Sleep No More

author: Jeff Gulvin

name: Wayne

average rating: 4.00

book published: 1996

rating: 4

read at: 2015/03/30

date added: 2015/03/30

shelves:

review:

'Sleep No More' is a police procedural that had me guessing almost the entire way. I liked it, but the story would shift time without notice and that was a little confusing.



Aden Vanner is a cop with a past. As a former army member in Ireland, he's got a penchance for violence. When he beats a prisoner, this lands him in the sights of Superintendent Morrison of the CIS (aka internal affairs for us Yanks). At the same time, there are a series of revenge killings, going on by a killer known as the Watchman. Morrison likes Vanner for the killings, and even though he's been suspended, Vanner decides he should figure out who's behind it. With Morrison closing in, can Vanner find the real killer? Or is Morrison right to suspect Vanner after all?



I liked it, and I didn't immediately figure out how it was going to go. There were occasional flashbacks that would take place suddenly within a chapter, and that was kind of confusing at first, but I got into the flow of it as the book went along. Not a bad mystery.



I received a review copy of this ebook from Open Road Integrated Media and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.









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Hinges: Book 1 Clockwork City (Hinges, #1)

author: Meredith McClaren

name: Wayne

average rating: 3.54

book published: 2015

rating: 4

read at: 2015/03/30

date added: 2015/03/30

shelves: graphic-novels

review:

'Hinges: Book 1' by Meredith McClaren is a webcomic turned graphic novel and it was an interesting enough premise for me to want to read more.



Orio is a kind of clockwork doll that is new to the city of Cobble, a kind of massive steampunk city. As part of her orientation, she is supposed to pick a companion, but ends up with the mischievous companion Bauble. Bauble picks Orio, not the other way around. Orio needs to find work to stay in the city, but Bauble is troublesome. As they move about the city, they find themselves in situations and meeting new people. Orio's companion is not liked by most of the people in her new town, but Orion becomes fond of the strange curious creature.



I liked the art. It's kind of a cross between anime and steampunk. The story is kind of weird, but I think I was in the mood for something strange because I ended up liking it more than I thought I would. I'd like to see where the story goes from here as Orio and Bauble explore this unusual city.



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





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The Eternity Cure (Blood of Eden, #2)

author: Julie Kagawa

name: Wayne

average rating: 4.32

book published: 2013

rating: 4

read at: 2015/03/30

date added: 2015/03/30

shelves: young-adult

review:

'The Eternity Cure' is book two in the Blood of Eden series by Julie Kagawa. You will need to start with book one or you'll be lost. It's an interesting post-apocalyptic world filled with zombies and vampires and humans who have to make tough choices. Spoilers for the first book will follow.



Vampire Allison Sekemoto, or Allie, finds herself allied with her hated "blood brother" Jackal to try to save the vampire that made them vampires. He's captured and in pain, and Allie dreams about it. It means going back to Allie's old stomping grounds of New Covington, a place she hasn't been to as a vampire. There they find evil vampire Sarren has unleashed a plague to kill off the remaining humans. He's supposed to have a cure, so in order to save their sire, they need to track down and stop Sarren. If they can't do it, the entire world may end, as humans become infected and vampires starve.



It's a second book, but it doesn't suffer from the usual second book things. There is enough action to keep things going, but there are those horrible moments that happen towards the end to keep readers moving on to the next book. The good news is that it's out now, so the nailbiting time will be short.



It's a YA book, so it's got the requisite angsty love story elements, which are not my thing, but weren't so cloyingly annoying that they stopped me from reading. Kagawa is a good author and knows how to build a credible world and characters to populate it. I enjoyed it.



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





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The Battle Begins: The Story of Creation

author: Caleb Seeling

name: Wayne

average rating: 4.60

book published: 2014

rating: 3

read at: 2015/03/21

date added: 2015/03/24

shelves: graphic-novels

review:

'The Battle Begins: The Story of Creation' is part of the Action Bible. This is a graphic novel version of the Bible, but it's best, at least in this case, to think of it more as a loose paraphrase than an exact translation.



The story starts in the time before the events in Genesis with the start of the fall of Lucifer story. Michael and Lucifer have differing opinions about this new creation idea, and Lucifer feels like he should be more important. This is setting the stage for later. We then move to the creation story with Jesus being the one doing the creating. We see John 1:1 quoted here, and this explains his part of the Holy Trinity and why he would be present during creation. God creates Adam, and Adam comes across as a bit slow on the uptake. He runs around shouting out names for animals and seems generally clueless. We then see the fall of Lucifer and his tempation of Eve and Adam followed by their ejection from the Garden of Eden. The book finishes with a scene from the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem in the New Testament.



The art by Sergio Carillo is quite good. I've liked his style in the Lone Ranger book that I read. This is my first read of the Action Bible series, and it looks like he does most of the art for this series which would give the series some nice consistency. Where I guess I might have taken issue is with some of the interpretive nature of the book. We know that Lucifer was cast out of heaven over pride issues. We know that he shows up in the Garden of Eden as a serpent, but we don't know the exact details, so what we get here is not a strict scriptural interpretation of those events, but a writer's paraphrase of events. The portrayal of Adam struck me as a bit strange. He seems clueless and a bit of an airhead. Granted, he's a newly created being, and maybe I've never given much thought to it, but it still seemed like not a very idyllic state, especially when he meets Eve and jumps up, ADD-like, to name a gazelle. Jesus is nice, but he seems not very clued in to the dissatisfaction happening with Lucifer. I wanted him to be more powerful and all-knowing. I liked it, but just not as much as some of the other reviewers.



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





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Silhouette (New Series Adventures, #53)

author: Justin Richards

name: Wayne

average rating: 3.73

book published: 2014

rating: 4

read at: 2015/03/19

date added: 2015/03/19

shelves:

review:

'Silhouette' by Justin Richards is the first 12th Doctor book I've read in the Doctor Who series and I liked it. It didn't hurt that it also took place in the Victorian era and featured the Paternoster gang of Madame Vastra, Jenny, and Strax.



When the Doctor and Clara visit a carnival, they find things are not as they should be. There are a series of strange murders and some suspicious characters. There is a strange woman who seems to be able to create animated objects out of paper, and a man who can make his face appear to be anyone else. Heading up this group is a strange man who doesn't seem to belong in Victorian London, or even on the planet Earth. With everyone following different leads, it all culminates in the revealing of the evil plot at the center. Can the Doctor and Clara save the day?



I liked it. The twelfth Doctor, at the point when this novel came out last fall, didn't seem to have any broad quirks like his predecessors. Having seen some episodes with Peter Capaldi, I'd say the book gets his character down pretty good. I like the strange characters that can manipulate objects or even their own faces. The bad guy came across as a bit too stereotyped, but it was all in good fun. And you can't go wrong with Strax, except there's just never enough of him. I liked it.



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





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Trees, Vol. 1 (Trees #1)

author: Warren Ellis

name: Wayne

average rating: 3.98

book published: 2015

rating: 3

read at: 2015/03/19

date added: 2015/03/19

shelves: graphic-novels

review:

'Trees, Vol. 1' is the start of a series, and this volume is mostly just the set up. I liked it for the most part, but felt it got a bit bogged down about 2/3 of the way through. I thought it recovered by the end and think it's an interesting premise.



10 years ago large columns came from outer space landed on our planet. They are different sizes and groups. They are nicknamed trees, and for 10 years they have just stood silently with no indication why they are there. The story takes place in different places on the globe with different ways of approaching these strange trees. Some are artists, or scientists, or people on the fringes of their societies. An over-obsessed scientist finds strange black flowers growing near a tree in the Arctic, and they may lead to a breakthrough. Just as the story winds up again, the volume ends.



I like the premise. I liked the global aspect and the characters that were introduced. The stories don't connect at this point, but it's possible they might. Some of the fringe folks and their stories didn't seem to advance the story at this point, and I wanted to get back to what was happening with the scientists. I liked it, and I'd like to see where it's going to end up going.



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





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Big Star Otto (Elephants Never Forget, #3)

author: Bill Slavin

name: Wayne

average rating: 3.29

book published: 2015

rating: 3

read at: 2015/03/14

date added: 2015/03/14

shelves: graphic-novels, children-s

review:

'Big Star Otto' is the 3rd graphic novel in a series, which I didn't know when I sat down to read it. I was still able to follow the story and still enjoyed it quite a bit.



Otto the elephant and his parrot friend, Crackers, have made their way to Hollywood (after the circus escapades of their last book). They are looking for their monkey friend Georgie who has been taken by the man with the wooden nose (who bears a resemblance to the man with the yellow hat in another series with a monkey). Otto and Crackers find work with an agent, but before long they find themselves in all kinds of trouble. Can they find Georgie, and has show biz changed him so much that he won't recognize his old friends?



It's zany fun, but there is a bit of a message too. Animals are treated well, and not so well, and there are probably discussions to be had with young readers. Elephants are forced to work and threatened with sharp objects and electrical shocks, so it could be a bit traumatic for certain young readers. The drawings are very cartoonish, and I could almost imagine this as an animated series. Otto and Crackers are endearing and there are little odd jokes here and there and I liked it.



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





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