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THE HALF-HEARTED QUEEN - Charlie N. Holmberg

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Nym is a healer who has used her craftlock (specialized magic) ability to heal the young, very sick prince of her region (see the first book in the duology). The healing process, which is not quick, especially for someone as damaged as Prince Renn was, is quite personal - requiring physical touch to work. Through the course of her work with Prince Renn, Nym and Renn developed romantic feelings for one another. Just as they began to recognize and accept these feelings the kingdom was attacked and Nym's older brother, who was meant to be king, was killed. Renn and Nym escaped, though not together, and Nym was captured by King Nicosia - who also had strong craftlock abilities to rival Nym's. This book picks up right where the previous left off, with Nym held prisoner by King Nicosia and, by default, she learns new methods of using her craftlock ability to heal herself but also to cause damage to others who come in skin-to-skin contact with her. A new bond between Nym and Renn was ...
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(RE)VISIONS: ALICE - anthology

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I find it difficult and sad to write this review.  I can't generally answer the question "What's your favorite book" because the answer might depend on what I'm currently reading, what my current mood is, or some other outside factors. And so usually I would say "The Alice in Wonderland" books. Because, really, they remain a constant for me: interesting characters, great conflict, and an incredible imagination. I love absurd fiction and the Alice books strike me as an epitome of absurdist fiction - impossible situations made to seem ordinary. Along with my interest in Lewis Carroll's stories, I've sought out Alice-related fiction. Sometimes that works out really well (as with Christina Henry's very dark Chronicles of Alice series) and sometimes, as with this, it's a dud. The concept for this book, according to the book's Goodreads page, is:  The (re)Visions series seeks to bring classic works of speculative fiction back into the moder...
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YOUNG NEIL: THE SUGAR MOUNTAIN YEARS - Sharry Wilson

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This is one of the older books in my ARC queue, but I've seen Neil Young in the news recently and it reminded me that I had this book to read. Author/biographer Sharry Wilson looks back at the formative years of Neil Young's youth.  The book title is not just a pun on the musician's name, Wilson's biography is focused on Neil Young's youth and upbringing - from his birth in 1945, through the years of education and to the very beginnings of his musical career. The very earliest years, as Wilson reports, seemed to be happy ones. Idyllic even. Though things change when his parents divorce and Neil is raised by an alcoholic mother and his father lives some distance away (Toronto). And, not surprisingly, his later school years are turbulent as he discovers the joy of music and song writing and performing and his school work suffers as his musical talent excels. It would be the very rare family that would be happy to have a child pursue an art form while falling behind in...
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THE MAID OF SHERWOOD FOREST - Sian Ann Bessey

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I was a little bit torn about whether or not to read this. I was not really in a mood to read a romance (though I'm not opposed to reading romance), but I was in the mood for a fantasy and a Robin Hood theme sounded really good. Mariah Clinton works as a sous-chef in modern London. When not cooking or running a kitchen, Mariah's passion is archery. She likes the idea of medieval life and plans to attend a re-enactment (ala a Ren-Faire). Of course a good costume is essential for being in a re-enactment and Mariah goes to McQuivey's Costume Shop to get her period outfit. But the strangest thing happens - with her costume on, Mariah doesn't step out of McQuivey's into modern London - instead she finds herself in Nottingham, circa 1100's. Being a woman her options are limited yet she knows she needs to find a way to survive and she finds work helping in a kitchen. Being with 'the help,' she learns about all the drama in this town and to her surprise, she le...
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CONSTITUENT SERVICE - John Scalzi

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Ashley Perrin has only just graduated from college and started a civil servant job working as a community liaison for the Third District. It's challenging for human Ashley as the Third District has a large alien population. More aliens, in fact, than humans. There's nothing wrong with a large alien population, but it does mean more of a challenge for Ashley as she has to field complaints and solve a wide variety of neighborhood conflicts - including an unusual, alien hornet that threatens every living thing in the entire city. It's only her first day and she hasn't even checked out the drawers in her assigned desk, but the most terrifying thing facing Ashley is her turn in the office karaoke. This is a short book - maybe more short story than novella even - but it's got all the hallmarks of a 'typical' John Scalzi book: smart and sassy leading characters, oddball situations, and supporting characters designed to be outrageous (usually to get a chuckle). Ther...
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LIES WEEPING - Glen Cook

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I have a shelf full of 'Black Company' books that I have;t read yet, but because I've read and really enjoyed some shorter works by author Glen Cook I knew it was just a matter of time before I got to reading them. When I received the opportunity to read this - the first book in a new 'Black Company' series, I decided this would be a good place to start. Perhaps I was wrong. The Black Company has retreated to Hsien - once the Company's most secure haven but now not quite the relaxing space it once was. The annals of the company are being recorded by Arkana and Shukrat - two of the younger, female members of the group. At first there isn't much to report and the teens write, diary-like, of the personal problems they have with others (and specifically each other). But slowly, judging by how it's noted in the annals, an evil is creeping its way into Hsien and the Black Company. Arkana and Shukrat comment on fellow company member, Tobo, who's been groome...
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DOUBLE TROUBLE - Joyce Carol Oates

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I don't know that I've ever read anything by Joyce Carol Oates, though the name is very familiar. But I also don't think I knew that Ms Oates  wrote such dark, psychological pulp fiction. This book collects two complete novels and two short stories written by Oates years ago and originally published under the name Rosamond Smith. The first novel here, STARR BRIGHT WILL BE WITH YOU SOON, is a hard look at a female serial killer, Starr Bright - aka Sharon, and her twin sister, Lily. Our killer finds it easy to justify her actions killing the 'pigs' who've made her life miserable. Looking to get as far away from the murders as she can, she shows up at her sister's home. Sharon hasn't seen her sister since she left home to be a successful model in the city. Lily, now married and with a daughter, isn't sure why her sister has shown up after being gone so long, but, being her twin, can't just turn the sister away. But will her family be safe? I thought...
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