Why Morrigan Crow is Better than Harry Potter

I'm really looking forward to the next book about Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend. And after a way, I wish it had been already a complete series; because then, I would know how much I can enjoy. For the time being, I'm waiting for the fourth book, and I can reassure you that the previous … Continue reading Why Morrigan Crow is Better than Harry Potter →

I’m not Impressed with Zelazny’s Amber, and Here are the Reasons

So, they say that Chronicles of Amber is a classic. A ten-volumes tale about an Amber prince and his son, a tale of alternative realities and parallel worlds, a symbolic tale of conflict between order and chaos. So they say. And I've read the whole thing, and I'm not that impressed. Maybe I'm based. Or … Continue reading I’m not Impressed with Zelazny’s Amber, and Here are the Reasons →

Rain Wilds Chronicles by Robin Hobb

Trigger Warning: SPOILERS For the last two years or more, I have been both wrong and right about Robin Hobb's books on the Realms of the Elderlings. I was right that the less Six Duchies' story, the better everything gets. But I was wrong that the author herself is homophobic. Or sexist on purpose. Liveship … Continue reading Rain Wilds Chronicles by Robin Hobb →

Deeplight by Frances Hardinge

Oh, what a strange and wondrous book it was! After a way, it's a departure from the previous works of Hardinge, at least from those I've read so far, such as Cuckoo Song, A Skinful of Shadows, or The Lie Tree. This time, the author doesn't write of England's not so glorious past, of class … Continue reading Deeplight by Frances Hardinge →

Valdemar Revisited

They are fine. It's fine. They are fine. Those Valdemar books by Mercedes Lackey. Recently, I've read another couple of Valdemar books, including an omnibus about Tarma and Kethry, the pair of a warrior and a sorceress, Brightly Burning, a tale of fire-gifted Herald, and Mage Storms omnibus, which is just the penultimate sequence in … Continue reading Valdemar Revisited →

The Nightrunner Series by Lynn Flewelling

I have certain problems with book series which were progressive as for their times in one aspect but were quite mediocre on other levels. Some of those series, like Darkover by Marion Zimmer Bradley, made me literally angry. Some others, like books of Lynn Flewelling, gave me fun, actually. Nevertheless, I should not forget about … Continue reading The Nightrunner Series by Lynn Flewelling →

Deverry Revisited

I didn't expect that Deverry Series would grow indifferent to me and that I would be no longer interested in it. But having read five more novels from this universe—three from the second tetralogy, an installment of the third tetralogy, and the brand new Sword of Fire—reassured me of it sadly. Do you see already … Continue reading Deverry Revisited →

Liveship Traders by Robin Hobb

Trigger warning: an incoherent reflection. No explicit spoilers, though I had fears about this trilogy. I remembered enough that in the books on Fitz Farseer by this author, there was too much of heavy-handed moralising and of somewhat simplified intrigue. So I approached this new trilogy unsure about what to expect. And it was almost … Continue reading Liveship Traders by Robin Hobb →

The Saga of Recluce—a Bad Trip

When there's a long book series, how many volumes do you need to estimate it's bad and boring, and you are no longer interested in it? The Saga of Recluce has twenty volumes or so. I've read two and a half, and I already know there's something bad about it. It isn't a controversial stuff. … Continue reading The Saga of Recluce—a Bad Trip →

“His Dark Materials” (and Co.) as an Anti-Narnia

I would say that His Dark Materials and its sequels are a religion-sceptic response for books on Narnia by C. S. Lewis. Religion-sceptic, maybe even atheist, but not necessarily progressive. I don't mean, of course, that it is bad then. But to be honest, if I want to see the topics of class, race and … Continue reading “His Dark Materials” (and Co.) as an Anti-Narnia →