More Catching Up

I've been re-reading, reading, not feeling so good at night (when I get most of my stuff done), and all of that has meant no new posts, but I'm fixing that now.

I'm still working on my Kingdom of Gods review - some things just need to percolate for awhile before I set them in stone.

I need to re-do my original review for Mind Games based on the re-read. Seriously, I highly recommend re-reading books when you can. I know I get caught up in new, shiny, pretty bookies, but it is a lot of fun to re-discover characters and stories. Be sure to check back on Nov 17 - We've got Carolyn Crane answering some of your questions and a giveaway!

On to reviews - I've got one fantasy short story and a steampunk, alt-Victorian...

Snitched, Snatched by Maria Schneider

Very short story, but I liked it. I want more, too. I think Schneider has a lot of room to play in this world.

A kingdom ruled by a king who does not believe women are capable of having magic power, a dunce of a royal wizard, and Zoe, a real power who comes to the rescue. In her own way. It was fun, and even though it was a short story, I still felt a connection to Zoe.

The society is very misogynistic, but I liked how Zoe dealt with it. I also like the strength of the female characters.

Did I mention I want more?

This eBook contains an English and Spanish version of the story.

[I won a copy of this story from a contest on the author's blog.]

Heartless (Parasol Protectorate #4) by Gail Carriger

This one was just so much fun to read. After the drama of the previous two books (which did culminate in the action-packed Blameless, my favorite of the series so far), it was nice to have a change of pace. Sure, there are still conspiracies, death threats, and political machinations, but in this one, "the gang is finally back together." Of course, it's not all sunshine and roses, but that would be boring.

All of my favorite side characters - Akeldama, Lyall & Biffy, get lots of "airtime" in this installment. Akeldama in particular is one of my favorite characters, and I missed his interactions with Alexia in books 2-3. They are one of the best examples of love between friends that I've found (the sunrise scene in Soulless, 'nuff said). We get to see more of what Akeldama is capable of. He loves having people underestimate him - so good to see what he can do when he needs to.      

Conspiracies, crazy ghosts, gadgets, annoying vampires, and even more annoying relatives (but thankfully those are in small doses), and of course the arrival of the newest Maccon. If you are a fan of this series, you should like this one a lot.