Tag Archives: books

The Sign of the Four by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Posted by melydia on March 12, 2013 1 comments

The Sign of the Four by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (unabridged audiobook read by David Timson; 4.5 hrs on 4 discs): This second novel of Holmes’s adventures is a tale of stolen treasure, betrayal, and of course murder. Holmes is his usual self, driving the police absolutely mad with just how right he is all the time. One of the things that most captivates me about Sherlock Holmes’s detective work is that it all takes place before the advent of fingerprinting. There are so many inferences he would never need to make today if he could show who touched what. Anyway, back to the story. The plot was pleasantly complex. Watson’s romance was adorable. My favorite part, though, was when the pair found themselves on the wrong trail and suddenly burst into laughter. While I certainly enjoy witnessing Holmes’s amazing (and often unlikely) feats of deduction and inference, its his friendship with Watson that truly makes the stories come alive.

Hoot by Carl Hiaasen

Posted by melydia on March 8, 2013 None comments

Hoot by Carl Hiaasen (unabridged audiobook read by Chad Lowe; 6.5 hrs on discs): Roy has just moved to Florida, where he is endlessly bullied by the local thug, Dana. One day he sees some kid running barefooted outside during school hours and it sparks his interest. Young adult literature has a number of archetypes associated with it, and two of them are presented here: the “ordinary main character meets weird new kid and has life transformed” story and the “ordinary main character fights corporate baddies for important cause” story. And there’s a kid who makes fart noises. It’s a cute tale, funny in parts and heartwarming in others, but extraordinarily predictable overall. Still, this is definitely the sort of story I’d encourage kids to read. I may have heard the lessons about being different or standing up for what you believe in many times before, but that doesn’t make them less valid. And who doesn’t love owls?

Also posted on BookCrossing.

The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran

Posted by melydia on March 5, 2013 None comments

The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran (unabridged audiobook read by Paul Sparer; 1.5 hrs on 2 discs): This is an interesting piece of philosophy, well worth a couple rereads. Basically this prophet comes to town, and the people of the town ask him all kinds of questions, and he answers them. There’s some good advice about infusing your every action with love and stuff like that, and some confusing advice that may be encouraging nudity and/or anarchy. Like I said, it’s worth multiple reads. And it’s short enough that rereading is no burden. A good choice if you’re in the mood to ponder the Big Issues.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

Goliath by Scott Westerfeld

Posted by melydia on March 1, 2013 None comments

Goliath by Scott Westerfeld (unabridged audiobook read by Alan Cumming; 10.5 hrs on 9 discs): This final installment of the Leviathan trilogy had me on the edge of my seat pretty much the entire time. If Deryn’s secret wasn’t on the verge of being discovered then Alek was in danger or the engines were smoking or some other calamity. This part of our story takes us from Siberia to Japan to the USA, introducing a number of memorable new characters and visiting old friends along the way. And Bovril the perspicacious loris was endlessly adorable. There were far more historical figures this time around, making Westerfeld’s “what actually happened” epilogue even more interesting. You know, I don’t really care for steampunk or alternate histories or books about war – fictional or otherwise – but I really, really loved this trilogy. I loved the characters, how you’re never quite sure who knows what or whom to trust. I loved the technology, the mix of science and fantasy involved in these genetically engineered critters. I loved the story, the adventures, the romance, the suspense. And the ending was quite satisfying, which is saying a lot considering how many loose ends were flapping about prior to it. Highly recommended.

A note on the audio: Cumming is a master of a wide variety of accents – American, German, Scottish, and numerous forms of English – but Russian, alas, is not one of them. It was a little painful listening to his Russian characters. But that’s a pretty small complaint, considering he remained simply fantastic for the rest of the book. It’s also worth noticing that since I was listening to this in my car, I did attempt to make up excuses to drive places.

The Ghosts of Nagasaki by Daniel Clausen

Posted by melydia on February 26, 2013 1 comments

The Ghosts of Nagasaki by Daniel Clausen: Bottom line up front: I have absolutely no idea what this book is about. The American narrator currently works in Tokyo as some kind of business analyst, having originally moved to the country as an English teacher in Nagasaki. The story regularly shifts between present day, where the narrator is writing his memoirs, and the memoirs themselves, but everything is written in present tense, making it tough to tell what happens when. There’s a chatty Welshman, some ghosts who may or may not actually be real people, a few cats, some persecuted Christians, a missing heart, and a whole lot of introspection. This isn’t a bad book, but it is a very difficult one to follow. I imagine there’s quite a bit of symbolism I missed. In short, this book is extremely literary, the sort I would imagine being dissected by college students in essays. If that’s your cup of tea, you’ll enjoy this one, but if you’re just looking for a straightforward piece of storytelling, you might want to give this one a miss.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

The Burning Time by J.G. Faherty

Posted by melydia on February 22, 2013 None comments

The Burning Time by J.G. Faherty: If you like cheesy horror movies, this is the novel for you. Two strangers arrive in a small town more or less at the same time, and between them they turn it completely upside down. One worships Lovecraftian gods like Cthulu, while the other has spent his life fighting against them. As the Bad Guy’s influence grows, the temperature rises and the townspeople get violent all over the place. If you like senseless gore – sometimes humorous, sometimes just disturbing – well, this book certainly has plenty of it. The plot itself doesn’t go anywhere new, and the love interest bit feels completely forced, but all in all it’s a decent little horror tale.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner

Posted by melydia on February 19, 2013 None comments

The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner (unabridged audiobook read by Jeff Woodman; 7.25 hrs on 7 discs): Gen is a thief thrown in jail for stealing the King’s seal – and then bragging about it in a wine shop. His reputation precedes him, and the Magus (the king’s closest advisor) takes him out of prison and on a long journey to find an important relic long thought to be mere legend. Along the way we learn quite a lot about the Greek-like mythology of the land. It was, to be perfectly honest, kind of boring. Gen’s ceaseless complaining got old fast, the myths were okay but not especially interesting, and the journey lasted for most of the book without much actually happening. I was also unimpressed by the Surprise Ending. I understand this book won awards and is the beginning of a trilogy, but this book felt too aimless to inspire me to read more.

Random aside: I totally pictured the Magus as Jafar. I don’t know why.

A note on the audio: Woodman was good. I previously heard him read An Abundance of Katherines, so I tended to think of Gen as younger than he was supposed to be. I’m not entirely clear on how old he was meant to be, but I do know I was caught a little off guard at the mention of marriage.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

Behemoth by Scott Westerfeld

Posted by melydia on February 15, 2013 None comments

Behemoth by Scott Westerfeld (unabridged audiobook read by Alan Cumming; 9.5 hrs on 8 discs): Deryn and Alek are in Istanbul, where they meet anarchists (who aren’t really), a perspicacious loris, and a nosy American reporter. I laughed aloud when Deryn and Alek were discussing Lilit, and there were several times when all I could think was, “How are they going to get out of this one, then?” I am thoroughly enjoying this series, which is interesting since I don’t generally consider myself to be a steampunk fan. I guess it helps that this is more alternate history and science fiction than a mere obsession with gear-and-goggle-based fashion. I can’t wait to see how the story ends.

A note on the audio: Cumming continues to dazzle. I’m almost certain that some American dude showed up, shoved Cumming out of the way just to say the American character’s lines, and then left. To my American ears, it was perhaps the best accent I’ve ever heard by a British narrator.

The Fantasy Worlds of Peter S. Beagle

Posted by melydia on February 12, 2013 None comments

The Fantasy Worlds of Peter S. Beagle: This volume contains two novels, a novella, and a short story, so I’ll review them each separately.

Lila the Werewolf: A strange and somewhat sad tale of a young woman who occasionally turns into a wolf, much to the dismay of her boyfriend. A good example of “just because it’s fantasy doesn’t mean it’s for children”. It’s written well, just a little disturbing to read.

The Last Unicorn: This is a marvelous book. I’ve read it before, and did not reread it this time around, but it remains one of my favorites.

A Fine and Private Place: A tale of two ghosts, a raven, and a man who lives in a cemetery. It’s decidedly bittersweet, with a little humor here and a little tragedy there. It was very introspective and atmospheric – a “quiet” book, if you will. I liked the snarky raven – and I thought it odd how, in a cemetery where people think talking to ghosts is a little weird, no one ever mentions how unusual it is for a raven to speak. I wish there had been just a little bit more about Laura and Michael, especially there at the end, but all in all it was good.

Come Lady Death: An old woman decides to invite Death to her next party – and Death does indeed attend. The ending left me a little cold, but otherwise it was a decent story.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

The Devil and His Boy by Anthony Horowitz

Posted by melydia on February 8, 2013 None comments

Devil and His Boy by Anthony Horowitz: I really wanted this to be fantasy. Devil in the title, wizard in the first chapter – I wasn’t crazy for expecting fantasy, was I? But it’s really not. It’s the story of Tom, a boy in the 16th century who finds himself plucked from his crappy country existence into a only slightly less crappy life on the streets of London, where he befriends Moll Cutpurse and aspires to become an actor. The whole plot was pretty predictable and the writing only so-so. Maybe I would have enjoyed this more were I still part of the intended age group, but I suspect I’d have been searching vainly for fantasy even then.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

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