stars of 5 possible

Photographs & Phantoms is a blend of genres featuring historical romance, paranormal, mystery, fantasy and alternate history. Photographer, Amy Deland is haunted by a shadow appearing in some recent portraits... The presence of that shadow ruining the portraits is bad enough, yet each time the shadow appears, the subject of that portrait has died shortly afterward. Amy is determined to get to the bottom of the situation and find an explanation for the phenomenon. Will she succeed?

The book has an intriguing and mysterious premise that enticed me to download the promotional freebie. First off, it's (marginally) historical fiction. Second, the story promises some magic.  Reading further, one discovers that this isn't true history, but an alternate version, which I usually find interesting. I'm glad I didn't know when I downloaded this book that Carina Press is a Harlequin imprint, or I might have skipped it.  I normally find straight romance tales to be too fluffy, plotless, and sticky sweet to suit me, which wasn't the case here, except for the big sex scene near the middle of the book, which I skipped.  Sorry, but I don't find that unadulterated sex moves the story along... this novella would have been better without that scene.  Minus half a star for the uninteresting and unnecessary sex scene.

Over all, I found the mystery to be entertaining and the entire tale to be a page-turner. Still, some scenes later in the book could have been better developed. I was disappointed to find that, although the male lead in this tale is described as being a Sorcerer, very little magic was involved. Most of the magic could be explained by the technology used... so minus one fourth of a star for that lack of development, and minus another quarter-star for the lack of magic...  I'd have loved this book to be a little longer - say about 30,000 words.

Incidentally, for those who haven't read this book, the Kindle edition is still free from Amazon.com.  Sure, it's an advertisement/teaser for the publisher's other books, but one that is very much worth reading  I'm not obligated to review this book, however, writing reviews IS what I do... so why not?  Recommended to adult readers age 18 and up who like something more than straight, sticky-sweet romance.

This review, for which no compensation - financial or otherwise - has been received by the reviewer, appears on Dragon Views, LibraryThing, Amazon.com and other sites deemed appropriate by the reviewer.

An Epic Conclusion

Oracle's Legacy: Dawn of Illumination
R. B. Holbrook
Lulu.com (2010),
Paperback, 458 pages
Rated 4 stars of 5 possible


Oracle's Legacy: Dawn of Illumination is the thrilling conclusion to the author's debut series, which began with Oracle's Legacy: Children of Sun. Since the Oracle's Legacy series is one massive story broken up into three books, the best way to read the series is to begin with Oracle's Legacy: Children of Sun and read the books in order. In this way, the reader does not miss character background or important story issues by starting in the middle or at the end.

As with Shadows of Fate, this third volume builds on the story thus far, beginning where the previous volume ended. Whether you borrow or buy these books, try to get them all at once, so you can rapidly move from one to the next without much delay. When you do this, you will get the most seamless transition from one book to the next, and the story will have a greater impact. 

Taken as one long epic, Oracle's Legacy is a fascinating story... however, if you like short stories or even average-length novels, you probably won't like this, because the three books are one large story, of which the three parts should be read in sequence, and for best effect should be read together, as opposed to reading one book and then something else before continuing with the saga.

Recommended to adults who love epic fantasy and science fiction. Oracle's Legacy: Dawn of Illumination was provided to me free by the author in exchange for this review. This review will be posted on LibraryThing, Dragon Views, Amazon.com and wherever else deemed appropriate by this reviewer.

Oracle's Legacy:
Book 1: Children of Sun
Book 2: Shadows of Fate

A Front for Terrorist Operations?

Electricland
By Ginger Mayerson
The Wapshott Press (2010)
Paperback, 222 pages
Rated 4 stars of 5 possible

The novel, Electricland, is a mystery tale. The story features satirical content, a terrorist organization run by three middle-aged women, an online game called Electricland, and gay romance.  But is Electricland just a game, or is it a front for terrorist operations?

The author's attention to detail and sense of fun becomes very apparent in this slim novel.  The three female terrorists were often interesting and sometimes even humorous. The Electricland game proved to be interesting too, but I was disappointed to see that very little of this game figured into the actual story. I would have liked to have seen more of the game. While I have to say that gay romance is definitely not my thing, I found that I could easily skim/skip those portions of the story and not lose much in the bargain. Over all, Electricland proved to be a novel that I am glad I have read.

Electricland was provided to me free by the author/publisher in exchange for this review, for which I have not received any financial compensation. This review will appear on Dragon Views, LibraryThing, Amazon.com and other sites deemed appropriate by this reviewer.

Suspense and Comic Relief

Oracle's Legacy: Shadows of Fate
R. B. Holbrook
lulu.com (2009),
Paperback, 556 pages
Rated 4 stars of 5 possible


Oracle's Legacy: Shadows of Fate is the follow-up novel to Oracle's Legacy: Children of Sun and is the authors second book.  The story continues from where the first book left off. Tightly woven, the story of Ollie Mason and her family continues to hold the reader spellbound as the plot thickens and draws nearer to the climax.

Sometimes it's hard to put a finger on why I like or dislike a book. Oracle's Legacy is a series like that.  I've enjoyed reading all three volumes... The characters are developed enough that I either like or dislike them as is supposed to be... and some characters, while not necessarily on the side of good, are still interesting enough that I like them too.  The story is a mix of suspenseful scenes with some comic relief, all serving to move the plot along to where book two transitions easily into the third volume of the epic.

Caviat:  Lots of violence, yet not unnecessarily violent, given the context of the story. Recommended to readers of epic fantasy who do not mind a fair amount of violence in the book, but should be read following Oracle's Legacy: Children of Sun.

Oracle's Legacy: Shadows of Fate was provided to me free by the author in exchange for this review. This review has been simultaneously posted on Dragon Views, LibraryThing, Amazon.com and wherever else deemed appropriate for this book's content.

The Crisis Gains Momentum

Evolussion
by Kathy Bell
Northern Sanctum Press (October, 2010)
ARC-PDF format,165 pages
Rated 5 stars of 5 possible

I've always been excited when a new science fiction book comes off the press and into the book stores.  The Infinion series is no exception. Evolussion continues the story of the characters begun in Regression. The sequel picks up the story 26 years after the end of the first novel and takes a different direction than the reader might expect. As the story develops, even the bad guys have something to say that helps the reader better understand the motivation of the opposition to Three Eleven... Mrs. Bell has done a great job with her flawed and very human characters... and, as with her first novel, leaves me wanting more.

The characters from the first novel whom we loved to hate (Alex and Stew) show a different side in this sequel, and as I began to understand their motivations better, I even started to like them just a little bit, though I am not certain if they would ever have earned my trust. Adya Jordan (aka Dawn Ingram) has matured in the interval between the first and second novels, but has retained her lovable characteristics nevertheless. The Three Eleven executives have also changed in their attitudes toward Dawn...

In the continuing story arc, the crisis gains momentum. Not too much is resolved here, and yet more questions are raised. Evolussion is clearly not the starting point for the Infinion series and should not be read as a stand alone. There is much in Regression that the reader needs to understand before reading Evolussion. Thus, I recommed the series as a whole, but start reading at the beginning; Regression first, then Evolussion, and finish with the as-yet unpublished conclusion of this exciting trilogy. Since November 11, 2011 is such an important date in this series, I suspect the climax to the series will probably be published around that date (hopefully a little before).  I'm on the edge of my seat now...

Evolussion was provided to me free by the author/publisher in PDF format in exchange for this review. This review has been simultaneously published on Dragon Views and LibraryThing.

Tightly Woven, Complex Story

The Wizard's Son
By Kathryn L. Ramage
The Wapshott Press (2009)
Paperback, 296 pages
Rated 4 Stars of 5 Possible

Following the posting of my review of Storylandia 1, which the editor of Wapshott press called "fair minded and honest", I received a request to give Wapshott Press another chance. I always intended to do that, but had no idea the opportunity would come so soon. I chose The Wizard's Son because I've long been a fantasy fan, and because it looks so good.

The first attraction of this novel is the lovely cover, with a view of the wizard's castle on the front, done in shades of red and black; absolutely perfect for this novel - but it doesn't stop there. The story synopsis available on the publisher's website set the hook before I ever got my hands on the book. The Wizard's Son is not simple fantasy with a single story arc. Instead it is a complex story that examines several issues in depth through multiple plot lines in the non-linear story. These issues include but are not limited to good versus evil, human nature and self restraint.

This novel does not disappoint, yet there is room for improvement too. While the characters introduced in the early part of the story are nicely developed, those who come along later are a bit flat. For instance, Orlan Lightesblood's wife and daughter are important to him, yet we are not allowed to know them well... Still, we have a tightly woven, well-told story with interesting and believable characters which is well worth the time it takes to read.

Recommended to fantasy fans ages 14 and up. This review has been simultaneously posted on Amazon.com, Dragon Views, Library Thing and YA Books Central.com. The Wizard's Son was provided to me by the publisher free in exchange for this review.

Thought Provoking

Regression
By Kathy Bell
Northern Sanctum (2009)
First Canadian Digital Edition, PDF format, 358 pages
Rated 5 stars of 5 possible.

40 year-old Adya, mother of 6, is involved in a traffic accident on November 11, 2011. Hours later, she awakes in a hospital bed asking for her daughter. When she is fully awake, Adya discovers that she has regressed into her own younger self. She is 14 years old and single.

There's surprise after surprise as Adya learns to cope with the way things are now and attempts to discover the reason she is here and learn how to cope with a group of other regressees who seem to be hostile and resentful toward Adya. How does Adya cope with the new, alternate reality she has awoken into...? Naturally, Adya is full of questions, and this first novel in a new series answers some of them.

While alternate realities are nothing new, Kathy Bell takes the old story-line, twisting and turning it in new and exciting ways. Regression grabs the reader and does not let go, staying in one's thoughts even after finishing the last page. Regression is not a "quick and fluffy" read, but is full of thought-provoking  concepts.  This is the kind of novel I look for and eagerly await.  I'll be interested in the remaining books to the series.

Recommended to readers age 16 and up who want something more than a quick and easy read.  This review has been simultaneously posted on Dragonviews and Library Thing. I received the First Canadian Digital edition free from the publisher via the LibraryThing Member Giveaway program in exchange for this review, however I like this book enough to purchase a signed copy of the paper back edition from Northern Sanctum Press.