“The Aeronaut’s Windlass,” by Jim Butcher

FM's ratings:

          1. Premise 9
          2. Prose 8
          3. Plot 9
          4. Characters 10
          5. Overall 9

Comments (optional - but try to keep it under 3000 words!)
I had just finished reading one of Butcher’s Harry Dresden novels, and was looking for another when I came across this book, his latest, and saw that it was his first Steampunk novel.  Perfect!  One of the jacket blurbs shouted, “Steampunk done very, very right.”  Well, very, very wrong.  While this is a brilliantly executed Fantasy/Sci-Fi novel, it takes more than simply including airships and old-timey clothing in the setting to make a Steampunk novel.  The trappings of the Victorian era are a must, as I see it.  I have noticed a number of Steampunk attempts that have included electricity in the culture, including this one.  Maybe I’m being a Purist in the most derogatory sense of the word, but I feel that “In world lit only by fire,” a line from “Clockwork Angels,” by Neil Peart and Kevin Anderson (and appearing as the first line of the first song on Rush’s album by the same name) is a basic of the genre – no electricity.  Yes, in many ways Steampunk is still developing, the dust still settling on its precise definition.  But this isn’t it.  What it is, though, is a thoroughly original setting (“10” for setting), an intricate but followable and engaging plot, and a cast of beautifully realized characters, including intelligent cats who have developed a language that humans can learn, though not many have managed to.  The Etherealists are a fascinating invention that, by itself, makes this novel worthy of its length (630 pages).  And the captain of Predator - the airship most featured in this novel - Captain Grimm, is unforgettable (especially if you imagine a youngish Sean Connery in the roll like I did!).  If you’re looking for Steampunk, look elsewhere.  But for a really great escapist fantasy, you can’t go wrong with this one!  [Addendum:  Since writing this, I have noticed that this book was one of the five nominees for novel of the year at the Hugo Awards, with the winner being "The Fifth Season," by N. K. Jemisin.]

Here’s the October line-up! 

Happy Halloween!

“Pet Sematary,” by Stephen King [10-1]
“The Body in the Library” by Agatha Christie [10-8]
“Dead Reckoning,” by Charlaine Harris [10-15]
“Neverwhere,” by Neil Gaiman [10-22]
“The Haunting of Hill House,” by Shirley Jackson [10-29] 

(As always, if there are any books you’d like to recommend for next month, please do so.  Also, if you have already read one on our previous lists, you are invited to send your ratings and or comments for that book!)

“Death of a Witch,” by M. C. Beaton

FM's ratings:

1.      Premise 8

2.      Prose 7

3.      Plot 8

4.      Characters 8

5.      Overall 8

Comments (optional - but try to keep it under 3000 words!)

Another very enjoyable read from this author.  The prose is simplistic but effective; just doesn’t display a lot of depth.  The rest is just good solid writing with characters that are fun to watch, though just a little too shallowly rendered.  The interplay between the characters is fascinating, especially the jealousies that spring up between Hamish and three potential “lady loves.”  And there is just the right amount of “noir” in the mix, with a darkness that contrasts interestingly with the lightness of the prose.  The “witch” may or may not have been a real practitioner of the dark arts; that is left largely unanswered – in itself a fine touch by the author.  But just as with the previous book I read in this series, the real draw for me is the setting: a small, typically uptight Scottish community set against a dramatic loch-and-mountains backdrop.  The descriptions of the area are concise but effective at evoking an atmospheric sense of place.  This extends to the local pubs, hotels, etc.  On top of all this, the humor is added as just the right amount of spice.  I have already begun another work by this author, finding her novels to contain just the right recipe for my usual light reading tastes!

Here’s the October line-up! 

“Pet Sematary,” by Stephen King [10-1]

“The Body in the Library” by Agatha Christie [10-8]

“Dead Reckoning,” by Charlaine Harris [10-15]

“Neverwhere,” by Neil Gaiman [10-22]

“The Haunting of Hill House,” by Shirley Jackson [10-29] 

(As always, if there are any books you’d like to recommend for next month, please do so.  Also, if you have already read one on our previous lists, you are invited to send your ratings and or comments for that book!)

“Naked Empire,” by Terry Goodkind

FM's ratings:

          1. Premise 9
          2. Prose 6
          3. Plot 7
          4. Characters 9
          5. Overall 7

Comments (optional - but try to keep it under 3000 words!)

You may be wondering, with my dislike of really long books, why I would choose to read one that is more than two inches thick (and NOT a Stephen King book!), 667 pages long, in a genre that is not my favorite; Medieval Fantasy.  I have been curious about the author for some time, wondering why his books are all so long, and what the draw is.  Well, the premise is pretty cool, though rather complicated, being part of a series.  The characters are considerably more developed than most books of the genre offer.  The prose?  Not so bad, sentence by sentence, despite the fact that we have characters with extremely limited educational backgrounds using words like “inculcated” and “comprehended.”  The problem with the prose – as in all overly long books – is not quality, but quantity.  Once again, we have a 300 page story being crammed into a 667 page book.  But in this instance, the “padding” glares at us.  It is as if he wrote the book as a 335-pager, and then went back through, paragraph by paragraph, and doubled each one.  There are many instances where a point has been adequately made, only to be adequately made yet again a paragraph or two later with only superficially different wording.  I found myself thinking, “Yeah, we got that the first time, move on.”  Perhaps Mr. Goodkind knows his readership well enough to realize that a large portion of them are “skimmers,” not reading for content so much as for the impressions that can be gleaned from skimming.  He doesn’t want them to miss certain key points, so he feels he has to belabor them.  But there really is content here.  The premise is hidden among the trappings out of necessity.  The story is really a study of several related political philosophy issues including the initiation of the use of force and the morality of doing harm in self-defense; and what fantasy buff wants to read about that?  The hero is dealing with an isolated culture of extreme pacifists who have come to him to rid them of oppressors.  (I seem to remember an old Star Trek episode that dealt with this theme as well.)  The pacifists are the “empire” referred to in the title; vulnerably “naked” to any band of thugs that wants to dominate them.  Much of the hero’s dialog includes an exploration of moral philosophies, including Objectivist and Libertarian fundamentals.  This actually saved the book for me, resulting in a much higher overall rating than I would otherwise have given it.  I wish I could recommend it.  Go for it if you’re a skimmer!

“Bloody Bones,” by Laurell K. Hamilton

FM's ratings:

1.      Premise 9

2.      Prose 10

3.      Plot 9

4.      Characters 9

5.      Overall 9

Comments (optional - but try to keep it under 3000 words!)

Book 5 in this series and no sign of fading!  The tight plotting in these novels is superb, though there is a hint of formula showing.  One technique that is showing up with just a little too much regularity is, for lack of a better phrase, “the long, hopeless situation.”  While scenes that take up 30 pages or more work beautifully in a cinematic situation – Quentin Tarantino is a master at this – it can be too much if overused, especially in a novel.  Our protagonist, Anita Blake (one of my all-time favorite protagonists!) gets into hopeless situations not just at the end of the story as many a mystery-writer loves to depict, but several times throughout the narrative.  And these scenes attempt to keep the tension up for page after page.  It almost works, the prose is so effective, but it is just a tad overdone.  But this is nit-picking.  Everything else about the writing is just short of perfect, with a wryly humorous first person narrative by Anita that never goes stale.  The comedic effect never gets in the way and adds immeasurably to almost every scene.  Love the writer; love the series - next stop: “The Killing Dance.”