Tag Archives: fantasy

The Alchemists of Loom

Book Review of The Alchemists of Loom (Loom Saga #1), by Elise Kova

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The Alchemists of LoomI received a copy of Elise Kova‘s The Alchemists of Loom from Netgalley.

Description from Goodreads:
Her vengeance. His vision.

Ari lost everything she once loved when the Five Guilds’ resistance fell to the Dragon King. Now, she uses her unparalleled gift for clockwork machinery in tandem with notoriously unscrupulous morals to contribute to a thriving underground organ market. There isn’t a place on Loom that is secure from the engineer turned thief, and her magical talents are sold to the highest bidder as long as the job defies their Dragon oppressors.

Cvareh would do anything to see his sister usurp the Dragon King and sit on the throne. His family’s house has endured the shame of being the lowest rung in the Dragons’ society for far too long. The Alchemist Guild, down on Loom, may just hold the key to putting his kin in power, if Cvareh can get to them before the Dragon King’s assassins.

When Ari stumbles upon a wounded Cvareh, she sees an opportunity to slaughter an enemy and make a profit off his corpse. But the Dragon sees an opportunity to navigate Loom with the best person to get him where he wants to go.

He offers her the one thing Ari can’t refuse: A wish of her greatest desire, if she brings him to the Alchemists of Loom. 

Review:
I’m vacillating on this book. Some aspects of it I absolutely adored. But I also found it painfully slow at times and was disappointed to find that it didn’t wrap up nicely in the end. It’s not a precipitous cliffhanger, but it’s not really and ending either.

On the positive side of the equation, I found that once I had enough information to understand what was happening (and this took a while) I liked the world and the characters. There is a lot going on here, with the large, multi-cultured world and several races. I appreciated that the romantic subplot was slow to develop and didn’t take over the plot when it did. And I think most of the writing was really lovely. It got a little purple at times, but mostly it was quite lyrical and a pleasure to read. Oh, and the cover is Awesome!

This was the first book by Kova I’ve read, but I’d be well up for another one.

Book Review of The Masked City (The Invisible Library #2), by Genevieve Cogman

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The Masked CityI borrowed a copy of Genevieve Cogman’s The Masked City from my local library.

Description from Goodreads:
Working in an alternate version of Victorian London, Librarian-spy Irene has settled into a routine, collecting important fiction for the mysterious Library and blending in nicely with the local culture. But when her apprentice, Kai—a dragon of royal descent—is kidnapped by the Fae, her carefully crafted undercover operation begins to crumble.
 
Kai’s abduction could incite a conflict between the forces of chaos and order that would devastate all worlds and all dimensions. To keep humanity from getting caught in the crossfire, Irene will have to team up with a local Fae leader to travel deep into a version of Venice filled with dark magic, strange coincidences, and a perpetual celebration of Carnival—and save her friend before he becomes the first casualty of a catastrophic war.
 
But navigating the tumultuous landscape of Fae politics will take more than Irene’s book-smarts and fast-talking—to ward off Armageddon, she might have to sacrifice everything she holds dear….

Review:
Darn it, this is the second book in a row that turned out to be a second in a series. Unfortunately, with this one I didn’t realize that it is a sequel until at least halfway through. It’s definitely followable without reading the first, I just had to overlook the references to action from book one. Doable, but annoying.

I generally really enjoyed this. I liked Irene as a heroine. I liked how it turned the damsel in distress trope on its head by having her save her male apprentice. Some of this was compromised by the fact that she had to beg a king and a male fae for assistance and a male side character came to her rescue, but in the end she rescued him too and carried the day (with the assistance of two men, but who’s counting). She was definitely the initiator of most of the action. Yay. I thought the dialogue was brisk and there was a lot of humor. But I thought the writing was repetitive and occasionally overblown.

I was consistently irritated to have the otherwise adult narrative interrupted by Harry Potter-esque magic, such as magical, inter-dimensional traveling wardrobes characters climb in and out of. And I flat out hated the Language (which is a magical ability). Every single one of her blunt magical directives read as cheesy and unbelievable, not to mention too convenient for comfort.

Perks for having women in positions of power, even if predominantly in the background, giving most the active authoritative positions to men. And extra perks for allowing for more than het seductions and the presence of at least one gender queer character.

Lastly, I would have liked one more chapter at the end, showing what happened to Irene once she returned to the library and faced her superiors, but I did enjoy the bonus content the reader is given instead. (Just not as much as I’d have enjoyed a little more wrap-up to the plot.)

What I’m drinking: Generic, loose-leaf green tea. As in, I put it in a pretty little tea tin and no longer remember where it came from or what brand it might be. As far as I’m concerned, it’s just green tea. It’s a nice brew though.

Clean Sweep

Book Review of Clean Sweep (Innkeeper Chronicles #1), by Ilona Andrews

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Clean SweepI bought a copy of Clean Sweep, by Ilona Andrews.

Description from Goodreads:
On the outside, Dina Demille is the epitome of normal. She runs a quaint Victorian Bed and Breakfast in a small Texas town, owns a Shih Tzu named Beast, and is a perfect neighbor, whose biggest problem should be what to serve her guests for breakfast. But Dina is…different: Her broom is a deadly weapon; her Inn is magic and thinks for itself. Meant to be a lodging for otherworldly visitors, the only permanent guest is a retired Galactic aristocrat who can’t leave the grounds because she’s responsible for the deaths of millions and someone might shoot her on sight. Under the circumstances, “normal” is a bit of a stretch for Dina.

And now, something with wicked claws and deepwater teeth has begun to hunt at night….Feeling responsible for her neighbors, Dina decides to get involved. Before long, she has to juggle dealing with the annoyingly attractive, ex-military, new neighbor, Sean Evans—an alpha-strain werewolf—and the equally arresting cosmic vampire soldier, Arland, while trying to keep her inn and its guests safe. But the enemy she’s facing is unlike anything she’s ever encountered before. It’s smart, vicious, and lethal, and putting herself between this creature and her neighbors might just cost her everything.

Review:
I have a really odd relationship with Ilona Andrews books. I enjoy them, but I almost never rate one higher than 3 stars. I like them but just don’t think they’re all that great…but taken together, I always want another. They’re like hard candies, not anything special but once you’ve had that first one you just want to keep popping them in your mouth until your tastebuds burn. That’s me and Andrews. I don’t think the books are great, but I always want another one. What am I supposed to do with that?

This is no exception. I thought it was a lot of fun, though bordering on utterly ridiculous and there were several too-coincidental-to-be-believed moments. But I liked all the characters; as always I appreciated the strong female and alpha male willing to let her lead, there are a ton of little easter eggs hidden in it and I’m already ready for the next one.