Tag Archives: book review

What’s Old Is New Again

Reading should be fun. If it’s not fun, why do it? A few days ago I ordered two 3-book fantasy series from Amazon, both by authors I had never even heard of. That’s taking a chance, but both series looked … Continue reading

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Stick With It

In keeping with my new resolution to ignore the flaws in novels that I start reading and actually finish them, I have now plowed through to the very end of Tiger Burning Bright by Marion Zimmer Bradley, Andre Norton, and … Continue reading

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Dull Thud

Yes, it’s time for another Oblong Book Review, brought to you by Mr. Grumpy, Inc. This month the local science fiction book club decided to read Lightning Strike by Catherine Osaro. I had never read any of her work. She’s … Continue reading

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Star-Crossed

Have you ever read a novel that was both wonderful and annoying, and also both wholly original and unashamedly derivative? Welcome to The Starless Sea. I had been waiting for Erin Morgenstern’s next book for quite some time, as have … Continue reading

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Shadowboxing

Writing a multi-volume epic is a popular pastime these days. This may be a market-driven trend: Once you’ve hooked readers with the first book, you’ll have a built-in customer base for the rest of the series. But it’s not always … Continue reading

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Teasers

The Mortal Word is the fifth book in Genevieve Cogman’s Invisible Library series. I’ll cheerfully admit I’m hooked on them. The stories are overwrought and a bit cheesy, but they’re good fun. I waited eagerly for The Mortal Word, and … Continue reading

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Tinsel & Tissue

There’s an important place in fantasy literature for places and events that are just flat-out amazing — colorful, fresh, spectacular, and beautifully fleshed out by the author. But is an amazing spectacle all that’s needed to propel a novel, or … Continue reading

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It’s a Marvel

I never read comic books when I was a kid. I read Mad Magazine, but that wasn’t a comic, it was freewheeling satire suitable for the warping of impressionable young minds. Last week, at the local used book store, I … Continue reading

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Lost Girl

I read a lot of genre fiction, but I’ve never quite had the patience to read literature. Read half of The Great Gatsby, lost interest. Read maybe a third of Tristram Shandy, lost interest. Tried Ulysses, didn’t get far. Liked … Continue reading

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Kvothe the Raven

Large fantasy novels sometimes get off to a slow start. When tackling a new one, I try to give it 125 pages before I decide whether to go on or bail out. By that point, if not before, a writer … Continue reading

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