The Y Logs

Yzabel / November 4, 2016

Review: Cybercrime and the Dark Net

Cybercrime and the Dark Net: Revealing the hidden underworld of the internet by Cath Senker

My rating: [rating=3]

Blurb:

With the emergence of the internet new forms of crime became possible. From harassment and grooming to fraud and identity theft the anonymity provided by the internet has created a new world of crime of which we all must be aware. The threat of hackers reaches beyond the individual, threatening businesses and even states, and holds worrying implications for the world we live in.

In this enlightening account, Cath Senker unmasks the many guises that cybercrime takes and the efforts of law enforcement to keep pace with the hackers. She reveals the mysterious world of hackers and cybersecurity professionals and reveals a story that is both shocking and surprising. With chapters on political activism and human rights, Senker shows a brighter side of the darknet. For anyone interested in learning more of the world of cyber-criminals and their opponents, this is the perfect starting point.

Review:

[I received a copy of this book through NetGalley.]

This book provided an introduction to part of what you can find on the “Deep Web”. If you don’t know anything about it, or just a few things, it will give you some starting points which you can use to then find out more. If you already know what there is to know, probably the book won’t be useful, though.

Divided in two parts, “Cybercrime” and “The Dark Net”, it introduces some of the basic ideas and concepts. What’s the Deep Web and what can you find it it. Who’s more likely to use the Tor browser and other tools to remain anonymous (not only criminals and terrorists: activist and people who fight for their rights do need a place where they can share information without being silenced by their governments). Examples of cybercrime: drug-selling websites, child sexual abuse, or simply places where you can buy regular items with Bitcoin. Interestingly, crime appears to be the least spread activity, and a lot of people who use the ‘Dark Web’ do so for reasons that do not go against the law. All in all, it’s a good reminder that a tool is never as good or as evil as the hand who wields it.

The book also provides examples of some of the most well-known leaks, uses of virus or worms, and DDoS attacks. Nothing new to me, but something that will be useful to neophytes, without drowning them under a deluge of information—and not as biased as one may have expected: all in all, the author tried to present various sides of the story, so to speak. (Of course, keep in mind that what’s in the book is only the tip of the iceberg: the most juicy bits are the ones you will -not- find in a book.)

I’m not rating it higher because in the end, it didn’t bring me a lot of information I didn’t already know. But I don’t doubt it will be more interesting for other readers.

Yzabel / November 4, 2016

Review: Revenger

Revenger by Alastair Reynolds

My rating: [rating=3]

Blurb:

The galaxy has seen great empires rise and fall. Planets have shattered and been remade. Amongst the ruins of alien civilizations, building our own from the rubble, humanity still thrives.
And there are vast fortunes to be mad, if you know where to find them…
Captain Rackamore and his crew do. It’s their business to find the tiny, enigmatic worlds which have been hidden away, booby-trapped, surrounded by layers of protection – and to crack them open for the ancient relics and barely-remembered technologies inside. But while they ply their risky trade with integrity, not everyone is so scrupulous.
Adrana and Fura Ness are the newest members of Rackamore’s crew, signed on to save their family from bankruptcy. Only Rackamore has enemies, and there might be more waiting for them in space than adventure and fortune: the fabled and feared Bosa Sennen in particular.
Revenger is a science fiction adventure story set in the rubble of our solar system in the dark, distant future – a tale of space pirates, buried treasure, and phantom weapons, of unspeakable hazards and single-minded heroism… and of vengeance…

Review:

[I received a copy of this novel through NetGalley.]

I’ve never read anything by this author before, so I can’t compare with his other works. In general, although “Revenger” is not without faults, it was an entertaining novel.

“Revenger” takes place in a decrepit, dark solar system. In this world where spaceships run both on ion engines and thanks to sails gathering solar radiation from the “Old Sun”, crews live and die for their constant scavenging of “baubles”, closed gems inherited from various alien occupations, that only open from time to time… and are rumoured to contain all kinds of treasures. There’s no massive colonisation of other planets here, only little artificial worlds, scattered here and there, some in the shape of tubes, others using rotation to generate their gravity. This is a world of smuggling and piracy, of young women signing up with crews to leave their smothering father, and of rakish captains and resourceful sailors—all united by their love of money (qoins) and their fear of the legendary Bosa Sennen.

There were great moments in this story—from gritty and gorey close-combat scenes to tense moments between characters, from the cold, constricted yet fascinating baubles to the ominous presence of the Nightjammer when it was looming close—and hints of a world building that goes much deeper, thanks to the various bits the author gives here and there about the various Occupations. I wish the author had had room to develop this some more, especially when it came to the baubles and why they were left here: weaponry warehouses? Traps? Something else? Part of a much more complicated system?

A lot of the characters in this novel are not particularly nice at first sight. Adrana and Fura dream of adventure, and enlist on a ship to earn money for their father who lost a lot in bad investments (on top of having heart problems), but most of their drive still comes from a selfish desire (selfish because they don’t think of all the hurt they’ll cause) to escape a pampered rich girl’s fate. Probably they’re meant to marry to bring money in, though, and, in Fura’s case, there’s the matter of her father, as doting as he is, considering having a creepy doctor inject her with drugs so that her body will remain that of a child for more years to come. While the crew of the Monetta seems to be decent people, other are clearly cowardish, like captains trailing other ships to let them do most of the work in a bauble before entering it themselves, or, worse, jump them to steal their loot and kill them (Bosa is in the latter category). Vidin, from the beginning, was a thug who demolished a robot instead of just “preventing it from entering the shop”. And Fura herself isn’t blameless, becoming harder (understandable considering the hardships she’s been through) in a way that also makes her really callous at times (I’m thinking of the morning of her escape, more specifically).

However, even though this doesn’t make them too likeable, it also definitely fits the mood. There’s something dark and rotten in this world, highlighted by some of the loot found in baubles: cloth as black as the night, ghostly weapons and armor that seem to defy the laws of space itself, claustrophobic baubles where you can end up trap if you’ve got your auguries wrong (they open and close at set times, and if you’re trapped, nobody can get you out). Ships communicate and spy through the use of bones, ancient remnants of aliens long gone, which nobody truly understand; only teenagers can read them, before adulthood freezes their neural elasticity and makes them unable to process the kind of data travelling on the bones. And, in general, no mercy here: a tiny mistake will kill you, and some, like Bosa, have mastered and elevated cruelty to the rank of art.

Oddly enough, I quite liked Bosa. Maybe because of her way of talking, her strange suit, the legend she posed as… I admit I was a little disappointed when her goals were revealed, not because of what they were, but because of the way they were introduced—these would have deserved, I think, more details, and a different kind of exposition. This echoed the disjointedness I could feel at times, when the rhythm of the narrative became uneven; the beginning would be a good example of this, with the girls’ decision coming a little too fast to be believable (especially Fura’s—Adrana was introduced as wilder, but Fura seemed to be too mild and obedient to suddenly do such a 180). Things became more interesting once the girls were onboard the ship.

There’s a slight shift in the narrative style as well: the harder Fura becomes, the more her style veers from her more prim, ‘ladylike’ speech (even though she always keeps traces of it—as several characters are apt to point out). Although to be honest, I’m still on the fence when it comes to Fura’s growth: in spite of the hardships she encountered, I found it too quick, and not entirely justified by the a certain plot element supposed to make her more paranoid/prone to anger. I don’t know. It just seemed to extreme.

Still, I enjoyed the book, and am hoping there’ll be a sequel, so 3.5 stars it is.

Yzabel / October 31, 2016

Review: The Bear and the Nightingale

The Bear and The Nightingale by Katherine Arden

My rating: [rating=4]

Blurb:

In a village at the edge of the wilderness of northern Russia, where the winds blow cold and the snow falls many months of the year, a stranger with piercing blue eyes presents a new father with a gift – a precious jewel on a delicate chain,intended for his young daughter. Uncertain of its meaning, the father hides the gift away and his daughter, Vasya, grows up a wild, willfull girl, to the chagrin of her family. But when mysterious forces threaten the happiness of their village, Vasya discovers that, armed only with the necklace, she may be the only one who can keep the darkness at bay.

Review:

[I received a copy of this novel through NetGalley.]

I was invited to read this book by the publisher, and gladly accepted, since it looked like something I would like.

And liked it I did, at least for most of its parts. It took me a little while to get used to the writing style, however once I did I found it worked fairly well, telling the story in the manner of a fairy tale. The descriptions made it easy to picture the house Vasya lives in, the horses, the nearby forest, and the deep cold in winter.

I liked Vasya in general, and how her “opponents” were not only out of tales and folklore, but also what society expects of her (either marrying or going to a convent). This was easy to see with the way she was described, often likened to a “filly” when the point of view was a man’s, like an animal just waiting to be tamed. I felt that at times, this description extended to other POVs, which weakened it, but in general, it worked (yes, it created a feeling of unease and frustration… which was exactly the point, I suppose!). Fortunately, Vasya had no intention of being “tamed”, and revealed herself as a brave soul who wanted nothing more than to protect her family, even knowing that people would call her a witch. And it didn’t matter to her: she still wanted to do the right thing, without wasting time on justifying her actions.

The magic here is more on the subtle side: no spells, but folklore, people leaving food for the spirits of their home, Vasya being able to talk with horses, horses teaching her how to ride them, and “witches” being generally characterised by their ability to see the spirits. The latter were on the side of nature rather than morality’s, which was a pleasant thing: contrary to the priest’s and Anna’s beliefs, this was never about “demons”, about Good vs. Bad, but about two different sides of nature, the cold/death/order pitched against the scorching heat and violence of an unbound summer. Even if the Bear was touted as the enemy, he was nevertheless part of the cycle: not to be destroyed, simply to be forced to rest in order not to burn too bright and destroy what he touched instead of warming it.

To be honest, I regret a little that the story didn’t truly turn to magic/tale before later. There was much of “Vasya growing up, politics in Moscow”, etc., which in a bona fide fairy tale would’ve been an introduction, soon to leave room to the actual tale. Granted, it did help in setting the mood and the family relationships, but I suppose I was expecting more of the magical/enchanted side, in larger doses? In spite of the presence of chyerty, some chapters felt a tad bit too down to earth, in a way. I think this also contributes to making it a slow story: I admit I wondered, towards the end, if there’d be room for the announced battle against the Bear, because I was reaching the 85% mark and I still wasn’t seeing it.

Conclusion: 3.5 stars.

Yzabel / October 30, 2016

Review: Doctor Who: The American Adventures

Doctor Who: The American Adventures by Justin Richards

My rating: [rating=1]

Blurb::

Travel through time and space with the Twelfth Doctor in these six brand new adventures, set in a host of locations across the US and eras from throughout US history.

An invisible spacecraft turns up at the Battle of New Orleans, an alien presence is detected at the 1944 D-Day landings, and ghosts take over New York’s subway tunnels as they’re being dug in the early 1900s…

Review:

[I received a copy of this novel through NetGalley.]

This was advertised in the Comics category, so I thought it’d be a comics, but it’s actually a collection of short stories. Ah, well.

Not sure what to think about it, really. I found it… just bland, to be honest. On the bright side, none of the stories come with glaring plot holes or annoying sidekicks, but on the other hand, none left me with a lasting impression either.

The main problems here for me are:
– The characterisation of the Doctor. The stories are supposed to feature Capaldi’s Doctor; it could be just any generic Doctor, though, the way he acts and is described. I could find no defining feature (even the eyebrows seemed weak!).
– Most of the stories’s endings are disappointing: too abrupt, or close to nonexistant. The fifth story, for instance, leaves a lot of things unsaid. The least I expect in a story about an assassin trying to off their target is the assassin’s motives, or who’s hired them. Here, nothing. It just ends.

“All That Glitters”: Forgettable. The plot is OK, but there’s are no surprised here, it’s all lvery classic, quickly solved, and a bit boring.

“Off the Trail”: This one had more of a creepy feeling, the “something’s wrong but we don’t know yet what” feeling. Still, the “enemy” was done with too quickly.

“Ghosts of New York”: Interesting theme, boring execution.

“Taking the Plunge”: A bit better. Not complicated, a simple enough plot to follow, but with more oompfh than the previous stories.

“Spectator Sport”: I seriously didn’t see the point. Tourism on battlefields in different eras is ethically bad. OK. I was more interested anyway in the crime story wrapped in it; however, the latter fizzled and petered out. (See above about this.)

“Base of Operations”: Considering its theme, it would have deserved a more complex resolution: I thought of all the stories, this was the most promising, the one with the strongest premise. At the end the Doctor was more like himself, with his determined stance of defending Earth and making sure the enemy’s aware of it.

Conclusion: 1.5 stars. I don’t recommend it, it is of little interest.

Yzabel / October 29, 2016

Review: The Radium Girls

The Radium Girls: They paid with their lives. Their final fight was for justice. by Kate Moore

My rating: [rating=4]

Blurb:

Ordinary women in 1920s America.

All they wanted was the chance to shine.

Be careful what you wish for.

‘The first thing we asked was, “Does this stuff hurt you?” And they said, “No.” The company said that it wasn’t dangerous, that we didn’t need to be afraid.’

1917. As a war raged across the world, young American women flocked to work, painting watches, clocks and military dials with a special luminous substance made from radium. It was a fun job, lucrative and glamorous – the girls themselves shone brightly in the dark, covered head to toe in the dust from the paint. They were the radium girls.
As the years passed, the women began to suffer from mysterious and crippling illnesses. The very thing that had made them feel alive – their work – was in fact slowly killing them: they had been poisoned by the radium paint. Yet their employers denied all responsibility. And so, in the face of unimaginable suffering – in the face of death – these courageous women refused to accept their fate quietly, and instead became determined to fight for justice.

Drawing on previously unpublished sources – including diaries, letters and court transcripts, as well as original interviews with the women’s relatives – The Radium Girls is an intimate narrative account of an unforgettable true story. It is the powerful tale of a group of ordinary women from the Roaring Twenties, who themselves learned how to roar.

Review:

[I received a copy of this novel through NetGalley.]

This book was fairly difficult for me to read. Fascinating, but difficult, because of its theme (and I must say immediately, this is entirely personal): on the one hand, it was really interesting; on the other hand, having teeth/jaw problems myself, reading some of the symptoms the girls manifested triggered my own fears (even though, obviously, my own problems are totally minor compared to theirs!). And that was before the book got to the cancer parts. It made up for very strange reading sessions, where I’d pick up my Kindle, read a couple of pages, leave it, go back to it 2 minutes later because I still wanted to know what would follow, rinse and repeat. Very weird—but, as I mentioned, and to be fair, entirely personal.

One may wonder why I picked this book, knowing my fears about part of its themes—obviously I should’ve expected the latter. This said, having previously read a couple of articles about the Radium Girls, I simply wanted to know more: about when exactly it happened, over how many years, how they finally got justice, more details about the hurdles, and so on. And in that regard, the book definitely doesn’t disappoint. Or perhaps it will an actual historian of that period and of that specific theme, but let’s be honest, I doubt the audience for such works is entirely made up of professional researchers anyway. So there’s much to learn in these pages about the Radium Girls, and it provides much more than a mere introduction to the topic.

The writing style was one of the things that made the book interesting to read, by humanising the accounts of what happened to the Radium Girls: I doubt a dry, clinical style would have worked here, all the more because there were quite a few pages dedicated to describing symptoms of radium poisoning and court sessions. You can feel that the author was genuinely passionate about her topic, also in a more literary way, and wanted to show the women involved as real people, with their lives, husbands, families, and (quashed) hopes for the future, and not just as examples of the consequences of radium poisoning. This is even more poignant because it happened in the Roaring Twenties, with the glamour and glitz I think they project in many people’s minds: the girls appeared at first as so young, in love with life and dancing and going out, and it was so easy to picture them as happy-go-lucky flappers who never deserved such a fate (not that anyone deserves it, mind you).

This gave a humane dimension to what could otherwise have been a bit boring to read, I suppose—and provided for reading sections, instead of huge info-dumps. On the downside, I found this style sometimes cheesy; it worked in some chapters/paragraphs, it didn’t in others, when it felt like the author was “laying it a bit too thick”, so to speak. But that’s a minor complain on my part.

Also, since I got the ebook version for review, I didn’t get to see the picture that are inserted in the printed book . Too bad for me.

Conclusion: 4 stars. If you’re like me, this may trigger a few fears, yet the book and the light it sheds on a not-so-well-known part of US history made it all worth it.

Yzabel / October 25, 2016

Review: Orphans of the Carnival

Orphans of the Carnival by Carol Birch

My rating: [rating=2]

Blurb:

A life in the spotlight will keep anyone hidden.

Julia Pastrana is the singing and dancing marvel from Mexico, heralded on tours across nineteenth-century Europe as much for her talent as for her rather unusual appearance. Yet few can see past the thick hair that covers her: she is both the fascinating toast of a Governor’s ball and the shunned, revolting, unnatural beast, to be hidden from children and pregnant women.

But what is her wonderful and terrible link to Rose, collector of lost treasures in an attic room in modern-day south London? In this haunting tale of identity, love and independence, these two lives will connect in unforgettable ways.

Review:

[I received a copy of this novel through NetGalley.]

This novel is based on the story of Julia Pastrana, a perforrmer and “freak” who lived in the 19th century; more than the typical “woman with a beard”, Julia was covered in hair, and had a facial condition that made her look like an ape. Throughout the story, we get to see here leave her hometown and the house where she had lived, to perform with a troupe, then with independent managers. More than a mere attraction, Julia sang and danced beautifully, something other characters find both fascinating and troubling: after all, is she really a human being, or merely an animal?

I found this attraction mixed with revulsion fascinating, for all the questions it raised. Most of the story is told from Julia’s point of view, and there’s no doubt she’s a human being, period, with her own thoughts, feelings, dignity, and desires in life. She may appear as a little passive at first (her fellow performers have to remind her to get a contract, not just take everything her manager send her way, and she let herself be prodded by doctors and scientists), but she reveals herself quickly as full of willpower: leaving the people she’s always known for the big unknown, and especially accepting her condition as something normal, something that’s part of her, while making use of skills that, in about everybody, would certainly garner admiration (singing, dancing, playing the guitar, acting). There’s some contradiction in her character, true; on the other hand, this is just part of the human condition—so many of us are creatures of contradiction.

But the world isn’t so kind to her, and while a lot of people are ready to pay just to see her, or are her friends (Ezra, Friederike…), some others don’t hesitate to criticise her, judge her as amoral, or as an abnormality that should be kept under lock and not shown to people. This definitely raises the matter of the “freaks” (Victorian period) and how they were perceived, not to mention what may easily be forgotten: that those people were, well, people first. In this way, the novel can be shocking—thus reflecting a very Victorian feeling, with “well-thinking people” judging those who’re different, while at the same time never judging themselves for gawking. (Also, there’s the matter of Theo’s decision later.)

This highlighted the tragedy of Julia’s life: people came to see her, but less for her skills than for her appearance. She was invited to social gatherings, but less for her personality than for others to “see the freak”. People talked about her relationship, but less out of happiness for the couple than to whisper in their backs about “does he does it with -that-?” It was all very sad, all the more because Julia can never free herself from her appearance, which in turns is limiting (she can’t go out without a veil, for instance, and in spite of travelling a lot, she doesn’t get to really see that many places).

Theo, well… Theo was less interesting. Mostly his character was of a mercantile quality (and at least he’s honest about that), and there was never any mystery about the part money/fame played in their relationship. Still, when things were told from his point of view, they never seemed as rich and interesting as when they were from Julia’s.

Julia’s story would have been a 3/4 stars. However, a few things prevented me from really enjoying it. First, Theo’s voice (as said, not very enthralling, especially when it dealt with his ambiguous feelings for her); I kept thinking that I would’ve wanted to see this relationship told only through Julia’s eyes, perhaps because there would’ve been more than a seed of wondering whether he truly loved her or just took advantage of the situation? Hard to tell. Also, the fact that Julia doesn’t stay that long with other performers, and apart from a couple of encounters with Ezra, Berniece and Cato later, mostly everything revolves around Julia and Theo, therefore: not much potential for various interactions.

Finally, the Rose narrative: I disliked that one, none of the characters were particularly appealing, and that story was only connected by a lose thread to Julia’s. I had expected something more… intense? More closely related? The way it was, it brought nothing to Julia’s story, and in the end my only feeling was “why did I bother reading those parts?”

Conclusion: 2.5 stars. Julia’s narrative didn’t need to be bogged down by Rose’s.

Yzabel / October 20, 2016

Review: Death By Cliché

Death by Cliché by Bob Defendi

My rating: [rating=3]

Blurb:

To Sartre, Hell was other people. To the game designer, Hell is the game.

Damico writes games for a living. When called in to rescue a local roleplaying game demo, Damico is shot in the head by a loony fan. He awakens in a game. A game full of hackneyed tropes and clichéd plots. A game he was there to save, run by the man who murdered him just moments ago. A game that has just become world-swap fantasy. Damico, to his horror, has become the heart of the cliché.

Set on their quest in a scene that would make Ed Wood blush, Damico discovers a new wrinkle. As a game designer, he is a creative force in this broken place. His presence touches the two-dimensional inhabitants. First a peasant, then a barmaid, then his character’s own father…all come alive.

But the central question remains. Can Damico escape, or is he trapped in this nightmare? Forever.

Wait, what? This is a comedy? Ignore all that. Death by Cliché is a heartwarming tale of catastrophic brain damage. Share it with someone you love. Or like. Or anyone at all. Buy the book.

Based on a true story.

Review:

[I received a copy of this book from the publisher.]

I’m on the fence regarding this novel, as some parts were fun, but some others made fun of gamers in a way that I would expect from someone who doesn’t play—as in, clichés that weren’t so funny as demeaning.

Damico, game designer, finds himself trapped in a tabletop RPG scenario, as a non-player character, after he got shot in the head by a loony Dungeon Master. (Which in itself is a bad cliché already, but that may be me being a wee bit sensitive after years trying to debunk myths in my hometown, like “oh you’re a gamer, so you must be weird and deranged”. Meh.) It’s only a game, right? Right. So it doesn’t matter if all those cardboard characters—peasants, the Evil Overlord, the buxom tavern wench…—get to die, because they’re just ink on paper, or in the head of the game master. Except they’re not, not exactly; and conversely, if they are, does it mean that Damico is dead, and nothing more than ink as well?

And this is one of the strong points of “Death By Cliché”. Sure, it’s nothing the literary world hasn’t seen before (what is real, what defines reality, what defines humanity…), yet it doesn’t matter: it remains an interesting theme. The humorous approach doesn’t detract from this kind of “serious” questioning, and at the same time is enjoyable, because, well, it’s fun.

The clichés I’m a bit undecided about, as mentioned previously. The book is packed with them, which is totally expected with such a title and premise, and some of them work really well. If you are, or used to be, a gamer, odds are you’ve encountered a lot of them, whether places, situations or people. It pokes fun at the tired fantasy tropes (the evil lord, the long days of travel—sorry, I’m not a “travel fantasy” person— the fabled Artefact, the cliché large-breasted tavern girls, and so on). Plenty of themes to play with, and it’s obvious the author had lots of fun with those. Also, the feeling of reliving some old gaming sessions, or discussing those with an old friend. I’m positive that every gamer, at some point, even the most serious/storytelling-type/roleplaying ones, gave in at some point to some jolly good cliché or silly action. This is part of what makes such games funny, after all.

Some tropes didn’t work as well for me; but then, they’re clearly the ones that tend to make too much fun of gamers in general, and can easily be construed as more derogatory than mere fun. You know, the “oh but it’s just for fun, don’t get angry” thing, to cover a hurtful comment/joke. That’s the kind of the impression I got.

The writing style was often tongue-in-cheek, sometimes deliberately breaking the fourth wall. I tend to like this, so it made me smile. I couldn’t care less about the chapter quotes, though; the first three or so were cool, the rest quickly became tedious.

Conclusion: As expected, a lot of clichés, that may have been exploited better; but all in all, it was a fun ride.

Enregistrer

Yzabel / October 16, 2016

Review: Curioddity

Curioddity by Paul Jenkins

My rating: [rating=3]

Blurb:

Will Morgan is a low-budget detective after quitting his job and hardly ever has any work. When one day a mysterious man named Mr. Dinsdale, curator of an even more mysterious Curioddity Museum (a museum that houses legendary relics of history), visits him and asks him to find a wooden box made of teak, with a mother of pearl inlay that contains the world’s largest sample of levity, Wil thinks it is all a joke. He accepts the task and before long finds a worthy substitute to meet Mr. Dinsdale’s specifications. What Wil soon learns, however, is that there is a whole other world out there, a world he can only see by learning to un-see things, and in this world there are people who want to close the Curioddity museum down. With the help of his new girlfriend Lucy, Wil will do everything he can to deliver on his promise to help Mr. Dinsdale keep the Curioddity Museum in business.

Review:

[I received a copy of this book through NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.]

Hard one to rate… I found it full of good ideas, but the pacing threw me off, except after the 70% mark or so, when it really picked up.

The beginning was tricky: slow and “dull”, which was fitting as it perfectly reflected the daily drudgery that is Wil Morgan’s life. So in a way, it was perfectly adequate, even though it made it difficult to get into the story fast. Wil is, simply put, a man who used to dream when he was a child, encouraged by his mother who taught him to look at the world differently; yet after his mother’s death, banality caught up to him, this time with his father’s support, the latter wanting a secure and normal life for his son. Of course, when the mysterious Mr Dinsdale waltzes into Wil’s bleak existence, everything starts to change…

There is no blatant revelation here, or very complex world building with a whole underground, supernatural society and its many rules and denizens. As far as urban fantasy goes, it’s relatively light, with the magical/unexplained side of things more touched upon than delved into. In itself, it’s not bad at all: it has a quaint charm, that also makes it easy to discover all those strange occurrences at the same time the main character does. It’s all about little things, and perhaps they’re not even so extraordinary, just less mundane than we’re used to, and able to become fascinating if we decide to let them do. Crates that move only when you’re not looking at them. Perpetual Motion artefacts. Machines rumoured to have been created by Da Vinci himself. Weird contraptions and items that “do stuff” as long as you don’t worry too much about it. The Museum of Curioddities has a lot of such objects, and every addition contributes to making Wil’s life more and more unusual, little bit by little bit. (Also, the Evil Swiss Clock.)

And even though it seems like nonsense, all of this, this little world, has a logic of its own. Nonsense ends up making as much sense as mundane life—perhaps even more, at times. So what if the villain is pretty wacky, and the light romance kind of predictable in a world full of unpredictability? Well, it doesn’t really matter.

What prevented me from enjoying this book more were mostly:
– The pacing: even after Wil’s life takes a turn for the oddest, it still felt somewhat… dull in places. I guess I had expected more in that regard.
– Although the writing in general is good, I thought there were too many “witty lines” and bizarre metaphors. A couple thrown in from time to time is all right, and fun, but too many will ruin the fun, so to speak. It was enough to pull me out of my reading; it may just be me, though.

Conclusion: apart from those (jarring enough for me, perhaps not for another reader), it was good in terms of whimsical/somewhat nonsensical magical realism.

Yzabel / October 11, 2016

Review: Knights of the Borrowed Dark

Knights of the Borrowed Dark by Dave Rudden

My rating: [rating=3]

Blurb:

Denizen Hardwick is an orphan, and his life is, well, normal. Sure, in storybooks orphans are rescued from drudgery when they discover they are a wizard or a warrior or a prophesied king. But this is real life—orphans are just kids without parents. At least that’s what Denizen thought…

On a particularly dark night, the gates of Crosscaper Orphanage open to a car that almost growls with power. The car and the man in it retrieve Denizen with the promise of introducing him to a long-lost aunt. But on the ride into the city, they are attacked. Denizen soon learns that monsters can grow out of the shadows. And there is an ancient order of knights who keep them at bay. Denizen has a unique connection to these knights, but everything they tell him feels like a half-truth. If Denizen joins the order, is he fulfilling his destiny, or turning his back on everything his family did to keep him alive?

Review:

[I received a copy of this book through NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.]

An enjoyable middle-grade novel, even though not the most original ever. Denizen (not the best of names, to be honest) is an orphan, grew up in an orphanage, has never known his parents, and nobody has information about them. But on his 13th birthday, an aunt he was never told about offers to have him home for a few days… and perhaps more?

After this start somewhat common to a lot of books in this category, and somewhat slow as well, things picked up. Denizen is introduced to a new world, and the author isn’t shy of showing that world’s darkness, literally (the Tenebrous) as well as figuratively: the magic has its toll, and is of the kind you need to use scarcely, otherwise it burns its users. Granted, I found the world-building a bit shoddy in places—great concepts, like the Endless King, the Emissary and Os Reges (the latter were beautiful and haunting, in their own twisted, creepy ways), but the Knights seemed to hold little enough information about their own Order and history, which felt odd. I could sense there was much more to develop here, yet was unsure whether it’d be in a next novel in the series, or something that just… wasn’t too thought-out.

In general, the characters were enjoyable. The Knights all had their little quirks, and Grey especially was a character I warmed up to very quickly. Denizen, too, in spite of some childish-pouting moments (he’s 13, after all), was overall a lovable kid. He’s ready to fight for his friends and even for strangers, yet also as savvy enough to obey orders and not get in the way, not too much that is, where I would have expected too stupid to live moments. And when he does “get in the way”, usually it’s because someone’s life is at stake and there’s no other apparent solution, since trying to find help would take too much time. There was one specific moment when his decision felt stupid; this said, it was prompted by wanting to help someone he trusts a lot, so it makes it more… understandable? It wasn’t some silly reason like “wanting to impress the others”, it stemmed from a genuine desire to help.

I hope Simon will be more developed in the next novels, as he seems interesting too but obviously couldn’t be devoted much time to, being at the orphanage and all. Also, I feared some romance with Abigail, but for now she seems to be more the potential friend than potential love interest, and it’d be great if things stayed like that, because I can’t sense much between Denizen and her in terms of “romance chemistry”.

Where this novel fell flat for me, apart from the world building, was in how its characters, albeit sympathetic, weren’t given enough spotlight. Especially the Knights (Darcie, D’Aubigny, Fuller Jack). Getting to know them better would help in making me feel closer, more involved. Finally, some twists were of the expected kind, and not always handled as well as they could have been.

However, in general, it was a good read, that I went through like a breeze. I think that in terms of “fantasy, magic and adventure books for a middle-grade audience”, it will keep its intended readers entertained. 3 stars, going on 3.5.

Yzabel / October 6, 2016

Review: Eight Rivers of Shadow

Eight Rivers of Shadow by Leo Hunt

My rating: [rating=2]

Blurb:

Luke Manchett used to be one of the most popular boys at school.
That was before his necromancer father died and left him a host of vengeful ghosts that wanted him dead.
Now everyone thinks he’s a freak.
To make matters worse, the mysterious new girl at school is actually the daughter of his father’s deadliest enemy…
And she’s out for revenge.

Review:

[I received a copy of this book through NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.]

Alas, I didn’t enjoy this second instalment as much as I did the first. It lacked the character dynamics, the spark I had felt at the beginning of this series.

I think the main reason is the way Luke and Elza are rather isolated from the others throughout the novel, even from their parents (who apparently don’t even care what their kids do?). Elza’s family pops in on one page only, Luke’s mother is faring better health-wise but still not very present, Luke’s former friends don’t talk to him anymore… So mostly it revolved around two, maximum three people at a time, and in turn, it shed light on the fact those characters weren’t that much developed. It would have been a great opportunity to do so, and it wasn’t used as such, and I found this too bad.

Another annoying thing was the magic itself: here, too, this book provided huge opportunities of developing it, more specifically of showing Luke growing into it and learning more. However, for the most part, he either didn’t want anything to do with it, or bumbled from one mistake to the other (when he was warned about what mistakes not to make!) while more savvy characters saved the day. Not unexpected, sure, but frustrating no matter what. Or perhaps it is my bias towards necromancy speaking?

On the other hand, the novel shows an actual foray into the land of the dead, which is definitely not unexpected where magic of the necromancy type is concerned! This catabasis was very welcome as far as I’m concerned. And ghosts fighting each other. That’s cool. (I would really have wanted to know more about the Widow!)

Also present in this second book: themes that make you think and difficult choices to make, especially when it comes to helping your loved ones vs. the sacrifices you may have to make. Again, this is about necromancy, not kittens and giggles, right?

Conclusion: Still interesting, only I didn’t feel invested much in the characters, and Luke disappointed me both with his magic and with his borderline stupid decisions.