Codex Born by Jim C Hines is the sequel to Libriomancer which tells of Isaac Vainio, a libriomancer with the power to access magic from within books. If you have not read Libriomancer, I would strongly suggest you start there. While it is not impossible to enjoy the story without having read the first book, it builds upon concepts, characters and events detailed in Libriomancer. Codex Born continues Isaac’s story and develops what we know of libriomancy. Feel free to check out my thoughts on Libriomancer. What I liked Lena’s backstory. We learn much, much more about Lena Greenwood through brief snippets before each chapter. For me, this was one of the most beautifully written and touching parts of the books as she learns to come to terms with her nature and the accommodations she has to make to achieve a little freedom. The visual imagery. Hines has a real talent for describing scenes that had me flat out giggling like a schoolgirl with the picture it evoked in my mind. An example was “She appeared to be holding off a small swarm of bugs with a drinking straw and a yo-yo.” I’m snickering even now at that mental image….
Codex Born by Jim C Hines is the sequel to Libriomancer which tells of Isaac Vainio, a libriomancer with the power to access magic from within books. If you have not read Libriomancer, I would strongly suggest you start there. While it is not impossible to enjoy the story without having read the first book, it builds upon concepts, characters and events detailed in Libriomancer. Codex Born continues Isaac’s story and develops what we know of libriomancy. Feel free to check out my thoughts on Libriomancer. What I liked Lena’s backstory. We learn much, much more about Lena Greenwood through brief snippets before each chapter. For me, this was one of the most beautifully written and touching parts of the books as she learns to come to terms with her nature and the accommodations she has to make to achieve a little freedom. The visual imagery. Hines has a real talent for describing scenes that had me flat out giggling like a schoolgirl with the picture it evoked in my mind. An example was “She appeared to be holding off a small swarm of bugs with a drinking straw and a yo-yo.” I’m snickering even now at that mental image….
Emperor of Thorns by Mark Lawrence is the final book in the Broken Empire trilogy in which Jorg Ancrath tries to consolidate his claim on the Imperial Crown and deal with the threat of the Dead King. This is undercut by a past timeline in which he tries to uncover the secrets of the Builders. Regular readers of my blog will know that I was at first unengaged by the Broken Empire trilogy, finding it hard to become emotionally invested in such a dark character as Honorous Jorg Ancrath as he was in Prince of Thorns and being somewhat put off by the violence. Having decided to abandon the series, I was persuaded by the promise of great character development to give the second book, King of Thorns, a second chance and am very glad I did. Like many fans, I was eagerly awaiting the release of Emperor of Thorns and picked it up on release day for your reviewing pleasure. What I liked Skillfully interwoven multiple plotlines. It has to be said there’s a lot going on in this book; Lawrence is weaving disparate plot threads together with real expertise. We have Jorg’s attempt to become Emperor and the…
Emperor of Thorns by Mark Lawrence is the final book in the Broken Empire trilogy in which Jorg Ancrath tries to consolidate his claim on the Imperial Crown and deal with the threat of the Dead King. This is undercut by a past timeline in which he tries to uncover the secrets of the Builders. Regular readers of my blog will know that I was at first unengaged by the Broken Empire trilogy, finding it hard to become emotionally invested in such a dark character as Honorous Jorg Ancrath as he was in Prince of Thorns and being somewhat put off by the violence. Having decided to abandon the series, I was persuaded by the promise of great character development to give the second book, King of Thorns, a second chance and am very glad I did. Like many fans, I was eagerly awaiting the release of Emperor of Thorns and picked it up on release day for your reviewing pleasure. What I liked Skillfully interwoven multiple plotlines. It has to be said there’s a lot going on in this book; Lawrence is weaving disparate plot threads together with real expertise. We have Jorg’s attempt to become Emperor and the…
I received a free copy of The Republic of Thieves by Scott Lynch for review. This is the third book in Lynch’s Gentlemen Bastards series and I was very much looking forward to reading it. In the way that Red Seas Under Red Skies explored Locke’s relationship with Jean through flashbacks and a present day narrative, Republic of Thieves explores our hero’s relationship with the mysterious Sabetha in a similar manner. This book also deepens our knowledge of the Bondsmagi and gives some possible hints about what to expect next for Locke. What I liked Lynch’s writing style. I really enjoyed the witty. light banter of the previous two books, and this one continues the trend. Many times I found myself giggling out loud at a particularly funny turn of phrase. Character relationships. Lynch clearly has a knack for writing relationships. In Red Seas Under Red Skies the Locke/Jean relationship reminded me of a Hope/Crosby Road to… movie while Republic of Thieves is more like a well-written rom-com. Their fears, hopes and misunderstandings seem very real. The Bondsmagi. In this book we get to learn a lot more about them and how they work. The storyline takes us deep into…
I received a free copy of The Republic of Thieves by Scott Lynch for review. This is the third book in Lynch’s Gentlemen Bastards series and I was very much looking forward to reading it. In the way that Red Seas Under Red Skies explored Locke’s relationship with Jean through flashbacks and a present day narrative, Republic of Thieves explores our hero’s relationship with the mysterious Sabetha in a similar manner. This book also deepens our knowledge of the Bondsmagi and gives some possible hints about what to expect next for Locke. What I liked Lynch’s writing style. I really enjoyed the witty. light banter of the previous two books, and this one continues the trend. Many times I found myself giggling out loud at a particularly funny turn of phrase. Character relationships. Lynch clearly has a knack for writing relationships. In Red Seas Under Red Skies the Locke/Jean relationship reminded me of a Hope/Crosby Road to… movie while Republic of Thieves is more like a well-written rom-com. Their fears, hopes and misunderstandings seem very real. The Bondsmagi. In this book we get to learn a lot more about them and how they work. The storyline takes us deep into…
I received a free copy of The Companions to review from Netgalley. The premise of the story is that several of the characters from the Forgotten Realms series, Bruenor Battlehammer, Wulfgar and Regis the halfling, choose to be reborn and meet again in twenty years in order to protect Drizzt Do’Urden from an unspecified threat. It is a tale of love and friendship rather than good vs evil. At first, I felt at a distinct disadvantage not being familiar with R.A. Salvatore’s work. The most noticeable example of that was near the beginning when the character Ruqiah suddenly declared her name was “Catti-brie.” From the context it was clear that this was supposed to be a shocking revelation, but my reaction was more along the lines of “oh, OK. Who the heck is Catti-brie, and why should I care about her?” Fortunately, Salvatore made a point of answering those questions clearly and effectively. It took me a little longer to get my head around the various races who live in this world, and their relations to each other, but that didn’t impact on my enjoyment of the book. What I liked Salvatore’s writing style. His writing style is noticeably more…
I received a free copy of The Companions to review from Netgalley. The premise of the story is that several of the characters from the Forgotten Realms series, Bruenor Battlehammer, Wulfgar and Regis the halfling, choose to be reborn and meet again in twenty years in order to protect Drizzt Do’Urden from an unspecified threat. It is a tale of love and friendship rather than good vs evil. At first, I felt at a distinct disadvantage not being familiar with R.A. Salvatore’s work. The most noticeable example of that was near the beginning when the character Ruqiah suddenly declared her name was “Catti-brie.” From the context it was clear that this was supposed to be a shocking revelation, but my reaction was more along the lines of “oh, OK. Who the heck is Catti-brie, and why should I care about her?” Fortunately, Salvatore made a point of answering those questions clearly and effectively. It took me a little longer to get my head around the various races who live in this world, and their relations to each other, but that didn’t impact on my enjoyment of the book. What I liked Salvatore’s writing style. His writing style is noticeably more “epic”…
I received a free copy of Finding Colin Firth by Mia March to review from Netgalley. It is set in the same town as her previous work The Meryl Streep Movie Club, on which I cannot comment as I have not yet had the chance to read it. Finding Colin Firth is a sweet story of three women drawn together in a Maine town connected by a theme of unplanned pregnancy and its impact on their lives. The theme of giving up a child is also explored through other characters in the novel. There are frequent references to characters being adopted, looking to adopt or working with young pregnant teens.
I received a free copy of Finding Colin Firth by Mia March to review from Netgalley. It is set in the same town as her previous work The Meryl Streep Movie Club, on which I cannot comment as I have not yet had the chance to read it. Finding Colin Firth is a sweet story of three women drawn together in a Maine town connected by a theme of unplanned pregnancy and its impact on their lives. The theme of giving up a child is also explored through other characters in the novel. There are frequent references to characters being adopted, looking to adopt or working with young pregnant teens. It is most fully explored, however, through the three main characters. Bea and Veronica are connected through the fact that Veronica gave birth to Bea as a young woman and gave her up for adoption. The novel explores their tentatively establishing a connection with each other. Gemma, on the other hand, is struggling to deal with the realisation that she is expecting a child, and is uncertain how to deal with it despite being happily married.The subject is dealt with compassionately, and the characters are very likeable. What I liked…