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Ahoy there me mateys! I received a copy of this fantasy novella eArc from the publisher in exchange for me honest musings . . .
The cover drew me in and three things convinced me to read this book:
1. I love Lois McMaster Bujold! I discovered her through her World of the Five Gods series;
2. It is a Subterranean Press book and they do great work; and
3. This story is set in the Sharing Knife world.
Ye see at some point in the past I read the first book of the Sharing Knife series. I remember enjoying it but literally nothing else (eek!). While this novella is technically #4.5 in the series, it is a standalone. I thought I would read this book to be reintroduced to the world and see if I should go back and read the whole series.
I ended up really liking this novella. The basic premise is that Barr has a secret daughter who he watches over from afar. After coming back from a longer than usual patrol, he finds his daughter missing and sets out to discover where she went.
The highlight of this book is Barr. Ye meet him as a mature man on his way home from a long journey. He was an impulsive youth who made bad decisions and has basically been paying for them ever since. It was so nice to see a male character reflect on his immaturity and past mistakes. Above all he didn't let those mistakes derail his entire future. He was just so thoughtful and wonderful and always trying to do the right thing. Ye get to watch his perceptions of the people around him grow and change as he gets to know his daughter.
I also enjoyed how the plot around the daughter was handled. The politics of the family relations were messy and realistic-feeling. One mistake really can impact generations and lots of people. It was nice to watch the side characters also grow and change. I did enjoy the unfolding of the father-daughter relationship. I also rather loved the epilogue.
The characters and the relationships were the strength of this one. The world building didn't thrill me that much when compared to the World of the Five Gods. It just seemed kinda cheesy and too simplistic. It surprised me that this series was written after the Five Gods books. I don't think I feel the need to go back and read the rest of series. I am, however, very glad to have read about Barr. Barr reminds me of Cazaril in a lot of ways and I rather loved him. So I do recommend this novella as a starting place to see if ye want to explore more of the world. Arrr!
Side note: I still plan on trying the author's sci-fi Vorkosigan Saga.
The cover drew me in and three things convinced me to read this book:
1. I love Lois McMaster Bujold! I discovered her through her World of the Five Gods series;
2. It is a Subterranean Press book and they do great work; and
3. This story is set in the Sharing Knife world.
Ye see at some point in the past I read the first book of the Sharing Knife series. I remember enjoying it but literally nothing else (eek!). While this novella is technically #4.5 in the series, it is a standalone. I thought I would read this book to be reintroduced to the world and see if I should go back and read the whole series.
I ended up really liking this novella. The basic premise is that Barr has a secret daughter who he watches over from afar. After coming back from a longer than usual patrol, he finds his daughter missing and sets out to discover where she went.
The highlight of this book is Barr. Ye meet him as a mature man on his way home from a long journey. He was an impulsive youth who made bad decisions and has basically been paying for them ever since. It was so nice to see a male character reflect on his immaturity and past mistakes. Above all he didn't let those mistakes derail his entire future. He was just so thoughtful and wonderful and always trying to do the right thing. Ye get to watch his perceptions of the people around him grow and change as he gets to know his daughter.
I also enjoyed how the plot around the daughter was handled. The politics of the family relations were messy and realistic-feeling. One mistake really can impact generations and lots of people. It was nice to watch the side characters also grow and change. I did enjoy the unfolding of the father-daughter relationship. I also rather loved the epilogue.
The characters and the relationships were the strength of this one. The world building didn't thrill me that much when compared to the World of the Five Gods. It just seemed kinda cheesy and too simplistic. It surprised me that this series was written after the Five Gods books. I don't think I feel the need to go back and read the rest of series. I am, however, very glad to have read about Barr. Barr reminds me of Cazaril in a lot of ways and I rather loved him. So I do recommend this novella as a starting place to see if ye want to explore more of the world. Arrr!
Side note: I still plan on trying the author's sci-fi Vorkosigan Saga.
Ahoy there me mateys! I received this short story collection eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. So here be me honest musings . . .
One of the best short stories I have ever read was Ken Liu's the paper menagerie which in 2012 was the first work to win the Hugo, the Nebula and the World Fantasy Award. Ye can read it for free by clicking here. This lovely cover for his second short story collection caught me eye and I was excited to read more of his work. This book has 16 stories from the past five years and a brand new novelette. There were 19 all together.
All short story collections are kinda hard to review. I usually try to give thoughts about each story individually but I am not able to do that for this book. This stems from the fact that the stories, as the author's preface states, have been arranged by the editor into a "meta-narrative." The stories at the beginning seem to standalone but later stories have many characters and plots reappear. I think the beginning of the collection was the strongest but much of the middle blurred together and felt very slow for reasons I will get to. Here are the stories that I loved:
"Ghost Days" - The first story was cool and the historical fiction aspects excellent. I didn't particularly love the ending but I did learn about bubi which are awesome Chinese coins. After the story I went looking to find out more about them and found this cool page.
"Maxwell's Demon"- This was the second story and the best for me. It deals with the Japanese internment in 1943 and ghosts. Poignant and beautiful.
"Thoughts and Prayers" - A thought-provoking tale about the consequences of a mass shooting on one family and how the digital world impacts how each member deals with grief.
"Real Artists" - A weird but fascinating look at how films could be made.
"Grey Rabbit, Crimson Mare, Coal Leopard" - Cool magic. Super fun characters. I wouldn't mind this one being expanded into a longer form.
"The Hidden Girl"- Assassins and magic. Arrrr!
"The Message"- Lovely story about familial bonds, alien archaeology, and tough choices. Bittersweet.
About 30% of the way through is where the tone switched. Much of the middle of this book deals with the unforeseen impact of technology advancing. One story dealt with what happens when ye crowdfund charity and the non-profits have to compete. Multiple stories dealt with uploading the human consciousness to computers.
Two repeating ones were 1) a girl, Maddie, who talks to her dead AI father and 2) the Singularity which is where people gave up their physical bodies. Many of the stories with Maddie used emoji which I couldn't see very well on me Kindle and couldn't enlarge. It irked me and I missed a lot of the meaning. I enjoyed the Singularity ones better. But the switching back and forth did lead to some whiplash. And some of the tech made no sense to me so I was just confused about what was going on.
At 65% it switched to fantasy second with the "Grey Rabbit" story. I loved that one. Next from 76 - 81% there was an excerpt from the third Dandelion Dynasty book. Horrible, horrible choice. It didn't fit and should have been put at the end of the book if they wanted to promote it. Blech. "The Hidden Girl" was next. Fantastic story whose theme and tone matched the "Grey Rabbit" story. The remainder of the stories were good.
Out of the 19 stories, I loved 7, enjoyed 7, and didn't like 5. That is pretty darn good for me and a collection. So while there were quibbles, I am very glad to have read this collection.
So lastly . . .
Thank you Saga Press!
One of the best short stories I have ever read was Ken Liu's the paper menagerie which in 2012 was the first work to win the Hugo, the Nebula and the World Fantasy Award. Ye can read it for free by clicking here. This lovely cover for his second short story collection caught me eye and I was excited to read more of his work. This book has 16 stories from the past five years and a brand new novelette. There were 19 all together.
All short story collections are kinda hard to review. I usually try to give thoughts about each story individually but I am not able to do that for this book. This stems from the fact that the stories, as the author's preface states, have been arranged by the editor into a "meta-narrative." The stories at the beginning seem to standalone but later stories have many characters and plots reappear. I think the beginning of the collection was the strongest but much of the middle blurred together and felt very slow for reasons I will get to. Here are the stories that I loved:
"Ghost Days" - The first story was cool and the historical fiction aspects excellent. I didn't particularly love the ending but I did learn about bubi which are awesome Chinese coins. After the story I went looking to find out more about them and found this cool page.
"Maxwell's Demon"- This was the second story and the best for me. It deals with the Japanese internment in 1943 and ghosts. Poignant and beautiful.
"Thoughts and Prayers" - A thought-provoking tale about the consequences of a mass shooting on one family and how the digital world impacts how each member deals with grief.
"Real Artists" - A weird but fascinating look at how films could be made.
"Grey Rabbit, Crimson Mare, Coal Leopard" - Cool magic. Super fun characters. I wouldn't mind this one being expanded into a longer form.
"The Hidden Girl"- Assassins and magic. Arrrr!
"The Message"- Lovely story about familial bonds, alien archaeology, and tough choices. Bittersweet.
About 30% of the way through is where the tone switched. Much of the middle of this book deals with the unforeseen impact of technology advancing. One story dealt with what happens when ye crowdfund charity and the non-profits have to compete. Multiple stories dealt with uploading the human consciousness to computers.
Two repeating ones were 1) a girl, Maddie, who talks to her dead AI father and 2) the Singularity which is where people gave up their physical bodies. Many of the stories with Maddie used emoji which I couldn't see very well on me Kindle and couldn't enlarge. It irked me and I missed a lot of the meaning. I enjoyed the Singularity ones better. But the switching back and forth did lead to some whiplash. And some of the tech made no sense to me so I was just confused about what was going on.
At 65% it switched to fantasy second with the "Grey Rabbit" story. I loved that one. Next from 76 - 81% there was an excerpt from the third Dandelion Dynasty book. Horrible, horrible choice. It didn't fit and should have been put at the end of the book if they wanted to promote it. Blech. "The Hidden Girl" was next. Fantastic story whose theme and tone matched the "Grey Rabbit" story. The remainder of the stories were good.
Out of the 19 stories, I loved 7, enjoyed 7, and didn't like 5. That is pretty darn good for me and a collection. So while there were quibbles, I am very glad to have read this collection.
So lastly . . .
Thank you Saga Press!
Ahoy there me mateys! I take a second look at a previously enjoyed novel and give me crew me second reflections, as it were, upon visitin’ it again . . .
This series was on the list to finish. I wasn’t planning on rereading the first book but I needed a new audiobook and this was one of the few available possibilities at the time. So I started the series over again. Sad how time changes things.
The first time I read the novel, I really enjoyed both of the characters. In listening to it, I still liked the character of Tarver but thought Lilac sucked a lot more. Some of this was due to the voice acting of Cynthia Holloway. I am not sure if the choices made were from Disney or from the actor but Lilac comes out very whiny and annoying. I kinda wanted to stomp on her face. The two male voice actors were fine but not great. I want to chalk that up to production choices.
The premise of the story is that there are two survivors of a spaceship crash that end up on a mysterious planet with a secret. I still found the set-up for the book to be fun. But even with me shoddy memories of the plot, the pacing seemed off and the tension lacking. I was kinda bored with the character interactions. The action stalls quite a bit. I did still love the plot twists in how the romance does not proceed in typical fashion. But me rating has gone down.
While I wasn’t thrilled with the reread, I already had the second book in audiobook form (and nothing else) so I started that one. I was immensely confused by the new characters and lack of cohesion between the ending of the first book and the beginning of the second. I honestly thought I had somehow downloaded the wrong book. I gave up fairly quickly.
When I got back to internet, I looked up the rest of the series on Goodreads and discovered it actually was the correct book but the series features “Three worlds. Three love stories. One enemy.” That spoiled me mood because the first book ended on a cliffhanger. The desire to read the other two books died so off the list they go! The good news is that I just took that series off the list. Saved time for the 76 other series I need to finish! Arrrrr!
Side note: The series apparently has a novella as book 1.5 to talk more about what happened to Tarver and Lilac after the fact. Should have been book two! But dang those covers are pretty . . .
Old Review Below ----
I wish I could remember which blogger talked about this novel so that I could thank them because I really enjoyed this young adult space adventure. But I suck. I will try to be better about remembering in the future.
The two main characters, Tarver and Lilac, are pretty cool. Well, Lilac kinda starts out as a snot. Though major improvement happens, and I like how she turns out by the end of the novel. Tarver, I pretty much liked from the very beginning.
The premise of the story is that the spaceship that two characters are on crashes into a planet. And they seem to be the only survivors. The relationship developing between the two characters was what kept me interested. Both characters have strengths and weaknesses and both characters are necessary to their survival.
However this story has multiple plot twists I did not see coming. Very enjoyable ones which I will not ruin for ye. Super fun though. I rather enjoyed all the discoveries made on this planet. While some seemed a little silly at first, I find meself ignoring the usual things that might annoy me and just enjoyed. I find I sometimes have a hard time not picking apart novels for flaws. This may have some but none come to me at the moment and I just don’t care.
Oh and the other two books in the trilogy are already out. Bonus!
If ye like this review, see me others at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
This series was on the list to finish. I wasn’t planning on rereading the first book but I needed a new audiobook and this was one of the few available possibilities at the time. So I started the series over again. Sad how time changes things.
The first time I read the novel, I really enjoyed both of the characters. In listening to it, I still liked the character of Tarver but thought Lilac sucked a lot more. Some of this was due to the voice acting of Cynthia Holloway. I am not sure if the choices made were from Disney or from the actor but Lilac comes out very whiny and annoying. I kinda wanted to stomp on her face. The two male voice actors were fine but not great. I want to chalk that up to production choices.
The premise of the story is that there are two survivors of a spaceship crash that end up on a mysterious planet with a secret. I still found the set-up for the book to be fun. But even with me shoddy memories of the plot, the pacing seemed off and the tension lacking. I was kinda bored with the character interactions. The action stalls quite a bit. I did still love the plot twists in how the romance does not proceed in typical fashion. But me rating has gone down.
While I wasn’t thrilled with the reread, I already had the second book in audiobook form (and nothing else) so I started that one. I was immensely confused by the new characters and lack of cohesion between the ending of the first book and the beginning of the second. I honestly thought I had somehow downloaded the wrong book. I gave up fairly quickly.
When I got back to internet, I looked up the rest of the series on Goodreads and discovered it actually was the correct book but the series features “Three worlds. Three love stories. One enemy.” That spoiled me mood because the first book ended on a cliffhanger. The desire to read the other two books died so off the list they go! The good news is that I just took that series off the list. Saved time for the 76 other series I need to finish! Arrrrr!
Side note: The series apparently has a novella as book 1.5 to talk more about what happened to Tarver and Lilac after the fact. Should have been book two! But dang those covers are pretty . . .
Old Review Below ----
I wish I could remember which blogger talked about this novel so that I could thank them because I really enjoyed this young adult space adventure. But I suck. I will try to be better about remembering in the future.
The two main characters, Tarver and Lilac, are pretty cool. Well, Lilac kinda starts out as a snot. Though major improvement happens, and I like how she turns out by the end of the novel. Tarver, I pretty much liked from the very beginning.
The premise of the story is that the spaceship that two characters are on crashes into a planet. And they seem to be the only survivors. The relationship developing between the two characters was what kept me interested. Both characters have strengths and weaknesses and both characters are necessary to their survival.
However this story has multiple plot twists I did not see coming. Very enjoyable ones which I will not ruin for ye. Super fun though. I rather enjoyed all the discoveries made on this planet. While some seemed a little silly at first, I find meself ignoring the usual things that might annoy me and just enjoyed. I find I sometimes have a hard time not picking apart novels for flaws. This may have some but none come to me at the moment and I just don’t care.
Oh and the other two books in the trilogy are already out. Bonus!
If ye like this review, see me others at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ahoy there me mateys! I received a copy of this fantasy eArc from the publisher in exchange for me honest musings . . .
This book is strange, wonderful, otherworldly, and hard to categorize. Literary fiction? Fantasy? Magical realism? Horror? Depends on the reader. I don't know who to recommend this book to but I loved it. The basic premise is that there is a person, Ada, who isn't completely human. She lives with her father who isn't human either. Both of them are from the Ground. They partially make their living by curing the humans, Cures, of their illnesses and seemingly have a well structured life. But Ada meets a man from the village and starts a relationship. Upheaval begins.
That description doesn't really begin to explain the book and that's okay. This is a book that has to be experienced not described. It is unsettling, evocative, and certainly doesn't have clear answers about anything. And it be compelling, haunting, and just plain fascinating. I am still not sure if this book horrifies or delights me or both. But much like the vegetarian, I know that I will be thinking about this for a long time to come. Arrrr!
Much thanks to Matey Sarah @ hamlets&hyperspace whose review led me to this delight. As she says:
"This book is so weird. I mean that in the best way possible. I don’t even know how to go about describing it, because it’s just that weird. Witchy healer does witchy things? Witchy healer starts an affair with a guy who might not be so upstanding himself and chaos ensues? Is she good? Is she not so good? No one knows. Certainly not this reader. . ."
This book is strange, wonderful, otherworldly, and hard to categorize. Literary fiction? Fantasy? Magical realism? Horror? Depends on the reader. I don't know who to recommend this book to but I loved it. The basic premise is that there is a person, Ada, who isn't completely human. She lives with her father who isn't human either. Both of them are from the Ground. They partially make their living by curing the humans, Cures, of their illnesses and seemingly have a well structured life. But Ada meets a man from the village and starts a relationship. Upheaval begins.
That description doesn't really begin to explain the book and that's okay. This is a book that has to be experienced not described. It is unsettling, evocative, and certainly doesn't have clear answers about anything. And it be compelling, haunting, and just plain fascinating. I am still not sure if this book horrifies or delights me or both. But much like the vegetarian, I know that I will be thinking about this for a long time to come. Arrrr!
Much thanks to Matey Sarah @ hamlets&hyperspace whose review led me to this delight. As she says:
"This book is so weird. I mean that in the best way possible. I don’t even know how to go about describing it, because it’s just that weird. Witchy healer does witchy things? Witchy healer starts an affair with a guy who might not be so upstanding himself and chaos ensues? Is she good? Is she not so good? No one knows. Certainly not this reader. . ."
Ahoy there me mateys! I loved the author's books about hippo cowboys even though I didn't enjoy their fantasy novel. So I was excited that their newest novella was once again set in the American West and deals with queer librarian spies on horseback. I mean how can ye not get excited about that? I got even more excited when Matey Tammy @ books,bones,andbuffy sent me a surprise copy of the novella. She be awesome (seriously)! Arrrr!
I really, really enjoyed this one. Only a few small issues that really are because I wanted more of certain things. The basic premise is that a young girl, Esther, runs away from home, hides in the Librarian's wagon, and hijinks ensue.
The positive:
The Librarians - Of course! I thought it was hysterical that these women are supposed to be morally virtuous and distribute the "Appropriate Materials" sanctioned by the government. Ha. Their official title is "Librarians of the Southwest Territory, the Honorable Brigade of Morally Upright Women." Of course the librarians are spies delivering the truth!
Diversity - Ye have a group of lesbians and non-binary kickass women as all the main characters. Arrr!
Genre-Mashup - This is an alternative history western dystopian. SO fun.
Functional Relationships - It is so wonderful to see couples who are in loving and caring partnerships. I particularly loved how Bet and Leda deal with each other and their disagreements. Each have rough pasts and mental health issues and yet make it work.
The Romance - The romance in this starts out in insta-lust on the part of Esther and then evolves into a slow-burn relationship. I liked how the ending was more about future hopeful possibilities between them and not just happily ever after.
Found Families - I just frickin' love when people find where they belong. This book captures that so nicely.
Amity - Such a dang good character! Fierce, kinda insane, and so very enjoyable. Her entire arc was just amazing. I loved how she dealt with Esther. She kept surprising me. I seriously want a whole story about her. Her past, present, future. I'll take it all.
The (not quite) Negatives -
Character Names - One of the characters is Bet and the other is Beatriz. I though Bet was a nickname for Beatriz at first and it lead to massive confusion at the beginning of the novella. Silly me.
The Romance - I was a little annoyed at how quickly Esther lusted over someone else after her girlfriend just DIED. I did believe that she was traumatized by the death but wanted more exploration into how she dealt with it. There was a bit of a nebulous time jump and the issue was just kinda glossed over. It should have been dealt with more. Beatriz deserved better. This is where a longer book could have helped.
The World-Building - I absolutely loved the world the author created but because this was a novella, there weren't many answers. How does the government work? How did the world end up this way? How do the Librarians not get caught? I loved the sketches and the world felt real but I want more!
So all in all this be an excellent novella that I am glad to have and would certainly reread. More set in this world please. Arrrr!
I really, really enjoyed this one. Only a few small issues that really are because I wanted more of certain things. The basic premise is that a young girl, Esther, runs away from home, hides in the Librarian's wagon, and hijinks ensue.
The positive:
The Librarians - Of course! I thought it was hysterical that these women are supposed to be morally virtuous and distribute the "Appropriate Materials" sanctioned by the government. Ha. Their official title is "Librarians of the Southwest Territory, the Honorable Brigade of Morally Upright Women." Of course the librarians are spies delivering the truth!
Diversity - Ye have a group of lesbians and non-binary kickass women as all the main characters. Arrr!
Genre-Mashup - This is an alternative history western dystopian. SO fun.
Functional Relationships - It is so wonderful to see couples who are in loving and caring partnerships. I particularly loved how Bet and Leda deal with each other and their disagreements. Each have rough pasts and mental health issues and yet make it work.
The Romance - The romance in this starts out in insta-lust on the part of Esther and then evolves into a slow-burn relationship. I liked how the ending was more about future hopeful possibilities between them and not just happily ever after.
Found Families - I just frickin' love when people find where they belong. This book captures that so nicely.
Amity - Such a dang good character! Fierce, kinda insane, and so very enjoyable. Her entire arc was just amazing. I loved how she dealt with Esther. She kept surprising me. I seriously want a whole story about her. Her past, present, future. I'll take it all.
The (not quite) Negatives -
Character Names - One of the characters is Bet and the other is Beatriz. I though Bet was a nickname for Beatriz at first and it lead to massive confusion at the beginning of the novella. Silly me.
The Romance - I was a little annoyed at how quickly Esther lusted over someone else after her girlfriend just DIED. I did believe that she was traumatized by the death but wanted more exploration into how she dealt with it. There was a bit of a nebulous time jump and the issue was just kinda glossed over. It should have been dealt with more. Beatriz deserved better. This is where a longer book could have helped.
The World-Building - I absolutely loved the world the author created but because this was a novella, there weren't many answers. How does the government work? How did the world end up this way? How do the Librarians not get caught? I loved the sketches and the world felt real but I want more!
So all in all this be an excellent novella that I am glad to have and would certainly reread. More set in this world please. Arrrr!
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Ahoy there me mateys! So apparently there was a meat shortage in the United States in 1910, so this dude Robert F. Broussard introduced what was known as the "Hippo Bill" or H.R. 23261 to Congress. In it, he proposed to import hippos from Africa and let them loose in Louisiana! These hippos would eat the hyacinth that polluted the swamps and in turn be eaten by the American meat-loving people. Anyone fancy a hippo steak?
Now obviously this did not happen. At least I never saw hippos running around during my time in the South. But the great thing is that this author took the idea of hippos in Louisiana and wrote two novellas in a alternate American timeline of the 1890s about what could have been. And what could have been is this - Yes me hearties, cowboys riding hippos! Or hoppers as they are known.
The first novella follows hopper Winslow Remington Houndstooth as he goes on adventures with fellow mercenary hippo wrangers while on his river horse, Ruby. I don't want to get into the plot because this is one ye must enjoy for yerself. How much did I love it? I finished and immediately paid for and read the sequel. I want more!!! So instead of spoiling the plot, I will give ye five fun interestin' hippo facts:
- the word hippopotamus is from the 1560s, from Latin, from Greek hippopotamos river horse, from hippos horse + potamos river
- "A group of hippos in known as a ‘herd’, ‘pod’, ‘dale’ or ‘bloat’"or school or sieges. I love bloat. Hardy har har!
- Hippos cannot float or swim! (source). They walk on the river bottom.
- The "average female [hippo] weighs around 3,000 lbs. (1,400 kilograms) while males weigh 3,500 to 9,920 lbs. (1,600 to 4,500 kg)."
- The Library of Congress has an awesome site where ye can read actual articles from the newspapers from 1910 about the "Hippo Bill." I had to do a happy hippo dance! No I am sadly not joking.
Hippos are awesome. These novella's are awesome. I suggest ye get them now. Or if ye can wait a little bit, both novellas will be published in a single volume called "American Hippo" in May of 2018. I am glad I didn't wait.
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Now obviously this did not happen. At least I never saw hippos running around during my time in the South. But the great thing is that this author took the idea of hippos in Louisiana and wrote two novellas in a alternate American timeline of the 1890s about what could have been. And what could have been is this - Yes me hearties, cowboys riding hippos! Or hoppers as they are known.
The first novella follows hopper Winslow Remington Houndstooth as he goes on adventures with fellow mercenary hippo wrangers while on his river horse, Ruby. I don't want to get into the plot because this is one ye must enjoy for yerself. How much did I love it? I finished and immediately paid for and read the sequel. I want more!!! So instead of spoiling the plot, I will give ye five fun interestin' hippo facts:
- the word hippopotamus is from the 1560s, from Latin, from Greek hippopotamos river horse, from hippos horse + potamos river
- "A group of hippos in known as a ‘herd’, ‘pod’, ‘dale’ or ‘bloat’"or school or sieges. I love bloat. Hardy har har!
- Hippos cannot float or swim! (source). They walk on the river bottom.
- The "average female [hippo] weighs around 3,000 lbs. (1,400 kilograms) while males weigh 3,500 to 9,920 lbs. (1,600 to 4,500 kg)."
- The Library of Congress has an awesome site where ye can read actual articles from the newspapers from 1910 about the "Hippo Bill." I had to do a happy hippo dance! No I am sadly not joking.
Hippos are awesome. These novella's are awesome. I suggest ye get them now. Or if ye can wait a little bit, both novellas will be published in a single volume called "American Hippo" in May of 2018. I am glad I didn't wait.
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ahoy there me mateys! So apparently there was a meat shortage in the United States in 1910, so this dude Robert F. Broussard introduced what was known as the "Hippo Bill" or H.R. 23261 to Congress. In it, he proposed to import hippos from Africa and let them loose in Louisiana! These hippos would eat the hyacinth that polluted the swamps and in turn be eaten by the American meat-loving people. Anyone fancy a hippo steak?
Now obviously this did not happen. At least I never saw hippos running around during my time in the South. But the great thing is that this author took the idea of hippos in Louisiana and wrote two novellas in a alternate American timeline of the 1890s about what could have been. And what could have been is this - Yes me hearties, cowboys riding hippos! Or hoppers as they are known.
The first novella follows hopper Winslow Remington Houndstooth as he goes on adventures with fellow mercenary hippo wrangers while on his river horse, Ruby. I don't want to get into the plot because this is one ye must enjoy for yerself. How much did I love it? I finished and immediately paid for and read the sequel. I want more!!! So instead of spoiling the plot, I will give ye five fun interestin' hippo facts:
- the word hippopotamus is from the 1560s, from Latin, from Greek hippopotamos river horse, from hippos horse + potamos river
- "A group of hippos in known as a ‘herd’, ‘pod’, ‘dale’ or ‘bloat’"or school or sieges. I love bloat. Hardy har har!
- Hippos cannot float or swim! (source). They walk on the river bottom.
- The "average female [hippo] weighs around 3,000 lbs. (1,400 kilograms) while males weigh 3,500 to 9,920 lbs. (1,600 to 4,500 kg)."
- The Library of Congress has an awesome site where ye can read actual articles from the newspapers from 1910 about the "Hippo Bill." I had to do a happy hippo dance! No I am sadly not joking.
Hippos are awesome. These novella's are awesome. I suggest ye get them now. Or if ye can wait a little bit, both novellas will be published in a single volume called "American Hippo" in May of 2018. I am glad I didn't wait.
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Now obviously this did not happen. At least I never saw hippos running around during my time in the South. But the great thing is that this author took the idea of hippos in Louisiana and wrote two novellas in a alternate American timeline of the 1890s about what could have been. And what could have been is this - Yes me hearties, cowboys riding hippos! Or hoppers as they are known.
The first novella follows hopper Winslow Remington Houndstooth as he goes on adventures with fellow mercenary hippo wrangers while on his river horse, Ruby. I don't want to get into the plot because this is one ye must enjoy for yerself. How much did I love it? I finished and immediately paid for and read the sequel. I want more!!! So instead of spoiling the plot, I will give ye five fun interestin' hippo facts:
- the word hippopotamus is from the 1560s, from Latin, from Greek hippopotamos river horse, from hippos horse + potamos river
- "A group of hippos in known as a ‘herd’, ‘pod’, ‘dale’ or ‘bloat’"or school or sieges. I love bloat. Hardy har har!
- Hippos cannot float or swim! (source). They walk on the river bottom.
- The "average female [hippo] weighs around 3,000 lbs. (1,400 kilograms) while males weigh 3,500 to 9,920 lbs. (1,600 to 4,500 kg)."
- The Library of Congress has an awesome site where ye can read actual articles from the newspapers from 1910 about the "Hippo Bill." I had to do a happy hippo dance! No I am sadly not joking.
Hippos are awesome. These novella's are awesome. I suggest ye get them now. Or if ye can wait a little bit, both novellas will be published in a single volume called "American Hippo" in May of 2018. I am glad I didn't wait.
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ahoy there me mateys! I received this sci-fi eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. So here be me honest musings . . .
I was so excited to be granted a wish to read this book. The blurb is awesome. A young human girl, Sarya, is being raised by her adopted mother who happens to be a killer giant black widow spider like thing. Only Sarya has to keep her identity hidden because she is the last human and humans are considered to be space's most dangerous and terrifying species. Panic would ensue and Sarya's life would be at risk.
I absolutely adored the beginning of this novel and the setup. I loved Sarya. I loved her scary mom. I loved the society status based on tiered intelligence levels. I love the machines and bots. I even loved the info dumps in the forms of instruction manuals that were dumbed down to match lower intelligence levels (like mine).
The first quarter of the book was so wonderful and action packed and interesting. At around 25%, the location changed and tone shifted. I thought about stopping there. Sarya's actions do not fit with how she presented in the first quarter. She becomes rather fickle and whiny. New characters were haphazardly introduced and confusion started to begin. It's not that I didn't love the ideas of the new characters (like the space suit) but the narrative starts to disintegrate into philosophical ramblings that bored me. The plot began to feel haphazard.
Though I thought about abandoning the book again at the 50% mark, I kept reading for the small snippets of hinted potential. I loved the mom's perspective and some things about Sarya's new shipmates. I stopped for the last time at the 64% mark. The story had lost the personal narratives and ceased to be character driven. The best part of the novel was the world building, developing relationships, and watching Sarya grow. The growth stopped, the plot died, and the plot twist happened. I didn't like that the big idea took center stage and everything I had loved about the writing ended.
I normally like discussions about artificial intelligence, personhood, technology, and the like. However, the beginning of this book led me to certain expectations and I did not like when the author decided to drop Sarya's agency and mission. I went online to read other reviews to see if I should soldier on but decided against it. Others may have better mileage.
This looks like the book was the author's debut. Based on the strong foundation of the beginning of this novel, I would be willing to try more of his future work. But this one ended up being unsalvageable. Arrrr!
So lastly . . .
Thank you Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine!
I was so excited to be granted a wish to read this book. The blurb is awesome. A young human girl, Sarya, is being raised by her adopted mother who happens to be a killer giant black widow spider like thing. Only Sarya has to keep her identity hidden because she is the last human and humans are considered to be space's most dangerous and terrifying species. Panic would ensue and Sarya's life would be at risk.
I absolutely adored the beginning of this novel and the setup. I loved Sarya. I loved her scary mom. I loved the society status based on tiered intelligence levels. I love the machines and bots. I even loved the info dumps in the forms of instruction manuals that were dumbed down to match lower intelligence levels (like mine).
The first quarter of the book was so wonderful and action packed and interesting. At around 25%, the location changed and tone shifted. I thought about stopping there. Sarya's actions do not fit with how she presented in the first quarter. She becomes rather fickle and whiny. New characters were haphazardly introduced and confusion started to begin. It's not that I didn't love the ideas of the new characters (like the space suit) but the narrative starts to disintegrate into philosophical ramblings that bored me. The plot began to feel haphazard.
Though I thought about abandoning the book again at the 50% mark, I kept reading for the small snippets of hinted potential. I loved the mom's perspective and some things about Sarya's new shipmates. I stopped for the last time at the 64% mark. The story had lost the personal narratives and ceased to be character driven. The best part of the novel was the world building, developing relationships, and watching Sarya grow. The growth stopped, the plot died, and the plot twist happened. I didn't like that the big idea took center stage and everything I had loved about the writing ended.
I normally like discussions about artificial intelligence, personhood, technology, and the like. However, the beginning of this book led me to certain expectations and I did not like when the author decided to drop Sarya's agency and mission. I went online to read other reviews to see if I should soldier on but decided against it. Others may have better mileage.
This looks like the book was the author's debut. Based on the strong foundation of the beginning of this novel, I would be willing to try more of his future work. But this one ended up being unsalvageable. Arrrr!
So lastly . . .
Thank you Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine!
Ahoy there me mateys! This review has a twist. The First Mate and I both read this one! We discussed the book and I enjoyed his viewpoint so I ordered asked him to write a review. So you get one from me and a bonus additional review from me crew. Please note that I write like I talk and the First Mate writes like he thinks. Hope you enjoy!
From the Captain:
I read this over 20 years ago. It was a five star read. I don’t remember many details about the plot anymore. It remains a five star read in me noggin though. Arrrrr!
From the First Mate:
Though The Alienist was published in 1994, I’m almost certain that I didn’t become aware of it until the early 00s. I have a very distinct memory of reading one of those “books that should be made into movies” lists that touted The Alienist as “Teddy Roosevelt and a psychologist solve a serial murder spree in 1890s NYC.” It sounded like something I’d like, and yet I didn’t pick it up. And then, about a decade later, the Captain put a paperback copy of it into my hands and said that I had to read it. But it just sat on my shelf, and I just never brought myself around to reading it. And a decade after that, well, I picked it up and read the damn thing. Finally.
Two things about the novel became obvious very quickly, 1) the description I had been given was erroneous (Teddy, while a significant character, is not a main character), and 2) the serial killer being chased is a pedophiliac preying upon male child prostitutes. Every time someone recommended the book to me, they mentioned Teddy Roosevelt and failed to mention pedophiliac child murders. It’s entirely possible that I would’ve been even less interested in reading this book if I’d know more about what type of book it was.
All that said, The Alienist is an extremely well written and well researched novel that’s full of very interesting characters and paints an incredibly unflattering portrait of 1890s New York City. The two main characters, alienist Laszlo Kreizler and crime reporter John Moore, are fully realized, complex, and compelling in both their strengths and weaknesses. With an assist from the newly appointed police commissioner, Theodore Roosevelt, Laszlo and Moore assemble a team comprised entirely of people at the margins (the first female NYC police officer, twin Jewish detectives, several former patients of Laszlo) who, due to their being outside the mainstream of that particular society, are able to bring perspectives to the investigation that the regular police are unable and unwilling to. The manner in which the team attempts to solve the murders is by forming a psychological profile of the killer.
While the method and structure of Laszlo and Moore’s investigation in some ways follows along the path set up by the first two Thomas Harris Hannibal Lecter novels (the team figures out what makes the killer kill while the bodies pile up), reading The Alienist actually made me think a lot about Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Laszlo is very much the van Helsing of The Alienist and he’s able to bring a sensibility to the proceedings that is foreign to the rest of the team. As with Dracula, the serial killer here brings elements that are decidedly non-urban that confuse the police and the populace at large. While the various team members go on investigatory missions, the bulk of the investigation happens in one room with the various team members talking to one another. And their discussions are fascinating.
The Alienist does come with some significant negatives. As said, it’s a novel that is centered on pedophiliac child murder, which is a rough topic even though there is no graphic sex in the novel itself. This is a predominantly male novel, with one of the only two main female characters being effectively mute. The investigation takes a few turns that drag a bit, which does take its toll in a nearly 500 page novel. The portrayal of the grimier aspects of 1890s NYC and the corruption of its police force probably was more effective in 1994 than in 2020 due to a lot of the same type of material making its way into quality pop non-fiction books that have come out in recent years (The Poisoner’s Handbook and The Radium Girls being ones that jump to mind). And, unfortunately, the ending is not entirely satisfying.
Probably the primary reason to read this novel is that Carr is very talented at beautifully describing the depressing and scary world in which the story takes place. Because the story is backed by solid research, one is left with the belief that the reality of 1890s NYC might not have been far from what is described.
Recommended to anyone who enjoys gritty, turn of last century crime stories. This is one of the better ones. Definitely avoid if your hard-nos include child prostitution and/or novels with a 99% male cast.
From the Captain:
I read this over 20 years ago. It was a five star read. I don’t remember many details about the plot anymore. It remains a five star read in me noggin though. Arrrrr!
From the First Mate:
Though The Alienist was published in 1994, I’m almost certain that I didn’t become aware of it until the early 00s. I have a very distinct memory of reading one of those “books that should be made into movies” lists that touted The Alienist as “Teddy Roosevelt and a psychologist solve a serial murder spree in 1890s NYC.” It sounded like something I’d like, and yet I didn’t pick it up. And then, about a decade later, the Captain put a paperback copy of it into my hands and said that I had to read it. But it just sat on my shelf, and I just never brought myself around to reading it. And a decade after that, well, I picked it up and read the damn thing. Finally.
Two things about the novel became obvious very quickly, 1) the description I had been given was erroneous (Teddy, while a significant character, is not a main character), and 2) the serial killer being chased is a pedophiliac preying upon male child prostitutes. Every time someone recommended the book to me, they mentioned Teddy Roosevelt and failed to mention pedophiliac child murders. It’s entirely possible that I would’ve been even less interested in reading this book if I’d know more about what type of book it was.
All that said, The Alienist is an extremely well written and well researched novel that’s full of very interesting characters and paints an incredibly unflattering portrait of 1890s New York City. The two main characters, alienist Laszlo Kreizler and crime reporter John Moore, are fully realized, complex, and compelling in both their strengths and weaknesses. With an assist from the newly appointed police commissioner, Theodore Roosevelt, Laszlo and Moore assemble a team comprised entirely of people at the margins (the first female NYC police officer, twin Jewish detectives, several former patients of Laszlo) who, due to their being outside the mainstream of that particular society, are able to bring perspectives to the investigation that the regular police are unable and unwilling to. The manner in which the team attempts to solve the murders is by forming a psychological profile of the killer.
While the method and structure of Laszlo and Moore’s investigation in some ways follows along the path set up by the first two Thomas Harris Hannibal Lecter novels (the team figures out what makes the killer kill while the bodies pile up), reading The Alienist actually made me think a lot about Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Laszlo is very much the van Helsing of The Alienist and he’s able to bring a sensibility to the proceedings that is foreign to the rest of the team. As with Dracula, the serial killer here brings elements that are decidedly non-urban that confuse the police and the populace at large. While the various team members go on investigatory missions, the bulk of the investigation happens in one room with the various team members talking to one another. And their discussions are fascinating.
The Alienist does come with some significant negatives. As said, it’s a novel that is centered on pedophiliac child murder, which is a rough topic even though there is no graphic sex in the novel itself. This is a predominantly male novel, with one of the only two main female characters being effectively mute. The investigation takes a few turns that drag a bit, which does take its toll in a nearly 500 page novel. The portrayal of the grimier aspects of 1890s NYC and the corruption of its police force probably was more effective in 1994 than in 2020 due to a lot of the same type of material making its way into quality pop non-fiction books that have come out in recent years (The Poisoner’s Handbook and The Radium Girls being ones that jump to mind). And, unfortunately, the ending is not entirely satisfying.
Probably the primary reason to read this novel is that Carr is very talented at beautifully describing the depressing and scary world in which the story takes place. Because the story is backed by solid research, one is left with the belief that the reality of 1890s NYC might not have been far from what is described.
Recommended to anyone who enjoys gritty, turn of last century crime stories. This is one of the better ones. Definitely avoid if your hard-nos include child prostitution and/or novels with a 99% male cast.