anchor.diff:  49628,"Cloud Atlas","David Mitchell","Mitchell, David","",="0375507256",="9780375507250",3,"4.01","Random House","Paperback","509",2004,2004,2012/10/14,2012/08/10,"sword-and-laser, read-2012","sword-and-laser (#3), read-2012 (#18)","read","<b> Executive Summary:</b> I went back and forth on rating this a 3 or 4 (In fact I slept on it). I decided to settle on a 3. I liked this book. In fact I rather enjoyed a few of the stories quite a bit. I just didn't LOVE this book.<br/><br/>This is a book that makes you think. In my opinion though, it made me think too much, and didn't allow me to simply be swept up in the enjoyment of it. I think that's what kept it from being a ""Really Like"" rather than a ""Like""<br/><br/>I will say to anyone struggling to start this book, try to give it to the halfway point, it's worth it.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/><br/>I read this for my book club, though if they hadn't read it, I would have on my own. It's not in my recent wheelhouse of Fantasy (and to a lesser degree Sci-Fi). I'll admit that I hadn't heard of it before seeing it was the basis for the new Wachowskis film.<br/><br/>It's a series of short stories that tie together with underlying themes. This is the kind of book that can lead to deep philosophical discussion. I generally don't like that.<br/><br/>I enjoy books that challenge my thinking or leave me to ponder, but usually prefer reading for escapism. I feel that I'd have to read this book multiple times to fully grasp everything. Some people may look at that as a positive. I on the other-hand have too many other books to read, to consider re-reading.<br/><br/>Maybe through discussion I'll come to a better understanding. I generally consider myself to be an intelligent person, but this is the sort of book that makes me feel dumb.<br/><br/>I enjoyed 5/6 stories. I didn't particularly care for the first: <b>The Pacific Journal of Adam Ewing.</b> It's style/story really made this book both start and end slow.<br/><br/>My favorite stories were actually the 2 with the female protagonists: <b>An Orison of Sonmi~451</b> and <b>Half-Lives: The First Luisa Rey Mystery</b>.<br/><br/>I did like how each story not only changed time periods, but it changed both it's style and it's ""genre"". At the same time there are certain themes throughout that tie things together. The changes could be jarring at first, but once I got into the next story a little it was fine.<br/><br/>This book started off really slowly for me. Once I got into the later stories (Luisa Rey onwards) and through the <b>Sloosha's Crossin' an' Ev'rythin' After</b>, the second half of the book just flew by.<br/><br/>As I think on this book/discuss it more and end up raising my rating some. We'll see. I'm also curious to see how the movie adaption works out.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
   17259169,"Libriomancer (Magic Ex Libris, #1)","Jim C. Hines","Hines, Jim C.","Brian Eslik",="",="",3,"3.83","Audible Frontiers","Audiobook","12",2013,2012,2014/05/20,2012/08/08,"audio-book, fantasy, urban-fantasy, read-2014","audio-book (#90), fantasy (#210), urban-fantasy (#43), read-2014 (#52)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A book whose main strength is the interesting magic system, and not the characters or story.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Brian Eslik is a good, but not great reader. It's been several audio books now, but my recollection was he didn't really add or detract from the book at all. I think this is one of those books that choosing between reading or listening is more a matter of which works best for you rather more than anything else.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I feel kind of bad. I had been looking forward to reading this book for awhile. The concept of the magic system sounded really cool.<br/><br/>I was looking for something fun and light to hold me over between books. This seemed like it might fit the bill.<br/><br/>Overall however, I was underwhelmed. I blame [a:Jim Butcher|10746|Jim Butcher|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1400640324p2/10746.jpg]. For me, everything seems to pale compared to the Dresden Files.<br/><br/>The other problem I had was it seemed like a generic Urban Fantasy series with stock vampires. Or mostly stock. Mr. Hines does work in a large variety based on various popular vampire novels over the year, including the sparkly variety that have pretty much have ruined what little interest in vampires I once had.<br/><br/>The main character seems generic too. Well except that he's a librarian instead of private eye or some sort of field agent. This may appeal to the librarians out there, but I'm not sure who else.<br/><br/>The second half of the book was a lot better however. Thankfully the whole thing wasn't about vampires. We also got more with the magic system, which is really the only thing that makes this book stand out. <br/><br/>Mr. Hines has come up an interesting and certainly unique system. Pulling magic items out of books. My only gripe is that while some things are explicitly named (Harry Potter, Doctor Who), other things are only alluded to (Star Wars). I'm not sure if it's over copyright concerns or what. If so that's yet another negative side effect of copyright. There is no way I'd confuse this book with a Star Wars book, simply because a character pulls a lightsabre out of a book. I mean who WOULDN'T do that if you had the ability?<br/><br/>Overall I think this is a book that will largely depend on how much you enjoy Urban Fantasy. If you're a fan, this may be a book to check out. If not, I don't think the strength of the magic system is enough to compensate for the mostly generic Urban Fantasy story.","","","1","","",1,2014/02/10,"Audible","Like new",,
   7743175,"A Memory of Light (Wheel of Time, #14)","Robert Jordan","Jordan, Robert","Brandon Sanderson",="0765325950",="9780765325952",5,"4.48","Tor Books","Hardcover","909",2013,2013,2013/01/12,2012/08/08,"wheel-of-time, favorites, read-2013, fantasy, epic-fantasy","wheel-of-time (#15), favorites (#15), read-2013 (#29), fantasy (#138), epic-fantasy (#32)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> How do you end a book series that has spanned 15 volumes (including the prequel), nearly 12,000 pages and over 4 million words, where the author died before finishing? Quite well in my opinion. I loved this book start to finish, and feel rewarded for sticking with it through some of the middle books.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/><img src=""http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Wheel_Of_Time_Logo_2122.jpg"" width=""200""/><br/><br/><i>The Wheel of Time turns, and Ages come and pass, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to myth, and even myth is long forgotten when the Age that gave it birth comes again. In one Age, called the Third Age by some, an Age yet to come, an Age long past, a wind rose in the Mountains of Mist. The wind was not the beginning. There are neither beginnings nor endings to the turning of the Wheel of Time. But it was a beginning.</i><br/><br/>It's hard to review the final book of a series, especially one as long and as old as as the Wheel of Time without including some personal history and talking about the series as a whole. Many folks have been at it the whole 23 years. Many others for at least 10. This is a series where I came late to the party. <br/><br/>I first heard about/was recommended this series by a good friend of mine back in college in the early 2000s. I wasn't much of a reader in those days, with priorities on other things. I mostly forgot it for the next 10 years or so. It wasn't until I heard about [a:Robert Jordan|6252|Robert Jordan|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1175475715p2/6252.jpg]'s death and that [a:Brandon Sanderson|38550|Brandon Sanderson|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1201547425p2/38550.jpg] was going to complete the series that it was on my radar again. I wasn't familiar with Mr. Sanderson, but it reminded me that I wanted to read this series.<br/><br/>I still wasn't much of a reader. I always was reading something, but the time I spent was few and far between. It took me about a year and a half to get through [b:The Gathering Storm|1166599|The Gathering Storm (Wheel of Time, #12; A Memory of Light, #1)|Robert Jordan|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1312064325s/1166599.jpg|1920889]. I didn't have long to wait for [b:Towers of Midnight|8253920|Towers of Midnight (Wheel of Time, #13; A Memory of Light, #2)|Robert Jordan|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1358109459s/8253920.jpg|7338128] by the time I was caught up. The only real waiting I had to do was 14 months or so between that book and this one.<br/><br/>So I can't tell you what's it was like to wait one decade or two. I can't tell you what it was like to see Mr. Jordan die and dread the notion that a series you loved would never be complete. I had a nearly similar experience with [a:Stephen King|3389|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1362814142p2/3389.jpg] and the Dark Tower, but thankfully he finished that series and has gone on to continue writing.<br/><br/>This series is largely responsible for getting me back into reading more. Some friends on mine started reading it not long after I did, and I enjoyed talking about it with them. One of them hit the middle books and gave up, the other pressed on, but hasn't read this one yet.<br/><br/>The middle books of this series are why I stopped recommending this series to people/warned people who asked me about it. It's not a perfect series from start to end. But I love these characters. I love the world Mr. Jordan created. I wanted to know what would become of them, my friends.<br/><br/>I read this book far faster than I would have when I started this journey maybe 4 years ago, and a large part of that is thanks to this series.<br/><br/>Endings are always a tough thing. Especially for long series where the audience has invested a large amount of their time. Not everyone will be happy. I've read some complaints that not everything was resolved, or that their are lingering questions that spoiled it for them. Personally, I loved the ending, but I won't say anymore than that here.<br/><br/>I close with the words Mr. Jordan did:<br/><spoiler><i>This wind, it was not the ending. There are no endings, to the turning of the Wheel of Time. But it was an ending.</i></spoiler>","","Signed by Brandon Sanderson and Harriet  McDougal.","1","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  -19340152,"The Man With the Golden Torc (Secret Histories, #1)","Simon R. Green","Green, Simon R.","Stuart Blinder",="",="",3,"3.85","Audible Frontiers","Audiobook","17",2008,2007,2013/12/17,2012/08/05,"audio-book, fantasy, read-2013, urban-fantasy","audio-book (#78), fantasy (#192), read-2013 (#99), urban-fantasy (#41)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Overall I’m pretty underwhelmed. I was hoping for something to take the place of Mr. Green’s Nightside series, but this just didn't do it for me.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> This is the first book I've listened to by Stuart Blinder. I thought he was pretty good. He does several voices and accents that helped move along what could often be a rather slow plot.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>A friend of mine introduced me to Simon R. Green with his Nightside series a few years back. I didn't read a lot back then, but I would generally pick up the new one he had out every year. I rated them all 3 star books save for [b:A Hard Day's Knight|8288919|A Hard Day's Knight (Nightside, #11)|Simon R. Green|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1279637066s/8288919.jpg|13137384], which I really liked. However, they were short and mostly fun reads that didn't require much thought. Mind Candy.<br/><br/>The protagonist of this series makes a cameo at the end of that one, so I've always been meaning to check this out as a possible replacement. I got a good deal on it from audible, and I needed something to fill about a week or so of audio so it seemed the perfect time.<br/><br/>Like Nightside this is another Urban Fantasy series. However instead of a detective protagonist, this one has a ""secret agent"" as the lead. James Bond, but with mostly magical gadgets rather than technological ones. In fact his cover name is Shaman Bond.<br/><br/>The book titles of this series are all parodies of Bond titles. Mr. Green always likes to poke fun at tropes in his writing. With this one he's mocking both spy novels and fantasy tropes by combining the two.<br/><br/>I'm not sure if the book just isn't as good, or if my tastes have changed as I've become a more voracious reader the past few years. The humor was still good, the plot was light. It just wasn't working for me.<br/><br/>It felt too long. My recollection was that most of the Nightside books were ~250 pages each, while this is closer to 400 I believe. It's over 17 hours in audio. That’s probably at least 5 hours too long.<br/><br/>There were too many dead-ends in the story. I recall Mr. Green writing scenes in Nightside that seemed unimportant to the plot but that explore some bizarre idea he must have had. This book has entirely too much of that. I think if a few of them had been cut out/saved for later books this might have been a better story.<br/><br/>It's possible these books get better as they go along. There were parts I enjoyed, and the ending was pretty good to bump it from a 2.5 to a solid 3, but I'm not likely to continue on at this point.<br/>","","","1","","",1,,"Audible","Like new",,
  +19340152,"The Man With the Golden Torc (Secret Histories, #1)","Simon R. Green","Green, Simon R.","Stuart Blinder",="",="",3,"3.85","Audible Frontiers","Audible Audio","17",2008,2007,2013/12/17,2012/08/05,"audio-book, fantasy, read-2013, urban-fantasy","audio-book (#78), fantasy (#192), read-2013 (#99), urban-fantasy (#41)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Overall I’m pretty underwhelmed. I was hoping for something to take the place of Mr. Green’s Nightside series, but this just didn't do it for me.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> This is the first book I've listened to by Stuart Blinder. I thought he was pretty good. He does several voices and accents that helped move along what could often be a rather slow plot.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>A friend of mine introduced me to Simon R. Green with his Nightside series a few years back. I didn't read a lot back then, but I would generally pick up the new one he had out every year. I rated them all 3 star books save for [b:A Hard Day's Knight|8288919|A Hard Day's Knight (Nightside, #11)|Simon R. Green|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1279637066s/8288919.jpg|13137384], which I really liked. However, they were short and mostly fun reads that didn't require much thought. Mind Candy.<br/><br/>The protagonist of this series makes a cameo at the end of that one, so I've always been meaning to check this out as a possible replacement. I got a good deal on it from audible, and I needed something to fill about a week or so of audio so it seemed the perfect time.<br/><br/>Like Nightside this is another Urban Fantasy series. However instead of a detective protagonist, this one has a ""secret agent"" as the lead. James Bond, but with mostly magical gadgets rather than technological ones. In fact his cover name is Shaman Bond.<br/><br/>The book titles of this series are all parodies of Bond titles. Mr. Green always likes to poke fun at tropes in his writing. With this one he's mocking both spy novels and fantasy tropes by combining the two.<br/><br/>I'm not sure if the book just isn't as good, or if my tastes have changed as I've become a more voracious reader the past few years. The humor was still good, the plot was light. It just wasn't working for me.<br/><br/>It felt too long. My recollection was that most of the Nightside books were ~250 pages each, while this is closer to 400 I believe. It's over 17 hours in audio. That’s probably at least 5 hours too long.<br/><br/>There were too many dead-ends in the story. I recall Mr. Green writing scenes in Nightside that seemed unimportant to the plot but that explore some bizarre idea he must have had. This book has entirely too much of that. I think if a few of them had been cut out/saved for later books this might have been a better story.<br/><br/>It's possible these books get better as they go along. There were parts I enjoyed, and the ending was pretty good to bump it from a 2.5 to a solid 3, but I'm not likely to continue on at this point.<br/>","","","1","","",1,,"Audible","Like new",,
   12216302,"Cold Days (The Dresden Files, #14)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="0451464400",="9780451464408",5,"4.51","Penguin Group (USA)","Hardcover","515",2012,2012,2012/11/30,2012/07/31,"dresden-files, favorites, read-2012, urban-fantasy, fantasy, audio-book, read-2013","dresden-files (#17), favorites (#17), read-2012 (#8), urban-fantasy (#11), fantasy (#18), audio-book (#56), read-2013 (#59)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> If you read The Dresden Files and haven't read/started this book, why not? If you're on earlier book..hurry up!<br/><br/>If you don't read the Dresden Files? Why are you reading this? Go get [b:Storm Front|47212|Storm Front (The Dresden Files, #1)|Jim Butcher|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1345556917s/47212.jpg|1137060] right now, so you can start catching up!<br/><br/>Seriously, I'm just amazed at the way Mr. Butcher has evolved this series over the years, still going incredibly strong with the 14th book in the series. This has easily been my favorite series since I discovered it a few years ago.<br/><br/><b>Audio Book:</b> I'm so glad to have James Marsters back for this book. He puts so much emotion into his reading. When Harry casts a fire spell Mr. Marsters snarls Fuego rather than just reading it. I also really enjoyed his voices for the new characters as well.<br/><br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I've eagerly been awaiting this book since finishing [b:Ghost Story|8058301|Ghost Story (The Dresden Files,  #13)|Jim Butcher|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1329104700s/8058301.jpg|12731936] last summer. I found that book to be a little bit of a fall of from [b:Changes|6585201|Changes (The Dresden Files, #12)|Jim Butcher|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1304027244s/6585201.jpg|6778696], but I just credited that to just how great [b:Changes|6585201|Changes (The Dresden Files, #12)|Jim Butcher|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1304027244s/6585201.jpg|6778696]. I really thought it was going to be hard for Mr. Butcher to top it, but somehow he did.<br/><br/>I found myself deep into the book wondering how Harry/Mr. Butcher was going to work things out. Of the course of the 14 books thing have evolved in a way I never expected.<br/><br/>This books answers many questions I had, including things I had hoped would have been in [b:Ghost Story|8058301|Ghost Story (The Dresden Files,  #13)|Jim Butcher|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1329104700s/8058301.jpg|12731936] but weren't.<br/><br/>I don't like to include spoilers in my reviews but there are a few minor things I'll hit on (while leaving all the really HUGE developments unsaid).<br/><br/>I really loved some of the new characters introduced in this novel in particular Kringle and  Lacuna. I hope to see them return in the next novel. And without giving any details, it was awesome to learn more about Demonreach.<br/><br/>I'm torn on the idea of Mr. Butcher taking time away from Harry to write a new Steampunk series. On the one hand I'm not really excited by the idea of steampunk as others seem to be. <br/><br/>On the other hand, I've been hoping for another series ever since he put out [b:First Lord's Fury|6316821|First Lord's Fury (Codex Alera, #6)|Jim Butcher|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1327903582s/6316821.jpg|6502096] finishing up Codex Alera. Not to mention as I joked with my friends, I'd read Twilight Fan Fiction if [a:Jim Butcher|10746|Jim Butcher|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1205261964p2/10746.jpg] was writing it.<br/><br/>Either way I hope Mr. Butcher doesn't make us wait too long for book 15, as each of the last few books has taken longer than the year between the year or less timeframe he spoiled us all with for awhile.","","","2","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
   13607815,"After The Crash","Stuart Jaffe","Jaffe, Stuart","",="",="",3,"3.73","","Kindle Edition","313",2012,2012,2012/08/05,2012/07/29,"read-2012, science-fiction","read-2012 (#28), science-fiction (#18)","read","I'll preface this review by stating the author contacted me via good reads and offered me a free ebook copy of the book in exchange for a fair and honest review. <br/><br/>Stuart Jaffe is not an author I was familiar with before he contacted me, but I would consider reading other books by him in the future.<br/><br/>To the actual review:<br/><br/><b>The good:</b><br/><br/>Once the book got going, I really enjoyed it. I thought the characters were well developed. You share a sense of concern with the protagonist for the motivations of the others. You are left to decide along with her who is being honest and who might be lying and why.<br/><br/>Jaffe also does a good job describing the planet and an ecology of this strange unexplored planet.<br/><br/>It is a story of survival and self exploration, with a bit of a mystery mixed in.<br/><br/><b>The not-so-good:</b><br/><br/>The book starts out at some point in the future, then flashes back. I presume it was done to draw the user in and present them with engaging questions. I just mostly found it confusing. <br/><br/>This technique seems to be overused in TV these days, so that might be why I'm particularly sensitive to it.<br/><br/>I flipped back to re-read the beginning a few times once I was further in the book to remind myself what happened to try to piece things back together. Overall this is a minor gripe on my part though.<br/><br/>The first part of the book moved a bit slow for my liking. Some of the detail Jaffe used to set up the main character felt a bit drawn out.<br/><br/>I was also a little underwhelmed by the primary ending (there are some things that occur after the ""big reveal"", but it's mostly prologue). I still feel that he wrapped things up sufficiently though.<br/><br/>","","","","","",0,,,,,
  -119322,"The Golden Compass (His Dark Materials, #1)","Philip Pullman","Pullman, Philip","",="0679879242",="9780679879244",0,"3.89","Knopf Books for Young Readers","Hardcover","409",1996,1995,,2012/07/25,"to-read","to-read (#49)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  +119322,"The Golden Compass (His Dark Materials, #1)","Philip Pullman","Pullman, Philip","",="0679879242",="9780679879244",0,"3.89","Knopf Books for Young Readers","Hardcover","409",1996,1995,,2012/07/25,"to-read","to-read (#47)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
   77197,"Assassin's Apprentice (Farseer Trilogy, #1)","Robin Hobb","Hobb, Robin","",="055357339X",="9780553573398",4,"4.10","Spectra","Mass Market Paperback","435",1996,1995,2012/08/17,2012/07/25,"elderlings, sword-and-laser, read-2012, fantasy","elderlings (#9), sword-and-laser (#6), read-2012 (#26), fantasy (#48)","read","This is the first book I read as part of the <a href=http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/4170-the-sword-and-laser>Sword and Laser</a> book club.<br/><br/>I had never heard of [a:Robin Hobb|25307|Robin Hobb|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1205023525p2/25307.jpg] before. I'm very glad I have now.<br/><br/>I really enjoyed this book a lot. It's a very different feel than most of the fantasy books I've read.<br/><br/>There isn't really a clear path for the protagonist until halfway through the book. Some might find that off-putting, but I found it refreshing.<br/><br/>Just learning about the character and the world as he grows up is more than sufficient to keep the story moving along in my opinion without some large and looming evil for him to confront.<br/><br/>Eventually you see where the character might fit in and play an important role in world events, but Hobb doesn't feel the need to set that up in the first 50 pages like most fantasy novels I've read seem to do.<br/><br/>I have already started [b:Royal Assassin|68487|Royal Assassin (Farseer Trilogy, #2)|Robin Hobb|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1323721053s/68487.jpg|4668002] which is the second book in this trilogy and have [b:Assassin's Quest|45112|Assassin's Quest (Farseer Trilogy, #3)|Robin Hobb|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1328153405s/45112.jpg|503752] ready to go when that's done to finish the first trilogy.<br/><br/>I plan to tackle the other 2 trilogies in this world when I have more time/read some other books.","","","","Anyone who enjoys fantasy","Sword and Laser",1,,"Amazon","Good",,
   29579,"Foundation (Foundation, #1)","Isaac Asimov","Asimov, Isaac","",="0553803719",="9780553803716",3,"4.04","Spectra","Hardcover","256",2004,1951,2012/09/02,2012/07/16,"sword-and-laser, read-2012, science-fiction","sword-and-laser (#5), read-2012 (#23), science-fiction (#17)","read","This book has long been on my to read list as has Asimov in general. It's the first thing I've read by him mostly due to it being a pick from my Sword & Laser book club.<br/><br/>I'd maybe rate the book at a 3.5, but having to choose between like (3) and really like (4) I chose to go for 3 in this case.<br/><br/>I enjoyed the book, but it hasn't aged very well. The story was good but many parts of it made it obvious to me how old the book is.<br/><br/><spoiler><br/>In particular the fact that they seemed to making a paper encyclopedia rather than digital (although this wasn't explicit). In general there seemed to be no notion of an internet where a character visiting the encyclopedia office ask for a copy to be transcribed for him. <br/><br/>Another major sign is the prevalence of nuclear power/weapons. Man is pretty innovative, and I doubt over 15,000 years of humanity hasn't led to even more powerful deadly/weapons or new/improved power sources<br/></spoiler><br/><br/>Despite feeling dated, I enjoy the overall story and plan to check out other books in the series at some point in the future.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  -13542606,"Kill Decision","Daniel Suarez","Suarez, Daniel","",="0525952616",="9780525952619",0,"3.93","Dutton Adult","Hardcover","400",2012,2012,,2012/07/16,"to-read","to-read (#46)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  -472331,"Watchmen","Alan Moore","Moore, Alan","Dave Gibbons, John Higgins",="0930289234",="9780930289232",4,"4.31","DC Comics","Paperback","416",2005,1986,,2012/07/15,"read-before-goodreads, graphic-novels-and-manga","read-before-goodreads (#153), graphic-novels-and-manga (#5)","read","This ain't your father's comics. <br/><br/>I read this awhile back (sometime before the movie). It's dark and more realistic than typical comics, in that no one really has any super powers. That doesn't stop people from tossing on  a mask and trying to be a super hero. The characters are far more flawed than the normal comic heroes that preceded this book. <br/><br/>I think this book changed comics forever.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  -152218,"The Return of Sherlock Holmes III: The Adventure of Black Peter and Other Stories","Arthur Conan Doyle","Doyle, Arthur Conan","David Timson",="962634346X",="9789626343463",4,"3.83","Naxos Audiobooks","Audio CD","0",2005,1905,,2012/07/07,"sherlock-holmes, audio-book, read-before-goodreads","sherlock-holmes (#5), audio-book (#22), read-before-goodreads (#63)","read","Good acting. Descent stories.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  +13542606,"Kill Decision","Daniel Suarez","Suarez, Daniel","",="0525952616",="9780525952619",0,"3.93","Dutton Adult","Hardcover","400",2012,2012,,2012/07/16,"to-read","to-read (#44)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  +472331,"Watchmen","Alan Moore","Moore, Alan","Dave Gibbons, John Higgins",="0930289234",="9780930289232",4,"4.32","DC Comics","Paperback","416",2005,1986,,2012/07/15,"read-before-goodreads, graphic-novels-and-manga","read-before-goodreads (#153), graphic-novels-and-manga (#5)","read","This ain't your father's comics. <br/><br/>I read this awhile back (sometime before the movie). It's dark and more realistic than typical comics, in that no one really has any super powers. That doesn't stop people from tossing on  a mask and trying to be a super hero. The characters are far more flawed than the normal comic heroes that preceded this book. <br/><br/>I think this book changed comics forever.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  +152218,"The Return of Sherlock Holmes III: The Adventure of Black Peter and Other Stories","Arthur Conan Doyle","Doyle, Arthur Conan","David Timson",="962634346X",="9789626343463",4,"3.85","Naxos Audiobooks","Audio CD","0",2005,1905,,2012/07/07,"sherlock-holmes, audio-book, read-before-goodreads","sherlock-holmes (#5), audio-book (#22), read-before-goodreads (#63)","read","Good acting. Descent stories.","","","","","",0,,,,,
   929201,"The Return of Sherlock Holmes: Volume 2","Arthur Conan Doyle","Doyle, Arthur Conan","",="056351003X",="9780563510031",3,"4.14","BBC Audiobooks","Audio CD","",2004,1904,,2012/07/07,"sherlock-holmes, audio-book, read-before-goodreads","sherlock-holmes (#4), audio-book (#21), read-before-goodreads (#46)","read","another well done bbc radio program. descent stories.","","","","","",0,,,,,
   7235533,"The Way of Kings (The Stormlight Archive, #1)","Brandon Sanderson","Sanderson, Brandon","",="0765326353",="9780765326355",5,"4.60","Tor Books","Hardcover","1007",2010,2010,2013/03/25,2012/07/07,"favorites, stormlight-archive, read-2013, epic-fantasy, fantasy","favorites (#16), stormlight-archive (#1), read-2013 (#15), epic-fantasy (#16), fantasy (#122)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I loved this book. It's not perfect, but it instantly was added to my favorites shelf. <br/><br/>Will you love it too? Well that depends on what you're looking for. I've seen some people call that slow, but not me. I think book sets up what could become my new favorite series depending on what Mr. Sanderson does in the books that follow this one.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I first heard of Mr. Sanderson, like many I suspect, when he was announced as the one chosen to complete [a:Robert Jordan|6252|Robert Jordan|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1175475715p2/6252.jpg]'s Wheel of Time series. The first book I read by him was [b:The Gathering Storm|1166599|The Gathering Storm (Wheel of Time, #12; A Memory of Light, #1)|Robert Jordan|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1312064325s/1166599.jpg|1920889] and I loved that too.<br/><br/>I went on to check out his Mistborn series shortly after and loved those books. When this came out however, I held back. I didn't really want to jump into what he promised to be a maybe 10 book series. I wanted to wait for it to be done/nearly done.<br/><br/>Fast forward a few years, two more excellent Wheel of Time books by Mr. Sanderson, and there was suddenly a hole in my reading. <br/><br/>I got to meet him in February at a signing for [b:A Memory of Light|7743175|A Memory of Light (Wheel of Time, #14; A Memory of Light, #3)|Robert Jordan|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1336055749s/7743175.jpg|10558806] and I felt bad that I had nothing that was exclusively his to sign in hardcover. That pretty much settled it for me and I managed to find a new first edition copy of the book online.<br/><br/>There is a lot of world building in this book. That's to be expected from book one of what looks to be a long series. There is a lot of time jumping, especially at the beginning.<br/><br/>After the brief first scene ends, we jump 4500 years into the future. Then there is a short prolouge, where we meet a bad-ass (though reluctant) assassin named Szeth. Then it jumps another 5 or 6 years before the main story gets rolling.<br/><br/>As the story begins we meet Kaladin Stormblessed. No he's not a farm boy suddenly thrust on an unexpected adventure, he's a unit commander in the military. He's a little bit older (19) than your typical fantasy trope hero as well. <br/><br/>That isn't to say he doesn't suffer from any tropes, but he feels like a refreshingly original character. I also appreciated the way Mr. Sanderson introduces him to you, in what I can only assume to be a nod to the prototype fantasy protagonist.<br/><br/>Mr. Sanderson makes use of flash back chapters starting 9 years in the past and slowly moves them forward in time filling you on how Kaladin came to be where he was.<br/><br/>We are next introduced to Shallan, a young noble woman set out on a mission to save her family from ruin. I've seen complaints that her parts of the book are ""pointless"" to the plot of this book, but I disagree. <br/><br/>While she has no roll in the main plot, Mr. Sanderson is building out his world and some of the key players in it. By the end of this novel it's apparent just how important Shallan's story line will be.<br/><br/>The first and third books of this novel deal with these two characters. <br/><br/>Starting in the second book, and continuing in the fourth, we are introduced to Dalinar and his son Adolin the Uncle and cousin of the King of Alethkar respectively. <br/><br/>Their chapters replace Shallan's while Kaladin's continue on.<br/><br/>It becomes apparent early on that Kalodin story is on a collision course with Dalinar but the journey to get there was enjoyable. Not to mention that the events surrounding their meeting as just pure awesomeness.<br/><br/>The final book makes use of all the character perspectives, and sets things up for the next novel. This novel is not stand-alone by any means, but I knew that coming in. That said, I think Mr. Sanderson found a good stopping point to conclude on.<br/><br/>I now eagerly await [b:Words of Radiance|11543195|Words of Radiance (The Stormlight Archive, #2)|Brandon Sanderson|/assets/nocover/60x80.png|16482835], and I suspect the many other books to follow.","","","1","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  -43889,"Wizard's First Rule (Sword of Truth, #1)","Terry Goodkind","Goodkind, Terry","",="0765346524",="9780765346520",0,"4.11","Tor Books","Paperback","836",2003,1994,,2012/07/06,"to-read","to-read (#58)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  -7332,"The Silmarillion (Middle-Earth Universe)","J.R.R. Tolkien","Tolkien, J.R.R.","Christopher Tolkien, Ted Nasmith",="0618391118",="9780618391110",0,"3.80","Houghton Mifflin Harcourt","Hardcover","386",2004,1977,,2012/07/06,"to-read","to-read (#57)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  +43889,"Wizard's First Rule (Sword of Truth, #1)","Terry Goodkind","Goodkind, Terry","",="0765346524",="9780765346520",0,"4.11","Tor Books","Paperback","836",2003,1994,,2012/07/06,"to-read","to-read (#56)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  +7332,"The Silmarillion (Middle-Earth Universe)","J.R.R. Tolkien","Tolkien, J.R.R.","Christopher Tolkien, Ted Nasmith",="0618391118",="9780618391110",0,"3.80","Houghton Mifflin Harcourt","Hardcover","386",2004,1977,,2012/07/06,"to-read","to-read (#55)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
   4412,"American Gods","Neil Gaiman","Gaiman, Neil","George Guidall",="141936538X",="9781419365386",4,"4.10","Recorded Books, LLC","Audio CD","18",2001,2001,,2012/07/06,"read-before-goodreads, fantasy","read-before-goodreads (#96), fantasy (#34)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  -2429135,"The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Millennium, #1)","Stieg Larsson","Larsson, Stieg","Reg Keeland",="0307269752",="9780307269751",0,"4.06","Knopf Publishing Group","Hardcover","465",2008,2005,,2012/07/06,"to-read","to-read (#56)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  +2429135,"The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Millennium, #1)","Stieg Larsson","Larsson, Stieg","Reg Keeland",="0307269752",="9780307269751",0,"4.06","Knopf Publishing Group","Hardcover","465",2008,2005,,2012/07/06,"to-read","to-read (#54)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
   100915,"The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (Chronicles of Narnia, #1)","C.S. Lewis","Lewis, C.S.","",="0060764899",="9780060764890",4,"4.15","HarperCollins Publishers","Paperback","206",2005,1950,,2012/07/06,"read-before-goodreads, fantasy","read-before-goodreads (#143), fantasy (#35)","read","","","","","","",0,,,,,
   236093,"The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Oz, #1)","L. Frank Baum","Baum, L. Frank","",="0140621679",="9780140621679",4,"3.95","Penguin","Paperback","156",1995,1900,,2012/07/06,"read-before-goodreads, fantasy","read-before-goodreads (#48), fantasy (#36)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
   7677,"Jurassic Park (Jurassic Park, #1)","Michael Crichton","Crichton, Michael","",="030734813X",="9780307348135",3,"3.86","","Mass Market Paperback","480",2006,1990,,2012/07/06,"read-before-goodreads, science-fiction","read-before-goodreads (#75), science-fiction (#25)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  -13536892,"Dune (Dune Chronicles, #1)","Frank Herbert","Herbert, Frank","Scott Brick, Orlagh Cassidy, Euan Morton, Simon Vance, Ilyana Kadushin",="",="",4,"4.12","Macmillan Audio","Audiobook","21",2007,1965,2012/12/26,2012/07/06,"audio-book, read-2012, science-fiction","audio-book (#13), read-2012 (#2), science-fiction (#21)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I enjoyed this book. It's not one of my new favorites or anything, but it was good. I'd recommend people read it, but won't start advocating it as a must read.<br/><br/><b>Audiobook:</b> I did the unabridged audio book from Audible. This version had multiple readers. There was the main narrator, and a secondary narrator for all the various excerpts written by Princess Irulan.<br/><br/>They also had readers for most of the main characters. Some of the conversations were more like a radio program than a book with the readers conversing with each other as the characters would. <br/><br/>The confusing thing to me was sometimes the dialogue used the multiple readers, and sometimes it didn't and was simply read by the main narrator. At first I thought it was maybe for internal dialogue, but that wasn't always the case. I never could figure out the pattern as to why they didn't simply use the multiple readers for every conversation.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This is a book that seems to always finish top 5 in many best of type lists. It's one of my friend's favorites. I got a free audiobook from Audible thanks to the <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/4170-the-sword-and-laser"">Sword and Laser</a> podcast and I needed a book for my Christmas road trip, so this seemed like a good fit.<br/><br/>I really enjoyed all the plotting and politics involved in this book. There was also an interesting array of characters with different backgrounds and desires that often lead to confrontation. <br/><br/>This reminds me a lot of Star Trek DS9 or Babylon 5 which I wouldn't be surprised to find were inspired by Dune. Often times the science fiction takes a back seat to the conflict. It's more of a sci-fi setting than a sci-fi story. <br/><br/>It shows that even on another planet with strange creatures and technology that greed, honor, war, revenge and many other Human behaviors are really just the same no matter what the setting.<br/><br/>If I had any one gripe about the book it was lack of detail in the ending. Everything that has building comes to a head and seems to be over in short order. The ending itself wasn't a disappointment, but I felt like the execution was lacking. This might be what made this book a 4 instead of a 5. It's hard to really say.<br/><br/>I may read the second book [b:Dune Messiah|106|Dune Messiah (Dune Chronicles, #2)|Frank Herbert|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347771287s/106.jpg|3634570] since my friend who loves this series said it is really the second half to this book.<br/><br/>I've also got the movie coming from Netflix this weekend so I can re-watch it after reading the book. I hope that I'll enjoy it a lot more than I did back in college, now that I have a clue what I'm watching. :)","","","","","",0,,,,,
  +13536892,"Dune (Dune Chronicles, #1)","Frank Herbert","Herbert, Frank","Scott Brick, Orlagh Cassidy, Euan Morton, Simon Vance, Ilyana Kadushin",="",="",4,"4.12","Macmillan Audio","Audiobook","21",2007,1963,2012/12/26,2012/07/06,"audio-book, read-2012, science-fiction","audio-book (#13), read-2012 (#2), science-fiction (#21)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I enjoyed this book. It's not one of my new favorites or anything, but it was good. I'd recommend people read it, but won't start advocating it as a must read.<br/><br/><b>Audiobook:</b> I did the unabridged audio book from Audible. This version had multiple readers. There was the main narrator, and a secondary narrator for all the various excerpts written by Princess Irulan.<br/><br/>They also had readers for most of the main characters. Some of the conversations were more like a radio program than a book with the readers conversing with each other as the characters would. <br/><br/>The confusing thing to me was sometimes the dialogue used the multiple readers, and sometimes it didn't and was simply read by the main narrator. At first I thought it was maybe for internal dialogue, but that wasn't always the case. I never could figure out the pattern as to why they didn't simply use the multiple readers for every conversation.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This is a book that seems to always finish top 5 in many best of type lists. It's one of my friend's favorites. I got a free audiobook from Audible thanks to the <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/4170-the-sword-and-laser"">Sword and Laser</a> podcast and I needed a book for my Christmas road trip, so this seemed like a good fit.<br/><br/>I really enjoyed all the plotting and politics involved in this book. There was also an interesting array of characters with different backgrounds and desires that often lead to confrontation. <br/><br/>This reminds me a lot of Star Trek DS9 or Babylon 5 which I wouldn't be surprised to find were inspired by Dune. Often times the science fiction takes a back seat to the conflict. It's more of a sci-fi setting than a sci-fi story. <br/><br/>It shows that even on another planet with strange creatures and technology that greed, honor, war, revenge and many other Human behaviors are really just the same no matter what the setting.<br/><br/>If I had any one gripe about the book it was lack of detail in the ending. Everything that has building comes to a head and seems to be over in short order. The ending itself wasn't a disappointment, but I felt like the execution was lacking. This might be what made this book a 4 instead of a 5. It's hard to really say.<br/><br/>I may read the second book [b:Dune Messiah|106|Dune Messiah (Dune Chronicles, #2)|Frank Herbert|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347771287s/106.jpg|3634570] since my friend who loves this series said it is really the second half to this book.<br/><br/>I've also got the movie coming from Netflix this weekend so I can re-watch it after reading the book. I hope that I'll enjoy it a lot more than I did back in college, now that I have a clue what I'm watching. :)","","","","","",0,,,,,
   7285601,"The Hunger Games (The Hunger Games, #1)","Suzanne Collins","Collins, Suzanne","",="0439023521",="9780439023528",3,"4.40","Scholastic Inc.","Paperback","374",2010,2008,2012/09/09,2012/07/06,"read-2012, science-fiction, young-adult","read-2012 (#21), science-fiction (#16), young-adult (#10)","read","I finally got around to reading it to see what all the fuss was about. I had seen the movie before reading the book, so I had a pretty good feel for what was going to happen.<br/><br/>In fact, it seemed like the movie was pretty true to the book with very few changes that I can remember.<br/><br/>The largest differences were increasing the size of the roles of some of the supporting and minor characters over the book since the book offers everything pretty much from Katriss's perspective. She does have some rather ""impressive"" insights into the thinking of some of the others that I think are better portrayed by showing the other characters doing those things instead.<br/><br/>Unsurprisingly though, the book was better than the movie, but both were just so-so to me. The book offers much better insight to the thought process and motivation of some of the characters that I just didn't find apparent in the movie.<br/><br/>You especially get to know a lot more about Rue, who was relegated to few little screen time in the movie with no real sense of why she and Kat had affection for one another.<br/><br/>My biggest issue is that for a book dealing with a battle to the death, the violence level is fairly low. I guess that should be expected since it's considered a YA book though.<br/><br/>It also felt pretty derivative of [b:Battle Royale|57891|Battle Royale|Koushun Takami|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1331235272s/57891.jpg|2786327]. I'm certainly not the first to say so. It's a book I haven't read, but I've seen the movie a few times. When I first saw the trailer for Hunger Games, I thought it was maybe an American remake of Battle Royale.<br/><br/>I'll likely get around to reading the next two books at some point, though I've had a few tell me neither is as good. Since I was only so-so on this one, I'm not in much of a rush so they will fall somewhere behind my fairly long to read list.","","","","","",0,,,,,
   2623,"Great Expectations","Charles Dickens","Dickens, Charles","",="0192833596",="9780192833594",3,"3.70","Oxford University Press, USA","Paperback","505",1998,1861,,2012/07/06,"read-before-goodreads","read-before-goodreads (#110)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
   18512,"The Return of the King (The Lord of the Rings, #3)","J.R.R. Tolkien","Tolkien, J.R.R.","",="0345339738",="9780345339737",4,"4.48","Del Rey","Mass Market Paperback","490",1986,1954,,2012/07/06,"lord-of-the-rings, read-before-goodreads, fantasy","lord-of-the-rings (#4), read-before-goodreads (#80), fantasy (#81)","read","","","","","","",0,,,,,
  
positive.code: 13497,"A Feast for Crows (A Song of Ice and Fire, #4)","George R.R. Martin","Martin, George R.R.","",="055358202X",="9780553582024",3,"4.03","Bantam","Mass Market Paperback","976",2006,2005,2012/07/01,2012/07/06,"song-of-ice-and-fire, read-2012, fantasy, epic-fantasy, dark-fantasy","song-of-ice-and-fire (#4), read-2012 (#30), fantasy (#118), epic-fantasy (#14), dark-fantasy (#27)","read","","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  62291,"A Storm of Swords (A Song of Ice and Fire, #3)","George R.R. Martin","Martin, George R.R.","",="055357342X",="9780553573428",4,"4.53","Bantam","Mass Market Paperback","1177",2003,2000,2012/06/01,2012/07/06,"song-of-ice-and-fire, read-2012, fantasy, epic-fantasy, dark-fantasy","song-of-ice-and-fire (#3), read-2012 (#31), fantasy (#117), epic-fantasy (#13), dark-fantasy (#26)","read","","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  10572,"A Clash of Kings (A Song of Ice and Fire, #2)","George R.R. Martin","Martin, George R.R.","",="0553381695",="9780553381696",4,"4.38","Bantam","Paperback","778",2002,1998,,2012/07/06,"song-of-ice-and-fire, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, epic-fantasy, dark-fantasy","song-of-ice-and-fire (#2), read-before-goodreads (#32), fantasy (#116), epic-fantasy (#12), dark-fantasy (#25)","read","","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  13361776,"The Alloy of Law (Mistborn, #4)","Brandon Sanderson","Sanderson, Brandon","Michael Kramer",="1427221049",="9781427221049",4,"4.17","Macmillan Audio","Audiobook","",2011,2011,2014/02/08,2012/07/06,"mistborn, fantasy, audio-book, read-2014","mistborn (#4), fantasy (#95), audio-book (#88), read-2014 (#15)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A fun, but predictable story. Mr. Sanderson does a great job of adding a new layer of complexity to the excellent magic system from the original Mistborn series that should appeal to anyone who enjoys well defined magical systems. A few minor complaints, but overall very enjoyable.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Micheal Kramer is an excellent narrator. This is the first time I've listened to him, and I hope it won't be the last. I actually met him briefly at a signing for [b:A Memory of Light|7743175|A Memory of Light (Wheel of Time, #14)|Robert Jordan|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1336055749s/7743175.jpg|10558806] and got to listen to him do a live reading. He does voices for the characters and really adds that extra something I wish all audio book narrators would do.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This book started out great right out of the gate. Things really ramped up further when Wayne was introduced. The pairing of Wax and Wayne is one I really enjoyed.<br/><br/>Wax reminds me a little of Roland Deschain from the Dark Tower series. Wayne reminded me a little bit of Sherlock Holmes simply for his frequent use of disguise and various voices/accents.<br/><br/>The main drawback for me was Marasi. I like her character in concept. A smart, resourceful women who is well studied on law and lawkeeping. The execution left a little to be desired for me however. I found her personality annoying. Vin got a little whiny at points in the original series, but I found that far less bothersome than the ""helpless noble"" persona Marasi has.<br/><br/>The book also slows down in the middle, but not for long. The antagonist is pretty well done, although a bit too much mustache twirly in place.<br/><br/>Most of the plot twists were pretty obvious to me ahead of time, but that doesn't matter. The characters, the magic system, and the action really sucked me into this book.<br/><br/>I especially liked the additions Mr. Sanderson added to his already great magic system. He introduced some pretty cool ideas by mixing Allomancy and Feruchemy to make ""Twinborn"". This is especially excellent with the addition of guns to mix making for some really fun action scenes.<br/><br/>Overall this was a really enjoyable book that I read at just the right time. I was in the mood for something fun and light and this fit the bill nicely. I hope Mr. Sanderson gives us more stories with Wax and Wayne sooner rather than later.","","","1","","",1,2014/02/04,"Audible","Like new",,
  3362870,"The Hero of Ages (Mistborn, #3)","Brandon Sanderson","Sanderson, Brandon","",="0765356147",="9780765356147",5,"4.41","Tor Fantasy","Paperback","748",2009,2008,,2012/07/06,"mistborn, favorites, read-before-goodreads, fantasy","mistborn (#3), favorites (#1), read-before-goodreads (#31), fantasy (#94)","read","Very happy with the ending of this series.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  2115046,"The Well of Ascension (Mistborn, #2)","Brandon Sanderson","Sanderson, Brandon","",="0765356139",="9780765356130",4,"4.32","Tor Fantasy","Paperback","796",2008,2007,,2012/07/06,"mistborn, read-before-goodreads, fantasy","mistborn (#2), read-before-goodreads (#83), fantasy (#93)","read","","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  2705034,"Mistborn: The Final Empire (Mistborn, #1)","Brandon Sanderson","Sanderson, Brandon","",="0765360969",="9780765360960",4,"4.38","Tor Fantasy","Paperback","643",2008,2006,,2012/07/06,"mistborn, read-before-goodreads, fantasy","mistborn (#1), read-before-goodreads (#127), fantasy (#92)","read","Really great series, with a unique magic system.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  10793701,"The Bride Wore Black Leather (Nightside, #12)","Simon R. Green","Green, Simon R.","",="1937007138",="9781937007133",3,"4.14","Ace","Hardcover","310",2012,2012,2012/08/11,2012/07/06,"nightside, read-2012, urban-fantasy, fantasy","nightside (#11), read-2012 (#27), urban-fantasy (#26), fantasy (#108)","read","The nightside books have always been a fun diversion from the longer and more complex stuff I usually read.<br/><br/> Somehow I missed this when it came out, so I just got to it.<br/><br/> Green has called this the last book ""for now"" and I hope that just means he's taking a break to focus on some other stories.<br/><br/> He seems to be pushing his newer Secret History series, which must overlap with this world. He mentioned the main character several times. I plan to check that out eventually.<br/><br/> I didn't enjoy this one as much as the last, but if this does prove to be the last book, the ending was satisfying enough.<br/><br/> I do hope this isn't the last I hear from John Taylor and his insane friends.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  1295202,"The Unnatural Inquirer (Nightside, #8)","Simon R. Green","Green, Simon R.","",="0441015581",="9780441015580",3,"4.00","Ace Hardcover","Hardcover","246",2008,2007,,2012/07/06,"nightside, read-before-goodreads, urban-fantasy, fantasy","nightside (#10), read-before-goodreads (#90), urban-fantasy (#25), fantasy (#107)","read","","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  8288919,"A Hard Day's Knight (Nightside, #11)","Simon R. Green","Green, Simon R.","",="0441019706",="9780441019700",4,"4.10","Ace Hardcover","Hardcover","294",2011,2010,2011/01/01,2012/07/06,"nightside, read-before-goodreads, urban-fantasy, fantasy","nightside (#9), read-before-goodreads (#24), urban-fantasy (#24), fantasy (#106)","read","Finally finished this a bit ago. Its one of his better ones. Pretty quick read once I got into it. It mixes the usual characters with Arthurian Lore.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  7664041,"Inheritance (The Inheritance Cycle, #4)","Christopher Paolini","Paolini, Christopher","",="0375856110",="9780375856112",2,"4.04","Alfred A. Knopf","Hardcover","849",2011,2011,2012/07/24,2012/07/06,"inheritance-cycle, read-2012, fantasy","inheritance-cycle (#1), read-2012 (#29), fantasy (#74)","read","I finally finished this book. It was very tough to read. If I wasn't already invested in the story and the characters from the previous 3 books, I would never have finished.<br/><br/>Most authors I've read seem to grow in their writing ability and style as they go on. <br/><br/>Paolini doesn't appear to have grown at all. I'm not sure if being so successful at such a young age went to his head or if he never went on to get a formal education in writing techniques or what.<br/><br/>His dialogue is just painful in places. I'm not sure if he's trying to dumb things down to a younger reader level or if he just can't write proper dialogue between adults. The book touches on very adult problems of love and loss. Of war and redemption, but the dialogue feels childish in most places.<br/><br/>I wouldn't recommend this book unless like me you want to see how it ends after already reading the previous books. I also wouldn't recommend this series as a whole to a new reader. There is a lot of better fantasy series out there that you should read instead.<br/><br/>Overall the series could have been much shorter. He goes off on tangents at several points in the 3rd and 4th books that don't seem to move the plot forward. This is often an issue with many fantasy books however. <br/><br/>I find it particularly frustrating here because despite all this extra pointless detail, he seems to leave a lot of things unanswered. I hope he doesn't plan to add a 5th book to the series, and that he simply wanted to leave some things to the reader's imagination. I feel like he could have explained a few things better while still accomplishing that however.<br/><br/>Read on if you want some more specific examples of problems with some light spoilers.<br/><br/><spoiler><br/>1. Roran is sent off to win some battle in place of another commander for a city that seems to have real point to the plot apart from growing Roran's reputation and to allow for him to be promoted to a Commander in the army.<br/><br/>2. There is an over abundance of Dues Ex Machina. In particular Angela showing up and solving huge problems at critical moments. Angela's character is never sufficiently explained as to who she is or how she is able to do what she does. She mostly seems to be a plot device Paolini to write himself out of the corners he puts himself in. Another example is some mystery woman who shows up at a critical moment to save Roran from certain death who presence/background is never touched on.<br/><br/>3. The complaint of Paolini's copying from popular works (LotR, Star Wars) is not a new one. I'd forgiven some/most of it as simply popular themes in fiction/fantasy (ie the poor young being thrust into a grand adventure with the mysterious mentor). But his ending is almost identical to the end of LotR. The battle against the great evil won, the heroes move on.<br/><br/></spoiler>","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  154121,"A Walk on the Nightside (Nightside, #1-3)","Simon R. Green","Green, Simon R.","",="0441014488",="9780441014484",4,"4.23","Ace Trade","Paperback","400",2006,2004,,2012/07/06,"nightside, read-before-goodreads, urban-fantasy, fantasy","nightside (#1), read-before-goodreads (#162), urban-fantasy (#23), fantasy (#105)","read","","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  77523,"Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Harry Potter #1)","J.K. Rowling","Rowling, J.K.","Mary GrandPré",="0590353403",="9780590353403",4,"4.38","Arthur A. Levine Books","Hardcover","309",1998,1997,2012/10/29,2012/07/06,"harry-potter, audio-book, read-2012, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, young-adult, read-2014, not-a-bookclub-club","harry-potter (#1), audio-book (#11), read-2012 (#16), read-before-goodreads (#17), fantasy (#69), young-adult (#8), read-2014 (#95), not-a-bookclub-club (#19)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I've now read this book (not sure how many  times), and listened to both versions of the audio. It's more like a 4.5 than 4, but I don't get 5 lightly. It's the book that started the Harry Potter series and I don't imagine I need to tell anyone how good those books are.<br/><br/><b>Jim Dale Audio Book:</b> This go round I did the audio book version, which was nice for driving to/from work and doing things around the house. I had the Jim Dale version. He's a very good reader. He does descent voices for the various characters.<br/><br/><b>Stephen Fry Audio Book:</b> I wanted to see the difference between the Jim Dale and Stephen Fry versions, but if I'm perfectly honest that's going to be hard as it's been 2 years since I did the Dale versions. I feel like Dale did a better variety of voices, but the Fry version is certainly quite good. I particularly like his voice for Hagrid, but his voice for Snape sounds wrong. That's probably Alan Rickman's fault though and not Stephen Fry.<br/><br/>Jury is still out but after 1 book I have to give it to Dale.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Summary</u></b><br/><br/>I'm not going to bother with a very long review, as this book is very well known at this point. It's been a few years since I last read it (likely as a re-read before book 7). It's a great book for re-reading. The characters are all well developed and the story pulls you and holds on as you adventure along with Harry as he battles bullies at home, at school, on the quidditch pitch before confronting the ultimate bully in Lord Voldemort. <br/><br/>This book introduces the reader to the world of magic and muggles. Of Hogwarts and broomsticks. It's not as good as several of the later books, but it's an excellent kick-off and signs of what is to come are quite apparent.","","","3+","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  136251,"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Harry Potter, #7)","J.K. Rowling","Rowling, J.K.","Mary GrandPré",="0545010225",="9780545010221",4,"4.57","Arthur A. Levine Books","Hardcover","759",2007,2007,2012/12/14,2012/07/06,"harry-potter, audio-book, read-2012, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, young-adult","harry-potter (#2), audio-book (#12), read-2012 (#6), read-before-goodreads (#10), fantasy (#70), young-adult (#9)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This is a really great end to what has truly become and instant classic series. I'm a bit sad my re-visit is over, and plan to do it again next year most likely if I have the time.<br/><br/><b>Audio Book:</b> I really enjoy Jim Dale. I imagine whatever I listen to in the near future will have an incredibly tough time measuring up.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review </u></b><br/>I originally gave this book a 5, but dropped it to a 4. On this re-read I up-rated [b:Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban|5|Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Harry Potter #3)|J.K. Rowling|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1333219419s/5.jpg|2402163] because it was better than I remember. This book didn't quite hold up. It's a high 4 though.<br/><br/>Early on I was definite I wanted to drop it 4, but as I got closer to the end I was less sure. I'm still a little iffy on it. This is really a story of two halves. The first half is slow sometimes to the point of being tedious.<br/><br/>I'm not sure if it was intentional or not. I certainly felt as frustrated as the characters at their lack of progress.<br/><br/>The second half of the book is truly excellent. The first part is what spoils a 5 star for me though. I'm trying to be a bit more frugal with what I give 5 stars to, to give that rating a bit more meaning. Cover to Cover this book just wasn't as enjoyable to me as [b:Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban|5|Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Harry Potter #3)|J.K. Rowling|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1333219419s/5.jpg|2402163] or [b:Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire|6|Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Harry Potter #4)|J.K. Rowling|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327625629s/6.jpg|3046572].<br/><br/>That said, I love this book and I for one am happy with the ending. I have this perception that many(some?) people were upset at the epilogue. I've heard complaints that Ms. Rowling left nothing to the imagination.<br/><br/>In some books that would bother me. For Harry Potter, it does not. I think if I had to imagine what would happen next, the Epilogue is exactly what I'd have wanted.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  759920,"The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay","Michael Chabon","Chabon, Michael","",="1841154938",="9781841154930",2,"4.16","Fourth Estate","Paperback","659",2001,2000,,2012/07/06,"read-before-goodreads","read-before-goodreads (#154)","read","I found the book unnecessarily wordy and hard to read at times, but overall enjoyed the story.<br/><br/>I guess I was expecting a book more about comics, and less about other things, but by the end was attached to the characters and eager to find out how things would end.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  13,"The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy #1-5)","Douglas Adams","Adams, Douglas","",="0345453743",="9780345453747",3,"4.35","Del Rey Books","Paperback","815",2002,1996,,2012/07/06,"read-before-goodreads, science-fiction","read-before-goodreads (#156), science-fiction (#26)","read","hard to review this book, since its really 5 books. I like the first 2 a lot. The last 3 are descent, but it was much harder to get into them. Overall a classic series that I finally got around to reading.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  7132363,"Freedom™ (Daemon, #2)","Daniel Suarez","Suarez, Daniel","",="0525951571",="9780525951575",3,"4.28","Dutton Adult","Hardcover","406",2010,2010,,2012/07/06,"daemon-series, read-before-goodreads, science-fiction","daemon-series (#2), read-before-goodreads (#144), science-fiction (#4)","read","This sequel to Daemon was alright. A lot more action and a lot less plot than its predecessor. It at least resolves all the loose ends that made Daemon feel like an incomplete book. Worth reading if you liked the first one.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  7303819,"Towers of Midnight (Wheel of Time, #13; A Memory of Light, #2)","Robert Jordan","Jordan, Robert","Brandon Sanderson",="184149867X",="9781841498676",4,"4.39","Orbit","Hardcover","843",2010,2009,,2012/07/06,"wheel-of-time, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, epic-fantasy","wheel-of-time (#14), read-before-goodreads (#146), fantasy (#137), epic-fantasy (#31)","read","Like the previous Sanderson book, it moved at a fast pace and was hard to put down. A bit sad I'm now caught up as I'll have to wait along with everyone else now to see how it finishes.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  6316821,"First Lord's Fury (Codex Alera, #6)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="044101769X",="9780441017690",4,"4.36","Ace Hardcover","Hardcover","465",2009,2008,2014/05/04,2012/07/06,"codex-alera, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, audio-book, read-2014","codex-alera (#1), read-before-goodreads (#135), fantasy (#25), audio-book (#105), read-2014 (#44)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A mostly satisfying conclusion to an enjoyable series.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Another enjoyable performance by Kate Reading. She really adds that extra something I hope to get from every audio book performance.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This series is a lot of fun. My main complaint on my first read still holds true on the reread. I just don't care about the Vord. I enjoy the internal politics of the Alerans. I love the differences of the Alerans to the Marat, Canim and Ice Men. <br/><br/>The battles and interactions with those races seems far superior to the stuff with the Vord. The previous 5 books the Vord while important are more of a setting rather than a large player. A looming threat as it were. In this book unfortunately, they feature way too much for my liking. The scenes where the Vord Queen is talking just felt to go on too long.<br/><br/>That said, I ended up enjoying this book more on my reread than I did the first time. As I said, it's a lot of fun. If you're looking for something deep or complex you'll be disappointed. On the other hand if you want some great characters, a pretty cool magic system, and some really excellent action scenes you'll find plenty of that here.<br/><br/>While Tavi is clearly the main protagonist one could also argue that it's just as much Amara's story as well. It's her POV that opens the series and she plays almost as significant a role in the events of the series as Tavi himself. So it's no surprise that she plays an important role here. <br/><br/>In a genre overrun by male characters, it's a nice change of pace. I can't speak to the accuracy of her as a woman, but she's certainly not your stereotypical female character whose only job is to seduce or annoy the male characters. Some of her stories/scenes got a little slow for me in places, but when they were good I was just as excited to get back to her as I was for Tavi.<br/><br/>Overall I think this is a pretty good conclusion to a pretty good series that will probably always be overshadowed by Mr. Butcher's more popular Dresden Files. Most things are wrapped up pretty well, but I'd love to get a sequel book/series where we catch up to how things play out 20 or 50 years down the road.","","","2+","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  6672129,"The Good, the Bad, and the Uncanny (Nightside, #10)","Simon R. Green","Green, Simon R.","",="0441018165",="9780441018161",3,"4.08","Ace Hardcover","Hardcover","275",2010,2010,,2012/07/06,"nightside, read-before-goodreads, urban-fantasy, fantasy","nightside (#2), read-before-goodreads (#134), urban-fantasy (#22), fantasy (#104)","read","book started off pretty slow, but got better by the end. Overall probably not one of the better stories in the series.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  7779059,"Side Jobs: Stories From the Dresden Files (The Dresden Files, #12.5)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="045146365X",="9780451463654",4,"4.20","Roc Hardcover","Hardcover","418",2010,2010,,2012/07/06,"dresden-files, read-before-goodreads, urban-fantasy, fantasy, anthologies-collections","dresden-files (#1), read-before-goodreads (#151), urban-fantasy (#16), fantasy (#15), anthologies-collections (#6)","read","A collection of all (most?) of the Dresden Files short stories thus far, including one brand new one taking place right after Changes.<br/><br/>Overall the stories are pretty good, the new story being the best of the lot. In general I favored the stories involving the alphas.<br/><br/>Since I only own/read one of the short stories before, this was a good pickup for me. I'd recommend it to anyone who enjoys the series.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  3613997,"The Associate","John Grisham","Grisham, John","",="0385517831",="9780385517836",3,"3.61","Doubleday","Hardcover","373",2009,2009,,2012/07/06,"grisham-laywer-books, read-before-goodreads, thriller","grisham-laywer-books (#1), read-before-goodreads (#150), thriller (#18)","read","","","","","","",0,,,,,
  2915837,"A Kiss Before the Apocalypse (Remy Chandler, #1)","Thomas E. Sniegoski","Sniegoski, Thomas E.","",="045146205X",="9780451462053",3,"3.59","Roc Trade","Mass Market Paperback","290",2008,2008,,2012/07/06,"remy-chandler, read-before-goodreads, urban-fantasy, fantasy","remy-chandler (#1), read-before-goodreads (#126), urban-fantasy (#27), fantasy (#109)","read","Overall I liked this book. The concept of an Angels living among us and battles of good and evil, has always interested me. If you're not, I can see this book not being very appealing.<br/><br/>I think the characters are well developed. In particular I like the interaction between Remy and his dog Marlowe.<br/><br/>I plan to pick up the second novel at some point.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  3697357,"Just Another Judgement Day (Nightside, # 9)","Simon R. Green","Green, Simon R.","",="044101674X",="9780441016747",3,"4.11","Ace Hardcover","Hardcover","272",2009,2008,,2012/07/06,"nightside, read-before-goodreads, urban-fantasy, fantasy","nightside (#8), read-before-goodreads (#137), urban-fantasy (#21), fantasy (#103)","read","Another descent book in the series. As usual it's not very long, making it a quick read. Not his best by far, but I still found it enjoyable. <br/><br/>You do meet some new and interesting characters as well as some of the favorites (Susy, Eddie, Walker). You also find out more about the new Authorities. Worth reading if you are already a fan of the series.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  3475145,"Mean Streets (Remy Chandler, #1.5; Greywalker, #3.5; Nightside, #9.5; The Dresden Files, #10.5)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","Simon R. Green, Kat Richardson, Thomas E. Sniegoski",="0451462491",="9780451462497",4,"3.98","Roc Trade","Paperback","368",2009,2009,,2012/07/06,"dresden-files, remy-chandler, nightside, read-before-goodreads, urban-fantasy, fantasy","dresden-files (#2), remy-chandler (#2), nightside (#3), read-before-goodreads (#141), urban-fantasy (#15), fantasy (#13)","read","I picked up this book because I already read the Dresden Files, and Nightside books.<br/><br/>I enjoyed all 4 stories. <br/><br/>Unsurprisingly, since Jim Butcher is currently my favorite author,  I enjoyed the Dresden tale the most. This is especially true after reading Turncoat *mini-spoiler alert* and being disappointed there was nothing with Micheal or the swords.<br/><br/>The nightside story was my least favorite of the four, but I always enjoy when Dead Boy makes an appearance.<br/><br/>I had never read any of Kat Richardson's Greywalker books, but I enjoyed the short story in here such that I may take a look at the series.<br/><br/>I found the story about Remy Chandler very interesting. Having been a fan of the movie Prophecy with Christopher Walken, as well as Constantine (the movie not the comics), I've been intrigued by fiction based around the war of the angels. I plan to check out this series next.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  8250850,"Forever Odd (Odd Thomas, #2)","Dean Koontz","Koontz, Dean","",="1415924929",="9781415924921",3,"3.96","Books on Tape","Audio CD","",2005,2005,,2012/07/06,"odd-thomas, audio-book, read-before-goodreads, horror, thriller","odd-thomas (#1), audio-book (#29), read-before-goodreads (#130), horror (#7), thriller (#22)","read","I did the audio book. It wasn't as good as the first one, but still enjoyable.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  2903736,"Princeps' Fury (Codex Alera, #5)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="0441016383",="9780441016389",4,"4.34","Ace Hardcover","Hardcover","386",2008,2005,2014/04/28,2012/07/06,"codex-alera, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, audio-book, read-2014","codex-alera (#2), read-before-goodreads (#128), fantasy (#24), audio-book (#104), read-2014 (#43)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Princep’s fury was more enjoyable than I remember. Like it’s predecessors, it’s a blend of war, politics, romance, humor and magic that makes for a fun read.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Kate Reading once again does gives an enjoyable reading. I’m pretty much repeating what I’ve said for the last 4 books. She’s becoming one of my favorite readers now.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>My recollection was this book was a step down after [b:Captain's Fury|346087|Captain's Fury (Codex Alera, #4)|Jim Butcher|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1315083292s/346087.jpg|6614434]. However I find myself changing my mind on this reread. Unlike that book all of the subplots in this book greatly interested me. <br/><br/>There was no slowdown in the middle and this might be the only book where anyone’s story was more interesting to me than Tavi’s. I think this series shines best when dealing with internal politics of the Alerans followed closely by the interactions with the Canim. <br/><br/>This series has large amounts of both. We learn a lot more about the Alerans, and see that people can be just as petty towards their fellow man under even the most dire of circumstances.<br/><br/>My least favorite parts have to do with the Vord, but in this book they are still mostly relegated to the setting. In other words they are a looming threat hanging over everything and impacting the interactions between the characters, while not really being on screen all that much.<br/><br/>Tavi still has to rely on his ingenuity more than his personal strength to overcome most obstacles which I think is what makes him such a likable character to me. The interplay between him and Max and Kitai are always my favorite scenes.<br/><br/>Overall a pretty fun book, although compared to [b:Captain's Fury|346087|Captain's Fury (Codex Alera, #4)|Jim Butcher|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1315083292s/346087.jpg|6614434], this ends on a pretty bad cliffhanger such that I jumped right into [b:First Lord's Fury|6316821|First Lord's Fury (Codex Alera, #6)|Jim Butcher|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1327903582s/6316821.jpg|6502096] immediately.","","","2","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  3475161,"Turn Coat (The Dresden Files, #11)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="0451462564",="9780451462565",4,"4.43","Roc Hardcover","Hardcover","420",2009,2009,2013/07/22,2012/07/06,"dresden-files, read-before-goodreads, read-2013, audio-book, urban-fantasy, fantasy","dresden-files (#3), read-before-goodreads (#139), read-2013 (#54), audio-book (#51), urban-fantasy (#2), fantasy (#14)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> While this one is a bit slow in parts it sets the stage nicely for what currently stands as the best book in the series ([b:Changes|6585201|Changes (The Dresden Files, #12)|Jim Butcher|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1304027244s/6585201.jpg|6778696]).<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> James Marsters is terrible in this one. Just Kidding. Still great! Highlights for this are his voice for the big baddie and I think he changed/gave TootToot a distinct voice that is both hilarious and AWESOME.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/><br/><i>""I love being a wizard. Every day is like Disneyland.""</i><br/><br/>Murder. Conspiracy. Evil. You know, politics. Just think about how bad the US Congress would be if those lifetime Congressman lived for centuries. Oh and could do magic. Welcome to the White Council.<br/><br/>Donald Morgan is being pursued for the murder of a Senior Council member, and he comes to Harry seeking help. What!?<br/><br/>Yeah, you read that right. The man who spent the better part of two decades trying to find a reason to kill Harry Dresden for being a Warlock is coming to him for help.<br/><br/>The premise of this book is probably one of my favorites. We learn more about the White Council, including getting a look inside their headquarters.<br/><br/>We are also introduced to a brand new baddie, called a Skinwalker, and let's just say it's nasty.<br/><br/>The book is a bit slow in parts, and Morgan is still not a very likable character. He was getting on my nerves as much as he was Harry.<br/><br/>It's also missing many of the best supporting characters that were present in the last book. We do however finally see a return of Billy and the Alphas. I'm trying to remember the last book he showed up in, and it seems like it's been awhile.<br/><br/>The end of this is pretty excellent too, with some pretty big implications that sets the stage for [b:Changes|6585201|Changes (The Dresden Files, #12)|Jim Butcher|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1304027244s/6585201.jpg|6778696].<br/><br/>All and all, another solid entry in the Dresden Universe.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  4699575,"Daemon (Daemon, #1)","Daniel Suarez","Suarez, Daniel","",="0525951113",="9780525951117",4,"4.19","Dutton Adult","Hardcover","432",2009,2006,,2012/07/06,"daemon-series, read-before-goodreads, science-fiction","daemon-series (#1), read-before-goodreads (#136), science-fiction (#3)","read","It started off fairly plausible, but by the end had jumped off the deep end. Still it was a fairly enjoyable ride along the way. I'm a little disappointed with the ending. It left me feeling like the book was incomplete. Not so much a cliffhanger to get you wanting the next book, just sort of no real ending. Worth a read if you like tech fiction. I plan to read the sequel. Hopefully that will wrap up what missing from this book.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  6130322,"The Angel's Game","Carlos Ruiz Zafón","Zafón, Carlos Ruiz","",="0385667639",="9780385667630",0,"3.79","Doubleday Canada","Hardcover","531",2009,2008,,2012/07/06,"to-read","to-read (#48)","to-read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  91475,"White Night (The Dresden Files, #9)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="0451461401",="9780451461407",5,"4.40","Roc Hardcover","Hardcover","416",2007,2007,2013/07/08,2012/07/06,"dresden-files, favorites, read-before-goodreads, audio-book, read-2013, urban-fantasy, fantasy","dresden-files (#13), favorites (#11), read-before-goodreads (#120), audio-book (#47), read-2013 (#50), urban-fantasy (#4), fantasy (#11)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This is one of three books from the Dresden Files series I've given 5 stars to, and if you follow my reviews, you know that's something I try not to do lightly. I really enjoy it start to finish.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I could just copy paste this section from book to book. James Marsters is great. If you've been reading my previous reviews or listening to this series yourself you know that. Highlights in this book include him actually yelling during one scene and this crazy french accent.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>So I finally arrived to what was for years my favorite Dresden book. I'm still not quite sure, but I think [b:Changes|6585201|Changes (The Dresden Files, #12)|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1304027244s/6585201.jpg|6778696] edges this out for best in the series.<br/><br/>This is the book that turned me into a herald for [a:Jim Butcher|10746|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1205261964p2/10746.jpg]. I couldn't shut up about this series for awhile. I would tell anyone who would listen they should read this series. (NOTE: This happened a second time after [b:Cold Days|12216302|Cold Days (The Dresden Files, #14)|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345145377s/12216302.jpg|17189468] last year.)<br/><br/>Now this isn't a life changing book or something. It just one of those books I have trouble putting down. Page-turning fun. In fact I spent at least 2 hours doing nothing else but listening to the ending. Normally I'm driving, riding my bike, running errands or doing stuff around the house. I ran out of stuff to do to keep listening, so I just sat in my easy chair and finished it.<br/><br/>Gone is the stranger coming to Harry's office. Gone is the introduction to some new characters/aspects of Harry's world. Mr. Butcher simply takes all the building blocks he established in the previous books to tell a really fun story, with a truly awesome ending.<br/><br/>I'm probably overselling this book. Only one of my friends I've since recommended this to seems to love this book as much as I do, and he stubbornly refuses to admit [b:Changes|6585201|Changes (The Dresden Files, #12)|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1304027244s/6585201.jpg|6778696] is a better book. Still, if you don't thoroughly enjoy this book, why are you still reading this series?<br/><br/>Murphy calls Dresden to check out a crime scene off the books. A woman is dead. It turns out a lot of them are. They appear to have committed suicide, but something just seems off.<br/><br/>If you know this series, you know if there is one thing that turns Harry Dresden from well reason detective to charge in first ask questions later neanderthal, it's when someone is hurting women. Especially in his town.<br/><br/>Harry is going to do whatever it takes to put a stop to it, even if it kills him. <br/><br/>We finally get to see Harry be a true badass in this book. There have been glimmers before, but nothing quite like this. With my vague memory of the next few books, it's something we won't quite see again until [b:Changes|6585201|Changes (The Dresden Files, #12)|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1304027244s/6585201.jpg|6778696] either.<br/><br/>This book shows that both Harry Dresden and Jim Butcher have both matured into something more then when they started.","","","3+","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  1393280,"Eragon (The Inheritance Cycle, #1)","Christopher Paolini","Paolini, Christopher","",="0552553204",="9780552553209",3,"3.78","Corgi Books","Paperback","517",2005,2002,,2012/07/06,"inheritance-cycle, read-before-goodreads, fantasy","inheritance-cycle (#3), read-before-goodreads (#119), fantasy (#72)","read","When I first read this I really liked it. With the third book out, I decided to re-read. I didn't like it as much the second time. <br/><br/>The overall story is descent, but the dialogue is pretty terrible. Yes, I know it was written by a 15 year old, but that doesn't make the dialogue any less painful. <br/><br/>Worth borrowing from a friend/library and reading once.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  2248573,"Brisingr  (The Inheritance Cycle, #3)","Christopher Paolini","Paolini, Christopher","",="0375826726",="9780375826726",2,"3.99","Alfred A. Knopf","Hardcover","748",2008,2008,,2012/07/06,"inheritance-cycle, read-before-goodreads, fantasy","inheritance-cycle (#4), read-before-goodreads (#116), fantasy (#73)","read","I was pretty disappointed with this book. It was rather long, and not much happened. I plan to read the last book, but mostly because I'm so invested at this point having read the first 3, and I'd like to see how he ends things at least.<br/><br/>I found it interesting that this book was longer before editing, because I think it could have easily been half as long as there was so much useless fluff.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  1166599,"The Gathering Storm (Wheel of Time, #12)","Robert Jordan","Jordan, Robert","Brandon Sanderson",="0765302306",="9780765302304",5,"4.30","Tor Books","Hardcover","783",2009,2009,2011/01/01,2012/07/06,"wheel-of-time, favorites, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, epic-fantasy","wheel-of-time (#13), favorites (#3), read-before-goodreads (#23), fantasy (#136), epic-fantasy (#30)","read","This might be my favorite book in the series so far. It's hard to say because its hard to remember the early part of the series that got me so hooked. Sanderson does a good job in staying true to the characters that Jordan created, but did so in such a way that it was nearly impossible for me to put down.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  2009462,"The Appeal","John Grisham","Grisham, John","Michael Beck",="0739316532",="9780739316535",3,"3.55","Random House Audio","Audio CD","0",2008,2002,,2012/07/06,"grisham-laywer-books, audio-book, read-before-goodreads, thriller","grisham-laywer-books (#17), audio-book (#24), read-before-goodreads (#121), thriller (#17)","read","I got this one on audio book for a trip. It runs 12.5 hours unabrigded. The book itself was standard grisham. Interesting story, though not his best. The audio book was good. The reader was enjoyable.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  2637138,"Welcome to the Jungle (The Dresden Files, #0.5)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","Ardian Syaf",="0345507460",="9780345507464",3,"4.03","Del Rey/Dabel Brothers","Graphic Novel","168",2008,2008,,2012/07/06,"dresden-files, read-before-goodreads, urban-fantasy, fantasy","dresden-files (#14), read-before-goodreads (#131), urban-fantasy (#14), fantasy (#12)","read","Being a graphic novel, its a quick read. The artwork is well done. The store was a decent one. It does not offer a lot of depth or insight into Harry, but is enjoyable none the less. I would recommend to anyone who is a fan of the series.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  1177118,"A Time to Kill","John Grisham","Grisham, John","",="0922066035",="9780922066032",4,"3.96","Wynwood","Hardcover","425",1989,1989,,2012/07/06,"grisham-laywer-books, read-before-goodreads, thriller","grisham-laywer-books (#16), read-before-goodreads (#122), thriller (#16)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  1454116,"The Stand","Stephen King","King, Stephen","",="0340951443",="9780340951446",4,"4.31","Hodder","Paperback","1327",2007,1978,,2012/07/06,"dark-tower-tie-in, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, dark-fantasy, horror","dark-tower-tie-in (#11), read-before-goodreads (#132), fantasy (#37), dark-fantasy (#2), horror (#1)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  611265,"The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes, Volume 1","Arthur Conan Doyle","Doyle, Arthur Conan","",="9626344652",="9789626344651",3,"3.96","Naxos Audiobooks","Audio CD","0",2007,1989,,2012/07/06,"sherlock-holmes, audio-book, read-before-goodreads","sherlock-holmes (#2), audio-book (#20), read-before-goodreads (#108)","read","I haven't read any of these books so I can't compare them to the other stories. The ones in this collection were alright, but nothing great.<br/> <br/>I got this in audio book, and really it was less an audiobook and more of a radio dramatization by the BBC. I found it pretty well done.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  843482,"From a Buick 8","Stephen King","King, Stephen","James Rebhorn, Bruce Davison, Betty Ann Baker, Peter Gerety, Stephen Tobolowsky, Fred Sanders",="0743520963",="9780743520966",3,"3.36","Simon & Schuster Audio","Audio CD","5",2002,2002,,2012/07/06,"dark-tower-tie-in, read-before-goodreads, horror","dark-tower-tie-in (#10), read-before-goodreads (#106), horror (#5)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  1001556,"The Firm","John Grisham","Grisham, John","",="0385416342",="9780385416344",4,"3.92","Doubleday","Hardcover","421",1991,1991,,2012/07/06,"grisham-laywer-books, read-before-goodreads, thriller","grisham-laywer-books (#15), read-before-goodreads (#124), thriller (#15)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  927979,"Small Favor (The Dresden Files, #10)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="0451461894",="9780451461896",4,"4.43","Roc","Hardcover","420",2008,2008,2013/07/15,2012/07/06,"dresden-files, read-before-goodreads, read-2013, audio-book, urban-fantasy, fantasy","dresden-files (#12), read-before-goodreads (#125), read-2013 (#52), audio-book (#50), urban-fantasy (#3), fantasy (#10)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Another great entry in the series. Instead of running on too long and rehashing old ideas, Mr. Butcher keeps ratcheting things up and making you want more.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> James Marsters? Check. Awesome reading? Check. He has me dreading [b:Ghost Story|8058301|Ghost Story (The Dresden Files,  #13)|Jim Butcher|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1329104700s/8058301.jpg|12731936], because I know he won't be reading it. I really can't imagine anyone else doing this series justice.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This one is even better than I remember, but still not quite as enjoyable for me as [b:White Night|91475|White Night (The Dresden Files, #9)|Jim Butcher|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1309552288s/91475.jpg|1254936] is. I'm not really sure why either.<br/><br/>It's got a lot of my favorite supporting characters like the Knights of the Cross, Kincaid and the Archive as well as the regulars (Murphy, Thomas, Molly). It's got a return of some of the series best villains too.<br/><br/>Not to mention the general premise: Mab shows up to collect on a favor (hence the title). But of course the title is ironic, because the favor she wants is for him to be the emissary for Winter and to help ""Gentleman"" Johnny Marcone.<br/><br/>You can bet Dresden is just thrilled at the prospect, and eagerly agrees. Or maybe she has to twist his arm a little..<br/><br/>I had forgotten about some of the more important details of this book. It really made for a pleasurable rereading. This isn't Malazan or anything, but I was surprised to see some of the setup and foreshadowing taking place here that I missed the first go round.<br/><br/>This book also put an idea into my head that Mr. Butcher has been taunting us all with ever since. <spoiler>Murphy taking up Fidelacchius.</spoiler><br/><br/>The level of action is a little down from last one. Maybe that's why it's not quite a 5 star for me (that and I'm stingy), but it's a very high 4 stars.","","","2+","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  828287,"The Last Legends of Earth (Radix, #4)","A.A. Attanasio","Attanasio, A.A.","",="0385263937",="9780385263931",0,"4.24","Broadway Books","Paperback","496",1989,1989,,2012/07/06,"to-read","to-read (#52)","to-read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  608474,"The Sign of Four (Sherlock Holmes, #2)","Arthur Conan Doyle","Doyle, Arthur Conan","Peter Ackroyd, Ed Glinert",="0140439072",="9780140439076",3,"3.95","Penguin Classics","Paperback","129",2001,1890,,2012/07/06,"sherlock-holmes, audio-book, read-before-goodreads","sherlock-holmes (#1), audio-book (#19), read-before-goodreads (#109)","read","did the bbc radio version of this. It was a descent story. The production quality is great. The actors were very good.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  832623,"The Rainmaker","John Grisham","Grisham, John","",="009917961X",="9780099179610",4,"3.85","Arrow","Paperback","568",1996,1995,,2012/07/06,"grisham-laywer-books, read-before-goodreads, thriller","grisham-laywer-books (#14), read-before-goodreads (#107), thriller (#14)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  985873,"A Game of Thrones (A Song of Ice and Fire, #1)","George R.R. Martin","Martin, George R.R.","",="0553381687",="9780553381689",5,"4.44","Bantam Books","Paperback","807",2002,1996,,2012/07/06,"song-of-ice-and-fire, favorites, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, epic-fantasy, dark-fantasy","song-of-ice-and-fire (#1), favorites (#10), read-before-goodreads (#103), fantasy (#115), epic-fantasy (#11), dark-fantasy (#24)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  2521697,"Children of the Mind (Ender's Saga, #4)","Orson Scott Card","Card, Orson Scott","",="0792740238",="9780792740230",3,"3.70","BBC Audiobooks","Audio CD","11",2006,1996,,2012/07/06,"enders-game, audio-book, read-before-goodreads, science-fiction","enders-game (#1), audio-book (#15), read-before-goodreads (#113), science-fiction (#34)","read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  504430,"Cursor's Fury (Codex Alera, #3)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="0441015476",="9780441015474",5,"4.35","Ace","Mass Market Paperback","536",2007,2006,2014/04/13,2012/07/06,"codex-alera, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, audio-book, read-2014, favorites","codex-alera (#6), read-before-goodreads (#115), fantasy (#23), audio-book (#101), read-2014 (#37), favorites (#22)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> To me this is where the series really starts to shine. Mr. Butcher established the world and the key players in the last 2 books, and now he gets down the business of telling the story.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I didn't like Ms. Reading too much at the start. Her male voices bothered me. By this book however, I couldn't imagine anyone else reading this. There is a scene where random legionaries are calling out and Ms. Reading does different voices for all of them. <br/><br/>I think she's also flushed out the voices she uses for all the main and secondary characters to really add that extra something that not all audio books readers seem to manage.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I was both a bit eager and nervous for this re-read. This is only of only a handful of books that I've given 5 stars to and on my favorites shelf. My memory of it seems to have held up pretty well however.<br/><br/>This book seems feels far less trope heavy to me as the last two. You still have your chosen one story, but I was just so wrapped up in the awesomeness of it all that I just didn't spend any thinking about it.<br/><br/>The first half of this book, but the second half is even better. Unlike the last book where I somewhat dreaded any chapter that took us away from the main story, the secondary stories in this book are much more interesting. Adding a lot of depth to the politics of the world and many of the secondary characters.<br/><br/>For a book that focuses mostly on a newly formed legion, there seems to actually be less time spent on battles, which may be a plus or minus for you depending on how much you enjoy reading them. Personally I think he strikes the balance just right and Tavi really shines in this book as a result.<br/><br/>No one is going to accuse this of being some deep, complex series full of numerous unexpected twists and turns. However while some of it pretty predictable, I think Mr. Butcher does manage a few surprises amid the more expected plot developments. But honestly, who cares? I was having far too much fun listening this book to spend much of the review getting into that.<br/><br/>Part adventure, part political thriller, part war novel with a decent amount of romance thrown in, there is a likely something for everyone here. I for one had trouble stopping for the day by the end and had to jump right into the next book.","","","2+","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  559298,"Everything's Eventual: 14 Dark Tales","Stephen King","King, Stephen","",="0743457358",="9780743457354",0,"3.88","Pocket Books","Paperback","596",2003,2002,,2012/07/06,"to-read, dark-tower-tie-in","to-read (#53), dark-tower-tie-in (#9)","to-read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  899044,"Xenocide (Ender's Saga, #3)","Orson Scott Card","Card, Orson Scott","Scott Brick, Gabrielle DeCuir, Amanda Karr, John Rubinstein, Stefan Rudnicki",="1593974787",="9781593974787",2,"3.73","Macmillan Audio","Audio CD","18",2006,1991,,2012/07/06,"enders-game, audio-book, read-before-goodreads, science-fiction","enders-game (#8), audio-book (#16), read-before-goodreads (#112), science-fiction (#35)","read","This was the first book that I've gotten on audiobook. I'm not sure if there are multiple versions, but I got the bbc one. It was well done. There were multiple voice readers, one for each of the major parts.<br/><br/>To the book. I thought this was a descent book, though I still think Ender's game is the best in the series. There are some twists and turns, but its very long in parts. I think it would have been much harder to read than listen to.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  513625,"Timeline","Michael Crichton","Crichton, Michael","",="0345417623",="9780345417626",4,"3.77","Ballantine Books","Paperback","496",1999,1999,,2012/07/06,"read-before-goodreads, science-fiction","read-before-goodreads (#114), science-fiction (#22)","read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  1081372,"Wizard and Glass (The Dark Tower, #4)","Stephen King","King, Stephen","Dave McKean",="0452279178",="9780452279179",5,"4.22","Plume","Paperback","672",1997,1997,2013/02/28,2012/07/06,"dark-tower, favorites, audio-book, read-2013, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, dark-fantasy","dark-tower (#8), favorites (#2), audio-book (#1), read-2013 (#19), read-before-goodreads (#6), fantasy (#45), dark-fantasy (#9)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This book to me is by far the best in the series. It's the reason I love the Dark Tower. I've read it more times than I can remember, and I highly recommend it.<br/><br/><b>Audio Book:</b> Another quality reading from Frank Muller. I've gotten used to him the last 3 books, and now I'm sorry this was his last.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>When I first was recommended the Dark Tower I was in high school. This was the most recent book. When I got to it's end I wanted more. There was no more to be had.<br/><br/>You could almost read this stand alone if you skip the parts at the beginning and end  as most of it is a flashback. I was shocked when I read some people consider this the worst book in the series. I consider it the best, by far. <br/><br/>Maybe it's because of when I read it. Or how many times. In fact this is the first time I've read it since the final 3 books came out. I had started it a few times since, but never got around to finish it.<br/><br/>This book was a staple of my end table in the living room. It basically became a platform for my remote controls. When I moved into my house in 2008 it got boxed up separately from my other books and along with my living room stuff, and ended right back up on my end table.<br/><br/>I finally put it back on the shelf sometime last year, but it still feels odd to not see it there. I worried this book wouldn't stand up to my teen-aged notions of what is good. I had no reason to worry. I love this book just as much now as I did then.<br/><br/>So this is a book review, maybe I should say something about the content of the book, rather than rambling on? Sure. Why not?<br/><br/>[b:The Waste Lands|34084|The Waste Lands (The Dark Tower, #3)|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1309202885s/34084.jpg|1810634] leaves off on one hell of a cliffhanger. The worst by far of any of the books. I feel bad for anyone who had to wait for this book. This book wraps that up in pretty short order.<br/><br/>The bulk of this book is a flashback to Roland's childhood. It picks up right where things left off in [b:The Gunslinger|43615|The Gunslinger (The Dark Tower, #1)|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1309288354s/43615.jpg|46575].<br/><br/>The stories of Roland's childhood fascinate me. Maybe because the world was still in the early parts of ""Moving On"". Maybe its because Roland's so young and hasn't experienced all the trials and tribulations to come.<br/><br/>Maybe it's because in some ways I like his Original Ka-Tet better than his current one. Or at least Cuthbert. I could read a whole spin-off about Culthbert Allgood.<br/><br/>This book has by far the best action sequences in the whole series, including this amazing stand-off with a rival ka-tet. <br/><br/>By the last week or so I didn't want to stop listening. I started bring the book in the house with me and finding excuses to listen to it, including in the morning while I was getting read for work. <br/><br/>I could probably turn around and start listening to it again, but I have to continue on my journey towards the Dark Tower with [b:Wolves of the Calla|4978|Wolves of the Calla (The Dark Tower, #5)|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348608372s/4978.jpg|2754911]. I've probably hyped it to an ideal it can't live up to, but it should come close.<br/><br/>If you actually made it this far in my gushing pretending to be a book review I Say Thankee Sai.","","","lost count.","People who are awesome! Cuz this book is Awesome.","Kristopher Kingston",2,,,"unspecified",,
  342445,"The Dark Tower, Volume 1: The Gunslinger Born","Robin Furth","Furth, Robin","Peter David, Jae Lee, Richard Isanove, Stephen King",="0785121447",="9780785121442",0,"4.11","Marvel Comics","Hardcover","240",2007,2007,,2012/07/06,"to-read, dark-tower, fantasy, dark-fantasy","to-read (#51), dark-tower (#7), fantasy (#44), dark-fantasy (#8)","to-read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  359820,"The Dragon Reborn (Wheel of Time, #3)","Robert Jordan","Jordan, Robert","",="0812513711",="9780812513714",5,"4.20","Tor Fantasy","Mass Market Paperback","699",1992,1991,2010/01/01,2012/07/06,"wheel-of-time, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, epic-fantasy","wheel-of-time (#4), read-before-goodreads (#20), fantasy (#135), epic-fantasy (#29)","read","This is my favorite book in the series so far. The 2nd book left off with so many unanswered questions and so I jumped right into this one, and found it hard to put down. <br/><br/>I've already jumped right into book 4.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  346087,"Captain's Fury (Codex Alera, #4)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="0441015271",="9780441015276",4,"4.37","Ace Hardcover","Hardcover","451",2007,2007,2014/04/19,2012/07/06,"codex-alera, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, read-2014","codex-alera (#5), read-before-goodreads (#100), fantasy (#22), read-2014 (#40)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> While this one didn't live up to my memory of it, it's still a really fun read with a lot to like.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> At this point, I'm used to Kate Reading as a reader and can't imagine anyone else doing it.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I originally maintained my 5 star rating after finishing my reread, but I think if I'm honest and rate it how I would if I were reading it for the first time, it would be a solid 4 star. This book starts and ends really well, but slows down in the middle some. <br/><br/>Like the first two books, some of the subplots just move too slow and left me wanting to get back to Tavi's story. In particular Amara's story really dragged for me here. I felt the tedium of her journey a little too much for my liking.<br/><br/>The start of this book mostly picks up right where Cursor's Fury leaves off (albeit a few years have passed) with Tavi and the First Aleran fighting the Canim. <br/><br/>Mr. Butcher does war well, and I think of all the antagonists of the series, the Canim are by far my favorite. They remind me a bit of Klingons. They really fit the proud warrior trope merged with wolfpack mentality to create a fun and interesting race.<br/><br/>The politics are ramped up in this one along with the stakes. Alera is at war on two fronts, and something has to give. The senator and his ""bodyguards"" remind me of everything I hate about politicians, so Mr. Butcher did a good job on that front I think.<br/><br/>The dialogue and the humor are great once again. Mr. Butcher always writes an excellent climax and this one is no different.<br/><br/>While there is still a lot yet to resolve, this one ends in a nice place that allowed me to take a short break and read another book.","","","2+","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  296740,"Rose Madder","Stephen King","King, Stephen","",="0451186362",="9780451186362",0,"3.58","Signet","Mass Market Paperback","479",1996,1995,,2012/07/06,"to-read, dark-tower-tie-in","to-read (#59), dark-tower-tie-in (#8)","to-read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  306150,"The Inferno","Dante Alighieri","Alighieri, Dante","John Ciardi, Archibald T. MacAllister",="0451527984",="9780451527981",3,"3.96","Signet Classics","Paperback","288",2001,1314,,2012/07/06,"read-before-goodreads","read-before-goodreads (#99)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  279583,"The Well of Eternity (WarCraft: War of the Ancients, #1)","Richard A. Knaak","Knaak, Richard A.","",="",="9780743471190",3,"3.94","Pocket Star","Paperback","384",2004,2004,,2012/07/06,"warcraft, read-before-goodreads, fantasy","warcraft (#2), read-before-goodreads (#97), fantasy (#141)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  375802,"Ender's Game (The Ender Quintet, #1)","Orson Scott Card","Card, Orson Scott","",="0812550706",="9780812550702",5,"4.28","Tor Science Fiction","Paperback","324",1994,1985,,2012/07/06,"enders-game, favorites, read-before-goodreads, science-fiction","enders-game (#7), favorites (#6), read-before-goodreads (#104), science-fiction (#33)","read","I decided to re-read this after reading Ender's Shadow to fill in some details I had forgotten. I enjoyed this more the second time.<br/><br/>I wish I had read this book as a child instead of finding it as an adult. This book extends beyond science fiction into a story about the struggles one can face while growing up. If you haven't read this one yet, you should.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  279562,"The Sundering (WarCraft: War of the Ancients, #3)","Richard A. Knaak","Knaak, Richard A.","",="0743471210",="9780743471213",3,"4.09","Pocket Star","Paperback","384",2005,2005,,2012/07/06,"warcraft, fantasy","warcraft (#1), fantasy (#140)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  239100,"Digital Fortress","Dan Brown","Brown, Dan","",="0312995423",="9780312995423",2,"3.52","St. Martin's Paperbacks","Paperback","431",2004,1998,,2012/07/06,"science-fiction","science-fiction (#27)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  228665,"The Eye of the World (Wheel of Time, #1)","Robert Jordan","Jordan, Robert","",="0812511816",="9780812511819",5,"4.15","Tor Books","Mass Market Paperback","800",1990,1990,2010/01/01,2012/07/06,"wheel-of-time, favorites, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, epic-fantasy","wheel-of-time (#2), favorites (#4), read-before-goodreads (#21), fantasy (#133), epic-fantasy (#27)","read","This book/series has been on my to read list for nearly 10 years. This book was a quick read for me, especially after the last two books I read. <br/><br/>Jordan introduces a large world with many well developed and interesting characters. <br/><br/>I'm looking forward to the next book in the series.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  234724,"Shadow Puppets (Ender's Shadow, #3)","Orson Scott Card","Card, Orson Scott","",="0765340054",="9780765340054",4,"3.85","Tor Books","Paperback","375",2003,2002,,2012/07/06,"enders-game, read-before-goodreads, science-fiction","enders-game (#6), read-before-goodreads (#94), science-fiction (#32)","read","Another good book in the Ender's Shadow series. This book picks up where shadow of the hedgemon left off. My only complaint is that Card seems a bit more preachy/judgmental in this book compared to his relative neutrality of his previous ender books.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  279545,"The Demon Soul (WarCraft: War of the Ancients, #2)","Richard A. Knaak","Knaak, Richard A.","",="0743471202",="9780743471206",3,"4.00","Pocket Star","Mass Market Paperback","384",2004,2004,,2012/07/06,"warcraft, read-before-goodreads, fantasy","warcraft (#3), read-before-goodreads (#95), fantasy (#139)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  233649,"The Great Hunt (Wheel of Time, #2)","Robert Jordan","Jordan, Robert","",="0812517725",="9780812517729",4,"4.17","Tor Fantasy","Mass Market Paperback","705",1991,1990,,2012/07/06,"wheel-of-time, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, epic-fantasy","wheel-of-time (#3), read-before-goodreads (#93), fantasy (#134), epic-fantasy (#28)","read","It took me a bit to get into this book. I'm not sure if its because I read a book from a different series between books 1 and 2, or simply that it starts slow. <br/><br/>Once I got into it however, it was hard to put down. <br/><br/>The ending was such that I'm glad to have book 3 already, and I started reading it promptly after completing book 2.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  228134,"Hearts in Atlantis","Stephen King","King, Stephen","",="0671024248",="9780671024246",3,"3.75","Pocket Books","Paperback","688",2000,1999,,2012/07/06,"dark-tower-tie-in, read-before-goodreads","dark-tower-tie-in (#6), read-before-goodreads (#89)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  228014,"The Pelican Brief","John Grisham","Grisham, John","",="0099382911",="9780099382911",3,"3.89","Arrow","Paperback","400",1994,1992,,2012/07/06,"grisham-laywer-books, read-before-goodreads, thriller","grisham-laywer-books (#13), read-before-goodreads (#88), thriller (#13)","read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  231603,"Insomnia","Stephen King","King, Stephen","",="0451184963",="9780451184962",3,"3.74","Signet","Mass Market Paperback","663",1995,1994,,2012/07/06,"dark-tower-tie-in, read-before-goodreads, horror","dark-tower-tie-in (#7), read-before-goodreads (#92), horror (#4)","read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  140974,"The Path of Daggers (Wheel of Time, #8)","Robert Jordan","Jordan, Robert","",="0812550293",="9780812550290",3,"3.86","Tor Books","Mass Market Paperback","685",1999,1998,,2012/07/06,"wheel-of-time, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, epic-fantasy","wheel-of-time (#9), read-before-goodreads (#84), fantasy (#130), epic-fantasy (#24)","read","I read most of this waiting in airports/on a plane, so it moved pretty quick due to lack of options. Once I got home the rest of it went kind of slow. Overall an OK book with some interesting parts.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  154091,"Mona Lisa Overdrive (Sprawl, #3)","William Gibson","Gibson, William","",="0553281747",="9780553281743",0,"3.92","Bantam Spectra","Mass Market Paperback","308",1989,1988,,2012/07/06,"to-read, sprawl, cyberpunk, science-fiction, next-in-series","to-read (#30), sprawl (#3), cyberpunk (#6), science-fiction (#39), next-in-series (#1)","to-read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  133664,"Academ's Fury (Codex Alera, #2)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="0441013406",="9780441013401",4,"4.26","Ace","Mass Market Paperback","704",2006,2005,2014/04/07,2012/07/06,"codex-alera, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, audio-book, read-2014","codex-alera (#4), read-before-goodreads (#82), fantasy (#21), audio-book (#100), read-2014 (#36)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> The chosen one goes to school in the capital and politics abound! If you enjoyed the first book, I think you'll find a lot to like here as Mr. Butcher continues to build out the world from the first book.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Kate Reading once more does a great job as a reader. I've gotten used to her reading all the male voices so it's much less noticeable.<br/><br/>One of her voices in this one is so spot on to what I imagined, I find it annoying (because I find the way that character talks to be annoying). Doing the audiobooks for this series aren't a must like Mr. Butcher's Dresden Files, but they certainly aren't a bad option in my opinion.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>Like the last book, this one started a little slow for me. It also leans heavily on tropes. We get a bit of the magical school trope here, though not a lot of it. For me that's a bad thing, because it's one of the reason I like Harry Potter so much.<br/><br/>Then again when your protagonist has no magical abilities to speak of, I guess it makes little sense to dwell on the magical training that takes place there. Instead most of the focus is on politics between not only the various Aleran factions, but also with the Canim, a fierce wolf-like race who despite being considered enemies of the Alerans, maintain an embassy in the capital. This leads to one of my favorite characters of the series, Ambassador Varg.<br/><br/>This book also introduces my other favorite in Antillar Maximus. His antics remind me a bit of Harry Dresden and add some levity that was mostly lacking from the first novel.<br/><br/>Now what magical school story would be complete without the asshole bully, that I like to call ""The Malfoy""? (I know Harry Potter wasn't the first to use this trope, but its arguably the most popular). Tavi must deal with bullying on a more severe scale than he ever faced back home in the form of Kalarus Brencis Minoris, son of High Lord Kalarus and his two cronies. Is it a requirement the bully have exactly 2 cronies? It certainly seems like it.<br/><br/>The stereotypical bully isn't the only thing of concern here however, and there are once again shades of gray when it comes to just who is ""good"" and who is ""bad"", all rolled up into the politics between nobles that are the most powerful in more than just title. Seriously, you do not want to be trapped in a dark alley with a High Lord or Lady whose pissed at you. It won't end well.<br/><br/>The story is also split with events back in the Calderon valley. I found that subplot a bit slow/uninteresting on this re-read, although Doroga helps to make it worthwhile and the second half of that story is a lot more enjoyable than the first.<br/><br/>Overall I found there is a lot I like here, in particular the politics and some of the new characters, that help me get over some of the slower parts of the story.<br/><br/>On to book 3, which is one of my all-time favorites!","","","2+","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  168668,"Catch-22 (Catch-22, #1)","Joseph Heller","Heller, Joseph","",="0684833395",="9780684833392",0,"3.96","Simon & Schuster ","Paperback","453",2004,1955,,2012/07/06,"to-read","to-read (#50)","to-read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  154105,"Paths Not Taken (Nightside, #5)","Simon R. Green","Green, Simon R.","",="0441013198",="9780441013197",3,"4.04","Ace","Paperback","262",2005,2005,,2012/07/06,"nightside, read-before-goodreads, urban-fantasy, fantasy","nightside (#7), read-before-goodreads (#86), urban-fantasy (#20), fantasy (#102)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  140975,"The Fires of Heaven (Wheel of Time, #5)","Robert Jordan","Jordan, Robert","",="0812550307",="9780812550306",3,"4.08","Tor Fantasy","Mass Market Paperback","989",1994,1993,,2012/07/06,"wheel-of-time, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, epic-fantasy","wheel-of-time (#6), read-before-goodreads (#85), fantasy (#131), epic-fantasy (#25)","read","This book really starts to slow down for me. Perrin is hardly mentioned, probably due to how much of the previous book focused on him. However, it felt like he didn't exist. <br/><br/>On top of that, too much time was focused on characters I find myself uninterested in. <br/><br/>I enjoyed the parts with Rand, Mat and the Aiel, but little of the many diversions found in this book. So far my least favorite in the series.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  187065,"New Spring (Wheel of Time, #0)","Robert Jordan","Jordan, Robert","",="1841492612",="9781841492612",3,"3.96","Orbit","Paperback","423",2004,2004,,2012/07/06,"wheel-of-time, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, epic-fantasy","wheel-of-time (#1), read-before-goodreads (#87), fantasy (#132), epic-fantasy (#26)","read","Very enjoyable prequel that fills in some details of events that lead up to the first book. A few things I would have liked to explained were left out, but otherwise pretty good.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  91476,"Grave Peril (The Dresden Files #3)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="0451458443",="9780451458445",3,"4.18","Roc","Mass Market Paperback","378",2001,2001,2013/05/31,2012/07/06,"dresden-files, read-2013, audio-book, read-before-goodreads, urban-fantasy, fantasy","dresden-files (#7), read-2013 (#33), audio-book (#37), read-before-goodreads (#169), urban-fantasy (#8), fantasy (#5)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I enjoyed this book, though not as much as [b:Fool Moon|91477|Fool Moon (The Dresden Files, #2)|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345556849s/91477.jpg|855288] or as I remember liking it for that matter. Probably because I'm much better read at this point.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Mr. Marsters continues to improve as a reader. Gone are most the odd saliva sounds and he seems to have found his voice for the characters. He still reads things too quietly in parts, though maybe it's simply that the overall volume of my copy is too low for my liking (too much loud music?).<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I debated about if I should keep my original 4 star rating, or bump it down to three. This story didn't grab me as much as [b:Fool Moon|91477|Fool Moon (The Dresden Files, #2)|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345556849s/91477.jpg|855288]. It's certainly better than [b:Storm Front|47212|Storm Front (The Dresden Files, #1)|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345556917s/47212.jpg|1137060]. I'd probably give this a 3.5.<br/><br/>This book continues the mostly formulaic structure the early books in this series suffer from. Dresden is approached by a mysterious client and mayhem ensues.<br/><br/>This book deals with not only ghosts, but vampires. Some of them do sparkle, but that's only to lure you in and feed on your emotions. If they feed to long you won't be running off and living happily ever after.<br/><br/>We learn there are not 1, but 3 kinds of vampires (Mr. Butcher seems to like variation as he did with werewolves), Black (think Bram Stoker), White (feed on emotions), and Red.<br/><br/>We've actually met the Red Vampire Bianca in previous novels, but in this novel we learn a bit more about the other kinds and the vampire courts.<br/><br/>The book opens up with Harry and one of my favorite characters, Micheal, the Fist of God on the trail of some ghost that is wreaking havoc on a hospital nursery. Ghosts are out of control and Harry has been relying more and more on Michael's help to sort them out.<br/><br/>We are also introduced to Thomas of the White Court, who becomes another of my favorite characters.<br/><br/>The main plot of this book doesn't do a lot for me, but as a re-reader, there is an awful lot I appreciate that has both short term (new baddies introduced) and long term (no spoilers) implications the series as a whole.<br/><br/>The book has some truly awesome parts, and I found myself enjoying Harry's sense of humor a lot more. Like Mr. Butcher's writing skills, Harry's sense of humor apparently taken some time to develop.<br/><br/>All and all is a quick and easy read.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  91478,"Summer Knight (The Dresden Files #4)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="0451458923",="9780451458926",4,"4.29","Roc","Paperback","449",2002,2002,2013/06/04,2012/07/06,"dresden-files, read-before-goodreads, audio-book, read-2013, urban-fantasy, fantasy","dresden-files (#9), read-before-goodreads (#71), audio-book (#38), read-2013 (#34), urban-fantasy (#7), fantasy (#7)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I really enjoy this story, even if it's a lot of world building.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I think I'll stop saying anything negative about James Marsters as an audio reader now. He's really quite good in this one. I especially love all the voices he did for Toot's friends, and the Road Runner ""Meep Meep"". I was however disappointed he didn't attempt to do Porky Pig.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>So we're still in cookie-cutter land, though less so than the previous 3. We still have the required mysterious (and attractive) female client coming in and hiring Dresden. Mayhem then ensues. Go Figure.<br/><br/>There is a lot of very important world building in this novel. It may not seem as obvious in the short term, but this book was one I really wanted to come back and visit after [b:Cold Days|12216302|Cold Days (The Dresden Files, #14)|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345145377s/12216302.jpg|17189468]. Unfortunately I don't feel it really answered the questions I was hoping, so I guess I'll just have to take the events of [b:Cold Days|12216302|Cold Days (The Dresden Files, #14)|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345145377s/12216302.jpg|17189468] as they were and hope to get a better understanding in [b:Skin Game|17250395|Skin Game (The Dresden Files, #15)|Jim Butcher|/assets/nocover/60x80.png|23811929] (Is this a tentative title for book #15?).<br/><br/>ANYWAYS, lets stop talking about 10 books from now and focus a bit on this one. In this book you learn a lot more about the Seelie/Unseelie. To this point we've only met Harry's Fairy God Mother, and some of the less Fae like Toot's.<br/><br/>In this one we learn all about the Summer and Winter courts including Titania and Mab. Hey I remember Titania from [b:A Midsummer Night's Dream|1622|A Midsummer Night's Dream|William Shakespeare|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327874534s/1622.jpg|894834]!<br/><br/>In addition to learning a lot more about the Fae, we finally get a lot more insights into the White Council as well, as they convene to discuss events from [b:Grave Peril|91476|Grave Peril (The Dresden Files, #3)|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345557222s/91476.jpg|803205].<br/><br/>We meet another batch of important characters that will help turn this series from good, but not great detective novels into one of my favorite series.<br/><br/>As a re-reader I really appreciate this book. I'm not sure if Mr. Butcher knew where the series was going at this point and was already laying the groundwork here, or simply did a brilliant job building on this novel later on.<br/><br/>On to [b:Death Masks|91479|Death Masks (The Dresden Files, #5)|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345557713s/91479.jpg|2183]!","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  104766,"Sharper Than a Serpent's Tooth (Nightside, #6)","Simon R. Green","Green, Simon R.","",="0441013872",="9780441013876",3,"4.08","Ace","Paperback","247",2006,2006,,2012/07/06,"nightside, read-before-goodreads, urban-fantasy, fantasy","nightside (#6), read-before-goodreads (#77), urban-fantasy (#19), fantasy (#101)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  113435,"Crossroads of Twilight (Wheel of Time, #10)","Robert Jordan","Jordan, Robert","",="0312864590",="9780312864590",2,"3.79","Tor Fantasy","Hardcover","700",2003,2003,,2012/07/06,"wheel-of-time, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, epic-fantasy","wheel-of-time (#11), read-before-goodreads (#79), fantasy (#129), epic-fantasy (#23)","read","Probably my least favorite book in the series so far. I enjoyed the beginning (after the rather long prologue) and the ending, while it was pretty slow in the middle with not much that happened despite the length.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  102868,"A Study in Scarlet  (Sherlock Holmes, #1)","Arthur Conan Doyle","Doyle, Arthur Conan","",="1420925539",="9781420925531",4,"4.13","Digireads.com","Paperback","108",2005,1887,,2012/07/06,"sherlock-holmes, audio-book, read-before-goodreads","sherlock-holmes (#3), audio-book (#18), read-before-goodreads (#74)","read","Covers how Holmes and watson meet. The story is pretty good. I did the BBC Audio dramatization. It was well acted.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  104765,"Hex and the City (Nightside, #4)","Simon R. Green","Green, Simon R.","",="0441012612",="9780441012619",3,"4.03","Ace","Paperback","246",2005,2005,,2012/07/06,"nightside, read-before-goodreads, urban-fantasy, fantasy","nightside (#5), read-before-goodreads (#76), urban-fantasy (#18), fantasy (#100)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  91479,"Death Masks (The Dresden Files #5)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="0451459407",="9780451459404",4,"4.31","Roc","Paperback","451",2003,2003,2013/06/08,2012/07/06,"dresden-files, read-before-goodreads, read-2013, audio-book, fantasy, urban-fantasy","dresden-files (#10), read-before-goodreads (#72), read-2013 (#37), audio-book (#52), fantasy (#8), urban-fantasy (#39)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> To me this is where the series stops being so formulaic and starts to get really intersting. I really enjoyed re-visiting this one.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> James Marsters gets better with each book. His Russian and Japanese accents are enjoyable in this one.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>While the book still follows the format of Harry gets a case and mayhem ensues, we at least break from the mysterious attractive female bit.<br/><br/>Someone has stolen the Shroud of Turin, and apparently fled to Chicago with it. The Vatican has hired Harry to help track it down.<br/><br/>In this book we get to meet the remaining Knights of the Cross Shiro the accidental Baptist (thank you Elvis Presley), and Sayno the Russian Atheist.<br/><br/>We also meet some of my favorite baddies in the series, Order of the Blackened Denarius.<br/><br/>I've seen complaints that this book suffers from the dual plot lines, but I don't find it an issue. I equate this to what many TV shows do. You have your on-going season story arc mingled in with story for that particular episode. Things are continuing to build and Dresden's focus is split.<br/><br/>It's hard to talk more about the book without getting into spoilers, but like most books in the series, it's a quick and fun read.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  91477,"Fool Moon (The Dresden Files #2)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="0451458125",="9780451458124",4,"4.04","Roc","Mass Market Paperback","401",2001,2000,2013/05/26,2012/07/06,"dresden-files, audio-book, read-2013, read-before-goodreads, urban-fantasy, fantasy","dresden-files (#8), audio-book (#34), read-2013 (#1), read-before-goodreads (#1), urban-fantasy (#9), fantasy (#6)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A vast improvement over [b:Storm Front|47212|Storm Front (The Dresden Files, #1)|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345556917s/47212.jpg|1137060], though still pretty simplistic if plot and style.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Like the writing in the novel, the improvement in the audio reading by James Marsters is also evident. He still whispers too much, which can make hearing what he's saying hard, even with the volume cranked way up. I still don't find him to be an amazing reader, but he has added some voices to his repertoire, including using what I'll call his ""Spike"" voice for Bob.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I was worried as I started this re-read that my previous ratings might not hold up. They still might not, as I'm a lot better read now than I was the first few times through these early books, but this book was as good as I remember it.<br/><br/>The early books all suffer from being formulaic, and this one is no different. Mr. Butcher's writing however does show a vast improvement, and the book is a lot more fun than [b:Storm Front|47212|Storm Front (The Dresden Files, #1)|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345556917s/47212.jpg|1137060].<br/><br/>As you might guess from the title, this book mostly deals with werewolves. In Harry Dresden's world, there aren't just one type of werewolf, there are several. I won't list them out as that's part of the fun, but I promise you none of them would be mistaken for a character from Twilight. <spoiler>Well, maybe the Alphas..but I'm still going to say no.</spoiler><br/><br/>These wolves are mean. Most of them don't really fit the characters of your typical werewolf, much as vampires in this series. Violent killings are happening in Chicago, and they seem to be happening around the full moon.<br/><br/>Animal fur and paw prints are evident at some of the scenes. The FBI is called in to help and they believe it the work of a wolf-based cult or gang, but Lt. Murphy isn't convinced and calls in the local Wizard, one Harry Dresden to help.<br/><br/>Harry is still broke, and his relationship with Murphy and the police is strained from the events of [b:Storm Front|47212|Storm Front (The Dresden Files, #1)|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345556917s/47212.jpg|1137060], but that won't stop him from doing whatever it takes to protect his city.<br/><br/>I thought this book was much less predictable than the first entry, and gives a better feeling to Mr. Butcher's writing abilities. It's a quick read and one I find entertaining. I equate it to a popcorn flick. I'd say if don't enjoy this one, this series just may not be for you.","","","3+","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  995133,"The Waste Lands (Dark Tower, #3)","Stephen King","King, Stephen","Ned Dameron",="0452279623",="9780452279629",5,"4.20","Plume","Paperback","422",1992,1991,2013/02/05,2012/07/06,"dark-tower, audio-book, read-2013, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, dark-fantasy","dark-tower (#6), audio-book (#2), read-2013 (#22), read-before-goodreads (#7), fantasy (#43), dark-fantasy (#7)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Roland and his ka-tet continue their journey to the dark tower. The drawing is not quite done after all, and Mr. King ramps up the awesomeness another notch in this third installment of the Dark Tower series.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>Blaine is a pain, and that's the truth. I wrote a great review. You never wrote a review!<br/><br/>Just what is madness? This book sure sets out to find out. Paradoxes and insane artificial intelligence. Plus a dying city where two factions have been fighting each other so long they forgot why they were fighting in the first place. What else could you want? How about a giant cyborb bear and demon houses?<br/><br/>If you've made it this far in Roland's journey you're rewarded with some of the best sequences of the Dark Tower series. It picks up right where [b:The Drawing of the Three|5094|The Drawing of the Three (The Dark Tower, #2)|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1309281704s/5094.jpg|2113248] left off, with Eddie and Susannah learning to shoot and adapt to Roland's strange world. <br/><br/>Then suddenly the world shakes and all hell breaks loose. The ka-tet finds the path of the beam, and the way forward is again clear.<br/><br/>All the while Roland is fighting off madness as two separate timelines of his own making argue their reality inside his head. Which one is true? Well both of course.<br/><br/>But where will the beam lead? To the fallen city of Lud, and a crazy train named Blaine. Just who were the old ones, what is left of the technology built, and what happened to all of them? Roland's ka-tet must deal with the aftermath of their achievements.<br/><br/>Will they manage to survive the Wastelands? This book ends with one of the worst cliffhangers of any I have ever read. Thankfully when I first read this book, [b:Wizard and Glass|5096|Wizard and Glass (The Dark Tower, #4)|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327946510s/5096.jpg|750558] was already out, so I didn't have to wait for my answer.<br/><br/>Long days and pleasant nights, and always remember ""All things serve the beam""","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  99383,"Blood Rites (The Dresden Files #6)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="0451459873",="9780451459879",4,"4.32","Roc","Mass Market Paperback","439",2004,2004,2013/06/15,2012/07/06,"dresden-files, read-before-goodreads, audio-book, read-2013, urban-fantasy, fantasy","dresden-files (#11), read-before-goodreads (#73), audio-book (#40), read-2013 (#43), urban-fantasy (#6), fantasy (#9)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Mr. Butcher ramps things up with this story, and continues to break away from the formulaic style of the previous novels.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Nothing really of note for this book, although James Marsters does get to try his hand at a Greek accent, which to me sounded pretty good. At this point in the series, I can't imagine anyone else reading it.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>So for me, the turning point for the series starts with the last book <br/>[b:Death Masks|91479|Death Masks (The Dresden Files, #5)|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345557713s/91479.jpg|2183], but if that one didn't impress you, this one should. Otherwise, why exactly are you still reading the series?<br/><br/>Gone are the mysterious and attractive females that bring Harry's sense of chivalry to override his better judgement. That doesn't mean he's still not taking cases, or working as a Wizard for hire, but he's tackling bigger problems, with larger implications than he once was.<br/><br/>Thomas has come to Harry to call in a favor for helping him in the past and help a friend of his who appears to be under attack from dark magic.<br/><br/>The underlying plot of the last few books takes a bit of a break with novel with the return of other baddies, along with introducing some excellent new ones.<br/><br/>We see the return of what are becoming the main stay supporting characters of Thomas and of course Murphy, as well as Ebeneezer.<br/><br/>This book has several very large revelations that have a major impact on the course of the story in futures novels.<br/><br/>The humor gets better with each book, although Harry's smart mouth in the face of mortal danger can get a bit tiring at times.<br/><br/>Also, Mouse! (Any of you who have read past this book, should understand that, any of you haven't will just have to scratch your heads).<br/><br/>It's getting harder to write these reviews in my normal spoiler-free fashion, or at least without discussing spoilers from previous books. This may be the last book that I can manage that.<br/><br/>This is another fast and fun read, and I can't wait to jump into [b:Dead Beat|17683|Dead Beat (The Dresden Files, #7)|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345667776s/17683.jpg|6614452], which probably sealed this as one of my favorite series.","","","3","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  91474,"Proven Guilty (The Dresden Files #8)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="0451461037",="9780451461032",4,"4.40","Roc","Mass Market Paperback","480",2007,2006,2013/06/29,2012/07/06,"dresden-files, read-before-goodreads, audio-book, read-2013, urban-fantasy, fantasy","dresden-files (#6), read-before-goodreads (#69), audio-book (#43), read-2013 (#46), urban-fantasy (#5), fantasy (#4)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> While not as good as the previous book, [b:Dead Beat|17683|Dead Beat (The Dresden Files, #7)|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345667776s/17683.jpg|6614452], it's still another enjoyable entry to the series.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Nothing of particular note in this novel. There weren't any stand out voices/characters worth mentioning. James Marsters does a great job with the audio, and seems really comfortable with the series now.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/><br/><b>NOTE:</b> This review contains some (mostly minor) spoilers from previous novels, as it's hard to talk about the later books in the series without proper context.<br/><br/><b>--------------------------------------------------------------------------------</b><br/><br/>Things have been escalating with the war between the White Council and the Red Court. Harry's responsibilities have increased with his new job as regional commander for the Wardens. The number of incidents of young warlocks violating the laws of magic is on the rise.<br/><br/>Harry is tasked secretly and separately by two members of the senior council. <br/><br/>First his old mentor Ebeneezer wants him to use his contacts among the Fae to determine why despite violations of the Seelie Accord by the Red Court, why the Fae have abstained from entering the war.<br/><br/>Secondly the mysterious Gatekeeper has warned Harry that there is Dark Magic about in Chicago once again.<br/><br/>And then because Harry's life wasn't complicated enough, Harry receives a call from Molly Carpenter, daughter of his friend, and Fist of God, Micheal. She's in jail, and needs his help.<br/><br/>What's Harry to do? He grabs his staff, blasting rod, and his dog Mouse and head off to do battle with the forces of evil and anyone else who gets in his way.<br/><br/>While not quite as entertaining as [b:Dead Beat|17683|Dead Beat (The Dresden Files, #7)|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345667776s/17683.jpg|6614452], there are some significant events in this novel that have a significant impact on the books that follow. <br/><br/>Full of the usual combination of laugh out loud and eye-rolling one-liners, nasty bad guys and magic battles, makes this another quick and enjoyable read.","","","3","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  77694,"The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn","Mark Twain","Twain, Mark","",="0553210793",="9780553210798",3,"3.78","Bantam Classics","Paperback","292",1981,1884,,2012/07/06,"read-before-goodreads","read-before-goodreads (#66)","read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  87963,"The Brethren","John Grisham","Grisham, John","",="0440236673",="9780440236672",4,"3.68","Random House Publishing Group","Mass Market Paperback","440",2000,2000,,2012/07/06,"grisham-laywer-books, read-before-goodreads, thriller","grisham-laywer-books (#12), read-before-goodreads (#70), thriller (#12)","read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  85424,"The Green Mile","Stephen King","King, Stephen","Mark Geyer",="0671041789",="9780671041786",3,"4.38","Pocket Books","Mass Market Paperback","536",1999,1996,,2012/07/06,"read-before-goodreads","read-before-goodreads (#67)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  60825,"Shadow of the Giant (Shadow, #4)","Orson Scott Card","Card, Orson Scott","",="0812571398",="9780812571394",3,"3.96","Tor Science Fiction","Paperback","384",2006,2005,,2012/07/06,"enders-game, read-before-goodreads, science-fiction","enders-game (#5), read-before-goodreads (#64), science-fiction (#31)","read","I went into this book under the false impression this was the final shadow book, but I was wrong. I guess another one will be come out that's supposed to finalize things and tie the 2 series together.<br/><br/>Overall this book was descent. I found myself interested to find out what would happen next, but by the time I got to the end I was disappointed with how many questions were left.<br/><br/>Worth reading if you like the Shadow series.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  74010,"Hell to Pay (Nightside, #7)","Simon R. Green","Green, Simon R.","",="0441014607",="9780441014606",3,"4.03","Ace","Paperback","264",2006,2006,,2012/07/06,"nightside, read-before-goodreads, urban-fantasy, fantasy","nightside (#4), read-before-goodreads (#65), urban-fantasy (#17), fantasy (#99)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  87961,"The Client","John Grisham","Grisham, John","",="0440213525",="9780440213529",3,"3.91","Dell","Paperback","566",1996,1993,,2012/07/06,"grisham-laywer-books, read-before-goodreads, thriller","grisham-laywer-books (#11), read-before-goodreads (#68), thriller (#11)","read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  29396,"Furies of Calderon (Codex Alera, #1)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="044101268X",="9780441012688",4,"4.11","Ace","Mass Market Paperback","504",2005,2004,2014/04/01,2012/07/06,"codex-alera, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, audio-book, read-2014","codex-alera (#3), read-before-goodreads (#58), fantasy (#20), audio-book (#99), read-2014 (#34)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A fun but trope-heavy fantasy story that combines a Lost Roman Legion with Pokemon. Yeah, you read that right.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I've long heard both good and bad things about Kate Reading. I actually got to meet her last year for the [b:A Memory of Light|7743175|A Memory of Light (Wheel of Time, #14)|Robert Jordan|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1336055749s/7743175.jpg|10558806] book tour as she and her husband both live near me, but had never listened to a book by her before now.<br/><br/>Personally I think she's a really good reader. However, she may not be well suited for this book as it has many male characters (then again what fantasy series doesn't?) and her male voices aren't as good. They aren't bad though, and eventually I got used to her so I wasn't thinking about the fact that it was a woman attempting a man's voice even though it was always apparent.<br/><br/>I think her theater background is apparent with the variety of inflections and voices she uses as well as the emotion and inflection of her reading.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>Until maybe 2 years ago I didn't really read that much anymore. I wasn't well-read in fantasy. In late 2006 I discovered [a:Jim Butcher|10746|Jim Butcher|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1205261964p2/10746.jpg] and the Dresden Files. I devoured all the books that were out until I was stuck waiting like everyone else. <br/><br/>Then I noticed in the back of the books that Mr. Butcher had 3 books in another series though, called Codex Alera. Unlike the Dresden Files, it wasn't Urban Fantasy, but closer to ""traditional"" or epic fantasy. I picked it up and devoured those books as well.<br/><br/>For awhile I liked this series better than Dresden Files, but it was a close thing. One thing was for certain, [a:Jim Butcher|10746|Jim Butcher|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1205261964p2/10746.jpg] wrote the kind of books I liked to read. For 3 glorious years I had 2 new Butcher books/year to look forward to.<br/><br/>Fast forward 7 years or so and I recently did a re-read of Dresden Files in audio, but haven't read this one since it ended back in 2009. I'd consider myself much better read in Fantasy than when I first discovered this. <br/><br/>I was a bit apprehensive about a reread. Would the series live up to my memory of it? Or would I find all the tropes tired and boring? The answer is a little of both it seems.<br/><br/>It took me a bit to get back into this book. I was starting to get nervous that I was ruining my memory of this series. However once things really got going, I remembered why I enjoyed it so much.<br/><br/>This is a ""chosen one"" story through and through. However most chosen one stories tend to have a protagonist who is suddenly great at everything. This one does not. In a world where everyone posses at least a little magic, Tavi has none. He is considered a ""freak"". That notion of being an outsider is something I've always identified with. I liked that Tavi had to use his wits to make it in a world where he was always at a disadvantage. That said, a 15 year old shepherd boy who saves the realm has been done. A lot.<br/><br/>The book also has some ""mustache-twirling"" bad guys. Mr. Butcher does a good job at making me hate those characters, but at the same time they feel a bit cartoonish. That said, there are other antagonists in the series who are much more complex. They aren't evil necessarily, but are willing to do whatever it takes to accomplish their goals. Those goals happen to be set against our young protagonist and his family, so they come out looking evil. But are they really? That's an ongoing question that won't be answered here.<br/><br/>I didn't know it until many years later, but Mr. Butcher was challenged to write a story based on a ""lame idea"". He countered that he could it using 2 Lame ideas, that of ""Lost Roman Legion"" and Pokemon. It sounds really stupid, but it somehow works for me.<br/><br/>I know almost nothing of Pokemon apart from the whole capturing magical creatures thing. There may be more to it. I don't know. The strongest furycrafters in the book have the ability to summon powerful elementals ala Pokemon, but they aren't the only part of it. His magic system is really fun and creative, though you really don't get the full experience in just this book. To this day though, it's one of the magic systems I've most enjoyed reading.<br/><br/>So if you can get past the heavy trope use and magic system based on Pokemon, the only other thing that may turn people away is battles. This series is battle heavy. I'd guess most of the last 25% of this book or so is one long battle. I loved it. People that aren't into that kind of thing, may find it tedious.<br/><br/>I think the story is pretty well self-contained. There are a lot of bigger questions looming, but all issues of the book are wrapped up pretty nicely in my opinion.<br/><br/>I had originally planned on alternating the books in this series with books from another, but by the time I got to that battle, there was just no way I could stop. I jumped right into the next book, and may continue on all the way to the end without a break.","","","2+","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  24192,"The Runaway Jury","John Grisham","Grisham, John","",="0385339690",="9780385339698",3,"3.90","Delta","Paperback","451",2006,1996,,2012/07/06,"grisham-laywer-books, read-before-goodreads, thriller","grisham-laywer-books (#10), read-before-goodreads (#56), thriller (#10)","read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  49130,"Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Harry Potter #4)","J.K. Rowling","Rowling, J.K.","Mary GrandPré",="0439139597",="9780439139595",5,"4.47","Arthur A. Levine Books","Hardcover","734",2000,2000,2012/11/16,2012/07/06,"harry-potter, favorites, audio-book, read-2012, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, young-adult, not-a-bookclub-club, read-2014","harry-potter (#7), favorites (#8), audio-book (#10), read-2012 (#12), read-before-goodreads (#13), fantasy (#68), young-adult (#7), not-a-bookclub-club (#23), read-2014 (#106)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This has long since been my favorite book in the series, and each re-read seems to only reinforce it. I think the easiest way for me to describe it is ""The Empire Strikes Back"" of Harry Potter. It's much darker and doesn't have the sort of ""Happy Ending"" of the first 3 books. It really is a turning point to the series which sets the tone for the final 3 books.<br/><br/><b>Jim Dale Audio Book:</b> Another great reading by Jim Dale. And apparently that's as much as I wrote at the time I listened to this one. Though by this point in the series, that should probably be obvious. <br/><br/><b>Stephen Audio Book:</b> Similarly, it's another great job by Mr. Fry. I can't really choose between the two readers, and really why should you? His voice for Moody was excellent among my favorite voices from previous books like Hagrid.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I""m including spoilers in the very unlikely chance someone reads this who hasn't read the book (or seen the movie), in which case: What are you doing here! Go read this book/series!<br/><br/>This book has so many elements that make it my favorite. As a fan of Quidditch (and really, who isn't?) to open this book with the Quidditch world cup! Which was nice since <spoiler>there is no Quidditch tournament at Hogwarts in this book</spoiler>. <br/><br/>Then if that wasn't enough the introduce this idea of a Tri-Wizard Cup, which unsurprisingly <spoiler>Harry becomes involved in</spoiler><br/><br/>This book has my second favorite Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher: Mad-Eye Moody too (To Lupin in the last book: [b:Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban|5|Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Harry Potter, #3)|J.K. Rowling|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1362278317s/5.jpg|2402163]). <spoiler>Yes, I know he's not really Mad-Eye..but how can you not love ""Draco the dancing ferret"" or some of the fun and amusing things. Plus I never saw the twist of him being a Death Eater in disguise at the end coming on my first read.</spoiler><br/><br/>Overall I enjoyed the much darker tone of this book as Harry and his friends not only have to struggle with all the comes with becoming an adult, but are forced to face very adult problems that would leave many others in a quivering heap.<br/><br/><spoiler>Not to mention that this book ends with the return of Voldemort and his death eaters</spoiler>","","","6","","",2,,,"unspecified",,
  47212,"Storm Front (The Dresden Files #1)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="0451457811",="9780451457813",3,"4.02","Penguin ROC","Mass Market Paperback","322",2000,2000,2013/05/20,2012/07/06,"dresden-files, audio-book, read-before-goodreads, read-2013, urban-fantasy, fantasy","dresden-files (#5), audio-book (#33), read-before-goodreads (#2), read-2013 (#2), urban-fantasy (#10), fantasy (#3)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A decent, but not spectacular first novel that shows the promise of the excellent series of books that are to follow.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> James Marsters does an alright job. I've been told he gets better. I'm not sure if this is the first audiobook he'd ever read, or was just having an off day. He doesn't ruin it by any means, but he doesn't seem to add any of acting ability into it either.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>After finishing up [b:Cold Days|12216302|Cold Days (The Dresden Files, #14)|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345145377s/12216302.jpg|17189468] last fall, I went on a bit of a crusade to get more of my friends to read the series, much like I did back when I first discovered it several years ago.<br/><br/>I found myself both itching for the next book, and having difficulty remembering some details of the world building of the 13 books that preceded it. I decided after enjoying an audio re-read of Harry Potter and the Dark Tower, that Dresden Files might be a good choice next.<br/><br/>It's really amazing to see how far Jim Butcher has come as a writer, and how far Harry Dresden has evolved as both a character and a Wizard. This book is pretty rough in places. It's the only one I've given 3 stars, most of the rest are 4, and a few are 5s in my book.<br/><br/>There were points in this book I was considering dropping my rating down to a 2. I'm a little surprised I kept on with the series. Then again, back when I found the Dresden Files I hadn't been reading a whole lot, and certainly wasn't as well read in fantasy as I am now.<br/><br/>The idea of Urban Fantasy intrigued me, and I hadn't read anything like it before. Mr. Butcher begins the building blocks of what looks to be an interesting world, with a great set of characters, none better than Harry Himself. <br/><br/>Harry is a wizard. The only one listed in the phone book. He's not very successful and therefore has a lot of money issues. His specialty is finding things. His best source of income is as a consultant for Chicago Police on the strange cases that can't be explained by normal circumstances. <br/><br/>His contact is Lt. Karen Murphy, head of a division of the police tasked with solving the unsolvable and strange cases. Lt. Murphy is a great indicator of the strong female characters Mr. Butcher is able to write.<br/><br/>As this is a noir-style novel, there are some stereotypical female characters, but Lt. Murphy doesn't fit that mold. Tough and determined, she doesn't take crap from anyone, least of all Harry. In your standard story this role would be played by some grizzled old male cop, not a short, young female.<br/><br/>Most of the story is pretty boiler plate. There is a series of strange murders Harry is called in to investigate. Meanwhile he's finally caught a client who wants her to find her husband. Somehow the local mob are involved and everyone is suddenly gunning for Harry.<br/><br/>The best thing going for these early stories is that Mr. Butcher seems to know how to keep things short. He's doesn't fluff the story out. The book finishes pretty strong and left me wanting more, which is usually the best sign of a good book for me.","","","3+","Everyone","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  43615,"The Gunslinger (The Dark Tower, #1)","Stephen King","King, Stephen","",="0452284694",="9780452284692",4,"4.00","Plume","Paperback","231",2003,1982,2013/01/01,2012/07/06,"dark-tower, audio-book, read-2013, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, dark-fantasy","dark-tower (#5), audio-book (#4), read-2013 (#31), read-before-goodreads (#9), fantasy (#42), dark-fantasy (#6)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This is a book that introduced me to [a:Stephen King|3389|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1362814142p2/3389.jpg] and my very first adult series. A friend gave me the book that first time and told me I must read it. <br/><br/>It's been many years since that first time, and many re-reads since then, but it was just as enjoyable this time as it was the first. Maybe more-so as I am much better read and more experienced than that teenaged version of myself.<br/><br/><b> Audio book:</b> I borrowed the audible version of the revised edition of this book from a friend. The reader is George Guidall. <br/><br/>He was enjoyable enough, and his voice seems suited to the tale. I opted to do an audio-book re-'read' of the series as my friend has been experiencing it for the first time and I find my memory of it lacking.<br/><br/>One of the things lost by doing the audio however is the artwork. I have 1-4 in trade paperback by Plume (with both the original text and updated version that this audiobook contains) and the original hard cover releases of 5-7. The Plume editions contain some, but not all of the artwork contained in the original hard cover releases.<br/><br/>Some may not welcome the art, as they prefer to let their own imaginations paint the pictures, but I've always been lacking in visual imagination so I welcome the inspiration to help my brain fill in the rest. I plan to make it a point to re-visit the art at some point as my re-read continues.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</a></b><br/>The start of an epic journey. Or is it? The start I mean. <br/><br/><i>""The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed.""</i><br/><br/>Why? To what purpose? How long has he been chasing him? Ah my friends, these are but a few of many questions.<br/><br/>The journey is the key, and here we throw our lot in with the Gunslinger as he speeds towards his goal. Will we ever reach it? One must continue the journey with Roland to find out. And so I have. Again.<br/><br/>I've lost track of how many times I've read this book. It's probably my least favorite in the series, and yet it contains some of my favorite moments.<br/><br/>The glimpses into Roland's childhood that are a large part of what makes [b:Wizard and Glass|5096|Wizard and Glass (The Dark Tower, #4)|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327946510s/5096.jpg|750558] one of my absolute favorite books are present in this book with much smaller doses. The story of Roland's coming of age in particular is one I could listen to again and again (and so I have, say thankee-sai).<br/><br/>Another particular favorite of mine is Tull. It gives us a glimpse, and it just a glimpse of who the Gunslinger really is. One of the revisions in the scene I'm not sure I agree with. <spoiler>In the original text Roland shoots Allie without her begging him for it.</spoiler> It's not a ""Han Shot First"" re-write for me, but one I felt un-necessary that tries to offer some forgiveness for Roland's actions.<br/><br/>That said. I love this book. The original book is actually a collection of  5 stories that were published in a magazine over the span of about 3 years. Mr. King revised the book in 2003. <br/><br/>For the most part, the revisions help to fill out the story and clear up some continuity issues that Mr. King hadn't worked out when he first wrote them. You could maybe call it ret-con, but I really consider it more of clarification of detail that was lacking.<br/><br/>I've always wondered why so many people don't like this book. My friend listened to it with his brother. He almost quit the series right there. His brother did. I've seen many people recommend skipping this book outright and coming back to it at the end. I suppose that would work, but the need for it is beyond my comprehension.<br/><br/>I thought maybe this re-read many years since my last around the time of the final 3 books release in the mid 2000s would shed some light on it. It did not.<br/><br/>Maybe it's a sense of nostalgia. Maybe because I first read this book before many of the long sprawling epics I've tackled since. But their are certainly other books I enjoyed as a younger man that I no longer enjoy as an adult.<br/><br/>This book isn't one of those. To me it offers you a glimpse and a promise of all that is to come. For that I must again say Thankee-sai to Mr. King.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  37449,"To Kill a Mockingbird","Harper Lee","Lee, Harper","",="0446310786",="9780446310789",2,"4.23","Warner Books","Mass Market Paperback","281",1982,1960,,2012/07/06,"read-before-goodreads","read-before-goodreads (#59)","read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  49116,"Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Harry Potter #3)","J.K. Rowling","Rowling, J.K.","Mary GrandPré",="0439136350",="9780439136358",5,"4.47","Arthur A. Levine Books","Hardcover","435",1999,1999,2012/11/04,2012/07/06,"harry-potter, audio-book, read-2012, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, young-adult, read-2014, not-a-bookclub-club","harry-potter (#6), audio-book (#9), read-2012 (#13), read-before-goodreads (#14), fantasy (#67), young-adult (#6), read-2014 (#101), not-a-bookclub-club (#21)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This is the book where the series really hits it's stride for me. It might be my second favorite book in the series.<br/><br/><b>Jim Dale Audio book:</b>Mr. Dale continues to grow on me as the series goes on. I've always thought him a good reader, but I'm really coming to love the extra effort he does doing voices for the characters. It really helps to bring the story to life (not that Rowling's writing needs it).<br/><br/><b>Stephen Fry Audio book:</b> Mr. Fry once again does a great job here too. His voice for Sirius is pretty good. I can't really think of any notable new characters from the last book. His Hagrid probably continues to be my favorite voice.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I won't spend much time on this, because well it's Harry Potter. With my last two rereads I really realized just how much I like this book. The movie doesn't really do it justice.<br/><br/>There are so many different things that go into this book to make it excellent. You have the introduction of Sirius Black and the Dementors. It also has my favorite Defense against dark arts teacher with Professor Lupin. <br/><br/>Then there is Hogsmeade. What I wouldn't give to go and visit the real deal. I really need to take a trip down to Universal Studios in Florida and visit the replica.<br/><br/>You also get a lot more Quidditch here than the last two, which is always a favorite element for me. And if all that isn't enough you get the Marauder's Map!<br/><br/>The twists and turns really took me by surprise the first read through, but even knowing how this book ends it's enjoyable start to finish.","","","6","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  45978,"Eldest (The Inheritance Cycle, #2)","Christopher Paolini","Paolini, Christopher","",="0375840400",="9780375840401",3,"3.93","Knopf Books for Young Readers","Paperback","668",2007,2005,,2012/07/06,"inheritance-cycle, read-before-goodreads, fantasy","inheritance-cycle (#2), read-before-goodreads (#62), fantasy (#71)","read","I remember liking this book better the first time. Maybe its because I've read better fantasy books since first reading it. The quality of the reading seems subpar. <br/><br/>Overall it was ok, but not great. I liked it better than the first book, which I also just re-read. <br/><br/>I find myself caring about the characters, yet hating much of the dialogue and the writing style.<br/><br/>If you enjoyed the first book, you should find this one better at least.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  22328,"Neuromancer (Sprawl, #1)","William Gibson","Gibson, William","",="0441569595",="9780441569595",4,"3.84","Ace Books","Mass Market Paperback","271",1984,1984,,2012/07/06,"sprawl, read-before-goodreads, cyberpunk, science-fiction","sprawl (#2), read-before-goodreads (#54), cyberpunk (#5), science-fiction (#38)","read","I originally read this back in high school. I have more of an appreciation for it now. It's amazing the stuff Gibson imagined 25+ years ago that exist today: the internet, virtual reality, artificial intelligence (though not as developed as in his book).<br/><br/>It's a true classic the creates the mold for all cyberpunk to follow.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  35231,"Lord of Chaos (Wheel of Time, #6)","Robert Jordan","Jordan, Robert","",="0812513754",="9780812513752",2,"4.05","Tor Fantasy","Mass Market Paperback","1011",1995,1994,,2012/07/06,"wheel-of-time, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, epic-fantasy","wheel-of-time (#7), read-before-goodreads (#60), fantasy (#128), epic-fantasy (#22)","read","Probably my least favorite book so far. It was very slow for a good part of it, focusing on characters I don't find particularly interesting plotting against Rand. <br/><br/>The last third of the book redeemed it though. Things really started to pick up and it was hard to put down at that point. It was enough to get me to pick up the 7th book next instead of taking a break from the series.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  13890,"A Crown of Swords (Wheel of Time, #7)","Robert Jordan","Jordan, Robert","",="0812550285",="9780812550283",3,"3.94","Tor Fantasy","Paperback","880",1997,1996,,2012/07/06,"wheel-of-time, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, epic-fantasy","wheel-of-time (#8), read-before-goodreads (#44), fantasy (#126), epic-fantasy (#20)","read","Better than the last 2. I think the momentum of the end of book 6 carried me through the beginning of book 7. Overall things seem to be moving at a rather slow pace with entirely too much time focused on characters I find annoying, but I still want to know what happens/next how it will all end.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  13891,"Winter's Heart (Wheel of Time, #9)","Robert Jordan","Jordan, Robert","",="081257558X",="9780812575583",2,"3.86","Tor Books","Mass Market Paperback","780",2002,2000,,2012/07/06,"wheel-of-time, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, epic-fantasy","wheel-of-time (#10), read-before-goodreads (#45), fantasy (#127), epic-fantasy (#21)","read","Had some good parts, but very slow in many places.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  17683,"Dead Beat (The Dresden Files #7)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="045146091X",="9780451460912",4,"4.42","Roc","Mass Market Paperback","517",2006,2005,2013/06/23,2012/07/06,"dresden-files, read-before-goodreads, read-2013, audio-book, fantasy, urban-fantasy","dresden-files (#4), read-before-goodreads (#51), read-2013 (#44), audio-book (#42), fantasy (#2), urban-fantasy (#38)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> One of my favorite books in the series. It might possibly have the most memorable sequence of all 14 books thus far.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> James Marsters continues to be excellent as the reader for the audio book. Of particular note, I really enjoy his voices for Butters and Ramirez.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>So what a long way we've come. Wizards, Werewolves, Vampires, Fae. What's left? Why Zombies of course..<br/><br/>One of Harry's enemies is back in town and blackmailing him to find something called the Word of Kemmler. Harry soon learns that Kemmler was a Necromancer.<br/><br/>So what is Harry to do when the undead are chasing him through the streets of Chicago? Just one of the most awesome things in the entire series!<br/><br/>Mr. Butcher does an excellent job of writing an entertaining stand alone story, while managing to develop important plot points for the overall story he's telling with the series so far.<br/><br/>We are yet again introduced to some important new characters. And while this book lacks the big revelations of the last book, it makes up for it with an extra dose of fun, as well as adding some layers of complexity to the series.<br/><br/>Books like this are why it's one of my favorite series. 4.5 stars, rounded down because I'm stingy with my 5 star ratings.","","","3","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  16435,"Life Expectancy","Dean Koontz","Koontz, Dean","",="0553588249",="9780553588248",4,"3.95","Bantam Books","Paperback","476",2005,2000,,2012/07/06,"read-before-goodreads","read-before-goodreads (#50)","read","Very enjoyable. Very interesting/likable characters. <br/><br/>I did the audiobook. The reader was descent. It made the drive home for Christmas go by rather quickly.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  13888,"Knife of Dreams (Wheel of Time, #11)","Robert Jordan","Jordan, Robert","",="0812577566",="9780812577563",4,"4.08","Tom Doherty Associates TOR Fantasy","Mass Market Paperback","860",2006,2005,,2012/07/06,"wheel-of-time, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, epic-fantasy","wheel-of-time (#12), read-before-goodreads (#43), fantasy (#125), epic-fantasy (#19)","read","This is probably my favorite book since the early part of the series, probably because a lot of it dealt with Mat, who I find to be the most interesting of the 3. It's sad it's Jordan's last, but has me excited to read the new ones again.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  18127,"The Eyes of the Dragon","Stephen King","King, Stephen","David Palladini",="0451166582",="9780451166586",4,"3.90","Signet","Paperback","380",1987,1987,,2012/07/06,"dark-tower-tie-in, read-before-goodreads, fantasy","dark-tower-tie-in (#5), read-before-goodreads (#52), fantasy (#38)","read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  15881,"Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Harry Potter, #2)","J.K. Rowling","Rowling, J.K.","Mary GrandPré",="0439064864",="9780439064866",4,"4.29","Arthur A. Levine Books","Hardcover","342",1999,1998,2012/10/30,2012/07/06,"harry-potter, audio-book, read-2012, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, young-adult, read-2014, not-a-bookclub-club","harry-potter (#5), audio-book (#8), read-2012 (#15), read-before-goodreads (#16), fantasy (#66), young-adult (#5), read-2014 (#98), not-a-bookclub-club (#20)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This is my least favorite book the series. Probably closer to 3.5 than 4, but since the series is great, I rounded up.<br/><br/>It's the weakest of the 7 books in my opinion.<br/><br/><b>Jim Dale Audio book:</b> I did the Jim Dale audio book first. It was good. Dale is an excellent reader and does a descent job with the voices. I wish I had taken better notes on which voices I liked or didn't to compare with the Fry version a bit.<br/><br/><b>Stephen Fry Audio book:</b> I liked Fry more for this book than I did for the last one. I particularly liked his voices for Dobby and Lockheart. His Snape voice still bothers me, but that's pretty much because I want Alan Rickman's voice.<br/><br/><b>Which Audio book?</b> I've decided I'm no longer going to try to compare Fry to Dale to determine which is better. Why? It really doesn't matter to me. I think they are both a very good, though very different. I find little value it ranking them. People will have their favorites, but just because you like one over the other doesn't mean the same will apply to everyone. Overall I don't think you can go wrong with either version.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>It's a toss up who is more annoying, Dobby the house elf or Professor Lockhart. Neither are unlikable in the way Malfoy and his family are. <br/><br/>I suppose both are supposed to be annoying, but Dobby's scenes are especially tedious. He does redeem himself later in the series however. Moaning Myrtle is a bit annoying as well, but far behind the other 2. <br/><br/>The flying car is a highlight, but that's about it I think. There really aren't any cool additions to the existing lore. It has the weakest antagonist too.<br/><br/>The story has some interesting elements to it, but overall there is just something about this book that has kept it at the bottom of my list on the series. <br/><br/>Maybe it's all the annoying characters, or maybe it's simply a result of the quality of the other books. Still, this like the rest of the series can be a lot of fun is a quick read.","","","6","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  21353,"Odd Thomas (Odd Thomas #1)","Dean Koontz","Koontz, Dean","David Aaron Baker",="0739301764",="9780739301760",4,"3.86","Random House Audio Publishing Group","Audio CD","399",2003,2003,2010/11/01,2012/07/06,"odd-thomas, audio-book, read-before-goodreads, horror, thriller","odd-thomas (#2), audio-book (#28), read-before-goodreads (#22), horror (#6), thriller (#21)","read","This was my first dean koontz book, and I found it pretty interesting/enjoyable. <br/><br/>I got it in audiobook for my Thanksgiving drive. I found the quality of the reader to be pretty good.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  18135,"Romeo and Juliet","William Shakespeare","Shakespeare, William","",="0743477111",="9780743477116",3,"3.72","Washington Square Press","Mass Market Paperback","283",2004,1594,,2012/07/06,"read-before-goodreads","read-before-goodreads (#53)","read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  9534,"Shadow of the Hegemon (Ender's Shadow, #2)","Orson Scott Card","Card, Orson Scott","",="0812565959",="9780812565959",4,"3.90","Tor Books","Paperback","451",2001,2000,,2012/07/06,"enders-game, read-before-goodreads, science-fiction","enders-game (#4), read-before-goodreads (#30), science-fiction (#30)","read","I enjoyed this book and finding out about events on earth after the war with the buggers. <br/><br/>I expected things to be farther along at the end based on the title however.<br/><br/>So far I'm enjoying the shadow series a lot more than ender series apart from ender's game. These books have felt more in the style of the first.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  11567,"Skeleton Crew","Stephen King","King, Stephen","",="0451168615",="9780451168610",0,"3.88","Signet","Mass Market Paperback","573",1986,1979,,2012/07/06,"to-read","to-read (#60)","to-read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  10584,"Desperation","Stephen King","King, Stephen","",="0451188462",="9780451188465",3,"3.75","Signet","Mass Market Paperback","547",1997,1996,,2012/07/06,"dark-tower-tie-in, read-before-goodreads, horror","dark-tower-tie-in (#1), read-before-goodreads (#37), horror (#2)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  502601,"Ender's Shadow (Shadow, #1)","Orson Scott Card","Card, Orson Scott","",="0812575717",="9780812575712",5,"4.28","Tor Books","Mass Market Paperback","469",2000,1998,,2012/07/06,"enders-game, favorites, read-before-goodreads, science-fiction","enders-game (#3), favorites (#7), read-before-goodreads (#29), science-fiction (#29)","read","I liked this book almost as much as Ender's Game. I certainly liked it a lot more then Speaker for the Dead, etc..<br/><br/>It really gives you a whole new perspective on the original. Now I want to go back and re-read ender's game, as well as read the next shadow book, to find out what happens to bean.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  10626,"The Talisman (The Talisman, #1)","Stephen King","King, Stephen","Peter Straub",="0345444884",="9780345444882",4,"4.09","Ballantine Books","Mass Market Paperback","735",2001,1984,,2012/07/06,"dark-tower-tie-in, read-before-goodreads, fantasy","dark-tower-tie-in (#4), read-before-goodreads (#41), fantasy (#47)","read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  11573,"The Dead Zone","Stephen King","King, Stephen","",="0451155750",="9780451155757",4,"3.86","Signet/New American Library","Mass Market Paperback","402",1980,1979,,2012/07/06,"read-before-goodreads, horror, dark-tower-tie-in","read-before-goodreads (#118), horror (#22), dark-tower-tie-in (#13)","read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  10596,"The Regulators","Richard Bachman","Bachman, Richard","Stephen King",="0451191013",="9780451191014",3,"3.48","Signet","Paperback","512",1997,1996,,2012/07/06,"dark-tower-tie-in, read-before-goodreads, horror","dark-tower-tie-in (#2), read-before-goodreads (#38), horror (#3)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  10589,"Bag of Bones","Stephen King","King, Stephen","",="067102423X",="9780671024239",0,"3.82","Pocket Books","Paperback","736",1999,1998,,2012/07/06,"to-read","to-read (#61)","to-read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  9539,"The Shadow Rising (Wheel of Time, #4)","Robert Jordan","Jordan, Robert","",="0812513738",="9780812513738",3,"4.18","Tom Doherty Tor Fantasy","Mass Market Paperback","1007",1993,1992,,2012/07/06,"wheel-of-time, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, epic-fantasy","wheel-of-time (#5), read-before-goodreads (#35), fantasy (#124), epic-fantasy (#18)","read","Not as good as the third book. It took awhile to get going, but was pretty good by the end. Seems to focus a lot on Perrin, which is a character I enjoy. If you don't this may be a hard read.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  10607,"Black House (The Talisman, #2)","Stephen King","King, Stephen","Peter Straub",="034547063X",="9780345470638",5,"3.95","Ballantine Books","Paperback","688",2003,2001,,2012/07/06,"dark-tower-tie-in, read-before-goodreads, fantasy","dark-tower-tie-in (#3), read-before-goodreads (#40), fantasy (#33)","read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  5350,"The Partner","John Grisham","Grisham, John","",="0385339100",="9780385339100",3,"3.84","Delta","Paperback","416",2005,1997,,2012/07/06,"grisham-laywer-books, read-before-goodreads, thriller","grisham-laywer-books (#5), read-before-goodreads (#168), thriller (#5)","read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  5348,"The Testament","John Grisham","Grisham, John","",="0440234743",="9780440234746",3,"3.79","Island Books","Mass Market Paperback","535",1999,1999,,2012/07/06,"grisham-laywer-books, read-before-goodreads, thriller","grisham-laywer-books (#4), read-before-goodreads (#161), thriller (#4)","read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  7967,"Speaker for the Dead (The Ender Quintet, #2)","Orson Scott Card","Card, Orson Scott","",="0812550757",="9780812550757",3,"4.00","Tor Books","Paperback","382",1994,1986,,2012/07/06,"enders-game, read-before-goodreads, science-fiction","enders-game (#2), read-before-goodreads (#27), science-fiction (#28)","read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  5356,"The King of Torts","John Grisham","Grisham, John","",="0385339658",="9780385339650",3,"3.63","Delta","Paperback","400",2005,2003,,2012/07/06,"grisham-laywer-books, read-before-goodreads, thriller","grisham-laywer-books (#9), read-before-goodreads (#163), thriller (#9)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  5352,"The Summons","John Grisham","Grisham, John","",="0385339593",="9780385339599",3,"3.64","Delta","Paperback","304",2005,2002,,2012/07/06,"grisham-laywer-books, read-before-goodreads, thriller","grisham-laywer-books (#7), read-before-goodreads (#165), thriller (#7)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  5355,"The Chamber","John Grisham","Grisham, John","",="0385339666",="9780385339667",4,"3.71","Delta","Paperback","640",2005,1994,,2012/07/06,"grisham-laywer-books, read-before-goodreads, thriller","grisham-laywer-books (#8), read-before-goodreads (#164), thriller (#8)","read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  516036,"Blade Runner (Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?)","Philip K. Dick","Dick, Philip K.","",="0345350472",="9780345350473",0,"4.05","Del Rey","Paperback","265",2007,1968,,2012/07/06,"to-read, sword-and-laser, science-fiction","to-read (#2), sword-and-laser (#27), science-fiction (#98)","to-read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  8852,"Macbeth","William Shakespeare","Shakespeare, William","",="0743477103",="9780743477109",4,"3.86","Simon & Schuster","Mass Market Paperback","132",2003,1606,,2012/07/06,"read-before-goodreads","read-before-goodreads (#28)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  5351,"The Street Lawyer","John Grisham","Grisham, John","",="0385339097",="9780385339094",3,"3.77","Bantam","Paperback","384",2005,1998,,2012/07/06,"grisham-laywer-books, read-before-goodreads, thriller","grisham-laywer-books (#6), read-before-goodreads (#166), thriller (#6)","read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  7956,"Treason","Orson Scott Card","Card, Orson Scott","",="0765309041",="9780765309044",4,"3.88","Orb Books","Paperback","288",2006,1978,,2012/07/06,"read-before-goodreads, science-fiction","read-before-goodreads (#26), science-fiction (#23)","read","","",,,,,0,,,,,
  5346,"The Last Juror","John Grisham","Grisham, John","",="0385339682",="9780385339681",3,"3.81","Delta","Paperback","416",2006,2004,,2012/07/06,"grisham-laywer-books, read-before-goodreads, thriller","grisham-laywer-books (#3), read-before-goodreads (#152), thriller (#3)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  644171,"Song of Susannah (The Dark Tower #6)","Stephen King","King, Stephen","Darrel Anderson",="1880418592",="9781880418598",3,"3.97","Donald M. Grant Publishers","Hardcover","413",2004,2004,2013/05/04,2012/07/06,"dark-tower, audio-book, read-2013, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, dark-fantasy","dark-tower (#3), audio-book (#36), read-2013 (#7), read-before-goodreads (#4), fantasy (#40), dark-fantasy (#4)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This book has some good parts, and is enjoyable if you've gotten this far in the series, but in my opinion it's the weakest of the 7.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Not much to say about this that hasn't been said in my previous reviews really. George Guidall is a pretty good reader, but I still miss the voices of Eddie and Susannah that Frank Muller did.<br/><br/>Mr. Guidall does have an excellent voice for the narration of the story, and Roland, probably better than Mr. Muller, but I find him lacking on the voices for all the rest of the characters.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This book is one of the shortest in the series, and it shows. It feels more like a transition and staging book for [b:The Dark Tower|5091|The Dark Tower (The Dark Tower, #7)|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348208581s/5091.jpg|6309701] that follows. By itself, I don't think it would stand up very well.<br/><br/>Thankfully Mr. King released the final 3 books over the course of about 2-3 years, so I wasn't stuck waiting for the next volume quite so long as in the past (I waited 5+ years for [b:Wolves of the Calla|4978|Wolves of the Calla (The Dark Tower, #5)|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348608372s/4978.jpg|2754911]).<br/><br/>I feel like very little happens in this book, and it's more about putting things into place. Maybe that's why it's so short. Of course some might disagree with my calling a 400 page book short.<br/><br/>After the battle with the Wolves the Ka-tet is split, and most of the events in the book take place almost entirely in our own world.<br/><br/>This book starts running rather than inching in the direction of what I would call Deus Ex Machina in most other books/series. It also gets incredibly Meta. For me however, it just works.<br/><br/>The series builds on the idea of multiple worlds/universes/levels of the tower and Mr. King takes that to an extreme with this book.<br/><br/>I can see this being polarizing. In fact my friend who read it recently was very upset by that part of the story, but I think it fits the story of the tower. <br/><br/>Or is it just a story? Say true, and I say thank ya.","","","3","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  4248,"The Da Vinci Code (Robert Langdon, #2)","Dan Brown","Brown, Dan","",="1400079179",="9781400079179",2,"3.72","Anchor Books","Mass Market Paperback","489",2006,2003,,2012/07/06,"robert-langdon, read-before-goodreads, thriller","robert-langdon (#2), read-before-goodreads (#155), thriller (#24)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  1232,"The Shadow of the Wind (The Cemetery of Forgotten Books,  #1)","Carlos Ruiz Zafón","Zafón, Carlos Ruiz","Lucia Graves",="0143034901",="9780143034902",5,"4.21","Penguin Books","Paperback","487",2005,2001,,2012/07/06,"favorites, read-before-goodreads","favorites (#13), read-before-goodreads (#158)","read","I read this book after the recommendation of a friend. It's one of the best books I've read in awhile.<br/><br/>The characters and the story immediately take you in, leaving you with a book that's hard to put down.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  995121,"The Drawing of the Three (Dark Tower, #2)","Stephen King","King, Stephen","",="0452279615",="9780452279612",4,"4.19","Plume","Paperback","401",1989,1987,2013/01/15,2012/07/06,"dark-tower, audio-book, read-2013, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, dark-fantasy","dark-tower (#4), audio-book (#3), read-2013 (#28), read-before-goodreads (#8), fantasy (#41), dark-fantasy (#5)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> In the second of the Dark Tower epic, Mr. King ratchets up the action, the conflict and most certainly the weird. <br/><br/>If anyone reads [b:The Gunslinger|43615|The Gunslinger (The Dark Tower, #1)|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1309288354s/43615.jpg|46575] and wonders “why do people like this series?” I advise them to continue on to this one, and find out. If after this book they still don’t get it, then this series is not for them.<br/><br/><b>Audiobook:</b> I listened to the revised edition of [b:The Gunslinger|43615|The Gunslinger (The Dark Tower, #1)|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1309288354s/43615.jpg|46575], which is read by George Guidall, who took over starting with [b:Wolves of the Calla|4978|Wolves of the Calla (The Dark Tower, #5)|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348608372s/4978.jpg|2754911]. With this book, it switches back to Frank Muller. Like Mr. King, Mr. Muller had a near-death accident. Unlike Mr. King however, he never fully recovered.<br/><br/>At first I didn't like the switch, because I thought Mr. Guidall did a good job. I warmed up to Mr. Muller after awhile, especially with his voices for Eddie and Detta.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>A walk down the beach may sound to you like a perfect setting for a romantic date. Not in Roland Deschain's world.<br/><br/>First Roland must face monsters. Monsters that are just a bit familiar yet terrifyingly different at the same time. <br/><br/><i>Did-a-chik!<br/>Dum-a-chum</i><br/><br/>Then there are the doors.<br/><br/>Doors? <br/><br/>Yes. Doors to a strange other world called ‘New York City’. But it’s not just another place, but another time. And not just one time, but three.<br/><br/><i>Three. This is the number of your fate.</i><br/><br/>Roland must draw must draw his three, to continue his journey:<br/><br/>* The Prisoner<br/>* The Lady of Shadows<br/>* Death<br/><br/><i>Death. But not for you Gunslinger, never for you.</i><br/><br/><br/>And a gunfight, you aren't soon to forget:<br/><br/><i>""...There's going to be shooting.""<br/>""There is?""<br/>""Yes."" The gunslinger looked serenely at Eddie. ""Quite a lot of it, I think.""</i><br/><br/>In this book we learn about those who must accompany Roland as he continues his epic quest for the Dark Tower. Roland must draw these three to him, and convince him of the worthiness of his quest. This is no easy task. Each of them has flaws. Especially Roland himself. But each has strengths as well. Strengths that will be needed if the Tower is ever to be reach.<br/><br/>Oh and don’t forget to pack the tooter fish popkins you honk mah fah!<br/>","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  656420,"Wolves of the Calla (The Dark Tower #5)","Stephen King","King, Stephen","Bernie Wrightson",="1880418568",="9781880418567",4,"4.14","Donald M. Grant Publishers","Hardcover","714",2003,2003,2013/03/23,2012/07/06,"dark-tower, audio-book, read-2013, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, dark-fantasy","dark-tower (#2), audio-book (#5), read-2013 (#16), read-before-goodreads (#5), fantasy (#39), dark-fantasy (#3)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> While I don't feel this to be as strong of an entry as the previous two books, it is still a good book in it's own right. Besides if you've made it this far in the series, how can you really stop now?<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Since I listed to the revised edition of [b:The Gunslinger|43615|The Gunslinger (The Dark Tower, #1)|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1309288354s/43615.jpg|46575], I got a taste of George Guidall at the start of my audio journey with Roland on my quest for the tower. I found him to be good, but not great.<br/><br/>Then with [b:The Drawing of the Three|5094|The Drawing of the Three (The Dark Tower, #2)|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1309281704s/5094.jpg|2113248], it reverted back to Frank Muller who originally read books 1-4 on cassette tape. <br/><br/>Unfortunately for Mr. Mueller (and to a much lesser degree all of us), he got into a car accident and eventually died a few years later from the complications. This is the first book where I've gone back to Mr. Guidall.<br/><br/>He is a great reader, but he's not Frank Mueller. I like Mr. Guidall's voice for Roland better than Mr. Mueller's. Everyone else's however are not as good. <br/><br/>Though to be fair to Mr. Guidall, I'm not sure he's really trying to make them sound like he thinks they would, rather than simply trying to make them sound distinct from one another.<br/><br/>I particularly miss Mr. Mueller's voices for Eddie and Susannah. That said, I enjoyed Mr. Guidall once I got used to him.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I liked this book better on this re-read than I did originally. I think part of the reason I was down on it was how much I love [b:Wizard and Glass|5096|Wizard and Glass (The Dark Tower, #4)|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327946510s/5096.jpg|750558]. After that book, and how long I had to wait for this one, almost anything was going to feel like a letdown.<br/><br/>But this story mixes elements from several things I enjoy. It's like a cross between some of the Clint Eastwood spaghetti westerns, and Kurosawa film, which King himself acknowledges as influences to the story at the end of the book.<br/><br/>This book probably more than all the others pulls in pop culture from all over the place, including Star Wars, Harry Potter, Marvell Comics and even some of Mr. King's own work ([b:'Salem's Lot|11590|'Salem's Lot|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327891565s/11590.jpg|3048937]).<br/><br/>In many ways it's another diversion for Roland's Tet from their quest to the beam, but an important one as several developments occur here that make it possible for them them progress further.<br/><br/>As this series is really all about the journey anyways, it's an enjoyable entry that not only gives us more insight into what a Gunslinger did in the time before the world moved on, but it's first real taste of what his Tet can do collectively as Gunslingers themselves.<br/><br/>With this re-read and some time from my original read, I was better able to appreciate what this book has to offer. <br/><br/>It does take a bit of a turn in direction from the previous 4 books that originally left me a bit disappointed, but now I found highly enjoyable, and probably inevitable.<br/><br/>The Dark Tower runs through just about everything Mr. King writes, and he fully embraces that notion with this book, but it really started in [b:Wizard and Glass|5096|Wizard and Glass (The Dark Tower, #4)|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327946510s/5096.jpg|750558] and Randall Flagg.<br/><br/>I'm eager to finish my journey with Roland, but will be taking a hopefully short break to do 1 or 2 other books before continuing on with [b:Song of Susannah|5093|Song of Susannah (The Dark Tower, #6)|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347565645s/5093.jpg|1178083].","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  1432,"Hamlet","William Shakespeare","Shakespeare, William","",="074347712X",="9780743477123",3,"3.98","Simon & Schuster","Paperback","342",2003,1603,,2012/07/06,"read-before-goodreads","read-before-goodreads (#157)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  960,"Angels & Demons  (Robert Langdon, #1)","Dan Brown","Brown, Dan","",="1416524797",="9781416524793",3,"3.79","","Paperback","713",2006,2000,,2012/07/06,"robert-langdon, read-before-goodreads, thriller","robert-langdon (#1), read-before-goodreads (#160), thriller (#23)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  1110,"The Broker","John Grisham","Grisham, John","",="0385340540",="9780385340540",3,"3.72","Delta","Paperback","422",2006,2005,,2012/07/06,"grisham-laywer-books, read-before-goodreads, thriller","grisham-laywer-books (#2), read-before-goodreads (#159), thriller (#2)","read","","",,,,,1,,,"unspecified",,
  2,"Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Harry Potter, #5)","J.K. Rowling","Rowling, J.K.","Mary GrandPré",="0439358078",="9780439358071",4,"4.41","Scholastic","Paperback","870",2004,2003,2012/11/25,2012/07/06,"harry-potter, audio-book, read-2012, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, young-adult, read-2014, not-a-bookclub-club","harry-potter (#4), audio-book (#7), read-2012 (#9), read-before-goodreads (#12), fantasy (#65), young-adult (#4), read-2014 (#111), not-a-bookclub-club (#27)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I'm not sure if it's how much I liked [b:Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire|6|Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Harry Potter, #4)|J.K. Rowling|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1361482611s/6.jpg|3046572] or if it's all the teenage angst, but this book just isn't as good. <br/><br/>The DA goes a long way towards making up for all the brooding and whining Harry seems to do for most of this book, but not completely. Really it's the women: Luna, Ginny and especially Hermoine who help make up for it the most.<br/><br/>3.5 Stars<br/><br/><b>Jim Dale Audio Book:</b> Jim Dale just seems to keep getting better with each book. His voices for Luna who is new to this book, as well as some the O.W.L. test givers and Neville with <spoiler>a broken nose</spoiler> are all excellent on top of all the ones he seems to have mastered in previous books.<br/><br/><b>Stephen Fry Audio Book:</b> Another great job. He was particularly good at making me annoyed at the characters who were being annoying. His Umbridge voice is nearly as irritating as the movie, and the part at the end with Neville was getting on my nerves it was so good. Once again making it impossible to choose between narrators.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I've always been torn on this book. On my very first read through, this was my least favorite. I think in retrospect it's more due to how great Goblet was (as mentioned above).<br/><br/>The first time I read this I was 20 years old and still in college. I was much closer in age to Harry and his friends. This time, I'm 30 years old and long removed from my teenage years.<br/><br/>I have recollections of similar thoughts and feelings to Harry, but they are just that.<br/><br/>Overall I still enjoy this book, and on this re-read, I put it ahead of  [b:Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets|15881|Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Harry Potter #2)|J.K. Rowling|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1370043634s/15881.jpg|6231171] but probably not [b:Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone|3|Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Harry Potter, #1)|J.K. Rowling|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1361572757s/3.jpg|4640799] on my ordering of the series.<br/><br/>There are several things this book has going for it to redeem all the miserable time of Harry feeling sorry for himself. <br/><br/>First it introduces Luna Lovegood, whose one of my favorite supporting characters.<br/><br/>Second it introduces the DA. This is a place where Harry really comes into his own. It also gives you a reprieve (for the most part) from all of his teenage angst.<br/><br/>Third is just how great Hermoine has become. I've always identified with her more than Harry or Ron. I like order and following the rules. I like books and the learning they can provide. I like being cautious and thinking things out. She's the voice of reason in a book full of teenage angst.<br/><br/>Fourth is the Weasely Twins. They have what could be argued as the best scene in the series in this book. While they are people I probably wouldn't get along with too well (you tell them Hermoine!), they sure go a long way to lighten things up.<br/><br/>And speaking of Weasely's, Ginny really finally comes into her own. She's smart and capable and moved on from fawning over Harry. <br/><br/>The final thing I'll highlight is Dolores Umbridge. This is someone I'm torn on. She is utterly obnoxious and frustrating. However, that is the point of her character, so Ms. Rowling does a fantastic job with her. I think simply coupled with Harry's obnoxious traits, it's just a bit too much for one book. <br/><br/>I also find her to be TOO much of an antagonist, and maybe a lost opportunity. If she was a little more like Fudge and less of a sadist, she could be a truly great villain, though maybe Rowling didn't think the subtlety of inaction would be apparent to her readers?<br/><br/>Overall this book is uneven, and I find how much I like it seems to vary with each reading.","","","5","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  9924508,"Cryptonomicon","Neal Stephenson","Stephenson, Neal","William Dufris",="",="",4,"4.23","Macmillan Audio","Audiobook","",2009,1999,2013/04/28,2012/07/06,"audio-book, read-2013, historical-fiction","audio-book (#25), read-2013 (#9), historical-fiction (#3)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> If you're a computer or math geek, this book is a must read. If you like geeky humor mixed with world war 2, and random side tangents, this might also be a book for you.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I listened to the unabridged audio book by William Dufris. This is the first that I have listened by him. While he didn't do distinct voices for all the characters he did do some as well as a few accents. His German accent was particularly good.<br/><br/>The audio suffers a bit from being unabridged, but thankfully in only a few places. I imagine the book has a bunch of white space/different font for some of the these parts where codes are written out, but Mr. Dufris is forced to read everything out and it can be a bit tedious.<br/><br/>This is my only relatively minor complaint. For a 42+ hour book, this occurred very infrequently.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This book has been on my to read list for a long time. [b:Snow Crash|830|Snow Crash|Neal Stephenson|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320544000s/830.jpg|493634] is one of my favorite books. While this book is more historical fiction than sci-fi (and certainly not cyberpunk), it has the same geeky humor that I loved in [b:Snow Crash|830|Snow Crash|Neal Stephenson|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320544000s/830.jpg|493634] so much.<br/><br/>The book has two time periods: The 1940's starting shortly before the attack on Pearl Harbor, and the mid-late 90s. <br/><br/>There are several point of view characters for the 40's timeline, but the primary one is Lawrence Waterhouse, an often misunderstood and awkward mathematical genius.<br/><br/>Waterhouse gets blown off by Einstein but becomes friends with Alan Turing. He eventually is put to work breaking codes of both the Japanese and later the Germans during the war.<br/><br/>Meanwhile in the ""present"" Randall is Unix Guru working with his friend Abby to set up their next business venture in the Philippines.<br/><br/>The other point of view characters include Goto Dango, a Japanese soldier, and Bobby Shafto an American soldier. Their stories augment the main narrative of Waterhouse's.<br/><br/>This book has several tangents, including one on beards and another on bicycles. Many of his tangents turn ordinary thinking into mathematical equations. I found most of them interesting if not amusing, but they are of little importance to the story, so I can see people complaining of the excess in what is a rather lengthy book.<br/><br/>The stories of the two timelines eventually converge in a way that wasn't very apparent to me until about the midway point or so.<br/><br/>I really enjoyed the book, although I'd be happy with some follow-up as I was left with several questions, though mostly minor ones.<br/><br/>Most of my questions relate to the historical accuracy of many events in the story. People like Alan Turing were quite real, as was his involvement in the British efforts to break German codes during the war. There is work involving the Enigma, but the names of the Japanese codes appear to have been changed, as well as replacing several of the people involved with fictional characters.<br/><br/>At some point I hope to find/read a non-fiction book (or books) on the breaking of codes in World War 2, and I am now fascinated by it.","","","1","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  830,"Snow Crash","Neal Stephenson","Stephenson, Neal","",="0553380958",="9780553380958",5,"3.98","Bantam Books","Paperback","470",2000,1992,,2012/07/06,"favorites, read-before-goodreads, cyberpunk, science-fiction","favorites (#5), read-before-goodreads (#142), cyberpunk (#4), science-fiction (#40)","read","Finallly got around to reading this one. This is a great story if you're into cyberpunk or computers and technology.<br/><br/>I found I enjoyed this a lot more than Neuromancer, although if you haven't read that, I'd still read it first.","","","","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  1,"Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Harry Potter, #6)","J.K. Rowling","Rowling, J.K.","Mary GrandPré",="0439785960",="9780439785969",4,"4.48","Scholastic","Paperback","652",2006,2005,2012/12/05,2012/07/06,"harry-potter, audio-book, read-2012, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, young-adult, not-a-bookclub-club, read-2014","harry-potter (#3), audio-book (#6), read-2012 (#7), read-before-goodreads (#11), fantasy (#64), young-adult (#3), not-a-bookclub-club (#26), read-2014 (#117)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I've gone back and forth on bumping my rating up from 4 to 5. The ending of this book is one of the best in the series but as a whole, I find this book just isn't quite as good as [b:Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire|6|Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Harry Potter, #4)|J.K. Rowling|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327625629s/6.jpg|3046572] or [b:Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban|5|Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Harry Potter, #3)|J.K. Rowling|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1333219419s/5.jpg|2402163]. It's very though, as it's another excellent book.<br/><br/><b>Audio Book:</b> I really want to try the Stephen Fry versions to compare, but Jim Dale has me firmly in his corner as THE way to enjoy these books.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I have to start with the end. Possibly one of the most spoilers of all time. I remember being at a convention the year this came out and people seemed to be making it a point of yelling <spoiler>Snape kills Dumbledore</spoiler>. I put that in tags on the very slim chance you either haven't read the book, or somehow avoided that.<br/><br/>People got really creative about this too. I remember someone did a mashup with castaway where Tom Hanks was keeping a copy of the book in that unopened package and then someone flew by the island with the spoiler on a banner behind the plane.<br/><br/>I also recall at the time Borders had your choice of bookmark one saying <spoiler>Trust Snape</spoiler>, and the other: <spoiler>Snape is a very bad man</spoiler>. I think I was more in the former camp, than the latter, but it's hard for me to remember anymore.<br/><br/>Above all I think this division among readers during what felt like a very long waiting time until [b:Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows|136251|Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Harry Potter, #7)|J.K. Rowling|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1333219787s/136251.jpg|2963218] came out, is what is best about this book. It is certainly THE cliffhanger of the series.<br/><br/>Also, in this book, Ms. Rowling finally starts to reveal some of the deeper secrets of the series as Harry and Dumbledore explore memories of the past.<br/><br/>As a grown adult, I find the descriptions of <spoiler>Harry's feelings toward Ginny</spoiler> both amusing and nostalgic. I remember having similar feelings when I was I was high school. I don't miss that ""monster"" as Harry calls it.","","","3","","",1,,,"unspecified",,
  
negative.code: ﻿Book Id,Title,Author,Author l-f,Additional Authors,ISBN,ISBN13,My Rating,Average Rating,Publisher,Binding,Number of Pages,Year Published,Original Publication Year,Date Read,Date Added,Bookshelves,Bookshelves with positions,Exclusive Shelf,My Review,Spoiler,Private Notes,Read Count,Recommended For,Recommended By,Owned Copies,Original Purchase Date,Original Purchase Location,Condition,Condition Description,BCID
  1148240,"Power-Up: How Japanese Video Games Gave the World an Extra Life","Chris Kohler","Kohler, Chris","",="0744004241",="0752073004248",0,"3.76","Brady Games","Paperback","312",2004,2004,,2014/11/10,"to-read, nonfiction","to-read (#293), nonfiction (#20)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  7113260,"Gotham Central, Book Three: On the Freak Beat","Greg Rucka","Rucka, Greg","Ed Brubaker, Michael Lark, Stefano Gaudiano",="1401227546",="9781401227548",0,"4.30","DC Comics","Hardcover","224",2010,2010,,2014/11/09,"to-read, batman, graphic-novels-and-manga, next-in-series","to-read (#291), batman (#11), graphic-novels-and-manga (#50), next-in-series (#35)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  23476874,"The Shadow of Elysium (Shadow Campaigns)","Django Wexler","Wexler, Django","",="",="",0,0.0,"InterMix","Kindle Edition","",2015,2015,,2014/11/04,"to-read, fantasy, flintlock-fantasy, shadow-campaigns","to-read (#291), fantasy (#279), flintlock-fantasy (#10), shadow-campaigns (#5)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  23346335,"The Price of Valour (The Shadow Campaigns, #3)","Django Wexler","Wexler, Django","",="0091950562",="9780091950569",0,0.0,"Del Rey","Hardcover","544",2015,2015,,2014/11/04,"to-read, fantasy, flintlock-fantasy, next-in-series, shadow-campaigns","to-read (#290), fantasy (#278), flintlock-fantasy (#9), next-in-series (#34), shadow-campaigns (#4)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  23447047,"River of Blue Fire (Otherland, #2)","Tad Williams","Williams, Tad","George Newbern",="",="9780756410339",0,"3.98","Penguin Audio","Audiobook","25",2014,1998,,2014/10/25,"to-read, otherland, audio-book, fantasy","to-read (#289), otherland (#2), audio-book (#145), fantasy (#276)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  23168818,"Time Salvager","Wesley Chu","Chu, Wesley","",="0765377187",="9780765377180",0,"4.33","Tor Books","Hardcover","368",2015,2015,,2014/10/24,"to-read, science-fiction","to-read (#288), science-fiction (#99)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  6375833,"Gotham Central, Book Two: Jokers and Madmen","Ed Brubaker","Brubaker, Ed","Greg Rucka, Michael Lark, Duane Swierczynski",="1401225217",="9781401225216",3,"4.41","DC Comics","Hardcover","288",2009,2009,2014/11/09,2014/10/24,"batman, graphic-novels-and-manga, read-2014","batman (#10), graphic-novels-and-manga (#49), read-2014 (#120)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>This volume is made up of issues 11-22 comprising four stories. It features notable Batman characters like the Mad Hatter, Harvey Bullock, the Penguin and The Joker. Batman once again makes a few cameos, but he's present even less than he was in the first volume.<br/><br/>Daydreams and Believers (1 issue) - 3 stars<br/>Soft Targets (4 issues) - 3.5 stars<br/>Life is Full of Disappointments (3 issues) - 3.5 stars<br/>Unresolved (4 issues) - 3.5 stars<br/><br/>I thought all the stories were decent, but not exceptional. It's a toss up for me between Soft Targets and Unresolved as the best story of this volume. I guess because they are the ones involving Batman villains? Life is Full of Disappointments and Daydreams and Believers were just basic cop stories that could have just as easily been set somewhere else. That didn't make them bad however.<br/><br/>Overall another decent entry in a series that offers a pretty unique take on the super hero genre.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>The artwork once again is good, but not great. There are a lot of characters in this series and I sometimes struggle to tell them apart. It's not my favorite art style, but far from the worst.<br/><br/>This is a dense volume with lots of panels and text on each page making for a heavier read than many comic trades I read.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  21856367,"The Innovators: How a Group of  Hackers, Geniuses and Geeks Created the Digital Revolution","Walter Isaacson","Isaacson, Walter","",="147670869X",="9781476708690",0,"3.94","Simon and Schuster","Hardcover","528",2014,2014,,2014/10/23,"to-read, nonfiction","to-read (#287), nonfiction (#19)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  11084145,"Steve Jobs","Walter Isaacson","Isaacson, Walter","",="1451648537",="9781451648539",0,"4.11","Simon & Schuster","Hardcover","656",2011,2011,,2014/10/23,"to-read, nonfiction","to-read (#286), nonfiction (#18)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  23012877,"Rat Queens, Vol. 2: The Far Reaching Tentacles of N'rygoth","Kurtis J. Wiebe","Wiebe, Kurtis J.","Roc Upchurch",="1632150409",="9781632150400",0,"4.67","Image Comics","Paperback","128",2015,2015,,2014/10/21,"to-read, graphic-novels-and-manga, next-in-series, rat-queens, fantasy","to-read (#285), graphic-novels-and-manga (#48), next-in-series (#33), rat-queens (#1), fantasy (#274)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  17848997,"The Dark of Deep Below (The Adventures of the Princess and Mr. Whiffle #2)","Patrick Rothfuss","Rothfuss, Patrick","Nate  Taylor",="",="9781596066205",4,"4.30","Subterranean Press","Hardcover","232",2013,2013,2014/10/25,2014/10/21,"fantasy, read-2014","fantasy (#277), read-2014 (#116)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>I liked this one a lot more than the first. It was less depressing for one. It's still quite twisted in places though, and definitely dark. I thought it was a lot of fun though, and as a picture book, a very quick/easy read.<br/><br/>If you liked the first one, you'll likely enjoy this, and if you were so-so on the first, you should give this one a shot, you may find it an improvement like I did.<br/><br/>It's still a borrow from the library book thing for me though. It's not something I'd read a bunch of times, which is the only real way to get value out of owning it in my opinion.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>Nate Taylor again does an excellent job with the artwork. There are a few pages without narration that really shine, but more importantly the facial expressions are really excellent. The art fits well with the story too. It has the look of a children's book while really being dark and fiendish.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  76778,"The Martian Chronicles","Ray Bradbury","Bradbury, Ray","",="0553278223",="9780553278224",0,"4.09","Bantam/Spectra","Mass Market Paperback","182",1984,1950,,2014/10/16,"to-read, science-fiction","to-read (#284), science-fiction (#97)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  23176344,"The Abyss Beyond Dreams  (Commonwealth: Chronicle of the Fallers #1)","Peter F. Hamilton","Hamilton, Peter F.","John Lee",="1494555328",="9781494555320",0,"4.28","Tantor Audio","Audio CD","",2014,2014,,2014/10/15,"to-read, commonwealth","to-read (#282), commonwealth (#6)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  20299683,"Rat Queens, Vol. 1: Sass & Sorcery","Kurtis J. Wiebe","Wiebe, Kurtis J.","Roc Upchurch",="1607069458",="9781607069454",5,"4.38","Image Comics","Paperback","128",2014,2014,2014/10/19,2014/10/15,"graphic-novels-and-manga, read-2014, rat-queens, fantasy","graphic-novels-and-manga (#47), read-2014 (#113), rat-queens (#2), fantasy (#273)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>Gruesome and crass, and I loved every minute of it.<br/><br/>I'm not really big into comics anymore. I think they are overly expensive and generally uninteresting. But things seem to be changing lately. Or at least there is some really great stuff out there. <br/><br/>First [b:Locke & Key|3217221|Locke & Key, Vol. 1  Welcome to Lovecraft (Locke & Key, #1)|Joe Hill|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1377304780s/3217221.jpg|3251160], then [b:Saga|15704307|Saga, Volume 1|Brian K. Vaughan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1351259514s/15704307.jpg|19113524] and now Rat Queens. These aren't comic books for kids.<br/><br/>I could spend time talking about how the story is lead by four women who break all the usual tropes of fantasy stories, but other people have done that already, and it's not precisely the reason why this volume got the rare 5 stars for me.<br/><br/>The characters are just great in general. Every one of them. But especially Betty. She's my favorite. I crave new and different stories. Stories where the tropes are either thrown out or turned on their head. This seems to have that in spades.<br/><br/>Unlike [b:The Mirror Empire|20646731|The Mirror Empire (Worldbreaker Saga, #1)|Kameron Hurley|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1399920947s/20646731.jpg|39939919] where the women felt like gender roles simply reversed, the Queens feel like women, even if they are unlike any women than I'm used to seeing, especially in genre fiction.<br/><br/>They are not the type of women I'd want to party with. I'm too much of a lightweight to keep up with them. But I sure do seem to love reading about them.<br/><br/>As a long time D&D player this story just seemed to press all the right buttons for me. On the surface it's your pretty standard party. You've your halfling thief/assassin, a human (I think?) cleric, an elven mage, and a dwarven warrior. But their battle plans and tactics are just ludicrous, and totally awesome all at the same time.<br/><br/>And if that wasn't enough, the humor is just excellent. Mr. Wiebe seems to poke fun not only at role playing tropes, but story tropes as well.<br/><br/><i>""I find it very strange that we've never talked about this before.""<br/><br/>""This moment seemed convenient.""</i><br/><br/>This hasn't quite convinced me to start picking up the monthly issues, but it's awfully close. I definitely can't wait to get my hands on the next trade.<br/><br/>Highly recommend.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>Mr. Upchurch's artwork is excellent. I've seen comments about realistic body images, and I can't really speak too much to that, but I have watched plenty of anime and read many comics with unrealistic body images, so I can say the characters seem more realistic to me. And of course they are wearing proper armor for their class and not the standard +10 bra of super defense.<br/><br/>But more importantly (to me anyways) the artwork is really excellent in general. I'm especially impressed at the facial expressions. There are more than a few scenes that are extra awesome due to the art.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  23157777,"Fool's Quest  (The Fitz and The Fool Trilogy, #2)","Robin Hobb","Hobb, Robin","",="",="",0,"4.60","Harper Voyager",,"",2015,2015,,2014/10/13,"to-read, elderlings, fantasy, next-in-series","to-read (#282), elderlings (#16), fantasy (#271), next-in-series (#32)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  12813952,"The Evolutionary Void (Void, #3)","Peter F. Hamilton","Hamilton, Peter F.","John      Lee",="",="",0,"4.23","Tantor Audio","Audiobook","",2010,2010,,2014/10/12,"audio-book, science-fiction, commonwealth, currently-reading, read-2014","audio-book (#140), science-fiction (#96), commonwealth (#5), currently-reading (#2), read-2014 (#121)","currently-reading",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  319359,"Runaways: Marvel Age, Vol. 1: The Pride","Brian K. Vaughan","Vaughan, Brian K.","Adrian Alphona, David Newbold",="1599612933",="9781599612935",0,"4.27","Spotlight","Library Binding","24",2007,2007,,2014/10/10,"to-read, graphic-novels-and-manga","to-read (#281), graphic-novels-and-manga (#46)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  9844910,"The Temporal Void (Void, #2)","Peter F. Hamilton","Hamilton, Peter F.","John      Lee",="1400181836",="9781400181834",4,"4.22","Tantor Media, Inc.","Audiobook","0",2009,2008,2014/11/07,2014/10/10,"audio-book, science-fiction, commonwealth, read-2014","audio-book (#139), science-fiction (#95), commonwealth (#4), read-2014 (#118)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  68571,"The Ultimate History of Video Games: From Pong to Pokemon - The Story Behind the Craze That Touched Our Lives and Changed the World","Steven L. Kent","Kent, Steven L.","",="0761536434",="9780761536437",0,"4.14","Three Rivers Press","Paperback","624",2001,2001,,2014/10/10,"to-read, nonfiction","to-read (#280), nonfiction (#17)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  13528420,"We Are Anonymous: Inside the Hacker World of LulzSec, Anonymous, and the Global Cyber Insurgency","Parmy Olson","Olson, Parmy","",="0316213543",="9780316213547",0,"3.92","Little, Brown and Company","Hardcover","512",2012,2012,,2014/10/10,"to-read, hacking, nonfiction","to-read (#279), hacking (#13), nonfiction (#16)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  23199692,"An Unwelcome Quest (Magic 2.0 #3)","Scott Meyer","Meyer, Scott","Luke Daniels",="1501220500",="9781501220500",0,"4.33","Brilliance Audio","Audio CD","",2015,2015,,2014/10/04,"to-read, audio-book, fantasy, next-in-series, magic-2-0","to-read (#277), audio-book (#138), fantasy (#269), next-in-series (#31), magic-2-0 (#3)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  20893568,"The Peripheral","William Gibson","Gibson, William","Lorelei King",="1611763355",="9781611763355",4,"4.17","Penguin Audio","Audio CD","14",2014,2014,2014/10/26,2014/10/01,"science-fiction, audio-book, sff-audio, read-2014","science-fiction (#94), audio-book (#142), sff-audio (#29), read-2014 (#115)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A good, but not great techno-thriller of sorts. 3.5 Stars.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I really didn't like Lorelei King at the start. But she grew on me. I'm not sure if she got better as the book went on, or I just needed some distance from my previous book. She's clear and easy to hear. She did a few voices, but they weren't very memorable to me.<br/><br/>I will say I started off pretty confused. I'm not sure if that would have been solved with some rereading of the early chapters, or if I just needed to get my bearings. Once I did though, I found it easier to follow. Audio is probably not the best choice though if you often distracted when doing audio books.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>William Gibson is one of those authors I keep meaning to read more of. I'm ashamed to say I've only read [b:Neuromancer|22328|Neuromancer (Sprawl, #1)|William Gibson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1285017005s/22328.jpg|909457], [b:Count Zero|22200|Count Zero (Sprawl, #2)|William Gibson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1390358225s/22200.jpg|879764],  and [b:Burning Chrome|22323|Burning Chrome|William Gibson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1349075772s/22323.jpg|2457086]. I've had [b:Mona Lisa Overdrive|154091|Mona Lisa Overdrive (Sprawl, #3)|William Gibson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1374778887s/154091.jpg|1263322] sitting unread on my shelves for a few years now.<br/><br/>So I can't say how this really stacks up against his other works too well. It reminds me more of [a:Daniel Suarez|1956402|Daniel Suarez|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1265394868p2/1956402.jpg] than the stuff of his I have read. If nothing else this book renews my desire to read some more of his work.<br/><br/>This one is hard to categorize. I'd guess techo-thriller is maybe the best? It's also a time travel book. Sort of. The time stuff definitely falls into the Back to the Future 2 category (altering the past forks it to a new future).<br/><br/>I think both protagonists are pretty good, though Flynne is easily the better of the two. She keeps herself together way better than I would under the circumstances she faces. Netherton is much less interesting, and took me a bit to warm up to, but by the end, I enjoyed his chapters almost as much as Flynne's. Though that may simply be due to the amount of overlap of the two.<br/><br/>The world building could have been a little better. There is this mysterious Jackpot, that while explained eventually, wasn't really explained in a lot of detail. I guess it was to move the plot along more than anything. We get glimpses of both Flynne's and Netherton's worlds, though not as much as I'd have liked.<br/><br/>There is a bunch of technology in this one. Some of it looks familiar like tablets and drones. The rest of it sounds familiar like robots, advanced haptic controls, and embedded phones. There is no big dreaming here. Everything Mr. Gibson writes seems feasible, and some of it probably not too far off.<br/><br/>At it's core though, this is really just a thriller. There are shady characters and a mysterious murder drives the plot. I probably would have preferred something more cyberpunk, but I have no idea if still writes those kinds of books anymore.<br/><br/>I found it a quick listen, at just over fourteen hours I did most of it over a busy weekend of chores and bike riding. Not a bad choice if you're looking for something shorter to fit in between other reads like I was.","","","1","","",1,2014/10/19,"Review Copy","Like new",,
  12070846,"Mile 81","Stephen King","King, Stephen","",="1451665601",="9781451665604",0,"3.55","Scribner","ebook","2",2011,2011,,2014/09/29,"to-read","to-read (#277)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  3316474,"Gotham Central, Book One: In the Line of Duty","Ed Brubaker","Brubaker, Ed","Greg Rucka, Michael Lark, Lawrence Block",="1401219233",="9781401219239",3,"4.38","DC Comics","Hardcover","240",2008,2004,2014/10/06,2014/09/29,"batman, graphic-novels-and-manga, read-2014","batman (#9), graphic-novels-and-manga (#45), read-2014 (#108)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>This first volume is 3 stories comprised of 10 issues. The first story is 2 issues, the second is 3, and the final one is 5.<br/><br/>The second story was kind of a continuation of the first, while the final story felt more stand alone.<br/><br/>Each story features a different Batman villain, and cameos of the Dark Knight himself.<br/><br/>Unlike the new Fox show, this is set much later in the timeline. Commissioner Gordon is retired rather than being new to the force. He only made a cameo in one issue rather than being a main character.<br/><br/>I thought the third story was a lot more interesting/had a better story than the first two. If it had been the only story, I would have rated this volume 4 stars, but the other two bring the rating down to a 3.5 (rounded down to 3 since GR hates half stars).<br/><br/>I like the concept of focusing on Gotham police in a city where Batman handles the worst criminals. They hit on a bunch of different reactions to Batman's presence.<br/><br/>I'm interested enough in the characters and stories that I'll probably pick up the next volume from the library at some point.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>The Artwork was good, but not great. There were some panels that didn't look very good, but others that were better. It really felt uneven. I'm not sure if it was intentional if certain panels were given more time than others.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  22886612,"Nemesis Games (Expanse, #5)","James S.A. Corey","Corey, James S.A.","",="",="",0,"4.14","Orbit","Kindle Edition","608",2015,2015,,2014/09/26,"to-read, audio-book, next-in-series, science-fiction","to-read (#276), audio-book (#136), next-in-series (#30), science-fiction (#92)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  22877341,"Mage's Blood","David Hair","Hair, David","Nick Podehl",="1491503130",="9781491503133",0,"3.81","Brilliance Audio","Audio CD","",2014,2012,,2014/09/25,"to-read, audio-book, fantasy, sff-audio","to-read (#6), audio-book (#135), fantasy (#268), sff-audio (#27)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18405221,"Queen of Fire (Raven's Shadow, #3)","Anthony  Ryan","Ryan, Anthony","",="",="",0,"4.47","Ace","Kindle Edition","",2015,2015,,2014/09/24,"to-read, epic-fantasy, fantasy, next-in-series, ravens-shadow","to-read (#275), epic-fantasy (#35), fantasy (#267), next-in-series (#29), ravens-shadow (#3)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  20518784,"The Ice Dragon","George R.R. Martin","Martin, George R.R.","Luis Royo",="0765378779",="9780765378774",0,"3.61","Tor Teen","Hardcover","128",2014,1980,,2014/09/24,"to-read","to-read (#274)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  20819685,"The Bone Clocks","David Mitchell","Mitchell, David","",="1400065674",="9781400065677",0,"3.94","Random House","Hardcover","624",2014,2014,,2014/09/24,"to-read","to-read (#272)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  22701387,"Beyond the Pale","Henry L. Herz","Herz, Henry L.","Saladin Ahmed, Peter S. Beagle, Heather Brewer, Jim Butcher, Rachel Caine, Kami Garcia, Nancy Holder, Gillian Philip, Jane Yolen, Abigail Larson",="0989448738",="9780989448734",0,"3.91","Birch Tree Publishing","Paperback","230",2014,2014,,2014/09/22,"to-read","to-read (#271)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  21413662,"What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions","Randall Munroe","Munroe, Randall","",="0544272994",="9780544272996",0,"4.11","Houghton Mifflin Harcourt","Hardcover","303",2014,2014,,2014/09/20,"to-read, nonfiction, humor","to-read (#270), nonfiction (#15), humor (#4)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  15779584,"London Falling (Shadow Police, #1)","Paul Cornell","Cornell, Paul","",="076533027X",="9780765330277",0,"3.78","Tor","Hardcover","402",2013,2012,,2014/09/19,"to-read, fantasy, urban-fantasy","to-read (#269), fantasy (#266), urban-fantasy (#50)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  13638125,"Vicious","V.E. Schwab","Schwab, V.E.","Victoria Schwab",="0765335344",="9780765335340",0,"4.22","Tor","Hardcover","364",2013,2013,,2014/09/18,"to-read","to-read (#268)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  12803304,"Reamde","Neal Stephenson","Stephenson, Neal","Malcolm Hillgartner",="",="",4,"3.93","Brilliance Audio","Audiobook","39",2011,2011,2014/09/27,2014/09/17,"read-2014, audio-book, science-fiction","read-2014 (#103), audio-book (#137), science-fiction (#93)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> While not as enjoyable as some of his other books, I found this pretty enjoyable. I suspect everyone won't feel the same however.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Malcolm Hillgartner is a pretty good narrator. He does a few voices/accents for some of the characters that adds a bit to the story. I will say clocking in at 38.5 hours this is a long one that most people can probably read faster themselves unless you listen to it sped up. I don't like to do that, so this one took me about 10 days to get through (which is honestly faster than I was expecting). <br/><br/>I'd say the audio is a good option while not be a ""must listen"". <br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>[b:Snow Crash|830|Snow Crash|Neal Stephenson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1385214698s/830.jpg|493634] is one of my favorite books, and I really enjoyed [b:Cryptonomicon|816|Cryptonomicon|Neal Stephenson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327931476s/816.jpg|1166797], but I was a bit disappointed with [b:The Diamond Age|827|The Diamond Age|Neal Stephenson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388180931s/827.jpg|2181158], so I wasn't sure what to expect here.<br/><br/>In many ways this feels like a spiritual successor to [b:Cryptonomicon|816|Cryptonomicon|Neal Stephenson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327931476s/816.jpg|1166797]. It's not really science fiction. It's really just a thriller with a technical starting point. Just like cryptography serves as a backdrop for that book, Gaming (particularly MMO's) does so here. <br/><br/>Only while the cryptography serves as a pretty constant part of that story, things take a 90 degree turn away from the MMO stuff here for awhile. I initially found that very disappointing. I'm a recovering World of Warcraft junkie and I was hoping for some kind of cyberpunk MMO story. That's not the case though, so if that's what you're looking for as well, you may be disappointed.<br/><br/>While we start off in typical Neal Stephenson fashion with immense detail about the design and development of T'Rain, and a virus associated with it called Reamde, this book is really more of a character driven thriller that feels almost more like a spy novel than anything sci-fi.<br/><br/>With a book this long, and Mr. Stephenson's tendency to go into more detail on certain things than is ever necessary, I found it got bogged down in parts and just wishing he would get back to the game.<br/><br/>However as things went on, I really came to like his characters. I never found anyone's story to be too uninteresting or slow, it was really some of his tangents that were the problem, and general lack of Richard Forthrast, whom the blurb leads you to believe is the main character. He's not. He's an important party, but really this is his niece Zula's story. <br/><br/>I found he to be a really enjoyable protagonist. The characters in this book have far more depth than some of his others, but this one will live or die on how much you like the characters I think. Zula is smart, capable and level-headed who continually tries to make the best of bad situations. Things maybe get a little bit close to ""chosen one"" levels, but for the most part I think Mr. Stephenson does a good job in creating a back story to make things stay closer to ""feasible"" than fiction.<br/><br/>So will you enjoy this one? Hard for me to say. If you liked [b:Cryptonomicon|816|Cryptonomicon|Neal Stephenson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327931476s/816.jpg|1166797] then maybe. If you enjoy spy thrillers, then probably. If you're looking for a cyberpunk story, or a video game story, then probably not. I for one ended up enjoying this despite it not being what I expected it to be.<br/><br/><br/><br/>","","","1","","",1,2014/01/30,"Audible","Like new",,
  64818,"Reflex (Jumper, #2)","Steven Gould","Gould, Steven","",="0812578546",="9780812578546",0,"3.90","Tor Science Fiction","Paperback","380",2005,2004,,2014/09/14,"to-read, jumper, science-fiction, next-in-series","to-read (#267), jumper (#2), science-fiction (#91), next-in-series (#28)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  47970,"Jumper (Jumper, #1)","Steven Gould","Gould, Steven","",="0765342286",="9780765342287",0,"3.86","Starscape","Paperback","345",2002,1992,,2014/09/14,"jumper","jumper (#1)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18950871,"Soda Pop Soldier: A Novel","Nick Cole","Cole, Nick","",="006221022X",="9780062210227",0,"4.02","Harper Voyager","Paperback","360",2014,,,2014/09/13,"to-read","to-read (#266)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18400491,"Jumper (Jumper, #1)","Steven Gould","Gould, Steven","MacLeod Andrews",="",="",3,"3.86","Audible Frontiers","Audiobook","11",2011,1992,2014/09/13,2014/09/12,"audio-book, read-2014, science-fiction","audio-book (#133), read-2014 (#100), science-fiction (#90)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A cool concept that is uneven in its execution. This is one that really needs a half star rating as it's more 3.5 than 3, but not good enough to get a 4.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Macleod Andrews is a pretty good narrator. He does some voices and accents. This is a good way to do the book, but not a must listen.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I watched the movie and liked the concept, but little else. As a result I picked up the audiobook when it was a daily deal on Audible.<br/><br/>The book is definitely better, but it's pretty uneven. The start was a bit dark for my liking. It's definitely got some adult themes though nothing too graphic.<br/><br/>My main issue is the protagonist is often unlikable. Now this isn't bad writing on my Mr. Gould's part. In fact the actions and anger of Davy makes total sense given his age and background. I just found it a bit wearing by the end.<br/><br/>I do wonder what I would do if I was in Davy's position. Maybe I'm judging him too harshly. Being a teenager is trying under even the best circumstance I imagine. The book alternates between fun coming of age/romance and darker issues of both Davy's past/family issues and the larger implications of his abilities in the world.<br/><br/>I will likely continue on with the series, but I'm not in a rush to do so.","","","1","","",1,2014/09/03,"Audible","Like new",,
  20518786,"Willful Child","Steven Erikson","Erikson, Steven","",="0765374897",="9780765374899",0,"3.74","Tor Books","Hardcover","352",2014,2014,,2014/09/10,"to-read","to-read (#265)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  19138878,"Attack on Titan: Before the Fall, Vol. 2 (Attack on Titan: Before the Fall Manga, #2)","Hajime Isayama","Isayama, Hajime","Satoshi Shiki, Ryo Suzukaze",="1612629121",="9781612629124",3,"4.05","Kodansha Comics","Paperback","208",2014,2014,2014/09/22,2014/09/08,"attack-on-titan, fantasy, graphic-novels-and-manga, read-2014","attack-on-titan (#16), fantasy (#264), graphic-novels-and-manga (#44), read-2014 (#104)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>Things are kind of moving too slow for me. I think if I was buying this, I'd be disappointed and stop, but since I'm borrowing them from the library I'll give the next volume a go if they pick it up.<br/><br/>There seems potential for an interesting story here if only they'd get on with it.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>The artwork here is definitely better than the main series, but I'm still not blow away or anything.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  21487691,"Attack on Titan, Volume 14","Hajime Isayama","Isayama, Hajime","",="1612626807",="9781612626802",0,"4.47","Kodansha Comics","Paperback","192",2014,2014,,2014/09/08,"to-read, attack-on-titan, fantasy, graphic-novels-and-manga, next-in-series","to-read (#264), attack-on-titan (#15), fantasy (#263), graphic-novels-and-manga (#43), next-in-series (#27)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  77232,"Legends","Robert Silverberg","Silverberg, Robert","Stephen King, Robert Jordan, Terry Goodkind, Anne McCaffrey, Raymond E. Feist, George R.R. Martin, Terry Pratchett, Orson Scott Card, Ursula K. Le Guin, Tad Williams",="0312867875",="9780312867874",0,"3.87","Tor Books","Hardcover","720",1998,1998,,2014/09/06,"to-read","to-read (#263)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  6415701,"The Complete Stories of J.G. Ballard","J.G. Ballard","Ballard, J.G.","Martin Amis",="0393072622",="9780393072624",0,"4.50","W. W. Norton & Company","Hardcover","1216",2009,2001,,2014/09/01,"to-read","to-read (#262)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  11590,"'Salem's Lot","Stephen King","King, Stephen","",="0450031063",="9780450031069",3,"3.94","New English Library","Paperback","483",1991,1975,,2014/08/30,"dark-tower-tie-in, horror, read-before-goodreads","dark-tower-tie-in (#12), horror (#21), read-before-goodreads (#175)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  8130318,"Stories of Your Life and Others","Ted Chiang","Chiang, Ted","",="1931520720",="9781931520720",3,"4.37","Small Beer Press","Paperback","281",2010,1999,2014/09/14,2014/08/21,"anthologies-collections, science-fiction, sword-and-laser, read-2014","anthologies-collections (#5), science-fiction (#88), sword-and-laser (#26), read-2014 (#99)","read","<b><u>Review</u></b><br/>I'd say that despite my 3 star rating (obtained by averaging the individual ratings for each story), I didn't care too much for this collection as a whole. This is the first I've read by Ted Chiang and based on these stories, his writing just isn't for me. I likely won't read anything else by him.<br/><br/>This collection is heavy on the science and really heavy on religious concepts. The later being something I just have very little interest in reading about. The stories I liked best didn't focus on religion, or if they did it wasn't apparent to me.<br/><br/>That doesn't mean it's bad. Far from it. I doesn't mean his ideas are bad either. Just that they didn't click for me. <br/><br/>Well except one. I really enjoyed the title story ""Story of your Life"" quite a lot. A few of the others were good in some parts but not in others, and some were a slog to get through.<br/><br/><b><u>Ratings</u></b><br/>- Tower of Babylon - 2.5 stars<br/>- Understand - 3.5 stars<br/>- Division by Zero - 2.5 stars<br/>- Story of Your Life - 4.5 stars<br/>- Seventy Two Letters - 3.5 Stars<br/>- The Evolution of Human Science - no rating<br/>- Hell is the Absence of God -  1 star<br/>- Liking What You See - 3.5 stars","","","","","",0,,,,,
  20404905,"The Spider's War (The Dagger and the Coin, #5)","Daniel Abraham","Abraham, Daniel","",="0316204056",="9780316204057",0,"4.50","Orbit","Paperback","592",2015,2015,,2014/08/18,"to-read, audio-book, dagger-and-coin, fantasy, next-in-series","to-read (#17), audio-book (#131), dagger-and-coin (#5), fantasy (#260), next-in-series (#25)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  22978042,"The Widow's House (The Dagger and the Coin, #4)","Daniel Abraham","Abraham, Daniel","Pete Bradbury",="",="",4,"4.07","Recorded Books","Audible Audio","15",2014,2014,2014/08/31,2014/08/18,"audio-book, dagger-and-coin, read-2014, fantasy","audio-book (#130), dagger-and-coin (#4), read-2014 (#94), fantasy (#280)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> While not quite as good as [b:The Tyrant's Law|15790816|The Tyrant's Law (The Dagger and the Coin, #3)|Daniel Abraham|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1351071320s/15790816.jpg|21512368], another solid book that sets things up nicely for the final book.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Pete Bradbury once again gives a great performance, making audio the best way to do this series in my opinion.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>Well dammit. I've enjoyed this series so much that now I've caught up and have to wait a year or more for the next and final book. Thankfully unlike some other authors it seems like I won't have to wait too long for the conclusion, and that will definitely be a release day read for me.<br/><br/>Once again this is a very character-driven story that focuses on economics and politics more than magic and battles. There is a lot of fighting going on, but we usually only see the before or the after and very little fighting. <br/><br/>Similarly there is magic, but it's all very hand wavy and not well fleshed out. In fact one of the characters wonders why so many practitioners make their money by doing tricks and aren't utilized in fighting only to be told that conjuring fire isn't nearly as effective in the long term as a bow and arrow.<br/><br/>I liked this book a little less than the last one however. I think it's partially due to Clara's chapters for the first half of the book. She felt more like a camera than an important character. For awhile I was wondering why exactly she was doing what she was, but by the end it made sense and I she might have regained her status as my favorite character.<br/><br/>Meanwhile Marcus's chapters are probably are probably the most interesting. Anyone who finished the last book should be able to guess why that is.<br/><br/>This book really highlights the differences of obtaining power by using military might and money. The title Dagger and Coin was well chosen by Mr. Abraham as we see both approaches to gaining power and attempts to bring about ""peace"" and order.<br/><br/>I really enjoy this series, which should be obvious if you look at how quickly I've listened to it. It's nice to have a fantasy series that feels realistic without being ""grimdark"". Plus I really enjoy the characters and the importance of money not being glossed over or relegated to minor subplot. <br/><br/>If my last 3 reviews haven't convinced you, hopefully this one will to catch up with the series before the final book comes out.","","","1","","",1,2014/08/27,"Audible","Like new",,
  19081729,"The Tyrant's Law (The Dagger and the Coin, #3)","Daniel Abraham","Abraham, Daniel","Pete Bradbury",="",="",4,"4.10","Recorded Books","Audiobook","15",2013,2013,2014/08/23,2014/08/18,"dagger-and-coin, fantasy, audio-book, read-2014","dagger-and-coin (#3), fantasy (#259), audio-book (#132), read-2014 (#90)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Probably my favorite book of the series so far. It just keeps getting better.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Once again another great performance by Pete Bradbury, making this a great series to do in audio.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>So in book two of a three book series, it's easy to suffer from ""middle book syndrome"". So with this being the middle book of five book series, I wondered if that would be the case here. I'm happy to report that it's not. This book is easily my favorite so far.<br/><br/>Once again Mr. Abraham sets the stage early on for where things are going. We also get a nod to more traditional fantasy with the addition of an ""epic quest""...of a sort. <br/><br/>[b:The King's Blood|12759057|The King's Blood (The Dagger and the Coin, #2)|Daniel Abraham|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1356495172s/12759057.jpg|17901316] was a transition book of sorts and in this book we find the characters in different locations and situations, with different supporting casts making for a very different book.<br/><br/>As in the last book, the character development really shines. In particular I enjoyed the development of Clara Kalliam, who might now be my favorite character, although I enjoy all of his characters. He's also written some great dialogue, especially as the characters are paired up with different people and put into different situations.<br/><br/>Mr. Abraham does a great job of shades of grey. All of the characters do stupid things or frustrated me at one point or another. Characters who are noble and sympathetic one minute are horrible and unlikable the next.<br/><br/>We get a bit more magic and action in this book than the previous two, but for the most part the focus is again on politics and economics. I think this is one of the reasons the character development shines.<br/><br/>I really enjoyed this book, and can't wait until I have some time to jump into the fourth that just came out this month. I once again reiterate my recommendation for the series.","","","1","","",1,2014/08/18,"Audible","Like new",,
  22512821,"Sand","Hugh Howey","Howey, Hugh","Karen Chilton",="1491545860",="9781491545867",4,"4.00","Brilliance Audio","Audio CD","10",2014,2014,2014/08/25,2014/08/16,"audio-book, science-fiction, sff-audio, read-2014","audio-book (#129), science-fiction (#87), sff-audio (#26), read-2014 (#91)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> While not as good as [b:Wool|13453029|Wool Omnibus (Silo, #1)|Hugh Howey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1349614200s/13453029.jpg|18979356] I'd put it about on par with [b:Shift|17306293|Shift (Silo, #2)|Hugh Howey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1379003176s/17306293.jpg|23965619] and [b:Dust|17855756|Dust (Silo, #3)|Hugh Howey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1369522849s/17855756.jpg|24576986].<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Karen Chilton is a fine but mostly unexceptional reader. However I listened at 1.3x speed, which I don't normally do, so that may played into it slightly.<br/><br/>She's clear and easy to understand, but didn't really add or detract from the story itself.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>In his first book book since finishing his Silo trilogy, Mr. Howey does a good job creating another interesting post-apocalyptic world. However, I'd like to see him write a different type of story next as post-apocalyptic stories really aren't my thing.<br/><br/>In this one the world is buried under sand and water is scarce. The daring and (maybe a bit crazy or stupid) use specialized equipment to dive deep under the sand and recover anything deemed valuable to be traded for money and supplies and just to get by.<br/><br/>The story is once again split up into multiple parts. The early books seems to each focus on a single POV, while the later ones jump around between them. All of our POV characters are from the same family. The children ranging in age from 10 to late 20's I believe.<br/><br/>The oldest, Vic (short for Victoria not Victor) is probably my favorite though all of her younger brothers are interesting in their own right.<br/><br/>It's a dangerous world full of thieves, murders and revolutionaries. Like his Silo books, the central story is a bit of a mystery. What happened? Why is the world buried under Sand? And on a smaller scale, what happened to the father of kids who walked off into the desert one night 10 years ago and never returned?<br/><br/>This was a short and enjoyable read. As it's post apocalyptic it's more on the dark side so I'm reluctant to call it ""light"", but it can certainly be called an easy read. There isn't a ton of depth here, but it moves along at a quick pace. I'd say if you enjoyed his previous books you'll likely enjoy this one as well.<br/><br/>3.5 Stars.","","","1","","",1,2014/08/20,"Review Copy","Like new",,
  19032089,"The King's Blood (The Dagger and the Coin, #2)","Daniel Abraham","Abraham, Daniel","Pete Bradbury",="",="",4,"4.03","Recorded Books","Audiobook","16",2013,2012,2014/08/18,2014/08/04,"audio-book, dagger-and-coin, fantasy, read-2014","audio-book (#127), dagger-and-coin (#1), fantasy (#258), read-2014 (#89)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Another great entry in this series that steps things up a bit.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I remember being not all that impressed with Pete Bradbury with book 1. Maybe it was my confusion getting used to the world, or maybe his performance has improved with this second book. I'm not really sure. <br/><br/>Either way he has a really great reading here. He does voices for at least some of the characters such that I can now identify who is speaking just by the voice he's using. Highly recommend doing this series in audio.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>It will be hard to give an extensive review without spoilers for not only this book but the first one, but here goes nothing.<br/><br/>I was pleased to find that Clara the wife of Baron Dawson Kalliam, is promoted from one-off POV character to full time in this book. It's a nice change of pace to see a female noble perspective who isn't plotting horrible things to her fellow nobles like those in Song of Ice and Fire. She just wants to do right by her husband and children.<br/><br/>Meanwhile Mr. Abraham delivers a few important revelations pretty early on this book that set up where the story would be heading next. Once again this book is light on magic and action and heavy on politics and economics. The stakes are ramped up in this one. <br/><br/>He also does an excellent job of character development, especially in regards to Geder Palliako. He does a great job of balancing his characters and plot. Often times in a multiple POV story, there is one or more character whose chapters I just don't enjoy, but thankfully that's not the case here, despite an additional POV being added.<br/><br/>You might call this a transition book as several of the characters are transition from one role to another, but I never felt like I was bored or that Mr. Abraham was simply moving pieces into place. You do get a sense of daily life for each of the characters that may not appeal to all readers, but that I found to be well executed.<br/><br/>Overall another solid entry to this series, and I moved right on to book 3 upon its conclusion.","","","1","","",1,2014/08/14,"Audible","Like new",,
  6479879,"Neverwhere","Neil Gaiman","Gaiman, Neil","",="",="",0,"4.16","HarperCollins e-books","Kindle Edition","400",2009,1996,,2014/08/01,"to-read, fantasy, urban-fantasy","to-read (#19), fantasy (#257), urban-fantasy (#49)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  20765775,"The Rebirths of Tao (Tao, #3)","Wesley Chu","Chu, Wesley","",="0857664301",="9780857664303",0,"3.00","Angry Robot Books","Paperback","",2015,2014,,2014/07/30,"to-read, next-in-series, science-fiction, tao","to-read (#261), next-in-series (#24), science-fiction (#85), tao (#3)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  21066604,"Half the World (Shattered Sea, #2)","Joe Abercrombie","Abercrombie, Joe","",="0007550235",="9780007550234",0,"3.86","Harper Voyager","Hardcover","400",2015,2015,,2014/07/27,"to-read, next-in-series, fantasy, shattered-sea","to-read (#261), next-in-series (#23), fantasy (#256), shattered-sea (#2)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  243601,"Imperium: A Novel of Ancient Rome (Cicero, #1)","Robert Harris","Harris, Robert","",="074326603X",="9780743266031",0,"3.96","Simon & Schuster","Hardcover","305",2006,2006,,2014/07/27,"to-read, historical-fiction","to-read (#20), historical-fiction (#1)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  19196719,"Revival","Stephen King","King, Stephen","",="1444789171",="9781444789171",0,"4.14","Hodder & Stoughton","Hardcover","384",2014,2014,,2014/07/26,"to-read","to-read (#260)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  6375845,"Batman: Hush","Jeph Loeb","Loeb, Jeph","Jim Lee, Scott A. Williams",="1401223176",="9781401223175",0,"4.28","DC Comics","Paperback","320",2009,2002,,2014/07/23,"to-read, graphic-novels-and-manga, batman","to-read (#16), graphic-novels-and-manga (#42), batman (#8)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  20174424,"City of Stairs","Robert Jackson Bennett","Bennett, Robert Jackson","",="080413717X",="9780804137171",4,"4.26","Broadway Books","Paperback","464",2014,2014,2014/09/21,2014/07/16,"fantasy, not-a-bookclub-club, read-2014","fantasy (#265), not-a-bookclub-club (#22), read-2014 (#102)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Looks like I'll be adding to all the hype. This is definitely one of the better books I've read this year. Only a few minor issues. 4.5 stars.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>The two most hyped books this fall (at least among my circle of friends) was this book and [b:The Mirror Empire|20646731|The Mirror Empire (Worldbreaker Saga, #1)|Kameron Hurley|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1399920947s/20646731.jpg|39939919]. After being a bit let down by Mirror Empire, I was wary of this one. I almost didn't read it. I'm glad that I did.<br/><br/><i>Rob gets on the bandwagon</i><br/><br/>I don't know where to start. This book is well written. Part mystery, part fantasy, with some pretty good humor. More ""urban"" fantasy than traditional fantasy, or maybe this could be considered ""flintlock"". The subgenre doesn't really matter too much though. It's more important to get across that this book feels very fresh and pretty light on fantasy tropes.<br/><br/>Mr. Bennett paints a rich and deep world, especially for a stand alone book of only 450 pages. The little bits of text from various fictional books really helped to flush things out in a short amount of text. And unlike Malazan these were cryptic entries that really only make sense to a rereader, but were at worst something to file away for later in the book, but usually for later in that chapter.<br/><br/>And if world building doesn't do much for you, then there are the characters. The main character, Shara, is a 30 something intelligent women who uses his brains rather than a weapon to do most of her fighting. However when violence is called for her ""secretary"", Sigrud is there to handle it. In many ways Sigrud almost steals the show, but that's really just because he like a few of the other supporting characters are so strong.<br/><br/>And if characters and cool world building aren't enough, there is a pretty interesting ""magic"" system, that's tied in well with the aforementioned world building.<br/><br/>The last thing I want these days is another series to read. This book is definitely stand alone, but I would totally read another book set in this world, and it sounds like I may get that. I had never heard of Mr. Bennett before this book, but I'll definitely be looking into some of his work. <br/><br/>Highly recommended.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  13539191,"Three Parts Dead (Craft Sequence #1)","Max Gladstone","Gladstone, Max","",="0765333104",="9780765333100",0,"3.96","Tor Books","Hardcover","336",2012,2012,,2014/07/13,"to-read, fantasy","to-read (#258), fantasy (#251)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  22504700,"The Mad Apprentice (The Forbidden Library, #2)","Django Wexler","Wexler, Django","",="0803739761",="9780803739765",0,"4.33","Kathy Dawson Books","Hardcover","336",2015,2015,,2014/07/06,"to-read, next-in-series, forbidden-library","to-read (#257), next-in-series (#21), forbidden-library (#1)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18191856,"The Penitent Damned (The Shadow Campaigns #0)","Django Wexler","Wexler, Django","",="",="",0,"3.75","","ebook","20",2013,2013,,2014/07/01,"to-read, fantasy, flintlock-fantasy, shadow-campaigns","to-read (#256), fantasy (#250), flintlock-fantasy (#8), shadow-campaigns (#3)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  22588083,"Tower Lord (Raven's Shadow, #2)","Anthony  Ryan","Ryan, Anthony","Stephen Brand",="",="",5,"4.27","Penguin Audio","Audible Audio","25",2014,2014,2014/07/08,2014/06/25,"audio-book, fantasy, ravens-shadow, sff-audio, read-2014, favorites","audio-book (#122), fantasy (#248), ravens-shadow (#2), sff-audio (#23), read-2014 (#73), favorites (#24)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Another great entry in what's quickly become one of my favorite series. The change in format may frustrating fans of the first book however.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Stephen Brand is once again a great narrator that could stand to have his volume boosted. He does an excellent job with voices and inflections, but can be frustratingly quiet in places.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>How do you follow up a debut novel that seems to be almost universally loved by those who have read it? By writing a book that may be even better in my opinion.<br/><br/>My opinion may not be shared by everyone who loved [b:Blood Song|13569581|Blood Song (A Raven's Shadow, #1)|Anthony  Ryan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1363126955s/13569581.jpg|19148922]. This is definitely a different book from that. <br/><br/>Instead of a single narrative about Vaelin told in the form of a flashback, we are instead given three new point of view characters in addition to Vaelin and the interludes from the perspective of the chronicler.<br/><br/>Two of the characters, Frentis and Lyrna will be instantly familiar from the first novel. The fourth, Riva, was probably my favorite. As a new character she probably got the most character development of the four. I think having two male POVs and two female ones gave the novel a good balance.<br/><br/>I found Lyrna's story to start a bit slow, but I was quickly grabbed by the book as a whole and eventually sucked into her narrative as well. Much like [b:Blood Song|13569581|Blood Song (A Raven's Shadow, #1)|Anthony  Ryan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1363126955s/13569581.jpg|19148922] this is one of those books that grabbed hold and didn't let go. I hated to put it down and loved to pick it back up.<br/><br/>I'm glad for the format change as I think Mr. Ryan was able to tell a much larger story as a result. There were parts of the story where the various POV's overlapped, but there were also a lot of things that would have gone otherwise unmentioned if he stuck with just Vaelin's story.<br/><br/>We are once again given some excellent action scenes, though probably fewer overall than the first. While the first book was more a hero's journey, this book is more epic fantasy with larger implications to the realm as a whole.<br/><br/>We get answers to many of the big questions I had from the first novel too. Often times it seems like authors jealously guard all their book's secrets and wait until the last possible minute to reveal them. Not so with this series. I felt there were several big reveals in parts 2 and 3 that other authors might have held back.<br/><br/>There is plenty of new questions to take the place of those that are answered that kept me wanting to keep listening and find out what would happen next.<br/><br/>Mr. Ryan has put himself in a precarious position of writing two really excellent novels in what I believe is supposed to be a trilogy. Now the expectations are that much higher for the finale of what has quickly become one of my favorite series.<br/><br/>If you haven't read this book yet, do yourself a favor and pick it up. And if you haven't read/heard of this series you should check out [b:Blood Song|13569581|Blood Song (A Raven's Shadow, #1)|Anthony  Ryan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1363126955s/13569581.jpg|19148922] as soon as you can.","","","1","","",1,2014/06/26,"Review Copy","Like new",,
  20646731,"The Mirror Empire (Worldbreaker Saga, #1)","Kameron Hurley","Hurley, Kameron","",="0857665553",="9780857665553",3,"3.79","Angry Robot","Paperback","539",2014,2014,2014/09/07,2014/06/25,"fantasy, read-2014, not-a-bookclub-club, dark-fantasy","fantasy (#261), read-2014 (#93), not-a-bookclub-club (#17), dark-fantasy (#45)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This book didn't really live up to the hype for me, but it might for you. I'd like to give this a 3.5 star rating, but I just can't round that up to a 4 star.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This book was getting a lot of hype from my circle of friends. Several of them seem to read nothing but ARCs these days so I always seem to get reviews and recommendations of books that are coming out. That coupled with the very reasonable ebook cost made picking this up a no brainer.<br/><br/>This book took a very long time to click with me. I really liked the last 25% or so, but the first 75% was good but not great. I had no problem picking it up every night, but it was never really a book I hated to put down or was rushing to pick up.<br/><br/>The world building is pretty different from most of the stuff I've read, and that's hard to do these days. I like the concept of mirror worlds a lot. That's probably the thing that will keep me reading this series. It's really a sort of epic fantasy novel with a sci-fi twist.<br/><br/>My main issue with this book was the characters. I just never connected with any of them. It's one thing to make ""grey"" characters who are neither good or bad, but they have to be likable. I need to understand why they live in that gray area, and it can't be because they are selfish and do whatever they want to without any thought to the consequences or how it will impacts others.<br/><br/>I was pretty excited at the idea of a matriarchal society to change things up. This may be an unpopular opinion, but it just came off feeling gimmicky to me. Maybe the idea was that you can put female characters into the same roles as male ones and nothing would change, but if so that doesn't work for me. I want it to be different. <br/><br/>Her characters didn't feel like women to me. That isn't to say they needed to be defer to a guy, or staying behind while men do all the fighting. Several other writers have created vicious women, strong women, smart women that break the tropes for women in fantasy while still feeling like women to me.<br/><br/>Most of Ms. Hurely's characters felt like male characters shoved in women's bodies. She plays with gender in this book a bit too. People can sort of choose what gender they want to be, and one of the character's genders is constantly changing. None of that bothers me, but I am sort of confused about it's relevance to the story. Maybe there isn't one, or maybe we'll find out later. I'll be curious to see which.<br/><br/>The book is very well written. It's very dark though. I wasn't expecting that. There are a few pretty cringe worthy parts. Overall this book had a lot of potential that just fell a bit short on the execution for me. <br/><br/>I'll likely be continuing on with this series, but I probably won't be rushing out to get the next one when it comes out.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  22552474,"All You Need is Kill, Vol. 1 (All You Need is Kill (manga))","Hiroshi Sakurazaka","Sakurazaka, Hiroshi","Takeshi Obata, Ryosuke Takeuchi, Yoshitoshi Abe",="",="",0,"4.23","VIZ Media: SHONEN JUMP ADVANCED","Kindle Edition","",2014,2014,,2014/06/23,"to-read, graphic-novels-and-manga","to-read (#255), graphic-novels-and-manga (#40)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18817427,"The Deaths of Tao (Tao, #2)","Wesley Chu","Chu, Wesley","",="",="",4,"3.96","Angry Robot","Kindle Edition","464",2013,2013,2014/08/01,2014/06/21,"science-fiction, tao, read-2014","science-fiction (#82), tao (#2), read-2014 (#83)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Another fun entry in the Tao series that ends with such an awful cliffhanger!<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>A few months ago I had never heard of this series or Mr. Chu. Thanks to <a href=""https://www.goodreads.com/group/bookshelf/4170-the-sword-and-laser"">Sword & Laser</a> and an Amazon daily deal, I corrected that oversight.<br/><br/>I rather enjoyed the [b:The Lives of Tao|15981711|The Lives of Tao (Tao, #1)|Wesley Chu|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1361886088s/15981711.jpg|19932371] when I read it a few months ago, and moved this book up my list planning to fit it in as soon as my book club schedule allowed.<br/><br/>Now that I have read it, all that I can say is <b>""Damn You Wesley Chu!""</b><br/><br/>That's a sure-fire sign of a good book/series if you get angry with the author for leaving you wanting more. It looks like the third book is tentatively coming out at the end of the year, and that's not nearly soon enough!<br/><br/>This book was just as much fun as the first one, though maybe not as funny. Once again where the book shines for me is the way Mr. Chu retcons history to fit the aliens in. Did you know that Global Warming is actually the fault of aliens? True story.<br/><br/>Galieo: Host to an alien. He wasn't persecuted by the church for blasphemy. It was really because he was part of a different faction of aliens than those who controlled it. You get the idea.<br/><br/>I think the best compliment I can give this book is to contrast it with the book I was listening to at the same time: [b:Patriot Games|32682|Patriot Games (Jack Ryan, #1)|Tom Clancy|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1328007145s/32682.jpg|5054702]. [a:Tom Clancy|3892|Tom Clancy|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1175466521p2/3892.jpg] is arguably the king of the Spy Thriller, and Jack Ryan is one of the best known of the genre. I found this book way more exciting and fun.<br/><br/>My only real complaint here is the main villain is a bit too flat. He's a believable character, but he's so unlikable that I found his chapters sometimes frustrating to read. Thankfully though his story line was pretty interesting and Mr. Chu did a good job at making me wish for bad things to happen to him.<br/><br/>Overall this book seems to do a good job distinguishing itself from a lot of other sci-fi books out there. Part Spy Thriller, part alien invasion story. Well written and good humor and dialogue. There is a lot to enjoy here and I recommend checking out this series.","","","1","","",1,2014/04/26,"Amazon","unspecified",,
  18505802,"Console Wars: Sega, Nintendo, and the Battle that Defined a Generation","Blake J. Harris","Harris, Blake J.","",="0062276697",="9780062276698",3,"3.86","It Books","Hardcover","576",2014,2014,2014/08/24,2014/06/16,"read-2014, nonfiction","read-2014 (#88), nonfiction (#1)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A good, but not great look at one of the key times in video game history.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I don't read a lot of non-fiction. Most of what I do read tends to be about computer stuff. However video games have been an important part of my life for as long as I can remember.<br/><br/>I still consider the 16-bit generation to be one of the best. The games hold up so much better than the 32/64 bit generation that followed as 3d was being introduced. The art style is a lot more timeless and some really great games were released. It probably helps that I was 10-13 or so during this time period.<br/><br/>I was a Nintendo kid. I own every console from NES through Game Cube, plus the original Game Boy. Nintendo lost me in college as they continue to focus on kids and decided to neglect those of us who belong to the ""Nintendo Generation"".<br/><br/>This is the first book I've read on this time period. From the title, I was expecting this to talk about both sides of the ""Console Wars"" and that was my first disappointment. If I had read the blurb, I would have realized that this was mostly Sega's story. In particular, Tom Kalinske's story. He was brought in to run Sega of America and take on Nintendo.<br/><br/>It's hard to know if I was just too young for Sega at the time, or if I truly just like Nintendo better, but I never got the big deal. Give me Mario over Sonic anyday. Or really screw them both and give me a new Zelda game to play.<br/><br/>That said if not for Sega and Tom Kalinske, the video game industry would be that much poorer for it as Nintendo had a near monopoly before he showed up and turned things on their head.<br/><br/>Mr. Harris did extensive interviews to write this book, and I imagine he either got more time/better interviews from the Sega folks than the Nintendo side. You get glimpses of the inner workings of Nintendo, but most of the time you see the actions of Nintendo through the eyes of their competitors. If you were a Nintendo kid like I was, you may find yourself as disappointed with this as I was. If you're a Sega fan, you might come away differently.<br/><br/>The other big drawback of this book is the format. For some reason he decided to write the book as though he/we were present while events were happening and apparently made up a bunch of the dialogue and conversations in the book based on his interviews.<br/><br/>What this does in my opinion is bloat the book while rarely going deep on some of the key points. He could have either written a much shorter version of the same book, or given a lot more depth at the same length.<br/><br/>It does make the book very readable though. It's an easy read, and there is definitely a lot of interesting stuff in here that those of us who grew up during this time period or are simply fans of video games and their history should enjoy.<br/><br/>He touches on most of the major events: The introduction of Sonic the Hedgehog, The launch of the SNES, The Sega Scream and ad blitz, Mortal Kombat, the government hearings on violence in video games and the creation of the ESRB. Things end with the first E3, the launch of the Sega Saturn, and Sony's entry into the market with the Playstation.<br/><br/>I think if this book got more in depth and was more balanced with its inside looks at both Sega and Nintendo it would have been a much better book, but it's still a good one worth a look if you're a fan.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  17840142,"The Lives of Tao (Tao, #1)","Wesley Chu","Chu, Wesley","",="",="",4,"3.75","Angry Robot","Kindle Edition","464",2013,2013,2014/06/20,2014/06/16,"science-fiction, read-2014, tao","science-fiction (#80), read-2014 (#65), tao (#1)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A fun present day sci-fi story that will cause you to never look at history the same way again.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I had never heard of this series or Wesley Chu until Sword & Laser <a href=""http://swordandlaser.com/home/2014/4/6/sl-podcast-170-the-lives-of-wesley-chu"">did an interview</a> with him back in April. Not long after, the first two books of this series were on sale so I added them to the ever increasing pile. Recently, I was looking for something to read. A few people recommended this as a good light read and I'm happy to agree.<br/><br/>Aliens are among us. The conspiracy theorists are right. They've been inhabiting humans since the days of the neanderthal. Tao has inhabited some of the best leaders in history including Genghis Khan and Zhu Yuanzhang. His current host Edward is an elite field agent. <br/><br/>Then everything goes sideways and Tao ends up in an overweight 30-something computer programmer named Roen (hey that's me! well, not *that* overweight, but still!) whose life is going nowhere.<br/><br/>This is really more of a spy thriller with a sci-fi backdrop than it is your typical technology near-future sci-fi story. Roen doesn't obtain magic powers, highly advanced weapons or a jet pack.<br/><br/>What he does get is thousands of years of experience and expertise of the alien symbiote named Tao. Can Tao use his knowledge to turn Roen from overweight slob into something that can pass for a field agent? He had better because there is a civil war between the two factions of aliens that has been raging for hundreds of years, and Tao's side is losing.<br/><br/>The book is well written, with enjoyable characters. The is a decent amount of humor throughout keeping things pretty light. I really enjoyed the way Mr. Chu incorporates the Quasing into our history.<br/><br/>This book was a lot of fun and I'm looking forward to picking up the sequel just as soon as I have some more time. Highly recommended!","","","1","","",1,2014/04/26,"Amazon","unspecified",,
  35430,"Path of Destruction (Star Wars: Darth Bane, #1)","Drew Karpyshyn","Karpyshyn, Drew","",="0345477367",="9780345477361",0,"4.22","Del Rey Books","Hardcover","324",2007,2006,,2014/06/15,"to-read, science-fiction, star-wars","to-read (#254), science-fiction (#79), star-wars (#6)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  19336279,"Attack on Titan, Volume 13","Hajime Isayama","Isayama, Hajime","",="1612626793",="9781612626796",4,"4.42","Kodansha Comics","Paperback","192",2014,2014,2014/09/08,2014/06/15,"attack-on-titan, graphic-novels-and-manga, fantasy, read-2014","attack-on-titan (#14), graphic-novels-and-manga (#39), fantasy (#243), read-2014 (#97)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b> Once again very few answers, and in fact way more new questions. So why 4 stars? Mostly because Levi is awesome. I'm really hoping that he'll pick up the pace soon though. <br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>Once again the still frames look good and the action scenes are pretty terrible. <br/><br/>I'm very happy to hear they are starting production on season 2 because this is a series that works much better as an anime in my opinion.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  21484458,"Spell or High Water (Magic 2.0 #2)","Scott  Meyer","Meyer, Scott","Luke Daniels",="1491519363",="9781491519363",4,"4.05","Brilliance Audio","Audio CD","12",2014,2014,2014/07/18,2014/06/14,"fantasy, magic-2-0, sff-audio, read-2014","fantasy (#242), magic-2-0 (#1), sff-audio (#24), read-2014 (#77)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> While not as funny as the first book, I still found this book a lot of fun and look forward to the next one.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I'm convinced [a:Luke Daniels|2978188|Luke Daniels|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1331514576p2/2978188.jpg] could read the phone book and make it sound interesting. When given a funny book to read he shines even more. He may be my favorite audio book reader. His voices are great and seems to really bring the characters to life. <br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I grabbed the first book in this series a few months ago because partially because it sounded interesting, but mostly because it was read by [a:Luke Daniels|2978188|Luke Daniels|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1331514576p2/2978188.jpg]. I grabbed this book however because I really enjoyed the first one and was excited to see that a second book was out.<br/><br/>My favorite character in the series is probably Philip, and he seemed to get more focus in this book. This book also addressed my major criticism of the first book: Where are all the women?<br/><br/>This book sees us visit Atlantis, which was used as the explanation for why there was almost no women. I enjoyed the female characters introduced in this one, especially the Brits.<br/><br/>Time travel stories are really hard to write well as it can all be very confusing. I think Mr. Meyer does a great job of handling this by having the characters be just as confused as everyone else. They offer several theories to explain things, but seem just as unsure of the plausibility as I was. This is definitely not a hard sci-fi book.<br/><br/>The humor in this book probably wasn't as good as the first one, but that didn't make the story any less fun. I did find the parts focused on Jimmy to be less enjoyable than the stuff with Philip and Martin however.<br/><br/>Overall I think this was another great entry in this series. Almost everything was nicely wrapped up, while the epilogue planted the seeds for a possible third book. I hope he does write a third because I'll happily listen to it. If not, maybe I can get [a:Luke Daniels|2978188|Luke Daniels|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1331514576p2/2978188.jpg] to read me the phone book.","","","1","","",1,2014/07/07,"Review Copy","Like new",,
  20670554,"Dragon Blood (Hurog, #2)","Patricia Briggs","Briggs, Patricia","Joe Manganiello",="1480581100",="9781480581104",3,"4.06","Buzzy Multimedia on Brilliance Audio","Audio CD","10",2014,2002,2014/06/25,2014/06/13,"fantasy, audio-book, hurog, sff-audio, read-2014","fantasy (#241), audio-book (#120), hurog (#2), sff-audio (#22), read-2014 (#69)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Not nearly as enjoyable as the first book.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Joe Manganiello once again does a fine job without really adding or subtracting from the story.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>After finishing [b:Dragon Bones|123408|Dragon Bones (Hurog, #1)|Patricia Briggs|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1275874277s/123408.jpg|118820] I was left with some lingering questions and looking forward to this book. For some reason this story wasn't as much fun. It's hard to put my finger on exactly why. <br/><br/>My best guess is the pacing. For such a short book, it felt like the plot meandered too much on unimportant details. The beginning was strong. It pulled me right back in again, and I thought everything was good to go. But then it got slow in middle, and felt sort of rushed at the end. I was sort of underwhelmed by the final confrontation especially.<br/><br/>I guess since I wasn't having as much fun with the story this go around and it made the quality of the writing more noticeable. I'm not one to spend much time commenting on the writing too much. I tend to leave that for English teachers/literary types.<br/><br/>I care a lot more about story and character development than I do about how elegant the prose are. If you're entertaining me, I'm not going to notice bad sentence structure/dialogue.<br/><br/>If I had to sum this book up with one sentence it would be ""Hurog means Dragon."" Why you ask? Well because it's said at least once per chapter. Often more than once. Or at least that's how it felt. Eventually I groaned every time another character said it. <br/><br/>I wonder if the writing was just as bad in the first book and I didn't notice. ""Hurog means dragon"" was said a few times in that book as well, but it didn't seem nearly so frequent. I didn't really find the dialogue or prose that bad.<br/><br/>Glancing over other reviews it seems like I may be in the minority. It's quite possible that if you liked the first book, you may enjoy this as well, but I mostly found it to a disappointing sequel.","","","1","","",1,2014/06/15,"Review Copy","Like new",,
  20670555,"Dragon Bones (Hurog, #1)","Patricia Briggs","Briggs, Patricia","Joe Manganiello",="1480581119",="9781480581111",4,"4.01","Buzzy Multimedia on Brilliance Audio","Audio CD","9",2014,2002,2014/06/16,2014/06/13,"fantasy, audio-book, hurog, sff-audio, read-2014","fantasy (#240), audio-book (#119), hurog (#1), sff-audio (#21), read-2014 (#63)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A fun political fantasy.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Joe Manganiello is a fine reader, though nothing special. He neither adds nor detracts from the story at all.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This is my first novel by Patricia Briggs. The name was familiar to me, but I wouldn't have been able to have named you any books or series by her.<br/><br/>I couldn't tell you if this is her usual style of book, but if it is, I'll definitely be interested in reading more. This doesn't seem to be as popular as some of her other series though. I found this a quick and enjoyable listen.<br/><br/>It's a play on the chosen one trope, but there is more of a focus on politics. Our protagonist has been playing stupid for years in an effort to reduce the chances his father finds him a threat and killing him.<br/><br/>Unfortunately for him, this means that his father also doesn't trust him to take over after he's gone and names his uncle to rule in his place, at least until his 21st birthday. So of course our hero sets out to make a name for himself and show his uncle that he's not really the fool he's been pretending all these years.<br/><br/>And of course he gets swept up into events bigger than himself and must rise to the occasion or see his friends, family and home suffer.<br/><br/>In a worlds where dragons are long extinct and magic is dwindling, this is more political than fantastical overall, but there is certainly enough in there to make it more than a historical fantasy.<br/><br/>This is book one of a duology, but I feel like it came to a pretty good stopping point where I don't feel I need to rush out right away to read the second book, or (given it's shorter length) like it was simply one book that was split in half.<br/><br/>Overall, I found this a fun and lighter book and I'm looking forward to listening to the conclusion soon.","","","1","","",1,2014/06/15,"Review Copy","Like new",,
  7638558,"Fatal System Error: The Hunt for the New Crime Lords Who are Bringing Down the Internet","Joseph Menn","Menn, Joseph","",="1586487485",="9781586487485",0,"3.68","PublicAffairs","Hardcover","304",2010,2010,,2014/06/11,"to-read, hacking, nonfiction","to-read (#253), hacking (#12), nonfiction (#13)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  6457620,"The Light Fantastic (Discworld, #2)","Terry Pratchett","Pratchett, Terry","",="",="",0,"3.88"," HarperCollins Publishers","Kindle Edition","292",2009,1986,,2014/06/10,"to-read, fantasy, next-in-series, discworld","to-read (#15), fantasy (#239), next-in-series (#20), discworld (#1)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  16097463,"Dawn (Xenogenesis, #1)","Octavia E. Butler","Butler, Octavia E.","",="",="",3,"4.09","Open Road","Kindle Edition","290",2012,1987,2014/07/17,2014/06/09,"science-fiction, sword-and-laser, read-2014","science-fiction (#78), sword-and-laser (#25), read-2014 (#76)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A well written and very different story that just made me uncomfortable the whole time. It wasn't exactly my type of book, but it may be yours.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>These sorts of reviews are the hardest to write. For books I love, the reviews usually come pretty easily. For books I don't, I try to express why I didn't like the book without ranting about it and then move on and don't worry too much about the quality of the review.<br/><br/>This book falls somewhere in between. It really made me feel uncomfortable the entire time. I'm sure that was the point. Not only the way the Oankali treated Lilith, but the way the other humans treat her.<br/><br/>The story was interesting and certainly made me think a lot more than most of the books I usually read. Not only is it well written, but Ms. Butler somehow packs a whole lot of story and ideas into such a short book without making it feel rushed or incomplete.<br/><br/>She's obviously a great writer. That said that level of discomfort is not something I enjoyed, and I read for enjoyment. I kind of want to see where this story goes next, but I'm still not sure if I'll continue on with the series or not.<br/><br/>That said, I'm glad I finally read a book by Ms. Butler and may try another of her books in the future if I don't decide to continue on to the next in this series. From the sounds of it though, working these sort of issues of discrimination and subjugation is a common thing for her work, so she simply may not be an author for me.<br/><br/>If you like books that challenge you to think though, this may be a great choice for you.","","","1","","",1,2014/06/09,"Amazon","unspecified",,
  12097367,"The Android's Dream","John Scalzi","Scalzi, John","Wil Wheaton",="",="",0,"3.96","Audible Frontiers","Audible Audio","11",2010,2006,,2014/06/07,"to-read, audio-book, science-fiction","to-read (#14), audio-book (#118), science-fiction (#77)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  19302633,"Mr. Mercedes (Bill Hodges Trilogy, #1)","Stephen King","King, Stephen","Will Patton",="144237134X",="9781442371347",4,"3.86","Simon & Schuster Audio","MP3 CD","14",2014,2014,2014/07/21,2014/06/06,"audio-book, horror, sff-audio, read-2014","audio-book (#117), horror (#20), sff-audio (#20), read-2014 (#79)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> While I don't think this book is as good as either of last year's books ([b:Joyland|13596166|Joyland (Hard Case Crime #112)|Stephen King|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348154483s/13596166.jpg|19185026] & [b:Doctor Sleep|16130549|Doctor Sleep (The Shining, #2)|Stephen King|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1362415596s/16130549.jpg|17851499]) it's another solid King novel that makes for a good summertime read.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Will Patton seems to be an excellent fit for this story. His natural reading voice just seems to suit the tone of the book. He doesn't really do voices, but you can tell his characters apart. I'm not sure how I'd like him as a narrator in general, but for this book, he's an excellent choice.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I think last year's [b:Joyland|13596166|Joyland (Hard Case Crime #112)|Stephen King|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348154483s/13596166.jpg|19185026] was one of my favorite [a:Stephen King|3389|Stephen King|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1362814142p2/3389.jpg] novels in awhile, making this book have a lot to live up to. I don't this one is nearly as good, but I think most fans of Mr. King will find this enjoyable. <br/><br/>Most of the novels by Mr. King I read have some sense of the fantastical to them. This one doesn't. It's straight up horror/thriller. No supernatural beings or unexplained phenomena here. That might be why I didn't like it as much.<br/><br/>The premise is pretty straightforward. A decorated retired cop whose depression is suddenly shelved after being taunted by the perpetrator of one his most high profile unsolved cases. The killer murdered a crowd of people, including a baby using a big stolen Gray Mercedes. They are a lot of psychological elements as both cop and criminal attempt to out think one another.<br/><br/>While the majority of the story is told from Retired Detective Bill Hodges point of view, we are also given numerous chapters told from the killer's perspective as well.<br/><br/>The story itself is nothing that special. Where this book shines (as usual) is in the characters. Mr. King always seems to write the most realistic and interesting characters. They aren't necessarily someone you'd want to hang out with or even know, but they are the type that make it hard to look away (or in this case stop listening to the book).<br/><br/>Holly and Jerome are both memorable characters to add depth to the duel between our retired detective and the killer who got away. I especially enjoyed Holly's character.<br/><br/>Overall, this was an enjoyable read, but far from a must read.","","","1","","",1,2014/07/14,"Review Copy","Like new",,
  760110,"Jedi Search (Star Wars: The Jedi Academy Trilogy, #1)","Kevin J. Anderson","Anderson, Kevin J.","",="0553297988",="9780553297980",0,"3.59","Bantam Spectra","Paperback","355",1994,1994,,2014/06/06,"to-read, science-fiction, star-wars","to-read (#252), science-fiction (#76), star-wars (#5)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18490602,"The Wurms of Blearmouth (The Tales of Bauchelain and Korbal Broach, #5)","Steven Erikson","Erikson, Steven","",="0765376229",="9780765376220",0,"4.04","Tor Books","Paperback","208",2014,2012,,2014/05/31,"to-read","to-read (#251)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  15786194,"The Last Command (Star Wars: The Thrawn Trilogy, #3)","Timothy Zahn","Zahn, Timothy","Marc Thompson",="",="",4,"4.17","Random House Audio","Audiobook","16",2012,1993,2014/06/09,2014/05/31,"audio-book, science-fiction, star-wars, read-2014","audio-book (#116), science-fiction (#75), star-wars (#4), read-2014 (#60)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A pretty good end to a pretty good series.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Once again another excellent job by Marc Thompson making this one a must listen in my opinion.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>In the third and final book of the series, Mr. Zahn does a pretty good job wrapping things up. My only main gripe was that for a series called The Thrawn Trilogy, the ending with regards to Admiral Thrawn felt a lot more rushed compared to some of the other story lines.<br/><br/>That said, I was happy with the ending. Parts of the ending I didn't see coming, but probably should have. I thought he wrapped up Mara's story particularly well. I was a bit disappointed this book didn't have the same scale of space battles as the last two though. It did have the requisite lightsabre duel that was two books in the making.<br/><br/>This book seemed to focus a lot more on Talon Karrde, who is probably my favorite new character of the series. A lot of the parts I found slow in the last book are paying dividends here and important to the resolution of some of the threads.<br/><br/>In general, I have a lot of the same feelings about this book as I did with the last two. Admiral Thrawn still feels a little too smart to be believable at times, though not nearly as bad as the last book. The writing could be a little better. However, this is a series to read more for the fun of being back in the Star Wars universe and not something that is read for the high quality prose.<br/><br/>Overall this was a pretty fun series that makes me want to check out some other star wars books in the future. I'll just need to filter through them to hit up the best ones, because their are far too many of them for me to want to read them all.","","","1","","",1,2014/06/04,"Audible","Like new",,
  15786173,"Dark Force Rising (Star Wars: The Thrawn Trilogy, #2)","Timothy Zahn","Zahn, Timothy","Marc Thompson",="",="",4,"4.10","Random House Audio","Audiobook","15",2012,1992,2014/06/05,2014/05/31,"audio-book, science-fiction, star-wars, read-2014","audio-book (#115), science-fiction (#74), star-wars (#3), read-2014 (#58)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Not as good as the first book, this was still another enjoyable entry in this series. <br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Marc Thompson once again gives a stellar performance. Add to that the sound effects and music and audio is the only way to do this book in my opinion.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>Empire Strikes Back is probably my favorite Star Wars Movie. So could the middle book of this trilogy top the original as well? No it couldn't.<br/><br/>I found the middle of the book particularly slow, especially Leia's storyline. However the ending of this book make up for the slow pace by being pretty non-stop action.<br/><br/>Apart from finding parts of the book slow, my only major complaint is the level of intuition of Grand Admiral Thrawn. There were a few parts where I was able to predict what was going to happen, not because it seemed like it was reasonable, but simply because Thrawn has rather ridiculous levels of deduction. I mean, I wonder if even Sherlock Holmes would be able to draw the same conclusions. It had me rolling my eyes and going ""Oh come on"" at points.<br/><br/>I guess though when Luke is able to see glimpses of the future using the force you have to do something to create a worthy adversary. However I just found Mr. Zahn went a little overboard in this book compared with the first.<br/><br/>That said, I still rather enjoyed the book. It's a lot of fun with characters I love. The story is compelling enough to keep me wanting to keep listening to see where things are going next.<br/><br/>I think with this book Talon Karrde has become my favorite new character, as Mara Jade's struggle with her past is starting to wear on me.<br/><br/>Overall I found this to be a decent entry in this trilogy with a fantastic climax making up for some of it's other faults and jumped right into the final book.<br/><br/>3.5 Stars rounded up due to strong finish.","","","1","","",1,2014/05/31,"Audible","Like new",,
  13372142,"X-Men: Days of Future Past","Chris Claremont","Claremont, Chris","John Byrne",="0785164537",="9780785164531",3,"4.16","Marvel","Paperback","184",2011,1981,2014/06/01,2014/05/30,"graphic-novels-and-manga, read-2014","graphic-novels-and-manga (#38), read-2014 (#57)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>This book is a little hard to review. The title says Days of Future Past, but that's only 2 out of like 6 or so comics in this collection. Really just under 50 pages of the 184.<br/><br/>The title story was enjoyable and I'm glad I read it. I wish they wouldn't have bothered with all the filler issues before and after though.<br/><br/>Obviously I picked this up with the movie that was just released. I wanted to see how it compared to the original story. I forgot it was adapted for the 90's cartoon as well. I'd like to go back and watch that at some point.<br/><br/>The basic plot is the same, even if a lot of the details are quite different. I does make for a good story.<br/><br/>My recommendation is borrow this from the library and skip to just reading #141 and 142. I'd give the title story 4 stars and the rest 2 stars, hence my 3 star rating for this collection.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>The artwork is nothing special for me. It's not bad though. I grew up reading comics in the 90s and have only just started again with the likes of [b:Saga, Volume 1|15704307|Saga, Volume 1|Brian K. Vaughan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1351259514s/15704307.jpg|19113524] and [b:Locke & Key, Vol. 1: Welcome to Lovecraft|3217221|Locke & Key, Vol. 1  Welcome to Lovecraft (Locke & Key, #1)|Joe Hill|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1377304780s/3217221.jpg|3251160]. It's really not fair to compare the art to either of those.<br/>","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  22249640,"Peace Talks (The Dresden Files, #16)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="0356500918",="9780356500911",0,"4.46","Orbit","Hardcover","416",2015,2015,,2014/05/22,"to-read, dresden-files, fantasy, urban-fantasy, next-in-series","to-read (#251), dresden-files (#21), fantasy (#237), urban-fantasy (#47), next-in-series (#19)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  8643407,"Hard Magic (Grimnoir Chronicles, #1)","Larry Correia","Correia, Larry","",="1439134340",="9781439134344",0,"4.16","Baen","Paperback","423",2011,2011,,2014/05/17,"to-read, fantasy, urban-fantasy","to-read (#249), fantasy (#236), urban-fantasy (#46)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  20736660,"War Crimes","Christie Golden","Golden, Christie","Scott Brick",="1442374225",="9781442374225",4,"4.00","Simon & Schuster Audio","Audio","14",2014,2014,2014/06/14,2014/05/16,"audio-book, fantasy, sff-audio, read-2014, warcraft","audio-book (#110), fantasy (#235), sff-audio (#17), read-2014 (#61), warcraft (#5)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I think your enjoyment of this book will largely depend on how much you like and know about the Warcraft lore.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Scott Brick is a fine narrator, but nothing really special. He seems to do accents for the trolls and a few other races, but for the most part he doesn't really add much to the story like my favorite narrators seem to.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I'm a recovering World of Warcraft addict. I've been clean for about a year since my guild's raids fell apart. I played a good portion of Mists of Pandaria, but didn't finish the last tier or two of raiding.<br/><br/>I knew enough background to know all the major players and that Garrosh Hellscream was the expansion boss this go around. I didn't really know any of the details of how it all played out however. I can't speak to how much of this book is in the game.<br/><br/>Warcraft has always been one of my favorites games because I loved the big name characters and the lore they've built up. It doesn't always make sense, but it's usually a whole lot of fun.<br/><br/>This book is full of all the major players from both factions, and everyone is angry. I've probably played more Alliance than Horde over the years, but I still like Horde better. <br/><br/>Thrall is probably my favorite character of the series, and I was really annoyed when he stepped down as Warchief. However as an Alliance player, I enjoyed being able to work with him on quests in Cataclysm. <br/><br/>I found myself really not liking many of the Alliance characters in this book. In particular Tyrande Whisperwind. As my main character is a Night Elf, I was pretty disappointed with her. I found myself rooting for Baine Bloodhoof and missing my Tauren druid instead.<br/><br/>I liked the notion of a trial and the involvement of the Bronze Dragons to present key moments in Warcraft lore, not only for the current expansion but back events involving the history of the Orcs.<br/><br/>Overall, I found this book a lot more enjoyable than [b:Vol'jin: Shadows of the Horde|15802977|Vol'jin  Shadows of the Horde (World of Warcraft, #12)|Michael A. Stackpole|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1365785320s/15802977.jpg|21526206]. I think this is one that Warcraft players will enjoy, but that probably won't offer much to everyone else.<br/><br/>If the goal of this book was to get the reader to want to play the game, they succeeded. I was already planning on picking up the next expansion and playing again for awhile, but now I'm itching to maybe try to do the raid that serves as background for this, so Mission Accomplished Blizzard.","","","1","","",1,2014/05/17,"Review Copy","Like new",,
  9727730,"Naked City: Tales of Urban Fantasy","Ellen Datlow","Datlow, Ellen","Nathan Ballingud, Peter S. Beagle, Elizabeth Bear, Hollly Black, Richard Bowes, Patricia Briggs, Jim Butcher, Pat Cadigan, John Crowley, Jeffrey Ford, Christopher Fowler, Caitlín R. Kiernan, Matthew Kressel, Ellen Kushner, Melissa Marr, Naomi Novik, Kit Reed, Lucius Shepard, Delia Sherman, Lavie Tidhar",="0312385242",="9780312385248",3,"3.67","St. Martin's Griffin","Paperback","539",2011,2011,2014/05/15,2014/05/15,"dresden-files, fantasy, read-2014, urban-fantasy","dresden-files (#20), fantasy (#234), read-2014 (#51), urban-fantasy (#45)","read","I'm not a Cubs fan, or much of a baseball fan for that matter. I was only vaguely familiar with the ""Billy Goat Curse"" that is the premise for this story.<br/><br/>As a pre [b:Changes|6585201|Changes (The Dresden Files, #12)|Jim Butcher|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1304027244s/6585201.jpg|6778696] story, things feel a bit more of ""the old"" Dresden. Dresden gets a case, and digs deeper into things. There is almost no action in this one though.<br/><br/>Overall it's a decent, but unremarkable story. There are several other Dredsen short stories I think are much better. <br/><br/>Hopefully Mr. Butcher will release a [b:Side Jobs|7779059|Side Jobs  Stories From the Dresden Files (The Dresden Files, #12.5)|Jim Butcher|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1269115846s/7779059.jpg|10351697] 2 that will include this and several other short stories he's written since then. Otherwise I wouldn't recommend going out of your way to read this story unless you can borrow [b:Naked City: Tales of Urban Fantasy (Riverside Series)|9727729|Naked City  Tales of Urban Fantasy (Riverside Series) (The Dresden Files #10.9)|Ellen Datlow|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1312232941s/9727729.jpg|14616573] from somewhere easily.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  17302559,"Thief's Magic (Millenium’s Rule, #1)","Trudi Canavan","Canavan, Trudi","",="0316209279",="9780316209274",0,"3.81","Orbit","Hardcover","553",2014,2014,,2014/05/14,"to-read","to-read (#248)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  13581064,"Blackbirds (Miriam Black, #1)","Chuck Wendig","Wendig, Chuck","",="",="",0,"3.83","Angry Robot","Kindle Edition","384",2012,2012,,2014/05/10,"to-read","to-read (#247)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  22080027,"Unlocked: An Oral History of Haden’s Syndrome","John Scalzi","Scalzi, John","Richie Pope",="",="",4,"4.04","tor.com","ebook","63",2014,2014,2014/08/02,2014/05/09,"read-2014, science-fiction","read-2014 (#85), science-fiction (#86)","read","<b>Note:</b> This story can be read for free on: <a href=""http://www.tor.com/stories/2014/05/unlocked-an-oral-history-of-hadens-syndrome-john-scalzi"">Tor.com</a><br/><br/><b>Executive Summary:</b> An interesting short story that has me excited for [b:Lock In|21418013|Lock In|John Scalzi|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1399037491s/21418013.jpg|26115712] later this month.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I held off on reading this one until it was closer to the release of [b:Lock In|21418013|Lock In|John Scalzi|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1399037491s/21418013.jpg|26115712], and I'm glad I did. It did it's job, namely promoting that book and whetting my appetite. But now I have to wait.<br/><br/>The story takes the form of a series of interviews from the people who were there, explaining the details of Haden Syndrome and doing an excellent job of world building. <br/><br/>This is the first time I can recall a story in this format, and it seems really fitting. He's able to provide the details he wants to without it coming off like a giant infodump. And he does this while providing a variety of views on the matter without needing to do a lot of character development that would bog down such a short story.<br/><br/>I'll be curious to see how he handles this in the novel itself. Will he expect readers to have done this short story first, and leave those who haven't confused? Or will he rehash much of what is here? I hope he's done it in such a way that people who haven't read it won't be lost, but those of us who have will be rewarded with an enriched experience. Time will tell.<br/><br/>My recommendation without knowing the answer to that question is to check this out first if plan to read [b:Lock In|21418013|Lock In|John Scalzi|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1399037491s/21418013.jpg|26115712]. Especially since <a href=""http://www.tor.com/stories/2014/05/unlocked-an-oral-history-of-hadens-syndrome-john-scalzi"">it's free</a>!","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  22751752,"Lock In","John Scalzi","Scalzi, John","Wil Wheaton",="",="",4,"3.83","Audible Studios","Audiobook","10",2014,2014,2014/08/28,2014/05/09,"audio-book, science-fiction, read-2014, not-a-bookclub-club","audio-book (#126), science-fiction (#84), read-2014 (#92), not-a-bookclub-club (#18)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Another fun Scalzi book. That shouldn't really surprise anyone at this point.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I opted for the [a:Wil Wheaton|37075|Wil Wheaton|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1356706649p2/37075.jpg] version of the audio since he's the way I prefer to consume Scalzi books. However thanks to the Audible pre-order sale, I got a free copy of the [a:Amber Benson|27209|Amber Benson|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1231537678p2/27209.jpg] version that I definitely want to listen to at some point now that I've finished.<br/><br/>I will say the run time of 10 hours (11 for the Benson version) is a bit deceptive because the last 2hrs and 15mins or so is actually a multiple reader version of the prequel Novella: [b:Unlocked: An Oral History of Haden's Syndrome|21805681|Unlocked  An Oral History of Haden's Syndrome|John Scalzi|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1397572655s/21805681.jpg|41068587]. I didn't listen to this since I had previously read it on tor.com, but if you haven't, I'd recommend you skip ahead (Chapter 27 I believe) to listen to it first before jumping into the book itself as it gives you more background than the book itself does.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I think before last year I hadn't read a single book by John Scalzi. Before 2012 I hadn't even heard of him. Now he's one of my favorite writers and I've listened to just about everything he's written.<br/><br/>I tend to read more fantasy than sci-fi. I seem to prefer my sci-fi in TV/movie form instead. Maybe because I like lighter sci-fi, which Mr. Scalzi writes very well. I also love his snarky sense of humor which I think Wil Wheaton does well.<br/><br/>This might be my favorite book of his yet. It's not as funny as some of his others, but it's still a lot of fun. I really love the world he built with some hand wavy science fiction that is really just used to set the stage for a murder mystery. He said that he's got an idea for another book in this world if it does well, so everyone go out and buy a copy because I want him to write it!<br/><br/>Our protagonist Chris is a rookie FBI agent on their first week with one major difference. They are ""Locked-In"" to their body since childhood due to a global pandemic. Chris uses a remote controlled robot nicknamed a Threep (after C-3PO) to be present in the world due to being unable to speak or move.<br/><br/>Writing the previous paragraph was very difficult because I wanted to keep it gender neutral. Because this entire book is as far as I can tell written that way. Mr. Scalzi probably had an easier time of it than I did because 1) He's an experienced and professional writer and 2) It's written in first person. Still it's an interesting approach to a story.<br/><br/>Since I did the Wil Wheaton version (and because I'm a guy myself), I assumed Chris to be a guy, only to realize we never really know if that's true or not.<br/><br/>It goes to show that for all the emphasis on racial and gender differences it really doesn't matter when telling a good story. When your protagonist is interacting with everyone remotely with a robot what does gender or race matter? They look like a robot. Chris is a capable FBI agent because of their mind, because when you're Locked-In that's really all that matters.<br/><br/>This is another fun and quick read from a master of writing those kinds of stories. Highly Recommended.","","","1","","",1,2014/08/26,"Audible","Like new",,
  116445,"Dies the Fire (Emberverse, #1)","S.M. Stirling","Stirling, S.M.","",="0451460413",="9780451460417",0,"3.92","Roc","Mass Market Paperback","573",2005,2004,,2014/05/05,"to-read","to-read (#246)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18616055,"Off to Be the Wizard (Magic 2.0 #1)","Scott  Meyer","Meyer, Scott","Luke Daniels",="1480578045",="9781480578043",4,"3.96","Brilliance Audio","Audio CD","10",2014,2013,2014/05/10,2014/05/05,"audio-book, sff-audio, read-2014, magic-2-0, fantasy","audio-book (#108), sff-audio (#16), read-2014 (#48), magic-2-0 (#2), fantasy (#270)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A really funny sci-fantasy story that will largely depend on your enjoyment of the humor.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Everyone seems to love the Iron Druid books. I just didn't. The one thing I did really love was Luke Daniels narration of those books however.<br/><br/>I'll admit that probably more than half of the reason I chose to review this book for <a href=""http://www.sffaudio.com/"">SFFAudio</a> was because Luke Daniels was the reader. He did not disappoint. Another excellent performance.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This book started really slow, despite a cool concept. A computer geek discovers a file that somehow lets him manipulate not only the world and everything in it, but time itself. So of course he decides to go back to medieval times and become a wizard. As a computer geek who (not so) secretly would love to be a wizard I was intrigued.<br/><br/>Unfortunately the main character, Martin isn't very likable at the start. Despite being good with computers, he doesn't seem very smart. For me the story finally started to get good when he meets Phillip. I will say Martin did grow on me as the book went on. I don't plan to say anything else about the plot because I don't want to ruin the jokes.<br/><br/>I think your enjoyment of the book will largely depend on if you find the humor funny and your willingness to not only suspend your disbelief but throw it right out the window. Things get silly. Really silly.<br/><br/>There is a lot of computer geek humor as well as some pop culture humor from the 80s and 90s that reminded me a bit of [b:Ready Player One|9969571|Ready Player One|Ernest Cline|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1383399667s/9969571.jpg|14863741], a book I absolutely love. I think fans of that book, may find similar things to like here. Scott Meyer does for fantasy geeks what [a:Ernest Cline|31712|Ernest Cline|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1310753539p2/31712.jpg] did for gaming geeks.<br/><br/>The only real complaint I have apart from the slow start is the general lack of women. That's a pretty common complaint in fantasy. However as this is a fantasy book based in current time and involves using computers to manipulate the world to <i>pretend</i> to be a wizard this seems like a big flaw for me.<br/><br/>Mr. Meyer has a plausible reason to explain away his lack of female characters, but he could have just as easily had a plausible reason for their inclusion instead.<br/><br/>Overall though, I really enjoyed listening to this book and I'll be on the lookout for his next book as well as planning to check out his webcomic in the near future.","","","1","","",1,,"","Like new",,
  22018739,"Wool","Jimmy Palmiotti","Palmiotti, Jimmy","Justin Gray, Hugh Howey, Jimmy Broxton",="1477849122",="9781477849125",0,"3.92","Jet City Comics","Paperback","160",2014,2014,,2014/05/05,"to-read","to-read (#245)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18243345,"Nightblood (Warbreaker, #2)","Brandon Sanderson","Sanderson, Brandon","",="",="",0,"4.33","",,"",2015,2015,,2014/05/04,"to-read","to-read (#244)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  147908,"Wild Cards (Wild Cards, #1)","George R.R. Martin","Martin, George R.R.","Walter Jon Williams, Melinda M. Snodgrass, Lewis Shiner, Victor Milán, Stephen Leigh, John J.  Miller, Edward Bryant, Brian Bolland, Mike Zeck, Howard Waldrop, Roger Zelazny, Leanne C. Harper",="1596872829",="9781596872820",0,"3.76","iBooks","Paperback","432",2007,1986,,2014/05/03,"to-read","to-read (#243)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18691078,"Attack on Titan: Before the Fall, Vol. 1 (Attack on Titan: Before the Fall Manga, #1)","Hajime Isayama","Isayama, Hajime","Satoshi Shiki, Ryo Suzukaze",="1612629105",="9781612629100",3,"4.33","Kodansha Comics","Paperback","193",2014,2013,2014/05/03,2014/05/03,"attack-on-titan, fantasy, read-2014, graphic-novels-and-manga","attack-on-titan (#13), fantasy (#233), read-2014 (#45), graphic-novels-and-manga (#51)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>The story was OK. I wasn't grabbed right away like I was for the original series. Since this is only volume 1 there hasn't been much time to establish the story. If the library buys the next volume though I'll probably pick it up at some point.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>It's hard to compare the artwork of this to the original series. My main complaint of the main series is the action scenes. This volume didn't really have many of those. I want to Mr. Shiki's art is better than Mr. Isayama's but it's hard to really say at this point.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  18467150,"Dust (Silo, #3)","Hugh Howey","Howey, Hugh","",="",="",4,"4.27","Broad Reach Publishing","Audible Audio","13",2013,2013,2014/05/29,2014/05/02,"science-fiction, audio-book, silo, read-2014, sff-audio","science-fiction (#70), audio-book (#106), silo (#1), read-2014 (#54), sff-audio (#18)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> An enjoyable but not perfect end to a pretty good series.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> [a:Tim Gerard Reynolds|4132657|Tim Gerard Reynolds|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1370714999p2/4132657.jpg] is once again a great reader. When deciding between reading or listening to a book, who the reader is often makes a big difference, and Mr. Reynolds makes this a must listen.<br/><br/>He does voices and accents that add a little extra something to the story. If you're deciding between listening and reading the book, I'd recommend listening.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>Final books in a series are always tough. Endings are difficult. Not everyone may be happy.<br/><br/>The ending to this series was good, but not great. I think it really comes down to what you're expecting. [b:Wool|13453029|Wool Omnibus (Silo, #1)|Hugh Howey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1349614200s/13453029.jpg|18979356] really sets the stage of a mystery series with a post-apocalyptic setting. By the end of it I had a ton of questions.<br/><br/>Some of those questions were answered or at least explored by [b:Shift|17306293|Shift (Silo, #2)|Hugh Howey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1379003176s/17306293.jpg|23965619], but a few more were posed as well. For me more than anything I wanted my questions answered to my satisfaction in this final book.<br/><br/>Unfortunately that wasn't the case for me. I still have questions. A few of the things that were explained, weren't done to my satisfaction. The clarification I was hoping might be in this book never really came. We do get some answers. Just not enough. When discussing it with others I found that some of my lingering questions hadn't occurred to them at all. Your mileage may vary.<br/><br/>That said, it's still an enjoyable book with a good, but not great ending. Mr. Howey does a good job in tying the two halves of the story set out in [b:Wool|13453029|Wool Omnibus (Silo, #1)|Hugh Howey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1349614200s/13453029.jpg|18979356] and [b:Shift|17306293|Shift (Silo, #2)|Hugh Howey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1379003176s/17306293.jpg|23965619] together.<br/><br/>I found Juliette not as enjoyable in this book as in the first, but I still probably enjoyed it the most. Solo was probably a close second. After Shift I found myself mostly getting tired of Donald however. He's not exactly the most likable of people. I found myself not really caring what he did except how it affected the others.<br/><br/>Overall I enjoyed the series, and will add [a:Hugh Howey|3064305|Hugh Howey|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1327581631p2/3064305.jpg] to the list of authors whose new releases I'm always on the lookout for.","","","1","","",1,2014/05/02,"Review Copy","Like new",,
  22016359,"The Churn (Expanse, #3.5)","James S.A. Corey","Corey, James S.A.","",="",="",0,"3.92","Orbit","Kindle Edition","77",2014,2014,,2014/04/29,"to-read, expanse, science-fiction","to-read (#242), expanse (#7), science-fiction (#69)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  23203101,"The Slow Regard of Silent Things","Patrick Rothfuss","Rothfuss, Patrick","",="",="",3,"4.08","Penguin Group US","Audible Audio","4",2014,2014,2014/10/17,2014/04/25,"kingkiller-chronicle, fantasy, sff-audio, audio-book, read-2014","kingkiller-chronicle (#4), fantasy (#232), sff-audio (#28), audio-book (#143), read-2014 (#112)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I think this is a book that most of the hard core fans will gush over, but I thought it was just alright. 3.5 stars rounded down for reasons I get into (rant about?) below.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I haven't done any of the Kingkiller books in audio. I have friends who have gushed to me over both the [a:Rupert Degas|1149240|Rupert Degas|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-ccc56e79bcc2db9e6cdcd450a4940d46.png] and the [a:Nick Podehl|2803557|Nick Podehl|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1294338060p2/2803557.jpg] versions.<br/><br/>I'm not sure if those people will bothered by this one being read by Mr. Rothfuss himself, but I thought for this book at least, he makes for a good narrator. As he was the one who wrote it, he was able to put emphasis on the words he wanted to and he has a good story telling voice.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I'm going to try to write a review without getting too ranty, but I may fall short in that regard, so I apologize in advance.<br/><br/>First a little background as to where I'm coming from: I heard about [b:The Name of the Wind|186074|The Name of the Wind (The Kingkiller Chronicle, #1)|Patrick Rothfuss|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1270352123s/186074.jpg|2502879] and [a:Patrick Rothfuss|108424|Patrick Rothfuss|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1351307341p2/108424.jpg] over four years ago from <a href=""http://www.penny-arcade.com/news/post/2010/03/03/the-name-of-the-wind"">Penny-Arcade</a>. Since that time I had several friends telling me I had to read it. <br/><br/>I was reluctant to do though, because the third book hasn't been published and there is no real eta in sight. I was content to wait until at least their was an announced publish date. Until last year that is, when I finally caved and read both books with a few friends. I'm glad I finally did, though now I'm stuck waiting for the final book like everyone else.<br/><br/>I seem to be in a minority of the fans I've talked to who thought that [b:The Name of the Wind|186074|The Name of the Wind (The Kingkiller Chronicle, #1)|Patrick Rothfuss|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1270352123s/186074.jpg|2502879] was good, but [b:The Wise Man's Fear|1215032|The Wise Man's Fear (The Kingkiller Chronicle, #2)|Patrick Rothfuss|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1297311431s/1215032.jpg|2502882] was much better. So maybe that will put me in the minority of fans once again who find myself a bit disappointed with this story.<br/><br/>Originally slated for [b:Rogues|20168816|Rogues|George R.R. Martin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1404616147s/20168816.jpg|27565413], Mr. Rothfuss set this one aside and wrote The Lightning Tree instead. It has a similar feel to this. We follow Bast around for a day in the life. I really loved that story. I felt like we got some good insights to his character we didn't in the main novels.<br/><br/>Auri is definitely one of my favorite characters in his books, so I was really excited to see he had a novella about her coming out. Until I saw the price. I like to support authors I read so they will hopefully continue to write more stories I enjoy, but $17 for a 150 page novella seems crazy to me. So maybe I was already in a negative mindset coming into this book.<br/><br/>I was planning to wait until I could get a copy from the library and if I enjoyed it, picking up a copy for my shelves if/when the price came down. However, I was fortunate enough to receive an early review copy of the audio book, making the price irrelevant to me personally.<br/><br/>So I've written all these words now (and apparently you've kept reading them) and still really haven't talked about the book. That seems appropriate because there really isn't a story here. <br/><br/>We follow Auri around for a week. We do get some insights into her thought process. Maybe someone smarter than me will argue we get a lot of insights. Maybe if I read it again, I'll come away with more. I don't know. What I really wanted was to know more about Auri's background more so than her character. As far as I'm concerned, you get none of that here. Maybe I'm just not smart enough.<br/><br/>And that brings me to why I rounded down my rating of 3.5 to a 3. I was all set to round up to 4 because I really like [a:Patrick Rothfuss|108424|Patrick Rothfuss|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1351307341p2/108424.jpg], and I really like Auri. He seems like a generally nice guy who does a lot of great things for other people with his success and influence. <br/><br/>But Mr. Rothfuss felt the need to include this long author's note at the end. He makes it out like an apology to his fans who may not ""get"" this book, or don't like it. But to me it came off as insincere and really more like him turning up his nose at anyone who doesn't love this story as much as Vi Hart.<br/><br/>And the thing is, I didn't dislike it for any of the reasons he mentioned. This book definitely FEELS like Auri. I liked all the randomness. Auri's OCD makes me feel way better about my own. She really is a great character, and that shines through here. As I said my main disappointment was getting nothing about Auri's back story.<br/><br/>But to talk about ""There are plenty of stories out there for you, even if this one isn't"" came off condescending to me. I'm probably just reading it the wrong way, because Mr. Rothfuss never stuck me as that sort of person before now.<br/><br/>So if you want a story where nothing really of note happens and to just spend time with Auri, you'll probably love this story. If you like me were hoping for some kind of back story, you may be disappointed like I was. There definitely were a few hints dropped, but nothing that made any real sense to me, just left me with more questions than before I read it.","","","1","","",1,2014/10/15,"Review Copy","Like new",,
  1514804,"Once Upon a Time in Computerland: The Amazing, Billion-Dollar Tale of Bill Millard","Jonathan Littman","Littman, Jonathan","",="0671702181",="9780671702182",0,"4.67","Simon & Schuster","Unknown Binding","413",1990,1987,,2014/04/24,"to-read","to-read (#241)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  615952,"Underground: Tales of Hacking, Madness, and Obsession on the Electronic Frontier","Suelette Dreyfus","Dreyfus, Suelette","Julian Assange",="1863305955",="9781863305952",0,"4.12","Mandarin","Hardcover","475",1997,1997,,2014/04/24,"to-read, hacking, nonfiction","to-read (#240), hacking (#11), nonfiction (#12)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  57965,"The Watchman: The Twisted Life and Crimes of Serial Hacker Kevin Poulsen","Jonathan Littman","Littman, Jonathan","Roger Donald",="0316528579",="9780316528573",4,"3.97","Little, Brown and Company","Hardcover","304",1997,1997,2014/06/26,2014/04/24,"hacking, read-2014, nonfiction","hacking (#10), read-2014 (#70), nonfiction (#11)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Another pretty interesting read about the early days of computer crime.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>Kevin Poulsen is often called ""The Other Kevin"". Not quite as infamous as Kevin Mitnick, Poulsen may have been the more technically proficient of the two, and less capable as a social engineer.<br/><br/>I had heard of his two most famous hacks, that being winning not one, but two Porches from a radio give away, and supposedly crashing the the Unsolved Mysteries call in lines when his story was aired on the show. The first was confirmed and explained in detail, while the latter seemed to be glossed over for some reason. It was insinuated, but not confirmed.<br/><br/>It appears that Mr. Littman had cooperation not only from many of the people in Kevin's life, but eventually Kevin himself. Hopefully this means that we get a pretty accurate picture of how things went down.<br/><br/>I had recently read Mr. Poulson own computer crime book: [b:Kingpin: How One Hacker Took Over the Billion-Dollar Cybercrime Underground|9319468|Kingpin  How One Hacker Took Over the Billion-Dollar Cybercrime Underground|Kevin Poulsen|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320477825s/9319468.jpg|14202643] and really enjoyed it. It's nice to know this story of brilliant but somewhat troubled young man has a happy ending, since the book was released shortly after his release from jail with a more abigious ending.<br/><br/>For those who may not know (though I suspect most people who pick up this book already knows who he is), Mr. Poulson has been a well known writer in the computer security and currently works for Wired. It seems to have been a long and dark journey to get there though.<br/><br/>I never knew he once had a security clearance or briefly worked for Sun Microsystems. It leaves you to wonder what he might have accomplished if he could have controlled his darker impulses.<br/><br/>The other thing that struck me was like Mitnick, they people prosecuting him felt the need to come up with bogus charges. He was guilty of all kinds of non computer crimes that they should have been able to prove, but they seemed to want to prosecute him for computer crimes he didn't commit (like espionage).<br/><br/>Overall it was a pretty fascinating read that I didn't find too technical, but may be a bit too in-depth for non-computer folks.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  19820726,"The Burning Dark","Adam Christopher","Christopher, Adam","",="",="",0,"3.41","Tor Books","Kindle Edition","336",2014,2014,,2014/04/24,"to-read","to-read (#239)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  30036,"Elric of Melniboné (Elric, #1)","Michael Moorcock","Moorcock, Michael","",="0441203981",="9780441203987",0,"3.88","Ace Books","Mass Market Paperback","181",1987,1972,,2014/04/19,"to-read","to-read (#238)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  23340,"Tailchaser's Song","Tad Williams","Williams, Tad","",="0886779537",="9780886779535",0,"3.94","DAW Books Inc. ","Mass Market Paperback","375",2000,1985,,2014/04/18,"to-read","to-read (#237)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  2199966,"Dungeon Master's Guide: A 4th Edition Core Rulebook","Wizards RPG Team","Team, Wizards RPG","Matt Sernett",="0786948809",="9780786948802",0,"3.40","Wizards of the Coast","Hardcover","224",2008,2008,,2014/04/06,"on-hold","on-hold (#1)","on-hold",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  22079826,"Sword & Laser Anthology","Veronica Belmont","Belmont, Veronica","Tom Merritt, Nicole Feldringer, Aidan Moher, Kristy Sutherland, Auston Habershaw, Day Al-Mohamed, Jeffrey N. Baker, Stephen Case, Zachary Tringali, Sean Tadsen, Sarina Dorie, Jacob A. Boyd, Adam Callaway, Rebecca J. Thomas, Luke R. Pebler, Mike Murphy, Trisha L. Sebastian, Austin Malone, Victoria Hooper, David Emery, Paul   Krueger",="1312149442",="9781312149441",0,"3.82","Sword & Laser LLC","Paperback","351",2014,2014,,2014/04/05,"anthologies-collections, fantasy, science-fiction, read-2014, on-hold","anthologies-collections (#2), fantasy (#245), science-fiction (#81), read-2014 (#86), on-hold (#2)","on-hold",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  12978119,"Heir to the Empire (Star Wars: The Thrawn Trilogy, #1)","Timothy Zahn","Zahn, Timothy","Marc Thompson",="",="",4,"4.07","Random House Audio","Audiobook","13",2011,1991,2014/06/01,2014/03/30,"audio-book, read-2014, science-fiction, star-wars","audio-book (#113), read-2014 (#56), science-fiction (#73), star-wars (#1)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Mostly lived up to the hype for me. Certainly more enjoyable than the prequels that Lucas put out, but that's not hard.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Do this in audio. Not only is Marc Thompson a great narrator who does a great job with almost all the voices, there is music and sound effects too that makes this more like a radio play than just an audiobook.<br/><br/>There was no way I was going to read this after seeing Marc Thompson did this series, and I was not disappointed.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>There is a lot of hype from the Star Wars geeks, that if you're going to read EU (now Legend) books, these are the ones to read. I personally was more Star Trek than Star Wars growing up.<br/><br/>Sure I watched the original trilogy growing up and loved it. And like most people who grew up before the prequels, I was disappointed with those. So I was content to just consider the original trilogy the only thing I cared about and move on with my life.<br/><br/>One of my buddies however is a HUGE Star Wars fan. He'd periodically try to get me to read this series to no real avail. Then earlier this year one of my favorite authors (well it's 2 guys, but whatever) wrote a book about Han Solo called [b:Honor Among Thieves|18050080|Honor Among Thieves (Star Wars  Empire and Rebellion, #2)|James S.A. Corey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1385232527s/18050080.jpg|24581828]. My friend told me it's a pretty good book that could be read without reading other Star Wars books and he was right.<br/><br/>I did the audio with Marc Thompson and that finally pushed me over the edge on giving this one a try. I know that Disney decided all the EU are no longer canon (if they ever really were), but I think they'd be stupid to discount this book completely when writing episode 7. If nothing else, Mr. Zahn adds some great characters to already beloved cast of the series.<br/><br/>I found Admiral Thrawn a little <i>too</i> smart at places almost to feel unbelievable, but not often. He certainly makes for a great villian.<br/><br/>Mara Jade I had heard of before, was not what I expected given what little I did know of her. I'll be curious to see how her character develops in the next two books.<br/><br/>Talon Karrde reminds me a lot of Han Solo. Sure he's a criminal, but he's got a code he lives by. He's honorable to a point, and you don't mess with one of his own. It's interesting to see him fill the vaccum of Jaba the Hutt and he couldn't be more different from him.<br/><br/>In addition to the great new characters all the big names are here, Luke, Leia, Han, Chewie, C3PO, and R2D2. Plus others like Admiral Ackbar and Lando Calrissian.<br/><br/>The story was pretty good and moved at a decent pace. My only real gripe with it is that sometimes there seemed to be a lot of ""coincidences"" like characters showing up at the same place at the same time, or some of Admiral Thrawn's insights.<br/><br/>Being the first book in a trilogy I didn't expect a lot of resolution, but I thought it stopped in a good place. Of course I don't have to wait and have already jumped right into [b:Dark Force Rising|216442|Dark Force Rising (Star Wars  The Thrawn Trilogy, #2)|Timothy Zahn|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327870067s/216442.jpg|463790].<br/><br/>Overall I found it enjoyable and wish I had read it sooner. Better late than never.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  1126719,"House of Suns","Alastair Reynolds","Reynolds, Alastair","",="9780575099",="",0,"4.14","Gollancz","Paperback","512",2010,2008,,2014/03/28,"to-read","to-read (#236)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  61887,"The Hallowed Hunt (Chalion, #3)","Lois McMaster Bujold","Bujold, Lois McMaster","",="0060574747",="9780060574741",0,"3.77","Harper Voyager","Mass Market Paperback","423",2006,2005,,2014/03/21,"to-read, chalion, fantasy, next-in-series","to-read (#235), chalion (#3), fantasy (#231), next-in-series (#16)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  19358975,"Saga, Volume 3","Brian K. Vaughan","Vaughan, Brian K.","Fiona Staples",="1607069318",="9781607069317",4,"4.59","Image Comics","Paperback","144",2014,2014,2014/04/09,2014/03/20,"graphic-novels-and-manga, saga, science-fiction, read-2014","graphic-novels-and-manga (#37), saga (#1), science-fiction (#68), read-2014 (#38)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>I always have trouble reviewing something so short. I only recently got into reading graphic novels with any regularity. This is one the reasons why.<br/><br/>The quality of this series is totally above most of the comics I remembering reading as a kid. The mix of sci-fi and fantasy and very real characters with some outright silly ones makes for some kind of recipe that I just really enjoy. Volume 3 is another great entry in the series, and I'm eagerly looking forward to Volume 4.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>Fiona Staples is a great artist. She adds so much to the story that my meager imagination wouldn't be able to approach. Her style greatly matches the story Mr. Vaughan is telling.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  17669067,"A Dance of Cloaks (Shadowdance, #1)","David Dalglish","Dalglish, David","",="031624239X",="9780316242394",2,"3.70","Orbit","Paperback","448",2013,2010,2014/04/06,2014/03/20,"fantasy, sword-and-laser, read-2014","fantasy (#230), sword-and-laser (#23), read-2014 (#35)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A premise that should be right up my alley, just seemed to fall flat in its execution.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I was only vaguely aware of this book when it was chosen by a Kickstarter backer for the April <a href=""https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/4170-the-sword-and-laser"">Sword & Laser pick</a>. It wasn't on my To-Read list though. A quick scan of my friends showed people who mostly weren't that impressed. <br/><br/>That said, I've surprised at times by books that were chosen, and I try to always read the S&L pick, even if I'm not that into it.<br/><br/>Most people who read my reviews will likely notice the books I don't like that much tend to receive shorter reviews than the books I really like. This one won't be much different. I'm not the type of person to rip apart something I don't like. I just move on.<br/><br/>The premise is one that should appeal to me. Several thieves guilds are vying for power over a city run more by the rich merchants than the King himself. I've always enjoyed playing rogues, assassins and thieves in various games over the year. Any class with stealth is usually my first pick.<br/><br/>I would say the first 20-25% of the book was enjoyable for me. Maybe that was due to my low expectations coming in. I'm not really sure. After that however it started to drag for me.<br/><br/>I don't really like any of the characters. There felt like too much was going on. I'd guess that's because he was trying to build things for a larger series, but for me this made things a bit too haphazard.<br/><br/>The book also doesn't come to much of a conclusion. Things were building steadily towards this festival. The books end with it where a lot of things happened. However so much was left unresolved that you're almost forced to keep reading to get any sort of closure. Unfortunately, I'm just not that interested in continuing this series to find out things resolve. One was enough for me.<br/><br/>2.5 Stars.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  20168816,"Rogues","George R.R. Martin","Martin, George R.R.","Gardner R. Dozois, Joe Abercrombie, Gillian Flynn, Matthew Hughes, Joe R. Lansdale, Michael Swanwick, David  Ball, Carrie Vaughn, Scott Lynch, Bradley Denton, Cherie Priest, Daniel Abraham, Paul Cornell, Steven Saylor, Garth Nix, Walter Jon Williams, Phyllis Eisenstein, Lisa Tuttle, Neil Gaiman, Connie Willis, Patrick Rothfuss",="0345537262",="9780345537263",4,"3.80","Bantam Books","Hardcover","806",2014,2014,2014/07/10,2014/03/19,"anthologies-collections, fantasy, kingkiller-chronicle, read-2014","anthologies-collections (#1), fantasy (#244), kingkiller-chronicle (#5), read-2014 (#67)","read","<b>NOTE:</b> I didn't read the entire anthology, just the stories listed at the bottom. My rating is simply the average of those stories I did read and may not be reflective to the entire thing.<br/><br/><b><u>Review</u></b><br/>After my disappointment with [b:Dangerous Women|17279560|Dangerous Women|George R.R. Martin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1370759802s/17279560.jpg|19236677], I decided I wouldn't be buying this (or likely any other anthologies) any time soon. So I borrowed it from the library instead and didn't feel obligated to read all the stories.<br/><br/>It's quite possible I would have enjoyed other stories, but there is always so much to read, and so little time, so I pretty much just focused on the authors I already really like. In particular I picked up this anotholgy to read Patrick Rothfuss and Scott Lynch.<br/><br/>The Rothfuss story about Bast definitely lived up to expectations, but I wonder how enjoyable it would be to anyone not already familiar to the series. If you're a fan of that series however, I definitely think it's worth borrowing this just to read that.<br/><br/>The Scott Lynch Story was initially disappointing simply because in an anthology entitled ""Rogues"" I couldn't imagine it being anything but a Gentleman Bastards story. However as I read it I came to love the characters and the world Mr. Lynch introduced in this story, and I hope he revisits it at some point in the future, just not until he's finished his Gentleman Bastard series. This was my favorite story in the book though, slightly edging out Mr. Rothfuss.<br/><br/>The rest of the stories I read were pretty good, but none really stand out as must reads for me. <br/><br/>I love [a:James S.A. Corey|4192148|James S.A. Corey|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-a7c55399ea455530473b9f9e4da94c40.png] but this was my first time reading either author by themselves. Daniel Abraham's story was enjoyable enough that I'll definitely try to get to some of his fantasy novels sooner rather than later.<br/><br/>The highlight of the Joe Abercrombie story was the brief cameo of Friendly from [b:Best Served Cold|2315892|Best Served Cold|Joe Abercrombie|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347732723s/2315892.jpg|2322406]. I'm not sure if there are other cameos since I haven't read all of his novels yet, but I was annoyed at the pulp fiction-esque lack of payoff. Still, it was a fun story.<br/><br/>I read the story by Gillian Flynn based on several recommendations, and it was enjoyable.<br/><br/>The biggest disappointment was the George R.R. Martin story. Like his story in Dangerous Women, it's not so much a story as a historical account, and it reads very dry.<br/><br/>I've actually read very little Neil Gaiman, but I had watched a BBC mini-series version of the Neverwhere from the 90s. I don't really remember The Marquis, but the short story here makes me want to pick up that book at some point.<br/><br/><b><u>Ratings of The Stories I read</u></b><br/>- ""The Lightning Tree"" by Patrick Rothfuss	4 stars<br/>- ""A Year and a Day in Old Theradane"" by Scott Lynch	4.5 stars<br/>- ""The Meaning of Love"" by Daniel Abraham	4 stars<br/>- ""Tough Times All Over"" by Joe Abercrombie	3.5 stars<br/>- ""What do you do?"" by Gillian Flynn	4 stars<br/>- ""The Rogue Prince"" by George R.R. Martin	3 stars<br/>- ""How the Marquis Got His Coat Back by Neil Gaiman	4 stars<br/>","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  7286699,"The Thing Beneath the Bed (The Adventures of the Princess and Mr. Whiffle #1)","Patrick Rothfuss","Rothfuss, Patrick","Nate  Taylor",="1596063130",="9781596063136",3,"4.23","Subterranean Press","Hardcover","72",2010,2010,2014/03/18,2014/03/18,"read-2014","read-2014 (#68)","read","Oh yeah, so I never reviewed this. It's short. The pictures are pretty good. I didn't really find it all that funny (which I sort of assumed the point), but the ending was great and unexpected and that made it worth reading overall.<br/><br/>Besides even if you don't like it, you're only out 5 minutes (well and a ton of money if you buy it, man this thing is expensive). I'd recommend borrowing this from a library rather than buying it if you really want to read it.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  20944489,"Ancillary Sword (Imperial Radch, #2)","Ann Leckie","Leckie, Ann","",="",="",4,"4.16","Orbit","Kindle Edition","432",2014,2014,2014/10/14,2014/03/17,"science-fiction, imperial-radch, read-2014, not-a-bookclub-club","science-fiction (#67), imperial-radch (#1), read-2014 (#109), not-a-bookclub-club (#24)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Probably not as good/interesting as the first book, but I still enjoyed it. 3.5 Stars.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>[b:Ancillary Justice|17333324|Ancillary Justice (Imperial Radch, #1)|Ann Leckie|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1397215917s/17333324.jpg|24064628] is one of those books that has become severely over-hyped. I read it early on as the hype was starting to build and before it won every award under the sun. I enjoyed it, and I'm not surprised it won so much, but I would have been equally unsurprised if it didn't. It's definitely one of those books that many people will read and scratch their heads at.<br/><br/>So now we come to the sequel to what is arguably the most successful (or at least the most decorated) book of last year. Will Ms. Leckie continue on her success or fall into the dreaded ""sophomore slump""? For me the answer is closer to the former, than the latter. <br/><br/>The first book gets a lot of discussion about the lack of gender. Everyone is a she. If I'm perfectly honest, I don't notice or care most of the time. I'm not sure if that's the point. To me it just feels like a gimmick though. But it really doesn't matter to me one way or the other. Someone much smarter and literary than I am can debate the implications or try to determine the gender from the context, I'll be busy reading another book. <br/><br/>One of the other gimmicky things about the first book I did really like however was the way Breq while the only viewpoint was still multiple viewpoints. I was happy to see that Ms. Leckie managed to continue that on in this book as well. I think it's a really cool idea that makes for very unique storytelling.<br/><br/>Overall though, this book felt smaller. We spend most of it on a single planet and an orbiting station. Breq is dealing with a lot of petty problems of the locals. I really wanted a book dealing more with larger problems revealed at the end of [b:Ancillary Justice|17333324|Ancillary Justice (Imperial Radch, #1)|Ann Leckie|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1397215917s/17333324.jpg|24064628], but this seemed to mostly dance around that.<br/><br/>Yet despite that, I still found it to be a page turner. I liked the characters. I continue to enjoy Breq and her(its?) take on things. Breq has a truly unique viewpoint. There are certainly times that Breq feels a little too capable and smart, but it never really bothers me.<br/><br/>So much like the first book, I rather enjoyed this book, but I'm not going to be exactly gushing over it. I think anyone who enjoyed the first, will enjoy this, and anyone who didn't won't find this be any better.","","","1","","",1,2014/10/07,"Amazon","unspecified",,
  18283029,"Attack on Titan, Volume 12","Hajime Isayama","Isayama, Hajime","",="1612626785",="9781612626789",4,"4.54","Kodansha Comics","Paperback","192",2014,2013,2014/06/15,2014/03/16,"attack-on-titan, fantasy, graphic-novels-and-manga, read-2014","attack-on-titan (#12), fantasy (#229), graphic-novels-and-manga (#36), read-2014 (#64)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>I'm developing a love/hate relationship with this series. I didn't rush out to read this one like I did the last one. I really want to know what's going on, but it seems like it's going to take a long time until we get any sort of answers. We get a few more hints in here, but far too few for my liking.<br/><br/>Hopefully they can tighten the story up in another season of the anime. This volume is a bit heavier on action and lighter on story than the last few. <br/><br/>Despite my complaints though, it still has its hooks into me and I will definitely reading the next volume when I can borrow it from the library.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>The artwork continues to frustrate me in places. The actions scenes are such that it's really hard to tell what's happening until afterwards at time. I look forward to revisiting this in anime form because the intense action is ruined by the bad artwork.<br/><br/>As usual most of the still frames are fine, and it's action that is hard to follow. This volume has a lot of action though.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  16278318,"Armada","Ernest Cline","Cline, Ernest","",="",="9780804137256",0,"4.09","Crown Publishing ",,"",2015,2015,,2014/03/16,"to-read, science-fiction","to-read (#12), science-fiction (#66)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  17315048,"The Martian","Andy Weir","Weir, Andy","R.C. Bray",="",="",4,"4.34","Podium Publishing","Audible Audio","11",2013,2012,2014/05/07,2014/03/12,"audio-book, read-2014, science-fiction, sword-and-laser","audio-book (#107), read-2014 (#46), science-fiction (#71), sword-and-laser (#24)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A surprisingly enjoyable hard sci-fi novel. I think most people's enjoyment will rely heavily on how much you enjoy the humor or not however. <br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> There are some books where the audio makes it even better. This is definitely one of those. I've never heard of R.C. Bray before this, but I definitely will be more inclined to listen to anything else he reads from now on.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I'm always more of a sword than a laser. I tend to watch sci-fi and  stick to fantasy for reading. Most of the sci-fi books I do enjoy are more space fantasy or space opera types. I'm not really into hard sci-fi despite having a science and math background. It just feels too much like work I guess.<br/><br/>So I hadn't really planned on reading this book despite all the hype it's been getting lately. Thankfully <a href=""https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/4170-the-sword-and-laser"">Sword & Laser</a> decided to make this their May pick, because I really enjoyed it.<br/><br/>I've seen it described as MacGuyver in Space and that seems really fitting. Mark Watney is an engineer and a Botanist. He's good at problem solving and fixing things. That probably a good thing as he finds himself left behind on Mars with both limited supplies and food.<br/><br/>The story takes the form of log entries, leaving the reader to wonder if Mark made it through his ordeal or if we're simply listening to the record of his final days recovered at some later date.<br/><br/>The book is a bit formulaic:<br/><br/>1. Evaluate Problem for possible solutions.<br/>2. Fix Problem<br/>3. Make humorous remarks about the Problem.<br/>4. Discover what new Problem crops up as a result.<br/>5. Repeat.<br/><br/>This may sound boring to some folks, but it just worked for me. It really helped that just as I was starting to think this he started interspersing Mark's log entries with events of the people at NASA back on Earth as they are trying to do all they can to recover Mark alive.<br/><br/>I think that anyone who don't find the jokes as funny as I did (laughing uncontrollably a few times while cleaning dishes in the break room or riding my bike), may grow tired of the story.<br/><br/>The science seems pretty good to me. However that's not something I normally care much about. As long as it seems mostly reasonable I don't give it much thought. I'm sure there are things that are wrong or could be nitpicked by people who know better than me.<br/><br/>Also anyone looking for case study of isolation and desperation that results from being left behind on Mars will be disappointed. I can't say that I spent much time thinking ""Mark's mental state doesn't seem realistic to me."" People who say that may probably be right. <br/><br/>However, astronauts are chosen not only for their skill-set and physical fitness, but mental fitness as well. I tend to make jokes when I'm stressed. Mark makes a lot of jokes. To me that seems fitting for someone between being super busy just trying to stay alive. Your mileage may vary.<br/><br/>I for one really enjoyed this book and it's put me in a total sci-fi mood for both TV and in my choice of audiobooks. I'll be eagerly awaiting for Mr. Weir's next novel as this was an excellent debut.","","","1","","",1,2014/05/03,"Audible","Brand new",,
  20883847,"The Autumn Republic (The Powder Mage, #3)","Brian  McClellan","McClellan, Brian","",="0316219126",="9780316219129",0,"4.22","Orbit","Hardcover","592",2015,2015,,2014/03/11,"to-read, fantasy, flintlock-fantasy, powder-mage, next-in-series","to-read (#234), fantasy (#222), flintlock-fantasy (#7), powder-mage (#5), next-in-series (#18)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  16164271,"Locke & Key, Volume 6: Alpha & Omega (Locke & Key #6)","Joe Hill","Hill, Joe","Gabriel Rodríguez",="1613778538",="9781613778531",5,"4.61","IDW Publishing","Hardcover","192",2014,2014,2014/03/16,2014/03/11,"locke-and-key, graphic-novels-and-manga, horror, read-2014, fantasy, dark-fantasy","locke-and-key (#6), graphic-novels-and-manga (#35), horror (#19), read-2014 (#30), fantasy (#228), dark-fantasy (#44)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>I had the fortune of reading the entire series over the course of one weekend rather than months/years. I really enjoyed the end a lot. I was reluctant to give it 5 stars, but I really was just so sucked in by this point and emotionally invested in these characters that I just had to know how it all came out, dreading what the results would be.<br/><br/>They made me laugh once or twice between all the cringing and sobbing. I don't want to say how it ends of course but I will it left off in such a way that I'm satisfied and not left with lingering questions. <br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>There is really little to say here that hasn't been said in my previous reviews. The artwork is great. It compliments the story This story wouldn't be what it was without it, just as the artwork wouldn't be what it is without the text.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  13490570,"Locke & Key, Volume 5: Clockworks (Locke & Key #5)","Joe Hill","Hill, Joe","Gabriel Rodríguez",="1613772270",="9781613772270",4,"4.54","IDW Publishing ","Hardcover","152",2012,2011,2014/03/16,2014/03/11,"locke-and-key, graphic-novels-and-manga, horror, read-2014, fantasy, dark-fantasy","locke-and-key (#5), graphic-novels-and-manga (#34), horror (#18), read-2014 (#29), fantasy (#227), dark-fantasy (#43)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>This one is almost entirely flashbacks and we get a whole lot of answers here. Things I have been wondering for awhile finally get confirmed. And of course once again we have more keys! Some of them aren't really explained that much though.<br/><br/>I loved going back and spending a lot of time with Rendell Locke. But we also go way back to the revolutionary <br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>With all the different time periods represented here Mr. Rodriguez does an excellent job with the various styles to truly bring each alive.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  9674335,"Locke & Key, Volume 4: Keys to the Kingdom","Joe Hill","Hill, Joe","Gabriel Rodríguez",="1600108865",="9781600108860",4,"4.46","IDW Publishing","Hardcover","146",2011,2011,2014/03/15,2014/03/11,"locke-and-key, graphic-novels-and-manga, horror, read-2014, fantasy, dark-fantasy","locke-and-key (#4), graphic-novels-and-manga (#33), horror (#17), read-2014 (#28), fantasy (#226), dark-fantasy (#42)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>This book has Nazi Dinosaurs. Need I really say anything else? Of course we got more keys, each one unique and interesting. Things really escalate in this book and it was hard for me to stop here for the night. I can only image people who had to stop and wait for the next issue.<br/><br/>I also really like how they did each day of February in a single panel or two. That was a particularly good issue.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>While I appreciate the nod to Calvin and Hobbs, it went on far too long. I really like Mr. Rodriguez's style, but I was annoyed for the entire first issue when he kept swapping back to that art style. It would have been fine if it was a single page like the comic book cover he does for Bode and Rufus.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  7202841,"Crown of Shadows (Locke & Key, #3)","Joe Hill","Hill, Joe","",="1600106951",="9781600106958",4,"4.43","IDW Publishing","Hardcover","140",2010,2010,2014/03/15,2014/03/11,"locke-and-key, graphic-novels-and-manga, horror, read-2014, fantasy, dark-fantasy","locke-and-key (#3), graphic-novels-and-manga (#32), horror (#16), read-2014 (#27), fantasy (#225), dark-fantasy (#41)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b> <br/>More Keys of course! The Shadow Key freaks me the hell out. I think the mending key would really handy and the Giant Key is just awesome. The creativity not only of the keys themselves, but how they get used in the story makes for some truly excellent scenes.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>Mr. Rodriguez is able to do so much without words. It adds so much. He can do full pages without no dialogue and show so much that would be much harder in text.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  6120349,"Locke & Key, Volume 2: Head Games","Joe Hill","Hill, Joe","Gabriel Rodríguez",="1600104835",="9781600104831",4,"4.37","IDW Publishing","Hardcover","144",2009,2009,2014/03/15,2014/03/11,"locke-and-key, graphic-novels-and-manga, horror, read-2014, fantasy, dark-fantasy","locke-and-key (#2), graphic-novels-and-manga (#31), horror (#15), read-2014 (#26), fantasy (#224), dark-fantasy (#40)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b> <br/>This one focuses on the Head Key, which is just crazy. I really find myself getting attached to the Locke kids here. We get inside their heads (literally) and get a better understanding for who they are.<br/><br/>I also really like Rufus.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>The artwork continues to impress. I especially like how he handles the head key. I don't think my imagination would have done it the same justice. This really is a story that works better as a graphic novel.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  3217221,"Locke & Key, Volume 1: Welcome to Lovecraft (Locke & Key, #1)","Joe Hill","Hill, Joe","Gabriel Rodríguez",="1600102379",="9781600102370",4,"4.19","IDW Publishing","Hardcover","158",2008,2008,2014/03/15,2014/03/11,"locke-and-key, graphic-novels-and-manga, horror, read-2014, fantasy, dark-fantasy","locke-and-key (#1), graphic-novels-and-manga (#30), horror (#14), read-2014 (#25), fantasy (#223), dark-fantasy (#39)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b> <br/>The story is gruesome. I'm not a horror fan, but thankfully this has just enough fantasy to keep me interested. The keys are addicting. We have four here: Echo Key, Anywhere Key, Gender Key and the Ghost Key. <br/><br/>I don't quite understand how the keys work, but I can't wait to find out. I'm also looking forward to seeing what keys come next.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>The artwork is excellent. It really fits the story quite well.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  16065004,"Shadows of Self (Mistborn, #5)","Brandon Sanderson","Sanderson, Brandon","",="473208211",="9781473208216",0,"4.11","Gollancz","Hardcover","320",2015,2015,,2014/03/10,"to-read, fantasy, next-in-series, mistborn","to-read (#233), fantasy (#221), next-in-series (#14), mistborn (#5)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  20886354,"Legion: Skin Deep (Legion, #2)","Brandon Sanderson","Sanderson, Brandon","Jon Foster",="",="",0,"4.44","Subterranean Press ","Leather Bound","",2014,2014,,2014/03/09,"to-read, next-in-series, fantasy, legion","to-read (#11), next-in-series (#22), fantasy (#254), legion (#1)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  21326,"Fables, Vol. 1: Legends in Exile (Fables, #1)","Bill Willingham","Willingham, Bill","Lan Medina, Steve Leialoha, Craig Hamilton, James Jean",="1563899426",="9781563899423",0,"4.04","Vertigo","Paperback","128",2002,2001,,2014/03/06,"to-read, fantasy, graphic-novels-and-manga","to-read (#232), fantasy (#220), graphic-novels-and-manga (#29)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18209565,"Honor Among Thieves (Star Wars: Empire and Rebellion, #2)","James S.A. Corey","Corey, James S.A.","Marc Thompson, Ilyana Kadushin",="0804191689",="9780804191685",4,"3.77","Random House Audio","Audiobook","10",2014,2014,2014/03/11,2014/03/05,"audio-book, science-fiction, read-2014, star-wars","audio-book (#95), science-fiction (#63), read-2014 (#22), star-wars (#2)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This is a short but fun book that has finally given me the itch to read Star Wars Books.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> The audiobook is awesome. The End. I'm told the sound effects and the music are normal for Star Wars books. It seems well done here and not overused/distracting. Marc Thompson is an awesome narrator. He does voices for all the characters, including Chewbacca. What's better than reading about a singing Wookie? Hearing it! <br/><br/>His Han Solo does remind me a bit of Peter Griffin for some reason, but overall it reminds me more of Harrison Ford's performance. His voices for Hunter Maas is probably my favorite. I think this will be my preferred way to read more Star Wars in the future, especially if Mr. Thompson is the reader.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>So let's set the stage for my review a bit: I'm a casual Star Wars fan. I like Star Trek just as much as if not more than Star Wars (<b>*ducks*</b>). I love the original trilogy (4-6) and I don't really care for the prequel trilogy. Jar Jar can go die in a fire. And this is my very first Star Wars book.<br/><br/>So why start here? My friend loves Star Wars books. I think he's read most of them. He's been telling me to read them for years. Shouldn't I have read Thrawn Trilogy by now at least? I guess so, but there are just so many other books to get to.<br/><br/>For me the final push was the author. I just did the Expanse books earlier this year and I really like [a:James S.A. Corey|4192148|James S.A. Corey|https://www.goodreads.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-d9f6a4a5badfda0f69e70cc94d962125.png]. The other thing is that despite this being book 2 of a series. It's really just a stand alone as far as I can tell. It's easy to just read this without committing myself to reading more books.<br/><br/>What you have here is a short and interesting tale focused around Han Solo and Chewbacca with smaller appearances of some of the others (Luke, Leia, R2D2, C3PO). So if you're looking for light saber battles and the force, you probably want to pick another book (just don't ask me which one).<br/><br/>There isn't some real deep plot or major revelations here. There can't be really. The book is set between episode 4 and 5. You know that none of the main characters are ever in real danger of dying because they are around in episode 5. Original characters are fair game though.<br/><br/>The original characters (or at least ones I've never heard of before) are all pretty good. The other main character of this is Scarlet Hark a rebel spy who needs extraction from the center of imperial space. And guess who has to go get her? I also particularly enjoy Hunter Maas.<br/><br/>The real winner here is the dialogue though. Maybe it has extra pop for me since I listened to it rather than reading it, but they seem to really capture the mannerisms of the characters that I remember and love from the movies. Han especially. The interactions between him and Leia are really good. There is even a ""Han Shot First"" joke in there.<br/><br/>So if your a Star Wars noob like me, should you start here? I'm not sure. It seemed to work for me though and now I'm excited to check out some more books later this year. Even if you're a bigger fan, I think there is a lot to like here, especially if you go the audio book route.","","","1","","Tom Schreck",0,,,,,
  18691177,"Black Science #1","Rick Remender","Remender, Rick","Matteo Scalera, Dean White",="",="",0,"4.00","Image Comics","Paperback","40",2013,2014,,2014/03/04,"to-read, graphic-novels-and-manga","to-read (#231), graphic-novels-and-manga (#28)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  17929637,"East of West, Vol. 1: The Promise","Jonathan Hickman","Hickman, Jonathan","Nick Dragotta",="1607067706",="9781607067702",0,"3.94","Image Comics","Paperback","128",2013,2013,,2014/03/04,"to-read, graphic-novels-and-manga","to-read (#230), graphic-novels-and-manga (#27)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  20653650,"Serenity: Leaves on the Wind #1","Zack Whedon","Whedon, Zack","Georges Jeanty, Karl Story, Laura Martin, Michael Heisler",="",="B00HZUSX5C",0,"4.20","Dark Horse Comics","Paperback","32",2014,2014,,2014/03/02,"to-read, graphic-novels-and-manga, serenity-graphic-novels","to-read (#229), graphic-novels-and-manga (#26), serenity-graphic-novels (#4)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  17250961,"Skybreaker (The Stormlight Archive, #3)","Brandon Sanderson","Sanderson, Brandon","",="",="",0,"4.40","",,"",2015,2015,,2014/03/01,"to-read, epic-fantasy, fantasy, stormlight-archive, next-in-series","to-read (#229), epic-fantasy (#34), fantasy (#219), stormlight-archive (#3), next-in-series (#13)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  1219028,"The Brave and the Bold, Vol. 1: The Lords of Luck","Mark Waid","Waid, Mark","George Pérez, Bob Wiacek",="1401215033",="9781401215033",0,"3.57","DC Comics","Hardcover","160",2007,2007,,2014/03/01,"to-read, graphic-novels-and-manga","to-read (#227), graphic-novels-and-manga (#25)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  20753341,"Untitled (Chronicle of the Unhewn Throne, #3)","Brian Staveley","Staveley, Brian","",="",="",0,"4.80","TOR",,"",2016,2016,,2014/03/01,"to-read, fantasy, chronicle-of-the-unhewn-throne","to-read (#227), fantasy (#218), chronicle-of-the-unhewn-throne (#1)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  22055280,"The Providence of Fire (Chronicle of the Unhewn Throne, #2)","Brian Staveley","Staveley, Brian","",="0765336413",="9780765336415",0,"4.09","Tor Books","Hardcover","608",2015,2015,,2014/03/01,"to-read, fantasy, next-in-series, chronicle-of-the-unhewn-throne","to-read (#225), fantasy (#217), next-in-series (#12), chronicle-of-the-unhewn-throne (#2)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  10471315,"Patriot Games (Jack Ryan, #1)","Tom Clancy","Clancy, Tom","Scott Brick",="0307934640",="9780307934642",3,"4.05","Random House Audio","Audiobook","22",2011,1987,2014/08/02,2014/02/23,"thriller, audio-book, read-2014, jack-ryan","thriller (#31), audio-book (#125), read-2014 (#82), jack-ryan (#1)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> After enjoying [b:The Hunt for Red October|19691|The Hunt for Red October (Jack Ryan, #3)|Tom Clancy|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1281995542s/19691.jpg|1112006], I had high hopes for this book, and found myself a bit disappointed.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I've listened to one or two books read by [a:Scott Brick|44554|Scott Brick|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1377113754p2/44554.jpg]. He's a decent reader, but nothing special. He does a passable English and Irish accent here, but not in anyway to make the characters of similar accents distinguishable from one another. He does a better job of that with his American voices, but still not great. <br/><br/>I'd happily listen to another book read by him, but wouldn't rank him among my favorite readers.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I've seen every Jack Ryan movie they've made (and enjoyed most of them), including this one, but this is only my 3rd book in the series I've read. This is one of the few cases where I think the movie is better though.<br/><br/>I rather enjoyed [b:The Hunt for Red October|19691|The Hunt for Red October (Jack Ryan, #3)|Tom Clancy|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1281995542s/19691.jpg|1112006], which I think had a slightly better reader plus a bunch of sound effects that really added to the experience.<br/><br/>The real core of my disappointment here was the pacing. The book starts out great and ends pretty well, but really got bogged down inbetween. After a pretty exciting start the next quarter or so seemed to just drag on.<br/><br/>See Jack Ryan, budding Analyst and he recovers in a hospital! Contain your excitement as he tours old castles along the English Country side. Watch your anticipation grow and you wonder: Will Jack be able to put together his daughter's Christmas presents while recovering from his wounds?<br/><br/>Eventually though things started to pick back and up and I thought I was over a rough patch. Unfortunately things slowed back down again for awhile before a pretty enjoyable finish.<br/><br/>Mr. Clancy offers a variety of POVs to give the reader the details from both the terrorists and those trying to catch them. I like this idea, though the execution was lacking in my opinion. <br/><br/>If the goal was to accurately portray the tedium and frustration of a CIA analyst, then this book succeeds. However if the goal was to mix in reality with fiction to tell an exciting spy thriller, this book fell short for me. <br/><br/>I think for me this was best contrasted by the book I was reading while listening to this. [b:The Deaths of Tao|17726421|The Deaths of Tao (Tao, #2)|Wesley Chu|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1376921492s/17726421.jpg|24804136] is a spy thriller with a sci-fi setting, where aliens secretly run the world. [a:Wesley Chu|5990662|Wesley Chu|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1337892454p2/5990662.jpg] is far less known/successful than [a:Tom Clancy|3892|Tom Clancy|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1175466521p2/3892.jpg] yet I found his book far more exciting.<br/><br/>While I found this book disappointing, it hasn't completely put me off of the series or Tom Clancy. I may switch to try our his John Clark books instead though. I mostly likely won't be buying my next Clancy book though, and will borrow it from the library instead.","","","1","","",1,2014/07/26,"Audible","Like new",,
  20746474,"Influx","Daniel Suarez","Suarez, Daniel","Jeff Gurner",="",="9781101630631",3,"3.92","Penguin Audio","Audiobook","14",2014,2014,2014/03/16,2014/02/19,"audio-book, science-fiction, read-2014","audio-book (#96), science-fiction (#64), read-2014 (#23)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> If you can get over the ridiculousness this book can be a lot of fun.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> The audio is pretty good. Jeff Gurner can do a few accents and they have some special effects for the AI/comms that add a little extra touch.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This book was pretty uneven for me. It starts out with a huge tech dump trying to explain how a Gravity Mirror might be possible. I'm not a physicist so I have no idea how sound the theories are or if he's just completely making things up. <br/><br/>It really seems pointless by the end considering all the other technology that's said to exist with little to no explanation and some of the crazy ways the gravity mirror is used later in the book. I'm fine with ignoring the science, but then he shouldn't have bothered with a few of the infodumps he included in my opinion.<br/><br/>Needless to say it made for a slow start, but I got into it by the third chapter. I actually found myself agreeing with the arguments of the BTC (Bureau of Technology Control), but quickly found myself changing my mind.<br/><br/>The notion of controlling technological advances for the good of humanity is a cool premise, but it really just turns into a ""absolute power corrupts absolutely"" sort of thing.<br/><br/>I felt a few parts went on too long and a few parts were just ridiculous. I didn't enjoy this as much as [b:Daemon|4699575|Daemon (Daemon, #1)|Daniel Suarez|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1394070569s/4699575.jpg|4763873] but definitely enjoyed it more than [b:Freedom™|7132363|Freedom™ (Daemon, #2)|Daniel Suarez|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1394604676s/7132363.jpg|7394861].<br/><br/>I found the main character a bit unlikable at times. That probably didn't help. The bad guys also seem a bit mustache twirly and over the top. I think I would have enjoyed some more shades of grey here. At first it seemed like it would be a bit of that as I found myself changing my opinion on the BTC, but pretty much from then on, it all seemed pretty clear-cut and predictable to me.<br/><br/>If you're not too worried about the tech and just want a fun little technothriller you may enjoy this one.<br/><br/>3.5 Stars","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  304123,"Blade of Tyshalle (The Acts of Caine, #2)","Matthew Woodring Stover","Stover, Matthew Woodring","",="0345421434",="9780345421432",0,"4.11","Del Rey Books","Paperback","800",2002,2001,,2014/02/17,"to-read, dark-fantasy, fantasy, next-in-series","to-read (#224), dark-fantasy (#38), fantasy (#215), next-in-series (#11)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18139131,"The Girl of Hrusch Avenue (The Powder Mage, #0.5)","Brian  McClellan","McClellan, Brian","",="",="",0,"3.92","","ebook","29",2013,2013,,2014/02/14,"to-read, flintlock-fantasy, fantasy, powder-mage","to-read (#223), flintlock-fantasy (#6), fantasy (#213), powder-mage (#4)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  23348155,"Mitosis (Reckoners, #1.5)","Brandon Sanderson","Sanderson, Brandon","MacLeod Andrews",="",="",3,"3.92","Audible Studios","Audible Audio","1",2014,2013,2014/10/13,2014/02/13,"fantasy, reckoners, urban-fantasy, audio-book, read-2014","fantasy (#212), reckoners (#4), urban-fantasy (#44), audio-book (#141), read-2014 (#110)","read","<b><u>Review</u></b><br/>This is an alright short story set in the Reckoners world. It shouldn't be read before you do [b:Steelheart|17182126|Steelheart (Reckoners, #1)|Brandon Sanderson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1357576738s/17182126.jpg|21366540].<br/><br/>It's a lot of the same elements as the first book. David and his bad Puns. An urban post-apocalyptic setting. Crazy villains with superpowers. The world won't feel very fleshed out to anyone who hasn't read [b:Steelheart|17182126|Steelheart (Reckoners, #1)|Brandon Sanderson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1357576738s/17182126.jpg|21366540] not to mention the spoilers for the end of that book.<br/><br/>Mitosis is an interesting villain from a powers point of view, but feels very flat otherwise. This is probably because it's a short story, but I would have liked some sort of motivation for his actions.<br/><br/>I'd say if you enjoyed [b:Steelheart|17182126|Steelheart (Reckoners, #1)|Brandon Sanderson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1357576738s/17182126.jpg|21366540] and can get this for free, it's worth checking out. If not, I'd give it a pass. I don't really think it's worth buying.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I ended up doing this in audio because they were giving it away for free. I did [b:Steelheart|17182126|Steelheart (Reckoners, #1)|Brandon Sanderson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1357576738s/17182126.jpg|21366540] in hardcover and tend to stick with the same format for books in a series. <br/><br/>At just a little over an hour, I probably wouldn't have bought/listened to it otherwise.<br/><br/>MacLeod Andrews seems like a decent narrator, and his voice really fit the story/David's POV.","","","1","","",1,2014/10/09,"Audible","Like new",,
  18667347,"The Hunt for Red October (Jack Ryan, #3)","Tom Clancy","Clancy, Tom","J. Charles",="",="",4,"3.92","Brilliance Audio","Audiobook","17",2008,1984,2014/02/23,2014/02/12,"thriller, audio-book, read-2014, jack-ryan","thriller (#30), audio-book (#91), read-2014 (#18), jack-ryan (#2)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A pretty fun spy thriller that occasionally gets bogged down by too much military jargon.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> This is my first time listening to a book read by J. Charles. He's a pretty good reader. I initially felt like he read too fast, but I either got used to it, or he slowed down. He does many accents, although with multiple Russian characters, I'm not sure if he made them all sound the same, or I simply couldn't tell them apart.<br/><br/>The book also uses sound effects to simulate phone calls and radio talk on the ships/submarines that I thought was well done. All and all I think the audiobook edition adds something extra to the story.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This is my first time reading this book. I had previously seen and enjoyed the movie. It's been awhile so I have a hard time comparing the two. I might have slightly enjoyed the movie more however.<br/><br/>There are a few parts of this book that seemed to get bogged down with too much military jargon and side antidotes that I don't think always added much to the main story.<br/><br/>The main story however is a lot of fun though. There is a reason why several of Mr. Clancy's Jack Ryan books have been turned into movies. He does a great job writing a fast pace spy novel that translates well to a big screen. It doesn't seem like they had to do too much to the story to make a good movie out of it.<br/><br/>This isn't a book for great character depth or intricate subplots, but was the perfect choice as a palette cleanser from the last book I listened to. Most people are probably familiar with Tom Clancy and most likely Jack Ryan. He's not really a gun-toting action hero, but an intelligent analyst able to out think his enemies.<br/><br/>I plan to continue on in the series (in publication order rather than chronological order) at some point, especially if I can get a hold of them in audiobook for cheap or from the library.<br/><br/>3.5 Stars","","","1","","",1,2014/02/09,"Audible","Like new",,
  17987501,"The Forbidden Library (The Forbidden Library, #1)","Django Wexler","Wexler, Django","",="0803739753",="9780803739758",4,"3.84","Kathy Dawson Books","Hardcover","376",2014,2014,2014/06/29,2014/02/11,"fantasy, read-2014, forbidden-library","fantasy (#249), read-2014 (#72), forbidden-library (#2)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> While I don't make it a point of reading much YA, let alone ""Middle Grade"" books, I enjoyed this enough to pick up the next one when it comes out.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I mostly decided to check this one out on the strength of [b:The Thousand Names|15810910|The Thousand Names (The Shadow Campaigns, #1)|Django Wexler|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1355441268s/15810910.jpg|21536059] and generous nature of Mr. Wexler in doing a Q&A with my small <a href=""https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/99675-the-not-a-book-club-club"">Side Reads group</a> last year.<br/><br/>I don't have kids of my own, so it's hard for me to gauge how much the target demographic would enjoy this. I can only really weigh in with the thoughts of a 30-something fantasy fan.<br/><br/>I thought the book has a strong protagonist that hopefully kids could identify with. Someone whose smart, strong willed and adventurous (albeit reluctantly at first).<br/><br/>I like the choice of a female protagonist. Fantasy is overrun by young male chosen one stories, so it's always a nice change of pace to have a female. <br/><br/>The book follows the apprentice mage trope pretty much, but with a pretty unique magic system that seems well thought out. Being a middle grade book, the rules of the system aren't very flushed out, but that's OK. We learn as our protagonist learns, and I figure more details will become clear as the series goes on.<br/><br/>I also like the choice of setting. It seems to be the early to mid 1900's based on the level of technology. This has a good fit to the story being told.<br/><br/>The story was mostly fun and kept me wanting to turn pages. It probably also helped that as a ""Middle Grade"" book I flew through the pages easily finishing the book in only a few hours. The ending was a pretty good stopping place that left me wanting to know what would happen next and about the world and magic system Mr. Wexler introduced.<br/><br/>While I don't plan to check out other ""Middle Grade"" books in the future, I will at least check out the  next book in this series when it comes out. It seems to me like one of those series you could read with your kids and enjoy right along side them.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  8911226,"Doc","Mary Doria Russell","Russell, Mary Doria","",="1400068045",="9781400068043",0,"3.94","Random House","Hardcover","394",2011,2011,,2014/02/09,"to-read","to-read (#222)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  9069545,"Up Against It","M.J. Locke","Locke, M.J.","",="0765315157",="9780765315151",0,"3.62","Tor Books","Hardcover","416",2011,2011,,2014/02/09,"to-read","to-read (#221)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  19198232,"The Willful Princess and the Piebald Prince","Robin Hobb","Hobb, Robin","Jon Foster",="",="",0,"3.86","Subterranean Press","Kindle Edition","85",2013,2013,,2014/02/07,"to-read, elderlings, fantasy","to-read (#220), elderlings (#15), fantasy (#209)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  16034494,"Terminal World","Alastair Reynolds","Reynolds, Alastair","John Lee",="",="9781400197118",0,"3.65","Tantor Media","Audiobook","0",2012,2010,,2014/02/06,"to-read","to-read (#219)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  8680417,"Midnight Riot (Peter Grant, #1)","Ben Aaronovitch","Aaronovitch, Ben","",="034552425X",="9780345524256",0,"3.91","Random House Ballantine","Paperback","298",2011,2011,,2014/02/05,"to-read","to-read (#218)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18184398,"The Emperor's Blades (Chronicle of the Unhewn Throne #1)","Brian Staveley","Staveley, Brian","",="1480517550",="9781480517554",4,"4.21","Brilliance Audio","Audio CD","16",2014,2014,2014/03/01,2014/02/04,"audio-book, sff-audio, fantasy, read-2014, chronicle-of-the-unhewn-throne","audio-book (#89), sff-audio (#15), fantasy (#216), read-2014 (#19), chronicle-of-the-unhewn-throne (#3)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Despite being a bit slow and predictable in places, this book was a whole lot of fun, and I'm looking forward to the next one.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I've listened to a few books read by [a:Simon Vance|5602|Simon Vance|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1240014151p2/5602.jpg] now, and I always enjoy his narration. Not only is his normal reading voice clear and easy to understand, but he does a variety of voices and accents. His reading definitely added a little extra something to the book. As a first time author, Mr. Staveley lucked out to get such a quality reader. I plan to continue this series in audio as a result.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I'm not sure what in the description made me choose this book to review. Maybe it was simply the fact that it was the first in a series. Since doing so I've seen a bit of buzz about this book, so I was eager to get my hands on my review copy.<br/><br/>This being the first book of a new series, there is a lot of character development and world building to get through. For the most part I think Mr. Staveley does a good job of this, especially as a first time author. However it does suffer from a few slower parts and some predictable twists.<br/><br/>His characters are interesting and have depth. The lore of his world is intriguing. The prologue seems confusing at first, but later on the reader discovers its significance, so just tuck it away for future reference.<br/><br/>For the most part this is the story of two brothers. They just happen to be sons of the Emperor of the largest nation in the world. First there is Kaden, the heir to the throne who is studying with the monks of the Blank God in an isolated monastery. Then there is Valyn, who is training with the Kettral, an elite military force made up of the best of the best.<br/><br/>Both suffer a bit from some of the fantasy school tropes. Valyn especially has his small group of friends and his rival with his group of cronies. However this being a military training facility, things are a lot more serious than bullying in the hallways.<br/><br/>We also get a few chapters with their sister, Adare, who has remained with their father in the capital. These are short, but politically charged. I hope we see a more prominent role from her in the books that follow.<br/><br/>This highlights the main flaw of this book. Like many fantasy books, the women are mostly relegated to secondary characters. They suffer a bit from stereotypes, but I think he does have some strong female characters that just don't receive as much focus as I'd like. In general, the secondary characters are all pretty interesting and have enough depth so as not to be interchangeable. <br/><br/>Each brother's story starts off in very different places but eventually converge with one another at the end. Things really pick up when they do. Strange things are happening around both brothers and they appear to be linked to a conspiracy to kill the emperor and his family. This makes for a lot of politics and conspiracy theories.<br/><br/>One of biggest concerns when reading books in a series is how the author chooses to end it. You need to strike a good balance between leaving the reader wanting more and wrapping up the main conflicts of the book. I think Mr. Staveley does a great job here and I'm looking forward to jumping right into book 2 when it comes out.","","","1","","",1,,"","Like new",,
  10031259,"The Emperor's Edge (The Emperor's Edge, #1)","Lindsay Buroker","Buroker, Lindsay","",="",="",0,"4.07","","Kindle Edition","324",2010,2010,,2014/02/04,"to-read","to-read (#217)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  13484189,"The Diamond Age: Or, a Young Lady's Illustrated Primer","Neal Stephenson","Stephenson, Neal","Jennifer Wiltsie",="",="",3,"4.18","Audible Frontiers","Audiobook","18",2001,1995,2014/07/26,2014/02/04,"audio-book, science-fiction, cyberpunk, read-2014","audio-book (#124), science-fiction (#83), cyberpunk (#8), read-2014 (#81)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> While there are some parts I liked, I didn't enjoy this one as much as the other books I've read by Mr. Stephenson.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> This book was one that was recommended to me by a few people when I was looking for a new audiobook to listen to. At first I was wondering why, but it eventually became apparent. Jennifer Wiltsie does a few voices and accents. Her voice for Nell is especially good. This is definitely one that works well in audio.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I have really enjoyed both of the books by Mr. Stephenson I've read. [b:Snow Crash|830|Snow Crash|Neal Stephenson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1385214698s/830.jpg|493634] is on my favorites list. [b:Cryptonomicon|816|Cryptonomicon (Cryptonomicon, #1)|Neal Stephenson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327931476s/816.jpg|1166797] while a bit slow in places was very enjoyable.<br/><br/>This book took me a bit to warm up to, and unlike the other two books, I didn't enjoy the tangents and side stories nearly as much.<br/><br/>The concept of the Young Lady's Illustrated Primer was really cool. Most of the stuff that directly involved it I really enjoyed. I liked the nested stories. As someone who knows the magic of a good book, the idea of a smart book that not only adapts to the reader, but teaches them is a fantastic idea.<br/><br/>Unfortunately I found most of the rest of the surrounding story and subplots far less interesting and sometimes downright confusing. The other disappointing thing for me was the general lack of humor that I greatly enjoyed in his other books. I was a bit surprised to find everything so serious all the time.<br/><br/>To me this is a book that falls short of its potential. It seems like it was split down the middle among my friends who either gave it 5 stars or 3 stars. I'm sad to say I'm joining in on the 3 stars side, but that doesn't mean you won't find this a 5 star book.","","","1","","",1,2014/03/15,"Audible","Like new",,
  112292,"Dauntless (The Lost Fleet, #1)","Jack Campbell","Campbell, Jack","",="0441014186",="9780441014187",0,"3.91","Penguin","Mass Market Paperback","304",2006,2006,,2014/02/04,"to-read","to-read (#216)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  13662,"The Tombs of Atuan (Earthsea Cycle, #2)","Ursula K. Le Guin","Guin, Ursula K. Le","",="0689845367",="9780689845369",0,"4.05","Saga Press","Mass Market Paperback","180",2001,1970,,2014/02/02,"to-read, earthsea, fantasy, next-in-series","to-read (#215), earthsea (#2), fantasy (#208), next-in-series (#9)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  12109372,"Range of Ghosts (Eternal Sky, #1)","Elizabeth Bear","Bear, Elizabeth","",="0765327546",="9780765327543",0,"3.77","Tor Books","Hardcover","334",2012,2012,,2014/02/02,"to-read","to-read (#214)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  15837317,"Gods of Risk (Expanse, #2.5)","James S.A. Corey","Corey, James S.A.","",="",="",0,"3.60","Orbit","Kindle Edition","76",2012,2012,,2014/02/02,"to-read, expanse, science-fiction","to-read (#213), expanse (#6), science-fiction (#61)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  11570653,"The Butcher of Anderson Station (Expanse, #0.5)","James S.A. Corey","Corey, James S.A.","",="",="",0,"3.77","Hachette Book Group","Kindle Edition","40",2011,2011,,2014/02/02,"to-read, expanse, science-fiction","to-read (#212), expanse (#5), science-fiction (#60)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  458394,"Night of Knives (Malazan Empire, #1)","Ian C. Esslemont","Esslemont, Ian C.","",="0593057813",="9780593057810",0,"3.77","Bantam Press","Hardcover","304",2007,2004,,2014/02/02,"to-read","to-read (#212)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  1206889,"Dave Barry Is Not Making This Up","Dave Barry","Barry, Dave","",="0517595745",="9780517595749",4,"3.96","Crown","Hardcover","244",1994,1994,,2014/01/30,"humor, read-before-goodreads","humor (#3), read-before-goodreads (#174)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  725994,"Dave Barry in Cyberspace","Dave Barry","Barry, Dave","",="0449912302",="9780449912300",4,"3.74","Ballantine Books","Paperback","215",1997,1996,,2014/01/30,"read-before-goodreads, humor","read-before-goodreads (#173), humor (#2)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  12111823,"The Winds of Winter (A Song of Ice and Fire, #6)","George R.R. Martin","Martin, George R.R.","",="0002247410",="9780002247412",0,"4.32","HarperVoyager","Hardcover","",,,,2014/01/29,"to-read, epic-fantasy, fantasy, dark-fantasy, next-in-series, song-of-ice-and-fire","to-read (#210), epic-fantasy (#33), fantasy (#206), dark-fantasy (#36), next-in-series (#8), song-of-ice-and-fire (#6)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  17981899,"The Human Division","John Scalzi","Scalzi, John","William Dufris",="",="",0,"4.05","Audible Frontiers","Audiobook","",2013,2013,,2014/01/29,"to-read, audio-book, old-mans-war, science-fiction","to-read (#209), audio-book (#86), old-mans-war (#3), science-fiction (#56)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  12451932,"Zoe's Tale (Old Man's War, #4)","John Scalzi","Scalzi, John","Tavia Gilbert",="",="",0,"3.73","Macmillan Audio","Audiobook","335",2008,2008,,2014/01/29,"science-fiction, to-read, old-mans-war, next-in-series, audio-book","science-fiction (#57), to-read (#20), old-mans-war (#4), next-in-series (#17), audio-book (#103)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  16160185,"The Last Colony (Old Man's War, #3)","John Scalzi","Scalzi, John","William Dufris",="",="",4,"4.00","Macmillan Audio","Audiobook","10",2008,2007,2014/04/22,2014/01/29,"old-mans-war, science-fiction, audio-book, read-2014","old-mans-war (#5), science-fiction (#58), audio-book (#102), read-2014 (#42)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Another fun, quick read in the Old Man's War series<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> As must as I enjoy Wil Wheaton for Mr. Scalzi's other books, I think William Dufris is a great fit for this series. This is especially true with the return of John Perry as the protagonist.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>If you look at my read shelf, you'll see that I read a lot more fantasy than science fiction. I think if I was aware of more sci-fi like this series, I'd probably read a lot more.<br/><br/>I've read several books by Mr. Scalzi, but the Old Man's war books have been my favorite, and this is the best of the series so far. The previous two have read more like stand alone, but this one really builds on elements and characters established in the previous books.<br/><br/>This once again blends action, politics and humor to make for a really enjoyable read. This time instead of being with the regular army or the elite ghost brigades, we get a view of colony life, through the eyes of some familiar characters.<br/><br/>As much as I enjoyed [b:The Ghost Brigades|239399|The Ghost Brigades (Old Man's War, #2)|John Scalzi|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1391051274s/239399.jpg|18279845], I really found myself missing John Perry. It was nice to have another book from his perspective.<br/><br/>There is even more politics in this one we start with small scale (local colony) politics and move to larger scale with the Colonial Union as well as galactic politics with other species. For some reason despite not liking real world politics, I find them the most enjoyable part of many sci-fi and fantasy books.<br/><br/>That isn't to say this book is completely without action, but it certainly takes a back seat to the politics in this one.<br/><br/>Coming in around 10 hours this is a really quick read/listen but didn't feel rushed or too short. I look forward to listening to the next two books in the series.","","","1","","",1,2014/04/19,"Audible","Like new",,
  18999985,"The Dragon's Path (The Dagger and the Coin, #1)","Daniel Abraham","Abraham, Daniel","Pete Bradbury",="",="",4,"3.76","Recorded Books","Audiobook","17",2011,2011,2014/08/06,2014/01/27,"audio-book, fantasy, read-2014, dagger-and-coin","audio-book (#92), fantasy (#211), read-2014 (#84), dagger-and-coin (#2)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> An enjoyable start to a fantasy series that seems to focus more on politics and the economy than it does on battles and magic.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I initially really struggled with the audio book. This wasn't Pete Bradbury's fault. Rather there is a lot sort of dumped on you at the beginning and it would have been nice to go back and reread which isn't always possible for me when I'm listening.<br/><br/>By the second day I had my bearings though, and will continue on with this series in audio moving forward. Mr. Bradbury is a good, but not great reader. He speaks clearly and at a good volume. He does a few accents and voices but nothing too elaborate.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>My only exposure to Daniel Abraham was in the guise of [a:James S.A. Corey|4192148|James S.A. Corey|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-d9f6a4a5badfda0f69e70cc94d962125.png] where I have no idea which writing is his and which is [a:Ty Franck|2851727|Ty Franck|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-d9f6a4a5badfda0f69e70cc94d962125.png]. However since I love those books, I really wanted to check out some of their other writing.<br/><br/>I got this one on a daily deal earlier this year, and with the fourth book out this month, I decided to give it a go.<br/><br/>The setting for this is one where magic has almost passed from the world. The dragons that once ruled are gone. Leaving 13 races and many ruins in their wake, but little in the way of record or magic. Normally I prefer books with cool magic systems, but there is a lot to like here that I didn't mind their not being any mages throwing fireballs around.<br/><br/>Most of the book follows 4 POV characters, with a 5th used in the prologue and a 6th one added near the end. Of the main ones we have Gedar, Marcus, Cithrin and Dawson.<br/><br/>Gedar is a young and mostly foolish noble, whose ideas come from books rather than experience who is out on his first campaign. Marcus is a season veteran of much renown with a troubled past. Cithrin is a young ward of a bank, who is smart and capable despite her lack of experience of the larger world and Dawson is a powerful noble whose sense of honor only extends to those with the right blood.<br/><br/>They make for a good mix of characters, each having things I like and dislike about them. These aren't perfect characters by any means, and it's sometimes hard to know who to root for when their positions oppose one another.<br/><br/>This book is a lot more about politics and economics than it is about big battles or magic. Most SFF books tend to gloss over the economics most of all, even if they are focused on the politics. The two pretty much go hand in hand and often money is relegated to not having enough and taxes. This books focuses on banking and the roles the banks play in the politics of the nations. The banks are independent and only care about making a profit and not about who is at war with whom. <br/><br/>There are 1 or 2 points where I wish I could have skimmed over some details about costs and things in the book, but for the most part I found it really interesting and important to the story. Economists would probably be disappointed, but compared to most other fantasy books I've read this covers things far more thoroughly.<br/><br/>This book has a lot of grey areas without really ever getting into dark fantasy. Do you root for the noble who wants to protect his kingdom and king from chaos, but regards farmers and other commoners as little better than dogs? Do you root for the kindly noble who may mean well, but is often ignorant or spiteful in his actions?<br/><br/>I will say that this book had a point where I saw where the plot was going and thought it would keep following a predictable path only to throw me for a complete loop.<br/><br/>Overall I enjoyed this book and look forward to continuing on with the series when I have a chance.","","","1","","",1,2014/02/10,"","Like new",,
  18077957,"Attack on Titan, Volume 11","Hajime Isayama","Isayama, Hajime","",="1612626777",="9781612626772",3,"4.54","Kodansha Comics","Paperback","192",2014,2013,2014/03/14,2014/01/27,"attack-on-titan, fantasy, graphic-novels-and-manga, read-2014","attack-on-titan (#11), fantasy (#203), graphic-novels-and-manga (#24), read-2014 (#24)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>I enjoyed the story a lot, but I was a bit disappointed to not get a single answer I was after. With the big reveal of volume 10, I was hoping for at least a few answers here.<br/><br/>I'd really like him to start picking up the pace on the plot development some moving forward. Thankfully now that I've read this volume I can catch up to what's been published in Japan thanks to <a href=""http://www.crunchyroll.com/comics/manga/attack-on-titan/volumes"">Crunchyroll</a>.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>I have the same problems here and I usually do. The action is just too hard to follow. There are some really great action sequences in this one that I'd love to see animated.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  18569078,"Hope's End (The Powder Mage, #0.4)","Brian  McClellan","McClellan, Brian","",="",="",0,"3.96","Brian McClellan","Kindle Edition","30",2013,2013,,2014/01/26,"to-read, fantasy, flintlock-fantasy, powder-mage","to-read (#39), fantasy (#202), flintlock-fantasy (#5), powder-mage (#3)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  20611669,"The Jester (The Riyria Chronicles #2.5)","Michael J. Sullivan","Sullivan, Michael J.","Tim Gerard Reynolds",="",="",4,"3.89","Audible Studios","Audible Audio","100",2014,2014,2014/01/26,2014/01/25,"fantasy, riyria, audio-book, read-2014","fantasy (#201), riyria (#6), audio-book (#85), read-2014 (#10)","read","This short story should be enjoyable to anyone whose already Riyria fan, and a decent intro the main characters of the series without any concern towards spoilers for anyone who hasn't read any/all of the books yet.<br/><br/>The author's note indicates it takes place after [b:The Rose and the Thorn|17163514|The Rose and the Thorn (The Riyria Chronicles, #2)|Michael J. Sullivan|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1362121827s/17163514.jpg|23589581], and I believe the story itself comments it's been 6 years since Riyria has been formed, making it about about 4 years after that book in fact.<br/><br/>It's very short and there are additional details I would have liked, but I think Mr. Sullivan does a good job of alluding to a more action packed adventure without going into detail.<br/><br/>I think this story really shows off his growth as a writer from the early Riyria stories as he's able to do a lot more with so few words.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I sound like a broken record, but I believe Tim Reynolds reading of the Riyria books makes audio book the best way to experience them. Plus you can pick up it up for free on audible (at least at time of this review) so no reason not to check it out. ","","","1","","",1,2014/01/24,"Audible","Like new",,
  22517421,"Cibola Burn (Expanse, #4)","James S.A. Corey","Corey, James S.A.","Erik Davies",="",="",4,"4.11","Hachette Audio","Audible Audio","21",2014,2014,2014/06/22,2014/01/24,"expanse, science-fiction, audio-book, not-a-bookclub-club, read-2014","expanse (#4), science-fiction (#53), audio-book (#121), not-a-bookclub-club (#16), read-2014 (#66)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This one felt very different from the rest of the series to me. Whether or not that is a good thing will largely depend on the reader I suspect.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Erik Davies is OK. Originally I was pretty indifferent about the narrator change for this book. I was never particularly attached to Jefferson Mays. I had sort of of hoped that as this was the first book released in hardcover maybe the change was due to them getting a better reader. <br/><br/>Turns out that wasn't the case. For the most part he’s not worse than Mr. Mays, just different. However Mr. Mays at least did a few accents and Mr. Davies seemed to only have a Russian accent and spoke with no accent for Avasarala, which just seemed to really annoy me.<br/><br/>If this wasn't a series that I thought made for an easy to follow audio book, I’d probably consider switching to reading it for book 5. Who knows though, maybe he’ll grow on me.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This is a hard review for me to write. I spent a good portion of it annoyed at the book. That would make it sound like I didn't like it, but that’s not the case.<br/><br/>I've always been more of a Star Trek fan than dystopian sci-fi fan. When it comes to Space Opera, I like politics and war at a higher level. Large factions feuding over planets and ideals.<br/><br/>For me the first three books really sort of fell more into this. This book however felt much lower level. The politics of the first three books serve as the basis for things. There has always been discrimination between the belters and the inner planets, but never has it been so central to the conflict as in this book.<br/><br/>That may appeal to some reasons, for me it mostly made me uncomfortable and mad. Not at the book or the authors, but the characters. I think most authors would be happy to evoke strong emotions in their readers, but for me personally I generally don’t like to spend my recreation time angry.<br/><br/>As seems to be par for the course, we get a bunch of brand new POV characters this go around, save for James Holden. Two of them are minor characters from previous novels. First there is Havelock, who was Miller’s Earther partner in [b:Leviathan Wakes|8855321|Leviathan Wakes (Expanse, #1)|James S.A. Corey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1289046195s/8855321.jpg|13730452], and Basia who was a friend of Prax on Ganymede in [b:Caliban's War|12591698|Caliban's War (Expanse, #2)|James S.A. Corey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1317402997s/12591698.jpg|17606541]. This is rounded out by an Elvi, a human scientist.<br/><br/>I didn’t like any of them, especially Elvi. I think she is the weakest female character they’ve written yet. I still wish they'd bring back Bobbie and Avasarala (thankfully there looks to be potential for this in book 5). I loved them so much that everyone else seem to disappoint me. I felt Anna in [b:Abaddon's Gate|16131032|Abaddon's Gate (Expanse, #3)|James S.A. Corey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388202946s/16131032.jpg|17606564] was already a step down, but still likeable. Elvi was another step in the wrong direction for me as well.<br/><br/>So you have a bunch of characters you don't really like in what to me felts like a side story for most of the book. They do stupid and hateful things to one another. I know the types of people portrayed in this book exist in the world. Maybe they once existed in greater numbers. Maybe I’m just sheltered or fortunate not to run into these kinds of people on a regular basis.<br/><br/>The whole thing just made no sense to me. Everyone’s actions were stupid. I was especially bothered that many of the Engineers were the worst. Most of the engineers I know are very logical and well thought out in their actions. Sure there are exceptions to that, but this seemed to flip that on their head.<br/><br/>I despised Murtry, head of the Earther's security and all around asshole. I'm pretty sure that was the point. The problem was I didn't feel like I had anything to root for. I spent most of the book wishing Holden and his crew would just leave and go do something else that was related to the protomolecule and the developments from [b:Abaddon's Gate|16131032|Abaddon's Gate (Expanse, #3)|James S.A. Corey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388202946s/16131032.jpg|17606564].<br/><br/>Overall this book seemed to focus on the worse things that humanity is capable of. Discrimination and pointless violence. Spending way too much time and energy trying to kill one another when there are far larger problems to worry about.<br/><br/>Despite this, I ended up enjoying the book. I found it hard to turn off when it was time to stop listening. I’m still not sure how they pulled that off. Eventually I did find myself liking Havelock and Basia more though. Elvi still felt like she was there to serve at a 4th ""camera"" most of the time. She was important to the plot, but I just never grew attached to her I guess.<br/><br/>I enjoyed the final quarter of the book a lot more than the first three. We eventually get some development of things with the protomolecule, though not as much as I would have preferred. I just really enjoy spending time with the crew of the Rocinante, no matter what’s going on.<br/><br/>With the announcement of 3 more books, I worry things will be drawn out too much. Personally I’d like the protomolecule story arc to get wrapped up by book 6, and have the three new books be a completely new story arc. Time will tell what happens. Either way I’ll be eagerly picking up book 5 when it comes out.<br/>","","","1","","",1,2014/06/17,"Audible","Like new",,
  18466657,"Abaddon's Gate (Expanse, #3)","James S.A. Corey","Corey, James S.A.","Jefferson Mays",="",="",4,"4.14","Recorded Books","Audible Audio","18",2013,2013,2014/01/31,2014/01/24,"audio-book, expanse, science-fiction, read-2014","audio-book (#84), expanse (#3), science-fiction (#52), read-2014 (#11)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Not nearly as good as [b:Caliban's War|12591698|Caliban's War (Expanse, #2)|James S.A. Corey|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1317402997s/12591698.jpg|17606541], but still quite enjoyable for me. Eagerly looking forward to [b:Cibola Burn|18656030|Cibola Burn (Expanse, #4)|James S.A. Corey|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1382997166s/18656030.jpg|26109318] now.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> The quality is about the same as the previous two. Mr. Mays is a good, but not great reader. <br/><br/>One of the POV characters is Russian, but he doesn't read her that way. That'd be fine except that there are times when she interacts with other characters and he seems to deliver her lines with a bit of a Russian accent, so I don't really get the inconsistency here.<br/><br/>I think this is a good series to be done in audio however, so I plan to continue listening to them this way, but it's certain not something where I think audio is the best way to go.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I found myself a little disappointed at the start of this one. [b:Caliban's War|12591698|Caliban's War (Expanse, #2)|James S.A. Corey|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1317402997s/12591698.jpg|17606541] has some great POV characters with the addition of Avasarala and Bobbie. This book adds three new POV characters that I just didn't like as much.<br/><br/>Anna I was pretty impartial to for most of the book, while Melba was just plain unlikable. Bull was a great character, but this series already has an abundance of strong male likable characters. I was really hoping they'd have kept at Avasarala as one of the POVs in this one.<br/><br/>I think it can be a lot harder to enjoy a book when you're just not invested in the characters as much, especially POV characters.<br/><br/>That said, I still enjoyed the book a lot. There were a couple of slow parts, and some murky motivations that I could probably pick apart if I spent a lot of time thinking about it, but that's not what this series is for me.<br/><br/>These are just generally fun books. Popcorn flicks. Brain Candy. I think anyone who spends too much time picking apart the details of the book is sort of missing the point. But hey, to each their own I guess.<br/><br/>There was fun new ideas introduced here like the slowzone or people who build cheap ships and slingshot themselves around stars for fun. Sort of the hot rods of space as it were.<br/><br/>I haven't read news/interviews with the authors, but I kind of hope [b:Cibola Burn|18656030|Cibola Burn (Expanse, #4)|James S.A. Corey|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1382997166s/18656030.jpg|26109318] ends this series. That isn't to say I wouldn't like other Expanse books, because I would, but I'd like to maybe see some other stories unrelated to the protomolecule. I don't want to see things stretched out too long.","","","1","","",1,,"Audible","Like new",,
  55358,"George Carlin Reads to You: An Audio Collection Including Recent Grammy Winners Braindroppings and Napalm & Silly Putty","George Carlin","Carlin, George","",="1565119169",="9781565119161",3,"3.66","HighBridge Company","Audio CD","450",2004,2004,2014/02/02,2014/01/17,"audio-book, humor, read-2014","audio-book (#83), humor (#1), read-2014 (#12)","read","This is a collection of three books [b:Brain Droppings|55352|Brain Droppings|George Carlin|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1389605173s/55352.jpg|805035], [b:Napalm & Silly Putty|55354|Napalm & Silly Putty|George Carlin|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1390262024s/55354.jpg|893440] & [b:More Napalm and Silly Putty|55356|More Napalm and Silly Putty|George Carlin|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1348328927s/55356.jpg|15731109] read to you by George Carlin (hence the name).<br/><br/>I found myself a bit disappointed. I loved a lot of Mr. Carlin's stand up, and found his books a bit lacking. The first Napalm book was probably the best of the three.<br/><br/>I found these books to more humorous or clever than they were laugh out funny, and most of the best laugh out loud moments were stuff I had seen him incorporate into his stand up act over the years. Those jokes still hold up for me though, even though I had heard them before.<br/><br/>A lot of what is here is random and often unconnected one-liners, observations about the way language is used, and just plain off the wall thoughts.<br/><br/>I don't think I would have enjoyed simply reading these books, but in audio form it's not bad.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> With Mr. Carlin himself reading it, it's almost more like a comedy album than an audio book except for the aforementioned fact that it's often a lot of unconnected one-liners and random thoughts.<br/><br/>Really though, no one else could read these books the way Mr. Carlin does, so if you're going to read the books, you should just go for the audio book instead.","","","1","Big Fans of George Carlin","",1,,"Audible","Like new",,
  6024528,"Fight Club","Chuck Palahniuk","Palahniuk, Chuck","Jim Colby",="1436149606",="9781436149600",0,"4.19","Recorded Books, LLC","Audio CD","0",2008,1996,,2014/01/17,"to-read, audio-book","to-read (#26), audio-book (#82)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  8739264,"The Inheritance","Robin Hobb","Hobb, Robin","Megan Lindholm",="0007273770",="9780007273775",0,"3.92","Voyager","Hardcover","400",2011,2011,,2014/01/15,"to-read, anthologies-collections, fantasy","to-read (#208), anthologies-collections (#3), fantasy (#246)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18666047,"Half a King (Shattered Sea, #1)","Joe Abercrombie","Abercrombie, Joe","",="0804178321",="9780804178327",3,"4.02","Del Rey","Hardcover","352",2014,2014,2014/07/26,2014/01/10,"fantasy, read-2014, shattered-sea","fantasy (#253), read-2014 (#80), shattered-sea (#1)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Well written, but predictable.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I like Joe Abercrombie. I consider him one of my favorite writers, but I don't love him like some of my friends seem to. Sometimes the dark fantasy is just a bit too much for me. So I was looking forward to seeing how he'd do in a Young Adult demographic.<br/><br/>I thought for such a short book, it was way overpriced so I opted to wait until I could borrow it from the library. I'm glad I did.<br/><br/>The book is very well written, but as expected far too short. The world building is almost non existent and the character development apart from the main character isn't much better. Contrast that with something like [b:Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone|3|Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Harry Potter, #1)|J.K. Rowling|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1361572757s/3.jpg|4640799] which is just as short but has far more of both.<br/><br/>I think Mr. Abercrombie is so used to writing longer ""grimdark"" that by the time he toned things down for a younger audience he wasn't left with much. But for me the biggest disappointment is the characters. After the memorable characters from his others books, I found that I just didn't care about any of the characters in this book all that much.<br/><br/>That said, even a ""bad"" Joe Abercrombie book seems to be much better than a lot of other stuff out there and I will continue on when the next book comes out, but I'm sure I'll once again wait to borrow it from the library instead of rushing out to buy it.<br/><br/>","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  13356675,"A Wizard of Earthsea (Earthsea Cycle, #1)","Ursula K. Le Guin","Guin, Ursula K. Le","",="0547722028",="9780547722023",4,"3.96","HMH Books for Young Readers","Paperback","264",2012,1968,2014/02/02,2014/01/08,"fantasy, sword-and-laser, read-2014, earthsea","fantasy (#199), sword-and-laser (#21), read-2014 (#13), earthsea (#1)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A fun story that I probably would have liked even more as a teenager, but I can still appreciate as an adult.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>So books published before say the 90's (or maybe 80's for certain authors) and I don't tend to see eye to eye. Whether it's one of those ""well they are just a product of their times"" type of books, or just something so different from what modern SFF writers do, I just don't like most of it.<br/><br/>So I was a little bit concerned coming into this book. I needn't have been. Yes it's different than what I normally read. It's much shorter. There isn't a ton of depth or world building here. But it's a fun story that sets up some interesting ideas that I hope to find time to continue exploring.<br/><br/>The prose are something I don't usually spend much time, but I'd be remiss not to mention it. They are absolutely beautiful. Some people have said it distracts from the story, but that wasn't the case for me.<br/><br/>This books reminds me a lot of [b:The Name of the Wind|186074|The Name of the Wind (The Kingkiller Chronicle, #1)|Patrick Rothfuss|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1270352123s/186074.jpg|2502879]. I'd be shocked if [a:Patrick Rothfuss|108424|Patrick Rothfuss|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1351307341p2/108424.jpg] doesn't cite this series/Ms. Le Guin as one of his influences.<br/><br/>In fact now that I've read it, I see how this series has likely influenced many series that have come after it. I wish I had first read this as a teenager rather than as an adult. I think I would appreciate it more. However, as a fantasy fan I can certainly appreciate and enjoy what is here.<br/><br/>The story moves along at a pretty good pace for most of the book, but does slow down a bit in the last third or so.<br/><br/>My only other complaint is less a complaint more than a puzzlement. Ms. Le Guin decided to break from the norm and have most of her characters be people of color. Yet she has almost no women, and the ones that are there are thin stereotypes. It doesn't ruin the book by any means, but as a female author it is a bit surprising to me.<br/><br/>Overall I found this enjoyable, and now I need to find time to read the rest of the series.<br/><br/><br/>3.5 Stars rounded up because I really enjoyed most of it.","","","1","","",1,,"Amazon","Very good",,
  15819028,"The Golem and the Jinni","Helene Wecker","Wecker, Helene","",="0062110837",="9780062110831",0,"4.09","Harper","Hardcover","496",2013,2013,,2014/01/06,"to-read","to-read (#208)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  17156074,"Caliban's War (Expanse, #2)","James S.A. Corey","Corey, James S.A.","Jefferson Mays",="1464030863",="9781464030864",4,"4.23","Recorded Books","Audiobook","20",2012,2012,2014/01/25,2013/12/31,"audio-book, expanse, science-fiction, read-2014","audio-book (#81), expanse (#2), science-fiction (#51), read-2014 (#8)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A step up from [b:Leviathan Wakes|8855321|Leviathan Wakes (Expanse, #1)|James S.A. Corey|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1289046195s/8855321.jpg|13730452] with some really great new point of view characters. It started a bit slow for me, but eventually it became hard to have to stop listening for the day.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Jefferson Mays is once again a good, but not great narrator. He doesn't add much to the story. He does an decent Indian accent for Avasarala, but reads everyone else the same as far as I can tell.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>Unlike [b:Leviathan Wakes|8855321|Leviathan Wakes (Expanse, #1)|James S.A. Corey|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1289046195s/8855321.jpg|13730452], this book started slow for me. It's likely due to three brand new characters to get used to and the fact that two of the four POVs annoyed me at the start.<br/><br/>Once I got warmed up though, this book was even harder to put down than the first. I really enjoyed both of the new female POV characters, Bobbie and Avasarala. Especially Avasarala. The crafty elderly politician who swears like a sailor, but really has the solar systems best interest at heart.<br/><br/>Prax took me much longer time to warm up to, and Holden who I was mostly indifferent towards in [b:Leviathan Wakes|8855321|Leviathan Wakes (Expanse, #1)|James S.A. Corey|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1289046195s/8855321.jpg|13730452], was down right obnoxious for about half the book.<br/><br/>Overall I think the story was better too. Mr. Abraham and Mr. Franck are able to build on what was established in the first story and really get into the meat of the story much faster.<br/><br/>By the addition of Avasarala as a POV character we get a lot more politics than the first book. While I'm not much on real life politics I usually find them especially interesting in my reading. It really shows the stupidity of humans with only self interest at heart.<br/><br/>Another major difference from [b:Leviathan Wakes|8855321|Leviathan Wakes (Expanse, #1)|James S.A. Corey|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1289046195s/8855321.jpg|13730452] was the cliffhanger ending. I feel like that book could almost be read stand alone. It leaves you with unanswered questions, but the story comes to a good conclusion. When I reached the end of this one, any debate about taking a break for another audio book was put to rest. I'm glad I didn't have to wait between books 2 and 3.<br/><br/>Very Enjoyable. 4.5 Stars (losing half a star for the slow start)","","","1","","",1,2014/01/20,"Audible","Like new",,
  9857249,"The Dreaming Void (Void #1)","Peter F. Hamilton","Hamilton, Peter F.","John      Lee",="1400177278",="9781400177271",3,"4.15","Tantor Media, Inc.","MP3 CD","23",2008,2007,2014/10/12,2013/12/30,"audio-book, science-fiction, read-2014, commonwealth","audio-book (#79), science-fiction (#49), read-2014 (#107), commonwealth (#3)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A decent story in Mr. Hamilton's Commonwealth universe, but not as satisfying as the original Duology.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I really enjoy John Lee's reading voice. It seems to fit well with the universe. He doesn't really stick out to me as someone who does a lot of voices and accents for the characters, but at the same time I wouldn't want anyone else to read this series.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I really enjoyed [b:Pandora's Star|45252|Pandora's Star (Commonwealth Saga, #1)|Peter F. Hamilton|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347952635s/45252.jpg|987015] and [b:Judas Unchained|45244|Judas Unchained (Commonwealth Saga, #2)|Peter F. Hamilton|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1316501189s/45244.jpg|44507] when I listened to them last year. I was happy to discover he had a follow-on series. Now that he's got ANOTHER new Commonwealth series coming out this year, I figured I should finally get around to this one.<br/><br/>So far this one feels more like a fantasy book than sci-fi in many places, especially Edeard's story. This is set 1200 years after the events of [b:Judas Unchained|45244|Judas Unchained (Commonwealth Saga, #2)|Peter F. Hamilton|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1316501189s/45244.jpg|44507], but thanks to technology, we get to revisit some of the characters from that series. <br/><br/>That was really awesome for me as the original series had some characters I really liked. Not everyone I was hoping to catch up with show up, but maybe in one of next two books. I did love how some of characters use Ozzie's name all the time as a part of speech.<br/><br/>For the most part however, it's a new cast of characters, though some of them are distantly related to characters from the previous series. There seem to be three main story lines, but a bunch of smaller ones.<br/><br/>Edeard's started a little slow, but probably was my favorite by the end. ""Aaron""'s story was pretty good overall, but there were a few slow parts. Araminta's story on the other hand was more miss than hit. A lot of it felt like self-fulfilling male sexual fantasy that seemed to add little to the overall plot.<br/><br/>The book suffers a bit from too many characters/story lines that made it hard to follow at first, especially in audio. Eventually I got my bearings though, but I still was wondering exactly how all the stories are going to tie together.<br/><br/>I think maybe if I had read this and could have flipped back to early parts to check names of people/places and confirm some theories, but since I can't I found myself a bit confused at the end to. I expect things to be made more clear in the next book and be spelled out for me, whereas someone more on top of things than I am will have it all figured out already.<br/><br/>Overall I thought it was a decent book, and I'll definitely continue on, but I hope he'll focus less on certain aspects from this book in the next one.<br/><br/>3.5 Stars rounded down.","","","1","","",1,2013/12/30,"Audible","Like new",,
  756823,"The Einstein Intersection","Samuel R. Delany","Delany, Samuel R.","",="0739403486",="9780739403488",2,"3.57","Wesleyan / SFBC","Paperback","136",1999,1967,2014/01/02,2013/12/30,"read-2014, science-fiction, sword-and-laser","read-2014 (#2), science-fiction (#48), sword-and-laser (#20)","read","This is a really short book and I didn't really care for it, so I'm forgoing my usual format to just include a few words.<br/><br/>I've never read anything by Mr. Delany before, and if this is an indication of his work, I likely won't read anything else.<br/><br/>My understanding however is that this is one of his earlier works, so maybe I'll like his later works better.<br/><br/>This was the January 2014 pick for <a href=""https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/4170-the-sword-and-laser"">Sword & Laser</a> and I've had pretty good luck with the Sci-Fi picks in 2013, sadly the trend hasn't continued to kick off 2014.<br/><br/>I read this all in one sitting in an airport/on the plane to Vegas. I'm now trying to recall what I liked/disliked about this story a long sleep deprived weekend later.<br/><br/>My only recollections were that ""thankfully this is short"" and ""I'm glad I'm done with this."" This is really a story about the journey and not the destination I guess, but I just found it strange and mostly pointless. There are universal themes of love and loss in a post-apocalyptic type setting.<br/><br/>The one highlight for me was the ancient lore of ""The Beatles"". They are one of my favorite bands so the notion of them being used as some kind of parable was amusing to me. I will however point out that Ringo DID sing some Beatles songs albeit much fewer than the other three. I'm not sure if Mr. Delany did that on purpose because of bad information discovered/passed down from generation to generation or if he simply got it wrong. It still irks me though. <br/><br/>Overall I think this is one of those books whose enjoyment will vary largely from person to person. It just really didn't work for me.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  19711730,"Shadow Ops: Control Point","Myke Cole","Cole, Myke","",="",="",0,"3.52","Ace","Kindle Edition","400",2012,2012,,2013/12/20,"to-read, fantasy","to-read (#9), fantasy (#200)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  4643301,"Imager (Imager Portfolio, #1)","L.E. Modesitt Jr.","Jr., L.E. Modesitt","",="0765320347",="9780765320346",0,"3.98","Tor Books","Hardcover","432",2009,2009,,2013/12/19,"to-read","to-read (#206)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  185253,"The Magic of Recluce (The Saga of Recluce #1)","L.E. Modesitt Jr.","Jr., L.E. Modesitt","",="0812505182",="9780812505184",0,"3.81","Tor Fantasy","Mass Market Paperback","501",1992,1991,,2013/12/19,"to-read","to-read (#205)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  45258,"Fallen Dragon","Peter F. Hamilton","Hamilton, Peter F.","",="0330480065",="9780330480062",0,"4.00","Pan Publishing","Paperback","650",2002,2001,,2013/12/16,"to-read","to-read (#204)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18077956,"Attack on Titan, Volume 10","Hajime Isayama","Isayama, Hajime","",="1612626769",="9781612626765",3,"4.53","Kodansha Comics","Paperback","192",2013,2013,2014/01/14,2013/12/12,"attack-on-titan, fantasy, graphic-novels-and-manga, read-2014","attack-on-titan (#10), fantasy (#197), graphic-novels-and-manga (#23), read-2014 (#7)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>I'm still enjoying this, but the first 3 chapters of this volume seemed to drag a bit for me. There are some big revelations here though, and things picked up in the final chapter. However, we still don't have any hint of answers to the big questions.<br/><br/>I'm not sure if Mr. Isayama has a plan in place or if he's just dragging things out a bit as he tries to figure out what's going to happen next.<br/><br/>Does he know what's in Eren's basement? Or why exactly the titans are attacking? The final chapter of this one has me eager to get my hands on the next volume though to find out what comes next.<br/><br/>3.5 Stars<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>I really enjoy all the still-frame artwork at this point. It's much improved from the start of the series. However the action scenes are still mostly just a bunch of lines.<br/><br/>This is a story that is told much better as an anime than a manga in my opinion. I really hope they greenlight a second season.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  18077955,"Attack on Titan, Volume 9","Hajime Isayama","Isayama, Hajime","",="1612625487",="9781612625485",4,"4.49","Kodansha Comics","Paperback","192",2013,2012,2013/12/14,2013/12/12,"attack-on-titan, fantasy, graphic-novels-and-manga, read-2013","attack-on-titan (#9), fantasy (#196), graphic-novels-and-manga (#22), read-2013 (#105)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>This story is all new to me. I don't have the anime to fall back on if the artwork is hard to follow, but so far that hasn't seemed like an issue.<br/><br/>The mysteries just continue to mount on top of one another, with no real hint of answers in the near future.<br/><br/>Now that I'm caught up to what's out in the US, I'm going to have to start waiting, or start learning Japanese..<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>I'm going to be redundant and say while it's improving with each volume it still doesn't hold up as well as anime.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  17568815,"Attack on Titan, Vol. 7 (Attack on Titan, #7)","Hajime Isayama","Isayama, Hajime","",="1612622569",="9781612622569",4,"4.49","Kodansha Comics","Paperback","192",2013,2012,2013/12/14,2013/12/12,"attack-on-titan, fantasy, graphic-novels-and-manga, read-2013","attack-on-titan (#8), fantasy (#195), graphic-novels-and-manga (#21), read-2013 (#104)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>You really get to see what the Survey Corps are capable of in this one, and even so how badly outmatched they are by the titans. <br/><br/>Captain Levi is something else though. As badass as Mikasa is, Levi is just in a whole other league.<br/><br/>You learn more about what Eren might be capable of, but still no whiff of answers.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>I'm going to be redundant and say while it's improving with each volume it still doesn't hold up as well as anime.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  17262714,"Attack on Titan, Vol. 6 (Attack on Titan, #6)","Hajime Isayama","Isayama, Hajime","",="1612622550",="9781612622552",4,"4.46","Kodansha Comics","Paperback","208",2013,2011,2013/12/14,2013/12/12,"graphic-novels-and-manga, attack-on-titan, fantasy, read-2013","graphic-novels-and-manga (#19), attack-on-titan (#6), fantasy (#193), read-2013 (#102)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>Big questions from this one, and if I hadn't been hooked on it before, I certainly would now. Questions introduced in this volume are a large part of why I had to jump into the manga after the anime ended.<br/><br/>It's really transitioned from a monster/survival story to something much deeper at this point.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>I'm going to be redundant and say while it's improving with each volume it still doesn't hold up as well as anime.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  18077954,"Attack on Titan, Volume 8","Hajime Isayama","Isayama, Hajime","",="1612625479",="9781612625478",4,"4.52","Kodansha Comics","Paperback","192",2013,2012,2013/12/14,2013/12/12,"attack-on-titan, fantasy, graphic-novels-and-manga, read-2013","attack-on-titan (#7), fantasy (#194), graphic-novels-and-manga (#20), read-2013 (#103)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>For any fans of the anime that just had to know what happens next, this is where to start if you don't want to read the whole thing. Most of this book covers the end of the anime but the last episode and a half were all new to me.<br/><br/>Overall reading this has left me with even more questions than I had from the anime however, so I can't get my hands on the next few volumes fast enough.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>I'm going to be redundant and say while it's improving with each volume it still doesn't hold up as well as anime.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  18354946,"Chimaera (The Well of Echoes, #4)","Ian Irvine","Irvine, Ian","Grant Cartwright",="1486203132",="9781486203130",0,"4.07","Bolinda Audio","Audio CD","",2013,2004,,2013/12/05,"to-read, well-of-echoes, audio-book, fantasy, sff-audio","to-read (#34), well-of-echoes (#4), audio-book (#77), fantasy (#191), sff-audio (#14)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18354935,"Tetrarch (The Well of Echoes, #2)","Ian Irvine","Irvine, Ian","Grant Cartwright",="1486203027",="9781486203024",0,"4.03","Bolinda Audio","Audio CD","",2013,2002,,2013/12/05,"to-read, well-of-echoes, audio-book, fantasy, sff-audio, next-in-series","to-read (#32), well-of-echoes (#2), audio-book (#75), fantasy (#189), sff-audio (#12), next-in-series (#10)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18354942,"Scrutator (The Well of Echoes, #3)","Ian Irvine","Irvine, Ian","",="1486203094",="9781486203093",0,"4.06","Bolinda Audio","Audio CD","",2013,2003,,2013/12/05,"to-read, well-of-echoes, audio-book, fantasy, sff-audio","to-read (#33), well-of-echoes (#3), audio-book (#76), fantasy (#190), sff-audio (#13)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18354934,"Geomancer (The Well of Echoes, #1)","Ian Irvine","Irvine, Ian","Grant Cartwright",="1486203019",="9781486203017",2,"3.90","Bolinda Audio","Audio CD","24",2013,1994,2014/02/17,2013/12/05,"audio-book, fantasy, well-of-echoes, sff-audio, read-2014","audio-book (#74), fantasy (#188), well-of-echoes (#1), sff-audio (#11), read-2014 (#16)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This is a book I liked a lot more in concept than in execution.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Grant Cartwright is the only bright spot of the book, and a large part of me being able to get through the worst parts. I’m not sure if he exclusively reads books targeted at an Australian audience, but if so that's a shame. <br/><br/>He does a good amount of voices for the various characters and his normal reading voice is clear and easy to understand. Some of his voices are grating, but I think that's fitting with the characters he's portraying. Maybe this partnership between Bolinda and Random House will bring more of his work to the US. I'd like to see what he does with a better book.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>The start of this book was promising, but things went off the rails. Then, just as they seemed to be recovering, I found the end to be awful. <br/><br/>I think my main problem this book is the characters and their dialogue. In part one of the book Mr. Irvine introduces us to several characters that I despised almost immediately. In part two he seems to be trying to elicit sympathy from the reader via self-pity from internal monologue and sympathetic back story. It might work for some readers, but not for me. At best instead of coming around to like the characters as complex and flawed, I find myself mostly indifferent about what might happen to them.<br/><br/>The main character is mostly likable, although some of her thoughts rubbed me the wrong way. I assume this is another attempt to give her depth through flaws instead of being a hero trope.<br/><br/>Maybe my dislike of almost all the characters is just an inability for me to understand their society, but I doubt it. The most likable characters are minor ones who don't seem to stick around very long. It's really hard for me to enjoy a book when I don't like the people I'm reading about.<br/><br/>The main story is interesting to me though. The world is at war with much more powerful alien creatures. Humanity have built machines called clankers in order to be able to fight back, but they are still mostly outmatched. <br/><br/>At first this seems more like sci-fi than fantasy, but the clankers are powered by crystals and there a mostly unexplained magical system based on them and their connection to power nodes around the world. So really it's some sort of mix that has more of a fantasy feel than sci-fi to me personally.<br/><br/>There are a lot of political and social issues that play into things. With so many young men dying in a seemingly endless war, everyone is expected to produce children to essentially provide the next generation of fodder. Anyone accused of a crime is sent to one of two places depending on their gender. Males are sent to the front lines where they will likely die in short order. Women are sent to ""breeding factories"" which are exactly what they sound like. <br/><br/>Entirely too much time  was spent on the breeding factories, and the notion of a society so desperate to survive they force women to sleep numerous partners in the hopes of producing the most helpful offspring as frequently as possible is downright horrifying to me. <br/><br/>This is apparently the second series of Mr. Irvine's Three Worlds sequence. Having never read the first (The Mirror Quartet), I'm sure I'm missing some references to things from that series. My understanding is this is set hundreds of years later, and possibly on a different world. I never felt lost but it’s possible I would understand more about the crystals and their powers if I had read that series first.<br/><br/>Overall it wasn't a very good book that wasn't as well executed as I'd like. I found myself cringing at some of the writing in places, especially the dialogue. I may still continue on with the second book of the series largely because I already have a review copy, but I need to take a break with another book first. The ending of the book really was really off-putting though. It felt like a bad TV Soap Opera.<br/>","","","1","","",1,,"","Like new",,
  16071864,"Attack on Titan, Vol. 5 (Attack on Titan, #5)","Hajime Isayama","Isayama, Hajime","",="1612622542",="9781612622545",4,"4.46","Kodansha Comics","Paperback","192",2013,2011,2013/12/12,2013/12/05,"fantasy, graphic-novels-and-manga, attack-on-titan, read-2013","fantasy (#187), graphic-novels-and-manga (#18), attack-on-titan (#5), read-2013 (#101)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>This is kind of a transition book. Things are being set up for the next arc of the story. This book does include one side story that isn't covered in the anime about a found journal of a survey corps member and her encounters with an abnormal.<br/><br/>Overall not a lot happens in this one apart from probably the court scene which is really just more moving pieces around. Looking forward to the next book though.<br/><br/>3.5 stars<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>The artwork seems to keep improving with each volume. However the main complaint I have is less the art or the fact that manga is black and white. There are several scenes involving colored smoke to signal various events while they are outside the wall.<br/><br/>In black and white this completely lost. The more I read this series, the more I'm convinced it just works much better as an anime. It's really hard to portray some of this stuff properly in manga.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  15798166,"Attack on Titan, Vol. 4 (Attack on Titan, #4)","Hajime Isayama","Isayama, Hajime","",="1612622534",="9781612622538",4,"4.42","Kodansha Comics","Paperback","192",2013,2011,2013/12/07,2013/12/05,"fantasy, graphic-novels-and-manga, read-2013, attack-on-titan","fantasy (#186), graphic-novels-and-manga (#17), read-2013 (#95), attack-on-titan (#4)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>This volume is a giant flashback, that was presented chronologically in the anime series.<br/><br/>We see Eren & Co. as they spend their time in training to fight the titans. We also get a lot more back story on the other members of their trainee class.<br/><br/>I think I prefer the anime's approach of having it chronologically rather than as a flashback. However Mr. Isayama does it early enough in the series that it may not matter too much because most of the story so far has focused on Eren, Mikasa and Armin.<br/><br/>I like this story arc as it really gives depth to the supporting cast which I think becomes more important later on.<br/><br/>Can't wait for volume 5! <br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>This volume didn't have quite the level of action in it as previous ones, so it's hard for me gauge on that point.<br/><br/>Mr. Isayama seems to be getting more comfortable with his characters as the series goes on.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  13536803,"Attack on Titan, Vol. 3 (Attack on Titan, #3)","Hajime Isayama","Isayama, Hajime","",="1612620264",="9781612620268",4,"4.41","Kodansha Comics","Paperback","208",2012,2010,2013/12/07,2013/12/05,"fantasy, graphic-novels-and-manga, read-2013, attack-on-titan","fantasy (#185), graphic-novels-and-manga (#16), read-2013 (#94), attack-on-titan (#3)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>We get some interesting developments in this where some questions from the end of the first volume are finally answered, but many new ones are introduced in their place.<br/><br/>You get a real feeling for the terror that the Titans have so embedded into humanity that really reflects mankind's fear of things the don't understand.<br/><br/>This volume also includes a small side story on Captain Levi, who is probably my second favorite character in the series. He's not a very likable guy, but he's a total badass.<br/><br/>All and all another solid effort story-wise that has me eager to continue on.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>The artwork does seems to be improving as the series goes on, but the action scenes continue to be a struggle for me.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  13531561,"Attack on Titan, Vol. 2 (Attack on Titan, #2)","Hajime Isayama","Isayama, Hajime","",="1612620256",="9781612620251",4,"4.43","Kodansha Comics","Paperback","192",2012,2010,2013/12/05,2013/12/05,"fantasy, graphic-novels-and-manga, read-2013, attack-on-titan","fantasy (#184), graphic-novels-and-manga (#15), read-2013 (#96), attack-on-titan (#2)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>This is the part of the series that really started to suck me in. While Eren can be a bit frustrating at time, I absolutely love Mikasa. She might be my new favorite female character in all of Japanese fiction.<br/><br/>We get a lot of depth added to both her and Eren and the nature of their bond in this one. We're also presented with a new wrinkle to the Titan problem which is left unresolved in the anime and a large part of why I decided I had to start reading the manga itself.<br/><br/>Overall I think this volume is a little more interesting than the first and if you enjoyed that one, you should like this one.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>The artwork here is once again uneven. I'm not sure if this is true of all manga or is just the case in this series, but the action can be really hard to follow. <br/><br/>I like the way the characters are drawn and you can really see that in full color version of the Anime series, but can be lacking in many panels of the manga.<br/><br/>Overall though I'm enjoying the story too much to care about it though.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  22702562,"The Shadow Throne (The Shadow Campaigns #2)","Django Wexler","Wexler, Django","Richard Poe",="",="",4,"4.15","Recorded Books","Audiobook","21",2014,2014,2014/07/14,2013/11/30,"fantasy, flintlock-fantasy, shadow-campaigns, read-2014","fantasy (#182), flintlock-fantasy (#4), shadow-campaigns (#1), read-2014 (#75)","read","Are you tired of the same old fantasy? Would reading yet another story about a chosen boy who goes on to be a great hero and save the world from an ancient evil make you want to punch a baby in the face*?<br/><br/>Well look no further. I present you the second book in [a:Django Wexler|639491|Django Wexler|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1357865518p2/639491.jpg]'s Shadow Campaigns.<br/><br/>We've got not one, but TWO female protagonists. (The third one's a dude, but he's pretty cool so we won't hold it against him.) And if that's not enough there are at least 3 solid supporting female characters as well.<br/><br/>Plus if you <b>ACT NOW</b>** one of the female leads will also be gay!<br/><br/>This book contains actual scenes with women important to the plot who are <b>NOT</b>: <br/><br/># Dumb as Rocks<br/># Nagging The Male Characters<br/># Pulling Their Braids<br/># Constantly Straightening Their Skirts***<br/># Basing Their Conversation/Plans Around ""<i>More Important</i>"" Male Characters<br/><br/>These women might just punch you in the face if you cross them though!<br/><br/>And who wants sword fights**** when you can have:<br/><br/># Musket Fights!<br/># Cavalry Charges!!<br/># Cannons!!!<br/># And More!!!!****<br/><br/>In this book you may get fewer action scenes/battles than the first book, but in it's place you get a lot of political plotting and deception!<br/><br/>As an added bonus this book can read itself to you! Richard Poe will follow you around***** and read this book to you whenever you want. He'll use several voices and accents in what seems to be a better job than the first book. Take him with you:<br/><br/># In the car!<br/># On your bike ride/run/at the gym!!<br/># Help you do the laundry/clean your house!!!<br/># Go Shopping!!!!<br/># Other things!!!!!******<br/><br/>Available Now wherever fine books are sold!!!<br/><br/><br/>* Don't punch babies. If you do feel this urge, seek help.<br/>** No need to act now, the book won't magically change. Or will it!?<br/>*** They may in fact be wearing trousers instead of skirts, but they aren't straightening those either.<br/>**** Everyone wants sword fights, and there are still plenty in this book.<br/>**** More being a vague term and left up to your imagination!<br/>***** Digital version only. Full size Richard Poe is too busy to follow you personally.<br/>****** Limited only by the power of your imagination!","","","1","","",1,2014/07/08,"Audible","Like new",,
  32418,"Hannibal (Hannibal Lecter, #3)","Thomas Harris","Harris, Thomas","",="0099297701",="9780099297703",2,"3.61","Dell","Paperback","562",2000,1999,,2013/11/29,"horror, read-before-goodreads, thriller","horror (#10), read-before-goodreads (#170), thriller (#29)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  28877,"Red Dragon (Hannibal Lecter, #1)","Thomas Harris","Harris, Thomas","",="0525945563",="9780525945567",3,"3.96","Dutton Adult","Hardcover","348",2000,1980,,2013/11/29,"horror, read-before-goodreads, thriller","horror (#11), read-before-goodreads (#171), thriller (#28)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  23807,"The Silence of the Lambs  (Hannibal Lecter, #2)","Thomas Harris","Harris, Thomas","",="0099446782",="9780099446781",3,"4.05","Arrow","Paperback","338",2002,1988,,2013/11/29,"horror, read-before-goodreads, thriller","horror (#12), read-before-goodreads (#172), thriller (#27)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  12974372,"A Natural History of Dragons (Memoir by Lady Trent, #1)","Marie Brennan","Brennan, Marie","",="0765331969",="9780765331960",3,"3.76","Tor Books","Hardcover","334",2013,2013,2013/12/07,2013/11/25,"fantasy, sword-and-laser, read-2013","fantasy (#181), sword-and-laser (#18), read-2013 (#98)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> The book has surprisingly few dragons in it for being in the title of the book. It's still a decent book, but I found myself underwhelmed by the end of it.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I was hesitant to read this book when it was announced as the December pick for <a href=""https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/4170-the-sword-and-laser"">Sword & Laser</a>. I like dragons, but the concept of this book made me apprehensive.<br/><br/>I ended up really enjoying the start of this book though. It really appealed to my inner scientist that wants to categorize things and understand how they work.<br/><br/>The main character of Lady Trent is well written. You can tell the difference of her as a girl/young woman and the elderly ""I don't give a damn"" renowned scholar. The humor while not abundant was pretty good.<br/><br/>I'm not sure if I was expecting a series of stories about her time as a dragon naturalist exactly, but I wasn't expecting so much of her time courting her husband and her early life struggling with her interests in Natural History and science in a society where it's not proper for woman to do so.<br/><br/>I expected a lot more dragons stuff. Even if it was time spent analzing and discovering things about dragons. There was certainly some of that, but it was more of a backdrop to the story of Lady Trent's early life.<br/><br/>This feels like the first book in a series, and maybe later stories will include a lot more about her life as a Dragon Naturalist. This just felt like too much setup for me.<br/><br/>It ends in a decent enough place and is well written, but it just wasn't really for me. At this point I don't plan on continuing the series (if it does indeed turn into one), but I imagine people who really enjoy Lady Trent, might thoroughly enjoy this book.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  12279431,"Hexed (Iron Druid Chronicles, #2)","Kevin Hearne","Hearne, Kevin","Luke Daniels",="",="",3,"4.21","Brilliance Audio","Audible Audio","",2011,2011,2013/11/27,2013/11/24,"audio-book, fantasy, read-2013, urban-fantasy, iron-druid","audio-book (#71), fantasy (#180), read-2013 (#91), urban-fantasy (#40), iron-druid (#1)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> More of the same. If you enjoyed the first book, you'll likely enjoy this one. If like me you were kind of so-so on the first one, you may feel the same way here as well.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Mr. Daniels once again does a decent job. I think I've gotten used to his normal reading voice such that it didn't bother me in this book. He again does a few accents and voices, including his excellent take on Oberon.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I wasn't really planning on jumping further into this series after being mostly underwhelmed by [b:Hounded|9533378|Hounded (The Iron Druid Chronicles, #1)|Kevin Hearne|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1327883998s/9533378.jpg|14419515]. However Audible, the length of the book and my reading schedule all colluded to get me to do this one.<br/><br/>I found it about on par with the first. It's possible I liked it a little less. It's hard to say for sure. I think your opinion on the first book will largely determine your opinion of this one.<br/><br/>It started too slow again for such a short book and had a lot of seemingly random elements introduced that eventually all tied together.<br/><br/>Oberon who found as the highlight of book 1 was already starting to annoy me by this book. His constant obsessions and stupid jokes felt repetitive. Maybe I'm simply spoiled by the excellent humor of the Dresden Files, but I just didn't really find his role of comic relief very good.<br/><br/>It's possible that this series isn't for me. They aren't bad books, but they aren't great and there is plenty of other stuff to read.<br/><br/>These books do have a light quick nature to them that can make for a quick time filler or diversion for heavier/darker reading, but I'll likely be taking a break unless Audible has another sale, or I decide to see if I can borrow the next audio book from my library sometime.","","","1","","",1,2013/11/21,"Audible","Like new",,
  18454478,"The Thousand Names (The Shadow Campaigns, #1)","Django Wexler","Wexler, Django","Richard Poe",="",="9781470361471",4,"4.05","Recorded Books","Audio CD","18",2013,2013,2013/12/05,2013/11/21,"not-a-bookclub-club, fantasy, audio-book, read-2013, flintlock-fantasy, shadow-campaigns","not-a-bookclub-club (#11), fantasy (#179), audio-book (#72), read-2013 (#93), flintlock-fantasy (#1), shadow-campaigns (#2)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This one is more flintlock than fantasy. It should appeal to any military fantasy, or maybe even military fiction fans, but may be found slow/uninteresting to sword and sorcery readers.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Mr. Poe is a decent reader, but nothing spectacular. I think he does attempt to distinguish voice a little, but it was mostly too subtle for me to really tell the difference. He does have good inflections and emotion in his reading at least.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I didn't know much about this one coming in, just that it was supposed to be another ""Flintlock Fantasy"" similar to [b:Promise of Blood|15790883|Promise of Blood (The Powder Mage, #1)|Brian  McClellan|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1350337505s/15790883.jpg|21512438]. While I enjoyed both, these series seem to be very different.<br/><br/>Apart from the prologue the first half of this book contained almost no magic at all. There is pretty much just a lot of military protocol and character development. <br/><br/>I'm not a big reader of military fiction in any form, but it is one of the aspects of Malazan Book of the Fallen I'm really enjoying. Unlike that series however there are no medics who use magic to heal or mages who attack with spells here. There are simply soldiers with muskets, bayonets and swords.<br/><br/>I think anyone who finds well described military action boring may be turned away by this one. It really is sort of slice of life with military men for a good portion as Mr. Wexler builds the world and his characters out for the reader.<br/><br/>I enjoyed the first half of the story at a solid 3-3.5 rating, but when the fantasy element of this book did finally come along it really raised things to another level for me.<br/><br/>We are provided with two primary point of views that of Captain Marcus d’Ivoire and a soldier named Winter Ihernglass. I liked this contrast between things at the command of the unit and things down at the grunt level.<br/><br/>I think Mr. Wexler also does a good job of swapping between the two while keeping the story flowing, especially in the later chapters where we get both POVs instead of just one of them.<br/><br/>We do get some POVs from the opposing forces in this book, but they are mostly relegated to the prologue, interludes and epilogue. I would have liked to see more from the opposing characters as for now their motivations are vague at best.<br/><br/>I'm still not sure who I'm rooting for in this series. I'm not sure if the goals of the Vordanai and their new commander Colonel Janus bet Vhalnich Mieran are for the best. <br/><br/>I think that's part of the charm of this book. Most fantasy these days operate in shades of grey, but since we're not given much in the way of opposing viewpoints the reader is left to draw their own conclusions about who (if anyone) is in the right here.<br/><br/>Things really pick up at the end and this book comes to a satisfying conclusion while setting things up nicely for the next book, which I'm now looking forward to.","","","1","","Alex Ristea",0,,,,,
  13223349,"Batman, Vol. 1: The Court of Owls","Scott Snyder","Snyder, Scott","Greg Capullo, Jonathan Glapion",="1401235417",="9781401235413",0,"4.28","DC Comics","Hardcover","176",2012,2011,,2013/11/16,"to-read, graphic-novels-and-manga, batman","to-read (#203), graphic-novels-and-manga (#14), batman (#7)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  10889279,"Batman: The Black Mirror","Scott Snyder","Snyder, Scott","Jock, Francesco Francavilla",="140123206X",="9781401232061",0,"4.31","DC Comics","Hardcover","288",2011,2011,,2013/11/16,"to-read, graphic-novels-and-manga, batman","to-read (#202), graphic-novels-and-manga (#13), batman (#6)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  106069,"Batman: The Long Halloween","Jeph Loeb","Loeb, Jeph","Tim Sale, Gregory Wright, Richard Starkings",="1563894696",="9781563894695",0,"4.25","DC Comics","Paperback","376",1999,1997,,2013/11/16,"to-read, graphic-novels-and-manga, batman","to-read (#8), graphic-novels-and-manga (#12), batman (#5)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  59980,"Batman: Year One","Frank Miller","Miller, Frank","David Mazzucchelli, Richmond Lewis, Dennis O'Neil",="1401207529",="9781401207526",0,"4.22","DC Comics","Paperback","144",2007,1987,,2013/11/16,"to-read, graphic-novels-and-manga, batman","to-read (#18), graphic-novels-and-manga (#11), batman (#4)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  17046606,"The Garden of Stones (Echoes of Empire, #1)","Mark T. Barnes","Barnes, Mark T.","",="1611098939",="9781611098938",0,"3.77","47North","Paperback","506",2013,2013,,2013/11/15,"to-read","to-read (#202)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  2522861,"Reckoning Infinity","John E. Stith","Stith, John E.","",="0812524845",="9780812524840",0,"3.33","Tor Books","Paperback","368",1998,1997,,2013/11/15,"to-read","to-read (#200)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  13154150,"Attack on Titan, Vol. 1 (Attack on Titan, #1)","Hajime Isayama","Isayama, Hajime","",="1612620248",="9781612620244",4,"4.43","Kodansha Comics","Paperback","208",2012,2010,2013/11/25,2013/11/13,"graphic-novels-and-manga, fantasy, read-2013, attack-on-titan","graphic-novels-and-manga (#10), fantasy (#178), read-2013 (#92), attack-on-titan (#1)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>I knew I'd enjoy the story coming into it, because I watched this anime already. I decided to check out the manga because the series ended in a terrible place and there is currently no plans for another series/second season.<br/><br/>There wasn't really anything I didn't know from this book. The first two stories or line up with the first few episodes of the show. The manga skips over most/all of the training however. I'm not sure if the people who did the show added all that in to give the characters more backstory, or if they pulled that stuff in from flashbacks in later volumes of the manga.<br/><br/>As someone who watched the show first, I might be filling in blanks and details in my head that someone who hasn't watched won't have. In a way it's almost like a re-read for me, even though I haven't done the manga before.<br/><br/>This volume ends in a terrible spot, and I'd be dying for the next book if I didn't already know what happens next.<br/><br/>Despite no real surprises I enjoyed the manga almost as much as I did the anime and plan to continue reading it as I can get copies from my library.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>I haven't read much manga, and what I did was back in college. It's hard for me to give a real good opinion on the art as someone who is better read in the stuff. I thought it was pretty good until the action sequences.<br/><br/>Those just appear to be a blur of lines that make it difficult to know what's going on. Coming from the anime which I think has absolutely fantastic animation, seeing the action in this way was hard to follow and not very impressive. You don't get a feel for how cool the 3d maneuvering gear really is from.<br/><br/>The titans themselves look good when captured in a pose, but again not so much when he's trying portray them in rapid motion.<br/><br/>I thought the artwork for the dialogue parts was fine though, making it rather uneven. ","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  2233549,"Batman: The Killing Joke","Alan Moore","Moore, Alan","Brian Bolland, Richard Starkings, Tim Sale",="1401216676",="9781401216672",3,"4.36","DC Comics","Hardcover","64",2008,1988,2013/11/16,2013/11/09,"graphic-novels-and-manga, read-2013, batman","graphic-novels-and-manga (#9), read-2013 (#86), batman (#3)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>I vaguely knew the details of Oracle's origins but had never realized this was the book where it began. I only recently heard the title in <a href=""https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCjJM2oo3EU"">a clip of the panel at NYCC this year</a> introducing Troy Baker as the Joker a few weeks back.<br/><br/>Unfortunately the book didn't really live up to the performance Mr. Baker gave for me. Overall the story just didn't do much for me, and the ending just felt abrupt and bizarre. To me more seems to come from the aftermath of the events in this book, than the book itself.<br/><br/>Still since it's a one-shot it's pretty quick, and probably worth checking out for Batman fans out there that haven't read it yet.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>I read the anniversary edition of this book, which had the colors redone by the original artist. Since I never read the original I can't compare the two, but I enjoyed the artwork and colors in this edition.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  59960,"Batman: The Dark Knight Returns","Frank Miller","Miller, Frank","Klaus Janson, Lynn Varley",="156389341X",="9781563893414",3,"4.27","DC Comics","Hardcover","197",2002,1986,2013/11/17,2013/11/09,"graphic-novels-and-manga, read-2013, batman","graphic-novels-and-manga (#4), read-2013 (#87), batman (#2)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>I'm not sure if it's the hype, the amount of time since it's publication, the artwork or something else, but I find myself a bit underwhelmed. I originally gave this 4 stars intending to declare it a 3.5 star rounded up, but as I was thinking about my review I decided to just give it a 3.<br/><br/>There was some really interesting parts of the story, but some pages I just found bogged down and confusing. This might be more a product of the layout, I'm not really sure.<br/><br/>I'm intrigued by the notion of an old Batman no longer in peak physical condition despite his best efforts. The idea of a female Robin is cool too, although not really explained. She's just a Batman groupie that he decides to take under his wing after proving herself useful.<br/><br/>It's certainly a darker story as things are falling apart around Batman and the law is closing in on him. Commissioner Gordan is even older and being forced into retirement and the new Commissioner elect has it out for him.<br/><br/>This is a lot to like, but I found it slow in places that overall brought it down for me. <br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>I didn't like the artwork at all. What worse was the layout. The pages felt cramped. The text was badly placed making it confusing which panel it went with at times. I wondered if the art was a result of having so many tiny panels crammed into a single page, but I found even the larger panels and some of the full page to be lacking.<br/><br/>I didn't read comics in the 80s as I was too young. The Marvel stuff I read in the 90s looked better than this based on my recollections at least, and I've grown accustomed to the digital art of the last 10 years or so. I found it distracting in places which didn't help when the story felt confusing or slow.<br/><br/>Maybe I'm not a good judge of it having nothing from that time period to really compare it to save [b:Watchmen|472331|Watchmen|Alan Moore|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1327866860s/472331.jpg|4358649] which to me looks much better despite only a year older.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  51080,"Batman: Knightfall","Dennis O'Neil","O'Neil, Dennis","",="0553572601",="9780553572605",3,"4.00","Spectra Books","Paperback","416",1995,1994,2012/01/01,2013/11/09,"graphic-novels-and-manga, batman","graphic-novels-and-manga (#3), batman (#1)","read","A friend loaned this to me last year before Dark Knight Rises came out. I wasn't really familiar with Bane, so he told me to check this out.<br/><br/>It was good, but not great. The Bane stuff was good, but I didn't care much for the other subplots.","","","1","Thomas Schreck","",0,,,,,
  17131869,"Saga, Volume 2","Brian K. Vaughan","Vaughan, Brian K.","Fiona Staples",="1607066920",="9781607066927",4,"4.59","Image Comics","Paperback","144",2013,2013,2013/11/16,2013/11/09,"graphic-novels-and-manga, science-fiction, read-2013, saga","graphic-novels-and-manga (#2), science-fiction (#45), read-2013 (#85), saga (#2)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>This book like the first volume went entirely too quick. Now I'm torn on if I can wait for volume 3 to be released, or if I want to buy individual issues that have been released since. Waiting monthly for each issue seems bad enough, waiting an uncertain amount of time for the next 6 issues to be collected into a volume seems like torture.<br/><br/>We get a lot more depth to the characters in this one. The scenes between Alana and Marko's father are particularly good, but really the whole thing is great. That The Will is no Boba Fett is even more apparent in this volume than the last. I'll be curious to see what he does when he catches up with the fugitives.<br/><br/>I debated giving this book 5 stars. If I did, I should really give volume one 5 stars as well. I've enjoyed every page of every issue. I'm just stingy I guess. It's certainly the best thing I've read in this format (not that I'm well versed in graphic novels), especially when comparing it to the two Batman graphic novels I read this weekend. I certainly enjoyed it a lot more.<br/><br/>I'll just give it 4.5 stars rounded down because I'm stingy.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>I again enjoy Ms. Staples artwork bringing the story of Mr. Vaughan to life and filling in details of this page-turner. Some of the images are just too ridiculous to be described in words and had me laughing just as hard as the dialogue; Fard I'm looking at you (albeit very reluctantly).","","","1","","Tamahome",0,,,,,
  13455553,"The Peculiar (The Peculiar, #1)","Stefan Bachmann","Bachmann, Stefan","",="0062195182",="9780062195180",0,"3.63","Greenwillow Books ","Hardcover","376",2012,2012,,2013/11/08,"to-read","to-read (#199)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18430203,"Jim Butcher's Dresden Files: Ghoul Goblin","Mark Powers","Powers, Mark","Jim Butcher, Joseph Cooper",="1606904388",="9781606904381",4,"3.77","Dynamite Entertainment","Hardcover","152",2013,2013,2014/07/18,2013/11/07,"dresden-files, graphic-novels-and-manga, read-2014, urban-fantasy, fantasy","dresden-files (#22), graphic-novels-and-manga (#41), read-2014 (#78), urban-fantasy (#48), fantasy (#252)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>I mostly picked this up since it was an original story and not simply a retelling of one of the novels in graphic novel form like most of the graphic novels seem to be.<br/><br/>I thought the story was pretty good. Nothing special though. It's much more like the early Dresden books than the later ones. This may be because it seems to be set just after [b:Fool Moon|91477|Fool Moon (The Dresden Files, #2)|Jim Butcher|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345556849s/91477.jpg|855288].<br/><br/>I'm a total Dresden fanboy, so that may bias my rating a bit. I think Dresden fans will enjoy this, but you shouldn't feel like you're missing out if you don't pick it up.<br/><br/>3.5 Stars<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>I enjoyed the artwork a lot. Harry doesn't look exactly how I'd imagine, but close enough. I loved the artwork for Bob the Skull though.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  13572822,"The Racketeer","John Grisham","Grisham, John","J.D. Jackson",="0307943259",="9780307943255",2,"3.72","Random House Audio","Audio CD","",2012,2012,2013/11/09,2013/11/05,"read-2013, grisham-laywer-books, thriller, audio-book","read-2013 (#81), grisham-laywer-books (#19), thriller (#26), audio-book (#69)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This one is just too ridiculous to really be enjoyable to me. Not one of Mr. Grisham's better works.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I believe this is the first book I've listened to by J.D. Jackson. He's not a bad reader. He takes a stab at some accents. He does a reasonable job given the material he has to work with.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I almost debated not reviewing this one. People who normally read/like my reviews probably won't have interest in it anyways, but I decide if nothing else to get my thoughts down before I put this book completely out of my brain.<br/><br/>I loved John Grisham when I was younger. My mom always read his books and I tended to pick them up when she was done. In the last few years I would occasionally grab his newer works in audio cd from the library as something to pass time on road trips.<br/><br/>I can't tell if my tastes have just changed, or if his writing has gone down hill. I'm too busy to go back and re-read the ones I liked to find out.<br/><br/>This book had no likable characters for me and I saw the ""big twist"" coming a mile away. It wasn't awful, but if it wasn't so short I would have just quit. Somewhere in the middle the story takes an abrupt shift that was rather confusing until I realized it was the way Mr. Grisham was facilitating the ""big twist"" I had predicted without even trying.<br/><br/>If you want to try Mr. Grisham, don't start here. Go with something like [b:A Time to Kill|32542|A Time to Kill (Jake Brigance, #1)|John Grisham|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1320488160s/32542.jpg|1804929] or [b:The Firm|5358|The Firm|John Grisham|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1165518895s/5358.jpg|38270].<br/><br/><br/>OK, that's probably more words than this one deserved.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  18743934,"Stay Awhile and Listen : How Two Blizzards Unleashed Diablo and Forged a Video-Game Empire","David L. Craddock","Craddock, David L.","Amie C.E. Kline, Andrew Magrath, Monica Cesario",="0988409909",="9780988409903",0,"3.85","Digital Monument Press, LLC","ebook","",2013,2013,,2013/10/31,"to-read","to-read (#198)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18052169,"Rhist  (The First Empire #3)","Michael J. Sullivan","Sullivan, Michael J.","",="",="",0,0.0,"",,"",,,,2013/10/29,"to-read, first-empire, fantasy","to-read (#197), first-empire (#3), fantasy (#177)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18052164,"Dherg (The First Empire #2)","Michael J. Sullivan","Sullivan, Michael J.","",="",="",0,0.0,"",,"",,,,2013/10/29,"to-read, first-empire, fantasy","to-read (#196), first-empire (#2), fantasy (#176)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  17664893,"Rhune (The First Empire #1)","Michael J. Sullivan","Sullivan, Michael J.","",="",="",0,"3.82","","Paperback","",,,,2013/10/29,"to-read, fantasy, first-empire","to-read (#195), fantasy (#175), first-empire (#1)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  15989430,"The Handmaid's Tale","Margaret Atwood","Atwood, Margaret","Claire Danes",="",="",0,"3.98","Audible a-list Collection","Audible Audio","",2012,1985,,2013/10/29,"to-read, audio-book, science-fiction","to-read (#27), audio-book (#68), science-fiction (#44)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  17623344,"Herald of the Storm (Steelhaven, #1)","Richard  Ford","Ford, Richard","",="1472203922",="9781472203922",0,"3.70","Headline","Hardcover","400",2013,2013,,2013/10/27,"to-read","to-read (#194)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  310737,"The Sleeping Dragon (Guardians of the Flame, #1)","Joel Rosenberg","Rosenberg, Joel","",="0451453506",="9780451453501",0,"3.93","Roc","Paperback","256",1993,1983,,2013/10/26,"to-read","to-read (#193)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  11600163,"The Litigators","John Grisham","Grisham, John","",="1444729705",="9781444729702",0,"3.69","London : Hodder & Stoughton","Hardcover","385",2011,2011,,2013/10/26,"to-read, grisham-laywer-books, thriller","to-read (#192), grisham-laywer-books (#18), thriller (#25)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  9265453,"Embassytown","China Miéville","Miéville, China","",="0345524497",="9780345524492",0,"3.84","Del Rey","Hardcover","345",2011,2011,,2013/10/24,"to-read","to-read (#191)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  17333324,"Ancillary Justice (Imperial Radch, #1)","Ann Leckie","Leckie, Ann","",="031624662X",="9780316246620",4,"3.97","Orbit","Paperback","386",2013,2013,2013/11/09,2013/10/24,"sword-and-laser, science-fiction, read-2013, imperial-radch","sword-and-laser (#17), science-fiction (#43), read-2013 (#82), imperial-radch (#2)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This is an odd one that may not be for everyone but that I really enjoyed in the end.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I had never heard of [b:Ancillary Justice|17333324|Ancillary Justice (Imperial Radch, #1)|Ann Leckie|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1397215917s/17333324.jpg|24064628] or [a:Ann Leckie|3365457|Ann Leckie|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1402526383p2/3365457.jpg] before about two weeks ago. If not for it being the November <a href=""https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/4170-the-sword-and-laser"">Sword & Laser</a> pick, I may not have read it. I would have been missing out.<br/><br/>This one was slow to grab me. The protagonist does not have one point of view but many. How you ask? Well it's a sentient ship made up of hundreds of mobile units referred to as Ancillaries. Just what is an ancillary exactly? It's not exactly clear at the start so, you'll have to read to find out.<br/><br/>I'm not very well read in Sci-Fi, so I don't know if this concept of Ancillaries is new or derivative of previous works, but it felt very unique to me. It was hard to get accustomed to at first. <br/><br/>The sudden swap of perspectives on the same scene can be quite jarring and confusing. As I'm only a solitary unit, and not a shared collective I don't think well that way.<br/><br/>I don't recall if this is the first time I've read a book with an artificial intelligence as the protagonist, but the fact that I can't certainly shows it's something unusual for me. I think Ms. Lackie does a good job with it. It certainly doesn't feel human to me, but that doesn't make it uninteresting.<br/><br/>I don't tend to spend a lot of time thinking about the books I'm reading while I'm reading them. I've seen/read far to many Movies/TV/Books over the years that when I do, it can ruin the experience for me. I tend to just ""sit back and enjoy the ride"" as it were and saving the thinking for when I'm done. This one was hard to do that though. There was a lot going on, I couldn't help but wonder and theorize.<br/><br/>My only real complaint about this one is it takes too long for you to know what exactly is going on. The story alternates chapters between past and present until meeting somewhere in the middle and you finally have things click into place. I can see this turning people away from the book and missing out.<br/><br/>There are just too many books out there competing for everyone's attention and it's too easy to put down something that doesn't grab you right away. Overall though, I really enjoyed this one and will be waiting for the next book in the series to come out.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  17230505,"Hollow World","Michael J. Sullivan","Sullivan, Michael J.","",="",="",4,"3.82","Michael J. Sullivan","Kindle Edition","384",2014,2014,2014/04/13,2013/10/24,"science-fiction, read-2014","science-fiction (#65), read-2014 (#39)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A large departure from his Riyria books, Hollow World was still something I really enjoyed, but is likely not for everyone.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I was a little nervous about reading and reviewing this book. I've been fortunate enough to exchange several emails and discussion posts with Mr. Sullivan over the last few months after discovering his Riyria books late last year.<br/><br/>Fortunate may not be the best word since Mr. Sullivan seems to go out of his way to interact with his fans. I hate writing reviews for books I don't like to begin with, so the notion of writing a review for an author I've actually talked with a bit was weighing on the back of my mind as I set down to read this book. Thankfully I really enjoyed the book, so none of that matters. <br/><br/>The book was a bit slow to start. Ellis Rogers is an unhappy man living in the present day who receives a terminal illness prognosis. Medical technology just isn't ready to solve his illness yet. His solution is to finally use the time machine he's been building in his garage to travel to a time when he can receive the treatment he needs.<br/><br/>So if read that setup as I wrote it, I'd probably not be too interested in reading the book. Thankfully this isn't a book that spends much time dwelling on whether someone (even an MIT graduate) could build a working time machine in his garage in 2014, or any of the other technological advances written about in this book for that matter. If that sort of hard science fiction is what you're looking for, you're going to be disappointed here.<br/><br/>What this book is about really is the nature of humanity. Politics, Religion, and especially love. You know, the stuff you're not really supposed to talk about in many social settings? For this reason alone I think many people may not enjoy this book. Especially those with more conservative leanings.<br/><br/>From my personal experience, most humans are social creatures. Why else would something like Facebook be so popular? They crave attention. Some more than others, but most people seem to need it to at least some degree. People want to be loved. Whether it is the platonic love of friends, the familial love of blood relatives, or romantic love of that special someone. It is our relationships with others that make life worth living.<br/><br/>The other major aspect of this book is what is happiness? Is Mr. Sullivan's Hollow World a utopia? A dystopia? Somewhere in between? A world where there is no more crime, war or disease. No more hunger? No more greed? Does that sound wonderful to you, or downright boring? Maybe a little of both? He also explores what it means to be human and unique. Are genetically engineered genderless clones still human?<br/><br/>I think this makes for both a great and divisive discussion book. Mr. Sullivan does a good job at presenting some of the different arguments, and leaves it to the reader to decide. For me personally I think that nothing is so black and white. The antagonist of this book makes some really good points. He also has some really awful ideas.<br/><br/>I hope that most of his Riyria fans will enjoy this one, but I suspect that won't always be case. I spent a lot more time thinking about the ideas in the book rather than just enjoying the ride. It's not the type of book I'd want to read on a regular basis, but one that I find enjoyable from time to time.","","","1","","",1,2014/03/11,"http://riyria.blogspot.com/p/store.html","unspecified",,
  17279560,"Dangerous Women","George R.R. Martin","Martin, George R.R.","Gardner R. Dozois, Carrie Vaughn, Joe R. Lansdale, Megan Lindholm, Lawrence Block, Brandon Sanderson, Sharon Kay Penman, Lev Grossman, Nancy Kress, Diana Rowland, Diana Gabaldon, S.M. Stirling, Sam Sykes, Pat Cadigan, Caroline Spector, Joe Abercrombie, Megan Abbott, Cecelia Holland, Jim Butcher, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Melinda M. Snodgrass",="",="",3,"3.72","Tor Books","Kindle Edition","736",2013,2013,2014/05/05,2013/10/22,"read-2014, not-a-bookclub-club, fantasy, urban-fantasy, dresden-files, anthologies-collections","read-2014 (#3), not-a-bookclub-club (#12), fantasy (#198), urban-fantasy (#42), dresden-files (#19), anthologies-collections (#4)","read","<b><u>Review</u></b><br/>I haven't read a lot of anthologies. After reading this one, I'm not planning on reading a lot more. I certainly don't plan to buy anymore anthologies. My overall sentiment for this collection is: borrow it from somewhere. I paid full price to get it when it came out and I regret buying it.<br/><br/>I'm not going to every story. There are too many. There are a few really enjoyable stories here. There are a few stories I really despised, one of which (Virgins) I just couldn't finish.<br/><br/>I bought this mostly for Jim Butcher and Brandon Sanderson, my two favorite authors. Neither of them disappointed. Those two along with the story by Megan Lindholm, alter ego of Robin Hobb, another of my favorite authors, are all well worth reading. But they still don't make this book worth buying in my opinion.<br/><br/>The other two authors of interest to me coming in were Joe Abercrombie and George RR Martin. Both stories were good, but not great.<br/><br/>In general I felt that most of the authors failed to meet the theme of the book in ""Dangerous Women"". Far too many stories focused on men with women just at the periphery. All 3 stories I liked had female protagonists that fit the title well. <br/><br/>There seems to be a wide variety of genres represented here, and unsurprisingly the fantasy ones were the ones I enjoyed most.<br/><br/>Overall I found this a mostly disappointing collection that I wish I had borrowed from the library instead.<br/><br/><b><u>Ratings</u></b><br/>“Some Desperado” by Joe Abercrombie	3.5<br/>- “My Heart is Either Broken” by Megan Abbott	3<br/>- “Nora’s Song” by Cecelia Holland	2<br/>- “The Hands That Are Not There” by Melinda Snodgrass	2<br/>- “Bombshells” by Jim Butcher	4.5<br/>- “Raisa Stepanova” by Carrie Vaughn	3<br/>- “Wrestling Jesus” by Joe R. Lansdale	3<br/>- “Neighbors” by Megan Lindholm	4.5<br/>- “I Know How to Pick ’Em” by Lawrence Block	1<br/>- “Shadows For Silence in the Forests of Hell” by Brandon Sanderson	4.5<br/>- “A Queen in Exile” by Sharon Kay Penman	2.5<br/>- “The Girl in the Mirror” by Lev Grossman	3.5<br/>- “Second Arabesque, Very Slowly” by Nancy Kress	2<br/>- “City Lazarus” by Diana Rowland	3<br/>- “Virgins” by Diana Gabaldon	1<br/>- “Hell Hath No Fury” by Sherilynn Kenyon	3.5<br/>- “Pronouncing Doom” by S.M. Stirling	3<br/>- “Name the Beast” by Sam Sykes	2.5<br/>- “Caretakers” by Pat Cadigan	3.5<br/>- “Lies My Mother Told Me” by Caroline Spector	3.5<br/>- “The Princess and the Queen” by George R.R. Martin	3.5","","","1","","",1,2013/12/03,"Amazon","unspecified",,
  18801976,"The Crimson Campaign (The Powder Mage, #2)","Brian  McClellan","McClellan, Brian","",="",="",4,"4.40","Orbit ","Kindle Edition","602",2014,2014,2014/05/12,2013/10/21,"fantasy, powder-mage, flintlock-fantasy, not-a-bookclub-club, read-2014","fantasy (#172), powder-mage (#2), flintlock-fantasy (#2), not-a-bookclub-club (#15), read-2014 (#47)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Another great entry in this series that I found even more enjoyable than the first.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I have a feeling I'm going to be sick of Flintlock Fantasy soon. Not because this book is bad, but quite the opposite. I think that this series and [a:Django Wexler|639491|Django Wexler|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1357865518p2/639491.jpg]'s Shadow Campaign series is going to inspire a whole bunch of other people to write Flintlock Fantasy until we're saturated with it.<br/><br/>The story picks up right where [b:Promise of Blood|15790883|Promise of Blood (The Powder Mage, #1)|Brian  McClellan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1350337505s/15790883.jpg|21512438] leaves off. Taniel is sort of suffering a kind of PTSD that makes him less likable than the first book. His story is still interesting though, and I found this change of character very understandable.<br/><br/>A big change for this book is that instead of having multiple POVs telling part of the same story, the characters are each involved in their own thing which aren't so tightly related. In fact the main characters don't really interact at all.<br/><br/>To me this built a sense of a much larger world than the first book. Things weren't so narrowly focused. You got to see things outside of Andro as well as inside of it.<br/><br/>My only real complaint here is once again the lack of strong women characters. Oh sure they exist in the world, but they are mostly minor characters. Ka-poel is probably my favorite, but she seems relegated to side-kick. Maybe if the mystery surrounding her character was removed by internal dialogue, I wouldn't feel the same though. However, I think Nila, who is the single female POV of the book, is by far the weakest.<br/><br/>This book ends a lot better than the first. [b:Promise of Blood|15790883|Promise of Blood (The Powder Mage, #1)|Brian  McClellan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1350337505s/15790883.jpg|21512438] seemed to just stop rather than end. This one does a good job in resolving the main threads of the book while setting things up nicely for the final book of the trilogy.<br/><br/>Overall I think Mr. McClellan shows growth as a writer and improves upon his debut novel with this book. I for one can't wait for the final book in the trilogy.","","","1","","",1,2014/05/06,"Amazon","unspecified",,
  7747782,"The Savage Tales of Solomon Kane","Robert E. Howard","Howard, Robert E.","Paul Boehmer",="1400162289",="9781400162284",2,"4.09","Tantor Media","Audio CD","",2010,1970,2013/12/10,2013/10/16,"audio-book, fantasy, sff-audio, read-2013","audio-book (#66), fantasy (#169), sff-audio (#10), read-2013 (#97)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This was a disappointment. I signed up to review this for <a href=""http://www.sffaudio.com/"">SFF Audio</a> trying something I wouldn't have read otherwise, but I mostly found myself bored.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Paul Boehmer does a pretty good job here. I'd listened to him before with the Night Angel Trilogy, and enjoyed him again with this book. <br/><br/>He does some voices for the various characters. I think if this collection had a bad reader I would have stopped before the end.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I don't normally seem to enjoy older works of Sci-Fi and Fantasy, and unfortunately, things were no different here.<br/><br/>I was never a Conan fan growing, so I'd never read any of Mr. Howard before. The audiobook collection stars with an obituary or memorium written by [a:H.P. Lovecraft|9494|H.P. Lovecraft|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1299165714p2/9494.jpg] with whom Mr. Howard apparently corresponded.<br/><br/>Mr. Howard is probably best known for his character Conan, but Solomon Kane is often credited as the first ""Sword & Sorcery"" character.<br/><br/>In this collection of stories Solomon Kane fights Pirates, Ghosts, Vampires, Sorcerors, Harpies and more. Solomon Kane wields daggers, pistols a sword, and in later stories, a magical staff. Sounds like it would be great!<br/><br/>Unfortunately I was mostly bored. The best story of the bunch for me was The Children of Asshur, which was only a fragment and therefore ends somewhat abruptly. I would have liked to see where Mr. Howard intended to go with that story.<br/><br/>There are certainly things to like here. The writing isn't bad and the adventures are certainly varied enough, but it just seemed like not much really happens most of the time.<br/><br/>And then there is the racism. You can pull out the usual excuses, when the book what written, or the fact that the racism portrayed is probably accurate to the characters themselves. That doesn't change the fact for me that it kept pulling me out of the stories. <br/><br/>It's not in every story, but is present in most, especially those where Solomon Kane travels to Africa. Many times it seemed like an unnecessary aside, rather than an important plot point for or character motivation.<br/><br/>All and All, as I believe these stories are in public domain you might be better off picking one or two to check out rather than the whole collection. I think the best complete story was [b:The Hills of the Dead|363715|Solomon Kane  The Hills of the Dead (Solomon Kane #2)|Robert E. Howard|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1231661964s/363715.jpg|353789] where Kane first gets his magic staff and fights a horde of vampires.<br/><br/>2.5 Stars","","","1","","",1,,"","Like new",,
  68527,"The Last Kingdom (The Saxon Stories, #1)","Bernard Cornwell","Cornwell, Bernard","",="0060887184",="9780060887186",0,"4.19","Harper Perennial","Paperback","368",2006,2004,,2013/10/14,"to-read","to-read (#190)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  1321351,"The Bastards and the Knives (Gentleman Bastard, #0)","Scott Lynch","Lynch, Scott","",="0575082135",="9780575082137",0,"4.41","Gollancz","Hardcover","336",2017,2017,,2013/10/12,"to-read, fantasy, gentleman-bastard","to-read (#189), fantasy (#168), gentleman-bastard (#8)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  16158553,"Hell Bent (Broken Magic, #1)","Devon Monk","Monk, Devon","",="0451417925",="9780451417923",0,"3.95","Roc","Mass Market Paperback","348",2013,2013,,2013/10/12,"to-read","to-read (#188)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  17333711,"The Rose and the Thorn (The Riyria Chronicles, #2)","Michael J. Sullivan","Sullivan, Michael J.","",="1478977388",="9781478977384",4,"4.38","Orbit","Audio","",2013,2013,2013/10/25,2013/10/11,"audio-book, fantasy, riyria, read-2013","audio-book (#65), fantasy (#167), riyria (#5), read-2013 (#79)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b>  Another solid entry into the Riyria series, albeit a bit more predictable for those who've read <a href=""https://www.goodreads.com/series/96465-the-riyria-revelations"">Riyria Revelations</a> first. Despite that, this should be another enjoyable time for Riyria fans.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Mr. Reynolds really makes this the only way to do the Riyria series for me. I hope that if/when Mr. Sullivan does more Riyria books, they make sure to hire Mr. Reynolds to do the audio again. No particular characters of note this time, but another enjoyable performance.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>With [b:The Crown Tower|16043804|The Crown Tower (The Riyria Chronicles #1)|Michael J. Sullivan|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1375570227s/16043804.jpg|21821161], I was convinced it's better to read <a href=""https://www.goodreads.com/series/96465-the-riyria-revelations"">Riyria Revelations</a> first. With this entry I'm a bit torn.<br/><br/>The major plot points were immediately apparent to me fairly early on. Why? Well I had heard about them before as background during the Revelations series. There are some major details that will likely escape readers starting with Chronicles first, or at best be unconfirmed suspicions that won't be confirmed until they read Revelations however. This adds some depth to the story that might otherwise be missing.<br/><br/>So how does a ""predictable"" book get a 4 star rating? Well I really love Mr. Sullivan's characters for one, and it's great to get to spend more time with them. Not only are Royce, Hadrian and Gwen back, but we get to see Arista, Aldric and the Pickerings as kids in this one. Not to mention everyone's ""favorite"" grandfatherly character, Bishop Saldor.<br/><br/>Mr. Sullivan once again promotes a minor character from the original series to a POV in the prequel series. This time it's Hillfred, who himself is a boy just on the verge of becoming a palace guard. That detail alone should give veteran Riyria readers an idea of many of the major plot points of this book.<br/><br/>Like [b:The Crown Tower|16043804|The Crown Tower (The Riyria Chronicles #1)|Michael J. Sullivan|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1375570227s/16043804.jpg|21821161], we get a much darker Royce who hasn't been tempered by 15 years in Hadrian's company. Maybe it's my grimdark fandom that leads me to somehow enjoy this version of Royce even more than I did during Revelations. Still this book is far from the grit and gruesomeness of Abercrombie or Martin, despite possibly being the darkest book of the series.<br/><br/>A problem with prequels is you know when something bad happening is inevitable, because it already has. You can only sit back and wait for it.<br/><br/>Like [b:The Crown Tower|16043804|The Crown Tower (The Riyria Chronicles #1)|Michael J. Sullivan|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1375570227s/16043804.jpg|21821161], Mr. Sullivan does a good job of taking background information from his first series and flushing it out into a full story making for an enjoyable ride even if the destination is already known. He avoids major spoilers with clever dialogue that will have Revelations readers shaking their heads knowingly that first time readers will likely miss completely.<br/><br/>I for one hope that he will continue writing these Riyria stories as I'm already sad to have burned through all 8 stories so quickly.","","","1","Riyria Fans","",1,2013/10/19,"Audible","Like new",,
  22877780,"Fool's Assassin (The Fitz and The Fool Trilogy, #1)","Robin Hobb","Hobb, Robin","Elliot Hill",="",="",4,"4.33","Random House Audio","Audiobook","27",2014,2014,2014/08/14,2013/10/10,"fantasy, elderlings, audio-book, sff-audio, read-2014","fantasy (#166), elderlings (#14), audio-book (#128), sff-audio (#25), read-2014 (#87)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I enjoyed it, though not as much as [b:Fool's Fate|45108|Fool's Fate (Tawny Man, #3)|Robin Hobb|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388181998s/45108.jpg|2960725], and if anything it's heightened my sense of dread that this trilogy will ruin that book's ending.<br/><br/><b>NOTE:</b> I always strive to write spoiler free reviews, but this one may fall a little short. Since people may be used to that from me I wanted to give a little warning. Some of my comments about the book as a whole may be considered spoilery by those like me who are especially sensitive to them. I don't talk about plot at all, but some of my comments about the characters/book structure may affect your reading and I'd hate to do that to someone.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I never planned to do this one in audio. I've done the other 13 books in Ms. Hobb's Elderling series in text and pre-ordered the hardcover of this at least 6 months in advance. But I got offered to do the audio a week before the book came out and I had a hard time passing it up.<br/><br/>I really didn't like Elliot Hill much at first. He grew on me by the end though. I don't normally hear characters speaking in my head as I read and haven't had any issue listening to books I had previously read and finding the voices wrong.<br/><br/>I did here for some reason. Fitz just didn't sound right to me. Same thing with Molly. Bee seemed fine, but really she sounded almost like Molly. I liked his voice for Chade though.<br/><br/>Mr. Hill does a few voices and accents and does a fine job of it. It just took me a very long time to get used to. By the end though I seemed to get over it. I likely won't do the audio again unless I get another review copy, but I'd guess many people won't have the same issues I did with it.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>When I first heard confirmation that the rumors of a new Fitz and Fool series were true, I was full of mixed emotions. I loved [b:Fool's Fate|45108|Fool's Fate (Tawny Man, #3)|Robin Hobb|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388181998s/45108.jpg|2960725] (<a href=""https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/404258538"">My Review</a>). I've enjoyed all of Ms. Hobb's books but that's the only one I've given 5 stars too. I was just so satisfied with how it ended. Sure there were questions, but all the big things were resolved.<br/><br/>So would this book ruin my favorite book? Well not yet, but it certainly hasn't alleviated my fears that the events of this trilogy won't tarnish things for me.<br/><br/>Like many books by Ms. Hobb, things start out slow. I don't mean that in a negative way however. Somehow she is able to write in such a way that I don't mind the day to day life of her books. Despite my trepidation, it just felt nice to be back with characters I love. If you're looking for a lot of action or a flashy start, you'll be disappointed. I imagine that anyone picking up this book is already going to be a Robin Hobb fan and used to her style though.<br/><br/>More than anything, Ms. Hobb's writing is able to evoke strong emotions in me as I read. Love, anger, happiness, frustration. Few other authors can make me despise a new character so quickly or completely. Similarly Fitz continues to frustrate me with the way he does things in a way that is just all too human. Often times the protagonist in a fantasy book faces external adversity and rises to the occasion. Meanwhile Fitz is frequently his own worst enemy. Poor Ms. Hobb loves putting him through the ringer too, and this book is no different.<br/><br/>I had three issues with this book costing it that fifth. The first one I suspect many long-time Hobb fans will share. The other two may largely depend on the reader.<br/><br/>The series is called Fitz & Fool. The book is called Fool's Assassin. So why did it take so long for us to see the Fool? Sure he's mentioned often enough, but I want to spend time with him just as I am spending time with Fitz. So far this series seems a lot more like Farseer than Tawny Man in that regard.<br/><br/>The second thing was the addition of a POV besides Fitz. I guess I'm a very jealous reader. I originally hoped it was a one off thing early in the book, but when it turned out to be a regular thing it bothered me. I felt robbed of time I could be spending with Fitz. By the end of the book it grew on me and I came to look forward to those chapters nearly as much as I did the Fitz ones.<br/><br/>The final issue I had was the ending. I know this is the first book of a trilogy, but I hate cliffhanger type endings, and this one seemed pretty bad to me. If you're the type of person who hates waiting for the next book, you may be better off waiting until the final book is either published or has a release date. It's going to a be a LONG wait for me until book 2.<br/><br/>Overall I really liked, but didn't love this book. I'm still pretty nervous about what may happen next. I think that above all shows how great a writer Ms. Hobb is to fill me with both a sense of anticipation and dread for the next book in the series.","","","1","","",1,2014/08/05,"Review Copy","Like new",,
  15999003,"Inherit the Night (Gentleman Bastard, #7)","Scott Lynch","Lynch, Scott","",="",="",0,"4.29","",,"",,,,2013/10/09,"to-read, fantasy, gentleman-bastard","to-read (#187), fantasy (#165), gentleman-bastard (#7)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  15998999,"The Mage and the Master Spy (Gentleman Bastard, #6)","Scott Lynch","Lynch, Scott","",="",="",0,"4.86","",,"",,,,2013/10/09,"to-read, fantasy, gentleman-bastard","to-read (#186), fantasy (#164), gentleman-bastard (#6)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  10626950,"The Ministry of Necessity (Gentleman Bastard, #5)","Scott Lynch","Lynch, Scott","",="",="",0,"4.76","Gollancz",,"",,,,2013/10/09,"to-read, fantasy, gentleman-bastard","to-read (#185), fantasy (#163), gentleman-bastard (#5)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  823,"Quicksilver (The Baroque Cycle, #1)","Neal Stephenson","Stephenson, Neal","",="0060593083",="9780060593087",0,"3.89","HarperCollins Perennial","Paperback","927",2004,2003,,2013/09/30,"to-read, historical-fiction","to-read (#184), historical-fiction (#4)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18519931,"Lot Beta","Tom Merritt","Merritt, Tom","",="",="",0,"3.26","Lulu.com","ebook","166",2013,2013,,2013/09/28,"to-read, science-fiction","to-read (#184), science-fiction (#42)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  15704460,"Calamity (Reckoners, #3)","Brandon Sanderson","Sanderson, Brandon","",="",="",0,"4.38","Delacorte","Hardcover","",2016,2016,,2013/09/28,"to-read, fantasy, young-adult, urban-fantasy, reckoners","to-read (#183), fantasy (#160), young-adult (#13), urban-fantasy (#34), reckoners (#2)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  15704459,"Firefight (Reckoners, #2)","Brandon Sanderson","Sanderson, Brandon","",="0385743580",="9780385743587",0,"4.18","Delacorte Press","Hardcover","432",2015,2015,,2013/09/28,"to-read, fantasy, reckoners, young-adult, urban-fantasy, next-in-series","to-read (#181), fantasy (#159), reckoners (#1), young-adult (#12), urban-fantasy (#35), next-in-series (#7)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  8074907,"The Thorn of Emberlain (Gentleman Bastard, #4)","Scott Lynch","Lynch, Scott","",="0575079584",="9780575079588",0,"4.17","Gollancz","Hardcover","512",2015,2015,,2013/09/28,"to-read, fantasy, gentleman-bastard, next-in-series","to-read (#180), fantasy (#158), gentleman-bastard (#4), next-in-series (#6)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  834479,"The Eyes of God (The Bronze Knight, #1)","John Marco","Marco, John","",="0756400961",="9780756400965",0,"3.62","DAW","Paperback","779",2003,2001,,2013/09/14,"to-read","to-read (#179)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18584451,"Doctor Sleep (The Shining, #2)","Stephen King","King, Stephen","Will Patton",="",="",4,"4.12","Hodder & Stoughton","Audiobook","",2013,2013,2013/10/05,2013/09/13,"audio-book, sff-audio, horror, read-2013","audio-book (#62), sff-audio (#9), horror (#9), read-2013 (#74)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> An interesting take on concepts established in [b:The Shining|11588|The Shining (The Shining, #1)|Stephen King|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1353277730s/11588.jpg|849585] that makes this feel less like a sequel and more like a spin-off.  This is a fun albeit very different book from it's predecessor.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Mr. Patton does an excellent job reading this book. He has many distinct voices and accents that adds a little something to the story. I was surprised they used a different reader than the [b:The Shining|11588|The Shining (The Shining, #1)|Stephen King|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1353277730s/11588.jpg|849585], but as it turned out to be a fairly different book, I think it was a good decision.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I'm not a fan of sequels. I'm not really sure [b:The Shining|11588|The Shining (The Shining, #1)|Stephen King|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1353277730s/11588.jpg|849585] needed a sequel. Sure there were lingering questions about Danny and Wendy at the end, but they weren't critical in my mind.<br/><br/>That said, Mr. King's novels tend to interconnect on several levels, so I was curious to see what he would do in a sequel to one of his most popular books.<br/><br/>Doctor Sleep is a very different book from its predecessor. The shining plays a key role of course, but I would categorize this book more as Paranormal Thriller rather than Horror. I would however recommend you read/reread [b:The Shining|11588|The Shining (The Shining, #1)|Stephen King|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1353277730s/11588.jpg|849585] before this though.<br/><br/>The first part of the book catches you up with Danny, his mother and Dick Halloran, and then proceeds to catch us up to Danny in the present day.<br/><br/>Unfortunately for Danny, Mr. King is a big believer in like father like son. Danny has become an alcoholic and has the same anger issues Jack struggled with in the first story. It hard to blame him given his traumatic childhood coupled with the horrors being so strong in the shinning has exposed to him.<br/><br/>A good part of this story felt like an advertisement for the Alcoholics Anonymous. I'm not sure if that's how Mr. King got himself sober, but it certainly seems like it, as he talks about it to excess. It does make for an interesting idea of ""what might have happened if Jack Torrence sought help?"", but I could have done with less time being spent on that aspect of the story.<br/><br/>Keeping with his themes of the cyclical nature of life, the other main protagonist is a young girl who is even stronger in the shinning than Danny was in his youth.<br/><br/>We are also introduced to the True Knot, a pack of ""physic vampires"" that are near immortal by traveling the country and feeding on the shinning for their longevity. Can you guess where this is going? I could.<br/><br/>So it wasn't the most unpredictable of stories, but in many ways I enjoyed it more then [b:The Shining|11588|The Shining (The Shining, #1)|Stephen King|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1353277730s/11588.jpg|849585]. I'm not a big horror fan. This book explores the shining in much greater detail than its namesake novel. Mr. King introduces some well developed new characters, and doesn't just retell the same story again with minor changes like many sequels tend to.<br/><br/>So will you like it? If you're a big horror fan hoping that Mr. King can scare the hell out of you again, probably not. If you're like me and enjoy the fantastical nature of Mr. King's novels then you just might.<br/><br/>3.5 Stars, rounded up because [a:Stephen King|3389|Stephen King|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1362814142p2/3389.jpg].","","","1","","",1,,"","Like new",,
  16131317,"The Crown Tower (The Riyria Chronicles #1)","Michael J. Sullivan","Sullivan, Michael J.","",="147897737X",="9781478977377",4,"4.29","Orbit","Audiobook","416",2013,2013,2013/10/21,2013/09/11,"fantasy, riyria, audio-book, read-2013","fantasy (#156), riyria (#3), audio-book (#64), read-2013 (#77)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This one starts slow, but ends really strong, and is a must read for any fans of the <a href=""https://www.goodreads.com/series/96465-the-riyria-revelations"">Riyria Revelations</a><br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Mr. Reynolds once again does an excellent job with his narration. I particularly enjoyed his voices for Pickles and Staind, but all of his voices are well done as usual.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>The book starts with a note from Mr. Sullivan covering two important things about writing a prequel to a completed series:<br/><br/>1) Too much of a good thing/ruining a good thing by going on too long<br/>2) Reading order for new readers<br/><br/>I want to cover both quickly at the start to give my take on them. For the first point, so far, so good. I had just devoured his original series and was eager to jump right in. This book did start slow, and had me worried a bit, but once it got going it was really enjoyable and makes for a great addition to the series.<br/><br/>Mr. Sullivan says he made it a point to allow readers to choose their entry point, and I think he makes a good effort at it. I had a friend read this book first and he enjoyed it and wasn't confused.<br/><br/>However, try as he will there are some things I'd consider spoilers in this book, which is pretty much inevitable with a prequel. They may only be minor things and I tend to be overly sensitive about that kind of thing. Either way I think you'll get more out of this book having read the original series first. There are definitely some subtleties and backstory that will missed by someone who starts with this book instead of [b:The Crown Conspiracy|4345290|The Crown Conspiracy (The Riyria Revelations, #1)|Michael J. Sullivan|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1313141264s/4345290.jpg|21574260]<br/><br/>So on to the book. There are two main POVs for most of this book: Hadrian and <s>Royce</s> Gwen? I was a bit surprised about the Gwen story as I didn't know much coming in. The start of her story is a large part of why I found the start of this book slow. It was worth it in the end however. <br/><br/>Once her story got going I found it really interesting, and made for a nice contrast from Hadrian's story which was almost entirely devoid of woman. Gwen was an interesting minor character in the original series, and it's fun to see her promoted here.<br/><br/>Hadrian's story starts a bit slow as well, but not as much and I did enjoy the character of Pickles a lot. Overall the book really doesn't get going until Royce and Hadrian are together though.<br/><br/>Coming fresh from [b:Percepliquis|12174312|Percepliquis (The Riyria Revelations, #6)|Michael J. Sullivan|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1312541516s/12174312.jpg|17145858], there had been a fair bit of mention of the ""Crown Tower job"" and I think Mr. Sullivan does a good job of fleshing that out into a full story here.<br/><br/>The book finishes a lot stronger than it starts, and I made it a point to get some extra listening time in on the last day to make sure I'd finish.<br/><br/>As a prequel, this really adds more detail to the back-stories of Royce, Hadrian and Gwen, and adds a lot of depth to the characters. Royce especially. <br/><br/>I'm looking forward to reading about other past adventures of the Riyira pair. On to [b:The Rose and the Thorn|17163514|The Rose and the Thorn (The Riyria Chronicles, #2)|Michael J. Sullivan|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1362121827s/17163514.jpg|23589581]!","","","1","Riyria Fans","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  16373193,"Rise of Empire (The Riyria Revelations, #3-4)","Michael J. Sullivan","Sullivan, Michael J.","Tim Gerard Reynolds",="1464014760",="9781464014765",4,"4.33","Recorded Books","Audio","",2012,2010,2013/09/29,2013/09/11,"audio-book, fantasy, riyria, read-2013","audio-book (#61), fantasy (#155), riyria (#2), read-2013 (#68)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I think both stories in this omnibus are an improvement over the first two. Both the writing and the character development is better. Can't wait to finish the series.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Mr. Reynolds again does an excellent job as a narrator. It wasn't quite as good as the last omnibus, maybe for lack of his dwarven voice. Still, audiobook is the way to go with the series.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>Since this is an omnibus, I'm going to opt to review each story individually.<br/><br/><i><b>Nyphron Rising</b></i><br/><br/>So once again Arista plays the damsel in distress. I was really getting fed up with her character. For someone so smart, she tends to always find herself in trouble. I guess that's supposed to be due to being noble-born and therefore naive about the ways of the world.<br/><br/>I really thought I wasn't going to like this story, but things turned out differently.<br/><br/>Finally in this book, Arista becomes much more likable. Away from the comforts she was used to, instead of whining and complaining, she adapts. <br/><br/>This has easily been my favorite of the series thus far. Not only has Arista developed but we're introduced to another great character in Emelia. Once a simple kitchen worker, she finds herself suddenly in the middle of plotting and politics.<br/><br/>And of course Royce and Hadrian are back. We get some great insights into the backstory of both.<br/><br/>Mr. Sullivan seems to have a knack for writing good episodic stories that build on the overarching story. Things are wrapped up nicely while still leaving you wanting to continue on in the series.<br/><br/>4.5 Stars.<br/><br/><i><b>The Emerald Storm</b></i><br/><br/>This one started kind of slow, especially after how much I enjoyed the last one, but the second half was much better.<br/><br/>I could have done without the pity party and the ""I'm retired"" bit, because we all know Royce and Hadrian are going to instrumental to the rest of the series at this point.<br/><br/>So it turns out the Emerald Storm is a ship, but the story ended up taking a much different turn than I expected. I figured there was going be a lot more pirates and high sea action, but the real story was more about the crew of the ship itself.<br/><br/>I really enjoyed the supporting cast in this book more than probably the previous three. There are a lot of shady characters, and some down right despicable ones that add a lot to story.<br/><br/>There is a lot more setup in this story than the rest, and the path to the finale seems clear now.<br/><br/>4 Stars.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  16110828,"Heir of Novron (The Riyria Revelations, #5-6)","Michael J. Sullivan","Sullivan, Michael J.","Tim Gerard Reynolds",="",="",5,"4.45","Recorded Books","Audiobook","",,2012,2013/10/17,2013/09/11,"audio-book, riyria, fantasy, read-2013, favorites","audio-book (#60), riyria (#1), fantasy (#154), read-2013 (#76), favorites (#20)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I try not to give out 5 stars too often. I add books to my <a href=""https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/10743961-rob?shelf=favorites"">favorites shelf</a> even less, but I really loved this book. I will definitely be revisiting this series again in the future. <br/><br/>Listening to this book just made me happy. It's not going to have much appeal to the people who want gritty realism in every story. For someone like me who needs an occasional break from that and just wants a fun sword and sorcery story, this delivered.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Mr. Reynolds sold me on doing these books exclusively in audio with [b:Theft of Swords|10790290|Theft of Swords (The Riyria Revelations, #1-2)|Michael J. Sullivan|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1307959785s/10790290.jpg|15702572], and hasn't left me disappointed at the choice by this third and final installment.<br/><br/>I'm happy to see he's also reading the prequel series!<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>Since this is an omnibus, I'm going to opt to review each story individually.<br/><br/><b><i>Wintertide</i></b><br/><br/>This was easily my favorite of the series thus far. It was really hard to stop listening. In fact I went out of my way to find reasons to keep listening. That’s always the sign of a good book.<br/><br/>In this story we have the majority of the characters that have been spread out throughout the world all in one place on the verge of Wintertide. Things are looking bleak for our heroes, yet somehow Mr. Sullivan finds a way to keep things light and fun for the reader.<br/><br/>In many ways this felt like a pause from the continuing story, but there are many important developments in the last few chapters that look to have large implications heading into the final book. The situation Hadrian finds himself in seems a bit ridiculous, but I don’t care as it made for some really great storytelling.<br/><br/>Mr. Sullivan seems to have really come into his own both in writing and his grasp of all the details of the world and characters he created.<br/><br/>My only small complaint is one that most authors and fantasy fans wouldn't mind. With the previous four stories, they each felt complete and come to a reasonable conclusion. You want to read what’s next, but I found it easy to pause between stories to read other things. <br/><br/>Not so with this book. If it were not for the fact that I had the final story ready to go not seconds after finishing this, I would be annoyed at having to wait. Thankfully that’s not the case and I jumped immediatly into the final story.<br/><br/>4.5 Stars<br/><br/><br/><b><i>Percepliquis</i></b><br/><br/>Given where the last story left off, the start of this book was frustrating me until all of a sudden it wasn't and I kept yelling in triumph. It was a little ridiculous. Thankfully I was alone in my car and it was dark out so no one saw/heard me. :)<br/><br/>War is threatening and mankind of on the verge of obliteration. Royce and Hadrian set out for <i>One last job..</i><br/><br/>This is Mr. Sullivan's [b:The Fellowship of the Ring|34|The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings, #1)|J.R.R. Tolkien|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1371849682s/34.jpg|3204327]. All of the characters I've grown to love, and some I've grown to despise group up and head to the find the ancient city of Percepliquis in search of an important artifact that may be their last hope for survival.<br/><br/>The book is maybe a bit too predictable. I was kicking myself for not guessing some of the details much sooner. Others might realize where things were going a lot sooner than I did. I might not have enjoyed it as much if I had, it's hard to say.<br/><br/>With authors like [a:George R.R. Martin|346732|George R.R. Martin|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1351944410p2/346732.jpg] and [a:Steven Erikson|31232|Steven Erikson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1219169436p2/31232.jpg] I've been trained to expect the worst to happen around every corner. This is a nice break from that. Don't get me wrong, bad stuff happens, but not at the same level as your grimdark fantasy that is all the rage these days.<br/><br/>As it was, I think the ending while a bit eye-rolling in places was perfect. It made me feel really happy but also sad that it was over.<br/><br/>I'm already jumping right into the first prequel book [b:The Crown Tower|16043804|The Crown Tower (The Riyria Chronicles #1)|Michael J. Sullivan|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1375570227s/16043804.jpg|21821161], so I can put off being sad the series is over for a little while longer.<br/><br/>5 Stars.","","","1","People who need a break from gritty fantasy","",1,,"","Like new",,
  9361589,"The Night Circus","Erin Morgenstern","Morgenstern, Erin","",="0385534639",="9780385534635",0,"4.00","Doubleday","Hardcover","387",2011,2011,,2013/08/30,"to-read","to-read (#178)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  317641,"The Demolished Man","Alfred Bester","Bester, Alfred","",="0679767819",="9780679767817",4,"4.00","Vintage Books","Paperback","243",1996,1951,2013/09/08,2013/08/23,"read-2013, science-fiction, sword-and-laser","read-2013 (#64), science-fiction (#41), sword-and-laser (#15)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Part sci-fi, part detective novel, part thriller. I was a bit surprised I enjoyed this one so much.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>When this book was announced as the September <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/4170-the-sword-and-laser"">Sword & Laser</a> pick, my initial reaction was: ""never heard of it"".<br/><br/>The premise sounded interesting, and all of my friends who read it prior had given it a 5. Good sign. But it's 60 years old. It was in fact the first book to win the Hugo 60 years ago this year.<br/><br/>I don't read a lot of classics. I've found most of the ones I've read boring. They often feel like a product of their time with paper thin characters, badly written woman (if they exist at all. I'm looking at you [b:Foundation|29579|Foundation (Foundation, #1)|Isaac Asimov|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1320416085s/29579.jpg|1783981]) , and a lot of ideas that seem ignorant to me. Some of those apply here.<br/><br/>I'm sure 60 years from now, many of the things I read might seem the same way to kids born 30 years from now. The same discussion threads about these points seems to come up every time we read one.<br/><br/>None of that really matters to me. The thing I like about being in a book club like <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/4170-the-sword-and-laser"">Sword & Laser</a> is to read things I might not have otherwise. Some selections are hit and others miss.<br/><br/>This one was a hit for me. Personally, I can see why this was selected as a Hugo winner. I can't say I have (or will) read the other nominees from that year, but this one was a lot of fun for me.<br/><br/>It's more thriller or detective novel than sci-fi. A lot of older works I've read are more focused on some cool sci-fi idea and less so on the story. This one was the opposite. It was a cool story with a sci-fi premise.<br/><br/>The idea of telepaths being everywhere sets an interesting backdrop to the question of ""Can you get away with murder when the police can read your mind?""<br/><br/>The protagonist and antagonist I thought were both pretty well developed even if the supporting cast wasn't so much. Then again this a 250 page story, so you can't expect that much depth of character.<br/><br/>The last quarter or so of the book bumped the rating up for me. The pace picked up and I really wanted to find out what happened next.<br/><br/>The last chapter wrapped things up nicely, which was nice because the penultimate chapter got rather surreal and confused the hell out of me, but just had me turning the page to find out what happens next.<br/><br/>3.5 Stars.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  13521459,"Red Country","Joe Abercrombie","Abercrombie, Joe","",="0316214442",="9780316214445",0,"4.25","Orbit","ebook","469",2012,2012,,2013/08/20,"to-read, fantasy, dark-fantasy, first-law, next-in-series","to-read (#177), fantasy (#151), dark-fantasy (#32), first-law (#6), next-in-series (#26)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  9300810,"The Heroes","Joe Abercrombie","Abercrombie, Joe","Michael Page",="1409130770",="9781409130772",4,"4.22","Orion","Audiobook","20",2011,2011,2014/09/09,2013/08/20,"dark-fantasy, audio-book, fantasy, first-law, read-2014","dark-fantasy (#34), audio-book (#93), fantasy (#214), first-law (#4), read-2014 (#96)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> My new favorite Joe Abercrombie book!<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I know people swear by Steven Pacy, but I once again got Michael Page as the narrator. I can't compare the two, but I think Micheal Page is pretty good. <br/><br/>He does some pretty good voices, though sometimes it's hard to tell the characters apart because while he mostly makes the Northmen and the Union sound different from one another they tended to sound similar to each other. He does a pretty good voice for Bremer dan Gorst though.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I like Joe Abercrombie, but not as much as most of my friends seem to. I enjoyed the 4 previous First Law books, but haven't loved any of them. This one comes close though.<br/><br/>This feels much more like a sequel to the original trilogy than [b:Best Served Cold|2315892|Best Served Cold|Joe Abercrombie|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347732723s/2315892.jpg|2322406] did, but I'd say it's important to read that first or you'll be missing out on some important details for some of the characters here.<br/><br/>We see the return of many of the characters from the original trilogy, a few of whom have been promoted to POV characters. <br/><br/>There are only a handful of POVs during most of the book, but there a few parts where he does this sort of ""Roving"" POV that follows the action from person to person. I'm not sure if I'd have liked it if he did it for the whole book, but in the select places he used it, I thought it worked very well.<br/><br/>I liked most of the POVs, but it's a toss up between Curnden Craw and Calder for being my favorite. They are very different characters, and Curden is certainly the more likable of the two, but I just really enjoyed the Smart ""Coward"" among all the ""dumb"" brutes of Calder's.<br/><br/>Like his other series, he does include a strong female character, but compared to the others I found her by far the weakest/least interesting.<br/><br/>This is Abercrombie's war book. Just like a real war, there is only a small amount of fighting, and an awful lot of waiting, speculating and planning. It's really in the in between moments that this book shines for me, but as expected Mr. Abercrombie writes some pretty great actions sequences too.<br/><br/>I found the ending of this book to be immensely satisfying, much more so the both the First Law trilogy and Best Served cold. The only real reason this book isn't getting a 5 star rating for me is I found some of the lesser POV story lines far less interesting than the others. <br/><br/>Overall a really good book though, Highly recommended.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  6746196,"Best Served Cold","Joe Abercrombie","Abercrombie, Joe","Michael Page",="1400163277",="9781400163274",4,"4.14","Tantor Media","Audio CD","28",2010,2009,2014/01/12,2013/08/20,"fantasy, dark-fantasy, audio-book, read-2014, first-law","fantasy (#152), dark-fantasy (#33), audio-book (#73), read-2014 (#5), first-law (#5)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Overall I enjoyed this stand-alone novel more than the First Law books themselves, despite the lack of likable characters. It's Kill Bill meets Ocean's 11 in a medieval setting.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I believe this is the first audio book I've listened to narrated by Michael Page. I think he does a pretty good job. He is clear and easy to understand. He does a variety of accents and voices. I would definitely listen to another book read by him.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I enjoy Mr. Abercrombie's writing quite a bit. But it's rather bleak. This book has only despicable characters.<br/><br/>First, we have the protagonist, a former mercenary bent of revenge.<br/><br/>Then we're got her assortment of ""friends"":<br/><br/>- A 'master' poisoner and his assistant<br/><br/>- A Northern Barbarian whose best skill is killing.<br/><br/>- A serial killer with an obsession for numbers. Rain Man he's not.<br/><br/>- Another mercenary whose loyalties are fluid based on whose paying the most.<br/><br/>- And a ""retired"" torturer<br/><br/>You know it's a bad sign when the most likable character is probably the serial killer.<br/><br/>That doesn't mean the characters are badly written. They are certainly quite entertaining too. Nicomo Cosca is especially amusing. But with no one really being likable to me, I wasn't sure what/who I was routing for by the end.<br/><br/>That sort of makes it a weird book to me. Typically even if the main character is ""bad"" they have some redeeming qualities or something to make them into a sort of anti-hero.<br/><br/>Monzcarro Murcatto may have had some redeeming qualities once, but now she is bitter and angry and won't let anything stand in the way of her revenge.<br/><br/>I think Mr. Abercrombie does do a good job in taking some minor characters from the first series and promoting them to larger roles in this stand alone novel. I think this also ties thing together nicely with the First Law trilogy without really spoiling things much.<br/><br/>I'd highly recommend reading First Law BEFORE tackling this book. Sure it's stand alone, but there is a lot of context and references you'll miss if you haven't read that first.<br/><br/>As a fantasy book, this was pretty light on the fantasy. It could almost have been an alternate history book if it weren't set in Mr. Abercrombie's First Law universe. <br/><br/>At its heart this is a revenge story. Monzo is determined to make the ones who wronged her pay. It makes for a fun romp full of unexpected consequences and lots of action. <br/><br/>Overall I really enjoyed it. Plus considering I wasn't sure what outcome I was rooting for, I ended up really liking the ending.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  7691216,"Shadow's Edge (Night Angel, #2)","Brent Weeks","Weeks, Brent","Paul Boehmer",="1400142873",="9781400142873",3,"4.26","Tantor Media","Audio CD","0",2009,2008,2013/08/28,2013/08/15,"audio-book, fantasy, night-angel, dark-fantasy, read-2013","audio-book (#59), fantasy (#150), night-angel (#3), dark-fantasy (#30), read-2013 (#63)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I have mixed feelings about this book. It's very uneven. I went from 3 stars to 4 stars, back to 3.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Paul Boehmer again does a good job reading. A few accents, but nothing special. My only real gripe is when the POV suddenly shifts. I'm not sure if it's the way Mr. Weeks wrote the book, the way Mr. Boehmer is reading the book, or the way the audio was cut, but there needs to be some kind of pause between POV shifts in the same chapter, because it is VERY jarring when it happens.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>So I'm apparently in the minority of my goodreads friends who all seemed to like this book a lot more than I did.<br/><br/>It started slow, and I mostly got over it. I was all ready to give it a 4 stars for recovering nicely and BAM! The ending happened. Terrible. I kind of understand why he did it that way, because I was wondering what was going to be the driving force for the final book, but still.<br/><br/>If you've read the book you can read me rant about what I didn't like in these spoiler tags: <br/><br/><spoiler>First he teases us with the Empire Strikes Back ending ""KYLAR I AM YOUR FATHER"" which annoyed me, but then it was ""just kidding"". Only he may as well not have been. Kylar loses his arm just like Luke and it's Vi, not Kylar whose the God King's offspring. Close enough. And dumb. Also unnecessary if you ask me. He simply could have been too powerful for the compulsion to have been completely broken on her without needed to add the rule that ""compulsion only works on family"". I would have believed that.<br/><br/>I get that Kylar needed to die, and make his deal to come back immediately when we get the note from Durzo saying ""DON'T MAKE DEALS"", but the whole thing just felt badly executed to me.</spoiler><br/><br/>Now that that's out of the way. Overall this book is very uneven. I really hate the ""Badass whose giving up on fighting"" trope. And this one just felt like it went on too long. We all know he can't stay hidden and never kill again, so can't you just get on with it?<br/><br/>Even when he does finally get on with it, the book tends to meander too much. I'd find myself listening to sections and just wanting to get back to the main story.<br/><br/>This sounds like a mostly negative review, but there are things to like. I enjoy his characters. I think Vi makes for a mostly interesting addition as a POV character. She is part of the meandering in places I was referring too though.<br/><br/>Logan's development is probably the most interesting, and at times the most disturbing. His time in ""Hell's Asshole"" still makes me cringe.<br/><br/>This book seems heavily influenced by the Wheel of Time. First we have the Aes Sedai wandering around and we meet the Brown who is more focused on  her scholarship than anything else.<br/><br/>Then the <s>Children of Light</s> show up (I can't remember their actual name, or find it on the damn wiki), with their roving army of Mage Haters. They even have a similar emblem.<br/><br/>Overall this is an OK book that very enjoyable in parts and not so much in others. It's a bit of letdown after the first book though.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  7147816,"Beyond the Shadows (Night Angel, #3)","Brent Weeks","Weeks, Brent","Paul Boehmer",="1400162882",="9781400162888",2,"4.29","Tantor Media","Audio CD","0",2009,2008,2013/09/06,2013/08/15,"audio-book, night-angel, fantasy, dark-fantasy, read-2013","audio-book (#57), night-angel (#1), fantasy (#148), dark-fantasy (#31), read-2013 (#66)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I really wanted to like this book more than I did. Most of my friends seemed to enjoy it, but I just found it a disappointment.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Paul Boehmer again does a good, but not great job as a reader. He is clear and easy to understand. He does a few voices, but I really have trouble telling some of them apart.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I found this book to be a letdown. I felt [b:Shadow's Edge|3754016|Shadow's Edge (Night Angel, #2)|Brent Weeks|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1327881435s/3754016.jpg|3797880] started going off the rails a bit and to be uneven. This book was worse. <br/><br/>There are things to like about it. I still found myself rooting for the main characters. The main plot was interesting. But that's about it.<br/><br/>This book suffers from way too many subplots. Many of which didn't add much to the story for me. What started as an action packed gritty fantasy series in [b:The Way of Shadows|3227063|The Way of Shadows (Night Angel, #1)|Brent Weeks|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1327881551s/3227063.jpg|3261241] has somehow been morphed into a bad soap opera.<br/><br/>I think the main story suffered as a result of all these subplots. It felt almost as if Mr. Weeks was considering expanding this from a trilogy into a longer series only to sort of plop all the characters together at the end.<br/><br/>I would have liked to see more time on Neph Dada and Khali as the main antagonists of this book, they felt more like background noise.<br/><br/>The most interesting character of the series to me was not the protagonist Kylar, but his master Durzo Blint. Now that I've finished the trilogy, I think I would have preferred if the first book was followed by two prequel books about Durzo previous exploits instead.<br/><br/>The series did at least end at a good place, wrapping up all of the main threads and many of the minor ones, but by the end I was just happy to get it over with.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  333867,"The Stars My Destination","Alfred Bester","Bester, Alfred","Neil Gaiman",="0679767800",="9780679767800",0,"4.15","Vintage Books / SFBC","Paperback","258",1996,1955,,2013/08/13,"to-read","to-read (#176)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  13640113,"Paladin of Souls (Chalion, #2)","Lois McMaster Bujold","Bujold, Lois McMaster","Kate Reading",="",="",4,"4.10","Blackstone Audio, Inc.","Audiobook","16",2005,2003,2014/03/22,2013/08/04,"fantasy, chalion, audio-book, read-2014","fantasy (#147), chalion (#1), audio-book (#97), read-2014 (#31)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A slow-paced but enjoyable fantasy novel that can mostly be read as a stand-alone.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> This is my first novel read by Kate Reading. I have long heard she is a great narrator, and I would have to agree. She doesn't exactly do voices or anything but she does distinguish a bit between characters. She speaks clearly with good inflections and emotions.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>Right off the bat this novel is unique for me. The protagonist is a 40-something woman. That's never the case for any of the fantasy books I've read.<br/><br/>This book like it's predecessor [b:The Curse of Chalion|61886|The Curse of Chalion (Chalion, #1)|Lois McMaster Bujold|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1322571773s/61886.jpg|1129349], has a slow pace that somehow just works for me. The only other author/series I can think of that manages this is [a:Robin Hobb|25307|Robin Hobb|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1394752275p2/25307.jpg]'s Edlerling books.<br/><br/>I don't really remember the details of [b:The Curse of Chalion|61886|The Curse of Chalion (Chalion, #1)|Lois McMaster Bujold|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1322571773s/61886.jpg|1129349], but that doesn't seem to matter. In fact I'd imagine you'd be able to read this book having skipped that one without issue. Not that I recommend it, because that book was also enjoyable.<br/><br/>Most reviews I've read seem to indicate this is the best of the series. I found my enjoyment to be about the same. If anything distinguishes the two it's that this one doesn't focus on a male whose righting wrongs with his sword, but a woman who is doing it with her wits (and some help from the gods).<br/><br/>I think this is one of those books you need to be in the right mood for. It's not a fast-paced, action packed sword and sorcery story. It's also not a politically charged struggle for power. Often times it seems that when strong woman are portrayed in fantasy, they are politically savvy nobility maneuvering for power.<br/><br/>Instead we have a woman who decides she needs a journey. Not for adventure. Not for glory. Simply because she needs a break. Royina Ista has spent most of her life under a family curse or control of someone else. She just needs to get away. This doesn't seem to make sense to anyone else, so she does so under the guise of making a religious pilgrimage to pray for her daughter to have a grandson.<br/><br/>Unfortunately for her (and fortunately the reader), the gods have other plans. Royina Ista is confronted with raiding soldiers, demons, sorcerers and a plot that threatens the safety of all of Chalion. There is a bit a of romance thrown in for good measure.<br/><br/>All and all this is a well written and enjoyable fantasy story that is quite different from just about everything I read.","","","1","","",1,2014/03/15,"Audible","Like new",,
  18050940,"Vol'jin: Shadows of the Horde (World of Warcraft, #12)","Michael A. Stackpole","Stackpole, Michael A.","Scott Brick",="1442362685",="9781442362680",3,"3.86","Simon & Schuster Audio","Audio","",2013,2013,2013/08/15,2013/08/01,"warcraft, sff-audio, audio-book, fantasy, read-2013","warcraft (#4), sff-audio (#8), audio-book (#55), fantasy (#146), read-2013 (#60)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b><br/>I reviewed this for <a href=""http://www.sffaudio.com/"">SFF audio</a>. I doubt I would have read it otherwise. It might appeal to World of Warcraft fans, but probably no one else.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> This is the first book I've listened to by Scott Brick. Mr. Brick has a good clear voice. He also does a pretty good Cajun accent for the trolls. <br/><br/>My big problem is apart from that everyone sounds the same. The Trolls (both male and female) sounded the same. I couldn't really tell apart the human character from the Panderan either. It could make some conversations very hard to follow unless it was between Vol'jin and a non-troll.<br/><br/>My other gripe with the audiobook was my digital copy had music at the end of EVERY chapter. I'd have been fine with it if it was in-between chapters, but I hate when audiobooks have music while the Narrator is reading the book.<br/><br/>That said, I'd probably listen to something read by Mr. Brick again.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This is my first book by Michael A. Stackpole, who is probably best known for his Star Wars books. From the dedication at the beginning, it sounds like he is/was a WoW player at some point.<br/><br/>This is book #12 in the World of Warcraft books. As far as I know/could tell it is unrelated to any of the others. I didn't find myself lost or confused.<br/><br/>As the title would indicate the protagonist of this book is <a href=""http://www.wowhead.com/npc=71148"">Vol'jin</a>, the Shadow Hunter, leader of the Dark Spears and high general in the Horde.<br/><br/><img src=""http://wow.zamimg.com/uploads/screenshots/resized/372707.jpg"" width=""200"" height=""300""/><br/><br/>I would say having quested in Pandaria is almost a pre-requisite. The other main character of this book is <a href=""http://www.wowhead.com/npc=56611"">Chen Stormstout</a><br/><br/><img src=""http://wow.zamimg.com/uploads/screenshots/resized/329555.jpg"" width=""200"" height=""300""/><br/><br/>I really enjoyed his questline as I leveled this expansion, so it was nice to get more with him. His niece Li-Li also makes an appearance.<br/><br/>I haven't played Horde in awhile, but there looks to be a <a href=""http://www.wowhead.com/quest=32318"">quest</a> related to this book.<br/><br/>Chen finds Vol'jin nearly dead and takes him to the monastery of the Shadow Pan.<br/><br/>The first half of this book is really slow, which is bad considering it's only about 12 hours long. I was really hoping for more action. There is a lot of self-reflection as Vol'jin tries to heal.<br/><br/>The second half of the book has a bit more action and was a slightly faster pace. I did end up listening a little longer than yesterday just to finish it up.<br/><br/>The book made me to want to start playing again, which is probably a large part of the point of these books.<br/><br/>However, I would say if it WASN'T about a world/characters I already really like, that it probably would have gotten an even lower rating.<br/><br/>Overall this is just a so-so book, 3 stars.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  1142011,"The Curse of Chalion (Chalion, #1)","Lois McMaster Bujold","Bujold, Lois McMaster","",="0380979012",="9780380979011",4,"4.14","HarperCollins","Hardcover","448",2001,2000,2013/08/04,2013/07/23,"sword-and-laser, fantasy, read-2013, chalion","sword-and-laser (#14), fantasy (#145), read-2013 (#58), chalion (#2)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> It took me a little bit to warm up to, but in the end I found this an enjoyable read.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I read this as the August pick for <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/4170-the-sword-and-laser"">Sword & Laser</a>. Despite considering myself more Sword than Laser (or maybe because I do?), I think overall I've been mostly disappointed with the Sword picks, especially the last two.<br/><br/>This one however, did not disapoint. It starts a bit slow. The pacing reminded me a bit of [b:Assassin's Apprentice|45107|Assassin's Apprentice (Farseer Trilogy, #1)|Robin Hobb|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1320339497s/45107.jpg|171715], so you if you enjoyed those books, you may enjoy this as well.<br/><br/>Cazaril is not your typical fantasy protagonist. He's in his mid 30s for one. In fact this book doesn't feel like a fantasy book at all for most of it. There are no dragons, or wizards, or (insert your favorite fantasy race) to speak of. There does end up being magic however. And Gods of great power.<br/><br/>Mostly however, this is a political story with a medieval setting. The characters are well written and interesting. Large parts of the plot are rather predictable, but that's not always a bad thing. It's the characters that make this book enjoyable.<br/><br/>It's also nice to get away from all the grimdark fantasy I've been reading with something lighter. There are certainly some awful things that happen/described in this book, but nothing to the level of Song of Ice and Fire, Malazen, etc.<br/><br/>Despite being listed as Chalion, #1 by good reads, this is a stand alone story. My understanding is it is actually 3 stand alone stories set in the same world. <br/><br/>That is both a nice change from most fantasy these days, and a little sad, because I've grown attached to her characters and would like to see how they make out after the story ends.<br/><br/>This is my first book by Ms. McMaster Bujold, but won't be my last. I at least plan to check out [b:Paladin of Souls|61904|Paladin of Souls (Chalion, #2)|Lois McMaster Bujold|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1348894979s/61904.jpg|819610].","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  8176893,"The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms (The Inheritance Trilogy, #1)","N.K. Jemisin","Jemisin, N.K.","",="",="",0,"3.78","Orbit","Kindle Edition","417",2010,2010,,2013/07/19,"to-read","to-read (#175)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  589979,"Daughter of the Empire (The Empire Trilogy, #1)","Raymond E. Feist","Feist, Raymond E.","Janny Wurts",="055327211X",="9780553272116",0,"4.20","Bantam","Mass Market Paperback","421",1988,1987,,2013/07/19,"to-read","to-read (#174)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  334123,"The Amulet of Samarkand (Bartimaeus, #1)","Jonathan Stroud","Stroud, Jonathan","",="078681859X",="9780786818594",0,"3.95","Disney-Hyperion","Hardcover","462",2003,2003,,2013/07/19,"to-read","to-read (#173)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  301538,"The Darkness That Comes Before (The Prince of Nothing, #1)","R. Scott Bakker","Bakker, R. Scott","",="1585676772",="9781585676774",0,"3.74","Overlook TP","Paperback","608",2005,2003,,2013/07/19,"to-read","to-read (#172)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  202544,"Devices and Desires (Engineer Trilogy, #1)","K.J. Parker","Parker, K.J.","",="1841492760",="9781841492766",0,"3.69","Orbit Book Co.","Mass Market Paperback","706",2006,2005,,2013/07/19,"to-read","to-read (#171)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  11737656,"The Troupe","Robert Jackson Bennett","Bennett, Robert Jackson","",="",="",0,"3.82","Orbit","Kindle Edition","500",2012,2011,,2013/07/19,"to-read","to-read (#12)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  36159,"Black Sun Rising (The Coldfire Trilogy, #1)","C.S. Friedman","Friedman, C.S.","",="0756403146",="9780756403140",0,"3.93","DAW Trade","Paperback","496",2005,1991,,2013/07/19,"to-read","to-read (#170)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  39063,"Titus Groan (Gormenghast, #1)","Mervyn Peake","Peake, Mervyn","",="0879514256",="9780879514259",0,"3.91","Overlook Press","Paperback","396",1991,1946,,2013/07/19,"to-read","to-read (#169)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  208,"A Shadow in Summer (Long Price Quartet, #1)","Daniel Abraham","Abraham, Daniel","",="0765313405",="9780765313409",0,"3.57","Tor Books","Hardcover","336",2006,2006,,2013/07/19,"to-read","to-read (#21)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  311864,"Heroes Die (The Acts of Caine, #1)","Matthew Woodring Stover","Stover, Matthew Woodring","",="0345421450",="9780345421456",4,"4.09","Del Rey","Paperback","545",1999,1998,2014/02/19,2013/07/19,"fantasy, not-a-bookclub-club, read-2014, dark-fantasy","fantasy (#207), not-a-bookclub-club (#13), read-2014 (#17), dark-fantasy (#37)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Dark Fantasy/Sci-Fi that is more gruesome in places than anything I've read from [a:Joe Abercrombie|276660|Joe Abercrombie|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1207149426p2/276660.jpg] or [a:George R.R. Martin|346732|George R.R. Martin|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1351944410p2/346732.jpg].<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>It's hard to believe this book was published in the late 90's. It would be right at home with all the Dark Fantasy that seems to be abundant these days. This book is way more gruesome in places than most of the so-called ""grimdark"" fantasy I've read recently. This seems to be a book that has gone under the radar of most fantasy fans.<br/><br/>This is definitely one of those man's man kind of books. Caine is a total badass who kills first and doesn't even bother asking questions later. I can imagine a lot of grunting and snarling as I read along.<br/><br/>The female characters are rather thin. They are badass too, but they also bombshells. You won't find a Brienne of Tarth, or Arya Stark here.<br/><br/>If you don't read the description before starting the book, you'll likely be a little taken aback when an assassin in a fantasy novel starts making references to CRTs and Elmer Fudd. It's not bad writing/editing though.<br/><br/>This is really the story of two worlds. A futuristic dystopian Earth, and a fantastical world full of magic called Overworld. Somehow humanity has found a way to send people to Overwold all while allowing the super rich to virtually ""ride along"".<br/><br/>It is the most popular form of entertainment for the privileged class. Watching lower class ""Actors"" fight, kill and often times die for their entertainment. This is no simulation. These are real people who are dying. The ultimate in bloodsport experience.<br/><br/>This is what makes really made the book for me. The parallels between the two worlds, and how the politics and caste system of Earth's impact on the politics of Overworld.<br/><br/>This is no simple revenge story, but one with political undertones. Similarly Caine is no simple thug, but the smart and calculating Hari Michaelson.<br/><br/>Overall I really enjoyed it. The story feels pretty self contained, so while there are other books, I don't feel a need to rush out and read the next one.<br/><br/>It got a little slow in places though. Mr. Stover doesn't seem to write the politics as well as he does gruesome violence and action sequences. That cost it the extra star, but I will definitely be continuing on the series at some point. I'd highly recommend it to any Dark Fantasy fans who like me had never heard of this series/author.","","","1","Fans of Dark Fantasy","",1,2014/02/06,"Amazon","Very good",,
  13616278,"The Red Knight (The Traitor Son Cycle, #1)","Miles  Cameron","Cameron, Miles","",="0575113294",="9780575113299",0,"4.12","Gollancz","Paperback","650",2012,2012,,2013/07/16,"to-read","to-read (#25)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  8935689,"Consider Phlebas (Culture, #1)","Iain M. Banks","Banks, Iain M.","",="1857231384",="9781857231380",0,"3.83","Orbit","Paperback","471",2005,1987,,2013/07/16,"to-read","to-read (#168)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  216363,"The Man in the High Castle","Philip K. Dick","Dick, Philip K.","",="0679740678",="9780679740674",0,"3.83","Vintage","Paperback","259",1992,1962,,2013/07/16,"to-read","to-read (#37)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  16160797,"The Cuckoo's Calling (Cormoran Strike, #1)","Robert Galbraith","Galbraith, Robert","J.K. Rowling",="0316206846",="9780316206846",0,"3.78","Mulholland Books","Hardcover","455",2013,2013,,2013/07/14,"to-read","to-read (#167)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  13556766,"Theft of Swords (The Riyria Revelations, #1-2)","Michael J. Sullivan","Sullivan, Michael J.","Tim Gerard Reynolds",="",="",4,"4.21","Recorded Books, LLC","Audiobook","694",2012,2009,2013/09/14,2013/07/12,"audio-book, fantasy, read-2013, riyria","audio-book (#49), fantasy (#153), read-2013 (#67), riyria (#4)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> These stories are a bit trope heavy, and therefore a  predictable in places. Despite that I found them to be enjoyable. Like settling into something comfortable and familiar. In the ever increasing abundance of grimdark fantasy, this serves as a nice break.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I listened to this in audio after getting a good deal on it through Audible. I was quickly sold on finishing the series in audiobook. <br/><br/>This is the first book I've listened to by Tim Gerald Reynolds. I found him to be an excellent reader. Not only is he clear and easy to understand, he seems to have a variety of voices that greatly increased my enjoyment of the book. <br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/><br/>Since this is an omnibus, I'm going to opt to review each story individually.<br/><br/><i><b>The Crown Conspiracy</b></i><br/><br/>The first story is a bit uneven. We meet thieves Royce Melborn and Hadrian Blackwater, who work under the name of Riyria. Royce is the prototype rogue while Hadrian the oft underestimated fighter. Mr. Sullivan does give them both a great amount of depth and had me greatly liking them by the end of the book.<br/><br/>During the course of the book, we meet a bumbling monk, an arrogant prince, a mysterious wizard, and a treacherous dwarf. The story is a bit lacking on female characters. The princess Arista is a bit interesting, but the focus isn't really on her. We also get the ""prostitute with a heart of gold"" who is just a minor character.<br/><br/>I found this story a bit uneven. There were some slow and predictable parts that seemed to just write themselves. However there was also some twists and turns that kept me guessing a little bit.<br/><br/>The pair take a job that leads them on an unexpected journey that turns them from thieves to reluctant heroes. There is a good mix of action that gets a bit dark, but nothing like you see in most grimdark these days. So if you're looking for another gritty ""realistic"" fantasy series, look elsewhere.<br/><br/>Overall this was a fun story and a good first effort from Mr. Sullivan. I probably liked it more than someone looking for something new and original might. It's the type of story I enjoy, especially taking a break from darker novels.<br/><br/>3.5 Stars.<br/><br/><i><b>Avempartha</b></i><br/><br/>This was the better of the two stories. There are a few slower parts early on, but once the story really got going, it was hard to stop listening.<br/><br/>We gets some insights into both Royce and Hadrian's past. There is some resolution to lingering story lines from the previous story, as well as a humorous nod to it.<br/><br/>We also get some insights into the mysterious wizard and the treacherous dwarf.<br/><br/>Princess Arista has a larger role in this book, although I find her a bit unlikable. Maybe that's simply due to her being raised a spoiled princess. I do think her heart is mostly in the right place even if she comes off like a spoiled brat in places.<br/><br/>The best addition to the cast was the farmer's daughter Thrace, who is the naive farmer's daughter with an abundance of courage. Again a bit tropey, but very likable and it's nice to have another female character at least.<br/><br/>The conspiracies introduced in the first story are explored further and <br/>we get some more insights on the larger scale.<br/><br/>Riyria has been sought out by Thrace at the prompting of an old acquaintance to help her father obtain a magical sword to defeat an evil beast that is plaguing her small village.<br/><br/>I'm most intrigued by the elves, who have always been my favorite fantasy element, who like many other books are elusive. We still don't meet any full-blooded elves, but we do get to experience some of their architecture. I hope we'll get to see something from them soon, maybe in the form of a strong female elf.<br/><br/>I thought this was a lot less predictable than the first story, and really enjoyed the character development of our two protagonists. There is some nice setup for the next books that has me eager to continue on in the series. Not only that, but Mr. Sullivan does a good job of developing many of his supporting characters as well.<br/><br/>This again isn't a story that will appeal to grimdark fans as it's more of a light fantasy where despite the dangers things work out for the best. Mostly.<br/><br/>4 stars. ","","","","","",0,,,,,
  828,"Interface","Neal Stephenson","Stephenson, Neal","George F. Jewsbury, Stephen  Bury",="0553383434",="9780553383430",0,"3.60","Spectra","Paperback","618",2005,1994,,2013/07/11,"to-read","to-read (#166)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  15704307,"Saga, Volume 1","Brian K. Vaughan","Vaughan, Brian K.","Fiona Staples",="1607066017",="9781607066019",4,"4.38","Image Comics","Graphic Novel","160",2012,2012,2013/11/16,2013/07/09,"graphic-novels-and-manga, science-fiction, read-2013, saga","graphic-novels-and-manga (#1), science-fiction (#46), read-2013 (#84), saga (#3)","read","<b><u>Story</u></b><br/>I didn't know this sort of story was being told in graphic novels. If not for goodreads, I might never have known. The core of the story is as old as time itself really. I'm sure Romeo and Juliet wasn't the first story of star-crossed lovers, but it's probably the best known, and certainly the one that came to my mind. Two people tired of an endless war between their people find comfort in one another.<br/><br/>However, I don't remember robots, lightsabers, magic and monsters during my 9th grade English classes reading of that story. While the premise may not be new, the take on it certainly is. <br/><br/>The idea of whether someone should be a child into this world is not a new one either. If humanity refrained from reproducing when things looked bleak, we might have died out long ago.<br/><br/>The story was a good mix of action, tension and humor that had me turning page after page until I found there were gone. I'm glad I had the next volume ready to go after.<br/><br/><b><u>Artwork</u></b><br/>I don't have anything to compare it to as I'm not really a reader of graphic novels. The only comics I usual read are the daily web comic variety. This is my first experience with Fiona Staples. I enjoyed her work. It seems to fit the story well and adds something that would be lost in a text-only version.","","","1","","Tamahome",0,,,,,
  16158596,"Lexicon","Max Barry","Barry, Max","",="1594205388",="9781594205385",0,"3.91","Penguin Press HC, The","Hardcover","390",2013,2013,,2013/07/08,"to-read","to-read (#165)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  10504636,"Spin","Robert Charles Wilson","Wilson, Robert Charles","",="1429915439",="9781429915434",0,"3.99","Tor Books","ebook","368",2010,2005,,2013/07/04,"to-read, humble-ebook-bundle-2","to-read (#164), humble-ebook-bundle-2 (#5)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  12282943,"Shards of Honour (Vorkosigan Saga, #1)","Lois McMaster Bujold","Bujold, Lois McMaster","",="",="",0,"4.14","","Kindle Edition","221",,1986,,2013/07/04,"to-read, humble-ebook-bundle-2","to-read (#163), humble-ebook-bundle-2 (#4)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  7294675,"Boneshaker (The Clockwork Century, #1)","Cherie Priest","Priest, Cherie","",="1429942495",="9781429942492",3,"3.51","Tor Books","ebook","356",2009,2009,2013/10/07,2013/07/04,"humble-ebook-bundle-2, read-2013, sword-and-laser, steampunk","humble-ebook-bundle-2 (#1), read-2013 (#73), sword-and-laser (#16), steampunk (#1)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A surprisingly fun and quick read that has me rethinking this whole ""steampunk"" thing.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>When the novel was described to me as ""Steampunk and Zombies, What's not to love?"" my reaction was ""Ugh. All of the above?""<br/><br/>I just don't ""get"" steampunk. And I'm certainly not big on the whole zombie craze. I've had this book for awhile from Humble Bundle 2, but wasn't planning to read it anytime soon. <br/><br/>I was pleasantly surprised. This is why I try to always read the monthly <a href=""https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/4170-the-sword-and-laser"">Sword & Laser</a> pick. It's not always a winner, but you never know until you give it a shot.<br/><br/>Now that I've finished, I feel like the whole zombie thing is overblown. That might disappoint the zombie fans out there, but for me it was a good development. S&L member <a href=""https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/811687-sandi"">Sandi</a> likened it to the threat of wild animals in a wilderness setting, and I think that's the perfect way to describe it.<br/><br/>Really if not for the poisonous gas that turns you to zombies and crazy contraptions, this book would be a western. I will say the crazy contraptions were pretty cool. Is that the appeal of Steampunk? If so, I can get behind that. I've always thought it was just an excuse to wear top hats, goggles or a monocle.<br/><br/>The story has 2 main POVs, Brier and her son Zeke. The book is full of several strong and interesting female characters in fact, which is always a pleasant development in genre fiction.<br/><br/>Zeke runs off to the walled off part of the city full of poison gas, zombies and dangerous people. Brier chases after in an effort to save her son from peril. <br/><br/>Add in a mad scientist, crazy contraptions, airships, pirates, and other shady characters and you've got a pretty fun and light read that had me eager to see what would happen next.<br/><br/>I hope to find time to read other books by Ms. Priest, and has me more interested in giving other steampunk books a shot in the future.","","","1","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  18162,"The Fugitive Game: Online with Kevin Mitnick","Jonathan Littman","Littman, Jonathan","",="0316528692",="9780316528696",0,"3.79","Little, Brown and Company","Paperback","416",1997,1996,,2013/07/03,"to-read, hacking, nonfiction","to-read (#162), hacking (#9), nonfiction (#10)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  16280101,"Forge of Darkness (The Kharkanas Trilogy #1)","Steven Erikson","Erikson, Steven","",="0857501356",="9780857501356",0,"4.15","Bantam","Mass Market Paperback","922",2013,2012,,2013/07/02,"to-read, fantasy, malazan-fallen, dark-fantasy, next-in-series","to-read (#22), fantasy (#205), malazan-fallen (#11), dark-fantasy (#35), next-in-series (#15)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  29587,"Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom","Cory Doctorow","Doctorow, Cory","",="076530953X",="9780765309532",0,"3.57","Tor Books","Paperback","208",2003,2003,,2013/07/02,"to-read","to-read (#161)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  132694,"When Gravity Fails (Marîd Audran #1)","George Alec Effinger","Effinger, George Alec","",="0765313588",="9780765313584",0,"3.97","Orb Books","Paperback","288",2005,1987,,2013/07/02,"to-read","to-read (#160)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18052754,"Altered Carbon (Takeshi Kovacs #1)","Richard K. Morgan","Morgan, Richard K.","Todd McLaren",="",="",3,"4.11","Tantor Audio","Audible Audio","17",2005,2002,2014/03/08,2013/07/02,"science-fiction, sword-and-laser, cyberpunk, audio-book, read-2014","science-fiction (#62), sword-and-laser (#22), cyberpunk (#7), audio-book (#94), read-2014 (#20)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A book that seemed to work better in concept than execution for me. It's possible I just wasn't in the right mood for this book at the time I listened to it though.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> The narration was OK, but not great. Todd McLaren has a decent enough voice, but isn't very good at accents. I think I would have preferred if he just read it rather than trying to do voices. They weren't so bad as to distract me from the story though.<br/><br/>The actual quality of the audiobook is awful. I'm not sure if this is because I accidentally downloaded the lower quality version or just in general. It was REALLY quiet. And when I plugged my phone into the car I'd get feedback noise if I had it plugged into the charger as well.<br/><br/>It was OK on headphones, but overall it was frustrating trying to listen to the book. I would have switched to the ebook if I wasn't in the middle of something else. I'd personally recommend staying away from the audio for this reason alone.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This one has been on my list for awhile. The blurb sounded pretty cool. I've read a lot of Urban Fantasy that uses the detective mashup, but not a cyberpunk one. I was pretty excited when it was chosen as the Sword & Laser March pick.<br/><br/>It started off pretty cool. An elite operative being forced into an unfamiliar body on earth. Hired by someone who recently died to investigate the circumstances. But I had trouble getting into it.<br/><br/>There seemed to just be a lot of sex and violence and very little in the way of plot. I enjoy a dumb action flick every now and again and I don't even mind popcorn fiction, but this just didn't seem to click with me. I'm still not sure if it's that I simply don't like the book that much, or if I just wasn't in the right mood for it.<br/><br/>There are cool action sequences. I liked some of the sci-fi elements (transferred consciousness, virtual reality) and how they were incorporated into the storyline. I was interested in finding out the reason for the murder/suicide. So why didn't I just love this book?<br/><br/>If I had to put my finger on it, I'd say it's because I never connected to any of the characters. I tend to enjoy character driven stories the most. Plus, when you have a story that is light on plot and heavy on action, you really need to have a protagonist the reader can get behind and that just didn't happen for me.<br/><br/>I can see this being an enjoyable book to read though, and I didn't hate it, I just didn't like it as much as I was expecting to I guess. Your mileage may vary.","","","1","","",1,2014/02/18,"Audible","Like new",,
  9958451,"Pandora's Star","Peter F. Hamilton","Hamilton, Peter F.","John      Lee",="1400177642",="9781400177646",4,"4.21","Tantor Media, Inc.","Audiobook","",2009,2004,2013/11/04,2013/06/30,"audio-book, commonwealth, science-fiction, read-2013","audio-book (#46), commonwealth (#1), science-fiction (#2), read-2013 (#80)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A really enjoyable hard sci-fi space opera, with only a few minor complaints to prevent it from a 5 star rating.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> This is the first book I've listened to narrated my Mr. Lee. He does an excellent job. He does a few voices, but I sometimes had a hard time determining who they were at first. It felt like he was using the same voices for multiple characters at time. Overall I was happy with the narration though.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>Is Epic Sci-Fi a thing? If not it should be. Or maybe that's what Space Opera is. This book has a lot of point of view characters and starts with a lot of stories that appear to have nothing to do with each other...at first. It made me think I was reading an epic fantasy novel where technology replaces magic and aliens replace elves and dragons.<br/><br/>There is a ton of sci-fi concepts in here: memory/life backups, cloning, anti-aging/near immortality, worm holes, FTL. I'm probably missing some minor ones, but those are the biggies.<br/><br/>It's a world where space exploration is boring because wormholes make travel between planets instantaneous, and the idea of spending money on ships and sending them to the far reaches of space to explore is considered a waste.<br/><br/>That is until a mysterious event occurs on the edge of space prompts the need for the first space ship in centuries to be constructed.<br/><br/>Meanwhile you have a terrorist, a murder investigation and a whole lot of politics to contend with. It's a society that doesn't seem very far off from out own, save for the technological advances.<br/><br/>Mr. Hamilton does a great job at character development. And he makes you think about things. What would you do if you lived for multiple centuries, getting a youthful body every few decades or so as you needed (assuming you can afford it)? Would you stay married to the same person? Would you keep the same job?<br/><br/>My favorite characters/story lines was the main storyline with Wilson Kime the one time NASA pilot and now captain of the new constructed Second Chance.<br/><br/>The other I enjoyed most was probably Paula Myo and her investigations into both a murder and the case that eluded for over a hundred years involving a terrorist named Adam Elvin. She's not someone I could see myself being friends with (I'm not sure she has any anyways), but I can identify with several of her character traits.<br/><br/>My only (mostly minor) complaints are that some scenes go on too long (30 minutes of hang gliding, seriously?), and the way this book ends by setting up several cliff hangers.<br/><br/>I knew this was part of a series coming in, but I think the ending could have been better.<br/><br/>Overall though, a very enjoyable book and I'm looking forward to finishing the series with [b:Judas Unchained|45244|Judas Unchained (Commonwealth Saga, #2)|Peter F. Hamilton|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1316501189s/45244.jpg|44507] at the end of December with my next road trip.","","","1","space opera fans","David Sven Goransson",0,,,,,
  9939608,"Judas Unchained (Commonwealth Saga, #2)","Peter F. Hamilton","Hamilton, Peter F.","John      Lee",="1400177634",="9781400177639",4,"4.27","Tantor Media, Inc.","Audiobook","39",2009,2005,2013/12/31,2013/06/30,"audio-book, commonwealth, science-fiction, read-2013","audio-book (#48), commonwealth (#2), science-fiction (#1), read-2013 (#106)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> An enjoyable conclusion to the Commonwealth Duology. I plan to check out the Void trilogy at some point in the future.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> John Lee once again does a great job. He doesn't do voices, but he's got a great reading voice that I could listen to for hours and seems well suited to Space Opera. I'm excited to see he reads the Void series for Tantor as well as a few other books I plan to check out.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This is a long one, but overall I enjoyed it. I think this works best in audio because Mr. Hamilton can sometimes go overboard on the details and I found it easy to miss a little here and there and still not seem to miss any plot points. If I were reading it, I might start skimming or something.<br/><br/>This book picks up right where [b:Pandora's Star|45252|Pandora's Star (Commonwealth Saga, #1)|Peter F. Hamilton|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1347952635s/45252.jpg|987015] leaves off, so you'll want to read that first before jumping into this one.<br/><br/>We're introduced to a few new POV characters in this one, to go along with some old favorites (of mine anyways) like Ozzy and Paula Myo.<br/><br/>I think Mr. Hamilton does a good job in not only tying up all the loose ends but merging the various story lines together into a cohesive finale.<br/><br/>There were some parts of [b:Pandora's Star|45252|Pandora's Star (Commonwealth Saga, #1)|Peter F. Hamilton|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1347952635s/45252.jpg|987015] that felt superfluous (I'm looking at you Hang Gliding scene!) or just more background and depth that felt necessary (like the whole murder/disappearing bodies subplot) that suddenly clicked in with this book.<br/><br/>The real enjoyment for me wasn't necessarily the space battles, the politics or the aliens, but just the Commonwealth itself and the people we meet. Don't get me wrong all that stuff was cool (not to mention I had a hankering for some Starcraft after the scenes with the soldiers in badass armor suits going to toe to toe with aliens that remind me a lot of the Zerg).<br/><br/>The Commonwealth feels very much like our world today, only with a lot more fun toys to play with and near-immortality to allow one to experience them. That is if you're lucky enough to be part of the right family/born on the right planet.<br/><br/>I think Mark really became one of my favorite characters because he uses his intelligence and hard work to get ahead, albeit thanks to taking advantage of some timely opportunities.<br/><br/>I'm excited to check out other stories the Commonwealth, even if they are with a whole other cast of characters. I happened to snag [b:The Dreaming Void|866136|The Dreaming Void (Void, #1)|Peter F. Hamilton|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1388208500s/866136.jpg|851537] as part of an end of year BOGO sale too. I'm hoping some of the characters from this are still alive and kicking and make a cameo or two at least.","","","1","","",1,,"Tantor.com","Like new",,
  17299692,"Agent to the Stars","John Scalzi","Scalzi, John","Wil Wheaton",="1469298961",="9781469298962",3,"3.90","Brilliance Audio","Audio CD","",2013,2004,2013/07/12,2013/06/29,"audio-book, sff-audio, read-2013, science-fiction","audio-book (#45), sff-audio (#7), read-2013 (#51), science-fiction (#6)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A decent, but not great sci-fi story. You can see the early signs of Mr. Scalzi's work, but not nearly as developed as in his later works.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> This is the third audiobook I've listened to read by [a:Wil Wheaton|37075|Wil Wheaton|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1356706649p2/37075.jpg]. I think it might be his best of the three. He does a much better job with voice variation for the characters in the book. Voices aren't his strong suit, especially female voices. I still enjoy him as a narrator however.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>If taken in a vacuum, knowing this is a novel that Mr. Scalzi wrote to see if he could, it's pretty good. Of course things aren't in a vacuum, and given my enjoyment of his later works, this one just isn't as good.<br/><br/>This book was a series of ups and downs for me. I started off a little slow, but built up as it went on. I liked most of the characters. The normal Scalzi snark is present, but not as funny as in his other works.<br/><br/>The premise itself is an amusing one. Thomas Stein is an up and coming young agent in Hollywood. He works for one of the top agency's in L.A. His boss is probably one of the best known people in all of Hollywood. It is for that reasons that aliens contact him. <br/><br/>The very benign Yherajk have a problem. Despite being very peaceful, they look terrifying, and smell worse. They've been watching our movies and TV for years, and worry about how the human race will react. They decide they need an agent. Tom is chosen by his boss as someone who can spare the time to work the problem without being found out.<br/><br/>Of course things don't go exactly as planned.<br/><br/>Just as I was really enjoying the story, the book took a turn. It really changed the whole tone of the book for me. It went from being a light sci-fi story to something more serious, and characters I liked were pondering actions I didn't like.<br/><br/>Things righted themselves a bit, and the ending saved the story from going completely off the rails for me.<br/><br/>Overall, I'd say this is one that could safely be skipped by all the biggest Scalzi fans. It's enjoyable enough, but nothing that special.","","","1","","",1,2013/06/29,"","Like new",,
  13130287,"Revelation Space (Revelation Space, #1)","Alastair Reynolds","Reynolds, Alastair","John      Lee",="",="",3,"3.95","Tantor Audio","Audiobook","22",2009,2000,2014/05/17,2013/06/25,"audio-book, read-2014, science-fiction","audio-book (#109), read-2014 (#49), science-fiction (#72)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> An interesting story that I found too confusing and full of unlikable characters leaving me a bit disappointed.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I like John Lee as a reader for space opera. He has a good voice for it in my opinion. I've listened to some [a:Peter F. Hamilton|25375|Peter F. Hamilton|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1235123752p2/25375.jpg] he narrated as well. He does a few accents and voices, but nothing really special to add to the story and make it a must listen.<br/><br/>That said, this isn't a book I think that works very well in Audio. There is a lot going on and I found myself a bit lost, especially with the names of characters. I wonder if I might have liked the book more if I had read it rather than reading it.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I'm not a big sci-fi reader. More than your average person probably, but I'd guess I probably read 2 or 3 fantasy books for every sci-fi one.<br/><br/>[b:The Martian|18007564|The Martian|Andy Weir|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1377707689s/18007564.jpg|21825181] put me in a sci-fi mood though, and I wanted some fun space opera to scratch the itch. After reading [a:Peter F. Hamilton|25375|Peter F. Hamilton|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1235123752p2/25375.jpg]'s Commonwealth Saga, I had several people telling me I should really check out this series.<br/><br/>As it happens, audible had a big sci-fi book sale, and I was able to pick this one up, so the timing seemed perfect. Unfortunately, this book didn't live up to expectations.<br/><br/>It's not bad, and I'd consider reading another Reynolds book in the future, just not anytime soon. I found it really confusing at the start. I'm not sure if that's entirely the story's fault (it sort of feels like he means for you to be confused) or the fact that I did it in audio, but I'm not a big fan of stories where the author tries to confuse you.<br/><br/>Eventually though I got my bearings, and there was some cool stuff going on that I wanted to find out more about. However, I found all of his characters unlikable. I prefer character-driven stories. Great characters can carry a weak story a lot better than weak characters can carry a great story for me.<br/><br/>That isn't to say Mr. Hamilton's characters are weak or undeveloped. I just didn't like them. The worst thing an author can do for me is make me not care what happens to the characters. I didn't exactly hate his characters either. If I did, at least I could have rooted for them to meet some sticky end. No, mostly I found myself indifferent.<br/><br/>To me this is a book that had a lot of potential that just failed in execution for me. Other people may like the characters more, or maybe aren't as put off by reading a book where you don't feel like you have someone/thing to cheer for. <br/><br/>Maybe I'll try one of his stand alone's next, but for now I need a break not only from Mr. Reynolds, but Sci-Fi in general.","","","1","","",1,2014/05/04,"Audible","Like new",,
  13642710,"Nexus (Nexus, #1)","Ramez Naam","Naam, Ramez","",="0857662937",="9780857662934",0,"4.08","Angry Robot","Paperback","460",2012,2012,,2013/06/19,"to-read","to-read (#159)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  530965,"The Day of the Triffids","John Wyndham","Wyndham, John","",="0812967127",="9780812967128",0,"3.97","Modern Library","Paperback","228",2003,1951,,2013/06/15,"to-read","to-read (#158)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  334176,"The Sparrow (The Sparrow, #1)","Mary Doria Russell","Russell, Mary Doria","",="0449912558",="9780449912553",0,"4.18","Ballantine Books","Paperback","408",1997,1996,,2013/06/11,"to-read","to-read (#157)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  16146232,"Joyland","Stephen King","King, Stephen","Michael (Joseph) Kelly",="1442359919",="9781442359918",4,"3.90","Simon & Schuster Audio","Audio CD","7",2013,2013,2013/06/17,2013/06/07,"audio-book, read-2013, sff-audio","audio-book (#41), read-2013 (#41), sff-audio (#5)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Not exactly what I'm used to from Mr. King, but quite enjoyable none the less.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> The book is narrated by <a href=""http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0446672/"">Michael Kelly</a> who is probably better known as an actor than as an audiobook reader. This is the first book I've listened to with him. <br/><br/>Unsurprisingly he speaks in a clear manner, with good inflection. He does a few accents for some of the characters, but not many. He's a decent reader, but doesn't really add much to it.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I'd like to think of myself as an experienced [a:Stephen King|3389|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1362814142p2/3389.jpg] reader. I'm no expert though. I've read about 25 of his books, but that's only about a 3rd of what he's written.<br/><br/>At first I found myself wondering if I had the author right. I kept waiting for horrible things to happen: evil clowns, monsters, Randall Flagg. You know, a [a:Stephen King|3389|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1362814142p2/3389.jpg] book. There are carnies, but no evil clowns.<br/><br/>That's probably not fair on my part, he has written a variety of things over the years, and not all of it is horror. Still it's what he's best known for, and it can be a bit surprising when evil isn't lurking around every corner. <br/><br/>That isn't to say this book doesn't have some spookiness and a sense of the fantastical going on. <br/><br/>Joyland is about a 21 year old college student named Devin Jones, recently ditched by his girlfriend who takes a summer job working at an amusement park in North Carolina called Joyland in the 1970s.<br/><br/>One of Joyland's biggest attractions is the Horror House, said to be haunted by the ghost of a girl who was murdered during the ride a few years past. That sounds more like the [a:Stephen King|3389|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1362814142p2/3389.jpg] we all know, right?<br/><br/>During his job interview, he meets the resident ""physic"" who gives him a prediction about his future. He's skeptical, because surely, it's all just an act for the show, right?<br/><br/>What follows is a time that Devin will never forget, and a story I greatly enjoyed. It's actually quite heart warming in places. It's really a book about people more than anything.<br/><br/>It's certainly not one of his scariest books, but it's one of the best of his I've read. It's certainly more [b:The Shawshank Redemption|39662|The Shawshank Redemption|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1329662611s/39662.jpg|2248680] than [b:It|18342|It|Stephen King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1309376909s/18342.jpg|150259].<br/><br/>At only 283 pages/7.5 hours it's much shorter than Mr. King's usual fare as well, but I'd definitely recommend it as a quick read.","","","1","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  16720144,"Fast Times at Fairmont High","Vernor Vinge","Vinge, Vernor","",="1469280434",="9781469280431",2,"3.79","Brilliance Audio","Audio CD","",2013,2001,2013/06/10,2013/06/05,"audio-book, read-2013, sff-audio, science-fiction, cyberpunk","audio-book (#39), read-2013 (#38), sff-audio (#4), science-fiction (#8), cyberpunk (#2)","read","As this is a novella, it's quite short (<3 hours). I just couldn't get into it. The technology in it was interesting, but that was about the only part I found enjoyable. It's about a bunch of middle school kids at a high-tech school.<br/><br/>The main character Juan has been convinced by his friend to partner up with Miriam, a girl he doesn't know for their ""offline"" project, where they aren't allowed to make use of net that is even more prevalent in their lives as it today with today's smart phones.<br/><br/>I've been told this is set in the same world as [b:Rainbows End|15736153|Rainbows End|Vernor Vinge|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1341438571s/15736153.jpg|3101132], which I haven't read. Mr. Vinge does set up an interesting world, even if this particular story isn't very interesting, so if that's true, maybe I would enjoy that novel better.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> The audio reader: Eric Michael Summerer was alright, but nothing special. His accent for William kept reminding me of George Takei.","","","","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  19486421,"Skin Game (The Dresden Files, #15)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="0451464397",="9780451464392",5,"4.56","Roc Hardcover","Hardcover","454",2014,2014,2014/05/29,2013/06/04,"dresden-files, urban-fantasy, fantasy, read-2014, audio-book, sff-audio","dresden-files (#18), urban-fantasy (#12), fantasy (#19), read-2014 (#55), audio-book (#114), sff-audio (#19)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> While not quite as good as [b:Cold Days|12216302|Cold Days (The Dresden Files, #14)|Jim Butcher|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345145377s/12216302.jpg|17189468], [a:Jim Butcher|10746|Jim Butcher|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1400640324p2/10746.jpg] once again shows why he's the king of Urban Fantasy and one of the best fantasy writers out there.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> [a:James Marsters|169487|James Marsters|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1252176950p2/169487.jpg] once again makes this series a must listen. It's not even the fact that he does voices for the characters that makes it great. It's the WAY he does the voices. The emotion when Harry casts a spell. Or him actually yelling PARKOUR! instead of simply reading it. He may not be the voice I originally expected for Harry, but he sure is now.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>It's been 18 months give or take since [b:Cold Days|12216302|Cold Days (The Dresden Files, #14)|Jim Butcher|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345145377s/12216302.jpg|17189468] came out and I've been in withdrawal. <br/><br/>I tried to hold myself over with an Iron Druid and a Libriomancer. They just didn't do the trick. In fact, I've decided that apart from Dresden Files, Urban Fantasy just really isn't for me. Nothing else compares. Not even close.<br/><br/>I barely made it halfway down the first page and I was already laughing out loud. I had to spend an extra ten minutes deciding which one-liner was best to use for my status update, and just opted for one of the shorter ones because I had already stayed up too late reading.<br/><br/>I really wanted to finish this book in two days, but managed to constrain myself and go to bed so I wouldn't be a zombie at work the next day. That shows that this book is a slight step down from [b:Cold Days|12216302|Cold Days (The Dresden Files, #14)|Jim Butcher|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345145377s/12216302.jpg|17189468].<br/><br/>We see a return of the Nicodemus and Order of the Blackened Denarius. By far one of the best villains of the series, if not all of fantasy. I was yelling at my book and Jim Butcher a few times.<br/><br/>My only real complaint is that many of the questions and issues created by [b:Cold Days|12216302|Cold Days (The Dresden Files, #14)|Jim Butcher|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345145377s/12216302.jpg|17189468] go largely unanswered. It almost feels like things were put on hold for a side story.<br/><br/>That said, the book once again combines great characters, great dialogue and great action in a way that makes it nearly impossible to put down. I always hate waiting between books, but I can't help myself from spending every free minute reading until I finish. It's just that good.<br/><br/>Anyone who reads the first few books and wonders what all the fuss is about, or balks at having to read a few books before the series ""gets really good"" is just missing out. If for some reason you still haven't caught up on this series after [b:Cold Days|12216302|Cold Days (The Dresden Files, #14)|Jim Butcher|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345145377s/12216302.jpg|17189468], consider this another recommendation to get on it.<br/><br/>Thankfully I'll have [b:The Aeronaut's Windlass|17403559|The Aeronaut's Windlass (The Cinder Spires, #1)|Jim Butcher|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/book/50x75-6121bf4c1f669098041843ec9650ca19.png|24239884] to read to tide me over over while I return to vigil of waiting for the next Dresden Files book. <br/><br/>Maybe I'll take up Parkour!","","","1","","",1,2014/05/27,"Amazon","Like new",,
  15790883,"Promise of Blood (The Powder Mage, #1)","Brian  McClellan","McClellan, Brian","",="0316219037",="9780316219037",4,"4.15","Orbit","Hardcover","545",2013,2013,2013/10/25,2013/06/01,"fantasy, not-a-bookclub-club, powder-mage, read-2013, flintlock-fantasy","fantasy (#170), not-a-bookclub-club (#8), powder-mage (#1), read-2013 (#78), flintlock-fantasy (#3)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> An enjoyable novel from a first-time author that has me looking forward to his next book. If I were to summarize it in one sentence I might say ""The French Revolution with magic"".<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>With many first novels, it is often apparent the writer is new. This one is no different. There are some confusing parts that could stand to be rewritten, and some minor plot lines that seem to be unimportant or go nowhere.<br/><br/>I'm pretty forgiving of such things if the story and characters are interesting/different enough however, and this fits the bill. It's possible Mr. McClellan is trying to leave the reader a bit confused at this point, since this is the start of a trilogy. It will be really hard to say until the story is finished.<br/><br/>I really enjoyed the characters, especially most of his females ones. My only gripe is that none of them are POV characters, save the least interesting one. Hopefully that will change in the next book. Ka-poel is probably my favorite, and I'm looking forward to understanding more about her as the series goes on.<br/><br/>Mr. McClellan has developed several magic systems whose details aren't really clear at this point in the series, from the Privileged who appear to be more traditional Mages to the bizarre and interesting Powder Mages that the series is named for.<br/><br/>The gunpowder snorting soldiers can do really amazing things with guns and gunpowder in a very unique magic system that stands in contrast to the more traditional Privileged.<br/><br/>This book was a little slow to grab me. It might be because Mr. McClellan has set up numerous subplots that seem to go off in several directions that may turn some people off as slow or confusing. <br/><br/>Personally I enjoyed them all, even if the pacing maybe suffers a bit as a result. We've got the grizzled and hardened commander Tamas, who leads a coup and execution of the nobility including the King making for politics and intrigue. Spies and Assassins.<br/><br/>Then there is his son Taniel, who appears to have a Gunpowder problem that makes me think of Coke-head. He's in pursuit of a powerful Privileged who killed many of his father's Powder Mages that leads to him being on the front lines of an invasion and the threat of ancient powers.<br/><br/>Finally there is the investigator Adamat who starts by investigating a cryptic prophecy uttered by every Privileged in the King's cabal as they lay dying.<br/><br/>Many of these story lines are left lingering as the book stops more than it ends. I'm left with more questions that have me eager for the next book, but some may find the ending unsatisfactory.<br/><br/>Overall an enjoyable read. 3.5 Stars rounded up since it's his first novel.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  14996,"Brother Odd (Odd Thomas, #3)","Dean Koontz","Koontz, Dean","",="0553804804",="9780553804805",0,"3.96","Bantam","Hardcover","364",2006,2006,,2013/06/01,"to-read, horror, next-in-series","to-read (#156), horror (#13), next-in-series (#5)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  17984867,"The Ocean At The End of the Lane","Neil Gaiman","Gaiman, Neil","",="",="",0,"3.99","William Morrow; 1st edition","ebook","143",2013,2013,,2013/05/31,"to-read","to-read (#155)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  840278,"Eon (The Way, #1)","Greg Bear","Bear, Greg","",="0812520475",="9780812520477",0,"3.83","Tor Science Fiction","Paperback","512",1991,1985,,2013/05/26,"to-read","to-read (#154)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  2890090,"The Republic of Thieves (Gentleman Bastard, #3)","Scott Lynch","Lynch, Scott","",="0553804693",="9780553804690",4,"4.20","Del Rey","Hardcover","650",2013,2013,2013/10/13,2013/05/21,"gentleman-bastard, fantasy, not-a-bookclub-club, read-2013","gentleman-bastard (#3), fantasy (#144), not-a-bookclub-club (#3), read-2013 (#75)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> The long awaited third novel in the Gentleman Bastards series, I would put this one about on par with [b:Red Seas Under Red Skies|887877|Red Seas Under Red Skies (Gentleman Bastard, #2)|Scott Lynch|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1291336119s/887877.jpg|856785] but not nearly as good as [b:The Lies of Locke Lamora|127455|The Lies of Locke Lamora (Gentleman Bastard, #1)|Scott Lynch|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1320532483s/127455.jpg|2116675].<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I only recently started the Gentleman Bastard series, so I didn't have the anticipation or the wait that many other fans had. I was however wondering if we'd ever meet the occasionally mentioned, but never seen Sabetha anytime soon.<br/><br/>This book delivers that in spades. In fact possibly a little too much to the detriment of the other characters. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy her character, and hope we'll see a lot more from her in the future, but I could have used some more with Jean and the other Bastards.<br/><br/>The others? Yes, about half of this novel is a series of flashbacks much like the first novel where we finally learn about Sabetha and her relationship with Locke. I found these parts the better of the two stories. Maybe it was the (albeit brief) appearance of Chains, or the twins. I'm not really sure.<br/><br/>For the present day story Locke and Jean are compelled to take their hand at politics, and you'll never guess who they are up against?<br/><br/>The writing is once again excellent. I've heard complaints about the pacing, but I didn't find that an issue. In fact I found it much easier to get into this one than I did with the start of [b:Red Seas Under Red Skies|887877|Red Seas Under Red Skies (Gentleman Bastard, #2)|Scott Lynch|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1291336119s/887877.jpg|856785].<br/><br/>There is once again a slew of hilarious (and often inappropriate to repeat) conversations and one-liners. I often had to pause my reading to set down my book to control my laughter.<br/><br/>My major issue is the main story in many ways felt like more of the same. Locke is supposed to be this criminal genius, yet he always seems not just one or two steps behind, but way behind his opposition. Maybe it's because I read all three books in close proximity, but I found it frustrating at points.<br/><br/>That said, it was still a fun ride most of the way and I'll be eagerly waiting now for the fourth book in the series.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  2171498,"Red Seas Under Red Skies (Gentleman Bastard, #2)","Scott Lynch","Lynch, Scott","",="0553588958",="9780553588958",4,"4.21","Bantam Spectra","Mass Market Paperback","760",2008,2007,2013/09/22,2013/05/21,"gentleman-bastard, fantasy, not-a-bookclub-club, read-2013","gentleman-bastard (#2), fantasy (#143), not-a-bookclub-club (#1), read-2013 (#71)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This book is uneven, and I didn't enjoy it nearly as much as [b:The Lies of Locke Lamora|127455|The Lies of Locke Lamora (Gentleman Bastard, #1)|Scott Lynch|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1320532483s/127455.jpg|2116675], but the second half more than makes up for the first to make this an enjoyable read.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This book is very uneven. The beginning was painfully slow. It seemed like little happened and Mr. Lynch was determined to describe everything in minute details.<br/><br/>A lot of what did happen seemed like a rehash of the first book in a new city and not nearly as fun.<br/><br/>Locke and Jean are dealing with the aftermath of the first book and things aren't going well. Like the last book this book mixes chapters of the present with flashback chapters filling in the reader on past events as they are relevant to the current story. I still think this works well.<br/><br/>Thankfully somewhere in the middle or so the book takes a turn. We have ships, and pirates, and of course plots within plots.<br/><br/>This book adds some greatly needed female characters, and provides interesting superstitions about sailing a boat without female officers and cats. Cats? Yeah, though kittens seem preferred.<br/><br/>The humor and the relationship of Jean and Locke continue, albeit under even more strain than the last novel. There are a lot of great quotes to choose from again.<br/><br/>I would almost call this book stand alone like the last save for some very major plot points left unresolved at the end and obviously the need to have read [b:The Lies of Locke Lamora|127455|The Lies of Locke Lamora (Gentleman Bastard, #1)|Scott Lynch|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1320532483s/127455.jpg|2116675] first.<br/><br/>Overall the second half of the book was much better and despite the slow start the book really got it's hooks into me and was hard to put down.<br/><br/>I debated between 4 stars and 3 on here and decided to round up since it ended better than it began.<br/><br/>3.5 Stars","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  3235477,"Last Argument of Kings","Joe Abercrombie","Abercrombie, Joe","",="1591026903",="9781591026907",4,"4.24","Pyr","Paperback","637",2008,2008,2013/08/20,2013/05/15,"first-law, fantasy, dark-fantasy, read-2013, not-a-bookclub-club","first-law (#3), fantasy (#63), dark-fantasy (#13), read-2013 (#61), not-a-bookclub-club (#6)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A fitting end to what is an essence a bleak series. Still, it made for an entertaining ride. I'm not sure what that says about me exactly. lol.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I started this book fully expecting to give this book one of the those elusive 5 star ratings, but somewhere along the way it lost me. I'm still not quite sure why.<br/><br/>Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed it, but it just didn't hold my attention fully like a 5-star book does.<br/><br/>The Union is learning what Napolean and the Germans could have told them. Don't fight a 2-front war. Things are pretty bad. They are only going to get worse.<br/><br/>Thank god there are heroes like Logen Ninefingers, Superior Glokta and the First Magi Bayaz to put things right. Or should we be cursing god and wondering what we did to deserve such ""heroes""?<br/><br/>The characters are great, albeit not very likable. Yet they are. I'm rooting for killers and torturers. Mr. Abercrombie must himself be a wizard, because I don't understand how else he can have me not only enjoying these characters, but rooting for them as well. It makes me feel uncomfortable. I chalk it up to ""interesting to read about, but I'd never want to meet any of them.""<br/><br/>This book is worth reading just for Glokta's internal dialogue alone. I have also acquired all the wisdom Logen's father has to offer.<br/><br/>Overall I was happy with the ending, but some things were left open-ended and unresolved that I wouldn't mind a follow-on story. Or maybe I'll get some glimpses into what happens after from the stand-alone novels? I shall see eventually, as I now count Mr. Abercrombie among my favorite authors, and plan to read the rest of his works at some point.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  2111520,"Before They Are Hanged (The First Law, #2)","Joe Abercrombie","Abercrombie, Joe","",="1591026415",="9781591026419",4,"4.25","Pyr","Paperback","543",2008,2007,2013/07/21,2013/05/15,"first-law, read-2013, fantasy, dark-fantasy, not-a-bookclub-club","first-law (#2), read-2013 (#53), fantasy (#62), dark-fantasy (#12), not-a-bookclub-club (#5)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Even better than the first entry in the trilogy, a dark and fun ride, not for the feint of heart.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I enjoyed this entry even more than [b:The Blade Itself|944073|The Blade Itself (The First Law, #1)|Joe Abercrombie|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1284167912s/944073.jpg|929009]. With most of the setup out of the way, Mr. Abercrombie now switchs to developing the characters and progressing the story further.<br/><br/>Parts of this book reminded me of [a:Patrick Rothfuss|108424|Patrick Rothfuss|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1351307341p2/108424.jpg]'s Kingkiller chronicles. Stories shared within the main story building the lore and giving the reader clues as to just what the heck might be going on.<br/><br/>This book is even darker than it's predecessor. It's not a nice world, and these aren't nice people. That doesn't stop you from rooting for them however.<br/><br/>Mr. Abercrombie somehow manages to describe terrible acts of brutality yet through the thoughts of his characters you find yourself both laughing and sympathetic to killers like Logen and his friends and a torturer in Glokta. Bayaz is no Gandalf  either.<br/><br/>I'm still not sure how that's possible. There is obviously something wrong with me, and Mr. Abercrombie is tapping into that. Given the generally high rating of these books, I can take some small comfort that I'm not alone in this.<br/><br/>My only real complaint about this book is that it doesn't so much end as it stops. Like [b:The Blade Itself|944073|The Blade Itself (The First Law, #1)|Joe Abercrombie|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1284167912s/944073.jpg|929009], it's a reasonable stopping place though. It's probably a better one since some short term goals are accomplished, but there is still much left to be uncovered and resolved.<br/><br/>I can't wait to finish this trilogy up next month. I might have to cheat and start early.<br/><br/>Given the way things are going however, I suspect we won't be getting a ""And they lived Happily Ever After..""","","","","","",0,,,,,
  23447029,"City of Golden Shadow (Otherland, #1)","Tad Williams","Williams, Tad","George Newbern",="",="9780756410322",0,"3.88","Penguin Audio","Audiobook","29",2014,1996,,2013/05/14,"to-read, audio-book, otherland, fantasy","to-read (#3), audio-book (#144), otherland (#1), fantasy (#275)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  29608,"The Codebreakers: The Comprehensive History of Secret Communication from Ancient Times to the Internet","David Kahn","Kahn, David","",="0684831309",="9780684831305",0,"4.18","Scribner","Hardcover","1200",1996,1963,,2013/05/14,"to-read","to-read (#153)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  3852641,"Little Brother (Little Brother, #1)","Cory Doctorow","Doctorow, Cory","",="0025430203",="2940025430209",0,"3.95","Random House","ebook","266",2008,2008,,2013/05/13,"to-read, humble-ebook-bundle-2","to-read (#152), humble-ebook-bundle-2 (#3)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  402045,"The Mists of Avalon (Avalon, #1)","Marion Zimmer Bradley","Bradley, Marion Zimmer","",="0345350499",="9780345350497",0,"4.10","Ballantine Books","Paperback","876",1984,1983,,2013/05/12,"to-read","to-read (#151)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  13500548,"Different Seasons","Stephen King","King, Stephen","",="",="",0,"4.31","Signet","Mass Market Paperback","507",1983,1981,,2013/05/08,"to-read","to-read (#150)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  17993080,"Shift (Silo, #2)","Hugh Howey","Howey, Hugh","Tim Gerard Reynolds",="",="",4,"4.15","Hugh Howey","Audiobook","18",2013,2013,2014/05/25,2013/05/08,"science-fiction, silo, audio-book, read-2014","science-fiction (#55), silo (#3), audio-book (#111), read-2014 (#53)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Not as good as [b:Wool|13453029|Wool Omnibus (Silo, #1)|Hugh Howey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1349614200s/13453029.jpg|18979356], but that's to be expected after such an enjoyable debut.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I first listened to [a:Tim Gerard Reynolds|4132657|Tim Gerard Reynolds|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1370714999p2/4132657.jpg] with [a:Michael J. Sullivan|2063919|Michael J. Sullivan|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1396351926p2/2063919.jpg]'s Riyria books. To me he is THE voice of that series. It made listening to this book a little strange at first. I kept expecting Royce or Hadrian to show up in one of the Silos.<br/><br/>That said, he's a great reader. He does voices and accents with the best of them. When I found out he was the reader for this, it made doing audio over reading it a no brainer.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>It's a bit strange to write a prequel as the second book in a trilogy. Yet somehow Mr. Howey makes it work. We start to get some of the answers I was left with at the end of [b:Wool|13453029|Wool Omnibus (Silo, #1)|Hugh Howey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1349614200s/13453029.jpg|18979356], though a few of them not nearly to my satisfaction. Hopefully we'll get more details in the final installment.<br/><br/>It's a bit strange being back in the US, albeit many years in the future. There is a whole new cast of characters, that at first seem completely unrelated to the first book. <br/><br/>However, as the book goes on things start to click in place and eventually we catch up to the events of the first book. This book fills in some background, but mostly seems to be setting the stage for the finale.<br/><br/>It seems like this book is the lowest rated of the three, so hopefully it finishes as strong as it starts and we'll see the two halves of this story finally come together. Personally though, I found this book to be a solid 4. Not as good or as page-turning as [b:Wool|13453029|Wool Omnibus (Silo, #1)|Hugh Howey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1349614200s/13453029.jpg|18979356] was, but enjoyable none the less.<br/><br/>On to [b:Dust|17855756|Dust (Silo, #3)|Hugh Howey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1369522849s/17855756.jpg|24576986]!","","","1","","",1,2014/05/20,"Audible","Like new",,
  6320534,"Under the Dome","Stephen King","King, Stephen","",="1439148503",="9781439148501",4,"3.88","Scribner","Hardcover","1074",2009,2009,2014/10/05,2013/05/07,"dark-tower-tie-in, horror, read-2014","dark-tower-tie-in (#14), horror (#23), read-2014 (#105)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Classic King. Despite the supernatural setting, the real horror of the book is perpetrated by characters on one another.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I've long since given up on reading every Stephen King book. But I try to read the ones with Dark Tower ties. This one was supposed to have minor connections, but I'd call them easter eggs at best.<br/><br/>What really moved this one up my list was the TV show. I enjoy the show, though if was a Fall show rather than a Summer one, it's possible I would have dropped it already. My main reason for reading the book was to find out the mystery behind the dome before the show revealed it. I needn't have worried though.<br/><br/>Like just about everything else though, the book is better. Not only is it better, it's almost entirely different. The plot seems to diverge from almost the very beginning. Some of the characters are similar, and they used some of the names. Most of them are drastically different though, or severely toned down.<br/><br/>No one will watch the show and think the Rennie's are likable characters by any means, but they have some redeemable characteristics. In the book both of them are downright awful. And they are not the only ones.<br/><br/>Mr. King's strength as a writer to me has always been his characters. They jump off the page. This book has some great ones. Though his best characters here are probably the worst. <br/><br/>Jim Rennie, used car salesman, town selectman, and fervent Christian is absolutely despicable. His ability to do something downright awful and follow it up with prayers for strength to continue to lead the town just show how self delusional some people can really be. And his son is probably worse. Most of the town is behind the Rennie's, or at least willing to blindly follow their lead in this time of crisis.<br/><br/>Thankfully though, there are plenty of likable characters, which will be somewhat similar to anyone familiar with the show. Primarily Dale Barbara, a drifter currently employed as a short order cook at the local diner. And there is Julia Shumway, the owner/editor of the local newspaper. They are rounded out <br/><br/>If you pick this book expecting a supernatural horror story, you may be disappointed. Mr. King doesn't spend a lot of time explaining the how or why of the dome. It mostly serves as the setting and a bit of plot vehicle. The characters want to escape, or use the dome as the reason to do something they might not otherwise.<br/><br/>Forget the fact that there is giant supernatural dome for a minute. The core of this story is really about all the horrible things people will do to one another when given an opportunity to get away with it, or simply not face real consequences.<br/><br/>Mr. King paints a picture of the best and the worst (mostly the worst) of humanity when panic and isolation and puts them under the microscope (or a dome!) for us to see the results.<br/><br/>I'm having a hard time trying to figure out other King book I've read this is most like to say ""if you like <i>book name</i>, you'll probably like this one."" Maybe [b:The Shining|11588|The Shining (The Shining #1)|Stephen King|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1353277730s/11588.jpg|849585]? You have that same sort of isolation and human driven horror with a bit of a supernatural flavor.<br/><br/>My main disappointment with the book was that the ending felt underwhelming. This goes back to the dome not being very flushed out, but merely a plot device. Despite that once I got into this book it was really hard to put down and I kept reading more and more each night until I finally finished it.","","","1","","",1,,"","Very good",,
  10593,"The Shining","Stephen King","King, Stephen","Campbell Scott",="0743537009",="9780743537001",4,"4.09","Simon & Schuster Audio","Audio CD","603",2005,1977,2013/09/24,2013/05/07,"audio-book, horror, read-2013","audio-book (#63), horror (#8), read-2013 (#69)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> As usual, the movie is not as good as the book. But it's not as different for me as many seem to say. The characters have a lot more depth, and it's certainly fantastical, but the core of the story is the same. If you like the movie, but haven't read the book, it's worth your time to check out.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> So how do you rate an audiobook that was adapted into a movie staring <a href=""http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000197/"">Jack Nicholson</a>? Surprisingly well actually. This was the first book I've listened to by Campbell Scott. He's pretty good. He's no Jack Nicholson, but he doesn't try to be.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I might have read this before, but I wasn't sure. With [b:Doctor Sleep|16130549|Doctor Sleep (The Shining, #2)|Stephen King|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1362415596s/16130549.jpg|17851499] coming out, I wanted to refresh myself either way.<br/><br/>I've only read about 1/3 of Mr. King's 60+ books. Most of what I've read have ties to <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/series/40750-the-dark-tower"">The Dark Tower</a>. This book is mentioned somewhere in the series. It seems like the Overlook Hotel might be competing with The Crimson King's Low Men for Danny. He'd probably be a hell of a breaker.<br/><br/>I'm not much of a horror fan, but Mr. King is one of my favorite authors. Why? Well most of what I've read by him tends to overlap into the fantastical. This one is no different. The book centers around the evil Overlook Hotel, which is very much so a character in it's own right (or more accurately, several characters). <br/><br/>I'm intrigued by the history of the hotel. There have been a series of dark events that have been mostly covered up by the ownership and the management. Are the owners purposefully helping the hotel to continue to claim new victims? It kind of seems that way.<br/><br/>The other reason I love Mr. King's books is his characters. I didn't really like any of the Torrance family. Jack is an alcoholic with anger issues, Wendy is neurotic, and Danny is kind of creepy. If you watch the movie, you might think that's all there is to the characters.<br/><br/>The book goes deeper. Jack's father was also an angry drunk. Wendy's mom gives her cause to be neurotic and that's before she married Jack. Danny is still a little creepy, but all of the characters are a bit more sympathetic and certainly more three dimensional.<br/><br/>Jack's decent into madness is more tragic. Wendy's craziness is more understandable.<br/><br/>3.5 Stars rounded up, because: fanboy.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  18342,"It","Stephen King","King, Stephen","",="0451169514",="9780451169518",0,"4.09","Signet","Paperback","1090",1987,1986,,2013/05/07,"to-read, horror, dark-tower-tie-in","to-read (#41), horror (#25), dark-tower-tie-in (#16)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  6318519,"His Majesty's Dragon (Temeraire, #1)","Naomi Novik","Novik, Naomi","",="",="",0,"4.05","Del Rey","Kindle Edition","384",2006,2006,,2013/05/03,"to-read, fantasy, sword-and-laser","to-read (#24), fantasy (#183), sword-and-laser (#19)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  219205,"Lord Foul's Bane (The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever, #1)","Stephen R. Donaldson","Donaldson, Stephen R.","",="0345348656",="9780345348654",0,"3.70","Del Rey / Ballantine","Mass Market Paperback","480",1989,1977,,2013/05/02,"to-read","to-read (#149)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  6658129,"Tokyo Vice: An American Reporter on the Police Beat in Japan","Jake Adelstein","Adelstein, Jake","",="0307378799",="9780307378798",0,"3.89","Pantheon","Hardcover","335",2009,2009,,2013/05/02,"to-read","to-read (#148)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  15832300,"Unfettered","Shawn Speakman","Speakman, Shawn","Terry Brooks, Patrick Rothfuss, Brandon Sanderson, Jacqueline Carey, Tad Williams, R.A. Salvatore, Naomi Novik, Geno Salvatore, Peter V. Brett, Daniel Abraham, Lev Grossman, David Anthony Durham, Peter Orullian, Blake Charlton, Michael J. Sullivan, Eldon Thompson, Robert V.S. Redick, Carrie Vaughn, Kevin Hearne, Jennifer Bosworth, Todd Lockwood, Mark  Lawrence",="0984713638",="9780984713639",0,"3.84","Grim Oak Press","Hardcover","574",2013,2013,,2013/04/30,"to-read","to-read (#31)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  13651,"The Dispossessed (Hainish Cycle, #5)","Ursula K. Le Guin","Guin, Ursula K. Le","",="0061054887",="9780061054884",0,"4.14","Harper Voyager","Paperback","387",1994,1974,,2013/04/17,"to-read","to-read (#147)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  8260364,"Hackers: Heroes of the Computer Revolution","Steven Levy","Levy, Steven","",="1449388396",="9781449388393",4,"4.18","O'Reilly Media","Paperback","502",2010,1984,2014/07/11,2013/04/14,"hacking, read-2014, nonfiction","hacking (#8), read-2014 (#74), nonfiction (#9)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Probably a must read for anyone who wants a deeper appreciation for the early days of the computer revolution.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>The less technical among you may be unaware that hacker as most people know/use it these days has been purloined from a group of men who apply a much different definition.<br/><br/>The original hackers may have ignored the rules, but they certainly would have never thought to steal passwords, bank accounts or write computer viruses. Then again, they also would put much stock in the notion of actually having password protected accounts, or care much about money so long as they could keep hacking away.<br/><br/>I found the first section about MIT is the 50's and 60's interesting, but often very slow. I feel like Mr. Levy spent too much time harping on the Hacker Ethic. I guess that was sort of the point of the book he set up out to write, but I would have preferred more of an account of the people and accomplishments.<br/><br/>The section on the 70's with the Homebrew Computer Club, Woz and the early days of apple might be my favorite. My first computer was an Apple IIgs in the late 80's. It's the only Apple product I own, and probably a long way from the original Apple II Woz designed in the 70's, but it still holds a special place in my heart. Without it I'm not sure if I'd work in computers today. I never tore it apart to learn how it worked or learned to code on it, but it sparked an interest in computers that has yet to fade.<br/><br/>The section on the 80's and Sierra and the early days of PC gaming might have been my favorite. I loved a lot of Sierra games in the 90's, in particular King's Quest 6/7 and all 3 Gabriel Knight games. I've backed several former Sierra developers on Kickstarter the last 2 years. It was interesting to read about the early days of that company and the games that laid the foundation for the games I loved as a kid.<br/><br/>The final brief section on Richard Stallman was so-so. I have a love/hate relationship with Mr. Stallman. The guys comes off as kind of an asshole. But without him/GNU, I doubt Linux would have ever taken off like him, and that powers so much of the things I love, including all my various Android devices. <br/><br/>I'm a big proponent of the open source movement that came out of his efforts, but don't necessarily agree that all software should be free and shared. I think there is a lot of merit shared code and my job is made easier by some of the more prominent open source projects out there. <br/><br/>However, it's unreasonable to think that someone is going to want to pay quality software developers for the sake of simply writing good code to share. And it's unreasonable to expect people to write quality software for free in their spare time. I think Mr. Stallman's unwillingness to concede this has hurt his own cause in many ways.<br/><br/>Overall this was a pretty good read, though it got a bit slow and repetitive in places, and less detailed that I would have liked on others. It makes me want to pick up a few more books that get more detailed on the early days of Apple and gaming companies in the 80's and 90's.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  18937,"In the Beginning...Was the Command Line","Neal Stephenson","Stephenson, Neal","",="0380815931",="9780380815937",0,"3.79","William Morrow Paperbacks","Paperback","151",1999,1999,,2013/04/14,"to-read","to-read (#146)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  19098549,"Masters of Doom: How Two Guys Created an Empire and Transformed Pop Culture","David Kushner","Kushner, David","Wil Wheaton",="",="",0,"4.26","B008KGXM6A","Audiobook","",2012,2003,,2013/04/14,"to-read, audio-book, nonfiction","to-read (#6), audio-book (#134), nonfiction (#14)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  6285903,"Retribution Falls (Tales of the Ketty Jay, #1)","Chris Wooding","Wooding, Chris","",="0575085150",="9780575085152",0,"4.02","Gollancz","Paperback","380",2009,2009,,2013/04/08,"to-read","to-read (#4)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  15949537,"The Scourge of Muirwood (Legends of Muirwood, #3)","Jeff Wheeler","Wheeler, Jeff","Kate Rudd",="1469250292",="9781469250298",3,"4.06","Brilliance Audio","Audio CD","",2013,2011,2013/04/14,2013/04/04,"audio-book, sff-audio, muirwood, read-2013, fantasy","audio-book (#32), sff-audio (#3), muirwood (#2), read-2013 (#11), fantasy (#98)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A enjoyable, but mostly predictable conclusion to a decent trilogy.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Ms. Rudd is once again the narrator for the third and final book of the trilogy. As with the previous two, she a good, but not great reader with little variety in her character voices.<br/><br/>She does attempt to do some accents for a few of the characters, but many of them sounded the same to me.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I finished this of the course of the weekend. This was partly due to various chores and activities I had to finish that allowed me the opportunity to get extra listening in, and partly due to my desire to finish the story.<br/><br/>While I found it enjoyable, it's ending was mostly predictable, and I didn't think it was as strong as the previous novel.<br/><br/>One of the aspects of all the books in this trilogy that I didn't hit upon in my previous reviews is the heavy use of Christian allegory.<br/><br/>A key concept to the series is that your ability to channel ""the Medium"" is largely related to your belief in it. This relates to the notion of giving your will over to that of the Medium and faith that it will protect and bless you if you do so. Many of the abilities of the medium may only be used to the benefit of others and not oneself.<br/><br/>There is also a large theme of life after death, and resurrection of the dead. While these themes are present throughout the whole trilogy, they weren't as much at the forefront as they were in this book. The plot of this novel largely revolves around testing the main character Lea's faith in the Medium.<br/><br/>I'm reluctant to throw out the term ""Deus ex Machina"" because I feel that all the events fall within the explained abilities of the Medium and someone who is strong with it being able to perform those actions. I could see someone making a good case for it however.<br/><br/>Overall, I think Mr. Wheeler does a good job of wrapping things up with a neat bow. There is certainly room for future stories in the world of Muirwood. <br/><br/>The author's note indicated he has a novella  called <a href=""http://www.jeff-wheeler.com/?p=28"">Maia</a> taking place many years after this trilogy available on his website. I believe he wrote it prior to completing any of the Muirwood books however.","","","","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  15949584,"The Blight of Muirwood (Legends of Muirwood, #2)","Jeff Wheeler","Wheeler, Jeff","Kate Rudd",="1469250802",="9781469250809",4,"4.10","Brilliance Audio","Audio CD","",2013,2011,2013/04/11,2013/04/04,"audio-book, sff-audio, muirwood, read-2013, fantasy","audio-book (#31), sff-audio (#2), muirwood (#1), read-2013 (#13), fantasy (#97)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Mr. Wheeler ramps things up second book of his Muirwood trilogy, and I found myself enjoying this one more than the first.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> Ms. Rudd is once again the narrator (not surprising since the whole trilogy was released at the same time as audio books). Her performance is comparable to that of the previous book. It's good, but doesn't add anything to the story.<br/><br/>She once again seems to use her own voice for all the female characters and a slightly different voice for all of the male characters.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This book is nearly twice as long as the first book (14 hours vs. 8 hours in audio form). It didn't really feel that way to me. I kept finding excuses to listen more than I normally would, especially last night as I was approaching the end of the story and didn't want to wait till morning for the conclusion.<br/><br/>Mr. Wheeler continues his trend of explaining things as you go along, and doesn't spend large amount stopping for world building. I find that a nice change of pace from the Epic Fantasy multi-book series I tend to read.<br/><br/>The story picks up right where [b:The Wretched of Muirwood|15954540|The Wretched of Muirwood|Jeff Wheeler|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1356123105s/15954540.jpg|15693991] left off, then skips ahead about a year. During that time Lia has been trained to be the new hunter of Muirwood Abbey.<br/><br/>Most of the characters from the first novel return in the second, and Mr. Wheeler gives us more depth and insight into their characters. Some great new characters are added to the cast, including Martin, who is training her as he once did John Hunter.<br/><br/>Colvin has returned to the abbey with Edmund, his sister, and Ellowyn Demont, the air to the throne of Pry-Ree. Lia is tasked to help the two mastons protect Ellowyn from various threats of kidnapping and murder throughout the realm.<br/><br/>There are also some new threats to the Abbey including Colvin's rival Earl of Dieyre and the King's Widow, the Queen Dowager.<br/><br/>Signs start to appear of a blight threatening the Abbey, and once again Lia must leave the safety of Muirwood in an effort to protect it.<br/><br/>As this is book 2 of a trilogy, it does suffer from middle book syndrome, and ends at a very annoying place. None of the real threats were resolved, more of a holding pattern than any real resolutions. <br/><br/>I was suspecting as much as I was approaching the last disc with too many things left unresolved. Luckily for me I had book 3 ready to go, and jumped immediately into it.<br/><br/>That isn't to say this book is not without it's revelations, although I can't say I was very surprised by anything that happened. Still, it made for an enjoyable read. Any book that makes it hard for me to stop is always a good thing.","","","1","","",1,,"","Like new",,
  15704458,"Steelheart (Reckoners, #1)","Brandon Sanderson","Sanderson, Brandon","",="",="",4,"4.14","Delacorte","Hardcover","384",2013,2013,2013/09/27,2013/04/03,"not-a-bookclub-club, fantasy, young-adult, read-2013, reckoners, urban-fantasy","not-a-bookclub-club (#2), fantasy (#157), young-adult (#1), read-2013 (#72), reckoners (#3), urban-fantasy (#36)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> While it's obviously young adult, and a little predictable, I found it to be a lot of fun and hard to put down by the second half. I enjoyed it more than [b:The Rithmatist|10137823|The Rithmatist (Rithmatist #1)|Brandon Sanderson|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1348506712s/10137823.jpg|15035866].<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I don't tend to read much Young Adult, but for [a:Brandon Sanderson|38550|Brandon Sanderson|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1201547425p2/38550.jpg], I make an exception. I really like the way he does world building, especially his magical systems.<br/><br/>Since this book is based on superheroes, there isn't a magical system persay, but I enjoy the types of powers he's come with, from the standard invincibility and super strength to the down right bizarre like the ability to never run out of bullets. Sounds like someone got a hold of the infinite ammo cheat code.<br/><br/>I loved comics as a kid, but these days my only real exposure to superheroes is the overabundance of Movies and TV shows being cranked out every year.<br/><br/>Most people with any familiarity to comics knows the line Stan Lee coined for Spider-Man: ""<i>With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility.</i>""<br/><br/>This book throws that saying right out the window and instead comes Great Destruction and Terror. Where are the superheroes? Instead all that shows up is varying degrees of villains.<br/><br/>That only leaves the humans to fight back against those with super powers. Except the military and governments tried and failed and eventually gave up. Enter the Reckoners. The last group still fighting. Determined to kill as many Epics as they can.<br/><br/>Everything seems to tie back to the appearance of something called The Calamity. What is it, and how does it relate to the appearance of Epics?<br/><br/>Well don't expect to find out in this book, as it's very obviously the start of a series.<br/><br/>The book started out a little slow for my liking, but once it got going, I really enjoyed it. I'm looking forward to [b:Firefight|15704459|Firefight (Reckoners, #2)|Brandon Sanderson|/assets/nocover/60x80.png|21979689] next year.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  6288,"The Road","Cormac McCarthy","McCarthy, Cormac","",="0307265439",="9780307265432",0,"3.94","Knopf","Hardcover","241",2006,2006,,2013/03/31,"to-read","to-read (#145)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18154,"The Cuckoo's Egg: Tracking a Spy Through the Maze of Computer Espionage","Clifford Stoll","Stoll, Clifford","",="1416507787",="9781416507789",4,"4.18","Gallery Books","Paperback","399",2005,1989,2014/05/18,2013/03/27,"hacking, read-2014, nonfiction","hacking (#7), read-2014 (#50), nonfiction (#8)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A truly excellent and fascinating tale of hacking in the early days of the internet.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I'm fascinated with computer crime. I have for as long as I can remember being interested in computers. Somehow I had never managed to read this book. <br/><br/>I'm glad I finally got around to it. It might be my new favorite. Cliff Stoll tells an engaging and personal story of his discovery of computer networks, security exploits and computer crime that reads more like a spy novel than a technical manual.<br/><br/>I think Mr. Stoll does a good job of making things easy to understand for the non-technical person. It has just enough detail to follow the story without being overwhelming. Of course being a computer person myself, I may not be the best to judge how technical this book gets.<br/><br/>This book overlaps with some other stories of computer crime I've read and re-sparked my interest in reading some others I have on my backlog, along with rereading one I read back in high school that seems to overlap with this one a bit.<br/><br/>It's hard for me to judge how non-techies will enjoy this book, but anyone who wants to see what things were like in the early days of the internet should find this fascinating.<br/><br/>The most remarkable thing was how little the various law enforcement agencies seemed to care. It was really the wild-wild west of computer crime. To the FBI, unless they physically stole something, destroyed something or cost your millions of dollars, it wasn't worth pursuing.<br/><br/>How do you quantify computer time? Especially back then when computers weren't affordable and resources were limited. What about the time Cliff Stoll spend tracking the hacker? Time he should have spent doing his job. Everyone wanted him to keep at, and to keep them in the loop, but no one was willing to do anything about it, or cough up funds to support him.<br/><br/>It would take a few more years and some bigger crimes to finally wake them up and change how computer crime ranked in importance. Then again, most people are inundated with malware, spyware, viruses, scams and phishing emails on an almost daily basis. So in some ways it feels like nothing has really changed. You're not going to call the FBI because someone tried to steal your password.<br/><br/>Computer crime is big business these days, and if you want to see how it was in the early days, this is a must read.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  35921,"On Basilisk Station (Honor Harrington, #1)","David Weber","Weber, David","",="1416509372",="9781416509370",0,"4.10","Baen Books","Paperback","458",2005,1992,,2013/03/27,"to-read","to-read (#144)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18488572,"Blood Song (Raven's Shadow, #1)","Anthony  Ryan","Ryan, Anthony","Steven Brand",="",="",5,"4.54","Penguin Audiobook","Audiobook","23",2013,2011,2014/07/01,2013/03/27,"ravens-shadow, audio-book, fantasy, read-2014, favorites","ravens-shadow (#1), audio-book (#123), fantasy (#247), read-2014 (#71), favorites (#23)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I really loved this book, and I highly recommend it.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I'm a little torn on the narration. Steven Brand is a pretty good narrator. He does accents and inflections to really add something to the story. However, he's so DAMN QUIET. It seemed like he was whispering half the time. I'm not sure if it's him or simply the quality of the production, but it seems like it's just the way he reads.<br/><br/>I listen to audiobooks on my phone. Sometimes with headphones, sometimes with the speaker, sometimes plugged into my car. I find audiobooks to be too quiet in general, but this was a real struggle in places.<br/><br/>To me he's more of the type of person I'd love to listen to tell me a story around a campfire than over an audiobook. Yet he's still better than a lot of readers out there and I'll likely continue going the audiobook route with this series despite the volume issue.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>Writing books for books I love go one of too ways: They either come gushing out of me because I'm so excited to share my love with everyone, or I struggle to put my thoughts into words, afraid of not doing the book justice. I worry this will be more of the latter than the former.<br/><br/>I generally don't give out 5 star ratings. I like to save them for books I really love so it's a sign that ""hey Rob must have really liked this one"". I don't exactly have a metric for what pushes a 4/4.5 star book to 5 star rating. It just sort of by feel.<br/><br/>The easiest way for me to quantify it though is that it's a book that I hate to stop and can't wait to pick up again. This book was easily that. It was also an easy add to my favorites shelf.<br/><br/>This book didn't grab me immediately, but pretty close. Once it did it never let go. It's hard to say why I loved it so much. It's a typical chosen one story. It's also got a bit of the school trope to it, though that's only part of the book.<br/><br/>At first it reminds me a lot of [b:The Name of the Wind|186074|The Name of the Wind (The Kingkiller Chronicle, #1)|Patrick Rothfuss|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1270352123s/186074.jpg|2502879]. Our main protagonist is an infamous man whose collected numerous names over the years, and is recounting his life story to a chronicler as a flashback, with occasional interludes back to present day. Sound Familiar?<br/><br/>However this basic structure is really where the similarity ends for me. Vaelin is a paladin (or maybe warrior monk), where Kvothe is a bard (at least in my mind). He's far from perfect, and was instantly more likable to me.<br/><br/>I think what really hooked me in the story is the mystery and lore. There is a lot to discover in both the history of the Order that Vaelin is now a member, but also surrounding magic, regarded with superstition, anger and fear and referred to by most as ""The Dark"". The magic is sort of not that prevalent for most of the book, nor all that well explained, but I enjoyed how Mr. Ryan incorporated it into the story.<br/><br/>The other thing I really enjoyed is all the politics and religion. Religion and politics are tightly coupled and ""The Faith"" of the Order is embedded in the rule of the Unified Realm. Like the real world arguments over religion and politics lead to conflict and war.<br/><br/>King Janus is determined to leave a legacy for his son, and will use Vaelin how he sees fit to accomplish it.<br/><br/>The cast of characters felt well developed and balanced. Coming from different backgrounds and parts of the realm, Vaelin and his brothers make for an interesting group, each excelling at certain skills honed through training rather than just excelling at EVERYTHING. We also have a few strong female characters, although they don't really take center stage in this book.<br/><br/>Overall I think this book just put a lot of my favorites parts of fantasy tropes together in a way that just hits my buttons in the right way and made it a great read for me. The writing seems really polished for a first novel. I'm sure there are things that can be picked apart about the story or the writing, but I just don't want to hear them. <br/><br/>I will end my ramblings hoping that I have I have convinced you to check out this series. I had people telling me over a year ago to pick this book up, and I wish I had listened. It took getting a review copy of [b:Tower Lord|18138189|Tower Lord (Raven's Shadow, #2)|Anthony  Ryan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1382486392s/18138189.jpg|25481154] to finally pick it up and I've eagerly jumped right into that book.<br/><br/>You made it through my ramblings? Why are you still reading this review? You should be reading the book instead. Seriously. Go now.","","","1","","",1,2014/06/26,"Audible","Like new",,
  61182,"The Hacker Crackdown: Law and Disorder on the Electronic Frontier","Bruce Sterling","Sterling, Bruce","",="055356370X",="9780553563702",0,"3.84","Bantam","Mass Market Paperback","336",1993,1992,,2013/03/27,"to-read, hacking, nonfiction","to-read (#143), hacking (#5), nonfiction (#7)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  17332218,"Words of Radiance (The Stormlight Archive, #2)","Brandon Sanderson","Sanderson, Brandon","",="0765326361",="9780765326362",5,"4.76","Tor Books","Hardcover","1087",2014,2014,2014/03/14,2013/03/25,"stormlight-archive, epic-fantasy, fantasy, not-a-bookclub-club, read-2014, favorites","stormlight-archive (#2), epic-fantasy (#17), fantasy (#123), not-a-bookclub-club (#10), read-2014 (#21), favorites (#21)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> If you enjoyed [b:The Way of Kings|7235533|The Way of Kings (The Stormlight Archive, #1)|Brandon Sanderson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1388184640s/7235533.jpg|8134945], I'd be really surprised if you didn't like this one as well. Mr. Sanderson does an excellent job building on the foundation he laid down in the first novel. <br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This is a really hard review for me to write. I probably won't do the book justice. I'm very selective about which books I give 5 stars to, and even more selective about which books I deem favorites. When I read [b:The Way of Kings|7235533|The Way of Kings (The Stormlight Archive, #1)|Brandon Sanderson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1388184640s/7235533.jpg|8134945] it was easily added to both lists for me. And now so is this one.<br/><br/>While I didn't have the same wait as anyone who read the first book when it came out, there was at least enough time to build up a sense of anticipation and a little bit of dread while I waited for this book to come out.<br/><br/>Would Mr. Sanderson be able to build upon the momentum of [b:The Way of Kings|7235533|The Way of Kings (The Stormlight Archive, #1)|Brandon Sanderson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1388184640s/7235533.jpg|8134945] or would things recede a little like most series tend to do for me? A ten-book, 10,000+ page series is really ambitious. It would be easy for things to go off the rails at any point along the way. I'm here to say: so far, so good.<br/><br/>I can only assume that Mr. Sanderson is writing this series specifically for me. Sure there are other people out there who seem to like his books. But there are many who are critical about them. While I may be critical of some of his other books, you won't find that here. I loved every minute of it.<br/><br/>The pacing might still be considered slow by those who found that the case in [b:The Way of Kings|7235533|The Way of Kings (The Stormlight Archive, #1)|Brandon Sanderson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1388184640s/7235533.jpg|8134945], but I think it moves along faster as he doesn't have to do the kinds of setup he did in the first book.<br/><br/>One common comment I saw about book 1 was: ""What is the point of Shallan here?"". This book should answer that question for those people. While [b:The Way of Kings|7235533|The Way of Kings (The Stormlight Archive, #1)|Brandon Sanderson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1388184640s/7235533.jpg|8134945] focuses on Kaladin, this is Shallan's book.<br/><br/>Don't fear Kaladin fans. You'll get plenty of him in this book, but he's just not the main focus here.<br/><br/>Once again this is a book that just kept building momentum as it went. It started as a book I looked forward to reading each night and changed to a book I had to force myself to put down.<br/><br/>The structure of the book is once again the same where you have 5 parts with various interludes between each. We are introduced to some pretty interesting new characters in these short interludes, as well as revisiting a few of those we met in [b:The Way of Kings|7235533|The Way of Kings (The Stormlight Archive, #1)|Brandon Sanderson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1388184640s/7235533.jpg|8134945]. I would have to say that while I enjoyed them all, Lift, the young thief was my favorite. I hope we'll be seeing a lot more of her in future books, and not just the interludes.<br/><br/>The prologue is set at the exact same time as the prologue from [b:The Way of Kings|7235533|The Way of Kings (The Stormlight Archive, #1)|Brandon Sanderson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1388184640s/7235533.jpg|8134945], only told from Jasnah's perspective instead of Szeth. This was a cool approach that I hope continues in the next few books at least. I'd like see Adolin's and Dalinar's take on these events at least.<br/><br/>I'd be remiss to review a [a:Brandon Sanderson|38550|Brandon Sanderson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1394044556p2/38550.jpg] book without at least mentioning the magic system. I love the world building so far and the characters, but it's the magic system that once again shines the brightest. We learn more about surgebinding and how it works, but there is still so much left to discover. <br/><br/>His creativity not only at coming up with rules for various magic systems, but at how he applies those rules in ways I would have never considered always makes for great sequences.<br/><br/>Overall I was really happy with this book. Kaladin is still my favorite character, yet I think I might have enjoyed this one more despite his reduced focus. Shallan really developed from an interesting side story into a proper main character in her own right.<br/><br/>I am already looking forward to and dreading just a bit book 3 of this series. Will Mr. Sanderson be able to work his magic yet again? Well since he's writing this series for me personally, I'm sure he will.","","","1","","",1,2014/03/04,"Amazon","Like new",,
  77711,"A Fire Upon the Deep (Zones of Thought, #1)","Vernor Vinge","Vinge, Vernor","",="0812515285",="9780812515282",0,"4.12","Tor Science Fiction","Mass Market Paperback","613",2010,1992,,2013/03/25,"to-read","to-read (#143)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  61975,"Dragonflight (Pern, #1)","Anne McCaffrey","McCaffrey, Anne","",="0345484266",="9780345484260",2,"4.07","Del Rey","Paperback","299",2005,1968,2013/04/14,2013/03/21,"sword-and-laser, read-2013, fantasy","sword-and-laser (#9), read-2013 (#12), fantasy (#29)","read","As I did not particularly care for this book, I'm forgoing the usual format and just writing a quick review. I read this book as the April pick for <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/4170-the-sword-and-laser"">Sword & Laser</a>. I was vaguely aware of it being considered one of the ""classics"" of fantasy. It hadn't really been on my radar as something I wanted to read.<br/><br/>In fact I had this feeling (based partially on discussing it with a friend who just read it for the first time recently) that I wasn't going to like it, so I borrowed it from the library rather than just buying it like I normally would. Maybe I was setting myself up to dislike it. Either way I'm glad I didn't buy it.<br/><br/>I didn't connect to a single human character in the entire book. I found them all to be pretty awful people that I wouldn't want to be around.<br/><br/>The only redeeming part of this book to me were the dragons. I think they were well done, and interesting/likable (for dragons). Maybe I'm not being forgiving to the fact the dragonriders themselves are just as arrogant as the dragons they ride.<br/><br/>Overall I found the plot lacking too. It seemed to jump all over the place, and when it finally came time to battle the ""threads"" that threatened Pern, it jumped off again (time travel: go!), then ended rather abruptly. Now I know there are more books, but I can't say I'm really itching to read them.<br/><br/>I will say I found the last third or so of the book much better than the first two-thirds, so really this is maybe a 2.5 for me rather than just a flat 2, but I couldn't give it a 3 after spending so much time looking for excuses not to read it. If it hadn't been a club pick and so short, I might have considered dropping it all together.<br/><br/>Maybe this is a book I would have enjoyed as a kid, but it's hard for me to say.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  15790940,"Sister Mine","Nalo Hopkinson","Hopkinson, Nalo","",="0446576921",="9780446576925",0,"3.62","Grand Central Publishing","Hardcover","320",2013,2013,,2013/03/18,"to-read","to-read (#141)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  15812811,"Walking In the Midst of Fire (Remy Chandler, #6)","Thomas E. Sniegoski","Sniegoski, Thomas E.","",="0451465113",="9780451465115",0,"3.99","Roc Trade","Paperback","352",2013,2013,,2013/03/14,"to-read, remy-chandler, urban-fantasy, fantasy","to-read (#140), remy-chandler (#7), urban-fantasy (#32), fantasy (#114)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  15949600,"The Wretched of Muirwood (Legends of Muirwood, #1)","Jeff Wheeler","Wheeler, Jeff","Kate Rudd",="1469250993",="9781469250991",3,"3.92","Brilliance Audio","Audio CD","",2013,2011,2013/04/06,2013/03/14,"audio-book, sff-audio, muirwood, read-2013, fantasy","audio-book (#30), sff-audio (#1), muirwood (#3), read-2013 (#35), fantasy (#96)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A decent fantasy story. Quick and easy reading. Nothing especially great, but has me interested enough to jump right into book 2.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> This is the first book I've listened to read by Kate Rudd. Ms. Rudd is a good reader, but nothing spectacular. <br/><br/>She sort of does voices for some of the Male characters, but seemed to read all the female characters in her own voice.<br/><br/>She has a clear and pleasant sounding voice, but I didn't find her performance to add anything extra to the book as I have with other readers.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This is the first book I am reviewing for <a href=""http://www.sffaudio.com/"">SFF Audio</a>. I chose this book primarily because it was short, and because it had a female protagonist.<br/><br/>Apart from picking a girl to center the story around, this book follows many of the common fantasy tropes including the ""young unknown thrust into adventure to discover they are more than they realize"".<br/><br/>The world Mr. Wheeler has created is one where no matter your station (King or Innkeeper) knowing your family line is VERY important. So much so that they distinguish between normal Orphans and Wretcheds (Orphans whose parentage is unknown).<br/><br/>Wretched are often abandoned to the various Abbey's around the world and sheltered until they turn 18, at which point they must make their way in the world.<br/><br/>Wretched's take their last names from their assigned role. Our protagonist, Lia Cook, a young girl of 13, has been assigned to work in the kitchens. In particular, she is assigned to smaller of two kitchens, which serves the head of the Abbey, referred to as the Aldermaston.<br/><br/>Lea wants nothing more in life than to become a learner and to gain the ability to read and write. As a wretched however, this is denied to her.<br/><br/>One night, a knight comes pounding on the door seeking help for his young squire, and Lea's life is changed, forever.<br/><br/>The rest of the story pretty much follows in a fairly cookie-cutter fashion. It's a short book, so there isn't a lot of world building. We learn things as Lea does.<br/><br/>This is the first book I've read by Mr. Wheeler. His writing style doesn't jump out at me as exceptional, but it is well done. His characters have reasonable depth for such a short book and varying personalities.<br/><br/>The magic system feels original to me, based on various statues referred to as ""Leerings"" by commoners, or Gargoyles by the learned. They are carved for a specific action based on an element (water, fire, etc) and are meant as a focus to use ""The Medium"".<br/><br/>The ending is a bit predictable, but as this is rather short story, I still found it enjoyable and have already jumped into the second book.","","","1","","Jenny Colvin",1,,"","unspecified",,
  3428935,"The Warded Man (Demon Cycle, #1)","Peter V. Brett","Brett, Peter V.","",="0345503805",="9780345503800",0,"4.26","Random House","Hardcover","416",2009,2008,,2013/03/10,"to-read","to-read (#139)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  57100,"Merchanter's Luck (Company Wars, #2)","C.J. Cherryh","Cherryh, C.J.","",="0886771390",="9780886771393",0,"4.01","DAW","Paperback","448",1982,1982,,2013/03/10,"to-read","to-read (#138)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  17403559,"The Aeronaut's Windlass (The Cinder Spires, #1)","Jim Butcher","Butcher, Jim","",="0356503658",="9780356503653",0,"4.27","Orbit","Hardcover","512",2015,2015,,2013/03/07,"to-read, steampunk","to-read (#41), steampunk (#2)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  10137823,"The Rithmatist (Rithmatist, #1)","Brandon Sanderson","Sanderson, Brandon","Ben McSweeney",="0765320320",="9780765320322",4,"4.24","Tor Teen","Hardcover","378",2013,2013,2013/05/18,2013/03/06,"read-2013, fantasy, young-adult","read-2013 (#3), fantasy (#27), young-adult (#2)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> An enjoyable story that can easily skipped by all but biggest Sanderson fans outside of the target demographic. It's a great book to share with your kids if they are old enough.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I enjoyed this book, though not as much as his others. It's a young adult book, and unlike some books I've read in that category felt like it the whole way through.<br/><br/>The book has great illustrations. I'd highly recommend getting the print or ebook copy over the audio. I guess the audio comes with an errata of the pictures, but I'd find that sort of hard to work in, especially considering I'm usually doing something else while listening to audiobooks. The illustrations aren't high art, but they certainly add a lot to the story.<br/><br/>Unlike a lot of Sanderson books, there isn't a whole lot of world building. From a map in the front of the book and a little of the discussion, apparently the United States is a series of Islands united under what seems more like the Articles of Confederation rather than the US Constitution.<br/><br/>The main thing that binds neighboring islands together are the academies where children are sent to learn how to be Rithmatists. Rithmatists are being trained to fight in a war in the center of the country against wild creatures that populated the country prior to the Europeans arrival. <br/><br/>There is some sort of federal jurisdiction, akin to maybe the FBI of sorts, but for the most part each island seems to keep to itself. The book is set in the early 1900s and has a bit of a Steampunk feel to it.<br/><br/>That's about all I could gather from the entire book. I'm sure he will flesh things out more as the series goes on.<br/><br/>As is the norm for a Brandon Sanderson novel, this series has an interesting and pretty unique magic system. Not as good as some of his others, but still interesting. Everything is based on drawing with chalk. Fans of Real-Time Strategy games will find the combat system familar. <br/><br/>You build your defenses, a base if you will, and there are various attacks you can do, including creating an army of chalkings to either attack or defend.<br/><br/>The protagonist is a 15 year old boy named Joel, whose mother works as a cleaning lady at the academy, where only Rithmatists and the richest non-Rithmatists can normally attend. He wants nothing more than to be a Rithmatist, but he was not chosen to be one.<br/><br/>Students begin to disappear, the Feds show up and one of the professors is tasked by the university to help figure out what is going on. Joel manages to get himself assigned to help in the hopes of learning more about Rithmancy that is normally kept from the non Rithmatists.<br/><br/>The story is decent, the writing is good, the characters are interesting, if a little cookie-cutter. The world building could have been a little better, even in a shorter young-adult novel. He does a bit at the end of the novel, but it is mostly setup for an inevitable sequel.<br/><br/>I was originally under the impression that this was a stand-alone story. I'm not sure if that was incorrect, or if it changed. I feel like the last few chapters could have been dropped with little detriment to the overall story and left it as stand alone.<br/><br/>That said when the next one comes out, I'll pick it up, though maybe not right away. I'm not the target demographic here, but I'd think pre-teens especially should enjoy this book. It might be a great book for parents to read with younger kids as well.","","","1","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  2845024,"Anathem","Neal Stephenson","Stephenson, Neal","",="0061474096",="9780061474095",0,"4.16","William Morrow & Company","Hardcover","937",2008,2008,,2013/03/03,"to-read","to-read (#137)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  6476913,"The Atrocity Archives (Laundry Files, #1)","Charles Stross","Stross, Charles","",="",="",0,"3.99","Ace","Kindle Edition","372",2008,2004,,2013/02/27,"to-read","to-read (#136)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  9791892,"Unremembered (Unremembered, #1)","Jessica Brody","Brody, Jessica","",="0374379912",="9780374379919",0,"3.69","Farrar, Straus, & Giroux (BYR) ","Hardcover","320",2013,2013,,2013/02/27,"to-read","to-read (#135)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  17255671,"The Memory Coder","Jessica Brody","Brody, Jessica","",="146683899X",="9781466838994",3,"3.52","Tor Books","ebook","32",2013,2013,2013/02/27,2013/02/27,"read-2013, science-fiction, cyberpunk","read-2013 (#20), science-fiction (#12), cyberpunk (#3)","read","Descent little short story. You can read it for free on <a href=""http://www.tor.com/stories/2013/02/the-memory-coder"">Tor.com</a>.<br/><br/>Reminds me a bit of [b:Adjustment Team|10335790|Adjustment Team|Philip K. Dick|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1331234702s/10335790.jpg|14510514]. As a software developer, I cringe at the idea of writing code to replace memories. What if you get a bug?<br/><br/>Not much to say about it since it's short. The writing is good and while I saw the ending coming it's pretty clever. <br/><br/>Leaves me wanting to check out the upcoming novel [b:Unremembered|9791892|Unremembered (Unremembered, #1)|Jessica Brody|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1342834815s/9791892.jpg|14681975], which is probably the point of giving away the short story.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  43545,"The Once and Future King (The Once and Future King #1-4)","T.H. White","White, T.H.","",="0441627404",="9780441627400",0,"4.07","Ace","Mass Market Paperback","639",1987,1958,,2013/02/19,"to-read","to-read (#29)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  28249,"The Magicians' Guild (The Black Magician Trilogy, #1)","Trudi Canavan","Canavan, Trudi","",="1841493139",="9781841493138",0,"3.94","Orbit","Paperback","467",2004,2001,,2013/02/19,"to-read","to-read (#134)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  71247,"Stone","Adam Roberts","Roberts, Adam","",="0575073969",="9780575073968",0,"3.74","Gollancz","Paperback","288",2003,2002,,2013/02/13,"to-read","to-read (#133)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  4981,"Slaughterhouse-Five","Kurt Vonnegut","Vonnegut, Kurt","",="0385333846",="9780385333849",0,"4.01","Dial Press Trade Paperback","Paperback","215",1999,1969,,2013/02/13,"to-read","to-read (#132)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  21032488,"Doors of Stone (The Kingkiller Chronicle, #3)","Patrick Rothfuss","Rothfuss, Patrick","",="0575081449",="9780575081444",0,"4.59","Gollancz","Hardcover","",,,,2013/02/13,"to-read, kingkiller-chronicle, fantasy, next-in-series","to-read (#131), kingkiller-chronicle (#2), fantasy (#77), next-in-series (#4)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  15808621,"The Wise Man's Fear (The Kingkiller Chronicle, #2)","Patrick Rothfuss","Rothfuss, Patrick","",="0756407915",="9780756407919",5,"4.56","DAW","Mass Market Paperback","1107",2013,2011,2013/04/25,2013/02/13,"kingkiller-chronicle, read-2013, fantasy","kingkiller-chronicle (#1), read-2013 (#10), fantasy (#76)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I've seen several people say they didn't enjoy this book as much as [b:The Name of the Wind|186074|The Name of the Wind (The Kingkiller Chronicle, #1)|Patrick Rothfuss|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1270352123s/186074.jpg|2502879]. I guess I'm the opposite. The things that mostly annoyed me in the first book costing it that extra star that all of my friends seemed to give it were gone or reduced in the sequel.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>One of my major gripes about [b:The Name of the Wind|186074|The Name of the Wind (The Kingkiller Chronicle, #1)|Patrick Rothfuss|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1270352123s/186074.jpg|2502879] was the main character. In many books an unlikable main character is easily enough to ruin a book. For some reason, I didn't find it the case here.<br/><br/>Kvothe is a prodigy in many things, but at the same time, I find him incredibly arrogant and lacking in common sense. Mr. Rothfuss's narrative, supporting characters and beautiful prose kept me interested in the story despite this.<br/><br/>With the sequel we find Kvothe is a little older, and thankfully a little wiser. As the story progresses, he is humbled, and bested on several occasions, and by the end of book I started to like him rather than loathe him as I mostly did through [b:The Name of the Wind|186074|The Name of the Wind (The Kingkiller Chronicle, #1)|Patrick Rothfuss|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1270352123s/186074.jpg|2502879].<br/><br/>With this book we also get several changes of scenery. About half of book follows Kvothe on adventures outside of the University where he always seems to be especially arrogant and stupid to me.<br/><br/>He is a lot more cautious and humble outside of that setting. This doesn't prevent him from being his own worst enemy from time to time, but it is reduced to a more tolerable level for my liking.<br/><br/>Mr. Rothfuss loves to embed stories within stories within stories, and this book is no different. There are some really great stories told that seem unrelated to main narrative at times, but you really have to wonder.<br/><br/>I like the idea of a ""bard"" main character rather than the stereotypical fighter/magician type. Through most of two books Kvothe travels not with a sword, but a lute.<br/><br/>My favorite part of this series has to be the supporting cast. In particular I love Auri and Devi, and want to know more about both. Like Kvothe I'm intrigued by Denna, and want to know what secrets she's hiding.<br/><br/>His friends Wil and Sim and the university are great as well. Mr. Rothfuss introduces some interesting new supporting characters in this book as well. I particularly liked Tempi, and learning about the Adem.<br/><br/>I blew through this much lengthier sequel in about a week, and if not for work, I probably would have finished it much sooner. <br/><br/>I had been avoiding staring this series for the very situation I now find myself in: stuck waiting for the 3rd and final book to come out. Thankfully I have many other books to keep me distracted in the meantime.","","","1","","Tom Schreck",1,,"","unspecified",,
  3186100,"Serenity: Better Days (Serenity, #2)","Joss Whedon","Whedon, Joss","Brett Matthews, Will Conrad",="1595821627",="9781595821621",0,"4.06","Dark Horse Books","Paperback","128",2008,2008,,2013/01/30,"to-read, graphic-novels-and-manga, serenity-graphic-novels","to-read (#130), graphic-novels-and-manga (#8), serenity-graphic-novels (#3)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  77207,"The Story of the Stone: A Master Li Novel","Barry Hughart","Hughart, Barry","",="0553282786",="9780553282788",0,"4.12","Bantam","Mass Market Paperback","289",1989,1988,,2013/01/26,"to-read, next-in-series, fantasy","to-read (#30), next-in-series (#2), fantasy (#204)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  8596384,"Serenity: The Shepherd's Tale (Serenity, #3)","Joss Whedon","Whedon, Joss","Chris Samnee, Dave Stewart, Steve Morris, Zack Whedon",="1595825614",="9781595825612",3,"4.12","Dark Horse Comics","Hardcover","56",2010,2010,2013/01/25,2013/01/25,"serenity-graphic-novels, read-2013, graphic-novels-and-manga","serenity-graphic-novels (#2), read-2013 (#26), graphic-novels-and-manga (#7)","read","This is just a short graphic novel. I've wanted to read it for awhile, but the first edition went out of print when I tried to buy it and then I ended up forgetting about it. <br/><br/>A friend of mine got it from the library and let me borrow it from him before he read it.<br/><br/>I always wanted to know the deal with Book, and one of the most frustrating parts of the movie was they didn't explore that at all.<br/><br/>This book is a bit of a mixed bag. The story and art is good. I liked the way they transitioned back to different times of Book's life.<br/><br/>However it was very short, and while it confirmed some things I suspected, it mostly added to my questions rather than answering them. I would have liked some kind of short video format, or a novella to the graphic novel simply to get a more detailed back story.<br/><br/>Worth checking out if you're a firefly fan though.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  133765,"Serenity: Those Left Behind (Serenity, #1)","Joss Whedon","Whedon, Joss","Brett Matthews, Will Conrad",="1593074492",="9781593074494",3,"4.03","Dark Horse Books","Paperback","96",2006,2006,2013/01/29,2013/01/23,"serenity-graphic-novels, read-2013, graphic-novels-and-manga","serenity-graphic-novels (#1), read-2013 (#23), graphic-novels-and-manga (#6)","read","I ended up reading these out of order because I've borrowed them from a friend who is in turn borrowing them from the library.<br/><br/>I think I enjoyed this one more than [b:The Shepherd's Tale|8596384|The Shepherd's Tale (Serenity, #3)|Zack Whedon|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348374308s/8596384.jpg|13466115]. The art was better, and there was no jumping around (The jumping around wouldn't have been so bad in a longer story though).<br/><br/>This story also felt too short. And it seems like it left off on a cliffhanger. I'll have to check out [b:Better Days|3186100|Better Days (Serenity, #2)|Joss Whedon|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347587713s/3186100.jpg|21764896] and see if it comes to a better conclusion. <br/><br/>It's worth reading at least once if you like the show and you can get it cheap/borrow it from the library.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  57045,"Downbelow Station (Company Wars, #1)","C.J. Cherryh","Cherryh, C.J.","",="0756400597",="9780756400590",4,"3.88","DAW","Mass Market Paperback","526",2001,1981,2013/03/10,2013/01/23,"sword-and-laser, read-2013, science-fiction","sword-and-laser (#8), read-2013 (#18), science-fiction (#11)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> If you like politics and war in a sci-fi setting where the focus is on the people and not the battles, this book is worth checking out. If you're looking for a lot of space battles however, you may be disappointed.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I read this book as the March pick for <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/4170-the-sword-and-laser"">Sword & Laser</a>. It's still early in the month but so far most of the discussion seems to be in the <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/1233165-is-anyone-else-having-a-hard-time-getting-started"">Is anyone else having a hard time getting started?</a> thread. I must say I don't really understand this.<br/><br/>Sure this book is dense at times. The book also starts with a lot of world building. It gives you several character perspectives as well. But it's well written, and the plot is compelling.<br/><br/>It centers around a neutral space station over the planet Pell caught in the middle of a war between ""The Company"" and ""The Union"".<br/><br/>This book reminds me a lot of Star Trek: Deep Space 9 or Babylon 5. To a lesser degree Battlestar Galactica. Mostly because the latter had a lot more space battles. <br/><br/>Cherryh doesn't spend pages detailing epic battles here. Sometimes you see the aftermath, or get the report of a distant battle when news reaches Pell station. There aren't completely missing however. I like a good space battle as much as the next sci-fi geek, but it's not a requirement for me.<br/><br/>What this books does have is political-driven agendas, greed, ambition, and a surprising amount of compassion (at least from some of the characters). <br/><br/>Like some popular fantasy series I've read (Song of Ice & Fire/Malazan Fallen) Cherryh gives you multiple points of view on the situation. Unlike those books however, there aren't as many shades of grey. Or weren't for me. I knew pretty early on mostly whose good and whose bad, and I'm not suddenly surprised at the end. <br/><br/>There are some exceptions however that seem to reside in a shade of grey, but not many.<br/><br/>Overall a very enjoyable book. I'm a little disappointed to find out there is no true sequel to this book as there are a lot things I'm interested in reading more about in the aftermath. <br/><br/>The conclusion is satisfying however, and I hope to check out more books in this universe at some point down the road, but I won't be rushing out to get the next book just yet.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  15743440,"The Best of All Possible Worlds","Karen Lord","Lord, Karen","",="0345534050",="9780345534057",0,"3.61","Del Rey","Hardcover","308",2013,2013,,2013/01/21,"to-read","to-read (#129)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18159958,"The Last Unicorn: Deluxe Edition","Peter S. Beagle","Beagle, Peter S.","",="",="9780970680167",0,"4.17","Conlan Press","ebook","236",2013,1968,,2013/01/20,"to-read, humble-ebook-bundle-2","to-read (#128), humble-ebook-bundle-2 (#6)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  1953,"A Tale of Two Cities","Charles Dickens","Dickens, Charles","Richard Maxwell, Hablot Knight Browne",="0141439602",="9780141439600",3,"3.76","Penguin Classics","Paperback","489",2003,1859,,2013/01/16,"read-before-goodreads","read-before-goodreads (#149)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  5470,"1984","George Orwell","Orwell, George","Erich Fromm",="0451524934",="9780451524935",4,"4.09","Signet Classics","Paperback","326",1950,1949,,2013/01/16,"read-before-goodreads, science-fiction","read-before-goodreads (#117), science-fiction (#20)","read","","","","","","",0,,,,,
  140671,"The Black Company (The Chronicle of the Black Company, #1)","Glen Cook","Cook, Glen","",="0812521390",="9780812521399",0,"3.96","Tor Fantasy","Mass Market Paperback","320",1992,1984,,2013/01/16,"to-read","to-read (#127)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  46756,"Oryx and Crake (MaddAddam Trilogy, #1)","Margaret Atwood","Atwood, Margaret","",="0385721676",="9780385721677",0,"3.97","Anchor","Mass Market Paperback","374",2004,2003,,2013/01/16,"to-read","to-read (#104)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  920395,"Only Forward","Michael Marshall Smith","Smith, Michael Marshall","",="0006512666",="9780006512660",0,"4.31","HarperCollins Publishers","Paperback","310",1998,1994,,2013/01/14,"to-read","to-read (#126)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  12605487,"Fuzzy Nation","John Scalzi","Scalzi, John","Wil Wheaton",="",="",4,"4.06","Audible Frontiers","Audiobook","8",2011,2011,2013/11/24,2013/01/08,"audio-book, science-fiction, read-2013","audio-book (#70), science-fiction (#47), read-2013 (#90)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This was a really fun quick listen. I blew threw it in 2 days and I might have done it in 1 if I wasn't listening to it.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> I really enjoy Wil Wheaton as a narrator. I'm not sure why. Maybe it's his snark. Normally I'd ding someone who doesn't do accents and voices for all the characters as so-so, but for me Mr. Wheaton just seems like a great fit for a Scalzi book. I totally get why he may not be everyone's cup of tea however.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This one wasn't really on my radar, but came up for a daily deal on audible and is pretty short at less than 8 hours long, so I did it over the course of a weekend.<br/><br/>The basis of the story itself isn't new. In fact the book itself is a modernization of [b:Little Fuzzy|1440148|Little Fuzzy (Fuzzy Sapiens #1)|H. Beam Piper|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1348972417s/1440148.jpg|1876891]. I haven't read that book and can't say if even that book is necessarily original. Man comes to planet/country/etc and ends up encountering natives he doesn't understand to find that he own people are filled with a bunch of asshats.<br/><br/>I could be describing the plot to Dances with Wolves, or more recently (and closer) Avatar. It's not exactly the same. There is no native love interest for instance, but close enough.<br/><br/>Still I really enjoyed Mr. Scalzi's snarky take on the story. I was laughing at several points and really enjoyed the ending. <br/><br/>The protagonist Jack Holloway isn't always very likable. He's surrounded by some better people than he deserves and is often unappreciative of them.<br/><br/>However, he proves to be infinitely less of an asshat than some of the other humans on planet, even if it takes him a little while to get there. I think there is a surprising amount of depth to Mr. Holloway given the length of the story. <br/><br/>Overall this was just a fun little diversion, that may be helped or hindered by Mr. Wheaton's reading of it depending on your opinion of him as a narrator.","","","1","Scalzi Fans","",1,2013/11/22,"Audible","Like new",,
  9412324,"Just a Geek: Unflinchingly Honest Tales of the Search for Life, Love, and Fulfillment Beyond the Starship Enterprise","Wil Wheaton","Wheaton, Wil","",="0596555571",="9780596555573",0,"3.97","O'Reilly Media","ebook","304",2004,2004,,2013/01/08,"to-read, humble-ebook-bundle-2","to-read (#125), humble-ebook-bundle-2 (#2)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  18875128,"The Ghost Brigades (Old Man's War, #2)","John Scalzi","Scalzi, John","William Dufris",="",="",4,"4.07","Audible.com","Audiobook","11",2008,2006,2014/03/25,2013/01/06,"science-fiction, old-mans-war, audio-book, read-2014","science-fiction (#54), old-mans-war (#1), audio-book (#98), read-2014 (#33)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A fun sci-fi space opera. You won't get deep plot, just a fast-paced military story...IN SPACE!<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> This is the second book I've listened to by William Dufris. He's pretty good. He speaks clearly and with good inflections. <br/><br/>You can tell the characters apart. He did seem to use the same voices as from [b:Cryptonomicon|816|Cryptonomicon (Cryptonomicon, #1)|Neal Stephenson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1327931476s/816.jpg|1166797], so I kept thinking of characters from that book. Overall though, I enjoy him as a narrator. <br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>Somehow I hadn't heard of [a:John Scalzi|4763|John Scalzi|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1236228326p2/4763.jpg] before last year. I remedied that by reading 4 of his books, starting with [b:Old Man's War|51964|Old Man's War (Old Man's War, #1)|John Scalzi|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1391208186s/51964.jpg|50700] with my book club.<br/><br/>He's not the kind of author to appeal to everyone. From what I've read he mostly writes popcorn fiction. The sort of stuff that would make for a good summer action movie. <br/><br/>This book is no different. There isn't some deep plot with twists and turns or a lot of complex characters involved in complex schemes. What you do get is enough plot to keep you interested while the characters go about cracking wise and blowing stuff up. <br/><br/>This isn't so much a sequel to [b:Old Man's War|51964|Old Man's War (Old Man's War, #1)|John Scalzi|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1391208186s/51964.jpg|50700] as it a stand alone novel that takes place in the same universe after the events of that book. There are references back to it, but almost no character overlap or important plot details to remember.<br/><br/>In a way this feels almost like book 1 again because you have the protagonist Jared Dirac going through the training of the Ghost Brigades. That said, there are things you are assumed to know about the universe Mr. Scalzi built in the first book, so it's not like you should skip that book.<br/><br/>We learn a lot more about the universe in this book, especially the Ghost Brigades of course. You're also treated to same humor as the rest of his books, which I always enjoy.<br/><br/>Overall I enjoyed it and plan to continue on with [b:The Last Colony|88071|The Last Colony (Old Man's War, #3)|John Scalzi|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1388776675s/88071.jpg|18279847] soon.","","","1","Fans of Old Man's War","",1,2014/03/20,"Audible","Like new",,
  21611,"The Forever War (The Forever War, #1)","Joe Haldeman","Haldeman, Joe","",="0060510862",="9780060510862",0,"4.12","Voyager","Paperback","278",2003,1974,,2013/01/06,"to-read","to-read (#125)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  8343267,"Dust of Dreams (The Malazan Book of the Fallen #9)","Steven Erikson","Erikson, Steven","",="0765348861",="9780765348869",3,"4.32","Tor Fantasy","Mass Market Paperback","1276",2010,2009,2014/03/02,2013/01/03,"malazan-fallen, fantasy, dark-fantasy, epic-fantasy, read-2014","malazan-fallen (#9), fantasy (#90), dark-fantasy (#22), epic-fantasy (#9), read-2014 (#9)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I found this to be a disappointment. It's not a bad book by any means, just not the book I was hoping for.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>So here we are in the home stretch of this epic 10 book series. Mr. Erikson starts this with an author's note saying how this is really part one of a two book finale to the series.<br/><br/>That colored my expectations some that we would start getting more answers than questions and that the new characters and subplots would be kept to a minimum as we finally start to wrap up what Mr. Erikson has been building for the last books.<br/><br/>I guess I can hope that it happens in [b:The Crippled God|8447255|The Crippled God (The Malazan Book of the Fallen, #10)|Steven Erikson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1320388198s/8447255.jpg|13311158], because I certainly set myself up for disappointment here. Once again Mr. Erikson writes some amazing chapters and an exciting climax. Unfortunately there is also an abundance of chapters, characters and subplots I just didn't care about. This series suffers from far too many minor characters that could often be interchangeable with one another and Mr. Erikson spends too much time for my liking with them.<br/><br/>As with previous books, I found the chapters focusing on the Malazans themselves to be the most fun and interesting. This has some of the best scenes and events in the series thus far, and somehow that just makes me mad. I look at those and wonder ""why couldn't the whole book be like this?"".<br/><br/>This has been a much more negative review than I had originally planned to write. Especially for a 3 star book. There is a lot to like here, I just wish there was more of it. More of my favorite characters. More cool battle scenes. More badass magic. More answers to questions. <br/><br/>This book has me pretty apprehensive for the final book and how Mr. Erikson is going to wrap things up. Maybe that book will help to better put this one in perspective. Or maybe it will take a re-read for me to appreciate the chapters I found uninteresting on my first read through. Only time will tell.","","","1","","",1,,"Amazon","Very good",,
  11701175,"The Crippled God (The Malazan Book of the Fallen #10)","Steven Erikson","Erikson, Steven","",="076534887X",="9780765348876",4,"4.40","Tor Fantasy","Mass Market Paperback","1198",2012,2011,2014/04/28,2013/01/03,"malazan-fallen, fantasy, dark-fantasy, epic-fantasy, read-2014","malazan-fallen (#10), fantasy (#91), dark-fantasy (#23), epic-fantasy (#10), read-2014 (#32)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A good, but not great end to a good, but a not great series (*ducks the attack from the Malazan diehards*)<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This time two years ago I had never heard of Steven Erikson or Malazan book of the fallen. Last January, some friends were organizing a big group read of the series and I decided to join in. I don't think I would have enjoyed reading this series nearly as much as I did if not for the great discussion over in <a href=""https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/85396-the-malazan-fallen"">Malazan Fallen</a>.<br/><br/>I started this 10-book journey 16 months ago with 20 something other people. I ended it with somewhere around 5 or the original readers and a few other gained along the way. In a way this sort of parallels the series. Many characters introduced, and many Fallen along the way. <br/><br/>Much like the other books in the series, if you're hoping for clear answers, you're going to be disappointed. Maybe it was foolish of me, but I had been hoping this series was building to a head and ""all will be revealed"" at the end of the journey.<br/><br/>I should have known better. There is so much left unclear and unexplained that Malazan diehards may find fun, I found frustrating. Sure there are clues, and maybe you can piece things together to answer some of the questions, but I just find myself not caring anymore.<br/><br/>That isn't to say that I'm unhappy with the end. If there is one thing Mr. Erikson has been consistent about in this 10-book series it's writing enjoyable endings. <br/><br/>Overall I found this book a vast improvement over [b:Dust of Dreams|4703427|Dust of Dreams (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #9)|Steven Erikson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388268201s/4703427.jpg|4767755], which is supposed to be the first half of this. If the two books had been released as one however, I would have given it a lower rating.<br/><br/>In fact I found most of the last 4 books to be bogged down in far too many new subplots. I'm still left scratching my head over the point of a few of them. They didn't really offer much in the way of closure for me with the characters involved and mostly felt like a diversion in attempt to make the world more ""epic"".<br/><br/>The main story however was really enjoyable for the most part, when Erikson managed to focus on it. It featured all of my favorite characters doing some truly awesome things and some of my favorite moments in the series.<br/><br/>The humor, especially that of the marines is great as always. The relationships between many of the characters, even some of the more minor Malzans I find far more compelling that some of the subplots and characters introduced late in the series.<br/><br/>I plan to continue on with more Malazan eventually, and in a few years from now I might be up for a reread. Maybe I'll enjoy the series more being able to better appreciate the complexity of this series rather than find it frustrating so often. Either way for right now I'm exhausted and need a break.","","","1","","",1,,"Amazon","Very good",,
  6657468,"Toll The Hounds (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #8)","Steven Erikson","Erikson, Steven","",="0553824465",="9780553824469",4,"4.31","Bantam","Paperback","1296",2009,2008,2014/01/10,2013/01/03,"malazan-fallen, fantasy, dark-fantasy, epic-fantasy, read-2014","malazan-fallen (#8), fantasy (#89), dark-fantasy (#21), epic-fantasy (#8), read-2014 (#1)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> To me this book lives or dies by its characters, if you liked the people from Darujhistan in [b:Gardens of the Moon|55399|Gardens of the Moon (The Malazan Book of the Fallen, #1)|Steven Erikson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1355144064s/55399.jpg|2646042] you'll likely enjoy this as much as I did. If not, you may find this one slow.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This book provides an interesting contrast with [b:Reaper's Gale|459064|Reaper's Gale (The Malazan Book of the Fallen, #7)|Steven Erikson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1356447867s/459064.jpg|4379974] for me. A lot more happens in Reaper's Gale, yet I enjoyed this one a lot more.<br/><br/>So why is that? The characters. The worst thing a storyteller can do is have characters you don't care about. I don't mean dislike. [a:Robin Hobb|25307|Robin Hobb|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1205023525p2/25307.jpg] writes great characters that I love to hate.<br/><br/>Normally Mr. Erikson does as well. For many of the characters in [b:Reaper's Gale|459064|Reaper's Gale (The Malazan Book of the Fallen, #7)|Steven Erikson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1356447867s/459064.jpg|4379974], I just didn't care. It made me bored.<br/><br/>Maybe it's because it's book 8 and Mr. Erikson decided he couldn't afford to keep dumping 20 new characters on us, but the beginning of this one didn't piss me off like many of the others.<br/><br/>With this book we return to some old favorites, some of which we haven't seen for a very long time. We're also introduced to a very small number of new ones that quickly fell into that ""love to hate"" category for me. You know a writer is doing a good job when you start hoping he'll kill someone off.<br/><br/>The chapters alternated between Darujhistan and people outside it. The Darujhistan were far more enjoyable for me, but those other chapters became moreso as the book went on.<br/><br/>I feel like I've come home again to the Phoenix Inn and caught up with old friends. Plus, the stage is set for an epic meeting of Kruppe and Iskaral Pust! Something I've been waiting for a very long time, and man does it not disappoint!<br/><br/>Of course not everything is a happy reunion. Forces are converging and the hounds are gathering. I'm always impressed at how Mr. Erikson can blend a story of gritty realism with the fantastical and occasional levity to keep your sanity in check.<br/><br/>I can see people finding this book slow if they don't enjoy the characters. But as usual, Mr. Erikson writes a great ending that even though who do will suddenly find the book impossible to put down.<br/><br/>We're in the home stretch now, and just 1 book that was so long that it was split into two left to go!","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  478951,"The Bonehunters (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #6)","Steven Erikson","Erikson, Steven","",="0553813153",="9780553813159",4,"4.39","Bantam","Paperback","1231",2007,2005,2013/09/12,2013/01/03,"malazan-fallen, fantasy, dark-fantasy, epic-fantasy, read-2013","malazan-fallen (#6), fantasy (#87), dark-fantasy (#19), epic-fantasy (#6), read-2013 (#57)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This has been my favorite book of the series thus far. There are just a few minor things that prevent me from giving it a 5 star rating.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>The book probably introduces the fewest number of new characters. As we've passed the halfway point of the series, it appears that the majority of the very large ensemble cast has been introduced and the stage is finally set for the looming battle.<br/><br/>Sides are forming up, but just who is on which side still isn't clear. This book contains most of my favorite characters, many of which are together again. I'm especially partial to the scenes of Quick Ben and Kalam, of which this book has many. Not only that, but they are hanging out with Fiddler as well.<br/><br/>Things with the Crippled God are heating up and things are looking bleaker for the soldiers of the Malazan's 14th.<br/><br/>I finally feel like I have a handle on the series, and while the start of this book introduces some new characters, I didn't feel like I was thrown into the deep end with this one like I did with [b:Midnight Tides|345299|Midnight Tides (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #5)|Steven Erikson|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1366996057s/345299.jpg|3898719].<br/><br/>My only complaint is that Mr. Erikson likes to conceal things from the reader beyond what seems necessary. It's one thing to have information withheld from the reader when the point of view character doesn't know it. It's quite another when he does things like playing the pronoun game with characters we already know or don't allow us to hear a conversation that the point of view character is involved in.<br/><br/>This series is complicated enough with a huge amount of depth. This just seems overkill and the reason I can't give this book a 5 star rating.<br/><br/>Still this has been the most enjoyable of the series thus far. I rushed a bit ahead of the <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/85396-the-malazan-fallen"">Malazan Fallen</a> group to finish a week early. I'm eager to see what happens next.<br/><br/>4.5 Stars.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  2893217,"Reaper's Gale (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #7)","Steven Erikson","Erikson, Steven","",="0553813161",="9780553813166",3,"4.32","Bantam","Paperback","1280",2008,2007,2013/11/15,2013/01/03,"malazan-fallen, fantasy, dark-fantasy, epic-fantasy, read-2013","malazan-fallen (#7), fantasy (#88), dark-fantasy (#20), epic-fantasy (#7), read-2013 (#70)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> After what has to be my favorite of the series [b:The Bonehunters|478951|The Bonehunters (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #6)|Steven Erikson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1320434864s/478951.jpg|3898723], this one is a big letdown. Too many new characters really bog the story down for far too long, but it ends strong enough to save it from being a bad book.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This book seems to take everything about [b:Midnight Tides|345299|Midnight Tides (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #5)|Steven Erikson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1366996057s/345299.jpg|3898719] and ramp it up. Unlike that book however, I didn't find myself confused and frustrated at the beginning. I was simply uninterested. So unlike Midnight Tides where I enjoyed the story once I got my bearings, this one just kept leaving me bored for far too much of the book.<br/><br/>One of the flaws I often see in Epic fantasy is introducing too many characters and subplots that it bogs the story down. This is the main fault I found with the Wheel of Time series that could badly use editing to make books 8-10 into 1 or 2 much tighter novels.<br/><br/>This one isn't quite at that extreme, but I hope that things turn around with [b:Toll the Hounds|938544|Toll the Hounds (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #8)|Steven Erikson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1316126179s/938544.jpg|3898730].<br/><br/>The Letherii/Tiste Edur story just isn't that interesting to me. Maybe it's because I find almost no likable characters in the bunch apart from Tehol and Bugg. All of the new characters, especially the Patriotists are despicable. <br/><br/>That's all well and good, but I feel Mr. Erikson spends entirely too much time convincing just how despicable they are. I think there were enough (or nearly enough) characters from [b:Midnight Tides|345299|Midnight Tides (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #5)|Steven Erikson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1366996057s/345299.jpg|3898719] that could have been used to tell this story without adding so many new faces.<br/><br/>Thankfully the Malazans come to the rescue of this story, albeit a lot later than I would have liked. Old favorites like Fiddler and Quick Ben and the banter of the Marines are a relief from the tedium that is the Letherii/Edur story.<br/><br/>Mr. Erikson seems to always write really terrible beginnings (even though I know he's capable of writing good ones) but really excellent endings. This one is no different. However I won't let another strong ending fool me into forgetting about how bored I was for far too much of this novel.<br/><br/>There were enough enjoyable chapters in this book to save it from a 2-star rating, but overall this has been the weakest novel in the series for me so far. Readers who enjoyed [b:Midnight Tides|345299|Midnight Tides (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #5)|Steven Erikson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1366996057s/345299.jpg|3898719] more than I did may come away with a different opinion, but I for one am happy to move on.","","","1","","",1,,"","Good",,
  1277613,"Midnight Tides (The Malazan Book of the Fallen, #5)","Steven Erikson","Erikson, Steven","",="0765348829",="9780765348821",4,"4.31","Tor Fantasy","Mass Market Paperback","960",2007,2004,2013/07/28,2013/01/03,"malazan-fallen, read-2013, fantasy, dark-fantasy, epic-fantasy","malazan-fallen (#5), read-2013 (#45), fantasy (#86), dark-fantasy (#18), epic-fantasy (#5)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I'm surprised to be giving this book 4 stars. It started as a 2 for me. My enjoyment slowly built as the book when on, and in the end I enjoyed it overall.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>So I gave this book 4 stars, which means I liked it, but I'm going to start off with a bit of a rant about this series that has been festering for the last 6 weeks or so as I've read this book.<br/><br/>[a:Steven Erikson|31232|Steven Erikson|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1219169436p2/31232.jpg] writes some of the WORST beginnings to books I have ever read. And it's not because he can't write them. [b:House of Chains|55398|House of Chains (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #4)|Steven Erikson|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1316729521s/55398.jpg|836472] shows that he can write a straightforward and comprehensible beginning, despite changing locations and introducing many new characters. I enjoyed that book all the way through.<br/><br/>No book in the series so far has shown this fact more than this one. I was about ready to quit the book in frustration. He introduced what seemed like 20 new characters in the span of maybe 2 chapters. This book has all of one character in it from the previous 4 books. And he was a relatively minor character that I was pretty indifferent towards. None of it made much sense to me.<br/><br/>I'm apparently not the typical Malazan fan in this. Everyone else seems to enjoy being thrown into the deep end at the start of each book. I don't. I'm pretty tired of it by now as my rant may indicate. I just don't get why all the hardcore Malazan fans do. I guess that means I'll never be one of them. Then again there are still 5 more books to go.<br/><br/>I'm really enjoying this series so far, but Mr. Erikson seems to go out of his way to alienate potential fans in my opinion. I don't mind all the layering and complex foreshadowing he does. I certainly don't get even a third of it, but it doesn't bother me. It just makes me feel pretty dumb/unobservant in a group reading setting.<br/><br/>OK, now that I got that off my chest. This book is sort of odd. The whole thing is a flash back. It's hard to say exactly when it occurs. It seems like the near past. I feel like this story might better have been told earlier in the series. Maybe it's beginning would have frustrated me less then, but probably not.<br/><br/>There are some really great characters in this book though. They are largely responsible for my enjoyment of this book. Mr. Erikson seems to have this obsession with pairs of characters, and Tehol and Bugg are now only second to Quick Ben and Kalam as my favorites.<br/><br/>Iron Bars is probably now one of my favorites as well. I wish we had gotten to see more of him in this book that we did. Hopefully we'll see more of him later in the series.<br/><br/>This book is much less action-packed than the previous four. There is a lot more politics in this one. That doesn't make it any less gruesome and dark. Just like the rest of the series, there are some truly disturbing scenes in this book.<br/><br/>As I got my feet about me again and got past the horrible beginning, I moved into a solid 3 territory. The ending of this was quite enjoyable, and the book became hard to put down. This bumped it to a 4 star by the end, which is saying a lot since I started at barely a 2.<br/><br/>I can't wait to jump into [b:The Bonehunters|478951|The Bonehunters (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #6)|Steven Erikson|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1320434864s/478951.jpg|3898723], especially since most of my favorite characters look to be back. Likely to die in some horrible fashion the way this series seems to be going, but I'll continue to read in morbid fascination.","","","1","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  55398,"House of Chains (The Malazan Book of the Fallen, #4)","Steven Erikson","Erikson, Steven","",="0765348810",="9780765348814",4,"4.29","Tor Fantasy","Mass Market Paperback","1021",2007,2002,2013/06/13,2013/01/03,"malazan-fallen, read-2013, fantasy, dark-fantasy, epic-fantasy","malazan-fallen (#4), read-2013 (#39), fantasy (#85), dark-fantasy (#17), epic-fantasy (#4)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> The best book in the series so far. There are just a few subplots in this book that slow it down and prevent me from giving it a 5.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This novel is very different from the first 3. The first ""book"" is not only 25% of the novel, it all focuses on one character. Karsa Orlong is not a very likable character. His story is still an interesting one.<br/><br/>His is one of the most straightforward stories of the series so far, and the one with the most character growth so far. The Karsa Orlong at the end of the novel isn't that fundamentally different from the one at the start, yet I find myself liking him now, and I'm still not sure how Mr. Erikson managed that. <br/><br/>He's obviously a genius when it comes characters and making the point that people aren't black and white, but many shades of grey.<br/><br/>This story isn't just about Karsa Orlong however. This book returns back to Seven Cities and the conflicts that were left looming at the end of [b:Deadhouse Gates|55401|Deadhouse Gates (The Malazan Book of the Fallen, #2)|Steven Erikson|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1316126263s/55401.jpg|3898716].<br/><br/>Some of my favorites are back, like Fiddler and Kalam Mekhar, as well as others I just don't really care for, like Felisin and Heboric. <br/><br/>Really I find pretty much everyone associated with Sha'ik's Army of the Apocalypse basically unlikable. At first. Once again everything isn't so black and white, and I found myself changing my mind on some of the characters.<br/><br/>Mr. Erikson seems to have a fondness for duos, as there have been many such pairs throughout the series so far. One of the newer ones I've come to enjoy in this book is that of the Claw Pearl and Lostara Yil. We are also once again rewarded with more Iskaral Pust and Mogora, which offer some pretty amusing dialogues.<br/><br/>The only thing that detracted from this book for me was the story of Trull Sengar and Onrack. I just found myself indifferent and eager to get through there parts. It wasn't that I didn't like them, every good story needs unlikable characters. I just didn't care. Hopefully that will change with future books.<br/><br/>All and all this was a great entry to the series, and I'm looking forward to continuing on with [b:Midnight Tides|345299|Midnight Tides (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #5)|Steven Erikson|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1366996057s/345299.jpg|3898719] shortly.","","","","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  175983,"Memories of Ice (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #3)","Steven Erikson","Erikson, Steven","",="0765348802",="9780765348807",4,"4.35","Tor Fantasy","Mass Market Paperback","920",2006,,2013/05/03,2013/01/03,"malazan-fallen, read-2013, fantasy, dark-fantasy, epic-fantasy","malazan-fallen (#3), read-2013 (#8), fantasy (#84), dark-fantasy (#16), epic-fantasy (#3)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Easily my favorite book in the series so far. Things just seem to click for me, and really enjoyed this book start to finish.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>With the third book in the series we return to Genabackis, and most of the characters from the [b:Gardens of the Moon|55399|Gardens of the Moon (The Malazan Book of the Fallen, #1)|Steven Erikson|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1355144064s/55399.jpg|2646042] with some new additions (because in epic fantasy, one can't have too many characters).<br/><br/>I'm not sure what it about this book, maybe it's because it's my 3rd Malazan book. Maybe it's the return to the characters of [b:Gardens of the Moon|55399|Gardens of the Moon (The Malazan Book of the Fallen, #1)|Steven Erikson|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1355144064s/55399.jpg|2646042] I liked much better than the characters in [b:Deadhouse Gates|55401|Deadhouse Gates (The Malazan Book of the Fallen, #2)|Steven Erikson|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1316126263s/55401.jpg|3898716]. It could just be the plot of this one is more compelling. Whatever the reason, this is was a really great book for me.<br/><br/>We are finally introduced what appears to be the main antagonist. The Malazans now set their sights East and a new war brewing from the new empire of the Pannion Domin.<br/><br/>Now instead of being the invading force in Genabackis, Dujek and Whiskeyjack are leading the Malazans and his Bridgeburners to defend some of the coastal cities.<br/><br/>They are unable to do this alone. Alliances must be forged, and people rallied. The horrors of the Pannion Domin make the previous fights over first Pale and later Darujhistan seem like a walk in the park by comparison.<br/><br/>Quick Ben is easily my favorite character in the series so far, and he gets even more bad-ass in this book. When living in a world of constant war, gods and demi-gods, it takes a certain kind arrogance for a human to throw himself in with the big boys and expect to triumph.<br/><br/>A great new addition to the cast was Gruntle, caravan leader. His story starts off on the slow side, but really gains momentum as the book progresses.<br/><br/>This book also offers more insight into many characters who were on the periphrial in [b:Gardens of the Moon|55399|Gardens of the Moon (The Malazan Book of the Fallen, #1)|Steven Erikson|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1355144064s/55399.jpg|2646042]. Caladan Brood for one.<br/><br/>Finally we meet the Grey Cloaks, mercenaries, and disciples of Fener, the god of war. They have been hired to defend the city of Capustan from the Pannion Domin. The Shield Anvil, Itkovian, is an especially compelling character.<br/><br/>All in all, a great book. I'm sad that I'll be leaving most (all?) of these characters behind as I continue on with [b:House of Chains|55398|House of Chains (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #4)|Steven Erikson|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1316729521s/55398.jpg|836472]. <br/><br/>I'd give this book a 4.5 if I could, but it had a few slower parts early on as things are being set up that make me reluctant to give it a 5.","","","1","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  541867,"Deadhouse Gates (The Malazan Book of the Fallen, #2)","Steven Erikson","Erikson, Steven","",="0765348799",="9780765348791",4,"4.24","Tor Fantasy","Mass Market Paperback","843",2006,2000,2013/03/16,2013/01/03,"malazan-fallen, read-2013, fantasy, dark-fantasy, epic-fantasy","malazan-fallen (#1), read-2013 (#17), fantasy (#83), dark-fantasy (#15), epic-fantasy (#2)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Like [b:Gardens of the Moon|55399|Gardens of the Moon (The Malazan Book of the Fallen, #1)|Steven Erikson|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1355144064s/55399.jpg|2646042] this book is a tough read. It is a lot more gruesome than it's predecessor however. This book is not for the feint of heart. While there are some lighter moments to interrupt the violence, this book has some truly disturbing scenes.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b> <br/>I found the beginning of this book very frustrating. Just when I felt like I had a pretty good handle on things we shift not only location, but get almost entirely a new set of characters to learn.<br/><br/>If not for my <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/85396-the-malazan-fallen"">Group Read</a>, I might have considered taking a break.<br/><br/>I read for fun, not to be frustrated. I don't normally like to have to work so hard for something in my free time. I honestly don't know if I'd enjoy this outside of a group setting. <br/><br/>The confusion level I felt while reading this did make for great discussion though. I found it reassuring that even the re-readers were confused on certain points.<br/><br/>Mr. Erikson does seem to reward your patience and careful reading. As the book went on, and I started getting used to this new cast of characters, my frustration greatly lessened. This book started as 3 starts but slowly rose to 4 stars.<br/><br/>There are 4 main plot lines with a few side lines that diverge and converge as the story goes on. <br/><br/>My favorite was the story of Kalam, who was one of the few characters in the first book to appear in this one. Maybe it's because I've always gravitated towards rogues and ranger types in RPGs that I found his story so interest.<br/><br/>You learn a little bit more about his past, and find out just how badass a well trained assassin can be. Kalam in on a self-appointed mission for the good of the Empire, or so he believes.<br/><br/>The other major plotline of this book was from the perspective of Duiker, the Imperial Historian as he chronicles the months long evacuation of ""The Chain of Dogs"", Malazan refugees fleeing for their lives, in the midst of a great rebellion of the Seven Cities.<br/><br/>This leads to some of most gruesome battle scenes I have ever encountered. Mr. Erikson makes no attempt to sugar coat the horrors of war.<br/><br/>The final two fairly major plot lines in this book are enjoyable as well, but both of them tie back to the two I highlighted. Their cast of characters were interesting (and one of the two groups contained all the rest of the characters that appeared in the first two books). I felt like these were mostly interludes to the other action though. <br/><br/>The book comes to a reasonable stopping point, though if this were a stand alone book I'd find myself with too many questions to be satisfied by it.<br/><br/>It's hard for me to recommend this to someone to read on their own. If you don't mind working for your reward, or have someone you can read/discuss this with, and are not offput by gruesome and disturbing scenes it's another good entry in what so far has been a mostly enjoyable series.<br/><br/>I'm also a bit nervous about starting [b:Memories of Ice|175983|Memories of Ice (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #3)|Steven Erikson|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1316729348s/175983.jpg|836462] that I'll get frustrated all over again. Peaking ahead though it seems like we see a return of many of the characters from [b:Gardens of the Moon|55399|Gardens of the Moon (The Malazan Book of the Fallen, #1)|Steven Erikson|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1355144064s/55399.jpg|2646042].","","","1","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  45110,"Shaman's Crossing (Soldier Son, #1)","Robin Hobb","Hobb, Robin","",="0060758287",="9780060758288",0,"3.38","Harper Voyager","Mass Market Paperback","591",2006,2005,,2013/01/01,"to-read","to-read (#123)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  10189972,"The Naming (Pellinor, #1)","Alison Croggon","Croggon, Alison","",="",="",0,"3.98","Candlewick","Kindle Edition","530",2010,2002,,2013/01/01,"to-read","to-read (#122)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  6902644,"xkcd: volume 0","Randall Munroe","Munroe, Randall","",="0615314465",="9780615314464",0,"4.37","Breadpig","Paperback","120",2010,2009,,2012/12/28,"to-read, humble-ebook-bundle","to-read (#121), humble-ebook-bundle (#13)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  7163862,"Zoo City","Lauren Beukes","Beukes, Lauren","",="",="9780007327683",0,"3.65","Angry Robot","Paperback","416",2010,2010,,2012/12/28,"to-read, humble-ebook-bundle","to-read (#120), humble-ebook-bundle (#12)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  1986356,"The Secret World Chronicle","Mercedes Lackey","Lackey, Mercedes","Steve Libbey, Cody Martin, Dennis Lee, Adam Higgins, Laura Patterson, Veronica Giguere",="",="",0,"3.49","","Podiobook","",2007,2007,,2012/12/28,"to-read, humble-ebook-bundle","to-read (#119), humble-ebook-bundle (#11)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  11526573,"The Most Dangerous Game: A Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal Collection","Zach Weiner","Weiner, Zach","Zach Weinersmith",="0982853718",="9780982853719",0,"4.05","Breadpig","Paperback","76",2011,2011,,2012/12/28,"to-read, humble-ebook-bundle","to-read (#118), humble-ebook-bundle (#10)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  166570,"Signal to Noise","Neil Gaiman","Gaiman, Neil","Dave McKean",="1878574434",="9781878574435",0,"3.83","Dark Horse Comics","Paperback","80",1993,1990,,2012/12/28,"to-read, humble-ebook-bundle","to-read (#117), humble-ebook-bundle (#9)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  11073526,"Save Yourself, Mammal!: A Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal Collection","Zach Weiner","Weiner, Zach","Zach Weinersmith",="098285370X",="9780982853702",0,"4.04","Breadpig","Paperback","88",2011,2011,,2012/12/28,"to-read, humble-ebook-bundle","to-read (#116), humble-ebook-bundle (#8)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  287109,"Epic Legends of the Magic Sword Kings (Penny Arcade, #2)","Jerry Holkins","Holkins, Jerry","Mike Krahulik",="1593075413",="9781593075415",0,"4.03","Dark Horse","Paperback","160",2006,2006,,2012/12/28,"to-read, humble-ebook-bundle","to-read (#115), humble-ebook-bundle (#6)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  287110,"Attack of the Bacon Robots! (Penny Arcade, #1)","Jerry Holkins","Holkins, Jerry","Mike Krahulik",="1593074441",="9781593074449",0,"3.86","Dark Horse Comics","Paperback","168",2006,2006,,2012/12/28,"to-read, humble-ebook-bundle","to-read (#114), humble-ebook-bundle (#5)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  2819368,"Pump Six and Other Stories","Paolo Bacigalupi","Bacigalupi, Paolo","",="159780133X",="9781597801331",0,"4.04","Night Shade Books","Hardcover","239",2008,2008,,2012/12/28,"to-read, humble-ebook-bundle","to-read (#113), humble-ebook-bundle (#4)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  66659,"Stranger Things Happen","Kelly Link","Link, Kelly","",="1931520003",="9781931520003",0,"3.86","Small Beer Press","Paperback","266",2001,2001,,2012/12/28,"to-read, humble-ebook-bundle","to-read (#112), humble-ebook-bundle (#3)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  66657,"Magic for Beginners","Kelly Link","Link, Kelly","Shelley Jackson",="0156031876",="9780156031875",0,"3.87","Mariner Books","Paperback","297",2006,2005,,2012/12/28,"humble-ebook-bundle, to-read","humble-ebook-bundle (#2), to-read (#111)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  1004139,"The Call of the Wild","Jack London","London, Jack","",="0140817689",="9780140817683",3,"3.77",,,"",,1903,,2012/12/28,"read-before-goodreads","read-before-goodreads (#138)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  355697,"All Quiet on the Western Front","Erich Maria Remarque","Remarque, Erich Maria","A.W. Wheen",="0449213943",="9780449213940",3,"3.85","Ballantine","Mass Market Paperback","296",1987,1928,,2012/12/28,"read-before-goodreads","read-before-goodreads (#81)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  12279393,"Hounded (Iron Druid Chronicles, #1)","Kevin Hearne","Hearne, Kevin","Luke Daniels",="",="",3,"4.11","Brilliance Audio","Audible Audio","9",2011,2011,2013/11/22,2012/12/27,"audio-book, fantasy, urban-fantasy, read-2013, iron-druid","audio-book (#67), fantasy (#173), urban-fantasy (#37), read-2013 (#89), iron-druid (#2)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> An alright, but not spectacular debut that is helped by how short it is. There are hints of possibility here to develop into a better series at least.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> This is the first book I've listened to by Luke Daniels. At first I didn't like him much but her grew on me. He seems pretty good at accents, I'm just not sure I like his normal reading voice though. I did really enjoy his voice for Oberon however.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I've had several people tell me this is a great series, especially as a fan of the Dresden Files. I got a good deal on the first book from audible recently so I finally checked it out. Since this is comparison I hear a lot, I figure I'll give my a review as a sort of compare and contrast for anyone else out there whose loves Dresden and are considering these books.<br/><br/>I'm a little underwhelmed. I always tell people to give Dresden a few books before it really gets good. Maybe that will be true here as well. <br/><br/>Both have a snarky protagonist who can do magic and fights overwhelming adversaries. I don't enjoy the humor in this one nearly as much. [a:Jim Butcher|10746|Jim Butcher|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1205261964p2/10746.jpg] has me laughing out loud at least several times during a novel. This one I chuckled internally a few times, but that was it.<br/><br/>There are several other similarities that seem to be taken right from the pages of the later books of Dresden. I'll put them in spoiler tags so as not to spoil anything from either series, I consider both minor at this point but better safe that sorry: <spoiler>a dog sidekick and an attractive young female apprentice</spoiler><br/><br/>There are differences however. Atticus has fully embraced technology. He runs his own business and sells things online as part of it. This would be a problem for Harry. Atticus is very old and the last of his kind (that we know of anyways). Harry is considered young for a wizard.<br/><br/>The big highlight for me was Atticus's dog Oberon. I think Mr. Hearne does a good job portraying dog-like thoughts, or at least what I would guess them to be.<br/><br/>I found myself bored for at least the first 25% or so, but somewhere along the way I ended up enjoying it enough that I snagged the sequel on another daily deal from audible. I hope to see some growth in the second book or I may stop there.","","","1","","",1,,"Audible","Like new",,
  16299590,"The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle (The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, #7)","Arthur Conan Doyle","Doyle, Arthur Conan","Alan Cumming",="",="",3,"3.74","Audible Inc.","Audible Audio","1",2012,1892,2012/12/17,2012/12/16,"sherlock-holmes, audio-book, read-2012","sherlock-holmes (#6), audio-book (#23), read-2012 (#4)","read","Quick review for a short story. I listened to this audio book on my drive into work. In the past I've listened to BBC Radio dramatizations of Sherlock Holmes stories. I believe this is the first actual reading of one that I've listened to.<br/><br/>This is not one of Doyle's best Sherlock stories. The start of the story has Sherlock rambling on about a hat trying to discover all he can about it's owner, and I find myself wonder why the great Sherlock Holmes is wasting his intellect on simply trying to return a man's hat.<br/><br/>Eventually the story does pick up as their seems to be a jewel heist involved. This was a free book from Audible, and only about 45 minutes, so well worth my time for the price.<br/><br/><b>About the Audio book:</b> This edition was read by the actor Alan Cummings. He's an excellent reader in the sense of his pronunciation/inflection. He did a bit of dialect and you could distinguish between someone educated such as Sherlock or Watson from a working man. I was unable to tell the difference between Sherlock and Watson however. He does a good, but not great job reading it.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  76173,"We","Yevgeny Zamyatin","Zamyatin, Yevgeny","Natasha Randall",="081297462X",="9780812974621",0,"3.97","Modern Library","Paperback","203",2006,1921,,2012/12/16,"to-read","to-read (#110)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  7672,"Congo","Michael Crichton","Crichton, Michael","",="0060541830",="9780060541835",3,"3.48","Avon Books","Paperback","442",2003,1980,,2012/12/10,"read-before-goodreads","read-before-goodreads (#102)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  55399,"Gardens of the Moon (The Malazan Book of the Fallen, #1)","Steven Erikson","Erikson, Steven","",="0765348780",="9780765348784",4,"3.82","Tor Fantasy","Mass Market Paperback","666",2005,1999,2013/01/28,2012/12/10,"malazan-fallen, read-2013, fantasy, dark-fantasy, epic-fantasy","malazan-fallen (#2), read-2013 (#24), fantasy (#82), dark-fantasy (#14), epic-fantasy (#1)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This is not a book for the faint of heart, or the first time fantasy reader. Mr. Erikson makes you think, and READ. No skimming allowed. Every word can be important. It's certainly not for everybody, but if you stick with it, I think most people will find their efforts greatly rewarded.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This is a case of, you were right Good Reads recommendation engine. Why didn't I listen to you?<br/><br/>Shortly after joining good reads last year and putting all my books in, I checked out the recommendations page. This book was prominently listed based on several of my shelves. I read the description, and some of the reviews, and wasn't too impressed and moved on.<br/><br/>Fast forward about 6 months and a few of my newly made GR friends were making a group to do a series re-read. A few others decided to join in as first timers. I was convinced to give the series a try.<br/><br/>I'm glad I did. I can't say how I'll feel after all 10 books, but after the first one, I'm hooked!<br/><br/>The <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/85396-the-malazan-fallen"">group</a> is probably a large part of my enjoyment. I can see this book being very hard to read by yourself. There were a few parts that confused the hell out of me, that were explained to me by people who had been there before.<br/><br/>I'm very much a go with the flow and enjoy the ride type of reader. I'm OK if things don't make sense right away, so long as I get there eventually. Everything that confused me at the start was cleared up by the end. I'm not 100% if that was all book, or our great <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/85396-the-malazan-fallen"">group discussion</a>, but it doesn't matter.<br/><br/>The book certainly has left me with a lot of questions to be answered, but that's to be expected as the start of a 10 book series.<br/><br/>Mr. Erikson is an excellent writer. His descriptions, characters and language are all top notch. My only (minor) complaint would be that he sometimes seems intent on showing you just how good his vocabulary is.<br/><br/>The highlight for me is the character development. This book involves some very powerful people. And just when you think ""wow, what a badass"", someone more powerful shows up. I don't know if Dues Ex Machina possible when the gods themselves are part of the cast.<br/><br/>He also paints a very grey picture. One or two chapters in, I started to feel I knew who was ""good"" and who was ""bad"". Five chapters in, I had to re-evaluate my  initial assessments. I wouldn't be surprised if 2 books in, I re-asses them again.<br/><br/>Mr. Erikson introduces an interesting magical system with his use of Warrens. Unlike Brandon Sanderson who gives you a lot of detail and rules about how magic works, at least through 1 book the details are quite murky.<br/><br/>All and all, a great start to the series. It's a 4, but it's a very high 4, and the ending almost pushes it to a 5 for me. I'm already looking forward to continuing on with [b:Deadhouse Gates|55401|Deadhouse Gates (The Malazan Book of the Fallen, #2)|Steven Erikson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1385272744s/55401.jpg|3898716] in two weeks.","","","1","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  13539171,"Pirate Cinema","Cory Doctorow","Doctorow, Cory","",="0765329085",="9780765329080",0,"3.67","Tom Doherty","Hardcover","384",2012,2012,,2012/12/08,"to-read, humble-ebook-bundle","to-read (#109), humble-ebook-bundle (#7)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  7139892,"Under Heaven","Guy Gavriel Kay","Kay, Guy Gavriel","",="0007342012",="9780007342013",0,"4.10","HarperVoyager","Hardcover","576",2010,2010,,2012/12/07,"to-read","to-read (#108)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  408854,"The Dark Tower (The Dark Tower #7)","Stephen King","King, Stephen","Michael Whelan",="1880418622",="9781880418628",4,"4.22","Donald M. Grant Publishers","Hardcover","845",2004,1999,2013/05/15,2012/12/06,"dark-tower, audio-book, read-2013, read-before-goodreads, fantasy, dark-fantasy","dark-tower (#9), audio-book (#35), read-2013 (#4), read-before-goodreads (#3), fantasy (#1), dark-fantasy (#1)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A satisfying ending to what has always been one of my favorite series of books.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> George Guidall was on par with his previous readings in the series. He's once again great for Roland, and so-so for everyone else. He neither adds to nor detracts from the book in my opinion.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>And so Roland's (and therefore my own) journey to the Dark Tower has once again reached its conclusion. I for one was very happy when I first reached the end. Both of them. I wonder if anyone really stops where he suggests?<br/><br/>I think both endings work well, though I prefer the actual ending to point where he tries to guilt you into stopping. He brings up the fact that the journey is always more important than the ending, and with the Dark Tower series, I certainly agree with him.<br/><br/>It is the journey part of this book, and not the ending that cost this book an extra star in my opinion. This books wanders a bit too much, and delves a bit too much into the background of new characters who in my opinion aren't that important to Roland's story.<br/><br/>This is only the second time I've read this book, and I enjoyed it about the same I believe. It's been many years now since I read it when it first came out in 2004 (I have a really nice Grant First Edition copy).<br/><br/>I've always felt the first half of the series (1-4) is much stronger than the latter half he wrote in one go after his near death experience. That isn't to say it is bad, or that I'm unhappy.<br/><br/>It might simply be changes to me, and not the series. I started this series in high school, and read and re-read the first four books more times than I can remember while waiting on Mr. King to finish. By the time the story was concluded I was mostly done with college.<br/><br/>On this audio journey, I got to revisit old places and old friends (and enemies) as Roland and his Ka-tet journeyed to the Dark Tower. I started it because I had some friends who were reading it for the first time. One dropped out after just the first book, but the other continued on and seemed to enjoy the series nearly as much as I have.<br/><br/>These days I don't have much time for re-reading. There are too many books that I want to read. This series might be an exception. I'm not sure if I'll ever read my physical copies again (listening is just a lot more convenient for re-reads), but I'm sure this won't be the last time I quest out for the Dark Tower. Say True, and I Say Thankya.","","","2","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  12903571,"The Color of Magic (Discworld, #1)","Terry Pratchett","Pratchett, Terry","",="",="",3,"3.94","Harper Paperbacks","Kindle Edition","287",2011,1983,2014/06/10,2012/11/29,"fantasy, read-2014, discworld","fantasy (#238), read-2014 (#59), discworld (#2)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Started slow, but finished strong.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I've been meaning to read Discworld for awhile. A good friend of mine loves the series and recommended it to me over 10 years ago, but I just never got around to it.<br/><br/>He suggested I might be better off starting with [b:Guards! Guards!|64216|Guards! Guards! (Discworld, #8)|Terry Pratchett|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1400992253s/64216.jpg|1128601] than this book. However between picking up the first few books on a sale, and my general need to read thing in publication order.<br/><br/>My understanding is that while all the books are set in Discworld, there are several different sub-series with recurring characters. The [b:Guards! Guards!|64216|Guards! Guards! (Discworld, #8)|Terry Pratchett|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1400992253s/64216.jpg|1128601] one is supposed to be a different set I guess. I don't pretend to know enough about it. I do know there are big complicated charts on the whole thing.<br/><br/>I found this book a slow start. I was expecting things to be a lot funnier. I'm not sure if I just wasn't getting them, or they weren't as prevalent.<br/><br/>It took me awhile to get through the story. I didn't really care too much for Rincewind or Twoflower. The luggage however was pretty amusing.<br/><br/>It all changed for me in the last quarter or so though. I was really cracking up at some of the jokes and overall was reading at a much faster pace.<br/><br/>All and all it's enough to get to try the next one at some point, which is good considering I already own it. Hopefully I work may way up to [b:Guards! Guards!|64216|Guards! Guards! (Discworld, #8)|Terry Pratchett|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1400992253s/64216.jpg|1128601] to see if I like that more.","","","1","","",1,2013/09/17,"Amazon","unspecified",,
  14891812,"Coding Freedom: The Ethics and Aesthetics of Hacking","E. Gabriella Coleman","Coleman, E. Gabriella","",="0691144613",="9780691144610",0,"3.62","Princeton University Press","Paperback","254",2012,2012,,2012/11/28,"to-read","to-read (#107)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  17728784,"Blood of Dragons (Rain Wild Chronicles, #4)","Robin Hobb","Hobb, Robin","",="",="",4,"4.04","Harper Voyager","Kindle Edition","545",2013,2013,2014/01/18,2012/11/21,"elderlings, fantasy, read-2014","elderlings (#13), fantasy (#60), read-2014 (#4)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A good but not perfect ending, to a good but not perfect series.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I was only introduced to [a:Robin Hobb|25307|Robin Hobb|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1205023525p2/25307.jpg] in summer of 2012, but she's quickly become one of my favorite authors. While I think this is probably the weakest of her Elderling series books, I still greatly enjoyed it.<br/><br/>Ms. Hobb once again has a way with writing characters that feel real, especially in the way they can frustrate your and make you down right furious.<br/><br/>She has a way of making me just enjoy following her characters around as they go about their lives. I feel like not as much happened in these four books as have in her previous trilogies. Yet I don't mind.<br/><br/>I don't need her to have epic battles, with spell slinging mages or dragons engaged in combat. This book has no mages, and the dragons do very little fighting. What it does have is complex characters dealing with the complexity that is life: love, hate, greed, courage in a fantastical setting. Somehow that's enough for me. It may not be enough for everyone.<br/><br/>There are some complaints I could make, but not many and I won't really dwell on them. I would have liked to see some more time spent with characters from Liveship. Their cameos throughout the series, and in this book in particular were excellent though.<br/><br/>The series ends by tying up many but not all of the loose ends I'd have liked. It leaves me wanting more, yet not upset as though the book just stopped. I would be happy to read more about these characters, especially a few years down the road to see how they made out.<br/><br/>I think the best example of this might be the bird keepers. We only know a little of them from their correspondence in a few paragraphs between each chapter. Yet they feel just as real to me as the main characters of the book.<br/><br/>They feel like friends. People I know and care about. Or they feel like rivals. People I would never want to meet. That's hard in writing, and Ms. Hobb always seems to do an excellent job of that for me.","","","1","","",1,,"Amazon","unspecified",,
  13059492,"City of Dragons (Rain Wild Chronicles, #3)","Robin Hobb","Hobb, Robin","",="",="",4,"3.97","Harper Voyager","Kindle Edition","416",2012,2012,2013/12/31,2012/11/21,"elderlings, fantasy, read-2013","elderlings (#12), fantasy (#59), read-2013 (#107)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Much like [b:The Dragon Keeper|4703450|The Dragon Keeper (Rain Wild Chronicles, #1)|Robin Hobb|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1330079386s/4703450.jpg|4767778], this book is a lot of setup, but I still enjoyed it albeit probably the least of the series so far.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>The Rain Wild Chronicles should really be a Duology rather than a four book series. This was obvious with [b:The Dragon Keeper|4703450|The Dragon Keeper (Rain Wild Chronicles, #1)|Robin Hobb|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1330079386s/4703450.jpg|4767778] and [b:Dragon Haven|7011403|Dragon Haven (Rain Wild Chronicles, #2)|Robin Hobb|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1263769185s/7011403.jpg|21457174] which felt like two halves of the same book.<br/><br/>[b:The Dragon Keeper|4703450|The Dragon Keeper (Rain Wild Chronicles, #1)|Robin Hobb|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1330079386s/4703450.jpg|4767778] seemed to have a lot of setup for the events of [b:Dragon Haven|7011403|Dragon Haven (Rain Wild Chronicles, #2)|Robin Hobb|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1263769185s/7011403.jpg|21457174] and this one feels the same.<br/><br/>Not a lot seems to really happen, but things appear to be nicely set up for the final book of the series.<br/><br/>That isn't to say I didn't enjoy it, because I did. The scenes exploring Kelsingra were especially enjoyable. There were nods back to events from the Farseer trilogy (if you have a better memory/read those books more recently than I did anyways).<br/><br/>I might have been happier if the whole book were simply exploring the ""City of Dragons"". Of course Ms. Hobb needs to roll out her hated characters to make you grind your teeth, and finally seems to get around to really abusing her likable characters like she does in previous series.<br/><br/>All and all excellent writing, characters and world building that just fell a little short on the plot development for me. I can't wait to jump into [b:Blood of Dragons|13109291|Blood of Dragons (Rain Wild Chronicles, #4)|Robin Hobb|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1341265576s/13109291.jpg|18282611].<br/><br/>3.5 Stars.","","","1","","",1,,"Amazon","unspecified",,
  8305126,"Dragon Haven (Rain Wild Chronicles, #2)","Robin Hobb","Hobb, Robin","",="",="",4,"4.00","HarperCollins e-books","Kindle Edition","526",2010,2010,2013/12/17,2012/11/21,"elderlings, fantasy, read-2013","elderlings (#11), fantasy (#58), read-2013 (#100)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> An improvement over [b:The Dragon Keeper|4703450|The Dragon Keeper (Rain Wild Chronicles, #1)|Robin Hobb|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1330079386s/4703450.jpg|4767778]. With everything set the story is just able to move forward at a brisker pace. This is really Dragon Keeper part 2 from what I understand and it feels like it. <br/><br/>If you enjoyed the first one, you'll likely enjoy this at least as much if not more. If you found the first book a let down, you may find you gave up on the story too soon.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>After completing [b:The Dragon Keeper|4703450|The Dragon Keeper (Rain Wild Chronicles, #1)|Robin Hobb|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1330079386s/4703450.jpg|4767778], I really wanted to jump right into this one. However with other obligations and coordinating reading schedules it had to wait a little bit.<br/><br/>I enjoyed the first book, but this one was a step up for me. The characters and the main plot are set. The journey is on. Now we can just sit back and see what happens. <br/><br/>Ms. Hobb has always had a slow plot development to me. For some reason it just works with me in a way other authors don't. This is really the second half of [b:The Dragon Keeper|4703450|The Dragon Keeper (Rain Wild Chronicles, #1)|Robin Hobb|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1330079386s/4703450.jpg|4767778].<br/><br/>The way Ms. Hobb writes animals has always impressed me. Nighteyes felt like a real wolf to me. Her cats were especially good too. She's done it again here with Dragons.<br/><br/>Of course no one knows what a dragon would be like, but she still seems to paint a picture that just feels right to me. Intelligent and arrogant. Only these aren't full dragons. Their development was stunted. Their memories aren't complete. They can't fly and have to rely on humans to help care for them.<br/><br/>There is a lot of development of both the dragons and their keepers in this book, as well as the supporting barge and crew. They face the first real adversity of their journey to find an ancient lost city of the Elderlings where the dragons may be able to thrive.<br/><br/>At its heart, this is a story about relationships. Sure there are dragons, but as intelligent creatures that are able to communicate with their keepers, their relationships play as large of a role (if not a larger one) than the interpersonal relationships of the humans.<br/><br/>Her characters are once again superb. I don't think I despise fictional characters quite so much as some of the ones Ms. Hobb has written. While none of these are quite as despicable as Regal or as frustrating as Malta, they are memorable.<br/><br/>The way Ms. Hobb writes, I feel like I could just fall right into her books and stay there. Not that I'd really want to see the acid Rain Wild River. But I'm all for checking out ancient cities with magical wonders and remnants of dragons.<br/><br/>I can’t wait to jump into [b:City of Dragons|11801463|City of Dragons (Rain Wild Chronicles, #3)|Robin Hobb|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1322613975s/11801463.jpg|16754534]!<br/>","","","1","","",1,,"Amazon","unspecified",,
  7571242,"Dragon Keeper (Rain Wild Chronicles, #1)","Robin Hobb","Hobb, Robin","",="0061966142",="9780061966149",4,"3.89","HarperCollins Publishers","ebook","482",2010,2009,2013/11/24,2012/11/21,"elderlings, fantasy, read-2013","elderlings (#10), fantasy (#57), read-2013 (#88)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This one may only be for big Robin Hobb fans, and those who didn't read/like Liveship Traders need not apply.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I tore through the first 9 books of Ms. Hobb's Ederlings world last year. This series wasn't complete however so I wasn't in a rush to start it.<br/><br/>After almost a year away, it's good to be back. There is some overlap with the events of Tawny man, so I'd recommend you have read those as well as Liveship before tackling this one.<br/><br/>That said this book is slow. Any fan of Ms. Hobb will be used to this by now. She tends to meander at the start of her stories and takes her time before the main plot begins. This book might be the worst of the bunch. If that aspect of her writing bothers you, this series may not be for you.<br/><br/>I think in any other author I might give up in frustration, but for me Ms. Hobb's writing is such that I seem to enjoy myself even if very little action is taking place. I can't really put my finger on why either. Maybe she's skilled me or something..<br/><br/>Things do finally get going however and we're introduced several new characters along the way that we know pretty well by the time they do. For fans of Liveship there are some appearances by old friends, who make me smile and cheer when they showed up however briefly.<br/><br/>I think this is where Ms. Hobb shines best. I've rarely love or despise characters as much as I tend to with hers. This series adds a few new ones that I may come to love, and certainly has several that I already can't stand.<br/><br/>My only real complaint here is that the book sort of stops rather than ends. Just as things are really getting good too. I really just want to jump right into [b:Dragon Haven|7011403|Dragon Haven (Rain Wild Chronicles, #2)|Robin Hobb|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1263769185s/7011403.jpg|21457174], which thankfully I can do if I want to, but if I had to wait, or if you didn't want to read the whole series at once, could be annoying.<br/><br/>I think Ms. Hobb's done a much better with ending her other early books in a series than this. That said I'm eager to continue on and see where things go from here now that the stage has been set.<br/><br/>3.5 Stars rounded up because I love Ms. Hobb.","","","1","Fans of Liveship Traders","",1,,"Amazon","unspecified",,
  17164655,"Wool Omnibus (Silo, #1) (Wool, #1-5)","Hugh Howey","Howey, Hugh","",="1476733953",="9781476733951",5,"4.26","Simon & Schuster","Paperback","509",2013,2012,2013/05/07,2012/11/21,"sword-and-laser, read-2013, science-fiction, silo","sword-and-laser (#10), read-2013 (#6), science-fiction (#10), silo (#2)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> While I feel only the first story works by itself the 5 stories as a collection make for an excellent novel that shouldn't be missed.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I first heard about Wool sometime last year as it gaining momentum, but before Mr. Howey had signed the print deal. It's become a pretty trendy pick as of late, and <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/4170-the-sword-and-laser"">Sword and Laser</a> chose it for the May pick this year.<br/><br/>While this is technically 5 connected stories, I think it reads much better as a novel. I think only the first story is satisfying by itself.<br/><br/>My original plan was to read the first 3 stories (a little under half the book) one weekend, then finish the book the next. Well Mr. Howey ruined those plans. When I got to the end of the third story I couldn't stop. Instead of reading 125 pages I read over 200, and put my original reading plans on hold so I could finish this first.<br/><br/>To me that's the ultimate sign of a great book. If you find yourself going out your way or re-arranging plans just to read.<br/><br/>The story mostly reads like a mystery novel, in a post-apocalyptic setting. People live in a large underground society. To the inhabitants, this is what life is like, and has always been like.<br/><br/>There is a screen on the top floor that shows ""outside"". The imagine slowly degrades over time as the camera gets dirty. To think of going outside is dangerous, to express that thought is a crime. <br/><br/>Many secrets lie beneath the surface, but discovering them can lead to your death. Through the series of five stories, we learn how things got the way they are.<br/><br/>I find it interesting that given recent events Mr. Howey is now considered by some to be sexist, when he's written one of the best female characters I've read in a long time. Personally I think the ""controversy"" has been overblown, and shouldn't deter anyone from checking this novel out.<br/><br/>The pace of the first three stories are pretty breakneck, but Mr. Howey does a great job of world building, especially in the second story. The pace slows down greatly in the final two books, especially the final one. I think the third story was my favorite part of the five.<br/><br/>Despite this the ending did feel a little rushed, and I'm certainly eager to continue on in the series. <br/><br/>The next set of stories is a prequel of sorts and helps to fill in some of the gaps I've been told, but what I really want to know is what happens next. Hopefully the next set of stories Mr. Howey is currently working on, will pick up where this one left off.","","","1","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  534004,"Minority Report and Other Stories","Philip K. Dick","Dick, Philip K.","Keir Dullea",="0060095261",="9780060095260",4,"3.91","HarperAudio","Audiobook","272",2002,1956,2011/02/07,2012/11/19,"read-before-goodreads, science-fiction","read-before-goodreads (#25), science-fiction (#19)","read","When I originally added these books, it was on Living Social's virtual bookshelf. They didn't seem to have this collection, so I added the titles I could remember as separate entries. I'm simply cleaning them up, since this is what I listened to. Copy/pasting the little bit of (and mostly useless) comments I had on the books.<br/><br/><b>Overall rating</b> is a 4. I enjoyed most of these stories.<br/><br/><u>Minority Report</u><br/><br/>Pretty good short story. Rather different from the movie, which I also enjoyed. I rated this a 4.<br/><br/><u>Paycheck</u><br/><br/>This too is rather different than the movie, which is a good thing. I didn't like the movie at all, but the short story was good. I rated this a 4.<br/><br/><u>We Can Remember it For you Wholesale</u><br/><br/>This too is rather different than the movie. I enjoyed both the movie and the short story despite their differences. I rated this a 4.<br/><br/><u>Second Variety</u><br/><br/>It was descent, but predictable. Maybe that was less true when published, but it doesn't hold up too well in my opinion. I'd give this a 2.5 or 3.<br/><br/><u>The Eyes Have It</u><br/><br/>This one didn't even make it on my list. I must not have been able to find any listing for it at all. My vague recollection is that it was the shortest of the stories, and that I liked it fine, but not very memorable. I think I enjoyed it more than Second Variety at least, so probably a solid 3.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  16083255,"Dark Pursuit: The Lost Shinmahs","Kevan Dinn","Dinn, Kevan","",="",="",0,"3.98","","Kindle Edition","328",2013,2012,,2012/11/08,"to-read","to-read (#106)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  5776788,"Sandman Slim (Sandman Slim, #1)","Richard Kadrey","Kadrey, Richard","",="0061714305",="9780061714306",0,"3.93","Harper Voyager","Hardcover","388",2009,2002,,2012/11/07,"to-read","to-read (#105)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  28187,"The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, #1)","Rick Riordan","Riordan, Rick","",="0786838655",="9780786838653",0,"4.18","Disney Hyperion Books","Paperback","377",2006,2005,,2012/11/07,"to-read","to-read (#103)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  91981,"The Dragonbone Chair (Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn, #1)","Tad Williams","Williams, Tad","",="0756402697",="9780756402693",0,"3.91","DAW Trade","Paperback","672",2005,1988,,2012/11/07,"to-read","to-read (#102)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  9319468,"Kingpin: How One Hacker Took Over the Billion-Dollar Cybercrime Underground","Kevin Poulsen","Poulsen, Kevin","",="0307588688",="9780307588685",4,"4.00","Crown","Hardcover","288",2011,2011,2014/06/14,2012/11/07,"hacking, read-2014, nonfiction","hacking (#6), read-2014 (#62), nonfiction (#6)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A fascinating and terrifying look at the darker underbelly of the internet and identity theft.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I consider myself fairly knowledgeable about computers and the internet. Computer Security has never really been my thing though. Yet for whatever reason I find reading books about computer crime fascinating.<br/><br/>This book is no different. Kevin Poulsen has turned himself from one-time hacker into a leader in covering computer security. I occasionally read some of his articles on Wired. I like getting the take of someone whose been there before on things. It seems like he's good about not just presenting the facts, but the reasons behind them. He really gets into Max Butler's head a little and presents a more complete picture than you might get from a different author.<br/><br/>I had read a little here and there about carding over the years, and I had vague recollections about the Dark Market, but I never really knew any of the details behind that bust. When comparing law enforcement in this book to that of [b:The Cuckoo's Egg: Tracking a Spy Through the Maze of Computer Espionage|18154|The Cuckoo's Egg  Tracking a Spy Through the Maze of Computer Espionage|Clifford Stoll|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1399480676s/18154.jpg|19611] it's like night and day. Of course 20 years have passed, but they really had some clever approaches to tracking and eventually capturing some big players in the cyber crime world.<br/><br/>It's scary to learn just how easy it was and continues to be for people to steal your credit card information, and that the credit industry in the US refuses to change magnetic strips simply because of the upfront cost to replace the machines is so high they prefer to deal with the cost associated with the theft instead. I don't know what it will take to finally force a change, but meanwhile innocent consumers continue to have their lives upended by it.<br/><br/>I didn't find this book too technical, though given my background, I'm usually a bad judge of these things. I think anyone who understands the basics of the internet would be able to follow along. It's really more a character study of Max Butler and others than it is a detailed account of how he did it.<br/><br/>Overall another fascinating read.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  7168606,"The Way of Shadows (Night Angel, #1)","Brent Weeks","Weeks, Brent","Paul Boehmer",="1400142865",="9781400142866",4,"4.15","Tantor Media","Audio CD","0",2009,2008,2013/08/21,2012/11/07,"audio-book, fantasy, night-angel, read-2013, dark-fantasy","audio-book (#58), fantasy (#149), night-angel (#2), read-2013 (#62), dark-fantasy (#29)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I seem to read nothing but grimdark fantasy these days, but compared to say Malazan or Song of Ice and Fire this isn't nearly as bleak. I enjoyed this one start to finish.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> This is the first book I've listen to narrated by Paul Boehmer. He's a pretty good narrator. He speaks clearly. I never had trouble understanding him. <br/><br/>He does a few accents for the various nations, but not really distinct voices. Sometimes I had a little trouble knowing who was talking, but not often. <br/><br/>He didn't really add or detract from the book. He looks to read the rest of the trilogy, and I welcome that.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I thought this book was going to be a 5 star one, but it lost a little steam at the end. It might have been the epilogue which was over 30 minutes by itself.<br/><br/>That said, I really enjoyed this book. The pacing was good, I enjoyed the characters and the story. It probably has one of the best villains I've read in a long time. I was literally yelling at my audio book a few times in outrage at their actions. It's really hard for me to believe this is Mr. Week's debut novel.<br/><br/>There are few silly things, like the term Wetboys. There are assassins and then their are wetboys. Wetboys are in a class well above just an assassin. That said, it's a really stupid name. Especially for a grown adult. Night Angel: cool name. Wetboy? Sorry, no. Couldn't he have come up with something better?<br/><br/>The book itself is loosely based on the coming of age fantasy trope, with a much darker flavor. Instead of the young farmboy being whisked away on an adventure to save the world, we have a young street urchin named Azoth, who aspires to become the apprentice to the best Wetboy in the city Durzo Blint.<br/><br/>The book has some pretty good action, and an interesting magic system that I don't really understand at this point. If you're looking for clear rules a'la [a:Brandon Sanderson|38550|Brandon Sanderson|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1201547425p2/38550.jpg] you'll have to look somewhere else.<br/><br/>Overall I really enjoyed this one and I'm looking forward to the next book, which I plan to start immediately.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  12253064,"Osama","Lavie Tidhar","Tidhar, Lavie","",="1848631928",="9781848631922",0,"3.54","PS Publishing","Hardcover","276",2011,2011,,2012/11/04,"to-read","to-read (#101)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  6381205,"Soulless (Parasol Protectorate, #1)","Gail Carriger","Carriger, Gail","",="0316056634",="9780316056632",0,"3.90","Orbit","Mass Market Paperback","373",2009,2009,,2012/11/01,"to-read","to-read (#100)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  11085132,"Isles of the Forsaken","Carolyn Ives Gilman","Gilman, Carolyn Ives","",="1926851366",="9781926851365",0,"3.70","Chizine Publications","Paperback","287",2011,2011,,2012/10/30,"to-read","to-read (#99)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  16109478,"Click-Clack the Rattlebag","Neil Gaiman","Gaiman, Neil","",="",="",0,"4.13","Audible, Inc.","Audiobook","1",2012,2012,,2012/10/26,"to-read","to-read (#98)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  20659156,"Burning Chrome","William Gibson","Gibson, William","Jonathan Davis, Dennis Holland, Kevin Pariseau, Victor Bevine, Jay Snyder, Brian Nishii, L. J. Ganser, Oliver Wyman, Eric Michael Summerer, Marc Vietor",="",="",3,"4.02","Audible Frontiers","Audible Audio","7",2009,1986,2014/02/05,2012/10/24,"sprawl, science-fiction, audio-book, read-2014","sprawl (#4), science-fiction (#59), audio-book (#87), read-2014 (#14)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> An anthology of 10 short stories mostly related to or set in Mr. Gibson's Sprawl world. I enjoyed some, but not all of the stories. Only worth picking up if you really like the Sprawl books in my opinion.<br/><br/><b>Audio book:</b> 10 stories. 10 different narrators. None of them stand out one way or another. Nobody was excellent and nobody was terrible. A few did occasional voices or accents, but none of them struck as particularly memorable. <br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>[b:Neuromancer|22328|Neuromancer (Sprawl, #1)|William Gibson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1285017005s/22328.jpg|909457] is one of those books that has stuck with me 20 years later. I had the fortune of reading it before the Matrix movie came out in the early days of the internet when many of his concepts still seemed fresh.<br/><br/>With this anthology you can see the building blocks of that book. Megacorporations, cyberspace, keyboard cowboys, black ice. The elements are there.<br/><br/>But for the most part these stories just weren't very good in my opinion. My favorite story, Dogfight seems like it <i>could</i> be set in the Sprawl, but could just as easily be set in a completely different sci-fi setting.<br/><br/>Some of the stories are ""near-future"" which when read 30 years later don't feel very futuristic at all any more.<br/><br/>The other story I really enjoyed was Johnny Nuemonic. I guess it's a lot different from the movie, but it's been so many years since I've seen it I don't really remember. This again is one of those stories that could be at home in some generic sci-fi future as it could in the sprawl.<br/><br/>The only story that is directly related to the sprawl is Burning Chrome, which I found to be OK, but not great. <br/><br/>From a literary point of view, this anthology is interesting to read and see how Mr. Gibson was putting together elements of his previous works to come out with [b:Neuromancer|22328|Neuromancer (Sprawl, #1)|William Gibson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1285017005s/22328.jpg|909457], but in my opinion most of these stories can be skipped.<br/><br/>3 Stars overall.<br/><br/><b><u>Story Ratings</u></b><br/>Johnny Nuemonic - 4<br/>The Gernsback Continuum	- 2<br/>Fragments of a Hologram Rose - 2.5<br/>The Belonging Kind - 3<br/>Hinterlands - 3.5<br/>Red Star, Winter Orbit - 3<br/>New Rose Hotel - 2<br/>The Winter Market - 2.5<br/>Dogfight - 4.5<br/>Burning Chrome - 3","","","1","","",1,,"Audible","Like new",,
  418173,"Wizard of the Pigeons","Megan Lindholm","Lindholm, Megan","",="0441894674",="9780441894673",0,"3.73","Ace","Mass Market Paperback","214",1986,1986,,2012/10/24,"to-read","to-read (#97)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  11282970,"Blackdog","K.V. Johansen","Johansen, K.V.","",="1616145218",="9781616145217",0,"3.58","Pyr","Paperback","547",2011,2011,,2012/10/23,"to-read","to-read (#96)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  14201,"Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell","Susanna Clarke","Clarke, Susanna","",="0765356155",="9780765356154",0,"3.74","Tor Books","Paperback","1006",2006,2004,,2012/10/23,"to-read","to-read (#95)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  16065811,"Legion","Brandon Sanderson","Sanderson, Brandon","Oliver Wyman",="",="",4,"4.11","Audible Frontiers","Audible Audio","3",2012,2012,2012/12/15,2012/10/18,"audio-book, read-2012, fantasy, legion","audio-book (#17), read-2012 (#35), fantasy (#255), legion (#2)","read","This is a short novella, so I'm forgoing my usual format for a short review.<br/><br/>I equate this to a drug dealer. First one is free, and then you're hooked! I snagged the free audible audio book and I will happily buy any more stories Mr. Sanderson chooses to write with this character.<br/><br/>The main character is some kind of crazy genius. In at attempt to keep a hold of his sanity, he has created all these imaginary people who act as sort of knowledge specialists. He has one who is an ex-Navy seal who gives him weapon and tactics advice. Another who is a scholar who acts as his own personal wikipedia, to name a few.<br/><br/>The story was interesting and moved quick as it's so short. I rather enjoyed it.<br/><br/><b>Quick comment on the audibook:</b> I thought the reader Oliver Wyman was good, doing voices for all the characters.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  13578175,"The Emperor's Soul","Brandon Sanderson","Sanderson, Brandon","",="1616960922",="9781616960926",0,"4.31","Tachyon Publications","Paperback","175",2012,2012,,2012/10/18,"to-read, fantasy","to-read (#23), fantasy (#174)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  23754,"The Sandman, Vol. 1: Preludes and Nocturnes (The Sandman, #1)","Neil Gaiman","Gaiman, Neil","Sam Kieth, Mike Dringenberg, Malcolm Jones III, Todd Klein, Karen  Berger",="1563892278",="9781563892271",0,"4.34","Vertigo","Hardcover","240",1998,1991,,2012/10/18,"to-read","to-read (#94)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  12067,"Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch","Terry Pratchett","Pratchett, Terry","Neil Gaiman",="0060853980",="9780060853983",0,"4.26","HarperTorch","Paperback","413",2006,1990,,2012/10/18,"to-read","to-read (#93)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  2744,"Anansi Boys","Neil Gaiman","Gaiman, Neil","",="0060515198",="9780060515195",0,"3.97","HarperCollins HarperTorch","Mass Market Paperback","387",2006,2005,,2012/10/18,"to-read","to-read (#92)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  13538873,"Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore","Robin Sloan","Sloan, Robin","",="0374214913",="9780374214913",0,"3.77","Farrar, Straus and Giroux","Hardcover","288",2012,2012,,2012/10/14,"to-read","to-read (#91)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  7747374,"I Am Number Four (Lorien Legacies, #1)","Pittacus Lore","Lore, Pittacus","",="0061969559",="9780061969553",0,"3.93","HarperCollins","Hardcover","440",2010,2010,,2012/10/09,"to-read","to-read (#90)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  6314336,"Ubik","Philip K. Dick","Dick, Philip K.","",="",="",3,"4.09","","Kindle Edition","241",,1969,2013/01/20,2012/10/07,"read-2013, science-fiction","read-2013 (#27), science-fiction (#13)","read","Ubik. A (well-written?) review by Rob, but only when used as directed.<br/><br/>This won't be a long review as the book wasn't that long, so I'm foregoing my usual format. I haven't read a lot by [a:Philip K. Dick|4764|Philip K. Dick|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1264613853p2/4764.jpg]. Mostly a lot of short stories that movies have been adapted from.<br/><br/>Ubik came across my radar when Amazon was running an e-book sale on various PKD works. It was recommended as one of his better stories.<br/><br/>I came into it knowing nothing about it. I don't think I had even read the blurb. It started slow, but picked up steam as it went along. It was a 3 at the start and pushing into 4 range by the end, but since it was only so-so at the start I stuck with 3.<br/><br/>I feel like this is a book where the less you know about it going in, the better it is. I will say there is some usual of his tropes: pre-cognition, telekinesis, and time travel. Sort of. You'll see.<br/><br/>It's a quick read at only about 200 pages, and worth checking out if you can borrow it, or pick it up on the cheap like I did.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  8244977,"Massively Multiplayer","P. Aaron Potter","Potter, P. Aaron","",="",="",0,"4.19","Double Dragon Publishing","Kindle Edition","327",2010,2010,,2012/09/28,"to-read","to-read (#89)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  8442457,"Gone Girl","Gillian Flynn","Flynn, Gillian","",="0297859382",="9780297859383",0,"3.95","Weidenfeld & Nicolson","Hardcover","395",2012,2012,,2012/09/27,"to-read","to-read (#88)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  12690590,"Mario Puzo's the Godfather","Mario Puzo","Puzo, Mario","",="1455809683",="9781455809684",3,"4.33","Brilliance Corporation","Audio CD","0",2012,1969,2012/10/22,2012/09/27,"read-2012","read-2012 (#17)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This might be one of those rare times where the movie is better than the book. As long as the movie is, the book is longer, and seems to have a tendency to go off on seemingly irrelevant tangents. I would say if you enjoyed the movie, you'd enjoy the book, but I find little reason to do so.<br/><br/><b>Audio Book:</b> Joe Montegna  does a good job reading this, doing voices for some of the characters, including a passable impersonation of Brando's Vito Corleone. <br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I did the audiobook, so it's a bit hard for me to talk about the prose of the author, but while the overall story is quite excellent, I found the writing a bit lacking.<br/><br/>Puzo has a tendency to ramble on in great detail about things that have little to no impact on the plot. He goes into depth with minor characters in what I assume is an attempt to give them a richer back-story, only to slow down the main plots.<br/><br/>You do get some more insight into the mindset of the characters, which is fairly common when comparing a book to a movie, since it offers the ability for internal monologue much better. But the acting/screenplay for the movie is so well done, I don't think this makes it worth the extra time of reading the book.<br/><br/>Another nice addition to the book that was cut from the first movie (but included in the second) was Vito's background from Italy to his rise to Don. That makes it easier to understand some of his motivations and decisions that could otherwise seem confusing.<br/><br/>Overall, I found it to be a good distraction from the long car trips (6-7 hours at a time) I took this past weekend, but this isn't a book I think I would have enjoyed sitting down to read as much. I would have likely stopped reading and opted to watch the movie again instead.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  19668,"Without Remorse (John Clark, #1)","Tom Clancy","Clancy, Tom","",="0425143325",="9780425143322",0,"4.11","Berkley","Paperback","750",1994,1993,,2012/09/27,"to-read, thriller","to-read (#10), thriller (#32)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  7562764,"The Quantum Thief","Hannu Rajaniemi","Rajaniemi, Hannu","",="0575088877",="9780575088870",0,"3.83","Gollancz","Hardcover","336",2010,2010,,2012/09/21,"to-read","to-read (#87)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  51964,"Old Man's War (Old Man's War, #1)","John Scalzi","Scalzi, John","",="0765348276",="9780765348272",4,"4.21","Tor Books","Mass Market Paperback","314",2007,2005,2013/01/06,2012/09/20,"humble-ebook-bundle, sword-and-laser, read-2013, science-fiction, old-mans-war","humble-ebook-bundle (#1), sword-and-laser (#2), read-2013 (#30), science-fiction (#14), old-mans-war (#2)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Mr. Scalzi combines war, politics, humor and of course a good heaping of sci-fi to give you a quick and fun read. This isn't a book of deep meanings, groundbreaking ideas or elaborate plot. But, if you want yourself an entertaining sci-fi read, look no further.<br/><br/><b>Full Review</b><br/>As book reader, I consider myself primarily a fantasy reader these days. I love science-fiction, and have for as long as I can remember, but I tend to consume my sci-fi mostly through TV and the movies rather than books.<br/><br/>For this reason I had never heard of John Scalzi before hearing about [b:Redshirts|13055592|Redshirts|John Scalzi|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348617890s/13055592.jpg|18130445] last year sometime. Even then his name didn't really stick with me. It should have, but he didn't. I'm pretty horrible with names.<br/><br/>When discussing this book as a possible pick for our book club, one member commented something to the effect that it was a bad pick, because anyone who truly wanted to read this book would have by now. So here I am, very late to the party. And what a party!<br/><br/>More than anything I found myself laughing aloud while reading this book. It's my first by Mr. Scalzi. Despite hearing about [b:Redshirts|13055592|Redshirts|John Scalzi|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348617890s/13055592.jpg|18130445] first, I still haven't gotten around to reading it. It defiantly won't be my last.<br/><br/>There is a fair bit of swearing in this book, and what I'd call low-brow humor, so if that's not for you, you may not find it as funny as I did.<br/><br/>The characters outside of the main one don't have a whole lot of depth to them, but that's OK. This isn't a book you read for it's in deep plot and complex characters. It's popcorn, plain and simple.<br/><br/>With my usual ""no spoilers"" policies for review, I won't talk about the technologies used at all, other than to say there is nothing ground breaking there. Mr. Scalzi makes use of some well used ideas, but combines them in some fun ways. <br/><br/>He doesn't go into a lot of depth on how it works, making this about as far from hard sci-fi as you can get. He gives you just enough of an explanation to set things up, then moves on.<br/><br/>The aliens in this book are diverse and interesting, though again their isn't a lot of depth there. You don't always get a good feel for who the majority of the alien species are or why they are fighting. Really the variety of species is mostly to offer a variety of combat scenarios the main character has to deal with.<br/><br/>I was satisfied by the ending, but their are enough lingering questions that I plan to check out other books in the series when I get some more time.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  398274,"Ringworld (Ringworld #1)","Larry Niven","Niven, Larry","",="0345333926",="9780345333926",3,"3.94","Del Rey","Mass Market Paperback","342",1985,1970,2013/07/14,2012/09/17,"read-2013, sword-and-laser, science-fiction","read-2013 (#48), sword-and-laser (#12), science-fiction (#5)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This book is a lot of big ideas, and not a lot of depth of character or plot. If you like that sort of thing, you may enjoy this.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This book was a tough one for me. It makes it a tough one to review as well.<br/><br/>I had been meaning to check this one out for awhile, but didn't make time for it. It ended up being one of the picks for July in <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/4170-the-sword-and-laser"">Sword & Laser</a> so I finally fit it in.<br/><br/>I read it over the course of 2 weekends, which with the way I've been lately is a really long time. The book is only 340 pages, and I read nearly half of it in one day. What was I doing the other 4 or 5 days that I was ""reading"" it?<br/><br/>Well not, much. I'd get an email notification and I'd go off and spend 10-15 minutes on the tablet instead of reading. Or I wouldn't even pick the book up to begin with.<br/><br/>I haven't read a lot of ""classic"" Sci-Fi, but most of them seem to be big on ideas, and little on much else. I liked the characters for the most part in this book, but there wasn't a ton of depth there. I think Speaker to Animals was by far the most interesting of the bunch.<br/><br/>Somewhere around the halfway point though, some new facts came to light and the story just seemed to click in and I managed to finish it fairly quickly.<br/><br/>I have a bit of a science background. My engineering degree has a lot of foundation in math and science. I haven't really used most of that in over 10 years, but I do find Hard Sci-Fi a bit interesting. I don't pretend to be smart enough to look at what Mr. Niven wrote and prove or disprove the science behind it.<br/><br/>The concepts in this book are really cool. Building planets and instantaneous travel among others. The actual plot wasn't anything spectacular however.<br/><br/>It's one of those books I'm glad I read, but probably won't read again, or go off recommending as something you MUST read.","","","1","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  17214,"Starship Troopers","Robert A. Heinlein","Heinlein, Robert A.","",="0441783589",="9780441783588",0,"3.97","Ace Book","Mass Market Paperback","264",1987,1959,,2012/09/17,"to-read","to-read (#86)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  350,"Stranger in a Strange Land","Robert A. Heinlein","Heinlein, Robert A.","",="0441788386",="9780441788385",0,"3.86","Ace Trade","Paperback","528",1991,1961,,2012/09/17,"to-read","to-read (#85)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  11774272,"The Killing Moon (Dreamblood, #1)","N.K. Jemisin","Jemisin, N.K.","",="0356500764",="9780356500768",0,"3.84","Hachette Book Group","Paperback","418",2012,2012,,2012/09/17,"to-read","to-read (#84)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  22320,"Pattern Recognition (Blue Ant, #1)","William Gibson","Gibson, William","",="0425198685",="9780425198681",0,"3.84","Berkley Publishing","Mass Market Paperback","367",2005,2003,,2012/09/15,"to-read","to-read (#83)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  11012966,"Zero Sight (Zero Sight, #1)","B. Justin Shier","Shier, B. Justin","",="",="",0,"4.11","Astraeus Press","Kindle Edition","236",2011,2011,,2012/09/14,"to-read","to-read (#82)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  52397,"Parable of the Sower (Earthseed, #1)","Octavia E. Butler","Butler, Octavia E.","",="0446675504",="9780446675505",0,"4.13","Grand Central Publishing","Paperback","345",2000,1993,,2012/09/14,"to-read","to-read (#81)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  15726547,"Memoria. A Corporation of Lies","Alex Bobl","Bobl, Alex","",="",="",3,"3.36","Sky Bridge","Kindle Edition","237",2012,2012,2012/11/25,2012/09/13,"read-2012, science-fiction","read-2012 (#10), science-fiction (#15)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> Descent thriller story with a sci-fi setting.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/><br/>I came across this book via a self-promotion in Sword & Laser. This is the only thing I have read by the author. From what I read, I think this might be the first novel he's written in English. For the most part it wasn't noticeable. Some phrases struck me as a bit odd, but not much beyond that.<br/><br/>As this is a fairly short novel (at least by my standards), you don't get a depth into the characters, but there is enough there that they don't feel flat. I found myself rooting for the main character Frank, and hoping he would manage his way out the predicament he found himself in.<br/><br/>The story is really more thriller than sci-fi, but there is a sci-fi setting that serves as the vehicle for the plot.<br/><br/>Overall, I enjoyed the book. It was a fairly quick read to hold me while waiting for [b:Cold Days|12216302|Cold Days (The Dresden Files, #14)|Jim Butcher|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345145377s/12216302.jpg|17189468] to come out on Tuesday.  It came to a satisfying enough conclusion, though it seems like from the epilogue however, that Mr. Bobl may be setting it up for the possibility of a sequel.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  15575,"The Sword of Shannara (The Original Shannara Trilogy #1)","Terry Brooks","Brooks, Terry","",="1857231511",="9781857231519",0,"3.74","Orbit","Paperback","726",1999,1977,,2012/09/11,"to-read","to-read (#80)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  13542846,"The Dirty Streets of Heaven (Bobby Dollar, #1)","Tad Williams","Williams, Tad","",="0756407680",="9780756407681",3,"3.74","DAW Penguin","Hardcover","406",2012,2012,2012/09/30,2012/09/10,"sword-and-laser, read-2012, urban-fantasy, fantasy","sword-and-laser (#4), read-2012 (#19), urban-fantasy (#33), fantasy (#31)","read","<b>Executive summary:</b> This book is alright, but nothing special. Certainly didn't live up to hype. I gave it 3 stars, but really it was 2.5 for me. I could have easily gone with a 2.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This is the first book by [a:Tad Williams|6587|Tad Williams|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1191183065p2/6587.jpg] I've read, so I can't compare it to any of his previous works.<br/><br/>The best I can do is compare it to [a:Jim Butcher|10746|Jim Butcher|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1205261964p2/10746.jpg]'s <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/series/40346-the-dresden-files"">Dresden Files</a> or [a:Thomas E. Sniegoski|27140|Thomas E. Sniegoski|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1238440776p2/27140.jpg]'s <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/series/45553-remy-chandler"">Remy Chandler</a> books.<br/><br/>The former being one most people who read Urban fantasy should be familiar with. The latter being another series I read that has a detective Angel for the protagonist.<br/><br/>I don't think it's nearly as good as Dresden. It reminds me a bit of [b:Storm Front|47212|Storm Front (The Dresden Files, #1)|Jim Butcher|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1345556917s/47212.jpg|1137060], where the concept is intriguing, but the book itself is only so-so. However, unlike Mr. Butcher, this isn't Mr. Williams first book.<br/><br/>I'd put it on par with Remy Chandler. I think the quality of the writing by Mr. Williams is a little better, but the quality of the plots seems to be about the same. I was pleased to see they both have very different takes on the Angel thing. <br/><br/>While Remy fought in the battle of Heaven and Hell, Bobby is uncertain of many things, including his own past. Bobby doesn't seem to have any kind of super human abilities and is limited by his body. Remy can embrace his Angelic nature and become more powerful/scary.<br/><br/>The book started out OK, but really went on to drag in the middle before picking up steam again at the end to finish alright. He does bring the mystery of the first book to a reasonable conclusion, while setting up some larger mysteries I assume he will address in the next two books.<br/><br/>The other I guess minor gripes I have about the book were the humor and the sex. I don't mind sex in books. It's a large motivator in human (or in this case Angelic) actions.<br/><br/>However Mr. Williams went into a lot more detail (across several chapters) than I thought was necessary. This will likely be popular for the 50 shades of gray/Paranormal Romance crowd, but for me, I just skimmed through it to get on with the actual story. The sex was important to the story, but could have been less detailed without losing any of that.<br/><br/>Humor is very subjective. I love Jim Butcher/Harry Dresden's sense of humor. I didn't really care for Tad Williams/Bobby Dollar's. I could tell some of the places he was trying to make jokes and they just didn't do it for me. He did have 1 or 2 others. It didn't spoil the book by any means, but it just fell short in my eyes.<br/><br/>Overall it was an alright book, and I'll probably try to read the next 2 books in his initial trilogy, but won't be in any rush to do so.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  518848,"Sabriel (Abhorsen,  #1)","Garth Nix","Nix, Garth","",="0064471837",="9780064471831",0,"4.16","Harper Collins","Mass Market Paperback","491",1996,1995,,2012/09/10,"to-read","to-read (#79)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  9579634,"Prince of Thorns (The Broken Empire, #1)","Mark  Lawrence","Lawrence, Mark","",="0007423292",="9780007423293",0,"3.86","Voyager","Hardcover","384",2011,2011,,2012/09/09,"to-read","to-read (#78)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  76620,"Watership Down","Richard Adams","Adams, Richard","",="038039586X",="9780380395866",0,"4.02","Avon Books","Mass Market Paperback","478",1975,1972,,2012/09/09,"to-read, young-adult, fantasy","to-read (#5), young-adult (#14), fantasy (#262)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  6148028,"Catching Fire (The Hunger Games, #2)","Suzanne Collins","Collins, Suzanne","",="0439023491",="9780439023498",0,"4.31","Scholastic Press","Hardcover","391",2009,2009,,2012/09/09,"to-read, young-adult, next-in-series","to-read (#77), young-adult (#11), next-in-series (#3)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  13821,"Lord of Light","Roger Zelazny","Zelazny, Roger","",="0060567236",="9780060567231",0,"4.09","Harper Voyager","Paperback","296",2010,1967,,2012/09/08,"to-read","to-read (#76)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  21787,"The Princess Bride ","William Goldman","Goldman, William","",="0345418263",="9780345418265",0,"4.24","Ballantine Books (Ballantine Reader's Circle)","Paperback","398",2003,1973,,2012/09/07,"to-read","to-read (#36)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  70539,"2010: Odyssey Two (Space Odyssey, #2)","Arthur C. Clarke","Clarke, Arthur C.","",="0345413970",="9780345413970",3,"3.83","Del Rey","Paperback","320",1997,1982,,2012/09/07,"space-odyssey, read-before-goodreads, science-fiction","space-odyssey (#2), read-before-goodreads (#49), science-fiction (#37)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  70535,"2001: A Space Odyssey (Space Odyssey, #1)","Arthur C. Clarke","Clarke, Arthur C.","",="0451457994",="9780451457998",4,"4.05","Roc","Paperback","297",2000,1968,,2012/09/07,"space-odyssey, read-before-goodreads, science-fiction","space-odyssey (#1), read-before-goodreads (#55), science-fiction (#36)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  643750,"The Lies of Locke Lamora (Gentleman Bastard, #1)","Scott Lynch","Lynch, Scott","",="055358894X",="9780553588941",5,"4.27","Bantam Spectra","Mass Market Paperback","722",2007,2006,2013/08/28,2012/09/07,"gentleman-bastard, first-read, fantasy, read-2013, favorites, not-a-bookclub-club","gentleman-bastard (#1), first-read (#1), fantasy (#142), read-2013 (#65), favorites (#19), not-a-bookclub-club (#7)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> While it didn't completely suck me in from the beginning, it was pretty close. This one is hard to put down and whole lot of fun.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This book has a whole lot of influences mixed together in a way that is impressive: Part Ocean's Eleven, Part Godfather and Part Fantasy. <br/><br/>The back cover totes Part Robin Hood, but since I didn't see the Gentleman Bastards giving any of their stolen loot to the poor, I don't really agree with that one. They DO have a Robin Hood reputation in the book, even if it's untrue.<br/><br/>Mr. Lynch paints a gorgeous world that could be a whole separate series of it's own. They city is full of amazing buildings from some long dead society and the current people are just living in it now.<br/><br/>We meet young Locke Lamora at the age of 5, and already he's trouble. Stealing from guards and breaking all the rules of the ""Silent Peace"" that has been established between Capa Barvosi (the Godfather) and the Nobility.<br/><br/>I really love the structure of this book. That's not something I usually comment on in my reviews, but it's really worth bringing up here. There is a fairly beefy prologue set in the past where we get a little background on our protagonist. Then in chapter 1 we are in present day with an adult version of Locke and his Gentleman Bastard friends.<br/><br/>It then alternates with Interludes flashing back to the past and filling in details about Locke and his friends lives. The interludes get short and eventually skipped in some places as the present day story really gets going.<br/><br/>It was well executed. I didn't find myself grumbling when an interlude came up interrupting the main story. It always added something important, and I liked how they got shorter as the book went on.<br/><br/>The characters are really great. Locke and Jean are probably the most developed, but the supporting characters are all interesting and feel to have depth. I'd really love to get more details on his master and founder of the Gentleman Bastards, Chains. He seems to have lived an interesting life, and what we did of his past left me wanting more.<br/><br/>It is once again another series where it seems like the Mages are assholes. That's probably more realistic. If you could do magic and were more powerful than most people, would you really be as benevolent as Gandalf? I think most people would end up like Saruman instead, and in this series we have a whole guild full of them.<br/><br/>The rules of the magic seem non-existent. It's hard to know just what a Mage is capable of, but it's pretty damn impressive, and scary. These are not people you want to mess with.<br/><br/>I've marked this as grimdark, but while there are some truly awful things in it, it's not as dark as some of the other stuff I've been reading. It's more of an adventure/caper story than anything else.<br/><br/>I finished the book a day earlier than I had planned, and if I hadn't been so busy last weekend, I might have finished it even sooner. This book grabbed me early on and never let go. I can't wait to see what Locke gets up to in the next book.","","","1","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  886955,"The Blade Itself (The First Law, #1)","Joe Abercrombie","Abercrombie, Joe","",="159102594X",="9781591025948",4,"4.10","Pyr","Paperback","536",2007,2006,2013/06/19,2012/09/06,"first-law, read-2013, fantasy, dark-fantasy, not-a-bookclub-club","first-law (#1), read-2013 (#42), fantasy (#61), dark-fantasy (#11), not-a-bookclub-club (#4)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b><br/>I really enjoyed the book, but it felt mostly like setup for the rest of the series. Most trilogies at least have some short-term goal accomplished in each book, but I felt like that was missing here.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>One of the very first things Good Reads recommended me to was this book. Well this and [b:Gardens of the Moon|55399|Gardens of the Moon (The Malazan Book of the Fallen, #1)|Steven Erikson|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1355144064s/55399.jpg|2646042]. I ignored both books until convinced otherwise by friends of mine. <br/><br/>Apparently good reads recommendation engine knows what it's talking about, and I shouldn't ignore it. I really enjoyed this book. It took me a few chapters to get into it, but once I was it was hard to put down.<br/><br/>It's often described as gritty fantasy, and it certainly delivers on that front but I didn't find this book as dark as either <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/series/43493-the-malazan-book-of-the-fallen"">Malazan Book of the Fallen</a> or <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/series/43790-a-song-of-ice-and-fire"">Song of Ice and Fire</a>. It's certainly not a book to share with your younger kids however.<br/><br/>This is the first book I've read by Mr. Abercrombie, and his first published work. It doesn't show. The book is very well polished. The characters are interesting, diverse and have a lot of depth.<br/><br/>If you would have told me I'd like an arrogant spoiled rich noble, and deformed malicious torturer as characters before this book, I wouldn't have believed you. <br/><br/>And that's neglecting to mention Logen ""The Bloody Nine"". He's got a reputation as a viscous killer, and numerous enemies who want him dead, yet for most of the book you wonder how that's possible. He seems more like a grizzled warrior whose simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time for most of his life, but somehow manages to survive.<br/><br/><i>""I'm still Alive!""</i><br/><br/>Eventually however, you learn that his name is well deserved.<br/><br/>I think Mr. Abercrombie does a good job of painting a world that is not black and white. His characters all have flaws, some of them major, yet I find myself liking and rooting for them all somehow.<br/><br/>I have two small fall criticisms of the book that prevent me from giving it a 5:<br/><br/>1) Lack of strong female characters. They aren't absent, just secondary. Both Ardee and Ferro are well developed in this story, but most (all?) of the point of view story telling is from the various other male protagonists, of which there are 5, compared to only 2 females, one of which only appears occasionally (Ardee) and the other (Ferro) who isn't introduced until much later in the book.<br/><br/>One thing I think that [a:George R.R. Martin|346732|George R.R. Martin|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1351944410p2/346732.jpg] does well is providing a sense of realism, yet still offering a good mix of female characters. I'm hoping we see more from Ardee and Ferro in the next book, and hopefully some additional woman as well.<br/><br/>2) As I mentioned in my summary, this book lacks some kind of short term goal. If there is any goal, it's essentially getting the group together to go on a quest of sorts. That's not really explained very well. The stopping point for this book was reasonable, but it was just that, a stopping point.<br/><br/>Say one thing for this book, say it's an enjoyable read. I mean, you have to be realistic about these things.","","","1","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  6976882,"Warbreaker (Warbreaker, #1)","Brandon Sanderson","Sanderson, Brandon","",="0765360039",="9780765360038",4,"4.16","Tor Fantasy","Mass Market Paperback","676",2010,2007,2014/04/25,2012/09/06,"fantasy, not-a-bookclub-club, read-2014","fantasy (#161), not-a-bookclub-club (#14), read-2014 (#41)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> While not among my favorite books by Brandon Sanderson, I still really enjoyed it, which may say more about my love for Brandon Sanderson’s books than it does about the book itself.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>Cool Magic system? check.<br/>Interesting world building? check.<br/>Easy to read? check.<br/><br/>So at first blush this is a typical [a:Brandon Sanderson|38550|Brandon Sanderson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1394044556p2/38550.jpg] novel. However this one isn’t nearly as polished as his Stormlight Archive books, nor as fun as his Mistborn books. That said, I still really enjoyed it. Mr. Sanderson writes the kind of books I like to read, and this one is no different. Your mileage may vary however.<br/><br/>I moved this one up on my reading list due to Cosmere tie-ins to [b:Words of Radiance|17332218|Words of Radiance (The Stormlight Archive, #2)|Brandon Sanderson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1391535251s/17332218.jpg|16482835]. That probably added to my overall enjoyment. Many people were recommending having read this before Words of Radiance, but I found it fun to go the other way and look for things that related back to the book. I think it would probably work out pretty well whichever way you choose to go.<br/><br/>Lightsong was easily my favorite character. I found him very quotable if not always funny. The mercenaries were less so, but still lightened up the mood with Vivenna, who was by far my least favorite POV in the book. She did grow on me by the end, but early on I just found her annoying. <br/><br/>Siri was somewhere in the middle. She starts off naive and a bit annoying. However she's not dumb and as she starts to get her bearings I found myself enjoying her chapters more.<br/><br/>The magic system is another cool idea, though it seems underutilized here. We only learn a few things about it early on and seem to be hit over the head a bit with those details, while never really expanding our knowledge until much later in the book.<br/><br/>The world seems pretty well built out for such a stand alone book, and from the notes available about the book it’s apparent that Mr. Sanderson knows a lot more about the world than he’s including in the story. <br/><br/>He’s supposed to be planning an eventual sequel, and I will definitely be excited to read it when it comes out. Then again that’s pretty much the case for EVERY new Brandon Sanderson novel for me these days.","","","1","","",1,2014/04/10,"Amazon","Very good",,
  66693,"The Crystal Shard (Forgotten Realms: Icewind Dale, #1; Legend of Drizzt, #4)","R.A. Salvatore","Salvatore, R.A.","",="0786942460",="9780786942466",0,"4.12","Wizards of the Coast","Paperback","344",2007,1988,,2012/09/05,"to-read","to-read (#36)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  11233176,"The Black Prism (Lightbringer, #1)","Brent Weeks","Weeks, Brent","",="",="",0,"4.22","","Kindle Edition","640",2010,2010,,2012/09/05,"currently-reading, fantasy, read-2014, not-a-bookclub-club","currently-reading (#1), fantasy (#272), read-2014 (#114), not-a-bookclub-club (#25)","currently-reading",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  16280868,"Alif the Unseen","G. Willow Wilson","Wilson, G. Willow","",="0802121225",="9780802121226",5,"3.82","Grove Press","Paperback","448",2013,2012,2013/05/12,2012/09/05,"read-2013, fantasy","read-2013 (#5), fantasy (#28)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> A blend of fantasy, technology, politics, and religion that just worked for me. I really enjoyed this book.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I seem to be a hot streak lately. I try not to give out 5 stars lightly. Based on good reads, I've given 5 stars to roughly 13% of the 221 books I've rated as of this writing. 18% of those have been given out this year. It's not exactly relevant to this review, but I'm an engineer and that sort of thing interests me.<br/><br/>I forget where exactly I first heard about this book, but <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/4170-the-sword-and-laser"">Sword and Laser</a> did an <a href=""http://swordandlaser.com/home/2012/10/15/sl-podcast-112-interview-with-g-willow-wilson.html"">interview</a> with Ms. Wilson last year, and that moved this book up in my list. The paperback was released last month, so I've finally gotten around to reading it.<br/><br/>I was expecting this book to be more cyberpunk than fantasy considering the main character is a hacker. After reading it, I wouldn't classify it as cyberpunk or even sci-fi. It is however a great book.<br/><br/>People who know me well would probably tell you I'm not very political or religious. That doesn't mean I'm not interested in those things, but both can be very sensitive issues, and I tend not to discuss them. This book contains some of both, but I didn't feel like I was being preached to in any way.<br/><br/>This book was being written prior the Arab Spring that occurred in Egypt. Ms. Wilson apparently saw this coming, and when no one seemed to want to listen to her talk about it, she was inspired to write a fictional story about it instead (based on an interview included in my book). She admits to having doubts that it might ever occur, but she hoped it could based on changes she was observing first hand.<br/><br/>Alif is a young Muslim half Arab, half Indian(and therefore considered an outcast by the full Arabs apparently) hacker who lives in an nonspecific Middle East country. He is not particularly religious or political. He sells his computer skills to anyone who wants them: Communists, Fundamentalists, Dissidents, Smut Peddlers, etc. Anyone who needs to avoid being caught and arrested by a strict government censorship.<br/><br/>Alif's world is suddenly turned upside down (thanks to a girl, go figure), discovers that the Jinn he's read about in books are real, and gets caught up in wild adventure where not only his life is at stake, but the lives of his friends, family and the country as a whole. <br/><br/>Fans of [a:Patrick Rothfuss|108424|Patrick Rothfuss|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1351307341p2/108424.jpg] may enjoy the stories within the story. I'm not sure if they are original stories by Ms. Wilson herself, Middle Eastern folk tales, or some combination of both.<br/><br/>I hadn't really planned to read this in one weekend, and I very nearly read it all in one day. I think if I were a faster reader, I easily would have. I just couldn't put it down. I highly recommend it.","","","","","",1,,"","unspecified",,
  45108,"Fool's Fate (Tawny Man, #3)","Robin Hobb","Hobb, Robin","",="0553582461",="9780553582468",5,"4.32","Spectra","Paperback","914",2004,2003,2012/12/31,2012/08/31,"elderlings, read-2012, fantasy","elderlings (#2), read-2012 (#1), fantasy (#55)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I've been trying to be cautious about the books I give 5 stars. I really enjoyed the 8 books before this one. Most are very high 4's, but this one was a 5. <br/><br/>From an author who seems to take pleasure in tormenting her characters, this was a surprisingly satisfying ending.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review:</u></b> As the year draws to a close, I look back on 9 books I read in the last 4 months by Robin Hobb. Books I might never have read if not for good reads.<br/><br/>This book caps off 3 stand alone trilogy that's by themselves are excellent. You can't really read Tawny Man without reading Farseer, but I suppose you could read Liveship without reading Farseer and many people have said their is no need to read Liveship before Tawny man. <br/><br/>To that I say why? Why would you deprive yourself of great books for one. For another this book once again strengthens my belief that you do yourself a disservice by skipping Liveship. While I can imagine you won't be confused without reading it, you certainly miss out on a lot of the back story and significance of certain things.<br/><br/>I had not expected to finish all 9 books this year, but once I finished  my December book club pick with most of the month left, I resolved to read the whole Tawny Man trilogy before what stands to be a very busy reading year in 2013.<br/><br/>I'm glad I did. It was a great way to cap off the year in between all the holiday busyness finding time here and there to read.<br/><br/>Ms. Hobb found a way to resolve things in satisfying manner while still leaving me with a few questions that I'm OK with not having answers to. Sometimes speculating is the best part of a good book. That way the book never truly ends.<br/><br/>Before coming to this trilogy I've read people who have clamored for more Fitz and the Fool books by Ms. Hobb. Her most recent entries in the Eldering series (<a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/series/49413-the-rain-wild-chronicles"">Rain Wild Chronicles</a>) which takes place at the same time as this series apparently contain neither. I expect I will read that series, but plan to take a break before doing so.<br/><br/>I would happily read another book with those characters if done right. But I'm perfectly content at leaving well enough alone for fear of ruining a good thing.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  45109,"Golden Fool (Tawny Man, #2)","Robin Hobb","Hobb, Robin","",="0553582453",="9780553582451",4,"4.28","Spectra","Mass Market Paperback","709",2003,2002,2012/12/24,2012/08/31,"elderlings, read-2012, fantasy","elderlings (#3), read-2012 (#3), fantasy (#56)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I really enjoyed this book, and found myself staying up till 2 in the morning and rudely reading while visiting with family on Christmas Eve just to finish it.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>There isn't a lot for me to really say about this book without getting into spoilers. Robin Hobb seems to find a way make you really care about her characters and suck you into the story even when it's just day to day living. Of course Fitz's days are a tad bit more interesting than your average person.<br/><br/>It also re-enforces my belief that you're really missing out by skipping Liveship Traders and moving right to Tawny Man from Farseer. I don't see how you can really understand the depth of some of the events of this book a lot that happens in this book without the full back-story from the previous trilogy.<br/><br/>In this book Fitz learns more about the Fool, and it changes their relationship. I however don't feel like I learned anything that I didn't already suspect. It simply confirmed those suspicions while leaving me questions I hope will finally be answered in the last book.<br/><br/>This book does suffer a bit from middle book syndrome. A lot of it really sets up the final book in the trilogy. That doesn't mean I was bored along the way, simply that the ending didn't come to any satisfying conclusion. <br/><br/>Really it just leaves me hoping for a lot of things to be resolved in the final book. When I was done I wanted to jump right into the final book, but didn't have time due to the holidays.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  45102,"Ship of Destiny (Liveship Traders, #3)","Robin Hobb","Hobb, Robin","",="0553575651",="9780553575651",4,"4.16","Spectra Books","Paperback","789",2001,2000,2012/11/21,2012/08/31,"elderlings, read-2012, fantasy","elderlings (#5), read-2012 (#11), fantasy (#53)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> In the third and final book of the Liveship Traders trilogy, Ms. Hobb expertly brings everything that built up for 3 books to an exciting and satisfying conclusion. Many people seem to skip this trilogy and jump right into <a href=""http://www.goodreads.com/series/45182-tawny-man"">The Tawny Man Trilogy</a>. I think this is a mistake. While there is very little overlap with Farseer (and maybe Tawny man, can't say for sure since I haven't read it yet), it's quite well written with many diverse and interesting characters.<br/><br/><br/><b>Full Review</b><br/>I got sidetracked reading [b:Cloud Atlas|49628|Cloud Atlas|David Mitchell|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1344305390s/49628.jpg|1871423] between this book and [b:The Mad Ship|45101|The Mad Ship (Liveship Traders, #2)|Robin Hobb|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1328628210s/45101.jpg|2571145]. It seemed to slow my momentum down. That coupled with the slow burn style of Ms. Hobb's writing. It took me 12 days to read the first 300 pages, but only 4 days to read the last 500 or so.<br/><br/>This book even more than the previous two, switches perspectives a lot. At some times it's only a paragraph or two to swap, especially near the end. It makes for a fast paced ending as all the subplots begin to converge.<br/><br/>For me the most impressive part of this trilogy was the character development. She took a character like Malta Versit and <spoiler>through character growth changed her from someone I want to reach into the book and strangle for being a spoiled little twit to someone of great strength and cunning</spoiler><br/><br/>I could go on to cite more examples, but you should just read for yourself. Where the characters are at the beginning of the trilogy and where they end up by the end seems miles apart. Ms. Hobb does an expert job in getting them there. <br/><br/>I highly recommend this to anyone who likes Ms. Hobb's writing and especially to anyone whose already read the Farseer trilogy.","","","","People who have read Ms. Hobb's books, especially Farseer.","",0,,,,,
  771713,"Mad Ship (Liveship Traders, #2)","Robin Hobb","Hobb, Robin","",="0553575643",="9780553575644",4,"4.16","Spectra Books","Paperback","850",2000,1999,2012/11/04,2012/08/31,"elderlings, read-2012, read-before-goodreads, fantasy","elderlings (#6), read-2012 (#14), read-before-goodreads (#15), fantasy (#52)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> I really enjoyed this book. I rated book 1 in this trilogy as a 4 as well, but on a scale of 10 book 1 would be an 8 and this would be a 9. There was a lot of setup in the first book that wasn't necessary in this one so the over-reaching story really started to pick up steam. <br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/><br/>This book does suffer a bit from ""middle book syndrome"", but not that much for me to mind. The ending of the book seems reasonable for a book boundary, but would leave me frustrated if I didn't know there was another book to follow.<br/><br/>I learned answers to a lot of the questions I had from the first book, while adding new questions to be answered by the final book. Some things became more clear, but I feel there is still a lot to be revealed.<br/><br/><br/>There is a lot of great character development in this book. Malta in particular who I wanted strangle every time she showed up in book 1 seems to finally growing up a little in this book. Ms. Hobb has always seemed to love to torment her characters and does an excellent job depicting growth in the face of this adversity.<br/><br/>I'm eagerly looking forward to finishing the final book in the trilogy.","","","1","","",0,,,,,
  515814,"Fool's Errand (Tawny Man, #1)","Robin Hobb","Hobb, Robin","",="0553582445",="9780553582444",4,"4.24","Spectra","Paperback","662",2002,2001,2012/12/15,2012/08/31,"elderlings, read-2012, fantasy","elderlings (#4), read-2012 (#5), fantasy (#54)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This is another great entry in the Realm of the Ederlings. It picks up not long after the Liveship Traders and 15 years after the Farseer Trilogy.<br/><br/>If you enjoyed those previous books, I imagine you will enjoy this one as well. If you haven't read those books, I highly recommend you do before starting this one.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>Like all the previous books in the Realm of the Ederlings books, this starts off slow without much indication as to what the main plot will be.<br/><br/>In a lot of books this would annoy. Fantasy in particular tends to ramble on, especially some of the extremely long epic fantasy series.<br/><br/>Ms. Hobb is different somehow. I'm not bored or anxious or wondering when she'll just get on with it. I'm excited to follow Fitz around discover what he's been up to while I was reading about pirates and magical ships.<br/><br/>The return of several characters from the Farseer trilogy brought a smile to my face. It was like catching up with old friends.<br/><br/>Ms. Hobb can be quite cruel to her characters, especially poor Fitz. As the catalyst he seems destined to lead a tragic life where his choices are always between bad and worse options. I was particularly sad when <spoiler>Nighteyes died.</spoiler><br/><br/>The books involving the Wit make me want a pet. I've always been more of a dog person, than a cat person. These books make me want a wolf, because Nighteyes is awesome.<br/><br/>Despite this the addition of cats to this book from the previous trilogy is a welcome one. The cats talk and act like I'd expect them to if I could share their thoughts. I particularly love the comments from the Hedge Witch Jinna's cat Fennel. He cracks me up.<br/><br/>Overall an enjoyable book that looks to be setting up nicely for the rest of the trilogy.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  618211,"Ship of Magic (Liveship Traders, #1)","Robin Hobb","Hobb, Robin","",="0553575635",="9780553575637",4,"4.07","Spectra Books","Paperback","809",1999,1998,2012/09/22,2012/08/31,"elderlings, read-2012, fantasy","elderlings (#7), read-2012 (#20), fantasy (#51)","read","I jumped into this book after finishing the Farseer trilogy. Like that series, Hobb takes her time to set things up. I felt this book started a bit slower than [b:Assassin's Apprentice|45107|Assassin's Apprentice (Farseer Trilogy, #1)|Robin Hobb|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1320339497s/45107.jpg|171715], but like that book, once it really got going, it was hard to put down.<br/><br/>This book uses 3rd person, with multiple perspectives compared to the single first person perspective of Farseer. With all that was going on, I think the change of style was warranted.<br/><br/>Hobb introduced an interesting ensemble of characters. The likable characters took me a while to warm up to. However, the unlikable characters of Kyle and his ignorant and arrogant daughter Marta had me screaming at my book. I think that's a great sign of how well she was written. Kennit provides an interesting villain so far.<br/><br/>So far there is little connection to the first trilogy, though I have my suspicions about some things that will tie in to the Fool as this trilogy unfolds.<br/><br/>Unlike [b:Assassin's Apprentice|45107|Assassin's Apprentice (Farseer Trilogy, #1)|Robin Hobb|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1320339497s/45107.jpg|171715], this book's ending left me unfulfilled. I think it was certainly written with the intention of a trilogy. It reached a good stopping point, but nothing was resolved. I feel like should could have easily tacked on ""To Be Continued...""<br/><br/>Overall I'd say if you like Farseer trilogy, this will be worth your time, before moving on to Tawny man.<br/><br/>I'm eagerly looking forward to the next two books, but taking a short break for some other reading.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  93990,"The Beast Within (Gabriel Knight, #2)","Jane Jensen","Jensen, Jane","",="0451456211",="9780451456212",0,"4.15","Roc","Paperback","352",1998,1998,,2012/08/30,"to-read, gabriel-knight, fantasy","to-read (#75), gabriel-knight (#1), fantasy (#121)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  93989,"Sins of the Fathers (Gabriel Knight, #1)","Jane Jensen","Jensen, Jane","",="0451456076",="9780451456076",0,"3.78","Roc","Paperback","416",1997,1997,,2012/08/30,"to-read, gabriel-knight, fantasy","to-read (#74), gabriel-knight (#2), fantasy (#120)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  15177,"Bridge of Birds: A Novel of an Ancient China That Never Was (The Chronicles of Master Li and Number Ten Ox, #1)","Barry Hughart","Hughart, Barry","",="0345321383",="9780345321381",4,"4.32","Del Rey","Paperback","278",1985,1984,2013/01/25,2012/08/29,"sword-and-laser, read-2013, fantasy","sword-and-laser (#1), read-2013 (#25), fantasy (#30)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> This book provides a good mix of adventure and humor with a bit of action and mystery thrown in for good measure. It's only about 250 pages, so it makes for a quick read once you get into it. Highly recommend.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>This one got on my radar thanks to Sword & Laser from one of Aaron's great white boards. It got lost on my ever-growing to read list, until the club decided to make the February pick.<br/><br/>Normally I try to time things so I can read the club picks at the beginning of the month, but that wasn't going to work out this time, so I opted to read it early rather than later.<br/><br/>This books starts off a bit slow. There is a lot of flowery descriptive language in the first chapter and I just wasn't digging it. I'd almost say you could skip the first chapter, but it explains a few things that are important later in the story.<br/><br/>By chapter 2 though, the story had already started grabbing my interest. Master Li comes off a bit like a cartoon character to me, but I really enjoy him, despite the <i>slight flaw in his character</i>.<br/><br/>Master Li and Number Ten Ox go on increasingly dangerous adventures in the hopes of saving the children of Ox's town. It seems like Master Li has ever increasingly zany schemes to match the danger.  I thought that everything is tied together nicely in the end.<br/><br/>I'm really looking forward to checking out the other two books in the series, as I purchased all 3 in the eBook omnibus.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  8100267,"Pathfinder (Pathfinder, #1)","Orson Scott Card","Card, Orson Scott","",="141699176X",="9781416991762",0,"3.98","Simon Pulse","Hardcover","657",2010,2010,,2012/08/29,"to-read","to-read (#73)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  68427,"Elantris (Elantris, #1)","Brandon Sanderson","Sanderson, Brandon","",="0765350378",="9780765350374",0,"4.13","Tor Fantasy","Mass Market Paperback","638",2006,2005,,2012/08/29,"to-read, fantasy","to-read (#43), fantasy (#162)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  93269,"Earth Abides","George R. Stewart","Stewart, George R.","",="0345487133",="9780345487131",0,"3.95","Del Rey","Paperback","345",2006,1949,,2012/08/19,"to-read","to-read (#72)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  7670,"The Andromeda Strain","Michael Crichton","Crichton, Michael","",="0060541814",="9780060541811",3,"3.81","Avon Books","Paperback","327",2003,1969,,2012/08/19,"read-before-goodreads, science-fiction","read-before-goodreads (#47), science-fiction (#24)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  4381,"Fahrenheit 451","Ray Bradbury","Bradbury, Ray","",="0307347974",="9780307347978",0,"3.94","Plaza y Janes","Paperback","238",2006,1996,,2012/08/19,"to-read","to-read (#38)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  388793,"Unshapely Things (Connor Grey, #1)","Mark Del Franco","Franco, Mark Del","",="0441014771",="9780441014774",0,"3.59","Ace","Mass Market Paperback","305",2007,2007,,2012/08/19,"to-read","to-read (#71)","to-read","","","","","","",0,,,,,
  12328193,"Seven Wonders","Adam Christopher","Christopher, Adam","",="0857661965",="9780857661968",0,"3.26","Angry Robot","Paperback","411",2012,2012,,2012/08/17,"to-read","to-read (#70)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  10795257,"Empire State (Empire State, #1)","Adam Christopher","Christopher, Adam","",="0857661922",="9780857661920",0,"3.12","Angry Robot","Paperback","445",2012,2011,,2012/08/17,"to-read","to-read (#69)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  7020,"Twelth Night or What You Will","William Shakespeare","Shakespeare, William","",="1419191284",="9781419191282",2,"3.95","Kessinger Publishing","Paperback","144",2004,1601,,2012/08/15,"read-before-goodreads","read-before-goodreads (#42)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  1622,"A Midsummer Night's Dream","William Shakespeare","Shakespeare, William","",="0743477545",="9780743477543",4,"3.93","Simon & Schuster","Paperback","204",2004,1595,,2012/08/15,"read-before-goodreads","read-before-goodreads (#167)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  704121,"Letters from an American Farmer","J. Hector St. John de Crèvecoeur","Crèvecoeur, J. Hector St. John de","",="0192838989",="9780192838988",1,"3.00","Oxford University Press, USA","Paperback","288",1999,1782,,2012/08/15,"read-before-goodreads","read-before-goodreads (#33)","read","had to read this in college. I never finished it. It was too hard to get through.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  99208,"The Monkey Wrench Gang","Edward Abbey","Abbey, Edward","",="0061129763",="9780061129766",3,"4.08","Harper Perennial","Paperback","421",2006,1975,,2012/08/15,"read-before-goodreads","read-before-goodreads (#129)","read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  7997069,"Dead or Alive (Jack Ryan Jr., #2)","Tom Clancy","Clancy, Tom","Grant Blackwood",="0399157239",="9780399157233",3,"3.73","Putnam Adult","Hardcover","950",2010,2010,,2012/08/13,"read-before-goodreads, jack-ryan","read-before-goodreads (#148), jack-ryan (#3)","read","I did the audiobook for this at some point in the last year or so. I forget when now.<br/><br/>It's pretty deep in the whole Jack Ryan series, and I haven't read any of them, just seen most (all?) of the movies based on Jack Ryan books.<br/><br/>Once I got up to speed on some things that had happened I was able to follow the story fine. It was descent, and enough to make me want to check out some of the previous books in the series at some point. Maybe if I can get them in audiobook format for another car trip.<br/><br/>This book also includes John Clark and one or more of the guys from the Rainbow 6 stuff.<br/><br/>The main plot is essentially a parallel of searching for Bin Ladden and stopping him from executing another 9/11 like terrorist plot.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  957376,"Net Force (Tom Clancy's Net Force, #1)","Steve Perry","Perry, Steve","Tom Clancy, Steve Pieczenik",="0425161722",="9780425161722",3,"3.32","Berkley","Paperback","372",1999,1998,,2012/08/13,"read-before-goodreads","read-before-goodreads (#123)","read","read this back in high school. I recall liking it, but not much else.","",,,,,0,,,,,
  9180885,"On Stranger Tides","Tim Powers","Powers, Tim","Bronson Pinchot",="1441754997",="9781441754998",3,"3.88","Blackstone Audiobooks","MP3 CD","",2010,1987,2012/05/14,2012/08/13,"audio-book, read-2012, fantasy","audio-book (#14), read-2012 (#32), fantasy (#32)","read","I did the audio book for this back in May for a car trip.<br/><br/>It was decent, but nothing special.<br/><br/>Apparently it was loosely translated into a pirates of the Caribbean movie but I never saw it.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  31259,"The Bourne Ultimatum (Jason Bourne, #3)","Robert Ludlum","Ludlum, Robert","",="0752858491",="9780752858494",3,"3.99","Orion","Mass Market Paperback","720",2004,1990,,2012/08/13,"jason-bourne, read-before-goodreads, thriller","jason-bourne (#1), read-before-goodreads (#105), thriller (#20)","read","Read this awhile ago. I liked this much more than book 2, but not quite as much as book one though. ","","","","","",0,,,,,
  15769,"The Bourne Supremacy (Jason Bourne, #2)","Robert Ludlum","Ludlum, Robert","",="0752863886",="9780752863887",2,"4.06","Orion","Mass Market Paperback","688",2004,1986,,2012/08/13,"jason-bourne, read-before-goodreads, thriller","jason-bourne (#2), read-before-goodreads (#57), thriller (#1)","read","Read this awhile ago. It was borderline 1 star. I'd give it 1.5 if I could. His wife is super annoying and the story was just slow. This is one where I actually liked the movie much much better (probably because the only thing in common it had was the name)","","","","","",0,,,,,
  7869,"The Bourne Identity (Jason Bourne, #1)","Robert Ludlum","Ludlum, Robert","",="0752864327",="9780752864327",4,"3.91","Orion","Paperback","566",2005,1980,,2012/08/13,"jason-bourne, read-before-goodreads, thriller","jason-bourne (#3), read-before-goodreads (#39), thriller (#19)","read","Read this one a long time ago. I recall enjoying it.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  93436,"The End of Mr. Y","Scarlett Thomas","Thomas, Scarlett","",="0156031612",="9780156031615",0,"3.80","Mariner Books","Paperback","402",2006,2006,,2012/08/13,"to-read","to-read (#68)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  33356,"Jennifer Government","Max Barry","Barry, Max","",="0349117624",="9780349117621",0,"3.65","Abacus ","Paperback","352",2004,2002,,2012/08/13,"to-read","to-read (#67)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  27003,"The Eyre Affair (Thursday Next, #1)","Jasper Fforde","Fforde, Jasper","",="0142001805",="9780142001806",0,"3.92","Penguin Books","Paperback","374",2003,2001,,2012/08/13,"to-read","to-read (#66)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  11669085,"Among Others","Jo Walton","Walton, Jo","",="0765331721",="9780765331724",3,"3.68","Tor Books","Paperback","304",2012,2010,2013/06/02,2012/08/13,"sword-and-laser, read-2013, fantasy","sword-and-laser (#11), read-2013 (#32), fantasy (#26)","read","<b>Executive Summary:</b> An interesting book, though one that just didn't resonate with me as much as it might with others.<br/><br/><b><u>Full Review</u></b><br/>I think I first heard about this book when it won the Hugo last year. Probably from Sword & Laser, which selected it for the June 2013 pick.<br/><br/>There are several things in this book I greatly identify with. There is one scene when the main character meets other people who share her interest in sci-fi and fantasy books and feels both self-conscious about that she is talking too much and yet at the same time is unable to control herself. I've been there entirely too many times in my life, especially after long periods of mostly being alone and catching up with friends.<br/><br/>The main part that I identify with is losing yourself in books. This is something I seem to be doing more and more of lately, for several reasons. I'm thankful for good reads as an outlet to discuss them all, and to find other people who read as much as I do.<br/><br/>So why only 3 stars? Well there were three main reasons:<br/><br/>1) The early part felt very ramblely to me. As someone prone to rambling I can forgive this in conversation, but not really in a book. It's meant as a diary of a teenage girl, so this is probably realistic, but was too realistic for me. <br/><br/>This leads me to my next problem:<br/><br/>2) As the diary of the teen-aged girl, there were parts I just couldn't identify with. Having never been a girl myself, and understanding entirely too little about the female species in general some parts of this book were just awkward for me. Not a fault of the book, just something that didn't resonate with me personally.<br/><br/>And my final drawback was:<br/><br/>3) All the book references. I'd like to think I've read a decent number of books in my nearly 30 year reading career (I don't remember exactly what age I started reading books). I've tracked over 200 books on good reads, and I know there are books I've read missing from the list, especially if I counted all the stuff I read as a kid. <br/><br/>There are at least 80 books referenced in this novel from the various lists I've seen. I've read less than 10 of them. That made for a lot of references I'm sure I just missed out on. This is another thing that isn't the book's fault. <br/><br/>This book is set in 79/80. I was born in 82. I didn't really start reading a ton of sci-fi or fantasy until the early 2000s. Most of what I've read was written after I was born.<br/><br/>I LOVED [b:Ready Player One|9969571|Ready Player One|Ernest Cline|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1333576871s/9969571.jpg|14863741]. It's chock full of geeky 70's and 80's nostalgia. If you took that away, the book wouldn't have been nearly as good. So that might be exactly what's happened here for me.<br/><br/>Overall, I'm glad I read this, but I'm also glad I'm glad I opted to borrow it from the library. With inter-library loan no less! Somehow that seems fitting.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  12987245,"The Hammer and the Blade (Egil and Nix #1)","Paul S. Kemp","Kemp, Paul S.","",="0857662457",="9780857662453",0,"3.80","Angry Robot","Mass Market Paperback","410",2012,2012,,2012/08/13,"to-read","to-read (#65)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  10942400,"The Hum and the Shiver (Tufa, #1)","Alex Bledsoe","Bledsoe, Alex","",="0765327449",="9780765327444",0,"3.82","Tor Books","Paperback","349",2011,2011,,2012/08/13,"to-read","to-read (#64)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  13609386,"Geekomancy (Ree Reyes, #1)","Michael R. Underwood","Underwood, Michael R.","",="1451698135",="9781451698138",0,"3.57","Pocket Star","ebook","255",2012,2012,,2012/08/13,"to-read","to-read (#63)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  2493,"The Time Machine","H.G. Wells","Wells, H.G.","Greg Bear",="0451528557",="9780451528551",0,"3.83","Signet Classics","Paperback","118",2002,1895,,2012/08/13,"to-read","to-read (#62)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  28194,"Inkheart (Inkworld, #1)","Cornelia Funke","Funke, Cornelia","Anthea Bell",="0439709105",="9780439709101",0,"3.83","Scholastic Paperbacks","Paperback","548",2005,2003,,2012/08/13,"to-read","to-read (#61)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  10836728,"The Rook (The Checquy Files, #1)","Daniel O'Malley","O'Malley, Daniel","",="0316098795",="9780316098793",0,"4.09","Little, Brown and Company","Hardcover","486",2012,2012,,2012/08/13,"to-read","to-read (#60)","to-read",,"",,,,,0,,,,,
  45112,"Assassin's Quest (Farseer Trilogy, #3)","Robin Hobb","Hobb, Robin","",="0553565699",="9780553565690",4,"4.16","Spectra","Paperback","757",1998,1997,2012/09/01,2012/08/13,"elderlings, read-2012, fantasy","elderlings (#1), read-2012 (#24), fantasy (#50)","read","I felt this to be a pretty good conclusion to the initial trilogy. I do wonder what will become of many of the characters, but could be content if there were no other books to read.<br/><br/> That said, I'm planning to make time in the next few months to reading the next two trilogies.<br/><br/> I feel like many of the larger question were addressed to my satisfaction, but could be explored further. There especially seems like more can be learned about both the Skill and the Wit.","",,,,,0,,,,,
  68487,"Royal Assassin (Farseer Trilogy, #2)","Robin Hobb","Hobb, Robin","",="0006480101",="9780006480105",4,"4.18","Voyager","Paperback","752",1997,1996,2012/08/24,2012/08/13,"elderlings, read-2012, fantasy","elderlings (#8), read-2012 (#25), fantasy (#49)","read","I found this book better than the first in the series.<br/><br/> It may simply be due to the fact that Hobb didn't need to spend any time setting things up.<br/><br/> The story moved along quickly, and I enjoyed the character development that occurred.<br/><br/> It left things off in a place where I'm glad to have [b:Assassin's Quest|45112|Assassin's Quest (Farseer Trilogy, #3)|Robin Hobb|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1328153405s/45112.jpg|503752] to jump right into.","","","","","",0,,,,,
  329262,"At Large: The Strange Case of the World's Biggest Internet Invasion","David H. Freedman","Freedman, David H.","Charles C. Mann",="0684835584",="9780684835587",4,"3.89","Touchstone","Paperback","320",1998,1997,,2012/08/11,"hacking, read-before-goodreads, nonfiction","hacking (#2), read-before-goodreads (#91), nonfiction (#5)","read","Another one I read in high school. I recall enjoying it.","",,,,,0,,,,,
  