Book Review: Rivers of London

Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch

The blurb: My name is Peter Grant and until January I was just probationary constable in that mighty army for justice known to all right-thinking people as the Metropolitan Police Service (and as the Filth to everybody else). My only concerns in life were how to avoid a transfer to the Case Progression Unit – we do paperwork so real coppers don’t have to – and finding a way to climb into the panties of the outrageously perky WPC Leslie May.

Then one night, in pursuance of a murder inquiry, I tried to take a witness statement from someone who was dead but disturbingly voluable, and that brought me to the attention of Inspector Nightingale, the last wizard in England. Now I’m a Detective Constable and a trainee wizard, the first apprentice in fifty years, and my world has become somewhat more complicated: nests of vampires in Purley, negotiating a truce between the warring god and goddess of the Thames, and digging up graves in Covent Garden . . . and there’s something festering at the heart of the city I love, a malicious vengeful spirit that takes ordinary Londoners and twists them into grotesque mannequins to act out its drama of violence and despair.The spirit of riot and rebellion has awakened in the city, and it’s falling to me to bring order out of chaos – or die trying.

My review: This book isn’t new out, it was one I was given for my book club and it’s been nudging at the edge of my consciousness in bookshops for the last year. It’s one of those book I kept meaning to read but somehow never quite got round to it (*insert excuse here) I don’t know if this was a cover thing or a general, magpie attraction to the new and shiny but what can I say, you can’t read em all!

This was a fantastic example of fantasty thinking outside the box. Despite the references in the blurb to the main character trying to get into the knickers of WPC Leslie May that’s really not a main theme in the book, this isn’t a fairytale of star-crossed lovers from different sides of the mortal divide, it’s a very funny, sometimes irreverent, often ironic look at the special branch of the London MET namely the one that looks after the supernatural.

It’s quite a fast paced book, I did lose track on one or two occasions and have to go back, I believe this is imitating real police work where many cases are on the go at once, which is definitely why I’m not a policewoman, sometimes I need to follow just the one path until the end! But this may have been the problems of a short commute. Don’t let this put you off though, it’s very enjoyable to read so no issues with going back over sections.

The main character Peter Grant is a lovably inept copper, one who gradually earns your respect throughout the book and has a refreshingly new upbringing, it was good to see a mixed race leading man adn the mix of cultures really reflects London and added authenticity to the book. If you read fantasty, love the likes of Christopher Fowler, Jasper Fforde and Paul Magrs then I’d give this a go, I’m going to be reading Moon Over Soho so that should tell you how much I enjoyed it!

7.5 out of 10 stars! *******.5

BUY ME! Rivers of London (Rivers of London 1)

Book Review: The Wise Man’s Fear

The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss

The blurb: Sequel to the extraordinary THE NAME OF THE WIND, THE WISE MAN’S FEAR is the second instalment of this superb fantasy trilogy from Patrick Rothfuss. This is the most exciting fantasy series since George R. R. Martin’s A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE, and a must-read for all fans of HBO’s GAME OF THRONES. Picking up the tale of Kvothe Kingkiller once again, we follow him into exile, into political intrigue, courtship, adventure, love and magic . . . and further along the path that has turned Kvothe, the mightiest magician of his age, a legend in his own time, into Kote, the unassuming pub landlord.

Packed with as much magic, adventure and home-grown drama as THE NAME OF THE WIND, this is a sequel in every way the equal to its predecessor and a must-read for all fantasy fans. Readable, engaging and gripping THE WISE MAN’S FEAR is the biggest and the best new fantasy novel out there.

My review: There’s a lot of capitalisation going on there, not a big fan of unnecessary capitals! Anyway… This book is exactly 1000 pages long. This sort of length would normally send me running for the hills but bring on the next 1000 I say as this is an amazing book. So rich in detail, characterisation and magic, without neglecting the human side of his characters it’s Rothfuss who is the real magician.

I only wish that I could remember half of the things that had happened in the first book, they’re both so big that it’s hard to remember all the subtle little plot lines that could come back. I would say I was only very slightly disappointed as I would’ve liked more time at the University but it’s not my story and the author obviously knows what he’s doing! The Kingkiller Chronicles were by a city motorway my favourite books of 2011! Looking forward to 2012!

10 out of 10 stars! What else! **********

A Long, Long Sleep

A Long, Long Sleep by Anna Sheehan

The blurb: Rosalinda Fitzroy had been asleep for 62 years when she was woken by a kiss. Locked away in the chemically-induced slumber of a stasis tube in a forgotten sub-basement, sixteen-year-old Rose slept straight through the Dark Times that killed millions and utterly changed the world she knew. Now, her parents and her first love are long dead, and Rose – hailed upon her awakening as the long-lost heir to an interplanetary empire – is thrust alone into a future in which she is viewed as either a freak or a threat.

Desperate to put the past behind her and adapt to her new world, Rose finds herself drawn to the boy who kissed her awake, hoping that he can help her to start fresh. But when a deadly danger jeopardizes her fragile new existence, Rose must face the ghosts of her past with open eyes – or be left without any future at all.

My review: I have just finished reading this book and I am dangerously dehydrated.

A Long, Long Sleep is just fantastic. For anyone who reads this who has lost a loved one, or been swept up in a new love, or been left behind when a relationship ends, this will strike a chord with you. There is an unbearable sadness about this book. The very premise, reminiscent of Sleeping Beauty, of the main character waking up 62 years after she was put in a stasis tube to a world completely altered to the one she remembers is both haunting and horrific.

To begin with I thought this novel lacked emotional depth. I was slightly chagrined at how Rose seemed to just continue through life without really being that upset about the loss of her parents or her friends. This was explained partly due to the detrimental effects being chemically put to sleep for 60 years will have on your body. But it turns out Anna Sheehan was saving her emotional punches for the last 50 pages! I wept, then read, then wept some more. Reading it felt like my heart had turned into a lead weight at the horror of her situation and sunk through the floor before breaking. There is nothing more tragic than missed opportunities and the what ifs of the world, especially when it comes to love. This is a thrilling, gripping and heart-breaking book.

The relationships in this book are complex and Sheehan explores some dark, intense themes such as abuse, loyalty, guilt and dutifullness. The scope here is huge. If I ever write a book I’d be happy if it was half as powerful as this.

I will reiterate. This was a fantastic book. I am traumatised by it but I will ask everyone I know to read it. Utterly compelling and tragic.

9 out of 10 stars! *********

The Name of the Wind

The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss

The blurb: ‘I have stolen princesses back from sleeping barrow kings. I burned down the town of Trebon. I have spent the night with Felurian and left with both my sanity and my life. I was expelled from the University at a younger age than most people are allowed in. I tread paths by moonlight that others fear to speak of during day. I have talked to Gods, loved women, and written songs that make the minstrels weep. My name is Kvothe. You may have heard of me’ S

o begins the tale of Kvothe – currently known as Kote, the unassuming innkeepter – from his childhood in a troupe of traveling players, through his years spent as a near-feral orphan in a crime-riddled city, to his daringly brazen yet successful bid to enter a difficult and dangerous school of magic. In these pages you will come to know Kvothe the notorious magician, the accomplished thief, the masterful musician, the dragon-slayer, the legend-hunter, the lover, the thief and the infamous assassin.

My review: This book was given to me as a birthday present and what a present it has turned out to be! Recommendations from friends who like the same books as you are golden and this did not disappoint.

The Name of the Wind is Kvothe’s story, but so much more, it spans a whole world. It’s the first novel in the Kingkiller Chronicles, which pleases me greatly! Rothfuss has created his world from scratch, the look and feel of it, history, geography and mythology. There is an epicness about it that you only find in books such as The Lord of the Rings. But it’s never too heavy, or too deeply fantasy that you can’t relate to the characters, it’s a fine blend of some fantastic ingredients.

Kvothe begins the book a talented, young trouper, visiting towns in his region and performing before an unfortunate series of events leads him to enrol in the University and study to become a member of the Arcanum. I loved all the scenes at the University, especially the masters. In fact, the only character I found it hard to warm too is the female lead, Denna, too much time is spent trying to make the reader sympathetic to her but it feels false. She’s not one I’m too bothered about!

So this is the reason for my long absence, I read it twice! And it’s a good 700 pages long, it’s got to be a ten out of ten from me!

10 stars out of 10! *********

Dead in the Family

Dead in the Family by Charlaine Harris

The blurb: If you think your family relationships are complicated, think again: you haven’t seen anything like the ones in Bon Temps, Louisiana. Sookie Stackhouse is dealing with a whole host of family problems, ranging from her own kin (a non-human fairy and a telepathic second cousin) demanding a place in her life, to her lover Eric’s vampire sire, an ancient being, who arrives with Eric’s ‘brother’ in tow at a most inopportune moment. And Sookie’s tracking down a distant relation of her ailing neighbour (and ex), Vampire Bill Compton.

In addition to the multitude of family issues complicating her life, the werewolf pack of Shreveport has asked Sookie for a special favour, and since Sookie is an obliging young woman, she agrees. But this favour for the wolves has dire results for Sookie, who is still recovering from the trauma of her abduction during the Fairy War.

My review: *SPOILERS*
Dead in the Family is the tenth book in the Southern Vampire series and as such possibly not one to start with. I have loved Charlaine Harris’s creation from its beginnings and this is a worthy book for fans of Sookie and True Blood.

The end of book nine saw the most traumatic scenes in the series so far, torture, war and death. Sookie is no longer the same girl she once was with her sunny disposition – wishing to meet vampires and trying to find someone she can be herself around.

This Sookie is a different creature, angst ridden and needy, her relationship with Eric never seeming to quite satisfy her, she seems to have turned into the Carrie Bradshaw of Bon Temps. I was saddened by this change but needed to remind myself that her character has been through a hell of a lot! The harrowing scenes at the end of book nine have taken their toll and while I was keen to read more of Sookie and Eric’s chemistry, that area falls flat but with good reason. I implore Charlaine Harris to reignite their sparkle in the next book, Eric is probably the sexiest character ever written!

Don’t expect big things. This novel has a much subtler message. Emotional consequences to violent actions don’t often happen in fictional worlds and it’s a refreshing change that these are addressed. Sookie isn’t a superhero but someone much more relatable. Dead in the Family holds the ground work for some really interesting future developments. Not my favourite Stackhouse book but definitely not one to be left out in the cold.

7.5 stars out of 10! *******.5

(I havent reviewed all of the Southern Vampire books on this blog as I’m going for diversity but as a recommendation my favourites – the ten star entries are Dead to the World and Dead and Gone)

Dead in the Family – coming soon!

Thanks to the wonderful Liz at My Favourite Books I have managed to get my grubby hands on a proof copy of the new Sookie Stackhouse! Yes that’s right I’m whizzing through Dead in the Family by Charlaine Harris as I write this and will be posting my review in time for its release. What an author, what a book and what a lovely blogger as well! This is why I love the book blogging community.  Now I just have to wait for Season three of True Blood to air - come on June!

I’ll keep you posted!

Where I’ve Been….

So I have not posted anything for a whole month, for blogging standards thats pretty poor. All I can say is that Waterstones are to blame. I decided to purchase the Sookie Stackhouse boxset for the bargain price of £30 (RRP £40 although now its online for £20! Damn it!) from my local Waterstones. It was an impulse buy, I was in there looking for good Christmas presents and the boxset just looked really cool. I have always prefered the Harper Connelly series by Charlaine Harris but I was won over by the boxset. AND WHAT A SET!! It turns out her first book is nowhere near as good as some of the others! I am head over heals in love with the character Eric Northmann who is fantastically ruthless,  cheeky and the sexiest fictional character I’ve ever come across! I am halfway through the eight books and seem to find that I am unable to read anything else! If you put one thing on your Santa list this year I heartily recommend this boxset, I give it 10 out of 10 stars, and I’d give Eric 12!!

Grave Sight

Grave Sight by Charlaine Harris

The blurb: Harper Connelly had a lucky escape when she was hit by lightning: she didn’t die. But sometimes she wishes she had died, because the lightning strike left her with an unusual talent: she can find dead people – and that’s not always comfortable. Everyone wants to know how she does it: it’s a little like hearing a bee droning inside her head, or maybe the pop of a Geiger counter, a persistent, irregular noise that increases in strength as she gets closer. It’s almost electric: a buzzing all through her body, and the fresher the corpse, the more intense the buzz.

Harper and her brother Tolliver make their living from finding the dead, for desperate parents, worried friends . . . and police departments who have nowhere else to look. They may not believe in her abilities, but sometimes the proof is just too much for even the most sceptical of police chiefs to deny.
But it’s not always easy for someone like Harper, for the dead *want* to be found – and too often, finding the body doesn’t bring closure; it opens a whole new can of worms.

My Review: So I decided, after reading the first Sookie Stackhouse novel by Charlaine Harris, that I would refrain from reading the whole series and try her other books, the less famous Harper Connelly books. It turns out I made a cracking decision as I was completely hooked from page one.

Harper Connelly had the perfect life until her parents shrugged off responsibility got into drugs and threw their lives into chaos. Consequently Harper and her step-brother Tolliver had to grow up fast. Especially when, at the age of 15, Harper was struck by lightening giving her special gifts and weaknesses like the ability to find dead people but coupled with crippling side effects that no doctor is able to fix. Harper and Tolliver make their living by travelling around the country and helping desperate people, parents, relatives, the police find the missing people in their lives, when they’ve given up all hope of finding them alive.

Not surprisingly Harper is not always looked upon favourably in the towns she visits, but thanks partly to her upbringing and her strong relationship with Tolliver is capable enough to deal with other people’s prejudices. This was a great read, engaging, interesting, sad and funny. I was drawn into Harper’s world and found myself firmly planted on Harper and Tolliver’s side! Definitely worth reading, a refreshing change from the Vampires in the world!

Brilliant book! (and the cover’s pretty cool too!)

9 out of 10 stars *********

Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris

Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris

DEAD UNTIL DARK by Charlaine Harris

The blurb:

Sookie Stackhouse is a small-time cocktail waitress in small-town Louisiana. She’s quiet, keeps to herself, and doesn’t get out much – Sookie’s got a bit of a disability. She can read minds. And that doesn’t make her too dateable.
And then along comes Bill: he’s tall, he’s dark and he’s handsome – and Sookie can’t ‘hear’ a word he’s thinking. He’s exactly the type of guy she’s been waiting all her life for.
But Bill has a disability of his own: he’s fussy about his food, he doesn’t like suntans and he’s never around during the day… Yep, Bill’s a vampire. Worse than that, he hangs with a seriously creepy crowd, with a reputation for trouble – of the murderous kind.
And then one of Sookie’s colleagues at the bar is killed, and it’s beginning to look like Sookie might be the next victim…

Charlaine Harris’ deep south vampire series is a rare treat, it flows easily and is unassuming. If I am completely honest I came to the book after I had started watching the television series True Blood – I was intrigued by the product adverts in the states so tuned in to watch when it was screened in the UK. I am hooked on the show and am now very likely hooked on the books.

Review:

Sookie Stackhouse, our heroine, has the ability to read other peoples thoughts. It’s rather down played in the book which I think is a shame as it could go in so many different directions. (I’ll have to read the rest of the series to find out if its developed!) Her character has an appealing naiveté that’s not always found in this genre, she’s working class and proud, raised with good morals and a people first attitude. Bill Compton, her main love interest and somewhat dead partner has an old time gentlemanly way about him which makes them a pretty perfect coupling. True Blood, a synthetic blood drink, where the TV series got its name, means that Bill can ‘mainstream’ into human society however with any minority this is a difficult transition. The other potential love interest Sam Merlotte, is also a conscientious character with his own little secrets.

As a whole the book was pleasantly easy to read, there are some surprising twists and great characterisation. I really empathised with Sookie and read the whole thing in one sitting! A definite recommend for fans of Twilight, Harris has created a truly believable world in Bon Temps.

7 out of 10 stars! *******

Out now