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Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2440 KP) rated Q is for Quarry (Kinsey Millhone, #17) in Books
Jul 21, 2020
“Q” is for Quality
Private investigator Kinsey Millhone is feeling a bit restless when Lieutenant Conrad Dolan walks into her new office. Eighteen years ago, in 1969, he and his friend, Stacey Oliphant, found the body of a young woman. Both men have pursued the case over their careers with the police, but they haven’t figure out who she was. They want to take one more look at it, and they want to hire Kinsey to help them with the leg work. Will the three of them find any new leads in this cold case?
I’m sure it’s no surprise to say they do indeed begin to make some headway as they go back over the case. I enjoyed being along for the unpredictable ride. I thought I had things figured out a few times before we reached the real climax. The characters are as strong as ever. I loved seeing the growth in Kinsey, especially with a recurring sub-plot popping back up. There are a couple of other fun sub-plots with the regulars. Dolan and Oliphant could be a bit annoying at times, but that never lasted for very long. This book is based on a real-life Jane Doe, and there is information in the back on how Sue Grafton became interested in that case, which is still unsolved best I can tell. It’s always a pleasure to see a long running series that is still this strong and entertaining after so many volumes.
I’m sure it’s no surprise to say they do indeed begin to make some headway as they go back over the case. I enjoyed being along for the unpredictable ride. I thought I had things figured out a few times before we reached the real climax. The characters are as strong as ever. I loved seeing the growth in Kinsey, especially with a recurring sub-plot popping back up. There are a couple of other fun sub-plots with the regulars. Dolan and Oliphant could be a bit annoying at times, but that never lasted for very long. This book is based on a real-life Jane Doe, and there is information in the back on how Sue Grafton became interested in that case, which is still unsolved best I can tell. It’s always a pleasure to see a long running series that is still this strong and entertaining after so many volumes.
What can I say about <i>Revenger</i>?
It was my first ever Space Opera and it has opened my eyes to a whole new genre.
It was my first ever Space Opera and it has primed my taste-buds for more.
It was my first ever Alastair Reynolds and now I want more.
Revenger itself was amazingly well written. As mentioned above this was my first book from Alastair Reynolds and it was just the kind of book I could get into again and again; the writing style flowed with a shocking ease and the plot line was very Firefly-esque with a hint more action and a smidge more ‘oh-shit’ factor.
Revenger follows the story of Adrana and Arafura Ness – two sisters from Mazarile whose sick father had made some very poor choices in business – as they embark on a journey into space to end all journeys.
It begins with Adrana convincing her younger sister Arafura to escape into Neural Alley for a reading by Madam Granity. There’s aliens, robots and weird looking men with bad attitudes and then there’s Captain Rackamore. Pol Rackamore is the captain of the Monetta’s Mourn – a sunjammer spaceship – and he’s in need of a new Boney on his ship as his current one is getting too old to ‘read the bones’ and I mean that in the literal sense of the word.
Adrana convinces Cap’n Rack to take both her and Arafura on board the Monetta in the position of new Bone Readers (with the aide of Cazaray the current Boney) and that is where the story really begins. We’re introduced to the rest of the crew and the Monetta sails off into the Empty in search of baubles. As they sail towards their first bauble Arafura becomes a lot closer to the rest of the crew while I feel that Adrana is doing her best to stay away from them all even though she’s front and center.
Story progresses and little hints are dropped about Bosa Sennen and Cap’n Rack’s long lost daughter. There’s several shocking deaths, a mad woman, a kidnapping or two and a young girl bent on revenge.
Around the mid way mark Arafura changes, subtly at first and then a lot more drastic and she becomes Just Fura. This is where the story becomes a lot darker and a lot less like Firefly and a lot more like the Firefly from hell; the second half of this book is based around Fura getting Revenger on Bosa Sennen for what she did and the things that Fura puts herself through to get where she needs to be? She started off as a little timid and shy but after the 50% mark she changed completely and became hard and unyielding.
You know how they say that the future is bright? That brightness is swallowed by the Empty and the future is dark and full of terrors (oh yeah I went there) there’s a doctor with a God complex, a father with a total lack of regard for his daughters, a totally bad ass soldier robot with logic barricades and all sorts of other people.
I think I loved the world building the most about Revenger it was such a smooth transition from place to place and from time to time that it was almost seamless; my second favourite thing was the characters – hands down they were some of the best characters I’ve ever read and I’d love to see if AR takes this book any further as it was seemingly left open for another book but we shall see.
The book gave off a distinctly pirate feeling but with the space element it felt more like Firefly than it did Pirates of the Caribbean which as a fan of both was saying something. Pirates sailing the high skies rather than the high seas! Some of the characters left much to be desired – Bosa, Adrana and Dr Moonface I’m looking at y’all – but the likes of Rack, Prozor and Paladin more than made up for them.
The dialogue was great and the story wasn’t overly scientific which sometimes can be an issue for me, I like my books to be a little less science fact and a bit more science fiction but with Revenger, I felt like AR was giving us regular folk an explanation without going overboard on the description.
It was my first ever Space Opera and it has opened my eyes to a whole new genre.
It was my first ever Space Opera and it has primed my taste-buds for more.
It was my first ever Alastair Reynolds and now I want more.
Revenger itself was amazingly well written. As mentioned above this was my first book from Alastair Reynolds and it was just the kind of book I could get into again and again; the writing style flowed with a shocking ease and the plot line was very Firefly-esque with a hint more action and a smidge more ‘oh-shit’ factor.
Revenger follows the story of Adrana and Arafura Ness – two sisters from Mazarile whose sick father had made some very poor choices in business – as they embark on a journey into space to end all journeys.
It begins with Adrana convincing her younger sister Arafura to escape into Neural Alley for a reading by Madam Granity. There’s aliens, robots and weird looking men with bad attitudes and then there’s Captain Rackamore. Pol Rackamore is the captain of the Monetta’s Mourn – a sunjammer spaceship – and he’s in need of a new Boney on his ship as his current one is getting too old to ‘read the bones’ and I mean that in the literal sense of the word.
Adrana convinces Cap’n Rack to take both her and Arafura on board the Monetta in the position of new Bone Readers (with the aide of Cazaray the current Boney) and that is where the story really begins. We’re introduced to the rest of the crew and the Monetta sails off into the Empty in search of baubles. As they sail towards their first bauble Arafura becomes a lot closer to the rest of the crew while I feel that Adrana is doing her best to stay away from them all even though she’s front and center.
Story progresses and little hints are dropped about Bosa Sennen and Cap’n Rack’s long lost daughter. There’s several shocking deaths, a mad woman, a kidnapping or two and a young girl bent on revenge.
Around the mid way mark Arafura changes, subtly at first and then a lot more drastic and she becomes Just Fura. This is where the story becomes a lot darker and a lot less like Firefly and a lot more like the Firefly from hell; the second half of this book is based around Fura getting Revenger on Bosa Sennen for what she did and the things that Fura puts herself through to get where she needs to be? She started off as a little timid and shy but after the 50% mark she changed completely and became hard and unyielding.
You know how they say that the future is bright? That brightness is swallowed by the Empty and the future is dark and full of terrors (oh yeah I went there) there’s a doctor with a God complex, a father with a total lack of regard for his daughters, a totally bad ass soldier robot with logic barricades and all sorts of other people.
I think I loved the world building the most about Revenger it was such a smooth transition from place to place and from time to time that it was almost seamless; my second favourite thing was the characters – hands down they were some of the best characters I’ve ever read and I’d love to see if AR takes this book any further as it was seemingly left open for another book but we shall see.
The book gave off a distinctly pirate feeling but with the space element it felt more like Firefly than it did Pirates of the Caribbean which as a fan of both was saying something. Pirates sailing the high skies rather than the high seas! Some of the characters left much to be desired – Bosa, Adrana and Dr Moonface I’m looking at y’all – but the likes of Rack, Prozor and Paladin more than made up for them.
The dialogue was great and the story wasn’t overly scientific which sometimes can be an issue for me, I like my books to be a little less science fact and a bit more science fiction but with Revenger, I felt like AR was giving us regular folk an explanation without going overboard on the description.
AD
Advanced Data Analysis in Neuroscience: Integrating Statistical and Computational Models
Book
This book is intended for use in advanced graduate courses in statistics/ machine learning for...
ClareR (5996 KP) rated The Familiars in Books
Jul 14, 2019 (Updated Jul 14, 2019)
The fact that this book is based on true events makes it all the more harrowing, in my opinion. When people ask “What era would you like to visit or live in?”, I pretty much always answer “I’m fine just where I am. I rather like the antibiotics, general freedom and option not to be hung and/ or burned as a witch, thanks very much”. I do however, very much like reading about the past, and this gives a fascinating insight to the Pendle Hill Witch Trials.
Fleetwood is seventeen years old and pregnant for the fourth time. Her three previous pregnancies have all resulted in stillbirth or miscarriage, and she has found letters from a doctor to her husband, saying that she will not survive another. She meets Alice Grey, who is a midwife, by chance. Alice promises to help her give birth to a living child, and assures her that she will survive the birth.
The fact that Alice is a midwife leaves her vulnerable to accusations of witchcraft, and accused she is. Fleetwood is adamant that she will save her as she is her friend and the only person who will be able to save hers and her baby’s lives. No one takes Fleetwood seriously though; when they do take her seriously, they expect her to go home and knuckle down to the more womanly pursuits of child bearing and being a wife.
Fleetwoods frustration is described so well - no one will listen, and no one will help. It’s such a tense atmosphere - Fleetwood just wants to help,her friend, and there are so many obstacles in the way. Even her social standing is no deterrent if someone were to accuse her of witchcraft if she becomes too troublesome (there’s the example of Margaret Pearson in the story, whose maid accused her of having a toad as a familiar, and spent time in the stocks before being imprisoned)
I really enjoyed this book, and I’ll be waiting for whatever the author writes next (I’m on the mailing list!).
Many thanks to Readers First for my copy of this book.
Fleetwood is seventeen years old and pregnant for the fourth time. Her three previous pregnancies have all resulted in stillbirth or miscarriage, and she has found letters from a doctor to her husband, saying that she will not survive another. She meets Alice Grey, who is a midwife, by chance. Alice promises to help her give birth to a living child, and assures her that she will survive the birth.
The fact that Alice is a midwife leaves her vulnerable to accusations of witchcraft, and accused she is. Fleetwood is adamant that she will save her as she is her friend and the only person who will be able to save hers and her baby’s lives. No one takes Fleetwood seriously though; when they do take her seriously, they expect her to go home and knuckle down to the more womanly pursuits of child bearing and being a wife.
Fleetwoods frustration is described so well - no one will listen, and no one will help. It’s such a tense atmosphere - Fleetwood just wants to help,her friend, and there are so many obstacles in the way. Even her social standing is no deterrent if someone were to accuse her of witchcraft if she becomes too troublesome (there’s the example of Margaret Pearson in the story, whose maid accused her of having a toad as a familiar, and spent time in the stocks before being imprisoned)
I really enjoyed this book, and I’ll be waiting for whatever the author writes next (I’m on the mailing list!).
Many thanks to Readers First for my copy of this book.
Trotskyists on Trial: Free Speech and Political Persecution Since the Age of FDR
Book
Passed in June 1940, the Smith Act was a peacetime anti-sedition law that marked a dramatic shift in...
Game Play: Paratextuality in Contemporary Board Games
Book
The 21st century has seen a board game renaissance. At a time when streaming television finds...
Terri Wiltshire (21 KP) rated The Lord of the Rings in Books
Sep 1, 2019
Tolkein created a complete detailed universe complete with its own mythology and lore (2 more)
Varied and rounded characters
Epic journey of good verses evil and the grey areas in between
Masterpiece
There is little I can say that has not already been said about The Lord of the Rings. It is an epic story of friendship, love, betrayal, war and essentially a coming of age journey. Middle earth and all its inhabitants come alive in your hands...you are transported to a world in chaos, a world of change where nothing is certain. Battle with dwarfs and elves, fight along side men who are impossibly brave and flawed and cry as the tiniest of people carry the biggest of burdens.
This book and the subsequent movies based on the world have been well quoted and are almost inbedded in British culture.
I envy those who haven't read them yet..you have a fantastic journey ahead. It will not be easy (this is not light reading) but it will be more than worth it. Enjoy, and give the elves my love.
This book and the subsequent movies based on the world have been well quoted and are almost inbedded in British culture.
I envy those who haven't read them yet..you have a fantastic journey ahead. It will not be easy (this is not light reading) but it will be more than worth it. Enjoy, and give the elves my love.
Mathematics Explained for Primary Teachers
Derek Haylock and Ralph Manning
8.0
Rate It
Book
Get access to an interactive eBook* when you buy the paperback! (Print paperback version only, ISBN...
Ross (3284 KP) rated Perfect Death in Books
Sep 28, 2018
Contains spoilers, click to show
I have debated with myself over a rating for this, the third in the "DI Luc Callanach" series of Edinburgh police procedurals. While the overall story is definitely a 4 star, verging on 5, certain aspects of the dialogue in this one were a little jarring at times, and the plot hinged on a couple of very out of character decisions on the part of the murderer.
As with the previous two books, we join the story at the start of two independent investigations, which inevitably expand and take up the whole team's efforts (it's almost as if there was no crime in the city before these came along as no other cases seem to be mentioned or worked on!). We have the apparent death by misadventure of a young girl on the hills around Arthur's Seat, and the apparent suicide of former DCI Begbie.
Both cases are interesting and very different, the former being a more typical murder investigation, the latter being more focused on police corruption and the Glasgow gangland (I do enjoy the fact that any nasty gangsters in these Edinburgh-based stories have to be based in Glasgow, almost like they are sponsored by the Edinburgh tourist board, or someone with an anti-East Coast agenda).
While the murder investigation is decent, a number of clangers really spoiled it for me. We have a young man who appears to be poisoning people after having ingratiated themselves into their lives and the lives of their loved ones under different false names. However, as is so often the case in these stories, the killer is made too clever to be caught (at least too clever to be caught in under 300 pages!), and so the slightest mistake or piece of luck is what the investigation hinges on. Here it transpires that, while the killer has used false names in every interaction, in one of them he seems to have for some reason used the name of someone who leads the police directly to his backstory and hence uncovering his real identity. This piece of Batman vs Superman ("Your Mom was called Martha?!") level plot pivot was just so jarring and so out of character for this supposedly clever murderer. And yet without it there was pretty much no way of the murderer being found. For a secret poisoner to then start waving a gun around was also a bit hard to accept.
And also, all characters seem to be very well spoken. We have a young man who grew up in care homes from the age of 5, a Glasgow gangster and his henchmen and numerous bad sorts along the way and all are very well spoken, to the point that none of them have a voice and are just ... there. And, of course everyone refers to the police in the same way as the police refer to themselves - I cannot imagine anyone referring to a policeman as "DI something" or ""your DCI said this". It just totally jars and again comes across as the author simply inserting their voice into the mouths of characters that they could not be bothered to properly consider.
This brings me on to the dialogue gripe. I have always struggled to accept the formality in the way fictional detectives speak to members of the public. I get that interviews etc have to be carried out in a certain way, but at one point DCI Turner is speaking to a 17 year old boy about the death of his mother and she says "I cannot leave someone who might be a danger to themselves without establishing first-hand contact". This just struck me as the author inserting a piece of research into dialogue rather than considering how that point would be addressed in a human conversation. Similarly, at one point a DC refers to one of the victims as "she" and Callanach snapped at her "We use victims' names not pronouns", which just struck me as an odd thing to say, and at several times throughout the book he himself refers to victims with pronouns.
And finally, while there was never a great deal of swearing in the first two books, it was believable swearing. Here we have the occasional use of "frigging" instead of the other "f" word, which I cannot think I have ever heard a Scottish person say, unless singing along to the Sex Pistols sea shanty.
Overall, I give this book 4 stars for the plot, 3 stars for the writing, then averaged out and rounded down for the annoying little things.
A definite step down from the second book, and a more slapdash feel to it.
As with the previous two books, we join the story at the start of two independent investigations, which inevitably expand and take up the whole team's efforts (it's almost as if there was no crime in the city before these came along as no other cases seem to be mentioned or worked on!). We have the apparent death by misadventure of a young girl on the hills around Arthur's Seat, and the apparent suicide of former DCI Begbie.
Both cases are interesting and very different, the former being a more typical murder investigation, the latter being more focused on police corruption and the Glasgow gangland (I do enjoy the fact that any nasty gangsters in these Edinburgh-based stories have to be based in Glasgow, almost like they are sponsored by the Edinburgh tourist board, or someone with an anti-East Coast agenda).
While the murder investigation is decent, a number of clangers really spoiled it for me. We have a young man who appears to be poisoning people after having ingratiated themselves into their lives and the lives of their loved ones under different false names. However, as is so often the case in these stories, the killer is made too clever to be caught (at least too clever to be caught in under 300 pages!), and so the slightest mistake or piece of luck is what the investigation hinges on. Here it transpires that, while the killer has used false names in every interaction, in one of them he seems to have for some reason used the name of someone who leads the police directly to his backstory and hence uncovering his real identity. This piece of Batman vs Superman ("Your Mom was called Martha?!") level plot pivot was just so jarring and so out of character for this supposedly clever murderer. And yet without it there was pretty much no way of the murderer being found. For a secret poisoner to then start waving a gun around was also a bit hard to accept.
And also, all characters seem to be very well spoken. We have a young man who grew up in care homes from the age of 5, a Glasgow gangster and his henchmen and numerous bad sorts along the way and all are very well spoken, to the point that none of them have a voice and are just ... there. And, of course everyone refers to the police in the same way as the police refer to themselves - I cannot imagine anyone referring to a policeman as "DI something" or ""your DCI said this". It just totally jars and again comes across as the author simply inserting their voice into the mouths of characters that they could not be bothered to properly consider.
This brings me on to the dialogue gripe. I have always struggled to accept the formality in the way fictional detectives speak to members of the public. I get that interviews etc have to be carried out in a certain way, but at one point DCI Turner is speaking to a 17 year old boy about the death of his mother and she says "I cannot leave someone who might be a danger to themselves without establishing first-hand contact". This just struck me as the author inserting a piece of research into dialogue rather than considering how that point would be addressed in a human conversation. Similarly, at one point a DC refers to one of the victims as "she" and Callanach snapped at her "We use victims' names not pronouns", which just struck me as an odd thing to say, and at several times throughout the book he himself refers to victims with pronouns.
And finally, while there was never a great deal of swearing in the first two books, it was believable swearing. Here we have the occasional use of "frigging" instead of the other "f" word, which I cannot think I have ever heard a Scottish person say, unless singing along to the Sex Pistols sea shanty.
Overall, I give this book 4 stars for the plot, 3 stars for the writing, then averaged out and rounded down for the annoying little things.
A definite step down from the second book, and a more slapdash feel to it.
Sophia (Bookwyrming Thoughts) (530 KP) rated Fury of the Phoenix (Kingdom of Xia, #2) in Books
Jan 23, 2020
Original Review posted on <a title="'Fury of the Phoenix by Cindy Pon'" href="http://bookwyrming-thoughts.blogspot.com/2013/05/review-fury-of-the-phoenix-by-cindy-pon.html">Bookwyrming Thoughts</a>
Note: Formatting is lost due to copy and paste.
*Warning: May contain minor spoilers from the previous novel*
Remember the evil sorcerer by the name of Zhong Ye from the previous novel, Silver Phoenix? In Fury of the Phoenix, the sequel to Silver Phoenix, it's been a few months after Zhong Ye's death and Ai Ling receives warning from a dream that Chen Yong is in danger. Knowing that, Ai Ling finds a way to try and find him.
During Ai Ling's journey, we go through a few flashbacks throughout the book entering Zhong Ye's life when he's just a worker in the Emperor's Palace (I'm not talking about the buffet) trying to climb up in rank to how he came to be in Silver Phoenix. Ai Ling and Chen Yong have also changed a lot and matured a bit (maybe a lot?) since the previous novel.
I'm not exactly sure what to make of the second (and I think final?) component to the Kingdom of Xia series. I personally picked up the series because it was based on Ancient China (just in general terms there are fictional stuff as well) and thought it would be really interesting to read. But staying away from the series actually, I never even knew a sequel existed until I joined Goodreads and then coming back to it has made me realize that I'm missing out in the world that Cindy Pon creates in Silver Phoenix and Fury of the Phoenix. In fact, I even miss the dumplings and buns. And that's coming from someone who has those often... :p I also want to visit China one day, though I certainly don't want to meet some of the unpleasant creatures both Ai Ling, Chen Yong and Zhong Ye encounter in the book.
Note: Formatting is lost due to copy and paste.
*Warning: May contain minor spoilers from the previous novel*
Remember the evil sorcerer by the name of Zhong Ye from the previous novel, Silver Phoenix? In Fury of the Phoenix, the sequel to Silver Phoenix, it's been a few months after Zhong Ye's death and Ai Ling receives warning from a dream that Chen Yong is in danger. Knowing that, Ai Ling finds a way to try and find him.
During Ai Ling's journey, we go through a few flashbacks throughout the book entering Zhong Ye's life when he's just a worker in the Emperor's Palace (I'm not talking about the buffet) trying to climb up in rank to how he came to be in Silver Phoenix. Ai Ling and Chen Yong have also changed a lot and matured a bit (maybe a lot?) since the previous novel.
I'm not exactly sure what to make of the second (and I think final?) component to the Kingdom of Xia series. I personally picked up the series because it was based on Ancient China (just in general terms there are fictional stuff as well) and thought it would be really interesting to read. But staying away from the series actually, I never even knew a sequel existed until I joined Goodreads and then coming back to it has made me realize that I'm missing out in the world that Cindy Pon creates in Silver Phoenix and Fury of the Phoenix. In fact, I even miss the dumplings and buns. And that's coming from someone who has those often... :p I also want to visit China one day, though I certainly don't want to meet some of the unpleasant creatures both Ai Ling, Chen Yong and Zhong Ye encounter in the book.