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juushikaTitle: Pennance
Author: Clare Ashton
Published: Smashwords, 2012
Rating: 2 of 5
Page Count: 250
Total Page Count: 294,215
Text Number: 967
Read Because: this has been on my TBR since before I started recording how I discovered books, ebook borrowed from the Multnomah County Library
Review: A woman tries to put her life back together after surviving the car crash that killed her boyfriend. I'm lenient with editing/formatting in self-published work, but the punctuation problems here (missing commas; commas when there should be semicolons or full stops) are so distracting that I almost stopped reading.
This a thriller set in an atmospheric small town, paired with a slow-burn romance that accompanies gradual trauma recovery; a pairing that is distinctive but not always harmonious. Characters are wildly emotive, and while the visceral descriptions are evocative it both strains credulity and highlights the clashing tone. The central romance is what kept me going, and its quiet, compelling dynamic justifies the book. The ending does not. I'm on board with a young antagonist, but writing out the deuteragonist's daughter for the sake of a happy ending is, at its most generous, a cop-out. Mildly not recommended.
Title: Greenglass House (Greenglass House Book 1)
Author: Kate Milford
Narrator: Chris Henry Coffey
Published: Recorded Books, 2015 (2014)
Rating: 4 of 5
Page Count: 365
Total Page Count: 294,970
Text Number: 970
Read Because: reviewed by Kalanadi, audiobook borrowed from the Multnomah County Library
Review: A boy finds his Christmas vacation interrupted by the arrival of a group of unseasonable guests at his family's inn. This may be too tightly plotted, which, if a complaint, is also an indication of the book's strengths. It's something of a kitchen sink novel, a heaped handful of diverse components that build a mystery with a cozy, adventuresome vibe. Milford does a commendable job making the cast of characters distinct, and the threads tie together neatly, but cleverly enough (and with enough pathos) that it doesn't feel too easy. It's incredibly charming, and I'm glad I got to read it in winter. I'm intrigued by the other novels set in this shared universe, especially as the author indicates most of them are darker—I'd love to see how she handles that tone.
(The Recorded Books narration isn't outright bad but does leave something to be desired—the narrator's voice and how he reads female characters doesn't jive with the cozy tone.)
Title: The Devil in America
Author: Kai Ashante Wilson
Published: Tor, 2014
Rating: 4 of 5
Page Count: 45
Total Page Count: 295,490
Text Number: 974
Read Because: fan of the author, ebook borrowed from the Multnomah County Library but also available for free online
Review: I love Wilson's writing as much here as I do in his novellas—I'm not convinced that the metatextual aspects of the narrative work, but the general thrust, the density of the voice and the fluid, powerful interplay between fantastical elements and lucid but challenging metaphor, is fantastic. A grueling read, kept accessible by its length.
Title: Super Bass
Author: Kai Ashante Wilson
Published: Tor, 2013
Rating: 3 of 5
Page Count: 30
Total Page Count: 295,660
Text Number: 976
Read Because: fan of the author, ebook borrowed from the Multnomah County Library but also available for free online
Review: This feels more like Wilson's novellas than does "The Devil in America"—it has a vibrant use of language, a vivid world, and forefronts a romantic relationship. It's dense, complicated, but also fun, and I enjoy it. But the narrative is simple which, combined with the length, doesn't allow these aspects to shine.
Author: Clare Ashton
Published: Smashwords, 2012
Rating: 2 of 5
Page Count: 250
Total Page Count: 294,215
Text Number: 967
Read Because: this has been on my TBR since before I started recording how I discovered books, ebook borrowed from the Multnomah County Library
Review: A woman tries to put her life back together after surviving the car crash that killed her boyfriend. I'm lenient with editing/formatting in self-published work, but the punctuation problems here (missing commas; commas when there should be semicolons or full stops) are so distracting that I almost stopped reading.
This a thriller set in an atmospheric small town, paired with a slow-burn romance that accompanies gradual trauma recovery; a pairing that is distinctive but not always harmonious. Characters are wildly emotive, and while the visceral descriptions are evocative it both strains credulity and highlights the clashing tone. The central romance is what kept me going, and its quiet, compelling dynamic justifies the book. The ending does not. I'm on board with a young antagonist, but writing out the deuteragonist's daughter for the sake of a happy ending is, at its most generous, a cop-out. Mildly not recommended.
Title: Greenglass House (Greenglass House Book 1)
Author: Kate Milford
Narrator: Chris Henry Coffey
Published: Recorded Books, 2015 (2014)
Rating: 4 of 5
Page Count: 365
Total Page Count: 294,970
Text Number: 970
Read Because: reviewed by Kalanadi, audiobook borrowed from the Multnomah County Library
Review: A boy finds his Christmas vacation interrupted by the arrival of a group of unseasonable guests at his family's inn. This may be too tightly plotted, which, if a complaint, is also an indication of the book's strengths. It's something of a kitchen sink novel, a heaped handful of diverse components that build a mystery with a cozy, adventuresome vibe. Milford does a commendable job making the cast of characters distinct, and the threads tie together neatly, but cleverly enough (and with enough pathos) that it doesn't feel too easy. It's incredibly charming, and I'm glad I got to read it in winter. I'm intrigued by the other novels set in this shared universe, especially as the author indicates most of them are darker—I'd love to see how she handles that tone.
(The Recorded Books narration isn't outright bad but does leave something to be desired—the narrator's voice and how he reads female characters doesn't jive with the cozy tone.)
Title: The Devil in America
Author: Kai Ashante Wilson
Published: Tor, 2014
Rating: 4 of 5
Page Count: 45
Total Page Count: 295,490
Text Number: 974
Read Because: fan of the author, ebook borrowed from the Multnomah County Library but also available for free online
Review: I love Wilson's writing as much here as I do in his novellas—I'm not convinced that the metatextual aspects of the narrative work, but the general thrust, the density of the voice and the fluid, powerful interplay between fantastical elements and lucid but challenging metaphor, is fantastic. A grueling read, kept accessible by its length.
Title: Super Bass
Author: Kai Ashante Wilson
Published: Tor, 2013
Rating: 3 of 5
Page Count: 30
Total Page Count: 295,660
Text Number: 976
Read Because: fan of the author, ebook borrowed from the Multnomah County Library but also available for free online
Review: This feels more like Wilson's novellas than does "The Devil in America"—it has a vibrant use of language, a vivid world, and forefronts a romantic relationship. It's dense, complicated, but also fun, and I enjoy it. But the narrative is simple which, combined with the length, doesn't allow these aspects to shine.
