Johnston & Riley #1: Keepers of the Cave

It’s empty in the valley of your heart. The sun, it rises slowly as you walk away from all the fears and all the faults you’ve left behind. The harvest left no food for you to eat, you cannibal, you meat-eater, you see. But I have seen the same I know the shame in your defeat. Let’s shed some light on Keepers of the Cave, by Gerri Hill.

Synopsis:

While the investigations go on in Dallas and Baton Rouge after the disappearance of a senator’s daughter, FBI agents CJ Johnston and Paige Riley are assigned to the sleepy backwoods of East Texas for a dead-end assignment to infiltrate an all-girls school.
Random disappearances dating back fifty years and more raise red flags that point to the tiny, isolated community of Hoganville. But CJ and Paige fear there will be little distraction from the memories of the one-night stand they shared six months ago.
Nevertheless, they integrate themselves into the lives of the teachers and staff, but soon the odd behavior of the townspeople has them convinced something sinister lurks there. Something, perhaps, that even the residents of Hoganville don’t know about.

Source: Goodreads

SPOILERS BELOW

Keepers of the Cave follows to FBI agents, CJ Johnston and Paige Riley, who have had a somewhat awkward work relationship ever since a drunken one-night stand a few months ago. And wouldn’t you know it, their new assignment requires them to go undercover as a couple in order to investigate an all-girls school which may be linked to a string of mystery disappearances. Will this lead to them working through their issues and ending up in a relationship for real? You know it.

But what about the case? This is no ordinary investigation, but a paranormal case worthy of The X-Files: a cult leader with magical powers is performing human sacrifices to a monstrous creature living in a cave. That sounds interesting, right? And I’m sure it would be, if the book actually devoted any time to it. But CJ and Paige are so interested in each other that they seem to forget to do any actual investigating. They don’t make any progress on the case until one of the cultists comes to them and spills the whole deal. Even then, I wouldn’t say they “solve” the case, because they end up just killing the cultists without actually figuring anything out. What is the creature in the cave? Never explained! How did the cult leader get magical powers? Never explained! Our heroes never even actually confront the monster. How do you make a book about FBI agents investigating a monster and not have the FBI agents actually fight the monster at the end?

But I know what you’re all really wondering: does this book manage to have a Dead Lesbian Penalty? What a silly question: of course it does. Pour one out for Ella, randomly shot dead by a cultist for no particular reason. She wasn’t helping the heroes, she wasn’t selected as a sacrifice for the monster; the book just decided, hey, we should kill off a lesbian, and she happened to be available.

Suffice to say, this book did not end up being to my taste. But apparently it’s the first in a series; and who knows, maybe everything will end up paying off satisfactorily in the sequel. So, I guess I have to pick that one up and find out.

Final Rating: 2/5

Magic For Liars

Why do you smile like you have told a secret? Now you’re telling lies because you’re the one to keep it. But no one keeps a secret, no one keeps a secret. Let’s practice Magic For Liars, by Sarah Gailey.

Synopsis:

Ivy Gamble has never wanted to be magic. She is perfectly happy with her life—she has an almost-sustainable career as a private investigator, and an empty apartment, and a slight drinking problem. It’s a great life and she doesn’t wish she was like her estranged sister, the magically gifted professor Tabitha.

But when Ivy is hired to investigate the gruesome murder of a faculty member at Tabitha’s private academy, the stalwart detective starts to lose herself in the case, the life she could have had, and the answer to the mystery that seems just out of her reach.

Source: Goodreads

SPOILERS BELOW

“Veronica Mars meets Harry Potter.” I forget where I heard that, but it’s all it took to sell me on reading Magic For Liars. Our protagonist, Ivy Gamble, is a hard-drinking noir detective, specializing in catching cheating spouses. She’s also a Muggle, unlike her sister, who as a child was whisked away to a magical school to be trained in the arcane arts, leaving Ivy behind to stew in envy and resentment. It thus comes as a surprise when said school contacts her, looking to hire her to investigate the suspicious death of a teacher. Not only is Ivy taking on her first-ever murder case, but it’s one involving magic. Can Muggle power uncover the truth where wizardry has failed?

I found Magic For Liars to be an extremely interesting and compelling story, with an intriguing mystery and a cast of deep, well-developed characters. The ending is more downbeat than I usually prefer, but that comes part and parcel with the noir styling: sometimes, crimes turn out to be tragedies for which there can be no justice. Forget it, Ivy; it’s wizard town.

So, I could almost give Magic For Liars a perfect score… except for one minor detail. The victim, as Ivy discovers in her investigation, was a lesbian. Which means that I have no choice but to apply my -1 Dead Lesbian Penalty to the book’s final rating. Why oh why do the lesbians always have to die?

That one significant flaw aside, Magic For Liars is a strong, interesting book.

Final Rating: 4/5

Star Trek: Voyager #6: The Murdered Sun

I wish for this night-time to last for a lifetime; the darkness around me, shores of a solar sea. Oh how I wish to go down with the sun, sleeping, weeping, with you. Let’s bask in the light of The Murdered Sun, by Christie Golden.

Synopsis:

When sensors indicate a possible wormhole nearby, Captain Janeway is eager to investigate – hoping to find a shortcut back to the Federation. Instead, she discovers a solar system being systematically pillaged by the warlike Akerians.

The last thing Janeway wants is to get caught up in someone else’s war, but to check out the wormhole – and to protect the innocent inhabitants of Veruna Four – she has no choice but to take on the Akerians.

But who knows what unexpected dangers lurk beneath the crimson glow of the murdered sun?

Source: Goodreads

SPOILERS BELOW

With my review of Ragnarok, I looked at a not-so-good Voyager novel. Now, let’s take a look at a somewhat better Voyager novel.

The Murdered Sun begins with Voyager detecting what they think may be a wormhole back to the Alpha Quadrant. Of course, it just turns out to be the universe taunting them, as usual. Charlie Brown is never going to kick that football, Gilligan is never going to get off that island, and Voyager is never going to make it home – not until the end of the show, at any rate. So, what the crew discovers is not a wormhole, but the Sun-Eater: a spatial anomaly which is killing the star of the Veruna system and threatening the peaceful Verunan people with extinction. Furthermore, the Sun-Eater appears connected to a hostile and highly militaristic race, the Akerians, who are exploiting the Verunans for slave labor and waste no time in declaring war against Voyager as well. So we’ve got our conflict for the book.

The Murdered Sun is not devoid of the bullshit which frequently plagues Voyager stories, but the bullshit is generally toned down a bit. For instance, Voyager often brings up Chakotay’s Native American heritage, but is vague on what that heritage actually is – having him interchangeably reference stories and traditions from different tribes like they’re one big unified culture. While this book also has Chakotay referencing various different Native American story traditions, he actually cites which specific tribe each of them comes from – almost as if some sort of research or effort had gone into the writing! And while Voyager often portrays Tom Paris as an omnidisciplinary savant capable of excelling in any field, this story only focuses on his outstanding abilities as a pilot and commando, rather than having him step on the other crew members’ toes by handling the field medicine and engineering as well. Plus, Neelix is barely in it; and when he does barge in to be a shithead like usual, Tom gives him a well-deserved verbal thrashing. Most surprising of all, always-overlooked Ensign Harry Kim gets a commendation for exceptional performance under trying circumstances. Of course, Harry will still be stuck as an Ensign for the next seven years; but at least he got recognized for once.

(Fun Harry Kim fact: Before embarking on Voyager, Harry was served a drink by Nog at Quark’s café. During Voyager’s seven years in the Delta Quadrant, Nog entered Starfleet, graduated Starfleet Academy, and was promoted to Lieutenant Junior Grade. By the time Harry returned home, still an Ensign, his former waiter outranked him. Poor dumb Harry).

In my opinion, the biggest problem with this book is the muddled inconsistency with which it refers to the Prime Directive. In one scene, Janeway tells her crew that the Prime Directive requires them to stand by and do nothing as the Verunans die and it is their duty as Starfleet officers to adhere to it; in another, she tells Tom that of course he can lead a strike-team of Verunan warriors into battle in a commando raid against the Akerians, nothing wrong with that. Now, a cynic who buys into the portrayal of Parody Janeway on SF Debris would say that Janeway always insists on upholding the Prime Directive when doing so allows her to sit back and watch others suffering, but insists on breaking it when doing so allows her to opportunity to inflict the suffering herself (Janeway’s inconsistent adherence to the Prime Directive is discussed in the reviews of “Caretaker”, “Prototype”, and “The Omega Directive”, among others).

If you’re willing to take away the last hope of a dying people despite the Prime Directive, maybe you could save dying people despite the Prime Directive. It gives the impression that desperate refugees are climbing a cliff, with many falling to their deaths; and not only is Janeway up top saying it would be wrong to help them because she can’t get involved, but when no one is looking, she starts stepping on their fingers.

– Chuck Sonnenburg, SF Debris, “The Omega Directive” review

Personally, though, I wouldn’t go that far. I attribute this more to a general decay of what the Prime Directive is supposed to be and how it has been used in Star Trek stories across the series from The Original Series through Enterprise… something I’ll talk about when I review an actually quite good Voyager book with Shadow. So, look forwards to that!

As for The Murdered Sun, I’d call it a solid but not exceptional Star Trek novel.

Final Rating: 3/5

Star Trek: Voyager #3: Ragnarok

Janeway, Captain Janeway, I’m the best captain in history! Stranding, all my people, their lives are filled with grief and misery! Let’s fight Ragnarok, by Lawrence Watt-Evans writing as Nathan Archer.

Synopsis:

Hope flares for Captain Kathryn Janeway and the crew of the U.S.S. Voyager when their sensors detect a signal that could lead them to a way home. But as the Starship Voyager races to the source of the signal, the crew find themselves in the middle of a raging battle between two warring races, a battle that has lasted for hundreds, if not thousands, of years.

Now, to find a way home, Captain Janeway and her crew must make their way through the most violent space-born conflict ever known – with both sides determined to destroy them!

Source: Goodreads

SPOILERS BELOW

Ragnarok begins with the crew of Voyager picking up the signal of a coherent tetryon beam, which is some technobabble that could possibly transport them home. Those poor, poor bastards: doomed by the very premise of their series to constantly have the hope of getting home dangled in front of them on a stick, then yanked away at the last minute. Given that, canonically, Voyager does not make it back to Earth until Season 7 episode 25, and that this is only the third book in the novel series, does anyone want to lay odds on this lead panning out? Anyone? Yeah, that’s what I thought. Voyager does not find a way home, but instead ends up getting caught in the middle of a massive space battle between two alien races who have been warring continuously for millennia. So, good job on that, Janeway!

“Let me make this clear, we all have a job to do. My job is to pointlessly put the ship into criminally hazardous situations on a whim. Yours is to bail things out if something happens to go wrong during that.”

– Parody Janeway, SF Debris, “Human Error” review

Okay, real talk: I started watching Star Trek: Voyager when I was pretty young, and did not yet have very strongly developed critical faculties. The show had aliens and lasers and spaceships, and that was all I needed in order to enjoy it. It was only much later, when I started watching SF Debris’s reviews of the series, that I realized that it was perhaps not as good as it originally seemed to my innocent eyes – that it did, in fact, have a rather large number of problems.

The reason, in fact, that I chose this book to be my first Voyager novel review is that it happens to very neatly tie in to a number of points raised about the show in SF Debris’s reviews. For instance, in chapter one, the book mentions how the power source for Voyager’s holodeck is incompatible with the rest of the ship, causing me to shout “Voodoo Shark!” in reference to the absurdity of this being discussed in the SF Debris review of the episode “The Cloud”. I also burst out laughing when it was claimed that Voyager only had one functioning shuttlecraft: despite the premise of the series being that Voyager was stranded in the Delta Quadrant with no means of resupply, they never had any shortage of the things – according to the nerds at Ex Astris Scientia, who keep track of such things, about seventeen were destroyed or irretrievably lost over the course of the show (source).

Most of all, Ragnarok has an ending which is perfectly fitting for SF Debris’s parody interpretation of Janeway as a homicidally insane psychopath. The Hachai and the P’nir have been continuously at war for millennia, have stripped every last resource from an entire star cluster to construct fleets which have been locked in continuous battle for centuries, and are obsessed with achieving nothing less than absolute genocide of the opposing race… and within a few hours of having met Voyager, the two sides are putting aside their differences and vowing to form an alliance against the hideous, unfathomable evil they see in our protagonists. Such is the terror of Janeway.

She has stared into the abyss as it has stared into her… and the abyss said, “JESUS!”

– Chuck Sonnenburg, SF Debris, “Year of Hell” review

What else, what else? Oh, there was also a scene where the Doctor tries to asks for Tom Paris’s assistance in sickbay, but Paris is unavailable because he’s too busy piloting the ship. It’s almost like, when choosing someone to be the Doctor’s assistant, they should have picked someone who is not constantly needed elsewhere. Though, to be fair to the Doctor, he ends up stuck with Neelix helping him instead – I would have pushed for Paris too in his place. Actually, I was a little confused by this at first, because I thought Paris didn’t start training as a medic until after Kes left, and she’s still with the ship at this point. This led me to consider that maybe this book was just forward-thinking in recognizing the omnidisciplinary genius of Tom Paris, who is not only Voyager’s greatest helmsmen, but also most skilled field medic, most knowledgeable historian, most talented engineer, most effective commando; and, oh, by the way, once invented an engine that went to infinity and also raised himself from the dead. Not even kidding; check out “Year of Hell”, “Distant Origin”, “Basics parts 1 & 2”, and “Threshold” for just a few examples of how Tom Paris is by far the most talented person ever to join Starfleet. Once I looked up the details, however, it seems that Paris did in fact serve as the Doctor’s assistant for a time in Season One before being replaced by Kes, then resumed being the Doctor’s assistant in Season 4 following Kes’s departure. So, this book is accurately reflecting the decisions of the show. The stupid, stupid, decisions of the show.

Does this book have any flaws that can be blamed on its own writing, rather than flaws inherent in the source material it is attempting to adapt? Of course it does! My favorite is this little gem, courtesy on Tuvok:

“On the contrary, Ensign,” Tuvok replied, as he bent down and hooked his gloved fingers under the edge of the stone. “It masses tons; however, it weighs no more than a few hundred grams.”

– Ragnarok, chapter 4

WROOOONG! It does not weigh any grams, because grams are a measurement of mass, not of weight; you measure weight in newtons. I’m willing to give you the benefit of the doubt with regards to “tons” and assume you mean “tonnes”, and are thus not mixing English and metric units; but come on, Tuvok, you’re a Vulcan – you should know the difference between weight and mass!

“Nathan Archer” is apparently a pen name for Lawrence Watt-Evans, he of Ethshar fame. I can see why he wouldn’t want his real name associated with this particular work. Ragnarok is a dud; there may be the outline of a potentially interesting story in there somewhere, but it’s buried under far too many flaws to make trying to dig out the good bits worthwhile.

So, yeah, I advise giving this one a pass. But just let me clarify: while I’m no longer as fond of Voyager as I once was before I saw its flaws, that doesn’t mean I completely hate it. Yeah, I gave this book a pretty thorough scolding; but only because it really was a particularly bad one. There are still Voyager books I like, and I’ll be sure to give them a fair shake.

Final Rating: 2/5

Star Trek: The Original Series #65: Windows on a Lost World

Star Trekkin’ across the universe, on the Starship Enterprise under Captain Kirk. Star Trekkin’ across the universe, boldly going forward ’cause we can’t find reverse. Let’s look through Windows on a Lost World, by V.E. Mitchell.

Synopsis:

While Kirk, Spock, Chekov and an archaeological team are exploring the ruins of an ancient civilization on the uninhabited planet Careta IV, they discover strange devices that appear to be simple windows. But the windows prove dangerous when Kirk and Chekov enter them, and disappear. Now, while the two struggle to survive, Spock struggles to unravel the mystery–while fighting off aliens.

Source: Goodreads

SPOILERS BELOW

Windows on a Lost World is one of two Star Trek books I recently picked up at a used book sale because I remembered them nostalgically from my childhood. And while it turns out I’d completely misremembered the actual content of The Wounded Sky, Windows on a Lost World was pretty much as I recalled: the U.S.S. Enterprise is investigating alien ruins on a dying world and discovers a window-based transporter system; but because of the xenophobic mindset of the alien race which created it, it reconfigures anyone who uses it into one of those aliens.

The real strength of this book was its exploration of the Kh!lict race: their biology and psychology, and how it influenced their society and culture. The world-building was top-notch, and it’s easy to see why it stood out to me as exceptional when I was a young reader.

Of course, it’s in the nature of nostalgia that I’d forgotten some of the less-good aspects of the book. For instance, how annoying Talika is in the beginning. Or how much of Kirk and Spock’s investigation of the window consists of chucking rocks at it. I mean, I can see tossing one rock at the window as a primitive “poke it with a stick” test; but they seriously spend a very long time throwing a very large amount of rocks at this ancient alien relic. I’m not sure what they expected to accomplish by this, given that the pattern of how the window reacts to rocks was pretty well established after the first five or so.

Re-reading Windows on a Lost World as an adult, I can no longer ignore the flaws which I overlooked as a child, and so cannot give this book the unreservedly enthusiastic recommendation my younger self would have. Still, as licensed Star Trek novels go, it is a solid, decent story.

Final Rating: 3/5

Star Trek: The Original Series #13: The Wounded Sky

Take my love, take my land, take me where I cannot stand. I don’t care, I’m still free; you can’t take the sky from me. Let’s stitch up The Wounded Sky, by Diane Duane.

Synopsis:

An alien scientist invents the Intergalactic Inversion Drive, an engine system that transcends warp drive, and the U.S.S. Enterprise will be the first to test it! The Klingons attempt to thwart the test, but a greater danger looms when strange symptoms surface among the crew, and time becomes meaningless.

Captain Kirk and his friends must repair the fabric of the Universe before time is lost forever.

Source: Goodreads

SPOILERS BELOW

When I was a kid, I loved the Star Trek TV shows. Naturally, this eventually led me to turn to the books in order to see the continued adventures of Kirk, Picard, and Janeway (I never really got into DS9, and this was before Enterprise). I subsequently learned a harsh truth about licensed novels: namely, that they are often churned out with more concern for quantity than quality, looking to make a cheap buck by shilling garbage with a franchise name slapped on it. Still, amidst the duds, there were two TOS books that I had fond memories of: The Wounded Sky and Windows on a Lost World. Imagine my surprise when, at a used book sale, I happened to see precisely those two titles. Ah, what luck, what fate, what evil fortune! I snapped them up right away, deciding to give them a reread to see if, after all this time, they held up against the faint recollections beatified by my nostalgia.

The Wounded Sky has the U.S.S. Enterprise selected to test a revolutionary new non-warp drive which offers the potential to instantaneously cross intergalactic distances. However, it soon becomes apparent that the new drive has some flaws, such as causing the crew to experience weird hallucinations, and also making nearby stars explode each time it’s turned on. Soon the crew discovers that a hole has been torn in the Universe, and they must find a way to fix it before all life is extinguished.

As I read this book, nagging doubts began to assail me. I didn’t remember so much time being spent on weird, wishy-washy philosophizing about the nature of the Universe. Nor did I remember so much time being spent describing weird, trippy dream sequences. I did remember the powerful alien energy being, but why was it being called the Other instead of Corona? And shouldn’t the Sackers have shown up by now? Finally, I was forced to admit it: my memory had failed me. While I had read The Wounded Sky at some point, it was not the specific book I had fond memories of.

Having done some research, I’ve come to the conclusion that I was actually fondly recalling a combination of events from Star Trek: The Original Series #15: Corona and Star Trek: The Original Series #41: The Three-Minute Universe. The reason I incorrectly associated their plots with this book is because it has elements of both of them, plus the most poetic, evocative title of the three. Although perhaps it would not be unfair to apportion some blame to the Star Trek literary universe for relying so heavy on powerful alien energy beings and weird anomalous rips in the fabric of space-time that the two together could reasonably describe the premises of dozens of different books.

Well, I’ll look at Windows on a Lost World next; hopefully I haven’t completely misremembered that one as well, and it is in fact the story of windows on a lost world which I’m thinking of – I don’t think Star Trek has driven that particular premise as far into the ground, but realizing that I’ve been misassociating this title with two completely different books for such a long time has me seriously doubting myself right now. As for this book, it ended up being a pretty big disappointment: too much time spent on philosophical mumbo-jumbo and strange symbolic dream-visions, not enough time spent on actual Star Trek-related stuff.

Final Rating: 2/5

The Water of Thought

Water, water, everywhere, and not a drop to drink. Let’s get drunk on The Water of Thought, by Fred Saberhagen.

Synopsis:

IT DROVE MEN MAD

…but each in a different way. In one the effect was total, utter addiction. In another, a compulsion to absolute obedience. In a third, idealistic monomania. In a fourth, unending, all-consuming lust. Of all the enigmas surrounding the planet Kappa, none was more inscrutable than that mysterious liquid central to all the native rites.

There was, in fact, only one certainty about it: Now that it threatened to contaminate the worlds of Earth, its source would have to be destroyed – even though for the native Kappans the Water of Thought was as necessary as the Breath of Life itself.

Source: Goodreads

SPOILERS BELOW

Fred Saberhagen is a pretty prolific science fiction author. I’ve liked a lot of his series – Empire of the East, Book of Swords, Berserker – so I decided to give one of his stand-alone works a try.

The protagonist of this story is Boris Brazil, a Space Force planeteer stationed on the mostly undeveloped colony world of Kappa. The plot kicks off when he discovers that the native species possess a mysterious drug, called the Water of Thought, which produces bizarre and drastic mental changes in humans, and that a criminal organization of drug smugglers are planning to gain control of the source so they can sell it off-world for a profit.

This does not seem to be a well-thought out plan at all on the criminals’ part, given that the Water of Thought possesses a number of qualities that would seem to limit its profitability as a drug: first, that there is no way of knowing what effect it will have on any given person; second, that even a single small sip of the Water will have effects lasting five days, meaning that it is not likely to sell in large quantities; and third, that after the first dose wears off, the user is henceforth immune to any further exposure to the Water, meaning that there won’t be any repeat customers. Consider me dubious as to the actual commercial potential of the Water of Thought.

That does, however, end up getting an explanation: the crime syndicate’s knowledge of the Water of Thought comes from Magnuson, who despises them and takes pleasure at the idea that he’s giving them a worthless product in exchange for their money. Likewise, much of what the book says about evolution is mumbo-jumbo; but given that it comes from Magnuson, who is supposed to be deranged, it can be excused. As to the Water itself, I was actually satisfied by the eventual explanation of what it is, how it works, and why it has the effects that it does.

A more genuine problem can be found with the book’s female characters. I’ve noted in past reviews of Saberhagen’s work that he tends not to be very good at writing women, with the ones present in his books mostly being of the shallow love-interest and distressed damsel type or else the hellish nagging shrew type; here, he gets to have it both ways, due to temporary derangement brought on by the Water. Since I went into the book expecting no better, I was able to just sigh and move past it.

On the plus side, my copy of the book included some pretty striking black and white illustrations by Janet Aulisio depicting certain scenes from the story. Those were a pleasant treat to see.

On the whole, I found The Water of Thought to be a decently adequate story.

Final Rating: 3/5

The Lotus Kingdoms #2: The Red-Stained Wings

Dark wings they are descending, see shadows gathering around. One by one they are falling, every time they try to strike us down. Let’s paint The Red-Stained Wings, by Elizabeth Bear.

Synopsis:

Hugo Award-winning author Elizabeth Bear returns the epic fantasy world of the Lotus Kingdoms with The Red-Stained Wings, the sequel to The Stone in the Skull, taking the Gage into desertlands under a deadly sky to answer the riddle of the Stone in the Skull.

The Gage and the Dead Man brought a message from the greatest wizard of Messaline to the ruling queen of Sarathai, one of the Lotus Kingdoms. But the message was a riddle, and the Lotus Kingdoms are at war.

Elizabeth Bear created her secondary world of the Eternal Sky in her highly praised novel The Range of Ghosts and its sequels. She continued it the first book of the Lotus Kingdoms, The Stone in the Skull.

Source: Goodreads

SPOILERS BELOW

Ah, the latest book by Elizabeth Bear is finally out. It’s been quite a while since I read the first one in the series; let’s see if I can remember what was going on. The city of Ansh-Sahal was destroyed by the eruption of an underwater volcano; the rajni Sayeh was taken captive by the warlord Anuraja, her son and heir was taken captive by the warlord Himadra, the Dead Man was with the rajni Mrithuri preparing her city for a siege, and the Gage had embarked on a quest to dragon-poisoned lands in search of a magical artifact called the Carbuncle. Whew! I think that covers it.

One of the things I believe I discussed in my previous review is that unlike the previous Eternal Sky series, which tipped its hand too early as to who the Big Bad was and thus made it apparent how little progress the heroes were making, The Lotus Kingdoms was more ambiguous about who was the ultimate villain and what plan they were working on. The Red-Stained Wings continues to slowly dole out hints, now revealing that Anuraja and Himadra are likely being played as pawns by the mysterious sorcerers who have been assisting them – Ravani and Ravana. However, the character are as yet unsure whether the sorcerers are themselves the masterminds or are in turn working for some greater evil. Instead of starting at the top of the villainous hierarchy and working our way down, we’re starting at the bottom and working our way up, which all in all is coming off as far more effective at making the heroes short-term victories seem meaningful while also building up suspense and menace with regards to the ultimate villain.

The book also shone in its character interactions. I was a bit worried on that regard at first, since the stand-out relationship in the first book was between the Gage and the Dead Man, who are separated for the length of this one; but I needn’t have feared, since the characters bounce off each other just fine.

Overall, I found this to be a strong entry in the series, and it has me more invested in the plot and characters than ever before.

Final Rating: 4/5

The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #1: Squirrel Meets World

Squirrel Girl, Squirrel Girl! She’s a human and also a squirrel! Can she climb up a tree? Yes, she can, easily! That’s whyyyy her name is Squirrel Girl! Let’s greet Squirrel Meets World, by Shannon Hale & Dean Hale.

Synopsis:

WHO RUNS THE WORLD? SQUIRRELS!

Fourteen-year-old Doreen Green moved from sunny California to the suburbs of New Jersey. She must start at a new school, make new friends, and continue to hide her tail. Yep, Doreen has the powers of . . . a squirrel!

After failing at several attempts to find her new BFF, Doreen feels lonely and trapped, liked a caged animal. Then one day Doreen uses her extraordinary powers to stop a group of troublemakers from causing mischief in the neighborhood, and her whole life changes. Everyone at school is talking about it! Doreen contemplates becoming a full-fledged Super Hero. And thus, Squirrel Girl is born!

She saves cats from trees, keeps the sidewalks clean, and dissuades vandalism. All is well until a real-life Super Villain steps out of the shadows and declares Squirrel Girl his archenemy. Can Doreen balance being a teenager and a Super Hero? Or will she go . . . NUTS?

Source: Goodreads

SPOILERS BELOW

I don’t read many comic books; but one of the ones I do read is The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl, written by Ryan North and illustrated initially by Erica Henderson and later by Derek Charm. So, when the comic mentioned at one point (in the escape room arc, I believe) that the series had tie-in books… well, I had to check them out, right?

Squirrel Meets World is a new origin story for Doreen Green, detailing how this plucky young girl – who you might mistake at a glance for a Mutant, but who is in fact medically and legally distinct – became the unbeatable superheroine Squirrel Girl, who wields the powers of both a squirrel and a girl. In doing so, it contradicts certain elements of Squirrel Girl’s previous appearances in Marvel Super-Heroes #8 and Great Lakes Avengers #1-4; the former presumably being ignored because it’s so obscure that nobody’s likely to have read it, the latter because The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl tries to be a family-friendly comic and, while the Great Lakes Avengers: Misassembled miniseries does has its virtues, it is very much not appropriate for kids. Not that I mind, overmuch – I reserve my obsession with continuity for Magic: the Gathering lore.

I will say that it took me a little while to get used to the book’s writing style, which initially struck me as kind of off. I’m not sure if it’s because being aimed at a younger audience meant the book was written in a simpler style than I’m used to; or because it felt like it should have used first person rather than third person; or because of the contrast between the detached narration and the footnotes, which felt like they so much more effectively expressed Squirrel Girl’s personality. Whatever the cause, it only really bugged me when I was reading the chapters focused on Doreen; the chapters which focused on Tippy-Toe and Ana Sofia felt fine – the former because they did make use of the first person, and the later because it felt like appropriate use of the third person.

In any case, my issue was only with the writing style; the story itself was fine. Better than fine, in fact: it was fun, humorous, enjoyable, and full of unexpected yet interesting science facts – exactly what I look for in a Squirrel Girl story. Plot-wise, it details young Doreen adopting her superhero identity in order to battle the petty yet surprisingly nasty evil schemes of the Micro-Manager.

Overall, I think that this book’s strengths outweigh my issues with it. Chalk up another victory for the unbeatable Squirrel Girl.

Final Rating: 4/5

The Case of the Toxic Spell Dump

Oh, the taste of your lips. I’m on a ride. You’re toxic, I’m slipping under with a taste of a poison paradise. Let’s solve The Case of the Toxic Spell Dump, by Harry Turtledove.

Synopsis:

He’s no hero.

David Fisher, an EPA (Environmental Perfection Agency) bureaucrat, was not the stuff of which heroes are made. At least he hoped not. All he wanted was a good life with a good wife, and a chance to do his bit for society reviewing magical impact statements (like the one that assesses the effect on local non-life resulting from the introduction of leprechauns into Southern California, for example) and ensuring that various manufacturers of magical devices did not intentionally or otherwise foul the environment with the sorcerous by-products of their trade. Indeed, it would be hard to imagine a more regular and down to earth soul than that of David Fisher of the EPA. No hero he!

Then one day David received a call from Washington to investigate a certain Toxic Spell Dump, and suddenly he is up to his neck in skullduggery and magic most foul. Some ancient deity, it seems, it attempting to reopen for business in the L.A. Basin, complete with human sacrifice (open up their hearts and let the sun shine in!) and the destruction of Western Civilization. All that stands in the way is David Fisher – and he’s no hero.

Until he has to be.

Source: Goodreads

SPOILERS BELOW

The Case of the Toxic Spell Dump is set in a world which is based on magic rather than technology: where telephones are powered by imps, commuters travel in flying carpets rather than cars, and invocations to gods and demons are used to provide public utilities. But while the basis of this world’s industry may be different, the problem of pollution remains the same: spellwork produces toxic by-products, which have to be safely contained at dump sites. Regulation and inspection of such sites falls under the purview of the EPA, which here stands for Environmental Perfection Agency; and our protagonist is a low-ranking bureaucrat who gets called up to investigate possible leakage at the Devonshire dump. But what should be a simple assignment ends up uncovering a deadly conspiracy involving illegal spell components and ancient, vengeful gods looking to wreak mass devastation.

This book’s greatest strength is its top-notch worldbuilding. It manages to really develop and explore this fantastical world, going into detail about all different aspects about how society and industry function with magic in place of technology. Admittedly, some of those details just end up being setups for puns; but the rich, vivid picture the book painted of its world kept me enthralled throughout. Add that to the several interesting, somewhat interrelated mysteries which our protagonist investigates, and the clever solutions he ends up coming up with for the problems he faces, and the result was a very strong reading experience.

The Case of the Toxic Spell Dump is an extremely strong, interesting story.

Final Rating: 4/5