Just a quick heads-up, I have moved my book reviews over to goodreads.com, as I think they fit better there and have been disrupting the other posts in this blog from time to time anyhow. So if you want to follow my book reviews, check out my page there.
Showing posts with label Book Reviews. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Book Reviews. Show all posts
Saturday, February 23, 2013
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
Book Review: A Latent Dark
A Latent Dark
by
In the steampunk novel A Latent Dark by Martin Kee, eleven year old Skyla barely escapes as the house of her mother is burned down. A hunt begins with Reverend Inspector Lyle Summers trying to bring her in to save his church, while Skyla tries to find out what happened to her aunt.
I was positively surprised by this book. It starts out seemingly as a standard witch story, but soon diverges from the normal expectations. In particular, the author manages to created a unique steampunkesque world while telling the story, mostly without delving into infodumps. The world just unfolds while you read the story. This was very well done.
There were a few things that annoyed me, though. A few sections did not advance the plot fast enough, making it laborous to get through them. The author also over-uses deus ex machina resolutions. They do, eventually, have a coherent explanation in the story, but during reading, too many dramatic situations are resolved by unmotivated semi-miracles. And finally, a pet peeve of mine. Stories with a strong fantasy flair should try and avoid modern physics as the main explanatory point. Explaining magic using a modern understanding of subatomic physics just kills immersion for me.
Other than that, a well-written and an enjoyable read. Recommended.
Book Review: Riverwatch
Riverwatch
by
In the mystery novel Riverwatch by Joseph Nassise, construction workers find an ancient statue in an abandondened tomb. When they return with the property owner, the statue is gone, and a corpse is in the tomb instead. Soon, others are killed as well.
The narrative starts out well in the style of Lovecraft, but soon switches to describing the evil explicitly, turning the book from a horror novel I might have enjoyed into a mixture of mystery and splatter which is not exactly my kind of genre. And while the text is mostly written fluidly, the story is a bit too cliché and the characters remain flat and uninteresting thorough the book, so I was actually happy it was over when it was.
I suspect I might have enjoyed the book more if it had been my type of genre. So if you enjoy mystery books about ancient evils splattering in the modern world, you might like it.
Monday, December 3, 2012
Book Review: The Tombs
The Tombs
by
In the adventure novel The Tombs by Clive Cussler, the rich treasure hunting couple Sam and Remi Fargo are called to help by a friend of theirs with an excavation. What they find puts them on the trail of Attila’s long-lost tomb. But they are not the only ones interested in the treasures, and soon they find themselves in grave danger.
This is the fourth book in Clive Cussler’s Fargo adventure series. It’s my favorite series by him, though I have to say this book is not the best one of them. Still, the fast-paced action combined with very likeable characters made the book a joy to read and a pain to hear the alarm clock after way too little sleep. For me, they made up for the in parts somewhat thin story.
Again, one of the things Cussler does really well is to present a double-protagonist of male and female, including some genderized roles such as a damsel in distress scene, while balancing those out easily and giving both partners strengths and weaknesses that make neither one clearly superior. This is sadly rare in the book market.
If you like adventure stories, don’t miss out on this book.
Monday, November 26, 2012
Book Review: Blaze of Glory
Blaze of Glory
by
In the apocalyptic novel Blaze of Glory by Weston Ochse, the world
is overrun by zombies an extraterrestial blob of
slime martian invaders maggots, which are seemingly
exterminating all of humanity. The story follows an unlikely group of
survivors, who for all they know could be the last living people on
earth! They stick together to push through, but the odds are against
them.
As this summary of the plot might show, the story of this book is very, very generic. In the post scriptum of the book, the author notes that he wanted to write a story in the B-movie genre alongside of Tremors and The Blob, and if that was the goal, he succeeded well. Too well, for my taste: The book has pretty much no unique flavor, no surprises, nothing to set it apart from all the other stories in this genre. Which is sad, because the characters are somewhat likeable and the general writing style is mostly fast-paced and easy to read. Had the author done just a little bit to make the story stand out from the rest, this could have been a great book. But as is, it’s just one of many.
Unless you are a huge fan of b-movie apocalyptic worlds, I can’t recommend this book.
Sunday, November 25, 2012
Book Review: Isaac Bell Adventures
Isaac Bell Adventures
by
In the adventure novel series Isaac Bell Adventures by Clive Cussler, the handsome detective Isaac Bell solves crimes at the beginning of the 20th century. Isaac is a banker’s son with great wealth, but prefers the thrill of detective work. His family’s wealth does help, though. Together with his sharp mind, he has become the top agent of the Van Dorn private investigation agency.
Adventure novels. A strikingly smart, handsome, good and friendly protagonist. A smart, corrupt, evil and cruel antagonist. Some beautiful women who madly fall in love with the protagonist. If you are by now feeling all sick and wonder why you’re reading this, this series is not for you. If you went “oh, sounds fun”, then you should look at Cussler’s books.
The Isaac Bell series combines Cussler’s adventure book style with the somewhat unusual time of the very beginning of the 20th century, which is a refreshing change and interesting to read.
My main gripe with adventure novels is the portrayal of women. The white knighting theme is pretty strong, and that generally requires a damsel in distress. I know from the Fargo adventures that Cussler can and does write strong female characters, though. In the first book of the series, The Chase, the two main women are surprisingly strong when you consider the time it is set in. I do hope this is the lower bar for the rest of the series, not the upper end.
So, if you like adventure novels, especially of the Cussler kind, and would like to read them in a refreshingly new setting, Isaac Bell might be of interest to you.
Buchrezension: Der sterbende König
Der sterbende König
von
Der historische Roman Der sterbende König von Bernard Cornwell beginnt am Ende des neunten Jahrhunderts, zu einer Zeit, als sich die Dänen überraschend ruhig verhalten. König Alfred liegt im Sterben und sein Nachfolger Edward ist in Skandale verwickelt. Trotz dieser günstigen Gelegenheit scheinen die Dänen nicht angreifen zu wollen. Der Frieden, den der Christengott verspricht, scheint wahr zu werden. Als Kriegsherr Uhtred zu einer Bündnisverhandlung mit einem benachbarten König entsendet wird, stellt er jedoch fest, dass der Schein trügt.
Die Uhtred-Saga von Bernard Cornwell ist eine meiner absoluten Lieblingsbuchreihen. Cornwells Schreibstil finde ich hier besser als in allen anderen seiner Bücher, und ich mag die meisten seiner Bücher. Zudem gefällt mir das Setting wirklich gut. Cornwell schafft es, eine historische Welt mit vielen kleinen Details und Hintergründen zum Leben zu erwecken, ohne sich von der spannenden Haupthandlung ablenken zu lassen. Der sterbende König ist vielleicht nicht der beste Band aus der Uhtred-Saga, aber das nimmt dem Buch keinerlei Faszination.
Für Freunde historischer Romane und natürlich Cornwell-Fans einfach ein muss.
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Book Review: Winter’s Bone
Winter’s Bone
by
In Daniel Woodrell’s Winter’s Bone, 16-year-old Ree Dolly has to tend her mentally ill mother and two pre-teen brothers all by herself, as her dad has been gone for a while now. One day, she learns that he put his house up for his bail-out, meaning their house will be gone if he doesn’t show up for court. Ree decides to set out and find him.
Wow. Just … Wow. The setting is a contemporary rural area with most people living in isolated houses, strong family bonds, and a lot of individualist strength. A reality completely beyond the grasp of most city-dwellers like myself. There is no blame and no arrogance in the book. Personal tragedies and daily suffering are described as simple reality, often not even particularly highlighted, just a mention in passing. An incredible book.
If you happen to feel too good and like to face some sobering reality, this is just the book for you.
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Book Review: Serpent
Serpent
by
The adventure novel Serpent by Clive Cussler follows the underwater specialist Kurt Austin in his investigation of the murder of archaeologists. What were they about to find that would require their death?
Ah, I love adventure novels. And I like Cussler a lot. Sadly, this one was a bit too prototypical. Kurt Austin is the hero, physically strong and fit, knows everything, can do everything−a bit boring as a character. Additionally, the story reminded me a bit of Cussler's Fargo novel Lost Empire, even though the quality of the storytelling here is far less developed. I suppose Cussler just re-used information from his investigations in the Fargo book.
All in all, a pretty average adventure novel with all the stereotypical requirements from uber-hero to the damsel in distress fulfilled. If you’re looking for a quick read and can live with these problems, the book isn’t a bad choice at all.
Book Review: The Rivers of London (Trilogy)
The Rivers of London
by
In the humorous trilogy The Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch, we can follow the adventures of Peter Grant, apprentice in the last department for magical events of the London Metropolitan Police. Caught between a police force that does not want to hear about magic any more than they have to and a superior office who is stuck in the 40s, Grant is drawn to adventures with river gods and decade-old wraiths.
The trilogy is a fast read and full of dry, British humor. Prejudices flow freely, which is a bit amusing but can go too far for my taste. For example, in the first book, Detective Seargeant Stephanopoulos is described as a woman you do not mess with, a strong woman with short hair, stocky, etc.—“a typical lesbian.” That’s just one example of where the usually good humor just goes too far. Stephanopoulos has a come-back in the second book, making her much more likable, though.
The second book was by far the best in my opinion. The author even managed an ending that really got under my skin, something I didn’t quite expect in such humorous novels. All in all, a good choice for a quick, funny read.
Book Review: The Whale Road
The Whale Road
by
The historical novel The Whale Road by Robert Low tells the first adventure of Orm the bear-slayer. Intrigues at home force young Orm to join the band of oathsworn under Einar the Black. After some fights, the oathsworn learn about the legendary hoard of Attila the Hun. A quest for riches begins.
The Whale Road is the first novel in the Oathsworn series. While the plot itself is fictitious, most of the little everyday tidbits in the book give a good impression of life in viking times. The book does end with a word from the author about what historically inaccuracies he built into the plot to make it a good story, something I have come to expect of good historical novels. Still, I am somewhat unsure about the accuracy of the book.
The author seemed a bit confused with his protagonist. On one hand, he tries to make Orm into some kind of anti-hero. The story his early fame is based on is a lie, and in general, he’s more lucky than skillful in solving the problems he faces, which he usually solves only barely. On the other hand, Orm is a real prodigy. He can pick up languages really fast by just listening to a few sentences, he knows mathematics and trade, and in his youth, he learned climbing, horse breeding, swimming, Latin, Finnish, and a few other things, all so well they impress others. These two extremes of the characterization of Orm just don’t mix well.
All in all, though, this was a rather enjoyable read. The feeling of a rough band of vikings comes across really well, so I can recommend it to people who like historical novels in Viking times, especially if they can live with some inaccuracies.
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Buchrezension: Schlangenkopf
Schlangenkopf
von
Im Politik-Krimi Schlangenkopf setzt Ulrich Ritzel die Geschichte des Privatdetektivs Hans Bendorf fort. Ein Junge klaut eine Jacke und wird kurz darauf überfahren – es scheint eine vorsätzliche Tat gewesen zu sein, jedoch lag wohl eine Verwechslung vor. Da die Polizei merkwürdig wenig Elan an den Tag legt ermittelt Bendorf, und wird in einen Sumpf aus Intrigen um den Bundestag gezogen.
Mein erstes Buch aus der Bendorf-Reihe, und ein Grund, den Rest gleich auf meine Leseliste zu setzen. Die Charaktere sind menschlich und dicht, und wenn der Autor zwischen den Perspektiven wechselt merkt man das bereits am Schreibstil. Ein fünfzehnjähriger Junge sieht die Welt nunmal anders und auch etwas einfacher als ein sechzigjähriger Privatdetektiv, und Ulrich Ritzel kann dies wunderschön zwischen den Zeilen vermitteln.
Zudem war ich recht angetan von der Art, wie hier auch weibliche Charaktere vollkommen natürlich und ganz ohne aufgesetzte Geschlechterrollen in die Geschichte passen. Danke dafür!
Für Freunde von Politik-Krimis eine gute Wahl.
Saturday, September 8, 2012
Book Review: Sworn Brother
Sworn Brother
by
The historical novel Sworn Brother by Tim Severin continues the tale of Thorgils as he travels through the viking world. The backdrop of the book is his friendship with Grettir, who becomes his sworn brother, but he still visits places from Iceland to Finland and even Constantinople.
As with the first part of the book, the book is more of a collection of loosely connected tales than one big story. And the main purpose of the individual stories is not so much to describe the development of a character, but to relate the realities of a world long gone. In this, the book is a textbook on the viking age masquerading as a saga.
I suspect if you do not like this kind of book, the lack of character development will put you off. While characters are not particularly thin, few of them are deep with a rich personality. On the other hand, if you are looking for a historical novel on the viking age, go for this series.
Saturday, August 4, 2012
Buchrezension: Borowski
Borowski
von
Der Agententhriller Der Borowski-Betrug von Robert Ludlum handelt von einem Mann, der sein Gedächtnis verloren hat. Auf der Suche nach seinen Erinnerungen lernt er langsam, dass er in seinem früheren Leben wohl ein Profikiller war – und er wird immer noch verfolgt.
Im zweiten Teil, Der Borowski-Herrschaft, hat der Mann gerade erst sein Leben wieder ein klein Wenig unter Kontrolle als ein Profikiller auftaucht, der unter seinem Namen wieder mordet. Die Regierung sieht keine Wahl als ihn gegen seinen Doppelgänger einzusetzen, und schreckt auch nicht davor zurück ihn mit seiner großen Liebe zu erpressen.
Beide Bücher, die ich hier zusammen beschreibe da ich sie in einem Doppelband las, verbindet die sehr flüssige und dichte Erzählweise Ludlums. Die Charakterentwicklung ist hervorragend. In beiden Büchern entwickelt sich Borowski langsam hin zum Charakter des Profikillers, jedoch aus leicht unterschiedlichen Bedingungen. Im ersten Buch beginnt er als Mann ohne Gedächtnis, der langsam und mit immer größer werdendem Schrecken seine Vergangenheit erkennt. Im zweiten Buch beginnt er als Mann, der seine Vergangenheit kennt aber vergessen wollte, und seine Persönlichkeit verändert sich immer weiter in sein anderes Selbst.
Besonders interessant fand ich an einigen Stellen die Rolle der Frau. Wie leider üblich ist die Frau in größeren Teilen eher eine Nebenrolle, eben das Zubehör des Mannes, und auch die typische Rolle als Haushälterin wird praktisch nicht hinterfragt. Dennoch scheint mir die Person als eigenständiger und stärker als in vielen aktuellen Romanen.
Leider haben beide Bücher durchaus Längen. Es gibt einige Stellen, die ich eher schnell überblättert habe. Davon abgesehen waren beide Bücher ein großes Lesevergnügen. Freunde von Agenthrillern sollten sich das nicht entgehen lassen.
Monday, July 30, 2012
Book Review: Rebel
Rebel
by
Bernard Cornwell’s Rebel brings us back to the start of the American civil war. Nathanial Starbuck is the son of a vehement anti-slavery preacher, but “Nate” as he is called does not like his snobby family. He starts to make friends among the “southrons,” and soon finds himself stuck in the war between the states.
As the first book of the Starbuck Chronicles, Rebel has the burden of having to introduce the characters. This gives it a slow start, but roughly halfway through I found myself back in the fast-paced action Bernard Cornwell can relay so well. This book delivered what I have come to expect of Cornwell: It is both interesting to read and, thanks to historical accuracy, educating at the same time.
Perfect for friends of historical adventure stories.
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Book Review: Ruthless Game
Ruthless Game
by
Christine Feehan’s Ruthless Game starts out with Kane Cannon and his team of psychic supersoldiers infiltrating a drug cartel owned town to liberate some hostages. During the mission, Kane finds out that the love of his life, Rose, is in the town. She is pregnant with his child which she got when the evil Dr. Whitney forced them to copulate to produce supersoldier offspring. Kane and Rose escape together and start a difficult path in discovering whether their love is genuine or just faked by the evil mastermind.
I’m not particularly impressed by the plot, but to make up for it, the writing of the book is quite good. In particular, the character development of Rose to actually trust her new friends is quite well done. Surprisingly for a romance, the action scenes are extensive and fast-paced. Even though psychic supersoldiers are not exactly my favorite topic, I enjoyed reading them.
My main gripe with the book, outside of it being romance, is the role model it perpetuates for women. Kane is a chauvinistic swine and incorporates pretty much every kind of stereotypical male role, and Rose either just puts up with his antics because she loves him, or gives some explanation on why she is different from normal women—implying that for other women, those expectations are quite ok. For example, the main reason she gives why she can’t be the house wife watching the kids while the husband is out working is not that that’s a pretty antiquated and horrible role model, but that she is a trained soldier and this special predicament means she has to do something else, too.
In real life, the interactions between the two would set the perfect beginning for an abusive relationship.
Another mind-numbing scene had “the girls” finally going out of the high-security building to enjoy their freedom. This was a good point in the story and nicely built up to. Rose has always been either imprisoned with no freedom, or on the run, so never could taste freedom like how the protection of her new friends allows her to.
So what do the three girls do? They go shopping. What do they shop for? Shoes of course. Why do they shop for shoes? So they can look sexy for their lovers. They sadly couldn’t go to the negligee shop to get Rose an outfit that would make Kane drool because that shop was a bit too far away. No, Ms. Feehan, the main purpose in life for a woman is not to find a partner and make him happy.
So, while the book is well-written, has some interesting character development and fast-paced action, it perpetuates horrible gender roles which are never challenged in and by themselves. Rose is only exempt from some of them because she is a special person. For this reason, I’d rather not recommend the book.
Monday, July 2, 2012
Buchrezension: Der Sommer des Kometen
Der Sommer des Kometen
von
Petra Oelkers Der Sommer des Kometen wird von einem Kometenbeschwörer auf dem Hamburger Marktplatz angekündigt. Nicht nur das, es werden auch in kurzer Folge drei Menschen ermordet. Und mit einem von den Opfern wollten die Komödianten um Rosina eigentlich sprechen. Rosina und der Kaufmann Claes setzen sich daran die Morde aufzuklären.
Bei einem weiteren Teil einer Reihe frage ich mich immer, was man neues erzählen kann. Petra Oelker schafft es auch diesmal wieder das Hamburg des 18. Jahrhunderts auf ganz herzliche Weise aufleben zu lassen. Die Protagonisten muss man einfach gern haben, während die Eigenheiten dieser Zeit weiterhin als ganz normal erzählt werden.
Wie auch die anderen Teile der Rosina und Claes-Reihe kann ich auch diesen nur jedem Freund von historischen Kriminalromanen wärmstens empfehlen.
Friday, June 22, 2012
Book Review: Corsair
Corsair
by
Tim Severin’s Corsair starts out with a raid by a Turkish slave trader on a city at the Atlantic coast of Ireland, where Hector Lynch and his sister Elizabeth are taken prisoner and brought to the Africa to be sold as slaves. Before they arrive, though, they are separated, and Hector starts on a long journey to find his sister.
The book is set in the 16th century and is able to both draw the reader into a fascinating and fast-paced story, as well as to relay a very accurate historical view of those times. It concludes with a summary of which people and events in the book are historically accurate and where the author took some artistic liberties, another important part of a good historical novel for me.
All in all this is by far the best book I have read in recent times, a must read for fans of historical novels. The follow-up books promise to be about piracy in the Caribbean, so if that is your kind of story, start here, it sets the mood perfectly.
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Buchrezension: Die falsche Reliquie
Die falsche Reliquie
von
Die Falsche Reliquie von Renata Petrys berichtet von einer Phiole, die angeblich Jesus Blut enthält. Ein Bischof schöpft Verdacht und entsendet einen Spion um die Sache aufzuklären. Dieser begibt sich unversehens in größte Gefahr.
Der Erzählstil des Buches kann getrost als »ruhig« bezeichnet werden. Die Einleitung erstreckt sich fast über die Hälfte der Seiten, und erst im letzten Drittel kommt Spannung auf. Da jedoch der Protagonist die Geschichte als alter Mann erzählt hätte die Autorin vielleicht nicht den möglichen Tod des selbigen als zentrales Spannungsmoment für den letzten Teil des Buches wählen sollen. Hier tritt auch die einzige Charakterentwicklung des Buches auf: Der Protagonist erzählt im Epilog, dass ihn die Erlebnisse verändert haben.
Positiv anzumerken ist, dass die Geschichte der Reliquie in immer wiederkehrenden Rückblenden neben der eigentlichen Geschichte erzählt wird, und dass dieses häufig missbrauchte Stilmittel der Autorin sehr gut gelungen ist. Und trotz der fehlenden Spannung ist das Buch gut geschrieben und liest sich sehr flüssig.
Insgesamt finde ich den Roman zu ruhig. Obwohl er wirklich gut geschrieben ist fragte ich mich doch die ganze Zeit, wann denn endlich mal etwas passiert. Von daher eher für Freunde von langsamen Erzählungen mit wenig Spannung zu empfehlen.
Thursday, June 7, 2012
Book Review: The Mediterranean Caper
The Mediterranean Caper
by
Clive Cussler’s The Mediterranean Caper starts out just as Major Dirk Pitt arrives on an island near Greece to investigate a series of mishaps on a science vessel looking for a rare fish. The arrival coincides with the attack of an old World War I war plane attacking an US Air Force air field. Dirk Pitt can drive the old war plane off with his own non-combat plane, but is now drawn into a strange fight seemingly about fish.
The second book in the Dirk Pitt series keeps up the story of the James Bond like hero and womanizer who lives through the strangest adventures. The amount of repetitions where the author tries to tell the reader how incredibly awesome Dirk Pitt is are vastly reduced in comparison to the first adventure, but there are still lengthy revelation scenes where Pitt explains the whole story to the Evil Overlord, showing him that he totally saw through him. Other than that, the book is a very simple and fast read, good for casual, low-brain reading.
If you don’t mind some chauvinism towards women and a rather simple but fast-paced story, you can’t go wrong here. Don’t expect high-quality literature, though.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)