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Meet the author Monday: Stacia Kane August 2, 2010

Posted by kmcalear in Author Interview, Urban Fantasy.
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Repost October 2008
Iiiiit’s Friday!  And there was much rejoicing!  Not only because it marks the end of the week for most of us worker bees, but we’re a week closer to Halloween and we have another lovely author interview to share!

<<Snipped for out of date>>

Housekeeping done, I wish my RL housekeeping was as easy, let’s get down to the interviewing.  Today’s delightful diva is Stacia Kane, author of Personal Demons, yes the one we featured on Wednesday, and The Demon Inside (2009).  Oh, and Unholy Ghosts is coming in 2009 too!

Let’s dig right in.

Vital Stats
Lives:  England!  Woohoo.
Webpage:  Stacia Kane
BooksPersonal Demons, The Demon Inside (2009), Unholy Ghosts (2009).  She has a bunch of others, but we’re only putting UF stuff here today.

From the mouth of the Author:

Do you have a day of the week that is your most creative day?  Or do all the days just gang up and attack you all the time?
Man, those days are such jerks. They follow me around with knives and taunt me, all the time, regardless of what I’m actually doing at any given moment. I hate them.

What is your favorite supernatural critter and why?
Ohhh, I still love vampires. I mean, demons are fun, and I am very, very partial to ghosts, but I still think vampires are sexy and I love them. I’m rather bloodthirsty anyway (um, not in that way. Well, maybe in that way. Muahaha) but the whole immortality thing is just way too appealing.

We all know it’s easy to get distracted when a project is taking its own sweet time to bubble.  What is your Achilles heel when it comes to getting distracted from writing?
I have two of them, actually; one is seven and the other is almost four, and they nag me constantly. Like it wasn’t enough for me to give them life and let them destroy my figure in the process. They actually expect me to feed them and give them juice and pay attention to them when they talk and stuff. Sheesh. Not to mention my husband.

Actually, my big one is baking. My family can always tell when I’m avoiding a project, because suddenly I’m baking layer cakes with fresh whipped cream, or meringue pies, or cookies, or whatever else. And I don’t really eat them, because I’m on a diet (I have lost 32 pounds in the last year and am now the same size I was when I met my husband, which makes me quite happy), but I love to make them, the more complex the better.

With the holidays coming up and October being a good kick off, what is your favorite Halloween activity?
Oooh. I love everything about Halloween! Everything. This year the hubs is taking the girls Trick-or-Treating while I stay home in my sexy zombie costume and hand out candy (it seems to be catching on in our area!). I celebrate Samhain, so I put out some offerings and do tarot readings for myself and some other stuff, so I’m really looking forward to those too. I just love all of it!

I’ve heard of inspirational eating, so when you’re settled in to get things done is there a particular food that you just have to have on hand?
No. I’m not an inspirational eater. I’m an inspirational smoker. I smoke Camel Lights, and I have to have one before I get to work.

What does it take to write a really good villain?  Do you ever find yourself in a mental space that scares you or makes you wonder if that really came out of YOUR head?
No, I’ve always known I’m kind of a sick freak, so…  I remember when the hubs and I were dating and we went to see the film “Apt Pupil”, which was an excellent movie, we thought. (RIP Brad Renfro.) And we were discussing it with the guy who worked at the local video store and I mentioned how I think the thing about movies like that is, everyone has a very, very dark side that is attracted to horrible things; it’s human nature, and it’s easy to be fascinated by serial killers or the holocaust or whatever horrible atrocities. But why I thought the film was so powerful was that it showed how dangerous it can be to really give yourself over to that dark side, and what it can do to you mentally. Which the hubs and I thought made perfect sense, but the guy at Suncoast seemed to think I was saying the Nazis were cool or something, which I totally was NOT (and I don’t think that, not at all, not one bit. Nazis=BAD). And he got all offended and walked away before I could explain, and told all the other employees what a terrible person I was. It was very upsetting, actually. (And incidentally, Malleus, Maleficarum and Spud had run-ins with the Nazis during WWII, and still have extremely strong feelings about the experience.)

A really good villain must be convinced that he or she is in the right. Yes, there is the sociopath-as-villain, or the ones who enjoy hurting people, but in general I like a vilaain who fools him or herself into believing they are doing the moral and good thing. Those villains are so easy to hate, but they’re also easy to understand. And I think it makes them scarier because we understand.

Which of your characters gave you the most trouble and was the hardest to write for?
Hmm. Probably Brian Stone. He’s very complex, but I didn’t really have time to get as deeply into his complexities as I would have liked.

What is your most favorite murdered darling from any of your books?
Oh, gosh. Um…Actually I usually figure out a way to work them in somewhere else if I like them that much. *blush*

What is your worst writing habit, the thing which you keep telling yourself you’re going to change and you do it anyway?
I’m a feedback whore. I shouldn’t be, but I am, and I get very hurt when people don’t read my stuff.

If you were going to interview another UF author, whose brain would you want to pick…or consume, we’re not picky.
Hmm. I guess Neil Gaiman isn’t technically UF, but him. I would say someone like Mark Henry but let’s face it, there’s nothing to pick there.

From the mouth Greyson:

Boxers or briefs? You know I had to ask.
Boxer briefs. If I wear them at all. I don’t always.

Since no one seems to be able to stay out of gore covered trouble how do you get the blood stains out?
Oh, I have servants for that sort of thing. I don’t know what they do; honestly, they probably throw the bloody things out and just buy new ones. F*** it. I’ve got the money.

It seems most UF characters get a wardrobe I’d kill for.  So what is your favorite article of clothing?
I quite like my overcoat. It’s just a nice black wool, but it fits well and looks good with everything. I buy most of my clothes on Savile Row.

What did your author screwed up most about you?
She made me too sappy. I don’t enjoy being exposed like that; it’s like she thinks she deserves to know everything about me and to spread it around. She’s a dirty sneak, that one.

Is there true love on your horizon, or is true love only for those sappy romance books?
Oh, no. That would be telling. You’ll have to wait and see, I guess; I don’t dare tell the author, she’d just blab it everywhere. It’s impossible to have any privacy with her around.

And there you have it!  Thank you Stacia and Greyson!

~J

Book Review: Alcatraz versus the Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson July 7, 2010

Posted by realitybypass in Book Review, Children Books, Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Young Adult.
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Hey folks!  Hope everyone in the stats had a great 4th of July weekend.  For our family it was a time of fireworks, memories and really good food.  Beyond that we also finished the book we’ve been reading together, Alcatraz versus the Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson, so I decided it would be a good review today.

We’ve been reading Alcatraz a chapter at a time for about the last 2-3 months.  My husband is our reader and myself and our two boys, ages 9 and 13, are the erstwhile listeners.  To give credit where it is due I think part of the joy of this reading is listening to my husband who is a very good reader and creator of various voices, but it certainly helps that the story he was reading was a delight in and of itself.  Alcatraz is told from a first person point of view, but it’s from a future version of Alcatraz looking back to tell how his story got started.  The narration is irreverent, humorous and filled with delightful forshadowing of upcoming events in completely unexpected ways.  Sometimes a rutabaga is far more than just a rutabaga.

Alcatraz himself is a character walking the line of deciding what kind of person he is going to be.  He addresses the bad things he does with the same honesty that he acknowledges bravery and love.  He’s a boy who has been raised in the foster system and who has an unnatural ability to break everything he touches.  Come to find out that the ability is a Talent and his whole family has them.  His thirteenth birthday begins with a present in the mail, the arrival of his grandfather, who has the Talent to be late, and a gun toting librarian because…of course…the world is not what we think it is and Alcatraz is thrust into the middle of a war between the Hushlands and the Free Kingdoms all while learning more about himself, his talent and what it means to be a family.

The book was delightful.  Some folks might get annoyed with the interjections by the narrator and moments when he’s purposefully poking fun at writing conventions, but I found them hysterical.  The language of the book is very accessible for middle grade readers and young adults, but there are enough twists to how the language is used that adults can be delighted by a whole other level of what’s going on.

We’re buying book two and three now cause we have to know what happens next to the boy that breaks things and his family.  And we’re still curious about the sacrifice on a stack of outdated encyclopedias!

Alcatraz versus the Evil Librarians

Genre: Modern Fantasy

Age: 8+

Content: Minor violence

Overall: 5/5 paws

Book Review: A Local Habitation – Seanan McGuire June 30, 2010

Posted by realitybypass in Book Review, Urban Fantasy.
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Hallo dear readers and welcome to another episode of Monsterpiece Theater…  Wait, wrong brain.  It’s a Wednesday, it’s hump day and time to talk about another book from the shelves of bookishness.

A while back I wrote about Rosemary and Rue which is the first book in the October Daye series.  Today we’re talking A Local Habitation which is book two.  Like book one this was a book that left me with seriously conflicted emotions.

On one hand I still love the world building going on here and I feel like there are some seriously cool things still to come.  There’s a wealth of backstory and history.  Each book gives me new character types and mythologies.  I love these books.

On the other hand I find that Toby does things that make me want to shake her, especially when she’s supposed to be a PI/mystery heroine and not a horror heroine.  There are some of the secondary characters which all kind of blurred together until I wasn’t sure which one was who without going back and reviewing when they were introduced.  I find I expect UF to have more character driven umph and that may be part of why it strikes me as odd.  I figured out who done it long before Toby had a clue.  I don’t love these books.

So see?  I’m all conflicted and stuff.

In the long run I know I want to read the next one and I’m really tempted by the zombie apocalypse series she’s written as well.  So we’ll keep going and see what happens…

(And I have a need to snuggle Tybalt…just cause he’d squirm.)

A Local Habitation

Genre: Urban Fantasy

Age: 14+

Content:  Violence, death, some minor sexuality – mostly kissies.

Overall 3.5/5 paws

Book Review: Dead Witch Walking January 21, 2010

Posted by kmcalear in Book Review, Book Series, Urban Fantasy.
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Dead Witch Walking by Kim Harrison is my most recent read, and I wish I had picked it up off my bookshelf much sooner than I did. I really enjoyed the novel, particularly because it didn’t repeat one of my Primo Numero Uno complaints about heroines in Urban Fantasy, the Bitch Factor. I don’t understand why the female heroes have to be smart mouthed to be interesting, powerful or face Bad Guys. Sometimes I think they speak up and insult their enemies when being silent, or not provoking them would be far wiser. Rachel Morgan still has ample One Liners, and good retorts, but what I like about her is she’s NOT your typical smart mouth. She’s resourceful and clever, and does make mistakes. It’s a big pro of the book.

Other Pros: The Pixie characters , while starting to show up in a lot of Urban fantasy, are very interesting in Harrison’s series. She gives a very unique definition to the pixie culture and behavior. The plot is fast paced and interesting, ties up enough loose ends while leaving questions open for further books. Oh and there’s a sexy librarian as a love interest, who has just a touch of magical power.

Cons: Rachel really has way too many Freak Out moments over her vampire roommate, which don’t seem to really fit in the development. The vampire, Ivy, is a flat character and could use some more development. In fact many of the sub characters could use a bit of development.

book cover of   Dead Witch Walking    (Rachel Morgan, book 1)  by  Kim Harrison

Genre: Urban Fantasy/Adventure

Age: Teen/Adult

Content: Curses, Assasination attempts, references to prostitution, mild violence

Overall: 4  paws

Book Review – On the Edge – Ilona Andrews January 13, 2010

Posted by realitybypass in Book Review, Book Series, Romance, Urban Fantasy.
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Happy Wednesday, Folks.

Yeah, second week back to work is easier than the first. Well, at least back to the day job, some work never takes a vacation. :)

Today’s review features On the Edge, by the lovely Ilona Andrews. We’ve reviewed some of her Kate Daniels books here before with much love, so feel free to go see what we thought of that. On the Edge is NOT a Kate novel but the first book in a new series which I’d classify as a paranormal romance. I’ve been following Ms Andrews blog for a long time and spent much of the lead up to this book eating up snippets, so I was excited to pick it up.

This leads to a CONTEST announcement!  I actually picked up two copies back in October when it released but I ended up giving one away for a contest and the other to my best friend for her birthday and realized I was bookless.  Now I have two copies again because I bought one for myself for Christmas and so did my husband.  Soo…I’ve a copy that needs a good home.  Contest will be open until Sunday night and one commenter will get my unread copy of On the Edge.

Now, back to review things.  This was a fun read and a quick one.  The flow of the writing is very easy to get into with a good balance of action, humor and romance.  I really enjoyed the family dynamic as it’s so easy to get the hard bitten heroine, and here Rose is a loving sister and granddaughter who is trying to do everything and take care of everyone.  As the oldest of six and mother of two I empathized immediately with much of her situation. Okay, not the magical aspect or being pursued by highly messed up hounds, but ripped shoes and getting kids to school and the toy aisle at WalMart were right up there.

Rose’s love interest, Declan, was amusing to me as well.  There were moments where the high blood arrogance got on my nerves, but those were around the same moments when Rose would verbally poke him or something would happen to show that there was much more to the story than met the eye.  The logistics of why he’s at Rose’s door and what he really wants both in the beginning and at the end had me giggling.  It’s human nature to make assumptions and in this case they both jump to conclusions which get Declan and Rose in trouble with themselves and others.  The younger brothers, George and Jack, were delightful as was Grandma.  I appreciate very much the skill this author has with secondary characters.  I’ve never read an Andrews book where the secondaries weren’t just as round as the primary characters, but were still secondaries.  This also applies to William and his painful story and need to be accepted.  Bayou Moon, the next book in the series, is William’s story and I’m hoping to see him end up in a happier place!

All in all this was delightful and fun.  I guessed a lot of what was going to happen in the plot, but it didn’t matter because the method of getting there was interesting and fun.

“Grab the guns and get in the truck, we’re going to WalMart…” – On the Edge

Genre: Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Romance

Age: 15+

Content:  Some sexual content, mushing of badguys, violence, magic, family, lurve

Overall: 4.5 paws

Jana

Book Review: Soulless – Gail Carriger January 6, 2010

Posted by realitybypass in Book Debut, Book Review, Book Series, Steampunk, Urban Fantasy.
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It’s funny to me to live in Utah where the winters are routinely below zero.  I’ve been listening to people complain that it’s going to drop to zero in their home town or there might be snow and I respond with a typical intermountain west ‘meh.’  Snow and freezing temps are just part and parcel.  For everyone else I suggest extra socks, walk like a duck, and let your pipes drip just a little so they won’t explode.

Moving on to other things.  Today’s book review is focused on Soulless by Gail Carriger.  I picked this one up from the library after reading a lot of very positive reviews.  Then I accidentally dropped it behind my bed and forgot I’d checked it out until the library started sending me ‘return our book’ emails.  Despite acquiring a nearly five dollar fine (I should have just bought the book in the first place since between getting a copy and the fine I’ve nearly paid for it twice) I held onto the book and got it read.  I’m glad I did.

Soulless is a Victorian age Urban Fantasy crossed with some Steampunk.  My library shelved it in Horror, so I suppose there’s some of that in there too.  The Soulless are a type of prenatural as compared to the supernatural creatures who are seen has having an abundance of soul which is why the super powers kick in.  Alexia Tarabotti is a soulless who has the problems of being Italian blooded, big nosed, swarthy, unmanagable and old…like all of 25.  Her mother, step father and step sisters despair of ever getting Alexia properly married off and she seems to have accepted her social demise with at least some measure of grace.  I loved Alexia as our heroine.  Much of the trouble she gets into honestly isn’t her fault, and when it is she knows it and fesses up.  She’s a great balance of a proper lady and someone playing on the fringes of acceptable society and the combination was charming.  This charming aspect is reflected in the language of the book and the way she reflects on things such as a badly tied cravat on a vampire trying to eat her.

In this London the supernatural have come out of the closet, so to speak, and are an accepted part of society.  They have ruling classes within their own groups and both the werewolves and the vampires have specific attaches to the queen in order to keep everything in balance.  In particular we are introduced to Lord Conall Maccon, the Alpha werewolf who just can’t keep his eyes or his hands off the troublesome Miss Tarabotti, and Lord Akeldama, the vampire dandy who is one of Alexia’s best friends.

Plotwise the book holds together fairly well.  I saw some of what was coming early on, but it was done in such a way that I remained both amused and willing to go along with it.  I love the dichotomy of the scientific versus the spiritual and man versus supernatural.  It was also nice to seem someone using a proper mythological golem and it went well with the book.  As vampires and werewolves began disappearing and Alexia got drawn further and further in Carriger did a good job at balancing the pacing between drama, romance and action.  There were points that were maybe a big heavy on the romance for everything else that was going on, and the book ends on a rather sexy note, but it sets up really well for the next book.  I’d expand on that, but it’d be spoilerific, so ask in the comments if you want to know.  :)

I’ll definitely keep reading this series.  Over the top, sure.  Charming, absolutely…and it left me craving treacle tart!

Genre: Urban Fantasy/Horror/Victorian Steampunk

Age: 15+

Content:  Some violence, sexual content and destruction of a perfectly good treacle tart!

Overall: 4.5 paws

Jana

Book Review: Child of Fire – Harry Connolly December 2, 2009

Posted by realitybypass in Book Debut, Book Review, Book Series, Urban Fantasy.
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Happy December, gentle readers.

This month K is crazy as she’s writing papers and taking finals.  Upon occasion she paddles bravely to the surface, takes a deep breath and plunges back in.  So we’ll see her sometimes, but the babbling is getting stranger.  Personally I think she’s going to summon feminist Cthulu Santa any time now.

Anyway…moving on to today’s book review.

I picked up Child of Fire after reading a recommendation from John Scalzi.  This is a debut urban fantasy taking place mostly just outside of Seattle, Washington.  We’re introduced to Ray Lilly and his sorta partner Annalise.  The two of them are on a mission which encompasses finding people using magic to be bad and killing them.  There’s some mention made of redeeming them, but that doesn’t seem to happen much.  We know immediately that Ray is under a death sentence, but not why and within a few pages the main plot is introduced, from there it really never lets go.  Ray is put through the wringer, particularly after Annalise is injured and can’t do as much as she usually does.

The book was very interesting on a lot of levels.  It was a very different Urban Fantasy, much closer to the works of favorites like Jim Butcher, but also with a darker horror bent.  I was reminded very much of Lovecraft and the investigator novels.  I liked the male pov, since much of UF is female, and the matter of fact attitude that he brought to his universe.  One of the neat things is that for the most part Ray is just a guy.  He has some knowledge about the way things are and a couple of magic tricks which help him out, but when he goes up against fire breathing monsters the right answer is to run for it and he knows it.  I’m fascinated by the world presented as it mentions some of our favorite UF critters, but stays very firmly with people and the horror they cause with the absolute best intention.  As a study of human nature the book is absolutely brilliant.

This is not to say it was perfect.  It has a few issues of pacing and I was felt a bit teased by some of the information.  We had so MANY hints about Ray’s past and his great sins, but nothing ever really explained.  I think I’ve pieced together the vast majority of it, but my mental picture is still missing some puzzle pieces that I’m not really happy to wait for.  Hopefully we’ll get more of this in the next book.  As my husband put it:  It’s not perfect, but I’m invested enough in Ray as a character and the world to keep reading.

And I do like Ray.  He visits a lot of violence on a lot of people, but mostly in reaction to being threatened himself or defense of other people and at the end of the day he feels bad about it and is trying to be a better person, even as the world around him seems determined not to let him be.

Genre: Urban Fantasy/Horror

Age: 15+

Content:  Violence, frightening images, language and some very mild sexuality.

Overall: 4.5 paws

Jana

More Supernatural Squee September 25, 2009

Posted by realitybypass in Television, Urban Fantasy.
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JensenAckles49Okay, last night’s episode made me giggle and squeal.  My poor husband had to leave the room cause he just doesn’t get the show and I’m fairly sure he doesn’t want to.  As long as I’m happy about it he’s happy.

Though for me there were some great moments…

If you haven’t watched the episode don’t read any further.

I mean it.

Okay.

Dean and Castielle out on the town just about killed me.  The look on Castielle’s face was priceless

Raphael the arch angel, scary and fun all at once.  I looved his defense of God (That’s my father you’re talking about), even as he gave into the despair that God was dead.

Castielle’s faith!

Sam and Lucifer!!!!  IPE!!!

Sad moments:  Dean admitting he was happier without Sammy.  Wah!  I can totally see where he’s coming from but…ouch.

Looking forward to next week.  We’ve seen the past, now here comes the future!
Jana

Book Review: Shadowlight – Lynn Viehl September 23, 2009

Posted by realitybypass in Book Review, Book Series, Romance, Urban Fantasy.
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Hallo my darlings and welcome to another book review day on RealityByPass.   As a matter of housekeeping I’m changing the scoring on our books just a little.  The overall category we’ve been using as a buy, borrow or toss and I find it’s actually pretty hard for me to break things down that way.  Sooo…I’ll give it a paw rating between 1-5 and go from there.

Today’s selection comes from an E-ARC which I was lucky enough to get my hands on and will be available to the public on October 6th.

Ms. Viehl is a prolific author with 43 books published to date and at least a good handful coming soon.  This was the first time I’d picked up one of her books despite being an avid reader of her blog.  Now I have to look for her books at the library, since I’m not allowed to buy anything until after my birthday.  My husband says so.

Shadowlight is the first in Ms. Viehl’s Kyndred series, which takes place in the same world as her Darkyn series.  It tells the story of Jessa Bellamy, a psychical gifted young woman who died and then was reborn with even stronger skills.  Her particular power the ability to touch a person and see his or her internal shame and guilt.  It’s a double edged sword since it’s always on, and Jessa struggles with always seeing the darkest side of anyone she touches.  She takes to wearing gloves and does her best to be careful, mostly keeping her own company.  When her talents are identified by a genetics company (GenHance) with a dark goal she’s put in danger of being both kidnapped and killed.  Enter Matthias, the man with a secret past, who works with an operation focused on stopping such things and giving the gifted new identities and someplace to go.  He knows from the first time that he meets Jessa that she’s the woman for him, no matter how she fights him and tries to escape from his protective custody.  They have to learn how to work together in order to keep her from being found by the authorities, the company, or the mutated man who wants to take her apart piece by piece.

As well in this piece we get cameos by Lucan and Samantha from the Darkyn series, who are down in Savannah for Samantha’s police work and Rowan and Drew, gifted folks who are helping Matthias with his relocation program and trying to put a stop to GenHance all together.

Overall I found this an enjoyable read.  The pacing is good and the characters well thought out with few too stupid to live moments.  Jessa was so bull headed about wanting to do everything herself that it made me laugh because I know people like that.  I’m fairly sure I’ve been people like that.  She and Matthias might have been a little too perfect, but not so much that it dragged me out of the story and they are both given flaws and backstory which are charming and interesting.  That Matthias wants to be a family man also won points with me.  Rowan, the chef, was my favorite character and I’m really glad her story will be the next book in this series.

The plot is generally very good though there were a few points where I kinda felt like things happened too fast or there was a twist which the reader should have been given more information about.  I love the powers the characters have because they don’t tend to be typical.  No teleporting or flying here.  The romantic arc works well, save that I feel like Jessa goes from clubbing Matthias in the head to calling him the man he loves just a little too suddenly.  I reread the section twice to see if I’d missed something.

I liked the inclusion of the Darkyn folks as it made me curious to go look up some of those books and gave a different perspective on what was happening.  Sometimes their appearance at certain places seemed a little contrived, but also necessary to keep things rolling along.  I did like watching Samantha learn to at least begin to embrace who and what she is and I find myself curious to go back and find her story.

So all in all it was a good read and kept me flipping the virtual pages.  There is some graphic violence and a couple of graphic sex scenes which folks may want to be aware of.  I don’t think any of this was gratuitous as each scene seemed to serve a purpose either on the plot or romantic arc, but the reader should be aware.

Genre:  Paranormal Suspense Romance

Age:  Adult

Content: graphic violence, sexuality, language

Overall: 3.5 paws

Shadowlight cover image

Book Review: Black and White September 16, 2009

Posted by realitybypass in Book Review, Urban Fantasy.
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It’s a bird…it’s a plane…it’s…neither of the above, but it is a tremendous story about superheroes and where lies the line between hero and villan.

Black and White is a joint project by Jackie Kessler and Caitlin Kittredge which follows the lives of two superpowered women in a world where heroes are born every day and the Corp uses them to keep the world safer for all the normal humans like you and me.  The problem is that all is not happy in the world of the Corp and there are good reasons for it too.

This book took on a huge challenge in how it tells this story.  We’re moved back and forth between the heads of the two protagonists and back and forth through time to see what is happening in the current day and then given the background of the characters in snippets which show their years together in school.  Each section is clearly labeled with JET or IRIDIUM and a THEN or NOW to help the reader keep track.  Honestly when I picked up the book I was highly concerned by this set up and fairly sure it would be annoying.  Thankfully it’s not annoying and, in fact, works brilliantly.  I think a good part of this success is because both authors know both characters so well that even when the view point switches both characters remain perfectly true to themselves.  So instead of being jerked back and forth between two very different stories, it’s a beautiful lay out of one situation through two pairs of eyes.

I very much liked the characters involved and believed their motivations and the character quirks that were both their strengths and weaknesses.  I liked seeing the play on the normal superhero tropes by making Jet the shadow user the hero type and Iriduim the light user the ‘rabid’.   Their interactions as friends and later as enemies who remember being friends and still yearn for that closeness is powerful stuff.  The plot going on around them makes sense and while I figured out a few things early, it was only by a page or two.  This lead to me doing a happy dance when my suspicions were confirmed and my husband giving me a long suffering look before going back to his Terry Prachette.

The story was satisfying but definitely a lead into the next book Shades of Grey, which I’ll be happy to snatch up.  Now I’m going to go make enchiladas…I’m hungry.

Genre:  SuperHero

Age:  14 +

Content: violence, mild sexuality.

Overall:  Buy

Black and White