Review: "Matt Archer: Monster Hunter" by Kendra Highley

I'd like to start by sharing the paragraph that convinced me to buy the book:

Before I had a chance to dig out some marshmallows for s'mores, the air turned sharp and the wind gusted cold into the campfire, sending up sparks. Uncle Mike rose to his feet, with an intense, alert expression I'd never seen before--like he could eat a brick and enjoy the crunch.

I laughed out loud when I read that. Original, well-used metaphors aren't that common, and a funny one to boot? Excellent. The rest of the book carries on in that vein, happily.

On to the plot. Matt Archer is your average ninth-grader whose biggest problems are a crush on a beautiful classmate, Ella, and a long-absent father figure when his world is rocked by the discovery that yeah, monsters are real. After his Green Beret uncle's mysteriously powerful knife picks Matt to wield it, he's got no choice but get out there and start slaying some monsters ... while staying out of trouble in school.

Highley keeps a nice balance between the parts of Matt's life that are about chasing and killing the monsters invading his part of the world and the parts of his life that are about being a teenage boy. He goes to classes, he argues with his siblings, and he struggles to work up the nerve to ask out Ella. My own teen years are a decade or so behind me, but I think younger readers will be pleased by the way Matt's life is depicted. As an older reader, I was happy to find that Matt's teen problems didn't make it hard for me to buy him as a soldier capable of slaying monsters.

The only real question I had about the story was how easily the adults accepted the idea of sending a 15-year-old and his best-friend sidekick off to fight creatures that units of Green Berets had trouble handling. It didn't bother me that much, however, and it's not something that's likely to matter much in subsequent books.

And, yes, Highley is writing a sequel to "Matt Archer: Monster Hunter." I look forward to reading it.

Review: "Anna Dressed in Blood" by Kendare Blake

Kendare Blake's "Anna Dressed in Blood" puts a neat spin on a familiar ghost-hunter story.

Cas is the hero of the story, a high school student who goes through the motions at each school he attends -- he knows he's going to spend his life killing ghosts, just like his (deceased) father, so a diploma is an afterthought. He moves around the country with his mother, taking care of ghosts in need of killing. He meets his match in Anna, a teenage girl who haunts the house she grew up in and who kills anyone to pass within the house's door. She's the strongest ghost he's ever fought, and though he's convinced he'll take her down eventually, he's surprised by how much he really doesn't want to. But the trouble in Thunder Bay may not be Anna after all, and Cas will need all the help he can get to figure out what's really going on.

First things first: Cas. The stereotypical hero in a story like this is a man (or a boy, as the case may be) who is a social misfit. He does what he does very well, but he has a hard time functioning in "normal" society and frequently has a tough time with the ladies. Cas, however, has got the high school social structure down pat. When he starts at a new school, he deliberately seeks out the most popular girl in school:

I need to be plugged into the social pipeline. I need to get people talking to me, so I can ask them questions that I need answers to. So when I transfer in, I always look for the queen bee.

Every school has one. The girl who knows everything and everybody. I could go and try to insta-bond with the lead jock, I suppose, but I've never been good at that. My dad and I never watched sports or played catch. I can wrestle the dead all day long, but touch football might knock me unconscious. Girls, on the other hand, have always come easy. I don't know why that is, exactly. Maybe it's the outsider vibe and a well-placed brooding look.

That self-assurance and confidence were a welcome change; I get tired of reading about the hero who longs to fit in. Cas was  comfortable with himself and the way his job took him out of the usual society. Later, that attitude went a ways toward explaining his attraction to Anna -- but I still had a hard time swallowing that. I mean -- she's a ghost. Cas has obviously lived a lonely life, but why he turns to the one girl with whom he absolutely cannot have a future, I'm not sure. (Spoiler-ish: I have to admit, I found the scene where Cas and Anna kiss to be icky. She's dead. Not to mention she's killed dozens of people.)

But the revelation and resolution of Anna's roots aren't the crux of this book; that honor goes to the mystery of the ghost that killed Cas' father. The developments here were nicely foreshadowed, and I particularly liked the way Blake developed the killer ghost. He was particularly creepy and suitably intimidating. Actually, many of the ghost- or horror-related scenes were well done; the part where Anna drops Cas into a basement full of rotting but sentient corpses is an excellent example.

The sequel, "Girl of Nightmares," came out Aug. 7. At $9.99 for the e-book, it's not an automatic pickup, but I'll keep my eyes on it and grab it if the price goes lower (or if the public library makes a copy available).

Review: "The Assassin ..." novellas by Sarah J. Maas

It appears that I haven't figured out how to work the timed posting feature yet. Here's the post meant for two weeks ago.

Sarah J. Maas' first novel, "Throne of Glass," comes out in August. Over the last few months and leading up to that debut, she's releasing four prequel novellas to build interest and back story: "The Assassin and the Pirate Lord," "The Assassin and the Desert," "The Assassin and the Underworld" and "The Assassin and the Empire." (That last one will be released in July.)

"The Assassin and the Pirate Lord" introduces Maas' heroine, assassin Celaena Sardothien, who at 16 already considers herself the best assassin in the world. She works for Arobynn, who is presented as something akin to a brothel madam for a stable of assassins. Celaena is beautiful, vain, self-centered and arrogant, but when she and fellow assassin Sam are sent to manage their master's purchase of 100 slaves, she realizes she can't abet human trafficking.

This was a good introduction. The antagonistic relationship between Celaena and Sam starts abruptly and isn't given much back story, and it resolves a bit too quickly, but that's a minor quibble. I generally like the characters — even the Pirate Lord, who is ostensibly the villain here. A bit more explanation of Celaena's role in the assassins' world would have been helpful - I found myself wondering a few times why it was so necessary for her to be disguised. We don't get that answer in this novella.

In "The Assassin and the Desert," Celaena is punished for her actions in "The Pirate Lord" with a vicious beating and sent to train with a covey of assassins in the Red Desert. She's out of her element and, though the assassins are familiar with her name, her reputation doesn't buy her the same awe it does back home. She has to convince the Mute Master of the desert to write her a letter of recommendation — essentially — but with a traitor at work in the assassins' base, her time to impress the master may be shorter than she realizes.

Sam isn't present in this novella, aside from in Celaena's thoughts, and I missed his character. The Mute Master's son steps into the leading man's role, in a way, and it highlights a weird contradiction in Celaena. She's very aware of her beauty and is a fairly worldly character, but we learn that she's never been in a relationship, nor even kissed a boy. It's rather odd for the way she's presented. Overall, the story arc is more developed than in the first novella, and there's more growth from Celaena.

"The Assassin and the Underworld" focuses less on action and more on personal growth. Back from the desert, Celaena finally learns what happened to Sam as punishment for their actions in "The Pirate Lord." She's dealing with her feelings for him at the same time she's trying to come to terms with her changed feelings for Arobynn. At the same time, she and Sam are working together to break up another web of human trafficking through the assassination of a key player.

Celaena faces the choice of remaining a kept woman or of leaving Arobynn and taking control of her own fate. It takes her longer to choose than I (and Sam) expected. We also finally get the reason that Celaena hides her identity: it's because she is presented to society as Arobynn's niece. Learning that earlier wouldn't have hurt anything, and it would have made parts of "Pirate Lord" less confusing.

The writing in these is top notch, and the characters are likable when they're supposed to be likable (and not, when they're not). Arobynn, in particular, comes across as a creepy, manipulative man. My only complaint, in fact, is that for all Celaena talks of herself as the BEST assassin EVER, it's not supported in the stories. She makes frequent mistakes, she gets caught, she gets played. I'm not sure whether we're supposed to believe she really is such an accomplished assassin or whether it's meant as a sign of her age; more clarification along those lines would be nice.

All in all, very good stories. I'm looking forward to "Throne of Glass" and the fourth novella — although judging by the description of "Throne of Glass," bad things are in store for Sam, in particular.

Review: "Zero Sum" by B. Justin Shier

"Zero Sum" picks up where "Zero Sight" left off — literally.

At the end of "Zero Sight," Dieter Resnick and his fellow Elliot College squadmates had been briefed on the threat facing the Department of Mana Affairs. Parts of campus have been blown up, but thanks to the efforts of Dieter and Rei, the students and the faculty — which had been targeted for assassination — were saved. "Sight" opens the next morning as the students pick up the pieces and start getting ready for war. Their enemy has a name and a face, and it's up to Dieter and the rest of Lambda to infiltrate his camp in Dieter's hometown of Las Vegas. Between preparing for that, adjusting to his weft-bond with Rei and trying to defuse the growing hostility between Rei and Jules, his Irish tutor, Dieter has his hands full.

In this sequel, Shier steps away from the example set by the Harry Potter books and more fully into his own creation. Dieter and his classmates are no longer mages-in-training at magic school; they're novice mages at the front lines of a battle. The characters who were introduced in the first book are fleshed out, especially Jules, Danta and, of course, Rei. Jules in particular is given heavy focus, as she's clearly set up as a counterpoint (and counter-love interest) to Rei.

Speaking of Rei, more attention is paid to the society of vampires and its role in relation to the mages. Shier refrains from humanizing them or otherwise weakening their status as monsters, which — as previously stated — I'm enjoying. More of Rei's back story is filled in through the introduction of family members, some in person and some in passing.

The plot is mostly straightforward, but the ending featured at least two major twists. One of them, related to the book's villain, I didn't see coming, but it was logically supported in retrospect. The other, related to Dieter's family, came out of left field and left me scratching my head. I'll be interested to see how Shier explains some of the previously given back story to make that revelation work. (And, yes, I know that's obtuse, but I can't be more clear without ruining the twist.)

You could read this book first and not be too lost, but reading "Zero Sight" before "Zero Sum" will make the twists more surprising and the cliffhanger ending more emotionally charged.

On his website, Shier says he's working on a third entry in the series. I'm looking forward to it.

Review: "Zero Sight" by B. Justin Shier

"Zero Sight" will inevitably draw comparisons to Harry Potter and, to a lesser extent, Twilight. Like Harry Potter, it's a story of a boy from an unhappy home who goes away to school to be trained in the working of magic. Like Twilight, it's a story about two young adults who find themselves drawn to each other — except one of them is a vampire.

Whether those similarities make "Zero Sight" more or less appealing will likely depend on how you felt about Potter and Twilight. For the record, I enjoyed the Harry Potter series, I didn't make it past the first Twilight book, and I really liked this book.

In "Zero Sight," we're introduced to Dieter Resnick, a high school senior (and, unbeknownst to him, a latent mage) who's driven to get out of Las Vegas and away from his abusive drunk of a father. He's pinned his hopes for the future on college, so when he gets an offer from the elite Elliot College, Dieter's moving to Connecticut. On his way, he meets with Rei, a strange but beautiful young woman who winds up saving his life — and who turns out to be both a vampire and a classmate of his. The two of them will have their hands full, dealing with attacks on their college by a mysterious group of counter-mages. It's a good thing they've formed a bond.

Dieter struggles with his attraction to Rei. She's beautiful, yes, but she's a vampire. To Dieter's credit, he's disgusted by her nature, and he has a hard time reconciling his feelings toward her with the fact that she drinks human blood. She suffers no conflicts about her nature, though, and it's refreshing, after the recent trend of vampires-as-tortured-sex-symbols-with-special-dietary-
needs.

"It's just weird. Here we are, talking normally, but I'd have expected your kind to be amoral killing machines. Lestat-style, you know?"

Rei cocked her head and the blue faded from her eyes. "That would be a very healthy assumption to make." She gazed into me, and my heartbeat started to race in reply. Rei's face had changed. The softness was gone. It looked like it was etched out of marble rather than flesh. She was cold. Lifeless. The voice that leaked out of her lips was devoid of humanity. The melodic timber was gone, replaced by that silky hiss. I could hardly draw breath, and an unreasonable terror clamped down on my body. An ancient part of my brain yelled shrilly: That predator. You prey. Back the fuck off.

"Zero Sight" is an excellent start to a series. The writing is good, and though the book could use another read-through by a proof reader, the occasional errors weren't glaring enough to detract from the reading. The secondary characters are just getting fleshed out by the end of the book, as is the system of magic, but both promise to be handled well in future entries.

The book ends on a cliffhanger, and I bought the sequel right away. Guess what's coming next week.

Review: "Finnikin of the Rock" by Melina Marchetta

If you like fantasy books that are first and foremost about the characters, not the battles, Melina Marchetta's "Finnikin of the Rock" is the novel for you.

Ten years ago, Finnikin's world was torn apart when his country's royal family was assassinated, and Balthazar (the crown prince and a childhood playmate of Finnikin's) either died or vanished. Half his countrymen were trapped inside the borders of Lumetere by a priestess' dying curse; the other half were outside the borders and cannot get back in. Finnikin has spent the years since roaming the world with his mentor, Sir Topher, as they do what they can to help their fellow exiles. For the exiles, lack of a home has meant depending on the goodwill of neighboring countries, and that goodwill hasn't materialized often.

Finnikin is haunted by the memory of a childhood fantasy and by a disturbing prediction. The fantasy: That he, rather than Balthazar, is heir and that he would be a better king. The prediction: That Finnikin would, indeed, become king of Lumatere, but only by spilling the blood of one of the princesses. Not surprisingly, Finnikin is carrying a great deal of guilt over what happened to his country. And then he and Sir Topher meet Evanjalin, a mysterious novice who carries a call to arms on behalf of the heir of Lumatere - who, she says, is still alive.

"And here you are, having learned the languages of the land and been taught the politics of the surrounding kingdoms by Sir Topher." [Evanjalin] stared at him intently. "Is that what you fear?" she pressed. "That you've stolen his life?"

"You don't understand," [Finnikin]` said. "I would make vows every night when I was a child. That if I were king, I'd change the plight of the Forest Dwellers. If I were king, I wouldn't be so soft on our Charynite neighbors. And Sagrami heard my dark desires."

In some ways, "Finnikin of the Rock" is a typical fantasy novel: There's a curse, there's a prophecy, there's the "chosen one" who must save his (or her) people. In other ways, it steps outside the bounds of its genre; the focus is less on the fight to retake Lumatere than it is on the path Finnikin takes as he shakes off the guilt of his childhood beliefs and comes to terms with his role in saving his country.

Evanjalin's story, though perhaps more important to the plot than Finnikin's, takes a back stage. She comes into the story knowing exactly what she has to do, and she never wavers. She's already fought her internal demons, and because of that, she's a refreshingly strong character.

Melina Marchetta's writing is smooth and highly readable. Her characters come across as true to life (with one irritating exception -- between the thief's awkward speech patterns and his persistent lack of growth, he never reads like a real person), and the dialogue is well-written. "Finnikin of the Rock" was a pleasure to read.

Review: "Graceling" by Kristin Cashore

Imagine you're a 8-year-old girl and a lecherous older man reaches toward you, intending -- well, nothing good. You lash out at him and he falls dead at your feet. From that moment, you're feared and shunned for your special talent: killing.

Thus is the life of Katsa, niece to the king of Sundoria. She is a Graceling, a child born strongly talented in at least one way. Gracelings are easily identified by their eyes, which are two different colors. Easily identified, in Katsa's case, means easily ostracized. It doesn't help that her uncle uses her to abuse and frighten those who cross him.

With few friends to call her own, the appearance of Po, a Lienid prince and a fellow Graceling, shakes her world. He's gifted at fighting, which means he can hold his own against her. Somewhat. But Po's gift goes beyond mere fighting, and Katsa's discovery of its true nature -- and her decision to accompany him on his investigation of his grandfather's kidnapping -- changes both their lives.

"Graceling" stuck with me. Katsa starts as a wounded, half-formed character who is so frustrated by her life that she can't even put it into words. She hates what her uncle asks her to do and the lack of control she has over her own life, but she sees no way out.

"Who are these fools who continue to resist Randa's will? Haven't they heard the stories? Don't they know he'll send me?”

"Isn't it in your power to refuse?" Po asked. "How can anyone force you to do anything?"

The fire burst into her throat and choked her. "He is the king. And you're a fool, too, if you think I have choice in the matter."

"But you do have choice. He's not the one who makes you savage. You make yourself savage, when you bend yourself to his will."

With the slightest nudge from her friends, she breaks away from her uncle's control and blossoms into a pretty kick-ass heroine. It takes the better part of the book, as it should. All the while, Cashore avoids the temptation of letting Katsa slip into more traditional female roles -- she doesn't come to relish pretty clothes or getting dolled up, nor does she relent on her determination to remain unmarried. It's refreshingly true to her bone-deep and oft-repeated desire to never let another person dictate her fate.

Some stories look like they'll be a light, entertaining read and leave you considering, seriously, what it would be like to walk in their characters' shoes. "Graceling," to my surprise, was one of those books.

"Graceling" is listed as a young adult/children's novel, but the writing and the handling of some pretty mature themes make it an enjoyable read for adults. Teenagers/children reading this book will encounter at least one obvious, but not graphic, sex scene.