Book Review: The Elves of Cintra by Terry Brooks

The Elves of Cintra by Terry Brooks

This is the second book in the Genesis of Shannara series so expect spoilers if you have not read the first, Armageddon's Children, which I reviewed here. The second thing to note is that I am not a previous fan of the Shannara series. When I first attempted to read it, I gave up due to boredom. My brother told me this series was really good, so I'm working my way through with an eye on possibly attempting the original Shannara books again.

The Elves of Cintra jumps right in where Armageddon's Children left off, with the various groups all coming together and separating in new and interesting ways to pursue their now clear-ish quests. Logan Tom, now with the Ghosts, is searching for Hawk, with the once-men hot on their trail. Meanwhile, Hawk awakens in the presence of a magical being who cryptically explains his new status as the gypsy morph and his destiny to save everyone by taking them to the promised land. The elves Kirisin and Erisha, now joined by Kirisin's sister Simralin, are still seeking the elfstones and trying to convince Erisha's father, the king of the importance of their mission to move the Ellcrys to a safe location. They are aided by an old historian elf named Culph and they are joined by Angel Perez and her fae conscience, Ailie. Angel is still pursued by the demon Delloreen, now fully transformed into a wolf-lizard creature.


The previous book spent a lot of time introducing the characters and giving them all backstories that made it clear that every human had suffered horrible childhoods that have led them to their currently place in this dystopian world of mutation and violence. They are all survivors in their own way. At the end of the last book, everyone has been set on the quests mentioned above so now, we are reading about how they survive the various pitfalls they meet along the way. Despite the efforts made to define the characters, I have not yet come to care about many of them. The ones that died in this book were not overly memorable and I can't say a I felt like their friends' reactions to their deaths were well written enough for me to feel their loss.

A new character was introduced, Catalya, and she alone is the bright spark in the series. A survivor just like the others, she actually doesn't get one of the melodramatic backstories. Her actions and personality in the face of danger and contempt make up for that loss and easily make her a favourite. When she teams up with one of the Ghosts on a rescue mission, things perked up a bit, but that part of the story continues in the sequel.

But what about the elves? The title implies that this is their story and their quest to find the elfstones and the Loden certainly seems important. But Erisha, Kirisin and Simralen are so unmemorable. Some of the elves they deal with on their journey are quite interesting, but they are not around nearly long enough.

I previously listened to the audiobook, but chose to read the hardcover to see if it affected my judgment. I can conclude that listening to an audiobook would definitely have made the tedium more tolerable, however, it's much easier to skim over pages when actually reading. The Elves of Cintra did not impress me enough to care about the future of Shannara, but I'm still just interested enough to at least find out how this trilogy ends. Eventually.

2 of 5 stars

Werewolves on SPACE

Laura Vandervoort as Elena Michaesl

Bitten was my first real introduction to urban fantasy and supernatural books. I fell in love with Kelley Armstrong's Women of the Otherworld series. Part of my love comes from national pride: both Armstrong and her main character Elena Michaels are Canadian and it's always nice to find the familiar in something you're reading or watching.

The story goes: Elena is the only female to survive a werewolf bite, but she's not too keen on pack life. A product of the more negative aspects of the foster care system, family doesn't quite mean the same thing to her as it does to her pack. Since wolves tend to mate for life, her ex, Clay Danvers, is a little upset by this concept. Circumstances draw Elena back to the pack's home at Stonehaven and murder and mystery ensue.

Greyston Holt as Clay Danvers

Since I learned last year about plans already underway for a TV series, I’ve been patiently excited. After Lost Girl, I’m quite happy to see more Canadian-made supernatural shows getting some attention. This month, SPACE released first looks from the set and fans are, unsurprisingly, already up in arms by what we’re seeing (video). We've been waiting for Clay's blond curls and southern drawl, but we won't be getting either. Elena's casting is acceptable, but personally, I would have liked to see a more Asian Jeremy Danvers. That might just be because I have a thing for quietly powerful, broody darkangels with long black hair.

Still, I’m not upset by what I’ve seen so far. I’m far more interested in actors that understand and can bring to life the internal workings of a character than just having someone who looks (and sounds) the part. There have been enough excellent examples of actors (e.g. 50% of the Game of Thrones cast) doing this that I am willing to be cautiously optimistic. More so because Armstrong seemed to feel the same way when I asked her about it. When I visited Fan Expo last summer and learned about the show, I got to chat briefly with her. I was curious about her involvement. I always worry that great stories will be swept away from their creators, like Ursula K. Leguin’s issues with EarthSea, if the creator isn’t involved enough. Armstrong noted that she had seen the some of the pre-production concepts (and didn’t seem bothered by any of it), but she specifically did not want to be part of the casting because she felt her idea of how her characters should look would cause too much bias. I was glad to hear that she was able to let that go, so hopefully, fandom will find it in our hearts to forgive as well, once we see what the show actually has to offer us.

Ignoring Laura Vandervoort’s references to 50 Shades of Grey and Twilight, the on set video snippets and interviews seem to confirm to me that the creative team and the actors have grasped the essence of the story and characters (and are aware of what the fans will be upset about, with actor Greyston Holt already apologizing for Clay’s lack of a southern drawl), which is far more important to me as a fan of the books. I particularly love that the pack’s home, Stonehaven, has been recognized as a character unto itself and given the love and attention it deserves with details including first and foremost, Jeremy Danver’s paintings on the wall.

For now, Bitten is focusing, it seems, on Armstrong’s first book, but I definitely plan to stick around to see if the world of the werewolves will expand to include the other Women of the Otherworld and the respective supernatural races they belong to.

Book~Film Comparison: Nightwatch by Sergei Lukyanenko

Night Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko

This book, along with the movie, was chosen for February 2012's book club read based on the praise of some members who really loved the film.

The premise involves the existence of supernatural beings, "Others," who choose to ally themselves with the Light or the Dark. Both sides, through the Nightwatch and Daywatch respectively, keep a close eye on each other in order to maintain the uneasy truce between them. The story takes place in Russia, but indicates that the watches exist worldwide.

Anton, the main character, is a member of the Nightwatch who's assignment, a young boy named Igor, is being hunted by vampires. Igor is an Other who has yet to come into his powers and therefore has not yet chosen a side. Anton crosses paths with a woman named Svetlana whom he realizes has been cursed. In this story, curses, even the little ones we utter in moments of frustration or jest, can be deadly if left unchecked. Whatever curse has been inflicted on Svetlana has the potential to destroy the entire city and it becomes the goal of the Nightwatch to find the source and stop it, while protecting Igor from the Daywatch.

This is one of the few cases where a movie far outshines the book. Lost in translation is always a problem when a book is literally translated into another language and culture, but that was not an issue for me here. I felt that the book spent a lot of time with convoluted plots that Anton would figure out without actually letting the reader in on the process. The characters weren't particularly interesting or well developed. The purpose of the whole mystery  seemed to change and lose focus along the way and, well, I eventually just got bored of the plot twists

The movie, on the other hand, was very interesting. It boiled the story down to its essence, gave it far more purpose in a pithy manner and strengthened several other elements, including the main character and his motivations. The movie was more focused than the book with the overriding issue of the curse and the conflict between Dark and Light, allowing far greater character and relationship building, even within the time constraints of a film setting. The end result was a truly engaging story with an unexpected ending.

The only issue I had with the film was that, initially, it was very visually chaotic. I assume the goal of this was to shock and frighten, as the opening scenes involved a gory battle between Anton and a pair of vampires. It helped that I'd read a few chapters of the book before watching, so that I could piece the chaos together a bit better. Fortunately, the visual chaos settled down after this.

I finished the rest of the book after watching the movie, but it was a struggle to do so because of how often the plot meandered off in various directions.

Book Rating

Movie Rating

FanArt: Anna Dress in Blood

Anna Dressed in Blood by ~AprilTears

Graphic Novel Review: Superman - Red Son by Mark Millar

Superman: Red Son by Mark Millar

(A) I don’t like Superman.
(B) This is the best Superman story I’ve ever read.

Twelve hours. That’s all it would have taken to change the course of history and turn the Superman we have grown up with into someone entirely different – or is he that different after all? In Red Son, the capsule from Krypton lands in Russia instead of the United States and, after the boy’s powers manifest, he is taken and raised by Joseph Stalin himself. Superman grows up a communist but, while he appreciates his adoptive father’s ideals, he does not approve of the violent methods. Stalin is grooming him to rule in his stead – just as the people want – but Superman cares nothing for politics. He just wants to help people. I loved this idea because I originally thought that the major motivation behind Superman’s desire to help everyone was primarily instilled in him by Ma and Pa Kent. This implies that it truly is his nature. I adored the scene with Stalin’s jealous son Pyotr who rages at Superman’s compulsive need to fix everything.

When Stalin is murdered, Superman discovers that his super powers can’t save people from poverty. He realizes that the only way he can help everyone is to become president. He puts Russia in order and moves on to the entire world, with only the United States stubbornly refusing him. All the while, the brilliant Lex Luthor continually attempts to defeat Superman in new and interesting ways.

This is a what if? story, but one that doesn’t just skim over the details or throw characters into this alternate realm without good reason for their existence*. Several popular DC characters appear in this story and I was very impressed with their manifestations. I loved how much depth Millar goes into for all the characters, even if for some it is brief. Even though this was an alternate version of the characters, I learned far more about them all than I ever have in their main stories.

*The only character portrayal that really bothered me was Lois Lane – er Lois Luthor. The feisty, bull-headed reporter we know doesn’t really show her head here at all. Instead, we get Jean Grey without the Phoenix entity – a woman defined by the two important male figures in the story. Rather than being Superman’s girl, though they share that brief spark, she’s with Lex who doesn’t give a damn about her because he’s too busy being level 9 intelligence awesome. I would have liked to see Lois as a balancing force in Luthor’s life, but instead he discards her as his focus on Superman intensifies. At least he is polite enough to call her to let her know. And Lois just accepts this. While I appreciate her devotion and determination to stand by her man despite him having no obvious need for her, I just do not see this as Lois Lane and I don’t see any justification for her being with Luthor just because she isn’t with Superman in this incarnation.

I was also a bit concerned with Luthor’s sociopathic portrayal as it began as somewhat caricature-ish. I prefer the Animated Series Luthor who is ridiculously intelligent, but not unaware of emotions. To me, that Luthor simply chooses not to acknowledge emotions, but recognizes that he and others have them and is able to factor emotion into any equation. This Luthor seems oblivious; closer to a mad scientist archetype. But by the end of the book, I was content with where Luthor’s careful machinations ended up.

Otherwise, I loved the incarnations of Wonder Woman – the utter joy she expresses when she tells Superman that she’s happy to finally be talking to someone who can understand her and the sad realization when she comes to understand him. Batman – who’s parents death forges the same man, but this man isn’t merely a well funded crime fighter, and he's willing to go to any length to bring down Superman and the oppressive communist regime. The Green Lantern Corp and the selection of Hal Jordan as recipient of the ring makes so much more sense than what I’ve known in the past.

And I loved poor, naïve Superman himself – yeah, you heard me. Millar takes the time to show us how smart Superman is, but makes it clear that reading a book really fast and retaining the knowledge does not equate with wisdom. Add to that his misguided idealism and Superman is a deadly force. He is so desperate to help everyone and fix everything that he doesn’t realize that we need be able to help ourselves. I love that Millar didn’t let Superman merely figure this out in the finale. It’s an issue that Superman himself raises and discusses with Diana, but ultimately fails to comprehend as he tightens his grip on humanity in desperate need to protect and fix us.

And oh gods when everything came full circle in the end? Just. Brilliant.

5 of 5 stars

Book Review: The Blue Blazes by Chuck Wendig

The Blue Blazes by Chuck Wendig

Okay, my first thought after reading this book: Chuck Wendig is awesome! Then, my second thought: Why on earth haven't I heard about or read anything from this author before now? So, my thanks to Angry Robot for rectifying this, by providing me with an e-ARC of The Blue Blazes via NetGalley. The book's expected publication date is May 28, 2013.

So what are the "Blue Blazes" anyway? In the book it's one of the many slang names for a type of drug, a cerulean powder that when rubbed onto your temples will not only give you one hell of a buzz, but it'll also allow you to see through the "glamor" of monsters living amongst the populace. The book is a tale of two Underworlds -- a literal Underworld located beneath the depths of New York City where the Blue Blazes are actually mined, as well as a criminal underworld run by a cabal called the Organization which controls the drug.

Mookie Pearl is our main protagonist, a hulk of a man who used to work down in the mines but is now a loyal member of the Organization. Working for the mob is just a way of life, that is until a big secret about "The Boss" comes to light, leading to a power struggle which shakes up the foundations of all the gangs in the city. And as if that wasn't bad enough, Mookie's estranged daughter also becomes involved. Now, criminals and thugs he can handle. Same goes for the goblins and other dangerous creatures of the Underworld. But Nora Pearl can definitely give Mookie a run for his money.

The book is like your favorite action movie meets paranormal urban fantasy. It seriously doesn't stop. Just when you think things are winding down, you get more. Mookie Pearl is all muscle and brawn, preferring to use his fists over his brains whenever he's in a tight situation. I can't really say he's my type when it comes to fictional characters, but if you enjoy non-stop thrills and lots of brawling action, then he's definitely your man.

I also have to say that I love Chuck Wendig's wit and punchy writing style. Its almost staccato-like rhythm is perfect for the gritty nature of the story, and I was hooked within the first few minutes of reading. When it comes to dealing with points-of-view, however, I felt the book could have done with less jumping around from perspective to perspective. The scene changes seemed to occur very frequently. As with the prose, I feel that this was quite appropriate for the overall tone of the story, but it also made for some confusing moments where I had to figure out where I was. 

Still, the best thing about this book has to be the world-building. Not something I would have expected AT ALL from an action-oriented urban fantasy novel like this, but I do love it when I'm surprised. What Chuck Wendig has created is just simply amazing. Through detailed descriptions, he's painted an original and convincing picture of the secret Underworld below. For example, I loved the addition of "excerpts" from Underworld expert and cartographer John Atticus Oakes' journal at the beginning of every chapter. The plot mostly drove me to keep reading, but admittedly, I was also motivated knowing I would be rewarded with more from Oakes. These little tidbits provided background information, complementing the storytelling by filling in the gaps or going into more detail about the life and lore of the Underworld.

The collection of horrifying creatures the author has created also bears mentioning. From the Gobbos to Snakefaces, each are described in such creative detail. Granted, I would not want to meet any of these in a dark alley at night, but I have to admire the imagination and ingenuity that went into coming up with these monsters and the places in which they live. The paranormal aspects, everything from the pigments and their, er, curious drug effects to the supernatural and magical ways of The Blue Blazes universe are unlike anything I've ever encountered in the genre. 

Bottom line: despite my lack of connection to the main character and some issues I had with the constant scene shifts, these are just personal preferences. I think more important are the book's strengths, such as the world-building which is exceptionally well done, rivaling some of my favorite epic fantasies. I really can't praise this part of the book enough. Truly a surprising treasure trove of fresh and interesting ideas. 

Final verdict:

3.5 of 5 stars

Book Review: The Remortal by Ramsey Isler

The Remortal by Ramsey Isler

Immortality is boring. This is one of the aspects of stories about immortality that I enjoy, but not many of the stories I’ve read deal with this. Or rather, they don’t focus on the desire of an immortal to move on. I was attracted to The Remortal specifically because this was the plot of the book. An immortal, Van Giles, is tired of his life on earth and wants to ascend to something greater in the unknown beyond. To do so, he needs a successor to kill him and take his place as an immortal. In a street teen named Telly Gonis, Van sees a good person in a bad situation and determines Telly to be the perfect choice.

There are other immortals in the book, each descending from a noble line, including the White Lotus Society, Julius Caesar and Spanish nobility. They are not entirely pleased with Van’s choice of successor. Nor are the pleased with Van’s choice to ascend in the first place. Or with Van in general, for that matter. There was potential for the story to focus too much on the concept of upper class versus lower class but, while the other immortals do have concerns, I really liked the way Isler let the others deal with Telly personally and come to their own conclusions beyond mere snobbery. I also liked the way Telly is torn over his loyalty to Van and all the choices that became wrapped up with the ascension process.

Van begins as a mostly likeable character with rational motivations, but once Telly agrees, Van’s “training” process reveals a cruelty that the other immortals already knew existed and fear will pass on into the afterlife. Van’s influence, along with the training and abilities Telly gains during the ascension process, change Telly from the innocent young man he was. Again, it would have been easy to turn this into a simple case of “Van is actually evil and Telly must free himself from that evil influence!” but I appreciate that Isler made things more complex than that.

Telly has to come to terms with his new self, his motivations, the choices given him by the other immortals, and Van. He also has to deal with the fate of his best friend, Mattie. Telly is presented as a reasonable character who does have a good heart and is able to show emotion without the story dwelling longer than necessary. There is one particular plot point with the Tree of Life that I’m not entirely certain was necessary to Telly’s progress, but otherwise, I enjoyed Telly’s journey and liked that I wasn’t entirely sure what Telly would choose to do in the end. I also didn’t expect the other immortals to make certain decisions in the end, though I suspected Telly’s friendship with Mattie and the circumstances of Mattie’s health would play a role.

3.5 of 5 stars

Film Review: Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

What is a movie review doing in a book blog, you might ask? Well you see, I would reply conspiratorially, I cheated.

Persepolis - the graphic novel - was the topic of discussion in our recent Ladies Night Comic Club meeting, but procrastination various distractions and priorities got in the way of me reading it. Since the film is so close to the source material, I decided to check that out instead.

This is an autobiographical story about Marjane Satrapi's coming of age during the Iranian Revolution. The  majority of the animation is in black and white, which gives the film a more universal appeal. The simplicity of the imagery manages to convey so much complexity and emotion. Often times as I watched it, I forgot when it takes place (1980s) and that it takes place in Iran - which was the author's intent. It was easy to realize how alike we are and to wonder about the potential for such events to occur within our own cultures at any time. I recently walked away from The Handmaid's Tale thinking that, while frightening, we are not quite there yet with some of the political and religious movements in North America. But, watching Persepolis made me realize just how close other nations are to that kind of dystopian future. And maybe we're not so far away here either.

Marjane's story begins with her as a rebellious child who wants to be a prophet and idolizes Bruce Lee. She is outspoken and throughout the story I often thought her rebellious moments would lead to her own punishment, like her Uncle Anouche who is imprisoned and later killed for his left-wing ideals. Undoubtedly, her greatest influence and my favourite character is Marjane's grandmother, who provides moral guidance for Marjane and admonishes her when she forgets to stay true to herself or takes for granted the sacrifices others have made. Her parents are depicted in a quiet, subdued manner, but it is clear that their love, encouragement, comfort and support are also an important part of Marjane's life. I loved the way they were always willing to stand behind her without questioning her or her mistakes, while her grandmother represented an unapologetic view that has no time for the indulgence of self-pity.

I expected Marjane's life story to result in some sort of epic anarchistic moment where she firmly takes up the cause to fight the powers that be. Instead, we see a gentle coming of age story where Marjane goes through many of the trials and tribulations, loves and losses of any normal person - only, this life is set with the backdrop of war, political strife, revolution, repression, sacrifice and more. And then I realized the obvious: this film is the result of her life. This film is the moment of epic anarchy where she firmly takes up the cause. Only, she's done it in such a way that nothing is forced on you. Nothing is preachy. It's interesting to note that Persepolis was banned in many places, including Iran, of course, only to have the bans lifted (though with some restrictions still imposed in some places).

4 of 5 stars

Graphic Novel Review: The Private Eye by Brian K. Vaughan, Marcos Martin and Muntsa Vincente

It's the year 2076. After all the information we've ever uploaded online is suddenly released for everyone to see, privacy has become a sacred right valued by everyone. Well, almost everyone. Where there are secrets, there will always be paparazzi. In this case, the paparazzi  become private detectives, hunting the secrets behind the secret identities that everyone is now wearing. The story follows P.I., a private detective hired to dig up any information on his client who happens to be involved with a very dangerous man.

This comic will make you think twice the next time you make a payment online or save something to a cloud. And the irony is that this comic is only available online. In a trendy move, the creators behind Panel Syndicate have made their comic available in digital format only, for the low low price of whatever the hell you want! Funds from sales will be used to publish future issues, which have been made available worldwide, with increasing translations available.

The Private Eye is a futuristic throwback with generous nods to the detective stories of yesteryear. Technology exists and pops up in unexpected places, but with everyone now fearful of revealing who they really are, all the things we take for granted now, like cellphones and driver's licenses, are dangerous commodities to own. The world presented is recognizable as a very possible, not so distant future. I'm reminded of the recent #Nymwars that occurred when Google+ demanded that users give up their pseudonyms. Many of us ended up conceding, despite knowing full well that the purpose behind Google's decision is all about marketing to advertisers who want to market to us.

Normally, I am very lenient when reviewing the first few books in a new comic. I allow a grace period for the stories and characters to present themselves and develop. But sometimes, the creators really nail everything in the first go. That's the case here with the characters, the society and then the mystery pouncing on the reader and firmly taking hold. Toss in some sleek art, and I was sold.

4 of 5 stars

Book Review: A Wolf at the Door: And Other Retold Fairy Tales

A Wolf at the Door: And Other Retold Fairy Tales edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling

This book is a collection of fairy tale retellings or fairy tale-inspired short stories intended for younger readers. These are the stories and their authors:  

The Months of Manhattan by Delia Sherman, Cinder Elephant by Jane Yolen, Instructions by Neil Gaiman, Mrs Big: Jack and the Beanstalk retold by Michael Cadnum, Falada: The Goose Girl's Horse by Nancy Farmer, A Wolf at the Door by Tanith Lee, Ali Baba and the Forty Aliens by Janeen Webb, Swans by Kelly Link, The Kingdom of Melting Glances by Katherine Vaz, Hansel's Eyes by Garth Nix, Becoming Charise by Kathe Koja, The Seven Stage A Comeback by Gregory Maguire, The Twelve Dancing Princesses by Patricia A. McKillip 

I admit, if this hadn't been a book club read, I probably wouldn't have picked it up on my own, and the reasons are threefold. First, even though I've been known to enjoy stories involving re-imagined fairy tales, it's not my preferred subject. Second, I'm not normally drawn to children's or middle grade books. And third, I'm generally not a big fan of anthologies or short story collections. One of the greatest joys of reading is being able to connect with the characters, and personally I find short stories are often too brief or are over too quickly for me to do that.

Still, another great joy of reading is being able to try new things, and I was glad for the chance to read something different for a change. This was a nice change of pace and a good opportunity to discover some new authors and their takes on the fairy tale subject.

I have to say, my feelings are mixed. There were stories I loved, and stories I did not like at all. Among my favorites were The Months of Manhattan (which I thought was the perfect story to open with) and The Twelve Dancing Princesses (likewise, the perfect closing story). As for the rest of the stories in between, there are a few that stand out, but I mostly found many of them to be mediocre.

The stories I tended to enjoy more were the fairy tale retellings that were more faithful to the classics, like Mrs. Big: Jack and the Beanstalk or Ali Baba and the Forty Aliens or Hansel's Eyes. These included elements from the original fairy tales that were immediately recognizable and gave me a frame of reference to which I could anchor myself while I read. Then there were those stories that were just downright "anything-goes" and made me wonder if the author even had an idea or simply slapped together a bunch of random fairy tale elements in an attempt to make their story sound as crazy as possible.

Granted, my feelings may have been influenced by my personal preferences that I mentioned at the beginning of this review, but I tried my best to form objective opinions. Overall, save for a few gems, the stories weren't too memorable, but the creativity and sheer range of styles in this book were impressive. Adults can certainly appreciate this, but I can see kids enjoying themselves a lot more with the stories in this collection, even (or perhaps especially) the ridiculous and nonsensical ones.

Final verdict:

3 of 5 stars