This was not quite what I was expecting. I think I was expecting something more along the lines of Naomi Novik’s Uprooted, because people have compared them endlessly, but aside from taking inspiration from Russian folklore, the two books don’t have very much in common. Uprooted is a fairytale, albeit one that is lengthened and deepened. The Bear and the Nightingale is a historical fantasy that is historical fiction first, fantasy second. This book takes place in medieval Russia, then called Rus’. The daughter of […]
Go for the throat.
I was in just exactly the right mood for this. And this was just exactly the right balance of satire, genuine laugh out loud humor, and sneaky pathos that I prefer in my Discworld books. But, hey, is this really the last of the Witches books? Are they in the Tiffany Aching ones? I’m gonna miss these ladies. (Even Magrat. And hey, she’s not too bad now that she’s a mother. Much more forceful, and less of a limp dishrag.) Firstly, this is a clever […]
Generic, derivative YA fantasy in disguise.
Two things: 1. I wanted to like this. 2. I did not like this. I will elaborate. (NB: I waited a couple of weeks to actually sit down and write this review, because I was so aggravated while reading I was afraid my review would come out more scathing than the book deserved. I’m glad I waited. Rant reviews are fun on occasion, but I prefer to be more level-headed for the most part.) I wanted to like this because: There are not enough diverse […]
It’s not enough to be a teenager, but an alien, too?
Kara is in the thick of adolescent growing pangs, unsure of her place in the world, like any first world teenager. She’s surrounded by people she loves and who love her in return, but she struggles to connect in a meaningful way. You know… because she can lift tractors with a single hand and fly and stuff. So when her powers start going a little haywire, there’s nowhere to turn for support. Is it some sort of super-puberty? Or is something else going on? Tamaki’s […]