Ahoy there me mateys! I am catching up with the rest of the crew who has been reviewing this book all over the place. I loved this author’s Hugo winning short story “A Witch’s Guide to Escape: A Practical Compendium of Portal Fantasies,” by Alix E. Harrow (Apex Magazine, February 2018). Ye can read the story for free. I really did enjoy this full length novel even though I did have some quibbles about it.

Things I Loved:

- the doors: I loved the idea of tracking down new worlds through myths. Awesome. I also loved where they were and how they opened and closed. The through-line of the doors was the best part of the book.

- the main character, January: I enjoyed January as a character and especially how she grows into her own being during the course of the novel. I particularly liked her adult way of facing hardship and pain towards the later parts of the book.

- the writing: I thought a lot of the writing was very beautiful and there were some very lovely turns of phrase.

- magic: I loved the magic in the world whether from cool artifacts or abilities of people. I loved the word magic most of all.

- the dog: I was glad that January got to keep him and how sweet their relationship was.
the ending.

Things I Didn’t Love:

- the doors: I didn’t get enough description of what the worlds were like through the doors. Lots of tantalizing hints but no real specifics besides one world.

- the main character, January: While I liked her growth, I thought that too much of the book showcased her passive side and angst. I would have liked her to have found agency much sooner.

- the writing: While I loved the writing overall, I didn’t love a lot of the framing of the story and how it evolved. It felt choppy to me and the story bounced around in time a bit too much.
magic: I wanted more! Though I did dislike the main villain’s powers.

- pace: It took a while for me to get into the story at the beginning. It didn’t really capture me fancy until about 50%. The pace never really sped up and this led to some disconnect with both the plot and characters.

- secondary characters: While I loved the idea of Jane specifically, I did not feel that any of these characters were well-rounded or really understood. They seemed to have no lives outside of their interactions with January.

I could write more but it seems that I am in the minority on this one. Seriously all the reviews I have seen are 4 or 5 stars. I am glad I read it and I actually wouldn’t mind another book set in a different Door. I guess I had higher expectations for this overall. Arrrr!

Ahoy there me mateys! With a title like that, ye know I had to check it out. This book stretched believability a whole bunch but I didn’t care because the story was so darn fun. A wonderful popcorn book with a heart. This book be 447 pages and flew by!

The story follows Teagan Frost who has no choice but to work for a shady government organization due to her psychokinesis in exchange for freedom on a leash. Well a simple job goes bad, then really bad when a guy is murdered, and then Teagan gets the blame. She has 22 hours to figure out who-dun-it or she goes back into government hands and maybe disappears forever.

The beginning was explosive! I was sucked right in. This book was a wonderful mess in a good way. I absolutely loved Teagan – her attitude, her soft(ish) interior, her spunk, etc. I loved that while this is very much an action-based non-stop plot, the characters are nuanced. Even the secondary ones. Watching Teagan’s relationships with them evolve is fantastic and even the reader’s perceptions of them change too. This was no mean feat when ye have so much chaos, characters running for their lives, and unexpected plot points. There be humor here too!

I loved that Teagan’s powers had limitations and side-effects. I enjoyed that both the good guys and bad guys make mistakes. This slight realism somewhat balanced out the silliness of some of the more ridiculous plot points especially involving Teagan getting the blame and her origin story. Then again who doesn’t like hellfires, gangs, secret organizations, hacking, chase scenes, a hint of romance, snark, and late-90s rap?

The climax and ending were absurd but I didn’t care too much because I am team-Teagan all the way. Book two is out in 2020 and has another excellent title, “random sh*t flying through the air.” I want it. Arrr!

Side note: Jackson Ford is a pseudonym for an author who has written 16 bestselling novels. I don’t care who really wrote it. It be fun!

Check out these reviews from the crew:

Matey Drew @ thetattooedbookgeek – “Sometimes you just want to kick back, relax, turn off from the world and enjoy a book. You want to read a book that is full of attitude, that is bold, brash and loud. A book that is pure and unadulterated fun and that is what The Girl Who Could Move Sh#t With Her Mind is. It is a book that is barmy, bonkers and brilliant.”

Matey Tammy @ books, bones,&buffy – “I knew The Girl Who Could Move Sh*t With Her Mind was going to be a fun read as soon as I heard the title, but I was not prepared for its over-the-top action and frenetic pacing. I also didn’t expect this story to have so much heart and emotion, which it did in spades. Jackson Ford, a pseudonym for a bestselling novelist, has written a super-charged story that starts with two women falling from the 82nd floor of a building, and never lets up after that.”

Ahoy there me mateys!  I received this sci-fi eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Be advised that this be the second book in the series.  While I try to post no spoilers, if ye haven’t read the first and keep reading this log then ye have been forewarned and continue at yer own peril . . .

I loved the first book of this duology so much that I requested book two as soon as I saw it and didn't even read the blurb.  I happily went in blind.  Upon completion, there be no disappointment.  I loved it.  I do suggest ye read book one before tackling this one.

In this book, set over two hundred years after the first, a group from Earth is dispatched to the planet Pax to do a scientific study and to see if contact can be made with the "lost" descendants of the original colony.  This leads to ample conflicts between the two groups due to the misunderstandings and assumptions brought by the Earthers regarding gender, intelligence, politics, etc.  These scientists were extremely narrow-minded and rather stupid (despite their intelligence) to me way of thinking.

That said, the conflicts did make some interesting reading.  This story was more linear then the previous book.  There were still awesome intelligent plant systems and lifeforms.  There were multiple points of view.  What made this book even more fun is that in addition to conflicts on Pax itself, ye also get to see how Earth has changed in the intervening years and I have to admit that it is not for the better.  Even Pax has undergone recent troubling changes that need investigation and have long range consequences. 

The juxtaposition of the two societies make for some lovely comparisons and conversations about how communities should be run and how human personality traits always seem to get in the way of progress.  But these insights don't get in the way of a great story but rather enhance it.  The limitations of biology and function of each species allowed for some fabulous problems that needed to be solved.  The points of view from the different species were excellent in showcasing the various issues.  And who doesn't  adore Stevland?

Basically this book is as good as its predecessor.  It ends with lovely implications but does seem to have wrapped up the series.  I sure hope that this is not the last book by Sue Burke though.  Arrrr!

So lastly . . .

Thank you Macmillian-Tor/Forge!

Matey Christopher wrote me a good question about the rating for book three and I thought more of ye crew members might be curious. So for the record:

Christopher wrote: "You rated the first one a 5, no rating for the second, and now a 1? What happened to the quality of the series?"

Hmmm I did not realize that I didn't rate the second book. I will have to fix that. It has been a long while since I read the series and the initial thoughts on it are hazy. I did like the second book. But when I went to read the third one, I just kept putting it down and not wanting to pick it back up. I must have restarted it half a dozen times. As a side note, I currently be going through the list of series that I haven't finished and taking out the ones I won't finish because I am working on the Series Shakedown Part 6 post on me blog. I read the reviews and spoilers for the third book and realized I don't want to read the third book. So it gets one star because I lost interest and never finished it. And I don't think I ever will try it again hence why I finally rated it and put it on me abandoned ship shelf. Hope that all makes sense. Arrrr!

Ahoy there me mateys! I received this fantasy eARC from Goodreads Giveaways. It was the first time I have ever won. Arrrrr! In return I will write an honest review. So here are me honest musings . . .

Title: age of myth

Author: Michael J. Sullivan

Publisher: Del Ray

Publication Date: TODAY!

ISBN: 9781101965337

Source: Goodreads Giveaways

The gorgeous cover is what made me click on the giveaway for this novel. The blurb is what made me enter the giveaway. Reading the novel is what made me fall in love with this author’s work and made this novel one of my top favorites ever. I actually struggled making myself write this post because I know that whatever I write will not do it justice. However, this novel deserves to be praised and the love shared and so I will do me best . . .

So I am a huge fantasy nerd and love epics but found myself in a bind recently of not wanting to finish epic series. I seemed to have a problem with the world building or the characters or the portrayal of women or the length of chapters and chapters where nothing happened. Even hyped series failed to deliver.

This book reminded me of all of the reasons that I love the epic fantasy genre. I was transported and immersed into the world of Riyria. This novel tickled me fancy in just the right way and fit me mood perfectly. I love when that happens. The world building and writing were glorious. My copy was 384 pages (minus glossary etc.) and yet seemed so short when it was over.

While the world was awesome and the plot was super fun, it was the characters that made me soul happy. Super strong female characters, men with depth, magical beings, etc. All characters were fleshed out and necessary for the story being told. Some of my favorites:

– Raithe – a reluctant hero who finds himself drawn into a conflict through unlikely circumstances

– Suri – a seer who talks to trees, has a unique worldview, and travels with a wolf (Arrrr!)

– Persephone – a strong willed woman who doesn’t break under the burdens life is giving her

– Malcolm – a former slave who has a penchant for using rocks

– Arion – a woman with magic whose perspective on life takes a hit

I love how the characters are drawn together in the conflict and how they work together.

As the author states on Goodreads, all the novels in this five book series are already written! Of course the publishing dates for 2 – 5 have not been decided yet. I want them all! The author also stated that this series can be read without having read any other Riyria novels. Eventually I will read them all.

So lastly . . .

Thank you Del Ray and Goodreads Giveaways!

If ye like this review see me other at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/

Ahoy there mateys! I received a copy of this novel from Goodreads Giveaways. I have tried to read this one multiple times and today I throw in the towel. This book is very dialogue heavy and I kept getting confused about who was saying what. And the pace was pretty slow. Cool concept but this book is not for me. Arrr!

Ahoy there me mateys! This be the fifteenth book in me Ports for Plunder – 19 Books in 2019 list. I wanted to read this book because it was said to be a dystopian sci-fi set in British Columbia. In the story, Elka finds out her adopted father is a serial killer with the law on his tail. She flees both the law and her daddy. But both are out to get her.

This was a very odd read. First off all I would call this a western in terms of feel – gold rush and all. The murder mystery parts weren’t a mystery. The dystopian setting really was non-existent. Even the sci-fi elements weren’t present as the technology was basically primitive. I had tried to read this multiple times before and couldn’t get into it. But the premise kept drawing me back.

The premise is very interesting and this time the book did keep me very engaged. I very much enjoyed Elka as a character at first. She is tenacious and I love her trapping, skills, and down-to-earth outlook. She is very much no nonsense and focused on survival. The problem is that as the book progressed Elka became more and more of an unreliable narrator. I could guess at many of the bad things of her past and wanted her to stop being naive and in denial. I kept getting tired of all her continual bad choices and the consequences to others. By the end, I had really lost all sympathy for her.

Luckily she has Penelope as a balance. Once Penelope enters the picture, I at least got interested in how her portion of the story was going to work out. Ye only get Elka’s point of view but I found Penelope to be fascinating. She is no angel but I went from finding her to be annoying to her becoming the best thing about the book. I wanted her to be happy.

While I was interested in finding how the story turned out, I ultimately found the entire ending to be unsatisfying. I didn’t like how the killer was caught, I didn’t like how Penelope and Elka’s relationship turned out, and I didn’t like the final plot twist. Also I really wanted to know more about how the world changed in the “Big Damned Stupid” that ended the world as we know it. So this was just an okay read but no real regrets about having finally read it. I do think it was well-written but certain elements were not to me taste. Arrrr!!

Side note: Only four books left in the 19 in 2019! Doable.

Ahoy there me mateys! So ummm this book was nothing like I imagined it would be from either the cover or the blurb. The blurb states that this is a coming-of-age tale set in 1980s Niagara Falls. A young boy, Jake Baker (age 12), and his new friends participate in his Uncle Calvin’s “Saturday Night Ghost Club” where they go around town exploring local spooky legends. However the summer brings real truths to light. It also deals with “haunting mutability of memory and storytelling.”

And aye, this is certainly a coming-of-age tale but it is such a sad one in the scheme of things. There be many good things here. I loved Jake and his newfound friendships. I loved the idea of finally getting back at bullies. I love that Jake has lovely caring parents. I love Uncle Calvin’s odd duck ways. I love Jake’s viewpoints of Dove. I love the betamax store owner, Lex. The writing itself is absolutely excellent and it is what kept me reading because I wanted to know the resolution of the story.

Really me problem with it stems from the expectations that it would be light-hearted and poignant in the missing of a bygone summer. There were those elements there for sure but lots of darkness too. I should have known given that the first chapter is about brain surgery. It did throw me and I almost didn’t read the book. But the next chapter started in the vein that I thought the whole book would be like.

This did not turn into the happy Halloween read I originally wanted (and kinda still do). Instead it was a beautiful look at family tragedies, love, friendship, how experiences shape future identity, and aye, memory. It really does showcase the end of boyhood and the entrance into the beginnings of being an adult. It ends on a hopeful note but the sadness underneath still peaks through. I can’t say that I loved this book. I can say that I am very glad I read it and that me heart is always going to feel a bit bruised whenever I think on this book. Arrrrr!