leahrosereads's Reviews (1.04k)

People ask some fucked up questions. Luckily for us, Randall Munroe is willing to answer them.

5/5 for some top notch science and math. I mean, it looked like top notch science and math. But, since I was a C average student in both areas in high school, it could actually be a crock of shit. But it seemed really smart, so, if it seems smart it must = accurate.

5/5 for humor. Seriously, most of the articles had me giggling, chuckling, or hysterically laughing at least once. I even dropped the book from cackling so hard. And, I appreciated that. This could have been dry and dull, but Munroe wouldn't allow that. He kept it entertaining and enlightening.

5/5 for the questions picked. There are some really interesting questions in here. I wish I thought to ask some of them, but luckily, there are plenty of individuals in this world willing to ask the tough questions, like:

"What would happen if the Earth and all terrestrial objects suddenly stopped spinning, but the atmosphere retained its velocity?"

Or

"If every human somehow simply disappeared from the face of the Earth, how long would it be before the last artificial light source go out?"

Or

"What would happen if you made a periodic table out of cube-shaped bricks, where each brick was made of the corresponding element?"

Of course, there were some questions too weird and worrisome which Munroe refused to answer, luckily he added them in for our enjoyment.

And finally 5/5 for the art/comics Munroe added to coincide with the articles. They helped really bring each answer to laugh, while adding in an additional element to the humor.


I cannot recommend this book fast enough if you haven't read it! It was the perfect way to start my 2018 reading!!

Oh, I am here for all of this! The gents took a break from the main storyline to give us some backstory, mainly around some of the relationships:

Inanna and Baal - yes please! holy hotness Batman!
Lucifer and Sakhmet
Baphomet and the Morrigan
Tara and her music
Lucifer and Laura
Lucifer and Amaterasu
And
Baal and Laura

It was excellent to see all of our favorite gods on a more intimate level (was that slightly punny).


In the past, I haven't been a fan of the guest artists but these ones didn't feel jarring and didn't take me out of the stories, which I appreciated. It was just overall really a spectacular addition to an already great series.

Definitely recommend picking it up and reading it if you're a fan of WICDIV and it ends up not being a part of any of the bindups.

The ninth book of the Joe Ledger series does not disappoint this long time reader, that's for damn sure! And it get's all the stars! Every damn day of the week. Stars for days!

Sure, it follows what has worked for past novels in the series by using a very well known formula (if you read these books). Something horrific is happening, Joe and the DMS come to the party late, shit gets crazy, shit goes down, and it feels like there's just no way the good guys will win.

In DOGS OF WAR, the reader get to see some of the worst technology yet. I didn't think we could see much worse than what went down in The Dragon Factory (which until this book, I believed had the scariest technology/science), but DOGS OF WAR takes the cake. I think what makes this book so much more frightening is how believable all the technology really is (and how much is already out/in development/in process of going live).

And no matter how terrifying it all was, it was awesome to read about. I think that's just how I view technology and new scientific discoveries in general. Terrifying but awe-inspiring. So much good comes out of both fields, that even when the bad stuff hits the market, it's hard to argue against. I mean, just look at all the good it does too? Ya know?

Anyway, the technology is just one of the elements I thoroughly love about the Joe Ledger series, and this one in particular.

The other of course, is our wonderfully damaged main character Joe. From his fucked up humor to his relentless drive to solve any mystery, to his ruthlessness when it comes to the bad guys, I just can't get enough of him. A lot went down in the last book (Kill Switch) that I didn't know if Joe and the Echo team would recover. It's one thing I really appreciate in these books too, the consequences from previous books are not only prevalent in the next book, but part of the larger plot/world building/character development of the next book. It all ties in together.

DOGS OF WAR is no different in that realm, of course. I will say where past books have felt like team books, DOGS OF WAR felt mostly like a Joe story. We got to see some character development for my two favorite members of Echo Team (Bunny and Top), but for the most part, Joe was center stage. Not that I minded. We also got to see Joe at what may have been his most vulnerable in any novel to date.

It did make for a sometimes awkwardly paced book though, because of it. While we got to see what Bunny and Top were doing (plus of course, seeing into the past and present of the big bads), when those have happened in past books, it didn't feel like such a pace destroyer, as it did in this one.

Maybe it was just how I was reading it, and needing to stay in Joe's POV because so much was going down, but this time around when those chapters/interludes happened, the pace of my reading and my enjoyment glitched for a moment. And, I'd have to take a moment to adjust from the edge of my seat to a more comfy position.

Even with that though, it's not enough to knock this down to 4 stars at all. DOGS OF WAR has become my favorite Joe Ledger book to date, and I love that fact!

If you haven't tried this series yet, I really highly recommend it! While I'm sure it's not a perfect series by any means, it's as close to a perfect series as I've ever read.

Oh BIRD BOX why do you have to make me a bad guy?

This just wasn’t the horror book for me. I was duped by the hype and all the amazing reviews, and I though this is it, this is going to be the first fantastic horror of the year. I’m so ready! But it wasn’t. And that’s a damn shame, because I wanted it so bad.

The concept was fucking brilliant! A (post apocalyptic-y) world where there’s something so terrifying or unnatural wandering around that once seen causes people to go bat shit crazy and violent, and no one knows anything about them/it/???? Oh, I’m here for that! For sure. Unfortunately, the execution doesn’t match what sounded like a sure-thing in horror.

Let’s start with writing. It was simplistic sentence structure after simplistic sentence structure. It sometimes read as though we were in the mind of a child, but we were actually following around an adult woman. It was awkward and disjointed and not my usual preference in writing style.

The adult woman we were following, Malorie…oh Malorie. I know I was supposed to like you, empathize with you, sympathize for you, and want you to succeed and survive, but I didn’t. This is most definitely because of the writing. There was not enough investment in any of the characters, even the one the reader was following for most of the book.

The secondary characters, including the housemates were just there. They didn’t matter at all to me, and again, it’s because there was no substance to make me care about the severity of their situation.

But where this writing is almost negligent is the fact that I gave zero fucks about 2 four year old children?!?! What the fuck Josh Malerman? What the fuck. This isn’t on me. I tear up during songs/news stories/books/movies/etc. there’s a mother’s struggle with children. Those stories tear me to shreds, usually. But again, the writing didn’t give enough for me to give back emotionally.

The writing didn’t do the characters justice, and it didn’t do the plot any good either. Because there wasn’t enough details/driving points/whatever anywhere in this book, I just went from page to page, almost clinically because there was nothing. No suspense, no build up, no tense situations (even though there were places where it was supposed to be), because the writing didn’t give anything to those parts.

So really, we’re kinda sticking with the writing. I think if there had been more to this story, a lot of my issues with the characters and plot would fix themselves. It was under 300 pages. Maybe it need to be twice its size to really live up to the potential of the concept. But, it’s currently just my first disappointing read of 2018.

Obviously, I'm not going to mention anything about what happens in this volume, because spoilers galore!

But holy hell Batman was this just a wonderful volume to an already fantastic story! Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples know how to tell a story. The art and words flow perfectly together, complementing each other, and creating a really concrete and coherent continuation, and I'm very much looking forward to Volume 8. I need it in my hands now! (Should happen this weekend.)

This made me feel so much, so often, and kept me turning page after page until the very end.

I can't recommend this series fast enough to everyone in my life (friends, family, acquaintances, strangers I pass on the street).

What an incredible story. Seriously, I'm going to suggest you read up on the synopsis, but this story follows the Cross family, in all their fucked up glory. Well, it's mostly the parents that are messed up, and these kids and this dog deserved so much better.

Jack Ketchum and Lucky McKee have created something really special here. The story, not only incredibly well written, doesn't sacrifice anything to make a certain part of this book better. The characters are so complete and dynamic, they felt so real. It's part of what makes this story so horrific/terrifying at times. The premise is raw and real and I believed everything I was reading.

This story could be someone's actual life, and, that's when I know a story is really and truly fantastic. When there are elements that are so real that they come off the page as their own spectral version of the characters and life they're portraying and it guts me.

That's what this story did. It ripped my heart right apart and put it back together, adding in some of these characters, who I know will stay with me for a very long time. From pace and plot, characters and dialogue, this story had it all in spades.


I regret that this is my first Jack Ketchum, and that I didn't have a chance to discover him while he was alive, but I know this isn't the last time I'll be in his world and with his words. But I know my heart will probably break all over when I have no more stories of his to read.

I'm late to the game, but when am I not?

So here's the thing - I'm going to be really upfront for a second. I have not read all of the Grisha trilogy, because I didn't like the main character in it. I actually DNF'd the first book, but gave it 3 stars because I could see the potential. The writing was incredible, the magic system was interesting, and the story itself was fascinating. But the main character ruined it all for me.

SIX OF CROWS is everything I wish Shadow and Bone was. And it all boils down to the characters.

These characters are so fleshed out and fantastically written. They may not all be the type of characters you should empathize with, but I did. Every single one of them. But, mainly Kaz. And maybe he should be the one that no one empathizes with, but I saw myself in him (mainly in the fears and convictions he has - less with the cruelty). He's just one of the best written characters I've read in a while.

Again, this world is as fantastically brilliant as I remembered it from Shadow and Bone, but even it has felt more fully developed. I think it's because this is a duology vs. trilogy, and I already knew a smidgen about the world before entering it. Still, it felt stronger, more real, like I could reach into these pages and feel the corruption and cruelties of Ketterdam and the bitter, bleak coldness of the White Island.

I'm so happy that I've tried more of Leigh's writing, because she's an incredible storyteller. I wish I enjoyed the first trilogy, but I have no doubt in my mind, that I'll be reading and loving more of her work in the future.

Maybe it's not poetry in the most traditional sense, but when it hits you because you've been there, it'll still have the capacity to shatter your soul.

I'm definitely going to be continuing on with this series, and while the style of poetry isn't quite for me, it still had the power to hit me where it hurts the most - memories.

So, I wanted to write my own review. That was the plan, but after reading this book, I read Lin-Manuel Miranda's blurb on the back of the book, and it's everything I wanted to say in the best way...so:

"Jomny Sun's incredible writing knocks you to the floor, breathless, then scoops you up and gives you a kiss where it hurts before it occurs to you to cry. Read this book only if you want to feel more alive." - Lin-Manuel Miranda

^A thousand thousand times this^