Room
by Emma Donoghue
(5/5 stars)
We've probably all heard stories about some girl who gets locked up by a creep in a basement or something similar and gets held against her will for years. In Germany there was a case where a girl was held for something like 19 years I think.
"Room" involves the story of one such woman. Except it's not really about her ordeal. Instead the story is told through her five-year-old son Jack who was born in captivity two years after the woman he only calls Ma was snatched off the street.
Because he knows nothing else, everything that's happening is normal to Jack. Ma tells him that where they live (Room) is the only real thing in the world and everything the TV shows is make-believe. So he never questions what's going on; to him there is no outside world.
The first half of the book deals with Jack and Ma's daily routines for the most part. A lot of these are pretty normal--eating, exercising, doing laundry--and some like "Old Nick" visiting in the night are not normal to us but normal to Jack.
The second half of the book deals with Ma and Jack finally emerging from Room and having to adjust to the outside world.
I thought most of this novel was brilliant. Jack might not sound like a "normal" five-year-old, but as we learn he's not normal. He has a higher-than-average vocabulary and can read. The way he describes some things like "wanting some" and the squeaks of the bed when Old Nick visits Ma in the night cloak a lot of the gory details about their captivity.
What bugged me at the end though was that the ending itself fell a little flat. I kept feeling like the story was building to something, but when it was over at the 94% mark it seemed more as if it had fizzled. Really the dramatic climax is somewhere around 50% into the book and so when you look back the remaining 45% was mostly a lot of details that weren't really going anywhere except to show Jack swapping Room for the much larger Room of the world.
Still this was a real page-turner, or screen-turner since I read it on the Kindle. I'd highly recommend it so much as you're not like some readers and such a coward that the very idea of this book frightens you into giving it one star.
That is all.
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Empire State
Empire State
by Adam Christopher
(4/5 stars)
Other than time travel, I'm not sure there's a more overused plot element in science fiction than parallel universes. You can look at shows like "Sliders" and "Fringe" that have leaned heavily on that. DC Comics had so many parallel universes that in the mid-80s they had a huge war between them all to establish one continuity. "Empire State" takes the sci-fi convention of parallel universes and combines it with noir detective fiction.
It all starts one night in 1930 when bootlegger Rex and his buddy are trying to flee from some cops. They wind up crashing near the Empire State Building, which at that time isn't finished. They don't get arrested because the cops are busy at the same place with a titanic fight between the city's two superheroes: The Skyguard and the Science Pirate (who has one of the worst superhero names ever). The fight ends when both crash hard into the pavement and seemingly disappear.
From there we meet Rad Bradley, a private investigator in the "Empire State." The Empire State is basically a world that consists solely of Manhattan circa the mid-30s. (If you saw the movie "Dark City" it's kind of like that because people in the Empire State think there's a world outside of it and a past beyond the nineteen years of the Empire State, but they can't really remember the details of that world or past.)
There's strict rationing there as they're engaged in "Wartime" against the "Enemy" who is never seen as no one who goes off to fight them ever returns. Then like in most stereotypical detective novels, a dame walks into Rad's office. She's looking for her partner, Sam (as in Samantha) Saturn, who's gone missing.
The case of course leads Rad to much bigger things. I don't want to give away more than I have by detailing all those things.
Overall I think while the story was interesting, it could have used a little more paring. There were so many explanations and double-crosses and failed schemes it was hard to keep track of what all was happening and who was on what side at what moment. Also for young writers who worry about "showing instead of telling" I could highlight many passages here of blatant telling over showing. Also point of view shifts during scenes. (So really if an agent's minion is telling you that's why they don't want your story they're probably lying because clearly they take those kinds of stories if the story is clever enough. Mini-rant over.) There was also at least one case where the British author got his American details wrong where he mentioned something was as big as a "football pitch." Football meaning soccer. Maybe in the parallel universe they like soccer instead of football? I doubt it.
Still, I did want to know what all was going on with the Empire State vs. New York and what happened to Sam Saturn and all that good stuff. So in that way the novel succeeds.
Basically if you like sci-fi and noir detective fiction then you'd enjoy this book.
That is all.
by Adam Christopher
(4/5 stars)
Other than time travel, I'm not sure there's a more overused plot element in science fiction than parallel universes. You can look at shows like "Sliders" and "Fringe" that have leaned heavily on that. DC Comics had so many parallel universes that in the mid-80s they had a huge war between them all to establish one continuity. "Empire State" takes the sci-fi convention of parallel universes and combines it with noir detective fiction.
It all starts one night in 1930 when bootlegger Rex and his buddy are trying to flee from some cops. They wind up crashing near the Empire State Building, which at that time isn't finished. They don't get arrested because the cops are busy at the same place with a titanic fight between the city's two superheroes: The Skyguard and the Science Pirate (who has one of the worst superhero names ever). The fight ends when both crash hard into the pavement and seemingly disappear.
From there we meet Rad Bradley, a private investigator in the "Empire State." The Empire State is basically a world that consists solely of Manhattan circa the mid-30s. (If you saw the movie "Dark City" it's kind of like that because people in the Empire State think there's a world outside of it and a past beyond the nineteen years of the Empire State, but they can't really remember the details of that world or past.)
There's strict rationing there as they're engaged in "Wartime" against the "Enemy" who is never seen as no one who goes off to fight them ever returns. Then like in most stereotypical detective novels, a dame walks into Rad's office. She's looking for her partner, Sam (as in Samantha) Saturn, who's gone missing.
The case of course leads Rad to much bigger things. I don't want to give away more than I have by detailing all those things.
Overall I think while the story was interesting, it could have used a little more paring. There were so many explanations and double-crosses and failed schemes it was hard to keep track of what all was happening and who was on what side at what moment. Also for young writers who worry about "showing instead of telling" I could highlight many passages here of blatant telling over showing. Also point of view shifts during scenes. (So really if an agent's minion is telling you that's why they don't want your story they're probably lying because clearly they take those kinds of stories if the story is clever enough. Mini-rant over.) There was also at least one case where the British author got his American details wrong where he mentioned something was as big as a "football pitch." Football meaning soccer. Maybe in the parallel universe they like soccer instead of football? I doubt it.
Still, I did want to know what all was going on with the Empire State vs. New York and what happened to Sam Saturn and all that good stuff. So in that way the novel succeeds.
Basically if you like sci-fi and noir detective fiction then you'd enjoy this book.
That is all.
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
A Sudden Vengeance Waits
A Sudden Vengeance Waits
by Nik Morton
(5/5 stars)
There's a whole subgenre of revenge stories out there, running the gamut from ancient times to Westerns to distant worlds. "A Sudden Vengeance Waits" is far more contemporary and closer to home, taking place in a small British community that nonetheless is plagued by crime thanks to the recent recession.
That crime hits close to home for the Knight family when their grandmother is killed during a break-in. There are four Knight children: police officer Paul, college student Lisa, mechanical genius Stu, and rebellious young actor Mark. Soon after the funeral (like pretty much the same night) someone beats up some burglars and leaves a note proclaiming him(her)self as the Black Knight. Now can you guess which Knight might be going out at night to bust criminal heads?
The answer is kind of obvious, but I won't spoil that. Anyway, "A Sudden Vengeance Waits" is a decent entry in the revenge subgenre. It's not as gory or violent as some more recent entries. Really there's no gunplay at all, just one brief sword fight and some martial arts stuff. That doesn't make it fun for the whole family but it does mean you probably aren't going to lose your lunch either.
Overall this was a quick and satisfying read on the Kindle. And being an American the good thing about reading this on the Kindle is that I could look up some of the British slang in the dictionary, which was very helpful in figuring out what a trilby is for instance. (It's a hat.)
My only complaint, a minor one, is that there were so many names to keep track of. Besides the Knight family there were police offices, criminals, victims, and so forth. It was sometimes confusing.
That is all.
by Nik Morton
(5/5 stars)
There's a whole subgenre of revenge stories out there, running the gamut from ancient times to Westerns to distant worlds. "A Sudden Vengeance Waits" is far more contemporary and closer to home, taking place in a small British community that nonetheless is plagued by crime thanks to the recent recession.
That crime hits close to home for the Knight family when their grandmother is killed during a break-in. There are four Knight children: police officer Paul, college student Lisa, mechanical genius Stu, and rebellious young actor Mark. Soon after the funeral (like pretty much the same night) someone beats up some burglars and leaves a note proclaiming him(her)self as the Black Knight. Now can you guess which Knight might be going out at night to bust criminal heads?
The answer is kind of obvious, but I won't spoil that. Anyway, "A Sudden Vengeance Waits" is a decent entry in the revenge subgenre. It's not as gory or violent as some more recent entries. Really there's no gunplay at all, just one brief sword fight and some martial arts stuff. That doesn't make it fun for the whole family but it does mean you probably aren't going to lose your lunch either.
Overall this was a quick and satisfying read on the Kindle. And being an American the good thing about reading this on the Kindle is that I could look up some of the British slang in the dictionary, which was very helpful in figuring out what a trilby is for instance. (It's a hat.)
My only complaint, a minor one, is that there were so many names to keep track of. Besides the Knight family there were police offices, criminals, victims, and so forth. It was sometimes confusing.
That is all.
Friday, February 10, 2012
Escape From Ensenada
Escape From Ensenada
by Harris T. Vincent
(4/5 stars)
I think you'd be hard-pressed to find another novel that could blend together sailing, The Da Vinci Code, dirty bombs, 9/11 conspiracies, shadow governments, Michael Jackson, the fabled city of Atlantis, and Satan. Really all that was missing was an alien invasion and ninjas. But I bet the author is saving those for the sequel.
It starts fairly ordinary enough. Three old buddies--Tom, Emmett, and Ernie--are going to Ensenada, Mexico to complete purchase of a boat called the Swan. Before they leave, Tom runs into Jeremy Princeton (a thinly-veiled Michael Jackson) who explains he's been having a run of bad luck thanks to an artifact known as the Black Piper.
Half a world away in Stockholm, Interpol agent Joy Heather is investigating a break-in at the art museum there involving the theft of some valuable old paintings--or so the thief thinks.
And meanwhile Navy man Tony "the bull" D'Anato is plotting to steal some uranium from a Navy base in--wait for it--Ensenada, Mexico.
Through some strange alchemy, these plots all come together in what becomes a prelude to Armageddon. It's hard to put the book down because despite the factual errors and formatting problems, I just wanted to see what sort of fantastic things the author was going to throw at me next.
The genius of Escape From Ensenada then is that by combining all these elements that don't seem to fit together, it creates a story that is exciting and riveting.
That is all.
by Harris T. Vincent
(4/5 stars)
I think you'd be hard-pressed to find another novel that could blend together sailing, The Da Vinci Code, dirty bombs, 9/11 conspiracies, shadow governments, Michael Jackson, the fabled city of Atlantis, and Satan. Really all that was missing was an alien invasion and ninjas. But I bet the author is saving those for the sequel.
It starts fairly ordinary enough. Three old buddies--Tom, Emmett, and Ernie--are going to Ensenada, Mexico to complete purchase of a boat called the Swan. Before they leave, Tom runs into Jeremy Princeton (a thinly-veiled Michael Jackson) who explains he's been having a run of bad luck thanks to an artifact known as the Black Piper.
Half a world away in Stockholm, Interpol agent Joy Heather is investigating a break-in at the art museum there involving the theft of some valuable old paintings--or so the thief thinks.
And meanwhile Navy man Tony "the bull" D'Anato is plotting to steal some uranium from a Navy base in--wait for it--Ensenada, Mexico.
Through some strange alchemy, these plots all come together in what becomes a prelude to Armageddon. It's hard to put the book down because despite the factual errors and formatting problems, I just wanted to see what sort of fantastic things the author was going to throw at me next.
The genius of Escape From Ensenada then is that by combining all these elements that don't seem to fit together, it creates a story that is exciting and riveting.
That is all.
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