Review: Dexter in the Dark

Dexter in the Dark by Jeff Lindsay

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


<spoiler>

Someone is hunting in Miami, but this time it isn't Dark Dexter. No this time Dexter isn't the hunter, but rather the prey and it must be something scary because his dark passenger goes into hiding.

</spoiler>



This book takes on a more fantastical genre than previous books in the series, as the origin of evil is explored and hits at where the dark passenger comes from are dropped.

<spoiler>

It is suggested that Dexter may be possessed by a demonic presence.

</spoiler>

I don't think that this was a good step to take and much preferred to think of the dark passenger as a compartmentalized part of Dexter's screwed up mind and I have a feeling that the series will suffer from the revelations that are made in this book.



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Review: Grunts

Grunts by Mary Gentle

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This is one of my favorite books, and the best parody I've read. As a parody it's beats both The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy as well as the dynamic duo of The Colour of Magic & The Light Fantastic, as it forces the reader to face his/her prejudices, in this case the fantasy genre itself.

The story is told from the perspective of a gang of Orchs, which are the canon-fodder of evil and are usually just there for the blonde and bright eyed hero to slay on his way conquer evil. Ever considered how life must look from their perspective? Well here's you chance to find out!
<spoiler>Things take an interesting twist when the cornered Orchs dig their way into the treasure trove of a dragon and find some metal tubes that does strange (almost magical) things in battle. For a hint read the title again.</spoiler>



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Review: Rogue Hunter: Gaia #1: Into the Abyss

Rogue Hunter: Gaia #1: Into the Abyss by Kevis Hendrickson

My rating: 1 of 5 stars


This is action packed science fiction, unfortunately it's also poorly written.

I've never read any pulp fiction, mainly as it was published a fair bit before my time, but this is always how I've pictured it.

No substance to the story, cardboard cutouts for characters and cheap dialogue and action scenes.



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Review: The Crown Conspiracy

The Crown Conspiracy by Michael J. Sullivan

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I stumbled upon this as I found a link to a free audio copy (CCL).

It reminded me very much of books I read quite a bit back by Gary Gygax, Fred Saberhagen and Fritz Leiber.

It's what I would call a classic fantasy story, with unlikely heroes who are capable of pretty much anything and can't help but banter every now and again.

I won't call it great or complex, but it was a fun read and ended too soon for my liking.



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Review: Good Omens

Good Omens by Terry Pratchett

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I finished this book a few hours ago and have been trying to figure out what it was really about, but it's pretty much a blank. There's a story, but it doesn't really have anything to say to the reader.
The most I can away with is the question; why did He put the apple tree in the garden?'.

With that said, it wasn't a bad read and as I haven't read any Gaiman before I can't discern his contribution, so to me this looked like an early Pratchett with more focus on the way the story is told than on the actual story. It's witty both in language as well as full of situational comedy, but it doesn't quite connect - at least not with this reader.



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Review: Once Dead, Twice Shy

Once Dead, Twice Shy by Kim Harrison

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


This was a breeze to read and with a main character still in her teens, this book qualifies squarely in the young-adult category.

The story is fairly good, but I strongly prefer Kim Harrison's normal books, targeted at an adult audience with a demand for more complex story lines and especially more developed characters. Madison has according to the story just turned seventeen, but there is not nearly enough maturity and experience to make her believable.

It was an OK read, but unless something changes I don't think I'll read any more in this series.



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Review: How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe

How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe by Charles Yu

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


This could actually have been a great story, if the author hadn't decided to make it a science fiction novel. The story is written as a self biography, where the author uses time travel to re-examine the relationship with his parents.
As the main story isn't enough to warrant the full length of a novel, the author has padded the novel with sci-fi blurbs and attempts at humor. Unfortunately he doesn't quite reach escape velocity from the seriousness of the heart of the book.
So the result comes of as a bad hash-up of Douglas and Coupland or in other words, pretentious drivel.



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