Up first! Hope's End by Stephen Chambers.
Rating: ***
Apparently Mr. Chamber's debut novel, it contains a strong concept and interesting plot, but really starts to falter pretty soon into the book. The book centers around a city in political upheaval during times of plague and imminent famine. The book really turns from fantasy to sci-fi pretty quickly, when there are hints of the populace of the city being descended from religious pilgrims from Earth. The main character is a young man named Vel, who makes a living conning the rich, and drinking his earnings away with friends. His life rapidly descends into hell when he makes the mistake of raising the ire of the militant police force that runs the city. There is a lot of violence in the book, with a lot of visuals, almost as if it was a movie-made-into-a-book. Overall, an okay read. There are a few twists at the end which lead me to want to continue reading the series.
Curse of the Blue Tattoo (Being an Account of the Misadventures of Jacky Faber, Midshipman and Fine Lady) by L.A. Meyer
Rating: ****
In this second book following the adventures of Mary "Jacky" Faber, Jacky's been kicked out of the British Navy and put ashore in Boston, MA. She quickly gets into trouble with her carefree ways and sailor manners, as she is placed in a school for the training of proper ladies. The historical detail about colonial Boston, American politics, and the overall tone of the book is quite excellent. Many of the situations Jacky manages to get into are laugh out loud funny. The book is also greatly enjoyable due to the letters Jacky writes to her 'fiance' Jaime, still in the British Navy, and his letters back to her - which neither of them ever receive. This is definitely a young adult book, even though I found it in the children's room at my local library, as there is prison, brothel houses, raging religious men, and puberty involved.
Under the Jolly Roger (Being an Account of the Further Nautical Adventures of Jacky Faber) by L.A. Meyer
Rating: ****
Meyer continues an excellent, and engaging series in this third book about Jacky Faber. After riding into the sunset, leaving Boston and ladies schooling behind, Jacky decides to reunite with her long lost love Jamie back in England. After a case of hasty judgement, Jacky finds herself pressed ganged- back into the British Navy. She finds herself onboard the Wolverine, patrolling of the coast of enemy France. After the insane captain discovers her gender, and her identity - Jacky is now infamous after a book published about her - she is written into the ship's log for the captains personal amusement. Jacky quickly takes charge of her gun team, and before long, finds herself a respected crew member. However, it's not long before she gets herself and many others into trouble. A very good book, but like it's predecessors, definitely for the 12+ age group. Once again, the historical and technical details of the book are phenomenal!
FlashForward by Robert J. Sawyer
Rating: ****
Apparently Mr.Sawyer is quite a successful, award-winning novelist, but I had no idea until about... 3 weeks ago. I was in my local Borders, cashing in on a free drink at the cafe (I don't drink coffee, got a green tea latte, mmm), and I noticed a "BOOKS ON TV" section. "What a brilliant marketing idea!" I thought to myself. It gets books read, and TV watched, all at the same time. The usual suspects (True Blood, Dexter, Gossip Girl) were all hanging out together, when I noticed a slim volume called "FlashForward". Now, I'd been in a state of perpetual excitement for about six months since the commercials for the pilot of the show "FlashForward" had aired, so I was pretty excited; I grabbed the book and went home and read it. And I was not disappointed.
The plot centers around a group of scientists in 2009 (the book was written in 1999, and many things were not far off!) who engage in a scientific endeavor to prove theories in quantum theory. However, when the experiment is set in motion the whole of humanity loses consciousness for 2 minutes. Upon waking to major global mayhem, everyone shares their experiences to find that the human consciousness had been vaulted 21 years into the future during those 2 minutes. The entire focus of the world shifts from the here and now into the what could be. The novel becomes a deep exploration of predestination versus free will, the cost of scientific discovery, and the complex relationships of the human community.
Well, that's all I have for now. I have spent the majority of this week's free time either drinking beer or enjoying the TV series of "The Dead Zone" (or both at once), so my reading is falling a bit behind.
Enjoy your reading!
-Care
Coming up in further episodes:
'salem's Lot by Stephen King
We Don't Live Here Anymore by Andre Dubus
Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O'Brien
The Oracle's Queen by Lynn Flewelling
The Woad to Wuin by Peter A. David
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and some guy
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