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thecaptainsquarters
Ahoy there me mateys! Now if spiders be creepy creatures to ye and make yer skin crawl and yer pulse run then understand that drew @ thetattooedbookgeek is to blame fer me just giving ye the shivers in yer timbers by mentioning ’em.
Why, ye ask? Because he be a salty cad and self-described “Fantasy fan, reader, poet, British gentleman and sarcastic degenerate.” In other words: a right good pirate. It was his delightful review that led me to this fabulous Halloween read. He is much funnier than I am and even had lovely poems and creepy gifs for this book so mehaps ye should check out his review and skip mine!
However, me ship’s log must be kept to date and accurate so I record me thoughts below . . .
If ye thought a nuclear disaster is the first step to the end of the world as we know it, then ye would be dead wrong. Try creepy crawly flesh-eating swarms of spiders. Arrrr! Gives this here Captain the willies. And yet I devoured this novel in one sitting, spiders and all. I thought this book was an excellent sci-fi horror. In this story 10,000 year old spiders emerge from hibernation with an insatiable hunger and a penchant fer flesh. And to think landlubbers be scared of sharks! Ha. I'll tackle those over these spiders any day. At least I can defeat a shark with me wits and cutlass!
The writing, characters, and plot are solid and the readin' was a great bit of fun. I loved in particular the FBI agent, the spider scientist, and the doomsday preppers. The horror aspects weren't too gruesome but definitely gave me some interesting mental images. And this story is just the first stage. There is a sequel that I going to capture next in me web . . . I mean net. Stay vigilant and look for me the review of that novel soon. Arrrrr!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Why, ye ask? Because he be a salty cad and self-described “Fantasy fan, reader, poet, British gentleman and sarcastic degenerate.” In other words: a right good pirate. It was his delightful review that led me to this fabulous Halloween read. He is much funnier than I am and even had lovely poems and creepy gifs for this book so mehaps ye should check out his review and skip mine!
However, me ship’s log must be kept to date and accurate so I record me thoughts below . . .
If ye thought a nuclear disaster is the first step to the end of the world as we know it, then ye would be dead wrong. Try creepy crawly flesh-eating swarms of spiders. Arrrr! Gives this here Captain the willies. And yet I devoured this novel in one sitting, spiders and all. I thought this book was an excellent sci-fi horror. In this story 10,000 year old spiders emerge from hibernation with an insatiable hunger and a penchant fer flesh. And to think landlubbers be scared of sharks! Ha. I'll tackle those over these spiders any day. At least I can defeat a shark with me wits and cutlass!
The writing, characters, and plot are solid and the readin' was a great bit of fun. I loved in particular the FBI agent, the spider scientist, and the doomsday preppers. The horror aspects weren't too gruesome but definitely gave me some interesting mental images. And this story is just the first stage. There is a sequel that I going to capture next in me web . . . I mean net. Stay vigilant and look for me the review of that novel soon. Arrrrr!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ahoy there me mateys! I know that I just reviewed the first novel of this series, the hatching, yesterday. But I just couldn’t help but need more of the swarm of massive creepy flesh eating spiders. I had to know what happened next! This review won’t contain spoilers but well it does talk about a sequel so if ye keep reading this log then ye have been forewarned and continue at yer own peril . . .
So first of all, this is a series where ye should definitely read book one first. Secondly I did not know this series was a trilogy. I thought it was a duology. So yes this book does have a middle book feel but not in a bad way – not at all.
The first book was action packed and the spiders were nasty. That book would be what I call the first wave. This book is what I would call the calm before the storm at high seas. Ye know that hurricane is coming but all ye can do is batten down the hatches, hunker down, and prepare fer the worst that mother nature has to offer. And the glimpse of the skittering that mother nature may have to offer in the next book is terrifying indeed.
Book two had a completely different feel as the first but was just as awesome. It has action, politics, revisiting old acquaintances (hello spider scientist!), some new characters, some new characters that become spider food, and above all – a building of tension. The fear in the air is thickening, the skies are growing dark, and the hurricane headed yer way might not just be a solitary storm on the horizon. Prepare to die and meet Davy Jones!
Of course despite the odds, I want to always go down fighting. I cannot wait to see if the world is going to survive day zero with the spiders. It’s looking grim. Sadly I will have to wait until book three comes out on February 27, 2018 to watch it all unfold. Good news is that ye can catch-up on the story in the meantime. Arrr!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
So first of all, this is a series where ye should definitely read book one first. Secondly I did not know this series was a trilogy. I thought it was a duology. So yes this book does have a middle book feel but not in a bad way – not at all.
The first book was action packed and the spiders were nasty. That book would be what I call the first wave. This book is what I would call the calm before the storm at high seas. Ye know that hurricane is coming but all ye can do is batten down the hatches, hunker down, and prepare fer the worst that mother nature has to offer. And the glimpse of the skittering that mother nature may have to offer in the next book is terrifying indeed.
Book two had a completely different feel as the first but was just as awesome. It has action, politics, revisiting old acquaintances (hello spider scientist!), some new characters, some new characters that become spider food, and above all – a building of tension. The fear in the air is thickening, the skies are growing dark, and the hurricane headed yer way might not just be a solitary storm on the horizon. Prepare to die and meet Davy Jones!
Of course despite the odds, I want to always go down fighting. I cannot wait to see if the world is going to survive day zero with the spiders. It’s looking grim. Sadly I will have to wait until book three comes out on February 27, 2018 to watch it all unfold. Good news is that ye can catch-up on the story in the meantime. Arrr!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ahoy there me mateys! So earlier in the year, wendy @ the biliosanctum set me on a series of adventures that led to me reading the first book in The Craft Sequence, three parts dead. I absolutely loved it. So when I saw the second book, I picked it up without even reading the blurb. I didn’t want to spoil any fun.
So I was completely not prepared for what I found. Ye see, the first book centers around a first year associate named Tara whose firm Kelethres, Albrecht, and Ao is hired to go to a city called Alt Coulumb to discover who killed the God, Kos, and bring him back to life if they can. It was full of action and super clever.
Surprisingly, the second book had nothing to do with the first, even if it is set in the same world. I love companion novels, so there was no problem with that. The book follows a middling risk assessment manager named Caleb Altemoc in the city of Dresediel Lex. His firm, Red King Consolidated, manages the water of the city, among other things. When the water is tainted, Caleb is sent to help clean up the mess and while there meets a cliff-runner named Mal. All hell starts to break loose in both his professional and personal lives. Can Caleb discover who is behind the water crisis and help fix it before the city consumes itself?
I really wanted to like this book but it ended up being only an okay read. Unlike Tara in the first book, Caleb is kinda lame. He is smart, dedicated, and a good friend. But sadly he seems to lack the fire and grit of Tara. His relationship/lust of and with Mal was the focus of the character relationships and I sadly found it uninspiring and rather insipid. I wanted way more of the fascinating side characters like Caleb’s dad or his best friend or his boss. The first book had a lot more well-drawn characters overall.
Also there wasn’t a lot of mystery or suspense in this one in terms of who-dun-it. That I figured out early on. However, I was never in any danger of not finishing this book because I needed to know how the author was going to resolve the problems. The ending was certainly fun and thoughtful. So while I didn’t love this installment, I certainly still love the both the world and the author’s writing style. I will be reading the third book at some point and, no, I won’t be reading the blurb for that one either. Wish me luck. Arrrr!!!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
So I was completely not prepared for what I found. Ye see, the first book centers around a first year associate named Tara whose firm Kelethres, Albrecht, and Ao is hired to go to a city called Alt Coulumb to discover who killed the God, Kos, and bring him back to life if they can. It was full of action and super clever.
Surprisingly, the second book had nothing to do with the first, even if it is set in the same world. I love companion novels, so there was no problem with that. The book follows a middling risk assessment manager named Caleb Altemoc in the city of Dresediel Lex. His firm, Red King Consolidated, manages the water of the city, among other things. When the water is tainted, Caleb is sent to help clean up the mess and while there meets a cliff-runner named Mal. All hell starts to break loose in both his professional and personal lives. Can Caleb discover who is behind the water crisis and help fix it before the city consumes itself?
I really wanted to like this book but it ended up being only an okay read. Unlike Tara in the first book, Caleb is kinda lame. He is smart, dedicated, and a good friend. But sadly he seems to lack the fire and grit of Tara. His relationship/lust of and with Mal was the focus of the character relationships and I sadly found it uninspiring and rather insipid. I wanted way more of the fascinating side characters like Caleb’s dad or his best friend or his boss. The first book had a lot more well-drawn characters overall.
Also there wasn’t a lot of mystery or suspense in this one in terms of who-dun-it. That I figured out early on. However, I was never in any danger of not finishing this book because I needed to know how the author was going to resolve the problems. The ending was certainly fun and thoughtful. So while I didn’t love this installment, I certainly still love the both the world and the author’s writing style. I will be reading the third book at some point and, no, I won’t be reading the blurb for that one either. Wish me luck. Arrrr!!!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ahoy there me mateys! Day two with book two of the Lockwood & Co. series completed. Challenge is going well so far. Arrr! If ye haven’t read the first book in this series, the screaming staircase, then ye might want to skip this post and go read the first book. Worth the read. If ye keep reading this log then ye have been forewarned and continue at yer own peril . . . . . .
It was absolutely wonderful to get back to Lucy Carlyle and the rest of the agency run by Lockwood. The gang survived the big first adventure (cause this is book two – duh!) and about six months or so have passed. The slightly bumbling but lovable trio has had a slew of successful if mildly routine cases. Then they are hired for what should be more of the same. But of course everything goes wrong. A Victorian artifact goes missing and the bureaucratic government agency wants it found at all costs. And if things weren’t bad enough, Lucy’s powers are strengthening and a skull is talking to her. Can the Lockwood agency solve the case? Will the voices drive Lucy insane?
I loved this book too and read it in one sitting. The highlights continue to be the relationships and banter between Lockwood, Lucy, and George. The world building continues to entertain too. This mystery, must like the one in the first book, I mostly solved early on but there were details in the who-dunnit that I did miss. This didn’t bother me in book one and certainly didn’t bother me in this one. I just liked being present for the ride. We get a couple new characters in this novel that I loved and growth in some of the characters in the previous book. I also love the rivalry between the two agencies fighting to solve the case first. I know that’s not a lot of plot information but I certainly don’t want to spoil this story. This book did not feel as spooky as book one but I enjoyed it almost as much.
Just pick up a copy and experience the novel for yerself. I am looking forward to attempting the third book tonight! Arrrrr!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
It was absolutely wonderful to get back to Lucy Carlyle and the rest of the agency run by Lockwood. The gang survived the big first adventure (cause this is book two – duh!) and about six months or so have passed. The slightly bumbling but lovable trio has had a slew of successful if mildly routine cases. Then they are hired for what should be more of the same. But of course everything goes wrong. A Victorian artifact goes missing and the bureaucratic government agency wants it found at all costs. And if things weren’t bad enough, Lucy’s powers are strengthening and a skull is talking to her. Can the Lockwood agency solve the case? Will the voices drive Lucy insane?
I loved this book too and read it in one sitting. The highlights continue to be the relationships and banter between Lockwood, Lucy, and George. The world building continues to entertain too. This mystery, must like the one in the first book, I mostly solved early on but there were details in the who-dunnit that I did miss. This didn’t bother me in book one and certainly didn’t bother me in this one. I just liked being present for the ride. We get a couple new characters in this novel that I loved and growth in some of the characters in the previous book. I also love the rivalry between the two agencies fighting to solve the case first. I know that’s not a lot of plot information but I certainly don’t want to spoil this story. This book did not feel as spooky as book one but I enjoyed it almost as much.
Just pick up a copy and experience the novel for yerself. I am looking forward to attempting the third book tonight! Arrrrr!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ahoy there me mateys! Day three with book three of the Lockwood & Co. series completed. Over half way there! Arrr! If ye haven’t read the first book in this series, the screaming staircase, then ye might want to skip this post and go read the first book. Worth the read. No spoilers ahead but if ye keep reading this log then ye have been forewarned and continue at yer own peril . . . . . .
Okay it’s official. I adore this series. Book three was absolutely fabulous and me favorite thus far. Soooo good. In this tale, Lockwood & Co.’s reputation has continued to improve. In fact the trio can hardly keep up. But the high profile cases are still hard to come by. However, a huge influx of ghosts is keeping the major firms extremely busy which brings a wealthy client to the their door. The problem? A set of creepy bloody footprints. Can the agency solve this case? What about the massive city outbreak that is threatening to shut down the city? Can they help with that too?
So many things are great in this book. There is the usual banter between the trio, the rivalry between the firms, the ghosts, the cases that Lockwood & Co. work on, and characters like Flo and the skull. Still wonderful. But the main focus for me in this one was the continuing growth of Lucy’s talent. This is a book of change and growth for the trio as a whole but Lucy in particular. This book also brought back some of the tingling feelings of ickiness when reading about some of the situations with the ghosts just like I had in book one. Add in a new character that adds to both the angst and the humor and I was hooked. And that ending sheesh! Totally not expecting that, and I have no idea where the next book is headed.
Just pick up a copy and experience the novel for yerself. I am looking forward to attempting the fourth book tonight! Arrrrr!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Okay it’s official. I adore this series. Book three was absolutely fabulous and me favorite thus far. Soooo good. In this tale, Lockwood & Co.’s reputation has continued to improve. In fact the trio can hardly keep up. But the high profile cases are still hard to come by. However, a huge influx of ghosts is keeping the major firms extremely busy which brings a wealthy client to the their door. The problem? A set of creepy bloody footprints. Can the agency solve this case? What about the massive city outbreak that is threatening to shut down the city? Can they help with that too?
So many things are great in this book. There is the usual banter between the trio, the rivalry between the firms, the ghosts, the cases that Lockwood & Co. work on, and characters like Flo and the skull. Still wonderful. But the main focus for me in this one was the continuing growth of Lucy’s talent. This is a book of change and growth for the trio as a whole but Lucy in particular. This book also brought back some of the tingling feelings of ickiness when reading about some of the situations with the ghosts just like I had in book one. Add in a new character that adds to both the angst and the humor and I was hooked. And that ending sheesh! Totally not expecting that, and I have no idea where the next book is headed.
Just pick up a copy and experience the novel for yerself. I am looking forward to attempting the fourth book tonight! Arrrrr!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ahoy there me mateys! Day four with book four of the Lockwood & Co. series completed. One more to go! Arrr! If ye haven’t read the first book in this series, the screaming staircase, then ye might want to skip this post and go read the first book. Worth the read. No spoilers ahead but if ye keep reading this log then ye have been forewarned and continue at yer own peril . . .
This Captain is one happy reader. Ye see me hearties, yesterday I thought book three was me favourite. Now it is definitely book four! Mr. Stroud ups the ante with this one and while I want to rant and rave about how wonderful this book is, I can’t. Because spoilers. The spoilers would abound. Book three sets up book four and so I can’t talk about this one without ruining elements of book three. And I would never do that to me crew. So let’s just say that the friendships, ghosts, characters, and plot rock. The writing style is awesome. The ending was fierce. I want more!
I am so very glad that I accepted this challenge am looking forward to reading and finishing the last book tonight! I will succeed! Arrrrr!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
This Captain is one happy reader. Ye see me hearties, yesterday I thought book three was me favourite. Now it is definitely book four! Mr. Stroud ups the ante with this one and while I want to rant and rave about how wonderful this book is, I can’t. Because spoilers. The spoilers would abound. Book three sets up book four and so I can’t talk about this one without ruining elements of book three. And I would never do that to me crew. So let’s just say that the friendships, ghosts, characters, and plot rock. The writing style is awesome. The ending was fierce. I want more!
I am so very glad that I accepted this challenge am looking forward to reading and finishing the last book tonight! I will succeed! Arrrrr!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ahoy there me mateys! Reach fer yer grog! Day five with book five of the Lockwood & Co. series done. Challenge Completed! I give meself a pat on me back! Arrr! As usual if ye haven’t read the first book in this series, the screaming staircase, then ye might want to skip this post and go read the first book. Worth the read. No spoilers ahead but if ye keep reading this log then ye have been forewarned and continue at yer own peril . . .
So this bleary-eyed but happy Captain managed to read all of the books of the series in one week by the skin of me teeth. The last book cannot be dealt with in any major way due to crazy spoilers but I will share me overall impressions with ye.
So while book four continues to be me favourite, this book was a highly pleasing conclusion to the series. There were a couple of major plot points that I did not expect in any fashion and I LOVED them. The good guys win which is always nice but there were some unintended consequences to the win which I also loved. I am hard pressed to pick a favorite character at this point. Lucy was the narrator throughout and it was excellent seeing things through her somewhat persnickety personality. Flo, George, Kipps, really the whole gang, were lovely to read about. I am so very glad that this series was brought to me attention and that I experienced it. Especially during Spooktober! I think no matter what be yer age, there is something to enjoy in following the adventures of Lockwood & Company. Do it!
Now some general thoughts of reading a five book series in a condensed timeframe:
- I haven’t done this in so long that I now realize that I am not likely to repeat the exercise anytime soon. While I may occasionally still do a 3 bells segment, in general I really do prefer some time in between the books of a series.
- Reading five books in five days does tax me brain slightly. In between fighting off sharks, burying treasure, and sailing the high seas (i.e me real life), every spare moment was spent readin’. While that is always fun, the pace did mean that other things like shut-eye and grub sometimes got forgotten. Me stummy is still grumblin’. I need some victuals. Three books in five days is slightly more palatable.
- So many unfinished series. Other members of me crew have been discussing this one recently and writing this Log post sent me a ponderin’ this question as well. The answer – I have no real idea. I don’t know how many series I have unfinished or even which ones I want to finish. I can, however, more easily recall some series that I want to start. So at some point in the near future I may be making meself a more concrete list.
So now it be on to the next great adventure. I have no idea what port I will plunder next . . .
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
So this bleary-eyed but happy Captain managed to read all of the books of the series in one week by the skin of me teeth. The last book cannot be dealt with in any major way due to crazy spoilers but I will share me overall impressions with ye.
So while book four continues to be me favourite, this book was a highly pleasing conclusion to the series. There were a couple of major plot points that I did not expect in any fashion and I LOVED them. The good guys win which is always nice but there were some unintended consequences to the win which I also loved. I am hard pressed to pick a favorite character at this point. Lucy was the narrator throughout and it was excellent seeing things through her somewhat persnickety personality. Flo, George, Kipps, really the whole gang, were lovely to read about. I am so very glad that this series was brought to me attention and that I experienced it. Especially during Spooktober! I think no matter what be yer age, there is something to enjoy in following the adventures of Lockwood & Company. Do it!
Now some general thoughts of reading a five book series in a condensed timeframe:
- I haven’t done this in so long that I now realize that I am not likely to repeat the exercise anytime soon. While I may occasionally still do a 3 bells segment, in general I really do prefer some time in between the books of a series.
- Reading five books in five days does tax me brain slightly. In between fighting off sharks, burying treasure, and sailing the high seas (i.e me real life), every spare moment was spent readin’. While that is always fun, the pace did mean that other things like shut-eye and grub sometimes got forgotten. Me stummy is still grumblin’. I need some victuals. Three books in five days is slightly more palatable.
- So many unfinished series. Other members of me crew have been discussing this one recently and writing this Log post sent me a ponderin’ this question as well. The answer – I have no real idea. I don’t know how many series I have unfinished or even which ones I want to finish. I can, however, more easily recall some series that I want to start. So at some point in the near future I may be making meself a more concrete list.
So now it be on to the next great adventure. I have no idea what port I will plunder next . . .
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Sadly me mateys, it is time to abandon ship! I am so grumpy at this particular title. Ye see in me head, this was supposed to be like the historical novel the twentieth wife with the added element of magic. It wasn’t. I only made it to 217 out of 287. So close. I just couldn’t take it anymore.
I should have been warned by the insta-lust or the treatment of women like property or the odd-seeming mixture of Indian and Chinese and other Asian cultures. Or the non-explicit but present rape scenes involving concubines. But well there was an author’s note claiming that though the religion was based on Sumerian deities, the book is not claiming to be based on any real place or time frame. And I kept remembering good reviews for this one.
I wanted a good explanation for Kali’s magic skills and to watch her accomplish something with them. I didn’t get any of that by page 217 and was so sick of the Emperor’s blatant evil and with the stupid to-the-death fighting tournament of the wives and concubines. The rules didn’t really make sense. I wish I had read some of the negative reviews of me crew and not wasted the time. The only good thing is that I got this one from a local library and so didn’t waste money. Sigh.
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
I should have been warned by the insta-lust or the treatment of women like property or the odd-seeming mixture of Indian and Chinese and other Asian cultures. Or the non-explicit but present rape scenes involving concubines. But well there was an author’s note claiming that though the religion was based on Sumerian deities, the book is not claiming to be based on any real place or time frame. And I kept remembering good reviews for this one.
I wanted a good explanation for Kali’s magic skills and to watch her accomplish something with them. I didn’t get any of that by page 217 and was so sick of the Emperor’s blatant evil and with the stupid to-the-death fighting tournament of the wives and concubines. The rules didn’t really make sense. I wish I had read some of the negative reviews of me crew and not wasted the time. The only good thing is that I got this one from a local library and so didn’t waste money. Sigh.
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ahoy there me mateys! I received this fantasy eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. So here be me honest musings . . .
Ken Liu recommended this book and when I read the description I just knew I had to read it. His awesome blurb:
“Stylish and action-packed, full of ambitious families and guilt-ridden loves, Jade City is an epic drama reminiscent of the best classic Hong Kong gangster films but takes place in a fantasy metropolis so gritty and well-imagined that you’ll forget you’re reading a book.”
Me thoughts: awesome ideas. awesome characters. made it to 50%. bored. never forgot I was reading a book. sigh.
So lastly . . .
Thank you Orbit Books!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ken Liu recommended this book and when I read the description I just knew I had to read it. His awesome blurb:
“Stylish and action-packed, full of ambitious families and guilt-ridden loves, Jade City is an epic drama reminiscent of the best classic Hong Kong gangster films but takes place in a fantasy metropolis so gritty and well-imagined that you’ll forget you’re reading a book.”
Me thoughts: awesome ideas. awesome characters. made it to 50%. bored. never forgot I was reading a book. sigh.
So lastly . . .
Thank you Orbit Books!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/