Books I’ve Read

Finished The Unhandsome Prince by John Moore. I’ve read some of Moore’s light-hearted fantasies before, so when I saw this one at the used bookstore, I snatched it up.

In this book, Caroline, a very determined peasant girl, has spent weeks systematically catching frogs and kissing them in hopes of returning a handsome prince to his original form (he was enchanted by an angry sorceress). She finally succeeds and ends up with Hal, who’s everything a prince should be — except handsome. Hal’s cute, but not cute enough for Caroline, so the two of them go to Hal’s kingdom so she can meet his brothers, who are much more handsome than he is. Also accompanying them is Emily, a magical apprentice who has a thing for Hal. Along the way, the trio meets Rapunzel and Rumplestiltskin, among other folks. There are sword fights, riots, and a wheel that can spin hair into gold.

Moore writes what I would consider to be fairy tale spoofs. He takes common fairy tales and myths and turns them on their head, and The Unhandsome Prince is no different. The humor is very wry and tongue-in-cheek. Moore doesn’t take himself too seriously, which is something I always appreciate.

If you’re looking for a light, fun, quick read, you’ll probably enjoy this one or one of Moore’s other books, like A Fate Worse Than Dragons. I did. Thumbs up.

Up next: Atlantis Awakening by Alyssa Day.

Books in my TBR pile: About 14.

A thought: On a side note, it is just me or are several of the Ace Books usually shorter than those published by other fantasy lines? This one was less than 300 pages. I believe Patricia Briggs is one of their authors too, and her books are usually right at 300 pages or a little less. I’m wondering if the line’s word count is only 90,000 words instead of 100,000. Anyone know?

Finished Soon I Will Be Invincible by Austin Grossman. This is a superhero book that came out about the same time as Karma Girl did last year. For much more on Invincible, check out Girls Read Comics. Karen Healey did an interview with Grossman last year. You can find it in the archives.

This book is about Doctor Impossible, a supervillain who escapes from prison and tries to take over the world (for about the 13th time), and Fatale, a female human/cyborg who becomes part of the superhero team the New Champions in order to stop Impossible. The book alternates between the two of them. One chapter is from Impossible’s first-person point of view; the next is from Fatale’s first-person POV; and so on and so forth.

It’s a little confusing at first, but it really works well toward the end of the book. And like my significant other, Wheezley, said, it feels like you’re getting two books in one because of the different narrators.

This is a really, really interesting book. Grossman has an easy-to-read style (no matter who’s narrating) that sucks you in. The different POVs make the book a sort of chess game, as you see what Impossible’s doing and how Fatale and the other heroes are countering him. The plot moves along at a brisk pace, and Grossman really makes you believe in his world and how commonplace the heroes/villains are. There’s also an index in the back of the various characters, which helps keep everyone straight.

But what really struck me about the novel is how sad it is. One scene that illustrates this is when Fatale is spying on the other heroes as they get ready for bed. One has to take over a dozen pills; another has back problems; one pops painkillers just to keep going; and so on and so forth. Fatale muses about how heroes have their problems just like everyone else.

Then, there are Fatale and Impossible themselves. Impossible’s a villain because he never fit in anywhere. Fatale became a cyborg, and now she doesn’t fit in either. Neither one complains about things, but there’s a sad undertone to their narration. A longing for acceptance that I think is the major theme of the book — along with the endless cycle of battles, triumphs, and breakups between villains and heroes.

I did have a few quibbles with the book. There were several places in the book where I wasn’t sure who was talking and/or who was being referred to. Too many he’s and she’s and not enough names. It happened enough times to make me really notice it.

Also, there wasn’t nearly as much resolution at the end as I would have liked. (Maybe this is because he’s writing a sequel? Does anyone know?) For example, toward the end, Fatale finds out that she’s actually one of Impossible’s creations. You’d think she’d ask him some questions about that. Instead, she punches him and that’s about it. Impossible doesn’t even tell us why he made Fatale during his narration. Again, something I would have liked to know.

There’s also a fairy warrior named Elphin. I sort of got the idea she disappeared or went back to fairyland at the end, but it’s not really confirmed. I would have liked to have known one way or the other.

Still, if you’re a superhero fan, you’ll probably enjoy this book. The story is interesting, and Grossman leaves you with a lot to think about afterward. Thumbs up.

Up next: The Unhandsome Prince by John Moore.

Books in my TBR pile: About 15.

Finished Neptune Noir: Unauthorized Investigations into Veronica Mars, edited by Rob Thomas. This is a book of academic essays that looks at various aspect of the VM television show. I won it last year over at Diana Peterfreund’s blog. She too is a die-hard VM fan.

I don’t read a lot of academic or non-fiction, mainly since I had to slog through so much of it in college, along with all those so-called fiction classics. Blech. When I read, I want to be entertained, plain and simple. I want fun. Give me action, adventure, explosions, and a love story, and I’m satisfied. No deeper meaning or deconstruction is required. So I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from this book, which is decidedly academic. But I was pleasantly surprised.

The book features several essays, each of which looks at a different aspect of the television show. The essays cover everything from Veronica as a vigilante; to how the characters’ cars reflect their personality; to analyzing justice and the depiction of law enforcement officials in Neptune. VM really is deep, once you think about it.

My favorite essay was the one on Logan and Veronica’s ever-evolving, love-hate relationship. For me, the chemistry between L&V totally made the show. The essay author points out that despite Logan’s so-called jackassery, you always wanted to see more of him. Couldn’t agree more. Duncan was so boring, so wishy-washy, so vanilla. He just didn’t have much personality. I never really thought Duncan and Veronica could be happy together.

The essay author also points out that Duncan just wasn’t strong enough to keep up with Veronica, but that Logan was. This is so true, if you think about it. Logan was the one who heard Veronica was in trouble and came to rescue her at the hotel. Logan was the one who grabbed Veronica’s hand during his surprise party and announced to everyone they were a couple. Logan was the one who was there on the rooftop with her and Cassidy. Even when he was being an ass, you knew that Logan cared about Veronica.

Duncan? Well, he pretended like he hadn’t slept with Veronica, making her think she’d been raped, and pretty much ignored her after Lilly’s death. He also neglected to mention to her that they might be brother and sister. And he also gets his current girlfriend, Veronica, to help him kidnap his daughter by his old girlfriend, Meg. What a prince.

Another interesting essay talked about Lilly and Veronica’s relationship. I have to admit I never liked Lilly. I thought she was spoiled, selfish, and not a nice person. She slept with her boyfriend’s father, for crying out loud, and was going to expose their relationship with no thought about how it would hurt Logan or anyone else.

Basically, the essay talks about how Lilly’s murder froze her in Veronica’s mind and helped make their relationship this idealistic dream Veronica holds onto. The author wonders what Veronica would have done if she’d found out about Lilly sleeping with Aaron before Lilly died. Me too. I like to think that would have made Veronica see the person Lilly really was.

Since this is an academic book, some of the essays are a little dry and out-there, like the one analyzing why conservatives like VM. Seriously, why bring politics into it? VM is a smart, funny show with a strong, female heroine. Isn’t that reason enough for folks to love it?

But I enjoyed this book very, very much. Thumbs up. If you’re a big VM fan, do yourself a favor and get this one.

In fact, I liked this book so much I’m thinking of trying some of the other BenBella pop culture books. (I’m also going to do another post about how the VM book made me think about my own writing. But that’s for later on.)

Up next: Soon I Will Be Invincible by Austin Grossman or something else from the TBR pile.

Books in my TBR pile: About 16.

Finished Echo Burning by Lee Child. This is the fifth book in his Jack Reacher series, about an ex-military policeman who roams around the country.

In this one, Reacher is hitchhiking through Texas when he gets picked up by Carmen Greer. Carmen has a serious problem. Her abusive husband is going to be released from prison on Monday, and she has no money, no way of getting away from him, and a young daughter to protect. Reacher is intrigued enough to want to help and goes back with Carmen to her husband’s ranch. But soon, Carmen’s husband is dead, and it looks like she killed him. There are also three assassins in the mix who get some new orders — kill Reacher no matter what …

You know, the more of the Reacher series I read, the more the premise reminds me of The A-Team. Reacher goes somewhere, helps someone straighten out the trouble they’re in, and moves on. Just something I’ve noticed.

Generally, I enjoy the Reacher series, but this book was disappointing. Mainly because not much happens. Seriously, for the first 75 pages or so, Reacher and Carmen are in her Cadillac driving through the Texas countryside as Carmen tells Reacher about her abusive husband. Then, Reacher’s stuck at the ranch for another 50 pages or so. Then, it’s 50 more pages of trying to figure out if Carmen killed her husband or not. There’s not even a really good fight scene until the very end of the book.

But mainly, the book didn’t work for me because the plot hinged on one giant coincidence in the middle of the story. A lawyer casually mentions an incident about several Mexicans getting murdered/raped/tortured as they tried to cross over into Texas. Reacher takes this one sentence of information and uses it to figure out what’s really going on. I couldn’t help but wonder if the lawyer hadn’t mentioned the incident to Reacher, if he would have been able to figure out everything else. It really seemed like a stretch to me. I would have liked for Reacher to find the info out on his own somehow. That would have made the story work better for me.

Also, the speed with which Reacher puts everything together bordered on the superhuman and implausible once again.

I’ll keep reading the Reacher series, because overall, they are really solid thrillers. But this book isn’t one of Child’s best efforts. The coincidence just ruined it for me. I’ve got to give this one a thumbs down.

Up next: Something from the TBR pile.

Books in my TBR pile: About 13 or so.

Finished The Bourne Legacy by Eric Van Lustbader. The original Bourne books were written by Robert Ludlum, who passed away. But Lustbader has written some new Bourne books based on Ludlum’s world/characters (kind of like the non-Ian Fleming James Bond books). I believe Legacy is the first of three Bourne books Lustbader has penned.

In this one, Jason Bourne (real name David Webb) is working as a linguistics professor at a college when someone takes a shot at him. Bourne goes to see his old friend Alex Conklin for help, only to find Alex dead — and himself framed for Conklin’s murder. From there, Bourne journeys to Paris and Budapest and uncovers a chilling terrorist plot that will remake the world. (Don’t they always?)

Wheezley saw this at the grocery story and bought it for me, knowing how much I liked the original Bourne books and the movies with Matt Damon. Besides, it’s a spy book. I’ll read just about anything with spies in it. 😎

But Legacy didn’t work for me as well as Ludlum’s original books did. Mainly, because Marie (Bourne’s wife) isn’t in it. The great thing about Ludlum’s books was the relationship between Bourne and Marie. But in Legacy, Lustbader has Marie go to a safehouse. She doesn’t take part in the action, and she doesn’t get a single word of dialogue. Bourne doesn’t even think about her that much, which was disappointing.

Also, too much of the action was away from Bourne. I don’t mind reading the villain’s POV sections, but Lustbader had about ten different characters with POV sections. There’s the bad guy, two Chechnyan terrorists, another assassin with a connection to Bourne, a detective, a French detective, and a femme fatale, for starters. I want to read about Bourne, not all these other folks. Also, each one of these characters is an egomaniac who thinks he/she is better, stronger, and smarter than everyone else. That got a little old after a while.

There are some nice action scenes, but overall, the terrorists’ plot and bad guys were pretty predictable, except for one nice double-cross in the middle of the book.

So thumbs down on this one, although I’ll probably buy the other Bourne books and read those too at some point.

Up next: Echo Burning by Lee Child

Books in my TBR pile: about 13 or so.