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Dragon Badge

Book Review of Dragon Badge (Lost Dragonslayer, #1), by Scott Moon

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Dragon BadgeIn December 2012, I grabbed a free copy of Dragon Badge, by Scott Moon.

Description from Goodreads:
Street cops face a crime trend no one saw coming. Who could have predicted what a person would do to possess another soul? 

Michael Prim is a cop’s cop, taking down drug dealers, killers, and all kinds of predators, until he realizes a sorcerer has a vendetta against him and is using hellhounds, demons, and soul slaves to exact revenge. 

MICHAEL PRIM 
Michael Prim is a hard charging beat cop soon to be thrust into a world of dark magic. He has always been a bit of a freak: different, strange, and always needing to prove himself. His last memories of his father were of bedtime stories—the mercenary war, dragon slaying, and demon fighting variety. He knows how to come down hard on wife beaters, pedophiles, and cop killing drug lords, but nothing has prepared him for the sorcerer who is coming for his soul. 

KEITH MARIN 
Keith Marin takes a new prostitute under his wing and tries to protect her, because she continually winds up in the gutter raped, tortured, and clutching a strange jar with a preternatural magnetism. He begins a dangerous dance with the sorcerer who has found his way to Blue Point, and discovers people from all walks of life who are slaves to the soul jars and little more than zombies. When two homeless layabouts who frequent his beat turn up driving a BMW, wearing tailored silk suits, and carrying serious firepower, Marin takes his investigation to the next level.

NICOLE SIMMONS 
Nicole Simmons has come out of hiding and reinvented herself—as a rookie cop. She begins to doubt her choice as soon as she is assigned to a training officer who is the archenemy of her kind. She should kill him and disappear again, but she had hoped this time would be different. 

DRAGON BADGE 
Michael Prim does what any good cop would do after discovering a soul reaving sorcerer is hunting on his beat, he goes to war, even as hellhounds and Rashfellen warriors come after him. He gets a little help from his friends—a tough as nails veteran and a zombie like prostitute who holds a soul trapped in a magical jar—but when the apocalypse comes, there is only his most hated enemy, the gang member who murdered his partner, to stand against Travass Isegurad and his demons.

Review:       **Slightly Spoilerish**
I really want to say I enjoy this book more than I did, because in some ways it was really interesting, but I just didn’t. Mechanically, it could have used a copy edit. It was well written (word choice, sentence structure and such) but it was just all over the place, took about an eternity to get to the point, had a painful lack of realistic reactions to events and introduced numerous threads that were never tied into the story in any way.

My biggest issue is with characters lack of reaction to the introduction of the supernatural. For real, a man got trapped in a cage-fight with a demonic warrior with his soul at stake. Basically doesn’t say anything, goes back to work. Man gets transported to another plain of existence and back again. Doesn’t say anything, goes back to work. People are being enslaved to small jars that everyone anomalously seems to understand contain soul. The police treat them like any other addictive substance, no one discusses it and everyone gets on with work. Officers are killed by a hellhound. No one says anything about it. They all go back to work. Man is attacked by a demon. Doesn’t say thing, goes back to work. Sorcerer tries to mentally influence a detective. Detective avoids it, but doesn’t say anything and goes back to work.

The book sets all this up as if this is an otherwise normal world and these things should be freaking people out, but nope. No one seems to be bothered in the least. Half of them seem to know more than they should, but we’re never told why or how and they ALL accept the preternatural with complete ease. It was so far from believable I almost didn’t continue with the book.

Some of the loose ends suggest someone somewhere knows something. For example, at one point one character goes to an interview in which she’s asked what she considers off topic questions about magic and dragon, but it’s never explained and it never comes up outside of the one scene. Similarly, obviously the bad guy knows what’s going on, but it’s never addressed.

Actually, a lot isn’t addressed. One person is apparently a dragon. It’s hinted at but never addressed. One man is a dragonslayer, but he doesn’t know it and it’s never addressed. Another is a demonslayer, but he doesn’t know it and it’s never addressed. Another seems to have some sort of biblical ability to see things, but it’s never addressed. There are apparently three different realms of existence, this is mentioned in one scene but never addressed. There may be some supernatural task-force, but it only shows up the once and it never addressed. Blue Point (the town) itself might be special in some way. It’s hinted at, but never addressed. There is so much ALMOST here and if it was the book would be great. But almost just doesn’t cut in when it comes to the enjoyment of a story and I finished the book scratching my head.

My second biggest issue is that the book contained a lot of unrelated police procedurals. I liked the Cop characters. I even thought that that aspect of the book was interesting and felt appreciably real, but it in no way progressed the story, In fact, it caused it to really drag. As an example, about 10% in you meet the sorcerer that will be the antagonist. Then he and that aspect of the plot doesn’t show up again until about 60% in. Everything in between is police officers making routine traffic stops and enjoying (or not) their time off. Interesting if it had been another book, but just a disappointing break in tension in this urban fantasy.

It’s all a shame too, because I so wanted to like it. I so wanted to wrap myself in this story and it’s characters, but the story is so buried in itself I could hardly even find it. Close but no cigar, I’m afraid.

A Reason To Believe

Book Review of A Reason To Believe, by Diana Copland

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A Reason to BelieveI bought a copy of A Reason to Believe, by Diana Copland.

Description from Goodreads:
Detective Matthew Bennett doesn’t believe in ghosts. So when the spirit of a murdered child leads him to her body, he’s shaken to the core—and taken off the case. Unable to explain his vision, or to let go of the investigation, Matthew turns to renowned medium Kiernan Fitzpatrick. Though he has doubts about Kiernan’s claims to communicate with the dead, Matt is nevertheless drawn to the handsome psychic, who awakens feelings he thought were long-buried.

Haunted by the lingering spirit of the little girl, Kiernan is compelled to aid in the search for her killer. The chance to get closer to the enigmatic Matt is an unexpected bonus. Although Kiernan’s been betrayed by people who turned out to be more interested in his fame than in himself, with Matt he’s willing to risk his heart. As the two men grow closer, Kiernan helps Matt rediscover that life offers no guarantees—but love offers a reason to believe…

Review:
This was an upper-middle of the road read, meaning I didn’t love it but I was perfectly satisfied by it. I like Matt’s character quite a bit. I tolerated Kiernan. He was basically just too over the top and grated on my nerves. I can’t even count how many perky, puppy-like bottoms I’ve encountered in m/m romances, but he just felt like one more of the same.

I’ll say the same for the token female BFF. They only seem to come in one of two designs, total biyatch or mouthy and nosy, but well intentioned. Sheila fell into the latter category. Meh.

As for the mystery, it was ok. I figured the basics of it out pretty early but was more than happy ride it out and learn the details. Unfortunately, three things annoyed me about it. One, there seemed to be quite a few convenient coincidences. For example, in a town of half a million the token BFF happens to be friends with the single person who can provide them the single piece of the puzzle they don’t even know they’re missing and just happens to think to speak to her. Ummm?

Two, Matt and Kiernan go about doing a lot of stupid stuff to figure out who the murderer is and exonerate the wrongly accused man. But nothing they do is anything they can take to the police, so it’s all basically pointless in the grand scheme of things. Three, the six-year-old ghost is way too smart for her age and Kiernan pretty much said they go into the afterlife with the understanding of their living selves.

The romance was also ok. I liked it well enough, but nothing about it wowed me. It was nice seeing Matt reemerge from his grief. (The scene with the flag at Brad’s funeral almost brought me to tears.) But the way Kiernan threw sexual innuendo in all the time just got annoying.

All-in-all, it was a fine read. I even liked it. But by next week I probably won’t even remember reading it.

Shadows of Asphodel

Book Review of Shadows of Asphodel (Shadows of Asphodel #1), by Karen Kincy

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Shadows of AsphodelI grabbed a copy of Karen Kincy‘s Shadows of Asphodel from the Amazon free list.

Description from Goodreads:
She never asked for the undying loyalty of a necromancer.

1913. Austria-Hungary. Ardis knows better than to save a man on the battlefield. Even if he manages to be a charming bastard while bleeding out in the snow. She hasn’t survived this long as a mercenary without some common sense.

When she rescues Wendel, it isn’t because he’s devilishly handsome, but because he’s a necromancer. His touch can revive the dead, and Ardis worries he will return from the grave to hunt her down. Besides, a necromancer can be useful in this world on the brink of war.

A gentleman of questionable morals, Wendel drops to one knee and pledges his undying loyalty to Ardis. She resists falling for him, no matter how hot the tension smolders between them. Especially when she discovers Wendel’s scars run much deeper than his skin, and it might be too late to truly save him from himself.

Review:
Wow, was I ever disappointed in this book. Not just because it was a disappointing read, but because it was a disappointing read that was almost something wonderful. It’s that close shave with loving a book that serves to exaggerate ones disappointment.

The problem really comes down to the romance and the fact that it’s not at all supported. Ardis meets Wendel on the battle field and on discovering he’s a necromancer, she’s so afraid of him that she’s not even willing to let him die (for fear he’ll come back from the dead for revenge). Further, she so disgusted by him she can’t even touch his hand with her fingers.

Then, less than a day later she’s grabbing him by the back of the neck and dragging him down for an impassioned kiss, but turning down sex because she wants something more than just a one-night stand. But the reader sees NOTHING to change her opinion or feelings toward him and honestly in less than 24 hours what conceivably could?

Then the next time they meet, meaning they’ve now known eachother a collective 36 hours (at most) and very little of that time is spent in conversation, they have sex and he’s telling her he loves her. They then are swearing to defend eachother to the death, etc. etc. etc. It’s not insta-love, it’s just insta-meaningful relationship. And there is nothing at all in the story to leave the reader feeling as if they’ve seen this relationship grow. What’s more, Ardis’ love seems to be wholly based on some cliché female need to heal the broken soul of an abused man. Ugh, please.

Plus, I was embarrassed for Ardis and the way she always seemed to be subtly demanding love from Wendel. She always behaved as if their relationship was more than he was offering. It was like seeing a woman trying to trap a man into marriage. Now, I’m fairly sure it wasn’t meant to feel like that. I think she was supposed to just have a big heart that she was offering to Wendel and that is what he responded to and changed his rogue-like ways. But it didn’t feel like it to me. She just felt clingy and demanding. (Though I appreciated her demanding nature in the sex scenes; I like encountering a female character who knows what she wants and is willing to say it.)

So, since the romance that was the reason the two characters were together to do the things they were doing felt hollow and unsupported, nothing else in the book felt believable to me either. Every-time Ardis ran off to save Wendel again, I wondered why. Every-time Wendel declared his adoration for Ardis, I wondered based on what. Every-time Ardis disregarded people’s warning about Wendel I thought, idiot, they’re probably right. The underlying scaffolding of the story was weak, thus everything else felt wobbly.

Beyond that, the story is mildly interesting, until the end when you reach a patently ridiculous ending where the ultimate baddie essentially allows them to waltz in, fight and waltz out again. How is that believable?

The writing is fine. The editing is fine (a few hiccups, but not many). The dialogue is fine. I liked the idea behind the book and the world. I almost liked the characters. I thought that Ardis, for a mercenary, was awful weepy and Wendel’s fragility felt contrived. But, for the most part, it was all passable.

I’d also like to comment on the cover. It’s a cool cover. I like it, but I don’t understand it. One can only assume that is meant to be Ardis on the cover, but quite a big deal is made out of her appearance in the book. She’s half Chinese and half American. She inherited her mother’s eyes and her father’s corn-silk blond hair. Why do publishers insist on putting characters on covers that look nothing like the characters are described in the book? It’s a huge pet peeve of mine. Either make them match or don’t bother, is my opinion.