Category Archives: Challenges

Dark Space

Book Review of Dark Space, by Lisa Henry

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Dark SpaceI borrowed an ecopy of Lisa Henry‘s Dark Space. (Thanks A.)

Description from Goodreads:
Brady Garrett needs to go home. He’s a conscripted recruit on Defender Three, one of a network of stations designed to protect the Earth from alien attack. He’s also angry, homesick, and afraid. If he doesn’t get home he’ll lose his family, but there’s no way back except in a body bag.

Cameron Rushton needs a heartbeat. Four years ago Cam was taken by the Faceless — the alien race that almost destroyed Earth. Now he’s back, and when the doctors make a mess of getting him out of stasis, Brady becomes his temporary human pacemaker. Except they’re sharing more than a heartbeat: they’re sharing thoughts, memories, and some very vivid dreams.

Not that Brady’s got time to worry about his growing attraction to another guy, especially the one guy in the universe who can read his mind. It doesn’t mean anything. It’s just biochemistry and electrical impulses. It doesn’t change the truth: Brady’s alone in the universe.

Now the Faceless are coming and there’s nothing anyone can do. You can’t stop your nightmares. Cam says everyone will live, but Cam’s probably a traitor and a liar like the military thinks. But that’s okay. Guys like Brady don’t expect happy endings.

Review:
I quite enjoyed a lot of this book. Lisa Henry can seriously write. I’ve not read a lot by her, but everything I have has been excellently penned. This is no exception. It’s also touching and a little thought provoking.

Brady and Cameron were a wonderful pair. I enjoyed Cameron’s quietly apologetic nature and Brady’s outwardly calm terror. In a lot of ways, their personalities and behaviours, given their circumstances, were believable. Though I might have expected a little more dissonance in Cameron’s attempt to return to humanity and I was vaguely uncomfortable with Brady’s almost obsessive need to accept a title before he could accept his feelings (especially since, in terms of M/M tropes, it felt a lot more like GFY than anything else).

I was also a little confused about how sex with an alien could enable communication. I accepted it as part of the fiction that kept the plot rolling, but it also felt a little like an obvious artifice to enable Henry to take the story where she wanted it to go. In other words: a convenient (if not uncommon) plot device, rather than any natural growth of the story. And I disliked having to read the first person rape.

I was also a bit disgusted with the shiny happy ending. It too felt forced and unnatural, given how dark everything had been to that point. For the most part, however, despite my few quibbles, I ended the book more happy than not.

Book Review of Cut & Run, by Madeleine Urban and Abigail Roux

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Cut & RunCut & Run, by Madeleine Urban and Abigail Roux is one of those books that everyone always seems to be talking about, so I borrowed an ecopy. (Thanks, D.)

Description from Goodreads:
A series of murders in New York City has stymied the police and FBI alike, and they suspect the culprit is a single killer sending an indecipherable message. But when the two federal agents assigned to the investigation are taken out, the FBI takes a more personal interest in the case.

Special Agent Ty Grady is pulled out of undercover work after his case blows up in his face. He’s cocky, abrasive, and indisputably the best at what he does. But when he’s paired with Special Agent Zane Garrett, it’s hate at first sight. Garrett is the perfect image of an agent: serious, sober, and focused, which makes their partnership a classic cliché: total opposites, good cop-bad cop, the odd couple. They both know immediately that their partnership will pose more of an obstacle than the lack of evidence left by the murderer.

Practically before their special assignment starts, the murderer strikes again – this time at them. Now on the run, trying to track down a man who has focused on killing his pursuers, Grady and Garrett will have to figure out how to work together before they become two more notches in the murderer’s knife.

Review:
I’m afraid I can only spare this book enough energy for a brief review. I enjoyed some bits of it—some of the sarcasm, some of the sex, some of the sweet (if utterly unbelievable) moments, seeing the two men learn to depend on one another, etc. 

But other bits…well, not so much. For one, it drug on and on. At one point I had convinced myself that pages really were being snuck in while I wasn’t looking. For another, I found the characters (Ty especially) inconsistent. Their personalities were unpredictable and ever changing, each feeling disconcertingly childlike at times. The mystery was fairly obvious far before the big reveal. I think they ate, put on their shoes, checked their guns and filled their pockets about a million times. Women are represented as screechy, needy, bitches. The whole ‘they’re total opposites’ was over emphasised and the way Zane’s dependencies and self-destructive tendencies were handled made him feel weak. 

I’d say I’m half and half, loving and hating this book. So, a safe three stars from me. If I came across a free or loaned copy of the sequel I’d read it, but I’ll not be crying if one never crosses my desktop either.

An Uncommon Whore

Book Review of An Uncommon Whore, by Belinda McBride

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An Uncommon WhoreI borrowed a copy of Belinda McBride‘s An Uncommon Whore. (Thank you, S.) It’s one of those books that I threw on my TBR so long ago I don’t even remember doing it, but there’s a certain notable gratification in finally reading it.

Description from Goodreads:
“As a general rule, you won’t find the love of your life while you’re on your knees under a table.” — Helios Dayspring

Pasha is a slave, whoring for travelers at the most dangerous bar on Warlan. He has no memory, no future of his own, yet deep inside Pasha knows that that he is meant for better things. The day that Pasha spots the dangerous pirate in the bar, he knows that he mustn’t let the stranger slip away, regardless of what he must do to attract his attention.

Captain Griffin Hawke spent the greater part of a decade searching for his lost king, only to find Helios Dayspring crouched between his knees, swathed in the robes and shackles of a whore. Though he is appalled by the downfall of his king, the hardened officer finds himself falling for the allure of the sensual creature who has taken his place. Returning Helios to his position on the throne is the only right thing to do, yet Griffin knows that in doing so, he risks losing his lover forever.

“A whore is a whore is a whore, unless he’s something else completely. I guess I must be an uncommon whore.” — Helios Dayspring

Review:
I don’t know about other people, but I read a lot of books that I neither love nor hate. I have very little feeling about them at all, actually. This is one of those books. There wasn’t anything obviously wrong with it and I didn’t find myself loath to finish it, but I can’t say it rang any real bells for my either. It was OK. It was so-so. It was average. It was a fine distraction that I probably won’t remember tomorrow.

I thought it started off strong and tapered to nothing as the plot died about halfway through. Helios and Griffin were very sweet and there were a number of ‘awww’ moments. I appreciated Helios’ take on submission and surrender and the sex was fine (not fabulous, but not too bad either). All in all, a passable read but little more.