Take a photo of a barcode or cover
2.39k reviews by:
thecaptainsquarters
Ahoy there mateys! Back in the day, I read a book called Freaknomics which uses statistics to answer questions like “What do schoolteachers and sumo wrestlers have in common?” This book is the next generation’s dive into statistics. Some of the questions answered in this book include “What percentage of white voters didn’t vote for Barack Obama because he’s black?” and “Do violent films affect the crime rate?” and some not so serious ones. This book delves into “big data” like Google search engine queries to explore the bigger questions about “economics to ethics to sports to race to sex, gender and more.” I loved it! The audiobook was fantastic even if I can’t recall any facts from this off the top of me noggin. It was thought-provoking and I would certainly listen to it again.
Check out me reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Check out me reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ahoy there me mateys! So in previous times, wendy @ thebiliosanctum 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. This is a review that talks about the fourth published book in the series. Like the others, I read this one without reading the blurb first. Not that would have helped me predicament. No real spoilers aboard but read at yer own peril . . .
So me hearties. I loved this book. But I found when I was readin’ it, something be fishy. Action that was happening in this book seemed to have been discussed in the previous books. I knew it was the correct book in terms of publishing order. But it had been a while since I read book three and me mind be faulty and often drops facts so I was very confused about timelines and such. I knew I was missing something. Eventually, I mentally shrugged and finished this fun tale.
But after I was done, I was even more confused. What in the world was going on? Turns out I can blame all the confusion on the author (more on this below). Arrr! Ye see I was online searching for a recap for full fathom five, the previous book, to help sort things out. I checked out the wiki fandom and some random reviews and was still unclear. So I hopped onto the author’s website. There on “The Craft Sequence” page was a section entitled “What about the chronology.”
Aye matey, what about it? Well, turns out that the publishing order does NOT match the chronology order. Well, shiver me timbers! Apparently the titles hint at the chronology. The books have numbers in their titles. Book four in publishing order is actually book one in chronology. But the books are all meant to be read as standalones even though there be some limited crossover in characters. So does the order in which ye read them matter?
Aye and nay. Ye see the first published book, three parts dead, is the book I read first. And it be me favourite and was a wonderful introduction to the world. I be grateful this was me initial foray into the series. This book, last first snow, is the fourth published book but is set 20 years prior to three parts dead. Is yer noggin’ whirling yet? But this current book is me least favourite of the series so far, even if it happens “first.” In fact, the order in which I like the books is (by publishing order) 1 –> 3 –> 4 –> 2.
Still with me? Now if I had read these books in chronological order then me third favourite (4) would have been read first. And then maybe without knowing how strong the other books were, I wouldn’t have picked up more of the series. And that would have been a shame. At the same time book four confused me because of the jump back in timeline.
Aye, I know I did not read the blurb. But that wouldn’t have helped. There is no indication in the blurb (see below) that this book takes place in an earlier time. And I be sure that the author put clues about time frame into this book. I just missed them. But some of the enjoyment of the book was lightly lessened due to me silly confusion. So the chronological order DID end up being important in the sense of me focus on the book. I wasn’t drawn into the story as deeply as I could have been. I do wish that I would have figured things out sooner.
That said, I always read books in publishing order. I am not sure why that be. The idea of readin’ books in chronological order bothers me.
Side note: Don’t get me started on the order in which the Naria series should be read. I still get angry when I see the box sets “ordered” incorrectly. But I digress . . .
I do know that some members of me crew read things in chronological order. I am not sure if readin’ this series in that order is best. Mehaps some of the crew has opinions on this matter and is up for lively debate on such topics. All I know if that I be glad that I read them in the order I did. Also I be glad that the author issued an apology-of-a-sort on tor.com called “This is How I Numbered My Books and I’m Sorry” where he takes responsibility for the scrambling of me noggin’. And I be grateful that he be crafty enough (hardy har har!) to give me such wonderful readin’ material.
I have been spacing out these books for times where I need a pick-me-up and for when I can savour them. I will be reading the next two books at some point and, no, I won’t be reading the blurb for them either. Wish me luck. Arrrr!!!
Side note no. 2: While searching for the recap, I inadvertently came across a post on Mr. Gladstone’s website called “How to Convince Your Friends to Read My Books.” I, of course, immediately became sidetracked because explaining these books to me crew can be hard. His post was absolutely funny and delightful and explained each book with fun little taglines. For example, the first book published, three parts dead, is described as “For Law, Finance, or Business People: ‘It’s about bankruptcy law, only the entity in bankruptcy protection is a dead god, and the attorneys are necromancers.’ So wonderful.
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
So me hearties. I loved this book. But I found when I was readin’ it, something be fishy. Action that was happening in this book seemed to have been discussed in the previous books. I knew it was the correct book in terms of publishing order. But it had been a while since I read book three and me mind be faulty and often drops facts so I was very confused about timelines and such. I knew I was missing something. Eventually, I mentally shrugged and finished this fun tale.
But after I was done, I was even more confused. What in the world was going on? Turns out I can blame all the confusion on the author (more on this below). Arrr! Ye see I was online searching for a recap for full fathom five, the previous book, to help sort things out. I checked out the wiki fandom and some random reviews and was still unclear. So I hopped onto the author’s website. There on “The Craft Sequence” page was a section entitled “What about the chronology.”
Aye matey, what about it? Well, turns out that the publishing order does NOT match the chronology order. Well, shiver me timbers! Apparently the titles hint at the chronology. The books have numbers in their titles. Book four in publishing order is actually book one in chronology. But the books are all meant to be read as standalones even though there be some limited crossover in characters. So does the order in which ye read them matter?
Aye and nay. Ye see the first published book, three parts dead, is the book I read first. And it be me favourite and was a wonderful introduction to the world. I be grateful this was me initial foray into the series. This book, last first snow, is the fourth published book but is set 20 years prior to three parts dead. Is yer noggin’ whirling yet? But this current book is me least favourite of the series so far, even if it happens “first.” In fact, the order in which I like the books is (by publishing order) 1 –> 3 –> 4 –> 2.
Still with me? Now if I had read these books in chronological order then me third favourite (4) would have been read first. And then maybe without knowing how strong the other books were, I wouldn’t have picked up more of the series. And that would have been a shame. At the same time book four confused me because of the jump back in timeline.
Aye, I know I did not read the blurb. But that wouldn’t have helped. There is no indication in the blurb (see below) that this book takes place in an earlier time. And I be sure that the author put clues about time frame into this book. I just missed them. But some of the enjoyment of the book was lightly lessened due to me silly confusion. So the chronological order DID end up being important in the sense of me focus on the book. I wasn’t drawn into the story as deeply as I could have been. I do wish that I would have figured things out sooner.
That said, I always read books in publishing order. I am not sure why that be. The idea of readin’ books in chronological order bothers me.
Side note: Don’t get me started on the order in which the Naria series should be read. I still get angry when I see the box sets “ordered” incorrectly. But I digress . . .
I do know that some members of me crew read things in chronological order. I am not sure if readin’ this series in that order is best. Mehaps some of the crew has opinions on this matter and is up for lively debate on such topics. All I know if that I be glad that I read them in the order I did. Also I be glad that the author issued an apology-of-a-sort on tor.com called “This is How I Numbered My Books and I’m Sorry” where he takes responsibility for the scrambling of me noggin’. And I be grateful that he be crafty enough (hardy har har!) to give me such wonderful readin’ material.
I have been spacing out these books for times where I need a pick-me-up and for when I can savour them. I will be reading the next two books at some point and, no, I won’t be reading the blurb for them either. Wish me luck. Arrrr!!!
Side note no. 2: While searching for the recap, I inadvertently came across a post on Mr. Gladstone’s website called “How to Convince Your Friends to Read My Books.” I, of course, immediately became sidetracked because explaining these books to me crew can be hard. His post was absolutely funny and delightful and explained each book with fun little taglines. For example, the first book published, three parts dead, is described as “For Law, Finance, or Business People: ‘It’s about bankruptcy law, only the entity in bankruptcy protection is a dead god, and the attorneys are necromancers.’ So wonderful.
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ahoy there me mateys! I received this fantasy/sci-fi eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. So here be me honest musings . . .
I have read some of the author's short stories and enjoy her writing style. This is a beauty and the beast retelling based on Vietnamese myths and culture. The story is an interesting blend of fantasy and sci-fi. The tale takes place in a world destroyed by an alien race called the Vanishers. The Vanishers used Earth as a plaything and left chaos behind. Humans are barely surviving in the barren wasteland. Disease, starvation, and lack of resources are the norm. In order to have a place in society, members must have viable skills to keep their place. Life is harsh and unfair.
Yên lives in one such settlement. She is a failed scholar and barely adequate healer's apprentice. Her position in the village is due to her mother's skill as a healer. But one day, a prominent leader's daughter is diagnosed with a fatal disease. Should she die, both Yên and her mother's places are forfeit. So Yên's mother makes a magical bargain with a dragon for the girl's life. Only the price of the healing turns out to be Yên's servitude to the dragon. Yên is taken to the Vanishers' palace to be a teacher to the dragon's two children. Only Yên is drawn to the dragon. What will become of her?
I have to say that this was just an okay read for me. I had a hard time getting drawn into the story. I liked many of the individual elements but the story didn't end up being an cohesive whole. I loved the "word" magic. I loved the f/f relationship. I loved Yên's mother. I enjoyed the blend of sci-fi and fantasy elements. I liked that Yên stood up for herself and demanded to be allowed to make her own choices. And yet the excitement was lacking.
Part of that may have been the dragon's aloof nature. Part of that was the many descriptions of the odd architecture and nature of the palace itself. I didn't really even feel the fairy tale retelling vibe. But overall, I am not sure what the disconnect was. I just did not love this story like others by the author. This story does seem to be loved by many of the crew. So while this story was not mesmerizing, I am glad to have read it. And I still will be readin' more of the author's work.
So lastly . . .
Thank you JABberwocky Literary Agency, Inc.!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
I have read some of the author's short stories and enjoy her writing style. This is a beauty and the beast retelling based on Vietnamese myths and culture. The story is an interesting blend of fantasy and sci-fi. The tale takes place in a world destroyed by an alien race called the Vanishers. The Vanishers used Earth as a plaything and left chaos behind. Humans are barely surviving in the barren wasteland. Disease, starvation, and lack of resources are the norm. In order to have a place in society, members must have viable skills to keep their place. Life is harsh and unfair.
Yên lives in one such settlement. She is a failed scholar and barely adequate healer's apprentice. Her position in the village is due to her mother's skill as a healer. But one day, a prominent leader's daughter is diagnosed with a fatal disease. Should she die, both Yên and her mother's places are forfeit. So Yên's mother makes a magical bargain with a dragon for the girl's life. Only the price of the healing turns out to be Yên's servitude to the dragon. Yên is taken to the Vanishers' palace to be a teacher to the dragon's two children. Only Yên is drawn to the dragon. What will become of her?
I have to say that this was just an okay read for me. I had a hard time getting drawn into the story. I liked many of the individual elements but the story didn't end up being an cohesive whole. I loved the "word" magic. I loved the f/f relationship. I loved Yên's mother. I enjoyed the blend of sci-fi and fantasy elements. I liked that Yên stood up for herself and demanded to be allowed to make her own choices. And yet the excitement was lacking.
Part of that may have been the dragon's aloof nature. Part of that was the many descriptions of the odd architecture and nature of the palace itself. I didn't really even feel the fairy tale retelling vibe. But overall, I am not sure what the disconnect was. I just did not love this story like others by the author. This story does seem to be loved by many of the crew. So while this story was not mesmerizing, I am glad to have read it. And I still will be readin' more of the author's work.
So lastly . . .
Thank you JABberwocky Literary Agency, Inc.!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ahoy there me mateys! This here be a sci-fi novel that I listened to in audiobook format. The premise is that a trio of astronauts have a chance to become the first people who travel to Mars. The expedition is privately funded by a corporation called Prime Space. This corporation has strict rules and protocols for both the astronauts and their families.
For the astronauts, these protocols include a 17 month simulation of the entire Mars voyage – both there and back again. For the trio and their families, this trial will have them questioning both the mission and the emotional consequences that occur when getting back to space seems more important than those people left back on Earth.
This is one of those reads where the space story is secondary in the plot. This is a character-driven book that showcases various relationships and the emotional growth of the characters. Ye follow the three astronauts, a spouse, several children, and a member of the support team. The space items are interesting but much of the book happens outside of the astronaut habitat.
I think me favourite sections were those of the astronaut, Helen, and her daughter. I also liked Yoshi’s wife. Overall I thought this was a well written book and I listened to it in one setting. The characters were multi-faceted and I enjoyed how they changed in the novel. I don’t think this has a ton of re-read potential and a lot of the details already begin to fade. But I am glad I took the journey.
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
For the astronauts, these protocols include a 17 month simulation of the entire Mars voyage – both there and back again. For the trio and their families, this trial will have them questioning both the mission and the emotional consequences that occur when getting back to space seems more important than those people left back on Earth.
This is one of those reads where the space story is secondary in the plot. This is a character-driven book that showcases various relationships and the emotional growth of the characters. Ye follow the three astronauts, a spouse, several children, and a member of the support team. The space items are interesting but much of the book happens outside of the astronaut habitat.
I think me favourite sections were those of the astronaut, Helen, and her daughter. I also liked Yoshi’s wife. Overall I thought this was a well written book and I listened to it in one setting. The characters were multi-faceted and I enjoyed how they changed in the novel. I don’t think this has a ton of re-read potential and a lot of the details already begin to fade. But I am glad I took the journey.
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ahoy there me mateys! I received this young adult fantasy eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. So here are me honest musings. While I try to post no spoilers, if ye haven’t read the previous book then ye might want to skip this post. If ye keep reading this log then ye have been forewarned and continue at yer own peril . . .
Dreaming Robot Press holds a special place in my heart as they were the first publisher to allow me the privilege of reviewing an eArc on NetGalley. That novel was the demon girl's song, which I loved and reviewed here.
They also kindly gave me a copy of the first book in this series called a witch's kitchen. That book introduced readers to the Enchanted Forest School where Millie, a witch's daughter, is sent when it appears she has no talent for magic. All she was good at was baking. Of course when she gets to school, she learns new things and makes friends and discovers her hidden depths. I loved it.
This second book takes place during a break from school and follows a pixie named, Petunia. I adored her (and her silly jokes) in the first book and was delighted for Petunia to take center stage. Petunia comes from a huge family and her mom is so distracted that she can't even seem to remember Petunia's name! So when Millie goes away for the school holidays, Petunia goes to stay at Millie's house to help her out with a project (a lovely spoiler!) and to finally have some peace and quiet. But when an epidemic breaks out, Petunia finds her break to be anything but restful and is given a chance to prove that even pixies can do serious, wonderful things.
The plot was silly and whimsical and light and fun and totally fit my mood. I love that Millie still has a presence in the form of letters, food, and recipes! I love that the old gang including Sagara and Max help out. I love that the "bad" guy may have different reasons than first thought. I love that the characters are still growing and changing and improving. I love the messages of breaking through old prejudices and stigmas. I thoroughly enjoyed this one.
This book is technically for middle grade but I don’t care. I believe everyone could enjoy it. This series deserves more love. And so far there are two more books planned in the series. I can't wait!
So lastly . . .
Thank you Dreaming Robot Press!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Dreaming Robot Press holds a special place in my heart as they were the first publisher to allow me the privilege of reviewing an eArc on NetGalley. That novel was the demon girl's song, which I loved and reviewed here.
They also kindly gave me a copy of the first book in this series called a witch's kitchen. That book introduced readers to the Enchanted Forest School where Millie, a witch's daughter, is sent when it appears she has no talent for magic. All she was good at was baking. Of course when she gets to school, she learns new things and makes friends and discovers her hidden depths. I loved it.
This second book takes place during a break from school and follows a pixie named, Petunia. I adored her (and her silly jokes) in the first book and was delighted for Petunia to take center stage. Petunia comes from a huge family and her mom is so distracted that she can't even seem to remember Petunia's name! So when Millie goes away for the school holidays, Petunia goes to stay at Millie's house to help her out with a project (a lovely spoiler!) and to finally have some peace and quiet. But when an epidemic breaks out, Petunia finds her break to be anything but restful and is given a chance to prove that even pixies can do serious, wonderful things.
The plot was silly and whimsical and light and fun and totally fit my mood. I love that Millie still has a presence in the form of letters, food, and recipes! I love that the old gang including Sagara and Max help out. I love that the "bad" guy may have different reasons than first thought. I love that the characters are still growing and changing and improving. I love the messages of breaking through old prejudices and stigmas. I thoroughly enjoyed this one.
This book is technically for middle grade but I don’t care. I believe everyone could enjoy it. This series deserves more love. And so far there are two more books planned in the series. I can't wait!
So lastly . . .
Thank you Dreaming Robot Press!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ahoy there me mateys! Since beginning to listen to audiobooks this year, I have become determined to listen to Neil Gaiman read as many of his own stories as I can. I have a wee bit of an obsession with Mr. Gaiman and so when I had a short bit of time I decided to listen to this one.
This be a cute story about a young Viking named Odd and the adventure he goes on to help reclaim the city of the Gods from the Frost Giants. I adore Odd and had a lovely time hearing him deal with Thor, Loki, and Odin.
Apparently this is a retelling of a known tale. I don’t know the Norse myths very well. Perhaps I have to listen to Norse Mythology soon. This story was middle grade but (as always) I don’t put age limits on things. So pick this one up!
Side note: Mr. Gaiman’s voice was so wonderful that I didn’t need the illustrations. Arrr!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
This be a cute story about a young Viking named Odd and the adventure he goes on to help reclaim the city of the Gods from the Frost Giants. I adore Odd and had a lovely time hearing him deal with Thor, Loki, and Odin.
Apparently this is a retelling of a known tale. I don’t know the Norse myths very well. Perhaps I have to listen to Norse Mythology soon. This story was middle grade but (as always) I don’t put age limits on things. So pick this one up!
Side note: Mr. Gaiman’s voice was so wonderful that I didn’t need the illustrations. Arrr!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ahoy there me mateys! I wanted to read this book when I found out it had ghosts and dealt with the Bayeux Tapestry. I studied the tapestry in school. It portrays the battle of Hastings in 1066 and also shows Haley’s Comet which occurred that year. This book weaves multiple generations together in chapters that jump in time – 1066, 1759, 1976, and 2017.
What is the significance of those years? Well in those years comets appear in the skies. Any time a comet is in the sky, members of a certain family can see and talk to ghosts. And not just any ghosts but the ghosts of their own family members. Not that comets are limited to those years. The family members also have to stay in Bayeux in order to see the ghosts.
The reason for the jumps back and forth are to show the different lives of various people, their connection to comets, and how their lives intertwine. I highly enjoyed the comet connection. This was me favourite part of the book. And I liked all of the major characters and glimpsing their lives. I do think it was very well written.
There were two things that led to this not being a better read. One was that I listened to this in audiobook format. I had a hard time grasping characters and time shifts in the beginning. I do think this book begs to be read and not listened to. Also I didn’t like the french accent used for the characters. I can’t say if the accent was good or not. It just didn’t work for me. I would have liked no accents at all.
The other quibble was the “mystery” aspect of why the ghosts appear. I thought that subplot was kinda lame. I didn’t like the ending of the book and how this resolves. That said, I did enjoy it and am glad I listened to it. I just think that overall it was an okay read and I won’t ever re-read it. Arrr!
https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
What is the significance of those years? Well in those years comets appear in the skies. Any time a comet is in the sky, members of a certain family can see and talk to ghosts. And not just any ghosts but the ghosts of their own family members. Not that comets are limited to those years. The family members also have to stay in Bayeux in order to see the ghosts.
The reason for the jumps back and forth are to show the different lives of various people, their connection to comets, and how their lives intertwine. I highly enjoyed the comet connection. This was me favourite part of the book. And I liked all of the major characters and glimpsing their lives. I do think it was very well written.
There were two things that led to this not being a better read. One was that I listened to this in audiobook format. I had a hard time grasping characters and time shifts in the beginning. I do think this book begs to be read and not listened to. Also I didn’t like the french accent used for the characters. I can’t say if the accent was good or not. It just didn’t work for me. I would have liked no accents at all.
The other quibble was the “mystery” aspect of why the ghosts appear. I thought that subplot was kinda lame. I didn’t like the ending of the book and how this resolves. That said, I did enjoy it and am glad I listened to it. I just think that overall it was an okay read and I won’t ever re-read it. Arrr!
https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
.jpg)
Ahoy there me mateys! I received this young adult fantasy eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. So here be me honest musings . . .
Upon reading the synopsis, I thought this novel would float me boat. It is about fighting sea monsters in the Mediterranean! But I just could not finish it and had to abandon ship at 42%. Why ye ask? Well for a myriad of reasons:
Sea Monsters - Well this be the entire reason I wanted to read this book. I love me some fierce fighting of nasty beasties. The first battle with monsters came at the 2% mark and I was excited that it jumped right into the thick of things. The monster sounded awesome. But this was only in concept. The battle was lackluster and was over pretty quickly in about 2 1/2 pages (the 3% mark). It was light on details. But it was the first one so I cut it some slack. The second monster battle begins at 33%. The decision about how to get the monsters attention was silly and ye tell me how a teenager is able to out-swim that swarm? Better than the first but still missing real tension. I was very bored by these monsters!
The Siblings - This tale follows four siblings as the hunt for the monsters that killed their parents. I actually did like all of the siblings and thought they were fun folk. The problem was that what they did was unrealistic. Ye put a 6 year-old in charge of butchering a sea monster over half the size of the 15 meter schooner? And also putting the 6 year-old in charge of the weapons? Ummm no. And the 19 year-old and 16 year-old leave the 12 and 6 year-old to fend for themselves in a port where they don't speak the language well? Ummm no. All so they can get laid. Ugh.
The Parents - So the parents hunted sea monsters for a living. Cool. They go off on a massive hunt and leave the children behind for safety. Cool. They have no backup plan for what happens if they don't come back? Very not cool. All the kids have is a small amount of money and a journal with cryptic clues about a mysterious treasure and snippets of where their parents might have gone. Also the kids have ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA about how to live on land. That's just stupid. The parents should have at least had an onshore base or some other sea hunter friends that could help them out if something happened to then. Unrealistic.
The World-Building - The ship knowledge felt off. The port of Marseille was so lackluster that it could have been anywhere. The shadowy society of monster builders wasn't explained in any detail. I wanted grand adventures and scary sea serpents and to feel that this version of the Mediterranean was real. The book just felt flat.
Fun concepts here. I wish this one would have focused on the sea monster battles and how the monster fighting community works! I wanted an awesome treasure hunt. I didn't get them. With so many books on the horizon, I just gave up. I want me reading to make time seem to disappear, not to accentuate every second passing. I am sad, but I couldn't fight the tide.
If ye be interested in a better sea monster story, try into the drowning deep about killer mermaids.
So lastly . . .
Thank you Chronicle Books!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Upon reading the synopsis, I thought this novel would float me boat. It is about fighting sea monsters in the Mediterranean! But I just could not finish it and had to abandon ship at 42%. Why ye ask? Well for a myriad of reasons:
Sea Monsters - Well this be the entire reason I wanted to read this book. I love me some fierce fighting of nasty beasties. The first battle with monsters came at the 2% mark and I was excited that it jumped right into the thick of things. The monster sounded awesome. But this was only in concept. The battle was lackluster and was over pretty quickly in about 2 1/2 pages (the 3% mark). It was light on details. But it was the first one so I cut it some slack. The second monster battle begins at 33%. The decision about how to get the monsters attention was silly and ye tell me how a teenager is able to out-swim that swarm? Better than the first but still missing real tension. I was very bored by these monsters!
The Siblings - This tale follows four siblings as the hunt for the monsters that killed their parents. I actually did like all of the siblings and thought they were fun folk. The problem was that what they did was unrealistic. Ye put a 6 year-old in charge of butchering a sea monster over half the size of the 15 meter schooner? And also putting the 6 year-old in charge of the weapons? Ummm no. And the 19 year-old and 16 year-old leave the 12 and 6 year-old to fend for themselves in a port where they don't speak the language well? Ummm no. All so they can get laid. Ugh.
The Parents - So the parents hunted sea monsters for a living. Cool. They go off on a massive hunt and leave the children behind for safety. Cool. They have no backup plan for what happens if they don't come back? Very not cool. All the kids have is a small amount of money and a journal with cryptic clues about a mysterious treasure and snippets of where their parents might have gone. Also the kids have ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA about how to live on land. That's just stupid. The parents should have at least had an onshore base or some other sea hunter friends that could help them out if something happened to then. Unrealistic.
The World-Building - The ship knowledge felt off. The port of Marseille was so lackluster that it could have been anywhere. The shadowy society of monster builders wasn't explained in any detail. I wanted grand adventures and scary sea serpents and to feel that this version of the Mediterranean was real. The book just felt flat.
Fun concepts here. I wish this one would have focused on the sea monster battles and how the monster fighting community works! I wanted an awesome treasure hunt. I didn't get them. With so many books on the horizon, I just gave up. I want me reading to make time seem to disappear, not to accentuate every second passing. I am sad, but I couldn't fight the tide.
If ye be interested in a better sea monster story, try into the drowning deep about killer mermaids.
So lastly . . .
Thank you Chronicle Books!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ahoy there me mateys! This be me read for the October BookBum Club Challenge where the theme be “Horrorween – read a horror book for Halloween!” This has been on me list to read for forever. I picked this one because it won the Bram Stoker Award for Best First Novel (2007), Locus Award for Best First Novel (2008), ITW Thriller Award for Best First Novel (2008). This book has a 3.83 rating on Goodreads from 85,635 Ratings and 7,334 Reviews. I must be missing something.
This book bored me. Aye, it had a fabulous premise. I kinda liked the snarky and grump-tastic protagonist, Jude Coyne at times. The beginning had a great set-up. I really enjoyed the book up until the ghost showed up. But the ghost was the least scary ghost I think I have ever read about. All it did was talk. Seriously boring.
This was one of those meandering books where not much happened. And what did happen wasn’t worth readin’ about. I feel like people who thought it was scary were readin’ a different version. I was interested in reading NOS4A2 but the First Mate read that one and said that that wasn’t good either. I shall pass. Very disappointed and will likely not be readin’ more by this author.
Much thanks to the BookBum Club for giving me the incentive to finally read this “Horrorween” novel.
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
This book bored me. Aye, it had a fabulous premise. I kinda liked the snarky and grump-tastic protagonist, Jude Coyne at times. The beginning had a great set-up. I really enjoyed the book up until the ghost showed up. But the ghost was the least scary ghost I think I have ever read about. All it did was talk. Seriously boring.
This was one of those meandering books where not much happened. And what did happen wasn’t worth readin’ about. I feel like people who thought it was scary were readin’ a different version. I was interested in reading NOS4A2 but the First Mate read that one and said that that wasn’t good either. I shall pass. Very disappointed and will likely not be readin’ more by this author.
Much thanks to the BookBum Club for giving me the incentive to finally read this “Horrorween” novel.
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ahoy there me mateys! This here be a combined review all three books of the Themis Files trilogy. There may be minor spoilers (i.e. small things found in the blurbs) so read at yer own peril . . .
Now I don’t normally do single posts for full series. But I started listening to book one, became hooked, and quickly gobbled them all up. The books start when an 11 year-old girl named Rose is out riding her new birthday bike. She falls into a hole and lands on a metal hand. The giant hand turns out to be part of an alien structure. That structure turns the past, present, and future of Earth upside down.
One of the negative things I heard about this series before embarking on the adventure meself, was that the time frames were odd. And it be true. The books jump around and skip huge chunks of time. A next chapter might take place several decades later. There be jumps into the past and back again. I was glad I was forewarned because I was able to go with the flow.
Another thing I be glad of was listening to the first and second books in audio book form. The majority of this book is told in epistolary style via audio file format, journal entries, etc.. I wanted to listen to book three on audio book but there was a massive wait list. So I got the available ebook. It was hard to read the book in that format. The audio book was first rate and I loved the voice performances. Each character is played by a different person. I particularly enjoyed Kara Resnick and crazy Alyssa. Two thumbs up for excellent production values.
The other thing that would normally bother me was the cliffhanger endings of books one and two. But they were rather perfect for this series and are part of why I had to immediately know what happens next. I treated the series as one long book instead of three separate ones and that actually increased me enjoyment.
So what about the story itself? Well I loved book one the best, followed by book three, and then book two. Basically the hand that Rose finds belongs to a giant robot. The giant robot is from an alien race. Rose ends up studying that hand when she has grown and helps sets all of the events in motion. She was one of the better characters and has the best personal growth in the trilogy.
One of me favourite things about the book is that even though the alien race is technologically advanced, they don’t seem to culturally be any better than humans. I loved that the aliens made mistakes. I loved the snippets of their lives and politics that we do get. I would have preferred more about them, actually. I also loved how the trilogy ended because I thought it was realistic. I enjoyed that the aliens aren’t godlike despite their godlike technology and the humans’ tenacity doesn’t solve all their problems or even most of them. I do admit that the end was rather bleak for the human species. But the aliens weren’t much better. That was refreshing for a sci-fi book. There is hope but it is slim, indeed.
The robot parts of the book did get a little bit old for me. I loved them in book one but subsequently wished they would go away. That could be because of how the dumb humans chose to use them. To be fair, there were some political consequences that I did not expect and those elements were lovely.
As for characterization, in general I did find it hard to connect to the characters as people. There were me favourites and I enjoyed them but it was hard to watch most of humanity make such dumb mistakes and stupid assumptions. Also there wasn’t a ton of growth for any of the characters with the exception of Rose. Many choices were made from outright emotional reaction that never seemed to change regardless of the circumstances. So I did watch a lot of the story as an observer rather than a participant. But not all of it. There were deaths and choices that made me tear up. There were sections where I cheered for me favourites. There were also “philosophical” sections where I sat back and watched from afar.
I think overall this be a very lovely trilogy despite the small flaws. It has been a long while since I had so voraciously read a trilogy in such a short time frame. I think it is a stellar beginning for a new author and will certainly be picking up whatever he writes next. Arrr!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Now I don’t normally do single posts for full series. But I started listening to book one, became hooked, and quickly gobbled them all up. The books start when an 11 year-old girl named Rose is out riding her new birthday bike. She falls into a hole and lands on a metal hand. The giant hand turns out to be part of an alien structure. That structure turns the past, present, and future of Earth upside down.
One of the negative things I heard about this series before embarking on the adventure meself, was that the time frames were odd. And it be true. The books jump around and skip huge chunks of time. A next chapter might take place several decades later. There be jumps into the past and back again. I was glad I was forewarned because I was able to go with the flow.
Another thing I be glad of was listening to the first and second books in audio book form. The majority of this book is told in epistolary style via audio file format, journal entries, etc.. I wanted to listen to book three on audio book but there was a massive wait list. So I got the available ebook. It was hard to read the book in that format. The audio book was first rate and I loved the voice performances. Each character is played by a different person. I particularly enjoyed Kara Resnick and crazy Alyssa. Two thumbs up for excellent production values.
The other thing that would normally bother me was the cliffhanger endings of books one and two. But they were rather perfect for this series and are part of why I had to immediately know what happens next. I treated the series as one long book instead of three separate ones and that actually increased me enjoyment.
So what about the story itself? Well I loved book one the best, followed by book three, and then book two. Basically the hand that Rose finds belongs to a giant robot. The giant robot is from an alien race. Rose ends up studying that hand when she has grown and helps sets all of the events in motion. She was one of the better characters and has the best personal growth in the trilogy.
One of me favourite things about the book is that even though the alien race is technologically advanced, they don’t seem to culturally be any better than humans. I loved that the aliens made mistakes. I loved the snippets of their lives and politics that we do get. I would have preferred more about them, actually. I also loved how the trilogy ended because I thought it was realistic. I enjoyed that the aliens aren’t godlike despite their godlike technology and the humans’ tenacity doesn’t solve all their problems or even most of them. I do admit that the end was rather bleak for the human species. But the aliens weren’t much better. That was refreshing for a sci-fi book. There is hope but it is slim, indeed.
The robot parts of the book did get a little bit old for me. I loved them in book one but subsequently wished they would go away. That could be because of how the dumb humans chose to use them. To be fair, there were some political consequences that I did not expect and those elements were lovely.
As for characterization, in general I did find it hard to connect to the characters as people. There were me favourites and I enjoyed them but it was hard to watch most of humanity make such dumb mistakes and stupid assumptions. Also there wasn’t a ton of growth for any of the characters with the exception of Rose. Many choices were made from outright emotional reaction that never seemed to change regardless of the circumstances. So I did watch a lot of the story as an observer rather than a participant. But not all of it. There were deaths and choices that made me tear up. There were sections where I cheered for me favourites. There were also “philosophical” sections where I sat back and watched from afar.
I think overall this be a very lovely trilogy despite the small flaws. It has been a long while since I had so voraciously read a trilogy in such a short time frame. I think it is a stellar beginning for a new author and will certainly be picking up whatever he writes next. Arrr!
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/