November Readling List

49. Deadly Heat (ua), by "Richard Castle"
48. The Best of Simon & Kirby, by Joe Simon & Jack Kirby. Hardcover collection.
47. Garment of Shadows (ua), by Laurie R. King
46. Stand-Up Guy (ua), by Stuart Woods

Earlier in the year:
45. Christmas Mourning (ua), by Margaret Maron
44. The Equalizer (hc), by Michael Sloan
43. Severed Souls (ua), by Terry Goodkind
42. Doom's Day, Book #2: Sabotage (pb), by Pierce Askegren and Danny Fingeroth
40. & 41. Left Behind: The Kids, books 31 & 32, by Tim LaHaye, Jerry B. Jenkins, and Chris Fabry.
39. The Divine Hours: Prayers for (pb), compiled by Phyllis Tickle
38. The Martian (ua), by Andy Weir
37. Batman Unmasked (hc), by Will Brooker
36. Star Wars: Kenobi (ua), by John Jackson Miller
35. Faith of the Fallen (ua), by Terry Goodkind
34. Unintended Consequences (ua), by Stuart Woods
33. The Valley of Fear (ua), by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
32. Blood of Tyrants (ua), by Naomi Novik
31. Both / And (pb), by Rich Nathan and Insoo Kim
30. The Forgotten (ua), by David Baldacci
29.The Cat Who Robbed a Bank (ua), by Lillian Jackson Braun
28. Fairest, book 1: Wide Awake (gn), by Bill Willingham, Matthew Sturges, and many artists
27. Ghost Train to New Orleans (pb), by Mur Lafferty
26. Hickory Dickory Dock (ua), by Agatha Christie
25. Saints Behaving Badly (hc), by Thomas J Craughwell
24. Justice League Dark, volumes 2 and 3, graphic novel collection. Written by Jeff Lemire, with art by Ray Fawkes, Mikek Janín, and others.
23. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest (ua), by Steig Larsson
22. Identical (ua), by  Scott Turow
21. The Athena Project (ua), by Brad Thor
20. The Divine Hours: Prayers for Springtime (ua), edited by Phyllis Tickle
19. Billion Dollar Batman (ua), by Bruce Scivally
18. Wonder Woman: Iron (gn), by Brian Azzarello, Cliff Chiang and others
17. The Innocent (ua), by David Baldacci
16. Song of the Quarkbeast (ua), by Jasper Fforde
15. Uncle Scrooge: Only a Poor Old Man (gn), by Carl Banks
14. Doom's Day, Book #1: Rampage (pb), by Danny Fingeroth and Eric Fein
13. The Guild of the Cowry Catchers: Book 5 (ua), by Abigail Hilton
12. Aquaman: The Others (gn), by Geoff Johns, Ivan Reis, and Joe Prado
11. Doing Hard Time (ua), by Stuart Woods
10. Star Wars: Scoundrels (ua), by Timothy Zahn
  9. Shadow Ops: Control Point (ua), by Myke Cole
  8. Little Black Sheep (Nook), by Ashley Cleveland
  7. The Last Dragonslayer (ua), by Jasper Fforde
  6. Before Watchmen: Comedian & Rorschach, by Brian Azzarello, J.G. Jones, and Le Bermejo
  5. Inferno Revealed (hc), by Deborah Parker and Mark Parker
  4. The Gearheart (ua), by Alex White
  3. The Great Fables Crossover (gn), by Bill Willingham, et. al.
  2. Silent Partner (pb), by Terrence King
  1. His Last Bow (ua), by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Review of Deadly Heat

Book #49. Deadly Heat, by "Richard Castle." Unabridged audio. 

I love what the producers of the TV show “Castle” have been doing. In every season of the TV show, the character Richard Castle has a new novel out, and during every summer, that novel is actually released.

As I have written before, in reviewing the prior three novels, that these novels are not adaptations of stories from the television series, but are “inspired” by events and characters that the character has faced on the show. It is a very interesting mix, and the author (whose actual identity is not widely known) does a fine job combining the light tone of the show and the serious mysteries that need to be solve.

Picking up where the prior book (reviewed here) left off, Deadly Heat continues Detective Heat’s search for justice for her mother’s murder. But a potential terrorist plot is complicating their efforts, especially since an ex-girlfriend of Rook is lead that branch of the investigation. Along the way, a serial killer is on the loose in New York City, and Nicki may be his next target. Add some incompetence (or maybe betrayal) in the police force, and this may be the toughest few weeks of her career.

For a novel featuring a pair of characters in a relationship, Rook & Heat do not spend a lot of time together in this book. And their relationship is one of the highlights of the series, so this lack definitely stood out. But the action plot and the character moments of the side characters make up for that lack.

I so miss the audio narration of Johnny Heller, who read the first four books in the series, but Robert Petkoff did a good enough job.

Source: public library

Review of The Best of Kirby and Simon

Book #48. The Best of Simon & Kirby, by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby. Hardcover collection.

Joe Simon and Jack Kirby are two of the true legends from the early days of comic books. Their careers began in the early 1940s, and both continued to work in the industry after their service in World War II. They worked together for nearly two decades, at a range of comic book companies, including a few that they founded themselves. Generally speaking, Jack was more of an artist and Joe was more of a writer, but in practice both men did everything.

Titan Books has produced a number of collections of their work, usually based on specific genres, such as crime, horror and science fiction. I reviewed the “superheroes” voume here. This collection was for the generalist, containing stories from all of the genres that Simon & Kirby worked in. The vast majority of the stories in this collection were originally published in the 1940s or 1950s.

Appropriately enough, superhero stories were most represented in this collection, the six stories in this genre taking up 62 pages. There were three war and adventure stories, and three crime stories, including a terrific dramatization of the life of Ma Barker, “The Mother of Crime.” The strength of this volume is its diversity, as it includes three westerns, as well as a pair of romance stories, one of which (“Wedding at Red Rock”) ended with a very nice twist.

The sections in the volume are each introduced by Mark Evanier, a comic book professional who worked closely with Jack Kirby towards the end of Kirby’s career. These brief essays add context for the particular genre, as well as telling a continuing narrative of their long partnership.

On a side note, as a result of recent lawsuit settlement, Jack Kirby has begun to receive official credit as a co-creator (with Stan Lee) of many Marvel comic books characters, including X-Men and Fantastic Four. 

Link: Simon-Kirby Collection 

Source: public library

Review of Garment of Shadows

Book #47.Garment of Shadows, by Laurie R. King  Unabridged audio.

I am a huge fan of Sherlock Holmes, and of all of the modern expansions of the Holmesian universe, the Mary Russell series is my favorite. I enjoy how the main characters have developed throughout the series, and although a few books have not been as strong as others, the books are regularly quite good. And the latest is among the stronger books in the series.

The opening scenes of the book concerned me, as the novel begins with Mary recovering from amnesia. This is just a plot point I’m getting tired of. Fortunately, Russell’s memory starts to return shortly thereafter, and this plot element does not become the tired trope that it could be. The slow memory recovery scenes allow for King to revisit the basics of the Holmes – Russell relationship.

Mary Russell’s opportunity to appear on film (which occurred in the last book, The Pirate King, reviewed here) separates her from Holmes. This leads to her disappearing from the film shoot and failing to meet Holmes at a pre-arranged rendezvous. This leads the great detective across the Middle East and North Africa to search for his wife. Along the way, they contact their old friends Ali and Mahmoud Hazr (from prior novels O Jerusalem & Justice Hall).

The period details are wonderful in all the books in these series. The backdrop of this novel includes the growing war in 1924 between France, Spain, and the Rif Revolt led by Emir Abd el-Krim. This is a period of time and a place in the world that I know very little about, so Russell’s ability to bring the setting to life is a strength of the story.

At this point in the series, King has to balance characterization and plot. And when Sherlock Holmes is a character in your novel, the mystery plot has to be compelling. In this one, the political intricacies add a level of complexity for the characters to navigate. And once the amnesia plot moved into the background, I foud teh novel to be an entertaining read.

source: public library

Review of The Unwritten, vol 6

The Unwritten, volume 6: Tommy Taylor and the War of Words, by Mike Carey, Peter Gross, and M.K. Parker. Graphic novel collection, consisting of issues 31-35 and 31.1-35.1.

What if JK Rowling had a son named Harry Potter Rowling, whose life was made miserable by his famous fictional namesake? That could be dramatic enough, but what if this Harry learned later in his life that he was in fact a wizard, and that the books in fact told the story of the coming apocalypse, and his role therein? In essence, that is the premise for the terrific comic series The Unwritten.

Novelist Mike Carey (whose The Devil You Know was reviewedhere) does a great job turning this crazy premise into a gripping and dramatic story. In this world, Tom Taylor is the chosen one, and he has to use clues found in his late father’s “Tommy Taylor” novels to save the world. Fortunately, he has a few allies, and legions of fans.

The theme of this arc is the power of words, and the power of the faith of readers. The theme is not original to Carey, but the execution here is interesting. The bad guys of the evil cabal weaken Tommy by hiring unknowing minions to read aloud Tommy Taylor stories of their own making. But by pulling together the power of fans and fandom, evil can be averted. At least for now.

Issues 31.1-35.1 tell an interesting backstory to the events of this story. This tells the tale of the immortals who formed the cabal, to keep the power of words from affecting their vision of the world they wished to create.

This is high-concept comics at it best, a great idea told well. The Unwritten continues to be among my favorite current comic series.

Source: public library

Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along!

Just do the following:

Grab your current read.

Open to a random page.

Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page.

BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

From Chapter 6 of Doom's Day. Book 3: Wreckage, by Eric Fein & Pierce Askegren 

  "Doom's dark eyes smoldered as they glared through the slits in his steel mask. 'I did not retrieve you from your place of incarceration so that you could pursue your own goals, he said. 'Only mine.' One armored hand reached for the circuit board.”

Review of Standup Guy

Book #46. Standup Guy, by Stuart Woods. Unabridged audio. 

I have read all of Stuart Woods’ novels up to this one, and have enjoyed most of them, despite finding the last half-dozen or so to be a bit repetitive. This one was a return to form for Woods, as the story had more intrigue than some of the most recent books have had. It was also nice to see lead character Stone Barrington portrayed as less than the perfect super-spy he seemed to be recently.

The book starts simply enough, with Stone Barrington landing a new legal client, a man with an interesting and lucrative dilemma. It seems that he knows the whereabouts of money that was stolen many years ago. Stone recognizes that the statute of limitations on the original crime has run out, and the man seems to have legal claim to the money.

But the police officers who originally investigated the crime are still interested in finding the money. As are the mob figures who were involved in the crime. Stone finds himself in unexpected crosshairs. And when he midjudges the intentions of a woman, he may in fact be out millions of dollars, if he manages to stay alive.

Woods’ novels are always quick reads, and Standup Guy is no exception. A few ongoing subplots are accounted for, and a few members of the standard supporting cast appear, but most of the novel deals with the specific case. And that plot goes a few directions I did not see coming.

I am a big fan of Woods’ ability to create a coherent and cohesive universe for his novels. President Will Lee and his wife are players here, and groundwork is laid for further novels featuring the power couple. The story of Teddy Fay, who was an antagonist for a half-dozen novels, was brought to a close in a satisfying manner.

Narrator Tony Roberts does his usul fine job bringing life to the various characters in this novel.

source: public library. .

Between Audiobooks (7)

I have written before of my habit of listening to a few episodes of PodCastle or Escape Pod in between audiobooks -- short story palate cleansers between novels. I am still waaaay behind (12+ months!) on these podcasts), so I listened to a bunch of Podcastles last week, just after reading Christmas Mourning. I listened to these episodes:

Escape Pod 394: Good Hunting, by Ken Liu. An interesting mix of steampunk, technology vs. tradition, and magical demon-hunting in post-colonial China.

Escape Pod 395: Robot, by Karina Bell. A very interesting take on the idea of human-to-robot transformation.

Escape Pod 396: Dead Merchandise, by Ferrett Steinmetz. When marketing companies upgrade their pitches to customized "ad-faeries," what is a disgruntled customer to do? Especially one taking a gasoline can to the mall.

Escape Pod 397: A Gun For Dinosaur, by L. Sprague de Camp.A classic writer taking on the classic Sci-Fi trope of the time-traveling dinosaur expedition.

Escape Pod 398: Subversion, by Elisabeth R. Adams.Thought-provoking take on cloning (of a sort). When we can split off portions of ourselves, to perform certain tasks, interesting questions (and plot points) arise.

Escape Pod 399: My Heart is a Quadratic Equation, by Shane Halbach.Sort of super-villain team origin story. But a love story, too. My favorite among this batch.

October Reading List

45. Christmas Mourning (ua), by Margaret Maron
44. The Equalizer (hc), by Michael Sloan
43. Severed Souls (ua), by Terry Goodkind
42. Doom's Day, Book #2: Sabotage (pb), by Pierce Askegren and Danny Fingeroth


Earlier in the year:
40. & 41. Left Behind: The Kids, books 31 & 32, by Tim LaHaye, Jerry B. Jenkins, and Chris Fabry.
39. The Divine Hours: Prayers for (pb), compiled by Phyllis Tickle
38. The Martian (ua), by Andy Weir
37. Batman Unmasked (hc), by Will Brooker
36. Star Wars: Kenobi (ua), by John Jackson Miller
35. Faith of the Fallen (ua), by Terry Goodkind
34. Unintended Consequences (ua), by Stuart Woods
33. The Valley of Fear (ua), by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
32. Blood of Tyrants (ua), by Naomi Novik
31. Both / And (pb), by Rich Nathan and Insoo Kim
30. The Forgotten (ua), by David Baldacci
29.The Cat Who Robbed a Bank (ua), by Lillian Jackson Braun
28. Fairest, book 1: Wide Awake (gn), by Bill Willingham, Matthew Sturges, and many artists
27. Ghost Train to New Orleans (pb), by Mur Lafferty
26. Hickory Dickory Dock (ua), by Agatha Christie
25. Saints Behaving Badly (hc), by Thomas J Craughwell
24. Justice League Dark, volumes 2 and 3, graphic novel collection. Written by Jeff Lemire, with art by Ray Fawkes, Mikek Janín, and others.
23. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest (ua), by Steig Larsson
22. Identical (ua), by  Scott Turow
21. The Athena Project (ua), by Brad Thor
20. The Divine Hours: Prayers for Springtime (ua), edited by Phyllis Tickle
19. Billion Dollar Batman (ua), by Bruce Scivally
18. Wonder Woman: Iron (gn), by Brian Azzarello, Cliff Chiang and others
17. The Innocent (ua), by David Baldacci
16. Song of the Quarkbeast (ua), by Jasper Fforde
15. Uncle Scrooge: Only a Poor Old Man (gn), by Carl Banks
14. Doom's Day, Book #1: Rampage (pb), by Danny Fingeroth and Eric Fein
13. The Guild of the Cowry Catchers: Book 5 (ua), by Abigail Hilton
12. Aquaman: The Others (gn), by Geoff Johns, Ivan Reis, and Joe Prado
11. Doing Hard Time (ua), by Stuart Woods
10. Star Wars: Scoundrels (ua), by Timothy Zahn
  9. Shadow Ops: Control Point (ua), by Myke Cole
  8. Little Black Sheep (Nook), by Ashley Cleveland
  7. The Last Dragonslayer (ua), by Jasper Fforde
 6. Before Watchmen: Comedian & Rorschach, by Brian Azzarello, J.G. Jones, and Le Bermejo
 5. Inferno Revealed (hc), by Deborah Parker and Mark Parker
 4. The Gearheart (ua), by Alex White
 3. The Great Fables Crossover (gn), by Bill Willingham, et. al.
 2. Silent Partner (pb), by Terrence King
 1. His Last Bow (ua), by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle