Dusk or Dark or Dawn or Day

author: Seanan McGuire
name: Wayne
average rating: 3.90
book published: 2017
rating: 4
read at: 2017/04/05
date added: 2017/04/05
shelves:
review:
'Dusk or Dark or Dawn or Day' by Seanan McGuire is a kind of whodunnit ghost story, with a different premise than I've seen before.

Jenna is still hanging around, but she's no longer living. She is upset over her sister Patty's death, and blames herself. She blames herself for her own death too. In this book, people who die sometime have a debt of time they have to work off. Jenna can do this by taking time from the living, but she chooses not to do that and instead works at a suicide hotline. The problem is that something is making the other ghosts around Jenna disappear, and Jenna may be the only thing that can stop it.

I liked this world and the main character. The vibe of the book is a bit sad and melancholy, but I liked that with this book. Jenna has a pretty sad existence and a lot of guilt to get rid of. She doesn't let this stop her, and that makes her a pretty strong character.

I received a review copy of this ebook from Macmillan-Tor/Forge and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.


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One Trick Pony

author: Nathan Hale
name: Wayne
average rating: 3.62
book published: 2017
rating: 5
read at: 2017/04/03
date added: 2017/04/03
shelves: children-s, graphic-novels
review:
'One Trick Pony' by Nathan Hale drew me in with a very artistic cover. The story and art inside turned out to be just as engaging.

It is the dystopian future and hungry aliens are eating electrical devices. Strata and her friends and family live in a caravan staying one step ahead of these aliens. They scavenge for the technology of the past in the hope of one day rebuilding. Strata and her brother are on a scavenging trip when they find a room full of robots and an unusual mechanical horse named Kleidi. Triggering these devices brings on the aliens, who are looking for such things. The kids find themselves separated from their family, but they also find some unusual allies along the way. What will be the purpose of this strange golden horse.

It's a graphic novel for younger readers, but I felt like it was solid science fiction story. The art has minimal colors, but that only enhances the amazing line work in the pages. The level of menace is strong, even though this is a story for younger readers, and I didn't ever feel like any character was completely safe. I really liked this one.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from ABRAMS Kids and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.


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What a Waste: Where Does Garbage Go?

author: Claire Eamer
name: Wayne
average rating: 4.00
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2017/04/03
date added: 2017/04/03
shelves: children-s, non-fiction
review:
'What a Waste: Where Does Garbage Go?' by Claire Eamer with illustrations by Bambi Edlund is a book for young readers about garbage and the problems it creates.

As long as humans have been around, there has been garbage. A history of garbage is given as well as the current problems, from large greasy clots in sewers to plastic islands. There is plenty of gross out science and lots of awareness of the problems we face. Along with the problem are innovative people who are finding solutions, like the person who started a restaurant making meals out of food that others had thrown out, or places where electronics can get repaired rather than tossed. There is also a further reading list and a good sized bibliography.

The art is fun, which might seem strange considering how serious the topic is, but I think that approach keeps the subject hopeful. I liked the history of garbage and the frank message of where we are. The book would make a good read for a young person who likes gross out science books, or wants to learn how they can change the world.

I received a review copy of this ebook from Annick Press Ltd. and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.


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Fires and Murmur

author: Lorenzo Mattotti
name: Wayne
average rating: 3.18
book published: 2010
rating: 4
read at: 2017/04/02
date added: 2017/04/02
shelves: graphic-novels
review:
'Fires and Murmur' is a reprint of two stories. 'Fires' is written and illustrated by Lorenzo Mattotti. Murmur is written by Jerry Kramsky and illustrated by Mattotti. Both stories are bizarre and illustrated vividly.

In 'Fires' a battleship called the Anselm II is dispatched to investigate a strange island that burns mysteriously. The island also has strange inhabitants which Lieutienant Absinthe finds out when he goes to the island. This changes him and causes him to go a bit crazy.

In 'Murmur' the title character is a man who has amnesia. He also has a strange disfiguring mark on his face. The story follows his quest to find out who he is.

In both cases the art is colorful and very artistic. Faces and characters distend grotesquely and the landscapes seem foreign and frightening. Reminiscent of Edvard Munch's The Scream, madness and amnesia are represented physically in the features of the characters. These are characters in unreliable landscapes experiencing psychic trauma.

I'm grateful for Dover making these reprints available. This title was unknown to me when it came out, probably because it was originally French. Then chance to read it now is great.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Dover Publications and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.


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Snow Blind

author: Ollie Masters
name: Wayne
average rating: 3.33
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2017/04/02
date added: 2017/04/02
shelves: graphic-novels
review:
'Snow Blind' by Ollie Masters with art by Tyler Jenkins tells a story about a boy who finds out his parents aren't who he thinks they are.

Teddy is a teenager living in Alaska. He posts a picture of his dad online and sets a chain of events in motion. When the FBI shows up at his house, he learns that his parents are in the witness protection program. He also finds out that there is someone out for revenge. Teddy's parants are not who he thought they were, and he's not sure if he can believe them when they do tell him. He encounters a strange man in town and learns a different story. Who should he believe?

I liked this story quite a bit. The art style looks like watercolors and I think it works very well for a story that has a vague truth at it's core. Teddy is a likable enough character thrown into a world he didn't create.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from BOOM! Studios and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.


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Gateway (Heechee Saga, #1)

author: Frederik Pohl
name: Wayne
average rating: 4.08
book published: 1977
rating: 4
read at: 2017/04/02
date added: 2017/04/02
shelves: sword-and-laser
review:
'Gateway' by Frederik Pohl was the pick for my book club last month. It's a good, though somewhat dated, story.

The framing story involves the main character, Robinette Broadhead, as he attends therapy sessions by a mechanical therapist. Rob is not a very likable character, and he seems evasive towards his therapist, even to the point of pulling pranks, and being derogatory towards him. Can you be derogatory towards a machine?

The reason he is in therapy is about his time on Gateway, a place with strange alien technology left behind by the Heechee. Fortunes can be made and lives lost by blindly taking a trip in one of the strange spacecraft left behind. Rob has come from a bleaker existence that makes this sort of risk seem like his only choice.

The dated parts come in regarding the kind of technology and even therapy methods used. Also some of Rob's feelings about things. I don't think we are supposed to like him, but that doesn't mean it's not a good book. The ending is a bit abrupt, and there are bits of Gateway ephemera that were sprinkled through my book that seemed disruptive to the narrative flow, but it was a quick enough read. I enjoyed this one.


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Limbo

author: Dan Watters
name: Wayne
average rating: 3.50
book published: 2016
rating: 4
read at: 2017/04/02
date added: 2017/04/02
shelves: graphic-novels
review:
'Limbo' by Dan Watters with art by Caspar Wijngaard is a graphic novel about a detective in a surreal setting. I liked the look and feel of this one.

Clay is a detective in a place called Dedande City. Based on things in the story, it seems to be the late 1980s or early 1990s in this city. Clay has been banged up pretty good, but he takes a case from a lady named Bridgette. She doesn't like her boss, who is nicknamed The Thumb. Things feel like a normal noir story up to this point, but they are about to take a turn for the weird.

The supernatural is here as well as alive in old television channels and video tapes. The spirit world can be contacted through mix tapes. Clay doesn't know how he got here and he's got questions, but first, he has some new enemies that want to silence him forever.

I liked the story and the artwork quite a bit. The story seems a bit normal at first, but then takes a good strange twist. I liked Clay's friend Sandy. She plays a different role than usual in this type of story, and I liked her competence.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Image Comics, Diamond Book Distributors, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.


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