Tag: Book Review

Review: Beautyland

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Title: Beautyland 
Author: Marie-Helene Bertino
Pages: 336 
Release: January 16, 2024 

Bertino skillfully dissects the alien nature of growing up and the complexities of human existence with dry wit, deadpan observational comedy, and incisive insights into life’s little absurdities.

This is a rare book where the concept and execution are both pitch perfect. Even if you dropped the fact that the main character is (oh by the way) an alien, this would still be a wonderful coming of age story. The alien angle is just gravy that Bertino plays with to great (tragi)comedic effect. Her writing is heartfelt, deeply funny, and without a whiff of cynicism about it. I loved this and can’t recommend it highly enough. 

★★★★★
✪ SPECULATIVE SHELF STARRED BOOK

My thanks to the public library for providing me with a post-release copy in exchange for a pinky promise that I’ll give it back within 14 days. (I did).

Review: Rakesfall

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Title: Rakesfall 
Author: Vajra Chandrasekera 
Pages: 304 
Release: June 18, 2024 

Surreal, lyrical, beautiful, haunting – featuring a heady mélange of narrative forms and storytelling styles – Rakesfall is an evocative epic poem of a novel. 

It’s impossible to distill Vajra Chandrasekera’s sprawling opus into any short plot synopsis (so kudos to whoever wrote the publisher’s summary), but readers will need to recalibrate their expectations if they go in looking for the everlasting romance said summary implies. Rakesfall defies any easy genre categorization. It’s closer to New Weird or “slipstream” than anything else. Oftentimes difficult to parse, but very hard to put down. The emphasis on atmosphere (read: “vibes”) over plot was a refreshing change of pace over most mainstream genre fare, as well.

This will surely be polarizing among readers as nothing is spoonfed and it challenges you at every turn. But with two incredible books (see The Saint of Bright Doors) releasing within the last year, Chandrasekera has cemented himself as a must-read author and a bold new voice in speculative fiction.

★★★★½

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Review: Toward Eternity

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“Music is as eternal as the universe, it is part of its very fabric, and a musician is only picking at a small corner of the universe, a tiny dot in it, when they turn air and time into sound. A musician’s task is not to create sound from nothingness; a true musician understands that music is the primordial state of the universe, the very first world, and silence is a cloak upon this state, and a musician’s job is to create a tear in that cloak to let out the music underneath. We do not create music, we draw it out from underneath the silence. I draw it out from my cello, my tear in the cloak.”

Title: Toward Eternity 
Author: Anton Hur 
Pages: 256 
Release: July 9, 2024 

Already renowned for his works of translation, Anton Hur demonstrates his prowess as a novelist in Toward Eternity, an engrossing exploration of the essence of humanity.

While the narrative initially embraces a slow pace and interiority for our protagonists, it begins to accelerate through time, challenging readers to keep pace with the plot’s ever-expanding Russian Doll-like recursions. I preferred the start of the story for its more accessible nature, but I understood the choice to jump through time to see how the past had reverberated into the future.

The novel truly shines when contemplating memory, artistry, and what it means to be human in the face of technological progress. Much like the Ship of Theseus paradox, if nanotechnology replaced our cells one by one, at what point do we stop being ourselves? And, from the perspective of artistic expression, if you are an instrumentalist playing notes written by someone else, are you any less an artist? Does your music not draw from your soul? I found these questions to be particularly interesting, especially considering Hur’s prolific work translating the words of other novelists and how that might inform his viewpoint on this.

Ultimately, there’s quite a bit to take away from Toward Eternity – you can latch on to the big ideas and philosophical questions it raises or you can just focus on the fun, sci-fi thriller aspects that make this so readable. Either way, Hur has written something really wonderful and I look forward to reading more of his work in the future.

★★★★½

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Review: Lost Ark Dreaming

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Title: Lost Ark Dreaming
Author: Suyi Davies Okungbowa
Pages: 192
Release: May 21, 2024

Within the confines of its short page count, Suyi Davies Okunbowa deploys truly impressive economical worldbuilding to situate us right into this literal fish(creature)-out-of-water tale.

The narrative unfolds within a massive skyscraper that towers above the flooded African coast, where societal classes are physically stratified – akin to turning the train from Snowpiercer vertically – the higher class residing above and the lower class below the ever-rising sea level, a literal manifestation of social hierarchy.

What sets this novella apart are the deeply felt interludes scattered throughout. These reflections delve into the complexities of humanity, trauma, displacement, class, intergenerational oral tradition, immigration, and more. It’s a tapestry of themes carefully woven throughout the narrative.

Lost Ark Dreaming is not only profound, but also approachable and exciting. It left me wanting more, and I look forward to seeing whatever Okungbowa writes next.

★★★★

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Review: Floating Hotel

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Title: Floating Hotel
Author: Grace Curtis
Pages: 304
Release: March 19, 2024

What a fun read to kick off the new year! Each chapter of Floating Hotel features a different passenger or crew member on board the hulking Grand Abeona Hotel as it saunters through the galaxy and Grace Curtis paints vivid portraits of the ragtag cadre of characters. While spending limited time with and shifting through each person’s perspective may be disorienting for some, there is a captivating mystery at the core of the book that provides a compelling thread connecting each distinct section.

The tone of the book vibrates on a similar frequency as Josiah Bancroft’s “Books of Babel” series — there are airships, class divides, a dash of whimsy, and a hodgepodge of peculiar characters, each aboard the vessel for a different reason.

There were some deliciously dark details that might make some question the “cozy” genre classification, but the story and characters exude charm, Curtis’s writing flows beautifully, and I raced through each chapter until reaching the final page. All in all, I greatly enjoyed my time spent aboard the Grand Abeona Hotel.

★★★★

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Review: Dead Astronauts

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dead-astronauts_cover.jpgTitle: Dead Astronauts (2019)
Author: Jeff VanderMeer
Pages: 323
Series: Borne #2

I will spare everyone an attempted plot summary as Dead Astronauts cannot be tidily synopsized. Just know that it features a messianic blue fox, a giant immortal fish, and human-ish characters seeking to end the reign of an evil organization across multiple dimensions…I think.

I had been frustrated by Borne’s lack of penetrability, so I recalibrated my expectations before reading this one. That was the right move. This book is trippy, oftentimes incoherent, but all sorts of enthralling. There is an apt quote in the earlygoing which references “things that could pull a mind apart if examined up close.” That was a good encapsulation of this book for me – you’ll lose your mind if you get bogged down trying to parse every tiny detail. Let the words and passages wash over you. The writing itself is quite mesmerizing with VanderMeer spinning some real poetry on each page.

Dead Astronauts is certainly not for everyone, and I don’t even think it’s for me, but I did like it? Maybe? Perhaps it’s just fun to see what oddities VanderMeer can think up and bring to life. Not to mention, this may be the best book cover I’ve laid eyes on. I wasn’t sure that I was going to read this, but the dust jacket really sold me.

★★★¼ out of 5

Review: The Philosopher’s Flight

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Philosopher's FlightTitle: The Philosopher’s Flight (2018)
Author: Tom Miller
Pages: 432

My thanks to Edelweiss/NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

In the midst of World War I, society grapples with the proliferation of Empirical Philosophy or “sigilry”, an art form that allows users to summon wind, carve smoke, or fly through the sky. Opponents of the field denounce and demonize these practitioners, as they seek to eradicate their kind from the face of the earth. Robert Weekes, a teenager with a burgeoning gift for sigilry, attempts to succeed in the female-dominated field and find himself along the way. He must exert considerable effort to prove himself against the notion that men are not good enough to be skilled in Empirical Philosophy.

In today’s current cultural climate, it seems ill-considered to center a book around a male character who must overcome gender discrimination…but at the same time, it’s refreshing to read an alternate history where women are so revered and respected for their talents in the first place. It also helps that Robert is a virtuous and endearing lead character who is easy to root for and works hard for everything he earns.

Author Tom Miller displays an impressive aptitude for storytelling as he deftly spins this wholly engrossing yarn. His writing style and dialogue choices really do a great job situating the reader in the early 20th century setting. Additionally, the plot, characters, motivations, and worldbuilding are all nicely fleshed out and well developed.

The Philosopher’s Flight is a wonderfully inventive historical fantasy that sinks its hooks into you and doesn’t let go. I truly enjoyed Tom Miller’s debut and hope a sequel is on the horizon. (The cover is great, too!)

★★★★½ out of 5
✪ SPECULATIVE SHELF STARRED BOOK

Review: The Black Prism

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9780316246279.jpgTitle: The Black Prism (2010)
Author: Brent Weeks
Pages: 678
Series: Lightbringer #1 (Series Tracker)

I’ve been meaning to start this series for a while, so I was excited that my initial impression upon starting this book was very positive. I was immediately hooked on the cool magic system and worldbuilding, but the hook eventually wore off as I became frustrated by the uneven pacing, the way the characters are drawn, and the sometimes clunky/cringey dialogue that is used. Several characters are sharp-tongued, flawed, and unlikable, but I’m hopeful that this will lead to further character growth as the books progress.  There are seeds of great storytelling here that I hope can be more consistently implemented in future installments. Hearing that this is not the high point in the series leaves me hopeful for future books, as I do plan on continuing to book 2.

★★★¼ out of 5

Review: The Queen of All Crows

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The-Queen-of-All-Crows-coverTitle: The Queen of All Crows (2018)
Author: Rod Duncan
Pages: 370
Series: The Map of Unknown Things #1, Gas-Lit Empire #4 (Series Tracker)

My thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Fresh off her battle with the International Patent Court, Elizabeth Barnabus finds herself working on behalf of that very organization that brought her so much trouble in the past. She sets sail to investigate the disappearance of an airship that went down in the Atlantic.

The concept of the worldwide alliance that maintains world peace at the cost of technological advancement continues to be a fascinating one. This novel explores the parts of the world untouched by this alliance and the consequences of unrestrained progress.

Having raced through and enjoyed Rod Duncan’s previous trilogy, I was excited to see what new direction he takes with Elizabeth in this new series set in the same world. Sure enough, Duncan has crafted a solid adventure story that featured some superb scenes and passages. I remain impressed by Duncan’s skills as a writer. His prose is clean, readable, and rich. There’s a great theatricality infused into his stories that make the mundane seem grand.

My main issues with the story had to do with the third act, where some lulls in pacing emerge and some steam is lost from the first parts of the book. Overall, though, this is another enjoyable adventure featuring a great protagonist and set of side characters. I look forward to seeing what comes next.

★★★½ out of 5