I like Charlaine Harris's writing. I like her world-building.
I really, really dislike her ingenues. They are weak and dependent.
By the end of the Southern Vampire series, Sookie has grown into a stronger and more self-reliant person, so I'm hoping for a similar transition, here--maybe a faster one, though.
(Spoiler: not so much.)
While the individual mysteries of the first three books are handled pretty well, the central mystery that ties the series together isn't as strong. All of the foreshadowing of that conclusion happens in book 4, and the event that has led to the central crime (the disappearance of the heroine's sister) is immediately obvious as soon as it's revealed. The twist ("it isn't who you suspect; it's this other person") is also unsatisfying, and an unnecessary coincidence is left unexplained.
Book 4 is enough of a let down that I'm tempted to dock the whole series …
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Your bird friend Coral, a library web developer and systems administrator, working remotely. Runs (despite their best efforts) on caffeine and rage.
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coral rated Grave surprise: 3 stars
coral reviewed Grave Sight by Charlaine Harris
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3 stars
I like Charlaine Harris's writing. I like her world-building.
I really, really dislike her ingenues. They are weak and dependent.
By the end of the Southern Vampire series, Sookie has grown into a stronger and more self-reliant person, so I'm hoping for a similar transition, here--maybe a faster one, though.
(Spoiler: not so much.)
While the individual mysteries of the first three books are handled pretty well, the central mystery that ties the series together isn't as strong. All of the foreshadowing of that conclusion happens in book 4, and the event that has led to the central crime (the disappearance of the heroine's sister) is immediately obvious as soon as it's revealed. The twist ("it isn't who you suspect; it's this other person") is also unsatisfying, and an unnecessary coincidence is left unexplained.
Book 4 is enough of a let down that I'm tempted to dock the whole series a star. Don't pick this one up; it is not Charlaine Harris's best work.
coral reviewed Please Do Not Taunt the Octopus by Mira Grant
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5 stars
This made the one about the zombie outbreak in an elementary school worthwhile. And that's saying something.
Plus, headcanon moment? I believe Dr. Shannon Abbey is the character Mira Grant has the most sympathy for, in the whole series--the character who is most like her creator.
coral reviewed San Diego 2014 by Seanan McGuire
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4 stars
Me, imitating Mira Grant: "I know, I will write something super horrifying and utterly heartbreaking. That'll be fun for everyone."
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4 stars
I like Seanan McGuire's/Mira Grant's Australia.
coral reviewed Day the Dead Came to Show and Tell by Seanan McGuire
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4 stars
Well, that was horrifying.
Still four stars, because it was well-written and because the tie-in to the novels made it kind of even more horrifying. (And because I knew what I was getting into when I picked it up. Nothing about "zombie outbreak in an elementary school" sounds like light reading.)
coral reviewed Chaos Choreography by Seanan McGuire
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4 stars
Although I genuinely like Alexander Price (lizard scientist with a foul mouth, what's not to love?), it was nice to get back to narration by Verity, in this installment of the series.
coral reviewed Blackout by Seanan McGuire
In 2041, Georgia Mason, held hostage by a team of CDC researchers, must find her …
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5 stars
Out of the park!
My only quibble/complaint about this book--about this series--came right at the end, and I can overlook it, in light of such an otherwise brilliant and engaging series.
(Though, was the big reveal earlier in the book really supposed to be a reveal? Were we not supposed to have guessed that sooner?)
coral reviewed Deadline by Seanan McGuire
Deadline, published by Orbit Books in 2011, is the second book in the Newsflesh Trilogy, …
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5 stars
I wasn't entirely sure about continuing to book two after the end of book one. (Mostly, I was afraid Mira Grant would hurt me more, and I wasn't entirely wrong on that front.)
I'm glad I kept reading.
coral reviewed Feed by Seanan McGuire (Newflesh Trilogy #1)
"The year was 2014. We had cured cancer. We had beaten the common cold. But …
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5 stars
Oof, this one's a punch to the gut.
It's my first Mira Grant, after a lot of Seanan McGuire. The one unfortunate thing about my timing is that I had just read Pocket Apocalypse; and lycanthropy-w has some things in common with Kellis-Amberlee, which makes keeping the plot lines separate just a bit harder than necessary.
(McGuire/Grant is a serious biology nerd. A serious nerd in several arenas, actually. I remain in awe. My favorite author, by any name.)
The audiobook is really brilliantly performed, as well--definitely a great way to read this series.
coral rated Pocket apocalypse: 4 stars
coral reviewed Half-off ragnarok by Seanan McGuire
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4 stars
At first, I was SO MAD that this series switched protagonists--and to a guy, at that. Then I learned that he is a foul-mouthed lizard expert, and, well, it's fine now.
coral rated Midnight Blue-Light Special: 4 stars
coral reviewed Discount Armageddon by Seanan McGuire
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4 stars
It took me a long time to get around to starting this series, because I hated the clip Audible used for their preview of it (didn't like the narrator's voice, much, or the tone of the scene). I finally realized my library had the Kindle version and downloaded books one and two.
It's pretty great, and that clip was not representative of the whole. A fun read, a cool world, an interesting cast of characters, a lot of action.
By the end of book 2, I'm starting to worry that October Daye might no longer be my favorite series.