Shape shifter, romance and all that. This is the core of urban fantasy. But this book was written in the 80s, and it An old urban fantasy, done right.
Shape shifter, romance and all that. This is the core of urban fantasy. But this book was written in the 80s, and it is not a 450-page doorstopper. It is a relic of an age long gone. Even if saying only three books in Knuth's "The Art of Computer Programming" isn't enough to make it that dated, "Byte" and "Doctor Dobbs" will throw you back to an era where computer fraud was magic, and computer operators could call themselves wizards still.
This book is like the bronze statue described in it: frozen in time. The perfect image of a dragon, curled on itself, a tea cup in one hand and an open book in the other....more
The second volume follows the adventure of a would-be mage using a game interface to master "classic maA good, solid, if not entirely original sequel.
The second volume follows the adventure of a would-be mage using a game interface to master "classic magic". The title is slightly misleading as you somehow expect the book to have the Templar character introduced in the previous book as MC. While she's a part major part of the story, it keeps the same perspective around our gamer nerd. Which is kind of disappointing as she is the one whose story progress more during the book.
Outside of this, there's no real surprise coming from the book. While I was ranking the first one as close to 5, this one is a solid 4, but no more.
The series is currently on hiatus, but Wong's promised a book "soon", so I'll be waiting for it....more
What happens when you introduce a djinn stuck in its magical container for six decades to online ARPGs because it's picked by aA very atypical litrpg.
What happens when you introduce a djinn stuck in its magical container for six decades to online ARPGs because it's picked by a gamer? This book.
The idea of an all-powerful (but bound) djinn using a game interface to teach a mundane to navigate "real" magic is perfectly executed, and highly original. It lets you make a blend of complete classic urban fantasy and modern litrpg in a way that's different from what the genre's convention would let you expect. There's probably a few progress to be made in term of characterization (the Templar squire is a bit too much), but it could be almost 5 stars....more
There's a number of twists in this book, not including the appearance of a new type of Other, that not only nobody prAnother book, another Other type.
There's a number of twists in this book, not including the appearance of a new type of Other, that not only nobody pretty much ever heard about, but that has also never heard about the Other (or, rather, has forgotten everything about them).
There's still too much of a 180 for one of the new characters (no spoiler). No idea how much it's going to be managed in the future, since it's a bit too unbelievable and feels a bit forced....more
This new volume adds some voodoo and some past problems.
The fact that this fourth volume includes the shitty adopted family of Gideon is made obvious This new volume adds some voodoo and some past problems.
The fact that this fourth volume includes the shitty adopted family of Gideon is made obvious at the outset. Despite that, their appearance remains slightly delayed, and is not the focus of the book. The real topic is yet another "friend" of Gideon requiring help on a surnatural matter. Since the matter involves death stuff, who better than a Deathspeaker to handle this. This is a minor problem, since even if you know the Deathspeaker team wins in the end, you never really doubt he's going to manage.
It's as if Alice in Wonderland and Jim Hines' Libriomancers had a baby, written by Wexler. The heroine Alice is thrown (A quick read for a kid's book.
It's as if Alice in Wonderland and Jim Hines' Libriomancers had a baby, written by Wexler. The heroine Alice is thrown (by a cat) into various shenanigans and discovers the world of the Readers, people who can extract magic from books and use it to make fully magical tomes - and draw various magical powers from these. The plot is tortuous, but not too twisted, and has just enough surprises coming to keep it moving well.
A nice series for those who still remember what it's like to be a child who love books and their magic....more
It gives slightly higher stakes than the previous book, resolves a few hanging threads, and we get to see finally theA good progression in the series.
It gives slightly higher stakes than the previous book, resolves a few hanging threads, and we get to see finally the magical bureaucracy at work... and how to tweak its nose (of course). And of course the Crystal Druid has to help our heroine alongside her usual trio (if you didn't expect it to happen, you should).
There's an interesting metaphor about identity which is a call to modern day identity politics (in the basic sense of the term) in the book. What makes you something specific? I don't want to spoil how the book handle that question (mostly in the last part), but there are very powerful calls out to the question of who you are in today's word. Good job on that....more
The recipe hasn't changed much, as you get to follow a no-nonsense angry normal woman in the world of the magically giftGood sequel to the first book.
The recipe hasn't changed much, as you get to follow a no-nonsense angry normal woman in the world of the magically gifted "mythics". This time, it's about runaways, kidnappings and she's involved because she suffered the same kind of family problems. Of course, there's complications, and the things that you expected aren't exactly what you expected them to be. Plus, a new smoking hot mythic to make her romantic life more complicated (apparently, three guys isn't complicated enough).
Lightweight urban fantasy with a dash of (unrealized) romance.
This first series book is a foray in urban fantasy featuring this rare character: the noLightweight urban fantasy with a dash of (unrealized) romance.
This first series book is a foray in urban fantasy featuring this rare character: the normal gal, with zero supernatural abilities or origins, thrown into the hidden fantastic world and trying to deal with it. It's rare, and kudos to Ms. Marie for doing and sticking to it. So you have a girl with anger management issues putting a layer of no-nonsense over the magical community and sticking her nose (and mace can) where it shouldn't belong.
It's a comment on the state of the independent urban fantasy scene that she has to warn about the book not being a reverse harem story, since there's a glut of both ways these days. So it's more of a love... square? Each of the three titular mage friends is a potential love interest for the heroine, and there's a couple of hints that let you imagine various - unrealized - scenarii.
Overall, this a good, if unexceptional read. Will continue the series....more
A spin-off of the previous series from Rachel Aaron.
This one follows a Cleaner, someone purchasing the rights to clean someone's home to recover debtsA spin-off of the previous series from Rachel Aaron.
This one follows a Cleaner, someone purchasing the rights to clean someone's home to recover debts, in the universe of the Detroit Free Zone from the Heartstrikers' series. While having a familiarity with the universe will help you see the various allusions (Merlins, The Peacemaker, The Empty Wind etc), there's no direct intersection between the two series, and this one stands alone.
Of course, there's magic recovery to be done, and some recoveries are a bit more complicated than others. But after being disappointed by the way the previous series was getting tired, this one is a breath of fresh air, and restarts my interest in the universe of the DFZ....more
The second volume of the series goes all furry (werewolves).
The book mixes a handful of new/temporary colorful characters with a too-short look at werThe second volume of the series goes all furry (werewolves).
The book mixes a handful of new/temporary colorful characters with a too-short look at werewolves in Bateman's universe. While the menace of the cult makes a good reason to get all wolfy, the bad guys are even more caricatures and straight unbelievable than in the previous book. Ok book, but could probably have been better....more
A standard, but well done urban fantasy series beginning.
There's little surprise, as you get the standard culprits (werewolves, faeries, and all the oA standard, but well done urban fantasy series beginning.
There's little surprise, as you get the standard culprits (werewolves, faeries, and all the occult paraphernalia), with the clueless hero dropped in the middle of this as he discovers his magical origins. Rythm is good, but I always hate those cults devoted to exterminate the magical (a secret cult that has hundreds of fanatical members in most major cities? I'll believe in werewolves first!). The origins of the hero are well used to provide an interesting background....more
A not unexpected exploration into the origins of the Deathspeaker.
After showing a bit more of the werewolves in the last volume, we're headed to the fA not unexpected exploration into the origins of the Deathspeaker.
After showing a bit more of the werewolves in the last volume, we're headed to the fae realm. It develops a lot more the - unsurprising and classic - fae stuff, goes into fae politics and develops the deathspeaker aspect as the previous deathspeaker appears to have been fae (and presumably dead, leaving the office the new one). It's an interesting continution, but I found it
1) moderately uninspired 2) going into a different way about the deathspeaking stuff than I would have liked
Hopefully, the next book goes a bit better....more
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