JoR

Decent enough, but…

Revisado: 04-03-24

This book is too crass. About a quarter of the words used is F*#$k. There is no reason for this and it really just serves to make the author look dumb. That said, if you can stomach the imbecilic vocabulary, the story is quite entertaining.

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Good to have Arimnestos back!

Revisado: 11-16-23

Cameron’s Long War series is my favorite historical fiction by a long shot. I had no idea a new book was coming and am so pleased that Ari’s story continues.

Treason has a few problems—it isn’t as focused as other books in the series and the title of the book serves to drain tension for a plot that takes too long revealing itself. I’d put it at the bottom of the series with Poseidon’s Spear. This doesn’t mean it isn’t a good book, just not on the level of Marathon, or Salamis, which are my favorite in the series. Still worth the credit and time spent with wonderful characters in a fascinating world!

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Serkis is a joy to listen to

Revisado: 09-20-21

I used to get sleepy during the slow bits of LotR and The Hobbit. And forget reading the songs—I skipped them every time. That was until Andy Serkis brought new life back into the telling of this greatest of tales. Serkis is a joy to listen to. I was grinning like a fool during my commute to and from work as Frodo and gang made their way out of the shire. Serkis’s narration of the barrow wights has so far been the highlight (they have only just left Bree).

You need these audiobooks in your life! Get The Hobbit while you’re at it, and start praying for a Silmarillion update to go with it (although I’d love Ian McKellan giving the Silmarillion a shot—Christopher Lee’s narration on Children of Hurin is great as well!).

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Good Parker

Revisado: 08-24-20

How to Rule an Empire is a decent Parker novel. Enjoyable, great character, and the usual snarky charm.

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Please, Audible, MORE KJ PARKER NOVELS!

Revisado: 01-03-20

Another entertaining KJ Parker read. I highly recommend Parker’s work to fans of ancient and medieval history—despite his work not being historical fiction; to fans of fantasy—despite there being no magic presented in the narrative; to fans of comedy—especially to those who prefer the dark, ironic, and clever sort of delivery that sometimes makes you uncomfortable for laughing at it.

Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City isn’t my favorite novel of Parker’s. That honor goes to The Folding Knife, or perhaps Sharps... maybe Devices and Desires. Then again, his collection of short fiction, Academic Exercises, might just take the cake. I really like his work. A lot.

But Sixteen Ways is special, because it is the first of Parker’s novels available from Audible. Audiobooks happen to be my preferred method of reading. Because I like Parker so much, I’m willing to make my eyes tired and take six months to finish one of his books in print. But I’d much rather listen to one of his books in a day and a half, as I did with Sixteen. Please, Audible, give us more!

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Sharpe is off the leash!!

Revisado: 08-07-18

This is the first book I’ve listened to in the Sharpe series that feels like an 80’s action movie... like the ones the Expendables movies tried to make viewers nostalgic for... pitting the hero against overwhelming odds, with the villain in a fortress on a hill protected by a bunch of goons. It was fun, but not the best Sharpe. 3.5 stars.

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Enjoyable

Revisado: 12-15-15

Less about the sword play, and more about the relationship of two siblings. Swords and Scoundrels is a surprisingly good character drama (which I did not expect). My only criticism would be that there were far too many Britishisms in the dialogue. Besides that, I recommend it to readers who want a light, quick fantasy read.

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Exciting, Inspiring, and interesting.

Revisado: 03-19-15

Exciting, Inspiring, and interesting! I've read SF for years... It was a lot of fun to listen to real science being done by real people, and see how SF writers could be inspired by it. I was born in 84, so most of what the Voyager missions accomplished were before my time, but the fact that we're still learning from them even today made me feel a part of the excitement and awe. Jim Bell's passion is obvious in this narrative, and him reading made it that much better. I'll be re-listening soon.

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A retelling of old legends...

Revisado: 02-20-13

On the surface, The Red Knight is an epic fantasy about a troop of mercenaries hired by an abbess to hunt monsters. There are a lot of awesome, huge battles, lots of exciting action, and the best tactical descriptions I've read in fantasy. It's an excellent beginning to a series. Dig a little deeper--not much, honestly--and you find its a retelling of sorts of Arthurian legend. Miles Cameron deserves all the success for this novel.

Some parts of the story are imperfect at best. There are too many point of view shifts... or at least they happen way too quickly. And the world building is strange at times--a version of Catholicism is alive an well in this secondary world. If you can get past these annoyances you'll enjoy what this tale has to offer. It certainly left me wanting more.

If you're an epic fantasy reader you won't want to miss this one. If not, this probably isn't the book to introduce you to the genre. Start with Sanderson.

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The Daylight War without a daylight war

Revisado: 02-20-13

I'm not sure why this book is titled the Daylight War. Don't want to spoil anything, but the plot that this title refers to doesn't really go anywhere in this book. This was disappointing. And lots of backstory was rehashed. This, too, was disappointing. It would have been more true to the story being told if this volume had been titled: The Daylight Porn, but I'm getting off track...

Despite my complaints, I still enjoyed most of the hours spent listening to this book. No, the overall plot doesn't advance much. It didn't in book 2 either. I'm not sure why Brett is writing this series this way, but I'll reserve my judgement whether this is a good idea or not until the end of the Demon Cycle. If you're a fan, yes, buy this. If you're new to the series, I'd say wait until the fifth and final volume is released. You'll deal with a lot less frustration if you take my advice.

Yes, it ends on a cliffhanger. In fact, the ending almost jumps up and down with its own "clever" cliffhangeriness. I found it annoying. It seemed the story would have been better served with another hour or two to close this portion of the tale. Oh well. Authors have their artistic freedoms.

I liked it. I hated it. Which feeling will prevail in the end? I don't know. Give me a few weeks to think about it. Faults and all, you can't deny that Brett is a talented writer, and his characters are truly interesting. Just please, please, Mr. Brett and co, take this story somewhere in book 4.

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