Caturday Reads: Haute couture and hot diamonds make for one hot mystery
Cat Got Your Diamonds A Kitty Couture Mystery by Julie Chase Crooked Lane Books Mystery & Thrillers Pub Date 15 Nov 2016 Review Haute couture, hot jewels, a hot setting and great chemistry make this zany mystery an absolute winner in my book. Even if you aren’t an animal lover, if you love cozies Cat Got Your Diamonds is certain to delight - especially if you enjoy old-style screwball comedies. Lacy is wonderfully odd, energetically throwing herself into her pet couture bus
Will I See? addresses the topic of violence against women with beauty and power
Will I See? by David Alexander Robertson | illustrated by GMB Chomichuk Portage & Main Press HighWater Press Comics & Graphics Novels, Teens & YA Pub Date 31 Dec 2016 Review Absolutely unforgettable! Will I See? addresses the topic of violence against women with beauty and power. The black and white images are realistic, but there is also a dreamlike quality to them. Swaths of red add a dramatic flair, implying violence and death. Will I See? has a strong emotional affect
Cyberpunk lives in this fantastic anthology
Cyber World Tales of Humanity's Tomorrow By Jason Heller, Joshua Viola Hex Publishers Sci Fi & Fantasy Pub Date 08 November 2016 Review I remember reading cyberpunk in my youth - stories of tomorrows where technology is an integral part of life, but that life is far from utopian. Strange technologies, dystopian societies and alienated individuals were all a part of visions that stirred the imagination. Cyberpunk didn't really disappear. Instead it transformed. The future i
Passable urban fantasy brings Egyptian gods to New York
Hidden Blade: The Soul Eater Book 1 By Pippa DiCosta Victory Editing Scifi & Fantasy Pub Date 18 October 2016 Review As urban fantasies go, Hidden Blade falls in the middle - decently written, a decent story with fairly interesting characters. I wouldn't call it excellent or groundbreaking, but it does successfully introduce the main series characters, provides some insight into their nature, and leaves the door wide open for future novels - exactly what a first novel is int
Incredible anthology opens world of Chinese SF
Invisible Planets Contemporary Chinese Science Fiction in Translation By Ken Liu Macmillan Tor-Forge Science Fiction & Fantasy Pub Date 01 November 2016 Review Invisible Planets is an incredible collection of science fiction stories from mainland China. Each of the stories is a gem, multifaceted, beautiful and utterly unique. What you perceive depends on the angle from which you look at it. So many wondrous places and amazing characters. What all of the stories have in co
Caturday Reads: Debut White Cat Chronicle cute but unexceptional
Boy Meets Witch The White Cat Chronicles, Book 1 by G.A. Rael G.A. Rael Romance, Sci Fi & Fantasy Pub Date 17 Nov 2016 Review Cute but unexceptional, Boy Meets Witch is a fun but forgettable read. This novel definitely falls in the romantic fantasy category. It is not graphic, unlike many in the genre, so it should be fine for teens. Harper Adams is a witch in hiding. Her father, an evangelical preacher, first used her as a faith healer, then kept her prisoner in the basem
Beautifully poetic The Winterlings appeals to lovers of Spanish literature
The Winterlings Cristina Sánchez-Andrade, Samuel Rutter Restless Books (Simon & Schuster) Pub Date: November 1, 2016 Fiction / Gothic Review The Winterlings flows smoothly, more like poetry than prose. It isn't a gothic in the traditional sense, but like in gothics women and the conception of femininity play a central role. This is a novel that will definitely appeal more to an academic audience than the general public. The story centers around two sisters who return to the
Witty, irreverent and a hell of a lot of fun
Strange Magic A Yancy Lazarus Novel, Pilot Episode By James A Hunter Shadow Alley Press Sci Fi & Fantasy Pub Date 16 January 2015 Review Yancy Lazarus is many things - wisecracking bluesman, wanderer, gambler, fixer. Sure he can do magic, but that doesn't mean he has an easy time staying out of trouble. Trouble normally finds him, and this time it has come en masse. Between rival gangs each believing he is responsible for the slaughter of members and their families and hye
A Ghost or a Warning of Danger to Come
The Lost Child of Lychford By Paul Cornell Macmillan-Tor/Forge Sci Fi & Fantasy Pub Date 22 November 2016 Review The Lost Child of Lychford is a good short fantasy novel, but it assumes that readers are already familiar with the main characters and their role in protecting the village. You will still enjoy the novel if you jump straight in, but you may want to consider reading Witches of Lychford first. Christmas is approaching, along with all that entails. As Reverend, Lizz
Terrific graphic adaptation to Charlaine Harris' Grave Surprise
Charlaine Harris' Grave Surprise by Charlaine Harris Diamond Book Distributors Dynamite Entertainment Pub date 27 December 2016 Comics & Graphic Novels Review I've always liked Charlaine Harris' Harper Connelly novels, so I was happy to have an opportunity to review the graphic novel version of Grave Surprise. It exceeded my expectations. The character designs accurately and appealingly depict the central characters, they captured aspects of their personalities through a w
