Review: Time to Smell the Roses (The Hermux Tantamoq Adventures #4)

5 stars. *sniffle* Man, I'm really going to miss these characters. Hermux, thanks for the adventures, the laughs, the memories and the snacks. (These books ALWAYS make me hungry - the food is cheesy and quaint and so delicious-sounding!) This one wraps up nicely, just like the first three, with a satisfying crack that reminds me of reading Nancy Drew and Sammy Keyes as a kid. 

Hermux, Terfle and Linka are at last ready to start their new lives together when a Mystery Appears! This one involves a murder, perfume, competitive business rivals, and a few deep family secrets. It's scandalous, twisted, tangled, and of course Tucka's right in the middle of it all. Expect a lot of clever rose puns, bee stings and new friends :)

I do enjoy that each of these books features a "theme" - art, history, the theater - although this was probably my least favorite. But I loved the story. There are breathtaking action sequences along with some really heartwarming moments. I'm so bummed the books haven't continued - I would've loved to hear what sort of doughnuts were served at the Tantamoq/Perflinger wedding. 

This is a random detail, but I really enjoy - beyond just her nature and narrative presence - how everyone else treats Hermux's pet. It's a sign that a character is "good" when he or she treats Terfle with respect, and a sign that a character is "bad," or villainous, when Terfle is ignored. There are many lessons embedded in these pages, and this to me is one of the most charming and important.

Sigh. I just love these cozy, nostalgic, amusing mysteries. 

Time to Smell the Roses on: Amazon | Bookshop.org | Goodreads

Review: No Time Like Show Time (The Hermux Tantamoq Adventures #3)

5 stars. Precious in the best way. I know that the Hermux Tantamoq Adventures were popular upon publication, I have no idea why they didn't stay popular beyond that. To me they are up there with Roald Dahl, Eva Ibbotson, the Redwall books... they're wonderfully clever and entertaining.

This, the third book in the series, takes Hermux and his charming pet Terfle to the theater. We meet old favorites, like Linka, new heroes, like Hermux's hilarious best friend Nip, and vicious villains with multiple identities and evil plans! It's all very charming - a solid mystery, characters you can root for, and even a little bit of romance...

I've been reading a lot lately about mythic folklore and children's literature, and talking animals, shockingly, comes up quite a lot. Beyond the analytical and psychological reasons, for me personally it's just very comforting to take a break from humans. The lessons in these books are just as clear without us. 

And lessons there are many - good ones, too! Michael Hoeye always injects classic good vs evil themes and his hero shows true bravery, honor, loyalty and courage. Hermux always does the right thing, and he is rewarded for it. And of course there's Tucka, who is literally the most Extra before Extra was a thing. Love her. 

I had the fourth book marked as read, but I don't actually think that's true - I have no memory of reading it and had to buy it used recently. I look forward to finishing (mourning) the series and - recognizing it's one of the least-known in children's literature right now? - my reviews will go totally unnoticed. But that's okay. That's not the point.

Team Pinchester for life. 

No Time Like Show Time on: Amazon | Bookshop.org | Goodreads

Review: Monster, She Wrote

“There seems to be an unspoken assumption that women aren't interested in horror and speculative fiction, despite ample evidence to the contrary.”

5 stars. Perfect for me, no doubt, but also perfectly researched, crafted, written, and printed. An extremely satisfying read that has already made my TBR list explode. I look forward to diving deeper and continuing my education in all things lady horror! The future is female indeed. 

This book collects brief biographies of fundamental, pioneering, and otherwise impactful female writers of horror. Divided by category and listed chronologically, the entries come across like dainty Wikipedia morsels packed with flavor, insight and wit. It's written simply - nothing too analytical or technical - and directly - nothing too obscure or presumptuous. 

Yeah, so I was the kid who read ghost stories in fourth grade, snuck into horror movies in tenth, wrote research papers on the Scream franchise in college. Horror is interesting to me and probably my favorite genre, though I read almost everything I can get my hands on. As soon as I saw this book from Quirk I snagged it, because I know it'd hit the spot.

And it was delicious. I enjoyed learning about the history of the genre from a specifically feminist angle. I was reminded of certain classic, familiar authors and was taught about new ones. I only wish it was longer! And perhaps dove deeper! A must-read for horror enthusiasts (there’s a ton about science fiction and fantasy as well). I highly recommend the print version, which is charmingly illustrated.

One last quote: 

“These genres of fiction are instruments with which women writers can shake up society and prod readers in an uncomfortable direction, to an unfamiliar space where our anxieties and fears run free. But this is also a space where strength emerges. Women experience horrors in everyday life; the eerie and the terrifying become tools for these writers to call attention to the dangers: frayed family relationships, domestic abuse, body image issues, mental health concerns, bigotry, oppression.”

Monster, She Wrote on: Amazon | Bookshop.org | Goodreads

Review: Obisidio (The Illuminae Files #3)

4 stars. Phew, what a wild ride. These books are really great - really impressive. It's clear a ton of effort went into the storytelling and the graphics and worldbuilding, and honestly, it all just comes across as really fucking entertaining. I'll be honest, I was tempted to skim through the climax (you know, just to zoom past all the pesky complications and fake-out deaths) but I stuck with it and it was really worth it. I'm a little sad it's over, for all my bitching and complaining about how challenging it is for me to finish a series.

Obsidio picks up immediately where Gemina left off - with a raggedy band of teen heroes attempting to take down Evil Corp and save lives and get laid. Heimdall has been destroyed, survivors are cramped on the Mao, and the only viable means of jump transportation leads them back to where it all began, Kerenza, where BeiTech is trying to wrap things up and return to the office, so to speak. All the favorites are still in play, including AIDAN, who I definitely do NOT dream about at night because he is definitely NOT my new favorite character of ALL time. 

Look, this shit is just fun - and, as I noted in my review of Illuminae, deep. We have space battles and wormholes and AI and we also have explorations of good vs evil, morality, ethics, war, death, identity, grief, existence, etc. I found the juxtaposition really jarring in the first book (I think that's probably because my expectations were off ... I judged! And was wrong for it!) but learned to love it here. This stuff makes you think. Maybe I learned a lesson, or two. 

If I had any quibbles, it would be that this one didn't need so many subplots. And also the romances annoyed me, but that's because I'm ice cold and also because I was nowhere NEAR as cool or smart or emotionally mature or monogamous as these teenagers. So I found the whole love thing a little ... ridiculous. And unnecessary? 

But honestly, good stuff. I'm officially interested in checking out more from Kaufman and Kristoff, if not a little frightened of what is apparently a very passionate fanbase? Nah, I'm excited. Onward. AIDAN, call me. 

Obsidio on: Amazon | Goodreads

Review: My Favorite Thing is Monsters Vol. 1

5 stars. Absolutely perfect. This revolutionary graphic novel soothed aches in my soul I didn't even know existed. Every word - every image - is a precious treasure. This is a story wrapped in a story with other stories weaved throughout, but there's nothing precocious or overly ambitious. It reaches, it aims, it fires, and it hits the mark.

My Favorite Thing is Monsters (Vol. 1) is 10-year-old Karen Reyes' notebook, filled with her doodles and drawings and a personal narrative of her life in late-60's Chicago. Through her eyes we meet her mother (well-intentioned, strict), her brother (protective, hard-working), and a colorful cast of characters that dance in and out of her experiences. Her neighbor, Anka, has died under mysterious circumstances, and her effort to learn Anka's heartbreaking story becomes crucial in shaping her developing sense of self. Karen's identity is central here, and central to my personal reaction.

I hate when reviewers (and I am super guilty of this, too) end up competing over who appreciated a book more. It spoke to ME because XYZ. Well, it spoke to ME MORE because XYZ. That sort of thing. And I'm afraid that if I dive into why My Favorite Thing is Monsters resonated so strongly - took my breath away - it'll come across as even MORE ridiculously dramatic than the first paragraph in this response. So I'll keep myself out of it and try to keep things dry, if you will.

Narratively, it works. Each component of the story is immersive in its own way and doesn't ask too much of the reader. It avoids tropes and/or anything particularly gratuitous, though there is nudity and many mature themes. It addresses many difficult topics: murder, death, illness, mortality, the Holocaust, racism, discrimination, bullying, sexuality, etc. with grace and ease and also a freshness I haven't encountered before.

Visually, it's stunning. The artwork consists of doodles, portraits, illustrations and spectacular recreations of famous pieces of art. Several pages depict not only incredibly accurate individuals - but incredibly accurate expressions. 

If I had one quibble, it would be the age of the protagonist: she seems WAY too talented/intelligent for a 10-year-old! Nothing against 10-year-olds, but I would've been thrilled to have mastered the fancy S at that age. 

I'd recommend this for: outsiders. People who feel like aliens in their own bodies. Art lovers. Horror lovers. People who have struggled - who are still struggling. Minorities. Young folks. Old folks. People who have suffered tragedy at the hands of others. Victims. Creatives. Those who are constantly slapped in the face with the fact that the world is not what they expected nor what they hoped. Those who have to endure regardless. 

My Favorite Thing is Monsters Vol. 1 on: Amazon | Goodreads

Review: Gemina (The Illuminae Files #2)

4 stars. Can I get some ass slaps and high fives for making my way through a YA series like a champ? Slowly, I know, but still. Illuminae completely confused me - I literally thought it was so dumb and so spectacular at the same time. Can a book be both? Yes, apparently, because I feel the same way about Gemina. 

Oh man. So visually stunning. So twisty and turny. So utterly breathtaking. So fucking impossible to read on a Kindle. So shockingly annoying. Seriously - the romance, oh man. So annoying. It grates. It burns. It maybe even melted my ice cold heart, maybe just a little. But still. How can a work inspire so much appreciation and so much eye rolling simultaneously? Should we ask True Blood?

Also, where were all these cute, emotionally available, commitment-ready boys when I was a teenager? Hmm?

Gemina picks up where Illuminae left off. After attacking Kerenza, Evil Corp sends Bad Guys to the wormhole where the survivors are headed, and once again the fate of the world - ahem - lands in the laps of several obnoxious, love struck teenagers. Yes folks, we’ve got wisecracks. We’ve got underage geniuses. We’ve got romantic melodrama! We’ve even got disgusting drug monsters to replace zombies.

I know I sound critical, which I am, sort of. But somehow all of these “lame” tropes mix together to make some sort of engaging book magic. *shrugs* who knows? Am I feeling generous? Am I feeling desperate due to strange reading times? What’s happening?! 

The sci-fi elements here are truly entertaining, if not totally incomprehensible and therefore not really necessary to enjoy the plot. Bring on the quantum entanglements. And AIDAN, oh AIDAN!! My fave. This book puts out a refreshing take on an old trope: AI that knows its power but not its place.

Anyway, can’t wait to knock out the third and continue FINISHING THINGS TO COMPLETION. Series, I mean. Books. It’s not what you think. I've had three White Claws and I'm about to have three more. 

Gemina on: Amazon | Goodreads

Review: Acceptance (Southern Reach #3)

5 stars. Ack, these are the times I miss being in college, where I was literally trained to read and understand and comprehend better. There’s a deeper meaning knocking its way out of this trilogy but I can’t seem to wrap my head around it. Which is maybe the point? Or at least an acceptable reaction to such a mindfuck of a reading experience? I’m actually dying to dive into it again, maybe via print version. I’m desperate to hear a lecture or two on the narrative themes - and the narrative construction! Wow.

Acceptance picks up where Authority drops off, with the addition of flashbacks from key characters. We are granted answers, for which I’m so grateful (sometimes you can just explain what happened! Seriously!), and we are presented with new questions, which I didn’t mind either. It’s true that the writing sustains a sort of dense tone, requiring intense focus. But it washes over you, or at least it did for me, in a way that was refreshingly immersive and interesting. It’s trippy.

This trilogy is something that, as I mentioned in my review of the first book, has become special to me. I’m quite sure it has and will to others as well. It’s unique but personal and penetrating and mindblowing. I hesitate to call it philosophical, because it’s almost too ... matter-of-fact. But it does connect (like many things these days) with the classic everything-you-think-you-know-is-wrong gut punch. The way this manifests in the character’s varying stories is a little sad and a little joyful at the same time. 

I wouldn't know how to classify this even if I tried: horror? Science fiction? Psychological thriller with an eco twist? But that's okay - it's all of these and more. I'm so bummed it's over and I'm so ready to read about it. I read the last few pages on a very rainy day and that felt appropriate. 

Last note: I was relieved to hear from my beloved biologist again and to witness the end of her story (or maybe ... the beginning?). I mentioned in my review of the first book that I admired her ability to adjust and adapt and ... well, evolve. Turns out that's a fundamental component of these novels and one that I will absolutely take with me. Nature - sciences - physics - space - math - it all shifted in Area X. And therefore we must too. Even if the shifts are unknowable, unmeasurable, unattainable. Even if there's deeper meaning knocking its way out and you can't wrap your head around it. Even if that means we lose.

"Acceptance moves past denial, and maybe there's defiance in that, too."

AHHHHHHH so good. AHHHHHH. 

Acceptance (Southern Reach #3) on: Amazon | Goodreads

Review: Authority (Southern Reach #2)

4 stars. Wow. I loved this. I missed the biologist - I missed her voice - but Authority kept my attention even under these weird reading circumstances. What an aptly-named book, by the way. Area X is fascinating, but I was more fascinated by the way the author played with broad concepts. The authority we seek (or, ahem, control) globally, over the planet, over countries, over the environment, and also the authority we seek on petty levels, over colleagues, over spaces, over emotions we can't truly stifle or escape from.

Authority picks up where we left off in Annihilation with a perspective shift to a new director at Southern Reach. He has replaced the psychologist and must adapt to this role while navigating office politics and attempting to solve the mystery of Area X itself. The members of the twelfth expedition have returned, apparently including the biologist, and this sparks an explosive series of events that completely erode the new director's impression of his job, his role, his purpose, and his identity.

Narratively and tone-wise the writing is more dense here, more complex than in the first book. I adored Annihilation for its simplicity and direction and voice, and Authority is simply not simple or direct or even trustworthy at times. But I was rewarded with a casually catastrophic third act that left me breathless and smiling ... a true gunshot of an ending both surprising and inevitable. For a book so freakish in premise and horrifying in a few seriously disturbing, if not a little cartoonish, ways, there are some skewering truths about humanity embedded in its pages.

I recently read House of Leaves, so of course it stuck out to me that the author played with space here in ways that are interesting. The idea that space - physical space - isn't reliable? Terrifying. He similarly plays with memory, logic, and intention. I'm not sure I enjoyed how the protagonist's character unraveled - a lot of seemingly random quotes from old family members - but I think that's partly too because I just simply loved and admired the biologist so deeply.

I can't recommend Jeff VanderMeer enough. From his concepts to his writing to his ability to create and maintain subtle threads of apprehension and dread - this trilogy is excellent. I look forward to the last one. 

Authority (Southern Reach #2) on: Amazon | Goodreads

Review: Abarat: Absolute Midnight (Abarat #3)

(No Rating.) Okay. I went in prepared. I did my research, I looked at reviews, I knew what to expect. But can we put all that aside for one tiny second and celebrate because I DID IT! I read it, I finished what's available, I completed what I started. Phew, I'm good for something after all (I joke. I'm good for nothing. I'm utterly useless during these weird times and also during normal times.). But I can finally cross a series (incomplete though it is) off my list and say that I'm banging along my 2020 reading challenge. Yay.

For reference - my review of Abarat and of Abarat: Days of Magic, Nights of War. For those too lazy to click - they are glowing, rave reviews of what I considered to be one of the most creative, imaginative, vivid, mindblowing fantasy series of all time. So there's some context for you: these books are super important to me and and actually quite beloved in terms of reading memories from my younger days.

On to the book. I don’t think I can summarize without spoilers bleeding through, but let’s just say: Mater Motley’s evil plan is revealed and executed to devastating results. Candy and her friends attempt to navigate the catastrophe while she sorts through the mess that is her very identity/sense of self. Abarat is, well, changed forever. It's not like he didn't warn us. The first two books are full of warnings and foreshadowing about nightmares to come. 

"There was worse to come, much worse. Whatever the fear-flooded mind might have imagined when it thought of Midnight - the unholy rituals performed there in the name of Chaos and Cruelty, the blank-eyed brutalities that took the sanity or the lives of any innocent who ventured there; the stink out of its gaping graves, and the dead who had climbed from them, raised for mischief's sake, and left to wander where they would - all this was just the first line in a great book of terror that the two powers who had once ruled Gorgossium, Christopher Carrion and his grandmother, Mater Motley, had begun to write."

About a hundred pages in, in the middle of a certain fight/chase scene, I sat back, closed the book and sort of went phew, how did we end up here?! Yup, the gloves came off, the claws came out and Clive Barker really let things run wild. And you know what? I kind of enjoyed it.

Okay, so this book starts with one of the weirdest rug pulls I've ever experienced. I kind of LIKED THAT! 

Okay, so the plot train went careening off the rails and into the Lovecraftian abyss. Almost literally. BRING IT ON! 

Okay, so the feel-good fairy tale turned out to be a lot darker, and weirder. SO WHAT? MOST OF THEM ARE!

Okay, so from a technical perspective the tone was REALLY different and the writing felt like a bad Jackson Pollack painting - borderline nonsensical at times - and the characters were not themselves and there were a lot of wait what moments that felt sloppy and forced (like a certain love story). I still couldn't put it down!

I've decided not to give this book a star rating because I'm pretty sure it doesn't exist in a universe where that would even be relevant. Read this fever dream if you dare. 

Abarat: Absolute Midnight on: Amazon | Goodreads

Review: Abarat: Days of Magic, Nights of War (Abarat #2)

5 stars. Happy/melancholy sigh. I wish I could jump into a glorious ocean and leave Chickentown-I-mean-Earth forever for a magical land full of colorful creatures and vivid wonders and honorable people and layered villains (lol). I wish I could start fresh with a found family of loyal friends and fierce warriors and lovely souls. Luckily, the second book in Clive Baker’s Abarat series, Days of Magic, Nights of War, beautifully offers that opportunity in a truly exciting sequel to the first.

Candy Quackenbush is busy exploring her new home with her best friend Malingo when it becomes horribly apparent she’s being hunted. Christopher Carrion, the Lord of Midnight, has plans for her - mysterious, dangerous plans. When she daringly escapes from his clutches by using magic, her new friends (and her enemies) begin to wonder if they’ve seen this girl before - and if she has a deeper purpose in coming to their land.

While the plot here is again a vehicle for the worldbuilding (which I didn’t mind in the first book and I don’t mind here), this book to me is BIGGER and WIDER and WILDER and DEEPER. It’s truly exciting and full of sequences that left me breathless. Abarat is so FULL and I couldn’t get enough. The stories, the myths, the dreams, the monsters, the beautiful illustrations merge into what is a truly captivating reading Experience-uppercase-E.

Also like in the first book, Barker circles some fascinating Big Themes, like morality and character and victimhood and intent and loyalty and abuse and cycles of abuse and most painfully/beautifully, love. I’m not normally one for love (or sentimentality of any kind lol), but I love his messages here. Love is love is love is love and it’s worth fighting for. Hate is hate is hate is hate and it can be super complicated, actually.

And there’s fun stuff too, like carnivals! And a battle! With ships! And dragons!

I wish these books had gained the notoriety/audience/longevity of other fantasy series from the 2000’s, as I truly believe they’d speak to readers of all ages, types and sizes. I guess they’ll just be iconic in my own mind, like my reviews ;) Anyway, onto the third - which I’ve never finished - and then I’ll cry big fat tears because the goddess Izabella will never take me away...

Abarat: Days of Magic, Nights of War on: Amazon | Goodreads