Review: Voodoo Love Song

Voodoo Love Song by Richard Daybell

My rating:

Voodoo Love Song starts out as a fun, lighthearted almost-romance between Paul and Huey (not her real name), with hints of mysterious goings-on in the background. But as they hop on a train together, and later a boat which leaves them marooned on a desert island, life gets stranger and they become gradually more convinced that the island paradise isn't as tranquil and perfect as it first seems. By the end, it's an action-packed and suspenseful thriller.

This is a very quick read - I finished it in a couple of bites - but it's tremendous fun, with colourful characters and a lush Caribbean setting, and just a hint of voodoo magic. Just the sort of thing to read on the plane to your own tropical island (although I read it on a rainy evening in England, which also works).

Buy Voodoo Love Song on Amazon

Review: Orlind

Orlind (Draykon #3)
by Charlotte E. English

My rating:

The Draykon Series:
1. Draykon • 2. Lokant • 3. Orlind
Short stories: Leximandra Reports

It's impossible to review Orlind without giving at least some spoilers for the earlier books in the Draykon series, so if you haven't been reading this series from the beginning, I suggest going back to read my review for Draykon and ignoring this one. You'll want to start at the beginning of the series, anyway: these stories form too seamless a sequence to suit being read out of order.

Orlind begins with scenes of destruction and desperation, as war takes hold of Waeverlyne, but within a few pages I was laughing out loud at Pensould's inability to grasp the fundamentals of normal human interaction and relationships. And this is one of the things I really love about the Draykon series: light-hearted moments are skillfully woven into the darkest of times, and the basic humanity (or drakon-ity) of the characters comes through at all times, whether they're preparing for battle, plotting to thwart their enemies' plans, or lying injured in the infirmary.

This is the final book of the trilogy, and neatly wraps up various plot lines and mysteries from the first two books. It made me laugh, and it made me cry, and I didn't want to put it down until I finished. A perfect end to the trilogy - though I still hope there will be more from these characters in other stories.

Author Interview: Monica Leonelle

Author Monica Leonelle is doing a blog tour as part of her promotion for Socialpunk - other stops on the tour include reviews, excerpts, and interviews. I wrote my review of Socialpunk a couple of weeks back; read on for Monica's answers to my questions about her work.

Between the 'real' and 'simulated' worlds of Socialpunk, you show two different visions of the future, each dystopian in its own way. Which do you think is more likely, and why?

I think both are likely, in the order they appear in. Though, I suppose the second one is more likely. But really, both are fairly preposterous!

You clearly enjoy building vibrant worlds with distinctive fashion, art, and food. How do you approach the process of world-building?

I don't have any tricks or anything, like answering world-building questions or establishing rules. I wish I could tell you where exactly these worlds came from, but they just came from my imagination. It might just be one of those things that comes natural to some people.

You're by no means the only one to set a dystopian novel in Chicago; what do you think makes it such a great setting for this kind of fiction?

Haha, I recently read Divergent and was surprised to see it was set here as well. It turns out we both live here, so maybe authors just write what they know. It was an easy choice for me, especially with the underground subways, which play a pivotal role in the book. Also, Chicago is really a city of snow, glass, and metal. The architecture is inspiring. So that just fit the style of the book perfectly, and it had to be in Chicago for me.

Ima's name change happens at a pivotal point in the book, and several of the Socialpunks have fire-related names. What are your thoughts on the relationship between name and identity?

Ima needed a new name after she was upgraded. Her name just didn't fit anymore, plus the book (however action-based it is) is mostly about Ima's character growth. Overall, I don't spend a million years on naming my characters, their names just come to me.

And on a related note, do you write under your real name or a nom de plume, and what were your reasons for that decision?

Monica Leonelle is my real name. Leonelle isn't my last name though. My reasoning is that my name is unique so I don't have to worry about branding issues with a common name.

How do you structure your writing time, and how do you balance this against marketing your work, and any other commitments (family, work, etc)?

I'm working all the time and have a tough time balancing, to be honest. I spend most of my time on marketing work and not a ton of time on fiction. Maybe 80/20? I spend at least a few hours with my boyfriend, dog, and (sometimes) friends each day.

What's the most unusual thing you've done to promote your books?

I haven't done much promotion outside of this blog tour! I just haven't had time. So nothing weird so far. My marketing plan is basically to get the book into the hands of people who will love it and spread the word. That, of course, means getting the book into a lot of hands, period. Only a small percentage will love it, and only a small percentage of those people will write positive reviews.

Review: Empire in Black and Gold

Empire in Black and Gold  (Shadows of the Apt #1)
by Adrian Tchaikovsky

My rating:         Fantasy

The Shadows of the Apt Series:
1. Empire in Black and Gold • 2. Dragonfly Falling • 3. Blood of the Mantis
4. Salute the Dark • 5. The Scarab Path • 6. The Sea Path
7. Heirs of the Blade • 8. The Air War

I love well-developed fantasy worlds with political intrigue and subterfuge, and Empire in Black and Gold has these qualities in spades. There historical and current relationships between the different races (each with its own insect-inspired talents) are fraught, and the menacing new force of the Wasp Empire is underestimated by leaders who are more focused on ancient enmities.

The main characters are a resistance group gathered around a scholar and accidental spymaster called Stenwold, who has seen the Wasp threat and would open the eyes of his countrymen. His small team includes two young women who he's raised as his daughters, and a few other friends and allies of varying races and talents. It's hard to go into detail about the relationships within this group without straying into spoilers, but suffice it to say that for a small group, there's plenty of drama, but nothing that didn't feel believable to me.

The races of insect-kinden themselves are a unique and appealing twist. Each race has its own characteristics, talents, and weaknesses - but despite this strong "typing," each character is given a personality which goes beyond the stereotypical characteristics of his or her race. Even Captain Thalric, a Wasp whose main role is to lead the enemy forces, is given a sympathetic side and some understandable motivation for his brutality.

I loved this book, and really didn't want it to end. Thankfully there are several more in the series, and if Amazon/Goodreads star ratings are anything to go by, then it only gets better from here.

Buy Empire in Black and Gold on Amazon

Review: American Chick in Saudi Arabia

American Chick in Saudi Arabia by Jean Sasson

My rating:

This is a very short book which tells of the author's experiences in Saudi Arabia in the late 70s and early 80s. Part personal travelogue, part feminist manifesto, Sasson tells of her interactions with Saudi women and her naive attempts to persuade them that Western freedoms are worth fighting for. Of particular interest to me were the attitudes of these Saudi women, most of whom seemed to feel that she was the unfortunate one, as she must work for a living and has no-one to take care of her. As the appendix makes clear, little has changed between then and now, in the matter of Saudi women's rights. Despite being an enthusiastic traveller myself, I've always been reluctant to visit countries where women are so oppressed; Sasson's story gives me a glimpse of what I'm missing, and I appreciate the candour of her account.

Review: Escape Velocity

Escape Velocity by Steven J. Pemberton

My rating:

When a chunk of London disappears, Sam Grainger is intrigued (what scientist wouldn't be?) but he doesn't really think it has anything to do with him. He's more preoccupied with the phone call that's just turned his life upside down - the call that apparently came from his dead wife. But these two strange incidents aren't as unrelated as they originally appear, and Sam finds himself getting sucked in to stranger and stranger circumstances.

I've loved Steven Pemberton's earlier work (in the fantasy genre) so I was looking forwards to reading this book, and I really did enjoy it a lot. It's full of interesting ideas about reality, physics, and AI, but more important (to me) the characters are engaging and the action keeps up a good pace. I'm not sure from the ending whether this will turn into a series: there's more interesting stuff guaranteed to happen in this world, but I think I'd be equally satisfied if that was left off-screen for my imagination to fill in.

Review: Secrets From The Dust

Secrets From The Dust by George Hamilton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Secrets From The Dust is a sweeping and thought-provoking work of historical fiction, telling the story of the early colonization of Australia and the mis-treatment of the aboriginal community.

The central character Margaret is a determined and sometimes rebellious girl, constantly fighting back against the injustices she experiences as a result of her background. On the scale of the aboriginal women in the book, Margaret is one of the lucky ones (she isn't raped, for starters), but her relative good fortune leads to constant internal struggles over her sense of identity, as her resentment towards her kidnappers gradually shifts into appreciation for the material things money can buy.

The narrative takes an omniscient perspective, so we don't only learn Margaret's thoughts; moments where we see into the hearts and minds of her well-meaning foster parents only make her suffering more poignant.

The massive scope of the story (it spans over a decade) means that the pace is uneven, skipping sometimes days and sometimes years at a time, but it reads well and the passing of time is clearly signalled. The only point where I found the pacing to be a problem was at the end, which feels rather rushed for the last few pages, hurrying towards a very sudden ending. A lot of questions were left hanging at the end, and Margaret's fate isn't clearly resolved; I felt this was a bit of a shame, as there had been so much focus on her internal struggles throughout the story and I would have liked to see how she comes to live at peace with herself.

Buy Secrets From The Dust on Amazon

Review: Don't Give Up Until You Do

Don't Give Up Until You Do: From Mindfulness to Realization on the Buddhist Path by Fred H. Meyer

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

It feels somewhat wrong to give a star rating to a book which is basically one man's description of his spiritual experience - so I want to make it very clear that I'm not making any attempt to judge Meyer's spiritual path here. All I can do is reflect back my experience in reading this book as it is presented.

And this is a particularly difficult case, as Meyer himself says (quite early on) that "another test of realization is how well one can understand the writings of acknowledged teachers of the path." I'd say this applies here, too: there are many passages that make little sense to me, but I'm sure would have more meaning if you've already gone through the experiences he's describing.

This books is made up of a series of very short essays, and reads a bit like a blog or diary. There isn't much evidence of the entries being edited for order or to reduce duplication, which gives a stream-of-consciousness feel to the whole thing. Meyer narrates his anecdotes with humour and compassion, combining what he views as essential advice, along with illustrative examples from his own life.

I would have liked to see more explanation on some points, particularly on the fascinating question of returning to "normal" life postmeditation. For instance, Meyer is married and enjoys horse racing, neither of which I would naturally associate with fulfillment of the Buddhist path (from my limited understanding of it, anyway). How do Meyer's wife and son feel about his renunciation of love? How does riding horses in a dangerous sport fit in with not inflicting suffering? One of the advantages of such a personal narrative is that it would have been entirely natural to include more about this sort of thing, and I would have liked to read it.

Overall, this was an interesting if sometimes confusing read, which I would recommend if you're interested in getting a "sense" of one man's personal insight along the Buddhist path - but for an introduction to Buddhist thinking, I'd suggest starting elsewhere.

Buy Don't Give Up Until You Do on Amazon

Review: Wedding Tiers

Wedding Tiers by Trisha Ashley

My rating:         Contemporary Romance


Josie, the heroine of Wedding Tiers has a talent with sugarcraft and is enjoying well-deserved success with her wedding cake business. At the start of the book she's also living comfortably with her childhood sweetheart, although it's obvious to everyone except her that there's something out of balance in their relationship.

Unfortunately, I found Josie's character and actions hard to believe in places. She goes from naively optimistic to (supposedly) hardened cynic, and back again, in the course of a few months. I just wasn't convinced by her decisions; the book focused too heavily on the set-up and Josie's collapsing relationship with Ben, and didn't spend enough time building her new relationship with Noah. She also thinks she's unattractive, and then suddenly has men throwing themselves at her the moment she's single, which didn't seem entirely plausible.

However, this has a number of the aspects I've come to enjoy in Trisha Ashley's novels: a small Lancashire village, a project to restore a somewhat dilapidated country house (although unusually this time it doesn't belong to the heroine or her love interest), and characters who enjoy gardening and creative careers. The elderly inhabitants of the village were great fun characters, and Noah was a charming suitor - I just would have liked to see more of him.

Friday Conversation 14/4

I'm participating in this week's Feature & Follow, hosted by Parajunkee's View & Alison Can Read. This is my second week taking part - please let me know if you're a new follower so I can return the favour.

Question: What is one book that you would be nervous to see a movie adaption of because you think the movie could never live up to the book?

I always have reservations when a favourite book is filmed. But I think I'd be particularly worried about screen adaptations of China Mieville's work - he's one of my favourite authors, but something like The City and The City would be incredibly hard to film convincingly. If you've read it, you'll understand why: the two titular cities coexist in the same space, but inhabitants of one can't see the other. I can't even imagine how to convey that on film. On the other hand, it would be absolutely amazing if it was done well.

Review: After The Cross

After the Cross by Brandon Barr
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

After the Cross is an enjoyable, action-packed thriller in the tradition of Dan Brown: intellectuals running around and getting into dangerous situations related to their academic interests. The fact that these particular academics are looking for the cross of Jesus' crucifixion gives an extra Christian theme, which gets a little heavy in places - but then, in the world of this novel, miracles really do happen.

There were a few historical flashbacks interspersed, which I found slowed the pace unexpectedly and detracted a little from the main thrust of the story. It could have done without these, in my opinion, since the events described are mostly also available to the reader through backstory interspersed in the main narrative.

However, on balance I really enjoyed the mix of investigation and action, and I'd like to read more from this author.

Buy After the Cross on Amazon

Review: Puffling Patrol

Puffling Patrol by Ted & Betsy Lewin

My rating:

Travelling round Iceland in the summer of 2006, we spent a couple of wonderful days on the small island of Heimaey. In a little cafe by the harbour, we spotted some colourful signs with numbers counting down the days to... something. We didn't know what. When we asked the proprietor, expecting perhaps a sporting event or a festival, we were surprised to learn about pufflings (baby puffins) and how they regularly get confused by the lights and fly into town. The countdown was for the beginning of the annual puffling rescue season, when the local children go out at night to pick up lost birds and return them to the sea.

Remembering that trip, and considering that puffins are my favourite bird, I knew I'd love this book as soon as I heard the title. It's fair to say I had high expectations, but the beautiful illustrations surpassed even my hopes, capturing in vivid detail everything from the windswept coastlines to the urban landscape - and, of course, the birds themselves - just as I remembered them. The narrative begins as an account of the authors' experiences visiting Iceland, and gradually moves to focus more closely on two children taking part in the Puffling Patrol. But this is a book of few words: the gorgeous pictures do most of the talking.

As well as the story of the puffling rescue, there are a couple of pages of puffin facts at the end. I was sad to learn that the puffin population on Heimaey has been decreasing - with the result that only ten pufflings were found and rescued in 2010 (from about 1600 in '07). I'd been hoping to return one day in the rescue season; if that's now less likely to be possible, then I'm doubly glad that the story has been captured for posterity in this beautiful book.

Buy Puffling Patrol on Amazon

Illustration from Puffling Patrol used with kind permission of the publisher.

Puffins on Heimaey, as we saw them in 2006.