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Father Figure

Book Review of Father Figure, by Kichiku Neko & TogaQ

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I bought a physical copy of the illustrated novel, Father Figure, by Kichiku Neko (author) and TogaQ (Illustrator). I’ve included the full cover (front and back) simply because it’s so freakin’ gorgeous. Art is subjective, of course, but this is the sort that ticks all my boxes.
Father FigureDescription from Goodreads:
A deep obsession with his estranged father leads Gabriel down a dangerous, twisting path. 

Review:
The description doesn’t tell you much about what to expect in this book and I think it’s the sort you really need a little heads up on, because a more accurate synopsis would be full of trigger warnings. I suspect it would roll right against a lot of people’s hard limits.

It’s a scary proposition, this book. The thing is though, none of it is used as titillation. There is sex, yes, but unless non-con is your kink, it’s not sexy.  This is neither a romance nor erotica. It’s almost Transgressive Fiction and is uncomfortable in much the same way Lolita is. It concerns cringe-worthy subject matter, but in such a way as to push boundaries and force concerted thought on the matter. It’s worth working through one’s own discomfort to face it.

It’s also an emotional roller-coaster.  You hate the main character, or what he’s doing, at the same time that you want to comfort him. You see the end coming and want to avoid, even as you know it can’t really end any other way. (Though, those familiar with Yaoi mangas, which this very strongly resembles, will likely hold out hope of a happy ending. I know I did. Such unlikely pairings are far more common in that media.) I teared up before I reached the last page.

There are 19 illustrations in the book and each one is a piece of art. Honestly, it’s why I bought the paper version instead of the digital one. Because it’s so darned pretty!

Despite being a hard read, I’m thrilled to have read it. I find Guilty Pleasures, the author and illustrator’s publishing partnership where I bought the book, difficult to navigate. But from what I can garner, all the other works are ‘in progress’—mangas published per chapter. I don’t read that way, too impatient. But should they publish another full work, I’ll be first in line to buy it.

Book Review of The Duality Paradigm (Blood and Bone Trilogy #1), by Lia Cooper

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Duality ParadigmI grabbed a copy of Lia Cooper‘s The Duality Paradigm from the Amazon free list. At the time of posting, it was still free.

Description from Goodreads:
Everyone knows magic users and werewolves are intrinsically diametrically opposed… 

Seattle Police Detective Ethan Ellison, born into a long line of Quebecois magicians, leads a fairly unassuming life working Theft and consulting on magical misdemeanors. He’s spent eight years building a life for himself in Seattle, far from his father’s shadow. He works hard, lives under the radar, and fucks whoever catches his eye. 

Detective Patrick Clanahan, beta-heir to Pack McClanahan, is a tightly wired bundle of rage and guilt, still trying to come to terms with the murder of his last partner. 

When a human woman is murdered in werewolf territory under suspicious circumstances, Ethan is reassigned to worked the case with Clanahan in the hopes that he’ll be able to balance out the wolf’s rougher edges. 

Too bad they mostly just rub each other the wrong way.

Review:
This is a pretty middle of the road read, not bad but not all that great either. It’s a shame too, because I think the idea could really have been something special. Unfortunately, it tended to flounder, with whole subplots that never coalesced into anything meaningful (I suspect it was a set up for a future book.), annoying characters and truly lacking editing.

Let’s talk about the characters. Both were meant to be in their late twenties (26 & 29, if I remember correctly) but both came across as extremely juvenile. Patrick was at least adorable in his boyishness, but he was still childlike. This was an interesting turn for the otherwise big alpha character to take. Ethan, however, was just plain irritating in his bratty, self-centered aggression and over-reactions.

Both also had a history that was important and referenced, but never explored enough to feel substantial. I could have done with a little more world-building too. The plot worked, but it felt like mythical creatures kept being referenced without the reader knowing they existed prior to that point. On a similar side note, I never did figure out what the title meant. Maybe that comes up later in the series too.

I did, however, appreciate that this wasn’t an insta-love (even if the actual leap to sex was a 0-60 scenario). I liked that as annoying as Ethan was, he was smart and willing to stand up for himself. I really liked Cooper’s tendency to play with gender norms, mothers as pack alphas and fathers who cook dinner, for example.

All in all, I liked it enough to be interested in reading the next book, but not enough to be racing out and buying it.

The Accidental Alchemist

Book Review of The Accidental Alchemist, by Gigi Pandian

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The Accidental AlchemistI received a review ARC of Gigi Pandian‘s The Accidental Alchemist from Netgalley. (Isn’t that a great cover?)

Description from Goodreads:
When Zoe Faust–herbalist, alchemist, and recent transplant to Portland, Oregon–begins unpacking her bags, she can’t help but notice she’s picked up a stow away: a living, breathing, three-and-half-foot gargoyle. Dorian Robert-Houdin is no simple automaton, nor is he a homunculus; in fact, he needs Zoe’s help to decipher a centuries-old text that explains exactly what he is. Zoe, who’s trying to put her alchemical life behind her, isn’t so sure she can help. But after a murder victim is discovered on her front porch, Zoe realized she’s tangled up in ancient intrigue that can’t be ignored.

Review:
I’ll admit that the writing in this book is generally readable and, even though I had an ARC, the editing wasn’t worth comment. The problem was that I was simply bored throughout the whole thing…that and I became increasingly annoyed with the food references.

Because I can’t be bothered to give the book any more of my time by counting myself, I’m going to quote another reviewer here. “I did a quick word count and the “cook/ed/ing” was mentioned 79 times. SEVENTY-NINE-BRAIN-NUMBING-TIMES.” I’m not exaggerating when I say that at least, AT LEAST, 50% of the book is dedicated to what Dorian is cooking or what type of smoothie Zoe is making. And it gets worse.

I assume I’m not the only person who has that one friend who is a health nut and constantly trying to convert his/her (in my case her) friends to ‘the lifestyle.’ Zoe is this friend and I liked finding her in a book I was reading for fun even less than having soy milk, non-caff, chai lattes with my own real life fad eater friend.

None of Zoe’s healthy eating lectures felt natural. What it felt like Vegan/crossfirwas the author taking an opportunity to use her book as a soapbox. (There are even recipes in the back! How is that relevant in a fantasy novel?) All of which is annoying, yes, but it was also detrimental to the book. Because when, for example, three kids are missing and it’s imperative they be found quickly, all of the tension and buildup evaporates when the main character stops to make herself a quick smoothie, noting of course that she added extra chia seeds for the energy boost.

Further, when half the book is dedicated to food descriptions and another 20 or so percent dedicated to lectures on healthy eating and the benefits of certain herbs and such, there is very little book left for plot, character development and world building. So, let me address this here. There isn’t any of the last two.

There is no character development. To call them flat is an understatement. There is also no world-building. Zoe is just a random Alchemist in an otherwise, presumably, average America. What little plot there is is WEAK. The romance comes out of nowhere and has no basis. The mystery might as well have been a series of random events broken up by a series of silly and unbelievable Poirot/Jessica Fletcher/Columbo style ‘investigating.’ And the little bit of Zoe’s past that is revealed is just thrown in willy-nilly for no apparent reason.

Lastly, and as an admittedly pedantic point, a gargoyle is designed as a waterspout, having a trough for water to flow through. I don’t believe Dorian is meant to have one. It’s never mentioned in his description. Thus, wouldn’t he be a chimera or a boss?

So, for a super-food freak who likes to revel in their obsessive eating issues like others roll with religion, this book is a must-read. For the rest of us, you know, normalish people…I wish I hadn’t bothered.