Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Book #19- Weird Things Customers Say in Bookstores

Title- Weird Things Customers Say in Bookstores
Author- Jen Campbell
Series- none
Genre-Humor
Pages-188
Pages to date- 5,427

The Good:
Weird Things Customers Say in Bookstores is absolutely hilarious. Neil Gaiman says in his blurb on the cover "So funny. So Sad...Read it and sigh." That sums the emotions of the book up perfectly.

The Bad:
The collection is funny, but equally disappointing. I say this only because it diminishes so much of my hope for humanity. It proves how few people read for leisure, and it's just sad.

The Verdict:
This collection is short (less than an hour of reading time), but extremely funny. I recommend it highly to anyone who loves books.

Sunday, December 23, 2012

Book #1-The Forge of Darkness

Title-The Forge of Darkness
Author-Steven Erikson
Series-Kharkanas Trilogy
Genre-Fantasy
Pages-688
Pages to date-688

The Good:
"The Forge of Darkness" is the first installment in Steven Erikson's newest trilogy detailing the split between the Tiste Andii and the Tiste Liosan. As a hardcore Erikson fan the I was very excited to see how events that I could only guess at before. Longtime fans of the Malazan Book of the Fallen series will be pleased to see many of their favorite characters of the series make appearances. While there's something for readers of MBOF in "The Forge of Darkness" this is also a great book for people looking to get into the Malazan world because it requires no prior knowledge of the the world.

The Bad:
Some fans of Erikson may be dismayed by the switch in his writing style away from the epic to something much more poetic, although I did not find it that distracting. Another thing that may disappoint readers of MBOF is the lack of scenes from Anomander Rake's POV.

The Verdict:
This is an amazing book. Everybody should read it.

Ryan

Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Book #18- Year Zero

Title- Year Zero
Author- Rob Reid
Series- none
Genre- Sci-fi
Pages- 357
Pages to date- 5,239

The Good:
Year Zero is a breezy read, but it is incredibly fun. The humor perfectly interplays with the suspense.
The characters are well developed with the slight exception of one. The intermittent law jargon is just present enough to be helpful and not overbearing.

The Bad:
Manda is a character with tons of potential, but she doesn't do that much by the end. I wanted more purpose from her.
There are a few loose ends in the final chapters, but the epilogue hints at a sequel.

The Verdict: A fun, humorous, and easy read, Year Zero is a fast-paced page-turner. A little more content wouldn't hurt, though.