Review: This is How You Lose the Time War

This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I love epistolary novels. Reading a story told only through the words of one person to another - with all of their own biases as they write - pulls me in like no other. It gives you a feel for the characters that just doesn't come through the same way as a traditional novel does.

This novel had been on my radar for awhile, to the point I'd even taken it out of the library and let it languish on my shelf until it needed to be returned. (That happens with far more regularity than it should.) Then, when I was looking for book clubs to join, this came up as the read for this month in one of them. What better way to make sure I read it than join a book club? I borrowed the ebook copy from the library and dove in.

I am so glad I did! This was one of the best stories I've read this year. Being a novella, it only took me a couple of hours to read it, but it didn't feel quick. Rather, it was like savoring a cup of tea, taking your time with each page. By the end, it was both a story that ended satisfactorily as well as one that you wouldn't be disappointed to see the next chapter.

Red is an agent for the Agency, traveling up and down the threads of the timelines to try to stop the incursions of the Garden and assure the timelines that she travels play out the way the Agency wants them to. One day, after a battle that ended exactly as Red had planned, she found a note on the battlefield. "Burn Before Reading" was written on the outside. And that began her unusual conversation with Blue, the Garden's agent equivalent to Red.

What follows is letters passed through their travels, each "written" and "read" in a different way (one was in the rings of a tree that Blue had grown to show the message that only Red could read). Between each letter, we get to see what the recipient was doing before the letter was found and how they came upon it. The letters start as short missives, speaking admiration of the other's skill. But slowly, the two start to share more about themselves and their world. As so often happens in our world, both had views of the other's society that didn't quite fit reality. And as each learned more, shared more, they found common ground. Love blooms, but how can they love in societies which want to crush one another.

The letters were a perfect growth from admiration to friendship to love. Starting from a place where Red isn't sure she should trust these letters from Blue and she isn't sure that she should trust the letters from Red, it weaves through pen-pal like sharing, Blue's sharing of letter etiquette and hidden meanings from time gone by, to declarations of love and finally, to a forced betrayal. It feels natural, though the otherness of Red, Blue and the world they inhabit feels very strange indeed.

The parts between the letters also serve to introduce another character - the seeker, who appears after the letter is destroyed, to take pieces of it into themself. By the end of the story, the seeker and their purpose is revealed and it adds a wonderful twist to the ending that I hadn't seen coming until it was revealed.

Much of the last quarter of the novel is told in a traditional narrative rather than via the letters, with a good reason that I'm not sharing so as not to spoil anything. But that is where the novel also really comes full circle and pieces from the past letters and intersections make perfect sense. It really was the only way for the story to come to a conclusion.

All in all, I highly recommend this novella. Especially if you like epistolary novels, non-traditional relationships, sci-fi and time travel. It has it all but it doesn't feel overcrowded. This is one that I'm going to have to purchase for myself so I can read and reread, as well as pass it along to others to do the same.

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Review: A Quick Bite

A Quick Bite by Lynsay Sands

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



Lissiana Argeneau is celebrating her 202nd birthday with a party at her mother's house. When she enters her room to get a new pair of stockings, she assumes that the man tied to her bed his her gift from her mother... a little bite to eat after the party.

Well, she has it half right. Her mother has "convinced" (through mental coercion) Dr Gregory Hewitt to come to the house as Lissie's birthday gift. But rather than being her midnight snack, he is there to help cure her of her phobia. And it's a bad one for a vampire - Lissie faints at the site of blood.

There's instant attraction between the two, but before either of them can admit it, they have to work through Greg learning about her family, crazy relatives (on both sides) and someone that wants to put a stake through Lissie's heart for being an evil, blood-sucking fiend. No one ever said the course of true love runs smoothly.

I really enjoy this series and was glad to have finally listened to the one that started it all. I'd seen Lissie and Greg in one of the other books I'd read, but I didn't really know their story. And I, for one, thought it was an intriguing one.

One of the best parts of this series is the inventive take on vampires that Sands has taken. Rather than the mystical/magical search for immortality that vampirism is usually portrayed as, the Argeneau series takes a scientific bent in the form of nanites that keep their bodies in peak condition. While she uses fiction getting it wrong to explain away some of the usual vampire "facts", she has perfectly plausible explanations for the ones that she's kept in. Since the nanites are fueled by blood, anyone with the nanites in their system (naturally born or "made") need to regularly replenish the blood in their system. And since sunlight is always damaging the skin cells, the nanites need to work harder to keep the host healthy, which uses more blood and weakens them until they can replenish.

I also like the fact that, in today's world when blood can be stored a la the Red Cross, the Argeneau clan has switched from "feeding off the hoof" (taking blood directly from an unwitting donor) to using bagged blood. And I like how Lissie being unable to use bagged blood (since she can see it through the bag) is the impetus from bringing a human into this world, which gives the reader a chance to learn about the world that Sands has crafted.

The story wasn't perfect. I don't remember a good explanation for the mental powers that the Argeneaus have (though that could just be my forgetting). And there were some parts of the story that I saw coming from the first. But she still managed to throw me a couple times by crafting the store differently than I had expected. For the most part, though, I knew what was coming. (eg. I knew who was behind the staking). But that doesn't always bother me. Because most of the time, it feels like the logical progression.

The writing was ok - not the best I've ever read but far, far from the worst. It was, however, good enough to keep me engaged in the story. And that, for me, is more important than any of the technical parts of the writing.

A word about the audio book edition - readers can make or break a book for me. I've listened to some books that, if I were to read them, I would thoroughly enjoy. But hearing them read by a particular reader destroys my good feelings about the book. I've also listed to some books in which the reader has made the book come even more alive for me. Victoria McGee is the reader for this book and she falls somewhere in the middle. She kept the story moving, didn't break me from the reality of the world and used a few distinctive voices for different characters. But she didn't make me believe that she was each of these characters, as some of the best do. I was very much aware that I was being read to rather than feeling like I was watching the story unfold before me.

I am looking forward to reading or listening to more books in this series. I love finding an unusual take on something that most people "know". And the Argeneau series does just that for the vampire genre.



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Review: The Morning Star: In Which the Extraordinary Correspondence of Griffin & Sabine is Illuminated

The Morning Star: In Which the Extraordinary Correspondence of Griffin & Sabine is Illuminated by Nick Bantock

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



(Note: This review covers all three books in the series - The Gryphon, Alexandria and The Morning Star.)

The Morning Star Trilogy is the second trilogy of books regarding Griffin and Sabine. But this time, Griffin and Sabine are in the background, guiding another pair of lovers together in an effort to stop Frolatti from some horrible plot. In the forefront of this story are Matthew Sedon, a young archaeologist in Alexandria with a connection to Sabine (she helped deliver him) and Isabella de Reims, a student in Paris and Matthew's lover. Isabella often has waking dreams, views into the psyche of the world. The letters are primarily between Matthew and Isabella, though Sabine does contact Matthew on occasion and Griffin keeps in contact with Isabella. There are shades of the beginnings of Griffin and Sabine's romance within these correspondence - primarily with Matthew's doubts regarding Sabine.

Unlike the previous trilogy, there is more of a sense of menace with this trilogy. There is active evil in the unseen Frilotti and his cohorts. But getting Matthew to understand the seriousness of what is happening (within the first book) is a large part of the first book.

I'll be honest. The second trilogy fell flat with me. It still had the beautiful artwork of the first trilogy, but the magic wasn't quite there. I think the addition of "the next generation" just didn't work as well. My husband, of course, thinks I'm crazy as he loved them as much as the first trilogy. But for me, Griffin and Sabine had a simplicity beneath the complications of their circumstance. Something primal about the connection and the love they shared. But adding Matthew and Isabella complicated that. And it just didn't sit as right with me.

The series was ok... worth reading at least once. But it didn't, in my mind, live up to the magic of the first trilogy.



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Review: Alexandria: In Which the Extraordinary Correspondence of Griffin & Sabine Unfolds

Alexandria: In Which the Extraordinary Correspondence of Griffin & Sabine Unfolds by Nick Bantock

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



(Note: This review covers all three books in the series - The Gryphon, Alexandria and The Morning Star.)

The Morning Star Trilogy is the second trilogy of books regarding Griffin and Sabine. But this time, Griffin and Sabine are in the background, guiding another pair of lovers together in an effort to stop Frolatti from some horrible plot. In the forefront of this story are Matthew Sedon, a young archaeologist in Alexandria with a connection to Sabine (she helped deliver him) and Isabella de Reims, a student in Paris and Matthew's lover. Isabella often has waking dreams, views into the psyche of the world. The letters are primarily between Matthew and Isabella, though Sabine does contact Matthew on occasion and Griffin keeps in contact with Isabella. There are shades of the beginnings of Griffin and Sabine's romance within these correspondence - primarily with Matthew's doubts regarding Sabine.

Unlike the previous trilogy, there is more of a sense of menace with this trilogy. There is active evil in the unseen Frilotti and his cohorts. But getting Matthew to understand the seriousness of what is happening (within the first book) is a large part of the first book.

I'll be honest. The second trilogy fell flat with me. It still had the beautiful artwork of the first trilogy, but the magic wasn't quite there. I think the addition of "the next generation" just didn't work as well. My husband, of course, thinks I'm crazy as he loved them as much as the first trilogy. But for me, Griffin and Sabine had a simplicity beneath the complications of their circumstance. Something primal about the connection and the love they shared. But adding Matthew and Isabella complicated that. And it just didn't sit as right with me.

The series was ok... worth reading at least once. But it didn't, in my mind, live up to the magic of the first trilogy.



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Review: The Gryphon: In Which the Extraordinary Correspondence of Griffin & Sabine Is Rediscovered

The Gryphon: In Which the Extraordinary Correspondence of Griffin & Sabine Is Rediscovered by Nick Bantock

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



(Note: This review covers all three books in the series - The Gryphon, Alexandria and The Morning Star.)

The Morning Star Trilogy is the second trilogy of books regarding Griffin and Sabine. But this time, Griffin and Sabine are in the background, guiding another pair of lovers together in an effort to stop Frolatti from some horrible plot. In the forefront of this story are Matthew Sedon, a young archaeologist in Alexandria with a connection to Sabine (she helped deliver him) and Isabella de Reims, a student in Paris and Matthew's lover. Isabella often has waking dreams, views into the psyche of the world. The letters are primarily between Matthew and Isabella, though Sabine does contact Matthew on occasion and Griffin keeps in contact with Isabella. There are shades of the beginnings of Griffin and Sabine's romance within these correspondence - primarily with Matthew's doubts regarding Sabine.

Unlike the previous trilogy, there is more of a sense of menace with this trilogy. There is active evil in the unseen Frilotti and his cohorts. But getting Matthew to understand the seriousness of what is happening (within the first book) is a large part of the first book.

I'll be honest. The second trilogy fell flat with me. It still had the beautiful artwork of the first trilogy, but the magic wasn't quite there. I think the addition of "the next generation" just didn't work as well. My husband, of course, thinks I'm crazy as he loved them as much as the first trilogy. But for me, Griffin and Sabine had a simplicity beneath the complications of their circumstance. Something primal about the connection and the love they shared. But adding Matthew and Isabella complicated that. And it just didn't sit as right with me.

The series was ok... worth reading at least once. But it didn't, in my mind, live up to the magic of the first trilogy.



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Review: The Golden Mean: In Which the Extraordinary Correspondence of Griffin & Sabine Concludes

The Golden Mean: In Which the Extraordinary Correspondence of Griffin & Sabine Concludes by Nick Bantock

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



Griffin is once again in London and Sabine is once again on Katie. They believe in one another, but the strangeness around their inability to meet has them desperate to find a way to do so. Each correspondence draws them closer to a possibility, while also exposing them to dangers that are stalking them.

Personally, I didn't care for The Golden Mean as much as I did for the previous two. Don't get me wrong... it was a good book and one that I'm glad to have read. But it just didn't seem to have the magic that the previous ones did. The introduction of Frolatti actually detracted from the story for me, though it did give the pair an extra impetus to find a way to get together. And it sets things up for the second trilogy.

The one constant through the series, however, is the artwork. There is nothing plain or uninspiring about any of the envelopes or postcards contained withing the pages of these books.



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Review: Sabine's Notebook: In Which the Extraordinary Correspondence of Griffin & Sabine Continues

Sabine's Notebook: In Which the Extraordinary Correspondence of Griffin & Sabine Continues by Nick Bantock

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



The second book in the Griffin and Sabine trilogy (that eventually spawned a second trilogy) sees Sabine come to London, only to find that Griffin has fled. The letters between them continue, Sabine being the supportive friend and love as Griffin tries to figure himself out. Of all of the books in this series, this is the one that explores change and acceptance more than any of the others.

As with the first book, Sabine's Notebook has beautiful, sometimes disturbing artwork that only adds to the postcard and letters that have been written between the pair. I could spend hours just looking at the artwork, finding something new with each glance. It's that wonderful.

Bantock also proved, once again, that he is a master at leaving the reader shocked and anxious to read the next book. I don't want to talk about the ending here... it would be too much of a spoiler. But prepare yourself for things not being quite what they seem.

In many ways, I enjoyed this book even more than the first. It brought the relationship of Griffin and Sabine to deeper levels, taught the reader more about each of them as individuals and the pair as a couple, without either having met the other. It takes a long time to digest everything in it.

Most series, I don't worry about reading in order. But this series... You really do need to read them in order. You need to take the journey along with Griffin and Sabine because you'll lose so much if you don't.



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Review: Griffin and Sabine: An Extraordinary Correspondence

Griffin and Sabine: An Extraordinary Correspondence by Nick Bantock

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



I'd originally read this wonderful book about 10 years ago and was impressed with it then. It had been in the back of my mind all this time and came to the forefront when I was reading through Book Lust for reading suggestions. I requested it and all it's sequels from the library. I picked them up yesterday and am glad to sink back into it.

This book will be a quick read, and you'll spend as much time looking at the artwork as you will reading it. The book is a series of postcards and letters between Griffin Moss and Sabine Strohem, initiated by Sabine when she recognizes a piece of artwork that Griffin had created for his card business as something she'd seen in her imaginings. Thus begins a conversation between the two that is defies description. With each postcard, and then letter (which are written as pieces of paper you can remove from envelopes on the page), you learn more about both Griffin and Sabine and a hint at what connects them.

This is truly one of the most fascinating books I've ever read, both in concept and in story. It's one that, when Pete's a bit older and not into destroying everything he touches, I'd love to own just so I can reread it whenever I need a little magic in my life. Because that's what this book feels like to me - magic within the pages of a book.



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Review: Darkness Unbound

Darkness Unbound by Keri Arthur

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



This new series is set in the same world as Keri Arthur's Riley Jensen series, albeit 20 to 25 years in the future of those books. And as the Riley Jensen series is one of my favorites, I knew that I would have to check out this new series. When last I remember Risa, she was the adorable daughter of one of Riley's closest friends. Now, Risa's all grown up and showing off her werewolf and Aedh sides. The book shows off Keri's wonderful writing style and gives just the perfect mix of new characters with their stories and old favorites that we've come to love from the previous series. The mystery that's happening in this book is an intriguing one and the sex scenes are pretty hot. All in all, it was a great read!



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Review: Succubus Revealed

Succubus Revealed by Richelle Mead

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



This is the final book in Richelle Mead's Georgina Kincaid series. Georgina was once human, but sold her soul to Hell a few thousand years ago in return for everyone, including the husband that she'd hurt so badly, forgetting she existed. She'd have to work for hell as a succubus. It wasn't too bad for the first couple thousand years - though there were a few men that she left because she felt too deeply for them. But now, in the 21st Century, she's gotten tired of her job and fallen truly in love with a human writer, Seth Mortensen. But being a succubus means that nothing can be easy - particularly love.

Succubus Revealed starts up the Christmas after Seth saved Georgina from the Oneroi (dream spirits) and broke off his engagement with Georgina's friend in order to try to make things work between he and Georgina. Georgina has given up her much-loved job as manager at a local bookstore and is instead working as an elf for a mall Santa. Things are going as ok as they can for a succubus and a human when Georgina gets paperwork from Hell, transferring her to her dream location of Las Vegas. But things are a little too pat - her dream job, people she loves working with, a human job that she'd love doing. And Georgina, along with her friend Hugh and her roommate, Roman, have to find out just why Hell is getting so involved in her life.

I knew where a lot of this was going, but it didn't matter to me. I'm the kind of person that can read the end of a book and still love getting to that point anyway. I was glad to see Georgina finally get what she deserved and to see Hell get what THEY deserved. If it hadn't been for the machinations, Georgina may never have been curious enough to find out what was going on. They made their bed, and I was glad to see them lie in it.

It was a great end to a fantastic series, and it's one that I really need to get my hands on to own. Because I think I'd enjoy rereading this one quite a bit.



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