Yzabel / September 14, 2014

Review: Two Hundred and Twenty-One Baker Streets

Two Hundred and Twenty-One Baker Streets: An Anthology of Holmesian Tales Across Time and SpaceTwo Hundred and Twenty-One Baker Streets: An Anthology of Holmesian Tales Across Time and Space by David Thomas Moore

My rating: [rating=3]

Summary:

The world’s most famous detective, as you’ve never seen him before! This is a collection of orginal short stories finding Holmes and Watson in times and places you would never have expected!

A dozen established and up-and-coming authors invite you to view Doyle’s greatest creation through a decidedly cracked lens.

Read about Holmes and Watson through time and space, as they tackle a witch-trial in seventeenth century Scotland, bandy words with Andy Warhol in 1970s New York, travel the Wild Frontier in the Old West, solve future crimes in a world of robots and even cross paths with a young Elvis Presley…

Set to include stories by Kasey Lansdale, Guy Adams, Jamie Wyman, J E Cohen, Gini Koch, Glen Mehn, Kelly Hale, Kaaron Warren, Emma Newman and more.

Review:

(I received an ARC courtesy of NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.)

3.5 stars.

Like most anthologies, this one included interesting stories, and others that didn’t impress me much.

It focuses not on the Sherlock Holmes we know, but on other approaches, such as Holmes and Watson in the 70s, or as teenage girls, or in a China-like land of magic. This definitely stretches the canon pretty far, but also allows for something different. I’m quite an avid reader of Doyle’s original stories, and I’m always of a mixed opinion regarding that kind of approach: part of me wants to see what else can be done, in alternative universes, while another part always remains wary of what is going to be done to “my” Holmes, because past some point, it’s not really Holmes & Watson anymore. I’d deem myself as straddling the fence here.

Mostly I found this collection ranging from average to good, nothing abysmal or excellent. One thing I appreciated here, though, is the way Watson was handled: like a valuable partner to Holmes. I’ve always disliked when he was shown as a bumbling idiot (which he is really far from being); I didn’t get that feeling here. Whether as a drug-dealer in the 60s’ New york City or as a magician at the court of a powerful lord, Watson (or Jane, or Wu Tsan…) wasn’t some of comic relief, but a character in his/her own right.

On the other hand, for an anthology that wanted itself different, sometimes I thought it could’ve carried things just a tad bit further, for instance by playing more on the female!Holmes or female!Watson variation, or by exploring other venues than London or the United States, which were often used. Another gripe would be that the mysteries in some of the stories weren’t so interesting; a couple of them didn’t even have Sherlock solve something.

The ones I liked:

  • The Final Conjuration, in which “Wu Tsan” the magician summons a demon called “The Sherlock” to help him investigate the mysterious death of one of the Seven Wizards of his country. The twist at the end definitely made me grin. Clever, clever Holmes.
  • Parallels, in which “Jane” writes AU Sherlock/Holmes fanfiction she doesn’t want her best friend “Charlotte” to see. Nothing really unexpected here, but I have a weak spot for stories that play on tropes, web communities, fanfiction, and/or hint to other books or series. Charlotte also mirrored well enough Holmes’s sometimes devious ways of causing clues to pop up.
  • A Woman’s Place also caught my attention for the way it plays on Mrs. Hudson’s role as someone who’s always here to listen to conversations if she so decides, and why she does it.
  • Half There/All There if you have at least some knowledge of the 60s’ scene and like reading about it, and for its exploration of Watson and Holmes’s potential relationshop.
  • The Innocent Icarus is interesting as well for its worldbuilding: a Victorian setting in which everybody has some kind of special power, and that allows for another type of questioning (i.e. the different reactions of people who’re born without powers).

It’s not the best anthology I’ve ever read, and it might deter a reader who’s not at ease with stories sometimes veering towards the bizarre and nonsensical, but overall, it was still a pleasant enough read.

Yzabel / August 24, 2014

Review: Darkness

DarknessDarkness by Erin Eveland

My rating: [rating=1]

Summary:

One Girl. One Boy. And the Masters of Darkness. See the Shadow Creatures. They are everywhere. But you can’t run from the shadows or the Masters who control them.

Catherine has been born with a supernatural power called Darkness. The Masters of Darkness have found her and it’s just a matter of time before someone claims her.

An Interactive Novel
A QR Code starts the beginning of each chapter connecting the reader to specific art or music that ties into the mood and setting of the novel. Using the quick response code in print and eBook formatting, Darkness incorporates visual and sound to heighten the reading experience.

Review:

(I got this book from NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.)

Try as I might, I couldn’t get into this novel, in spite of a theme that seemed appealing to me. Although I liked the idea of “interactive” parts (codes/links leading to songs, videos, pictures.. that had artistic value regarding the various chapters).

I think the main reasons to this are that:

1) I couldn’t connect with the characters at all. Perhaps because I’m not currently in the mood for Bleak Life Is Bleak worlds, where nothing the people do seem to be able to get them out of their misery? Catherine had a strong streak, but in spite of that, I found her extremely passive, basically waiting on a guy that wouldn’t look at her so often, just because they had been friends for a couple of years before that. This, in itself, was partly understandable (wanting to escape a horrible life with someone you love), except that he didn’t show any inclination to do so, she never tried to prod and see how he was feeling about it, and so it looked less like hope than unfounded infatuation.

2) The romance between Nathan and Catherine: no chemistry to speak of. Again, with more action and less wishful-thinking-in-my-little-corner on their part, it could have worked.

3) The whole Darkness/Light conflict and mythology was confusing. It made more sense when Jorgen explained it, but this comes rather late in the story. In the end, I’m still not sure if Catherine is Darkness or Light or a mix of both, nor what exactly Artros wanted of her.

4) The story lacked editing. A few typos here and there, I can live with. However, the story had a tendency to go into rambling, about the thoughts of this or that character, as if at some point, several versions of those thoughts had been written, then left all together because choosing one turned too hard to do. It slowed down the pace and caused me to start skimming after a while.

5) Nothing much happens before the 65-68% mark. The characters are unhappy, then unhappy again, then something makes them more unhappy… And I just can’t believe that after Kathy’s episode with the hospital, no social worker pulled Cathering out of there. I know the CPS don’t have the most brilliant reputation, but that was stretching it. (And why didn’t Catherine do anything on her own, anyway? It’s not like she was staying with her mother out of love and respect, her basic needs weren’t even met, and frankly, considering her place and living style, going to some orphanage for two years might not even have been the worst option here.)

On the good side, the idea of Darkness as a power, of controlling Shadow Creatures, was interesting. Just not used here in a way that would have made me like this story.

1.5 stars.

Yzabel / August 22, 2014

Review: The Wonder of All Things

The Wonder of All ThingsThe Wonder of All Things by Jason Mott

My rating: [rating=3]

Summary:

On an ordinary day, at an air show like that in any small town across the country, a plane crashes into a crowd of spectators, killing and injuring dozens. But when the dust clears, a thirteen-year-old girl named Ava is found huddled beneath a pocket of rubble with her best friend, Wash. He is injured and bleeding, and when Ava places her hands over him, his wounds miraculously disappear. 

Ava has a unique gift: she can heal others of their physical ailments. Until the air show tragedy, her gift was a secret. But now the whole world knows, and suddenly Ava is thrust into the spotlight. People from all over the globe begin flocking to her small town, looking for healing and eager to glimpse the wonder of a miracle. But Ava’s unusual ability comes at a great cost—her own health—and as she grows weaker with each healing, Ava begins searching for an escape. Wash agrees to help Ava, but little does she know he has his own secret he’s been harboring, and soon Ava finds herself having to decide just how much she’s willing to sacrifice in order to save the one she loves most.

Review:

(I got a copy from NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.)

A novel that raised interesting questions, but that in the end failed to deliver some answers. I don’t mean THE answers, because I don’t think there’s any definite one. It’s more a feeling on my part that it didn’t go as far as its premise could (and should) have taken it.

The story deals with Ava, a thireteen-year-old girl who suddenly reveals a healing power. Unfortunately, this power comes with a price, and the more she uses it, the more her own health suffers. However, as news the event that revealed her existence spreads throughout the country, she and her family are confronted with the many opinions of many people about what she should do with her newfound ability… and those opinions are quite revealing of what drives human beings.

Ava’s father, her stepmother, other people around her, are all tempted, at some point, to ask her to perform some healing, each for their own motives. Macon (her father) because he’s at a loss, seeing his only daughter wither, and trying to find a way to put an end to it, even though this might mean pushing her through more healing at first. Carmen (her stepmother) because there’s a baby on the way, and who knows what might go wrong? In a way, they’re somewhat justified in their “demands”, and one may wonder: are they selfish? Or are they only being people, with their own temporary weakness when confronted to something so awe-inspiring? At the same time, other people, such as Wash’s grandmother, don’t demand anything at all—and those who don’t demand anything aren’t always those who’re the less in need.

I think The Wonder of All Things makes us question those hypothetical motives in ourselves as well. If someone with such a healing power was to appear, would we be entitled to demand they heal just about anyone, regardless of the cost to their own health? Would we deem them “selfish” if they were to keep their ability for their loved ones only, knowing that doing more would kill them? Would such a person have a “responsibility” to everyone, should s/he be expected to sacrifice his/her own future? Some may say yes, some may say no, some may not know. I don’t know. Part of me would likely want such a power to be used; yet another part kept revolting, thinking, “Guys, this is Ava’s life. You have no right to tell her what to do with it.”

This is where, in my opinion, the novel could have gone further, and didn’t. For instance, we know early on that news about Ava spread through the internet, but not once do the main characters try to use the same media to tell the world the truth about her ability: that it’s hurting her. Not once do they force other people to face their own demands, if only by simply asking: “You want me to heal your child/father/spouse, but considering I can’t heal a lot of people, tell me, why should I choose him/her over someone else? Tell me. Give me a reason that isn’t a selfish one, you who’re calling me ‘selfish’.” (This is definitely something I was expecting some character, any character, to do at some point.) In a way, they may have been too passive about this, maybe expecting things to calm down on their own—wishful thinking, that.

On the other hand, there was also a lot of beauty in this story, in how Ava and Carmen had the opportunity to find an unexpected common ground in a situation that could just have well have divided them even more. And the parts where Ava remembered her own mother were touching.

I liked this story, I did. I just wanted the characters to be more on the confrontational side, regarding other people around them.

Yzabel / July 29, 2014

Review: Horrorstör

HorrorstörHorrorstör by Grady Hendrix

My rating: [rating=3]

Summary:

Something strange is happening at the Orsk furniture superstore in Columbus, Ohio. Every morning, employees arrive to find broken Kjerring wardrobes, shattered Brooka glassware, and vandalized Liripip sofa beds clearly, someone or something is up to no good.

To unravel the mystery, five young employees volunteer for a long dusk-till-dawn shift—and they encounter horrors that defy imagination. Along the way, author Grady Hendrix infuses sly social commentary on the nature of work in the new twenty-firstcentury economy.

A traditional haunted house story in a contemporary setting (and full of current fears), Horrorstör comes conveniently packaged in the form of a retail catalog, complete with illustrations of ready-to-assemble furniture and other, more sinister accessories. We promise you’ve never seen anything quite like it!

Review:

(I got an ARC through Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.)

3.5 stars. An interesting enough blend, in my opinion, of an IKEA/retail parody coupled with horror/ghost stories elements, though after a while, I wished said blend had been more balanced (hence my rating: I would have liked this book more if it had been the case, I think).

It plays on several tropes typical of the genre (people isolated in a haunted place, with dangerous things happening as soon as they’re separated, etc.), while also offering tongue-in-cheek criticism of large retail stores practices. One thing I really liked, both as a reader and as a graphic-designer, was that the book itself reads like an IKEA catalogue, complete with square format, furniture illustrations, pseudo-Swedish names. Those schemas also gradually shift from innocent-looking retail items to contraptions and devices that appear in the real horror part, and the change was subtle enough to make me at unease without realising, for a few seconds, what was actually wrong.

The characters weren’t too likeable in the beginning, in a cardboard-cut way, but some of them I started to appreciate after a while, and they displayed growth as well: nobody could get out unchanged from such an experience, after all, and the changes seemed to me both traumatising as well as positive.

Oddly enough, or maybe not, the serious horror part didn’t really cut it for me. It was definitely creepy, with vivid descriptions, and definitely fit what I’d expected from a horror story. In fact, I’m of a mind to dub it “Silent Hill meets IKEA”, in that the places the characters are trapped in aren’t merely frightening: they also toy with their psyches. However, I realised I missed the funnier tone from earlier chapters. The book cover made me expect more satire, and so, in the end, I felt a little disappointed in that regard.

Nevertheless, I’d recommend this story. It was entertaining, had its really scary parts, and its ending provides a conclusion to the night’s events while still leaving room for enough speculation—not a cliffhanger, but reader’s imagination, which is something I always appreciate.

Yzabel / July 21, 2014

Review: We Are All Completely Fine

We Are All Completely FineWe Are All Completely Fine by Daryl Gregory

My rating: [rating=4]

Summary:

Harrison is the Monster Detective, a storybook hero. Now he’s in his mid-thirties and spends most of his time not sleeping.

Stan became a minor celebrity after being partially eaten by cannibals. Barbara is haunted by the messages carved upon her bones. Greta may or may not be a mass-murdering arsonist. And for some reason, Martin never takes off his sunglasses.

Unsurprisingly, no one believes their horrific tales until they are sought out by psychotherapist Dr. Jan Sayer. What happens when these likely-insane outcasts join a support group? Together they must discover which monsters they face are within and which are lurking in plain sight.

Review:

(I got an ARC of this book through NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.)

This was an intriguing and gripping novella, tackling a question that is probably seldom asked: what of the somewhat normal people in paranormal/supernatural stories, the ones who aren’t the powerful mage detective or powerful vampire or whatever, yet have also dealt with their share of anything-but-normal situations? What of those people’s psyche, can they ever go back to a semblance of normalcy, and how? In an attempt to reclaim their selves, five people gather around Dr. Jan Sayer to talk through their problems, some more reluctantly than others, gradually revealing what exactly happened to them, and how it left them scarred. Because no matter what befell them, whether true monsters or human cannibals or other deranged kinds of minds, it was just the right amount of too bizarre for them to find solace in traditional therapy, which basically ended up in a bunch of souls suffering without ever being able to truly express how… until the group started meeting, that is.

The world building rests on a lot of common themes, some well-known (Lovecraftian mythos—the town of Dunnmouth being obviously reminiscent of Innsmouth), some vague enough that they could be placed basically in any series, and all morbidly fascinating in their own ways. The family of human cannibals that fed off Stan’s and his friends’ bodies, for instance, is pretty close to typical stories of that kind (like the Sawney Bean clan). The Scrimshander could be a regular psychopath touched with a bit of sight… or something else altogether. Greta’s fiery little problem could be interpreted as a variety of spirits. As a result, I felt it allowed the story to fit a lot of potential settings, and gain a kind of legitimacy.

Though overall, I liked it a lot, I remain slightly frustrated. I wanted this book to be longer. I loved its premise, but I felt that it sometimes came short, and wasn’t exploited enough (especially when the doctor was concerned). The ending, too, left me somewhat dissatisfied, in that it seemed to leave the characters too close to where they started. In part, its outcome fits the bleak theme of the book as a whole, yet I couldn’t help but wonder if it went “far enough”.

A note about the style, quite atypical: a blend of first person plural (highlighting the sense of a collective, of a group) and third person. I thought it worked, but it could just as well detract from one’s enjoyment of the story. Be warned.

Nevertheless, I’d still recommend this novel no matter what.

Yzabel / July 21, 2014

Review: How To Date Dead Guys

How To Date Dead Guys - Blog Tour

 

 

 

 

How To Date Dead GuysHow To Date Dead Guys by Ann M. Noser

My rating: [rating=3]

Summary:

College sophomore Emma Roberts remembers her mother’s sage advice: “don’t sleep around, don’t burp in public, and don’t tell anyone you see ghosts”. But when cute Mike Carlson drowns in the campus river under her watch, Emma’s sheltered life shatters.

Blamed for Mike’s death and haunted by nightmares, Emma turns to witchcraft and a mysterious Book of Shadows to bring him back. Under a Blood Moon, she lights candles, draws a pentacle on the campus bridge, and casts a spell. The invoked river rages up against her, but she escapes its fury. As she stumbles back to the dorm, a stranger drags himself from the water and follows her home. And he isn’t the only one…

Instead of raising Mike, Emma assists the others she stole back from the dead—a pre-med student who jumped off the bridge, a young man determined to solve his own murder, and a frat boy Emma can’t stand…at first. More comfortable with the dead than the living, Emma delves deeper into the seductive Book of Shadows. Her powers grow, but witchcraft may not be enough to protect her against the vengeful river and the killers that feed it their victims.

Inspired by the controversial Smiley Face Murders, HOW TO DATE DEAD GUYS will appeal to the secret powers hidden deep within each of us.

Review:

(I received a copy of this book from the publisher, Curiosity Quills, in exchange for an honest review, as part of the related blog tour. Thanks a lot for allowing me to take part in it.)

How To Date Dead Guys was a nice read, light enough and even funny in parts, while also more serious in others. The problems Emma ran into, trying to cover up for the several guys she accidentally brought back from the dead, sometimes made me smile. At the same time, the novel also provided interesting (if typical) questions about “what would you do if you had a second chance at coming to terms with something you couldn’t finish before your death?” Every single one of the drowned men left something behind them, something unfinished, whether it concerned themselves, a relative, or a lover; and those stories were all touching in their own ways. I couldn’t help but agree with them, with their choices to “make it right” or at least try to see what had become of their loved ones.

Emma as a protagonist was fine enough: painfully shy at first, but gaining confidence as she grew into her powers and was also forced to come up with lies to hide what she had done—this with a hint of being tempted in the future by this same power she’s acquired. It’s not the main focus of this first installment in the series, but I wouldn’t be so quick to dismiss her desire to keep the Book of Shadows even though it put her in this mess for starters. (First one guy, then another, then three, and all with their own issues? Definitely a mess.) I also liked Jake a lot: infuriating at first, and seemingly a jerk, but one with a heart of gold, who opened Emma’s eyes on more than one thing. He wasn’t even so much a jerk, in fact, than a sociable guy who enjoyed life and took it as it came to get the best out of it, even in death. The outcome of his own predicament was a bit predictable, but cute nonetheless.

And I guess the cuteness factor is one of the things that made me like this book (that, and necromancy—let’s face it, it is necromancy, and I’m always partial to such magic). Even though the novel sometimes bordered on the “too cute”, it was enjoyable. Sure, it might seem cheesy, and yet I just want to say: “So what?” Sometimes we need twee plots and characters. Sometimes we need twee plots and characters. Sometimes I like myself such a book, and considering I had a hard time putting it down for long, I’d say it quite reached its goal.

It’s also light on the romance: there are several men involved, so it stands to logics that Emma wouldn’t get into a relationship with all of them. She’s not immune to their different personalities, their qualities, their quirks, but she manages to remember that nothing can come out of this (them being obviously doomed to become dead again at some point), and in my opinion, such budding relationships, condemned from the beginning, actually helped her grow as a person, going from fickle, almost teenager-like “first attraction” feelings to a deeper understanding of life and love.

On the other hand, I found a couple of things too exaggerated (everyone blaming Emma for Mike’s death was like kicking the proverbial puppy, and Chrissy seemed just so terribly superficial and “me, me, me” that she became tiring—good thing she doesn’t appear much). Moreover, I found the plotline a little too over the place, in that it wove the stories of all those guys, along with Emma’s, Abby’s, Walker’s, and a few others, but didn’t seem to have a really definite plot. The part about the murders came a little too late to my liking, and almost felt like a kind of afterthought, as if the novel suddenly had to be more serious than it had been up until now. There are some hints here and there, but the characters just don’t seem that bothered about them, except perhaps for two (who don’t voice out their suspicions, though, so they’re only proved right later).

I’m giving it 3/3.5 stars “only” because of that, but I’ll still recommend it if you’re looking for a light read that is sometimes fun, sometimes mellow, and sometimes sad.

You can get this book from:

Yzabel / July 20, 2014

Review: The Girl From The Well

The Girl from the WellThe Girl from the Well by Rin Chupeco

My rating: [rating=3]

Summary:

You may think me biased, being murdered myself. But my state of being has nothing to do with the curiosity toward my own species, if we can be called such. We do not go gentle, as your poet encourages, into that good night.

A dead girl walks the streets.

She hunts murderers. Child killers, much like the man who threw her body down a well three hundred years ago.

And when a strange boy bearing stranger tattoos moves into the neighborhood so, she discovers, does something else. And soon both will be drawn into the world of eerie doll rituals and dark Shinto exorcisms that will take them from American suburbia to the remote valleys and shrines of Aomori, Japan.

Because the boy has a terrifying secret – one that would just kill to get out.

The Girl from the Well is A YA Horror novel pitched as “Dexter” meets “The Grudge”, based on a well-loved Japanese ghost story.

Review:

(I got an ARC of this book through Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.)

Not so much “terribly scary” for me in the end, in that I don’t scare easily, yet fascinating nonetheless for its depiction of ghosts, the appearance they have after death, and the imagery it conjured. I could fairly easily picture Okiku, the murderers she targeted and got revenge on in place of the dead children, said children literally latched onto those men’s necks and linked to their limbs by spirituals cords… And the woman in black… well, all right, that one I’d definitely attempt to draw someday, although I’m not sure I could do her justice. I think the way the story was told, too, contributed to this: somewhat cold and detached, and special, because it’s a strange mix of omniscient and first person point of view (the story’s told by Okiku herself, who’s able to observe other characters and their reactions, and sense their thoughts and feelings). In any other story, it probably wouldn’t have worked for me; here, it did, because it seemed to fit with the ghost’s paradigm. I don’t know if other readers in general would like it, but as far as I’m concerned, it partook the fascination I had for this novel, through descriptions that were just the right length and just suggestive enough (all the more for the intended YA audience), without falling into the realm of “too much”.

The Girl From The Well is loosely based on a well-known Japanese legend, that of a servant girl who worked for a lord, and was tasked with keeping ten precious plates; she was tricked into believing she had lost one of them, and was put to death for her “carelessness”. As a result, she became a vengeful spirit who drove her former lord to death—and the number 9 sends her spirit into a frenzy. This was nicely reflected in the book, in that Okiku tends to count whatever she sees (people, items…), and the accursed number indeed makes her react violently. Forever detached from both human world and and elusive afterlife, she can only watch, in between enacting revenge throughout the world on people who’ve killed children, but were never punished for their bad deeds. The Smiling Man, especially, was of quite a scary persuasion—I find smiles way more frightening than other expressions whenever such characters are concerned.

However, this isn’t exactly Okiku’s story. Hers was already written, already told, and this is more a “what would happen some three hundred years later, how would such a vengeful spirit evolve with time.” Partly to her own surprise, she finds herself drawn to Tarquin, a boy with strange tattoos, and whose fate is doomed to be a dark one if what plagues him isn’t destroyed in time. (Note: there’s no romance involved—a very welcome element in my opinion. It would just’ve been weird and misplaced in such a story.) Odd things happen around Tark, his own mother has been locked in an institution and has tried to kill him several times, and he just doesn’t understand much to what’s happening. But other people slowly start to notice the presence that haunts him, those people being mostly Okiku and his cousin Callie, and it’s up to them to try and understand what his problem his, and how to solve it, which involves going back to his roots.

On the downside, I wasn’t too convinced by the characters in general, in that they seemed more driven by the plot than people with their own lives. Okiku’s involvement was also somewhat problematic, since she was mostly a watcher and didn’t act as much as I expected her to. I think I would’ve liked her nature as a vengeful spirit to show through more than it did; for instance, one of the vengeance scenes made me feel like it had been put there as some kind of reminder, and not really as part of the plot. There was also one huge blunder that could’ve been easily avoided if only one of the characters had spoken out loud about a specific event, yet didn’t for… no reason? I don’t mind characters making honest mistakes, but not when the latter are the product of unexplained reasoning.

Overall, I had a hard time putting this book down, and remained fascinated, though with hindsight, those aspects I mentioned prevented me from rating it higher. (3.5 stars)

Yzabel / May 18, 2014

Review: Dollhouse

DollhouseDollhouse by Anya Allyn

My rating: [rating=3]

Summary:

Dress-up turns deadly. . .

When Cassie’s best friend, Aisha, disappears during a school hike, Cassie sets off with Aisha’s boyfriend Ethan and their best friend Lacey, determined to find her. But the mist-enshrouded mountains hold many secrets, and what the three teens discover is far more disturbing than any of them imagined: beneath a rundown mansion in the woods lies an underground cavern full of life-size toys and kidnapped girls forced to dress as dolls.

Even as Cassie desperately tries to escape the Dollhouse, she finds herself torn between her forbidden feelings for Ethan, and her intense, instinctive attraction to The Provider, a man Cassie swears she has known before…

Because Cassie’s capture wasn’t accidental, and the Dollhouse is more than just a prison where her deepest fears come true—it’s a portal for the powers of darkness. And Cassie may be the only one who can stop it.

Review:

(I got a copy of this book through NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.)

A likeable story—on the creepy side, that is, but if I didn’t want creepy, I wouldn’t have applied for this book, right? I liked the atmosphere conveyed through the book, at least when it came to the house itself and its inhabitants (this isn’t a spoiler; the title gives it away, after all). It was oppressive, left little doubt as to the stifling nature of the place, and the toys as well as Jessamine’s behaviour were definitely elements of unease. I was never scared, to be honest, but this doesn’t necessarily means “Dollhouse” won’t be scary to other other people. In any case, in terms of imagery, those were themes I could relate to.

The plot is kind of strange. It’s both a good and a bad thing in my opinion. On the one hand, it fits the overall atmosphere; on the other, sometimes things were a little confusing. At first I thought it may be a purely horror/mystery story, then different supernatural elements creepeed in. I was all right with that, though: it may be part of what the book was meant to achieve, depending on how one considers it, and it also contributed to the characters’ confusion. So, for me, it worked.

I found the pacing somewhat uneven. The first chapter pulled me in, then the next ones were slower, and I think some of the scenes in the dollhouse itself dragged a little. Again, this is one of those double-edged aspects in my opinion: slowing down the story, yet also reflecting the bleak existence of the “dolls”, the day-to-day routine under Jessamine’s guidance (if one can call that guidance…), the world being narrowed down to a few rooms only, with few activities available. So, slow in pacing, but fitting in theme.

I didn’t find the characters really memorable, and was mostly interested in the atmosphere and in looking for hints about the bigger picture, I admit. Cassie was kind of bland, Ethan and Aisha as well, and Lacey was easily forgotten. This is probably one of the weakest points in this book: I kept feeling that those friends didn’t really care about each other. That they went looking for Aisha not in the hopes of finding her alive, but of removing suspicion from Ethan. That they didn’t have much in common, and didn’t look like a strong enough group to go through the hassle of camping in the mountains at night to search for the missing girl. Cassie leaves Lacey alone in a creepy place, then oh, surprise, she’s missing as well. Rule number one: you never, ever leave someone alone. Not in such a setting.

The romance… Meh. I wasn’t convinced. But then, I seldom am.

The book ends on a cliffhanger that may very well be quite annoying. You can somewhat imagine what will happen, but if it’s still rather abrupt, and felt more like a chapter was missing, rather than a real ending.

I’m giving it 3 stars because I really enjoyed the theme, the atmosphere, the imagery it all evoked. I found it easy to picture the rooms, the clothing, to imagine what the dolls’ life was like. If one is looking for strong characters, though, perhaps this isn’t the right book.

Yzabel / April 30, 2014

Review: A Gift of Ghosts

A Gift of Ghosts (Tassamara, #1)A Gift of Ghosts by Sarah Wynde

My rating: [rating=3]

Summary:

Akira Malone believes in the scientific method, evolution, and Einstein’s theory of relativity. And ghosts.

All the logic and reason in the world can’t protect her from the truth-she can see and communicate with spirits. But Akira is sure that her ability is just a genetic quirk and the ghosts she encounters simply leftover electromagnetic energy. Dangerous electromagnetic energy.

Zane Latimer believes in telepathy, precognition, auras, and that playing Halo with your employees is an excellent management technique. He also thinks that maybe, just maybe, Akira can help his family get in touch with their lost loved ones.

But will Akira ever be able to face her fears and accept her gift? Or will Zane’s relatives be trapped between life and death forever?

Review:

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

This was a quick and light read, and I mostly appreciated it. Not the best book I’ve read this year, but definitely enjoyable.

I liked its take on ghosts, how they behaved, the way they were bound to places that had been important to them in life or at the moment of their death. Their world wasn’t in black and white only: the “bad” ghosts, though definitely dangerous, aren’t totally unredeemable, and aren’t intrisically bad either; conversely, a “safe” ghost could turn into a dangerous one just as well if overwhelmed with grief. A lot seemed to be about balance, about regrets left behind, but it wasn’t so simple as “just get rid of your regrets and you’ll find the white light that’ll help you move on.” This predicament (for both the ghosts and Akira, who had her share of bad experiences with people she had tried to help) was interesting, and left room to various interpretations on the reader’s part. Being able to see ghosts doesn’t mean Akira can “save” them, and it explained her attitude on the matter. For instance, she doesn’t like advertising her ability because then she’s asked to bring closure to the ghosts’ relatives; yet simply relaying said ghosts’ messages doesn’t ensure their family will feel better, nor that the dead will manage to move on.

Those plots with the ghosts may or may not be seen as a problem. In a way, the story felt a little disjointed, in that those subplots were of the slice-of-life (pardon the pun) kind and didn’t seem to serve a larger purpose at first. However, in the end, they were important to understand Akira’s views, played a part in how relationships developed, and I think they also helped shape the ending. (I liked the twist with Henry, by the way.)

The writing itself was pleasant. Good formatting and editing, no weird sentence structures (if there were any, they really didn’t strike me). There was one sex scene that might seem weird at first, because the flirting/foreplay part involved a lot of references to physics; I think it depends on the reader here. I liked it, and I guess my inner geek just found it sexy—much better than the usual purple prose I’ve seen in too many depictions of romance/erotica—but I can also see how it wouldn’t work for other people.

The two things I liked the less were:

1) The setting. We have a small Florida town seemingly full of psychics, with Zane’s family members also having their share of powers, but we don’t see them that much. It would’ve been interesting to have a better glimpse into the life of Tassamara as a whole.

2) The characters were somewhat lackluster (though some got better later in the book). I think I liked the ghosts characters (Dillon and Rose mostly) better than the human ones. Akira especially struck me as a little too passive: accepting a job she didn’t know that much about for starters, not reacting that much to situations that should’ve prompted a more heated answer… I got a better feeling of her later on, but not at first.

In general, this novel had its faults, but as far as I’m concerned, the ghost-related plots made up for them.

Yzabel / April 29, 2014

Review: The Oversight

The OversightThe Oversight by Charlie Fletcher

My rating: [rating=4]

Summary:

“The end always happens faster than you think.”

Once there were hundreds of members of the Oversight, the brave souls who guard the borders between the mundane and the magic. Now there are only five.

When a vagabond brings a screaming girl to the Oversight’s London headquarters, she could answer their hopes for new recruit, or she could be the instrument of their downfall.

Review:

[I got an ARC of this book through Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review. Physical copy liable to change upon actual publishing.]

At first, I wasn’t sure what to make of this novel, not knowing if I’d like it or if it was starting too slowly to my liking. However, I soon found myself engrossed in the story—I only read it in more than just a couple of days because I was busy, otherwise I’d probably have gone through it much more quickly.

First, though, one thing must be made clear: this is book 1 in a trilogy, and while it doesn’t end on a strong cliffhanger, readers should be aware that not every single plot line gets resolved in it. The world building is quite complex, and only some of its aspects are revealed in this first installment. When one threat gets neutralised, another one appears; when one character is saved, another one gets into a predicament. All those things are meant to tie into the next book(s). If a reader’s all right with that, then there should be no problem.

I found the 19th century London depicted here to my taste: dark alleys and street urchins; gentlemen dealing with creatures they don’t fully understand; a travelling circus with a battle of “wizards”; the mysterious Oversight, who may be seen as “the nice ones”, but whose members can be just as ruthless as their enemies, if not more. This world is painted in more shades of grey than I could count; the purest-looking ones aren’t so innocent, and the darkest may not be so evil as they seem (the Sluagh’s vindictive attitude, for instance, partly stems from how they feel cheated: they were allowed to keep the forests/wild lands if they stayed out of the cities… but human cities are encroaching more and more upon the wilderness, making the deal somewhat obsolete).

The writing was descriptive and captivating enough, without making me feel that it was delaying too much the setting of the various plots. There was something magic-like to it that made me come back on a regular basis.

What makes this novel’s strength might be its downfall for some readers, though, in that it’s very much plot-driven. The author wove his story in a way that kept me guessing as to who was truly evil and who wasn’t, who was the enemy and who might actually be even more dangerous; on the other hand, while this was very well-done in my opinion, one might also find the characters not so well-developed in comparison. An example would be the relationship between Sara and Jack: I could feel it, sense it, but it was perhaps too subtle, so in the end her decision to go through the mirrors seemed somewhat rushed. The story and the promises it holds for next volume prevented me from resenting this too much, but it could still be a problem, depending on one’s expectations.

Overall, a very intriguing novel which really caught my attention and makes me want to read the next one right now, but with the hopes that we’ll get to know the characters better.