For a Few Demons More

This is the latest chapter in the Rachel Morgan saga that I have read. I get these when they come out in paperback and for my taste of the dark side of sci-fi this really has a the feel of a detective style novel in a very believable setting. In this, a couple of the characters from prior books are done away with and others return, obviously, with vengeance in mind. We pick up smoothly from the prior story about the Werewolf focus and delve more deeply into the seemingly unlimited well of power available to our dark version of Danger-Prone Daphne.
For those of you who've not read this series, which I got into quite by accident, Rachel Morgan is an earth witch in an alternate reality where most of the normal human population had been severely decimated by a genetically engineered virus transmitted by Tomatoes. Demons, Pixies, Faries, Elves, Vampires, Werewolves (dogs, foxes, etc), and trolls round out the mythical creature list to date. With the exception of Elves, the "Turn" engendered by this virus made no dent on the now significant population of other-worldly races.
Rachel's job at the start of this series was as a "Inderland" officer and with a genetic quirk foisted on her to cure her of a deadly disease, she can do this job much better than anyone else, or so we're led to believe.
Although this book is found in the science fiction environment, For a Few Demons More (ISBN 0061149810) may also be very comfortable in a couple of other sections and Mr. Dewey could just break his decimal system with this writer.
Rating: 4/5

Stardust

Well, I bit the bullet. After the movie being out for nearly a year I decided to finally read the book (and no, I haven't yet seen the movie, tends to ruin the book that way). After the hype of the commercials I had a glimpse of this universe, and only when I saw that he wrote 'Neverwhere' as well did I put 2 and 2 together.
For those who want to read it, it is a fantastic ride down the well of imagination. While there are plot points that could be expanded upon in other stories or may have already been so, each of his books appear to be independent stories. Startdust (ISBN 0060934719) is the story of a boy drawn into a plot before he was born to reshape the lands of Faerie. At points it is hard to tell who is on the boy's side and discovering the truth about his mother has profound implications on the wayward lad. As the author puts it in the closing remarks, we are reminded that fairy tales are not just for kids but adults to.
Some of the character development and attributes, while fantastical, did not ring true to me for the world, but all in all, that may have been colored by my previous reading of 'Neverwhere' (ISBN 0060557818).
Rating: 3/5

Lodestar

Michael Flynn's Lodestar is a jaunt through the near future. Some of the tech is doable now.... just look at the MMORPG environs.... In the meantime, we'll have to wait for hobartium based anti-gravity devices. In all, this was an easy book to follow but I was left with one question: When can I sign up to fly to Leo Station or Goddard?
See ISBN 0812542967
Rating: 4/5

Enemies

I read this Lee Hogan book, and though it combines politics, Russian lore, and religious zealotry, I was not impressed by the plot. The science and tech of this far flung universe was superb but it read more like a diatribe on race relations of the 50's than Star Wars style space opera as touted on Amazon.com (see ISBN: 0451459199).
Rating 2.5/5

Outlaw Sword

This is book 2 in J. Ardian Lee's story about 18th century Scotland. Not having read book 1 yet, I can not comment on continuity of the story line between them. It was fairly robust in my opinion. Drawing known elements of how life was lived at that time well into the fantasy aspects of dealing with the wee folk. In many ways, this reminded me of Harry Turtledove's historical fiction works (the few I have read) where plausibility plays a large part in the direction of the story. As an avid fan of Sci-Fi and Fantasy, I had hoped for a larger part for the magic in the story. The author, however, paints the characters strongly enough that I can connect to the Hero, Dylan when he is pushed to the limits.

Rating 3/5

Best Destiny

Imagine a jaded young Kirk after a disastrous first outing with his father and Kodos the Executioner of Tarsus IV two years earlier. If you started out witnessing executions in another place, one you would hate to return to, wouldn't you run as fast as possible away from such a thing?

This was, at least in Kirk's case, exactly what happened. His father, being honorable and seeing his job in Starfleet as a way of preventing this same thing from happening elsewhere, had seen little of James between the age of fourteen and sixteen. I can relate to an extent since my father spent months at a time out at sea in the Coast Guard (he and I still argue about it to this day). Young Kirk however, had more than a chip on his shoulder. Parallels could be drawn between him and a prime candidate for the gangs on the streets. In need of guidance, believing he was perfect, it was time for him to grow up or perish.

The story is both griping and detailed... but the action was not what I had expected.

Rating 3/5

Death Masks

In book 5, realizing I have not read books 2-4, Butcher fairly drowns Harry in a christian battle between the fallen angels and holy knights while he has to defend himself from his own desires and a vampire warlord.

Dresden learns a life lesson in this book. The biggest lesson many of us have ever learned: The answer to the question, "Why?" To find out his answer, read the book. I have a feeling that for several books at least, this is the last we will see of Susan.

Butcher does a decent job of comparing Christianity, faith, and religion with magic. I may not agree with everything he has suggested, but, in an effort to be open-minded I can see why he chose to make the characters the way they were. It was an effort to contain everything in a single unified universe. Kudos on the blending.
Rating: 4/5

Storm Front

Book 1 of the original series that led to the Sci-Fi adaptation lives up to the promise of the TV show. If it wasn't for the show, I'd never have picked up the 2000 publication. Danger, suspense, supernatural power, and good ol' detective work.

Two cases, intertwined, drive Dresden to his limits of both ingenuity and magic. All the familiar characters from the show make an appearance and indeed, you may see five or six episodes getting there start from this triumphant start to the book.

Tension is really raised in the book by the attraction of Murphy to Dresden and the arrival of her rival, Susan. Now, Susan is not a regular on the show, but in this initial book she fawns over Dresden like a lovesick puppy (and at one point is definitely lovesick).

Bianca, the Vampire ex-lover on the TV show, is a very different sort of person in this introduction to the world of Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden.

Rating 5/5

The Broken Places

The authors help us to learn much about the inner minds of the crew of the Andromeda Ascendant and a future 3 millennium hence in book 2 of the series. The preface of each chapter stirs the imagination and colors the remainder of that chapter. There are two main themes to this book that intertwine in a stunning conclusion.

As with the TV series, this book goes to the brink of total annihilation. Due to the nature of the media, we see here, however, not just a single tightrope with destruction waiting below, but two. Both plots could have been written as stand alone stories and been good, but together they weave a stunning tapestry that seems as ageless as the universe and as relevant as the dichotomy of everyday life.

Rating 4/5

Bonds of Vengence

In book 3 of this saga, Coe continues the theme I have seen developing in this series of a nearly unlimited evil being fought by ordinary men and women as well as essentially lower level magics. He builds upon the relations of three key Qirsi (the sorcerer race) -- Grinsa, Cressene, and Keziah.

Cadel's life is a major sub-plot in this book as chapters are devoted in whole or part to learning more about what drives him to the big duel.

Spoiler: Tavis manages to realize his two biggest goals so far in the series. He is able to duel Cadel/Corbin and he is able to clear his name. However, these come at a great cost: the lesson that desire and results do not always lead to happiness.

Rating: 4/5

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Please be patient with me. I've never written any reviews of the works I've read before for public consumption. Please, comment (moderated), and let me know what you think, and if I should change my format.